Charlotte Mae is here!!

Well, my neice, Charlotte Mae Mcaffry made her way into this world last night @ 10pm....She weighs 8lbs 4oz, 19 1/2 in long....It was a wonderfully, long, long, long day for most of us,,,ESPECIALLY my beautiful sister in law, Sarah, who, in my opinion was the MOST gorgeous, laboring AND delivering, new mama you would ever see!! She did soooo great and Im so proud of her for experiencing that with such dignity and grace....Everyone woman thats been there knows what I'm talking about,,can I get an AMEN!!! LOL....I wont post much about this experience because I know the best is YET to come, when Sarah updates her blog, about this beautiful little baby born to us from Heaven, named Charlotte Mae.."Children are a gift from God". Thank you Lord for making me an aunt, again....

Cades Cove bike ride-11miles

Last Saturday this Lonas clan ventured out w/another family to ride the Cades Cove loop (in Townsend, Great Smokey Mtns) on our bikes.The loop is right at 11 miles long, so as you can imagine, this was no small feat for me!! We went w/the Keeble family (Jason, Deidre, Kailey and Ty; we were missing their eldest, Calvin), but they were so supportive and very helpful as to what it takes to ride this trail w/endurance and of course, enough rest stops (looking back, Im thinking those were meant MOSTLY for me, but we'll just say EVERYONE needed it..lol)...We started off, it was a BEAUTIFUL morning, not too hot yet, just perfect...Now, to recap, there was probably about 10 of us, cuz remember we both have pretty big families, so we had to pace ourselves....The loop has many uphills and downhills, but very equal, so everytime you were pushing yourself, struggling to get uphill, you knew in the back of your mind, there was ALWAYS a downhill waiting for you somewhere...thats what saved me..ha ha...So, were going at a pretty good pace, on our bikes, and then about a 1 1/2 miles into it, I hear Jake crying..Now, this is not a sound you want to hear about 100 ft in front you, and not able to see..He wrecked, and it was not pretty, according to my husband, he couldnt control his speed going down a BIG hill, and apprantly wiped out, flipping off his bike about 4 or 5 times...Well, a few crocodile tears and a couple bandages later, we were back to the trail..I have to admit, I was getting tired by the 8th mile, then miraculously my 2nd wind kicked in...By that mile, we ran into a park ranger who said there was a black bear not too far ahead of us, that was spotted...We never did see the bear, but we saw several deer, one of which , was right next to my friend Deidre...All in all, we finished the whole 11 miles...And did I mention, my kids did it too!! They were such troopers....Glory be to God, we have this kind of blessing to look at everyday, in our little East Tennessee dwelling...It was a GREAT day!!

New Family Pics!!

Well, my sweet "SIL"..(Thats what I call my sister in law, Sarah) has come, once again to take some pics of our family...But this time its for my long awaited niece thats due this month, Charlotte Mae!!...Sarah's idea to put pictures of the family in Charlotte's nursery is a GREAT way for her to get to know us, by seeing us everyday and recognizing her cousins, that love her dearly already!! Sarah is a very talented photographer and I know working with THIS family is no easy task...lol...but she always does it w/patience and grace....and tonight, I was thinking we'd add labor contractions to the list!! Charlotte is due to arrive anytime now...Cant wait to meet you, sweet neice, and show you your family!!..

The Twins are Here!!!

Well, My cousin Amy in California had her twins a couple days ago....From what I hear Mother and babies are doing just fine...and big sister Allie!! Im so excited for them, what a wonderful blessing, to have 2 !!! "Children are a heritage and a blessing from the Lord"....Amy and Robert are a beautiful and amazing example of Christian love and marriage and I pray for them as the embark on a new and exciting adventure...They went from 1 to 3 children in the blink of an eye!! Isnt God neat??....Now, all I can say cousin, is were tied.....LOL...Love you and God Bless you always w/these sweet little ones...

The Tooth Fairy

Well, my baby boy, Jacob Ryan Lonas, has lost his FIRST TOOTH!!! Alert the press!! It had been loose for awhile, probably about a month or so, but this past couple days, it was just dangling!! It was ready....So Jake, as he usually does, somehow retreived a sucker from Monie and Pops (Russ' mom and dad),without asking, and as he was pulling it out of his mouth, it pulled his tooth out as well!!! OH BOY, WAS HE EXCITED!! He KNEW the tooth fairy was going to swoop into his room that night and pay him a visit, when I say "pay", that means something else...lol...So he got his shiny dollar from the tooth fairy and all was right in the world of a 5 yr old that night...

CHEETAHS ARE #1 !!!!!!!!!!!

