The Long Family

Happy New Year 2012

2012-01-22T19:49:00.002-06:00

We did this last year for the first time and the kids loved it so much we did it again. This year I passed on the cheese and stuck with the chocolate and fruit. Jeremy added in some last minute marshmellows that were a huge hit!

Addi basically had chocolate from ear to ear. Luke really only wants a couple of pieces with chocolate then he just wants the fruit on a poker.

I love the fact that New Year's is pretty mellow. We watch some football and eat what we can find until fondue time at night. What a great way to kick off a new year!

New Year's Eve

2012-01-22T19:44:00.001-06:00

This year we kept it pretty simple, at least that was the idea, for New Year's. We get along so very well with our neighbors we did a progressive dinner. I hosted the main course section.

Here are our neighbors Susan and Bret on the left and Jill and Larry on the right.

For the first time ever I cooked a crown pork loin. It tasted good but the best part was for sure the gravy that went along with it from the drippings of the meat. This is for sure on the list to make again!

2012-01-22T19:41:00.001-06:00

I can't believe I never posted about Christmas. I think it is because it all happens so fast! Then there was that irritating issue with my camera not wanting to upload my pictures onto the computer, but never fail....we had a very Merry Christmas!

We started off Christmas with Nana and Papa Clay and then a couple of days later had Aunt Carrie and gang over for tacos and presents! Oh the presents. It is almost more fun to make the kids wait to open their gifts then the actual gifts themselves. Well almost...

Mike got Addi a Bedazzler. Oh the fun we are going to have around here. Addi would like to bedazzle about 800 shirts 200 pants and her walls. I would like to say Mike did write on the gift tag, Sorry Beth. I think we are going to have to Bedazzle something special for Mike!

I love how Addi is so excited for everyone to open their gifts. Sometimes she remembers what is inside, others it is just excitement!!

Hailey got clothes, and more clothes. She really appreciates clothes and I love to give a girl clothes she appreciates!!

Hunter got a bat cave. He said he has been wanting it his entire life. Can you believe that his entire life. Talk about make my night!

Love to see someone really enjoy what you give them.

It is then off to Christmas Eve. This is always at the farm. It is blast all day. This year we did have one slight issue of dumping the soup and other goodies on the gravel road after the shifted in the truck, we won't dwell on that. Instead Presents.

We always open gifts in the evening. You can see the kids go through these stages where they are beside themselves before lunch then start to cope that it will be a while before we open gifts but then one they put their pj's on it is all those 4 walls can do to contain us!

Annual pj picture. This year they were penguin with stereos. I shows how they are all getting older. Cute little pj's are not just going to work anymore.

This is the crazy picture.

Some of our elves.

She almost gets lost in all the piles of presents.

OH MY GOSH IT IS A GLOW DOME. Addi did not sit close to me this year. All of a sudden I hear this I got a glow in the dark. MOM I GOT IT, I REALLY REALLY GOT IT. Oh thank goodness cause she has played with it almost everyday since then! You use these stencils to outline a design on the dome and then turn on the light and it turns around. Addi is adament you use the stencil and not just color on it. That is unless she is writing her name on there. She sits in her closet for hours drawing and then turning off the lights to watch it go around and around.

The "big people" do a white elephant game instead of exchange presents. This is what Grandma Jan got this year.

CHRISTMAS MORNING

Santa came yet again. Addi got a Barbie Rv. Santa thought he got off easy this year with the assembly but this one turned out to be a little tricky.

Luke got a Texas light that flashes like a stopsign. He was so very happy. They both got a couple pieces of clothes that make them more fun to wear since Santa game them to him and a pair of cowboy boots.

Addi was very into opening presents!! Very into opening. It is also important to her though that everything end up in its correct pile after opening and since Grandma Char saves bows we must all save bows.

Luke got his camo paint. It has a mirror inside it and he was so very happy about this stocking gift because now he can see what he is doing in the duck blind. Oh that goodness cause who wants a messy painted face?

For Luke's white elephant gift he stole a donut maker. He was kind enough to make us donuts Christmas morning. I have to admit they are very very tasty!

Every chef must taste before they serve.

Well this is the only "snow" we had for Christmas. So far we have not had enough snow to cover up the grass. It is the end of January, lets get with it!!

Luke got his x-box. Can you beleive it. An x-box. He was super happy though.

They also got a movie sac. It is like a bean bag but made of memory foam so it is super comfortable. It is large enough the two of them can sit together without touching.

Oh yeah, an x-box!

This week's pictures

2012-01-22T19:12:00.001-06:00

Here are the pictures we took on my phone last week. Luke has a good basketball game, he scored the first two points and then another a free throw. He really is doing good. Grandma Jan and I were talking yesterday about how it is impressive that regardless of the sport he is playing he can see a play break down and understands exactly what needs to happen, even if he can't get it done he understands what needs to happen.

One of the things I love about Luke is that regardless of him opinion of his play he is a great sport. He is a good teammate! That makes a happy mommy.

On Saturday afternoon we went to the local bike show. This was certainly Addi and Dad's pick. I am not a lover of the bike show. Too many skulls and angry words for me. Luke is getting to be an age where seeing girls wearing things with more parts missing then included bother him. Don't worry I know the stage where he will enjoy that is far too close.

Addi loves a motorcyle. I am not sure why, but she loves a motorcycle.

This was her favorite of the day. Yeah, that's a skull on the back but she did not care at all cause it was P-I-N-K.

On Monday the kids were out of school due to MLK birthday. First we went to Beauty and the Beast in 3D. B&B is my favorite Disney movie. I just love Belle. A girl that loves books, did not always know what she wanted, brings a special touch to a not so perfect place to live (let's be honest we don't all start out living in our dream home) The kids loved it.

Then we went roller skating. I tried to get them to go ice skating but they were not so much into that. Luke just knew he was going to break a leg out there and oh my gosh do you know how hard frozen ice is? You would of though I recommended sky diving the way they went on about that. Luke thought it would be a better idea to roller skate. To what I said oh my gosh do you know hard concete is :)?? They were open due to school closures so off we go.

Addi thought she would know how to skate as soon as she hit the floor. Which means, hit the floor she did! She went so fast after I tied her last lace I could not grab her.

After a few laps around holding onto the wall and a total melt down because her body did not know how to skate she calmed down and was able to start understanding how center her balance and move her skates.

Luke taking a break. He goes around and around so fast it is hard for me to take a picture if he is not sitting!

Ha, got one!

Her she is making her move for the center. Somehow she was able to skate with her legs apart like this most of the way.

And back to the wall

Addi can't wait to go back. She has asked everyday if they are open. We are going to have to find a time to get back out there!

Phone Pictures

2012-01-16T19:26:00.004-06:00

So I am starting to take a lot of pictures on my phone. Part of the problem is that I sometimes forget my camera, another is I currently cannot download pictures from my camera and then other times it just does not work to take a camera with you. Sometimes I think these pictures on the fly will give you a better view of what we have going on then certain events. I am going to give it a whirl every week.

Happy New Year. This year we tried something new, we did progressive dinner with the neighbors. Jill and Larry did appetizers and soup. I did the dinner portion, mainly because it was my idea. Also because it takes that much longer to come back around to me! We had dessert at Bret and Susans. Susan is know for NOT cooking so this was actually a challenge for her.
She did great though. She made baked alaska! Can you beleive it, I have dessert next year and I actually have my work cut out for me!

Luke needed a haircut BAD, so Addi and I took him up for Sports Clips. You will be able to see a lot of pictures from Addi in the weeks to come!!

Here is Jeremy getting ready for 2012.

Chrissy and Kalon got puppies after Christmas! Luke and Addi love them!!!

Here is Addi with Snow

Here is Crazy Brenna on Christmas Eve at the farm. Jeremy rubbed her tummy until se fell asleep.

Welcome Snow White

2012-01-11T14:50:00.002-06:00

The Sunday after Thanksgiving Addi spent the day with Aunt Carrie and I was exhausted from staying up half the night looking for a puppy. We thought we had a puppy lined up for the kids, but something tragic happened. The entire liter died. It was horrible. Jeremy and I agreed to get the kids a puppy. It was not an easy decision but they finally they wore us down. We agreed and I thought we had a french bulldog from Springfield picked out but then the litter died. I knew I had to have a replacement before I could tell the kids and it was not going to go over easy. We had looked early on at a Bichion and I could not find any close, which means shipping, which is an entire different set of issues/problems. I did find a "designer"dog Northeast of KC. It was a Bichion/Shiz Su mix. Her name was Snow White and she was 14 weeks old and get this folks, potty trained. I figured they were fibbing on the potty training but come to find out, they were not! The name was ok with me and I knew Addi would approve so that worked also. It was prefect that Addi was not around because normal people cannot handle a 90 minute car ride of are we there yet every 2.5 seconds. We loaded up, told Luke on the way and were all so excited.

She is a cutie so it was no brainier. I was at home the next couple of days so that worked out great.

The only draw back is that she cannot handle being in the kennel at night. She sleeps with Luke and both of them love that. Addi is a bit sad Snow can't sleep with her but there are too many Barbie accessories for a puppy to be there and Addi would never sleep if she had something to entertain all night! This is the kid who barely needs any sleep at all!

So here she is, Snow White!! Actually she is pretty much called Snow at this point, Luke could not take the Snow White.

Everyone is so happy!

See her hands wrapped around the dog? If Addi had her way snow would never walk, she would be carrier everywhere!

This is in he car ride on the way home. See his hand under her mouth? The car made her tummy upset and she threw up all over Luke a couple of times. Feel bad for him, but it really made her love him!

Addi and a Best Friend

2012-01-11T14:44:00.002-06:00

Addi really has come to make a special friendship with Kayia. She is the younger sister of Keagan. Keagan is a very good friend of Lucas. They play on the same baseball team, use to wrestle together (different weights thank goodness) and both played football, although for different teams. Addi and Ky dance together and are so sad when the other is not there. Addi and Lucas are pretty spread out when it comes to age so finding someone to play with when you are stuck at practice for your brother has certainly been a bonding angle for these two. What really has made them stick to each other is the fact they love the same things! I am talking glitter, colors, dolls, movies, shoes, ability to be bossy, ability to hold their own against a big brother, and the love of gab!

Happy Birthday to YOU

2012-01-11T11:38:00.002-06:00

Jeremy had a wonderful birthday if you ask Addi Jo. He had cake and ice cream and presents. Actually he got to hunt on top of that so it really was a prety good birthday. We got him a humidor to keep all his cigars in and he was pretty happy about that. We stayed at home and had a nice little celebration and then mom and dad went out to celebrate on the weekend with an adult only dinner, which is always a nice treat. His big gift really was our trip to Vegas where Jeremy had an absolute blast!

A Hunting Experience

2012-01-05T07:16:00.006-06:00

This year Jeremy has a duck/goose lease in Osawatomie. It is a rather long story as to how that entire process took place so we will leave it at Jeremy has a lease, finally!!
In honor of actually have a place to build his own blind he took all of us and Hunter down to show us this fine spread. As you can see from the pcitures some of had differences on the temperature. The kids and Jeremy thought it was a nice day. I on the other hand was freezing. The kids had a wonderful time and are so excited to go again and again and again. Luke would like for Addi to stay the heck away but she is all in. Addi has gone two or three times this year. She would like to go again with PAPA Clay so we will see if the weather holds for her. Lucas loves to go every single chance he gets.
After a day of unsucessful hunting Jeremy had the kids put up a lot of decoys. In the process they decided to play a little hide and seek.

Here is Hunter being a wilderness man. He was going to move some logs.

Lucas is using his call and Addi is dancing along to it.

Ah, she tried to steal my hiding place.

So the face painting thing. Luke is all into it. That pretty much means the other kids were all over it that day also. I am not sure how much camo we need from a duck with an eye smaller then a pea but hey if ya wanna paint your face go for it. That is as long as it comes off with soap and water!

Nothing like a helping hand with your face paint.

People, this is it. This is the only heat you get in the blind. You sit in a rather nice plywood constructed blind with a bench and sides, floor and roof. I would also like to mention that they have covered the sides and roof with crap growing in the wild including pine trees, which I am amazingly allergic too. But, back to the lact of heat. This is it. If you are going dress warm cause this is all you get!!

Me and Hunter. He clearly did not understand it was cold out there! I have on like 3 layers and if I could of gotten my coat on over that sweatshirt I would of done it!

Here are the face painted people

Here is poor Jeremy. At the other end of the blind waiting and watching for ducks. Sadly, I mean very sadly that day no ducks showed their faces. It was a warm weather day if you ask Jermey and Luke and they say that is why we did not see much luck but I think it may of had something to do with all those little voices.

He is becoming a hunter man.

I think this is when Jeremy moved the truck back to hide it. I had zero control of the kids. As soon as they saw him they were all over him, 1,000 and twelve questions they had.

Hunter had such a great time. He loved all of it and wants to go again. Lucas would love to take him so if the weather is nice I think he will get to go at least one more time.

He was just determined to wear that hat. It was like Luke's and he was going to do all in his power to match him!

Happy Halloween

2012-01-05T07:05:00.002-06:00

Pumpkin carving is an absolute must. It is one of my most favorite parts of Halloween. I am not big on the rest of it. It is seems crazy to go around asking for candy you will never eat or in Addi's case over eat. Buy a costume for when we have an entire tub full upstairs that I get to see weekly and try to scare people, cause that has no entertaining value to me at all! Regardless, the kids are in so I am in.

Now back to your regurally scheduled blog post about carving.
This year we did not go to the pumpkin patch, mainly because of scheduling conflicts but also because Giant pumpkins were grown at the farm and there were more then enough for all of the families! It was awesome and I think they scraped out so much easier.

Addi is like me she is grossed out and intrigued by the slime of the pumkin guts. She wanted to be all dainty scoop them out one I loosened them but then soon realized there is some weird fun in just getting your hand in there. I will say it was a quick dash to the bathroom to wash her hands though.

Lucas on the other hand hates to scraping and scooping and really only participtes when it is time to do some carving. I saw some serious improvements in his carving abilities this year.

Here is the finished product. Addi did the owl, which meant some help. Luke did the big nose guy. I only helped in the corners as he was afraid something might break. See, amazing work!!

Here is the pumpkin we brought home in memory of GG. She may not be here phyically but one little girl is going to make sure we remember here in everything we do. It may bring tears to my eyes but it sure warms my heart.

I have no pictures of actualy Halloween cosutmes. It was not on purpose I promise. I had a download issue with my camera and it seems to have at least temporaily eaten them!

Vegas Baby

2012-01-05T06:54:00.002-06:00

Jeremy and I took a short but very sweet get away to Las Vegas. At the time we booked the trip we did not think I was going to go out at the first of November for a work conference. That of coarse changed about a week after we booked it. We decided what the heck we will still go together and I will just go with my work peeps in November. It is hard when I am there for work to get all of that done and still have time to do fun stuff with Jeremy. It may be the City that NEVER Sleeps but I still have to!
I took zero pictures of our hotel, Mandalay Bay. It is very hard to capture a picture of a building up close because they are all huge but also one covered in mirrors!
It really was an amazing time and one that left us energized to get back to our regular life, which is something every vacation should do!

Lucas is in LOVE with the show Pawn Stars. He begged and begged for us to go down there for him. Of coarse we promised we would! It is a tiny tiny store. The line was around two sides of the building. It was a freaking joke. They were in there but would not let anyone in the building. We assume because they were taping. There were people in line who had come several days in a row with the same result. Then those that had come on previous trip who said they are rude and upset that people want to see them and get autographs. That was a giant bummer! I have a 9 year old that would only love to have a paper with their name on it. I thought about forging an autograph but we went on down to Fremont street, because I was not about to stand in a pointless line, and found a guy doing characters and he had a pawn stars one. Forgery relief! We brought it home and he loves it. Hangs on the wall and everything.

Volleyball

2011-12-22T15:05:00.000-06:00

Fall Baseball

2011-12-22T15:02:00.002-06:00

This year Lucas played Fall Baseball instead of football. He really does love his baseball. This was the first year for non-competitive baseball in Belton/Raymore. I was so thankful because I thought I was going to have to drive all the way to Blue Valley four nights a week for a bit. Lucas loved it. He got to catch and do a lot of pitching. He did great with his contact when it came to hitting and I can see how much it has helped him as we get backing into the baseball swing preparring for the spring season.

Basketball

2011-12-22T14:50:00.002-06:00

This year Lucas decided he wanted to play basketball instead of wrestle. I was a bit caucious about this because wrestling is a very physical sport and he has some skill, although I know he does not love it and most kids that are playing basketball have been playing for 3-4 years now so gosh I don't want him to be a doff out there.
So we signed him up for rec basketball.

So far he has had two games and done AMAZING. I mean I am trying to think of the best word to use but A-M-A-Z-I-N-G seems like it would be the best one!! I just can't beleive how much he loves it. He smiles almost the entire time he is playing. He contributes to his team, understands their offense and defense. I mean why the heck did I doubt it so much? What the heck is wrong with me. I clearly did not know the most exciting part. We are in and out of the gym in an hour. A hour people. Wrestling is about a ten hour day. I mean I clearly have some mental issues! An hour. Lets just take some time to think about this. With nine extra hours in one day I can seriouly make some progress on my to do list then!! But honestly it is just great to see him love it so much!!

Chiefs Game

2011-12-22T14:39:00.002-06:00

Grandma Ann had a connection to some Chiefs tickets at the beginning of the season. You know when it is still hot outside! We decided to buy them so Luke could go to a game in person. This is a big decision around here because Chief fans are not always sensitive to a 9 year olds ears. In the end we took him and there were only a couple of times my ears hurt and my skin curled up. Luke did great and loved it. It was awesome to be that close to the action. I was bummed they never scored a touchdown at our end zone but winning made up for that!!

Grandma Ann's boss

Fall Baseball

2011-12-22T14:36:00.000-06:00

Such a cute pitcher!

Leukemia Walk

2011-12-22T14:33:00.002-06:00

We did our first 'cause' walk as family. I can't think of a better family walk for us to start off with then the Light the Night walk for Lukemia.

Chrissy and Kalon had a nice group of people walk. I would guess just over 20. It was pretty awesome that it was at night. Lucas understood it was something special and Addi pretty much loved the balloons with lights in them and a necklace that flashed. It had party written all over it for her!

It was an awesome time and allows you time to visit while walking with your own group and thouse around you as well as reflect how many people this cancer really touches.

Value of Self

2011-12-22T14:29:00.002-06:00

I have never, ever, seen anyone so in love with themself at such a young age. Addi loves to take her own picture. It may just be the technology she has at her fingertips, that she just seems to understand so well but also the time in front of the mirror and constant questions with how smart she is, how she looks, what she can and cannot do that make me realize she is one confident chick!!

Whenever I go to download or upload pictures from my camera or phone I have at least a couple dozen that Addi has taken of herself.

It seems that she has learned to add some graphic design to her pictures. Now we are really in trouble!

Beware if Addi asks for your camera or phone!

Better Story Time Pictures

2011-12-22T14:27:00.001-06:00

Here are some better pictures I found of Addi Jo's

sotrytime at school. Addi is the tiger.

Friday Night Lights

2011-12-22T14:18:00.002-06:00

Around here in these parts it is important to be at the football games on Friday night. That is where everybody is!! The kids stay in the stands for the first quarter and about the last seven minutes of the game where they always come back shocked to see if the team is winning or losing. Addi has to stay with us to watch from the stands and point to her friends and friends parents where we will take her to visit. I dread the day when she can get up and solicize. The stadium may not be ready for that amount of chatter.

We took Haley, Taralyn and Hunter one Friday night. I was super awesome and let everyone get facepainting of their choice. The little people made some dramatic choices but they loved it!!

Field Day

2011-12-22T09:52:00.002-06:00

This year I got to be a parent helper on Lucas field trip. They went to MacFee Stagecoach Museum. My first reaction when I learned this was an outdoor museum was shock. I signed up for a safe museum indoor field trip. My allergies cannot take an outdoor field trip in October. Oh wait, I signed up for this. Okay, put the boots and a smile on and get on with it.

I packed our lunches and we headed out for a day of outdoor fun. Lucas loved every second it. After all he was outside all day long!

It was a very nice museum and all of the volunteers did a great job teaching the kids all of the history and relating it to today and how history got us to things we do and use today.

The lady standing in the back is Lucas teacher Ms. LaSala. She is amazing!!

Here is Lucas paning for fool's gold.

Storybook Time

2011-12-22T09:46:00.002-06:00

Addi's preschool class does a pancake breakfast and storybook re-enactment every fall. This year Addi's Pre-K class did three stories and Addi did great at all of them. So great in fact that it was almost impossible to get any pictures of her because she moves so fast.

Here are a couple I was able to snap.

Oh how time flies

2011-12-22T09:41:00.002-06:00

I cannot beleive that it has been forever since I have updated the blog. We have certainly been busy and have lots of things to update about! I promise I will get it all done. I set an internal deadline of New Year's Eve to get it done so we will see how well I do.

The pictures at the top are from the kids last Christmas. When I look at them day to day I can't see how they have grown but when you take an entire look back over the year you can certainly see!!

Everyone is doing great. Addi Jo is in dance. Luke has already started baseball catching and pitching to get ready for the season and is playing basketball for the first time and Jeremy is busy hunting every chance he can get.

Soccer 2011

2011-10-04T16:11:00.002-05:00

Addi and Hunter are both playing soccer this year and they are even on the same team. It is working out wonderfully!!

Addi has some good games and some not so good games. If we were tracking how she was doing as far as cheerleading skills she would be a superstar. She makes sure everyone gets an appropriate cheer after each score and lately has been addin in a cart wheel afterwards. If we ask her or yell for her to kick it and she is off in la-la land she simply shrugs her shoulders like no biggie oh well. It is certainly more about being t the game then actually doing well at the game that impresses her.

In the end we are glad she is having fun and are going to look into cheerleading for her for next year. Hunter on the other hand is a star every game!

2011-08-20T10:46:00.001-05:00

The start of the 2011-2012 school year

Addi is in Pre-K

Luke is in 4th Grade

It is amazing how time flyes.

Motorcycle Fever

2011-08-20T10:45:00.001-05:00

Jeremy rented a motorcyle this year for Mikie's poker run. It was the 5th year for the run and Jeremy really did not want to miss it, nor did he want to drive his truck. He rented a Harley from the local Harley dealer for 4 days. He left Saturday morning and came home Sunday afternoon. The two of us took the bike out Friday night after he picked it up. It was a nice drive around the city until we got stuck in traffic on the way home. Traffic on a motorcyle really really stinks!!

