Football

 Wyatt recently decided he wanted to take a break from wrestling and add a little football to his list of things he loves to do.  We have loved watching him play.  I look forward to Saturday every week.  His team has yet to win a game but they get better and better every week.  It has been a great experience for him to learn a team sport and also realize that even when he does well that they win as a team and they loose as a team.  He has gotten amazing opportunities to play.  He plays Center on the offense.  He also plays defense and special teams.  He comes home exhausted most days but he also comes off the field at the end of the games saying "That was so much fun!"

I love these kids!

 

Coltons 18th Birthday and McKenzie's First Car

This year we celebrated Coltons 18 Birthday.  17 1/2 years of my life without my sweet little boy.  Who by the way would not be so little anymore.  If he was still here he would have been a Senior in High School.  McKenzie was talking to me about how cool it would have been to have her big brother going to school with her and being a year older than her in school.  I think about how differently our life would be if he were still here.  What we he be doing?  What would his interests and hobbies be?  It seems so unfair that any parent should have to bury their baby.  It feels like a whole lot longer than 17 1/2 years since he left us.  It seems so unfair that this is the closest we will ever get to having a family picture. I love and miss him so much.

So on the evening on Sunday, October 4th I got a phone call from my mom asking if we were coming over.  It had been such a crazy day.  I was in the middle of getting dinner cooked and we still hadn't done homework.  I told her no we were not coming over that night but we would come over the following night because it was Colton's Birthday and she reluctantly hung up the phone.  Not more than 2 minutes later I got a phone call from dad.  He asked if we were coming over.  I told him the same thing I told mom but he was so persuasive and said he had a surprise for me.  Kinda frustrated because I had so much to do I told him we would come over.  So I put my half cooked dinner in the fridge and out the door we went.  We got there for the tail end of FHE when mom handed McKenzie a "piece of the road" in a plastic bag.  By this time I had kinda figured out what was going on.  Dad handed McKenzie a set of keys and they both told her how proud they were of her for being such a great girl and maintaining her great grades.  They walked her out to the driveway and gave her her first car.  She was so excited and didn't even care that it was a minivan.  Which btw, I think will be great because she's been driving mine so it will be a vehicle she will be comfortable driving.  Now, we need to get her through drivers ed (which she starts in 2 weeks)  and give her more experience driving. 

Fall Picture 2015

So, it has been so many years since the last time I posted to this blog.  Recently I feel like this is an important thing to do and that I need to take time to do this again, not only because I love to look back to pictures taken but so do the kids.

A few weeks ago I took the kids to do their yearly photo shoot.  The kids are growing up so fast. I may be a little biased but I think I have the best looking kids!

So just to update:McKenzie is 16 years old and a sophomore in school.  She is involved in many activities including Deca, Youth Community Council and National Honor Society.  She is on the yearbook staff and is excelling in school.  She is currently ranked #1 in her class.

Rylie is in 8th grade.  She is doing well in school and plays the violin.  She is a great friend.  I love her very much.

 Kaylie is also in 8th grade and also doing well in school.  She is kind and thoughtful.  She also plays the violin.

 Wyatt is in 1st grade and doing well.  He is all boy.  He loves to do anything little boys do...playing trucks, dinosaurs and getting dirty.  He loves to be outside and spend time with his dad.  He loves hunting, fishing and riding 4 wheelers.  He belongs to a wrestling club and does very well.  He is currently ranked #6 in the State in folk style and free style wrestling.  So proud of my little Champ!

Family Pictures

My parents

My good looking brother

All of us

This Fall we finally got our family pictures taken.  It's been a very long time since the last time we had family pictures taken.  I dare say you'd be surprised.  The last family pictures we had taken Kaylie and Rylie were 9 months old.  Yes!! We were way overdue!!  My amazing friend Sherri Nelson and her brother in law took our family pictures.  In total they took almost 700 pictures.  And we had a huge group.  20+ people and several different groups and 5 separate families.  They did an awesome job!! Thanks you two.  They are amazing!!  I did not however get pictures of my kids that night.  Wyatt was tired of posing and smiling his cute smile.  After a while he'd had it.  Sooo, a few weeks ago on a warm Fall morning I dressed up the kids.  Curled the girls hair and got everyone looking nice.  We jumped in the car and headed to Salem ponds.  The pictures of my kids I took myself.  I was quite impressed considering I have no knowledge of photography.  But how can you not take a great photo when you have such cute kids to take pictures of?  And hopefully we don't wait another 9 years before our next family photo shoot.  :P