The whole Terry clan was here in July. It will be a few years at least before that will be possible again so we took the opportunity to update the family pictures.
I think I have the ages right on the individual pictures, the younger ones I might be off by a year. 😊
It was a little last minute but we decided to work in one more family vacation before Matthew left. He loves the heat and the ocean so we decided to go with Gulf Shores.
We left on a Friday afternoon. The Torgerson’s were in Branson at Silver Dollar City so we drove to them and spent the evening with them and doing as many rides and roller coasters as we could. After we ended the night watching the drone/firework show (which was pretty cool) we stayed in a hotel near by and then left early the next morning to get to Gulf Shores.
We headed to the beach once we got to Gulf Shores, it was great weather and the waves were really nice, but unfortunately they were having one of their worst peak jellyfish seasons. It was a bit of a bummer. We played in the water a little bit, we all got a little sting here and there but Emilee got a pretty bad sting on her arm and neck. They were sea nettles which are not lethal but extremely painful. She was mad, frustrated, sad, and hurt all at once. After that we waded in the waves and stuck pretty close to the beach instead of the water. We played catch and enjoyed relaxing but we didn’t get to spend as much time on the beach as we hoped.
We spent the next few days relaxing and enjoying each others company. We went to the movies, a waterpark, played lots of games, Matthew, Ryan and Emilee went golfing, we swam in the pool, went shopping, did icee runs at the gas station and got ice cream at our usual spot. It used to be called Matt’s Ice Cream but they changed the name to Sweet Cone. We liked the first name better for obvious reasons.
We drove home on Allison’s birthday which isn’t very fun for her so we let her pick our activity the night before we left. She went with a 3D glow in the dark dinosaur miniature golf. It was pretty fun! I think Emilee lost but the score card showed that I lost.
We got home around 10pm on Allison’s birthday. Happy 15th birthday! Her presents were at Grandma Terry’s along with her guinea pigs so we stopped there first and brought them home with us so she could open them. Friday we did her birthday cake and she went swimming with a friend. Sunday we had more birthday cake with all the family in town-including Grandma and Grandpa Jones who were here to visit. And on Monday she went to brunch with some friends and then they hung out at our house for the day. So we spread it out over a few days but she still had some good birthday celebrating.
This is last Summer but I wanted to make sure it is in one of my books. This is from our back porch. I love our view and seeing the beautiful sky.
We went to a karaoke bar for Ryan’s birthday. They had a band playing for part of the night and the friends we were with had them announce happy birthday to Ryan. He was thrilled and loved getting to sing-If I Had A Million Dollars.
I got these pretty flowers for my porch but they blooms only lasted like a day and I kept cutting the dead ones off every morning and was frustrated they didn’t last very long. Then somewhere in the cobwebs of my brain I remembered that some flowers close up at night and then open in the day. So I waited a little longer and then went out and checked them and sure enough they had opened and looked beautiful! I’m glad I remembered before I cut off perfectly good flowers all summer.
Allison went on a youth temple trip.
Found this sign above a drinking fountain in Emilee’s softball facility. It is now one of my favorite quotes to share with my children.
Emilee went to her first church girls camp and had a great time. The food was ‘tolerable’ the weather was 80’s-AMAZING, the cabins were air conditioned and there was a lot of fun activities!
We didn’t make an official summer bucket list like we used to when the kids were younger but we had a few things that Matthew wanted to do that we made sure got worked in.
One was an awesome 4th of July, which we did. Awesome overalls and all. Visiting grandparents in Florida. Watching all the new summer movies. Eating lots of Costa Vida food. Things like that.
Ryan’s family was here at the beginning of July. We went to Lake Olathe with cousins while they were here. There is a small beach area to swim and a blow up water obstacle course. We usually go once a summer and Matthew specifically mentioned wanting to do it. We were there for a little over an hour before we got rained out but Matthew said it counted.
We usually do at least one if not several family Royals games. We worked that in right after the fourth. The Royals won and they hit 4-5 home runs, that always makes it an exciting game.