On Sunday Jeremy gave the kids rides around the neighborhood. Both of them loved it. Luke jumped on and rode off before I could ever find my camera. I never managed to get a picture of him on the bike, I did manage to snap a few of Addi Jo.

She was in love from the second she put the helmet on.

Her body never moved from this position. She was gone for 20 minutes and sat just like this the entire time. Jeremy also says she talked the entire time but the good thing about a bike is that you can't hear a word out of her!

I can't wait to see what we have in a few years!! And by that I think the bike fever is pretty bad and that girl is in love with riding!!

Son of Surf

2011-08-20T10:43:00.001-05:00

This year Addi and Luke did VBS at the church where Addi goes to pre-school. There were just over 200 kids participating. It was the largest group the kids have ever participated in. It was amazing to see the kids know exactly where to go in their little groups and have such a great time with their friends, that they were somehow able to see.

On the last night they had a performace with skits and singing to show us everything they learned as well as their art projects and slide show of pictures. Can you imagine a water day everyday with all these kids? Somehow they managed to pull it off. They called the teachers life guards to go with the theme. I am so glad I did not volunteer to help out!!

Addi was able to find me out in the crowd and make sure she posed for her picture.

Addi knew all the moves to all the dances and all the words to all the songs. Luke could not wait for the singing piece to be over but did love the skits.

Independence Day 2011

2011-08-20T10:41:00.001-05:00

We arrived back from vacation just in time to celebrate the 4th of July with our family and neighbors. Actually we flew home on the 2nd because Jeremy needed to make sure there were no delays in our arrival home for the firework celebration.

We had a wonderful time and the kids are getting more into it every year. It was a hot day but a beautiful night. I took no pictures at night, I was too focused on watching the show. We had 39 people spread out across the driveway and yard.

Look at all that confetti. Those were some awesome poppers Aunt Carrie found!

We are so glad for those that were able to make it. For those of you that missed it, feel free to join in next year. We have a few extra beds if you need to make it a sleep over!! Only one side dish needed for admission to the pot luck dinner!

Luke is 9

2011-08-20T10:39:00.000-05:00

Lucas turned nine on Saturday-of a baseball tournament weekend. He could not of been happier about it!! I wanted to make it special for him, something he would remember. Really he was just so happy he got to play baseball on his birhtday he did not care about much else. I did not want to haul an entire cake down there so I made a 9 out of mini-donuts for everyone to eat. He loved and so did everyone else on his team. It was a real "hit"

Everyone sang happy birthday to him and he soaked up every minute!!

The Rascals did great in the tournament! 4-0. 1st Place!

Now this is some serious batting! He even got to open some presents at the ballpark!

Luke went home with Grandma Jan that night after being a bit overheated at the games.. The farm and baseball, a perfect birthday for Luke!!

Seals and Sea Lions.

2011-07-31T18:16:00.002-05:00

This is simply amazing to be this close to seals and sea lions. To see families go in and out of the water, to watch a mom sleep with one eye open and know exactly when to chase after her kid to get them back on the beach. It is funny and fun but also very smelly. Oh the smell, try to forget that part but if you see it in person there is no way you can. It almost make syou want to run away.

So here we are walking down to see the seals and Addi can't move because there is a ground squirl running around. Come on, come on lets go. Oh no look at this. Ahhh, fine sure what's ten minutes. Ten minutes people!!

Pictures of San Diego

2011-07-31T18:08:00.002-05:00

San Diego is a very easy city to get around which is a good thing because it is so beautiful whatever direction you decide to you. We went all the way to the Southern point and all the way up to LA then side to side and no matter your direction is is beauty. We are drawn to the water and what it has to offer to explore.

Here are some pictures of our trip

The roar of the ocean and the amount of sand it can carry back out with it is amazing to me.

More Disneyland

2011-07-31T15:27:00.004-05:00

This was our first Disney experience without a stroller. I was shocked at how easy it was. Addi did great and the backpack was not bad to carry around all day at all. It is almost sad because Disney strollers are so awesome (world better then land) and so easy to bring in a million things, and because that means Addi is getting older. It was so very nice though to get off a ride and head right over to the next one.

Addi loved this ride. It is the basic flying chair. We rode it several different times. She especially liked the fact she did not have to wait in line. She had to be in a connected chair and there is a special line for that so off and right back on we would go.

Yes, this is another turn.

This is not exactly Luke's idea of a good time. He thought we could do this anywhere and wanted to rush off to something big and fun but agreed it was cute to see Addi loving it so much.

It's Tough to be a Bug. Lovin the 3D glasses.

Addi decided she did not love characters this trip. It did not last long, but there were a few she wanted nothing to do with. Luke loves the Chimpmuks so we had to get their autographs.

Chip n Dale are so funny....

One down side of not having a stroller is Addi pretty much selecting the spot to take a rest.

A ridin fool I tell ya

He was so cool when it came to riding the little people rides with his sister so nice to go along with the flow.

I tried to get a picture at the end of the day. We bought our souvenirs and pictures for the Disney bathroom and a picture frame. I had a crazy idea to try and get a Disney picture of them, for said frame. That was a big no go! Addi was a dancing fool and Luke would not give up a smile for anything. Ahh, you so can't win them all.

La Jolla

2011-07-31T15:17:00.003-05:00

We went to La Jolla one day and saw amazing ocean and some pretty amazing houses along the way. Some houses so amazing that were for sale we decided to dream a little and check out exactly how much they were. After all the market has dropped and real estate is cheap. Apparently it did not drop by the ocean cause $3 million for a house I would have to downsize too is not cutting it around here. That was a short lived dream. It certainly did not take away from the views though.

Yes, Addi is a poser but really this bush was pretty and I did give her credit for that.

We walked around the cliff. Addi carried her baby the entire time. I think it wore her out!

Luke pretty much lived in his jacket. We were always close to water and the breeze was more then he liked.

Jeremy is holding him back, not pushing him. I just can't beleive how close he thought he could get to the edge. We stood here and watched some surfer right up against the rocks for the longest time.

A Harbor Walk

2011-07-30T21:59:00.002-05:00

A short walk along the harbor while we waited for Brad's ship.

Padres Game

2011-07-30T21:48:00.002-05:00

Maybe you knew that we love baseball around here? Maybe not. I will tell you Addi can make it six innings at a major league game so I am going with the fact she also loves baseball. The rest of us love the game, I love the sound of the bat on the ball, the strategy of the game, the speed of the game, fellow fans at a stadium. Jeremy and I decided when Luke was a little guy that by the time he was 18 we want to make it to every MLB Stadium. That goes into our strategy when we pick our family vacations. We have tackled a few and some others are going to have to be done as a group and we are waiting for them to be a bit older. It is fun to see the difference of every stadium and the fans around. We are not picky the teams that are playing but we licked out this time that the Royals were playing the Padres. Sadly the Royals lost (all 3 in the series) but it was fun to watch anyway.

I love how they took an old building already part of their downtown and made it part of the stadium.

Look what Luke caught

Addi did not make it through the entire game. She would not take a nap during the day so she took one for a few innings, but woke up in time to get a hot dog.

And she is alive. She took this picture by herself, ahh an iphone is an amazing thing.

San Diego Zoo

2011-07-30T21:39:00.002-05:00

Jeremy wanted to make sure we got to the San Diego Zoo. After all it is one of the best zoo's in the USA and we are here, he kept saying. I am not a huge lover of zoo's in general but hey go with the flow when on vacation and especially when in So Cal. It is an awesome zoo. They have a wide range of animals and the kids were engaged the entire time we were there. The one down side is the fact that someone built the zoo on the only mountain in San Diego. I kid you not, it is up one side of the mountain down the other all day long. You almost want to complain then you notice a panda bear or a polar bear or heck even a koala. You realize you have yet to break a sweat because it is not even 80 yet and you move on with your day. Now your feet once you reach the car at the end of the day tell you differently but that memory fades quickly.

Lucas was the chief stroller pusher. He was very helpful all day long. The little people all wanted to be together. We had two strollers but everyone wanted to be together and touching.

I had to get a picture of this. We stopped and watched these ducks cross the road and go into a pond at the zoo. We are around rare and endangered animals and the kids were totally blown away by a family of ducks. It tells you, the little things. Don't miss the little things.

It was not always pretty in the stroller.

First San Diego Beach Day

2011-07-30T21:20:00.005-05:00

The kids could not wait to spend a day at the beach. The first thing we did Sunday was eat breakfast so we could head to the beach. I kept trying to tell them the water would be cold and they should wait but there was no holding back. Jenny, Corben and Nevie met us at the beach and we spent the entire day. We took a break for lunch back to the beach house. After all who wants sand in their sandwich, and trust me with the kids there is lots and lots of sand where it should not be.

I love this picture, they are playing together, the background is beautiful and there are not a million people around.

We caught crabs when they washed up.

Addi Jo thought a long time about getting on the board before she ever did it. She much preferred to pretend it was her puppy.

Corben was not much of an ocean lover so Addi pretty much forced him to get his trunks wet in the water. His smile when he was running out of the water was the best.

Where is that crab?

Nevie was not about to get wet, I have never seen anyone run so fast from the waves!

We had such great waves come in all day long. Surfers got up all day long. The morning is of coarse the best but the afternoons were pretty amazing to watch. I related more to the paddle boarders more then the surfers. It is funny how easy they make it look, like oh yeah, I can do that.

Riding it in

I remember the ocean when I was a kid but I am confident that Lucas was much more in love with it then I was.

There is my crab....Addi caught this one all on her own.

Hi Jen and Nevie. It was so good to be able to see everyone, even Brad!

What a fun day at the beach, who knew we would have so many more before we left seven days later?

Oh my goodness we are at the beach

2011-07-30T21:16:00.004-05:00

We landed in San Diego grabbed some breakfast at The Broken Yolk, which I highly recommend to anyone going to downtown San Diego it is a must stop. After unloading the luggage we walked down to the beach to get our toes wet, or in some folks case their lower half. But hey it is Southern California so who cares.

Ocean Beach 2011

2011-07-30T18:31:00.004-05:00

Our rental house was in Ocean Beach. It was a block away from the ocean. The house was not amazing by any standards but the beach was wonderful. The kids loved it, when we asked them what they wanted to do on their last day they picked the same thing as their first day, the beach. It was great and relaxing.

We got Luke a boogie board and he picked up on it very quickly. It was so much fun to watch them run through the water and ride the waves in. It was amazing to sit at the water's edge for hours and not think of a better place to be. The ocean may very well be one of the most relaxing places I have been in years.

Here he is getting ready to head back out.

Addi gave it a try a few times and would do great but she loves standing still and having the sand bury her feet when the water goes back out.

What a view

He is hard to see out there but he is catching some waves. This was the pier at the end of our sidewalk. It had a cafe and bait shop up there. I passed on eating there because it had a cafe and baitshop connected.

There were only a couple days we did not spend some time at the beach, any beach. We went on a drive one day and ended up getting out and walking around another beach. The ocean=amazing.

San Diego 2011- Point Loma

2011-07-30T18:13:00.005-05:00

We down early one morning to see Point Loma. There is a beautiful light house and amazing tide pools there as well as some sea lions/seals. The tide pools were the best thing. The sea life comes up in the tide pools and can live in the rocks and then go back out when the tide comes up in the evening or next morning. We all loved it. You can go down trails and climb up and down the rocks all while hearing the crashing ocean and with the best breeze blowing on you.

