2017 :: week 34

August 20

August 21

Solar Eclipse Day! We live very close to the path to totality, but opted not to travel the approximately thirty miles to be in it. I waffled back and forth and am still undecided about our decision. Regardless, we had fun. Tony worked from home and we went up to the school to watch with the kids. Unfortunately it was pretty overcast so it was hard to tell if it was getting dark because of the sun getting covered up or the cloud cover. Thankfully it cleared up right before we hit peak coverage. I believe we had 99.7% coverage. It got pretty dark, the street lights turned on and the cicadas got loud. It is amazing how much light .03% of the sun still provides. A few days before the eclipse I talked with the kids about how important it was to NOT look directly at the sun. Apparently I did an effective job because I made Will cry and tell me I ruined the eclipse. Lauren refused to look at the sun and had to be lead around because with her eclipse glasses on she couldn't see anything.

August 22

Elliott and I are still trying to get into a routine. This is the first time I haven't had a midday pick-up or drop-off in four years! Tuesday we met up with Stephanie and Kendall at Sheridan's for some delicious food.

August 23

August has been a lot cooler this year than I remember it being in years past. We went tot he pool after school Wednesday afternoon and the kids had fun jumping off the diving board. I zoomed in to take this pic of Will and Lauren jumping off the diving boards at the same time as I sat next to Elliott while he played with the over-sized Connect Four game. It feels good to see my kids have fun together and enjoy doing the same things I enjoyed doing when I was young.

August 24

Melanie and Leah, the first family visitors of the week arrived Wednesday afternoon. Thursday morning Elliott and I went over to my parent's house so hang out with Memaw, the aunts and cousins. Memaw bought some lemon cookies that Elliott likes. Tyler, Leah and Elliott collaborated to get some.

August 25

Laura and Jill arrived Thursday night and Friday morning. Friday after school we visited our dad at work. The kids like to m&m machine in the break room and watching the cars drive by on the highway. We have a good dad.

August 26

Our eleventh anniversary! It was a busy day. Yard/housework in the morning. Baptism at noon. Haircuts for TJ and Anthony. BYU football game. Visiting with family. Pool time with cousins!

2017 :: week 31

SUMMER 2017 :: WEEK 11

The week with a lot of housekeeping...

July 30

We went for a family walk Sunday afternoon. I subbed in nursery which is more taxing than a usual Sunday.

July 31

Monday was the first of many days of errands.  The drain next to our hot water heater and HVAC system backed up and a small amount of water began to accumulate on our basement floor. We called Snake-n-Rooter and sent Dave out to clear the drain. In less than half an hour we were as good as new.

August 1

Tuesday we took our car to the Honda dealership to get it checked out before we drove approximately 2,500 miles to North Carolina and back. They recommended new tires and brake fluid. We hit the dealership on an extremely busy morning and after waiting ninety minutes for our diagnosis decided to come back another day. I also wanted to call around and check prices. We met up with the Throssells at Valley Park in the late morning. The kids had fun exploring and climbing after spending the morning stuck in the lounge at Frank Ancona.

August 2

Elliott wants to be like his big brother. Will has been wearing a hat to and from the pool and Wednesday afternoon Elliott insisted on wearing the hat home. We made a late afternoon trip to the pool after a long day of getting new tires, replacing my driver's licence and shopping for travel supplies.

August 3

Thursday evening we made our last visit to Bluejacket for the summer of 2017. Insert crying emoji. The pool was open for another ten days, but we would be out of town. We love this pool and the many neighborhood friends we see when we visit.

August 4

On the road! We had a great day of travel even though we left later than I had planned. We stayed up late and slept in to make up for it. The beauty of driving and making your own timeline. Despite our "later" start we made great time and arrived at our hotel around 8:30pm.  The kids were fantastic travelers! We drove across the entire state of Missouri before we made out first stop. In fact, we traveled through five states (KS, MO, IL, KY, and TN) and only stopped three times all day. I packed a lot of food so we could stop at rest areas to eat. The Smokey Mountains in Tennessee are beautiful. It was so green! We traveled through rain and fog and can understand how the mountains got their name.

