September

I cleaned out the school cupboards but had to take a picture first of all the great stuff the kids did during the school year!  What hard workers.

The Great American Solar Eclipse!  We were in the path of totality here in KC.  David, Annie and I watched it with our neighbors and Mason and Kate got to watch it at school.  It was so beautiful and exciting.

David and I have gotten to take Annie and Julie on some fun outings to like the zoo, library, or nature trails while Mason and Kate are in school; it reminds me of when Mason and Kate were little and we got to go do fun things like that during the day.

 Annie's first day of preschool!  It was also her helper day, so I got to tag along and help pass out snacks.  Mrs. Bratcher tells us every day how awesome Annie is and how good she's doing.

David and the kids watching some fun movie or maybe our new favorite TV show: Spartans!  See the empty bookshelves?  Our poor basement has had problems all summer.  We had a busted outdoor faucet because I didn't unhook the hose for the winter, and lately we've been sealing the foundation and replacing the wall behind that couch.  I bet our basement has flooded at least 5 times this summer. 

Stacking up next to each other :)

August

I gave David Royal's tickets for his birthday and we went in August; it was the first game against the Cardinals=sold out game.  Very busy, loud, and I almost gave Kate a vodka lemonade!  Our neighbors were nice and switched us for a regular one.

 Julie loves this little kitty in our neighborhood; she likes puppies, too.

Mason lost his third tooth! Legoland, swimming, and washing Dad's car.

 

First Day of (regular) second grade and kindergarten!  Mason has Ms. Bacon and Kate has Mrs. Schurle--both great teachers.  They have done awesome so far!  Kate struggles to get up in the mornings but has come a long ways.

 We went to UT/ID for Greg and Hailey's wedding.  We are so happy for them.  David also went to visit his good friend Ryan.

David has been taking Kate camping sometimes on the weekend to bribe her to keep going to school.  She loves it.

Mason has started football and basketball, and there is a great playground where he practices that the girls enjoy playing while they wait for him.  Mason and Kate are also doing music class again, but Kate is not doing dance.  Kindergarten was a pretty big adjustment so we will pick up dance again when she is a little more balanced.

July

Fourth of July! 

 

Our neighborhood had a fun bike parade, BBQ, and we all lit off fireworks at the pavilion.

In July, we went to Bear Lake with the Harper family.  We drove there and back and the kids did great!  On the way there, we stopped at Derek and Talane's and played with their kids.  Annie and Rose hit it off!  We also had fun swimming at the Yates' pool, going to Cafe Rio in Vernal, UT, and seeing the Pioneer Day Parade floats with Becky and her kids.

 

 

 

 

Worlds of Fun, swimming, and spending time with the kids.  Lots of extra time together during the summer!

June

June was a big month!  But first of all, how great are these kids?

 Kids riding their bikes to SUMMER school--Julie thinks it's fun to put on helmets, too.  Kate was not a huge fan of her summer school teacher and went less than half the time, but it was good to get used to the staff and the layout of the school and whatnot.

 

San Diego Trip

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Some highlights of the trip were: the smelly but inexpensive rental van, kayaking on La Jolla beach, the Los Padres game, body surfing, the outdoor museum that we went to but the kids had meltdowns, the spa parties with cousins, and losing my ipod.  During traveling, Annie got really good at this Octonaut game and made it to the moon to everyone's surprise and Mason's disappointment for her beating his high score!

 SWIMMING!

We did lots of swim lessons, which was a great way to force us to get to the pool and use it.

 DAVID'S 34TH BIRTHDAY!

 When I asked the kids what we should give Dad, Kate said, "I know!  Dad's favorite thing is hugs so we should wrap ourselves up and then give him hugs for his birthday!" I also got him a box of "34 memories with you" as an homage to my first birthday gift I gave to him 10 years ago--"24 things I love about you."

 Movie night for the neighborhood--they watched "Moana."

I also raced in the Topeka Tinman.  I drove down by myself through a horrible storm, it was a very windy day, but I placed first in my age division--woohoo!  I was awarded a large mug.