School groove and Letting it GO!

We had a very full week. Brenner transitioned into riding the bus home from school, and he seems to like it.  We were relieved that it went well. Nola got a special surprise this week from Aunt Theresa and Grammy Vo - more on that below. Matt is getting used to the new routine - more time at home to get work done in his shop!

Nola's preschool class made bird feeders out of bagels, peanut butter, and bird seed. What a cutie!

On Thursday, Nola and I headed to KC to see Frozen on Ice. She was so excited! Thank you to Aunt Theresa and Grammy Vo for making it happen!!!!

The Sven skaters were awesome - the costume was huge!

Nola was memorized :) What fun memories!

Nola thought the huge inflatable Marshmallow was pretty cool too!

Girl time is awesome!

Nola also got a coloring book and colored and colored and colored on Saturday morning.

We let Brenner sleep in....he still had some rough evenings this week. It has been stressful but today was much better. We hope that trend continues!

Brenner was tired Saturday morning because of soccer practice Friday night - in the rain!

Working on some ball handling skills!

Saturday was also busy for mom and dad. Matt went to a gun show while I took the kids to get some new plants for the new front yard landscaping. We planted and mulched before dinner guest arrived. It was nice to sit and relax that evening!

Nola telling me "Mom, look - I am laying like Emi." Sweet girl - she loved Emi so much!

Brenner is doing great on his assignments - the work is coming slow though because the teacher is new. We are telling Brenner to be patient!

This is what Brenner drew when he had extra time in art class. I asked a friend if I should be worried. She said she didn't know - but that her boys draw the same sorts of things - with so much ninja characters these days I shouldn't be surprised but I did ask Brenner if he could draw something less violent.

Brenner's behavior chart - purple and pink are the highest - way to go buddy! The second is what he likes to do - play outside, go to school (that is a good sign, right?!), donuts, TV (sign), and video games (odd since we don't have video games).

Back to school

It was back to school week and the kids did great. The weather was unseasonably cool which was nice! Most pictures this week are of Nola - Brenner was plenty busy with soccer and open house - but we just failed to get pictures. We will try harder this week!  This week should be interesting. Brenner's attitude toward his parents has been dismal to put it mildly. So good in the classroom but rude at home (yes that is the honest truth). What ever you say - he challenges it - even if it is not getting enough pretzels. It has been a constant, exhausting battle. So - this week he will start riding the bus home from school. I think after he tries it, he will like it. Time will tell. Wish us luck!

Brenner the second grader and Nola the 4 year old preschooler. They are too cute!

Brenner going into school - he wasn't keen on me taking a picture but I did it anyway!

Nola looking less brave than she really was on her first day. She was rarin' to go!

On Friday, Nola's buddy Morgan turned 5 so Nola and Matt took her out to lunch and then to the park. This is such a sweet picture!

And this one made me laugh out loud! They look so grown up!

Not sure the story behind this - are we going to Area 51? I especially like the dress shoes :)

Brenner did a little work this week in the classroom.

The second graders have a behavior log - Brenner scored perfect all this week. Way to go! The picture was suppose to be what he thought his teacher Mrs. Dixon had in her lunch. He drew a mariachi band dancing on the lunch table. Weird right?!

House projects continue. On Sunday, I started painting the lattice Matt installed on the front porch. Matt hates to paint and I don't mind so I was happy to work on it. Nola and Brenner begged me to help.

They did a pretty good job! Good teamwork we all agreed!

Latter on Sunday was Morgan's actually birthday party. It was Frozen themed and Elsa actually showed up! Each girl could wear a Princess dress if they wanted. Nola had a lot of fun! They got to color their own Elsa shirts. Nola didn't have much patience with this task....I mean she decided to give hers an abstract spin :)

The party included a bounce house!

Trampoline fun....for kids. Makes me nervous so I was a hoverer while Nola was on it!

A sweet end to the weekend!

Meteor shower, birthday party, school open houses - what a week!

