Moving South!

We are putting our house up for sale and moving south! Ok, so not really but damn....I hate cold weather! The lovely winter weather we have been having has been messing with our basketball schedule, our school schedule, our winter programs, our last minute Christmas shopping, and our mood in general! We have had 1 early out, 2 snow days, and 3 basketball games postponed. We have really been hunkered down here.

I was lazy in getting a post done last week so I will do my best to catch you up. We are still enjoying our "quality time" together. Dana has been doing all the school and preschool drop offs and pick ups. He has also been doing all the grocery shopping. We tackled the painting of our entry, front room and office area this last week. Hope to tackle a bathroom or two, the stairwell and the toy room in the next month. Have a few last minute Christmas things to do but am feeling really good about that too.

The kids are in major countdown mode to the holiday break (the older two) and Christmas Day (the little two). Jordan has been busy with basketball, semester test prep, work, and Kelli. Abbey has occupied her time with show choir, home work, movies, reading, and babysitting. Carson and Emma are busy keeping up. Sure have been glad that a few events have been postponed. Don't like having them out when it is so cold! They are both looking forward to this week. Emma has pajama day at preschool tomorrow for their holiday party. Carson gets to celebrate his birthday tomorrow with his classmates and then on Tuesday Dad gets to join him for lunch and his holiday party.

Dana and I have been rearranging schedules, painting, bowling, celebrating, and shopping. Cut out the cold and life is darn good!

We hope that everyone has a great Christmas and a Happy New Year. I will do my best at posting over the next two weeks. Lots of family time planned! Wishing you all the best!


Dana and I celebrating a friend's 30th birthday!


Jordan before a home JV game.


Abbey reading on a wintery day.


Carson and Emma watching a movie together.

Santa visits

Wednesday evening The Sump Family was going about their normal business....when from their front door there arose such a clatter, we sprang from our positions to see what was the matter. : ) A visitor on a weeknight just never happens at our home so the little two are always intrigued by who might be at our door. The sounds of delight that erupted when Dana opened the door told me that the only person it could be was Santa Claus. Carson and Emma were so excited that they forgot to tell him what they were hoping for this Christmas. Santa asked them if they were being good and told them there was still lots of time left for them to be on their best behavior. Each got a Christmas ornament with their name on it and a candy cane. Santa was kind enough to let us snap one picture.



As I told you in the last post, Jordan was injured in the first game of the season last week. He did not suit for the JV game on Thursday which allowed him time to rest. He is feeling much better and back at 100%. We are thankful that he recovered quickly and can get back in it. Today the weather has halted the JV/V boys games. School was canceled due to icy conditions so all events are subsequently canceled. Another quiet night in our house. Abbey has been busy with the show choir preparing for the winter concert next week.

Dana is really enjoying his time off!

No...this isn't what he has been doing the whole time! He has really been working on getting some things organized. Hoping to start a painting project next week. He is smiling so much more and joking all the time. I have been wondering where this guy went. Kum & Go was sucking the life from him! : )

I am just enjoying everything! With Dana home I have been able to focus on a few small projects that are in need of some attention. One being my office area. Those of you that are here frequently know that my desk is a pig sty! I have actually been able to do some organizing in that area. I just feel that we are making great strides towards starting the New Year off in a very good place! So.....yes, it's all still good!

Thanksgiving and It's All Good!

Hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving. We here in the Sump house enjoyed a quiet day together. Dana grilled a yummy turkey on the weber and I handled the rest. Your usual Thanksgiving turkey accompaniments. We all went around the table and said what we were thankful for.
Carson and Emma: "my family"
Abbey: "Thanksgiving break"
Jordan: "Singulair and my inhaler"
Dana: "a happy and healthy family"
Jamie: "that nobody said yuck when they sat down at the table"
We spent the afternoon putting up the Christmas tree and the kids played outside for a little bit. The wind was a little brisk so we lured them back in the house with decorating the tree.

Dana and I joined many others on a very early Friday morning for a little economic stimulus. I spend more time watching the other crazy people than I do getting what I need. It really is a spectacle. Dana and I usually go without the cart and carry our stuff. So much easier to maneuver around. I do feel we have a good handle on the shopping though.

Saturday was spent just doing stuff around the house. That is a never ending job. And then on Sunday we went over to Panora for a Thanksgiving celebration with Uncle Bill and Aunt Karen. The food was fabulous, as always! We spent the afternoon visiting and playing Uno Spin. My sister and her family were able to join us so the kids got to play together which doesn't happen often enough.

Several blogs back I eluded to a very exciting meeting that Dana was attending. Well, I can finally divulge that it involved a second interview and subsequent job offer with Casey's General Stores. (yes....the competition) Dana has accepted the offer of employment with their company and is scheduled to start on January 5th. He gave Kum & Go his 2 week notice last Wednesday and in a matter of 1 hour the email went out company wide that he was no longer with the company, his pass key had been taken away, and an exit interview completed. So....Dana is now enjoying some time off. 39 days to be exact. When he called and told me they were letting him go right away I immediately had to add things to my Honey Do list! Oh the things I am going to get done around here! : ) Many people have said this could be lead to the demise of our marriage. He has been a business traveler since the day we got married. Now we have lots of together time. I just tell people, if we could build this house together without it ending I think that 39 days will be a breeze.

All kidding aside, this is a great opportunity for him! Way more room for professional and personal growth with Casey's, 8:00 - 4:30 business hours, and very little, if any, travel. He will be working in their marketing department and will oversee everything in the cooler. Dana did a lot of different things for Kum & Go and now he just has the cooler to worry about. No equipment, no openings, no acquisitions or divestitures.

So right now he is enjoying taking the kids to school and catching up on some reading and things that need to be done here. Today he had the snowblower out and took care of a few driveways. I say, Great!! I was tired of "going all out". Now I say...."it's all good!"

Jordan started basketball this week. During his first game he was going for a loose ball and ended up having someone land on top of him. Right in his right clavicle area. He really looked like he was in pain. Said he heard a pop but everything looked ok and he had pretty good range of motion. He thought he would be ok and went ahead and suited last night for the varsity game. He only played a few minutes and looked like he was in quite a bit a pain. When he came home he thought maybe he should take a few days off. Not what you normally hear coming from his mouth. Dana took him in this morning for an x-ray and it was read as negative. Great news. Badly bruised and he is clear to play as he is comfortable. So, I think he is going to rest a few days and then try to get back into it. Doesn't like being on the bench needs to be in on the action.

I started a new little one this week. A 3 month old little guy from our neighborhood. Really fun having a little one in the house again. Kinda glad Dana is around to help out. Also enjoy the adult conversation!

So for right now....."it's all good!" Ask me again in a few more days! : )

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Kingpin!

Dana became the leader of the pack last Wednesday night during bowling. I have no idea what came over him, but he bowled a 434 series. He bowled a 230 in the first game and a 204 in the second. It was amazing to watch. He had been struggling right along with the rest of us but Wednesday night he had it figured out. We are off this week so hope he can carry it over! I on the other hand bowled 2 games in the low 100's. I am still striving to "keep it real"!


Dana after his amazing series!

