T-ball, coach pitch and pitching machine

Miriam wasn't going to play T-ball until next summer, but when two aunts on different sides of the family asked if she was playing and could their sons play with her? I decided to go ahead and sign her up. Not only that, but I thought it would be fun to coach a team with my daughter and two nephews, so I became the coach of the Dragons/Red Robins/Firebowls. (The kids couldn't decide on one team name, so we rotated.)

Miriam sporting the face paint she had acquired at the elementary school's field day earlier that day.

Cheering for the other team at the end of a game. 

She had a thing for sticking out her tongue during the games. I didn't discover this until I looked through all the pictures my dad shot.

Safe on third.

Dang, she's a cute one.

She can touch her nose.

Proof she did do some fielding.

And batting.

Miriam enjoyed learning the game, and I enjoyed coaching the team, which included only two girls (out of nine players) but a whopping three Coopers.

Analee tried to tell me that she didn't want to play baseball this year, and when I finally discovered she was nervous at having to have someone pitch the ball to her rather than hitting off the tee, I took her out in the yard, pitched underhand to her and helped her discover that she could, in fact, hit a pitch. She ended up loving the games, her coach and teammates as she played on the Brown Bears.

Analee is hilarious to watch in the field. Sometimes she watches the ball. Sometimes she stretches, curtsies, checks out her mitt, chews on her mitt, holds her head in her hand, swats at gnats or smiles at her photographer grandfather.

Oh, yeah. And she plays ball. She was a lightning-fast runner, I tell you. See her beating the throw to first base? Well, it may not look like she's beating it, but I promise she did.

We also learned, thanks to the magic this is photography, that Analee has a little something to work on while she bats. Namely, she should quit closing her eyes.

She should also try to avoid the sprinklers in left field.

But she had a blast this season and can't wait to play again next June.

Rebekah signed up to play pitching machine, so she (and all of us) were shocked when we attended her first game and saw that the kids were overhand pitching to the other team. The league hadn't had enough paying sponsors to afford a pitching machine, so we got to experience young and inexperienced pitchers chucking the ball and occasionally getting it over the plate. The pitchers made progress throughout the one-month season, but when my dad learned of a pitching machine for sale through BYU-Idaho's surplus for significantly less than the league's organizer said a pitching machine would cost, he bought it and got the part necessary to convert it from a softball to a baseball pitching machine in time to be reimbursed for it and for the "pitching machine" teams to actually get to play with a pitching machine during the last week of the season.

Before the pitching machine made it onto the scene, Rebekah had only struck out or walked onto base; after the machine was acquired she actually hit the ball and made it on base with the pitching machine. We were excited to see all the kids getting to field many more balls than they had been before.

Rebekah hitting off the pitching machine.

Ready at short stop.

Fielding the ball.

A great play Rebekah made by fielding the ball barehanded and tossing it to first in time to make the out.

Midway through the season, Rebekah was begging us to not make her play baseball again next year because of the pitchers. After she played the two games with the pitching machine and got to handle the ball a lot more, she decided to reconsider next year. The jury's still out on that one, but I think she enjoyed those last two games more than all of the others put together, so I suspect she'll sign up again.

Happy by the pitching machine.

As for Winnie, she enjoyed being outside, but did not enjoy the restraints her parents placed on her, like the "no running away" rule.

Andrea retrieving Winnie from the field where Rebekah's team was playing.

Seth retrieving Winnie from behind the backstop.

To see more fun baseball pictures, start here.

Snowbird

Every summer Seth and I nerd it up in Snowbird at the annual Jostens summer workshop for middle school and high school advisers and students who congregate at the ski resort to plan next year's book. Our job is to take pictures and shoot video of the happenings and create a slide show that sums up the workshop at the end of the award show on the last day.

In the past, we've just brought ourselves and whatever baby had to come because she was still breastfeeding. This year we decided that Rebekah could come along and enjoy the ride with us.

The beautiful, green landscape soon turned ugly as, over the course of a day, rain and fog settled around us and then turned into a blizzard. This was in June, folks. Mid-June. Boy, I was glad I threw in our jackets at the last minute. As it was, we were still poorly prepared; Rebekah had only brought flip-flops and a pair of slip-on shoes with giant holes for the big toes to poke out of because they're too small for her, but she insists they're too comfortable to part with. Seth tried to help her out by piggy-backing her from the lodge to the classrooms, but ended up slipping and dropping her. Alas, I don't have a picture of the droppage, but I do have piggy-back and running-through-the-snow pictures:

Coming down the steps on Daddy's back.

