The Ballard Family

Merry Christmas from the Ballards

2011-12-18T07:55:00.000-08:00

As you can see, Fisher is a big fan of sitting on Santa Claus this year.

He wasn't too happy sitting on Santa with Trace at the LSU Staff Senate party:

Maybe he'll do better by himself at Bass Pro ... Nope. Everything was fine once he got his candy cane after though:

Hmmm, where have I seen that reaction before? That's right, Trace three years ago:

We hope everyone has a Merry Christmas!

"May the Lord bless you and keep you;

the Lord make his face to shine upon you,
and be gracious to you;

the Lord lift up his countenance upon you,
and give you peace."

Go Panthers!

2011-11-30T09:47:00.000-08:00

This fall, we signed up Trace for his first organized sports league, flag football at Istrouma. Not only was this his first sport to play, I signed up to help coach his team, The 4-5 year old Panthers.

While there were lots of frustrating moments (getting eight 4-5 year olds to snap the ball, hand off and run straight doesn't seem like it would be too difficult), there were so many awesome moments during the season. The best of which was getting to spend some extra, quality time with Trace.

Trace got to make some new friends and really enjoyed playing flag football. I'm not sure he has all the concept down pat, but he really enjoyed snapping the ball and handing off. Every now and then, we were even able to convince him to run with the ball (most of the time, he ran straight ahead too).

Ask him about playing flag football, and he's sure to tell you about the touchdowns he scored and here's the video of him scoring in his last game:

Growing up and playing sports, I always wondered about how it will be when I have kids and get to coach or play sports with them. Looking back now that the season is over, it was such an amazing time, and it will be memories I'll never forget. I can't wait for the next sport he plays, and I can't wait until Fisher gets to play too ... until then, he has fun watching his big brother play.

School Days!

2011-09-03T15:33:00.000-07:00

"So, it's for real." "This is really happening." "There's no turning back now." These are all things that I keep thinking and telling myself throughout my day as it begins to sink in that Trace is now in Preschool! I feel like we prepared him the very best that we could. We made several visits to his school, checked out his classroom, met his teacher, and even played on his playground. I'm thinking, "This kid is ready!" But little did I know, the real question I should have been asking was "Am I?" The first day went great!...better than either of us even expected. He got all dressed in his uniform and was excited as could be.

We brought him to his classroom and then walked with him to breakfast in the cafeteria. We watched him as he was served his first tray of food and carried it across the cafeteria so independently.

Once he was busy eating, we asked if it was okay that we go and come back to get him later. He was fine with that and didn't seem to care that we were leaving.

And so we left, both a little surprised that neither of us had lost it or had even shed a single tear. Well, Ernie claims he didn't, but he did get a little choked up at one point. ;) I kept waiting to feel sad, but I never did. I was just so excited for him. How could I be sad?

The rest of the week went great. We received good comments on behavior and he seemed to be having lots of fun each day. That was until Friday of the first week, he tried testing his boundaries a little with some spitting, but we nipped that in the bud really quick and it's been smooth sailing since then, especially since his teacher implemented the rewards program for good behavior. Stars and smiley faces = treasure chest prizes!

Then week 2 began and reality began to sink in. Trace isn't coming back. He's gone for good. Or at least that's what it feels like. I think the first week was wrapped in so much excitement, it was hard to be sad or even realize that he'd be gone for the most part of every day. But when week 2 rolled around and Fisher and I cleaned the house from top to bottom and ran all of the errands we could possibly run, something happened. It got quiet...really quiet. Sadness crept in, tears made up for lost time, and I began to question everything. I began thinking, maybe he's still too young for this. Maybe this school isn't right for him. Maybe we should have waited another year...and so on. But never once did he show any sign of resistance. He came home happy as could be everyday. He talked about each new friend that he made as he began learning thier names. He did have trouble remembering his day to tell me about it, though. I think after naptime his memory was erased. So, it was a struggle getting things out of him and because I wanted him back so badly, I assumed the worst.

It wasn't until Open House that I began to see what all he was really doing throughout his day. In just a couple of weeks they had accomplished so much and I could see that he was already learning a lot.

After talking with his teachers and learning more about his routine, I realized that this is where Trace needs to be and that it is good for him. His memory has gotten better, or he just got so used to me asking about everything little thing he did each day that he started trying harder to remember. ;)

We've also had some fun things going on at school that have kept us busy and involved. The PreK class threw the first teacher's appreciation lunch of the year. It turned out great and it was nice to spend the day at school meeting the faculty and staff. They were all so upbeat and positive. It was nice to see how much they enjoyed their job and how much they appreciated the lunch. Trace and I made these cute little candy pencils for his teachers that day.

