Bye Miss Julie

One of our favorite preschool teachers and current babysitter is moving to Colorado.  This is a sad day for all of us!  Good luck Miss Julie!  We love you!



Big Sister

Brielle is proud to announce she will be a big sister in November!  She is so excited!  Brielle is constantly talking about all of the things she will do for her little sister/brother and all of the things she will teach her little sister/brother.  I know the new baby will be in good hands! 

Cute Comments (she talks about the baby every day):

- The morning after we told her she would be a big sister, she ran into our room and asked "Will the baby be here in 5 days?"  It's going to be quite a long wait.  :)

- I can teach the new baby karate  when they are 2. 

- If it's a girl she can have all of my old clothes.  If it's a boy we can give my old clothes to another baby girl.

- Do they have bathrooms here (in church)?  Yes.  Do you need to go to the bathroom?  No.  I was making sure there was a place to change the baby's diaper.

- (driving home) Mom you know I know how to unbuckle.  Well, I can unbuckle the baby when we are back here and hold the baby.  Well that's sweet, but we all have to be buckled in when we are driving.  I will hold the baby really tight though.  :)

We know she will be a rock star big sister!!!! 

Tae Kwon Do

I offered Brielle cheerleading, dance, or tae kwon do.  Surprise!  She chose tae kwan do.  I was shocked.  The best part is that she loved it.  Her introductory course included 8 lessons and a uniform.  She earned three tapes, learned to count in Korean, learned all kinds of kicks and arm moves, and sparred with partners.  The sparring was cute.  Each child had two flags and the goal was to get the other person's flags.  I was surprised that she did it without getting scared since she doesn't show a lot of aggressiveness.  She got right in the "ring" and tried her best.  She didn't win a match, but she did manage to get some flags.  However, she was so stunned when she got a flag that she stopped and stared at it.  Then the other kid would rip her flags down and win.  She was the youngest in the class, so we'll see how she improves as time goes on. 

I asked her if she wanted to keep going to tae kwon do.  She said, "Yes. I want to do it until I get a black belt.  It's the best."  Glad she has such high goals!  It will be fun to see where this one goes!  :)

Royals Game Fun

We went to the Royals game with friends last Sunday.  Brielle had a blast!  The Royals lost, which now means we have a 0-2 losing streak going.  Hopefully game number three will prove to be different!

Here's our day in pictures:

At the Little K getting ready to bat...

First time mini-golfing 

Running the bases...oh wait the whole field after the game 

Brielle ran the whole time! 

Brielle and Jenna rounding third base 

John, Jenna, and Brielle waiting in line 

A little more waiting... 

And some more...we learned patience!

Happy faces to be at the game!  Go Royals!!!!



Ducks

Our neighbors got baby ducks at Easter.  It was amazing to see them grow in such a short amount of time.  Brielle enjoyed watching them, petting them, and now visiting them at the neighborhood "lake". 

Nate and Sarah's Wedding

We celebrated Nate and Sarah's wedding this weekend.  Nate is my brother's friend from high school.  We tailgate together and he lives in Kansas City.  The wedding was beautiful! 

Brielle loved getting to spend the whole weekend with Grandma, Papa, Uncle Jake, and Aunt Samantha.  She was also a party animal!  Typically Brielle is more shy and reserved unless you know her.  However, when there's a DJ and strobe lights she's like a totally new person.  She was struggling during dinner and the wedding, but as soon as the music came on she was a new person.  Luckily, Grandma, Papa, Aunt Samantha, and Uncle Jake love to dance.  She kept dragging them to the floor and would occasionally hit the floor alone.

Wedding party..."I'm sexy and I know it"!  Oh I wish that song would have been around for our wedding!  Grant would totally say no but....

Yummy cupcakes! 

Yeah!  Uncle Jake time! 

So excited to party with Uncle Jake and Aunt Samantha! 

Dancing with Uncle Jake... 

and Aunt Samantha... 

And Papa... 

Getting down! 

Family dance time with Grandma, Papa, and Uncle Jake! 

Fun night!  Congrats Nate and Sarah! 



School Picnic

Cinco de Mayo began with Brielle's school picnic.  This will be our second picnic and Brielle has been looking forward to it for weeks!  We enjoyed the Mexican themed meal and park atmosphere with all the kids.  The highlight of the picnic was probably the pinata or maybe it was getting soaked in the water spout.  We can't wait for next year!

Grant was one of the lucky dads chosen to hold the pinata.  :) 

Excited to take a swing! 

Henry and Brielle showing off their pinata prizes. 

Brielle's face is priceless.  You wouldn't have guessed that she went for a hug earlier and Hudson totally blew past her.  He is in kindergarten...too cool for those pre-schoolers!  :)  



Graduation

I graduated Friday night and the whole family was there!  It was pretty special that Brielle was there to see the whole thing.  Grant was very patient during the ceremony to humor Brielle and move from spot to spot on the bleachers.  My parents said she did great, so we'll stick with that story!  We didn't get any pictures with Grandma and Papa, but they were there too.  We ended the night with some yummy ice cream!  This degree is as much Grant and Brielle's, as it is mine.  Thanks for your support and countless nights alone these last two years!

After the ceremony...all smiles! 

Is that a Dorthy costume?  Yes.  Did I fight this choice.  No.  I've learned to pick my battles and this didn't seem like the right battle.  I guess you might as well wear costumes while people still think you're cute!  :) 

Cute little graduates...Brielle and Alvia.   Yeah!  Our mommies are finally graduating!

I could not have made it through these two years without Whitney!  She's simply the best!



Conversation of the Day

Grant:  Who is going to drive you to karate tomorrow night?  Maybe Brielle can drive herself?

Brielle:  Daddy, I can't drive!  Giggling...  I can only drive in Florida!

She was serious.  Then I remembered the waitress at the sci-fi drive-in gave Brielle her own "driver's license" that was only good in Florida.  :)  ha!  She doesn't forget a thing!