August 5

Saturday was another great day of travel. We got up and on the road in good time and were able to visit our friends the Tanzies in Hickory, NC. The kids had fun playing together for about an 90 minutes while the adults visited. They graciously fed us lunch too. We made it to our beach house on the Outer Banks in time for a late dinner and quick trip to the beach. The joyful noises my children made as they frolicked in the waves made all the prep work and time in the car worth it. Look at that gorgeous sky! A perfect ending to our roadtrip and start to our week at the beach.

2017 :: week 33

August 13

On the road again! We had planned on attending church in Mt. Vernon at 10am, but we got up and were finished with breakfast by 8:30am. I found a 10am Sacrament service in St. Louis and we hit the road, arriving with ten minutes to spare. We drove across Missouri and arrived home around 3pm. As great as our vacation was, it sure felt good to be home. We took short naps, unpacked and...got ready for school the next day.

August 14

We got right back in the swing of things and Will started school at 8:10am Monday morning. He was a bit nervous about it, because we didn't know who would be in his class and he hadn't met his teacher before. He was very pleasantly surprised when he walked into he classroom and saw several buddies from kindergarten as well as kids he had played kickball with at recess last year. Lauren had a "meet the teacher" conference in her kindergarten classroom that started right after school started.

August 15

Lauren has been helping me walk Will to school for the past two years, but Tuesday morning it was finally her turn to walk to school for herself! She was very excited to start kindergarten and picked out the new outfit Nana bought her to wear for her first day. After school Will walks to her classroom and "picks her up" and then they walk down the hill together. Elliott and I will wait for the kids at the playground most days.

August 16

Elliott and I spent the morning looking for eclipse glasses. Our hunt took us to Union Station where we spent some time looking at the train exhibit. Elliott loved it and I had to literally tear him away. Last year Elliott and I had some alone time while Lauren was at preschool. but he spent most of it napping. I am looking forward to spending some quality time exploring the world with him this fall.

August 17

Some more garden produce. I am so excited that our zucchini plant did well this year! We added a grape tomato plant this year as well and it has been the hands down favorite. Lauren and I fight over who get to eat them. They are like candy!

August 18

Hillary and Matt drove to from Dearborn and arrived just before dinner. They are both in between semesters and graciously offered to come see us on our home turf. We ate with them and then joined some friends at church for a dessert potluck at the Shawnee Mission Park. We roasted marshmallows and made s'mores. Elliott really wanted to get in the water.

August 19

We hung out at our house most of the morning and then went to the pool in the evening. Hillary and Matt were good sports and went down the water slides with Will and Lauren several times. That evening Matt and Anthony went on a hunt to find cookie dough candy. They were unsuccessful. Hillary and I discovered that Hy-Vee has some pretty decent and reasonably priced fountain drinks. Matt introduced us to Better Call Saul (prequel to Breaking Bad.)

2017 :: week 30

SUMMER 2017 :: Week 10

July 23

While we were eating lunch after church on Sunday Will complained that his tooth was hurting. I had my doubts (he was eating Ramen Noodles after all!) but the next thing I know he was holding his tooth in his hand.

July 24

Elliott is a funny little guy. The older he gets the more clearly he expresses his opinions and preferences. He is very possessive of his towel. My mom bought it for him when we went to Florida and he has been using it ever since. If either of his siblings or parents touches the beloved towel to do anything besides hang it up to dry or wrap it around him he gets chippy. He also commandeered the swim shirt he is wearing. It is Will's and Elliott insists on wearing it. I gave in and put it on him one morning before swimming lessons and now he wants to wear it every time we go to the pool.

July 25

My favorite time to visit the farmstead is on a Tuesday or Thursday nights during the summer. Admission is free, it is open until 8pm, and there are no crowds. I love being able to let Elliott wander without worrying about him getting lost or hidden behind groups of taller kids. Emily and I took our kids Tuesday evening while our husbands were at mutual. It was hot and humid, but still fairly pleasant.

July 26

I decided we needed to get the kids closets cleaned out and went to work on Elliott's closet Wednesday and Thursday. He has the largest walk-in closet in the house, but it doubles as our linen closet. I went through and refolded, washed and got rid of things. I also keep my bins of kid clothing in there. When the weather turned warm back in the spring I went through the kids' drawers and took out all the small stuff, I just never organized it. Finally did that. In the end everything is back in and organized and on Saturday we dropped three boxes and one large bag off at Catholic Charities. I took this picture of Elliott while I was taking everything out of the closet. He is wearing his favorite pj's, which is the only thing he would wear for a few days this week. Later in the week he tracked down the pants and carried them around the house when I made him put on other clothes.