All the cousins played games inside and out. Matthew and Ethan organized a game of whiffle ball. That was fun to watch. We had lots of family meals, eating is one of Matthew’s favorite activities so he loves a family meal. We did smores’ a few times in Grandpa Terry’s firepit and caught fireflies.
Matthew was set apart as an Elder in our church and got the Melchizedek priesthood. That was one of the things he needed to do to go on his mission. His Dad, Grandpa Terry, Bishop Sirois, and Uncle Kris and Uncle Ross were able to set him apart. Kris was wearing a tie but took it off before I took the picture and I wasn’t patient enough to let him put it back on. There have been several times this summer that I just look at Matthew and feel so proud of him and thankful to him for setting a good example and being a good person. He is very kind and inclusive to everyone around him.
Playing some baseball was of course on the bucket list. There wasn’t as much as we usually put into a summer but we attended several tournaments. The team did pretty good. Everyone had fun and enjoyed it. A lot of the team is going to keep playing in college but several are done so it was time for them to enjoy their team and have fun playing ball. Matthew has played with some of them since 5th grade. Their banter with each other on and off the field is fun to see. Their last tournament was in mid-July. Matthew was in a little bit of a hitting slump but he turned it around and had some great last games. He had a triple, a few doubles, a home run, and for the very last game to win the whole tournament- he scored the walk off run. 😜🤷♀️ Kind of a silly way to win a tournament, but we will take it. The video is a few videos of their final huddle and walk out to the field and then the last 10 minutes or so of the game, starting with Matthew’s last at bat.
And not on the summer bucket list but worthy of mentioning is saving this little guy-only about 2 inches big- we found him wandering on our sidewalk while we were doing yard work one day. Emi and I walked him over to the creek by our house and put him in it. Hopefully he is living a happy life there.
Way back in January or February, Ryan found a fourth of July outfit that he ordered for me and him to wear on the 4th. He was pretty excited about it. It was overalls with the flag on it. He wanted to be festive and over the top. A few weeks before the 4th Matthew sent me a link on his phone and asked if I would help him order an outfit he wanted to wear for the 4th. It was the same overalls! Ryan was delighted, he thought it was hilarious and was very excited. When the day arrived Ryan shaved his beard and left a gross mustache and they both decided to go shirtless to make it as red-neck as they could. It was pretty funny. We went to the firework booth to get our fireworks and there was a teenage girl there wearing the same outfit. She looked pretty embarrassed that we were all wearing the same outfit she was. We had a BBQ lunch at our house and lots of Ryan’s family, some of Lauren’s, and a few friends of ours came. Fourth of July has always been one of our favorite holidays, we did it in Nebraska for years and then had to tone it down when Roger and Rhonda moved here until we had a place we could light fireworks off again. The kids love the cousin time and always look forward to it. I don’t know how much longer it will be like we are used to but it was a fun time this year!
Right before the 4th before Matthew and Emilee got back from Florida, the rest of us went to Arkansas. All of Sherrie and Dave’s kids were there and we to celebrate the 4th and they wanted to take a family picture…so we kind of ruined it by not bring all of our kids, but we didn’t know about it until they were already going to be gone. So we did our best. We got some great pictures, and it was nice to see everyone. We haven’t gotten to know Austin and Giselle and their families as well because they live in Utah. We are getting to know everyone better and better though and it is nice to spend time with them.
Last December, DeAnna called and said that her family was going to go on a trip and see some of the church history sites and asked if she could come and stay with us for a few days since we live by them. We said yes, of course.
When it got a little closer Sherri and Kenny decided they wanted to join in the fun so they asked to come visit too. So we had a party with the Terry, Cazier, and French families for a week in July. There were 11 kids and 6 adults. I am hosting Thanksgiving in November so it was a good practice run for when I have 14 kids and 10 adults here.
