Sunflower Elementary - Color Run

William's school held a color run! It was so fun to get together at his school. I'm so used to going to school events as a teacher, it was fun to go as a parent. Bret was working, so Aunt Anders went with us for the fun! William had fun and tried to go after some of the color to get his shirt very colorful!

Busy Saturday: May 4th

Whew! Today was a busy, fun-filled day!

After the days of rain this past week, the soccer fields were too wet for soccer practice. That opened some time up this morning for other fun events! Bret wanted to go to some of the city's garage sales (it's our City Wide Garage Sale weekend), but I did not want to partake in that. I had seen a Touch A Truck event in Miami County (Paola, KS). William enjoyed the similar events we went to last summer, so I thought it would be a good substitute for soccer practice. Of course, I read that it started at 9am and it was really 10am, so we had an hour to kill while in Paola. The event was right next to the high school track, so we walked some laps and W climbed the stands. He also had to go to the bathroom while we were waiting. Thankful he's a boy, I found a corner and let him go outside. It might be is favorite thing ;)

Once the Touch A Truck started, W had a ball! They had many vehicles he could climb in and pretend to drive. He even got to honk the horn on many of the big trucks! He just loves trucks and other work vehicles.

After the Touch A Truck, we went over to Home Depot for their Kids Workshop. They are free workshops on the first Saturday of each month. Each time he goes, W gets to make something (usually seasonally themed) and get a pin for his construction apron. Today, he made a Mothers' Day present for me with a flower picture.

All of that done by noon! I brought W back home to see the treasures ;) Bret found while garage saling. William does have some nice new (to him) toys that Bret found.

The first weekend in May is the KU Jayhawk Rugby Alumni celebration. Nana and Papa were gracious enough to take over William duties for the afternoon/evening/night so we could head up to Lawrence. Bret saw many friends of his he hadn't seen in a couple years and was able to catch up with their lives. After the college players' game, any alumni who were so inclined could kit up and get out on the field. Bret just happened to bring his rugby kit bag with him. Surprising, right?!? Not. He had a good time out on the field and I was only briefly worried we would be headed to the hospital after he was done.

Love our busy life!

Couples' Trip to Nashville

Bret and I met Megan & Robert in Nashville, TN for a couples' vacation! It was a city none of them had been to & I hadn't been in ten years. We had fun exploring the area and visiting the bars & restaurants downtown. It was nice to get away for a bit and just be with Megan & the guys. I'm thinking we should do this more often!

plane rides are so relaxing without a toddler to entertain!

No way were Bret and I going to be in Nashville and NOT stop by Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace Plaza & studio. It was a day Dave was out of the studio (of course!) so we didn't get to meet him, but we did get a tour of the facility and a free cookie & coffee cup for visiting. Bret and I wouldn't be where we are today financially or relationally without going through FPU. It literally changed our marriage.

We got to visit the Grand Ole Opry on our Nashville trip as well. It was so fun to see performers on such a famous stage!

LOVED having sister time!

Summer Outings: July 31- August 6

July 31- Boy, today was a full day!! This week, Sea Life Aquarium celebrated teachers with free admission. William is under 3, so he's free as well. That equals a fun morning for us! William loved looking at all the different kinds of fish and even touched a starfish.

Since we were at Crown Center, we went to see the Thomas the Train exhibit. William just starting to play with trains and he loves to say, "choo choo" whenever we see or hear a train. He had fun exploring the exhibit.

After all the fun in the morning and a long nap, our little family went to the JoCo Fair to see the tractors and animals. And those overalls!!

August 1- Our local library hosted a puppet show this morning. It was a 30 min show and we lasted about 15 minutes ;) In William's defense, it was music only and no talking in the show so William didn't know what to pay attention to. He did, however, want to touch all the puppets which was not allowed. After the puppet show, we went to vote. Will and I both got stickers for voting and assisting vote. Then, we went to see our favorite little baby: Ledger Essig He's seven weeks old now and William loved him. He touched his toes and showed Ledger his shoes. The boys are bound to be buddies! In the evening, we drove into Shawnee for a police event. Bret saw a couple of friends of his who work for Shawnee PD.

toy box becomes William box

dada voted, too!

August 2- We went on a walk this morning, where William wanted to touch all the plants we passed :) The rest of the morning was filled with playing at home and helping Bret in the garden. I had an afternoon hair appt so Will & Bret had some bro time at Home Depot, doing what men do.

August 3- ZOO DAY!! Today we went to the KC Zoo for the first time as a family. I hadn't been in a couple of years and Bret hadn't been since high school (just a few years ago...). Aunt Meg got us a day pass for Christmas and today was the day to use it. There was a chance of rain & it was cloudy, which must of scared off a lot of people, because when we got there, it was almost our personal zoo! William was able to run, run, run which is his favorite thing in the world to do! He loved looking at the animals & we practiced animal sounds as well. Because of the small crowd, we were able to cover almost the whole zoo in the morning. William was pretty amazing, he didn't get cranky until it was time to eat (and who doesn't get hangry at that point?!). He fell asleep pretty quickly once he was settled into his carseat. Mama may have had a snooze on the drive home as well...

little did he know the adventure that awaited him today!

mama and baby gorilla

waving at the people in the tram as they passed

belly buddies

As if a trip tot he zoo weren't enough for one day, we went to Lawrence that night! Sigma Kappa was having an event and we took the evening to hang out in our favorite city.

be still my heart!

entertaining himself on the drive

like father, like son

August 4- Today was the last weekday of summer. William, Bret, and I walked to get Bret coffee and play on their patio. When we got back home, Bret had some gardening to do, so William and I joined him outside. William played on his slide and with his bubbles (a new word he can say!).

August 6- Today is my birthday! Bret wasn't able to get the day off, so we had our normal Sunday routine of William & I getting ready for church, waiting for Bret to get off work and home. He was taking longer than normal and I was anxious we were going to be late for church. Then, Bret appeared, walking up to the kitchen with a cookie cake (my favorite!) complete with burning candles. He's the sweetest!

giving mama birthday snuggles!

Nana & Papa are back in Kansas!!