Running into the Snowbird Center. This was lush and green the day before, people. I kid you not.

We finished the slide show with time to spare, so Seth participated in the talent show Jostens has before the awards.

He sang/played Gaslight Anthem's "The '59 Sound."

Our slide show played without much of a hitch (Seth had to figure out how to get the sound to play with the images, but being the computer genius he is, it didn't take him long), and we all came home happy and tired. Rebekah enjoyed it so much that she can't wait to come with us again next year.

Rebekah is 9

Grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins and missionaries joined us for dinner to celebrate Rebekah's birthday back on June 14. We ate Lucy's pizza (and introduced everyone else to it ... Seth and I already knew of its greatness) and red, white and blue fruit (Bekah's birthday is on Flag Day).

Miriam laughing while everyone eats dinner outside. The party started out on the lawn, but after the cake, we all retreated inside because it cooled down quickly.

Winnie having the time of her life.

Cooper, Miriam, Kelsey and Analee eating at the little picnic table.

As a birthday present to Rebekah, Aunt Jessica signed her up for a cake decorating class at Joann. Rebekah decorated this monster cake, and we put it in the deep freeze for a week until the birthday party so it could be her birthday cake.

Blowing out the candles on her cake. We had to drag everyone in the shop for the candle-blowing because it was too windy outside for the candles to stay lit.

Family members who attended Rebekah's festivities.

Rebekah opening presents while Miriam, Seth and Analee watch. She received Nerf darts and a Nerf gun from her mom and dad. She also got to pick a summer class to take, and she chose a sewing class at Joann.

Aunt Rachel and Uncle Justin gave her a wand, a deathly hallows necklace and a snitch necklace. I'm seriously jealous of her Harry Potter-themed jewelry.

Grandma and Grandpa Scott gave her a huge science kit.

Grandma Susan and Grandpa Dennis gave her a $20 gift certificate to Amazon (she later bought a watch with part of it) and an ecard which featured Grandpa Dennis' head singing "Happy Birthday."

The kids thoroughly enjoyed the ecard and had to watch it twice.

Tea party at Grandma's

I believe our girls are the luckiest kids in the world. They live one street over from both sets of grandparents who love them to death. It's so fun to go on a walk around the block and see all four grandparents. And sometimes they even get a wild hare and allow their granddaughters to pull out the family china (and, admittedly, some plastic tea cups) and have a tea party (with red punch and Girl Scout cookies).

Rebekah feeding Mother Goose while Analee, Grandma Scott, Winnie and Miriam feed themselves.

The rest of us being dainty while Rebekah gulps.

Checking out Darby

I have the immense pleasure of being one of the assistant stake camp directors for girls' camp this summer. How did I get lucky enough to be called as such? Well, when your mom is called as the stake camp director, apparently your name comes easily to her mind when she's thinking of assistants.

In preparation for camp, the stake camp director (Mom), her husband (Dad), her two assistants (Candis and I) and one of their husbands (Candis', not mine, who had to stay home and watch the girls) and one of their daughters (mine, because Analee wanted to come) traveled up Darby canyon to check out our future digs.

We checked out the amphitheater in preparation for our stake night:

We saw some bunnies:

We tried out the giant slide:

And the newly installed low ropes course:

I can't wait for girls' camp next month when all the Young Women in the stake get to call Darby their home for a few days.

Another family funeral

We got to see many members of the extended Scott family again as we attended the funeral of another of my dad's sisters. This time, Seth, Winnie and Grandpa Wirkus came with us to Snowville, Utah.

The headstone for Aunt Lenna.

Andrea, Analee, Seth, Winnie, Grandpa Wirkus and Rebekah at the graveside service.

Rebekah, Analee, Seth and Grandpa Wirkus looking at the headstone and wooden memorial on Andrea's grandparents' graves in Snowville. Analee was pointing out Walter Neal's (her grandpa's) name on the back of the wooden sign.

Andrea and Winnie eating cake at the luncheon so wonderfully prepared by the Relief Society in the Curlew Ward.

Rebekah's gift for her teacher

Rebekah thoroughly enjoyed third grade this year, and she wanted to thank her wonderful teacher, Mrs. Clarke. Mrs. Clarke was due with her second daughter in July, but she delivered had to miss the last couple weeks of school to be on bed rest. The baby came much earlier than they hoped, but she turned out to be healthy and happy.

