A couple shots from our winter schedule

Heartbreakers

Oh my gosh.  These guys, I've sighed every time I've seen these pictures.  They came over one day on Christmas break and we shot these in less than 10 minutes.  Seriously, they are so much fun, so full of personality.  We are blessed beyond belief to live by these cousins.  We go to different elementary schools now, but our kids will all attend the same middle and high schools. (!!!)  It's a big rowdy bunch of fun.

Tis the Season to be Jolly

Christmas Morning

 World Series Baseballs signed by Jeremy Guthrie yo!

My little cuties in their Sunday finery

 And, ye old Christmas Card photograph

Halloween 2014

This photo shows it as it really is.  Zach was so into his Royals uniform...it was the year of the World Series after all.  Lily, forever the patient older sister...trying to break up the fight between Violet and Poppy.  And Roman is like "dude, let's get on with the candy!"

Then, they all wanted action shots...

 Roman the ninja

Lily the ballerina

 And Zach was so committed to his role as a baseball player...

that diving for an imaginary ball seemed totally appropriate.  My 33 year old body could only think, "ouch".

Kindergarten Pumpkin Patch Field Trip

We met Roman for his pumpkin patch field trip.  It was a patch we had never been to, but loved.  There were baby animals, bouncy attractions, a corn box and so many other things to see and do.  

Unfortunately, it was unexpectedly cold that day. Brrrrrr.   The weather certainly didn't follow the forecast so most people weren't prepared for the chill. We hustled from place to place and tried to smile for the camera for a quick pumpkin picture before we raced back onto the tractor's wagon to huddle together.  It was fun to see Roman with his class.  His teacher tells me every time I see her that Roman is a dream, always doing exactly what he is supposed to be doing.  :)  

Lily turns 8

My lovely little Lily turned 8.  She invited everyone she knew to attend her baptism.  Family, teachers, coaches, neighbors and friends all received an invitation to join her on this most special day.  It turns out that she was baptized on her actual birthday.  Afterwards, in the church parking lot, her grandparents and aunts surprised Lily with an electric scooter.  It was a gift she had really been hoping for, and I think I will forever have in my memory the picture of Lily zooming around and around, her beautiful white dress whipping in the wind as she circled with giggles and glee.  It was just so perfectly Lily.  She is beautiful and feminine in every way, and so full of energy and adventure that the fancy dress and fast scooter combination really are the embodiment of her true self.

First Day

It's school time again for a certain 4th grader, 2nd grader, and kindergartner (!!) in our house.  They are doing so well, love their teachers, are excited to see friends each day.  It truly makes it a lot easier knowing that they are excited each and every day. (and pains me to think of my poor mom who had to deal with me...although I loved school eventually, I cried almost every day of kindergarten, didn't want to ride the bus and ran after her car while a patient secretary would walk me to my classroom.)  Mornings are pretty wild around here.  And although I did catch a few moments of peaceful, and beautiful first day action, its not always so smooth.  Having a big and busy household means that I am constantly trying new things to help our routine.  And from my experience, we really start off strong with high hopes every August.  Signing every planner and reviewing the day, making delicious lunches, reading and recording minutes and book titles every night, homework packed, clothes set out, projects done, sports bags at the ready with everything they'll need plus a healthy snack, to just scratch the surface of responsibility.  But I have not found a way to outsmart the 2nd law of thermodynamics, and by May it's often school lunches, wrinkled clothes, running (!!) not walking to the bus, and gosh darn it how much longer do we have to sign these planners!  Ha!...so here's to our fresh start.  Here's to trying something new.  Here's to bigger and better, onward and upward.  Precisely the reasons I will always love the beginning of a new school year.

Mount Rushmore & The Badlands

The drive home was loooong, but scenic.  This far away from Kansas City, why not stop and see some of these iconic things.  We went downstairs to the small museum and watched the movie about the history of Mt. Rushmore (so interesting!) and took the scenic route through Badlands National Park.  On the drive home we listened to the Wizard of Oz Book on CD (who knew Dorothy's shoes were actually silver in the book! no ruby red slippers to mention :), the kids watched Annie (a few times!) and Poppy started calling me Ms. Hannigan and singing "it's a hard knock life" over and over.  We pulled in to our driveway a lot later than expected (ahem, 4am), and fell into bed.  Just today David and I were reminiscing and said we've both already forgotten the nightmarish parts of the drive, and are so glad Painter Roadtrip 2014 is in the books.

Yellowstone

 We spotted a grizzly just 15 minutes outside of the gates to Yellowstone.  That definitely set the mood for what we would experience during our 2 days in Yellowstone. (and maybe renewed my fear of getting eaten while tent camping!)

 We drove to our campsite to get everything set up.

 And the kids were really intrigued with the bear box and insisted on being the ones to load it!

 The first day we explored all the geothermal areas, Old Faithful!

 Grand Prismatic Spring.

 We let the kids pick a souvenir.  The boys both wanted a personalized Yellowstone pocket knife, and the girls each picked a stuffed wolf.  Poppy brought her wolf with her to each sight and made sure "wolfy" had a spectacular view too.

 This little bee bee was a trooper.  She spent lots of time in a carseat/stroller/backpack.  But the tent is where she roamed free.  Actually, almost all night long haha.  All the other kids did great, fell asleep fast, and stayed warm with the 40 degree low.  I think David and I woke up a million times to cover them up though.

We were able to attend a Ranger Program (about grizzly bears) and the kids earned a Junior Ranger Patch.  We visited a few museums, and were able to spot almost every large game animal at some point in the park (except we didn't see a black bear) which was pretty sweet!  We made the large loop around the park and sometimes it felt other-worldly with boiling water and bubbling mud.  Only once did Poppy fall off a boardwalk, and roll towards the boiling water.  No joke.  So many interesting formations and geological history.   Honestly, we could have spent so many more days here.  And if we had more time before school started, I think we would have!  At the end of the 2nd day in Yellowstone, we said our good-byes and spent the night in Cody, WY.