Another quiet week for the rest of us. Jordan received JV and Varsity basketball uniforms this week. He was very excited and knows he is going to be a busy man. The games start next week and there will be 3 for him. He will probably start JV and be in the sub rotation for Varsity. At any rate....lots of bleacher butt for the parents and we are just fine with that. He also received the official diagnosis for his exercise induced asthma. They are going to put him on different medication to help control that better. He and Kelli ran the Living History Farms Cross Country Race together on Saturday with over 7500 other crazy people. The rest of us are enjoying the calm before the storm. Early to bed, meals that don't come from a concession stand and a home with some organization to it.

We will be spending Thanksgiving right here in Grimes with just the 6 of us. We haven't done that for 4 years and are looking forward to some quiet family time. We wish you all a Happy Thanksgiving! We are so thankful for each one of our friends and family!

Adult time!

So...not a lot to share this week. Dana was gone the beginning of the week and things were very quiet. House got cleaned, laundry got done....you know, the usual stuff.

I did get out on Wednesday night with the neighborhood girls for Mexican and conversation. It is such a nice way to break up the week and always fun to spend time with them. Even if the service sucked, the company did not. I then went directly to the bowling alley and bowled a 165. Not my highest ever but the highest so far this season. We actually won all three games and that hasn't happened in a few weeks.

Saturday we went out with 3 other couples from the neighborhood to celebrate Mark's birthday. We had great food at the Bonefish Grill and then headed over to The Blue Moon piano bar for drinks and entertainment. We are so lucky to have such great friends. It was also so nice to get away before we all get really busy with winter sports and the holidays. Thanks guys you are the best!

Cold weather birthday

I hate cold weather!! Even more...I hate precipitation and cold weather. They put brine down on the roads yesterday in anticipation of icy weather and I darn near cried. We scrambled the end of last week to get snowpants and other cold weather gear for Carson. They go outside for recess as much as they can and I wasn't ready for the weather to take this wintery turn.

We are between sports still so are enjoying the calm that comes with it. Basketball starts for Jordan next week and Abbey has decided to focus on Show Choir and school work. It will be different having only 1 in an activity at a time.

The XC team had their awards banquet last week. Jordan received the Sportsmanship patch this year. It is the last award given out and each year Coach Gilroy says that it is a special award. We were so proud of him. He had such a different year this year and hope it continues for him. He also put in a bunch of hours at work last week and is scheduled for 20 this week. He is happy to do it. Loves that paycheck. Spends a lot of his free time with Kelli.


Jordan getting The Sportsmanship award!


Abbey, Carson, and Emma are enjoying the lack of excitement. It is really nice to eat as a family and not have to rush out the door. Abbey comes home does her homework, reads and is catching up on some of her favorite TV shows. Carson is polishing up his Wii skills and Emma is perfecting the art of "dress up". She hasn't, however, correlated being cold all the time to the fact that she wears thin, short sleeved princess dressed all day.

Dana and I did our bowling thing on Wednesday. We haven't been doing so great. A few of us seem to be in a slump! Mostly the ones that live here. I think Krista and Stacey may be contemplating new partners. Saturday night we helped surprise a friend for his 40th birthday at our local sports bar. He really didn't know about it and we all enjoyed visiting with friends.

Sunday we loaded up to go to Cherokee to surprise my dad for his 60th birthday. We had to leave Jordan behind as he had to work. Neither Dad or Mom had any idea that we were coming. We had a nice time. I hadn't been home since last Christmas and we hadn't seen Mom and Dad since the beginning of May. It was a really nice day. We had a yummy breakfast and bloody mary's made by my dad's best friend out at his cabin. Thanks Dale! It was great. Then we went to Mom and Dad's to watch football and enjoy time together.


Grandpa and the grandkids.


Mom and Dad with the kids.


Camille and Emma

Dana left for Colorado yesterday and will return tomorrow. Really glad that it is a short trip. Has an exciting meeting on Thursday that I hope to be able to tell you about soon. (A little teaser for ya.) I am looking forward to girls night out tomorrow evening with the neighborhood girls. Not much planned for the upcoming weekend. Sounds like the next post will be short. Stay warm!

Halloween!

Ok, so apologies to those of you who religiously come to the blog Sunday or Monday looking for a new update. Last week kept me busy and the weekend kept me busier. Haven't sat at the computer much so....I'll do better.

Last week revolved around the Halloween holiday. The anticipation was almost too much for Carson and Emma. Each day was counted down as if Santa was arriving. For the rest of us it was business as usual. Bowling and a Fall Concert by the Middle School students was all we had.

Dana took off for Texas on Friday morning with a friend for Race Weekend at Texas Motor Speedway. He met his brother there and from the sounds of it had a great time. Dana has had a passion for Nascar since I met him. He came home Monday afternoon tired, relaxed, and maybe a bit in need of detox. : )

That left me here to do the Halloween thing. We did get pumpkins carved before he left. We had to make it a 2 day process. One to open and scrape them out. The second to actually carve them. Jordan and Dana decided to use a jigsaw to cut them open this year. Saw it on tv during the World Series I guess. I don't question them anymore. Jordan carved 3 of the pumpkins and Abbey did her own. Nothing fancy this year...just your basic pumpkin faces.

Friday was Beggars Night. The weather was perfect to be out in the neighborhood with everyone else. It was really like a scene out of a movie. Kids running everywhere laughing and families sitting out on their porches or driveways to greet the kids. Carson went as Indiana Jones and Emma went as her favorite storybook character Fancy Nancy complete with a Posh Puppy, which I ended up carrying most of the evening. We were a group of 7 kids and 5 adults and we needed every one of those adults to keep track of the kids. The boys were 3 houses ahead of us and the little ones brought up the rear. Jordan was with Kelli and friends to watch movies and Abbey stayed behind to hand out the candy to between 150-200 kids. We lost count.

Saturday night was my turn to celebrate Halloween. Our friends had their 3rd annual Halloween Costume Party that is eagerly looked forward to by all. I had to go stag this year. My neighbors Tyler and Julie (I watch their daughter, Landry) graciously allowed me to tag along with them. Julie and I teamed up and went as Saloon Girls and Tyler went as Michael Jackson. It was a blast. The band was great....the cops only showed up once.....and I still like being behind a microphone! I somehow tried to sing "867-5309" along with another party goer but we couldn't remember all the words to the verses. After the band was done we rocked the karaoke! We have some talent in the neighborhood!

We ended the week with the kids bellies full of candy and parents who each enjoyed a few moments of adult time! Livin' the life!!

2 montages this week. One of the pumpkin carving and trick or treating. The other of the party. Thanks Julie for taking all the pictures putting it together and then just letting me copy it!! : )

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Race Week

This week was race week in our home. District Cross Country and The Race for the Cure. Good news is that Emma and I raced (well...walked) for all of the woman who have been affected by breast cancer. Bad news is that Jordan's Junior season of Cross Country is over.

The District meet was in Atlantic and has been for the last 3 year. It is no easy course with many hills. The weather was not cooperative with about 2.5 inches of rain the prior 48 hours and temps in the low 50's. Always a bridesmaid...never a bride. Our team finished 4th and we had runners in the 11th and 13th spots. The top 3 teams and top 10 individuals go to state. We just missed it again this year. Jordan didn't run at districts last year because his time wasn't good enough. This year he ran but the hills were too much. He said once he got going he "put the cruise on" and said that when he wanted to start moving up that he "couldn't get it to go off". He said his legs wouldn't carry him faster. I was overcome with emotion at the end for those boys that were so close to state. I really wanted it for them and the whole darn team. The expressions on their faces said it all.

Saturday morning Emma and I braved the brisk temps to join some friends in The Race for the Cure here in Des Moines. Over 23,000 people took part in it. It is truly amazing to see all the people coming together for the same cause, not to mention emotional. To see the survivors in their pink shirts and the families with pictures of their loved ones taken by this awful disease. Both Dana and I have been touched by breast cancer in our families. Emma and I walked for Grandma Egger and Grandma Judson, Aunt Marcella, Aunt Virjean, and my own mom who has not received an official breast cancer diagnosis but has breast health issues that are watched closely. We just did the 1 mile loop since we had two 4 year olds with us. They were troopers! It was quite overwhelming with all the people. Please consider a donation to the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation to help find a cure for breast cancer.

This weeks montage is going to have some of my favorite pictures from the XC season in it. Sorry, some you have already seen. There will be new pics of the district meet and some photos of Emma and I down at the race and some pictures of people that you may not know. I just wanted to use the whole song "I Run for Life" by Melissa Etheridge for Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Enjoy!

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Cross Country Winds Down

The Raccoon River Conference XC meet was this week. The season is winding down. It was the last meet for Abbey. Jordan has districts on Thursday and maybe the State Meet if the boys work hard. It was cold and rainy. (The things we do for our kids!) Both kids definitely like the cool better but the rain we could all do without! Both of them ran their personal best at this meet, which was run in Winterset. Abbey had her best time prior on this course of 18:08 and ran a 16:26 on Monday! I wish I could have captured her jubilation on film but I was too busy catching her as she lept into my arms! We were so proud of her final effort of the season. Jordan ran a 18:02. His best career time. He looked great. He was a bit disappointed that he was 8 spots out from an all conference award. The top 20 get those. It was still a very great effort. Now he focuses on districts and Abbey on school and show choir. She still hasn't decided if she is doing basketball.

It was the start of parent teacher conferences this week. We had Jordan and Abbey's conferences. Both are doing very well. Abbey really did a great job bringing her Math grade up. We also met with the guidance counselor for Jordan and received "light reading material" (ha ha) on getting ready for college. I really need to stock up on the Kleenex that I carry in my purse. I just want him to be 5 again. This growing up stuff is taking an emotional toll on me.

Wednesday night found us at the bowling alley. Our team, The Fantastic Four, has won the last 5 out of 6 games. We always have way more fun when we win. This week, after our games we moved into Trophy's for some Buck Hunter which I am really bad at. All males are safe when I have the gun! It's the females that better watch out. The beverages consumed have nothing to do with how lousy I am. I would be the same without the beer! Am pretty sure that my bowling average would go up considerably if I stuck with a diet coke. I just always tell the team that I am "keeping it real". Wouldn't want to make them look bad. : )

This weekend our neighbor Julie took our family pictures and they turned out great! And we had fun doing it. Can't wait to share them with you. You will have to wait until I send out the Christmas cards which will be early this year thanks to her. Most of the weekend was spent making sure that we all had the appropriate attire, which went surprisingly well. Abbey babysat and Jordan went to a movie with some friends. They saw "Quarantine" which he said was "the scariest movie I have ever seen" and I do believe he slept with his light on that night. He also volunteered with some of the XC team at the Des Moines Marathon. They always run a water station. This year they were at mile 7. The little ones were stuck with us this weekend. We ate out alot (there goes the food budget for October) and watched movies. The weather is turning cold so we are going to have to break out the board games soon. (I know..livin' on the edge!)

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Week of October 6th

This week seems quite uneventful in comparison to the recent few. We do enjoy them when they happen. Post homecoming quiet. Jordan's car was able to be back in the driveway and no crazy dress up days or dances to anticipate.

Only 2 XC meets this week. Jordan ran at Nodaway Valley on Monday. Continued with an upper respiratory infection so did struggle a bit during the run. Ran a 19:01 and brought home some hardware for a 17th place finish. It poured rain while they ran! Both our varsity and JV teams brought home the 1st place trophy! Way to go boys. Abbey ran on Thursday which Dana and I both had to miss. Makes me almost physically sick to miss the kids events but she was so understanding! She, of course, ran a great time of 18:10. Her second best time. They both run at the conference meet next week. Abbey is especially excited about this meet as she likes the course and it was where she ran her fastest time. We hope she does is again!

After 1 week of early morning practices Abbey informed us that she secured herself a spot in the show choir. Both of us were so excited for her. She loves to perform. Next week starts early morning practices on Mondays and Thursdays. Can't wait for their first performance. She also went to see The Hobbit at the Des Moines Playhouse with Aunt Karen yesterday. She loved the show and really enjoys time with Karen, who is a pseudo-grandma to my kids. If I know those two, plans are already underway for the next show.

Carson and Emma got to enjoy a week with no sporting events. I figured it was time to give them a break when Carson was asking everyday when picked up from school if they had to go to a "track meet" or not and when I said "no" his was response was pretty jubilant. School is going well for both of them. Carson went to the fire station to check out our "community helpers" and Thursday his class got to have a pajama party for "filling their lilypads". Something that happens when they are good as a class. He was amazed that he got to wear his jammies outside. He thought that was the best. They kids didn't have school on Friday. (teacher workday to prepare for next weeks conferences) Kids were happy!

Dana and I spent a crazy Friday night in the concession stand at the high school football game. (I know...livin' on the edge!) That stand really rocks! We were always busy. I spent it putting together and wrapping burgers, chicken, pork, and ribeye sandwiches. Dana spent it at the window taking money. DC-G lost to Boone by a large margin! Jordan had about 15 people over after the game to watch a movie. He also put in a couple of shifts at work this weekend and spent time with Kelli.

Saturday I made a quick batch of Snickerdoodles for the Punt,Pass and Kick Fundraiser for After Prom and then Dana, I and Emma headed for the lake with the boat in tow. It was a bit windy but we stayed close to the dam and just floated and enjoyed the weather for about 4 hours. Dana and I snuck away for sushi on Saturday evening. Yummy! Love that we can put the little two to bed and then sneak out for a quick bite. We usually miss the wait then.

Sunday Dana waxed the boat and prepared it for winter storage and mowed lawn. The kids played outside the whole day and I spent the day on the couch and in bed not feeling well. Fever, aches....something viral I am sure. Feeling a bit better today. Hope this isn't a prequel of the sick season!

Very few pictures this week. All of Jordan at the Nodaway Valley meet. Enjoy!

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Spaghettios, Flour, & Homecoming Queens..Oh My!

I know...this entry is tardy! I am still trying to recover from last week! It was Dallas Center-Grimes Homecoming and the whole week was a blur! We packed alot into those seven days. As I sit down to write this I am slightly amazed at all the things that we did. I guess that would explain why people keep telling me I look tired this week. (or maybe the signs of being 40 are finally showing up!)

