2021 :: week 25

 

June 13

Lauren paid tithing on her earnings from her springtime "bunny business." She kept track of the money she made and set aside $1 per bunny for supplies and $0.60 per bunny for tithing. I admire Lauren's knack for business and organizational skills. 

June 14

I love summer nights when the sun doesn't set until 8:45pm. After we put the little boys to bed I sat outside and read while watching Will shoot hoops. Will has been playing more basketball since attending camp last week. This week I have been reading Heartland by Sarah Smarsh and Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reed. 

June 15

We met up with the Allreds and Wilsons at Sapling Grove Park. It was so fun to see the five little boy cousins run around in the water together. Will and Lauren cooled off too, but they were more active when we met the Throssells at the pool later that afternoon. Summer is here and we are fully taking advantage of the long, sunny days. That evening the youth came to our house for a pancake making activity. The youth divided into three groups and made pancakes in a different way--one group with a recipe, one group with Bisquick and one group with Krusteaz. The Krusteaz was the clear winner.

June 16

I told Lauren to take a picture of me while I was reading to Miles and Elliott and I was pleasantly surprised by how much I like the picture she took. I don't have a lot of pictures of me doing the prosaic things I spend a lot of my life doing. I know this time with my little guys fighting over the real estate of my lap won't last forever and I want to cherish it as best I can. My children bring me such joy (most of the time).

June 17

Thursday was Elliott's last day of swimming lessons. He passed with flying colors, and spent the later part of class riding down the slide over and over. It is so satisfying to see him overcome his fear of getting his head wet. The world of water has really opened up to him this year. 

June 18

Anthony and I started scraping the popcorn texture off the dining room ceiling this weekend. We still have to get the kitchen scraped, but we made good progress. Anthony scrapes and I clean up the mess. Neither job is glamorous, but it is so satisfying to get it done. The kitchen tear out will be happening next Tuesday. I get very excited thinking about our new kitchen. 

June 19

The Red Sox were in town for a series against the Royals and we took in a game Saturday afternoon. A softball game was rescheduled for the same time, so Lauren chose to play in her game and we brought Knox along with us. While we were sweating to death at the game Lauren played softball and then went to see Peter Rabbit 2 with Memaw and the Wilsons. It was insanely hot and humid at the game. Elliott's shirt did not last the entire game. The Red Sox blew out the Royals 7-1. Dad was happy, but no one else was happy about the score. 

2021 :: week 24

June 6

Baseball paraphernalia is a staple in our house, and keeping the floor clear of it is a never-ending task! All three boys like to play with bats and balls, but Elliott is in the middle of imaginary games 24/7. He swings his arms around all the time, as if he was swinging a bat. He reminds me a little bit of Michael Scott (from the Office) at his improv class when he cannot complete a scene without having a gun. The other night he struggled to sit still and not swing his arms like a bat while we were saying our family prayers. I snapped this picture as I was heading to bed. When I came across these bats and balls and glove my initial reaction was annoyance. But I know soon enough the kids won't be playing imaginary baseball games in our front room and I will probably miss it. I do enjoy the enthusiasm and passion our kids have. It makes life fun.

June 7

I think Monday was our busiest day since early March 2020. Will started basketball camp, Elliott had his first swimming lesson, the floor guy stopped by to get a sample of our current flooring, Miles had a meeting with his SLP, and Will had a dentist appointment. There was a lot of driving by me and stepping up by the big kids--especially Lauren--to make everything happen. Thankfully this is the exception, though with basketball camp and swimming lessons every morning the day took off running.

June 8

When I signed Elliott up for swimming lessons my goal was to get him comfortable in the water before our John family reunion. Specifically, I was hoping that he would be able to jump into the pool without being caught. He did that on the first day! The class has worked out really well for him--boy teacher, all boy classmates, alone time with mom while driving to and from the lessons, extra time in the water on a very hot week, and tons of positive feedback from his instructor.

June 9

The pool was a big part of our week. We were lucky enough to match up with friends each time we went, but the kids had a great time playing with each other too. Now that Elliott will put his head under the water the boys have a lot of fun together retrieving various objects. 

June 10

The kids were over the moon excited when they saw that Holy Spirit was hosting a garage sale again this year. It is something they look forward to at the beginning of each summer and last year they did not have one. They each found a treasure or two and it was under $10, which was the arbitrary limit set by the amount of cash I had in my purse. Elliott was most excited about his batting gloves and I was most excited by the brand new white church shirt I found for him, both $1.

June 11

A really intense rainstorm passed through in the area late Friday afternoon. The sky turned black, the wind was blowing hard and it poured rain for close to an hour. We didn't get any hail, but friends on the east side of the neighborhood did. The wind was so strong a tree outside of Anthony's office window was uprooted. Our original plans included an evening of watching Will play baseball. Instead had homemade pizza and watched the Lindsay Lohan version of Freaky Friday. When your child that struggles to speak insists "I hewp" you let them help, even if it slows the process down. Miles' speech has dramatically improved over the past month. He has started to at least attempt to repeat most things I ask him to, including two and occasionally three-word phrases. We are getting along much better now that he can more fully express himself. He's still two so he's frustrated a lot of the time, but it feels like typical two-year old frustration.

June 12

The Hintons were back in town and Darren, Tony and the boys went to the Negro Leagues Museum. 

2021 :: week 23

 

May 30

We celebrated Uncle Matt at dinner Sunday evening. We never expected to live close to family, and now living close to my parents and two of my sisters exceeds all expectations. Uncle Matt is a great friend and very popular amongst the nephews.

May 31

A little rain didn't stop the Memorial Day picnic from happening. The shelter made it possible for everyone to comfortably eat their own food, though there was a nice break in the rain for most of the gathering. Most of the adults visited under the shelter, and a lot of the kids stayed where it was dry as well, but a few of the more adventurous kids went over to the playground. Miles loved "telling" the Throssell twins what to do on the playground. He would point and they would perform for him. It was such a chilly, gray day. Usually we go to the pool on Memorial Day, but not this year!

June 1

Elliott is Miles' hero. He wants to do what Elliott does and is very interested in all of his stuff. When I can't find Miles the first place I look is on Elliott's bed. He is usually pretty quick to respond when I call for him, but when he's on Elliott's bed he's usually looking at his Pokemon or baseball cards. Elliott is generally pretty patient with him. As Miles gets more skilled and resourceful it is increasingly difficult to keep our house Miles-proof.

June 2

We spent Tuesday evening at the ball park watching Will play. It is so much more enjoyable watching games when Lauren is there to help entertain Miles. Miles seems to like baseball, and he wants to play! He does not enjoy watching nearly as much. 

June 3

We met up with friends at Young's Pool Thursday afternoon. It was our first time at an Overland Park pool since 2019! Only three pools are open this year, and sadly Bluejacket is not one of them. Hopefully there will be enough lifeguards next year. Regardless, we are so excited to have access to pools again and for the ability to gather with friends. I forgot how much I liked this pool. The kids had a blast splashing and swimming with their friends. It was the first hot day in weeks! We had an unseasonably cool May, so the transition to "summer" after school let out has been slow. 

June 4

June 5

We got an early start Saturday morning. Lauren had her final soccer game of the season at 9am. We left Heritage Park and headed to the splash park at the Lake Olathe Park to meet up with the Allreds and Wilsons. The cousins had a fun time playing in the water and climbing on the rocks while the adults visited. Everyone snacked. It was a very pleasant start to the weekend.