State Champs!!!!!

Whew!!!! It has been too long since I have been on here. Alot has happened but I will just pick up with the recent....Braden's travel ball team won the State Tournament last week! They had a really good season. They ended up winning the USSSA 10under AAA division. We won the substate tournament two weeks before and had also won a couple of other tournaments previously. One of them was a wooden bat tournament against 12 year olds! We are very proud of them and Braden did a wonderful job!!! Carmen's team came in 2nd in regular season and 3rd in the county tournament. Austin's season is still going and hoping for a State Tournament trip later in the month. Busy....busy....busy... but we wouldn't have it any other way!

This is a picture of the State Champions!!!!!!

This is Braden after the Sub-State Championship!

Braden with Meemaw and Papaw at the State Tournament! Thanks, Delilah, for the pictures!

County Champions!!!!!!

Congratulations to Austin and his team for winning the County Tournament!!!!! We defeated East Limestone in the finals today. Austin was also selected to the All-County Team! Great job, Austin and also to the whole team. Also, Braden did a good job being the "water boy" for the team. He kept that water coming this year!

Also, congrats to Braden's team....finished up regular season yesterday and went undefeated!!

A Whole New Meaning to Our Christmas "Break"!!!

A whole new meaning to our Christmas "Break".....

Well, it has been a while! The lightning messed up our main computer and that is where I do most of my pictures and stuff so now that we have gotten it semi-repaired, I don't know how to catch up from Carmen's Preschool Graduation to now. So I guess I will just back up a little and start with the recent catastrophies of our household. In the last 3 months or so, we have been through 5 cases of strep, 2 cases of the flu, 2 ER visits, many dr.'s visits and copays, 1 case of staph, a glued eye from a cut, 1 surgery, and a broken arm in a bright pink cast! (With a little work, this might could be made into a Twelve Days of Christmas Song!!!) But at least they have all been temporary and fixable!!!! :) Most of you know already, but in one weekend we had Austin at the ER with a gashed eye from a collision in basketball but he was able to have it glued. Braden was at the urgent care the next day with what was supposed to be a sinus infection but turned out to be the flu throughout the next few days. Then that same night...Carmen fell off the couch backwards and broke her arm. She also tested positive for Strep the same night. She had surgery the following week and had 2 pins put in her arm and now has a bright pink cast and ended up having the flu this past week!

This was after the ER trip with just a splint before we went to the orthopedic dr.

A special thanks to Meemaw and Papaw for helping us out. Meemaw went with us and played with Carmen in their wonderful playroom while awaiting surgery. Papaw stayed at home with Braden for us since Braden still had the flu. Thanks so much...we don't know what we would do without y'all!

She got her own driver's license and drove the princess jeep back to the operating room. It definitely helped Carmen and ME with the separation anxiety of going back to the surgery!

This is my baby after surgery. She did so good. She was scared but very brave to go through all that she went through. Women and Children's Hospital was sooooo good with Carmen. When it was all over as I was carrying Carmen to the van....we stepped outside the door and Carmen said..."Well, that was a little fun!" They definitely did their job to get a statement out of her like that after the day she had been through!

So much for her first basketball season....now she has to watch from the bench!

I told her coach that this looks bad on him....everybody out there doesn't know that these two actually got hurt at home!!! :)

Now hopefully we are on the road to recovery and things have been looking up. We had a wonderful Christmas with our family and are very, very blessed! Maybe I will catch up some more with a few more posts soon! Happy New Year from our family to yours!

Another Milestone--Preschool Graduation!!!!

Carmen graduated from Preschool Thursday Night. They had their program at McCandless Hall at Athens State. She did a great job in their program. She just sang and did all of the things she was supposed to do. I guess you could say I am a "Proud Mama!" She had a ball afterwards running around with her friends, also. Our pictures taken during the graduation were dark but here are some from afterwards. Look out Kindergarten...here we come!!!!!!!!

Carmen with her teacher...Mrs. Amy! Thanks Mrs. Amy for a wonderful, wonderful job this year and for taking such good care of my baby girl!

Carmen and some of "the girls". Too bad they can't stay together for Kindergarten! :0(




Carmen loves her Meemaw and Papaw!

I would have a picture of Carmen with her mama, daddy, and brothers on here....but.....it didn't quite turn out like I had hoped so.....I decided against it! :0(

Carmen with the twins....Olivia and Nora.

Rachel and Carmen (They are actually distant cousins. Rachel's grandmother and my mama were cousins and used to play together and then we found out Carmen and Rachel were friends and played together. We thought that was sweet!)

Jillian and Carmen--I thought it was cute that on the back of the program they put what the kids liked best about Pre-K. Carmen's was picking flowers outside. Jillian's was swinging with Carmen! Precious!!!!!

Carmen and Jackson

Carmen and Jake

Just a few pics afterwards around the campus.

COULD SOMEONE PLEASE TELL ME WHERE THE PAST FIVE YEARS HAVE GONE??????

Please Help Us Recycle!!!!

Braden is collecting plastic in a contest at school. If you can help us, please keep all of your plastics that have a 1 or 2 in the recycling triangle (usually on the bottom of the container). I have been amazed at how many plastics are recyclable. Drink bottles, soap, shampoo, cleaners, medicines, vitamins, detergents, even strawberry containers have been some of the things that we have found to be recyclable! I find myself going around the house picking up things and looking at the bottom! Also, he is collecting Box Tops for Education for a different contest. If you do want to help us and you want us to pick them up from you, just let us know and we can come by and get them. We are turning in plastics from now until May 14th. I think the Box Tops through about the same time or maybe a little longer.

Thanks to the ones who are already helping us and thanks in advance to you who are going to help us now!

Hippity Hoppity...Easter went on it's way!

Of course I am late posting....again! We had a wonderful Easter and beautiful weather. We went to church and then to Meemaw and Papaw's for a great lunch. Then the kids hunted eggs and we just visited and enjoyed the beautiful weather. Then back to church. Then after supper, we colored eggs....yes...we were late doing that, too! But we did it!


Okay...picture taking is an adventure with the Tutens! One of the pictures that we took.... I think all 3 of the guys were either trying to pinch or tickle me! This is about as good as it got!



Here are my 3....again... an adventure trying to get them to cooperate!






The kids going through the "loot" in the eggs!



Meemaw and Papaw with all the grands!



Here are my brothers and me---a picture in our 40's.



And yes....we finally colored our eggs at the end of the day. Oh well...at least we can say we did them!

And then there were three.......

Well...now there are three! Carmen has joined Austin and Braden in the ballplaying!! Let's see...3 schedules, sets of uniforms to wash, gloves, helmets, cleats, batting gloves, equipment bags, X 3!!! But also 3 times the fun! On Tuesday, Friday, and Saturday, we only had 8 games between the three of them. Austin had 2 on Tuesday, Braden had 2 and Austin 1 on Friday, and Braden had 1 and Carmen 2 on Saturday. (And Austin was scheduled 2 more but they were cancelled.) They all 3 played great! I am proud of them. So if I look a little more frazzled than usual (if that is possible) for the next several weeks...you will know why.

Here is Carmen at her 1st game!

Getting a little help from Mom so she can get a little batting practice.



Go Austin! Go Braden! Go Carmen! And go, go, go the rest of the family as we run everywhere trying to make as many of the games as we can!