NBA Finals Game 6

A month ago an opportunity presented itself to be able to go to the NBA Finals. This was an event that I had on my bucket list and it just so happened that my favorite team was playing at home for game 6. There were a few problems with this opportunity. First Jennifer had to work, so I needed someone to watch the kids. Just a quick call to my parents and they were more than happy to come up and watch the kids. Secondly, I didn't have anyone to go with me so I sent out a few messages to see if any friends were interested in making the journey with me. I had some people interested until they found out the price of the tickets. So, I made the decision to make the 5 hour trip by myself.

Ready for the big game!

My first pictures after arriving at the stadium were with the huge Lebron picture on the side of the building. Growing up I was a huge Michael Jordan fan and Lebron is the only player that has come close to filling that void in my eyes of the greatest basketball player of all time. I can't believe that I was going to get to see one of the greats on the biggest stage.

View from my seat. I was literally the top seat in the building. If I turned around there was the wall of the back of the stadium.

Since I got to the game about an hour and a half early I spent some time walking around the stadium and seeing everything. It was also free t-shirt and towel night. I really felt sorry for the people that had to put out all 20,000+ of the freebies.

Let's do this! Ready to cheer on Cleveland to the win!

Since I had some extra time before the game I decided to Facetime the kids to make sure they were being good for Grandma and Grandpa. They were happy to see me and I was glad to see them too, even though it had just been about 5 hours since I had seen them.

Little recap of each quarter's score. The first quarter started off with a huge momentum swing to the home town Cavs. They were firing on all cylinders and broke out to a 31-11 lead. From then on I could breathe a little sigh of relief, but I knew that the Warriors were a tough team and could quickly put together a run. Thankfully the game never got closer that 6 points before the Cavs would pull back out in front.

This trip was worth every penny that I spent on it and I still can't believe that I actually went to the NBA Finals. It was a fun and action packed game with lots of highlights and most importantly it forced a game 7 for a winner take all game out in California.

I usually take quite a few pictures, but I was just really living in the moment and kept forgetting to take as many during the game. Most of my pictures were taken during a dead ball or timeout.

Only one more game for the Cavs to become the World Champs! I was so pumped after the game that I really couldn't believe that it had just happened. The only thing that would have made it even better is if this was actually the winning game for the Cavaliers!

After the game I headed back out to the car and the city was going absolutely crazy. People were everywhere and celebrating the win. I knew that I would be awake after the game because I figured that my adrenaline would have kicked in so I decided to start the journey back home. I drove a couple hours until I was just outside Columbus. I decided to take a quick nap before heading out again. Well, 5 hours later I woke up to the sunrise and a couple of people talking outside the car next to me. I started up my car and backed out and then completed the rest of the three hour drive home. I was so glad to be home, but I was extremely excited to mark something else off my bucket list. I was even more excited a few days later when the Cavaliers won the championship and ended a 52 year drought for the city of Cleveland. It was great to be a part of history too because it was the first time a team came back from a 1-3 deficient to win the NBA Finals. Thanks for reading and God bless!

Brinley's 1st Round of Golf

This morning I got up and decided that since it was a beautiful day I didn't want it to go to waste sitting inside all day long. I really wanted to play a round of golf since it is one of my new favorite hobbies. Ever since I got the kids a set of clubs for Christmas last year I have wanted to take them for their 1st round of golf. I tried earlier this year to take Landon, but the course I took him to said that he was too young. So, I decided to and take Brinley this morning. I called the course beforehand to make sure that it was ok to bring my 4 year old and they said that she could. Just FYI it was the same course both times and they do not have a age limit posted. When we arrived at Meadowbrook Golf Course the guy that I had just talked on the phone with tried to talk me out of playing with her because he said she was too young. I told him that we wanted to play and he took our money and said have a good day.

Arriving at the 1st tee box. I was super excited to teach Brinley as much about the game that I know, but today was just for fun. I hope that she and Landon grow to love this game at an early age so that I can have a couple of playing buddies.

Putting for her first hole. After she finished I asked how many times she hit it to get it in the hole and she thought for a second and then said 20. I didn't count all the times she hit it, but she was probably pretty close to her real total. 

Things were going pretty good until hole #2 when Brinley started to say that her bag was getting too heavy. I had expected this at some point, but not this early into our round. I really didn't mind. I just wanted to have a good day with my little lady. 

