We are headed to Utah tomorrow and when I finish the post I will be officially caught up (except for the major thing called Christmas and the month before and after it...womp, womp, womp). Anyways, I won't focus on that, I will focus on getting through what we have been up to since school got out! This may be a little jumpy, but I will do my best.
Basketball has been a big deal around here. With the Warriors and the Cavs and having kids that semi care about sports, it has been a lot of fun. Eve is just glad dad is on the floor so she can sit with him!
It has been fun to have lazy mornings and a change of pace with having Thad around all day to play with!
Summer seems to have made these kids a little more silly than usual...
Eve figured out that she'll get a good laugh from her brothers if she makes this face when they say, "Poop, Eve, poop!" She's a crowd pleaser!
But, Wes can't let Eve show him up with a funny face, so I had to get his on camera-
Silly gooses!
Thad thought he wanted a tickle torture one day, so I gave him a tickle torture-
He didn't cry, but almost...
Wes and Eve got pretty concerned so I laid off and told him to be careful what he wishes for!
We randomly watched a rugby match and Thad and Wes were super interested so dad was kind enough to play a version of it with them in the back yard.
We have been loving our back yard this year! We (Brian) rehabbed it over the last few months and we have spent some good time out there.
I don't know how Brian managed to wear pants for the thirty minutes he was out there, but he did. The kids loved it and they all came in with some nice sweat beads!
The Monday after school got out we went on a little adventure to Jumpoline with the Dukes and my kids had a blast, of course.
We went to a park and ate and played some more afterwards. It doesn't matter what we do with the Dukes--my kids are in heaven!
We figured out that Eve loves summer food and is pretty awesome at eating it-
We are also reminded every day that this little girlfriend is obsessed with being outside and gets really made when her brothers go in and out without her.
Luckily we have been spending LOTS of time at the pool so she can be outdoors where she wants to be!
She got so good in her Puddle Jumper so fast because we went to the pool so many days in a row. I am so glad she figured out her balance, it has been a lot of fun to see her swim around with the big kids!
The boys are pretty obsessed with the pool themselves and have had a lot of fun going every Wednesday for playgroup with the ward and also on occasion with neighbor friends. I don't have as many pictures as I want of them at the pool because I want my focus elsewhere, but we have been having fun in the sun!
We've also been having some fun inside with rainbow loom bracelets-
I'm pretty sure these were all the craze a couple years ago, but they have caught fire on our street and all the boys are obsessed with them! Thad used his money to buy a kit and they have all now created a business, The Bracelet Shack, to sell them and have made a little over $20. If you're in the market for a bracelet, let Thad know, he makes them custom if you want.
I'm kinda shocked I have no pictures of him with his friends making them and selling them door to door and on the corner up by the pool. They have been having a lot of fun with it and it's been fun to watch him be interested in it and get creative with it.
Eve just keeping things cool-
We had Dax and Mila over one day and Eve loved brushing Mila's hair. It was adorable!
Mila really wants to hold Eve a lot, but Eve won't let her so she was happy when Eve wanted to stay in one spot and play with her for a while.
At the beginning of the month we had a surprise visitor!
Ben Faux!
He called Brian and told him to come out into the driveway at 9:30 p.m. and Brian was super confused. He was hoping to surprise us with his car in our driveway, but is GPS stopped him a couple houses short. They heard each other talking outside and they figured it out pretty quick. We had a fun visit for an hour with one of our best friends. He was in Round Rock for a quick work trip and we're so happy he stopped in!
We have also put these kiddos to work around here so that we when summer is over we have accomplished some things. We all set some summer goals and are having a good time working towards them.
Thad has probably made the most progress with all his reading and running, but it is giving us all some great things to focus on.
Thad is really excited about his goal to read 25 chapter books this summer and he pumped out three the first week! It has slowed down a little, but I love it when this is my view-
Books are the best!
We have a great little collection for him to bring to Utah and I hope he gets lost in a lot more over the coming weeks.
Thad finally lost his upper right tooth next to his middle teeth and we were so happy to have some symmetry back to that smile of his-
He was struggling with the summer food eating and was pumped about being able to use both sides of his mouth again!
