April 2026

 April sure did fly by! Love that Reeve and I share birthdays in April:)

Last volleyball tournament! I strongly encouraged Joden to come watch-ha!

Easter without dad because he was back home helping Geno move out of his house.

Happy 41st birthday to me! We enjoyed dinner at Red Lobster!

Reeve got a turkey with her dad:) It was her first one!

Every year I take a group of students to tour Wayne. This was our group this year and we lucked out with beautiful weather! 

We got to cheer on Blair and Quinn at their soccer games:)

Reeve's official birthday--it never fails that she has a dance recital or a school concert on her birthday! 

Joden with his girlfriend Khloe. She was in a play at her school so Joden went to watch her. 

Reeve and I had some added fun celebrating her birthday! We went to Kearney for Steel Magnolias and then enjoyed a day of shopping for items for her room. That is what she chose for her birthday gift this year.

More often than not lately we are finding ourselves alone without the kids. It is a sad feeling, but all of us parents know it is inevitable. Love though that we love being with each other still! 

More odds and ends at the house! Sprinklers is a first for us-in almost 19 years of marriage we have never had sprinklers! So excited for them:)

March 2026

 My stress level definitely was less in the month of March! Winter sports were done and we had spring break. We also have had way more time at home relaxing and it feels so good!

Mike surprised me with a Valentine's gift to see And Juliet at the Orpheum. We enjoyed dinner together and truly had such a great time. I love him so much and am so grateful that we are still in love after almost 26 years!

Happy 17th birthday to Joden. We were on spring break and the weather was amazing so we enjoyed coffee on the patio at Baristas! 

Joden said it was his best birthday ever. He had eight boys over (2 showed up after the pics). We fed them burgers and hot dogs, they shot clay targets, video gamed, and played tag in the dark. Then the next day they stayed late and played spike ball in the living room. Love that Joden has a great group of buddies!

Reeve passed her written drivers test and now has to drive with us for two months before she can take her actual driving test. The goal is that she can hopefully drive herself to school on a school permit. It is mainly for her to go to summer activities and then drive home when she gets back from sporting events late. She really is not the greatest driver so we have to keep working on it. She will get there slowly but surely.

We are finally getting to the wallpaper in the laundry room! We also just finalized our cabinets this week, so those will hopefully be here in a few months!

The sky out at our new house is up there with my favorite parts of our new place!

Sometimes the kids come see me from 3-3:30pm. It is the most quality time I get with the two of them together anymore. I love it so much!

Celebrated my moms birthday at the races! We had a good time:)

Wrestling end of the season banquet is always great, but real long-ha! Joden earned a varsity letter, met the requirements for Gutz Club, and earned academic honors. Praying he can join the state qualifier group again next year for his final year! Very proud of all of these boys' hard work. Wrestling truly is something. Not only is the sport itself hard, but having to manage weight adds a whole other layer!

Another perk of working at the school my kids go to is being able to pop down to science and see Reeve's project. So grateful! 

Dinner group out and adults only! We tried the restaurant at the casino. It was pretty good and we of course enjoyed each others company!

Got to pick up my niece from school one day because her dad was out of town. We had the best time together! Love her lots:)

February 2026

 A month of good quality family time and equally lots of emotions! Ending a four month stretch of very busy schedules filled with highs and lows was a mixed emotion finish. Through it all we know God is always growing us. Thank you Lord for the many blessings and all that we learn along the way!

Loving the beautiful sunsets at the house! God's creation is gorgeous!

Enjoyed taking a group of students to our state Educators Rising conference in Kearney! 

Club volleyball began. Not exactly what our plan was for the year, but we know that sometimes that is how life goes. I am not sure what God might be doing here, but we know we have to trust His plan!

Reeve absolutely loved show choir and plans to continue next year:) It really is fun, but definitely adds to the chaos!

Basketball went really well this year. Reeve loved it and I am grateful for the time commitment from the coaches. Next year we will be adding back varsity. It will be interesting. Hoping the girls can keep their heads high through the challenge!

Oh wrestling-I think you are trying to give me a heart attack! Joden had a tough end to his season. Lots of tough matches. He fought hard, but fell short on making it to state. Praying he can come back strong for his last year! Always proud of him and all the hard work these guys put in!

We still went to state wrestling because we had tickets and had a room booked. It really was fun to all be together and spend some quality time with one another!

I got to send off my niece Delayna for state swim! Love that it worked out to do so:) She goes to Northwest, but the swim team is all the high schools combined. They are under the Islander name though, so the sendoff was at our school. She came home with some medals. Super proud of her!