BAMA 2014 was a huge...

Success!!!

About a month ago, we hit the road for a little 17+ hour road trip to Alabama to see my Nana & meet up with my mom, my bro, and his girlfriend. We spent 5 days in the sun, soaking up more than just a little sunshine. 

We soaked up new memory after new memory & could not have had a better visit. 

The road trip was the first step & I'm proud to say that the looong hours in the car didn't even phase me. We wrapped up a bunch of surprises & made a roadtrip clip for each of the kiddos. If their clip stayed up for a given amount of time, they got to pick & open up a surprise.... 

The clips...

A few of the surprises...they were a hit and did keep the kiddos busy!! (And, there were only two times during the entire trip where someone "lost" the chance to open a surprise!) A definite win-win for everyone in the car!!! 

Making Fruit-Loop jewelry is always exciting!!! 

She made a stethoscope with her pack of pipe cleaners surprise...so creative!!!

Even Daddy joined in on the pipe cleaner surprise!! Nice snake!! 

After the long drive, we finally made it to Nana's house!!! 

And IMMEDIATELY hit the beach!!! 

I've said this a million times, but there's just something about the beach!!! No stress & plenty of smiles. 

A fun day of swimming, shell finding, sand castle building, and just listening to the waves crash. Perfection. 

The rest of the gang soon arrived and we spent the next day down at the Alba Club, on the bay side of the Gulf...

One word.

Amazing. 

Nothing beats the bay life!!! Brings back sooo many childhood memories of visiting my Nana & Pops down in Bayou Le Batre...

Memories that are forever beautifully engrained in my mind. 

Memories that I want my own children to experience time & time again....

(Yes, he's making fun of my "skinny arm" pose! Ha! Love him!!!)

And, probably my favorite pic of the day... 

Love this place. 

The next day brought more beach, of course!!! 

Between the beach & the bay we had fun doing the simplest things... 

Then it was, unfortunately, time to make the trip home...(with a pit-stop on Kansas City, which is another post in itself)...

Loved the laughs. Loved the sunshine. Loved the laughter. Loved the time we spent together. Without a doubt. 

BAMA 2014 is in the books! 

What a trip!!!!

Flag Football is in his...

Sights and he couldn't be more thrilled!! 

After a summer full if early morning conditioning work with the high school kids where Jason coaches, he's been chomping at the bit to get in and play a little flag football. 

We opted not to sign him up for tackle, figuring he needed at least a year of flag football under his belt before going there. (Plus, deep down, this momma is just NOT ready for crunching body parts.) 

The evaluation went well, he had a blast,  and walked away proud of himself & excited to get on a team and onto that field!!!

Here's to a great season of flag football, Trey Man!!! We're proud of all the work you've put in with Dad & the high school boys & know you're going to have a blast!!! We'll be there cheering you on, that's for sure!!! Way to work!!!

Another first..

for Miss Ty!! 

Yesterday's trip to the pool marked the first time Ty has jumped off the diving board!! Woot!!! 

I don't know about you, but when I was growing up, jumping off the diving board at the pool was sort of like a write-of-passage! You were now a real big kid & could pretty much conquer the world! I know it's a big deal for every kid, but I honestly didn't think she'd be at this point already. I was thinking more of a, "I'm in second grade" write-of-passage moment and not a "I don't even start kindergarten for another four weeks" moment!!! She's growing up soooo quickly!! But, I can't hold her back...if she says she's ready, then I have to learn to loosen the reigns just a (little) bit.

So, after getting measured to make sure she was taller than the 48" requirement, she doned her blue bracelet & hit the deep end. I stood by and made her prove she could swim in the deeper waters & showed her exactly which direction she'd swim after she hit the water. She said she was ready....

In cute fashion she claimed the steps, basically snail-paced it to the end of the board, immediately started biting her nails & looked at me with that' "I'm scared outta my mind!" look. I gave her a thumbs up & told her to only jump if she wanted to and that turning back was an option. Ty did turn around and walk back away from the water & the end of the board. But, before climbing down, she turned around again and headed towards the end of the board. She looked at me and smiled & said she was going to do it...

About 10 seconds & a face & belly flop later, I watched her swim to the side of the pool holding back tears that flooded out once she reached the ladder & climbed out of the pool. 

In her typical Tylee way, the sobs ended, she wiped her eyes, and told me she was going to do it again. This time we talked about doing a "pencil jump" and making sure that she jumped into the water FEET  first....

And, guess what...the second time (and the next hundred times) were exactly what she imagined when she first walked out on that board....