I wish that I had continued to take pictures of her on the next few holes, but I was just doing well to carry all of our things from one hole to the next. By hole number 4 she decided that she could get her ball to go further if she kicked or threw it. Again, I didn't really care because I just wanted her to have fun.Then on hole 5 she discovered the ball washer and she fell in love with it. She wanted to clean all of her balls, but I told her we had to wait until we saw another ball cleaner. Then on hole 6 we decided to take a little break and sit down and enjoy a snack. Brinley had some Cinnamon Toast Crunch and apple juice to snack on. She also discovered the shoe cleaners that were attached to the hole markers so she had to clean her shoes. Hole 7 is where she said that she didn't want to play any more and that she just wanted to find more ball washers. So off we went to find more ball cleaners.

As we made the turn to the back nine holes Brinley was only worried about finding her next bench to relax and eat more snacks. She never once complained, cried or said she wanted to go home. 

Brinley just enjoying hanging out with her daddy. She also enjoyed finding every bench on the course and seeing how comfortable each one was. Also I let her watch a show on my phone for holes 12-16 while she sat on the benches. 

By hole number 17 she had come back around and decided that she wanted play again. We discovered that Brinley did better when she put her ball on a tee every time. She was able to make better connection with the ball. 

Nice follow through with her swing. 

Brinley posing with the 17th flag. 

Brinley excited to be on the 18th hole. She is standing on the shoe cleaner that became one of her favorite things. She always wanted to clean her shoes off every time. 

Putting her ball up on the tee.

Brinley wanted her picture made on this big hill on the 18th hole. So, of course I took it for her.

18th hole! 

I am so proud of the way Brinley played today and so glad that we got to have some fun together. She was a trooper and I can't wait to play with my little girl again. I wouldn't mind to be her caddie any day.

Heading home from our first round of golf. She looks so big here! 

I really thought it was great when we went through the clubhouse to go home and the man said to have a good day. I said thanks and then he asked how many holes we made it through. He couldn't believe my 4 year old walked all 18 holes with me. Well he just doesn't know Miss Brinley Kate very well! 

Here is our score card from the front nine. After every hole I would just ask Brinley how many shots it took her and it turned out to be some pretty funny responses. I have no idea where she came up with such random numbers, but I wrote down what ever she said. I actually had my best round ever at that course. I shot a 69, which was the first time I had shot under 70. Jennifer said that Brinley was my good luck charm and I quickly replied that I thought so too, but I just couldn't take her back every time.

Her reward for being such a good golf partner was her own icee. This also helped cool her down a little because it was a pretty hot day. She was even nice and said we had to get one for her brother who didn't get to play golf.

I had so much fun playing with Brinley for her first round of golf. I hope to have many more rounds with her as we get older. It makes me so happy to get to spend so much time with my two little ones because I know someday they may not enjoy hanging out with their old man as much. Thanks for reading and God bless!

Landon turns 3!

Landon is such a great little man who I still cannot believe is already 3 years old. He is always keeping us on our toes and makes life around our house interesting. We decided to have a party for him at the house with our families while everyone was in town for the 4th of July. We couldn't think of a better theme than Mr. Olaf himself. This is one of Landon's favorite Disney characters. Then Jennifer went ahead and thought of themed snacks that tied into the theme.

Snack table: We finished each other's BBQ sandwiches, Olaf's noses-cheetos, Sven's carrots, Kristoff's Ice-rice krispy treats, Melted Olaf's-water, and YooHoo big summer blowout chocolate milk.

Our very own Elsa and Olaf. 

Our big 3 year old. Every body throwing up 3's for our big guy.

Blowing out his candles. 

Opening up his gifts. More dinosaurs to roam around the house. 

Olaf play-doh set.

He also got his first nerf gun which was a huge hit with me and the kids. Mommy on the other hand was not a fan.

Here is a picture of my little guy on the last night of being a 2 year old.

On the morning of his birthday we woke up early and headed out to Bible School. He had gone the day before and really liked it. However, on the way to the church he said that he didn't want to go. He also told me that he didn't want to be 3! He just wanted to still be 2. Landon cried a little when we dropped him off, but was all smiles when we picked him up. The teacher said that the entire class sang Happy Birthday to him.

A little known birthday celebration is at the Disney Store. You just tell them you are celebrating a birthday and they put up a birthday message and everyone sings to you. Then they give you a Happy Birthday pin with your name on it. 

Landon with his birthday buttons. The one on the left was made by mommy for him to wear to Bible School. The one on the right was the celebration pin that he got from the Disney Store.

We found a couple of people we knew while at the Disney Store. We headed over to one of Landon's favorite places to eat for lunch, Olive Garden. 

To burn off a little bit of energy we decided to head over to the park for a little bit of fun on the playground. Here are my little monkeys.

Next we headed over to Bruster's Ice Cream for a little treat. Landon got a blue ice cream cone with a face and sprinkles for hair. 

After a little nap we decided to get a few games in at Landon's favorite place, Chuck E Cheese! Landon ran around and played like it was the best place on Earth. Jennifer isn't a big fan of the place, so after we met Chuck we headed back home.

