This year our Halloween ended up looking a little different than it has for the last 10 years. The McDonalds kids and ours all made individual plans with their friends so we didn’t get together like we usually do. We still made pizza and home made root beer for people to eat as they came and went to get ready or stop in on the way to their party. Our houses in our new neighborhood are spread out pretty far so we didn’t have any trick or treaters.
Matthew dress up as Dr Duffensmirch from Phineas and Ferb. Campbell was Harry the platypus. They went to a party with a group of their friends from school. They actually went trick or treating for a little bit too.
Allison and her friends assembled matching outfits and were gangster minions together. They went trick or treating in Grandpa Terry’s neighborhood and then spent the night at our house.
Emilee was a witch this year. She went trick or treating with Reese and a few other girls. They picked a neighborhood that is known for handing out full size candy bars and they were not disappointed. They found a few haunted houses people were doing as they trick or treated too.
Ryan rediscovered his Joe Dirt costume from almost two decades ago and proudly wore it to work. He gave himself a goatee to go with the costume.
The night of Halloween Ryan and I shuttled the girls around were they needed to go and then enjoyed a quite night at home. We did go to a Halloween party with Dani and RJ Halloween weekend. RJ is a pilot so he provided Ryan with an outfit to borrow and Dani and I got First Officer costumes to go with them. I think we were a hit. Ryan LOVED being a pilot too.
As I mentioned in a previous post, this was Matt’s last season with his competitive team. They started playing tournaments on the weekends right after Labor Day in September. He has been on this team since 4th grade. There have been lots of changes over the years but at the end of this season there were three boys, plus Matt, that were on the team when he started. Coach Jimmy was the head coach and there were several others that were awesome coaches. Coach Kent, Coach Uhl, Coach Robby. Ryan helped coach most of those years too. If he wasn’t actively coaching he filled in and was helping in some way. He had a hard time just sitting in the stands and watching. There were some tricky times but overall it was a great experience and I am really glad that Matthew was able to be a part of this team and make good friends. The boys and their families on the team were all good kids, good people. That makes a big difference when you are spending the whole weekend together for months at a time during Spring, Summer and Fall baseball. We traveled a few times and had good times and memories from that as well. We went to Oklahoma, Nebraska, and Gulf Shores. I have posted many pictures from his baseball over the years and that was another blessing from being on this team. There were several parents that great photography skills and they took so many pictures and shared them with everyone. I wouldn’t have very good pictures if it wasn’t for them. Matt had his arm back in top form for this last season. He had the highest batting average on the team most of the time. He hit triples and doubles pretty often and was robbed of a home run or two by inches several times. He had good plays at short stop. Watching the boys play and read each other from playing with each other for years was a lot of fun. I will miss it next Summer when it is time for baseball season to start. We all will.
At the end of the season we had one more get together at a restaurant to say good bye to everyone and give appreciation to the coaches and recognition to the boys for their hard work. It was a fun night. One of the parents made each of the boys a poster of them in their uniform for their rooms. There was a slide show of all the boys, and lots of pictures on the tables to look at while we visited and ate dinner. I am sure we will run into them and keep in touch over the years but it is an end of an era for sure. I have really come to love baseball and appreciate it. I love a quite baseball field in the morning with the sound of the team warming up and the sun shining on the grass.
Here are some pictures from the season.
Coach Jimmy and the original kids he started with. Matt, Aiden, Jake, and CamWe had lots of meals together between games.Lots of gorgeous sunrises and sunsets.Campbell had a tournament at the same place we were and came over when she was done.This is the day Matthew wore the wrong uniform. He called and told me he didn’t look like the other kids.This is the core group that we spent our weekends with.
Here are some cool action shots, thanks to our photography parents.
Turning a double play.
Running the bases, trying to catch Ramey.
Catching the pop fly.
Getting the out.
Making it look good.
This is getting on the field in position first.
Getting runs in. His speed was top notch this season too.
Beating the runner.
Crushing it.
And…stealing bases.
For one of the games we were so far ahead of the other team, the coach let everyone pick the position they wanted to try for a few innings. Matt went with pitching.