It was a jam packed week! We checked out the stars, celebrated Cousin Gannon's first birthday, got health checkups, and went to preschool open house! Nola went to get a physical and was a-okay. Brenner got his eye checked. He did great although had a super funny face when they dilated his eyes. We assured him that no one really enjoys that part!

A couple silly manillies!

During my morning run, I noticed a lot of shooting stars. I then learned that it was the Perseid meteor shower and the kids were intrigued. Brenner even got up with me a couple of mornings at 4:30 to see them! It was super cool!

Who knew school supplies could be so fun! There was a lot to buy. Brenner was not that interested in the required 5 composition notebooks!

On Friday night, I baked cupcakes for Mr. Gannon's first birthday and Brenner had his first soccer practice. Matt didn't get any pictures but said that Brenner did great. More pictures in the future! Krystee wanted a giraffe theme for Gannon's birthday. She did a great job decorating the cupcakes!

Gannon waiting for this "smash cake".

He seemed to like our gear gift. Our kids had one of these and loved it!

Grandma Val and the kids doing who knows what!

Sunday night, we had preschool open house. Nola was very excited to see Ms. Gerhardt! Love the way she greeted Nola - "Hello, my friend, I have missed you." That woman has a heart of gold!

Nola outside of preschool.....she was excited!!!!! School starts this week - stay tuned for more shenanigans!

Never a dull moment

Despite the oppressive heat, we have been going full blast!  Bike riding, game playing, road trip, and back to school shopping - what a week! A funny story from today - the kids wanted to watch a movie today but I said they needed to clean up their bedrooms and playroom. They kept calling me back to do the check - but there was were toys shoved under the bed, clothes not in the hamper, etc. As I left the room, I heard Brenner say "Ok, Nola, Mom is being hard core today - we gotta do better." Made me chuckle!

Early in the week, Matt took the kids and one of Brenner's buddies to the Katy Trail to ride bikes. Looks like there were some fun moments!

All of that energy called for lunch at McDonalds.

Nola striking a pose - what a character!

More practice is paying off!

Brenner intensely playing battleship.

Papa and Nola taking it a bit less serious!

Back to school shopping led us to the Under Armor store to find shoes for Brenner. Nola decided to model some clothes - but luckily didn't throw a fit when we didn't purchase anything for her (she has plenty of everything is seems!).

Brenner helping water the grass out front - thanks for helping, buddy!

New super fast slide at a local park! Nola looks so tall!

Happiness - my first jar of pesto this season. Not all is lost in our dismal patch we are having to call our garden this year!

Grandma Val time

Grandma Val wanted the kids for a few days this week and they were so excited!I must admit that Matt and I were a little excited too - grown up time!!!! We did miss them though and when I picked them up on Saturday, I got big hugs. Now it is back to "normal".

On Monday, Cousins Eadlin and Gannon came by for a visit. The kids had a fun time!

Grandma Val took the kids to the butterfly exhibit at Powell Gardens. They had been a couple of years ago and this time was just as fun. It was hot but Grandma, Aunt Lynnie, and the kids had a great time.

Look at the smile!

This made me laugh!

A bit of body art.

Selfie time with Aunt Lynnie.

Nola asked to watch the DVD with the girl singing. I thought she meant some Shirley Temple movies. But what she wanted was Celtic Women Christmas. So we had Christmas singing in August - why not?!

I knew Brenner needed new tennis shoes for school and wanted to check on his pants. Think he needs some new ones?! Note he did have the hiked up extra high but they were above his ankles/

Brenner is on a training soccer team (Boonville Ravens). The league starts at 8 years old but they have a 7 year old training team.  The academy had a pool party Saturday night. Brenner and his buddy are in the background and Nola and her buddy are in the foreground. They had a really fun time despite the unseasonable cool temps (70 degrees!).

Sunday was hot again but the boys shot their bows. Nola actually did as well but she was done by the time I got the camera back outside.

Nice grouping at 10 yards buddy!

Nola making her own kingdom in the living room!

Loved her drawing from Sunday school. She also cracked me up with some flash cards today. She handed them to me and said "Mommy, here is your credit report with your credit score. I need your signature." Hmmm....not sure what Grandma let them watch at her house :)