Scenes From Our Weeks

I haven't posted any photos of our life in awhile...putting them mainly on Facebook or Instagram (which you can see my feed below on the right).  So, here are some snippets from our life over the last couple months.

Bennett had one of the lead roles in their annual musical at school, playing Mr. Crabby. He nailed it! Who knew he could be so crabby when he has a permanent smile on his face!

Bennett played some basketball - seen here taking a shot!

Reagan played some basketball and will again in the next couple months.

We decorated our annual gingerbread house.

We celebrated Christmas!

Then the new year arrived with Patrick playing basketball, 

and Reagan's 8th birthday.  

The rest of the winter looks to keep us running with honor bands, more basketball, show choir competitions, and anything else we can throw in there.  But, I love it all and can't wait to share all of it with Pat and the kids.  

On a side note, we have shared some "classic" movies with the kids over the last few months....WAYNE'S WORLD, WAYNE'S WORLD 2, and THE PRINCESS BRIDE.  Pat hadn't even seen THE PRINCESS BRIDE.  It was fun sharing those movies with them and even better when they loved them all.  I need to find more of those "classics" that we can watch as a family!  What are some of your family's favorite classics?

Scenes From Our Week

Since October started, it has been quite hectic around here.  I turned 40, left for a trip to California, subbed at school, went on a field trip with Reagan, attended a wonderful Surprise party hosted by my husband, cheered on our son, Patrick at the Middle School State Cross Country meet in Des Moines, attended a 60th birthday party, and watched our other son Bennett play football.  Needless to say, I have spent this week trying to catch up with emails, chores, regular mail, and here on my blog.  Please enjoy some of the photos from our last 2 weeks and stay tuned for a more specific post on my trip to California!

Patrick warming up at the state Cross Country Meet.

The 3A 7th Grade Boys ready to start the race.

The finish!  He got 39th place out of 65 boys and earned a medal on this tough course!

A fire in our small town on October 3rd destroyed a bar/restaurant.  

Our girl weekend begins! 

Grapes in El Dorado County Wine Country in California

Just one of the amazing views we saw in California.

In front of one of the many vineyards we saw in California.

Me overlooking Emerald Bay at Lake Tahoe

Reagan at Bloomsbury Farms

Jumping on the bouncy pillow.  I think every yard needs one of these!

At my Surprise 40th Birthday Party!

My life is blessed because of these friends!

The guy who made it all happen....my husband!

Scenes From Our Week - Week 52

Well, it has been one year since I started my goal of posting Scenes From Our Week....snippets from our little corner in Iowa.  I've been sharing photos of our family, friends, and scenery throughout the last year.  I hope you have enjoyed seeing them as much as I have had taking them.  This project forced me to be more deliberate in my photography, being sure the camera was always close by.  Now we have the photos to help us remember those moments.  Stayed tuned for many more Scenes From Our Week.

Every 6th grader needs to construct a boat for science class.  The boat must be able to float and be creative.   This year, Bennett came up with a canoe made out of Rice Krispies.  So, I mixed up a batch of Rice Krispie treats for him and he formed it into the shape of a canoe, adding popsicle sticks for the seats.  After letting it sit for a couple days, we covered it in Shellac and we wait to see if it floats.  Tomorrow is the big test.

Bennett, #77 has been getting some action on the football field.  He's been going after tackles and having fun with it.  It has sure been fun to cheer the team on and celebrate their winning season so far.

Every week, Patrick improves his time during his Cross Country runs.  This week he ran a mile in 6:47.  Way to go Patrick!  Grandpa, Grandma and Aunt Elaine came out to cheer him on.

Finally, Patrick reminded us we are never to old to be a kid.  

Have a wonderful week and be sure that you are taking in all the beauty of fall that surrounds us.

Scenes From Our Week - Week 51

Last week I forgot to post a special photo. 

 We had a double date night with Pat's sister, Julie and her husband, Bill.  

We had such a fun time visiting and enjoying wine at our local winery, John Ernest Vineyard 

and then a delicious Chinese meal in a neighboring town.

Last week was busy with Bennett's two football games, a cross-country meet and it was Homecoming! Thank goodness we still had excellent weather!