Monday! So it starts out like a normal week with getting the kids off to school. Emma is learning about fire prevention and safety this week so the Grimes Fire Department brings some equipment out to the preschool and lets the kids spray a fire hose and climb into a truck. One of the preschool teachers puts on all of the firefighting gear and the kids can touch her. I took the daycare kids up so they could see it too. It was fun and Emma talked about it all week.
Later that day I packed the little two up and drove to Nevada for Jordan's cross country meet. He ran his fastest time of 18:17 so far this season. He finished 5th for our team and the team finished 4th.
Later that night, Dana lets Milo out for the last time and hollers back into the house, "Jordan's windows have love notes on them." We walk out to his car...parked in the street...to find affections written in shaving cream on the windows, a very large EMPTY spaghettios can on the roof and said spaghettios on the trunk and hood! Ahhh homecoming! So Dana and I load up the dog and take his car down to the car wash. While in the car wash we are spied by some of Jordan's female fans who think that he is in the car. They block us in the car wash and are going to throw flour on it as it comes out. While the rinse is happening they discover that Jordan is not behind the wheel and take off! Ahhhh homecoming! Jordan's car finds a home in the garage for the rest of the week! Oh, almost forgot, Jordan informs us tonight that he has a date for the dance. Holy cow! Did I hear him right? I wanted to ask him to repeat himself. He says he is taking Kelli, a girl from the cross country team. We couldn't be happier. She is a sweetheart, and not to mention, one of the Homecoming Queen candidates! Guess we had better go shopping!

Tuesday! I load up the kids in the morning and take them to the library for story time, complete with singing and crafts. They have a great time and we vow to go each week now that it is getting colder and we can't always get outside.
That afternoon I load up the little two again and this time we are off to Waukee to watch Abbey run her cross country meet. She finishes with an 18:40 and looked great.
We get home just in time to shovel food into our mouths as Dana and I need to be out to the high school for the Homecoming Games. We were in charge of one of the games. This is part of our After Prom fundraiser and the kids have a blast. They get teams of 6 together and come and compete in some crazy games. Some involve water, others pudding, mashed potatoes, and BBQ sauce, some have Redi-whip and cheese balls, others a skate board and a purse. Use your imagination! Dana and I ran our butts off being the referees for our game. We were both exhausted, hoarse, and covered in pudding and BBQ sauce when we went home. (and our game didn't even consist of those substances!) Ahhh homecoming!

Wednesday! A quiet day. I take a break from all the action and join some of the neighborhood women at our local pub for food and drink. It was so nice to catch up with the girls and we always laugh alot! I couldn't ask for a group of better friends! Dana picked me up from there and we went to bowling. Our team has managed to lose the last 6 games. Not doing so hot. But with handicap we are spotting some of the other teams over 100 pins. I had my highest game so far this season with a 147. At least we are having fun while we lose!

Thursday! I spend the day catching up on laundry. Late afternoon the little two were again loaded up for another cross country meet in Perry. Both Jordan and Abbey ran and it was a beautiful day. Abbey ran well with a time consistent of her previous efforts. She is always smiling and the end of the race. Jordan says she isn't running hard enough but we are happy she is having a good time and she has something to do after school. We tell her that she is going to be in great shape for basketball! Jordan had an asthma attack during his race but ran the best he could. He ran a 19:08 while hyperventilating and managed to maintain his varsity status running 5th for the team. We were very impressed with his determination! When I saw that he was struggling I had to do more running to keep an eye on him and get updates. I grabbed his inhaler when I got close to camp and headed for the finish line to find him lying on the ground struggling. Once we stopped the hyperventilating he was able to do the inhaler and recovered ok. He has a bit of a cold and cough so are thinking that this is contributing to what is going on. Will have to see how the next few meets progress. After the meet we load up the kids and stick a sandwich in their hand. We are off to the high school to see coronation. Jordan had to miss the Powder Puff football game that evening to run but he had an inside source that was sending him text messages during the meet to tell him that the Juniors pulled off an upset. This made all the junior boys very happy! The pep rally had already started when we arrived. We did make it in time for the presentation of the royalty and saw Jordan's homecoming date crowned queen! We were so happy for her. Jordan couldn't stop smiling. She looked so beautiful. It was hard to tell that just and hour before she had run a 4K! Jordan took her out for ice cream after and Dana and I came home and collapsed in a heap after finally getting the little ones to bed.

Friday! I took the daycare kids over to Dallas Center for the annual 1 mile run. Every 4th-8th grade student runs a mile during homecoming. We went to cheer them on and the Varsity cross country runners come over and run the races with the kids. Abbey did great and she was flanked by Kelli and Gunner (2 of the varsity runners). She was all smiles. It was a fun morning. Football Friday night found all of us in the stands watching DC-G beat Perry by 3 points. Was a bit of a nail biter at the end. Abbey marched with the middle school band for pre-game. Carson and Emma just wanted to know if it was time to go home yet. (those poor kids!)

Saturday! Jordan and I spent all morning in the mall searching for the perfect ensemble to match Kelli's outfit. After some negotiating we found it and made it home just in time for him to get to work by 2:00pm. He worked until 7:00 and then raced home to clean up. He brought Kelli back to our house for a couple of pictures. (he did it "so you will have something to look at when you are old and I am gone." Sweet, huh?) Then they were off. Since they weren't able to go out for supper before they went out to breakfast after and then watched movies at another friends house. Ahhhh, Homecoming!!

Sunday! Finally a day of rest! We were going to try to get the boat out but it was pretty windy. I spent the day cleaning and Dana worked on the patio furniture some more. (yes, we are still at it but the end is near!) We had survived the week and had some great stories to tell. We owe the little two big time! Must be why Dana said yes to Emma when she asked to play Hi-Ho Cherrio!

The montage is all about our week. Lots of cross country with a bit of homecoming in there. I haven't gotten any of the pictures of Jordan at the Homecoming games. I was too busy with our game that I couldn't take any of him. Hoping there are some moms that will share some if they got any good ones. The music I picked for Jordan! These are two songs that he recently down loaded from itunes. Ahhhhh, homecoming!!

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Lordy, Lordy.......

Look who's forty! On Wednesday I began my forth decade on this earth. I got up and all my body parts still worked. Nothing appeared to have moved any farther south than the day before. Those small crows feet remained unchanged and nothing new had cropped up on my forehead or around my mouth. I guess turning 40 isn't so bad. I have accomplished a lot so for in this life and am praying that, Lord willing, I will have lots of time left to finish the things that are still on my to do list. It was a day like any other....daycare kids arrived, Dana went to work, and the kids went to school. I did eat like a queen that evening as the dinner honoring Dana and the other recipients of the Kum & Go awards was at Des Moines Golf and Country Club. He and I then finished off the evening with league bowling. Between the wine, champagne, and the beer my scores weren't all that great. :-)

Dana also celebrated a birthday this week. His was on Friday and it was a typical day for him as well. We were lazy and ordered The Radish carry out and watched The Longest Yard. I know....livin' on the edge!

I really don't have a lot to report this week and even less to show. No photo montage but have included a few pictures of the kids that I took at the meet on Monday. The kids ran in Adel and that happens to be Jordan's favorite course. It was a little windy but other than that a pretty great day to run.

Abbey started out like usual..in the back. Only this time she didn't move up like she normally does. She really seemed to struggle and walked a bunch. We couldn't understand it. When we asked her later what her time was she said "I don't know 20 something." She said everyone ran slower and she wasn't worried about it. Neither did we. She woke the next morning with the flu and we are chalking up her difficult run to that. She spent Tuesday in bed and the rest of the week seemed to go ok.

Jordan really surprised us! He ran 3rd for his team this week and looked great. The whole team seemed to run a bit more aggressive. He came home with some hardware and the team came home with a 3rd place finish. Jordan ran a 18:38 which is a little slower than last week but still very consistent. The whole team also had slower times. Makes us wonder if the course was marked a little long but the coach was very pleased anyway. Jordan put in 3 shifts at Kum & Go this week and did lots of socializing this weekend.

