Weekend Wrap-Up

You guys.  We summer so hard.  My sister used that as a hashtag on Instagram the other day and it fits us so well! I kept us BUSY while Kent was away.

One night was Little League night at the Jag/Hawk baseball game.  Kase had so much fun and ran into lots of his teammates.  He just wanted to know when it was his turn to bat! Ha!

Everyone else is facing the flag during the national anthem and Kase can't keep his eyes off the high school player!

I had a sweet message from my father-in-law who took Kael to the MB2 raceway last week.

My day with Kael was awesome! He was so kind appreciative  thoughtful. I had a great time. We had a lot of fun together and I am looking forward to the next time!

Kael had the best time and also knows anytime you go somewhere with Grandpa Keith there is also bound to be ice cream involved!

Meanwhile in Minnesota the guys continued to catch whoppers.

And Kase wanted to see every single picture and hear every single stat on every single fish.  This is his excited face when he saw the giant fish my dad caught!

The kids, my sisters, my mom and I all went to see Brooklyn's dance rehearsal.  She couldn't have been cuter up on that stage and her cousins were so proud of her!

Cousins are the best friends.

I didn't get any pictures, but we also spent the afternoon swimming at the Slater pool with my family. The kids loved the small town pool!

Later that night I took my kids to the I-Cubs game.  There was an Edward Jones event so we had good food and great seats! The kids were really well behaved and honestly really enjoyed the game.  I was so proud of them.  Kase went and saw Cubby bear no fewer than fifteen times. 

When Kylee and Kase were walking around a little bit some guy gave them a foul ball! They were pumped! (I'm also LOVING the high ponytail Kylee has been wearing lately. )

They didn't even ask for treats but near the end of the game I offered to buy them something.  You guys we lasted almost the whole game! The kids could have stayed but I was getting tired.  It was just a great night.

Friday, we were all very, very happy when Kent got home! We had missed him so much! Kylee made the sweetest Welcome Home sign. We had fun looking at his pictures, then hit the pool since it was a steamy afternoon!

We had dinner at my parents' house.  Kylee was happy to see Grandpa!

Kael has been really into fishing with his friends the last few days.  I'm so happy for him! They've been having a great time together and Kael was pretty proud of the bass he caught!

Saturday, Kael and Kylee had a triathlon practice, then Kase had a tee ball game.  We have some wonderful friends and neighbors who came to cheer for Kase!

Saturday evening Keith and Cindy took the kids to see Wonder Woman, then out for dinner.  Then Kylee and Kael went to a movie outside and one of Kylee's friend's house.  They got home pretty late and felt very independent!

Kent and I enjoyed a night out on the town! We had dinner at Magnolia- a cute little place near the sculpture park downtown.  Then, we met up with my sister and brother-in-law to see The Nadas play at Nitefall on the River! We have been talking about going for years and finally got there last night! It was a beautiful night- a cool venue, great music and just a really fun time!

Sunday the kids slept in, we hit the pool for a little bit, then Kylee went to a cake decorating party at her friend's house! I think this unicorn cake turned out so cute! Kylee's friend has a little brother exactly Kase's age so Kase got to go over and play too.  He also got to decorate a little cake! 

It's been a fun, busy week and weekend.  We are all happy, exhausted and tan.  We've clocked a lot of outside hours, friends.  How was your weekend? 

Thankful Thursday

I'm thankful Kylee likes to watch cooking shows.  I love Food Network.

I'm thankful made it 27 hours into summer before I heard,  "I'm bored".

I'm so thankful that the kids are excited about using our Adventureland season passes.

I'm thankful my mom went along with us last week to Adventureland! I'm also thankful the kids and I got along just fine by ourselves when we went this week.  The big kids are so responsible. 

I'm thankful for my baking buddies.

I'm thankful for pool days.  Last week we went three times in 24 hours. 

I'm thankful the kids have been excited about the library summer reading program, and also so thankful for my dear friend who works at the library and snapped this picture of Kylee being the very first kid to claim her prize this summer! That means she was the first person to put her star up on the window!

I'm thankful for these sweet baseball buddies.  Also thankful for the popcorn that lasted quite awhile (and helped Kase sit still) so we could watch our neighbor play ball!

