Fishing with Grandpa Jim and a Trip to Indianapolis

It seems Maddox is getting ready for school in her own little way these last couple of weeks. She has been repeatedly asking to 'work on her letters' unprompted by Eric and I.   She can successfully write the entire alphabet upper and lower case letters and her technique and penmanship has been getting better and more 'correct' each time.  I love the above picture. All summer she's been working on writing her name and making 'it fit'.  You can see the first two times on the bottom it wouldn't 'fit'…but third time is the charm. She got it to fit.  

The construction workers are still working tirelessly in the field behind us.  Although Maddox and Kennon have lost a little interest in the big machines, every now and then we walk down to their staging area.  The kids were standing on a big tractor tire here and Kennon needed a little balance help from Maddox. Today, at the staging area, they threw huge rocks into the gigantic puddle that had formed from the rain. They could have stayed there all day throwing those rocks. 

The kids and I visited my favorite garden center a couple of weeks ago. Of course they wanted to sit in ALL the cute 'little' chairs.  

 Grandpa Jim made a special trip over to take the kids and I fishing a couple of weeks ago.  We all had a ball….and were 'profitable'.  Maddox and I caught the above 'biggest catch of the day' together  We ( well maybe me) were so excited to catch a big one.  I honestly thought Maddox's little Dora pole was going to snap right in two!! There is a great pond right in the center of Bettendorf just a few minutes from the house that the city stocks each year. You practically wave your hook with a worm ABOVE the water and the fish almost jump out!!  Which was just perfect to keep the kids' attention.  We got tons of bites and caught about 5 fish. It was a beautiful day!  

 I love this one…Maddox looking up to Grandpa Jim for direction!

 Look at Maddox's pole…tipped down.  She's got one!!! Her first one…a little sun fish. All by herself!!!  Grandpa Jim had her trolling on the bottom when she caught this one…. Trolling on the bottom??  Advanced I'd say!! Leave it to Grandpa Jim to teach em the high skills stuff :) Kennon will be the first to tell you he 'did not' catch a fish that day but 'Maddox did'. And he really doesn't seem to be bothered at all by that.  It's almost like he knows he's the little guy and will get one next time. I'd honestly like to think he's letting her have the 'light' for a bit…but that's probably a little above his thinking. 

 Although it appears that she is going to hold her catch I don't think she actually went through with it.  She did touch a couple but we left the remove/release part and the worm application part to Grandpa Jim. ( I'm not really into that either) Bot kids are getting more proficient at their casting and have continued to practice in the driveway almost daily.  Such a fun special time to have with Grandpa Jim. 

Last weekend we trekked over to Indianapolis to visit with Uncle Jay, Aunt Carolyn and my cousins Lynn and Amy and their children.  We had such a fabulous time. Carolyn and Jay have a wonderful home right in the heart of Indianapolis.  Maddox and Kennon were intrigued by  Uncle Jay's Mustang.  I love this one…and as Aunt Brooke pointed out….she even has her seat belt on. 

 Friday we spent the morning at the Indianapolis zoo. It was great to see some different animals and the weather was just perfect, nice and cool, to see the sights.  We got to pet some sharks and even got to see a totally cool dolphin show….something the kids hadn't seen before!! So fun.  The zoo has a brand new orangutan enclosure and has elephants too.  Lot of different animals we don't get to see very often at our little Niabi Zoo. 

 Friday night Jay and Carolyn had a BBQ and all the family came over.  Maddox got to help Aunt Carolyn bake mini cupcakes for the event.  They were pink and she even got to do the pink frosting all by herself…Aunt Carolyn was very brave!!   I love this picture.  Reminds me of Maddox baking with Grammy…standing on a chair.  My cousins Lynn and Amy and their husbands and children joined us for the BBQ. Maddox and Kennon literally had a BALL playing with all the kids!!  I don't think I heard ONE of them cry or whine or have any arguments at all.  The house and yard is perfect for playing hide and seek…and of course then there's the Mustang…!! I love the below pictures. 