Carson managed to fill his sticker chart by being good at school so he was able to pick from the treasure box this week. Emma took an interest in her bike. Normally she is a trike kind of a girl but is moving on. An uneventful week for the two little ones.


Abbey at the 1 mile mark.



Abbey coming to the finish line.


Emma resting in between races.


"I am really getting tired of being at this meet!"


Jordan running in the 5th spot for DC-G.


Giving me a little smirk when I expressed my excitement at his aggressive running. He is now in 2nd place for DC-G.


Coach Gilroy congratulating Jordan's efforts and his 3rd place finish for DC-G!

Well, tomorrow begins Homecoming Week. We have 3 meets, Dana and I are in charge of a game at the "Homecoming Games" on Tuesday, bowling, and Abbey marches in the band at the game on Friday. There will be lots to share next week!!

The last week of summer!

I had a hard time sitting down to write this tonight. The weather has been so great and I had a very nice weekend that writing this felt a bit like work this week. However, if I don't keep going I'll let my 2 fans down. : )

The weather has just been amazing and we have been trying to be out as much as we can. I love having the windows open but that lead to some major allergy issues for me this week. My head was so full and the sneezing was nonstop. I did have a few minutes where I was begging for a nice hard freeze. Then I spent a lazy afternoon on the boat (sneezing the whole time) and thought that a few more really nice weekends would be great. At least get us through the last home football game.

Jordan and Abbey had a dual XC meet at Ballard on Monday. This is one of the states largest meets of the season. Some 40+ teams, boys and girls. Abbey ran very well this week. We were really proud of her effort. She looked more confident and seemed a bit more competitive always trying to get to that next group of runners. She finished 123rd out of 141 with a time of 18:19. Jordan looked good again this week. There were 22 schools in his race which is approximately 154 runners on the course. Yikes. You had better hope you don't fall or get pushed when the gun goes off. He finished 31st with a time of 18:34. 1 second faster than last week and 5th for DCG. There is a very close battle for the 5th, 6th, and 7th spots on the varsity team. Those 3 boys finished right next to each other. Makes the race to the chute very exciting. The rest of the week for the older two was dedicated to homework and jobs. Abbey had a couple of babysitting jobs and Jordan put in three shifts at Kum & Go. He is definitely liking that paycheck and so are we.

Carson had his first field trip this week. They spent most of the day at an apple orchard. He loved riding the hayrack and picking apples. His favorite thing was getting to ride a bus to the apple orchard. The morning of the trip I said something about the bus and he immediately did the fist pump with a jubilant "yes"! He told me he needed to call Dad right away and tell him that he was going to ride a bus. So...we called Dad right away and told him that Carson was riding a bus.

Emma had a pretty good week if you cut out Friday afternoon when she threw up all over the backseat of the suburban just as we were backing out to get Carson from school. YUCK!! She laid on my lap all night and had a good nights sleep. Never puked again. Whew! She woke up Saturday morning saying she felt much better and was the only taker when we asked who wanted to go for a boat ride.

Dana and I have had a very good week. He was home every night this week. We had a fun night bowling which we followed with some Buck Hunter (video game) for Dana and karaoke for me. No one would sing with me so Krista asked a really nice gentleman if he would sing and he graciously said yes. I haven't sang in public for a very long time so that was definitely stepping out of the box.

We really enjoyed our Saturday out on the boat. With just Emma with us we were able to just relax and float the day away. We don't have many more of those left this season. It is fun to watch the birds follow behind the boat and try to catch the little fish that jump up behind us. Dana then surprised me later in the evening by taking me out for sushi. It was so great! Beer, sushi, and time alone with Dana. Then we went to a friend's house to hang out with two of the guys Dana graduated from high school with. Rick lives in Des Moines and Mike lives in Davenport. He was back in the area for some work related activity and we spent the evening catching up.

We have a busy couple of weeks coming up but after a weekend like this I think I am ready.

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Can't keep up!!

We are into my favorite time of the year. Crisp days, football and cross country. I can feel myself losing a little control as our evenings get a bit busier. The laundry is piling up a bit, general household chores are being done very late at night, and Carson and Emma's bedtime routines are getting rushed. (Which no one likes!)

Abbey had her first cross country meet this week. She did really well for not having any idea what she was getting into. She ran her 2 mile in 18:09. We gave that an A+ for effort seeing as neither Dana or I could pull off such a feat. We were really proud of her and now her goal is just to run a little faster at the next meet. All about the personal best.

Jordan looked really good this week. He followed our instructions (this time) for the inhaler and ran a 18:35 and came in 5th for our team and 11th overall at the meet. He also medaled for his 6th place finish as a Junior. They didn't give team scores at this meet but we would have finished well. We also found out that our boys are ranked 15th in the state. May not seem much to the average Joe but we have never been ranked and they are very excited. Jordan will be running at the varsity level on Monday's meet.

Dana and I had another fun night of bowling on Wednesday. Kum & Go's league wasn't very big so our 4 teams are joining the Wells Fargo league. We had a kick off night with their league which meant another week of free bowling. Stacey decided to pump it up a bit by ordering shots for the team and the camera came out. A few funny pictures and a couple of headaches the next morning! Thanks, Stacey!

Carson and Emma had a typical week of school and running to keep up with us at the meets. They had fun playing with friends at the Iowa/Iowa State party that out neighbor threw. Emma and McKenna played dress up and Emma didn't care that everyone could see her underwear through the dress she had on. She wore it loud and proud. Gave the adults a great laugh. No she DOES NOT take after her mother!

Jordan and I had a very quick bout flu on Saturday night. He got sent home from work and I was up most of the night. Not fun. Thank god for Abbey, she was such a great help. Dana played poker with the neighbor guys until the wee hours of the morning. He had been asked many times and has never gone so I didn't have the heart to ask him to stay home and help with the little ones. Abbey did a fine job and will be rewarded with her favorite....clothes and shoes. Dana came home lighter in the wallet but had a really fun time.

Tonight, we had 18 high school boys and the coach here for the pre-race meal. I made 4 lbs of pasta with alfredo sauce that had 3 sticks of butter, 6 cups of heavy whipping cream, and 3 cups of parmesan cheese. They ate it all...along with a pan of lasagna, 4 loaves of garlic bread, 1 watermelon, and 3 lbs of grapes, 2 gallons chocolate milk, and a full sheet of ice cream cake. WOW! It took us all day to prepare and 1 hour for them to feast.

The proudest moment of the week was when Dana came home with an award he was given at work. His peers voted and he received an award for his excellence in his commitment to Krause Gentle's core value of teamwork. He had no idea that he was receiving it and was humbled to have been chosen. He will be honored in a few weeks at a supper at Des Moines Golf and Country Club. I am so proud of him. He gives alot of himself to the company and was so happy to see that others notice it also. He sent me the picture they took the day he got it. It is of him and the CEO of Krause Gentle, Kyle Krause. Way to go Dana!

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Let the games begin!

Well, fall sports officially started in the Sump house this week. We had our first Cross Country meet on Thursday and Dana and I started bowling again on Wednesday. The pace has picked up a bit around here and so has the coordinating efforts.