I'm thankful for a late evening dinner on a patio with the kids.  They were like, "Mom, can you believe we are eating dinner at 8:00?!" Turns out I'm a lot less structured (and arguably more fun) when Kent's out of town.

I am thankful he's having a great time catching big fish and thankful he sends me lots of pictures!

I'm thankful Kylee had a fun day with my mom baking brownies earlier this week.  

I'm thankful that Kylee was ok when she stubbed her toe pretty badly the other day.  Also thankful for our late night walk and a big brother to help her. When we got home he even carried her upstairs when it was time for bed.

I'm thankful that Kylee talked me into riding the Monster! It was definitely scary but we did it.  She loved it!

I'm thankful we were able to convince Kase to ride the Falling Star.  The rest of us love that one but he wasn't sure he wanted to do it.  We got him to go on with us and he liked it!

I'm thankful we were able to make a quick getaway when a family of geese tried to join our picnic.

I'm thankful when I catch sweet moments.  We were riding the train over the water at Adventureland and Kase grabbed Kylee's hand and said, "Don't worry Kylee, I won't let you fall.  I will hold you forever."

I'm am so thankful for this hilarious photo shoot that Kent got of my dad, my uncles and my grandpa. Apparently there are swings near the cabins they are staying in and Kent had them take these pictures.  My mom and I were dying laughing when they sent them to us!

Summer is off to a seriously good start for us.  How about you? 

Weekend Wrap-Up

Summer is the best.  Specifically the first few days of summer are the very best, right? 

Here are a few pictures from the Day in the Life I posted the other day. Donut day, cupcake stand, pool.  A good day, for sure. 

 

Saturday morning was busy.  Kael and Kylee had triathlon practice.  Kase and I watched for a little while then went to watch a friend play ball at Miracle League.  What a great way to spend our morning.  Then Kase had a tee ball game- luckily it was near triathlon practice so Kael and Kylee rode their bikes and met us there. It was a fun game and happened to be our longest game of the season and also our hottest so far! Headed home for a quick lunch, then off to watch my nephew Huston play blast ball! We loved cheering him on.

After the game, looking for a way to cool down, the kids talked me into going to the Captain Underpants movie.  Huston came with us, and I certainly didn't have high hopes for the movie but it turned out to be even funnier than I anticipated.  A great way to spend our afternoon!

From the movie we headed straight to Tammy's for a pool party! The kids had so much fun splashing around and playing on the slip and slide. 

My mom and Mandy and her family were there too and it was so much fun to see the cousins all play together.  We ordered pizza for supper then had a sleepover there.  It was a great night! The next morning after breakfast the kids went back outside to play in the water.  Loved spending time with my family.  Just look at these cute girls!

We went home for a little bit then I took the kids to the pool.  We had the best time.  Kylee was excited that she is tall enough for the lily pads this year! Also, Kael wanted to take Kase down the water slide but he noticed the rules say you have to be 13 to be able to take a younger kid down the slide.  Kael is only 12, so he very honestly went up the lifeguard and admitted his age, but she said he could take Kase on the slide anyways! He was thrilled and so was Kase.  Looks like my years of being needed at pool are coming to an end! I hardly know what to do with myself. So, I made the kids take pictures we could send to Kent. ;)

Meanwhile, in Minnesota, this handsome guy is having a blast catching walleye!

After the pool, Kael had a soccer game.  A really, really HOT soccer game.  Kael played great and the game ended in a tie.  It was his last game of the season- I have so enjoyed watching him play this year.  

After his game, Kylee went to a friend's house for awhile then came home and said her friend invited her to the pool.  The boys heard this, of course, and decided they wanted to go to the pool too.  So that's how we ended up at Cascade Falls.  Two pools in one day?! That's a great day! 

We wrapped up our evening with popcorn, pop (something the kids NEVER get), and a little Ninja Warrior on TV. 

It's been a great weekend, guys.  Looking forward to more summer fun ahead!

Day in the life

I'm always interested in how other people spend their days.  Thought I would share how one of our first days of summer went.

I wake up at 5:30.  I never set an alarm, but I am an early riser.  Kent's at the gym.