July 27

Thursday we said goodbye to our good friends, the Cooks. They left town early Friday morning for California and we were able to spent their last night in town together. I made pizza, which was a menu staple when we did our babysitting trades. They have been some of our closest friends this past year. We are really going to miss them!

July 28

Friday was a big day for Lauren at the pool. Even though she went off the diving board last year, she had decided she wasn't going to even try this year until after she finished swimming lessons. Both her and Will completed and passed their classes on Thursday. She nervously went of the diving board once, and then spent the rest of our time at the pool Thursday jumping off the board over and over. She was still not ready to go down the slide. I tried bribing her (chick-fil-a, legos, and ice cream were all on the table, not my finest parenting moment) but she stubbornly refused. Then Friday evening while we were swimming with some friends she ran over to me after she had gone down the slide by herself. When I talked to her about why she avoided it so long she said that a lifeguard told her she had to go down on her bum (as opposed to her stomach) and last year when she went down the force of the slide was strong enough that she ended up on her belly a few times. Lauren HATES to receive negative feedback of any kind from any authority figure (even mildly disinterested teenage lifeguards) so she avoided the slides for over a year. I feel like this is a learning moment for me as Lauren's parent that I need to be careful with the feedback I give her and to help her process negative feedback, because life is FULL of negative feedback. It also reinforces what I already know, that once Lauren makes a decision she will stick to her guns no matter how many Lego sets or popsicles she's offered.

July 29

The main branch of our library system put on a Harry Potter party Saturday morning. The kids dressed up in their robes and house scarves and we checked out the fun. Both Will and Lauren played one round of Muggle Quidditch, and Will went on to play several more rounds. Lauren and I went to the different houses and did the various crafts and activities offered there. It was a fun morning. We ended in the photo booth where we got this fun picture next to the Hogwart's express. Anthony was wearing a green shirt and it was a green screen so it looks like he is a floating head which fits the theme. We stopped by Pie 5 for some pizza on the way home.

2017 :: week 29

SUMMER 2017 :: WEEK 9

the week with lots of pool time

July 16

Sunday we attended my grandparents' ward in Hurricane, then spent a few hours at their home before driving back to Las Vegas for our early evening flight. We got out albums full of old family photos and family histories and enjoyed pursuing them. The view from the balcony is gorgeous. The drive to Vegas was relatively uneventful, but it is worth noting that we drove a Nissan Rouge and it made us miss our van. We were all in such close proximity to each other it was loud and hard for the kids to fall asleep. Elliott, Will and I sat together on the flight home and Lauren sat with Tony. We got to our house around 10pm that night.

July 17

We hit the ground running Monday. I wanted the kids to sleep in, but Will and Lauren started swimming lessons at 10am so they couldn't sleep too late. We were all up by 8:30am. That evening we went to the Royals Game. It was the second annual "Mormon Night," and it was a bit of a bust. It was crazy hot and humid, the Royals lost 8-1 (and didn't score their lone run until after we left) and a girl on our row threw up. We did get to visit with friends, which was nice, but the lack of sleep from our trip caught up with us and we left the game exhausted.

July 18

We are taking lessons later in the summer than usual. This summer is our fifth year of swimming lessons and Will is in Wave 3 (level 5) and Lauren is in Wave 1 (level 3). Will's friend Gretchen is in his class and they are the only two that can tread water for over 2 minutes. Elliott and I hang out at the baby pool while the big kids swim.

July 19

Wednesday evening was the relief society summer social. In years past we have had a pool party, but decided to change things up due to declining attendance. We went bowling and it was a lot of fun!

July 20

Lauren has been dying to go to Mahaffie Stagecoach & Farm ever since Will went on a field trip there in May. We had a pretty good time and even learned some new facts. Did you know that the mercury used in the process of removing hair from and then pressing beaver pelts into felt for hats eventually caused damage to the nervous systems of the hat-makers is where the phrase "mad as a hatter" comes from?

July 21

Friday was a three trips to the pool kind of day. Swimming lessons in the morning, quick afternoon trip to see a visiting friend and then a relaxing post-dinner swim.

