Girls Book Club

Isabella is in a little book club with her friends Scarlett & Lucy. The first book club we discussed "Understood Betsy" and the girls all dressed up in pioneer clothes and they got to make butter.9.26.11

Afternoon with Grandma & Grandpa

We went up to visit Great Grandma & Grandpa, Grandma Mary & Papa Dave. The kids got to have a piano recital and recite their poetry. They had a pretty competitive game of Pretty, Pretty, Princess. Grandpa looked great in a crown. 9.21.11

Riverfest 2011

Our first home in Kansas City was an apartment in Riverside. Every year we go back in the fall for their big festival: Riverfest. They always have a great parade and a wonderful festival with lots of free activities for kids. This year they had a giant velcro wall and a harness trampoline. Nothing funnier than watching our kids throw them selves at a wall and stick! Pretty cute 9.17.11

Afternoon at the orchard

Here are some pictures from our relaxing day at Aldrege orchard. 9.11.11

Just doin' the chores Ma

Dominic just cutting some fire wood for our bonfire. 9.4.11

Time to make the Donuts

My Grandma makes the most amazing donuts. I however have never even tried to make them on my own. The only time my kids have had homemade donuts was when we made them with Great Grandma. This summer we finally worked together to make some super yummy treats. We made strawberry, lemon, anise and vanilla flavored donuts. The kids had a great time glazing them and of course eating them! We had just listened to the book Homer Price and the Donuts so it added to the fun. 9.4.11

Astronomy Planet Model

For science this year we are studying astronomy, today we made a model of the solar system. We even tried to make proportional...which is hard with some of those tiny little planets. (the yellow planet with the red ring is Saturn-just visualize the ring higher).8.29.11

Dominic and his Sweet kitties

This is pretty much what Dominic looks like everyday-lovin on his kitties. Not sure why they put up with all his entrapment techniques but he sure does love them!
8.28.11

Happy 65th Anniversary Grandma & Grandpa

For 65 years they have been a model of love and fidelity. What an inspiration in today's world. 8.28.11

Happy Birthday Mommy

The kids surprised me with beautiful flowers, homemade cards and a super warm hoodie coat. The kids know how I am always cold...giving me the gift of warmth is always a great gift. They topped the day off with some home made strawberry shortcake. Perfect birthday. 8.25.11

1st Day of School 2011

Dominic's first day of Kindergarten and Isabella's first day of 3rd grade. They are so excited! 8.22.11

Worlds of Fun

We had "team day" at Worlds of Fun with our track team. Grandma got to join us for the first half of the day and she got to see Isabella ride her first roller coaster and got to get splashed on the Fury of the Nile. We had a great day at Planet Snoopy and went home to pick up dad for an evening full of fun. 8.19.11

Happy 89th Birthday Great Grandma

We got to be with Grandma on her 89th birthday. We love you Grandma. 8.19.11

The Johnson Shut-Ins

Here are some pictures from our fun day at the Johnson Shut-ins. What are the Johnson Shut-Ins you ask. Here is the info:
Nearly 1.5 billion years ago, violently explosive volcanoes hurled hot gasses and ash into the air. The ashes and gas fell and cooled, forming rhyolite rock. A billion years later, shallow inland seas swallowed the ancient, worn-down mountains, burying the igneous rock under thousands of feet of sedimentary rock such as limestone, sandstone, shale and dolomite.

About 250 million years later, the entire Ozark region lifted and the seas retreated. The wind and rain took their toll on the upraised land, sending streams of sand- and gravel-laden water to slice away the layers of soft sedimentary rock and expose the rhyolite below. In low places, the swift Black River became shut-in by the hard igneous rocks, swirling and churning to form huge potholes, and breaking away the weaker rock to create natural water slides and canyon-like gorges .8.14.11

Elephant Rocks

The weather finally cleared up and we got to do some hiking at the Elephant Rocks. This park is amazing. Good thing we came when we did some of the rocks needed to be pushed back into place. 8.14.11

Floating on the River

8.2.11

Sweet Dominic

Dominic is a big 6 year old now. He continues to be filled with joy and enthusiasm everyday. He still loves Super Heros and celebrated his birthday with a Justice League birthday cake. He adores our two cats, Stella & Krypto. Every free minute he spends "loving" on them. I am amazed at what the cats will tolerate. He is really enjoying his first year of Kindergarten and is becoming a good reader. He gets to take art classes and piano and is doing great in both. When he isn't playing with cats he is building with Legos or playing Super Heros.

My sweet Isabella

Isabella is growing into quite the little lady. She turned 8 over the summer and continues to be a voracious reader. She is currently loving the Classic Starts series and American Girl Mysteries. Her favorite 3rd grade subjects are history and spelling. She was in a constant battle with long division but there seems to be somewhat of a truce lately between the two. She continues to love her art class and is really enjoying our new family music lessons. She has an amazing ear for music and a natural talent for playing. She loves all her book clubs that she is currently in...there are 3! In her free time she loves to be creating something, playing with her dolls or reading.

Canoeing Fun

We finished up our vacation week with the B-W's at the lake. We had nice cool weather for canoeing and biking. 8.7.11