Ella ( Amy's daughter),  Kennon, Maddox,  Zach ( Lynn's son) and you can't see her but Rachael ( Lynn's littlest) is in the back seat.  Does it look like they are having fun or what….???   There is a better picture of this below…. I can never figure out how to move them once they are uploaded.  

 This is Carolyn and Jay's backyard….!!  Such a fun place for kids to play. Their entire yard is wooded and they have no grass…it is all landscaped and/or covered with trees. The kids had fun on the hammock and running about in the shaded area ( something we don't have in our newer neighborhood). 

 This table traveled back with us from Indy and now has a fabulous new home in our entryway.  I just love it!!  It was Mom's Grandma's…Ninny…they called her and it sat right in Ninny's entryway in Kentucky.  It may have also been in Ninny's mom's house…Granny Mac as Mom, Jay and Bill called her.  We have some of Granny Mac's furniture too ( Maddox's new bedroom set).  You all know our love of antique furniture and more importantly the nostalgia, tradition, and connection to the family. Thanks to Jay and Carolyn for sharing it with us. 

 Zach, Maddox, Rachael, Ella and Kennon

 Ella and Kennon.  Ella, is Amy's  ( my cousin) youngest ( Nate is her oldest and the oldest grandchild but he was busy at a church function….)  Both Maddox and Kennon adored Ella. She is extremely funny, has a fabulous personality and really seemed to look out for the little ones. Maddox and Kennon were so happy to have ALL the kids to play with Friday night. 

One of my best friends from college, Angie,  lives in Zionsville, just north of Indy. We were lucky to get a quick visit in with her family.  Her maiden name is Knapp….so we met in freshman orientation as both of our names started with 'Kn'!! We ended up being roommates our sophomore year and have continued to stay in touch.  

 Angie and her husband Brent live in a neighborhood community in Zionsville.  It has a nice restaurant, pool, playground area, school, fountain, walking paths, soccer fields, post office and dentist. Pretty cool. Unfortunately the weather did not cooperate for outdoor activities so we met a huge indoor playground at a local church. Maddox and Kennon and her two boys Max and Leo had a good time burning off their sillies. 

  

 Angie and I on her back patio which she has basically turned into a container garden. Check out the huge pumpkin growing on the fence. Angie has always had a green thumb.

 Kennon, Leo, and Max playing in the fountain in the neighborhood…yes those are rain drops…but that doesn't stop 3 little boys from still dabbling in the water. Luckily no one fell in :) 

 Kennon, Maddox, Leo, and Max walking the 'plank' 

 The huge indoor playground we played at Saturday morning with Angie, Max and Leo. 

 I forgot to post this from last May!!!  Our great neighbor Elisha took this. 

 Elisha took these two at the 4th of July parade!!  

We are anxiously awaiting the start of preschool!!! Do you see me doing the happy dance through the computer :)  The kids officially start on Wednesday…YIPPY! The public school started a couple of weeks ago so we have been 'patiently' waiting for our turn.  The kids went to church school last week and met their teachers and saw their classrooms. I think it is going to be a good year.  Both kids like their teachers and RAN into the school excited for the year to start. Kennon has been asking almost daily 'mom, are we going to church school today?' since we had the open house.  I'll be excited to say 'YES!' when he asks on Wednesday morning.   Kennon has been on a bit of a rough streak with his sleeping. He has become afraid of the dark/his room etc and has been up numerous times in the night  UGH!!  Last night was the first night in a couple of weeks that he made it all the way through.  We'll hope this phase passes soon.  Eric painted Maddox's room this weekend and we all love it. She seems really excited to have yellow 'happy, girly' walls as she calls them.  Most importantly she is happy to take ownership of the yellow color as she picked it ( over pink) from a list of 4 choices we gave her. We'll put the rest of the bedroom together next weekend but are planning to leave a little surprise to reveal the weekend of her party.  Her hair has become my project….what you say??  I have been visiting a cool website with all these neat hair do's for girls with long hair. She is getting fairly good at sitting for them too….especially if I tell her they are going to be like Elsa and Ana's hair.  She loves her braids although we have ventured over to the bun side as she will start ballet lessons next week!!!  She and I are both so excited.  She has all her clothes, shoes and now we've about got the bun down.