If it doesn’t feel like time is flying by in September, by the time October gets here is really picks up the pace. School, activities, holidays, more birthdays, and all the things that go with those make it hard to stop and enjoy everything that is going on.
Matthew’s last baseball season with his FBC competitive team was in full swing for September and October. They played pretty much every weekend. There was a weekend in October that off and that was it. I have a lot of good pictures from this season. I will share them in another post.
The biggest event for October was our family trip we have been planning for a while. Unless something changes it is our last big family vacation together before Matt graduates and goes on his mission and the family dynamic shifts into a new era. We talked about what we should do and asked Matt for his input a lot because it was also over his 18th birthday so we wanted to celebrate that too. Matt loves beaches, sunshine, warm places, fishing and food. After tossing a few ideas around like Hawaii, Alaska, cruise, and all inclusive beach resorts, we decided that a cruise would check the most boxes on the wish list. When we went on a cruise in 2019 for Christmas with the kids we had a great time but we thought it would be fun if they each had a buddy. Since then we have tossed the idea around with Ross and Lauren to come on a cruise with us. Matt asked if that could happen with this trip so we invited them too. Each pair of people ended up with their own room.
We settled on a cruise in October that was the week of Matthew’s actual birthday. A few weeks before the cruise there was some issues with Ross and Lauren not realizing they had other priorities the same week. I don’t really want to get into all the details but I was pretty upset about it. They were going to send Ethan and Leah home alone half way through the cruise, but luckily the cruise required them to have an adult accompany them. So Ethan, Leah and Lauren left half way through the cruise which was dumb. Allison and Matthew were on their own the last two days but we had a great time still.
A few days before we left all the girls went to the nails salon together and got a manicure for the cruise.
Matthew felt left out so he showed us his nails to take a picture.
To include Matthew’s love of fishing and for part of his birthday present, our family drove down to Galveston Texas a few days before the cruise left. We drove to Dallas and stayed night with Kenny and Sherri. Then next day we drove the rest of the way to Galveston and that afternoon we Ryan booked us a deep sea fishing boat.
Our traditional family picture to start a trip off.
Matthew and Ryan went ocean fishing a few years ago in Florida for Matt’s birthday. They caught probably 40 fish in a few hours. This time…we caught one fish…in five hours. It was a good one though. Matt caught a 4 1/2 foot long black tip shark. Once we got it on the hook Matthew wrestled it until we got it up to our boat. He did a good job, he said it was a little awkward because the pole the shark bit was right handed and he usually fishes left handed. I was the video/picture person. I tried to get fancy and take photos while I was videoing and at the point when he pulled it out of the water the most instead of taking a picture I stopped and started the video. Total mom fail. I still got some video and pictures though. The captain asked us if we wanted to keep it but we had no where to store it because we were getting on the boat the next day. So we let it go. It was a fun experience to watch him real in the shark. Pretty exciting. The other 4 hours and 50 minutes was a little slow, that is the lot of a fisher. I thought just relaxing and floating on the waves was great. The others had occasional waves of sea sickness but everyone kept everything in their stomachs.
After a day of fishing we went to dinner and checked into our hotel for the night. The next morning we headed to the boat! We didn’t realize it at the time we booked the cruise but the ship we were on was the same one we went on with the kids in 2019. Mariner of The Seas. The kids were all paired up and had their own rooms. Allison and Leah’s room ended up being the hangout spot for cousins when they weren’t doing other things. They mentioned a few times the room was pretty hot. A few days into the cruise we realized their AC wasn’t working. We called maintenance and 30 minutes later it was much cooler in their room. The first day we explored the ship and got settled in our rooms. We discovered the ice cream cone dispensary and snack areas, soda refills, all the important things. For dinner we ate at the Hibachi grill. It was a fun kick off to the cruise.
It seemed like the kids really enjoyed having a buddy and doing whatever they wanted together. We all got a lot of activities in on the ship. We had two days at sea, plus the embarking day. Some of the favorite things we did were shows, trivia games, dance parties, swimming, the flow rider, water aerobics, mini golf, rock climbing, napkin folding, working out, finding and hiding ducks, napping on the deck, watching movies at the pool, ice skating, board games, a sushi making class and eating lots of yummy food. Our waiters names each night were April and Jozie. They were really nice and took great care of us. They had been on the boat for 7 months and were getting off to go home for the holidays the same day we did. The only picture Matthew asked for the whole time was with them. They always brought him extra food. I have never seen someone eat so much, he was like a food vacuum. He started keeping track of how many ice cream cones he ate but lost track after 34. The girls decorated their doors and I decorated Matthew’s room for his birthday.
