Honors Band!

Yesterday, Gabe was selected to be a part of the Southern Plains Honor Band! We are so proud of him! He was one of seven selected by Mr. Hollis from the St. James/Ewalt combined 5th grade band!! He will go to Andover Central High School on Saturday, February 11th and practice all day, and then put on a concert with other 5th grade musicians from all over Kansas at 3:00 that afternoon! The letter stated "he was recommended for this prestigious honor based upon his talent and diligence"!!! WAY TO GO GABE!!!

Well Hello Deer!

Well, after 12 years of doing the same drive...it finally happened....Shawn hit a deer on Monday morning! He is fine, but the car is a little crunched! It happened just over the hill from our house...not even a quarter of a mile from the driveway....isn't that what they always say though, the wreck always happens close to the house?! Anywho, we are still waiting to hear what the insurance company wants to do with the car....Shawn and I are keeping our fingers crossed the damage was not bad enough to total it...that little Mazda has been an awesome car and we are just not quite ready to part with it...plus, we really don't want a car payment...how nice is it without one?! The poor car is 11 years old...so it has done it's time....but, we really don't want to see it go out like this.....keep your fingers crossed we get to keep it a little longer...we just aren't ready for the final goodbye!

Grady's First Basketball Game!

On Saturday, Grady had his first basketball game! Final score 36-16! He did pretty well! He is on a team of 6 second graders and 3 first graders, so the 2nd graders sort of dominate the game, but the little guys do get a little time with the ball! He had a couple of pass ins, dribbled the ball a little, and ran up and down the court a lot! He did have a little issue with putting his hands in his pockets...he tends to do this when he is nervous, but we have alleviated this issue...he is now wearing shorts without pockets....pretty easy fix! Last night during practice, he was doing a much better job defending..amazing what happens when your hands don't have anywhere to go but up! He plays again this Saturday...same time, same place! WAY TO GO GRADY!! WE ARE SO PROUD OF YOUR HARD WORK!!! GO HOT RODS!

Happy New Year!

Keeping with tradition we headed to a Japanese steak house for New Year's Eve! We then headed home and snacked our way to midnight! Poor Grady didn't quite make it...he was trying so hard....he made it until 11:45...so close! The next day after church we headed down to the Fox Farm for a little get away! Shawn did some hunting while the boys and I "adventured" our way around the creeks and ground on the south side! We all met back up in the evening for burgers and movies and then spent the night! It was a wonderful way to finish up our Christmas break before getting back on our regular schedules! Happy New Year's!

Legos Out The Wazoo!

One of the only toys either boy asked for this year was legos....and boy, did everyone deliver! I'm not sure how many different sets they received, but I think the number was somewhere around 15 between the two of them! So, needless to say...our house is bursting with little lego pieces everywhere...here are the first two they completed over Christmas Break! Gabe's lighthouse actually lights up and has mechanic goings on inside....very impressive! Grady actually completed this log cabin with only minimal help! The doors and windows open! We are so proud of these two little builders!

Faces of Christmas!

We did it...we survived Christmas! We had a wonderful Christmas...we got to spend tons of time with family...had good laughs and tons of great food! All 4 of us were spoiled rotten.....I thought it would be fun to do something a little bit different this year with Christmas pics...I usually post pics of us opening gifts and such...well this year enjoy our faces....some of them were priceless!

Was this face because he really was surprised about the KSU titanium necklace he had been begging for or the early hour...well, we'll never know, but he hasn't had the necklace off for more than a couple hours since receiving it!

I was completely surprised....my camera had fallen during the wrestling meet the weekend before, but the crazy thing was still working even though it was missing parts! Well, my awesome boys took pity on me and bought me the snazziest, fanciest camera!!! I am loving it! Check out the picture on the top of this post...I took it using a fancy feature...only highlighting red!!

Grady has the best little smile...especially his sweet smile minus one tooth!

Poor Shawn....we saved this for the very end ...only because I couldn't wrap it and it had spent it's time hidden in the basement storage room!...but, for all of the excitement the boys had...Shawn was probably thinking there would be a Lexus parked in the basement not a hand truck! I'm not sure which face I liked better...Grady's sweet, excited smile, or Shawn's...so this was what the excitement was all about?!

ChRiStMaS pArTiEs!!!

Yesterday the boys had their last day of school and Christmas Parties, plus Christmas with Grandpa Glen!!! It was a stellar day in kiddo world! I was in charge of the treats for both of the boys' classes, so once I got the food to the room, I was free to run from class to class taking part in both parties! Usually I am in charge of one the boys' parties, so I miss out on one of the other parties...this was the first time I got to be at both! Both boys had lots of fun playing games and doing crafts!! Once we got home we started getting ready for Grandpa Glen, Greta and Marshall coming for dinner! We had Wild Rice Soup and Beef Stew...both were fantastic, if I say so myself! We also had Jesus' Birthday Cake for dessert....this year the boys decided we should do a giant cupcake! After dinner the boys opened gifts from Grandpa Glen...they raked it in! Wii games, K-State sweatshirts, games, puzzles, legos....I think they have it pretty good! It was a wonderful evening....a great way to start off our celebrating!!! MeRrY cHrIsTmAs!!!

2nd Place!

Gabe had a really good tournament on Sunday...he ended the day with 2nd place! He wrestled 6 times, with 5 wins coming by pin! His only loss was to the 1st place finisher and they did wrestle all3 rounds...just being decided by points! He has really improved over last year.....looking forward to more fun wrestling weekends! Go Gabe!

Grady's Christmas Program!

Last night, Grady had his Christmas program! He did a fantastic job....he was even able to smile the entire time he was singing.....do I have him trained for pics and video or what?! The program was a combined program with Kindergarten and 1st grade classes from Ewalt....Grady sang "Jingle Bells", "Jolly Old St. Nicholas", and "Here We Come A-Wassailing". All very, very good songs! As a combined choir the kiddos sang "Rudolph" and "We Wish You A Merry Christmas"! If you missed it and would love to see it...let me know, we got the whole thing on video! Shawn put it best...if that program didn't put you in the Christmas spirit then you must just be a Scrooge! Next week, Gabe will have his first band concert! Can't wait for a bit more Christmas cheer! Merry Christmas All!

Upcoming Wrestling Entertainment!

It's official...Gabe's first tournament will be this weekend in Derby! He is doing very well in practice so far this year...so, we are hoping he can come away with some wins on Sunday! We will keep you all posted...and if you are in the Derby area on Sunday afternoon and are itching for some wrestling...let me know and I can get you the details! We'll let you know how the weekend goes! Happy Wrestling!