Great Wolf Lodge

So I admit it, I don't have it in me for long family vacations, but what I do love......short, fun, long weekends with the family.  This trip was no different. We set off for Kansas City and the Great Wolf Lodge this past holiday weekend.  Had to stop off at Legends first to get some awesome shopping in!  The kids were so great and well behaved. They enjoyed themselves at Dave & Busters, Brenley liked all the fountains, and we all LOVED the water park.

As per usual, if Brenley went down the frog slide once, she went 1000 times! And Beau was running around having a blast! It was a really fun trip that I think everyone needed.

Beau's Last Baseball Game of Spring 2011 Season

.......and Mama had to miss it for work of all things!  But Brian managed to video it ( too many good ones to choose from!), and the Tigers managed to win. Beau ended the season with a double and two singles.....and he got the final out to end the game!  Fly ball to center field and he almost bobbled it, but came up with it with his bare hand.......and fists in the air when he realized it. Whoo Hoo! Great feeling all around. So proud of him this year.  He made great strides in fielding and hitting. Getting to be so strong. He has a great swing.

He will also play baseball this Fall - kid pitch, and we are excited for what is in store after this!

And then after the game, they were treated with ice cream at Braum's.......oh these boys......!!!

Father's Day and a little ball played

Beau, Brenley and Brian celebrated Donuts with Dad at Northridge on Friday. Not sure who was more excited for the time.  The kids had precious cards waiting for him and enjoyed every minute of having their dad share part of their day with them. Beau got to go into Bren's room to eat with her. Another excitement for all of them.

And now we are wrapping up Father's Day weekend, with a little extra sun and some tired eyes and bodies.  It was a great, albeit busy weekend.  Beau began a weekend tournament Friday night at 5:30.  That game produced a win so we played again Saturday at 12:30.  So after swim lessons for Bren at 8:30 and a protein breakfast, we headed out.

I would say Bren was prepared for the heat, and looking might cute to boot!

Saturday's game produced a tie ballgame (which they allow in pool play) so we took our tie game and headed home, pretty confident that we were first in our pool, which meant our first actual bracket play started Sunday again at 12:30.

So we went home and decided the neighborhood swimming pool was in our future. We spent some time there and ended with a pizza party at home.

Sunday morning came and it brought Father's Day with it!  Yeah.  We love our Daddy. So we opened gifts, ate breakfast, and headed to the ball field......again.  It was mighty hot, but our #1 Tiger fan was there again in her glory, and the boys were ready to play.

 It was a very close game, but we won, which meant we were in the championship game. About 30 minutes later we began play, only to get defeated in extra innings.

Beau Grant played an AWESOME couple games with big hits, and only feet away from hitting a homer.    So proud of our big boy.  And here are some pictures of our Daddy and his Tigers.  

Happy Father's Day to our Daddy, and my Daddy (who is so terrific!) and all the other wonderful father's out there!

Start to Summer

Well, it seems like we haven't done much of anything, but then again, not sure where the time is going!  But to regress just a tiny bit....this is what Beau looked like at the end of his second grade year. My handsome big boy!  I hope you have a great summer!

Speaking of summer, Beau is still playing ball. We have a tournament this next week (Father's Day weekend) and have four more regular season games. So between that and practice, he and his Dad stay busy.

Both kids started swim lessons.  Beau still quite hasn't learned everything he needs, but he really has come a long way. I hope he gets something from his lessons. And Sis. Well, Sis really likes the water and can rock her Hello Kitty swimsuit!

Both kids are enjoying their fun days at Northridge.  Bren comes home with her toenails and fingernails painted a new color every day. And it is really good!  I'm secretly a little jealous of her daily manicures!

The ice cream truck came to visit last Wednesday and Brian asked Beau if he was going to get an ice cream sandwich and Brenley said, "Ice Cream Sandwich?  What?  You don't put ice cream in a sandwich! That's silly!" All said with a furrowed brow (gotta get a picture of that someday!).

We also just had a garage sale this past weekend. We finally sold furniture that we have had since our single days!  Crazy, I know. But someone just couldn't let go of his beloved long brown couch and not sure why I held onto to certain things either! Memories, I guess. But after 10 years.....it's probably time to say goodbye.

