Aug 2020

 Summer is drawing to a close and we fit in a bunch of fun in August. 

Our garden gave us a few more spoils and we LOVE how big the sunflowers got! We found a few surprise baby watermelons, but they died. We loved roasting the potatoes and carrots with our dinner. 

 

 

  

My mom was up for a visit and the kids enjoyed teaching her all they know about checkers! Grayson loves to hold all the babies, eventhough Chance is never enthused. Aunt Kendra made a goal to keep herself busy in the summer. She hand drew all the kids' favorite characters and made them into puppets. They were so surprised to see their favorites!

Summer is ending and we did somethings to get ready for school. Tyler slept with the kids on the trampoline. We covered them up, but they were still covered in mosquito bites. 

 

We went to a baby shower for Aunt Sam, my brother Chett's wife and their baby boy. He is due the end of September. Tyler took the boys to disc golf as Freeman Park in I.F. Lyla and I played games and ate snacks. 

It looks like the boys are soo high in the tree! Tyler says, angles make a difference. 

Lyla will give you whatever it takes to get a razor ride from Grama Jean and Grandpa Lyle. We also found a REALLY fun dinosaur mask. It's hilarious, the ways these kids use it to have fun. 

We went back to church for the first time. Nolan loved that he got to keep the little cups. He made a very funny face with them. The kids were thrilled to help sanitize for the next session. 

We found some good yard sales this summer and the kids are hooked! We found a GREAT Captain America costume for Grayson and are on the lookout for the other two.  We went to the park and spent one morning at a local mini-golf place. I won a $25 gift card for a hole in one!

Next year, when Grayson is 9, he can show an animal for the county fair. Lucky for him, Papaw and Aunt Kendra have a goat club for 4H. Grayson got to help Kendra get ready for the goat show this year, to see what's in store for him next summer. he got something in his eye and got creative because his "arms were tired". One Sunday we caught the kids watching Shrek while Papaw got a bit of shut-eye. 

The last day of August brought the first day of school! They are doing half days for the first two weeks and the Kinders don't start for another week. Grayson was so excited to wear his Brachiosaurus shirt and Texas mask. 

Nolan doesn't start until next week, but I wanted to be sure to get everyone in the photo! It's crazy to have two in school. Because Nolan is in half-day, I'm doing the carpool pick-up and drop-off line THREE times a day! Heaven help my road rage! Nolan and I went for his Kinder testing. He did great and is ready for school! 

Whether we agree with them or not (NOT!), everyone around here is getting used to wearing them when we have to. Maybe, Tyler needs another lesson. Or maybe, he's trying to be invisible so he can get his work done without being bothered. 

I am glad the boys get to go to school and I'd really like it to stay that way!! They need it and it is good for them. We are adjusting to the new routine again and I find that I REALLY like the half days. We get everything done on those days.... I am really sad that the summer weather is going away. I'm already wearing socks and jackets. I'm not sure I'll survive the winter. 

Until next time... 

July 2020: Part 3: Grayson is 8!

On the last day of our camping trip, Grayson turned 8. He had a small gathering and was spoiled rotten! When we got home, the primary had decorated for him, as well! 

He got a picture of Jesus getting baptized that he held all the way home! He immediately put it on his shelf and is proud to own it! 

For his special family day, he picked bowling and Pizza Pie Cafe! They learned that it was his birthday and gave him a special treat! He was amazed and loved how huge it was! 

He got a new dinosaur shirt and all the pieces for his "robot" (imaginext) dinosaur. He also picked a bowling cake. For now, he is super impressed with my cupcake cake skills! Hopefully, it lasts. 

Then it was time to get ready for his baptism! We took some pictures at the temple and made a cute announcement. Nolan and Lyla were so excited to take a picture wit their brother!

Tyler likes to make fun of me when I'm taking pictures and then use his own creativity for something a little ridiculous. 

Grayson's baptism day was a wonderful day! We have lots of family to support him. He worked really hard to learn all about baptism. He was pretty afraid for most of the year, but we set a goal to overcome that. Swimming lessons helped a lot and he was baptized even though it was a little hard for him! He and Nolan have also started piano lessons at home with me. I'm proud to state that they are 4th generation piano players. I never met my great-grandma Fullmer, but I'm grateful for the legacy she started! My Grandma Jean tells me stories of the Organ classes she and her mother attended. Grayson worked to very hard to learn "When I am Baptized" and we played a duet together. We are so blessed to raise our Grayson boy! We are proud he made this decision and we can't wait to see what he does next! 

We also got an awesome family picture. I LOVE MY PEOPLE!

I can't believe it's August and time to get ready for school! The summer was great, but I'm shocked that it's practically over. We will have two in school this year and that will be an adjustment. I'm excited to see what August brings! 

Until next time...