THE BEST TIMES

Sometimes hanging out is just the best!  With some beautiful weather just being able to spend some time at home together playing...and resting has been a lot of fun.

How many crayons do you collect from resturants???  Today we decided to melt some and make a mega crayon.

JUST A COUPLE FUN MEMORIES.

The past couple days have been super saturated with school/fun!  This weekend was Elementary Night at the Friday night football game.  I hate to say but I shrugged it off last year and tried to steer my kids away from all the hype that surrounds Friday but this year we just gave in.  Brayden was all smiles getting to wear his football jersey to school, along with the girls in their free dress.  An elementary pep rally always seems like a stretch to me but we were there...along with a packed large gym to cheer on all the elementary cheer-leaders and football players.

Brayden the "bull" Haveman

Brayden and football buddies

Special buds at school, I love seeing them together.

Special after school brownies

A little piano recital for Grandma

OLD MAC DONALD 

The pep rally was only the beginning, after gaining a couple more kids for the evening we ventured out to the METRO BASH!  What a time, popcorn, snow cones, cotton candy, sugar, dunk tanks and any kind of inflatable you can imagine.  At more than one point I had one kid tell me their tummy hurt only to be followed by..."I'm hungry, can I get a hot dog"  We played at ate until the varsity football game then proceeded to watch with a gazillion other family's and kids.  I was exhausted and really not the least interested in the game, but had to stay because all the elementary football teams were running the field and being announced at half-time.  It was all worth it seeing Brayden sprint the field with a huge smile on his face.

This was headed for all the fun, everyone was pretty excited!

This was at the end of the evening...the excitement had drained!

Saturday morning we were back at Metro for Brayden's football game.  It was another loss but fun to see Brayden get some runs in and some hard tackles.

Team photo day-no smiles for a team football photo

Yummy filled donuts after the game-a good second breakfast on an early Saturday morning.

We ended the day with some girl fun.  The girls and I along with Marleny, Katherine and Grandma all went to see Disney on Ice.  WHAT A SHOW!!  Turned out to be a ton of fun.  The costumes were beautiful, the stories were as endearing as ever and oh so fun to hear all the Disney songs. 

An end to to Grandma's stay, a story on her last night in Tulsa.  It has been a wonderful week having her around making everything the kids do just a little more special.

COMPANY!

Last week I got a surprise call from my mom letting me know she might be coming to visit for a bit.  Turned out tickets to CA were not working but Tulsa seemed possible.  The kids were super excited and it turned out to be a great week to have her visit.  Ron was out of town the beginning part of the week and without my extra helper things would have been a little crazy around here!  Thankfully my mom is great with full days and helping out when I can't be two places at once.  The kids have enjoyed walks to the donut store, mornings at the park feeding the ducks and lots of time reading and helping with homework. This week was dentist visits-something that completely ruins my day but my kids absolutely LOVE seeing the dentist.  I am just happy we walked out without any cavities!  Mom brought some jump ropes for the girls.  It is fun to watch them learn-although they both get a little frustrated with the whole process...jumping/turning.

 Just a couple snap shots from our week so far.  Brayden earned the coveted skull and cross bones jersey last practice...sounds horrible but means he played hard and listened throughout the entire practice.  He was pretty proud to wear it while Grandma was hear.  Andrea is such a silly girl, yesterday she walked out of school with this kitty mask and wore it while she waited outside for Becca and Brayden, it was so funny to see and even more fun to see her give the kids a good laugh.  Of course we managed a little ice-cream one evening making James a happy camper.  We also enjoyed getting out along the river for a little exercise a couple mornings, mom riding on the bike.  The temps are still on the warm side but a little rain and fall in the air gives hope that the seasons are finally changing!

FUN TIMES

Just a couple fun memories over the past couple days.

Guess who is loving gymnastics....both girls!  Andrea is working hard on cartwheels and is convinced she can do a handstand.  Becca loves the bars-so much so that tonight she came home in tears with blisters on her hands.  I thought she was crying because her hands hurt, when she informed me that she was upset because she couldn't do her favorite thing on the bars...flips.

Yet another soldier in the Army of God.  I love this focus lesson on the armor of God, each kid loves learning and dressing the part.

Yes, maybe a little inappropriate for a public blog but an update non the less. James is potty training with ups and downs. Tonight...DOWN-involving a huge accident on the football field in front on the football moms (I think everyone at school with less than three kids...which is a lot, thinks I am nuts).  So glad/sad to say my wonderful husband was there to deal with the aftermath of potty training without any underwear (which has really been working).