Right now the little two are just along for the ride. Neither are participating in any activities this fall. They are the designated fan club. They love going to the big kids events. I think that it is mostly for the attention that they get from Jordan and Abbey's friends and also the parents that are watching them grow up right along with us. Carson may not look happy in a few of the photos I took but, it's usually because he isn't getting his way right that minute or he just wants to take off and be with the "big kids" and he's stuck with the "old folks" instead. : )

Jordan did really great for the first meet of the year. He did not run in this meet last year because we were in the middle of the cardiac evaluation, so the coach was pleased that he shaved almost 2 minutes off of his previous run on our course. He ran a 19:30 5K and came in 7th for our team. Good enough for a varsity position. We need to get the inhaler coordinated with his run and I think that he would feel a bit better. He looked rough while he was running. He wasn't sure if he should take it before warm ups or before the race so he did 1 puff before each. Will do what mom (the registered nurse) suggested in the first place at the next meet and see if that works better for him. He grades are looking great and he likes his job and the pay check coming with it. Not happy that he has to miss next weeks home football game to work but they really needed him. He really loves to go to the games. He shared a few pictures of him and his friends at the last home game.

Abbey has her first meet this next week. She was really excited to go out and watch Jordan's meet to see how things work. She is also glad that she only runs 2 miles at this level and not a 4K like the high school girls do. Didn't have the heart to tell her that where they run on Tuesday is the toughest course in the conference because it is really hilly. She will find that out soon enough. She had a babysitting gig this weekend so made a little money herself. She is struggling a little bit with Math but is working really hard and her grade is showing it. All of her other classes are going great.

Carson went to Pump It Up for a birthday party this weekend and had a great time with some if his classmates. It was nice for me to meet some of their parents too. Otherwise, Carson and Emma played and enjoyed the nice day today.

Dana and I are glad that bowling is underway again. It is a guaranteed date night once a week and we really have fun. Wednesday was the league kick off. Dana bowled a 224 which is the best game I have ever seen him bowl! Mine weren't that great. I am not known for my consistency.

Dana spent today sanding our cedar picnic table so we can re-varnish it and I took the big kids shopping for some new clothes. This next week finds us with a XC meet, booster club meeting, bowling, and an athletic scholarship meeting before we spend next weekend preparing to host about 23 high school boys for the pre-race meal next Sunday night. It is crazy and I know I will have some great photos and stories about the massive amount of food consumed by said boys.

Have a great week!

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Labor Day 2008

Well, another week comes to a close. Well, actually another week has just started. I guess it is Monday. I have been having a hard time getting that all day. Someone is going to have to remind me that I don't have to take Emma to school tomorrow or I will be sitting in front of the preschool wondering if they are going to open the doors. It was a relatively quiet week. Either that or I am more organized than I thought.

Jordan is excited that the inhaler that he was given in working. He isn't having the issues that he had been. He is having to concentrate on his breathing when he trains hard to keep from hyperventilating but otherwise he is happy to be back training at full speed. He spent his weekend working and hanging out with his friends. We didn't see much of him. You won't see any of him in the montage. He is looking forward to the first XC meet of the season this week which is at home. Will have lots of pictures of that next week.

Abbey "hibernated" according to Carson. ("I learned that word on Curious George", he told me.) She relaxed and watched TV, caught up on her Wii skills, cleaned her room, watched the little 2 so we could go out on Saturday night, and attended the home football game Friday night. She helped with the Character Counts celebration they had in coordination with the game and kept me posted with score updates.

Carson is loving school. He tells me so much of what he does during the day. He is pretty darn exhausted each night. One night during supper he laid his head down on the table and said, "I'm just going to take a little rest for a second." He is definitely ready for bed at 8:00. I even had to wake him a few mornings which is a little different. He spent the weekend playing with friends and having fun at Cole's birthday party. He and Emma both went and Cole had the same amazing balloon artist that Emma did for her party. He made Emma another crown and Carson a Goofy hat. Carson loved the Silly String fight they had at the end.

Emma spent much of her weekend doing stuff with Carson and the neighborhood kids. She is having a great time in preschool and has adjusted well to 3 days a week. She has been napping a bit more than she did this summer and I have been having to wake her up each morning. She doesn't bounce out of bed like my other 3 do. She always wants "five more minutes". Got that from me. Her favorite part of the weekend was the large "yellypop" that she got at Cole's party. She has been licking on it off and on all weekend and hasn't made a dent in it.

Dana was only gone one night and that was really nice. He made it home in time to be in charge of the Booster Club membership drive and the athletes brought back $13,000 worth of memberships. Way to go guys. The largest year so far. Dana was please and thought it seemed really organized. He spent Friday night in the concession stand at the football game helping the Booster Club. He also went golfing Saturday morning with some guys from the neighborhood. They golfed at The Harvester which is ranked the best course in Iowa by Golf Digest. He said the coarse was brutal, he lost nine balls, and no one talked about their scores later that evening when we went out but they did laugh alot. He just had a great time. :)

My allergies kicked into full gear this week making life not so fun. Brady started on Monday and he is really sweet. A pretty quiet little guy but did pretty well for his first week. I attended the After Prom Committee meeting and got signed up to help with some fundraising things. I stayed home from the first football game. Carson, Emma, and I curled up on the couch together and watched movies. They both were battling stuffy noses and full heads also, so it was a great way to end the week.

Dana and I enjoyed lots of time with out neighbors this weekend. We went to Prairie Meadows on Saturday with 6 other couples for the horse races. Dana and I have lived hear since 1995 and have never been in the place and we had a great time betting on a few races. We did come away with some money. Not alot but it paid for our meal that evening. I know we will definitely go back. Last night we had a little get together at Mark and Kelly's house. The kids had a great time playing together and we just relaxed and had great conversation with friends. Today was really lazy. We worked on a few projects this morning and spent the rest of it on the couch watching the Top 100 Songs of the 80"s on VH1. The big kids had homework they needed to get done and Jordan had XC practice today so we didn't take the boat out. I am sure that it was pretty busy out there and we didn't miss much.

We really love this neighborhood. When we hand picked the lot we built this house on we did it strictly for the price. We had no idea that it would turn out to be the perfect place to plant our family. The kids never have to go far to find a friend and neither do we. It is so great to know that in a second people will jump into action to form a search party to look for a lost child. (I know because it happened this week and no it wasn't one of ours but it might have well been!) Also, to know that if you are ever in need of a little extra man power 7 or more strapping men show up and the project is done in hours not days! Or if you just want some fun people to gather with and throw a few back that can happen too. It is a large extended family and we are so blessed to be a part of it!

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Back to school!

It has been a fun and eventful week at the Sump house. I have to say I am a bit tired. Ok, well a whole lot tired. At least I think that is what the big bags under my eyes are telling me. We survived a week of Dana being gone, getting back to school, and much structure added back into our routine. We enjoyed a little play time on the weekend and a whole lot of clean up!

Carson loves school. He was so excited the first day. He has always been ready for a new adventure. As is typical on that first day almost every parent (and in some cases both parents) in our district take their child to school. And it seems to me that they all drive separately! The parking lot was packed, however, I was early enough and didn't have to walk blocks like some parents. That was a bit overwhelming for Carson. I am sure that he wasn't expecting there to be that many people. He stayed a bit closer to me but was eager and ready. We walked the route from his coatroom to his classroom twice as we came in a different door than during open house so he was a bit confused but picked it up quickly. I had to find his place at his table for him because he was so busy looking at all the people and what other kids were doing.(....some were crying and clinging...you get the picture!)Once he sat down and started looking at books he was great. He gave me a big hug and kiss and off I went. (with a very large lump in my throat!) I held back the tears as Emma was the next to be dropped off at preschool and I didn't want to make her extra clingy. Carson came home from school starved! (he eats very slow so am sure that he didn't have enough time to finish his lunch!) The first thing he said to me when I picked him up was "Do you know what they got in there? They got a restaurant in there!" After all the talks we had about going to kindergarten....apparently he didn't remember that he would be eating lunch in the lunchroom! I about died. He is doing a really good job about telling me what they do in a day! Seems he is most excited about art, library, music and recess. Oh and, of course, lunch! The other stuff he describes as "doing some work.." when they do things in their classroom. A very successful week for our Carson!