On top of that, it was also Grandparents Day, so MawMaw & Pap came to eat lunch with Trace at school, which he loved!

Overall, school has been a positive experience for Trace and for me. It just took me a lot longer than I expected to be able to let go of my baby boy. Meanwhile, Trace is still doing really well at school. He loves learning new things and showing off all that he has learned once he comes home. I'm so proud of him, but sometimes I just can't stand how grown up he really is!

Happy 4th Birthday Trace!

2011-06-27T06:24:00.000-07:00

It's hard to believe, but Trace is now 4 years old. Seems like just yesterday, we were going to the doctor for our routine ultrasounds and waiting for Trace to make his appearance. Now he's 4 and getting ready to start preschool in August. How time flies!

2007
2008

2009
20102011
Trace, we hope you have a great birthday! You are a great big brother, you are so smart and so funny, and mommy and daddy love every minute we get to spend with you. We love you so much!

Happy Easter!

2011-04-22T06:54:00.001-07:00

Happy 1st Bithday, Fisher!

2011-03-21T05:11:00.000-07:00

Happy 1st Birthday to my Fisher-man! You LOVE wagon rides, so we thought we'd celebrated with a Little Red Wagon-themed party. But there wasn't lots of "wagon-themed" stuff available, so Mommy had to get creative. Also, you were a little sick with bronchitis on the day of your party, so we had to downsize it a bit; but you still seemed to have lots of fun!

Birthday Banner
Cake Table

Your cake!

*For more on the cake, click here.

Wagon Wheel Cupcakes

More Cupcakes!

Candy Apple Party Favors

Another Birthday Banner!

(Thanks for the idea, Lucy!)

Red Wagon Pinata

*made from 100% recycled materials (cereal boxes, paper towel roll, and a corn muffin mix box) Your big brother helped me paint it! :)

We had a Wagon Parade! Here you are eating a flower, my little goat! :)

Pop & Pap!

Throw Me Something, Fisher!

Parading with Friends!

More Parading!

The Spectators! :)

Trace is ready for cake!

What's All This?

This is the BEST DAY EVER!!!

Cupcakes are for babies...I want the real cake! :)

That's better!

Oooh, and some ice cream to wash it all down! :)

Uncle Josh & Trace take first crack...er...pull @ the pinata!

Candy For Everyone!

Our only family pic of the day. Your brother is upset that I took his candy bag for the picture. :(

After a 4+ hour nap, you woke up to open presents! :)

Supper time! Here you are playing peek-a-boo...except you cover your ears instead of your eyes! :)

We love you so much Little Bug. You are such a happy baby and bring so much joy to our family. At one year you can say "Da Da", "Ma Ma", "Eat", "Bye Bye", "Dat" (as in "What's that?" or "Who Dat?") hehe and you've attempted to say "Trace" a few times. You love to play peek-a-boo, patty cake (you love to roll 'em up!), give hugs when we say "Love, Love", and you make sure everyone knows how old you are; when we say "One" you point you finger way up high! You also love to dance, you crawl super-fast, especially when you're trying to get into something like Phoebe's bowl or Trace's lunch, and you put things in your mouth faster than lightning. You love to laugh, especially at your brother's silly antics. Oh, and you're still famous for your hair, although you've had 4 hair cuts in the past 6 months and you always stick your tounge out, but you've gotten much better about this since your 2 teeth have come in. You are perfect in every way and we can't imagine or remember much of life without you. Happy Birthday, Fisher. Looking forward to MANY more (but try to slow it down a bit, please?) ;)

We love you. -Momma, Daddy, & Trace

First Game at The Box

2011-03-02T09:07:00.001-08:00

Last night, I took Trace to his first LSU baseball game at the new Alex Box Stadium. LSU beat Southeastern 7-3, and we had a great time.

Here are some of the highlights of the night:

Eating all the popcorn he wanted:

Watching the game with his friend Cole:

Wait, there's a park here? This definitely put going to an LSU baseball game at the top of his LSU sports list:
Oh yeah, there was a baseball game going on too:

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

2010-12-22T07:54:00.001-08:00

Merry Christmas everybody! We're excited about Trace's 4th and Fisher's 1st Christmas this weekend. Trace has been asking for a blue skateboard for a few weeks now, and Fisher hasn't really asked for anything :) so he'll be surprised with whatever the big guy brings him.

