Yikes, I'm bad about updates!

So I'm not sure I will remember everything important or fun that has happened since my last post...hope you kept up with me on Facebook!  LOL! 

We started out the summer with a new playset for the boys!  It got TONS of use initially until the weather got tooooooooo HOT to use it!  But the Fall will surely change that again! 














Ok so Decovin participated in T-ball this summer for the first time and did really well!  He was able to hit the ball via coach-pitch more often than not!  We were so proud of him!  It sure made June a SUPER busy month though!  :-)

July started out with a vacation for us to Arkansas!  We started it out with my Aunt Mendy & Uncle Jim at their house in Ft. Smith, AR for a few nights including 4th of July!  It was a fun stay and the boys had a great time!

We left their house and headed for Mt. Magazine State park and climbed to the highest point in Arkansas!  The boys did pretty good but are not QUITE ready for hiking!  haha!  They were READY to be done before we got to the top, making the walk back to the car a bit trying!  LOL!

From there we headed to our campsite at Petit Jean State Park where we camped for 2 nights...it was fun and the boys did GREAT for their first official camping trip!!  :-)  We did small hikes while were there to keep the boys interested but not too tiring for them.  They did awesome and the complaining was really minimal!

We packed up and headed to Buffalo National River for the canoeing portion of our trip but on the way spotted a site to see a Natural Bridge, so we pulled over and checked it out!  It was really cool and we were glad for the find!!

We arrived at our hotel and chilled at the pool that evening and the next morning we got up and paddled 9 miles down the Buffalo Nat'l River...the boys' first official canoe trip also and they did really well!  Camden better than Decovin...Decovin was known to be bored and tired at any given time, until we stopped the canoe and they got to get out and swim...then he was happy as a lamb! Ha!

It was a really fun vacation and I hope we can do several more like this in the future!!  :-)

When we got home, the boys' bunkbeds arrived and Bob put them together and they are IN LOVE with them!  Such big boys now!  :-(

At the end of July, Bob and I participated in Kansas City's Warrior Dash.  It's a 5K (3.1 mile) trail run with obstacles thrown inbetween!  It was really challenging but it was super fun and I'm glad we did it! 

We also spent 6 days at the Plummer family cabin at Lake of the Ozarks, like we usually do every year.  Both the boys have zero fear of jumping off the dock into the water and often like to jump in just to get out and jump in again!  It wore them out for sure!!  They also enjoy going out on the boat and the jet ski!  Our little water babies!  (who aren't babies anymore!)  It was very relaxing and we really enjoyed our time down there!! 

When we got home I immediately came down with a sinus infection and I am on day 7 of this miserable cold that does not seem to want to vacate my sinus cavities!  I've been down and out pretty much the entire 7 days...I tried venturing out a couple days but I ended up feeling really bad by the end of those days!  :-(  So I'm resting today and hoping to start feeling better real soon! 

Anyway, sorry for the long post, AGAIN...I say I will keep trying to keep this up but life just gets in the way I guess!  Now for Decovin to start Kindergarten on Thursday and Camden to start Preschool on the 30th!  Eeek!  This momma is a wreck!  They will both do well, I'm just sad to see them leave me already!  :-(

Graduation, Wellness Waddle, Storm, Dam fun, & TBones Game

Decovin getting his diploma from Pastor and Miss Tina:

Smiling for the picture as the newly graduated:

He was so proud! We were too!! Good Job Decovin!

With the greatest preschool teacher EVER!! So thankful Camden gets her the next 2 years!

Me after participating in this years Wellness Waddle in Burlington...I placed 3rd in my age division!!

There was a nasty storm that was passing thru Burlington and the boys and I headed over to the neighbors to ride it out with them since Bob was working...so when the lights went out, we had fun anyway: Reading a book by flashlight:

Making shadow puppets on the ceiling:

And crashed on the couch together! Awwww

Bob had a day off and we took the boys to the dam and they had a blast throwing rocks in and just exploring...here's Decovin with his walking stick he found! ha!