Rebekah has practiced sewing with and without my machine, and she wanted to use the machine to make a blanket for baby Evelyn. The finished product turned out to be beautiful.

The front of the blanket.

 

 Snuggling with the minky side.

I bought the minky from the fabric store; the elephant fabric is left over from the bumper pads Grandma Scott made for Rebekah's crib, so the blanket has extra sentimental value to Rebekah. We hope Mrs. Clarke and Evelyn enjoy it.

School talent show

During the last full day of school (Remember back to when school was in session? Man, I'm behind on blogging ...), the elementary school's student council emceed a talent show. Each 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th grade class got to choose one boy act and one girl act for the school-wide show. Rebekah was voted the girl act to represent Mrs. Clarke's third grade class.

Toward the end of the show, I suddenly heard someone playing the piano, but I didn't see anyone on stage. Turns out, the piano was on the floor on the opposite side of the gym where I was sitting. I ran over to catch a few pictures of Rebekah playing "Temple Dancer," a song from one of her piano books.

She played it flawlessly. She sure made her mom proud, and I'm positive she made her piano teacher (and the school's part-time librarian) proud. This was her first year of piano lessons, and she has definitely excelled. I can't wait to hear how great of a pianist she'll be after another year of lessons.

My toddler's cooler than yours

Word to your mother.

Memorial Day weekend

We couldn't have asked for a better Memorial Day weekend. The weather was gorgeous. The cousins were fun. The lake was beautiful. Well, the fish could have been biting a bit more ...

On Friday we drove our trailer up to Island Park for the first time. Seth had spent many, many hours beforehand getting it all ready to go (putting on extended mirrors on the pickup, greasing the trailer's hubs, checking for leaks, etc.). Everything went smoothly, and we parked it next to Grandma and Grandpa Hendricks' cabin. Our family slept in it while Kent's family, Rachel's family and Grandma Susan and Grandpa Dennis slept in the cabin.

Saturday morning we took it easy at the cabin and then went to Henry's Lake State Park after lunch. (Gwendolen stayed at the cabin with Grandma and Grandpa so she could take her nap.)

Analee showing her age on her actual birthday (not the day we celebrated it with family).

Rebekah wading in the lake and playing with the kiddie pole (it only had a bobber on it). 

Miriam and Seth sitting by the lake.

Miriam wearing the sweatshirt we fashioned into pants after the pants she had been wearing got soaked.

After an entire afternoon of having no luck with the fish, we went back to the cabin for dinner and s'mores.

Bekah holding Winnie and Analee sitting next to Kelsey on the swing in the yard.

Kelsey and Ana on the swing.

Seth chopping wood for the fire.

Cooper and Miriam at the fire.

The next morning, we attended sacrament meeting in the dark since the whole area went without power from about 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. The doors were all opened to let in as much light as possible and the speakers spoke as loudly as they could.

After coming home and changing, we took the kids to Big Springs.

Miriam looking at the springs.

Rebekah holding Winnie.

Emma, Kelsey and Winnie riding in the bike trailer/stroller. Rebekah pushed them the whole time we were on our nature walk.

Analee wearing a net on her head.

After lunch at the cabin (thank goodness for our trailer ... despite having the power off at the cabin, we still had a flushing toilet and a working stove in the trailer), we took our girls to Yellowstone for a few hours since we already had a season pass.

Miriam, Analee and Rebekah watching a geyser at the Artist Paint Pots.

Miriam with the "umbrella" she found while waiting for Old Faithful to erupt.

Seth sitting on a broken log waiting for Old Faithful. Funny story: Rather than elbowing for room on the boardwalk for a view of the geyser, we decided to sit on some of the fallen logs in the shade. Seth and I both sat on this particular log and had been on it for at least a good five minutes when it decided it had had enough. The snap was so loud that a big crowd of people on the boardwalk turned around to look at us sitting on the ground.

We had another night in the trailer, and on Monday morning we went back to Henry's for another failed attempt at fishing. This time we took Gwendolen along with us (she loved throwing rocks in the lake and petting the dog someone had brought with them), but I forgot the camera back at the cabin, so you'll just have to take my word for it.

After lunch and Winnie's nap at the cabin, we packed up and came home to find everything well here.

To see more pictures, start here.