Brayden had his first official field trip as a 2nd grader.  It was a trip to OKC to visit the Natural History Museum.  I was glad we had been and I could picture where he was going.  They went on a huge bus with all three 2nd grade classes.  Brayden was pretty surprised when he found out where they were going and that I was not coming along.  I think he was a little more nervous than I thought-he was up at 6:30 that morning ready to roll.  Of course he had a wonderful time but it sure was nice having all the kids give him a big welcome back hug once that bus rolled into the school parking lot.

A Little Baseball

The team Brayden has played with since he was about five is playing a little fall ball this year to help get them ready for spring ball...which is kid pitch this year.  At first we declined but after talking to his coach we decided to give the month a try.  Actually it is working out nicely.  It is relaxing to watch...for the most part and the kids get to just hang out and play with the other siblings watching.  Brayden is getting good practice...its all about the pitcher and catcher, a totally change in game strategy (not quite as fun!)

 Finally found the strike zone the other night-he was feeling pretty good!

Some Updating

Well, I guess it has been a while since my last post.  I think I enjoy posting when I have pictures and lately I have not been doing so well in having the camera with me.  Although our schedule is busy...as is most everyone's these days it is tolerable, as long as we all stay on top of things.  Meal/lunch planning, homework, laundry as all pretty crutial.  Our washer went out this past week and I think it was the fastest decision/purchase Ron and I have ever made!  Football continues with practice twice and week.  Ron started Cyclocross on Tuesdays...I miss watching!  BSF finally started this week for both Ron and I-something I was really looking forward to, a little hard committing a whole morning but so worth it once I get there. Both Becca and Andrea have started gymnastics and were totally thrilled this week because they got to play in the pit...whatever that means(I can't watch-hallway fun for James and I)  We did finally figure out Andrea's speech teacher, thankfully her teacher from Jenks Schools was willing to come to the house once a week and continue working with Andrea.  This seemed like a better solution than having her leave class at school and have to start over with another teacher...added bonus was that she qualified for some state scholarship to help pay for her speech classes! 
    This past week we also had back to school night.  It is amazing to see how each kid is growing.  Andrea's class was short and sweet, she was ready to play and thankfully we have the same pre-k teacher as the other two.  Becca was proud to show us her desk and all the little notes she writes to her friend.  Her teacher likes mice...which Becca's thinks is pretty funny seeing as her one grandma hates mice.  Her teacher's reasoning is that mice are quiet and have good listening ears.  Becca has been doing great so far in first grade...a big jump from K5 in my opinion.  She is mastering her spelling and bible verses a lot faster than I thought.  Thankfully having two sets of spelling words and bible verses is not as overwhelming as what I envisioned. Brayden was also set to show us his desk but  had some work to show us-character assessment, very cute.  I love seeing his writing-so fun to see how their brain thinks.

    On to this weekend, CHURCH RETREAT.  Becca took home a calender from church and the kids were counting down the days the entire week. What do you know after suffering hot/humid temps and drought conditions the with decided to finally take and turn-cool temps and rain.  It was hard to be upset when it has been so long that we have had a raining weekend.  The kids were troupers-we managed to still have lots of fun.  Crazy hay rides in the dark and rain/smores/crafts/pony rides/riflery/zip line/canoeing/fishing/dodge ball....it was a packed weekend. 

With some daily bible study's and all the family activities it was a welcome break from our schedule.  So nice to spend time together as a family and some time in study without the kids!

This  was the mild canoe ride.  I think at one point I had three girls all going over board in their clothes all screaming at the top of their lungs, followed shorty by them trying to frantically flinging themselves back over the boat to get out of the cold water-crazy fun!

Brayden missed a football game...fine by us, but still a little hard to tell coach.  Brayden got his share of fishing in.

 Eight kids in one cabin...with a divider that had a mind of it's own with the air conditioning.  I am amazed at how well they did really sleep but then again going to bed at two hours past bedtime and without naps made even me exhausted!

With our small group there are four little ones all around the age of two.  Sunday morning it was a string of defeats as each one showed their toll of sleepless/busy days-each one having their own meltdown.

This was the first year I didn't have a stroller or a diaper bag-strange!  The girls wanted to do the zip line and after harnessing them up realized I could actually go this year...good and bad for me.  It was super high but turned out to be lots of fun.  The climb up was pretty crazy but then I realized who was I to complain seeing as my 6year old was up in no time with a smile on her face.

My brave girl.

A wonderful weekend away-I love these kids and seeing them grow and develop, my favorite time spent!

