Thankful Thursday

I'm so thankful it's summer!

I'm thankful for the beautiful sunny day yesterday. Kase and I played water table and with water balloons all day while we watched the kids at their last recesses.

I'm thankful for picnic lunches in the backyard.

I'm thankful for Kase's new summer 'do.

I'm thankful the weekend is upon us already! I love short weeks.

Have a great day!

Weekend Wrap-Up

Hope you all had a wonderful Memorial Day weekend. We filled our time with family and friends- so fun!

Kicked off boating season with 3/5ths of us "skiing". Ok. Only one (Kent) truly skiied but Kael and Kylee loved the ski trainer!  Had dinner at a fun little place before heading home.

Saturday we had a birthday party with family- the kids had so much fun - Kase was even crying when it was time to leave. Later that night we had s'mores and a fire pit with friends.

We spent our rainy Sunday watching movies. Mary Poppins for Kylee and me, Avengers for the boys. Then the kids went to a sleepover at my parents, Kent and I went for a walk, went out for dinner, and spent time planning more details of our Colorado trip. 

Monday we hung out at my parents and had a fish fry there for lunch. Also enjoyed some kickball games. Came home to ride bikes with family and friends- Kase rode his own bike all the way to Miracle League! I couldn't believe it. So fun.

Hot and tired from the ride, we headed to the pool for a quick hour before it closed. 

Wrapped up the evening hanging in the backyard with the whole neighborhood crew. Ahh. It feels like summer!!!

So to recap...

Boating? Check.

Skiing? Check.

New restaurant? Check.

Breakfast in Collins? Check.

Family birthday party? Check.

Sleepover at grandparents? Check.

Movie day? Check.

Date night? Check.

Fire pit and s'mores? Check and check.

Bike ride? Check.

Pool? Check.

Down time with friends? Check. 

We fit in a TON of fun this weekend!

Just one more day of school left for my big kids after today.  Looking forward to Super Summer 2015! 

Thankful Thursday

I'm thankful for my mom's company. Tuesday Kase and I tagged along when she went to Bass Pro then also went out for lunch with her. It brightened our day!

I'm thankful my friend's girls came to play with Kase the other day! He was happy to have some playmates.

I'm thankful for a long weekend ahead and soo thankful for only a few days left of school!

I'm thankful for a husband who loves me.

I'm thankful for a new opportunity next fall! I will be an associate at the preschool (our church) that Kase is attending. I will be in the three year old room but not the room Kase is in. I am so excited! 

I'm thankful the sun is shining for the kids' Field Day today. Can't wait to wave to them from the deck!

Have a great weekend everyone! 

Thankful Thursday

I'm thankful we have our summer vacation booked. I am so looking forward to going to Colorado with my crew!

I'm thankful when Kase asks, do you wanna sweep wif me? Even when it is 10:00, 

I'm thankful for the Sam's Club membership I purchase yesterday.  I think it opens in a week or so!

I'm thankful our strawberries, watermelons, green beans, green pepper,  lemons and apples are growing. I think we also have one pumpkin growing in our garden too.  I love spring!

I'm thankful for a lazy, rainy day.

I'm thankful there's only nine days of school left!! Come on, summer!

Happy Thursday, all!

Weekend Wrap-Up

What a lovely, fun-filled spring weekend we had.  

Friday, Kent had the day off work.  The parents of first graders were invited to a special breakfast at school.  We enjoyed spending time with Kylee and loved the thoughtful gifts she had made for us.

Kent and Kase had fun watching the kids at recess.

Later that afternoon we headed back to the school for Kael's Science Fair. We spent a lot of time on this project and it was one he was very proud of.  I could see he had fun sharing his project with all the parents and students who walked through. 

After school we headed to Tulip Time.  It was a little chilly which happened to be kind of nice since it kept some of the crowds away! We had a great time walking around Pella, eating some good food, checking out Central's campus, running into family, and seeing the tulips!

Poffertjes!

I think this was called a Triple Threat.  Burger, bologna, gouda and and egg.  I can't even.

Eating pizza and watching a tractor show.  What more could he want?

Kael even held my hand while walking around.  He's not too cool yet.

