A Couple Things To Be Proud Of!!!

Lots of fun things going on in our house, and I just wanted to document them :)

We didn't quite finish our bucket list over the summer break, but we got pretty close! Haden wants to slowly work on it to finish it, so we may just do that! We had so much fun and tried lots of new things and enjoyed spending lots of time as a family!

Jeff started school!!!!

He has 1 class at the college and the rest are online. We (the kids and I) are SO proud of him and are excited and looking forward to our future! I know there are great and exciting things in store for us, and this is just a stepping stone.

I am going to miss having my best friend around all the time. It's been nice to have someone to depend on and be right there. But at the same time I am ready for this change, and this new adventure. And we are prepared to let him study, read and do what he needs to for his classes!

I totally staged these pictures after he came home. I meant to take pictures but spaced it until he had already left. But this is something definitely needing to be documented, the first day of our new life as a family on a new journey :)

Tonight was Pack Meeting....

And Haden earned his Wolf Badge, FIVE Arrowheads and a Belt Loop! He has worked so hard, and is constantly asking us what he can pass off next. So we have pushed through and continue to work on it. He was so proud of himself, and we are SO proud of him!!!

Getting his awards!

Notice my Wolf Pin on the bottom of my shirt?! I am a proud Mama!

Papa Dan made the drive out to be there for Haden, which meant a LOT to him! Thanks Daddy!!!

Lots of fun and exciting things happening! We are getting more into a routine, and getting used to what this school year is going to be like :)

1st Day of School....1st Day of School!!!!

3 of the 5 started school today! Such Handsome boys, ready to go!

Haden

Age: 8

Grade: 3rd

Teacher: Mrs. Young

Haden loves school and is already looking forward to tomorrow! He says Mrs. Young is really fun and knows so many kids in his class. It really is an Amazing Class!!!!!

When asking him his favorite thing, he responded with 'mostly everything'! Which tells me he had a really good day!

Grant

Age: 7

Grade: 2nd

Teacher: Mrs. Hudleson

Grant had a great day as well! He also has quite a few kids in his class that he knows and is friends with! Another Fantastic class we lucked out with!!!

Grant's favorite thing was spending time with his class. I couldn't be more happy to know that my boys are already loving school and their teachers and classes!!!

Coleman

Age: 5

Grade: Kindergarten

Teacher: Mrs. Stemp

Cole did Awesome today! He came home having a bit of a sore throat, but he made it through the day and loved school! He is one that takes a little bit to remember all the fun he had :) But we patiently waited until he wanted to share! I totally love and adore his teacher, she is amazing! And he has 4 other kids from church in his class!

Cole's favorite thing he did was resting and listening to music from playing. And learning about the gingerbread man, who doesn't always follow the rules. He is excited to go back tomorrow!!

Can someone tell me where my babies went?!!! I love these kids so much!!!

Ready to go, in front of the school sign!!

We went in and first took Grant to his class....

He sits right across from his friend Sierra! This was the first year he didn't cry when leaving him! We were so proud!!!!!

These 3 were best friends in Kindergarten! It's fun to have them back in the same class!!! Grant has quite a few kids he knows in his class, and an amazing teacher, so I am sure that all made going that much easier :)

After we got Grant settled, we headed out to take Haden to his class.

Haden knows almost all the kids in his class, and they are really good kids! We are looking forward to this year :)

Mrs. Young, who is Absolutely Fantastic! Haden and Ryan....Haden was thrilled to be in the same class as Ryan this year!

After Haden got everything put away, we took Cole out to the Kindergarten playground to line up!

He didn't really look at Jeff or I, and was a bit hard to get a picture of. He was excited, but you could tell he was nervous as well!

Heading into his class.....yep I totally cried!

After dropping the boys off, we headed into the school for the Boo Hoo/Yahoo breakfast. They do this for all the Kindergarten parents :)

Here are the boys from Church, all lined up!

Picking Cole up was so fun! He came running out with a big smile on his face!

Mrs. Stemp is seriously the BEST Kindergarten teacher, we love her and can't wait to watch Cole grow and learn while in her class!

Delaney is already planning the shopping trips and things to do while the boys are in school. She isn't missing them, and loves the attention :) Kahle seemed to do well without them and enjoyed his time with his sister!

A big shout out to my parents for purchasing the boys' backpacks! They love them and we so appreciate you!!

I couldn't be more happy to have heard how much each of them loved school! It is the best feeling, knowing that they are so happy!

Day 1 down....A Fantastic Day at that :)

Back to School Party!

We had a family Back to School Party today!

Haden helped me with some of the decorating :) It was a last minute idea, so nothing too fancy. But it was a hit and something I plan to do every year from now on.

Balloons and Paper Airplanes to help set the mood :)

Thanks to Jeff for doing the Paper Airplanes!

And little drawings Haden did, hidden throughout the dining and kitchen area :)

I made place mats and we had an appetizer dinner (which was a hit)!