We had a good time. I was again a little nervous about the weather. July in Kansas does not usually encourage one to be outdoors due to the ridiculous heat and humidity so I was trying to think of good indoor things to do around here. The weather ended up being pretty awesome the whole time though. Seriously gorgeous 80 degree temps and low humidity. Everyone arrived on Thursday and Friday. Saturday we went to a park and played pickle ball for a few hours. There was a playground and baseball field that some of us played kick ball on too. Sunday we went to church and played games, jumped on the trampoline and hung out at the house. Ryan squeezed in as many games with John and sushi runs with Kenny as he could before he had to leave for a conference Sunday night. Monday we went to Liberty Missouri to see the Liberty Jail, where Joseph Smith and a few others were put in jail for false charges for several months. That night we went to a Royals game. It was a pretty exciting game. I think there were 4 maybe 5 home runs, a little drama with people getting hit by pitches that resulted in coaches getting kicked out. Between that and the stadium food it was a pretty fun night. Tuesday we went to the Spring Hill Aquatic center and spent a few hours at the pool. There was lots of games and activities at the house. I am glad we had the trampoline, it was a big hit. Hannah had a birthday while she was here too. We made her a cake and she picked what we had for dinner. It was a fun couple of days. I enjoy the chaos of big family gatherings. My kids do too. They love having cousins to play with from the time they wake up until they go to bed. The Cazier’s left Wednesday to go to Nauvoo Illinois and then home. The French’s left the next day.
Jake and Becky came that same week and were at Grandma Terry’s house. We saw them a little bit. The Bourne’s, grandparents, and Terry’s came to our house on Saturday and Sunday to hangout together. Ryan and I had Allison to ourselves for a week because Matthew and Emilee left the same day the Cazier’s did to spend a week with Grandma and Grandpa Jones. It will probably be the last time Matthew goes to spend a week with them since he will graduate and move on to other things this year. He loves going there. Grandma cooks him tons of good food, grandpa tells him funny stories, and he can walk out the door and fish in the ponds around them anytime he wants.
The kids all went to Florida this Summer to spend time with Grandma and Grandpa Jones. Allison went first. I know my mom loves it but all my kids like going to visit too, especially Allison. She can relax and not have anyone to mother. My parents always seem to find fun places or things to do while they are there too. This year they went on a swamp tour in an airboat and held some alligators. They did some school shopping. They got hooked on the show The Flash, went swimming, baked lots of cookies and treats, and did more shopping. She flew there and back on her own. I don’t love it, but I am able to take her to the gate and my mom picks her up at the gate. While she was there is was her Aunt Rachel’s birthday so they decided to make her a video with a birthday song. I will attach it to this post for your enjoyment.
https://youtu.be/6W9G-e-jnh4?list=PLBwkO01uWtw9DJu2WA-l0-1CZ6EuoK5Kl
On a sadder note, shortly before she left, her guinea pig Peanut passed away. We had him for almost 5 years. He was the first one she got and he had a very happy life. She took amazing care of him. He had a few vet check ups and the vet always said he was well taken care of. It was all Allison. We could tell he was getting pretty old and might not be around to much longer. She spent a lot of time with him the last few days swinging in the hammock with him wrapped in a towel snuggling with her. The morning we found he had passed away Allison and I went and found a nice wooden box to bury him in. Emilee painted some wooden grave markers for him, and Matthew and dad dug a hole for him. We buried him in the flower bed by Allison’s window.
That left us with Milo. Allison watched him pretty closely and thought he was getting lonely. Guinea pigs are pretty social creatures. We discussed it for a while. Milo is three years old and I didn’t want to get another baby. I didn’t want to get another one at all, but we looked around and found a lady that had a guinea pig rescue. She had a few male guinea pigs that were about the same age as Milo. Dad and Allison took Milo over to her house to meat the different ones and see if there were any that would make a good buddy for him. There were a few solid ‘No’s’ but Milo seemed to like a chubby chill guy named Oreo. Allison brought him home and over the next few days they became the best of friends and Allison renamed him Bubbles because Oreo was to basic. All is right with the guinea pigs once again.