July 22

We went blueberry and blackberry picking Saturday morning and it was a mistake. It was close to 100 degrees and very humid. There were literal and figurative meltdowns.  The blackberry bushes were very picked over and we ended up getting covered in burs. Elliott ate blackberries as fast as we could pick them. We've had such a fun time picking in the past and did end up with a nice cache of blueberries, but it wasn't quite as fun as I hoped.  I need to do a better job of picking a time to go when it isn't so unbearably hot!

2017 :: week 28

SUMMER 2017 :: WEEK 8

the week of Grandaddio's funeral

July 9

My maternal grandfather, affectionately known as Grandaddio, passed away Saturday evening. We went to my parents' house for dinner and then discussed logistics for the upcoming week. Emily and I looked through old pictures and I found this one of my and my grandpa when I was about one.

July 10

We've been taking advantage of the free lunches offered by the school district a few days a week this summer. The kids favorites are chicken nuggets, popcorn chicken, chicken sandwiches, cheeseburgers and corn dogs. Elliott loves having his own tray. I like running into friends and not having to figure out to feed the kids and having a place we can stop in for lunch when we are out and about.

July 11

Tuesday we participated in Chick-fil-A's customer appreciation day and dressed up like cows to get free dinner. We've done this the past several years and Will has always looked forward to it. As we were getting ready he told me, "This is really embarrassing." I am very curious to know if someone said something to him about it being embarrassing or if he came up with it by himself. We met up with his classmate Soren and family and saw several of his peers decked out in cow gear so even if he was embarrassed he was in good company.

July 12

We went to the kiddie swim Wednesday morning. It was so hot! I think it was close 100 degrees with a heat index of close to 120. Whatever it was it was noticeably hot. Several friends from church were at the pool too, which was fun for the kids. Will played catch with Jack and Holden while Lauren help court with Kenni, Gretchen and Ava. Elliott didn't like venturing too far from my bag and tried to scavenge snacks. I enjoyed talking to my friends in the cool of the pool.

July 13

Thursday evening we traveled to Hurricane, Utah, via Las Vegas. We had a direct flight to Vegas, rented a car and drove the two hours and twenty minutes to my grandparent's home in Utah. It was weird being there without them. My grandpa passed away and my grandma now lives in an assisted living facility. She is in the advanced stages of Alzheimer's. The kids behaved very well on the flight and were troopers carrying their backpacks and car seats across the airport and to the rental car pick-up (which is farther away than usual at LAS).

July 14

We are rarely in Southern Utah, and decided to take advantage of our proximity to the Grand Canyon and make a day trip out of visiting. The drive there was different than I expected. I was anticipating desert and it was really quite green with lots of birch trees and wildflowers. Will guessed that we were passing through a "temperate forest." We met my sister Melanie and her family at the North Rim Visitor's Center and hiked the Bright Angel Point Trail. The Grand Canyon is amazing! It was beautiful and so different than anything I have seen before. The kids were so good and it was great adventuring with the Staritas. Even though we were exhausted by the end of the day it was well worth the trip.

July 15

My grandpa's funeral was Saturday morning at 10am. It was a nice service and I learned impressive new things about him. He had been in a lot of pain in the weeks leading up to his death, but it was still a shock to see his body so thin and old. In my mind he will be eternally 70. It was nice to see family that we rarely see and spend time thinking about my grandparents.

2017 :: week 27

SUMMER 2017 :: WEEK 7

the week where we took things slow

July 2

Summertime is game time. For whatever reason we seem to play a lot of games in the summer. Disney Eye Found It has been in heavy rotation recently. It is a pretty fun game that adults and kids can play together on a relatively even playing field. We really like games that are quick enough to play a few rounds before bed.

July 3

As I thought about things I wanted to do this summer, I wanted to get the kids involved in the community and help others.  Delivering "Meals on Wheels" seemed like a good fit. We have been assigned a route to deliver meals each Monday morning. It takes a little more than an hour and we've developed a good routine. Will and Lauren alternate getting out of the van and walking the meal up to the door. Elliott gets out once or twice depending on his mood. The first few weeks were a little rough, Elliott did not want to hand over the food. Luckily the recipients were very gracious about his death grip on their desserts.