Camden, cheesin' as always!

Self portrait of Bob & I:

We had the priviledge to be invited to a TBones game with a bunch of my family members...a lovely treat provided by my Aunt Mendy & Uncle Jim! Thanks guys, we had a blast:

Camden with a T-Bones hat on...he was borrowing it from Isaiah! ;-)

Bob & D

Sorry for all the pics...I will try to be better about keeping up the blog! Life is starting to get crazy...especially this month since Decovin is in T-Ball! His first game is tonight! I will try to post pics of that before July! LOL!

Summer starting in T minus 1 day and counting...

Well, I can't believe that after tomorrow, Decovin will be done with preschool! He is graduating tomorrow night and then he will be an official Kindergartener! *sniff* Where did the year go?!

So far our summer is looking to be QUITE busy! All of May & June will be t-ball, t-ball and more t-ball...

We have a few weddings to attend this summer as well...one this month, next month and one in August! Not to mention the one last month! LOL! ;-) Like I said...busy!

We do plan to make it to the lake at some point this summer for our summer vacay. :-)

The most exciting thing I am looking forward to right now is Bob's schedule is about to go back to a "quasi-normal" state!!! His outage hours should cease this Friday!!! He will actually have a few days off in a row and be able to be awake during the day to enjoy them!!! YAY!!!!! The boys are just about as excited, if not more, than Bob & I! Decovin keeps telling all his friends: "My dad has a few days off coming up!" Awwww! He misses him a lot! As do we all!

Hope everyone is doing well and has a fun summer planned!!

Wedding Pics for your pleasure!

Wedding Weekend Fun!

Well, the much anticipated wedding of Elizabeth & Jake has come and gone...It was really fun and the boys did AWESOME!! They walked down the aisle with zero hesitation and held each other's hands...it was ADORABLE! They looked really handsome in their tuxes and were really good all weekend really!

The weather was awesome and we couldn't have asked for it to be any nicer! It was such an awesome day considering they were predicting rain on Saturday days prior! Friday was SUPER SUPER SUPER windy but Saturday was just right! Funny that today, Sunday, is cold and rainy! Phew!!

So the wedding was great! The reception/dance was fun and there was no major mishaps! We all had a good time and enjoyed our stay at the wedding location, which was a lovely bed & breakfast! The entire wedding party got to stay 2 nights!! It was quite ideal really! We had the entire house to ourselves! It was LOVELY!

My mom & dad came and took some pictures so if you want a sneak peak you can look on facebook...otherwise, not sure when the pics will be posted! :-)

Well...

My Aunt Ruthie said to Blog again...so I am! ;-) Heart! I love blogging...sometimes I feel like it becomes repetative with Facebook being the priority...but I do love putting a big paragraph (of sorts) together as opposed to a one liner! :-) Took my van into the body shop today to get its boo-boo fixed. For those of you that don't know, I backed into Bob's Jeep a few weeks ago and did so much damage that the entire back hatch has to be replaced. :-( So I had to claim it on insurance since the cost was so high and also drop it off for about 4 days...so I am in a rental van that only has the sliding door on the one side so I am appreciating my van more now that it is gone. I'm hoping it looks like new when they are done with it! :-( I still question why Bob decided to park behind my garage door that day...he NEVER parks there and I was backing out mind-numbingly and just nudged right into his vehicle...ugh! Bob wasn't mad and didn't even react...he just shrugged his shoulders and went about his way...to him it is a "thing" and no one was hurt so life goes on! It's true...just stinks it cost so much to fix! Oh well... I'm still babysitting part time and I don't mind it. The girls I watch are so good that I hardly have to do anything extra...feeding them and making sure the tattle-tales aren't frequent! They do make for long days as I watch them for 12+ hours...but it's only part time so it's not that big of a deal! And the extra cash is nice! Looking forward to Easter and getting out of the house for a bit...the boys and I are getting a bit stir crazy with Bob on night shift for this outage. The hours are long and the boys CRAVE his attention whenever he is in the room...it's really sad. :-( We all miss him! Hopefully it will be over soon. But there is at least another month to go! ;-( Hope everyone is doing well! I, along with Ruthie, miss reading all the blogs! Hope to hear from you all soon!!