  Bennett is right in the middle in blue, 

but I love how the kid in black seems to be giving me the thumbs up for this shot!

It was an exciting first game and the boys won 24-16!

Tuesday night, Bennett's team played a game in the UNI Panthers Dome.  This is such a thrill for these boys and was a great game.  They scored. We scored. Back and forth the whole game.

Bennett #77

Bennett's #1 Cheerleader - Reagan

Time Out

Pat and Patrick helped with the chain gang.

It was an exciting game, but sadly we lost 40-38. 

I made Bobcat cupcakes for the kids and their friends to enjoy after the pep rally.

Patrick was super excited to perform with the marching band in his first parade.  

He played the Tri-Toms and had a lot of fun marching through town playing the Benton Fight Song!  

So much school spirit!  What a fun pep rally!  As a former cheerleader, I love Homecoming week!

There was even a teacher flash mob! So fun!

The FFA sponsors a Kiss the Pig contest each year.  Teachers are nominated and students donate money towards a certain teacher.  The teacher with the most money has to kiss the pig.  All the money is donated to the University of Iowa Children's Hospital.

Mrs. Noettger was such a good sport!

We closed out our week with a lazy Saturday morning.  

We spent some of our Summer Fun money and went bowling 

and then out to dinner at one of our favorite spots, Fazoli's. 

Fall is here and the kids are anxiously waiting for the field behind our house to be harvested.  Our days and nights on the porch are limited and the fireplace will soon be lit.  But, it truly is my favorite season of the year! 

Scenes From Our Week - Week 50

Like I mentioned last week, Bennett won the election for Student Body President.  

Here he is with his campaign poster.

We had our first week of After School JAMS.  JAMS is a program that we started at our church on Wednesdays after school.  Our goal was to reach out to kids in our community and share the love of Jesus with them hoping they will in turn share that love with others.  

JAMS stands for Jesus And Music Service. This week we had 30 kids which is more than ever and there were some kids who couldn't come.  

We are so thrilled that each year our program is growing and we are reaching out to kids that have never known the love of Jesus.

 Since it was so nice on Wednesday, we took the kids outside for some relay races.  

We had the favorite Egg On Spoon race 

and then the Balloon Between the Legs While Blowing Bubbles race.  The kids had a blast!  

On Thursday night, while doing dishes, I was in awe of the amazing colors in the sky.  It seemed every time I grabbed a new dish, the sky was different.  I had to run out and snap a couple photos. 

 I wasn't the only one to be amazed with the sunset that night as many friends posted photos as well.  

We truly are blessed with the amazing sunsets we get to see outside our windows.

We have a busy week ahead with 2 football games, a cross-country meet, a no-school day, and it is homecoming week.  There will definitely be lots of pictures to post next week!

Scenes From Our Week - Week 49

We had a fun Sheltered Reality performance last Sunday night.  We were able to perform with some of our friends and get them up on stage.  Everyone had a great time!

Patrick had his first Cross Country meet on Tuesday.  Yes, Tuesday, if you remember was HOT.  It was still 95 degrees with high humidity at 4:30 when the race started.  It was hot for the fans watching let alone the kids that had to run in it.  We were really proud of Patrick for finishing his 1.25 miles in 9 1/2 minutes.  

And...they are off.....

Sticking with the pack.....

Coming in for the finish.

Both boys came home with exciting news this week.  Patrick was selected to play the Tri-Toms for the Middle School Marching Band, which apparently is a big deal.  He is certainly looking forward to Homecoming now!  Bennett decided to run for Student Body President since he is a 6th grader this year and he won the election.  He is thrilled and is looking forward to leading his school and classmates to a fun and exciting year.  Hopefully, I don't have to start calling him President Bennett!

Patrick had a second Cross Country meet on Saturday morning and it was our home meet.  The weather was perfect and he had a much better time.  I don't have the official time but it was just over 8 minutes.

There were a lot of Middle School Boys to race against.....

He placed 23rd and received a ribbon.  We are sure proud of his accomplishments so far.  

Cross Country is not easy!

After our meet on Saturday, we headed over to Pat's sister's home to pick up our nephew for the night.  

We just had to get some kitty lovin in.  This kitty liked licking and then biting Reagan's fingers.