Running into Fall

The calendar still says August, but our life says it's FALL! As much of a summer girl that I am, I love fall just as much. Football, cool temps, sweatshirts, pretty leaves--I'm so ready for it all. We're beginning to settle into our new routine around here. School's going well, although I'm afraid Braylen's teacher knows him a bit too well. See, she's our neighbor, and her husband works with my husband. I guess that's what happens when you live in a small town! Anyway, she wrote a note in Braylen's planner on Friday that describes him so well you'd think she knew us or something. :) She said, "Braylen has AMAZING ability! Working on following directions and avoiding unnecessary talking." Ha! Now it's not just his mom and dad telling him he talks too much! "Unnecessary talking" is our new catch-phrase around here. :)

Kaleb's played 2 soccer games so far and he's having so much fun. I wish you could be here for these games, Grammy and Grampy! Next best thing are pictures, so these are for you.

Kaleb and his trademark "thumbs up" to Daddy on the sidelines!

Aaron watching the game from his chair

Ginger had a big week this week. Let's just say we won't have to worry about raising any more puppies around here. :) I had quite an interesting time explaining this surgery to Braylen and Kaleb. Thinking back to when I read them the story of Marley, I reminded them that even boy dogs need to have this surgery done. Big mistake! Their next question was, "You mean boy doggies can have puppies too?" Oh man. It all went downhill from there... Ginger, however, is doing well! Honestly, I couldn't even tell she had anything done. She has as much energy as my boys do!

Ginger at 20 weeks

Last Sunday, Aaron became my first son to be stung by a bee. Poor kid was just minding his own business, and next thing we knew he's screaming! No harm done though, as he recovered quickly. Still, I felt the need to take him out for ice cream during Kaleb's soccer practice that day. Anyone who knows me well knows I'll use anything as an excuse for some ice cream! Another thing about Aaron this week--he loves killing flies with his bare hand. He'll slap 'em so fast they don't stand a chance. Ginger snaps them out of the air; Aaron smacks them to smithereans. I might not need my fly swatter anymore. :)

As Kaleb grows, it's fun to see him reach some milestones of his own. Braylen paves the way, and Kaleb waits for his turn. This week Kaleb learned to mow the lawn! Derek helped him turn the mower, but that's about it. Kaleb did a great job and felt so proud of himself. Derek's so good about teaching our boys responsibility early on. He knows how much of a boost it is to their self-esteem when they see themselves doing things that Daddy can do. :)

This weekend we've enjoyed a visit with some very good friends. They live out of state, but we manage to see them several times a year. They have a little boy who's not quite 2 years old, and a 6 week old baby girl. I just loved our visit together. I know our friends are weary--little ones do that to you. And I don't think they believe us when we tell them it goes so fast...that's just something you figure out for yourself. I snuggled with the baby as much as I could. I'll honestly admit I liked giving her back at bedtime. ;)

Shocked to see me holding a pink bundle? Looks so strange to me!

One more week with Aaron at home before he starts his second and final year of preschool. He keeps telling me, " This is your last year with me at home Mommy!" As if I needed reminding. I just love my little boy being home with me for one more year. He has such a fun personality. Even though it wears on me at times, I wouldn't trade this year in for anything. Next year will be so quiet. Let me enjoy one more year of my boy's noise. :)

Aaron's got spunk!

This is what happens to little tyke cars when boys outgrow them. They even give rides to little brothers!

School Daze

This past week launched a brand new school year for us! As sad as I am to see the end of summer vacation, it is refreshing to see my boys excited to go back to school. 4th grade and 2nd grade! I feel like we're in the heart of our elementary years now, and I'm REALLY loving these years! Friday night, August 14th, we enjoyed our school's open house. Music, colored disco balls, and friendly faces greeted us that night. Due to the way our school is structured, we are a tight-knit group. I admit it felt a bit like "coming home" when we walked through those doors. It does a mother's heart good to walk into her children's school and feel that way.

Checking out 4th grade at the open house!


Kaleb is so excited to have his own locker this year!

Monday morning came bright and early, and everyone got ready without any trouble. Aaron chose to sleep in, so when it was time to go I scooped him up and plopped him in his car seat. Only one more year of that. . . Of course I took pictures of my school boys on the front porch. These days really are special to me.

Backpack full of new school supplies for 4th grade

Looking good in his new shoes for 2nd grade

Back-to-school-brothers

After school, Aaron and I surprised the boys by bringing along a special guest in the minivan--Ginger! I felt like an all-American mom picking up my boys from school with my happy dog waiting to see her "brothers." An ordinary thing, I know, but it's new to us. :)

As we settle into our new schedule, I'm seeing life kick into high gear real quick. Curriculum nights, PTO meetings, soccer games, dog obedience school, homework, Cub Scouts, piano lessons, flag football, Awana...it all leaves me feeling dazed and confused. I want to enjoy what we're doing and not just get through it! Thankfully I don't handle this alone. God is bigger than my schedule!