We had two days at Ports. The first was Costa Maya. We all went to a beach and the kids played keep away and we did some souvenir shopping. The second was Cozumel. It was raining pretty good in the morning. Our family had an excursion booked. Jovee came with us and everyone else went to the airport to fly most of their family home. We were debating on canceling the excursion due to rain. When we were checking in they told us we needed two drivers with a drivers license. Ryan didn’t have his so Matthew and I were the drivers for our group. They asked us a bunch of health questions and when they asked about asthma I said yes but not who had it. They said Matthew couldn’t drive if he had asthma (how dumb is that btw) so Allison immediately said it was her. We went along with it (not the best example, I know) and I told them it wasn’t bad at all and we weren’t concerned about it. Then they said that Allison could not only not snorkel but she couldn’t go on the boat to snorkel because if she needed medicine they couldn’t help her. I told them it was fine and I had her medicine if she needed it, which she wouldn’t. Then they were really freaking out because I had medicine. It was a disaster. We decided to just cancel the excursion and rented our own car. We drove ourselves to the cenote that was on our excursion and it was closed anyway because of the rain. We drove for a bit until we found a nice beach that it wasn’t raining at. We had an almost empty beach with chairs and a restaurant. We rented some boogie boards for the kids and they enjoyed the pretty big waves for several hours. It was a great afternoon and I was happy that it wasn’t ruined by rain or asthma. It is so fun to see new places and make new memories.
Playing keep away at Costa MayaCozumelI made a sand castle that looked like a Mayan temple.Costa Maya
We got off the boat early in the morning on a Saturday and drove the whole way home. Matthew had a baseball tournament that weekend and we were able to get back so he could play on Sunday and help them win. It is going to be very different and feel weird when Matthew and then the girls start leaving the house. I have enjoyed this phase of our lives. I still am but it is getting alarmingly close to it coming to an end.
Since we were doing Matthew’s senior pictures it was a good time to update our family pictures too. The ones I had hanging on my wall were a few years old. Kids getting older and going through puberty make it looks like even longer. So we got everyone’s pictures taken. I think they turned out pretty wonderfully. I love my sweet family.
It was time to get Matthew’s Senior Pictures taken shortly after school started. He has to have his picture turned in by December 1st for the yearbook. I wanted to make sure we had plenty of time to get them scheduled and edited before the deadline. I wanted Summer/Fall pictures too. Matt doesn’t love taking pictures but he was a good sport about it for the most part. He tolerated three outfit changes and two separate sessions taking about two hours total. He doesn’t think they are that big of a deal and would have not done them at all but his mother is a picture taker and documenter so I wanted them and wouldn’t take no for an answer. They turned out great. I was very happy with them. I have such a handsome son. Matthew’s reaction didn’t include many words but I think he was happy with how they turned out too. Here they are!
September is one of my favorite months, and not just because it is my birthday. Its a little bit of a chill month. And usually the weather is beautiful, cooler and still pretty. Sometimes the leaves start changing at the end but this year was pretty warm so it was almost end of October before they started. Fall is just my favorite. I really like all the seasons and maybe they are all my favorite when they start, but I think Fall is my favorite right now…since it is Fall.
Per my request, Ryan took me to a Royals game with our friends the Gudjenov’s for my birthday. It was a great game, great company, fun environment and good food. Turning 43 wasn’t bad at all. I highly recommend it.
Emilee opted to not do softball for the Fall. She stuck with horse lessons and piano. She still loves horse riding and looks forward to her lesson every week. She is pushing to quit piano right now. I am letting her take a little break and then hoping she gets back into it.
Allison took a break from extra curricular activities for the first time…ever. She wants to start doing a weight training program but we are still discussing which one to do. She is going to help with wrestling at the middle school which starts mid October and is followed immediately by HS wrestling so she will be busy again before to long.