Way to go, Tylee!!! I'm so proud of you and so blessed to be able to be right there with you as you experience another first!! Love you to the moon and back!!!

Mom & Kids' Night Out...

At the Des Moines Menace game last night was a huge success!!! Everyone had a great time & we won!!! 

After a fun-filled Saturday of morning football evaluations, baseball practice, and pool time with family friends, I decided to take these five to catch a little soccer action!!! We've never been to a game before, and I guess with the thought that summer's winding down, last night was the perfect night!! 

It was fan appreciation night so we all got some cool shades... 

The boys got a little game truck time (which they've only gotten to eyeball from afar until this point) & the girls had fun playing a little mini pick-up game of soccer...

We even stayed for autographs!!! (Which I thought were going to be on player posters...not so much! Ha!)

 

Don't worry, they came right off with a little wet wipe action...and then the boys got to play goalie on the field!!! 

Had fun spending the day with you guys. Exactly what these summer months are all about!!! 

Last days...

Of this year's school year have come & gone...but that doesn't mean we didn't celebrate!!!

Trey wrapped up 2nd grade, Ty finished up preschool, and Tay transitioned to the "big kids" room at daycare!!! 

Can I get a Woot-Woot?!?

As much as I looooove summer, I do have to say that time's ticking by waaaay too quickly for this Momma!!! I mean my "baby" is already THREE!!! Agh!!! 

Ty finished up preschool and is beyond amped to start kindergarten!!! I know she's ready and let the countdown begin!!! You've done such an amazing job in preschool, Ty! You're working hard on your reading skills and can't get enough easel work. Those letters, rhyming words, and "Guess what I'm drawing!" games are looking fantastic! 

Trey's eight now and starting to enter that, "MOM! You are soooo dorky!" phase! So....this is all I got from him...

Ha!! I'll take what I can get and keep this as evidence that parenting can sometimes be somewhat of payback!! So, when he's 30 & I hear about his kiddos not wanting to cooperate, I'll just whip this bad boy out and smile. 

Great job in 2nd grade, Buddy!!! We love you and know you'll have a blast of a summer!!! Here's to another one in the books!!!

Love you, smarties & I am beyond proud of all the hard work you put in to learning over the past year!!! 

Who ever said that...

Blogging needs to be done in some sort of proper chronological order?!?

Hopefully no one because I'm all outta sorts in the blogging department!! I like to blame it on all this awesome technology! I mean the iPhone has made plugging into the laptop NOT a necessity. Between easy access to photos & easy access to instant prints of all varieties, I just don't get on the computer. As in like never. And, unlike some people, I am NOT a quick iPhone typer. (Is that even a word?) 

No, but seriously, trying to write a blog post on the iPhone "keyboard" takes forever & just ends up with tons of typos due to my awesomely chubby fingers. 

So, please excuse the fact that my posts are not in order & are not updated nearly quick enough....life calls & sometimes, quite frankly, I forget to jump in the Blogger app & "type" away!!!

With all that being said though, I do have quite a bit to catch up on!!! So, without further ado....

I'm gonna get (close to) caught up....

But first, lemme take a selfie!! Ha!!! My kids are going to forever hang their heads in shame!!! 

Bahahahaha!!! 

Happy 4th of July from

The Weite Crew!!!

What a fun-filled couple of days it's been around here. Great company and plenty of patriotic happenings....

God Bless America!!!

We truly hope you all enjoyed precious moments with friends and family!!! We all know, as always, there is a tremendous amount to celebrate!!!

And, as always...I took waaaay toooo many pictures!!! Here are a few of my faves....

Who doesn't love a teeny tiny big wheel?!?

Parades always are a barrel of fun...

What a sweet big bro...because every little sis needs some parade candy!!

Loving the floats in the annual parade...and Tay's little "truck or treat" mentality was the cutest thing. Ever.

And Ty's excitement about everything these days just can't be beat!!! It's what I call zest!

Post parade pic of my cuties!! (Who obviously racked up in the parade goodies department!)

Sparklers are always a hit...

Cheeses & sillies from this bunch!!! 

Early morning park fun was a must!!! The weather was PERFECT!!!

Trey & Tey putting on a show...

And Ty floating around as free as a bird!!!

Reachin' for the stars!!!

Splishin' & Splashin' with the neighbors...

Being silly and playing around unti the fireworks!! What a fun bunch!!!

Family shot! Love them!

And a girls' shot to wrap up the photo overload!!! 

What a fun time!!! Munchkins, I love you to the moon & back and had a blast celebrating Independence day with you three!!! How lucky we are to be free!!!