Weekend Fun

The past few weekends have been super fun. I am not sure if I appreciate the weekends more now because I am back at work and see my family so much less, because we finally have nice weather on the weekends after several rainy weekends where we were stuck inside, because my little boys are so much fun right now or what, but I can say I have LOVED the last few weekends!

We were able to enjoy some extra fun at the pool, as the weather has been great and the pool stayed open an extra weekend. On our last few trips to the pool, Preston decided that he can jump off the diving board without my assistance! He goes up the ladder, walks to the end of the board and jumps in the water all by himself! He is getting quite independent and even tried to tell Carl that he did not need to help him get to the side of the pool! Preston also worked on teaching himself to swim! In the baby pool, he would place his face in the water and kick his feat and move his arms to swim to the side of the pool! He would often swim 3 feet or more, which we thought was pretty impressive!

Silly boy!

Preston LOVES his "surf board!"

Carl and I attended a couple of U of L football games together and enjoyed watching the Cards win and getting to tailgate with our friends.

Will and Laurel host the best tailgates! We always have a blast!

 

 We love our new conference! 

 

 

 
Go Cards!

We all hiked the trail though the woods that is near our house. Preston has not been since he was a baby and I could carry him, so this was his first trip as a "big boy" that could walk around and explore! We all had a great time and we made it all the way down to the creek. Evan caught lots of crayfish, which is not unusual, but he also caught nine little frogs! Preston had fun throwing rocks in the creek, as well as looking at the fish, frogs, etc. Unfortunately, the creek looked like a pool to him, so at some point, he got right in! He was SOAKED and SO tired when we needed to hike back up the trail and we knew we had to carry him back. We had no extra clothes, but thankfully, we did have extra diapers, so poor Preston had to get carried home in only a diaper! It was quite a sight, but he did not mind one bit!

Preston was very excited to go hiking!

Evan was so sweet with Preston! He took his hand and said, "Let's go explore!" It was so much fun to watch Evan help Preston discover things as we hiked!

Much like Evan, Preston loves creatures. He was so excited to see all of the frogs that Evan caught!

Preston thought getting in the creek was lots of fun!

Evan isn't allowed to keep the creatures he catches, so he likes to take pictures so that he can remember his cool finds.

Evan had his first soccer game of the season. Carl and I are amazed at the skills he retained from last year, as well as his ability to focus more. Evan enjoyed the game while he played and even had fun watching his team play and cheering for his teammates when it was his time to rest. What a great start to the soccer season!

Go Seahawks!

We went to Hayes Kennedy park and walked all the way to the river, which we have not done in awhile. Preston really enjoyed seeing the boats and running around the river bank, while Evan had fun finding "river glass." It was a nice, cool evening and Carl and I had fun watching the boys play and enjoy their time together. As a bonus, we ended our evening with a successful dinner out and watching Star Wars.

"Look, Mom! Boats!"

Explorer Evan

Evan took our picture too!

Preston climbed and ran everywhere!

Evan loves to help his brother. Once again, he took his hand, to help him be safe by the water.

I can't forget to mention that we made a trip to Owensboro during the past few weekends too! We went to visit our friends, the Congletons, and we had a ball! We swam, played in the backyard on a giant water slide, ate, drank, and had a ball! We were so happy that we were able to make the trip and spend time with our best friends!

Evan was SO excited!

Sweet Friends (The little boys were napping.)

Preston climbed this water slide all by himself! WOW!

Being silly with Terri! These clip on earrings John won at an auction, were perfect hair accessories!

School Days!

After a lovely summer, it is now time for BOTH boys to go to school and for me to return to work. (I have actually been going to school for many weeks, since I needed to get the classroom ready, plan lessons, do assessments, etc.) I am always sad for summer to go, since I LOVE the extra time with the boys and things just seem more carefree.

Evan started school on August 13th. He is in Ms. Morrow's first grade class at Chancey Elementary. He is enjoying school so far and is happy to see many of his old friends in his new class. He really likes Ms. Morrow and is already showing us that he is learning a lot! Both Carl and I are really proud of him and we hope he has a great year!