Of course football started. Matthew and Ryan both are in a few different fantasy football leagues. They love it and look forward to it all year. This picture is his school buddies that he does a league with each year. They get together and draft their teams and eat way to many donuts and junk food.
Homecoming was in September this year, I think it is a little early but nobody asked me. Matthew went to his last Homecoming with Campbell. Ramey and Ellie doubled with them. They took pictures while the sun was still up, then they changed into casual clothes and went to dinner at Taco Bell. Then it was off to the football game. Shortly before the game ended they went to change into their dance outfits again and then went back to the school for the dance. After the dance they hung out at Ellie’s house and played games. Matthew is still growing pretty fast and starting to put on weight too. The pants he is wearing he at the end of July for senior pics with Campbell. Just two months later he barely fit into them!
While Matthew was at his last Homecoming, Allison was at her first!! She went with a couple friends and had a fun time. We had pizza at out house for dinner and pre-game hanging out. She went to the football game with her friend Olivia and met other friends at the game. They came over to our house and got ready at half time and then I took them back to the dance. After the dance she spent the night at Olivia’s. Allison looked beautiful and so did her friends. I think they had a fun time at their first official high school dance.
Left to right-Olivia, Addie, Kylie and Allison
Each year at the high school they have FCA (Fellowship of Christian Athletes). It is several school districts in the area that get together and do it and Spring Hill hosted this year. One of Matthew’s best friends, Ramey, spoke at it and several other people he knew participated in it. Matthew and Allison both went but this is the only picture I got from it. I am really glad Matthew has always picked good friends that have good morals and values. He has a great group of friends- boys and girls- that really support each other and are good kids.
It was a big year for the kids in school this year!
Emilee is officially a middle schooler now. She started at Forest Spring Middle School. Because of our move she is attending a new middle school that Matt or Allison didn’t attend so she gets to blaze her own path. She was a little nervous to start without really knowing people. It was hard to not be going to the middle school most of her friends were at. She was a good sport about it and crushed her first day. She even made a few friends right away because she was pretty good at opening lockers so she helped some girls around her a few times. She was most excited about her FACS class and engineering class. She catches a bus each morning which I think she likes because she is on her own schedule and doesn’t have to wait for anyone.
Allison left middle school behind and became a Freshman this year. She is planning on doing wrestling in the winter. She decided to give Spanish one more try because last year was a disaster with a new teacher that has now been fired and not a lot of Spanish was learned. She rides with Matthew and is pretty gracious with accepting that she is the Freshman and he is the Senior so she doesn’t get to pick the music or where they park. She started seminary this year and has done great at getting up and getting there on time. She likes to be in the know so she is quickly learning every person in the schools name. She has a good group of friends that seem to get along pretty good for the most part. She would love to get a job and is keeping her ears open but opportunities are a little scarce for 14 year olds.
I remember when Matthew was in kindergarten they called them the class of 2025 and I thought I had forever until then. Now it is here and it doesn’t seem like it took forever at all. He has the confidence of a senior that has high school figured out…but is in no hurry to graduate yet. He should have 9-12 college credits when he graduates and could take a few less classes his last semester but he loves weights and lifetime fitness so much he is going to take them. He has Campbell and a solid group of friends that keep him busy along with his part time job at Costa Vida. Seniors had a first day of school sunrise event that he went to the first day. We are all going to try and make the most out of his last year in HS and enjoy all the things. Starting with senior pictures which he is not as excited about but his mother has told him are very required. I know his eyes are closed in most of these pictures. These were the best our of the 20 options I took. He said, “Its ok mom, it will remind me I was to tired to even open my eyes on the first day of school.”
Matthew and Campbell and a few other friends started the first week of school off by going to a Zach Bryan concert. He is one of both of their favorites. Matthew says one of his top three favorites. They had a great time and stayed up really late on a school night, just like seniors should.
After the float trip it was pretty much time to get ready for back to school. Since we weren’t doing our own family vacation anywhere this Summer I was a little worried it would be a boring, slow Summer. It really wasn’t though. We had lots of family come visit and between camps, sports and the kids going to visit grandparents we were pretty busy.