Chugging along...

Not much new has been happening around here...Bob is still working outage on night shift and has been on nights since March 8...so one full month as of today. He still has at least one more month to go. They are only allowed to work a maximum of 60 days on this schedule (4 nights on, 1 night off)...so it will eventually come to an end. Love the paychecks but the boys and I really miss him. Even on his "night off" we ony get to see him for the evening from about 4:30pm until boys go to bed, etc...so it's not MUCH time but it's better than nothing! ;-) Last night was Bob's night off and he took the boys to Emporia to run an errand and they had a blast going on a "boys only" trip! I had my Turbo class so I stayed home...they came home with some new sandbox toys that they are just ITCHING to try out. Once Camden wakes up, we will head outside on this gorgeously sunny day to give them a whirl! ;-) I've been keeping the boys and I busy with lots and lots of playdates at the rec center or park almost everyday! They love it and I do too! It's social time for me and for the kids! It's a win-win! Next week I will be babysitting more than I usually do so it will go by a lot faster! Anyway, not much else to report. So off for now...

Wedding Prep

So, as most of you know, Bob's littlest sister is getting married at the end of next month. We have been busying ourselves with a couple of wedding showers, a bacherlorette party, dress fittings, and tux fittings! We are ALL in the wedding so it has been a busy time for us! (I can't imagine what the bride is going through! I don't remember that far back I guess!)

Anyway, yesterday we had the boys' tux fittings and my dress fitting...the boys look SO big in their jackets! Which, by the way, are the EXACT same size! LOL! Here they are trying them on...so cute and handsome!

My dress fitting went well (sorry, no pictures), the only things that had to be done are the straps needed shortened and it needed taken in SLIGHTLY under my armpits...otherwise it was a perfect fit! :-)

Hope everyone is having a fantastic week and enjoying the end of March and hopefully the beginning of the ACTUAL spring weather! One can hope anyway!

Spring Break!

So Christy came down Tuesday afternoon and stayed til Friday afternoon. We all had a good time and enjoyed the relaxed company! Christy baked a cake with the boys and they LOVED the fun "baking tools" she brought with her! Good times!

Friday afternoon the boys and I packed up and headed to Cameron, MO to spend the weekend with Amanda & Derek...we stayed in and cooked and played games and chatted...it was so relaxing and fun! :-)

Sunday the boys & I said our goodbyes and headed to the Sprint Center in KC for the Toy Story 3 on Ice show! It was adorable and the boys had a GREAT time! :-) It was fun to see their faces light up with delight! Moments I try and cherish! Love my little men!

Spring Break

So our Spring Break started Friday...Bob had the day off so when he got up around 3:30, we headed to Emporia to run some errands! It's nice when he has the night off but we only get the evenings with him on his night off as he still has to stay on "night shift" since he only gets the one day off every four days. (He is in outage right now and it is slated to go through first of May but will probably go through June!)

Saturday I took the kids to my parents house and then headed up to DeSoto for a day/night of fun! First it was Elizabeth's 2nd bridal shower then that night we had her bachelorette party! Came home on Sunday in time to see Bob before work and then we headed to bed.

Monday I took the boys to a playdate at the Christian Church here in town. It is close enough that I let Decovin ride his bike and I pulled Camden in the bike trailer on my bike. It was fun and we all got some outside time!! After Bob left for work I took the kids to the park for another playdate and they got their silly's out! They CRASHED at bed time! Thank goodness! :-)

Today Christy is coming over for her Spring Break thru Friday! The boys are SUPER excited as they LOVE it when Aunt Christy comes! :-)

Friday afternoon the boys and I are heading to my cousin Amanda's house for the remainder of the weekend and Spring Break! Should be fun! Hope everyone is having a wonderful week and enjoying the weather! I know we are!