Not to be left out, Aaron had his preschool open house on Thursday, August 20th. To be honest, he's never told me he loves preschool. Last year he complained almost every day about it. But when he's there, he lights up and loves it! Hmm. When I told him about his open house this week, he complained again. "Mommy, I'd rather stay home with you. Preschool is BORING." Well, as soon as we set foot in the church Thursday night he lit up with delight. An armoured knight stood in the entrance next to a table of special cookies with frosted crowns on them. The rooms are decorated in a castle theme, complete with a "throne" to sit in when he's the star of the week. He spent most of his time at the sand table, and I didn't hear one complaint all night. His favorite part was the "jump-a-roo" castle outside the back door. Aaron, his brothers, and his daddy jumped and jumped in there! What fun for Aaron!!!

All smiles

Camouflage shorts x3

To end this post, I've got more funnies from Aaron of course! He's really taken a liking to Capri Sun drink pouches lately. Every time he wants one he says, "Can I have my Sun Capri now?"

He came into the house one day and said this to me:

"God can make the world into a hawk. Did you know that Mommy? He can make a vacuum into an eagle, and me into a fingernail. That would be funny to see a fingernail walking around all day! He really can do that--He can do anything! And when I say anything, I mean EVERYTHING!"

Just a tiny peek into his mind. :)

Birthday Mama

Turning 33 was not so bad. I slept in. I enjoyed a quiet morning by myself while my husband and sons shopped for my gifts. I was treated to lunch where I had not only my favorite tea but a chocolate shake too! In the afternoon we rode bikes as a family at a park we all love. In the evening we gathered with extended family to celebrate Braylen's birthday along with mine. Having a Saturday birthday as an adult is the GREATEST thing! I felt pampered all day long. Quite a nice feeling, since August is such a jam-packed month for us. I enjoyed every bit of my one day off. :)

Getting ready to open my gifts--Aaron calls his hippity-hop his "big bottom."

Braylen's cupcakes and my peach cobbler--yummmm!

I finally have a boating hat so I can match ALL of my boys!

I love this picture of our family--love it love it!

Putting a Bow on Summer

It's hard to believe, but summer is on it's way out the door. Glorious, hot, water-fun days will now be turning into school, fall sports, and cub scouts days. Definite fun times ahead, yet I'd like to linger in summer a bit longer.

After our trip to Omaha, we spent 5 days at the lake and cabin. What a blessing to get away from it all and do nothing but enjoy a slower pace of life. We went boating every day, the boys went on lots of bike rides, and Derek even did some night fishing. Some good friends joined us on Sunday and we had a blast! Aaron and Kaleb knee-boarded for the first time and did fantastic. Derek and I went knee boarding too, and it was a fun change from skiing and tubing. I think knee boards might be on our Christmas list this year. :) It's fun to pull 2 knee boards at the same time and watch the kids play--or the adults! Of course the kids also loved tubing on "Big Mable."

Aaron loved to wash dishes at the cabin

My boys experienced riding a bike on gravel roads and loved it of course. While riding on the gravel, Aaron said, "It sounds like firecrackers!"

Derek with Ginger at 4 months old

Although we had lots of fun at the cabin, I'll admit it was nice to come back home. :) We celebrated Braylen's birthday the very next day. The rest of the week we hung out at home, wrapping up summer. The highlight for me was our last trip to the pool on Friday. Kaleb just loved the diving boards and water slide. Braylen brought a friend, and Aaron swam all over the pool with me. My little boy. Of course during the breaks I did some lap swimming, which I love to do. Friday night our school had it's open house, and the boys saw their classrooms and teachers. I'm always impressed with our school and what the staff does to make the kids feel welcome.

Saturday was MY birthday, and that is for another post!

Funnies from the week:

We caught Kaleb zoning out at supper one night, and when we asked him what he was thinking about he said, "I'm daydreaming about a lake of meatballs."

Braylen had a dream that I let him do anything he wanted for an entire day. He chose to drive around town all day and crash into cars--including police cars. When I asked him what he'd really like to do if I let him do whatever he wanted, he said, "Drive!" That boy has loved cars since he could crawl.

Kaleb's white-blond hair has been compared to many things: a fuzzy white dandelion, a q-tip, a marshmallow, etc. This week I heard two new ones: vanilla hair (from Braylen), and when looking at whitecaps on the lake the boys said, "Look! Kaleb heads!"

