FALL IS FAB!

i love, love love summer, but when it's time for FALL i love that too!!! its fun to don the jeans and sweatshirts again, watch football, celebrate the CATS wins, and get pretty pumpkins and mums for the front step! we've already had a chili cook off with the Kauks and the Ranzenbergers. we've visited the lousiburg cider mill, and had a fabulous Indian Summer.

 school is off to a great start for all of us. i always say that it takes until October to settle in, and I swear, last week, things were all ironed out! thank goodness! ryan and I enjoyed a fun trip up to Weston, thanks to mom and dad watching the kids for the night. we've loved fishing, running, riding, and just being outside so much this fall. it is fabulous! we're gearing up for HALLOWEEN, which I'm sure, will be fun.

 Eddie and Staci are coming home this weekend, and we are all so exited to see them! here's to many more beautiful days of fall!

Life

School has started for Will, Sam and Me. Along with soccer and dance. This all equals crazy, crazy times. Our happy-go-lucky days of summer are over, and we're (I'm) still trying to transition! My baby boy turned 7 on August 17th (the first day of school). That kid continues to amaze me every day. Last night on a walk with just him and I, he made me stop to look at the awesome sunset. He is just so in tune to the beauty around us, and not afraid to voice it. I pray that he never loses that wonder!
Sam seems to meet a new friend every day. She even told me that a boy in her class named Luke was her friend now! We love it when she comes home with something to read to us. I cannot believe that we have two readers on our hands now! Sammy started a tap/ballet/jaz class with her BFF this week. It's gotta be better than soccer. She just couldn't handle all of the sweat involved!
Livilea is just a doll baby. She finally decided that her mode of mobility will be walking. (about 1 week shy of 16 months) She is so darn tall that she can reach door knobs, countertops, drawers, and so much more. It keeps us hoppin' that's for sure!! Livi is a big "phone talker"! She adores our cell phones, and just carries them around held up to her ear. She says "hello". She seems to have a lot of important instructions to give her big brother and sister with all of her pointing and babbling at them.
It's nice to chill out in the midst of this daily chaos to count our blessings because there are many.

Viv's Visit

Today marks the last day of an awesome visit from Viv and Stacy. Eddie's here, too, and he leaves tomorrow. We do this every summer, and every summer it gets better. (and harder to say goodbye!) We had such a good time going to the petting zoo, Omaha zoo, pools, movies and just playing around! Last night we had a big get together for all of our friends and family so that Stacy and Eddie could see everyone in one place. Eddie cooked a ton of yummy food and we had a wonderful time!

The very best thing about Viv's visits are her "viv-isms". This child is simply hilarious! The things that come out of her mouth are absolutely priceless. The latest and greatest was today when I was talking to her about how much we'd miss her when she left. She told me we could just make a sculpture of her. What a perfect solution! She said we could wire it up with a button to push that would talk like her. What do you say to that? She is hilarious! And we already miss her to pieces! She said she promises that when she's an adult she'll come to live in Kansas. Thank goodness!!!

14 months

I'm not sure why this little milestone is getting to me...maybe because summer life has slowed down just enough for me to realize that Livi is one month older! With every month that goes by, I am sad that my little baby girl is growing up, but it sure is fun! Livi is such a sweet little girl! She absolutely goes with the flow of our crazy little family. When it's time to run someone to practice, or swim lessons or a play date, she's just happy to be along for the ride. Livi isn't too interested in walking, but she's mastered climbing. She likes to climb just about anything; couches, ladders, chairs...and she's good at it too! YIKES!! Although she doesn't have a ton of words, she does make her wants known! She loves to say dog and "bark" when she sees one. She waves hi and bye with the cutest little wave and she is the sweetest at blowing kisses! Livi is a total water baby! She just loves to blow bubbles, kick, splash and float in the water. We're having such a blast this summer! This sweet little princess is such a blessing, and I just thank God for her every day!

Summertime!

We are finally here! It's summer! Blue Valley decided it would be fun to be the last creatures on the planet to start summer break this year! Fun! Sammy made it through a wonderful year of preschool as a peer mentor with the same preschool teacher Will had for 2 years, and loved to pieces! We will miss her a ton! (She's definitely our pick for Livi when she gets to preschool!) Sammy is super excited for all day kindergarten! She's got that S flipped the right way, and she's ready to read! She's made some great friends who she'll see in kindergarten, too! We're just crossing our fingers that she gets the same teacher Will had this year! Will exceeded all of our expectations in Kindergarten this year! He is now a reader, artist, and athlete. He has a bright, bright future ahead of him! Livi and Sammy spent their days this year between Grandma and Caitlin. We have to say goodbye to Caitlin as our sitter for next year, but we get to look forward to having Mandy watch Livi beginning in the fall! Mom will still help out, too, thank goodness!
Now it's time for the kids to sleep a little later (not me, I still do my Jazzercise every morning at 5:30), pool hop, and play! Will has already started soccer camp, and he's in the thick of his baseball season. Sammy starts a Hip Hop dance class in a couple of weeks, and she's pumped! She told me that she never wants to play soccer again because it made her sweaty! (Oh, Sammylou!) Both kids will do swim lessons next week and, that's it for scheduled stuff. I've already knocked out a few projects that have been waiting to be done, and have created a few more for my list. It's super weird to have days open to do what we want, but I so LOVE it!
Livi is on the verge of walking, and seeming to form more and more words by the day. She can sign "more" clear as day now. Miss Livilea is a definite pointer! She has learned that with all of the helpers around, she just has to point it out and she'll get it. Why talk? The other day we were swimming at Mom and Dad's. Dad was mowing and she was super concerned with where he was the whole time. Every time she saw him she just pointed. One time when she was hunting for him, I swear she said "Papa"! She just loves her Grandma and Papa! When we talk about going to see Grandma she gets so excited!

Here's to a fun, relaxing summer loaded with awesome memories!

ONE

Olivia Lea,
One year ago, we didn't know if this day was going to be celebrated with colorful polka dots or baseballs! We knew we were about to have a beautiful new baby, but we didn't know it would be our sweet Olivia! In fact, Livi, the majority of our close family and friends predicted we'd have another boy! We went along with their guess, and thought we'd be welcoming Thomas Ryan to the world! We were so happy to hear the doctor announce "It's a Girl!" I just cried, knowing that our new little baby Olivia was here with us! You have been such a sweet little girl from day one! You have the best big brother and big sister in the whole wide world, which makes life just that much sweeter!! They love you to pieces and have since the first second they met you! You have your daddy wrapped around your finger, which works out nice for extra treats and cuddles at bedtime! Livi, you are just such a gift to all of us! We love to hold you, cuddle you, play with you, and laugh with you. You are a bright light in every one of our days. We are blessed to have you with us. As we celebrate your first year, we are just so excited for the year to come. We know you will just continue to blossom. You already say mama, dada, duck, dog, and no. Who knows what all we'll hear from you in the next year! You still just crawl around, but I'm sure you'll decide to walk sometime soon! Livi, you're off the charts according to the doctor's height and weight graphs. We know that just means you're bound for a super-star future!!! The sky's the limit, baby girl!

 Livi's favorite food! Spaghetti!!

 Cake!

 Opening presents with Mommy!

After bath time with Grandma!

Easter '11

 Easter was so fun! Sam and Will are now masters at egg hunting, so it goes without saying that we have Easter candy coming out of our ears! Livi discovered chocolate, realized it was in the eggs, and the hunt was on from there! Aunt Stacy got the girls darling matching dresses for their birthdays, which worked out perfect for easter dresses! Livi's had cute ruffles on the bottom, too! So darling!