I read my devotional then go downstairs for my usual one and a half cups of black coffee. When Kent gets home, I go for a run.  Once I'm home, Kael and Kylee are waking up just as I get done showering.  They hop in the car in their pajamas and we drive to Dunkin' because it's National Donut Day.  We get home, Kent heads to work then Kase wakes up around 7:30. I start some laundry.

By 8:00 everyone is dressed and ready for the day.  Kael and I go outside to play catch with a football for awhile.  Then my mom comes to stay with Kylee and Kase so I can take Kael to the dentist to fix the tooth he chipped the other day when he fell at school.

It's a pretty quick fix so we head home to bake cupcakes.  Kael has been asking to have a cupcake stand and wanted to  make four different kinds of cupcakes to sell.  That was just a little ambitious for me so we agreed on two different kinds. Kylee goes to play at a friend's house while the boys and I get baking.  By 10:00 we have our cupcake stand up and running in our driveway. Several neighbors and family stop by; Kylee and her friend come back to help makes signs to advertise.  It is a successful morning.  Kael decides to split the money he earned with Kylee and Kase and also decides to put some in his college fund.  So sweet.

We decide to call it a day on the cupcake stand and come in for lunch.  While I'm fixing a gourmet meal of peanut butter and jellies, the kids dust their rooms and do a few other odd jobs.  After lunch I quickly vacuum the house then we're off to the pool!

We plan to meet up with friends there.  The pool is busy but my kids are confident swimmers so I just watch them go off the diving boards and help Kase into a tube at the lazy river and am otherwise available to chat with my friend and enjoy the sunshine! I let them buy a snack at the concession stand with their cupcake money, which is a total treat for them.  I never encourage (let) them spend (waste) their pool time waiting in a concession line and also almost never let them spend their money on junk food, so they know it's a special day.  We spend a good few hours at the pool and everyone comes home tired and happy.

The kids have a little quiet time in their rooms while I bake some monster cookie bars for Kent's upcoming fishing trip.  He gets home from work earlier than usual after a good, busy day.  He mows the lawn, the kids and I prep homemade pizzas which Kent puts on the grill when he's finished mowing.  After we eat, we stop by my parents' house to give my dad an early Father's Day gift (a Yeti cooler that he can use on the fishing trip) and Kent drops off all of his stuff for the trip to load in my dad's suburban.

We're home by 7:00 and everyone showers up to call it a night- pretty early by our summer standards but Kent's leaving at 4:00 in the morning and everyone was tired.  We spend some time relaxing together, watching America's Got Talent before heading to bed.  

It was a full, happy day! How's your summer going?

Thankful Thursday

I'm thankful I didn't lose it when I woke up Tuesday morning and found our coffeepot, which is set to a timer, had filled, but the pot itself wasn't all the way on correctly so the water and coffee grounds had run out all over the counter and onto the floor. So not only did I have to clean it all up, I had to wait for another pot of coffee to brew! I have gotten very used to having my coffee ready and waiting for me when I wake up.  #NorthParkProblems

I'm so thankful Kael is doing ok after a fall at school.  He was running around the pond with his health class and he fell, cut his lip, scraped his face and his knees, and chipped his tooth.  He was pretty bloody and swollen when I picked him up and I could tell he was so upset by it.  His teacher reported that he'd handled it so well and she joked about him just wanting to start summer break sooner.

I'm thankful that I was there when I heard a kid call Kase something at the park yesterday.  The kid had asked Kase his name, and kept trying to call him Casey and Kase was like, "Nope, just Kase." The kid smiled and said, "Ok, Kase-adilla". (quesadilla)  And Kase laughed so hard.

I'm thankful that we played tee ball against another one of Kase's buddies last week.  They were so happy to see each other!

I'm thankful that yesterday was the last day of school! Bring on summer!! 

I'm thankful for the time to make fun summer surprises for the kids.

I'm thankful that these three were accidentally all matching the other day! They walked out of their respective houses before school and just started laughing. 

I'm thankful that the big kids appreciated Kase's and my chalk work after school.

I'm thankful for one last lunch date with this one! 

Hope your summer is off to a great start!