Preston's LAST Baseball Game :(

Preston's last baseball game fell on the same night as our monthly RS meeting. And since I am in the presidency I had to split my time. So once I got the meeting going I ran out to his game, caught him in the outfield and up to bat - there for about 30 minutes - and was able to get some great final pics of him playing the game. Darren and I are unsure about baseball next year. Preston is a good player, but it doesn't keep his short attention span, so we are thinking of something more continual like soccer or basketball. Enjoy the final pics of this season!

Preston running home right as I got there, didn't have time to get the camera set so there is the fence :(

Happy to be able to have run home

Focusing on playing baseball... I mean playing in the dirt!

OK - I really wish I had my camera on the right setting for this picture - it's completely out of focus. But once he figured out that I was taking pictures of him he started posing... it was so funny everyone was laughing that saw him

The game is not fast pace enough for Preston so he wonders quite often

Now that is a great!!! Picture... boy he is really focused

Weston just enjoying his time running up and down the walk ways

Preston up to bat for the last time this season

Getting ready to hit

Got on base - showing me his muscle man arms!

Preston lost his Training Wheels!!!

We are very excited to post that Preston has lost his training wheels! We tried to do this last year but he was too scared! This year he did it - after about 3 side walk trips he was on his own. We are still working on him starting by himself but once he is going he is like a bullet - seriously he goes so very fast!

I was so happy to walk outside and see Darren doing this with him. I didn't even mention it to him, he just did it! He is such a great Daddy for these boys, he is the right balance of man... handy, likes sports but isn't obsessed with them, athletic and has a great build! I am so happy to have him in my life!

Steck Family Reunion

We had the opportunity to attend two family reunions back to back this year - actually it was nice! I didn't mind it at all! The Steck reunion is held religiously very year around Memorial day, this year it was down in Ephraim at Uncle Jacks house. This is the first reunion without his wife who past away last June. It was a perfect day, not too hot and the turn out was pretty impressive. We were the only Paul/Karen kids that showed up though. After 13 years of being in this family I still am clueless on who belongs to who and who all his family is. Darren really enjoys his Steck cousins and likes to be able to catch up, even if it is only once a year. With 8 total kids there are so many family members, I know for a fact that I haven't met them all. Maybe one day. It was a perfect event - we had a lot of fun and so did the boys.

The brothers and sisters - I love how all the boys look the same. My poor boys kept going to the wrong Grandpa! One sister could not make it and another sister past away as a toddler. I also love how all the men's bellies look the same and they have their mouth open - a Steck trait :)

Bryson taking a wack!

All the kids!

Grab the CANDY!!

Preston's score

Grandma Karen helping Weston with his Candy

Bryson was moving the pinata rope and laughing so hard - it was so cute!

Preston taking a wack at the pinata

Darren's Parents (Paul and Karen) with our boys!

Willis Family Reunion

On whim this past January I invited all my cousin's, Aunts and Uncles to join the Don Willis family down at the Coral Pink Sand Dunes. Not thinking much of it and actually thinking that at best maybe 1 or 2 families would come. Boy was I wrong!!!
What started as a whim turned into a 4 day reunion with ALL but 7 people attend. This family of 4 kids and my grandparents has turned into a full 67 strong and growing. How impressive that is! While this was one of the most stressful things I have planned and one of the things I have learned so much from - it was also one of the funniest weekends. We haven't been this together for at least 5 years... I say that shockingly as we all grew up so close as an extended family and after my grandparents passed and cousins started marring and starting families the get together grew farther and farther apart. So really this was so much fun to see everyone and chat.
With 67 people and 35 of which were kids under the age of 12 you would think we would have had fight after fight... just the opposite. It was amazing! Everyone shared, took turns riding the machines, the bigger kids helped the little kids, no toys were MINE, and food was a free for all. I am so impressed with that and it says a lot about how they have all been raised.
All in all - it was a wonderful weekend!
Everyone waiting for the machines to come off the trailer!

Nephew Spencer

Cousin Sally's son Jonathon

The best pic I got of Darren all weekend.

Preston waiting for a ride!

Cousin Russ, Aunt Becky, Aunt Jane and Sherine

Cousins - Peggy, Jamie, Bryan and Lilly

Cousin Lisa with her son's

Bryson playing in the mudd - see how nice and clean he is trying to stay.

Cousin Katie and her son Ben

The results of Preston and Mudd

Nice face!

The very tired Newly Weds - Jamie and Bryan were married 1 week before we left and drove from the California honeymoon straight to the sand dunes... what troopers

The Art and Ethel Willis Family - Est. 1941

Uncle Brent was unable to attend - what is so great about this photo is that I have one that is of them like 30 years ago in the exact same layout - just a lot more polyester and plaid :)

The Ray Willis family - everyone except David and Caryn's family

The entire Don Willis family - missing Jessica and Zack

More baseball

There has been so much rain that our schdules have been a bit open - but then again I say that sparingly as I know we will only have more games into June. But we are loving the games we play and I love watching my boys! If hurt for Bryson, he knows he isn't the best on the team, he watches his brother play and gets sad cus 'he is better then me' - he is sucha tender heart. While he loves to play I am not sure that he 'wants' to play. It just isn't his love, Darren and I are accepting that but not pulling him out. We'll see what next year brings. But until then we will keep trying and practicing. Good job to both my boys, they are such great kids!

Weston enjoying the ball park!

Preston giving me a thumbs up on his way in to the dug out!

Preston sliding into home

The end of the slide! Man what a ball player!

Bryson getting geared up for that big hit

Weston enjoying an Angels game!

Bryson up to bat

Darren's surgery

Darren had surgery on the 23rd of April and the surgery went well - ok so it depends on how you look at it. We thought that his right shoulder would be better off then his left shoulder was... we were wrong, it was worse! so while the surgery went well and was a success, the findings we not so good. They did a full rotator cuff repair, took off some of his bone to eliminate the rubbing, subcronial decompression, and best of all he ripped his biceps tendon clean off so the had to screw that one back in to the bone... 5 hours later we were on our way home! He is doing much better this time after surgery, they gave him a nerve block so the pain wasn't too bad the first 24 hours. However the nurse told me not to start the pain meds till the block wore off... pain hit and it was huge and hard! I called the doctor as the meds weren't touching the pain and he said we should have started the meds as soon as we got home. So basically we are a full day behind schedule... it took us 2 days to get it under control and he was in so much pain those 2 days. I felt so helpless just having to watch him hurt like that.
Now it is a 6 week recovery in a sling, and 16 weeks of therapy. He will go once a week and cannot start to strength train until the end of June... that is killing him. He is a lousey patient - I have told him that - he doesn't keep his arm in the sling, and does far more then he should. But it's his pain and his road back so I back off.
It took me a week but he finally allowed pictures :)


About the happiest he looked in the first week

Front view, the one closest to his arm pit is about 1-1/2" long where they went in to screw teh tendon back on

The fun briusing

All his openings - it's amazing what they can do orthoscopically.