Christmas Eve

Waiting for Santa!!!

For the fourth Christmas in a row, we went to Powell Gardens for "Breakfast with Santa." We can not say how enjoyable this annual outing is for us. We again were able to go on a weekday and were the only family there! Santa rode with the boys on the train, took them around the solarium showing them all the 12 days of Christmas motif. Mrs. Claus read to the boys, and the wonderful volunteer was enourmously patient with the boys, showing them how to make reindeer out of their hand prints.

As always, the water in the solarium was a huge draw!!! They had "seven swans a swimming" this year.

Kye made sure Santa saw all the hidden drummers.

We highly recommend the short drive to Powell Gardens if you live in the KC area. It is a wonderful time for our family!

SNOW DAY!!!

We had a snow day in December, by late afternoon the snow had stopped and we were able to go a couple of blocks to the elementary school down the street and do some sledding.

Kye and Mommy made snow angels

Kris had more fun eating snow and playing on the playground equipment

Kye got really good at speeding down hill!

My three boys

Basketball is upon us again and Dave took extra time to spend with the boys this weekend. They put up the Christmas trees together, cut down the cannas together, they even did bedtime reading all together. You can almost see Kye's missing tooth and the other about to fall out in this picture. More on that later.

Paghetti!!!!

Our sweet little Kristopher has entered that phase of eating tons one day and nothing the next. One meal we are assured that he will eat however is "PAGHETTI!!!!" He LOVES it. He can't get it into his mouth fast enough as you can see by the abandonment of the fork for both of his hands.

Halloween

We had lots of Halloween activities leading up to the big day. We had the 1st grade pumpkin carving night at school that Mommy got to go to, yes she worked with knives and didn't attempt to cut of any fingers this time! The kids had some Halloween carols to sing to us and let me tell you how cute they were!

Kye opted to be an "ARMY Guy, like BaBa" so Mommy opted for Kris to be a Navy guy. We went to the zoo and gots loads of candy, then Daddy escorted the boys for the big night. They got more "special" treats from our wonderful neighbors than they could have imagined.

Brothers

Last weekend, Kye was practicing baseball with his metal bat. Kris got really excited and wanted a turn too and just as Kye was swinging, Kris ran up to him. He caught Kris in the cheek, not the eye fortunately, but he looks like he won the prize fight!
Kye is also loosing his front tooth, it's wiggling all over the place!

Moon Marble Company

Kye's Tiger Cub group went to the Moon Marble Factory in Bonner Springs this month. They showed them how to make marbles and taught them some fun games. I highly recommend this trip! There are some really cool marbles there!

Pumpkin Picking

We made our annual trip to Johnson Farms this month. They have a wonderful selection of pumpkins and gourds. The boys like the pumpkins, I LOVE the gourds! All those fun shapes and colors. For me, the bumpier and lumpier they are, the better!
They added a pig race this year and Kye's pig won! The farmers are very friendly, willing to answer the 150 questions the boys had about EVERYTHING!! They also had a pumpkin "Muncher" and a pumpkin launcher this year. We could have stayed all day watching that!

Bye Bye Royals......

Yesterday was the Royals last game of the season. Although we are not die hard fans, an occasional game or two is fun. We managed to make it to two games this season and also went to the T-Bones twice. It was the last game for Buddy Bell, the manager, and for Mike Sweeney, the first baseman. Dave and the boys were down front during the National Anthem and got some good pics of Mike up close. Dave said Mike had a hard time during the National Anthem. Can't imagine how hard it must be for him to walk away after all these years.
During the whole game, Kris kept saying "GO TBONES!!" I'd say, "No Kris, Go Royals," and he would respond with "GO TBONES!!" He was so enthusiastic about it, I just gave up after awhile. The game ended with two injuries though, a fan a couple of sections away got hit with a fly ball, and moments later, Alex Gordon, the third baseman, got it right above the eyes. It was a beautiful day and we had a great time even though the Royals lost, AGAIN!!

University of Nebraska

One of the perks of being a counselor is that colleges and universities regularly invite me to lunches. Some places even invite me to campus for a visit, this time I even got to bring a guest. Last weekend David and I went to University of Nebraska at Lincoln, home of the Cornhuskers. We enjoyed a wonderful weekend away, just the two of us! We toured the campus extensively, had lovely meals in the Haymarket district, and best of all, attended the Nebraska vs. Ball State game. Have to say, Ball State has a wonderful quarterback and an even better running back. Fortunately for the 84,000 plus fans who were in attendance, Ball State missed a field goal with less than 20 seconds left!!! The people of Nebraska are very friendly and we are very impressed with their programs. A former student, Ashley, is there playing softball now and she showed us around to all the athletic facilities. Nebraska is only one of four self sustaining athletic programs, no money comes from the student body at large. Dave was not happy about cheering for the Huskers, his K State blood ran cold, but they were such good hosts, we found ourselves clapping and yelling with the best of them. Being in the stadium was an amazing feeling, it literally pulsated with pride and enthusiasm.
Thanks for a wonderful weekend Huskers!

Airplane Ride!

The other first of the summer for Kris and I was the airplane ride Uncle Roger took us on. Kye and Daddy weren't interested but Kris and I had a wonderful time seeing the Branson area from the sky. Kris was so not bothered by being in the air, he fell asleep! Thanks Uncle Rog for the fun morning!

At the lake!!!




My BIG BOY!! Dad and Kye the first day of 1st GRADE Daddy and the boys at Powell Gardens
Kye and Kris at the ball fields


Kye and Uncle Al











Kristopher

The Family

We've created this blog to keep friends and family in the "loop" so to speak. We hope to add comments and photos frequently as the boys are growing so fast.
Last weekend, Whitney's childhood friend, Andie and her husband, Mike were in town from FL. They are too far away but we were able to enjoy some shopping, eating, and of course 3 bottles of wine around the fire pit. We hit Zona Rosa art fair Sunday after lunch for as long as Kris could stand it(15-20 minutes!).
This summer was full of firsts-
Kye-first summer to really swim!!! By the end of the summer, he was jumping off of BaBa's boat without hesitation.
First base for Kye was his favorite position during his first season of Machine Pitch baseball. The team is finally showing signs of the basic concepts of baseball. They have come a long way in three years
First shower-in July, Kye informed us he no longer wanted to take a bath "those are for babies Mom", so we are now a full time shower taker. I think Kris secretly loves the one on one time in the tub with Mom or Dad.
Kris-Pseudo-big boy bed-the side of the crib is gone and he can come and go from his bed as he pleases. Sometimes it's more than Mom and Dad please but....
Swimming-with a life jacket in the lake all by himself, wanted no part of help from Mom and Dad
Talking-we were a little concerned that we weren't hearing a lot of language last spring. No need for concern, we're wondering now when we'll hear a little quiet!!! He says Thank You more than any other 2 year old I know and it's adorable!! Tancue is how it comes out.
Also a first for both boys is an aunt!!! Uncle Al got married this summer and now Aunt "Header" Heather is their favorite(and only!) aunt!
They looked awfully cute in their tuxes!
The weather is starting to turn colder it appears, except for today's 92 degree forecast. Soon it will be time to pick pumpkins and rake leaves!
Whitney, David, Kye, and Kris