It is simply amazing how the ocean tides come in. One minute you can see an entire bolder with crabs and star fish crawling on it and then the next you would be swimming in five feet of water. I tried to get Lucas to stand on a rock and that happened to him, it was so funny.

this was our first attempt at it, he could not believe I made him do it again. I thought it was a cute picture and really he had to love it.

Here we are looking over the cliff at the tide pools

Can you see the crab?

Walking along the edge

This is a pretty good picture of one of the tide pools although you can't see what animals are in it.

Here is my attempt to get a good picture of these crazy people.

Disneyland 2011

2011-07-30T17:58:00.006-05:00

We took our family vacation in San Diego this year. We flew out of a very busy KCI on a Saturday morning and were in San Diego in time for breakfast. One day we went an had a wonderful time at California Adventure land in LA. It is close to what Hollywood Studios would be like in Florida but with its own California touch. We went to Disneyland a couple of years ago so we though we would try this one day. Everyone had a great time. I did not get to use my camera all day so we don't have any pictures of Mickey or Buzz here but we did get to see them. I wish I could of taken my camera on the tower of terror because Addi Jo went on it with us. It was our first ride of the day and she loved it, even though she openly admitted she was scared. I am not sure she will be eager to get into line again but she did love it. It amaze me how much fear she does not have!
After that we rode on some smoother rides for a while before hitting our all time favorite Toy Story Mania.
For the record, Jeremy did have the highest score out of our family and the highest score for the group. Obviously I cannot let this stand for long so we will have to go back to Disney in a few years to correct that crazy title.

Here are some pictures of bumper cars and flying bug rides

Addi and I rode together, she was the driver and we did really good going in circles.

Here are the leaders of the ladybug dizzy, it is like the tea cups at Disneyland. They love the spinning.

Here we are in line for tower of terror

A Disney day is not complete without a parade. Luke participated in the Pixar parade and Addi screamed whenever Sully got close. I think we are going to have to watch monsters again so she can remember they are funny not scary.

2011 Rascals

2011-07-30T17:54:00.000-05:00

Remodeling

2011-07-13T20:51:00.002-05:00

So before Jeremy and I could move downstairs we knew we would want to re-do the bathroom because the layout would just not work for us. This year has sort of been a blur and a ton or stress has caused me to almost fall apart at times. This is mainly because I try to work out way to many things in my head and don't really have the ability to work through issues one step at a time. I really am more of a five to seven steps at a time type of person. So remodeling this bathroom was somewhat therapeutic for me as well as stressful all at the same time. Since I like to do thing at a time I managed to stretch a bathroom remodel into an entire house paining job both inside and out. Talk about adding stress.

So here are some before and after pictures. The vanity stayed although it was re-painted. The mirror was taken down but put in our closet and the lights are history. The general layout is different. The giant jacuzzi tub is gone and there is a double shower with a brand new wall.

See ya later ugly pink and teal marble tile and useless tub.
Oh and the half wall had to go just as a general casualty

Welcome new bathroom.
Everything was done around the pebble floor in the shower. I knew I wanted that and then found this great stone to go with it. We have double showers and the bench in their that is wonderful.

We got double sinks and mirrors with the facets I wanted so bad.

We have slate heated floors and it is wonderful to have them pre-heated for your toes in the morning.

So the bathroom is done and we have moved every one's bedroom around and only have to replace some carpet (look for the call Uncle Randy) I feels like a brand new house to us which is good and weird all at the same time.

First Dance Recital

2011-07-13T20:39:00.004-05:00

Addi had her first dance recital in the auditorium at Harrisonville High School in June. She did amazing! Addi loved every second of it. We did her hair up all nice and curly and put on make up and the costume was perfect for her!

No help needed for the pose

She even wanted to take one with her brother who was kind enough to participate.

Addi's class did three dances. Two ballet and one tap. This is the last dance they did in their pj's. I think you can see her excitement in doing each step. My pictures did not turn out the best but I was able to grab a few.

The closing number.

Here they are during the tap number. Addi was the first on the stage and the last one and made sure everyone else was off before she left. Talk about the perfect job for a little boss!

Addi will be dancing again this fall so more recitals are yet to come!

Luke baseball pictures

2011-07-13T20:35:00.001-05:00

Up to bat

Memorial Day Weekend 2011

2011-07-13T20:03:00.003-05:00

This year for Memorial Day weekend we went with Chrissy and Kalon to Hot Springs, Arkansas. Connie and David have a lake house their. To say it is perfect might be an understatement!! It is so beautiful and peaceful and the water is amazing! That does not even take into account the amazing hosting done by Connie and David. It was such a wonderful weekend. Jeremy and I had to return to work on Tuesday but we left Addi and Luke with Chrissy and Kalon so they could soak up a few more days of lake fun. They had a blast and I think they were all pretty sad to have to return home at the end of the week.

Addi loved jumping off the dock onto a green floaty or to the tube or just into the water. I think she did it no less then 1,000 times. What amazing exercise.

Lucas tried his hand at water skiing. He was not able to get up but did manage to wear himself out trying. He is close so I think on our next trip down he will get it all together. David and Connie have the awesome skies where they are connected to each other so it is so much easier to learn this way then when I had to learn to do 100 things at once. Keep the rope between your legs, stay behind the boat, keep your skies level and close together, but not too close together. I can't wait to see Luke get up!

Aunt Chrissy did manage to get up!!

We did a ton of tubing. So much tubing that it became difficult to climb up on the tube when you fell off. It was a blast! Addi was so cute on the tube with Emily and we all took turns riding with everyone else and it was so much fun.

It was so much fun apparently that I failed to take one single picture of it at all. That is so sad because we had such a great time but hopefully next time we are down I can stop laughing long enough to snap a few pictures.

Here is Captain David. David did such a good time driving us around the lake in the boat and pulling up skiers, tubers and wake boarders! Way to go Captain David!!

The end of every great weekend you have to have the annual photo so here is ours.

Addi Jo just fell in love from Friday night on with Emily. Emily is 14 and so kind to spend almost every waking minute of her weekend with Addi Jo. I am not sure what it is about the name Emily in general that Addi loves but she has even asked us several times in the last year if we can call her Emily. Everything is named Emily, every doll, her hamster (was) and her imaginary friends. So Emily had that going for her on sight. Then Emily still has her Barbie collection from her younger years still and let Addi hand pick one to carry around all weekend. Super bonus. Then there is the icing on the cake. Emily is super sweet and kind. Addi was in love. It is so cute that Addi still asks about Emily every week.

Luke's baseball

2011-07-13T19:53:00.002-05:00

Luke and his team did great at baseball this year. The Rascals were one of the youngest if not the youngest team in the division this year and finished the season 15-5 including the tournament they went undefeated in. it was wonderful to watch them improve and the winter practice really paid off.

Addi also had a great time this season because a couple of the boys have little sisters that are about the same age as Addi.

Yes I am back

2011-07-13T19:46:00.002-05:00

Well it has been almost forever, but I am back. I will get you updated on everything that we have been up to but it is going to take a bit because we have been doing so much. School is out!! Actually I have been gone so long school is almost back in. It will be a month from this weekend that we will be back in school. Dance is over for the summer. Baseball is over for the summer. Lucas is not going to play football this fall. Summer Camp is going great!! We have been on vacation to San Diego. The house is almost back in order and I think I may go on with life without a nervous breakdown or pulling out all of my hair. That last one is still somewhat day to day so we will have to see.

Spring Program 2011-Guiding Star

2011-05-20T16:28:00.003-05:00

Addi Jo had her spring program at preschool one night last week. It was so cute to see her excited about her show. She told us it was mostly singing and not to look for any dancing. When we got home she immediately ran to her room to change for the show.
This is what she looked like when she came down.

She had done her hair, put on a dress with a sweater, changed her shoes to match her dress and put on pink socks.
It was a heavy winter sweater, pink dress and pink leopard socks with soccer sandles. She brushed her hair up and put in a head band.

See the pride. For half a second I felt bad about telling her that was not going to work

Look at that hair.

This is what she looked like after a "little" help. If you ask Addi she will say it was too much help but we should only struggle with that for the next twenty years or so.

She did great, you could hear her voice on some songs and she knew all the moves.

Are you wondering why you did not get an invite? Well that would be because I totally never wrote it down, not even once. It was in her weekly newsletter on the date and time and I never ever thought about putting it on a calendar. What is wrong with me? Thank goodness her teacher reminded me that night to bring them to the classroom for the line up and they would come up together after that. Apparently my blank face let her in on explaining more.

Yes, I am now going for the worse mom of the year award.

Are you looking for us?

2011-05-20T16:27:00.001-05:00

This is where we are almost every Monday and Wednesday for games and don't forget about those Sunday and Thursday practices.

Some baseball pictures

2011-05-20T16:22:00.002-05:00

Last soccer game

2011-05-20T16:12:00.002-05:00

For Addi's lost soccer game the weather decided to turn from cool to freezing. It was a special treat apparently. It was also our day to bring oranges for half time and drinks/snacks for the end of the game. Thankfully Jeremy remembered this on the way to the game because I would of been standing around at half time looking at all the other parents like they were total failures and misfits when they would of been staring right back-and they would of been right. Oh the horror. I think I might actually have nightmares about that.
Well so Jeremy remembers two minutes before we are to be there so I drop everyone off, fly to the grocery store. Bag of oranges-check. Boxes of fruit snacks-check. Box of Capri Sun-check. Hurry to check out-check. Get behind woman with thirteen items-check. By this time I am looking like a super star. I even take a moment to think about eating one of these beautiful oranges when I am at home. Then crash, failure, do not pass go. The woman has thirteen items totally twenty something dollars and only a $100. Well since it is before $10 our little boy cashier does not have change. Since he is under the age of 10 he also do not know what to do. AHHHHH, crisis-run. Cannot run. Cashier from next lane comes over to help him out. AHHH, oranges 4 year old kids. I could be killed here people.
Change is finally made, I use debit card in order to get out of store and off to home. I properly sliced ten oranges, I only needed 8 but after all this you don't want to be 2 short! Drive back to the field, throw all items out car window to smiling husband, ask if it is halftime, get a no and take a breath.
What a great Saturday morning.

As you can see everyone like their oranges but Addi, she was upset I only used the toy story zip loc bags. Roll eyes and make self feel better-check.
What a way to get your blood pumping on a Saturday morning.

Hardcore Volleyball

2011-05-20T15:57:00.005-05:00

For Mother's Day we went to the farm to do some work. It was a suprise gift so Grandma's really were not preparred. We did a few hours of work then got to some serious fun of volleyball.

These are the coaches

Yes, the ball rolled down the hill to the pooh pond and Aunt Carrie had to catch it before it was no more.

What an amazing day. It was so much fun and it is so nice to have the kids be old enough to really get out there and play with us.

Baseball thoughts

2011-05-20T15:39:00.002-05:00

First year kid pitch baseball can be painful at times, it can also be a great learning experience for those playing and watching the game.

Some thoughts from the season so far;

do not offer to take over for the score keeper if she does not have a book for you. I tried to cover for Jill but no scorekeepers book. We tried to make one up on the fly but in the first inning alone we ended up an entire run off.

Forget about eating dinner when the sun is up. Be thankful that concession stand is always open in case you don't even have time to grab some snacks.

Cheering for your kid to hit the ball can be said in so many other ways then be a swinger. Yep, that was me.

It will be cold at the beginning of baseball season, a jacket is needed every night

It was rain. If you hope for it to rain a game out there is no way in hell that will happen. If you are close to game time or score it will downpour.