When we got home we surprised Landon with his very own train table. He loves playing with the one at the library so much that we thought he would like one at home.

He also got a few more toys from his grandma and grandpa. Brinley even got him a nerf bow and arrow. 

The birthday boy with his cake that I made him. I let him pick it out at the store and of course he picked blue with sprinkles.

Who needs a fork when you have a perfectly good hand. 

This little guy always cracks me up. This is how he wanted to go to sleep. Right next to Super Man and with his weapon of choice - bow and arrow.

 I am so glad that we could make his birthday special. He is such a special little guy and I can't wait to see what he grows up to do in life. I am just going to enjoy watching him along the journey. Thanks for reading and God bless!

Kentucky Down Under and Visiting the Procks

Jennifer and I had a few days off together so we decided to head out on a quick little trip to see Jennifer's sister, Sarah and her family. Unfortunately, they both had to work while we were in town, so we kept the kids occupied during the day and then we got to hang out with them at night. Our first stop was at Kentucky Down Under. None of us had ever been there so we really didn't know what to expect. We had a groupon, so it made it even better because we got in for half price.

This little guy was just relaxing on a homemade chair. 

They also had a cave on the property. This was the only picture we got of our cave tour because it was so dark down in the cave. The only lighting during the tour was from our flashlights. It wasn't anything as elaborate as what I remember from Mammoth Cave, but it was a pretty good first experience for the kids. It was about a 15-20 minute walking tour in the cave. 

My beautiful girls! 

This peacock found a nice spot up in the tree while it was raining, so we decided to take advantage of the shelter too. 

We went into meet the Lorikeets. The kids wanted to feed them so I paid for each to get a little container of sugar water. As soon as we stepped into the enclosure the birds flew right onto the kids arms to get something to eat and they immediately dropped their cups. I picked them back up so that all the sugar water didn't go to waste.  The kids still haven't stopped talking about when the birds landed on their heads and backs.

They had a little informational meet and greet with a few of the animals. We learned about owls, laughing Kookaburras, and pythons. They told us all about the animals and then asked if anybody wanted to touch or hold the animals. Both kids wanted to hold the snakes and Brinley even put it around her neck.

The best part of the day was going into the kangaroo cage. You were able to get up close and personal with these amazing animals. We again bought the kids some of the food to feed the kangaroos, which was some carrots. The kids really enjoyed feeding them.

More of the kids interacting with the kangaroos.

The man who was our guide in the kangaroo area told us that this was the nicest kangaroo in America and her name was Amelia. He showed me that you could feed her out of your mouth. I got brave and decided to try it out myself. I was scared, but it ended up being pretty cool.

We took a little horse drawn wagon ride around the property too. At one point I wasn't paying attention and I got smacked in the face with a tree branch, but otherwise a pretty good ride.

The kids were pretty excited about the rock candy in the gift shop. They also got a picture with a stuffed kangaroo and emu before heading out. Landon liked the huge kangaroo carved out of wood.

Aunt Sarah read the kids their bedtime story and they both enjoyed playing with all of their cousin Elam's toys and books.

We also had a great night going up to visit with Nick's cousin. The kids enjoyed playing with Kye and all of his cool toys. Little Elam learned how to walk the week before we came down to visit and he was getting around so good. He carried around this golf club like it was his cane.

Kye showed the kids what it was like to be a country kid. They ran through the field and played at the barn all in the same field with all the sheep and their little newborn lambs.

We took a little side trip to Habegger's Amish Market to see all of the homemade goods. The kids enjoyed playing at the playground while we enjoyed some fresh fried pies.

Since Nick and Sarah had to work while we were in town so we decided to head to Bowling Green to see what they had to offer. We found the mall and I noticed that they had a Chuck E Cheese. I knew the kids would be excited, but also that Jennifer wouldn't be. So, I told her she could see what else the mall had to offer and I would take the kids to play. They had a blast playing all kinds of new games that our location in Lexington doesn't have.

We headed back to the Prock's so that Nick and I could head out for a round of golf. Jennifer was left to watch the kids, but she at least got to hang out with this huge stuffed puppy dog.

Nick and I got a round of golf in at the Kentucky State Park, Barren River Lake. It was a pretty tough course, but we had a lot of fun. Any day playing golf is a good one.

View of the lake right before teeing off. The course had some pretty nice views along the way.

Even though we didn't get to spend as much time visiting with the Procks as we would like because they were working, we sure did have a good time. Elam is starting to become more playful and it won't be long until Brinley and Landon are getting into all kinds of things with him. The kids are already asking when we can go back to see them. Thanks for reading and God bless!