The Big 4-0

April has come to an end, and there was one big event to mention - I celebrated my 40th birthday! I have officially crossed over from one decade to the next. When I think back to turning 30, I was about 8-weeks pregnant with Emmy, and the excitement and uncertainity of motherhood were at the forefront of my mind. I don't remember being too focused on saying goodbye to my 20s. Even now, with the busyness of life, there wasn't much time on that Thursday to give a lot of thought to turning 40. However, all of my friends and family made it a special day full of sweet surprises, thoughtful gifts, and yummy treats. When I first woke up, I was greeted with a heart full of messages from Emmy on my bathroom mirror. Some of the messages were silly - "sweet as pie", "born colorful", and "sprinkles kindness." Others really touched my heart - "heartworking Mommy", "full of forgiveness", and "cheers me on." I plan to leave them up until their stickiness makes them fall. When I went downstairs, the counter was full of all of my favorite treats. My family definitely spoiled me. At work, there were even more surprises there. My Starmount coworkers got me a bag full of goodies, and everyone brought in food and desserts for lunch. It was so thoughtful! In the evening, we were at the ballfield for Emmy's Walkertown softball game against the King Bananas. It was a competitive game that ended in a 8-8 tie at the time limit. While in a lot of ways the day was a "normal" day with work and sports, there were a lot of little things that made it special. Tonight (yes, two weeks later on May 1st!) we celebrated together with Grammy, Granpda, and the Houstons. We had dinner at East Coast Wings, and it doubled as my victory meal for winning the Bakewell Bracket Challenge. The 30s sure brought a lot of wonderful memories - I pray the 40s will be just as good to me!

April was a full month of school activities and ball games. Emmy's class took a field trip to Bethabara, and Eli's went bowling. They have also had Field Day, which of course is a highlight for every elementary-aged kid. Things at the high schools are very busy too. I went to Starmount's Prom on the 25th, and much like the Forbush Prom, I was coming from the ballfield after back-to-back games for Eli in Walkertown and then Emmy in Greensboro. It's hard to keep it straight with all the games that have passed since the last time I wrote. This past Saturday though was probably the most exciting day all around for both kids. Eli's team had an exciting 10-9 win against another strong Walkertown team, and Eli made all three outs in the final inning to hold off the home team. All three outs were pop-ups to him at 2nd Base - so exciting! He also went 3-for-3 at the plate, earning him the game ball. Eli and I kept reliving the plays in the car as we drove from Walkertown to Greensboro, where Emmy's Yadkin Ignite Black team was in bracket play. The previous weekend, the Yadkin Ignite Pink won the Silver Bracket, but this time, they were fighting for the Gold. They had two tough games in bracket play and won the championship 10-9 - same score as Eli's! It was Emmy's first time winning a Gold Bracket championship, and it was sure exciting to finish at the top of all the teams that day. At some point, I will stop posting photos from every. single. game. but ball has certainly taken over my Camera Roll. We did fit in one soccer game. Last Friday, we were able to watch Zander play in High Point, and his team had a hard-fought tie, 1-1, with Zander scoring the team's one goal. I yelled for him as if he were my own out there - It's hard to contain myself when watching any of our kids! 

This month was also special at church for two reasons. On Sunday, the 19th, Emmy was able to take part in her first Communion. Boomer and I talked to her beforehand so that she understood the meaning behind the bread and juice. I love the way that our church provides this opportunity and the inclusion of our youngest believers. The second special event was on Sunday, the 26th, when Boomer was ordained as a deacon. He was one of five men to be ordained that morning, and the currently serving deacons prayed over them. I am so proud of Boomer for the godly leader he is in our marriage, our home, at our church, on the ballfield, in the workplace, and wherever he is. A glimpse at the calendar for May, and it seems that it will be another month jam-packed of school activities and sports. What a blessing it is to experience this season of life! 

Grammy's 70th

Although we celebrated all of our April birthdays when we were together on our cruise in March, we have still been determined to celebrate at home too, despite our busy spring schedules. Grammy's 70th birthday was on Friday, the 10th, and originally the Kennedys were supposed to be in Statesville for another Friday Night Lights softball tournament. Quite unexpectedly, several teams withdrew from the tournament, so the date was moved to May, which opened up our evening to celebrate with Grammy. I was so thrilled that things turned out the way they did; it would have really crushed me to miss the birthday celebrations. Meg changed the reservation from 7 people to 10, and we joined in with the Houstons and also with Aunt Glenda, who was passing through on her way to Virginia, for dinner at J Pepper's. It was so wonderful to be together and celebrate Grammy's milestone birthday. We are so thankful for all Grammy does for our family! She is an easy person to celebrate - she brings so much joy to our lives!

Disclaimer: below is not Grammy's actual cake, but it is pretty accurate! We have been playing a lot of ball lately - softball and baseball! Even though the FNL tournament was cancelled, we were at a ballfield the next day; this time in Greensboro at Proehlific Park for a 13-team tournament with Emmy's Yadkin Ignite Black team. The girls went 1-1 in pool play, which placed them in the Silver Bracket. They had two strong double-digit wins in bracket play, to go 4-1 for the day and end up as champions in the Silver. We had hoped to play in the Gold Bracket, but a 6th place finish wasn't too bad. There is still a lot of softball to play this spring and hopefully more opportunities to face stronger competition. After the tournament, we had a quick dinner at Freddy's, where I changed into a dress in the bathroom and jetted off to the Forbush Prom. I went solo this year, while Boomer took the kids home for baths and bedtime. I missed my Prom date and our usual standing tradition of going out to a nice dinner beforehand, but it looks like things will just be a little different this year as we adjust around the kids' activities. After checking off my Prom duty, I finally arrived home a little after 10PM - what a day! 

Here are a few other snapshots from April so far: spring pictures at school, Eli's teammate Barrett, photos with Maddox when his KLL team played in Walkertown, silliness in Ms. Servello's classroom, and a very thoughtful gift from one of my coworkers for Emmy's baptism. What a wonderful village we have!