The Good, The Bad & The Ugly!

Hello friends,

We are back from our 4-day baseball tournament in Ocala. It was a challenging weekend to say the least! But let's start with the GOOD . . .

Allie had so much fun running through the fields with Brandon. This girl likes to GO and run all over the place!

Here they are looking for bugs!
It is so funny how she wants to do everything her brothers do!
They are teaching her all about baseball, dinosaurs and catching bugs. :) I love how completely fearless and trusting she is.

Devin & Brandon at the hotel.
And the best news of all is that Devin's All-Star team came in 2nd place! The games were so nail-biting close and so exciting.
Way to go, guys! We are so proud of all of you!
Devin with his 2nd place medal.
Unfortunately, we had a lot of BAD moments as well . . .

We checked into the hotel with the kids only to find out that their pool was closed. Can you believe someone had an accident and ran a car into the pool? So we packed everything back up and changed hotels. We needed a pool after spending all day at the HOT ball field.

Then the weather was horrible on Saturday - really bad thunderstorms! The baseball field looked like a river and the games were delayed for 5 hours. Because of the delay, we had to play 2 games back to back. It was a long day on the ball field.


And even though Devin's team came in 2nd - only the 1st place team advances on to the next tournament. So that means our All-Star season is officially over. The boys were really disappointed - but off the record - can I just tell you that I am really happy with second place. :)

And Allie fell in the hotel and hit her cheek on the coffee table - giving her an awful-looking bruise on the side of her face.

And right after Allie calmed down, we noticed that Kyle had broken out in hives all over his body - obviously having some type of allergic reaction to something. Thank goodness we had Benadryl with us! The hives completely disappeared about an hour after taking the Benadryl - just the weirdest thing!


But believe it or not - it gets worse!

The really UGLY part of our weekend was that Allie came down with her very first stomach virus Saturday afternoon while we were waiting for Devin's game to begin. And of course she was in her carseat the first time she got sick . . . and she continued to throw up about every 15-20 minutes for about 8 hours. That was so NOT FUN - especially since we weren't at home! I felt so bad for baby girl! I don't even want to tell you how bad I smelled . . . And let's just say that the car seat was so bad that we ended up throwing it away. We just could NOT get rid of the smell. Allie is doing better now - but her diapers still aren't "normal" yet. We are keeping her well-hydrated and hopefully she will be back to her usual self soon. Unfortunately, Allie passed the stomach bug onto me - which I guess was inevitable since she had been sick on me all afternoon! It has not been fun one bit but finally, today, I am feeling a little better.

As mothers, we certainly have our ups and downs and this trip was proof of that! But over the years I have learned that the tough days don't last forever - thank goodness. :) And I know that each day - God's grace is sufficient and my blessings are abundant. This is what we saw in our backyard when we got home the next day . . .



What a reminder that to see the rainbows in life - we must endure a little rain. :)

“May God give you...For every storm a rainbow, for every tear a smile, for every care a promise and a blessing in each trial. For every problem life sends, a faithful friend to share, for every sigh a sweet song and an answer for each prayer.”
Irish Blessing


I got to tag along to a sonogram appointment with Rhonda and Steve yesterday and it was so fun to see my nephew wriggling all over the place. That is one active baby! :) But everything looks good and we are getting pretty anxious to see this baby boy. Rhonda's due date is Aug. 10 so we are getting closer.

We are heading out of town again on Thursday for a 4 day trip to the beach. Donnie has a conference/trade show on the East Coast - so the kids and I are tagging along. We are all looking forward to it - but I am hoping and praying that no one else gets this stomach virus.

Ending with a scripture . . .

"When I see the rainbow in the clouds, I will remember the eternal covenant between God and every living creature on earth.”
Genesis 9:16

Thankful for the rainbows after the rain,