It seems Disney is around the corner and I've been finishing up last minute details.  We have all our dining reservations booked, ride reservations in place, I've been organizing coordinating clothes to wear ( I know….crazy….but this trip is kind of a big deal…and I'd like for the pictures to look a tad organized), picked up ponchos to bring for the wet rides and for the R word just in case.  Maddox and I've been trying to pick out which dresses she'd like to wear to meet which princesses.  I continue to remind myself ( although anyone wanting to remind me in person is welcome!!!) that I need to remain flexible and that we probably won't be able to 'do it all'…and most specifically …..do that 'one more thing' as I am notorious for trying to do ( just ask Eric!!!)  I am so excited to see their faces when they get to meet the characters and am hoping for good not freakishly hot weather and slightly more calming crowds as compared to the summertime visitors.  Our travel agent Angela as well my cousin Lynn have been fabulous in helping us to get everything planned.  I am so thankful we have had them to consult!!  I couldn't have made all the decisions myself.   

Junior Bix, Balloons, Carter and Reid Visit, and our new FAVORITE PARK!!

July 25th was the start of BIX weekend.  We continued the tradition of the kids participating in the Junior Bix.  I ran with Kennon, and Eric with Maddox. Both kids did well during their very short race. Maddox, for the first time,  ran the entire race and didn't get scared by all the excited parents yelling.  She is growing up!! Kennon almost took a header at the finish ( he was running so hard!!) but I quick grabbed his hand and saved him from tasting the pavement. Such a fun event. Aunt Diane, Hannah and Uncle Brian met us at home after the run for pizza, salad, and brownies!! Uncle Brian ran his fastest BIX ever Saturday morning and Eric joined him with a good run as well despite his achilles injury that he's been nursing for several weeks.  Kennon and Maddox were showered with lots of attention from Aunt Diane, Brian and Hannah!  A fun weekend.  

 Cousin Hannah Kennon and Maddox waiting for Uncle Brian and Daddy to run by!!

After Bix morning and naps we headed to another Kies tradition, the Galesburg Hot Air Balloon festival. I accidentally deleted a few of the cool balloon pics from my iPhone earlier this week..grrrrr…but here's what I have. We had a great time and this year invited my good running buddy John and his wife Sue. They provided 2 great sets of extra hands ( although that's not why we invited them along :)  They have grand kids themselves so know just how to have fun with a 3 and 4 year old.  This year we got to get RIGHT UP close to the balloons. They are just so majestic and beautiful. We took a picnic dinner and enjoyed the company and sights.  So FUN. 

 Waiting…waiting…waiting for the balloons to start. We have come to learn that balloon festivals historically do NOT start on time. I have yet to put this tidbit in our permanent balloon planning itinerary. But the kids found a rock…yes….a rock to play catch with ( note to self…bring a few outdoor toys to play with next year). It was all fun and games until Maddox got socked in the head by Kennon..although I'm quite certain he didn't hit her on purpose… !! And Eric and I are guilty for letting them play with the rock but it seemed like a great source of entertainment at the time. Oooops!! She was fine…. Sue and John gave her a huge back of ice from their cooler and she was fine in just a few minutes! 

John and Maddox near the balloon….so loud and so so so so hot!! Amazingly hot!  Crazy.  

Maddox and I often watch Barefoot Contessa on the Food Network weekdays after her nap while Kennon is still sleeping. She has come to love Ina so we thought we'd try one of her coffee cake recipes.  We made Sour Cream Coffee Cake with a real maple syrup glaze.  It was kind of dry the first night ( yes…. Brooke Eric and I tried it the night before the morning it was to be eaten!! :) but yummy as it sat longer.  The kids had a grand time helping me dump the ingredients in. They love to help me cook especially with the big mixer. Although I must say with 2 extra sets of hands…little hands at that…. it makes for slightly less efficient cooking and a disastrous kitchen at the end of the event!! But, just look at those smiles…using their own spatulas from Aunt Kelly.  So fun. I LOVE to cook and it seems my little kiddos are following in my footsteps.  