We sold a lot of big stuff. It was awesome. Such a great sale on Friday, there was no need for me to be open on Saturday! Even better!  And funny story here is that I kept asking Beau if he wanted to sell some of his toys and that if he did, he could keep the money for them. He kept saying no, he didn't have anything. But low and behold Friday morning before leaving for NRA, when he saw everything out on tables.....he said "Mom, can I go in and get some old toys?"   I was like, "sure, and here are the price stickers to tag them with."  I got busy with something else and when I turned around he said, "Mom, here you go." And I look down to find a Nerf football for $20 ("It lights up", he says, "it's worth more"). Then another little ball was $10.  And well, you get the idea.  So he left and I re-priced them. He was excited that I sold everything, but disappointed when I told him he only made $10. "But Mom, what happened to the $20 football?" Guess we have some lessons to teach in value and how much things cost. ha ha  Sweet boy, though. Just trying to earn a dollar!

So there ya have it.  Quick rundown of our summer so far.  We were putting everything on the calendar yesterday and there are few open weekends now through school starting in August.  Hopefully a camera will be by my side to capture each precious minute!

Memorial Day Weekend

It was a great weekend of visiting family, relaxing, grilling, and sleeping in. Just what a long holiday weekend should be.

I took some extra days off to celebrate Beau's last day of school!  I forgot to take my "end of year" picture, so I'll have to "re-do" that moment tomorrow morning before he heads off for his summer adventure at NorthRidge.  Stay tuned there.

But I also took Friday off just to make the weekend even longer. I certainly needed a head clearing. So we drove down to Oklahoma on Friday to visit Me Ma and Pa Pa. It is always good to go home.

Then on Sunday we drove to McPherson to visit the other Grandma and Grandpa and to get some squeezes in on the almost 3 month old twin nephews of ours. They were adorable. Getting so much personality!  And it was great to see my SIL and BIL fall into such a great routine of parenting twin babies.  It was a great day spent.

And today, well today, we rested......
Here are a few pictures of those sweet boys...

Beau holding Tyler. Pretty good job there, cuz!

Tyler chillaxing

Bren kissing Tyler

Bren not one to play favorites, but Mom wasn't fast enough to snap the picture....she is going in for a kiss on Brandon's forehead.

These boys in their tie shirts.....so cute.

The Zoo

We finally made it to the zoo this year.  It started off as a colder trip, but that meant no crowds, so it was a good trade.  The animals weren't very active, but the birds certainly were.  We about got our heads chopped off a few times from flying, swooping birds.  And then never mind all the geese, their babies, and their poop.

It was fun, though. Lots of babies. Elephants entertained us, and beautiful birds to scare us.

Beau taming the tiger

Brenley not to be outdone

Happy Mother's Day!

What a wonderful day it has been! Nothing crazy. Nothing over the top. Just family bliss.

My husband and sweet kids took me to eat breakfast at Taco Buneo. Breakfast burrito....yummmmm!
I opened a cool hot pink slapstick watch and a gorgeous pink and white scarf that my daughter refuses to let me hold. She claims it as her own. Hmmm...sign of times to come? Here she is sporting her lovely necklaces, my scarf, and her backpack. Sitting on the bed watching Dora. She is in her own world of bliss right now.

Both kids made me sweet things at school. Bren had her footprint with a poem, and Beau made up his own poem. They are just the most precious keepsakes.  And of course I got lots of lovin'!!

Then we hit the road for a quick dine and dash with Mom and Dad. It wouldn't be Mother's Day if I didn't get to see my mama.  I love her so. My kids love her so. So even if it was only for a quick lunch with bonus ice cream (!), it was perfect.

Then my phone went ka-put, so I ran to the Sprint store to get it fixed, only to be told it wasn't fixable, and hey, did you know, you are eligible for a free upgrade?  You don't say?  Hmmm....
So guess Mommy treated herself to a new phone for Mother's Day or I'll just tell everyone that my dearest, hot husband got it for me!  Right on! :)

And now we wait for the pizza delivery man to arrive.......

We're talking pure bliss.......