What’s going on here…

Here’s just a quick update on what’s going on with us:

-  Eric and I went to Vegas for a whole week for ASCA’s World Clinic (for swimming coaches).  It was a lot of fun and we learned a ton.  We got to talk to Olympian Tyler McGill, see Phelps’s coach and listen to great speakers.  I took a Build a Pool class because we are really hoping to have our own facility sometime in the near future.  Hopefully I will have more news on that in the next few months to year.  A week was a long time in Vegas but we were lucky enough to have my parents take the boys Monday-Friday and then Eric’s mom took them Friday evening-Sunday night.  We walked the entire strip, went to the top of  the Eiffel Tower, saw an illusion show and played craps.  We did not come home big winners.

-  Our dogs developed not only pink eye but some gastrointestinal problems after being at dog place for a week.  It was not fun, not to mention an extra expense that we were not expecting to pay.

-  Kenny and Luke are both doing great at school.  Luke’s mid-term report card looked like this…

-  The boys fall sports are in full swing.  Kenny’s soccer actually started at the beginning of August and his football and Luke’s soccer didn’t start until mid-September.  It was nice to have it broken up a little.  Sporting KC used Kenny’s soccer team in a coaches’ clinic and it’s on You Tube.

-  My work is starting to pick up right now after a nice month lull in August.  Back in June, the owner of our team and I flew to Colorado to look at an infant aquatics program for babies as young as 6 months.  Non-walking babies learn how to float on their back if they were ever to fall into water and the walkers learn how to float and then swim to the side of the pool (or wherever they are).  Most people have seen the video of this.  It shows the baby in pajamas or clothes falling into a backyard pool and then floating safely.  I remember seeing it the first time and thinking someone should pick up the baby.  When we went to Colorado, we honestly sat there all day just watching baby after baby and it was AMAZING.  So amazing, the team has invested a ton of money to send one of our head coaches out there for 6 weeks to get trained.  I would like to get trained some day but I just can’t be gone for 6 weeks at this point in our life; not with the boys being so young and Eric’s schedule.

-  My SIL is getting married in less than 2 weeks!  It still feels like it should be a few months away.

-  Eric and I celebrated our 10th wedding anniversary on September 20th (but actually celebrated in Vegas).

I think that covers all the big things.  Now, off to do more work…

Easter eggs

I always feel like we dye our Easter eggs at the last minute and this year was no exception:) 

Camille and Mac (freshly shaved)

Christmas 2011

We started out a little worried about Christmas.  There was a bad stomach virus going around Kenny’s school  that we were praying we wouldn’t get.  We really didn’t want a repeat of Christmas 2009.  But, of course, Kenny got it on the 22nd.  We made it through the 23rd and 24th without anyone else having signs of getting sick so we celebrated with my family on Christmas Eve.

Getting ready for church:

Christmas Eve at my mom and dad’s house:

Christmas morning at our house: 

Santa may have forgotten to leave anything in the dogs’ stocking.  Oops.  We decided it was probably because they have been getting on our couch while we’re gone.  Luckily I had two bones for them in the cupboard that we were able to give them.

Christmas morning at my parents:

See the stockings in these pictures?  My Grandpa Bill and Grandma Dolly had one made for everyone back when I was little.  This year, my mom made ones for Kenny, Luke and Eric so that everyone now has one.  It took her a long time and they look great. 

Christmas Day with Eric’s mom, Amanda and AJ:

Remember how I said that we thought that we had escaped that stomach virus?  I ended up throwing up every hour on the hour Tuesday night and then Eric had a mild form of it.  I’m not going to say anything about Luke not getting it because I’m afraid I’ll jinx us:)  I’m just glad that it didn’t ruin our Christmas.  And I’m really hoping we didn’t pass it on to anyone else in the family.

Happy 4th birthday Mac!

Mac turned four last Saturday (December 3rd). 

I have to share this story while I’m talking about our dogs:

Apparently our dogs have something against the wise men in our Little People Nativity. 

Luke was playing with the set and when he was done he left two of the wise men standing on their heads.  They were on opposite sides and surrounded by the other figurines.  Camille walked up to the set, looked at it, pushed over the first wise man, looked at the second wise man and then pushed him over too.  Eric and I were cracking up.   

Then last night I found Camille chewing on one of them (which I saved just in the nick of time) and found that Mac had chewed off the top of the head of the other one.  We taped it back up but it will never be the same.

Just a lazy, overcast day

Easter eggs 2011

We dyed our Easter eggs tonight.  Better late than never, right? 