This will be our first Christmas staying home, so we're excited about that too. While we enjoy going to Grand Isle and spending the holiday with the family, with the kids, it has gotten more and more difficult to pack up the house and go out of town for Christmas. We can't wait for the boys to wake up at home Christmas morning to see what Santa brought and to be able to hang out at the house all day and play with their new toys.

Enjoy the holidays and we hope everyone has a merry Christmas and a happy New Year!

Here are a few pictures of the Ballards getting ready for Christmas:

A few weeks ago, we beat the rush and went to the mall for the boys to sit on Santa. It went great, there was no fussing and no wait.

Trace drawing Santa a picture of what he wants:

Mailing his Christmas list:

Checking to see if he's been naughty or nice:

Explaining to Santa exactly what he wants:

Trace and Fisher with the big guy:

Counting down to Christmas:
Opening one of his Advent calendar gifts:

Topping the tree:
Making a Gingerbread house:

Each year for Christmas, our church participates in Advent Conspiracy, which reminds people to worship fully, spend less, give more and love all. One of the ways we gave back was for all the little ones at church to help make cookies to bring to a local fire station. Last weekend, we visited the fire station and delivered the goodies. The fire fighters got some sweet treats and the kids got to play fire fighter for the day:

silly 2010

2010-12-10T05:45:00.001-08:00

Retro Flakes American Lung Association Holiday 5x7 folded card

Turn your holiday photos into holiday cards with Shutterfly.

View the entire collection of cards.

Christmas Cards

2010-11-20T12:42:00.000-08:00

Every year in November, it's become a tradition that we take family pictures for a Christmas Card. In past years, we've gone all out; and as you can imagine, it gets pretty expensive (the photographer, the pictures, the cards, the outfits, the haircuts, the postage...it all just begins to add up). However, this year we're on a tight budget now that I stay home. I've also become "Budget Nazi" and had all but given up on the idea that we would do a card this year. But I think Ernie could see that this made me sad, so he put his foot down and said, "We're doing them." He said it didn't matter if we had them made and only send out 10 cards, but we should still send them out because (and this is what got me), "It's Fisher's 1st Christmas." And so, the search began for a photographer. Imagine my excitement when I found that our good friend and photgrapher Christi Santangelo (you can find her on FB @ Santangelo Photography) was having a Christmas Special and conducting mini sessions that included 25 cards! I later found another great deal from Shutterfly that included 50 free cards if I write a blog about Christmas Cards, hence me writing this blog! ;) This whole experience of staying home/cutting back on our budget has definately been a challenge, but it's also helped me to become more creative in doing the things we love without going overboard with our spending. :)

Oh, and did I mention how much I love Shutterfly!? ;) Here's some of our Christmas Cards from years past that we've done with them:

Halloween 2010

2010-11-15T08:36:00.000-08:00

LSU Website

2010-10-29T08:07:00.001-07:00

Those kids on the LSU homepage sure do look familiar:

You can check out the story at www.lsu.edu or clicking here.

First Haircut

2010-09-30T12:13:00.000-07:00

Last week was haircut day for the Ballard family. Everyone one of us got a trim, even Fisher. I was hesitant to get Fisher's haircut, but he really needed it. He probably needed a haircut the day he was born, and his side burn curls had now gotten out of control. He did great and didn't fuss once. He even received a first haircut certificate.

Look Out Ace of Cakes

2010-09-10T13:51:00.000-07:00

At the end of August, Maw, Pap and Rhi Rhi came up and we celebrated Pap's birthday and Pap got the best birthday cake ever b/c it was made by none other than Trace (with a little help from mom).

Here's Trace testing out the batter to make sure it's just right:

Also, making sure that the icing and sprinkles go well together:

Adding a little color:
Finally, the masterpiece is ready:

Everyone enjoyed Pap's surprise party:

A Summer in Pictures (Part II)

2010-09-08T07:05:00.000-07:00

Onto Part II of the Ballard summer in pictures. If you missed Part I, you can check it out here.

During the summer, Fisher started to eat his veggies. We've had some ups and downs with getting him to get the hang of eating "food," but he's getting better. Peas and carrots are working out better than sweet potatoes and squash did.

