Take Me Out To The Ball Game

Lil's first baseball game happened in June. We had seats right behind the bull pen. It was a shaded area and it was down low. Only big problem, it was directly under the jumbotron, so she didn't get to see that. She enjoyed watching the "boys throw the ball" and play but she got bored pretty quickly and she only stayed through three innings.
Grandpa had the best time showing her the ropes at the game. They ate cotton candy and ice cream and had an awesome time.

Just for the record:

I interviewed Lil on her birthday and asked her a few questions (21 to be exact!) and here are her answers:

1. What is your favorite color?  blue
2. What is your favorite toy? my princess shoes (she had them on at the time!)
3. What is your favorite fruit? strawberries (true.   In the past few months, she has stopped eating watermelon and blueberries.  Not sure why)
4. What is your favorite tv show? Blue's Clues.  (my little note... she also loved Mister Rogers till the dog fell off the ladder and that freaked her out)
5. What is your favorite thing to eat for lunch? chicken nuggets
6. What is your favorite outfit? pajamas (oh lil, me too! she also hates socks and is pretty unhappy when she has to put shoes on.)
7. What is your favorite game?  Hi Ho Cherry O
8. What is your favorite snack? raisberries (no idea) and gummies (gummy bears)
9. what is your favorite animal? giraffe (funny thing, on zoo trips, she could care less about the giraffe)
10. What is your favorite song? Chicka Chicka Boom Boom (for the record she also loves Bad Romance by Lady Gaga.  I blame her daddy)
11. What is your favorite book?  Pigeon doesn't want to go to sleep (Don't let the Pigeon Stay Up Late)
12.  Who is your best friend? Ellie
13. What is your favorite cereal?  Lucky charms
14. What is your favorite thing to do outside? plant (garden) and run
15. What is your favorite drink? water
16. What is your favorite holiday? no answer
17. What do you like to take to bed with you at night? Kitty and Cat in the Hat
18. What is your favorite thing to eat for breakfast? eggs and pancakes
19. What do you want for dinner on your birthday? cupcakes
20. What do you want to be when you grow up? (her first response was fireman but changed it soon after) I want to work in a castle.  Me: what will you do in a castle?  Lil: I will drive in a truck like daddy's to the castle and be the cooker.
21. What is your favorite place to eat? Jason's Deli.  They have ice cream.

The test....

So about Monday or Tuesday of the last week, Kayla let us know that in order to "pass" the class and move on to becoming a Clown Fish (this is the Tadpole class), she would have to keep her head in the water for more than 3 seconds and also swim a little bit by herself.  Stress!  She was in no way ready for that, or so we thought.  But Kayla kept working and we did a little bit of "homework" in the bathtub at night each night.  She learned how to hold her breath and keep her head in for 3 seconds.  She was becoming a pro! 

By the end of the week, she was ready!  And she did great.  

We had heard rumors that after the "test", the kids would get the opportunity to jump off the diving board. What a big deal!  We were stressed and excited but Lil just acted like it was no big deal.  She got in line with the rest of the kids and waited her turn.  

Had I been a betting girl, I would have bet money that she would chicken out and not go, but she walked on that diving board like a champ. After she jumped and Kayla caught her and brought her to the side of the pool, she was ready to go again and was mad when we told her that there would be no more jumping, the line was too long!  

The rest of the kids in Lil's class did not jump so happily.  They needed lots of coaxing and support.  I am so proud of my little girl.  For being the youngest one in the class she was the toughest one at the end. And she proved she could do anything the older (by 4-5 months) girls could do!

I was one proud mama. 

Jumping

At first, she was really scared to jump but like I said, Kayla is the master of developing confidence. She was jumping like nothing in no time!

My Little Swimming Diva

Swimming, Part 2

Each day got better and better. There were three kids in her class, so the kids got lots of attention and support. The two other girls were older than Lilly and at first, that seemed evident. But later on, she was just as big as the other girls. Ms Kayla was awesome. She did an amazing job of staying calm while kids cried, danced, and talked about poop (ok so maybe just my kid) and she really was great at gradually developing their confidence!

Swimming Lessons

Nana signed Lil up for swim lessons. Two full weeks, from 10:00-10:25 every day. We were expecting to get to be in the water with her so we all wore our suits. When lessons began the first day, we quickly realized that lessons were "kid only" lessons and that mommies were not invited to come. This did not sit well with Lil and she spent the first 15 minutes the first day of swim class crying. So much do that we had to go to the other part of the pool do as to not be seen by her. Once she stopped crying, she refused to put her face in the water and blow bubbles. We really were worried for the rest of the time.
Day two, she did much better. She sat for a while in her little beach chair before class began, just soaking it in.