August Photos

Riding Bikes- Modeling at the shoe store- New room set up!

Good luck snuggles for Daddy- Am I as tall as my puzzles?- Deanna Rose

Wyatt and Rex- Hotcakes with Daddy- How many kids can you fit in golf cart?

Shooting hoops with cousins- Jumping with cousins- Sleepy Wyatt

Deanna Rose selfie- Lunchroom selfie- Grant's school journal

Wyatt working hard- Painting the basement with Daddy- Catch!

KC Air Show

It has been 4 years since our last air show, so when we heard the Blue Angels were in town, we knew we needed to be there!!! The boys loved the last air show we went to, and they were only 1 and 3!! We thought Mason and Luke would like to join us too, so they came along! We had to park quite a ways away and catch a shuttle bus to the Charles B. Wheeler airport. I kept thinking to myself- this is great now, but I don't think it'll be so easy when its time to leave (more on that later!).

Once we entered the crowded gates, there was a lot to see. There were also a lot of people wanting to see the same thing. The static displays were ok- not alot of cool aircraft, but a few. We got to see a T-6 that was from Vance, so that was neat! Otherwise, the boys really could care less about the displays. They wanted food, shade, and to see the Blue Angels- all of which were hard to find! While it was a cool event- I have to say it was not managed well at all. There was a good 2 hours where there was nothing flying at all. For an air show, that's pretty bad! Plus, trying to entertain 4 kids with only two chairs to sit on in the hot hot sun when bottles of water were $3/each was HARD!! We took turns sitting on the chairs and then going to sit under the old TWA plane on display for some shade. Back and forth. Back and forth. We spent a good 2-3 hours doing that while we waited for the Blue Angels. When they finally did come on, it turned out we had the best seats!! Front and center right where they did a lot of their tricks. They always put on such an amazing show- just amazing to see them fly in such unison formation!!! So awesome!!!

And then things got really bad- I knew getting to the air show would be easy since there was such a large window of time for people to show up. But when the Blue Angels were done, the air show was over and every single person inside the airport had to hop on a shuttle bus to get back to their car. It was a recipe for disaster!! It took us an hour just to even get on a bus to get back to the car!!  Luckily the boys were soooooo good and soooo patient! I couldn't have been happier with them! I think they learned a life lesson on how horribly people can behave and it was a not a pretty sight to watch!!

So all in all- yes it was cool because a chance to see the Blue Angels should never be missed, but it definitely came at a cost!!! I was proud of the boys for hanging in there during the boring times and the hot hot heat!! Nothing a little Freddy's and night swimming couldn't fix!!

Daddy's Little Helpers

Pretty much since the day Levi stepped foot back in Kansas, his days have been filled with house projects of all sorts! The boys like to get in there and help him as often as possible! So when it came time to fix up the shed, he had to little helpers looking for a job!! 

The shed doors had been rotting since last year. I was just hoping they didn't fall off the shed until Levi came home!! And it was a good thing he came home when he did, because there was only one screw holding up the entire door! So he put his little helpers to work to get it all fixed up!

Grant pulled out every single nail from the boards Levi wanted to reuse. He worked sooo hard pulling out all 16 nails! I was so impressed with his determination!

 Wyatt just really wanted to use the drill, so Levi guided him in screwing the trim pieces back to the door!

 And once the job was almost complete, of course they had to do some manly snuggling!! Well, Grant tried to wiggle his way out of you because that's just how Grant rolls. 

At some point, these little helpers are going to grow up and be just like their handy dandy daddy!!!!

Fun Times with Daddy!

We have been having so much fun with Levi being home. And I'm not talking about just being back in Kansas, but being AT HOME all the time!! It was perfect timing for him to come home the week before school started so we could spend 24/7 together! He's still attached to the Navy til mid-October, and hopefully that is when we he will transition into a new job. So we are enjoying all of our time together while we can! We've eaten out a few times, done alot of swimming, playing, snuggling, riding bikes, and just living life as a family!!!

We have been making a small dent in our to-do list. The first thing we wanted to get done was install the basketball goal we bought on Black Friday. Levi saw the deal online, told me I had to go get it, and there it has sat since then. Taking up almost our entire 3rd car garage. We we all thrilled to get it in the ground!! I think his first four days at home were spent on this project! 

Our to-do list is about a mile long, so we will never really finish it! But it sure has been fun crossing each little thing as we get it done! We are so thankful to have this time together!! 

First Day of First Grade!

I can't believe the day has come that my little buddy is in First Grade!! He has thoroughly enjoyed his summer and I was thinking the transition back to school might be a tough one. But once we got word of who his teacher would be- Mrs. Knapp- he seemed to be a little more excited! Then, during our supply drop off night on Monday, as he was putting his supplies in his desk he said, "Ok, can we just start school tomorrow?" I took that as a good sign that he was ready for a new school year!! 

 He woke up with a spring in his step! He was excited about his new outfit, to bring his new lunchbox to school, and his cool patch on his backpack (thanks to his awesome dad!) We got to walk to school as a family, which was SO GREAT!!!!! 

 We walked back to his classroom, he hung up his backpack and went right to his very own desk!! He is super excited for that this year, since Kindergarten only had shared tables. Then, he just got to work, which was my cue to leave. I didn't want to leave. I wanted to stay for as long as possible. I wanted to watch him and be there in case he needed me. But seeing him feel so confident, I knew he wouldn't. I knew he would have a great day!

 And he did!!! I walked back to his pod to get pick him up and he said, "The day seemed kind of short!" We walked out of school with his buddies, snapped these few pictures, and got a sweet ride home from Eli!

