Last Day of Summer!!

Today is our last day of summer before Maddy starts 1st grade! She is very excited to get back to school and see her friends. She can't wait to be a 1st grader. We got to go into her school last night and meet her teacher and see her classroom so that was really fun and her teacher seems very nice. She has a few friends in her class from last year, so that will be great as well.

We have had a really good summer --- I am actually a little sad to see it go (even though I love Fall and the cool weather it brings!)

I think Colby and Maddy will miss each other -- they had a lot of fun together this summer and now that Colby is a little older they interact and play together more than they ever have....

Relaxing and watching tv:

2 1/2 Years ......

.....and this picture pretty much says it all!! Colby had his half b-day yesterday and is now 2 1/2!! He is changing so much everyday and is still a very curious, active, talkative, fun-loving little boy! He decided to start the morning off by getting into my mascara and putting it all over his face :-)


Next we celebrated by going to Colby's first movie in the theatre, The Smurfs. Really the movie was more for Maddy (and me, I'll admit, I have been wanting to see it :-)) Colby did pretty good, although there were 30 minutes of previews, so he was ready for a couple of breaks before the movie ended.



It is pretty amazing how much Colby has grown this year and improved in his communication skills. He is pretty much talking non-stop and is so friendly and social to everyone he meets. His favorite things right now are dogs, bunny rabbits, Barney, and playing "tickle monster". He also loves to play outside, ride his scooter and mow with Jeremy. We have had a great summer!

Taste of Hope 5K

Our church has an annual 5K every summer and once again this year I went out to run, even though it seemed a lot hotter this year than in any previous year! Maddy and Colby both did the kids' run as well. Maddy has done a few kids' runs in the past; this was Colby's first one. He was pretty excited and ended up winning the 2 yr old division with only 3 kids competing! Of course, he also got a big head start as he was so excited to run that he took off before they said 'Go'! The 2 other kids came running behind, one holding her dad's hand and the other one crying the whole way -- it was pretty funny! Of course Colby needed no prompting or help to get started; He just needed to hear the words 'Run' and it was all over!!!

Really funny to watch -- I included a video from my camera of both Colby's and Maddy's races below.

Maddy and Colby greeting me after the 5K and enjoying some post-race snacks (sorry for the poor quality, it was really dark):



Maddy, the ol' pro:


Colby standing in the rain waiting for the kids' race to start:


Colby's Race:

Maddy's Race (she is the 3rd one in on our left with a yellow shirt on:)

Fun with Cousins!

Jeremy's sister Tami and her 2 girls Meg and Abbie came for a visit in July. We had a lot of fun going swimming, going to Adventureland, Living History Farms, celebrating the 4th of July and just hanging out. The kids look forward to this fun-filled week every summer!

All ready for the 4th of July parade:


Racoon River beach on the 4th -- We buried the kids in the sand...ahhh, the memories of doing this as a kid...


Watching Fireworks on the 4th (Colby couldn't make it until 10:00 this year; maybe next year!):


Living History Farms:


Meg and Colby on a ride at Adventureland:


Abbie reading to Colby:

Summer Fun - Aunt Sarah Comes to Visit!

Aunt Sarah came to visit a couple weeks back for several days and we had a great time! We had a grill out with a bunch of the family, got nails done, went to Incredible Pizza, did some shopping and went to Maddy's last soccer game. It was fun!

Colby and Sarah:


Sarah showing Maddy and Colby all of her makeup stuff -- they were very intrigued by this!:


Riding the rollercoaster simulator at Incredible Pizza:


Go-Karts!


Watching Maddy's last soccer game of the season:


Acting goofy at the BBQ:


The giant whale that took way too long to blow up ;-):

Summer Fun - Rathbun Lake!

We took a trip down to Honey Creek Resort at Rathbun Lake last week with Grandma and Grandpa Kennedy. The cottage we stayed in was very nice and new and the indoor waterpark was perfect for Maddy and Colby. Maddy could touch in all the pools and Colby was content staying in the "little kids" area as there were 2 pretty decent sized slides for him to go on. The weather was colder and rainy, but we still got a lot of swimming in, fishing, golfing (Jeremy), and a guided nature walk. It was a fun week!

Maddy getting ready for her kayaking lesson:


There she goes!


Colby testing out the water:


The really cool playground on the resort:


Grandma loving the playgroud as well!


Me and Jeremy:


Climbing the real rock wall:


We made it to the top!


Colby chillin' in the cabin:


Taking a break at the deer look-out on our nature hike:

Summer Fun -- Father's Day!

We had a nice Father's Day this year. We went to church and then headed over to the Blank Park zoo. It was a nice day and not too crowded. We spent the afternoon just relaxing at home and grilling for dinner!

Jeremy with Maddy and Colby on the bridge -- they love their Dad!!


Maddy and Jeremy on the train: