There is a lot to love about Lowell, and one thing to love is the minor league baseball team that calls the city home. The Lowell Spinners are the single A affliliate of the Boston Red Sox, and they play at a beautiful field across the city. My twin mom's group plans a family outing to a game every year, so we told the kids we were going to a Red Sox game and headed over! The kids were decked out in their Sox gear and were super excited for the game.
Jack
Ben
Someday, I will get a picture with all three kids looking at the camera and smiling. Someday...
If you can't read it, her shirt says, "Lowell." Just because he doesn't play for the Sox anymore doesn't mean we can't wear the shirt to show our Lowell pride!
The boys did great, too! Their favorite part was probably when they got to eat chicken fingers and fries right out of a box at their seats. They also liked the kids' play area where they had a chance to throw real baseballs. It was a fun night and we will definitely go again next season!
We took the kids to Parlee Farms again the other day since they love it there and we can always get some great produce and strawberry donuts at the farm stand. At the animal barns, Jack introduced himself to all of the animals by getting face to face with each one and saying, "Hi goat, I Jack!" Ben followed suit with "Hi sheeps, I Ben!"
On Tuesday, Mairead had a visit to her neurologist at Children's (just a regularly scheduled appointment). He is really happy with her progress and is encouraged by how much she has shown that she can learn. Every time we go there, I have this secret hope that he is going to give me some great revelation about why this happened or what we can do to make things easier for her, but I know that this is never going to be the case. I have a lot of respect for her doctor and I trust him, and he keeps telling me that there is so much we (the medical community) don't know about infant strokes and that a lot of things are still a mystery. He believes that based on how Mairead has done in the past 18 months, she is capable of learning so much and that she will do really well. I wish he or I had a crystal ball and that I could know that in a few years she will be doing great in school, have tons of friends, play sports, and do all the other things kids should be doing. I have said before, though, that a visit to CHB always reminds me of how lucky I am that she is doing as well as she is. There are so many seriously ill children there; it makes you so grateful for what you have.
On a related note, after our last visit to CHB I told you about Ella Grace, whose room was visible from the waiting room in neurology. She had been there at our June 1, 2010 visit and was still there at our last visit in May, 2011. I hold my breath each time I walk into the waiting room and look for her name on the windows. The other day, her name was not there! I am choosing to fully believe that she was able to finally go home and live a happy and healthy life with her family.
This weekend, the guys are headed to a (real) Red Sox game today and we'll all be preparing for Hurricane Irene. The kids were a little concerned yesterday when they went out in the yard and discovered that their toys were all put away. Hopefully, everyone will be able to stay safe and dry and the damage will be minimal. Good luck in the storm, everyone! Nana has informed me that "they" say we should expect to be without power for four days. Not quite sure who 'they' are, but I am guessing Fox News. In even better news, in the event of hurricane, Nana will be coming up to stay with us for the duration. With four adults, three young children, two cats, and Nana all in the house during the storm, I really believe we could be a reality series.
Stay safe, everyone!