Aaron wonders why we can hear with our ears, but not with the other holes in our body--like nostrils and bottoms. . .hee hee!

The First Decade

Here's a short & sweet version of why the past 10 years of my life have been so incredible! I LOVE MY SON!!!!! Happy Birthday to you Braylen. I'm blessed to be your mother.

Today, Braylen's 10th birthday, brought a beautiful sunshiney day. We enjoyed a relaxing morning and spent the afternoon with 20 other kids at our friends' lakehouse. Plenty of swimming and fun with other kids! Back at home, he opened gifts from family and used his new tool set to put his new kickstand on his bike. I made him a cake in the shape of the number 10 and we sang happy birthday to our "double digit" son. I've been pondering the past 10 years all day long, and remembering August 11th, 1999. It's hard to wrap my mind around the fact that I've been a mom for 10 years! I wouldn't change a thing. I love you Buddy.

Summer Crunch Time

I always seem to keep a running blog post in my head as we go through our daily activities, but time at the computer is short and sweet these days. I've reached the "crunch time" of summer--cramming as many fun things as I can into such a short time before the calendar tells me it's time for school to start.

Aaron and Braylen were all about the go-carts, while Kaleb loved the bumper cars.

This past Sunday through Tuesday our family took a short vacation to Omaha, NE. Why Omaha? Derek had some job training to attend there, so he brought us all with him. While Daddy worked, his family played. :) We enjoyed the Omaha zoo on Monday, which is really quite a great zoo! The weather was mild and the boys behaved amazingly well. I wondered how I would do on my own, but it all turned out great. We played at The Amazing Pizza Machine on Tuesday, which I found to be PERFECT for my boys' ages. Who knew we could spend 5 hours at the zoo and 5 hours at the Pizza Machine? Toss in a fun supper with Daddy at Cheeseburgers in Paradise and lots of swimming at the hotel pool, and this was one fun trip! Even the Disney channel cooperated and played "Beethoven's Big Break" for us on Monday night. What fun to see my boys laugh and laugh at such a great movie!

Starting out our day at the zoo

The polar bear gave us quite a show!

Getting hot by the time we reached the giraffes!

Back at home on Wednesday, our puppy showed us she needed to go to the vet. While my mother-in-law did an excellent job caring for her while we were gone, Ginger somehow picked up a severe urinary tract infection. Ugh! She's probably had it for a while, and only showed signs of it yesterday. Lots of money later, she is on an antibiotic and seems to be holding her own, although she's not able to "hold it in" for very long. Ha ha ha. I'm amazed I'm able to make a joke about it today, because yesterday I was quite stressed about it. Due to my own history of severe UTI's, I've often been glad to avoid passing it on to my children by having only boys. How ironic that we'd have a female dog catch this type of infection. Figures!

Today I've baked banana bread, brownies, and chocolate chip cookies. The house smells delicious! I look forward to enjoying some more family time at the lake--and we always need goodies at the lake. :) A very good friend brought me a delicious turtle mocha this morning, which lifted my spirits as I wade through everything that needs to get done today. Yes, coffee and good friends are such blessings in my life!

Last night we spent time at some friends' house teaching Braylen how to waterski. They have a house on a private lake with an amazing set-up, so we didn't want to pass up this opportunity. Braylen got up on his first try and made several laps around the lake! He even went in and out of the wake without falling! Derek and I were so happy for him! After seeing his parents waterski for years, he finally experienced it for himself. I'm such a waterbug that Derek calls me his mermaid, so I'm especially happy to see my son do so well in the water. Kaleb, bless his heart, wouldn't give it a try or even try the kneeboard. That's okay--he loved the tube! Aaron swam all over the cove, jumped on the water tramp, and tubed with Kaleb. Thanks to these great friends, we had such a fun night!

Some funnies for the week, and then it's time to go. My next post will be all about my baby turning 10 on Aug. 11th. What a crazy ride parenting is. You think it will last forever, and before you know it--poof! They grow up!

Aaron asked if he could help Daddy vacuum the vehicle. Derek set him up with the floor mats and Aaron spent lots of time vacuuming them. While trying to say "rubber mats," Aaron said, "I'm going to vacuum the mother rats!"

Ever try to explain what a bladder is to a 5 year old? I tried, and this is what happened.

Me: Ginger has an infection in her bladder.
Aaron: What's a bladder?
Me: It's kind of like a water balloon--it holds the potty until you're ready to go. Ginger's isn't working right, so she needs some medicine to fix it.
Aaron: Maybe it popped!