Emma was very excited about preschool this year. She always stays a bit closer to me in new situations but going to preschool is no big deal because we have Gabi! Gabi is Emma's best friend and one of my daycare charges! Gabi is actually more like a sister and a daughter in our house. Emma can do anything when Gabi is with her. They both walked in, hung up their back packs and humored Marti and I a bit while we snapped some pictures! Emma has been confused that she goes three days this year and not two and was very distraught when on the 2nd day she didn't get to bring home her folder to show me her work. The first thing that she shares with me each day is what they ate for snack. (really I do feed my children) I can tell she misses Carson, though, because she is asking me to do more things with her and asks frequently if it is time to go get him.

Abbey started off her week a bit rough! She really felt crappy but was bound and determined that she was not going to miss any school. Especially that first few days. She said that school is great. She started Cross Country practices also. She managed to hold it up through everything each day but came home exhausted and was in bed early each night. Seems she has figured out her schedule fairly quickly and had a little home work a few nights. She hasn't decided yet what her favorite classes are. She said she needs to get to know the teachers better and find out what the class is actually about. Her cross country coach sent me some pictures of her and the group during a practice this week. She is feeling a bit better as the week closed but isn't quite back to herself. There are a lot of viruses going around from talking to others. She used the weekend to catch up on more sleep.

Jordan had a busy week. We are still trying to figure out why he is having chest tightness and breathing issues while running. Why it only happens during XC and at this time each year. He had several visits this week with a sports med Dr and they did an exertional treadmill test for exercise induced asthma. I was unable to go with him for that but Jordan claims that the Doctor said he couldn't diagnose him. I have been unable to talk with the Doctor so I am assuming that maybe the test wasn't definitive enough. They are talking about bringing the equipment out to practice and have him wear it while doing the workouts. They did give him an inhaler to use prior to exercise to see if that changes anything. But we still don't have answers. He did the annual run from Grimes to Dallas Center at 5:00am Saturday morning. 9 miles. He didn't have any problems. He said school is good and didn't seem to have much homework. He is doing it though. Our school has a website that we can check daily for grades and homework. He worked this weekend and spent time with his friends. Already talking about Homecoming which isn't for a whole month yet.

Dana spent the week in Rogers, Arkansas opening a new Kum & Go. Was one of the more trying openings as they didn't have power or water for quite a bit of the week. Was slightly angry with the construction department. Apparently, they are under a timeline and can get a bonus if they meet it so they are telling the marketing guys (Dana and his crews) that they are ready to open prematurely. I guess next weeks store in Springfield, MO is going to be much the same so Dana put the brakes on that one. He is going down on Monday for an overnight to put equipment in the store but will be home on Tuesday and then his partner will go down after Labor Day and actually get the store open. Yeah!! That means he won't be gone all next week too! He got to hear all about the first days of school on the phone. Carson even sang him the Rules of the Classroom song over the phone.

I spent this week being a drill sergeant! Trying to keep everyone on a tight schedule. It went very well. I enjoyed my day off on the first day of school. Had plenty here to do to keep me busy. I didn't make the open house for Jordan on Tuesday night as Abbey was feeling crappy and didn't want to drag the little ones out. I did have to go the the parent/student activity night where we hear about the Good Conduct Policy and the Academic Eligibility Policy. Basically....get good grades and stay out of trouble....or you won't participate in athletics. We also had the Cross Country (XC) meeting and got people signed up for Pre-race meals, Meet snacks and drinks, and working a football game in the concession stand! Next week I attend the After Prom committee meeting. Yikes....Prom! I really am not old enough to have one going to Prom!! :) It was quite an emotional week for me. Dana gone, Carson starting school, and this was the final week for Sayler to be with me for daycare. I have had her since she was 12 weeks old. Her parents have decided to put her in a daycare facility so she can be with kids her age and be in a preschool program there as well. I will miss the whole family dearly. I am lucky that they live in the neighborhood and we often do things together as adults. I am still going to be able to watch her grow. Emma will miss her a lot because Sayler loves to play dress up as much as Emma does. So Monday I begin a new adventure with another family. Brady is two and a very sweet little man! It will be fun to have another boy in the house. We were pretty female dominate. The Nelson's are new to our community and they have two older boys that go to high school. One is in Jordan's grade. I can feel that they will be a great family to work with.

We spent most of the weekend on the boat. The weather was great. Now we are working on getting back on schedule and ready for another week of school. Really looking forward to the long holiday weekend coming up! Will have lots of fun pictures to post. For now, enjoy going back to school!

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In My Daughter's Eyes

Just before we went on vacation, my neighbor Julie took Emma and took some photos of her out by Saylorville Lake. The montage she put together for me made me bawl like a baby and I wanted to share it with you. Julie is really amazing and you have to check out her new site! www.landryannadesigns.com Get your kleenex ready!

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Summer winds down...

We must have really crammed a lot of things in this week because it feels like longer than a week since we came back from vacation. The beginning of the week started with Jordan in Colorado at Cross Country camp and the rest of us back to our regular old work week.

Jordan had a pretty good time at camp. He said the scenery was really great and the food was "too fancy...with salad served at every meal." I think that they were glad to be home. He did have some breathing issues while out there so his work outs were a bit different towards the end of the stay. He had some issues like this at the beginning of last season that we had evaluated by a cardiologist with a healthy exam so this time we are seeing a sports med doc that specializes in breathing issues with runners. He is frustrated as he just wants to train like he normally does and stay with the team. We think he might be hyperventilating during his workouts...? Will have to wait and see what this doctor thinks. This week Jordan also became gainfully employed!!!! Yeehaw!!! He started working at the Kum & Go here in town Saturday. Yeah...it helps when your dad works in the corporate office. He seemed to enjoy his first day with the exception of having to wear a tie. Doesn't fit his surfer style. However, he did cut off his hair this week so maybe the style is changing. He has had longer hair since middle school so was quite a change. I found myself staring and thinking how much older it made him look. He begins his Junior year tomorrow.

Abbey spent her week sleeping in and enjoying the last week of summer break. She did do an inservice for the staff at a local nursing home with a few others from the schools youth leadership group. There was also an open house at the middle school so she got to take her stuff and put it in her locker and meet with the cross country coach. Her first practice is tomorrow. She woke this morning feeling a little yucky and spent most of the day on the couch with a fever. She is worried that she is going to miss the first day of school. Looking perkier tonight as she got up and packed her stuff for tomorrow. She begins the 7th grade.

Carson started off the week with a flag football clinic. He was in the 5-7 year old group and was the smallest one at the clinic. Not sure he understood what was going on but it looked like he had fun. We decided, though, that we probably won't join the league this year. He had his open house on Thursday night for Kindergarten and was so excited to meet his teacher and take his supplies. He didn't even argue tonight when I put him to bed at 8:00pm. He can't wait to start school. I am struggling a little but have been trying very hard to hold it together in front of him. I don't want him to get the wrong impression. I will definitely miss him around here everyday. Today we went out on the boat for awhile and he and Jordan rode the tube so I got some pictures of him finally. He would ride it all day if we would let him.