It will be far more fun to watch em have a great inning then you could think.

It will be far more painful to watch em make a bad play or fall apart out then you can stomach at time

Baseball really is America's past time

We play with some great families!

Volleyball Tournament

2011-05-20T15:29:00.004-05:00

The end of season tournament for volleyball. It was noisey and exciting and something was on the line here. I was so hoping we would have to leave for soccer and get to come back to watch some more games but that was not in the cards. I just know if the season had been a couple weeks longer this tournament would of turned out differently!
The girls did absolutely great and I can't wait for the fall or next year to see more games and how they have improved.

Good thing she serves quick cause it would be hard to hold that face for long.

It is cute to me how girls teams cheer so differently then boys teams. Boys yell for each other and then a pat on the back when it does not turn out quiet right. Girls, they clap, yell, cheer, scream, jump up and down and run over to each other as each victory was their own. It really makes me excited to have Addi play on more teams!!

A nervous Aunt Carrie!

Talk about a trade mark. Taralyn bounces the ball a couple dozen times before her first serve every single time. I think I would actually worry if she did not do it once.

She is so cute in her glasses.

Can you beleive how much taller Hailey is then Taralyn. Sometimes you never realize how short you are til someone tall comes along.

Good job on a great volleyball season girls!!

Regular season volleyball

2011-05-20T15:11:00.003-05:00

We went to Taralyn and Hailey's last regular season volleyball game in Pleasant Hill. We did not make it til half way through the first game, due to soccer, but they were winning and they went on to keep winning. They won and won and won!! It was awesome. It was so great because the very next week they had to play in that same gym for the end of season tournament. What a great sign!

Look at this serve!

Aw, Coach Carrie

Look at those victorious girls go through the line.

Look at this cutie, waiting in the stands

Look at this score!

Go Strikers!!

More soccer

2011-05-20T15:03:00.003-05:00

Addi has really enjoyed playing soccer this year. The more games I watch the more I appreciate the fact they play 3 on 3.

Addi really had a great coach. He is so patient with the kids and takes as much time as they need to get "their head in the game" before he moves to the next item.

Kick that goal!

Addi really does not like being a defender. I think it is in the fact she feels left out.

The grown ups like to watch Addi because it has its entertainment value but that means bunches of kids have to be with us. They don't really enjoy watching each other all that much but they were able to start their own soccer/football/kickball game up.

Look at these cuties!

Close but no goal!

Start of Baseball

2011-05-13T21:58:00.002-05:00

This is the Rascals first year of competitive baseball. We are a team made up of 8-9 year old baseball lovin boys. I say we because really all eleven sets of parents love the game as much as they do.
The Rascals play in a 10 and under league. That means we play boys that are two years deep into pitching. That can be an issue this year for us but it is going to take time and learning to overcome.
We had our first game against one of the same teams we played against in the indoor winter league. Trust me there is a wide range of other teams we could of started out playing but who would want to start the season easy.
It was a cold windy night and we were really not ready for starting the season out this way. Lucas had on a long sleeve shirt under his jersey but none of the rest of us even had a jacket to wear. We made it through but it made a long game painful.
Our pitching was okay, not great. It is hard to throw when it is cold and I can only imagine how difficult when you are the first on the mound for the first time in your life in a real game. Blake would not want it any other way!
There were only two hits in the entire game, a lot of walks and a couple of hit kids. That is taking both kids into account.
Lucas was able to score and even steal a base along the way.

This is going to be a season of learning but the boys are happy to play and learn. We are lucky to have Coach Cronk to take them on this journey and have enjoyed our share of wins and loses so far. Come on out to the ballpark!!

Easter 2011

2011-04-27T10:50:00.002-05:00

We tried to get pictures of the kids in their Easter outfits. Addi was in the mood to pose to they are certainly not the best.

I just love the fact she put her arm around him, she had to stand on her tip toes to do it but look at that smile.

We opted for individual shots because getting them to cooperate is getting to be a little more difficult.

I can't believe this summer he will be 9.

Yes, you see Addi Jo really was the issue when it came to the pictures. She did not like where I was taking them she did not think I was doing it correctly and she was very upset I was not using props. While I was trying to take a picture of Lucas she went and got this bench and sat on it to get her picture taken. I have never in my entire life seen someone with some much built in glam and drama!
I have also never seen anyone with so much deep down joy for everything they are doing in their day. It does not matter the activity Addi will find joy in completing it.

WE HOPE YOU HAD A WONDERFUL EASTER HOLIDAY!

Grandma Ann's Easter

2011-04-27T10:43:00.002-05:00

After church we headed over to Grandma Ann's for Easter lunch. Grandma Netto and PAPA Larry came and so did Aunt Chrissy and Kalon. Grandma Ann had Easter baskets for Addi and Lucas and so did Chrissy and Kalon and Netto and PaPa Larry. So much stuff to get on Easter.

Addi has been asking for Bambi for a while now and was so happy to get it and of coarse Tangled, of yes Tangled!!

For some reason Grandma Ann thought she could get away with not having an egg hunt. After the two the kids had already had there was no way they were giving one up. Aunt Chrissy was kind enough to stuff 104 eggs for them to find. Yep, same issue. they had to resort to Target bags to fill up. Every time Addi would find an egg she would scream E-g-g-g-g-g-g-g. It was funny at first but them of my goodness, you have already found 100 today.

Lucas loves the hunt for the eggs more then the candy. Since we have bags and bags full here at the house he has yet to touch more then one piece of chocolate. Addi Jo on the other hand. Well she is a good hunter. I kept moving and half way hiding her candy but she is on a mission to eat it all. I think the trash man is going to have a little heavier bag this week.

HAPPY EASTER!

Church egg hunt

2011-04-27T10:37:00.002-05:00

Our church put on their first egg hunt this year for the kids and families of the church. It turned out to be a rather cold morning and a lot of kids did no end up coming so as Luke said, more for us.

The field on the side of the church was just full for almost an entire mile of eggs. Over 1500 eggs for just 10 kids.

Here is Aubrey with her first full basket. We were so glad they were able to come to church with us.

Here is Addi with her bag after her basket was full.

It was a cold and windy morning. Pastor Rob got out to see how the collection was going and the wind turned his umbrella inside out.

It was a great time for everyone. After we got to go inside and have pot luck breakfast. It was an amazing way to start off Easter.

Easter at the Farm 2011

2011-04-27T10:22:00.005-05:00

Addi had a soccer game early afternoon so we headed to the farm immediately after. Grandma Jan was nice enough to plan an egg hunt for everyone. Ah, the famous egg hunt. Nothing is as one would assume at the farm. An egg hunt is not just an egg hunt.
To start off Grandma Jan took everyone on a long walk to find where the eggs were hidden. Even us stupid parents fell for this one. We walk and walk and bam, the eggs are exactly where they are every year.

I just love how the big kids don't think twice about letting a little person in front of them. Heaven forbid someone else get an egg.

Addi thought she better team up with a big person to try and get some eggs. Grandma Jan is more thoughtful then that. The big kids only get 11 eggs and the little ones get 12. You have to stop when you get your limit. hahaha!
Look at these cuties. Listening so well to directions and teaming up together. Grant is such a gentleman.

Yeah, here are the rest of us standing around. Hoping there are some money filled eggs for us. No luck again this year.

yes, you are correct. That is Jeremy "helping" Addi Jo out. Too bad she does not even get to carry her own bucket.

Luke is going to give Hunter a couple of clues but after that he is on his own.

Apparently if you race you can run over about 25 eggs without ever seeing one of them.

Look at this cutie!

After the egg hunt you get to empty your eggs with money or candy in them and stand in line to turn in your empty eggs. This is the best egg hunt I have ever seen!! Your eggs can get you clothes, sunglasses, more candy, art supplies, games or puzzles. Amazing the value of an egg!!

Here is Addi getting a coloring book. She was so happy. I did not get many pictures after this because the kids kept bringing me their loot to hold and my arms were overflowing!

HAPPY EASTER!!

Some more soccer

2011-04-26T16:16:00.005-05:00

Oh how Addi loves her soccer.

Addi also loves to pose a lot. Aunt Carrie came to her game so she found some time to pose goofy for Aunt Carrie, just to make sure she got some "good" pictures.

Wonder what they are talking about? My guess is was it your mom who brought half time oranges, cause I know mine did not.

We had a bit of a trauma during the game. Addi was pushed down by a player on the other team. She was upset and ticked off. She kept looking at her elbow just knowing it should bleed but a scratch was all there was and a spot of dirt from the ground. I actually think that made her more upset because after the game we did not give her any sympathy or offer her an ice pack as she reminded us.

I know, miracle of all miracles. Addi is actually taking some coaching advise.

This is after the game. I just love how they only love to play the game and don't care at all that they got their hinney kicked. Not one single goal the entire game. Addi could of scored but she forgot which goal was theirs in the second half and kicked it the wrong way. In the end it is playing that they love and that is good!!

Everyone loves a good tunnel after the game!

Brad is home

2011-04-16T16:38:00.003-05:00

On Wednesday Brad come home from his Navy deployment. Lucas went to Virgina when Brad come home on the large carrier when he was almost 4 and has some memory of that, a lot of pictures more then anything. This was a great memory I know he will never forget. To see Brad come home and to see Corben and Nevie be so happy to see their dad after such a long time. I know Luke remembered that and it had some effect on him afterwards.

We felt very lucky to be at the airport to see Brad come home.

I just love the way Nevie looks at him.

Yeah the family is all together again!

After the airport we went to the Yard House to have some lunch. Of which I took no pictures. We were too busy talking.

After lunch we let the kids play in the grassy yard outside the restaurant. What a great way to burn off some built up energy!

It also gave the grownups another chance to talk!! Oh how Benezette's love to do that!!

WELCOME HOME BRAD AND THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE!

First soccer game

2011-04-16T16:15:00.005-05:00

Addi has waited for this moment for almost a year. She desperatly wanted to play soccer, a sport of her own, something like Marissa (the neighbor girl) did. Don't get me wrong she loves her dance but she liked soccer before she ever could begin and once she stared it was a sealed deal. Game day finally arrived!! Addi lined up for skin guard inspection. We got in troube for her earings, which Addi now reminds me before every practice and everytime someone asks about her game or anytime we drive by the field that she cannot play with earings in, it is dangerous. Here she is after scoring her first goal. Most moms would of taken a picture of that moment but I was too busy chearing so the victory run will have to do. That's right, Addi kicked a goal. She was really paying attention!! This is her right after she scored, I mean she is not proud or anything. Ha

A little pose

Oranges at half-time. I mean this could be the perfect sport!!

Kickin the ball in after a foul

She tripped and seriously tried to make a huge deal out of it to the ref. It did make Marissa proud.

Lining up after the game. The don't keep score for offical purposes but if you were to be on the sidelines and count up the number of times the ball went into each goal, Addi's team would of come out ahead.

One happy soccer player

They played the first week, then had an off week and this week was cancelled due to rain

Volleyball

2011-04-16T16:08:00.003-05:00

Taralyn is playing volleyball again this year. Her season started one week before soccer started for Addi, which is a great thing because throught he magic of game scheduling almost every single one of her games is at the same time as Addi Jo's. There is no hope for us!! This year Aunt Carrie is coaching her team and as a super added plus Hailey is able to play on the same team.

They really are doing well and getting better week to week. Those stripers are putting up a great fight each set!!