  He said he liked First Grade! They had two recesses where he got to play with Jalen and Eli, and he sat by both of them at lunch, even though they are in the other first grade classes. He had Computer and REAL for specials. They did one math page. And that was about all the info I could get out of him before he and Wyatt ran off to play, and where they are currently holed up in the basement enjoying each other immensely!

It'll be a year of transition- full day school, lunch at school, part time school for Wyatt. But I think before too long, we will figure it all out!! Bring it on new school year, we're ready for you!

Worlds Of Fun Day!

It was the day before school started and the day before Luke's 8th birthday, so the only logical thing we could do was go to Worlds of Fun, of course! None of the boys had ever been there and Levi and I haven't been for 10 years, so we were all excited to spend the day together!! We researched all the roller coasters on the way there and everyone was beyond excited to ride them ALL! Well, we knew Wyatt wouldn't be able to ride too many of them, but he was still excited regardless! 

 After a ride on the Bamboozler, the Viking Voyager, and the Sea Dragon, The Boomerang was the first roller coaster we made it to! I think Mason left his stomach and his courage on the Sea Dragon because he instantly became a little cautious about the roller coaster, but they were still sooo excited to ride their first big ride! Levi went with them and Wyatt and I watched from the sidelines. I couldn't believe Grant was big enough and brave enough to go on this thing! The last roller coaster he rode was a kiddie ride at Sea World when he was 3. This one was no joke! I couldn't figure out how he wasn't terrified!!!! But he had no fear!!

 This is what Wyatt thought of him being too small for rollercoasters...

But after they walked off, I could tell they might not have been as brave as they thought they were!! Levi loved it, Grant had no thoughts about it, Luke said "he regretted it," and Mason thought he might pee or puke. We thought we better take a breather and get some lunch to settle their stomachs. We went to Fury of the Nile next- Levi and Wyatt stayed at the food place, as he had to make a few phone calls and Wyatt wasn't tall enough. Then, Levi, Grant, and Luke all headed towards the Mamba and Wyatt and I were heading to Planet Snoopy. And after Mason's experience with the Sea Dragon and Boomerang, he thought he'd pass on the Mamba and head to the kiddie park with us! 

 Wyatt was so excited to be 42" tall and could ride everything single thing at Planet Snoopy by himself if he wanted to! I rode a few things with them and Mason took him on a few I was too big for. They had fun palling around together!

 The first thing we did was the Snoopy Space Coaster and Wyatt proclaimed, "This is my very first roller coaster of my whole entire life!" And of course, he loved it!!!! 

 He flew this little airplane- he's the one in the front. They got to pull the stick and move higher, just like a real plane. He thought that was awesome and couldn't wait to tell Levi about it!

One of rides has an exit that goes right into the gift shop (genius marketing!) and the most exciting part was....

 Meeting Snoopy in real life!! This kid is a Peanuts fanatic!! He pointed out his shirt to Snoopy and they hugged multiple times!! Wyatt was in shopping heaven in that little gift store! We got two keychains for souvenirs! 

Right after that, the big boys came back from the Mamba and were ready to move on. Wyatt and I could've stayed at Planet Snoopy the entire day, but I was hoping to ride a few things with the boys too, so we moved on! The big boys all went to the Timberwolf while Wyatt and I looked for a good place for us all to get a snack. We got some good snuggle time in here too while we waited....and waited..and waited...good thing he's do darn cute and entertaining!

When they got out, we had a snack stop, and then I took the big boys to the Prowler roller coaster while Levi took Wyatt on the train, the ferris wheel, and the Viking Voyager again. Mason was a little unsure about another roller coaster, but I assured him this didn't have the stomach-wrenching drops like the others did! And after it came to a stop, he turned around and said, "That was my favorite ride so far!" In fact, I think all the boys loved that one! I did too!! 

 We all rode the Viking Voyager again (obviously a big crowd pleaser!!), and the Fjord Fjarlane, and then Levi took Luke and Grant to the Spinning Dragons roller coaster, while Mason, Wyatt and I did the Viking Voyager again!! Then it was time to call it a day, since it was a school night!!

It was a great day, celebrating our last day of Summer and Luke's birthday with some super fun cousin time!!!! We might wait a few more years before we go back, but I know we will be there again someday!!

Build a Bear Date with Grant

Time got away from us this summer and we ran out of time for date nights! So a few days before school started, Grant and I snuck away for a little date day at Build a Bear. Wyatt and I did that earlier in the summer and that was on Grant's list to do when it was his turn! So that's exactly what we did!

He has a soft spot in his heart for his soft friends! Picking one out is about as hard as picking out a pet to buy or adopt. It becomes a family member to him. So after much deliberation, and an explanation to how much our budget is, he made his final decision! A soft and cuddly teddy bear!

 He filled his heart with every characteristic, just like him!

 He added his fluff, but not too much. At one point, he told her to stop and she said, "Well, he doesn't have any stuffing in his belly yet." He said that was ok- that's how Cuddles is and he LOVES that about Cuddles- but he said it was ok to keep going. So after a little bit more fluff, he gave him a snuggle test and thought he felt just right!

 We went to name him and what better name than Snuggles! He and Cuddles will be best friends! Grant picked out a Star Wars tshirt and a blue backpack, so he could dress him for school when he got home. I just love this kid!!

 I love that my big guy still loves his little animals!!! So much so, that he had to buckle him in the car on the way home, just to make sure he stayed safe! 

Snuggles has made a perfect new addition to our family!

Baker Chapel Visit

We met up with Levi's parents in Abilene Sunday afternoon for lunch, and on our way home, we thought we'd drive through Baldwin City. It was late afternoon and a perfect place to stop and stretch our legs. While I've been to the chapel we got married at a few times, Levi hasn't been since our wedding, so it was nice to be there as a family!

My, how they've grown since these pictures....