July 4

For the sixth year in a row we hosted a potluck BBQ on the 4th of July. The weather was a bit of a bummer in the morning--lots of rain and storms--that cancelled our plans. We had planned on picking blueberries, going to the Lenexa parade and maybe even swimming if there was time. Instead Anthony took Will and Lauren to see Despicable Me 3 Luckily it stopped raining (for the most part) by dinnertime and our BBQ went on as planned. We watched the fireworks on the golf course in the back of my old neighborhood with several friends.

July 5

Wednesday was a slow day. We watched the Cook kids for a few hours in the morning. In the afternoon we went to the pool. All three kids are getting very competent in the water. Will can tread water for over 2 minutes and swim the length of the pool without stopping. Lauren isn't far behind him.

July 6

We visited the recently reopened Johnson County Museum with Will's buddy Landon and his crew. Tara (Landon's mom) nannies two boys close to Lauren and Elliott's age so there was a playmate for everyone. The new museum is really nice, albeit crowded. The kids had a good time and I enjoyed chatting with Tara so it was a successful outing.

July 7

Friday morning we made plans to go to Science City with the Wilsons. Without checking the schedule I arranged for us to met at 9am. Unfortunately Science City does not open until 10am. To pass the time we rode the streetcar. It was a fun way to show them KC landmarks. When we were finally able to go to Science City we were pleased to see it wasn't very crowded. We spent two hours exploring and playing. Tyler loved the helicopter and checked it out two times. Will and Lauren enjoyed the outdoor playground. Elliott liked the playground and "under 5 area."

July 8

Will and Lauren have become best buddies this summer and it makes me so happy. They've always been playmates and spent a lot of time together, but this summer it seems to be going deeper. They have fun playing with their separate friends, but they have the most fun with each other. Each night they talk, sometimes for hours. They play together and work together as a team, most of the time ;). They make up elaborate games and use their collective imagination when they design their Lego city. I hope they will always look after each other like they have this summer.

2017 :: week 26

SUMMER :: WEEK 6

the "Kansas City" week

June 25

It was almost cold when we went for an short walk Sunday evening. It was only about 70 degrees and not humid at all. Lauren was fascinated by the fairy houses while we walked.

June 26

We were playing a few rounds of Eye Found It Disney Edition when the kids looked out the window and saw a rainbow. It was actually a double rainbow, though you can only see one in the picture. Monday was another unseasonably cool day. The kids went to the park with Soren and Saffi in the afternoon and said that all the lifeguards were hanging out at the playground because there was no one at the pool.

June 27

Will attended art camp at the Kemper Museum this week for the second time. His good buddy Landon participated too. The theme of three days was "storytelling through art" and they made interesting structures, masks, shadow boxes, comic strips, and two-dimensional abstract pieces. The boys had a great time! Interestingly enough, in a class of 20 kids from throughout the metro, we had connections to three other kids enrolled in the class. One girl is a home-schooled neighbor that lives down the street and another two girls are in other wards in our stake. We carpooled to class with Landon, so during class on Tuesday Lauren, Elliott and I checked out the Thomas the Train exhibit at Crown Center.

June 28

Wednesday was our first pool day of the week! It was cold over the weekend and we were very busy. This may have been our busiest week of the summer.

June 29

Thursday Lauren, Elliott and I checked out a storytime at the Plaza Library. They really enjoyed the fireworks craft project at the end. We had planned on walking around the Plaza too, but it rained intermittently all morning. Luckily the library had large playspace with a variety of activities to keep us busy for the two hours while we waited for Will to finish his class. After the class we stopped at Donutology is Westport to celebrate a fun week of art class with Landon.

June 30

Friday was an epic Kansas City day! We started off by going to the zoo with the Throsells in the morning. That night we met the Cooks and the Throssells downtown and hiked around the city. We checked out the park on the top of Cosentino's, rode the streetcar to the City Market, ate dessert and then walked along the River Trail. It was a pretty night and fun to adventure with friends. All three of my kids slept in past 8am Saturday morning so I know they were pretty worn out from all the walking!

July 1

Saturday we took things at a slower pace. We went to Charles Andrews' baptism in the morning,
ate lunch and stocked up at Costco, hit the pool and gave the boys haircuts. And just like that, summer vacation and 2017 is half over!