Here are the dedicated bench warmers!! As they are getting older they are getting a little more restless, I think they can feel their turns coming!!

St. Pats Day

2011-04-16T16:03:00.002-05:00

For St. Patrick's Day this year I decided to get a little fun for the kids. I love a ruben and Jeremy will eat corned beef, the rest he is not in love with but the kids will not even touch it. Jerey was nice enough to cook up some green pancakes. What a big hit. The thing is once you have the food coloring out why stop there so we had pink pancakes, blue pancakes and green and purple eggs.

I would not recommend purple eggs, it just looks bad but Addi Jo inhaled them. I would say that is a plus except she inhales any color egg!!

Bowling

2011-03-17T13:00:00.003-05:00

We took the kids bowling on Sunday for a family get away. Originally we planned on going to a local St. Pat's parade but it was cold, windy and drizzly so scratch that. Off to the bowling ally it was!!

Everyone loved it. This was really Addi's first time bowling and entire game.
After a few turns Luke was upset his sister was doing better so he made a sneaky trip to the counter to ask for bumpers for himself. He was very pleased with his score after that!

For Addi it is more about ball color the ball weight that matters.

Such joy every single time!

I thought it would be nice to get a picture of Jeremy bowling to show Luke how to hold the ball. To my camera delight Jeremy slipped and fell on his side when he went to bowl the very first time. I never thought I would of gotten this on the camera but I have to share because I just about fell out of my chair laughing when he did it. Thankfully he was okay so we were off to great fun from then on.

Soccer time

2011-03-17T12:52:00.002-05:00

Addi started soccer this week. She has asked all winter to play soccer. The time has finally come to start. This is her first team sport activity and she loves it!

I always worry a bit about Addi being a part of the team. Leading the team is never a worry but just being a part of team is something we have thought a lot about. She did great at her first practice. She only corrected the coach once during practice.

She starts playing games in April so more pictures to come!

Spring is near

2011-03-17T12:41:00.002-05:00

Spring is almost here, despite what the daily forecast says. This year has seem like the winter that will not end.

A couple of weeks ago I decided we would do a little sping project and plant some flowers. I let Addi pick out the packet of flowers so we are goin to have some very colorful flowers in a few weeks.

I read about the project a month or so ago and it was perfect for us because I save all the egg shells anyway for fertalizer so we got some dirt and seeds and off we went.

They did a great job working together on the project and there really was not much mess!!

I am happy to report that we already have some stems popping up!!

Dentist Disaster

2011-02-27T16:38:00.002-06:00

Addi went to the denist last year and had two cavities. Two, let me tell you that will make you feel like a horrible parent! The dentist was quick to say that she has very deep centers in her teeth and should have some seals put over the top of them but first needed to have the two cavities filled. We did the first one in January and Addi did great!! I asked Addi if she wanted to come back for the second one before or after her birthday. She said a firm after. Okay, the Monday after her party we headed to the denist first thing in the morning for what turned out to be a disaster. Addi would not sit still in the chair, she would not keep her mouth open, she would not stop moving her head. The denist was able to numb it up and start drilling before we had to stop. It just was not going to be okay to continue. He referred us to a pediatric dentist. They saw is the next day. On the way home from the denist Addi's gum, lip and side of her mouth were still numb and she ended up chewing on all of it. It was horrible and so sad. It looks gross now but it is not infected and should go away any day now. Addi did much better at the dentist office and once the swelling goes down from chewing on her face we will be good to go on getting the tooth fixed.

I will say after all this tooth drama Addi is one of the best brushers I know!!

Little hands

2011-02-27T16:33:00.002-06:00

For Addi's birthday she received a cookbook. I though it was a pretty cool gift but really did not understand until the next day when I started looking closer. It is a small cookbook and 6 silicone cupcake holders that have easy to do receipes and fun kid foods to cook. We have already made a couple things from the cookbook and we have loved them all. Addi picked the first item which was ham and cheese pop-ups. Super easy to do and only took 10 minutes to cook. I was happy. It is hard for me to believe that these little hands are now useful in the kitchen. She loves to be a helper and is getting better at being a good helper. It is amazing how fast she has grown up!!

Being left out

2011-02-27T16:26:00.003-06:00

The same night at the kids birthday party was the Ray-Pec Father Daughter Dance. Since Taralyn is now in school this is a must attend event. We were so happy that she stopped back by the house to show us her beautiful dress and hair.

The little people were not about to miss out on the picture event.

Addi did in fact freak out that she was not going. I mean a dance and her not invited, those were some tense moments.

Everyone loves Mikey and no one wanted to miss a chance to get their picture taken.

After Mike and Taralyn left Addi changed her clothes and announced that Mikey forgot her. Ahh, so sweet. I can see the trouble Jeremy is going to have in two short years!!

Special Hats

2011-02-27T15:09:00.002-06:00

It has been a couple of months since I found this out and have just not had the chance to blog about it. My Grandparents who are full fledged snow birds at this point spend the winters in Arizona. This winter they decided to take up knitting. It is special to me because my Grandpa Brud was the king of knitting. I can remember so many times him make a blanket on his lap in the winter evening just until it was warm enough to fish again. Well Grandma Netto and Grandpa Larry or PAPA Larry as he is more famously known these days made a hat for Lucas and one for Addi. They have worn them a lot lately because we are getting a couple inches of snow a week around here these days. Luke loves his hat. It is done in Texas colors for him and he tells everyone whenever they ask about it.
Addi's first hat was a bit small for her and I could never really get it to stretch out enough for her to wear it. It would just shrink back up and fall off her head. Well for her birthday she got another one and so did her baby. Let me tell you, that was a super hit. The only problem was finding the perfect doll to put the hat on. Some may call it abuse how she went about that process but we won't dwell on that process. Poor things being thrown under the bed and into the play pen.
Addi wears it everywhere with her coat now.

They are so cute but I am secretly hoping that we will stop getting snow and move onto spring where we can wear light jackets and play outside in the grass!

Hamster Fame

2011-02-27T15:01:00.002-06:00

This post is a special request from Luke himself. He feels like we have left the hamsters off the blog since their magical arrival at Christmas. Chum Chum and Mr. Emily still live in Luke's room and are feed and watered very well.

Chum Chum loves his ball and likes to explore all around Luke's room in it. He has made a full recovery from his accident in December. Mr. Emily on the other hand is, well how should we say, lazy. Let's just call it what it is. He does not like to exercise. He climbs into the food bowl to eat and refuses to exercise on the wheel. If you put him in his ball he will sit and stare at you until he can go back to the cage. Everyone except Addi thinks this might have something to do with the fact he was named Emily but she is sure he loves the name as much as she does.

Here is Mr. Chum Chum himself.

Mr. Emily

Now I know this makes you want to run out and ask Santa for a hamster or maybe stop by the pet store but it is important to remember Lucas read lots of books about how to care for a hamster before Santa brought him a pet so Lucas would like for you to remember it is important to care for your animal and to know how.

I would like for you to know that means he pesters us a lot to take the hamsters to the vet for a check up, which is so not even made it to the bottom of list of things to do in my lifetime.

Happy Party Girl

2011-02-27T14:38:00.008-06:00

We had Addi's 4th birthday party on Saturday February 19, 2011. We went to Hunter's party first for a Batman/Spider man bash. It was a great time and really got Addi in the spirit. She even took a little nap before her own party.

Jeremy did some pulled pork for the party and we had some other snack items for all the party goers to munch on.

Lots and lots of folks were able to come, even some little people. Here is Nevie all the way from San Diego. Well she has been here for a few months but she does officially live in San Diego so we will count it.

Addi has been in love with Rapunzel since the movie premiers came out so it took all of five seconds for her to decide what kind of party to have. I knew right away that I would make a tower cake for the party and had in my mind just how cool this would be. Well that came crumbling down at about 8 on Friday night. My lovely iced cake tower fell over in one solid cake piece. We had all four kids over and the look on their faces when it happened actually made it kind of entertaining. Jeremy quickly offered to go to the store (remember the part about all 4 kids being over) I redid the cake that night and iced it. We decided to go with a long tower cake laying down so we did not have any events on Saturday during the party.

Happy Birthday Addi!

It was very important to Addi Jo that we all sign to her, she reminded us about this for a week before her birthday. That is why it was so funny when everyone was singing to her that she actually got embarrassed. She hid below the table. I guess there is a first for everyone.

She did make a quick recovery so she could blow out the candles.

By far Addi's favorite part of her party was the present opening. I am still amazed at how many cool things she got and how in the week since the party she has actually played with so many.

All the kids gather around in the beginning to watch and see what is cool.

Even a little help so Addi can see the coolness quickly.

Look at all the people at her party.

Even Addi is surprised by some of her gifts.

Pretty soon some of the most excited ones get board and start playing with some gifts. Way to go boys!

Oh yeah, Barbie. I see this as a big up coming theme in life around here.

Happy Birthday Addi. So many people love you!!!

Addi is 4

2011-02-16T20:22:00.005-06:00

Addi turned 4 on Sunday

What a wonderful day to be 4. We told her HAPPY BIRTHDAY first thing when she woke up Sunday and she quickly reminded us, all day is my birthday. We headed to church, in her fancy dress and then off to Buffalo (Buffalo Wild Wings) for lunch. You get to pick where we eat on your birthday and Addi picked Buffalo a month ago. Then it was home for presents. After a brief nap it was a quick dinner and ice cream cake time. Addi wanted to go to Luke's baseball practice so off we went. She was excited to tell everyone we saw all day it was her birthday. This Saturday is her party so the celebrating has not stopped yet!

A Barbie ice cream cake on her birthday and Tinkerbell cupcakes for school celebration on Monday.

Yeah, I'm 4

Addi was a dancing fool when it came time to open her presents.

She was so excited she had to have some help to open them because she could not focus.

Even a little help from GG, just because that is what GG got her.

GG got Addi a cute pair of sandals but Lucas spent his own money to get Addi Rapunzel hair and it was a major hit!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ADDI

Snow fun 2011

2011-02-03T18:21:00.004-06:00

We had snow much fun playing outside in the snow. Aunt Carrie and gang came over and the neighbors came out so we could play together. The kids got to sled and we all loved the snowball fight.

It is simply amazing to me that Lucas can get this much on him.

Here is T with Marissa, the neighbor girl and her friend.

Sledding and snowboarding down the hill on the side of the neighbors house. The snow was pretty blown over here but it had a nice frozen top to it and was super slick.

Hangin out in the igloo.

Don't focus on my back side, look at that nice clean driveway.

As soon as it warms up I will have some more picture of the snow fun. Until then I can only show you pictures of us under blankets or in front of the fireplace eating soup and playing games.

Come on 0, I'm tired of the - sign in front of my temperatures in the morning!!

Fun in the snow

2011-02-02T18:50:00.002-06:00

Aunt Carrie came over!! Yeah, we got to leave the walls of our house and play outside with some true snow warriors.

Look at Aunt Carrie trying to get some good photos.....

I am honestly starting to think Jeremy has a shoveling addiction. Who on earth shovels the street two days in a row?

Yep, this was the beginning of the snow fight. Good ol Uncle Jeremy got it going and everyone else fell right behind. I had to put the camera away but this snow is dry, dry, dry so no awesome snowballs for any of us.

After I put the camera away I forgot to get it back out for sledding but I busted out the old fashion slice your leg open sled for Hunter to use going down the side of the house. Addi had given up and gone inside by then so we had some fun on some ice covered drifts. I was glad to see the old fashion sled went just about as far as the new slick bottom one.