Sherrie and Dave (Ryan’s birth mom) came up for a visit at the beginning of Summer to watch Matthew play baseball. We had some extra time between games and were right by Liberty so we went and saw the Liberty jail visitor center with them. His half brother Dave and his family came up to visit for a weekend too. They took Allison to the zoo with them on the day Emilee had a softball tournament. Emilee went home with them for a week and spent time with her cousin Lizzy and then they stayed at our house for a week too.
We squeezed Matthew getting his wisdom teeth out between baseball seasons. He recovered pretty quickly. We were very grateful for that because a week after he had them out Campbell wanted him to take pictures with her for part of her senior pictures and we were worried he would have bruising or maybe still be swollen. He was fine, still a little hard to smile a full smile but the pictures turned out great. Campbell is a sweetheart. She is outgoing and responsible and beautiful. Her and Matthew are pretty cute together.
Allison was not in a hurry to get her learners permit once she turned 14 but I was. Kansas makes them have it a full year from when they get it before it can become a limited license and they can drive themselves to school and work. Allison is young for her grade so I need her to have that before the start of next school year so she can drive herself to school. Matthew and her go together this year- which I love- it is great sibling time for them. So…we braved the stupid DMV to get her learners permit. They tried their best to be difficult. My deep breathing exercises before and during all interactions helped me remain calm. Even though we had an appointment to get a learners permit scheduled through their system they tried to tell me they wouldn’t have time to do it before they closed. Even though their computer stopped working so they thought we wouldn’t be able to finish. Even though my valid drivers license with my current address wasn’t proof enough and I had to find an electric bill that anyone could forge to prove my legal, valid, #1 source of identification drivers license did in fact have my real address on it. Even though the employee had to work until 4:32 instead of 4:30. Even through all that made up stupid drama, we all persevered, Allison passed the test, took a beautiful picture and got her learners permit! When I took these pictures in the car she told me she had used up her one good picture for the permit so this is the best I was going to get.
Ryan had a work trip to upstate New York right as school was starting. I had never been there so I decided to tag along. It is a lot different than New York City. It is a lot like Kansas. We stayed in a VRBO with his boss and a few of the other VP’s of the company. There were some other spouses that came too. There were several nice dinners, and the main work event was a day at the Saratoga Race Track watching horse races. Neither of us had ever been to a horse race so it was a cool experience. We also wrote our names on a table at one of the places we went to mark our spot in history that we were there. We had a great long weekend. We did a ferry boat tour of one of Lake George. I am glad Ryan has found a place that he loves to work at and feels pride and happiness from it. He works hard and works with good people. I am proud of him and appreciate all he does to provide for his family.
A few years back when Ryan found is biological mom and met her and more of her side of the family, he also looked into his biological dads side. His dad passed away back in the late 90’s and the only family he really has left was a sister and a cousin. Ryan didn’t reach out to either of them because he was a little overwhelmed at the time and was working through the emotions of meeting Sherrie. His information was public on the 23 and Me website so his dads cousin saw the connection and put it together and he and his aunt-Rae-Ann reached out to Ryan to see if he would be interested in meeting them. He talked with them on the phone and a few times after that as well every few months but it never worked out to meet them in person. In August he was traveling pretty close to where Rae Ann lives and he felt ok about meeting her so he reached out and they set a meeting up for an afternoon while he was in the area. He said said it was a nice afternoon and he appreciated meeting her and getting to know her and more about that part of his history from her. He plans on keeping in touch with her and his cousin going forward. Here is a picture of there first meeting. I can see a family resemblance in them.
We didn’t do a big vacation this Summer because we are going on vacation in October together-more about that later- but we wanted to have a mini-cation together at some point this Summer. We have been wanting to do a float trip with the kids for a while so we decided it was time to do it. Ryan had a friend from work that lives by the Current river in Missouri. They have people come stay with them a lot and they have all the stuff you need to float the river. They have invited us several times and it hasn’t worked out so we decided it was a good time to do it.