This is the second year that we’ve done them outside on our back deck.  I’m so glad we did because I knocked over the cup of yellow dye within a minute of us being out there.

Eric took the boys to an Easter Egg hunt this morning while I was training two of my new managers.  He’s not used to my camera so most of the pictures ended up a little blurry.

He was mugged (and all they took was his hair)

I think the groomer got a little out of control, don’t you? 

Pro:  He definitely won’t be shedding anytime soon.

Con:  He looks like one of those sphynx cats.

Easter eggs 2010

Camille

Here’s Camille, our new dog. 

One of the guys that Eric works with was looking for a family to adopt her because he’s marrying someone who had a bad experience with dogs when she was younger and is now afraid of them.  We had him bring Camille over the other day to see how she would do with Mac and the boys and everything went great – she’s really calm and sweet, which is exactly what we were looking for.  There’s just no way I could handle a puppy at this point in time.  Mac is a great dog and has really calmed down but he’s still only two and is as big as a horse (or at least a small pony).  Even though Camille is only 65 pounds, (40 pounds less than Mac), she’s still been putting him in his place when he gets a little too frisky.

Lap dog

 

Guess who’s 2 today?

This post was originally titled Guess Who’s 1 Today until my husband looked at me and said, “uh, he’s two today.” 

1 little, 2 little, 3 little indians

Kenny had a Thanksgiving feast at school today.  The kids dressed up in their Indian gear and ate a lot of turkey, ham, muffins, popcorn and fruit. 

Front view

Back view

This was one of Kenny’s homework assignments.  We had to work together to disguise our turkey so he would be safe on Thanksgiving Day.  We turned ours into a leprechaun at the end of a rainbow.  

Luke (of course) had to try on Kenny’s outfit once we got home.

Elf Yourself 2009

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Bullet points

• Kenny had his last soccer game today.  I really can’t say that I mind too much, considering how cold it has been lately.  We’re having lunch with the team tomorrow and then we’ll all go our separate ways.
• Kenny starts basketball at the end of November.  He’s doing it with his friend J.T. (from preschool) for sure and hopefully his other friend Arden (from preschool and kindergarten).  We haven’t seen J.T.’s family as much since school started so we figured that this would be a great way to get the boys back together.
• Kenny got his first report card on Friday and it was wonderful.  I could do a whole post on just his first quarter at school.
• Take a look at Mac’s face in the picture below.  The entire right side of his face and his nose are completely swollen.  Thank goodness Eric’s friend Ben is a vet.  He told us that Mac probably either ate something he shouldn’t have or was bitten by a snake or insect.  We’ve never seen a snake in our yard so we’re thinking that he probably either ate some of the berries that are on the tree that hangs over into our yard or was bitten by some weird bug.  Ben told us to give him Benadryl and to keep an eye on him for the next 2 days.  I love not having to pay for a vet to look at him, at least for now (knock on wood). 

Crown Center and the Pooch Plunge

We went down to Crown Center for the Free Friday Night Flicks.  We ate dinner at Fritz’s and then let the kids play in the fountains before The Wizard of Oz started. 

If you look hard, you can see both Will and Kylie.

Then yesterday, we took Mac up to the Pooch Plunge.  He didn’t really like swimming in the water but he loved running around with the other dogs.  There was only one other dog that was bigger than him and it seriously was as big as a small horse.  Here’s an idea of Mac’s size.  He’s the big one on the right side.  The dogs in this picture next to him are normal sized big dogs. 

Oreo came too.  I swear I’m going to take Casey and Maddie to one of the ones after Labor Day.

We also almost got a second dog.  Pet Connections had some of their adoptable dogs there.  There was the sweetest big (but smaller than Mac) black dog up there.  If I can talk Eric into it, we may have a new family member some time soon.

We knew this would happen…

See that nose?  That would be our neighbor’s dog, Daisy.  When we lost that side of our fence back in December, she and Mac were able to play together a lot.  Now that the new fence is up, they’re not very happy.  I’m actually a little surprised that it took them this long to start digging.

Almost there

aka Fence work:  Day…I’ve lost count.

Eric is almost done with our fence.  The only thing left to do is the door, which he should finish tomorrow.  He has worked so hard and so long on it.  I know he can’t wait to be done. 

Kenny is now pumping his legs and swinging on his own.  I’m so excited about this.  I don’t know why but I hate pushing the kids on the swing.  Well, I don’t mind doing it for a while but after 20 minutes, I’ve had enough.