A Quick Catch Up

Yikes!  I have no other words!

Ok, so I've been working on this post for a  few weeks now.  One filled with all of the craziness that has been going on in our house.  Instead I'll just let you know that we've been incredibly busy with the usual things.  School, soccer, marathon club, doctor's appointments, vet appointments, softball games, Shawn's business trips, house work, etc.  To be honest the house work has been falling behind and I'm playing catch up little by little.

This post, I just want to focus on the things that aren't normal.  The things we don't usually do daily or weekly, like Ben's birthday and party, the Royals game we went to as a family, and Shawn's Aunt Bernie's memorial, and many more fun events.

Ok, I guess I'll start with the Royals game since that happened first.  Shawn's dad has season tickets to half of the season and the tickets he doesn't use, he gets to trade some in for certain days and we all go, in a huge group.  The kids even get arm bands for unlimited use of the kids area which includes batting cages, timed base running, a playground, goofy golf, and a carousel.

Even though the Royals lost that night, we still had a good time.  Also, the really interesting thing. This is the first year in 29 years that the Royals have made the post season.  We are doing really well. I hope I didn't jinx it, but seriously, we are enjoying the awesomeness of a winning sports team! Shawn and his dad bought the post season ticket package so they've been at all of the home games really enjoying it.

Ok, time for my favorite part of this update.  Ben, my sweet baby boy, turned 7!!!  Since his birthday is at the beginning of the school year, last year, by his birthday he didn't have a bunch of friends to invite to his birthday, so this year, we did the great, big, fun, birthday party with all of his friends invited.  We threw his party at Laugh Out Loud, which is one of the kids favorite places, and we served hot dogs, candy, and birthday cookies.  We rented out the entire facility for 2 hours after it closed and the whole family and a bunch of Ben's friends had a good time.

See, even the grown ups had fun!  Those cookies, AMAZING!  If you have an Eileen's Colossal Cookies near you, GO TO THEM!!!

On Ben's actual birthday, we went to our favorite Mexican restaurant in Lawrence.  We let Ben pick and that was his top choice.

The night before Ben's birthday, I stayed up late decorating for him.  He was so surprised when he came downstairs in the morning.  I loved how excited he was for it.

I spent all afternoon working on his cake.  He had never liked a cake I baked for him, and didn't even like this one, but at least he said the frosting was good and it looked cool.

Here was my Ben at exactly 3:18 pm.  The exact moment of turning 7.

He had such a good time, and has been building Lego sets ever since.  I couldn't believe how many Lego sets he got.  He was one extremely happy camper.

The following weekend we went to a memorial for Shawn's Aunt Bernie who passed in May.  We really do need to do get big family get togethers for more than just funerals.  Especially since a good chunk of that side of the family are local.

This is a family so full of love, and I'm just happy to get to be a part of it.

A little over a week ago, we went to the Renaissance Festival with my mom and brother to sort of celebrate my brother's 17th birthday. 

Last Thursday we all got dressed up like zombies and walked in the Zombie Walk.   Even Scotland was a baby zombie.  Shawn's mom and our friend (I suppose that's what we'll call her even though that word doesn't seem strong enough.  She's related to my husband by marriage and adoption, but since she's not just a cousin or aunt, I'll just use the term friend.  She really is a good friend.) Kathy came out and got all zombie-fied and walked with us as well as my sister-in-law and my nieces.  It was bunches of fun and the kids were so cute. 

I was actually worried about Rylie since she was terrified in the Halloween store the night before, but man, she was into it.  She was screaming and growling at people that were watching from the restaurant patios.

We've had a few cold soccer Saturday mornings, but with the kiddos that aren't currently playing soccer in a warm van, and hot Starbucks, we've been getting through.

The next weekend we went back to the Renaissance Festival.  We had a little more money to spend and more fun to have.  This time, my mom, Shawn's mom, our friend Terry, and my nieces Langston and Leigha came with us.

Shawn even got a Ren Fest costume.  My husband is so cute!

I've tried to find some time for a little relaxing, especially with all the rain and gloomy weather we have been getting. I haven't had a ton of luck, but I've had a little.

Today, we just got home from Shawn's company picnic and had soccer this morning.  The girls are asleep, and Ben and I are waiting for Shawn to get home with some cough medicine for Ben.  He and Rylie seem to have come down with a cold, although, I feel pretty crummy myself.  I will not get sick! I will not get sick! I will not get sick!

Here's just a few more fun assorted pictures from over the past couple of weeks.  I'll try to do better in the future, but there are no promises.  Hahaha!  I'm such a scrambled mess.

I asked Sydney if she could run upstairs to grab my glasses for me from my bedside table.  This is how she came back downstairs.

Ben on his picture day.  We put a bunch of gunky goop stuff in his hair, and when I picked him up after school, his hair was back to laying flat like normal.

Scottie loves her dolls.  She constantly has to be entertained but she's fun to play games with.

Sydney on picture day.  Her hair did not stay back long enough, even for pictures....  It will be interesting to see how they turned out.

All I could think, while she was jumping around with this bell was "Needs more cowbell." or "I've got a fever and the only prescription is more cowbell."  Yup, I'm a total nerd, but who doesn't love the cowbell sketch from Saturday night live?

Rylie decided that she didn't want anything for dinner other than ranch dressing, so that's what she ate.

I swear, my kids are way cooler than I ever was.  If I was a kid, I'd totally want to be friends with them.

One night, while Shawn was out of town, the kids and I each made our own french bread pizzas.

Rylie has been painting lately.  She really loves it and I love that it's the one thing that keeps her attention for longer than 5 minutes.

Ben has been doing Legos, all the time that he is at home, awake.  He loves them so much!  That's good considering, that's mostly what he got for his birthday.

Scottie falls asleep in her exersaucer every now and then.  It must wear her out... all that playing and working out. 

I saw a fun opportunity for a pretty picture by Shawn's parent's house.  A little tall grass and some adorable kids.  You can't go wrong... well maybe you can, but it turned out well for me.

This is out by where the kids play soccer.  So much beauty! I see land, trees, etc and get super excited.

Shawn and the kids completed their version of the polar bear plunge.  It's been in the 50-70s pretty consistently for the past few weeks.  We've had a few nights in the 30s.  Shawn's parents recently closed their pool, but before they did, Shawn, Ben and Sydney decided to take one last swim.  Rylie never got up the nerve to put in more than just her feet, but Shawn, Ben, and Syd swam in the very cold water for a good 20 minutes or so before bringing their pruney fingers and blue lips to be wrapped in towels.

See, I haven't just been sitting around, watching TV, eating Bonbons all day.  I really have been busy. Hahaha!  And to top it off, we started the process in looking at houses to potentially buy in the next several months.  To buy before Christmas is unlikely, but after that, who knows!

Alright, I'm going to head to bed.  I'm completely exhausted and Scotland is need of some pajamas and a little milk before she hopefully sleeps all night.