Chicago trip!

My parents, Emmy and I left early and stayed late to make some visits to our Chicago family. We LOVED our time with them. We got to hang out with Kyle, Claire, Kate, Adam while we stayed at their house. Emmy requested to go to the Shedd Aquarium and to go to a Butterfly house. We did both.....and so much more. We got to do a fly-over type ride to see all of Chicago. Hang out on the boat in Lake Michigan. We got a sailing lesson from Claire and got to sail in Lake Michigan. Had many dinners and lunches that were amazing near Wrigleyville. I got 3 runs on Lakeshore in during the early mornings. We toured around Navy Pier and did some major shopping. Emmy was so excited to stop in at Brandy Melville. We visited Kate at her new job. Emmy and Buddy (Adam) hung out together and went to dinner and ice cream just the two of them. It was just a fabulous time with family.

We had a couple mornings of Starbucks breakfasts since it is just down the street.

How amazing to get a Sailing lesson from an accomplished Sailer. Claire took us on an adventure!

I had so many bonding moments with Emmy. She is a joy to be around.

 

Baseball season comes to a close

The Naturals can be very proud of how their season ended. They won two tournaments before heading down to Crystal Lake, IL to an International Tournament. They had 3 wins before a tough loss. It was single elimination so that marked the end of the season.

Aunt Claire came to two games and commuted from Chicago. It was great to have her there! Of course, Bobby's grandparents were there.....the only grandparents there.

We won against a very spirited Puerto Rico team in our first game. The boys made friends with these players and hung out at the hotel during our stay.

At opening Ceremonies they met the International Champion 15U Japanese team. They were very disciplined in the dugout.

We are grateful for the memories and the life lessons baseball has taught our Bobby. He works hard and he has a wonderful attitude.
 

Emmy sings the National Anthem at Countryfest

Robb and I and my parents all bought VIP tickets so we could get the best seats to see Emmy sing the National Anthem on Military Night at Countryfest. My mom and my friends joined me the first night of the 3 day event.

Emmy sang on Day 2. She sang on the same night as Diamond Rio and Dierks Bentley. She was beautiful, confident, poised, and on perfect pitch. We were SO incredibly proud. I can't believe the things this young lady can do! She uses all the gifts and talents God gave her to shine.

Emmy with her Choir teacher, Mrs. Vicki Boechler, who chose her for the honor of singing.

Emmy had a lot of family fans there that night to support her.

 

July

Bobby's team went on a winning streak the last 3 tournaments of the year. They won tournaments in Sioux Falls and then in Bismarck. Bobby worked his way back up to lead off batter, which was a highlight of his accomplishments this season. He always had lots of fans with grandma and grandpa there, loudest cheering mom, occasional sister, and dad in the dugout.

Bobby got his first umping gig. He only had one controversial call that he assures me he was correct on (runner vs defensive player in base path rule). He did great and made good money too.

Emmy enjoyed her last year as a camper at the Triangle YMCA camp. She loved it, made lots of new friends, came back confident and full of great stories. She wants badly to be an LIT.

 Biscuit is still loving pup cups. She puts her nose all the way in to get that last lick.