Bobcats and Basketball

I love coaching basketball and Kaden's team but there's something about sitting in the stands and watching Logan and his buddies play. It just brings me great JOY!

Thankfully, Logan was blessed with an AWESOME coach and this momma just sat back and watched as he and his team grew leaps and bounds over the season. They went from running one offense to running two offenses and multiple inbounds plays. They learned to look ahead to see if any of their teammates are on a breakaway. They learned to share the ball. They learned to take it to the hole when it was open. They learned so freaking much and I was so stinking proud. 

The team celebrated at the end of the season with a little pizza party at Pizza West & Coach Sarah handed out awards to each of the players. Logan got the Play Maker Award -- she said that she could always count on Logan. Logan not only knew every play and where he was to be but he also knew where everyone else needed to be and was headed. That is a true point guard in the making and talk about a beaming mom---it was ridiculous! Now, we just gotta get use to using that left hand a little more so we can go both ways and become even more of a dribbling threat. 

Off to the Symphony

Last year Logan's first grade field trip was canceled due to the weather. It was an abnormally cold October day and the district determined that it was not safe for the kids to attend the zoo. We were all bummed. So when they sent out information regarding the 2nd grade field trip and mentioned they needed volunteers but could only take 2 per class, I put my name in running. The field trip gods must have been watching over because my name actually got drawn & when I told Logan, he JUMPED up and put his arms and legs around me in excitement. This kid was stoked. As was I. 

So off the symphony we went. Bow tie and all. 

It has been a number of years since I had been on a school bus and as loud as it was, not to mention bumpy, it was totally worth it to be sitting next to my little man. That smile was plastered across his face for the entire day which only told me that I was right where I was suppose to be.

We got to take in the 11:30 performance by the KC Symphony and somehow Logan and I ended up with some of the best seats in the house. He loved listening to the music and then they performed a musical play called Peter and the Wolf. Each instrument represented a different character and the narrator of the story had a different movement for each character too & asked that the kids join along in the story. Logan was flapping his wings like the bird, pouncing like the kitty & waddling like the duck. His smile only grew bigger as more and more animals were introduced. Our time there was special but the adventure wasn't over yet.

We loaded up the buses and we headed over to Crown Center where we ate lunch and then got to explore in our little groups. As we explored we made sure to capture moments with our favorite friends as we ran into them. I mean, is there anything cuter than little 2nd graders dressed to the nines---I don't think so! 

We finally arrived back at school, we gathered Logan's stuff, stopped by to get Kaden and we broke out of there a little early. It's always a special treat to spend a little extra time with the boys during their school activities and I'm so lucky that I not only was chosen but have the flexibility to to say yes too. These are the moments that are important, these are the moments they will remember & I want them to know that I was there. I was there for everything I could be.

LOVE day 2019

Valentine's Day brings another school party and special time with our little loves. I'm not the biggest fan of celebrating Valentine's Day but we at least acknowledge it at home. But first, school parties...

Since I am the room mom for Kaden's class I haven't been able to participate as much in Logan's classroom parties and that was especially true for this one because we ran out of volunteers and I was in charge of the activities and games. UGH. So we made slime. The boys had a great time perfecting our recipe in the days leading up and you know what, I think we did a pretty good job. Sixteen third graders went home with some pretty epic slime that day. 

Logan, well, he came home with a bag full of fun too. Each time I stepped into his classroom he was busy doing something and would come hug me and run right back over to what he was doing. I think my mom guilt was weighing more on me than it was him. Plus, Grammy was there too & that always makes things better.

For dinner Justin made us something special and then the kids had heart-shaped pancakes with BOTTLED Coke and Root Beer. I mean, what kid wouldn't be happy with that! 

And as the evening was winding down and I was checking my FaceBook feeds I was kind of bummed not to see any HUGE announcements from friends. I mean, it is Valentine's Day but I guess I am just getting to the age where friends just aren't getting married...

& then, my phone buzzed. We got a text from Janet and it said. 

"Craig asked and I said YES!" followed by about 5 pictures of the whole thing. I was completely shocked. Justin was shocked. Adam and Becky were shocked. Not because we didn't want this, quite the opposite actually. But, because we just thought the Craigster and Grammy were happy with how things were and not really worried about when that next step came. However, we couldn't be more excited for the Craigster and Grammy Janet. Craig has been in our lives for over three years and we love him dearly and he loves Janet dearly. Although it's "official", he's been part of our family for some time now. We just love him and are so incredibly happy that they both have found this kind of love again. They both deserve it and so much more.

So, maybe it wasn't any of my "friends" that had the huge announcement but this was an even better surprise & we can't wait to celebrate with them. Hawaii anyone!?

Birthday Weekend

For the past few years we've had basketball on my birthday weekend & honestly, I'm cool with that. I mean at a certain age it's more about the kids, than you anyhow but due to a wonderful Christmas gift, I was getting a night out with some of my favs. But first, we ball. 

Saturday both boys had games that were relatively close in time but still allowed us to grab some lunch in between so Grandma Sara and Papa Tom made the long drive to KC to watch the boys play. It should come as no surprise that the boys LOVE having the extra fans in the stands and just smiled the entire time they were on the court--for the most part, even though we came up short in both games. At this age, it's less about the scoreboard and more about development.

As soon as Kaden's game ended we headed straight over to Aunt Becky and Uncle Adam's, they were taking the boys for the evening. One of their Christmas gifts to the boys was to see the Globetrotters and well, it just happened to fall on the eve of my birthday so we made sure to have reservations ready to go with our dear friends. 

The boys had a blast. We had a blast.

Win. Win.

And the next day we were back to the court where one of my lovely parents showered me with these gorgeous flowers. 37 was starting off on the right foot.

Around the World

Whenever we travel to a new location whether it be in the US or to a Caribbean Island, we always place another pin in our map. We quickly realized that we have NO pins in the western hemisphere and then I had the idea of pinning locations with a different color, in this case PINK, whenever we received a postcard from that country. Over the last couple of years our pink pins have started to add up. Most recently Grammy visited Australia & New Zealand. Before that it was Alaska, Greece and Ireland. Grandma Sara and Papa Tom tackled Hawaii for us! 

Not only is it fun for the boys to receive the postcards but it's also interesting to see if Grammy beats the postcards home too! 

So if you are out and about traveling the world---send us a postcard and we will add it to our map!