The city of Olathe doesn’t allow fireworks. People still do, but it limits the fun a bit. That’s why we loved going to Nebraska and having a huge firework display and doing our own right from Grandpa’s drive way. Ever since Grandma and Grandpa Terry moved to Olathe we have been anticipating a July 4th celebration at our new house! Our house is not considered inside city limits so we can light off whatever we want. Last year we lit of fireworks on the road but we didn’t have a house yet. This year we had the house!
It is always such an awesome holiday. It really is one of my favorites. It is low key and minimal prep. The point is to just relax, eat and light off fireworks. For the past few years at some point during the summer we go with Terry cousins and spend the day at World’s and Ocean’s of Fun Amusement park. Last year we didn’t go because we had a family reunion at Branson and everyone went to Silver Dollar City together instead. This year my kids were really looking forward to it and the day that worked out was July 3rd. I was a little nervous in anticipation of the heat but it ended up being a great day. It was overcast so not blistering sun and humidity but still warm enough to swim. Everyone was tall enough to go on every single ride if they wanted too for the first time too! Jovee is one of the biggest roller coaster junkies in the group and up until this year there was always one or two off limits due to height for her. Emilee has had a little anxiety about a few roller coasters since going on one when she was really young that she probably shouldn’t have. Height wise she has always been as tall as kids several years older than her. She was trying to talk herself into doing the Patriot. We got in line the first time and then when it was our turn she couldn’t do it. We watched everyone else go and then she decided she would give it another shot and the second time it was our turn she did it. She loved it and was much more relaxed about going on the rest of the rides after that. Leah is not a big roller coaster fan but for Allison’s birthday she said she would go on any ride Allison wanted her to go on with her. It was a great day. We hit all the rides we wanted then ate lunch and went to the water park side. After they were all done there we headed home with a stop at chick-fil-a on the way.
The next day we had a BBQ at our place with all the KC family and my friend Dani came with her son Ethan. We played games, ate food, went and got fireworks, set of the day time ones and then repeated it all until it was dark enough to do the night time ones. We had one small incident. The kids were lighting off smoke bombs and bottle rockets and things like that. The three youngest kids like to light smoke bombs and run through the smoke. They lit what they thought was a smoke bomb and it was but it had some firework stuff in it too. So they were all standing around it and ready to start running in the smoke and it started shooting out whistlers at them. They ran pretty quick. Luckily no one was hurt. It was a good lesson to read the entire description and always stand back even if you think it is just a smoke bomb. Other than that is was just a fun time. We topped the day off with strawberry short cake and it was another successful Fourth of July!
These are pictures I have that I like but didn’t really need a full post about them, or didn’t go with pictures taken at the same time that I put in other posts. So I thought I would just do a collection of them here.
Both of these pictures are in Utah when we were staying with DeAnna for my Grandpa’s funeral. I thought 6 people brushing their teeth in the bathroom was pretty cute. DeAnna made lots of good food while we were there too, Sherri wanted to document that ‘she can cook but chooses not to’. While we were in Utah, dad took Emilee and Matthew to their softball and baseball tournaments they had going on that weekend. They love it so much they decided to go watch a Royals game one of the nights we were gone.
I am not sure where we were coming back from…maybe the eclipse, but the girls were being a little grumpy to each other but when they fell asleep they snuggled right up to each other.
This is one of the many times we have had to rent a skid loader to do some lawn stuff. It won’t be the last either. Ryan and I take turns between freaking out about why we have so much land to take care of and someday it will be awesome.
We try and do an annual amusement park day with our cousins each year. Sometimes it ends up being in Branson and Silver Dollar City, sometimes Worlds/Oceans of Fun. It was a great time this year. Everyone is tall enough for all the rides. Jovee is the biggest adrenaline junky and finally hit the tallest minimum requirement for the rides she had been waiting to go on for years. We went on July 3rd which was begging for heat stroke, but the weather was cloudy and perfect so it was a great day.
We have had typical so hot and humid days you can barely go outside this Summer for sure but there have been a lot more than usual gorgeous beautiful weather days. This hammock is one of our favorite spots to hangout on those days.