More Weekend Fun!

Well, my weekends have been filled with fun times lately!!

This past Friday I met up with a lot of my family at a greek restaurant called: Tasso's. It was really good and I had a great time!
Saturday I met up with my good friends, Kim Grooms and Crystal McParland for a lunch date and pedicure! It was really fun and I enjoyed seeing them!

Sunday (today) we have had a nice relaxing day at home. However, the morning started out kind of rough as I set the clocks backwards instead of forwards...in my state of "tiredness" last night I decided to change ALL the clocks...it was a blonde moment indeed...my thought process: we LOSE an hour...so subtract! Whoops! Oh well, all is well and we are slowly adjusting to the time change. :-)

Decovin had his Kindergarten Round-Up Friday and "he did good" so says the school...so he is all ready for school for next year! *sniff* Where did the time go?! I can't believe he will be in Kindergarten! Not to mention Camden will be starting Preschool next year too! This mama is going to be an emotional wreck come August! ha!

Next weekend should be fun too, I'm dropping the boys off at Grandma & Papa Long's house as I am hosting a Bachelorette party for my sister-in-law, Elizabeth, Saturday night. Should be a fun time!

Hope all is well for everyone...been thinking heavily about those who have been affected by the damages done in Japan and for Paul Wagoner (Tabitha's father-in-law). Please say a little prayer or send positive thoughts their way...they could all use it, i'm sure!

Cheers!

Weekend Fun!

My friend Kim got these awesome capes/masks for the boys for their birthdays...the boys were ELATED!! Check them out...Camden is OBSESSED with his! LOL!

SUPER CAMDEN!!!
SUPER DECOVIN!!!!

They even have their names on them!! CUTE!

So before Bob starts outage next week, we decided to do a quasi-vacation with the boys...our first stop: Coco Key Water Resort Park in KC, MO. I didn't get any other photos b/c I forgot my camera and didn't want to take my cell phone near the water for fear of getting it wet...but trust me when I say it was AWESOME and the boys had a great time!! Camden asked to go back already! :-)

We didn't stay the night in the hotel with the water park, but we did stay the night at Bob's parents house and the next day we took the boys to the T-Rex Cafe for lunch and a little "Build-a-Dino" action...

Decovin doing his Dinosaur impression:

Camden doing his Dinosaur impression:

After lunch we went to the movies and saw Rango. It was ok...not the best animated film ever, but ok. Camden crashed hard after we left though:

And here they are with their dinosaurs they made at the T-Rex Cafe...Meet "Dina" and "Claw"...the boys love them!

It was a good time but I am so glad to be home again, even if it was just an overnight! :-) We are exhausted! LOL!

A little Part-Time work...

So I decided to start babysitting part time. I watch 2 girls, ages 6 & 4, two days a week. It's a long day as I watch them from 6am until almost 6pm, but I take the oldest to kindergarten so I only have her for about 4 hours total...and they are just really good girls. They play well with my boys and so far it has been going well! They have been here 4 times already and so far, no problems at all! :-)

So, other than that, not much else has been going on. Valentine's has come and gone. We don't celebrate that holiday so it isn't exciting...so there you go.

Bob and I will be running a 5K this Sunday in Lawrence for Breast Cancer. Should be fun...hoping it warms up a bit...not a HUGE fan of running in the cold, but I do it! LOL!

Camden is still fighting a cold...it started out as Pink Eye, then that got better...then he started coughing and it went straight to his chest...croupy even...then he started in with the fever and now runny nose...lovely! Ready for everyone to be healthy!

Hope everyone is getting their taxes all taken care of...April is right around the corner...:-)