Guess where we went?

I'll give you a hint:

Mother's Day 2011

From Jayden:My favorite parts:
1. Happy "Muthrs" Day
2. The backwards letters
3. The hearts

From Ryland:My favorite parts:

1. The very long "d" in Ryland

2. My portrait (w/belly included)

3. With his 'lots of money' he would buy me baby bottles!

Spring Tball Season 2011

Spring Tball is over.

I guess I should be nostalgic, as this was their first and maybe last time they will be on the same team. However right now I'm relishing in the fact that we don't have Tball several times a week AND.EVERY.SATURDAY! Ahhh...what ever shall we do with all of our "free" time?!?!

I think Jayden will play Coach's pitch in the fall but we'll probably wait until next spring before putting Ryland in his second season of Tball. I have a feeling that my fall months won't be able to handle a newborn and two different baseball schedules!

I don't remember if I mentioned that not only were my boys on the same team, but their cousin Brandon (who is just a couple of weeks older than Ry) was also on the team!

Todd & Chris (Can't imagine 'my boys' in 30 years)Brandon at batJayden at batRyland at batAnd to end the season off right...'There's not crying in baseball'

Sea World's Aquatica

Several weeks ago, during the boys spring break we met Matt at Sea World's Aquatica for the day.Jayden and Matt could ride most of the slides while Ry and I hung out by the pool.

The kiddie area was also a big hit for both boys!So thankful for Matt's help!

I could not/would not have done it without him!

Time for the Big Leagues

One of the benefits of having a baseball stadium in the same city is the different events it hosts. The Mets have their spring training here and then the triple A St. Lucie Mets play there too. Last week the Port St Lucie Little League was honored at one of the games. They started the evening off by going on the ball field during the National Anthem. Then the got free admission to the game.
Play ball!

Easter Weekend 2011

We drove up to Mimi & Granddaddy's house for the Easter weekend. Hottie was able to take the afternoon off so we got up there around 2:00 on Friday.

Friday evening's Good Friday serviceSaturday morning we headed to Alachua for the city's Easter Egg Hunt. They gave each kid an Easter basket. As we waited for the children to be divided into age groups...Iphone entertainment! Mom & Dad went with Ry while Hottie and I went with Jayden. Some of the eggs in Jayden's age group had numbers on them. They were considered the prize eggs. Jayden found two and was able to pick out two prizes. At first he picked out a shooter gun and a ring pop but then decided to put the shooter gun back and get another ring pop...for his brother! That kid has such a compassionate heart!
After naps, we colored eggs. I have concluded that with 3 boys, egg coloring will last a total of 7.2 seconds before it's onto the next activity...flying kites!

The family on Easter morning. Unfortunately Michelle couldn't come because of her black out dates at the Marriott.

Happy Easter!

C.L.S

Thank you to my loyal commenters about our little Cooper! (Even my mom made an appearance.)

I was tempted to give the background on our name decision and Tara just gave me the extra incentive I needed.

But first I have to start with the first...

Back in 2004, I liked the name Aiden. It had become very popular due to the show Sex and the City. But I wanted something a little different. We ended up with Jayden after cycling through the alphabet and added the "y" for masculinity.
We settled on Cato (my maiden name) because we wanted a significant middle name and because I love the nickname Jay-cee (Aunt Laurie gets credit for that one!).

Shortly after Jayden, I knew if we had another boy I wanted something that started with Ry. I love the nickname Ry-Ry. For most of my pregnancy we were wavering between Ryerson and Ryland.
When deciding on a middle name (again looking for something significant) we decided on Francis. Francis is Hottie's dad's name. It became undeniable once Hottie predicted Ry being born on 4/7, he's father's birthday too. (I did have Ry on 4/7, 17 days early!)

Well when you combine Ryerson with Francis and Soich you're almost bound to curse the poor kid with a lisp! Not REALLY but it did sway us to go with Ryland :).

#3. I've mentioned that we had a girls name (Adderlyn Katheryn) picked out and some of my favorite for boys; Colson, Braxton, and Keaston. Hottie was dead set against all of them. (More so than any of the other names we contemplated for Jay & Ry. He particularly thought Colson sounded like Coleslaw. Lol)

The one name he kept coming back to was Cooper. I really like Cooper but wanted something that ended in the "n" sound.

I also don't love Cooper Lee . It's not enough syllables. Guess I have a thing for 4 (jay-den-ca-to & ry-land-fran-cis).

Lee is not only my middle name but is also my mom and Hotties mom's middle name. It is also my maternal grandfather's name and my-favorite-cousin-named-Nick's middle name. Significant enough for ya?
When I approached Hottie with adding 'son' to Cooper (Borrowing it from Colson) he agreed!

4 syllables? Coop-er-son-lee. Check!
Ends in the 'n' sound? Check!
Hottie agreed? Check!
Different first initial than the other 2? Check! I didn't want 2 with the same (ie Jayden and Jackson) and not the other.
Stayed away from A & B initials? Check! You have to be careful with the last name Soich! ( ie A*S or BS)
Both boys like it? Check!

And there you have it! Everything that went into coming up with Cooperson Lee Soich. It's a big decision but ultimately when it feels "right", it is perfect!