Tonight the cold is coming so it should firm up our tunnels but I am not sure it will be warm enough for us to get out in for another day or so. More fun for the weekend!!

Snow fun

2011-02-02T18:34:00.005-06:00

A snow dome is only fitting after a blizzard. We had two nice piles of snow going so we decided to make one tunnel and one igloo.

Yes, this is me working on the igloo with Luke. I was worried that it would cave in so I tested it myself and was nicely shocked when the snow was packed very tightly. The igloo was later turned into a tunnel because the kids decided it was more fun then just sitting in the snow.

Here they are playing in the snow.

Luke dug a hole to find the grass. He wanted to see just how deep he had to go. He was a bit afraid of digging into the ground he said but I told him have no fear of breaking dirt this week.

Addi was afraid to stand in the hole, thinking she would be buried. It was not that deep but was pretty close to her chest!!!!

I sent Luke down to the end of the street to see if Lucy Webb was plowed. I figured we would ask Aunt Carrie and gang over to play in the snow but I wanted to make sure the main roads were plowed. They were so we asked and yippee, they were kind enough to come on over!!

Blizzard 2011

2011-02-02T08:37:00.005-06:00

Before I even begin I would like to say in all of my mind I never would of thought I would post two separate blogs a year apart about a blizzard.

Okay so the blizzard of 2011 was really only an issue for me from the view of my front window. I did not even try to get out Tuesday and Wednesday will be the same. Our office is closed on Wednesday so sledding will be our only reason to depart the beauty of our home.

Here are some radar pictures from early Tuesday of the snow. At 6am were were not fully in the heavy snow band, that is what pink means, heavy snow and white is thunder snow or increased bands which means you get 2 to 2.5 inches and hour. We had those later in day when I began to wonder if Jeremy would make it home.

This is what they were predicting for totals I would guess they were pretty close. According to the best measurements we can get here puts us at 14 inches. It is so hard to figure out for sure because of all the wind but we will go with 14.

Now lets just say Luke's measurements taken every other hour yesterday were a bit off, maybe an inch or two. That is still a foot of snow!! That makes me very happy!

These pictures are after our first shoveling of the driveway. We could not even keep up with the snow falling so we eventually gave up.

Jeremy went out a couple hours later and the rest of us joined him because of guilt shortly after.

Luke was a very good shoveler.

This is our first shovel. The snow was very fluffy but deep, so deep!

Addi was sleeping during our first shovel so she came out the second time and could not believe the amount of snow everywhere. she was especially impressed with the snow on the table at the entry way.

What would you do after all the snow is piled along the side of the drive way. Yeah, me too. Go for a climb.

At first they tried to slide down but decided it was way cooler just to use your own body.

At the top of the world, or at least snow pile.

Snow surfing.

And the slide down.

Today we are going to work on building a snow fort. I think if we spray the piles down with some water they will harder up on the outside and we can tunnel through on the inside. Hopefully, I will have some pictures later. I am a bit worried about the wind chill. That is part 3 of the wonderful storm. Part 1 was freezing drizzle on Monday. Part 2 snow and wind (blizzard) on Tuesday and Part 3 Wednesday and Thursday severe cold and windchill.

I will take Part 2 any day but the others only make me grouchy!!

Jeremy and Luke just came in from one last shovel to totally clear the driveway of all the drifts from last night. We have a clear drive way, a street full of snow and I am certain we are not getting mail today. The mail van thing-y got stuck when she turned on our street and finally got turned around enough to leave. No mail means no bills so I'm good here! The City classifies us as a level 4 road because we are a dead end or cul-de-sac. Actually our road is both so we are most likely the bottom of level 4. They sent out notification that level 4 roads should be plowed later this evening. Good thing we can sled in our own yard because there is no getting out of here!

Honeybell's are here

2011-02-02T08:30:00.002-06:00

Honeybell's have finally made it to Raymore. They were a Christmas gift from Amy. These are the best juiciest oranges I know. They box even comes with a special stray to drink right out of the orange. De-lish!!

Addi was sort of creeped out by the idea of drinking out of them. She really just wanted the orange orange she would say.

Luke tried to peel an orange for Addi and discovered how juicy they are.

Addi agreed to drink the juice finally to get the orange orange part out after seeing how juicy they were.

Luke would drink the entire box if you would let him. He can't believe we can't get more of them in the store and is afraid we will run out and have to go back to that orange juice in a cartoon soon.

Thank you Amy for the wonderful gift. We love Honeybell's!

Poor Guy

2011-02-02T08:18:00.002-06:00

A couple weeks ago PAPA came to town and stayed at Great Wolf Lodge. We had a full weekend of baseball pancake breakfast, indoor baseball before Lucas could enjoy some GWL so Aunt Carrie was nice enough to take Addi Jo with her. She had a wonderful time in the water. After baseball I switched Luke for the little people.

I knew leaving GWL I was walking away a winner. I will take two kids that have been swimming all day over one all day swimmer and a new arrival any time. I was practically floating on air getting them into their booster seats. Have a great night Aunt Carrie, see ya suckers!!! Jeremy is in Texas, I have two tired kids one easy Saturday night.
Famous last words I tell ya, famous last words. NO SLEEP all the way home. It took 45 minutes to get home and they did not stop talking. After 20 minutes I was glad because I figured that nap would do me in. Hunter figured out how to drive Addi nuts and whenever she wanted to ask him a question he would say, we will talk about it later. I thought the girl was going to go insane. Put her on hold, oh she almost pulled her own hair out.
Okay, so we get home drops in our chlorine eyes, pj's on and ready for a good nights sleep. Ahhh, what is this? Kids running around the house. What on earth is going on. Did someone give you sugar, is this a mean trick? It was 9:30 before these little people fell asleep. I can say though it was a good hard sleep when they fell though.

Sunday we went to church and then played for a bit before nap time and going over to Aunt Carrie's for some football games.

Addi decided to dress Hunter up. Poor guy had to put on a dress just before these pictures. He did get that off rather quickly I have to admit!

He did love the cool rays

Seriously, could Addi be any prouder of her creation ?

Oh what the heck, all for the attention of a girl

ADDI SCHOOL PICTURES

2011-01-10T17:27:00.001-06:00

Snow Day

2011-01-10T16:49:00.007-06:00

Today was our first snow day of 2011. This was also the first time I had to try to drive to the airport for work. Regarding that topic, it will also be the last time I go to the office when it is snowing. What a freaking mess!! I can work from home and if I did not have to get one very important thing done I would have turned around. Okay, on with something of more interest.

We left early and when we all got home we started in on the driveway. This is a very light snow, which is good when you are a shoveler. We have some good helpers around here so it went really fast.

This is really the first time that Addi has been helpful with a shovel with any significant benefit. I have to say she still has a way to go because she shoveled her little row right off the driveway, across the street, and down the cul-de-sac. When you tell her to clear snow you better mean it!!

After the driveway is clear we are good to go on sledding!!! We love to sled, or at least in theory we love to sled. Addi does great until that first push. Then she is all screams, and not the joyful type. Addi loves to make snow angels but she hates to do it when it is still snowing because it gets in her face. It is to snow all evening and into the night so hopefully we can make some angels tomorrow.

oHHHH, KCMO just cancelled for tomorrow and so did Lee's Summit? Could we get two snow days in a row? I so hope for Luke's sake. That means he can play in the snow whenever he wants and how ever long he wants tomorrow .....I am so crossing my fingers

Indoor baseball

2011-01-10T16:46:00.006-06:00

Are you thinking about baseball?

Luke had his first indoor baseball game Saturday afternoon. They play at an indoor facility in Lee's Summit. It really is not set up for people to watch, you have to stand or sit on the cold ground for 90 minutes but the boys have an awesome time.

Luke is going to play for the Rascals this year. This will be their first year as a competitive team. This will also be the first year for boy pitch. Yep, that means the boys have to pitch the ball, no t, no machine, no coach. It could be scary folks!
Just about every boy needs to be able to pitch. Luke is working on his throwing and being a catch will help him out they say. We have a couple of boys that are pretty good so that should help. No one is expecting an amazing season here but the boys are excited and that is the key to getting anything going.

It is hard to get pictures in the indoor facility, for some reason they did not install good picture taking lighting. I am so going to have to talk to someone about that. Hum, maybe Frank White because he was there talking to all the boys and our coaches Saturday. What an awesome guy!! If the lighting was not enough of a problem I also have to deal with a chain link fence and a black netting system. I hate to complain because we all know I would really bitch if I got hit by a ball while I was standing around.

As the season moves along, and outdoors, I will keep you updated as to the schedule for league games and tournaments. Baseball this year will go from January to September and the football starts in August. Have I mentioned lately how glad I am we are sitting out wresting this season?

Hunting

2011-01-10T16:44:00.003-06:00

Jeremy and Lucas have been lucky enough to hunt a lot this season. This season Jeremy has shot more banded geese then every before in his whole hunting life as Luke likes to say. The winter has been mild until this last weekend so Luke has been able to go quiet a bit in the blind. Saturday Jeremy brought home another banded goose!

Addi decided to check it out, I mean who does not love a goose with a little jewelry on it?

This is one happy hunter!

Happy New Yar 2011

2011-01-10T16:35:00.002-06:00

We hope you are having a wonderful start to the New Year. I am not so big on resolutions, maybe because I am not so great at setting ones I can achieve. I do think the new year is a good chance to start new traditions and to re-focus on things that are important to you. This year we started a new tradition for New Year's Day. We did fondue. Aunt Shelly got a new fondue pot and gave me her old one, which is wonderful for us. We started off with cheese fondue and moved to dessert with cho-ko-lot fondue. That was every one's favorite. It was a tradition I am sure we are going to keep because after all the eating of the holidays that something lite is perfect!
The kids had such a good time that I think we are going to do fondue a lot this year!

cheese, bread, diced pepperoni, salami all equal yum.
Addi tried to dip peanuts but she could not stick 'em.

blueberries, strawberries, bananas and marshmallows now that is serious yum!

Christmas 2010

2010-12-26T20:37:00.006-06:00

Merry Christmas from the Long Family. We had a wonderful Christmas this year. Santa brought animals for Christmas. Oh what a treat, a crazy crazy treat.

The kids bought Christmas presents for GG at the Christmas store at school this year. GG got such a kick out of her present.

I must admit that this year Jeremy got me. He decided to get a little creative with my present. He sent me on a scavenger hunt. I do love a scavenger hunt. Typically, I enjoy being the planner but a hunt can be fun! I am happy to say in the end I received a new pair of shoes, a wonderful bottle of wine and an ipad. Yep, that is correct and ipad!!! Can you believe it? I can't.

I am still trying to figure out how to work it and look forward to blogging away on it because the things you can do to pictures is amazing!!

Here is Addi digging into her puppy present. Oh year, Santa did not bring it but GG sure did. Addi has walked that little dog a lot!!

We spent the rest of the day hanging out around the house, playing with our gifts and eating a nice Christmas dinner.

We hope you had a very Merry Christmas. If you did not, come on over to our place next year. We will surly entertain you and may even drive you crazy enough to love what you did before :)

Christmas at the Farm

2010-12-26T20:11:00.005-06:00

Christmas on the Farm.....this year was much, so much, less stressful than last year. I did not realize how relaxing it was until after we opened presents and did not have that we must rush out the door feeling. It is so nice to sit back and relax. The farm can be such a relaxing place. There was a nice snow falling but nothing scary. There was a nice breeze in the air, not a blizzard rolling in. I took a nice nap in the afternoon-oh how I love a farm nap!

