Ladybugs, birthdays, and deer

We had an exciting week - at least for part of the week! I left for Washington DC on Monday and proceeded to get sick. I had one watery eye for the whole plane ride - ugh! With lots of hand sanitizer, tissues, tea, and sleep I was better by Wednesday but still made it to my meetings every day. A huge shout out to Rosa, the housekeeper at the hotel that gave me extra tissues and left nice notes for me! Matt and the kids kept busy with the daily routine!

Nola had a project to make a pollinator (to go along with their trip to the Butterfly House). She decided on a lady bug (indirect pollinator) and I said that Dad would be glad to help her out :) They used cardboard and glue to make the 3-D model.

Nola then covered it with epoxy so that the paint would stick (and not soak into the cardboard).

Head was detached from body so that it could have some movement (See - there was a reason Dad should help out with this - I am not crafty!).

Nola's final project. She also had a to write a report (paragraphs and drawings) about her pollinator. Great job! Nola also did a great job helping out a friend at school. So great that I got a emotional call from the principal and vice-principal on Wednesday letting me know how amazing Nola is and how appreciative they are that they get to be around her. The really amazing thing is that when Nola described to me what she did, it wasn't a big deal to her - just her being her. God has great things planned for this one - she is already shining his message through her.

View from the top of the Department of Interior (I never knew I could go up there before).

Early morning walk on Friday before my flight. Peaceful sunrise in Washington DC. A little different than the news with pipe bomb mailings, hate speech, mass shootings - we can go on and on. What are you doing to help or hurt this narrative? Words matter. People matter. Love God. Love people.

Matt turned the big 4-5 on Friday. He looked up to see 10:26 on his computer screen - haha!

Our friend Bill invited Brenner to do the youth hunt on his property. It is 5 minutes from the house which made it super appealing. Matt took some time to scope out a nice spot earlier in the week.

Brenner and Matt sitting in the tent Thursday afternoon.

Saturday morning bright and early. With peanut butter M&Ms.....when I asked Brenner about it he said "how did you know" and I showed him the picture. He then informed that the orange slices were right behind the M&Ms! Drat!

The boys a bit later...perhaps after ingestion of too many orange slices!

But boy oh boy, Brenner took two button bucks late in the afternoon. He was so excited that Matt said he was shaking! Matt said they had to wait a while for the first one to turn so that Brenner could get a clean shot. He landed him and while they waiting the other came around and Brenner took that one too (after Matt asked if he wanted to fill both his tags).

Brenner with Bill. Bill was very excited for him and didn't mind that they were two button bucks (Matt felt a bit bad about that). Brenner was the 7th youth to take their first deer off Bill's property.

Brenner with his proud dad. I think that was the best birthday present that Matt got. He said he didn't get his first deer until he was 16 so not bad for Brenner at 10 (says a lot for the help that he gets from his dad).

The colors are gorgeous here in Missouri. And the weather was beautiful this weekend!

Love these two!

Brenner's big week

This week it was Brenner's turn to get the blog spotlight! And boy did he have a good week for the most part. We hit a little bump when we that his piano teacher will no longer be giving lessons. It was a little ironic in that he had finally quit complaining about practice. Who says God doesn't have a sense of humor?!We had his parent teacher conference and then the end of the fall soccer season.

Brenner's teaching Mrs. Loesing is amazing. I have heard other describe her as the best teacher in the district. I don't know if that is true but I can tell you that she knows and cares about her students. And is tough. And passionate after 20+ years of teacher. This kid got an awesome report - he is doing great in class, works hard, is a bit ornery, and a great role model. We asked what we could do at home to help. Mrs. Loesing said  "just tell him to take stop and take a deep breath". Didn't I tell you that she "gets" him. To celebrate his great report, we went out for dinner - reuben and fries for this guy!

During the drive to the butterfly house with Nola's class, I found out from another mom that Brenner had a science test (it was on the planner that I sign - just shows that I didn't read it close). When I asked Brenner about it - he said he blew the two essays. A few days he got his paper - appears he did just fine the little booger!

Brenner and his team waiting to play on Sunday. Matt was head coach as Coach Paul had conflicting games.

Dribbling down the field.

Getting it in - love his facial expressions.

Shot to the goal. I don't think this one went in but B did score one for his team to avoid a shutout.

The second game was much more exciting with frankly a better team. But our boys showed up to play. Score was 4-2 at the half with the Brenner scoring a goal off a shot and a PK.

Although they were down (get it - he is on the ground - hahaha) at the half, they came back to win 7-5.  I don't think the other team knew what to do with our boys passing, communicating, and winning! Way to go boys!

U12 Ravens - Fall 2018.

