it's march...really?

the weather this month has been crazy beautiful and unseasonable.  we are taking full advantage of it and have been outdoors as much as possible. I should note that late winter/early spring isn't my favorite season (insert mental picture of mud, brown grass, and cold temperatures), so imagine my delight with the endless 60-70 degree days and bright sunshine.  l.o.v.e.
hello picnics in march:

bring on the bikes!

apparently this one was in need of some repairs...

I love watching my two boys play together.  they are true "boys" and light up when they can be running around and burning off some of their endless energy.  they have recently perfected the art of brotherly love and sneaking a good whap! in on each other every now and then.  I have to admit that there are some days when it's quite draining and that time out corner gets plenty of use.  but most of the time I am captured by those bright blue eyes and I'm reminded of their sweet spirits.

miles is definitely a first born.  he likes things in order, is imaginative, has a gentle soul, loves to read, is cautious and shy in new situations, takes the lead when he's comfortable, and he's a natural teacher. henry is energetic, silly, adventurous, cuddly, stubborn, funny, athletic, and sweet.sweet.sweet. despite their differences, they have both inherited their dad's love of baseball.

all of this beautiful weather brought about the first of MANY trips to the parks in our neighborhood. cousins nick, ellie, and josiah made an appearance for this inaugural visit.

snack break:

you're never too old to run around at the park...right scott?

if march's weather is any indication of the rest of this spring, then I'll toast a good non-alcoholic beverage to that...cheers!

a little "pitchy"

here's a video Miles and i shot the other day playing baseball.  getting to drag out his green sports bucket to play in the house is one of his favorite things now.  that list includes getting to play football, which consists of a game of catch with his NERF ball.  this involves a couple of pretty hilarious touchdown dances that are triggered whenever he catches the ball.  video evidence will have to wait for a future entry. 

a few disclaimers about this video:
1) i did not teach Miles this Jeff Bagwell-type stance or his Frank Thomas-type positioning in the batter's box (all the way back and as far from the plate as possible), but i did teach him to tap the plate with the bat to square up.  he now insists i do it, too.
2) i've already apologized to "Curious George" for the lumps he took while playing catcher without a mask.
3) this particular night's game started as an elaborate ploy to get Miles to teach me to play his baseball bat like a musical instrument.
4) it was really hard to not start laughing.  i still laugh just as hard watching the video as i did when i first saw him play this "music".

peanuts and cracker jack

in our household, summer is synonymous with baseball. and in rochester, baseball means the honkers. every year we try to make it to a handful of games and this year is no exception. we were a little late though, as we usually have been to at least one or two by the fourth of july. papa was gracious enough to invite us to the luxury box and miles had an absolute blast. he especially enjoyed all the extra attention he received being the only little guy in attendance. a special thank you to nana for hanging out with josiah and henry for the evening. kyle missed out on a fun evening while he was "winning money" at canterbury downs. riiiiiight. at least he had a good time with some high school buddies. who needs money anyway?

miles was mesmerized by "slider" (the mascot). papa hooked him up with a new honkers hat and he's so proud to show off the slider signature on the top of it. "slider write his name right heeeere. I like slider" in fact, slider walked on water until he came a little too close...at which time miles declared, "I don't like slider!" back off big guy.

the weather has been appropriately warm and muggy, but it didn't stop us from returning the very next night to take in a game out on the sports deck. my best friend, laurie, and her family invited us along to cheer on the home team just like we did during our college days. not unlike the box, the deck is an all you can eat and drink experience. this certainly did wonders for my waist line. guess I'll have to start my 30-day shred...again!

for me, spending time with the shevik family is a little like finding your favorite childhood blanket and wrapping up in it. it brings back such wonderful memories and I cherish the times when we can all get together. miles and bennett were immersed in their own world of books, trains, hot dogs, and slider. they had a ball.

what a more perfect way to wrap up two nights of baseball on fourth of july weekend than with a great fireworks display? miles stared at every burst of color with amazement. I stared at him and couldn't stop smiling. his face was better than even the biggest and most colorful fire cracker. I loved it.

target field: part one

one of kyle's all time favorite activities to do is to visit a major league ballpark and catch a great game...preferably one in which the home team wins. it was icing on the cake to be able to spend the evening with my brother, marc, and my best friend, laurie, in honor of their birthdays. in case you are not a mn twins fan, let me fill you in. target field opened this season and it would be the understatement of the year to say that it was a great improvement to the old metrodome. to watch the twins play outside is a treat and we soaked it all in. it didn't matter that we chose the longest route possible to get there or that when we did get there we sat in the second to last row in the entire place. it was awesome! the stadium is impressive and we did it up right - hot dogs, italian sausages, beef sandwiches, nachos, beer (and that's just round one!). here are a few shots from our seats. how can you complain with the view of the minneapolis skyline and the most picturesque weather to come our way all summer long.

it was round about the end of third inning when we decided that the first round of snacks had worn off and we were officially famished...again. we strapped on our hiking boots and made our way to ground level. the cool thing about target field is that they sell standing room only tickets, so you are welcome to belly up to the counters that are at the back of each section to watch the game. the metrodome was just one big, loud, crowded hallway that nearly caused panic to ensue each time you stepped foot in it. don't miss that one. bit. I was also impressed with the way that you enter the ballpark from the street level and can literally see right in. oh, but don't think someone didn't engineer it perfectly so that you can't actually see the field unless you buy a ticket. no freebies here.

I recently edumacated myself on how to better use our camera. poor marc and laurie frequently stood in to help me "test" the lighting, settings, etc. here they are poking fun at me and asking for a picture in front of this exceptional background.

after darkness set in, we convinced kyle to head back up to our seats, but not before getting more food and one more brew to enjoy from the nose-bleed section. by the way, it was $7 a beer. how do these people sleep at night?

I'm a huge fan of give-aways, so you can imagine my delight when I heard that it was free tote night! I don't think kyle, marc, or laurie could've cared less about this little addition to our twins experience, but I was thrilled. unfortunately for marc, it meant that he now had to carry around a murse.

and in case you were staring at marc's footwear and wondering, "what the, what the?"...here's a close-up. these dopie sandals are often the topic of conversation and random stares from strangers. when kyle's lime green kermit-the-frog sandals arrived, I about flipped. ok, so I did. but they are wearing on me and I don't notice them much anymore. but let's just say that I'm not about to order myself a pair anytime soon.

the game was over at 10:30 and after one last trip around the stadium to shake kirby pucket's hand, we headed back to rochester. we had such a great time. I'm looking forward to our next game at the end of july. nose-bleed section or front row...I'm not picky.

it was fun, but who wouldn't miss this face?