Here our our Christmas elves passing out presents. This is where all the kids would wear their matching pj's that Aunt Carrie buys. I was a wonderful mom and managed to leave Addi's at home this year. When we arrived back home I found them laying on my bed with the coat I was going to wear but decided to switch at the last minute. Addi did have them for Christmas morning and the official picture was the week before when Maddie was in town so at least we have that one.

I think everyone received more than they could absorb. Addi got the cutest cowgirl boots. She then opened up a cowgirl costume and told me today when I was unpacking she thought she was going to have to wear that dress and hat with her boots. Now that she knows she can wear them independently, we seem to be good to go. She also received a Dorothy outfit from the Wizard of Oz. She insisted it was Hannah Montana. After seeing a few minutes of Wizard of Oz she seems to be back on track. I think she is just willing to wear the dress so she can wear the shoes. Oh for shinny shoes.

Luke received a BB gun with targets. Thankfully, we left that at the farm so I have been able to avoid the entire discussion of when he can go shoot. He really thinks he is going to be able to bring it home and shoot into the creek. Got to love how his crazy mind woks.

The Grant man got an Iron Man mask and was able to open his presents with the mask on. Now that is Christmas bliss.

Years ago the adults gave up exchanging presents with each other in order to play a white elephant game. The most popular item this year was a box of lottery tickets. I stole it, Jeremy stole it and lucky Brian got it back in the end. Unlucky Brian only won $5 off the box full of tickets.

Here the kids are hovering over our game. I think they are getting old enough to join in or at least think they want to join in. I still wonder how it will go when their favorite thing gets stolen out of their cute little fingers.

I love this scene every year, Christmas Even, gifts are being ripped open. Parents are searching to see what their kids got and you are hoping no one throws away a present. Family is a good thing!

CHRISTMAS EVE 2010

2010-12-26T19:56:00.004-06:00

We decided to start our Christmas Eve this year at Aunt Carrie's house. It was a bit selfish of me because I wanted Addi to see her present to badly.
Look at these Christmas angels. They were so good. We made them wait about two hours before we opened the presents. Ah, I love the torture!

This is what the first few shots looked like. I can't wait until everyone is old enough to sit still and fake smile for us. I am sure then I will miss the moments of trying to get everyone together.

Carrie made Addi Jo a dollhouse. A dollhouse that I thought was going to get a lot of screams and oh my goodness when she opened it but received more of a silent shock look. In the two days that have passed the excitement and realization have begun to sink in. She is demanding we go get it. Yeah, we are bad parents. It is still at Aunt Carrie's house. It is huge and would not fit with everything else we had in the car. We have got to go it soon. Today we ran a few errands and went down the toy isle where Addi demanded a pool for her house. We recommended she go for bedroom and living room furniture first and we were told she did not need the living room because she can put a pool in there.

Here is a special Christmas photo. Aunt Carrie thought she could plop her little self on the trampoline and it would not sink. Now that would be one special present :)

Ah, the moments we can catch on film and now the internet forever :)

Hunter loves Batman. Thank goodness we got in on the love with the Batmobile.

Christmas pickle 2010

2010-12-26T19:49:00.004-06:00

We did the Christmas Pickle this year. Jeremy and I thought Addi might really give Luke a run for his money. She had practiced just about every night and wanted me to keep moving it.

I have to say her competative spirit is very impressive if you love the idea of winning. If you love the idea of being a good sport she may have a ton to learn yet.

We hid the pickle and called them out at the same time. I made Luke wait for a minute to start looking which caused Addi to get upset because it was no longer a race, of coarse. Silly me. It lasted a few minutes more then I would have guessed. In the end Luke found it first then Addi found it on round two. I mean you have to have two rounds, hurt feelings and Christmas spirit just don't mix well.

MERRY CHRISTMAS PICKLE!

First snow of 2010

2010-12-26T19:33:00.004-06:00

We had our first snow of the year a couple of Sunday's ago. We headed off to church and came home in time to play for a bit before it melted. There was just enough to shovel a bit of the driveway. The biggest issue we had with the snow is the fact we have 50mph winds whe it was snowing so we had some mounds in place and bare grass in others. It did remind us of Christmas Eve last year.

Addi just loved the snow!!

Mr. Mischief!

then everything had to end with a snowball to the face.

Sadly the snow was gone the next morning. We did not have any snow for Christmas and are waiting for enough snow to make a snowman!!

Addi's Dance Show

2010-12-09T20:25:00.004-06:00

Addi has been taking dance since September. She was promised that when Lucas started football she could start dance. That statement was made without me realizing the dance studio would not start up until after Labor Day so Addi could not start in July when Lucas started football. Oh, those were long days. Addi asked every single day if it was the day dance started. Finally, dance started and she went every Tuesday.

Sunday was her first real show. She had a practice a couple weeks before and it did not go so well so we sort of held our breath for this one. Addi did great! It was such a relief to know that Grandma's and Grandpa would get to see a real dancing Addi.

It was not easy to get picture of her, but I was able to snap a few;

Part of the dance they were to pout. You can pretty much see it is a very natural pose for Addi...

I just think this is the cutest thing ever and I love the tu-tu's.

Here is a picture of Addi's teacher Ms. Courtney. She was the lucky one to stand off to the side of the girls and do the dance while they did it. It is not her best picture but Addi really does love her and she makes their 45 minutes of dance so much fun. Addi loves to try and take over when Ms. Courtney has to talk to another girl during class Addi is very quick to jump in and try to teach the other girls. I know, who would of ever thought.

Christmas Tree 2010

2010-12-09T20:18:00.002-06:00

The tree went up the Friday after Thanksgiving just as it should. I went to be at 9 after making a final list and one last peak at the ads. I hit Wal-Mart at midnight for the toys and then came home, did some on-line shopping and grabbed the neighbor to hit Wal-Mart again at 5am. The only trick was that was for electronics so we had to be there at 3am. We conquered Target, Gordman's, and QuikTrip for some cappuccino then came back home. My mom came over about 9am and Addi, my mom and I hit Dick's, PetSmart, and Kohl's. After that we had lunch and then back home to do the tree. By then the boys were home from a morning hunt and we started decorating. It was not until 9pm that I manged to find my bed again. I may or may not of had sugar plums dancing in my head, I have no idea, I was exhausted.

This next part is 100% for Jeremy. He loves the fact that the tree he asked me to measure before I decided I wanted it is really larger than necessary for the living room. I wanted a tall tree and we certainly have it. I moved it to a better spot this year so we can get every section up. It is now taller than the ceiling fans.
The picture is not the best because I took it the day we were decorating but it is beautiful, well I am happy with it at least, and tall, very, very, very tall. I think next year I will switch up the colors but is no ceiling fan use for a few more weeks around here. I can't have an angel that really flies!!

Addi Jo

2010-12-09T20:11:00.003-06:00

For some reason it has really hit me lately that Addi is no longer little. It may of started during football season when there really was no rational to explain to her that she is not like the other big girls anymore.

It certainly sank in when she started to steal her own mashed potatoes and eat them with chopsticks in the kitchen. I mean there is no need to tell her that is just not a good plan because she does not want to hear one word of it.

Then there is the cute face of a little girl that made her own Christmas list. One that compares to 16 year old girls in some ways and one that made of items only a 3 year old would want. I mean the i-pod was a bit over the top but who would not want to get her a sleeping bag and pillow pet. Then there was the baby puppy and zhu zhu pets.

It is just amazing Addi Jo is so big now. She loves preschool everyday and is learning so much. She loves to say the prayer at the dinner table and give her brother a hard time. She is starting to play games and is super competitive, which means she fits in well here. She is her brother's biggest fan and worst nightmare all in the same evening.

The tangled experience

2010-11-30T19:57:00.002-06:00

Saturday night we took the kids to see the new Disney movie Tangled. I have to get this down because one day I will be sad that she can go off and see movies without us. Addi had actually been looking forward to it for a few weeks since she found a t shirt with Rapunzel on it and then immediately after saw the movie preview. It is really her first movie attachment experience.

We got our tickets, which was a bit shocking for Jeremy. Usually Grandma Ann takes the kids to the movies so we had a bit of sticker shock at the price to get into a movie. I can clearly understand how Netflex has become successful because we headed over to the concession stand after picking up our 3-D glasses. I was prepared for this because these prices have always been out of whack but Jeremy just about lost it. I digress.

The movie was great, really, it was. I thought Addi dozed off a couple of times until I realized that she was awake and just not blinking she was watching so intently.

Then we get to the end of the movie. If you need to be kept in suspense until you can see the movie yourself you should stop reading now......Rapunzel's boy friend came to rescue her out of the tower and the evil "witch" who stole her stabbed Eugene in the side. Addi lost it. She started balling. I mean like Jack just sunk to the bottom of the Atlantic on Titanic, like Goose just died in the plane crash, like when Hillary dies in Beaches. I had to hold in my laughter because really are you seriously breaking down. She had tears down her face and I had to consider putting my hand over her mouth she was crying so loudly. It was crazy and sad at the same time. Once I got her to focus back on the screen and what was going on the witch was pushed out of the window and died so she was good to go but those were a rough four minutes.

In the end she loved the movie and can recall clearly when the witch was mean and how Rapunzel was so happy in the end.

Holiday Cards

2010-11-24T09:19:00.003-06:00

I have to pass this along. I know usually I share info about what is going on but this is a great deal, and easy. Shutterfly is giving away 50 free cards if you blog about this. Hey, finsih reading this blog post before you go off and post one of your own on this deal!
I have wanted to do my own photo cards for a couple years with the kids but the ones in the studio always seem so fake by the time I get them home. There are some pretty awesome themes at Shutterfly so look in your mailbox in a couple weeks to see which one we picked........

Week 8

2010-10-30T19:15:00.002-05:00

You know the old saying that everything good must end. I can tell you it stinks having to try and explain that to an 8 year old. Today we played the team that until last week was ranked first in the division all year. They saw their first defeat lat week. This wekk they handed us our first defeat of the season.

Lucas handled it much better this year then last but it hurt. It hurt to see the boys out there not getting the plays pulled off as we should of. It hurt knowing we could of won, it just was not our day. I would love a rematch, I would take it any day of the week but it is not going to happen until next year.

The stats will all have to be calculated and figured to see where the ranking will end up. We are not a shoe in for 1st any longer but it is going to be close. I will let you know.

Well off to pack up the catcher's gear for baseball practice tomorrow.

Week 7

2010-10-24T18:03:00.004-05:00

This was a big week of football. Our quarterback Blake suffered a bone bruise to his arm at practice on Thursday. Everyone was thankful it was not broken and Blake wanted to make sure he played Sunday. PaPa and grandma Trish were in town for the game and Luke was excited.

Things were going well through the first half. Then this play happened.

Cronk went down crying, his arm was killing him. He was sacked hard. I tried to be helpful and thrown the bag of ice from Aunt Carrie's cooler out to the coach but it slid out of my hand and I looked like the biggest fool ever, seriously it was like I had never thrown a ball in my life. I have to put this in here because I want to see how many years that story lives on.

Luke played on defense this week and did very well. He got a big push back from a kid only once. He felt really good about his game.

With this win 37-0 the Tigers are in first place all by themselves. The only undefeted game in the league now. Next week is the final game of the season, don't miss it!