WOW!! All I can say is WHAT A DAY!!...The Cheetahs played their very, very best yesterday in Crossville, and came out VICTORIOUS!! Despite a hot, tiring and exhausting day, full of tears, sweat (including the parents side), a little drama, a pinch of frustration, some physical illness, and being so nervous, sitting in your chair was no longer an option,,,we STILL came out and became the CHAMPIONS !!! I know Ive said it before, but Im SO PROUD of these girls, they played so well, gave their all and they SO TOTALLY DESERVE THIS!!! And I couldnt mention them, w/o mentioning their Head Coach, my hubby, Russ..(ok-cue mushy-ness)..My husband is the most hard working, dedicated, passionate and loving man any wife could ever ask for..His heart is bigger than anyone REALLY knows, and he loves these girls SOOO much, he fights for them and sometimes fights WITH THEM, but ALWAYS out of love for them to be the best they can be and see it to the end, so that they know they will ALWAYS be winners, no matter what...I love you honey, you're the best coach and husband, and Im VERY proud of what you've accomplished...A special thank you to Jason Keeble, Jason Deck, Lance Fuson and Cora Woods, you know Russ owes you his life (in softball land, anyway..lol). You all were the DEFINITE backbone of this team, and NONE of this could be accomplished w/o you, so thank you...Thank you to all the parents for their support and love for the game, and a special thank you to Shannon Hughes for supplying alot of the pictures of the team, Lord knows they'd be 21 and grown by the time I had MINE developed...Renee knows what Im talkin about,(note to self:change Emma Grace's pic once in awhile, she ISNT 6 mos old anymore, and has blonde hair now)...Last, but DEFINITELY not least, the girls...These girls are AMAZING....COURTNEY-"speedy", always willing to run 1/2 mile in 1.2 sec to get the ball there, Congratulations on winning 2nd place in "fastest runner"!!....KAYLIN-our mighty 1st-baseman, you are the "heart" of this bodily team, the body cant function w/o the heart, and you were always there to get the out for the team, great job..KASSIDY-All I can say is you might be the "cub" of the team, but underneath is a large FIGHTING CHEETAH! You never ceased to amaze me w/how tough you are, even after a broken nose, you got out there and finished the game..so proud of you, and I know coach is too...KAILEY K- YOU GO GIRL,, MRS. MVP!!!..You amaze me w/ your athletic ability , at such a young age!! Can I get your autograph now, before you become famous and its really expensive??? lol....LAUREN-This girl, Ive known for awhile, and how good she is @basketball, but now I see her playing softball, WOW! A consistent hitter, way to go girl, thanks for playing w/us!! HALEY- This girl just cracks me up!! Despite being a great catcher (way to go on that pop fly too!), she is also a sweet ,sweet girl, instead of practicing w/the girls, she was more content to walk around giving everyone a backrub!!..Too cute..KAELEE- every team needs a great outfield, or they cant do the job, you showed your true talent out there yesterday, and one more thing, ALWAYS listen to your mother, she can teach you ALOT about this game..SYDNI-"Cindy-Lou"-Ive know this girl since she was born, and dont let that red hair fool you!! SHE'S FIESTY!!..Much like another daughter to me, Syd and Aud have ALWAYS been together, like sisters, and now they get to play softball, as well..GREAT hitter and GREAT at catching pop flys!!....AUDREY- my babydoll, wow, I cant believe you've been playing now for almost 5 yrs!! 3rd base is hard, but you field it well, Im so proud of you, and I know its hard sometimes, but listen to your daddy, he knows what he's talking about(well, most of the time..lol)...KELSEY- you prove at every game, you were meant to play 2nd base...your thinking is ALWAYS quick and ALWAYS very calculated, and THATS what it takes to be a great 2nd baseman..great job!....JAYLA-Our secret weapon!!-This girl can HIT the ball, even though she just started w/us at the tournament yesterday, she proved already she's a Cheetah.....And last but not least, it wouldnt be right w/o mentioning the few players who didnt join us yesterday, but were still w/us in spirit, and who helped in making this team who it is, and thats OLIVIA, ALEAH, AND APRIL...We STILL love you girls and are proud of all you've accomplished on this little Cheetah team from Eagleton..thanks for being apart of this team...Well, thats all I guess..More than just winning, may we ALWAYS remember this as a wonderful time in our childrens lives...These girls sure do LOVE their softball........Thanks for the memories girls.....

Crossville, Here we come!!

Well, the Cheetahs are heading to Crossville this weekend, to play in the ISA World Series Softball Tournament, AND I couldnt be more proud of these girls!! (esp. the 3rd basemen, who just happens to be my baby girl #2)....Anyway, they were invited to come play w/4 other teams, after placing 3rd out of 10 teams , at the last tournament...Russ is the head coach of the Cheetahs, so there's much pride at our house right now , not to mention numerous trophies...Pop's gonna have to build us a trophy case now!! LOL...Im so excited for these girls, they've worked sooo hard and sooo deserve this, as does coach Russ!! Please pray for the girls and their safety during these games, because unfortuntely, last time, we had a horrible accident, when our left fielder, Kassidy, was reaching for a fly ball, and was hit directly on top of her nose which made one terrifying "POPPING" sound and broke her nose....Let me tell you, as a mother, (and I speak for all the mamas that day) that is NOT a sound you want to hear over 500 ft away, coming from your baby...The force of the ball hitting her was so hard, that it knocked her head back, and knocked her to the ground...All the moms had their hands over their faces, crying for sweet Kass...But she went to the hospital, was healing well, and was at our practice last night, like the little fighting Cheetah she is, and back on our team...So, please remember these girls this weekend, they sure do LOVE their softball!!!

Fun in the Sun

Well, apparently Maryville (where we live, for you California folks), has a new water spray park on the Maryville College campus, for the kiddos to run thru, much like Splash Country (again, for California family, thats Dollywood)....Anyway, we ventured out, as we usually do, in search of this new found treasure for my kids, and much to my dismay, an employee there said they were closed temp for insurance reasons....Maybe a kid fell, or something, who knows....Well, my babies were all upset over it, and dissapointed....So we took our fresh cheese pizza we had just got from Little Ceasars and headed back home to just sit,,,,when I realized our wonderfully giving neighbor, Frank Mimbs, told us the day before we could go swimming in his pool anytime!! YEAH, YEAH, YEAH! The kids shouted!! So we did just that, Emma Grace slept most of the time in the van, w/the doors all open to feel the airy breeze we were fortunate enough to have, even in July , and just swam and enjoyed ourselves for a couple hours....Thanks for the fun day Frank!!