Weekend Wrap-Up

It's been a full weekend around here! Kase and some friends spent Wednesday at the mall then came back here and had the idea to do a cooking challenge.  My kitchen filled with teenagers will never get old to me.  Funny memories.

Thursday was cousin day at Adventureland! I couldn't believe we lasted the entire day- open to close! Just like I used to with my cousins growing up. Had the best day with my mom, Tammy and her kids and the Vogel kids!

Thursday night was a belated birthday celebration for Kael with Kent's side of the family.  He has been wanting to go to Prairie Meadows  so they all made it happen.  I can't say anyone walked away a big winner but Kael got a great steak dinner out of the night and also family time which he loves!

When we got home from Adventureland I was hot and tired but not Kase.  He put in over an hour workout with arm care and tee work.  He just kills me. 

Got some more skydiving px from Kylee from last week so thougth I would share- she just had a blast!!!

Friday after Kase had Driver's Ed we headed north to the lake! Kase had asked Kent for a smaller tube so he could try to do tricks and Kent was able to buy one before we left town.  Kase wanted to try it right away and loved it!

He also spent time wakeboarding and is getting really close to jumping both wakes!

That sunset!!!! Most of my pictures from the weekend are Kase learning new tricks but we had a couple of GORGEOUS sunset cruise evenings that we all just loved. 

Meanwhile in St. Louis Carter and Kylee were having a great time and looks like they were enjoying a beautiful sunset too!

Kase woke up early Saturday determined to get out on the water before it got too choppy.  I couldn't believe he was on the water by 6:10. 

Grandpa gave him a boat driving lesson on the way.

Kase had a great morning wakeboarding but a little rainstorm rolled in- Kase couldn't have been happier. He was just laying in the lake on his back with the rain falling on his face- good stuff.

Kael had a great weekend too- he just loves playing Clue and card games and is just always up for a cruise around the lake or in the car- we headed uptown to check out some wooden boats and Kael ran into a bunch of guys he knew from Central so that was fun! 

Kase has a friend whose grandparents have a place near my parents' place so she and Kase and both of their cousins have had fun hanging out on and off over the last couple times we have been at the lake. Saturday afternoon they took Kase on their boat tubing for a long time and Kase also offered to teach them to wakeboard so he had his board on their boat for awhile too. Later the girls went tubing with us!

Strong man Kael.  Lookin' good and I just love spending time with this kid.

Kael got out on the tube this weekend too which made me so happy.  Kent just loves driving him- as you can imagine he's pretty tough to knock off since he's so strong  and when he does get knocked off he is such a good sport and just has these epic wipeouts. Look at this awesome shot my mom got!!!! Kael backflipped off the tube!

The cousins had some fun swimming too and honestly it was just the best weekend. Thankful for family and summer fun!!

Weekend Wrap-Up

 A weekend to remember for sure!

Kylee and her friends have been keeping busy all summer- they went to the Farmer's Market Saturday morning.

Thankful for Kent and Kael who helped clean up a tree in my parents' backyard. 

Kylee and her friends went skydiving! She loved it! I'll have to share more on this when she gets all the photos. 

It was State Tournament weekend for Kent, Kase and the Ankeny Crew.  This is our seventh and final year for our little neighborhood, backyard ball-type team. 

We had a huge cheering section and were thankful for the support from everyone!

Keith coached for years and sure passed his love of the game on to Kent and Kase.

We went 4-0 Saturday and Sunday with just an amazing performance from the whole team. We were first seed which put us in great position with game times too. 

Monday Kent was up early analyzing pitch reports. He was locked in and ready to go and just had a great feeling about the weekend. He truly soaked every moment in.

The coaches.

Love this pitcher/catcher duo. 

Kase caught so well. But he pitched even better.  He threw a no hitter with only 40 pitches over 4 innings to win the game 12-0 in the state semi-final. I couldn't have been happier for him or prouder of him.

The championship game was close with lots of ups and downs but in the end we walked it off for a 15-14 win.  Kase had to come in to pitch again to close out the game.  

If you had asked me how I would hope the final weekend of Crew baseball would go, I couldn't have written a better ending.  Truly every single kid played a vital role at some point in the weekend to contribute to the wins. It was a storybook ending for sure. Tears were flowing, there was a Gatorade shower and everyone was just so.very.happy to end our season like this.  AAA State Champs!!!!!

The OG four and their moms. 

So thankful for these boys, their families, and everyone who has supported Crew baseball over the years. No one will ever know the hours Kent put into managing this team and how much of his heart he poured into these boys.  His coaching career has been such a big part of our lives and he has led this team with integrity and high expectations year after year.  To see these boys put it all together at the perfect time is something I will never forget.  Way to go, Crew!!!!!

Weekend Wrap-Up

Fourth of July edition! Kase went with some buddies to Lost Island last week and had the best time.  Thankful for this gang!

We headed to the pond and lake for the long weekend. My pictures uploaded in reverse so please enjoy some photos of my crew having the best time!!! Kase got the chance to try his new wakeboard. 

Fireworks over the lake are my favorite! Clear Lake puts on quite the show!

The neighbors let the kids borrow the jet ski.

We caught a lot of fish this weekend!

Kase and Tyson had so much fun together this weekend- there was a HUGE rainstorm so the boys got to skim board!

The captain of our ship!

Kylee, Kase, Kent and I all skied. 

We love to get patriotic!

The sunsets were GORGEOUS every night.

Kase helped Kylee learn to wakeboard.

And Carter tried too!

Kase is starting to hit some jumps and do some tricks so that's fun to watch.

No trip to Clear Lake is complete without a stop at The Viking.

Tubing was so much fun.  Huge thanks to Kent for driving this squad always! Kase even had some friends a couple houses down join us so that was fun!

And the boys got a night at the pond. Always a win.

I'm so very thankful for a great place to spend the Fourth. My parents are the best hosts and always make everyone feel so welcome and included and we love sharing this place with our family and friends. The memories we have made here will last a lifetime!