Last week I took him to the outlets with me to find him some new tennies and this is what he looked like-
Hat, necklace, attitude and all!
He cracked me up that he wore the necklace they were giving out at a booth for free and walked around with the bill of his hat pointing up. I love that he doesn't care and I love that I don't care in the summer...win-win!
He is such a good big brother and has been having so much fun with Wes and Eve while being out of school.
I'm so glad these two always have each other because they always have a friend even when their other friends can't come out to play!
I loved seeing my three little ducklings in a row!
Eve is going to everything in her power to keep up with those big kids!
Brian taught the boys some tricks of the shoe shining trade and the loved it.
They're pretty obsessed with their dad-
And part of it is because he loves being silly with them...
Kids love silly!
Hahahahaha!!!!
They flock to him EVERY night at bedtime. He's the best!
I've only taken all three of the kids shopping this summer one time and I remembered why I was dealing with the Saturday mob instead...
At least we got a fun Costco date out of it!
Here is Wes practicing the Star Spangled Banner and taking out the silverware-
He was determined to know all the words just like Thad and he did it! He actually picks up on lyrics quite easily so having pictures to help out made it that much easier for him.
He is amazing.
This boy can drive me bananas, but he is just as amazing and bright as that smile. So many people have been telling us how much they love him and can't get enough of him lately. That is always fun to hear. He lights up the room and I can't wait to see how he shines that light as the years pass.
Me and my Evelyn Ann bear get worn out by these brothers and take naps to try and keep up with them-
Ha! This has actually never happened and I wasn't even tired, but when she woke up cranky from her nap and wanted to cuddle and sleep some more, I made myself tired!
I love that perfect little girl.
A lot of days I think this is when she is the most perfect, but she is perfect nonetheless!
We went on a date night with the Dukes last weekend and tried out a new place called Mambo House. It is Cuban cuisine and we were all very impressed! They had unlimited plantain chips and the best sweet fried plantains I've ever had so that alone made us all love the place.
We always have such a good time with these two and could have just chatted all night with them.
After dinner we decided to go welcome some new friend that moved into the ward and wanted to take them Round Rock donuts, but we were bummed they were already closed. They closed at 6:30 and it was almost 7. Well, Kristen worked her magic, walked up to the drive-thru and wa-la...six free Round Rock Donuts!
That girl always has a trick up her sleeve...I love it!
Brian and I were very impressed and Michael was not one bit surprised. He is used to it. Haha!
And tonight we had an ice cream social and movie night with our awesome neighbors before we all head out on our summer adventures.
I was stressed about it being the night before we go, but I'm so glad we did it and that we all got to hang out with these good people we live by before heading north for a few weeks.
Eve.Brooklyn.Sevi
These three darlings were all born within 10 months of each other and it is a blast to have all three of them right in the culdesac. It is just so crazy that there are so many boys and then these three little girls. I love it and think it was meant to be.
I also think living by these good ladies was meant to be.
Danielle.Abby.Anna.Liz.Me
Wendy.Charli
Heavenly Father knew what he was doing when he led us to this house on this street. I can't think of a better place we could be spending our five years in Texas. Good people, just really good people.
I didn't get a picture of the kiddos watching Inside Out projected onto Wendy's garage, but we were out until 10 finishing that up and the boys had a blast! Right before we went inside Big Braden gave my boys each a rainbow loom bracelet to remember him while we are gone. I thought it was kinda funny and as we were walking in Braden was telling us to have fun in Utah, Thad said to me, "At least we're not moving." And my heart got tender. We are two years away from doing that, but it's going to be hard when it happens. I think it was a combination of sugar and a late night, but Wes was tender also and cried and said he was going to miss his friends. It was really sweet. I've gone through phases of thinking it won't be hard to leave Texas when it's time to go because it's not Connecticut, but the longer I am here and the more I am with these neighbors and friends like the Dukes I'm realizing more and more that it's going to be hard. Really hard. As somber as that makes me, it makes me even happier that it is the truth because when things are really hard, I know it's because it has been so incredibly good. And I wouldn't change that for anything.
So it's pretty late and I'm going to stop being sentimental.
I am SO excited to get to Utah and will cherish our next two years in Texas!
I am SO excited to get to Utah and will cherish our next two years in Texas!