While Fisher was learning to eat, Trace has been improving in the potty training area. I'll save you some pictures, but let's just say he loves to show off.

Ashley and Trace took a "mommy and me day out" and visited Pottery Works for a little painting (check out the great picture of mommy that Trace took):

One of the cool things we found out about was kid's movies at the Grand Cinema during the week. It was $4 for a movie, popcorn and a drink. Too bad we only learned about this toward the end of the summer.

As I mentioned in the previous post, the Ballards became members of Baton Rouge Zoo this summer. Even though it was almost unbearably hot, we made it to the zoo a few times:

This summer our church held a Wee Kids Camp for the kids too young to go away for camp. The kids learned Bible stories, a memory verse and did some arts & crafts, and the week ended with a pool party:

One of the highlights of the summer was going to the Lawrence family adoption party. Not only did we get to celebrate with a great family and friends, there was a water slide. It was tough to get Trace on the slide at first, but then it was tough to get him off of it:

One of Trace's favorite places to visit in Baton Rouge is the mall. Here are a few pics from various trips there.

Trace loves to ride the carousel, especially Mike the Tiger:
Enjoying some samples at Menchies:

Riding in a spaceship:When Maw Maw and Rhi Rhi came up one weekend, they brought Trace to Build a Bear at the mall, and he left with a Mike the Tiger dressed as Woody from Toy Story ... and a red car for him or Fisher :) to ride in:
Trace loved cutting grass with Pap in Thibodaux. He liked it so much, he didn't want to get off the lawn mower, even after falling asleep a couple times:

Time to roller skate:

Trace enjoyed going to Uncle Josh's house to watch the Saints first preseason game. Here's Josh telling Trace all the reasons to root against Tom Brady:

Just say "I want free flip flop cookie" at Cookies by Design, and low and behold, you get one:

Checking out the annual Baton Rouge Balloon Fest:

Trace went through Little Gym this summer and recently started Chopsticks (beginning karate) classes. He did Little Gym last summer too, and he's like an old pro now:

We'll leave with with a few shots of the Ballard boys in action:

Last, but not least, of course Maw Maw and Rhi Rhi bought Fisher some blue jeans diapers:

A Summer in Pictures (Part I)

2010-08-24T09:32:00.000-07:00

As anyone who gets on the road in Baton Rouge can tell, summer is coming to an end and what a fun, exciting summer it was. Ashley and the boys survived their first summer together at home, and we managed to do a lot of fun things as a family of four. Since we didn't get to post as much lately, we're hitting you with a big summer in pictures recap (in two parts). You ready?

The first big activity of our summer was catching the circus in Baton Rouge. While it seemed a little long for kids, especially with an intermission, but Trace loved it. He especially loved eating popcorn and watching Dumbo (all elephants are Dumbo). Fisher even had a good time, mostly napping.

Summer's are also a time filled with birthday parties (including Trace's). For a while it seemed like we were going to a birthday party every weekend.

Trace turns 3:

A party at Lyndsey's Bouncing Tiger:

A party at the Splash Park:

Parker's 3rd birthday:

One of the big activities of the summer was Trace taking swimming lessons. The first day of class was an emotional one for mommy and Trace, but after that, he enjoyed it and learned a lot of swimming basics. With a little more practice, he'll be swimming without his floaties sooner than we know it.

Ashley and the boys caught a few story times and other activities at the library this summer. Trace even got to meet Harvey the Rabbit and Friends:

During the summer, the Ballard family also became members of the Baton Rouge zoo. Before Trace's birthday, Nonk Eli, Aunt Kassi and cousin Morgan spent the day (or at least as long as we could take the heat) at the zoo with us. Not long after this there was a new addition to their family:

We spent the 4th of July in Grand Isle and got to see the effects of the oil spill first hand. Actually, the only effects we saw were lots of cleanup workers on the island and no boiled crabs to eat, but thank you for the fireworks BP:

Fisher and Trace gained a new cousin this summer with the arrival of Gracie Mae on July 16, 2010:

That brings us to mid-July. One half of the summer down, one half to go. To end part one of our summer in pictures, we leave you with a few random shots to give you a flavor of the summer in the Ballard house:

Cereal and Veggies

2010-08-17T09:16:00.000-07:00

It's hard to believe, but Fisher is already 5 months old. He is growing so fast and discovering new things every day. The other day, he discovered his voice, or should I say, his yelling voice. He isn't upset or anything, but he will just lay there and yell as loud as he can. He's just trying to make sure he inherited mom and dad's great singing voices.

