4th of July

Yes, I am going to get caught up eventually! I have actually been reading more lately, one of my passions that I usually deny myself and lately have been splurging. So....more reading=less computer time!

We had planned to go to my hometown for my 15 year high school reunion over the 4th of July weekend and be back in time to celebrate the evening of the 4th in Lincoln. But I decided that at 8 months pregnant and having recently been on two long trips (both included some hot weather) staying home sounded much more appealing. Our good friends, the Wyatt's, were in town for the weekend and I had plenty of "nesting" to do too. (More on that in a later post if I don't get tied up in another novel!)

We enjoyed a low-key but fun weekend, lots of fireworks and food and most importantly family and friends! Even with the rain on Sunday, our fun wasn't spoiled. Instead of meeting everyone to play some sand volleyball, we decided to potluck it at our house and then head over to Craig and Erin's for fireworks. At the last minute Casey decided we should take in the parade in Seward. No planning = no camera! So I didn't get any pics of the parade but the kids are still enjoying the sack full of candy that serves as proof that we were there! And I have plenty of pics from the rest of the weekend for you to enjoy:

Max Wyatt enjoy a turkey leg!

The go-cart and 4-wheelers kept the kids entertained at our house. Corbin took Max for a little ride.

Nate takes a turn at the wheel with Max and Ellie

Kennedy struggled a little with sharing...she thought she had to be a passenger if she couldn't drive!

Ellie got stuck, Kennedy gives her a little push

Corbin and Kennedy, going FAST

Charity took the little girls for a ride. Who had more fun?

Sporting his new mohawk and flag
Very few pics of Kyndal; she spent most of the night indoors (not a fan of fireworks!)Kennedy and her sparkler

Addison

The boys, blowing things up

Hurry, get out of the way!

Jimmy and Ryder

The Wyatt's

3 expectant Mom's! Me in August, Erin in November and Erika in September!

Enjoying the big bangs

Little Slugger

After practicing in the backyard many times this spring (and last year with Big Sis), Corbin finally got his turn at playing t-ball "for reals". He was so excited to wear his YMCA uniform, a green t-shirt and ball cap. The coach even had their names put on the backs of their shirts and numbers on their caps for them......which made Kyndal a little jealous!

Both Kyndal and Corbin play on Saturdays and at least half their games conflicted with each other so Casey and I have taken turns on whose we go to.

Here's some footage of our little sports nut:

Thanks to Jodee at Follow the Leaders for the awesome idea of the traveling sandbox. It has been an absolute HIT for Kennedy during the games. And she's instantly the most popular girl around....every week she's surrounded by little friends wanting to share in the fun. Good thing we have a sand volleyball court to dip into to refill the box each week!

And here is Miss K doing her thing in the sand:

KC's Creation

M&M Time:



This spring I formally started something I've been wanting to do for awhile. With the baby due just a few months away I felt like I needed to purposefully schedule in one-on-one time with each kid at least once a month. We already naturally split the kids up frequently, but it seemed like I rarely did something with just Corbin and with the baby on the way I didn't want to slip in a routine of never having that special time with the others (which is pretty typical for me during babe's first year.)



The kids LOVE this new tradition we have, it's called "M&M Time", (Mom and Me Time)... like I mentioned we squeeze it in at least once a month and it's often not scheduled but we do stay pretty fair in taking turns (they make sure of it!) We have done a variety of things already and I'm not sure who has enjoyed the outings more! And I have to admit we've squeezed in some "errands" along with the fun stuff. But what I've found out is that they enjoy that part of it too, I don't think the "what" is nearly important to them as the "time" that they get me all to themselves!



Here are some things we have done:



Kyndal: literacy night at Roper, ice cream at the Dairy Sweet, run to Walmart, slush from Sonic



Corbin: trip to the park, stop for ice cream, trip to Hobby Lobby



Kennedy: shopping for horseshoes for her new room (and got to hold baby chicks!), trip to Runza, playing at the park, grocery shopping at Russ's including her own package of M&M's!