Saturday we had a busy day- Kase had a Blast Ball game (so fun to watch), Kael had a soccer game (scored two goals and was so happy), Kylee and I went to watch her good friend in a figure skating show (so cool), and then I got to enjoy a girl's night out!

What a treat.  Dinner with my mom, sisters and the little girls. This is going to be an annual thing for sure!

Sunday I woke up and the kids and Kent all had sweet, thoughtful gifts for me.  We spent some time hanging with my family, then had a late lunch with Kent's parents.  We fit in some flower shopping and bike riding, and finished up the night with my faves, watching "funnies" (as Kase calls it) and eating ice cream.  A great weekend!

Thankful Thursday

I'm thankful Kylee enjoyed running the mile in PE. I recall that as being one of my least favorite PE days when I was in school but she loved it!

I'm thankful Kael didn't mind staying home from his field trip when he was sick last week.

I'm thankful that I'm a stay at home mom.  In the last week and a half I have spent hours upon hours doing laundry from my sickies. 

I'm thankful my mom brought over some early morning May Day baskets last week.  It sure boosted everyone's spirits!

I'm thankful for a good friend and her sense of humor- they delivered us a May Day basket, including a basket of toy plastic food.  It's kind of a running joke around here how much Kent hates the million pieces of plastic food we have.  He appreciated her humor.

I'm thankful that my kids didn't mind we  did super easy, quick May Day baskets around here. 

I'm so thankful my dad was able to help out last week in getting Kael to his soccer in Indianola.  It takes a village, no?

I'm thankful that Kase bounced back quickly from being sick.  One night he fell asleep at 5:30 (before dinner) and when he woke up at 4:30 the next morning he ate two pieces of pizza, a cookie bar, a banana, two glasses of milk, some peanut butter and pretzels, a juice box...and more. 

I'm thankful for the safe delivery of a good friends' baby.  Welcome to the neighborhood, Cooper! 

I'm thankful for Kase's first Blast Ball game.  He's been to sooo many of Kael and Kylee's games that it was fun to see him have a chance to play! 

I'm thankful for this girl and how much she just LOVES to give.  It's Teacher Appreciation Week and she was so excited to go buy flowers (roses, specifially- "They're my teacher's favorite").  Also thankful for Starbucks Happy Hour and half price frappuccinos for my girl.

I'm thankful that when I'm gone, I return to the sweetest bouquet of hand picked flowers from Kylee.

Basement is done!

This will be short and sweet, but I feel like as much as I've mentioned our basement project around here that it was finally time I showed you the finished product! Kent put so, so many hours into finishing this basement, you guys.  I'm so grateful that he was able to do so much of it himself and super thankful he took care of the whole thing, start to finish.  I am not good at making big decisions like where to put the shower, what type of cabinets we want, and while Kent always sought out my opinion, he was always the one to pull the trigger.  If it had been all up to me, we'd probably still be in the framing stage.  If you'd like to see some before pictures, click here. 

Of course, there are still things that need to be hung on the wall.  I've seen a fun idea to do a travel wall so I have a big map that's framed and ready to be hung up, but I'm hoping to get the pictures for around the map figured out soon. 

One of the things I'm most excited about in the basement, besides having a couch that is super comfy and actually fit down the stairs, is the tables we found for behind the couch and the barstools.  They provide awesome, and often needed extra seats for when we have friends and family over.  Also, the kids think it is so fun to eat down there while we watch a movie.  

The bar area turned out really nice and I'm thankful for the cabinet and counter space.

This is an old table I put a bunch of pictures on, with storage bins for each kid underneath. Each bin has some favorite books, games, toys, etc.

I'm geeking out over finally having a space to put all our games and puzzles.

The couch.  It was totally worth three trips to Homemakers to end up with the.perfect.couch.

The space is pretty long and kind of narrow but the tables help to separate it into two spaces- the TV/couch area and the kids play area behind.

The bathroom is a nice size so Kent plans to build some shelves to the right of the shower for me.

We heart these tables.

We are so enjoying using this space! I think it's going to be awesome as the summer heat sets in. Love spending time as a family down there!