Appetizers and a Party go together, right?!

Each one had their name, and what grade they were going into. Delaney and Kahle's had their ages, and Jeff's said College Student! I can't believe he start College!

After dinner we played some Just Dance on wii, and then had ice cream sundaes! After that the boys played some Mario Cart, and we just relaxed and enjoyed the evening.

After Jeff gave the kids Father's Blessings (which all the kids look forward to) to get them started for the school year, I read them 'The Kissing Hand'. I wasn't sure I was going to make it through it, and had to get control of the tears. This is a Fantastic book and another tradition I plan to carry on throughout their school years (as long as they will let me, lol).

This summer has been a BLAST! There has been hardly any fighting, and we have had so much fun. I am going to miss these kids while they are in school, and can hardly believe that Coleman is starting Kindergarten! We have been truly blessed with some amazing Kids, and I feel so lucky to be their Mom!

Sidenote: Cole did MUCH better today! He has had a few rough patches, but today went well. Gives me hope for him starting school tomorrow! Praying he can make it the 2 1/2 hours without any problems!

Coleman is a Champ!

It all started with a trip to the Ped. to talk about some concerns with Coleman's focus. Knowing his tonsils were HUGE and what the Ped. referred to them as 'kissing tonsils' because they were touching. We landed ourselves in the ENT's office to talk about getting his tonsils removed. The ENT confirmed that his tonsils were touching, and his adenoids were enlarged as well. And discussing his lack of sleep because he stopped breathing and snored loudly, which made sleep something that he was not getting the most out of. We scheduled an appt. to have his tonsils and adenoids removed. They couldn't get him in until the middle of September, which made me sad because I was hoping to get it done before school started so he didn't have to miss any school, let alone a week to recover! Jeff called a couple days later and let the nurse know that we are willing to go to any location if they have any cancellations, to please keep us in mind. 2 weeks ago, I got a call letting me know they had a cancellation on the 24th if we wanted it. We were concerned with him recovering in time for school to start, but decided to take our chances!

Fast forward to Last night, where my Dad came over after work, and he helped Jeff give Cole a blessing! Thanks Daddy!!!

Trudy and Amanda so sweetly came to our house this morning and watched the kids, while Jeff and I took Coleman in for his surgery! Thank you both SO much!!! It's always a weight lifted knowing your kids are being taken care of by someone who loves them!

We got there and they got us back fairly quickly, the doctor was ahead of schedule (always a plus). We got him all changed and ready to go!

Cole was excited, but as the time went on you could see the concern settle in on his face.

Waiting and wondering what was going on. Makes your heart ache as a parent, to not be able to take those feelings of nervousness and being scared from your child!

I have to say the nurse and anesthesiologist were WAY cute! His nurse came in and talk directly to him and asked about his favorite movies and things he liked. The anesthesiologist got to know him a bit as well, let him pick a flavor of chapstick, and what story he would be told as he was going to sleep. He gave Cole choices, and Cole picked Grape chapstick, and a story about going to the beach. We asked him after he had woken up what the story was, and he couldn't remember :) Then the nurse pretended to be Bumblebee and Cole was Optimus Prime, and as she wheeled him down the hall they shot the decepticons. So sweet :) I was quite impressed with how great they were with him, and made him feel more comfortable!

Waiting for him to wake up!

His Doctor said that his tonsils were so big, they basically just slid them out. Which we are all hoping makes his recovery quicker! His adenoids were also large and definitely needed to come out as well.

He came out of it really well, and very thirsty! He drank 2 apple juices!

Hanging out with Dad!

We had to be there for 90 minutes after he was out of surgery. So we got to hang out :)

It took him a while to fully wake up. And the poor thing kept trying to clear his throat, which didn't feel very good.

They had Toy Story playing for him as he woke up. He liked watching that.

After a while, and the more he was awake, they took his IV out. Which he was not a fan of the splint, so he was happy to have it out.

After he was more awake they brought him a popsicle! Which he enjoyed! They told us once he was done eating the popsicle, we could get him dressed and ready to go.

The nurse came in, gave us the paperwork and prescription and got us ready to leave.

And then we were on our way! WOOHOO!!!!

On our way home we picked up his prescription and a slurpee for Cole! He was sound asleep on the way home! He came home and has enjoyed pudding, popsicles, slurpees, capri suns and water!

After getting home, and settled in, you would not have known that he had surgery today. He is feeling great and doing fantastic! He is keeping close to the couches, and rests when he needs to, but he is up and playing and being his crazy little self! I am just praying he keeps up this way and we can have an easy and quick recovery!

Thank you to all of the help we have gotten, the little gifts that have been brought, the visitors and the prayers and well wishes! Thanks to my awesome Visiting Teachers, who brought dinner and dessert tonight!

We are surrounded by so many amazing family and friends, that we feel truly blessed!