A Better Morning

Another Saturday another football game.  Actually we had a nice break over the holiday weekend and with another couple practices under his belt Brayden was feeling a little more confident.  I woke up sick to my stomach, after the last game I really did not want him to be pummelled for four long quarters.  If anyone was at our house they would think I was crazy, aside from pumping the house with music I did everything I could to pump him up for the game.  It is always a long morning, having to arrive an hour before the games....today Brayden was worried about weigh in, as some of the boys had to take off their pads.  I told him he had nothing to worry about!  Turned out they had a great game, they still lost but actually did score a touch down.  Brayden had his head in the game and was out to block and tackle-at one point he was hanging on by a shoe but still pulled the guy down.  I think I am turning into that crazy side-line mom....it comes out with any sport but sounds horrible with this one in particular.  I find myself yelling to bring the other guy down...hit him...take him down---Crazy!  James is well taken care of by the cheerleader girls which made  Becca a little jealous.  Andrea was just tired and hungry having exhausted herself on the high jump pads.  We all missed Ron who was having to drill this weekend.

I just love this age!  This was one of Brayden's team mates during half time.  HUGE BONUS  60 degree temps this morning.  A huge change from triple digits just a couple days ago.

Labor Day Weekend Fun

This labor day weekend really crept up on us.  With the possibility of rain with remnants of hurricane Issac we were not really ready to plan a big get away weekend.  Turned out that instead of rain the heat was turned back up and camping was not even a fleeting thought!  So we did a couple day trips.  Saturday we spent the day at Robbers Cave State Park.  Our day just flew by and we almost didn't have enough time to enjoy the entire park.  The kids loved swimming, once they got in the water.  The shore is rocky and a bit murky.  James jumped right it but it took the other kids a little bit to get in the water.  They loved jumping off the dock-including James he has no fear when it comes to water.  The girls enjoyed the playground with James and Brayden was all about catching minnows.  At one point he had waded into the murky shore line up to his arm-pits....all I could think about was snakes!  We did enjoy a little naturalist led hike (we were the only family out in the heat) The kids had fun looking for fish and identifying animal tracks.  There was also a snake feeding at the nature center-quite gruesome, but educational none the less.  Becca hid behind me for most of the time while Brayden was front and center.  All James had to say was "YUCK"  We spent so much time around the water that by the time we made it to the horse barn the gates were closed-us girls were pretty disappointed but we headed up to the cave area to do a little exploring.  The kids had fun climbing-even Andrea had fun exploring and finding tunnels.  The day quickly came to an end and we found ourselves pulling into the driveway 10pm wondering where the day went.

Brayden did do a little fishing but didn't catch anything-although he did attract some a couple little local boys where were full of local fishing knowledge.  Very funny to overhear their conversation.

 Only in Oklahoma!  And yes someone caught it and took it home....NOT US!

Becca is quite the little climber and is pretty good at figuring out how to get up and down....almost more so than Brayden.  On days like this one there is little time for naps and James is just one energizer bunny-it amazes me how well he does without sleeping.

After a good four months of waiting for his father's day gift this hammock finally arrived.  Our friends have one that always looks wonderfully relaxing so I decided to get one.  Crazy thing was that no matter where I ordered it from it always came from the same place-Mexico....not that I mind but the warehouse there was in no hurry to ship.  We missed two trips to MI and were finally able to give it a test....it slept well according to Ron!

Monday Ron and I enjoyed a bike ride together, something we have not had the time or the sitters for lately.  Wonderful to have a little time together riding.  We spent the rest of the day floating the Illinois river.  Ron would say float, I would say paddled!  It was work!  When I mention float trip I think 2 miles and the kids jumping out and swimming most of the way.  This is NOT was Ron thinks when he hears float.  We "floated" 12miles in 105 degree weather....we were all sun burned and parched.  The kids did have a blast-swimming, jumping off a rope swing, floating with the current.  James did managed to fall out of the boat once although he loved the water so no big deal just a little shocking.  Andrea made the comment "this is just bad" as Ron was pushing us over a shallow rapid area, she also wondered out loud on one particular hot slow section "why are we doing this?"  she just made me laugh with her random comments.  Ron got a work out as we towed the kayak most of the way-giving way to many funny moments.  I will let you envision the canoe getting caught up on a rock in rapids with the kayak rushing on by only to be flipped around backward (two wide-eyed kids) because we can't untie them fast enough from the canoe-funny funny!  Anyway, no flipping just lots of funny moments-mostly resulting in boats floating down the river backwards-although at one point I think Brayden was paddling backwards??  We did hit another raft much to my embarrassment and Brayden did have to make a detour to pick up Becca after she fell off the kayak and couldn't keep up. Sounds a little crazy now that I think about it!  All in all it was a huge work-out, way to long but it gave me a lot to smile about...after we got slushy's, water and ice-cream!