March adventures!

March Adventures

March began with capturing some snapshots of Joden playing flag football in the Danger league!  Joden sure enjoyed playing this year and always said he had fun:)  I am excited to continue watching him play, especially as he gets to know the game more.

 Of course Reeve always came with us and she made a friend named Paelyn whom she played with every time Joden had a game:)  

I always feel like she would make a great big sister, but that is not in our plans!  So she can just be a great big cousin!

 Next up was Joden's 7th birthday.  We ended up doing a Star Wars birthday at home this year with some of his classmates.  Below is him with Jackson and Cooper!

 Nelson and Joden

 Gavin and Joden, Elijah and Joden

 Here is a PicStitch of the party, which included:

1.  Star Wars Bingo

2.  Scavenger Hunt outside

3.  Ice cream cake/Gifts

4.  Playing games in the field at a church near our house

Joden said he had a blast and that is what matters most on your birthday:)  I know people always say this, but it truly is crazy how fast 7 years go by.  I absolutely LOVE being his mom and am incredibly thankful for the opportunity knowing that not everyone gets to be a mom!  It has been so neat to watch him change, grow, and gain more knowledge each year.  Looking forward to each and every year that lies ahead!

  

 Joden being Joden :)

 Reeve and I went to my boss's sons basketball game one night and got to see her daughter dancing.  Hannah has babysat Reeve a few times so we had to get a picture with her.  Also, during my break from work I got to catch some swim lessons in action:)

Got some new kicks right before our trip!

Joden and I were very blessed with the opportunity to go visit some relatives in South Carolina because we get a week off for spring break!  Mike and Reeve still had work and school so we left them at home:)  My parents were born and raised in South Carolina so that is why I have lots of family there.  

*We flew out early on a Tuesday and Joden was pumped!  

*During our lay over I thought a beer would be perfect at 11am:)  Why not?  

 Due to our early start Joden crashed on our second flight!  Then he was again pumped and ready to hop in our rental car, which was really nice:)

 First stop was my aunt and uncles house, which is my moms sister.  They were way to generous to us.  Joden's birthday just happened to be the second day of our trip so the night before he got a cake and a few gifts! 

 On the day of his birthday we drove into Columbia, SC to hit up a trampoline place and Frankie's Fun Park.  Both were super fun, but I think I actually wore Joden out too much.  Later in the day he complained of a headache, which then resulted in throwing up.  He was sad that he did not get a hot dog, fries, and cake on his birthday:(

 Day 3 of our trip we drove through Orangeburg, SC which is where my mom grew up.  We decided to stop and visit my grandparents' grave sites.  It felt good to go see them and great for Joden to start to make some family connections:)

 Why not eat at McDonalds when they have a play set attached? :)

 For the most part the whole reason of our trip was to visit my great-grandmother in the nursing home.  This is my dads mom and is the only grandparent that I have left.  She truly means the world to us...it is really hard not getting to see the Granny that we grew up visiting, but at the same time we are incredibly thankful for being able to go and visit her!!

 Joden sure had a blast play Bingo and Ringo!  When we walked out of the nursing home he said mom I thought you said it would be boring, but it wasn't.  I had a blast he added:)

 For the last day of our trip we did not have any set plans.  We ended up visiting my grandmother for a few hours and then headed down to Beaufort, SC, which is as close to the ocean as we could get.  We spent the day having ice cream, walking along the water, seeing the bridge open up, playing at a park, and eating at Dockside where the seafood was AMAZING!!  

Spending this 1 on 1 time with Joden was so wonderful!  I LOVED every minute of it and look forward to these times with him in the future:)

 While we were away Reeve got to go to our churches Easter celebration with our good friends the Keaslings!

 Also, while we were gone Mike, his dad, and brother began working on our living room project.  Before I left I painted the wall and then the men were going to work on the floor.  We had carpet in there, but discovered these hard wood floors underneath the carpet.  Sadly the height of the hardwoods and the tile in the kitchen were off by about an inch and a half, therefore Mike put in a sub floor and new wood flooring. 

 We also refinished these oak tables that were given to us from my parents.  Lots of work, but worth the savings!

 Here is the finished living room!

 My dad went through a bunch of old pictures and sent them to me.  I found this gem of my sister and I.  We used to pretend we were teachers and crazy thing is we are now both teachers:)

 Then I found this one of me when I was Reeve's current age.  I thought it would be fun to compare.  We have similarities, but do not look a lot alike. 

 And then Joden and I at the same age.  I truly do feel that we look more alike than Reeve and I.  Crazy thing to me about this all is next to Mike Joden does look like a mini version of him and Reeve looks a lot like my sisters daughter Delayna-so she must have some of my traits in order for that to be possible:)

 One day the nurse called from school and told us Joden had a tick in his hair.  He did have a spot on his head, but luckily he ended up being fine!

 Family fun night at Joden's school included some karate:)

 Reeve is so into dressing herself up and accessorizing.  Sometimes it is frustrating when in a hurry to get somewhere, but other times it is pretty cute to watch her become somewhat of a fashionista!  We were getting dressed up this night for the basketball banquet.

 Here are the basketball girls at the banquet all dressed up.  We truly do not really ever see the girls dressed like this, so it was fun to see them in their Sunday best!  Sure do love getting the opportunity to work with each and every one of them:)

 BB-8 was what he picked out with his birthday money from my parents and more legos from my sister and her family!  He was pumped:)

 Dinner group friends!  These 8 kiddos sure are going to have a bond like cousins and some really awesome memories to go with it:)  Joden may be the only boy, but he does not make a stink about it.  Love that we do this and that God led us to these amazing friends that are just like family to us!

 It has been awhile for us, but story time at the library is always a good time!

 Due to the cold weather we held our Easter egg hunt in the basement, so the kids were enjoying their candy!

 Another birthday gift for Joden from Mike's sister and her family!  It was fun, but I did not feel it was that amazing....maybe I am a party pooper:)

 We ended up staying in Grand Island for Easter and had lunch with my sister and her family at Tommy's.  So, the kids had a picture with the chicken....Mike's idea:)

 All dressed up for Easter service at church! 

 And finally, football season came to an end.  Next up will be baseball for the first time!

 Although blogging is another thing to do and adds a tiny bit of stress to get this done once a month, I also sit back and am very thankful I decided to do it back in 2013!  The reason being is it makes me sit down, reflect on the month, count my blessings, and recall how I may have served others.  Whether that be my own family, friends, students, or my community.  It truly amazing how God leads us down these paths and ultimately we jump in and follow them, sometimes not even realizing it:)