bye-bye floaties

It is hard to believe that swim lessons are officially over. Berkley and Beckham had their final lesson yesterday. They got a chance to show off some of their new skills. Beckham loves the water, and he was very excited each day to jump in the pool.
One of his best buddies, Luke, took lessons with him. They had a great time together.

Miss Mary Margaret gave Beckham a certificate to show his completion of swim lessons and to recognize all of the things he learned!

Berkley took her lesson after Beckham, but she was always ready to watch Beckham and cheer him on.

Brenner enjoyed being at the pool for his brother and sister's lessons too. Most days he got to play in the baby pool, but for the last day he just got to watch the performances!

Beckham absolutely loved jumping off the diving board. He would have done it all day long!

And with such amazing form... or at least style!!!

He did a great job swimming back to the side too. He really learned great form this summer!

He was really proud of himself, and with much reason to be. He did a great job!

Supportive siblings...

Then it was Berkley's turn to get her certificate. She was feeling pretty proud of herself too for her accomplishments!

Berkley also enjoyed jumping off the diving board this summer. She was very comfortable doing it, and she too put her own style into it!

Her form improved a great deal this year. We are so proud of her!
And she might be pretty pleased too!Berkley did a great job in swim lessons this year... even without knowing anyone in her lesson. She had a terrific class and a fabulous teacher.

After watching two final lessons, Brenner was very concerned why he hadn't gotten his chance in the pool. After all, he could only play with his sweet friend Grace for so long without noticing that he was the only one who hadn't gotten to swim!!!
So... he got his chance when the lessons were over and he loved every minute of it.

He was definitely proud of himself! After all, he hadn't even had lessons!!! Those will definitely be coming next year.

brandin' buckaroos

This past weekend was the annual Rock Springs Ranch Branding. My dad has been doing this for several years now at his ranch, and it has become an event that we all look forward to... especially our kids. In years past, the kids have been spectators along with the girls; while the men are all assigned certain "jobs." This year, however, Beckham wanted to participate. (I think Brenner would have too if he had been old enough to make the cut!) Needless to say, my boys were all ready to play cowboy.Berkley had an invitation to help this year too, but she decided she would just watch with the rest of the girls. Of course, she still dressed the part of a stylish cowgirl!Matt really does enjoy this chance he gets every year to play cowboy. (Even if he does feel like a poser!) He definitely looks the part!

Beckham got a chance to ride around with Daddy for a while and loved every minute of it.Brenner even got to ride around a while with JT. He didn't seem to show a lot of emotion, but I think he enjoyed it.It wasn't long before Beckham requested to ride solo. He was so proud of himself and felt like a true cowboy.
After warming up on the horses, it was time to get down to business. Matt has had the same job the past few years at the branding. He gets to "cut." (I won't go into detail on that one!!) JT asked Beckham if he wanted to help "spray" the cows this year with their special medicine, thinking Beckham would be more than thrilled to have a job. Nope... that didn't sound exciting enough. "I'm going to be a cutter with daddy!" he explained to us. So, it looks like daddy was going to have some extra help this year. JT got a "special" knife for Beckham to use, and he was so proud of it.Daddy showed Beckham how to "sharpen" his new knife. Beckham took this job very seriously and quickly got to work.He enjoyed doing it and even tried to show Brenner what to do.Brenner didn't seem too interested. He chose to be the glove man instead. Tasty!Once Beckham had his knife sharp, he took his stance ready to begin. He and daddy took one last look at his knife before they were ready to begin. Beckham wanted to make sure he had gloves too, because he didn't want to get any "bleed" on his hands like daddy does. (Smart thinking!)
Once the cutting began, Beckham watched Matt very closely.He also observed the other cowboys, making sure he knew everything that was going on. He didn't want to miss a thing!He was finally ready to get to cutting. He worked right along side Matt.He "cut" over and over again, never growing tired of his assigned job.

In fact, he seemed to fit right in with all of the other cowboys out there helping.

Meanwhile, Berkley observed all of the action.She seemed to find some of it quite entertaining!

After the first round of the branding was complete, it was time for a break under the shade trees. Berkley and Beckham found a great spot with Uncle Chris.I would love to know what this little buckaroo was thinking right then while he was taking his rest. Too sweet!

Beckham later moved over to a rock by himself to watch his horse, Smokey. There is no telling the dreams of adventures with Smokey that run through his head!

Beckham grabbed a spot to watch the final work for the branding that day. The cutting was over, so he had finished his job.

Later he found an even better spot up on the truck with Marmie and Brenner. The action was entertaining them all.

After a full branding, as everyone was getting ready to head home, Beckham was still busy. I think this little cowboy was already getting ready for next year. After all, you always have to have a "sharp" knife.
There is no question that Beckham will indeed be counting down the days until the next branding. He sure has come a long way since his first one.

the mighty thunderbolts

Tee-ball season has officially begun for Beckham. He had his first tee-ball game this morning, and he was very excited! He does have a little growing to do before he completely fits into his "thunderbolts" uniform, but he looked really cute. Before the game the thunderbolts weren't looking so "mighty." In fact, several of them looked a little timid.

However, in no time they began to warm up a little and were ready to play!

Beckham has several friends on his tee-ball team. Two of his great friends from mother's day out, Nic and Luke, are on his team along with our sweet neighbor, Ella. They are great buds. (In fact, it is Ella's brother who got Beckham so interested in baseball!!!)

Berkley is excited for the tee-ball games too, because she has a friend to sit with this time. Berkley and Carlee are ready to cheer on their brothers!

The thunderbolts began the game in the field first. Beckham took his place, ready to get some balls.

Soon it was time for the thunderbolts to bat, which is Beckham's favorite part. (Along with most of the team!) The team bats in order of their number, so Beckham had to wait patiently. (Once again, he got to be lucky number 7 thanks to Coach Bobby!)

Finally it was Beckham's turn to bat. He quickly took his stance.

He was in deep concentration as he got ready to swing his bat. Look at that face!

Beckham got a great hit and got to run the bases with daddy!

When the game was finished, Beckham was pretty proud of himself. He had a lot of fun!

He was excited to see that baby Dane came to cheer him on. It won't be long and Beckham will be giving Dane some pointers on his swing!

Matt and I questioned whether or not we should let Beckham try tee-ball since it was starting right at the beginning of the Summer and we knew we would miss some games due to being out of town. In the end, however, we decided we would let him do it and I know he is so happy that we did. (Even if he does have to miss a few games!)