Since Tyler was busy catching fish in Alaska this week :)Brooke brought the boys down for a visit and a trip to our favorite local water park…Splash Landing.  We had a great visit with lots of bike riding, park playing and…..dress up!!!  Presenting….Princess Carterlita and Princess Maddox!! They were adorable…and I so love Reid looking on in the background… !! I"m sure he's thinking… 'what are YOU doing Carter??'  They were so cute and danced and sang to what else but FROZEN's  Let It Go! Maddox knows most of the words and Carter would sort of chime in on the chorus. Be sure to check out the videos below!!  They, I believe multiple times,  said they were going to marry each other. Well…I guess I have to say that Maddox says she is going to marry Carter..  I'm not so sure Carter is willing to go along with the deal.  So fun!!  Splash Landing was fun, but of course I didn't get any pictures because both Brooke and I were all hands on deck, literally, watching the kids. They all loved the waterslide…even Reid and Maddox continues to surprise me at how much more comfortable she is in the water. She even started trying to swim underwater JUST LIKE CARTER!!  Thank you Carter for showing Maddox the ropes.  She'll set up the wedding..you keep teaching her how to swim :)  Thanks for visiting Brooke!! 

 Those pink ballet shoes are Maddox's new dance shoes. She'll be taking her first official dance class at the Family Museum starting in just a couple of weeks. I"m so excited…and so is she!! In fact I've had to hide the shoes at times so she doesn't wear the out before the class.  

The long 'snake' outside Splash Landing….IE bike rack.  It was kind of overcast on Tuesday so Splash Landing wasn't busy at all..which was nice for the water..and also no bikes to dodge!! 

The kids and I kept busy after Brooke and the boys left Tuesday afternoon.  We power washed and scraped the back deck and I"m still in the process of sanding it. It is in desperate need of a paint job. What a process!!!! I"m sure wishing we had that composite stuff!!  We decided to do a CARTOON free week ( as I felt I was relying too much on cartoons to entertain the kids while I got meals ready/got stuff done etc). We have all done surprisingly well and have played lots of games of memory, worked on school stuff, the calendar, and the kids have come up with a lot of their own little games. Amazing what happens when the TV isn't on!!  I think we'll be utilizing cartoons a little less in the future but I will admit they sure come in handy sometimes.  Yesterday we had breakfast at McD's while the cleaning lady was at our house ( a special treat for the kids every other week!!) and then we tried a new park.  We had so much fun. This particular park is in Riverdale and has all sorts of levels of playground equipment. Including a merry-go-round!  The kids spent most of their time on the merry go round and the cool old but newly refurbished tire swing.  So fun. Maddox worked SO HARD achieving her positing in the above picture. She climbed up from the underside of the jungle gym bar by bar to make her way to the middle. It took her several tries to figure it out but she was so proud of herself. She is getting so strong and confident with her physical skills. 

 Go Maddox Go!! You Can Do It!!

Maddox has started calling Kennon 'bubba'  I have no idea why… but in the above picture. She is saying 'Bubba…do you want to go ride the merry go round?'  in this sort of sweet sugary voice.  Kennon, at this point, had already gotten somewhat injured on the merry go round in previous rides so he was sort of leery to get back on. But, in true big sis fashion she lured him over and they rode several more times before we went home. They had so much fun…definitely our new favorite park!! 

And not a sole there…which is kind of good and bad…..all you moms know why! 

Carter….we need you…!! It has a triple racing slide!! SUPER FUN!

I'm excited to tell you that Kennon is no longer wearing pull ups at nap time and is staying totally dry!! He knows when he wakes up that he has to go potty and does a great job. He is starting to get his undies and shorts down/up all by himself!  He can basically do number 1 all by himself! YIPPY.  On a down note he has become somewhat afraid of the dark this week and most specifically in the last 48 hours…. (Carter did you rub off on Kennon…?? ) Maddox is excited to start school and we'll actually have a home visit from her teacher for the year on Monday. Her name is Mrs Roseman and Maddox is excited to meet her.  The kids both start school on Wednesday Aug 27th! Can't wait…..all of us :)