First day of Pre-K

How did our little peanut get to Pre-Kindergarten?  Now he's the big brother.  He loves going to school, loves that some old friends are in his class again and that he gets to make some new ones.  And his teacher from last year is the aid in his class again this year.  More pictures to come from his Friday adventures.  But this Pre-K class is 2 full days a week, and he'll be pumped up and ready to go for Kindergarten next year.

First Day of First Grade

Yes there are a lot of kids out there that love school, but Gavin might take the cake!  He LOVES school.  Of course if you ask him he will say that PE, recess, and lunch are his favorite subjects.  He might take after mom, school = social awesomeness! 

His teacher this year is Mrs. Downing.  He has been very disappointed that he didn't get to have Mrs. Kufeldt (Kindergarten teacher) again.  A few days in now and I think he's adjusting just fine.  Of course there isn't a sole we haven't crossed paths with that Gavin doesn't like.

Happy First Grade kiddo!  Hope it's a great one, we know it will be.

G-man's 7th Birthday Party

Traditionally we have birthday dinner and dessert of the birthday person's choice.  On your 6th, 12th, and 18th birthday you get the "party" of your choice.  Last year Gavin had the Lego extravaganza and loved every minute of it.

As the summer got hotter and hotter thinking about having  dinner with the oven, stoves, people, etc. in the house just didn't sound appealing this year.  So rather than dinner we skipped right to Gavin's favorite thing - DESSERT!  Sure we had the traditional cake of choice for the family, but we also had a Hawaiian ice truck to help celebrate with the neighborhood and attempt to stay cool. 

All you can eat frozen ice and pure sugar syrup...does it get any better?  We topped that off with a 500 balloon water balloon fight.  Great day bud, glad we got to celebrate another wonderful year of life with you!

Fearless Liam

Our second trip to the ER with our little peanut.  His head is a magnet for accidents.  That's okay, scars are cool.  And now he has one on each side to even it out.

He has managed to avoid stitches each time though.  And nothing a little cuddle time with dad, raspberry slurpie, and lego's can't fix (plus the magic glue from Children's Mercy Hospital).  He's back to normal now and ready for his next adventure...which will more than likely happen with a bicycle.

Turn 40, climb a mountain

To celebrate this big birthday Jason wanted to do something different, more challenging, bigger than the average road race.  So why not enter a trail run that's the distance of a half-marathon but goes uphill and ends up at 14,115 ft?  Sure!  It's symbolic of the whole "over the hill" right?

The weather had us guessing for a bit.  Friday night it rained so hard the streets were flooding.  Rain down below means potential snow up top.  The talk about clothing, gear, possible turn arounds, and even maybe cancelling the race had the runners in a flurry.  Luckily God stepped in and the sun shined on everyone for a beautiful day full of accomplishments.

We are all so proud of him!  He trained hard and worked diligently to be successful in America's most challenging trail run.  He's setting great examples for his kids (and wife) about being healthy, enjoying the outdoors, sticking to your commitments, always pushing yourself, and celebrating accomplishments.  As the kids get bigger it's fun to have them participate in these events with us.  May be a few more years before any of them are ready to tackle this mountain with dad.  I (Barb) will gladly offer to be the official photographer and cheerleader of this race.

The stats!

Little man isn't so little anymore.  So handsome, so funny, and the biggest heart of any human I've ever met.  Love watching him grow and becoming an even better human every day.  He makes us all better people by being in our lives.

STATS
Weight 58 pounds
Height 48.4 inches
Head - really big, because he's really smart :)

He's most excited that he doesn't have to get another shot until he's 11 years old.  It's the simple things in life.