Weekend Wrap-Up

Oh, how I love long weekends.  I especially long weekends that include beautiful weather, birthday celebrations, and lots of family time.

Friday night we celebrated Kent's birthday with my family.  We went out boating, Kent skiied with a new ski belt and then we had dinner at Sports Page.

Saturday morning Kent and my dad fished while I took Kael to soccer practice and played at the park with the kids. 

We watched the Hawkeye game with some friends- Kael LOVED holding baby Cooper! A Hawkeye win in the fall always makes for a good Saturday. 

Sunday after church Kent's family came to town.  We had lunch at Leaning Tower before the guys and Kaity headed off for a long, hot bike ride! Cindy and I met up with them in Slater where they refueled with water before heading to Madrid, where we met up with them again.  Back to Ankeny for ice cream at Dairy Queen! 

The air conditioner inside DQ had been broken for a few days so we chose to eat outside even though it was 90 degrees!

After ice cream, Kent, the kids and I went to the pool.  It wasn't as busy as I thought and I was happy to squeeze in one more pool visit before it closes for the year. Later that night we had some friends over. It was great to catch up with them and the kids all got along great.

Monday morning Kent rode bikes with the neighbor guys to Slater and back. When he got home we went to Sheffield to spend the day with my grandparents, parents, Tam and her family at the pond.  It couldn't have been a more beautiful day- the pictures just don't do it justice!

The kids caught a TON of fish. 

Grandpa Dean always offers up a dollar for the first fish caught!

Kase did a couple flips off the floating dock.  I nearly had a heart attack.

I can't think of a more perfect weekend to celebrate the main man in our lives.  Skiing, fishing, bike riding, dinners out with family and even an Oreo blizzard at DQ. All of his favorite things. 

Busy doesn't even begin to describe the week we have ahead of us.  We have school meetings, band meetings; Kase starts soccer and Kylee dances at the football game.  Kase and I start our first week of school; we have a family tailgate at Kent's work, there are book clubs, library events...the list goes on. I'm so glad we got to celebrate Kent's birthday this weekend! Hope you all enjoyed your long weekend as well!

Thankful Thursday

I'm thankful that the first week of school is under our belts, and it went great!

I'm thankful for lots of quality time with my littlest buddy.  It's easy for him to get lost in the shuffle (ie: taken everywhere his big siblings want to go) all summer long.  I am soooo enjoying being able to sit and read books with him for hours at a time if we want.

I'm thankful my mom has been available to watch Kase this week as I've been up at the preschool doing some training and room prep. 

I'm so thankful for a wonderful team at preschool.  We really have a great group of teachers and I'm so excited to be a part of it!

I'm thankful for a long weekend ahead. Looks like temps will be h-o-t so we should be able to hit the pool one more time before it closes!

I'm thankful for the busy-ness that is fall.  It feels so good being back in a routine.

Lots to be thankful for, not lots of time to write.  Happy Thursday, all!

Weekend Wrap-Up

Not a lot of time today to write, but want to stay caught up on our weekend happenings.

Friday it was rainy and the kids were tired from the first few days of school.  We got in jammies early and held our First Annual Family Fantasy Football Draft, which mostly consisted of Kylee and me asking Kent and Kael, "Is this guy good? Should I pick him?" So fun.

Saturday we bowled with some good friends- Kael and his friend tied with a score of 99! We had a great time.

Saturday afternoon/evening we spent in Collins, celebrating Kent's grandparents' 80th birthdays. What a great night of family fun- I just love this picture of our whole crew. 

Sunday evening Kent had (another) Fantasy Draft, so my parents picked the kids and me up and we headed for Sonic for a little outdoor dinner.  

Monday rolled around and Kael was excited for his post on Safety Patrol! He looks so grown up. 

This week marks my first week of work outside the home in nearly ten years, so it's been off to a fun start! I am loving being a part of preparing preschool rooms and can't wait for Meet the Teacher night tonight! It's going to be a GREAT year!

How's your week going?

Back to School!

Today's the first day of fifth grade for Kael and the first day of second grade for Kylee.  Kael was ready to go and just seemed so grown up.  Kylee was fine but wasn't really excited to go.  "I just loooove summer, Mom.  And this one was the best ever." I hear ya, Ky.  I really do.  It was one for the record books, no doubt.  But I'm convinced this school year has all the markings of becoming Best Ever too.

I always make muffins on Wednesdays, and I try to have a little Back To School gift waiting for them before school. 

I let the boys have full reign when it cam to picking out backpacks this year.  Kael's is a pepperoni pizza and Kase's backpack is bigger than him.  But the shark mouth does open and close when you squeeze the backpack straps.  So there's that. 

We have quite a crew! A full front porch, and a very full heart. 

The house always seems painfully quiet to me after the big kids go to school.  I'm so thankful I still have my Kaser home for a couple weeks and also thankful for a friend who stopped by so we could have some coffee and watch the kids at recess.  Kael gave me a cool nod and a wave, to which I was very grateful.  I wasn't sure if fifth graders waved at moms or not.  Kylee ran up near the fence line and gave me a big thumbs up, so that was great too.

It's been a great day, with Kase and I having popsicles on the deck, a picnic lunch out back, and practicing for Halloween (his idea- which consisted of putting on cowboy boots and a funny hat and carrying a jack-o-lantern bucket around). He also helped me make a blueberry pie because I know Kael and Kylee will be thrilled to come home to that.

How did back to school go for you and yours?

Weekend Wrap-Up

As far as The Last Weekend (before school starts) goes, I'd say we had a pretty good one.  Temps were a little chillier than usual for this time of year so we didn't go to the pool, but we certainly made the most of the fall-like weather!

We made some salsa with tomatoes from Kent's grandpa's garden. Kylee did everything, start to finish, including lots of taste-testing to adjust seasonings.  It turned out great!

Friday night we went to Exile with Kent's family.  As you can see, they're no fun at all. ;)

After Exile, we walked around Gray's Lake for awhile.  It was such a beautiful night.

Saturday morning we rode bikes to the Ankeny Farmer's Market, which is much bigger than the last time I'd been.  We had a blast. Later that day, Kent and his dad went for a longer bike ride and we met them for lunch.  That evening we just hung around the park and neighborhood with friends until the storm rolled in. 

Sunday, my parents had just gotten home from a trip, so we went to their house to see pictures and have lunch with them.  Later in the day we went to the library, played a little tennis, then Kent had his draft.  It was a great weekend, and I *think* we're all ready for back to school this week!