Day Four Hundred and Sixty-Nine

The Hart-y Boys

Meet the Hart boys. Their mommy was our honeymoon travel agent...and their daddy was Adam's hitting coach in Jupiter this season. You might better remember these handsome lads as the three little munchkins dressed head-to-toe in Marlins baseball uniforms at some of the Hammerhead games. Ah! They're just too fun! We were invited over to dinner last night after running into their parents at the Christmas party the night before! Stacy was at work, so Coach Corey did the cooking!

We ate at 5:15 and after...played and played. Apparently, they're guitar lovers just like Mr. Adam! This was maybe the only time all night that the three boys weren't on their feet, jumping around, kicking, punching, laughing, or flipping over each other. So precious!

With guitars aside, they soon transformed into superhero maniacs, all trying to tickle Mrs. Kendall to her demise.

1...2...3...Attack!

Their usual bedtime is 7:30. Last night, they weren't in bed until 8:45. Oops! The boys, dad, and the two of us had far too much fun to call it a night after only 2 and a half hours! But eventually, they calmed down (sort of) and we were able to read them a few stories before tucking them in. We had an incredible time, but we think for now, we're good with being able to leave the kids at a different house to sleep!

Day Four Hundred and Fifty

The Cozy Conley Casa

I woke up in a Jolly mood yesterday! Our beautiful Evergreen was sitting in our front room naked and I was so excited to dress it up nicely! So, I spent the entire morning, afternoon, and evening decorating our cozy little home. I started with our wreath this morning. This is what I came up with...and I'm kinda super-loving it. Adam even said he liked it! 

Adam made me a deal when he bought his Plasti-Dip...if we went to Home Depot to get it, I could get Christmas lights. The bribe worked...and I got lots of lights! Only problem was: I didn't know what to do with them! So I finally decided, and ended up spending way too long hanging them like crown molding. I originally thought it would be just so much fun...it turned out to be just flat ugly. The lights kept on falling...so I then spent even more time taking them down. I was sad.

But this brightened my mood! Our nativity scene, (homemade) stockings, and Whitacre the Floridian Santa Polar Bear are all so lovely. This makeshift fireplace is my favorite!

My (our) finished product! Apartment 14 is the coziest place to be in this little town! It's all lit up (I found plenty of ways to use my lights!) and smells just like a winter home in Washington. I would leave it like this year-round if he'd let me.

Oh yeah...Husband purchased another gun last night. This time: an AR-15. If Obama reintroduces the weapons ban, he ain't taking our right to bear arms away. No thank you, Sir.

Day Two Hundred and Thirteen

The Guitar Heroes

When you play baseball for a living, you're bound to need a hobby. Five months of the year, you don't technically have a job, and that means, you either get one, or you find something to get really good at. Well, Adam chose the guitar, and apparently, so did Wooster. Only, James has quite a few more hours logged than Adam, so naturally, he's become a sort of teacher to my boy. Gosh, our outfielder is good! Around 1 AM this morning, they found out that each other played the guitar and became instant buds. A couple of things to note:

1) Pitchers and position players have a sort of love-hate relationship. They either love each other or hate each other. At least that's what I've heard. And before tonight, these two boys weren't that close. But all that changed fast when...

2) We met some of the guys at the Wash Pub. Literally, exactly what it sounds like. A place that, while you wash your clothes, you can enjoy a game of pool and maybe a beer too. And so, when the boys need to do their laundry, which they did last night, that's where they go. And that's where I met James. After his laundry was finished, we gave him a ride back to the complex, and on the way, the two Hoppers discovered their similar interest in the guitar.

3) Since the games don't end until 10 PM or so, we don't leave the stadium until around 11 PM. After that, Adam needs to eat. Naturally, our nights don't end until at least midnight. Which means, that when you go hang out for an hour, it's already 1 AM. Hence, the early-morning photo of the day! 

The two played for a little while, James showing Adam a bunch of crazy "moves" (I am not musically fluent) on the guitar. It was fun to watch this lesson unfold. And I'm happy that the guys are bonding so well. We love this team! They're great!

Day One Hundred and Thirty-Three

The Electric Hair

No, he didn't stick his finger into a light socket. He didn't fall into the bathtub while blow drying his hair either. Nope. He just woke up. Each morning, we share giggles back and forth over our bedhead, but today, it was over-the-top-crazy. Immediately, after nudging my sleeping bear out of the covers, he jumped up, threw on some workout clothes, and sat with his guitar for a bit of morning strumming, or "picking his guit-fiddle," as Adam would say. His hair is getting longer by the day, and by Spring training, he's either aiming for a Billy Beane flow (if you haven't seen Brad Pitt in Moneyball, you should), or the comeback of his mullet. As long as he keeps winning on the mound, he's allowed to keep his hairstyle, but as we've heard from many before us, the minute things start to dwindle downhill, the hair is required to come off. Hopefully he pitches well this Spring, or his "flow" could be in jeopardy. I guess you could call it an incentive. I'd say the Big Leagues are incentive enough, but I guess these boys are particular about their hair. 

Day One Hundred and Two

The Artists

It was one of those really-busy-but-not-really-busy-at-all kind of days. Katy's finally here and her Washington skin got to soak up a few rays in the 80 degree sunshine this afternoon. Following several laps in the pool, we layed out to bronze our fading tans and then met the rest of the day with a craft project that took the collective wit of all three of us to complete. I've spent too many hours on Pinterest, stockpiling hundreds of ideas, so I finally buckled down and tackled one of my favorites: burlap stockings! We started with felt fabric, as they helped me get acquainted with the sewing machine. Adam kept telling me to treat the machine as bandsaw. Ok, well that would have helped...if I knew what in the world a bandsaw was. He took one stab at the sewing machine, and of course, his stitching made mine look like a preschooler had gotten ahold of it. That would happen. How did I snatch up a husband who's good at everything he tries?! I'll take it! But over the course of the day, with frustration mounting, and heat rising, I finally pulled off my first stocking, with the help of my two crafty friends. And I must admit, this ain't too shabby either! Tomorrow calls for two more, and I can't wait to see them all lined up next to each other, hanging beneath our new nativity that Katy gave to us! 

In other news, Adam's guitar got lost in Houston yesterday during one of Katy's connections. His devastation was obvious. But luckily, the Seagull arrived safely at our doorstep tonight, and he's been attached to it ever since. What a sweet early Christmas present!