At the beginning of this month, we started Fisher on cereal. Saying he doesn't love it is an understatement. He's gotten better, but he still blocks the spoon with his tongue, and you have to maneuver it around to make sure the cereal gets where it's intended to get. Ashley recently started with two feedings a day and introduced his first vegetable: sweet potatoes. He liked the sweet potatoes a little better, so hopefully with more flavors, he picks up on eating from a spoon quicker.

Trace supervising to make sure mommy remembers how to do this:

Daddy's first attempt at feeding cereal:

First vegetable:

Two Little Hams

2010-07-20T07:16:00.000-07:00

If only we could get them to both smile in the same pic :)

Happy 3rd Birthday Trace!

2010-06-29T08:57:00.000-07:00

I can't believe it, but it really has been 3 years since Trace was born. Seems like just yesterday, we were going to all of our doctor's appointments watching the little guy on the ultrasound. Now he's a 3-year-old big brother.

Ever since the calendar turned June, Trace has been excited about his birthday party. Out of his friends, he has one of the later birthdays, so he's been to a lot of other people's parties. Now it's time for his. Ashley tried to help him understand how many days were left before his party with a calendar she put together for him and printed out countdown sheets. It seemed to work, either that or he just got tired of us telling him his party was still a few days away.

For the party, we went with the theme of his favorite movie Toy Story (Thank you to Jenny for a great logo and invitations!).

With Toy Story 3 coming out the week before his party, there was no shortage of Toy Story decorations or snacks to be found (but just try to find a Toy Story pinata a few days before the party. Impossible).

Toy Story 3 opened up Father's Day weekend, and as part of my great Father's Day with the family, we brought the boys see it. Trace liked it and has asked to watch the new Toy Story a few times since. His favorite part of going to the movies though is eating lots of popcorn. With about 5 minutes left in the movie, Ashley and I realized he was still eating his bag of popcorn:

With his birthday falling on a weekend (this past Sunday), we got to have his party on his actual birth day. Trace woke up that morning and knew right away he was the birthday boy. We let him open a couple of presents right when he woke up, and he even had one from his brother, Fisher.
We decided to have the party at his favorite park near our house, and it was a huge success. While it was a hot day, we beat the usual summer rain by a few hours. Trace had a great time playing with his old friends from day care and all of the other friends and family who came.

To go with all the Toy Story balloons and decorations, Ashley made an awesome Buzz Lightyear cake and delicious Toy Story cupcakes:

We had pizza delivered from Pizza Planet (or Domino's with a Pizza Planet Logo on the box) and a snowball stand to beat the heat:

To top things off, Buzz Lightyear even payed a visit to sing "Happy Birthday." Trace wasn't too sure what to think at first of "Buzz." He didn't recognize me and wouldn't even come near me. After I took off the hair cover, he realized who it was and let me hold him. He tried to push the buttons on Buzz's suit, but still wasn't sure what to think.

After we sang "Happy Birthday" and cut the cake, everyone had a few more snowballs, played some games and enjoyed the park a little more before the heat did us in.

So we loaded up all the presents and headed home for Trace to spend the next hour or so opening them. It was fun to watch him open his presents; he got so excited for everything he opened (even the clothes from Maw Maw, especially his new suit so he can dress like daddy does when he goes to work).After each thing he opened, he would check it out and ask if he could play with it. It was tough to get him to go back and open something else. He now has more Toy Story toys than we know what to do with and lots of other cool stuff like a Star Wars Play Doh set, tee ball set, books, games, etc. But the grand finale was his new Woody and Buzz toys. These had to be taken out of the box right away. They ended up taking a nap with him later, and haven't left his sight since.

It was a great day, and we know Trace felt so loved by all of our friends and family. Thank you to everyone for the birthday wishes and for being a part of our family. We look forward to many more birthdays with the boys, but hopefully they don't grow up too fast. Before we know it, we'll be throwing Fisher's 1st birthday party and planning for Trace's 4th.

Go Fly a Kite

2010-05-31T08:25:00.000-07:00

A few weekends ago, we brought Trace to the park and to fly his kite he got for Easter. It was his first time to ever fly a kite, but after only a couple of minutes he was a pro:

Sorry no pictures, but Ashley got a kick out of watching me run with the kite to get it in the air. Good thing the wind was blowing pretty good that day or I would have really looked like a fool, not being able to get the kite to fly.