Phillies in Arizona

We flew down to Arizona recently to see (not necessarily in order of importance, but maybe) the Phillies play a few games and to see some family. We flew in on a thursday, saw a game friday, saw a game saturday, then I came home sunday while Karen and the girls stayed behind to spend time visiting family.

So how were the games? On friday night, both families and all the kids went. With 9 tickets to buy, we decided on sitting in the outfield. But because we are all Phillies fans, we decided to sit right next to the Phillies bullpen. No home runs were hit to our seats but we got a close-up view of all the action in bullpen and even got a few balls tossed up our way.

I think I figure out why the Phillies bullpen is struggling this year, it could be their diet.














The Phillies lost after Cole Hamels did what he does best, pitch great for most of the game but then get rattled and give up a big inning, but we had fun anyway.

The second game was even better. This time only Eric and I went, no kids or wives, so we splurged and got tickets two rows behind the Phillies dugout. We got there early to watch batting practice and hoped to get a few autographs.



It was interesting to watch the players interact with the fans. Victorino and Howard signed some autographs (not for us), Werth and Ibanez acknowledged the fans but didn't stop to sign anything, and Utley looked down the entire time, never looking up above the dugout. After all the players were done with BP, Rollins came out took BP and fielded some balls. He's on the DL so I didn't expect to see him. Then he came over to our section and started signing autographs, including one each for Eric and myself. Then, to top it off, the Phillies won on a home run in the top of the 9th. So great seat, great game, and an autographed baseball. We might have to follow the Phillies down there every year.

3 Years versus 4 Months

Storming the Castle

What do smart parents do when their child turns 3 and wants a party? Arrange a playdate in the park so they don't have to plan much and, more importantly, they don't have to clean the house. What are they to do when the weather turns cold (42 degrees) and windy and rainy (in a place where it rarely rains) on the day of the party? They move the festivities to a dry location, insanely inviting their child's friends into their home.

Happy Birthday, Princess Ally!

Although the situation didn't seem ideal, it all worked out in the end. The kids had fun running around the house and playing with bubbles, balloons, stickers, crayons, and Ally's toys. And my living room and kitchen were finally cleaned up as I've been wanting them to be-- at least for a little while.

That was on Friday. Today is the princess' real birthday. What does she want to do to celebrate now? Take a bus ride to the library. And maybe eat a birthday doughnut when Daddy gets home.









remnants of a 12-child invasion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .post-party snacking

Cora can walk!

If you believe the title to this post, then you'd probably also believe Ally when she tells people that Cora can say "Snotsucker". Happy April 1st! Our baby hasn't taken those first few steps yet (I don't know what her problem is!), but she has learned a few new tricks. She rolls over when we ignore her, and she sucks her thumb for comfort-- usually while sleeping. The first time she turned over, she was crying alone in her crib and no one saw it. (Chris and I were busy giving Ally a cold shower for screaming at us and not listening.) This second time, Cora was lying on the floor while I was talking on the phone with Courtney and also having a conversation with Chris about a man crawling in the wrong hole in our front yard. I verbally praised Cora for rolling over, then ran outside to check on the man. When I returned a few minutes later, I found her asleep with her thumb in her mouth. Here's the pic.