The week of our trip Allison went to girls came Monday through Thursday. She was actually pretty close to were we were going to be so instead of having her drive home and then all the way back to the same place, we left on Thursday and picked her up at the camp she was at before they left to come home. She was actually at camp for her birthday. We had lots of little celebrations to celebrate her this year. Becky made her a cake and we celebrated with the rest of the KC Terry’s on Sunday before she left for camp. I sent a surprise gift bag for her to open on her actual birthday at camp. Her main gift this year was a new bed and mattress for her room. She wanted a queen bed instead of a twin. She also wanted to but some board and baton on one wall in her room and make an accent wall. We got that put up for her and painted it the blue color she wanted. Then we let her pick a place to eat out for her birthday dinner when we were on our float trip and Matthew and Emilee were back.
Matthew and Emilee came home from their Florida trip late Wednesday night and we left to get Allison Thursday morning and then go straight to the river. On Tuesday Ryan’s work buddy that was going to take us to the river and let us stay with him called and said that his wife was pretty sick with COVID and he would still let us use stuff and take us to the river but it might be best if we don’t stay at their house so we didn’t get sick. I would always rather stay at our own place than with someone so I thought it worked out great. Ryan decided to see if he could find a VRBO even though it was last minute. There were literally two options available. One was a definite no and the second was pretty new but had a handful of decent reviews. Once we gathered our kids from Florida and girls camp we headed to the Current river. We had some time to pass before we could check into our place so we stopped and watched the new movie Twisters on the way. It was pretty good. It still makes me feel old to watch ‘new movies’ that are remakes of movies that came out when I was young. After the movie stop we finished making our way to our little VRBO that the kids quickly nick named the “Crack Shack”. We were a little concerned when we pulled up. It looked a little rough from the outside. Luckily it was clean and not as bad on the inside, and had good door locks. It was literally 30 feet from a Dollar General store which is a little ghetto but very convenient. We settled in and went to dinner at an outdoor burger and ice cream stand. We watched the Olympics and played games the rest of the evening.
The next day we met Ryan’s friend and he hooked us up with all kinds of floating options. Ryan decided to get a kayak and the rest of us went with a tube. He drove us to a spot on the river to get in at and planned to meet us about 4-5 hours later at the pick up spot. Allison was a little tired from her week at girls camp and was a little less than excited about the whole trip. It took some convincing to get her to come out of her room and do anything with us the first night. With a little bit of help from us, mostly her brother Matthew, we loaded up and headed to the water. Once we got on the river it was much better. All of us loved it. The weather was great, the water was clean and a perfect temperature. It was so relaxing. We had the river to ourselves most of the time too because we went early instead of in the evening. We stopped to swim and play in the water a few times. We caught a baby turtle, saw some fun animals, got tan, and enjoyed each others company. I love float trips. It was the perfect length too. About the time we were getting tired and had run out of snacks we saw the pick up point.
After we dropped off the equipment we went home and showered and went to a pizza place that was recommended. It had potential…but they must have been short staffed and had a new cook, and something. It was comical how ridiculous it was. They only had half the items on the menu available…no pizza, which is what we went there for. Once we ordered the waitress (who had to go ask someone else about everything because she was brand new) said it would be about 45 minutes before the food was ready. We decided to try some of the games they had…the only one that worked was the dart board. That after asking almost everyone that worked there only had two working darts. They had axe throwing-another reason we went there… but it wasn’t available. When the food finally arrived it was ok. Nothing great. We decided to see if we could save the meal with shakes for dessert. After what seemed like forever waiting for the shakes we asked if they were coming and our waitress said they were almost ready. Then we watched her walk over to check on them and they must have told her to do it herself because she then went over and made them by herself one at a time. It took a while and we think it was her first time handling ice cream ever. By the time we got the shakes, the first three were liquid, two were the wrong flavor, mine was only half full and tasted like thick milk. It was so ridiculous from start to finish we just all laughed about it. We left and went back to our crack shack. The Dollar Store was still open so we got some junk food and played games the rest of the night. The next day we headed home.
It was a short but sweet vacation. Lots of little hiccups but I will still probably remember it as one of my favorite vacations with the kids. Our season of life is getting ready to change after this year. I have loved this season. I love the kids being older and a little more independent and watching their personalities develop. It is a time they are developing themselves and trying things but it is still a little bubble that their lives don’t have to much craziness or stress. They are all awesome people and I love spending 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.