First topic of this post is T-Ball. Towards the end of the school year we decided to sign Mallory up for T-Ball through Farmington Park and Rec. It overlapped a little with Footfire Soccer but soccer is now finished so it's just T-Ball time! Once again Mallory is having a BLAST! We are so fortunate to have a daughter that dives right in and gets the most out of everything. Right away we knew she would enjoy T-Ball, she seemed to pick up on the skills pretty quickly.
T-Ball is held on Tuesday nights for one hour. At times the hour seems too short. There are four teams practicing at the same time and for the first few weeks only one team could be on the diamond at a time. Now they scrimmage and two teams are on the dirt at the same time. I was told last week that the next two weeks they will be playing an actual game. Here are some pictures of Mallory at T-Ball practice.
At the end of the first practice, we learned that Mallory's good friend (she calls him her boyfriend) Danny from school is also in the same T-Ball class. Mallory and Danny are on different teams, but she was super excited to see him there and is very happy she gets to see him every week. Mallory's bestie Lucy is also in the same T-Ball class. I tell you, we're laying down roots.
Last week they had a scrimmage and Mallory was able to hit the ball and run the bases for the first time! She did GREAT! Not only did she score a run, when they were in the outfield, she grounded TWO balls and threw them to first base. Even though her throw to first was WAY off, she knew exactly how to ground that ball and showed no hesitation in throwing it to first. It's clear to me she pays attention to her coaches. She always makes the right move! She's having so much fun and we are having so much fun watching her! T-Ball Tuesday's are becoming one of my favorite things to do with Mallory!
Here is a video of Mallory hitting the ball and running the bases. It's a few minutes long but totally worth it!
Staying on the topic of sports, Footfire Soccer has wrapped up for the year and boy did it end with a bang! On their last night they played and actual game and Mallory scored TWO goals. Without a doubt, she's an ALL STAR. It's quite amazing to me how much her soccer skills improved with only four weeks of practice. She's ready for more and has made it clear to us she wants to play soccer as much as she can. At the end of the game, they awarded each participant with a certificate and a trophy. We've had a few certificates before, but this was her first trophy. Mallory was so excited to receive such an award!
Here is a video of Mallory scoring ONE of her TWO goals that night. It's a little hard to see from the distance the video is filmed at but you'll know when the ball goes in the net because you will see little miss Mallory and all of her teammates starting jumping up and down with delight! Enjoy!
Second topic to update everyone on is swimming. Mallory is lucky enough to have her BFF Lucy living right next door and during the week they spend a great deal of time together. We have been pretty lucky this year to make it to the beach a couple of times with Lucy and her family. If they aren't playing in the sand, they're playing in the water. They are never bored at the beach. One of the perks living in the Land of 10,000 Lakes. We've tried two different beaches this summer: Clearly Lake Regional Park in Prior Lake and Schulze Lake Beach in Lebanon Hills Regional Park in Eagan. Good times at both places and EXHAUSTED kids AND parents at the end of the day. Swimming, sun and snacks...you can't go wrong!
Here is a little video of Mallory and Lucy "crab walking" while they're at Cleary Lake. These two crack me up!
Of course the other place we get plenty of time in the water is at the cabin on Lake Jefferson. We are no strangers to the lake and try to get there at least two weekends out of the month. We've done quite a bit of swimming there this summer and Mallory has even done some fishing. Her good friend Bailey is there to help her out, every step of the way!
Mallory has expressed some interest in learning how to fish this summer while on Lake Jefferson. She has her own Dora fishing pole but has only been practicing with the purple plastic fish it came with. Earlier this summer she was casting the pole and the purple plastic fish fell off and sank. I guess that's the push she needed because now she just wants to fish "for real". Another great reason to live in the Land of 10,000 Lakes. Check out this video of Bailey helping Mallory catch a fish!
Being at the cabin goes hand in hand with pontoon rides and this summer is no different. Pontoon rides in the morning, anchoring the pontoon and swimming in the afternoon and a night cap pontoon ride after dinner. Mallory is very comfortable on the pontoon and is always very ready to go out for a ride. Here she is, in her element, enjoying the pontoon and being silly while wearing Grandma Judy's sun hat.
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| Eagan Fireworks ~ All American Family |
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| Getting a sugar high thanks to Aunt Cindy |
The fun did not stop when the Texas Ludgate's headed home. My good friend Valerie, who also lives in Texas, happened to be home in Minnesota at the same time. We replaced one Texas family with another. Valerie has two children, Lily and Christian. I was very happy and lucky to be able to spend two full days with these three. I really miss My Pal Val and that nickname added some inspiration for the name of this blog...My Mal Pal. The girls played and played while Valerie and I talked and talked about marriage, motherhood and Montgomery. I wouldn't have wanted it any other way. We spent one afternoon at Memorial Park in New Prague and another at Kelley Park Splash Pad in Apple Valley. Both days were VERY warm so we were strict on their hydration. Good thing both girls LOVE water! While Mallory had trouble saying goodbye to her cousins and was sad when they left, I had trouble with this one. When we left the splash pad in Apple Valley and I turned onto my street, Valerie's car kept going south to Montgomery where she would spend the rest of her time here with other friends and family. I parked my car in my driveway and opened the flood gates. I was so sad she left. She had just gotten here and was already getting ready to go back to Texas. My good friend was gone. Mallory and I snuggled for a long time that night. Both of us saddened by our friends and family departure back south.
I guess it's a good thing we have such great neighbors to fill that void. Being able to spend the recent summer days with them sure cheered us up! How can you not smile when you see this little man and how cute he is? This is Karis. He is the now six month old who lives next door. He is Lucy's younger brother and my favorite little dude. Matter of fact I think Mallory is pretty fond of him too. How can you not be? LOOK AT HIM! We've had plenty of outdoor playtime between our two houses, front yard and back.
I would imagine that will continue in the fall but I know things will be a little different then. Mallory will be in Kindergarten, that means school five days a week and less play time at home. On top of that Lucy is going to all day Kindergarten so she will be around even less. This summer is moving quickly, it got started a little late after all, but none the less, it's moving quickly. I just received my e-mail instructions on how to access Mallory's school records and I am sure her teacher assignment and class information will soon follow. We are already thinking of when to go to the State Fair, which always means end of the summer to me and planning our annual trip to Bayfield in October. Summer has been great fun so far and we plan to pack in quite a bit more fun before it's officially over. I hope this has been a good update for all of you. Stay tuned for some birthday party coverage soon! It's a pretty big one this year. One week from now, Mallory will be FIVE! Wowza!
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