Emma spent the week playing with her friends after being separated by vacation. She starts her second year of preschool tomorrow and was also more than willing to go to bed early. I think that summer had finally caught up to her as she napped a lot this week and was a bit more emotional. Lucky us. : )

Dana and I have been trying to sync our back to school schedules. I have spent more time this week making sure that I have stuff put on the calendar and making all parties involved aware of what needs to happen. The two of us managed to sneak away two night this week and enjoy a couple of concerts at the Iowa State Fair. Tuesday we saw 38 Special and The Charlie Daniels Band. They were really good. I could almost smell the perfume I used to wear in high school during 38 Special. Dana and I listened to them alot when we first started dating and it brought back many memories. Last night we saw Def Leppard and oh my god THEY ROCKED!!! It was an awesome show and we had the best time drinking beer and singing as loud as we could. Along with about 10,000+ other fans. We also ate our share of "fair food". Was a really great date night.

This next week finds a new school year starting and me in the single parent roll again. Dana is headed to Arkansas to open a new store. He hasn't been home for the first week of school in the last four years! I think he is doing it on purpose. I took tomorrow off to help the kids get back into the swing of it. Will have about two and a half hours all to myself in the morning. I am thinking nap but the piles on the desk tell me otherwise. The montage this week is just a few shots of the kids. (didn't get any of Abbey this week...sorry) Jordan shared some pictures from their trip. He seems to be with the girls alot.....hmmmmm?? Enjoy.

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Great Family Fun!

Crest Lodge Resort 2008! It is our 11th year vacationing at this small family owned resort. Bob and Mary really make us feel like part of their family whenever we stay. It's what keeps us going back year after year. As a matter of fact, we already know the dates of next years vacation. We also have been vacationing with the same group from the Urbandale area for about 9 of the 11 years. Even though we live so close we love the opportunity to "catch up" each summer. This year Dana's brother Dale, his wife Deanna, her sister Debbie and our nephews, Kyle and Kody joined us for the week which made it even more fun. Dale is stationed in Fort Hood, TX and has done 2 tours in Iraq and was injured on his last deployment. We haven't seen him for two years and it was really great to spend time with them.

Most of the week was spent on our boats or in the water. The weather was extremely hot with the heat index in the 110's so we were all thankful for that water(even if it was 96 degrees). Here is a run down of the highlights for each of us.

Jordan spent his week working on his tan, spending time with Kyle and Kody, talking with Danielle, tubing, and mastering the wakeboard! Yes, you heard me correct!! On the last day of his vacation he conquered the board. Wait until you see the pictures. He is smiling in almost all of them. Having Uncle Dale give him the pointers really helped. (Even if they were some of the same things we were telling him.) Plus, Kyle and Kody were both already doing it and that was great incentive. He was not going to be outdone. Jordan's vacation was cut a day short by the Cross Country camp. He and I left Table Rock at about 1:00pm on Friday so he could get home to catch the 12:00am bus on Saturday. He spent all Friday morning wakeboarding, stayed awake on our drive home picking music for us to listen to, and texting his friends. The resort has basically no cell reception so he was trying to catch up with his posse! We were home long enough to do laundry, go buy more food for the trip, and update his Facebook page. I put him on the bus hoping he would sleep but knowing that he probably wouldn't. I haven't heard from him yet. I guess no news is good news.

Our Abbey celebrated her 13th birthday on vacation! Blows me away that she is a teenager already. We spent her special day anchored in a cove and enjoying the day with family. She received the Nintendo DS that she had been begging for since spring break and a few games for the system. She could not have been more happy. We topped off the day with fresh from the oven brownies with ice cream and chocolate dumped on top. Not a lot of fanfare but just what she wanted. She spent her week in her swim suit (like the rest of us) enjoying the water. She did a lot of tubing and after I left on Friday Uncle Dale talked her into attempting to ski. Dana put the stabilizer bar from our trainer skis onto our big skis and on the 3rd attempt Abbey skied for about 20 yards before she walked right out of the skis. She needs an in between pair. She was so proud that she had done it and I was very sad to have missed it. No pictures to document it. Abbey also loved the trip to the Go Karts and our very rain shortened day at Silver Dollar City. I guess getting to ride only two roller coasters was good enough. The sprint back to our vehicle in parking lot D wasn't.....right guys?

Carson was happy all week if it involved anything with the water. That kid just loves to swim and jump. As you have seen in previous photos that the little kids have these really cool life vests called puddlejumpers (which were the talk of the resort) and Carson's has a shark on the front of his. We had lovingly started calling him "shark bait" when we bought it for him. Somehow, that morphed into "shark bait..ooh,ah,ah" (like on Nemo) during our vacation. He would even yell it just before he would jump into the lake. Carson and Kody teased each other back and forth about that all week. He hasn't been on the tube since I dumped him in Clear Lake in June, but Kyle and Kody talked him into it after Jordan and I headed for home. No photos of that either. Carson had a great time Go Karting and riding the few rides he got to at Silver Dollar City before it poured.

Emma was all about swimming or riding in the boat. No tubing for her yet but Abbey did talk her into jumping off the dock with her while holding hands. A major step for her. We were all in that water cheering and she smiled so big. She also entertained much of the resort (remember it's small) with her singing while on the deck of our cabin. I secretly tried to take some film of her show while sitting on the sofa. You will see in the montage what looks like a bad shot but if you listen and watch carefully you will hear her and occasionally see some dance moves as she passes in front of the deck doors.

Dana enjoyed a week of no Blackberry, tubing and skiing, but mostly it was spending time with his brother that made this vacation so special. He got an occasional nap when he could. I think his least favorite thing about the week was hauling a full large cooler up and down the hill from the cabin to the boat and back. And probably when one of the boat trailer tires blew on the way home and neither Jordan or I were with. Thank goodness for Kyle and Kody who were traveling with them. He did have some strapping lads (hee hee) to help out. And thank goodness for his sharp as a tack wife...without her mind like a steal trap...he might never have remembered that he put the spare tire key on the boat key ring! Anytime, honey. :)

I just enjoyed being with my family. Not worrying about laundry, cleaning, and schedules! I got two books read, floated most of the week away on the lake, took lots of pictures of the kids doing their stuff, and drank my fair share of the Miller Lite that traveled with us! (With lots of help from the 4 other adults with me!) I had about 16 hours completely alone in our home after I dropped Jordan at the bus for camp and before Dana got home with the kids. It was the longest I had ever been alone here and it was quite strange. I didn't sleep well or even sleep in. Which was ok because Dana lovingly sent home most of the dirty laundry with me so I could get a head start. I know, I am one lucky girl! :)

Dana wasn't home with the crew but 10 minutes and Emma had stripped down and put on one of her princess dresses, Carson had started the Wii, and Abbey was stashed safely away in her room catching up on the latest Jonas Brothers music and any Miley Cyrus news. 10 minutes after that was the sound of Carson and Emma arguing and Dana asking me "Do you know where the......went?". Welcome home!

This week will mark the end of the summer as we start school on Monday. Lots of things to do. More on that with our next post. For now...vacation memories!

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