Nola's big week

I am very late with the blog post this week! I will focus on Nola this week and focus on Brenner next week :) Nola's 3v3 soccer season wrapped up on Sunday, we had a field trip to the Butterfly House in St. Louis, and she had allergy testing - whew! It was very busy but this little girl makes the hustle and bustle worth it!

Nola's team played the other Raven team on Sunday. Only one other girl is in her grade so she made a lot of new friends this season. Her foot skills have been awesome this season - even though almost the youngest, others look to her for some skills. Good job, Nola!

The girls played hard against each other! They black team got a last second goal and beat Nola's team by one (which was okay since the white team won the game earlier this season). I think the split the teams pretty even :)

The second game was a little tougher - the weather turned colder and we had one player show up late.

Nola took a hard fall on her shoulder. She went back in after she told me she was okay but as you can see she was note. I took her back out. The trainer checked her, and it was just a bruised scapula. Nola was fine later that day.

So proud of these U10 girls. They didn't rack up many in the win column but they all improved tremendously and had fun. Those smiles are great.

Team Booterfly (the name my group picked) on the second grade field trip. The weather was crisp but bootiful :)

Waiting to go into the conservatory.

In the classroom, the kids made their own butterflies and learned about pollination.

In the conservatory. Then it was off to lunch and the playground before riding the carousel.

Nola held on for dear life - she didn't really like it.

We stopped for ice cream with friends on the way home!

On Thursday, Nola had her allergy prick test. Here they had just been applied........

After about 15 (of 20) minutes. Her reactions weren't as severe as Brenner's but she tested positive for 20 allergens - trees, animals, and mold. Nola will be starting immunotherapy soon!

Despite no more games, Coach Daryl and I had the girls practice this week and scrimmage in full uniforms as the season finale. Another parent took this picture at the end of the game. With the sun setting, so did the season. I learned a lot as well - one is that I enjoy coaching more than I thought and they actually learned something from us! A great way to help the youth in your community - don't be afraid to try!

Fall time

I missed the post last week because, well, I was just tired! Plus I didn't take many pictures post-Nola bash. This past week was a busy one - I was in DC/Reston for work and Matt held down the fort. The kids have a few more weeks of fall soccer, are continuing with piano, and of course school! Throw in some birthday parties and weddings - and a master bath renovation and you have glimpsed into our world :)

Birthday dinner on Nola's actual birthday. We had soccer first and then headed to the restaurant of her choice - Arby's. Yeah? Apparently they have the meat. She enjoyed so that is what counts!

We got this pic from the Children's ministers at church with the title Chick Magnet. Haha - Brenner actual is a big helper in children's church.

Master bath last week - it has come a long way since then. Frustrating process overall - but It. Is. Almost. Done. Our marriage will be very happy for that!

Nola and I went shopping and found her a new winter coat at Marshalls. Were we looking for a coat? No. Did she need a coat? Yes. That is what I love and hate about Marshalls!

Brenner with his new glass lens with crizol - no more glare with pictures - yahoo!

Please meet the student of the month! Nola and other awardees were treated to lunch at McDonalds with the principal.

When I got home Friday from my work trip, I needed to bake a carrot cake and other goodies for the Festival of Sharing at church Saturday. So I didn't want to cook dinner and my husband that was home all week hadn't thought that far ahead. So - sushi for the boys (I had sushi for dinner the night before), other stuff for us girls, and then ice cream. What can I say - it wasn't homemade but everyone was happy (at least for a little while!).

Matt headed to Hermitage for a little kid break while the kids and I went to my cousin's wedding. Before we went, I switched my summer and winter clothes. Brenner thought he could rock my "green zebra" dress. Silly boy!

Brenner ready for the wedding. Collared shirt and combed hair. Can I get an amen?!

Here we are ready to go! A weather front moved through and by the time we made the 85 mile drive the temp was 58 - gulp.

But - it was a small reception hall and lots of people (and dancing) - so we warmed up and I was glad for the sleeveless dress. Grandma Val with Brenner and Nola.

Lynn and I trying to get a pic and mistakenly thinking Brenner was up for the job. Nope - but this picture was funny of me trying to get my phone back!

Here we are on Lynn's camera. She knows more about selfie angles than I do but I need to make my head not look so big - lol! The kids and I danced and danced - yes we were the only ones out there at certain times but who cares - I learned I can still do the Grease Lightening medley, marcarena dance, learned the cupid something (a country thing), and many others - all in heals thank you very much. But I had to shut it down when the DJ played "I like big butts" and Brenner came up to me and said - "do you know what this song is saying". Why yes I do. And the next song was "Pour some sugar on me". Time to go! Kids chattered a while in the car talking about how awesome it was! We were all tired by the time we got home!