I am looking forward to the many years ahead of this tradition...and I welcome new ideas in your comments!

Birthday Boy Part 2

On Corbin's actual birthday we enjoyed some fun traditions. The first was that he woke up to a present at his place on the breakfast table. It definitely got his day off to a great start!

His "breakfast present"----a Husker football costume!

Starting with their fifth birthday I've decided to make the tradition of taking the day off work and spending it with them. I had a meeting that morning so I had to work until 11:00, but we still had plenty of time to do many of his favorite things.

We started the afternoon off by meeting up with Daddy at Applebee's!

His birthday dessert after being totally embarassed by the Applebee's birthday song!

Then it was off to the Children's Museum!

He looks so LITTLE here!

He wanted to go to the park SOOO bad. The heat index was over 100, but it was HIS day so I agreed. I was secretly glad when less than 15 minutes had gone by and he was ready to find some a/c! I suggested the library and his face lit up.....

After doing some reading and signing up for the summer library program he took me up on my idea to have a water gun fight at home. He still naps at daycare so he dozed on the way home.

We broke out his new water guns and super soaker...I think this was his favorite part of the afternoon with me. It was the perfect way to cool off and end our special time together :o)

After dinner it was time to open his gifts from us. Another tradition, we like to have them open their gifts from us just as a family.

A new t-ball bat.....now he doesn't have to borrow big sister's pink bat!

The grand finale, a new bike! He busted out the tools and took off the training wheels himself. I forgot they were on there when I bought it.

Taking a spin....Happy Birthday, Corbin!

Birthday Boy Part 1

Five years.....where does the time GO? Corbin's actual birthday is June 22, but we stretched the celebration out a bit, which is typical in our family, at least for the kids! We ended up having 3 separate parties for him and I enjoyed a special outing with him on his big day, he definitely got the most out of his birthday this year!

The first party was a bounce house party at the Cooper Y with some of his daycare buddies and a few family friends. I had a hard time getting pics, those boys were all.over.the.place. Literally. There were 10 of them in all (including Kyndal, Corbin and Kennedy) but no way I could get them all in one picture!

Before heading to the gym, we all met in the party room. He wanted a "t-ball" theme, so the bouncy balls we found waiting for us in the room fit nicely. I wasn't sure they would want to leave the room, they were having such a blast! I'm really surprised we didn't break anything!

Fun in the bounce house and the gym.

The part of the clan that would sit for a picture.

Since we had a family party scheduled for later with cake, I decided to shake things up a bit. I made these baseball ice cream cookie sandwiches. They were totally sugar over-kill. I don't think any of the kids ate the whole thing. They were fun to make (Kennedy helped me) and super easy to tote to the Y.

Party's over!

In order to have all the Aunt's/Uncle's/cousin's/Grandma that are in town be able to come, we had to have our family party that evening. It was total overkill for our family to do both in one day even though I kept them both as simple as possible. And I didn't even mention, this was also on Father's Day. But we made the best of it and he definitely enjoyed the special attention!

New Transformer helmet

His "t-ball" cake

Happy 5th Birthday Corbin!!! We love you!!!

"S" is for Summer, Softball and Swimming!

I am pretty sure summer is here to stay....bring on the heat and humidity that Lincoln is known for! We have finally gotten a break from the loads of rain and now it's hotter than I'd like to discuss. BUT it's finally warm enough to dive into the blue stuff! We hit the outdoor pool at the Cooper Y before Kyndal's softball game last weekend and it was super refreshing on the hot afternoon.

As we arrived the whistles went off so we had to wait a few minutes for the safety break. The kids looking longingly at the tempting pool.It was worth the wait!

Then it was off to Kyndal's first softball game of the season. It's coach pitch this year, which made us a little nervous, but she has surprised us and is doing really well so far. Here she's scooping up an infield hit.

Throwing to the pitcher.

Both times up to bat she got a hit off of the first pitch!

Rounding the bases, headed for home. Go Kyndal!