Here are a few pictures of Evan on his first day of first grade!

Although I know he will love preschool, I have been very nervous for Preston to go to school. Mostly, because he tends to cry when he is left in childcare at church and he can be shy around new people. Thankfully, he did very well at his orientation last week. I was with him, but he happily played with toys, interacted with the other children and even hugged and kissed his teacher as we left! I was so happy!

Preschool orientation was fun!

Sadly, Preston's first day of preschool was spent at home. He woke up vomiting, so he was not able to attend his official first day of school. He stayed home with me, where he spent most of the day cuddled up with me and watching his favorite movies. I was happy that I was able to take care of my sweet boy, but I did feel so bad for him. He was just so pitiful.

Thankfully, by Friday (August 29th), Preston felt great and was able to go to preschool! He was all smiles on the way to school and he was very excited to go! He did cry when I dropped him off, which was sad for both of us. Thankfully, his teacher said he only cried on and off and not the whole time. Preston keeps telling us that he likes preschool and that he wants to go back, so I am hoping that he will cry less and less and that soon he will not cry at all! I am sure that he will have a great year.

Here are some pictures of Preston's first day of 2 year old preschool!

Happy Birthday, Carl!

Although Carl does not like to make a big fuss about his birthday, the boys LOVE celebrating birthdays and wanted to help Daddy have a great birthday. Once Carl left for work, the preparations for his "surprise party" began. We went out to buy supplies for making a cake, as well as picked out some special birthday balloons. When we returned home, the boys worked together to bake the cake. They did a great job and took turns adding ingredients, mixing, etc.

Later in the afternoon, the boys made some great party decorations and Evan decorated a great Star Wars cake.

When it was time for Carl to come home, Evan stood by the door and watched for Carl to pull in the driveway. Once he was spotted, Evan made sure we were all in the right hiding spots. When Carl walked in the door, we were able to jump out and surprise him!

We spent the night eating dinner, cake, and playing outside. It may not have been what Carl was expecting, but he had fun and the boys had a great time showing him how much they love him!

Evan and Preston did a super job making the birthday cake.

Making birthday decorations was fun and they turned out great!

 

 

 

Evan was so excited to make Daddy's special Star Wars birthday cake. I think he did a great job!

 

The cake was yummy!

 

Happy birthday, Carl! You are a great daddy, husband and friend! We love you!

Kaiya

Kaiya was our very first "baby." After a series of weird events where no one was able to keep her due to lease agreements, finances, etc. Carl brought her home to me, just a few months before we got married. (He has since said that this was the worst decision of his life, but I know he is joking!)

Kaiya was quite a stinker when we got her. In addition to not being super cuddly, she would do crazy things, like hide under the couch until someone walked by and then run out and bite the person's ankles. She was also notorious for making people think it was ok to pet her, but then biting them!

Of course, with lots of love and time, she became a sweetie. She loved to cuddle and would sit in my lap while I watched t.v. at night and purr almost the whole time. She was GREAT with the kids and never once scratched or bit them. In fact, she was super gentle with them and she let them hold her, hug her, play with her, etc.

Sadly, our sweet girl developed cancer last summer. After a major surgery to remove the tumor and a tough recovery, we thought she was well. Unfortunately, her tumor came back in the winter. With no other good options, we spent the last few months loving our sweet girl and keeping her happy and comfortable.

Last week, the day after we returned from vacation, it was clear that Kaiya could no longer fight the cancer. She was in a lot of pain that she could no longer bear, so we made the decision to have her put to sleep. It was the best decision for her, but so sad for us. We miss her terribly and our hearts ache for her.

My hope is that my sweet girl is happy now, where she is no longer in pain and happily playing, eating her favorite wet cat food (Fancy Feast Tender Beef Feast Classic) and enjoying playing with Reece and Charlie at The Rainbow Bridge.

I know I have lots more pictures of my little sweetie, but these are the ones I was able to find quickly and/or that are some of my favorites.