Birthday Boy Griffin

OK, I thought I'd put some pictures up before I get way behind.  Griffin had a great
party.  Pizza and Butterbear was served.  The boys painted shirst with different spells
on them.  They threw water balloons at the bad guys in a Harry Potter poster, and
also ran around casting spells with their glow stick 'wands'.  The brought home acid
drops & chocolate frogs.

We are leaving for Idaho early tomorrow morning, and today has been so busy,
so a quick picture.  Yesterday Griffin Celebrated his eighth birthday.  He had a
Harry Potter party with his friends. My awesome friend made his cool cake for
him, he loved it!

I'll update later on, BUT...... maybe not for a week or more.

Back to school shopping

We decided to go out and buy all the back to school supplies we need.
I've been buying a few things here and there, but Patrick said we should
go one time and get the rest.  It feels good to be done, but I hate spending
money  :(

With three kids who all have a pretty long list of things they must buy, it

can get expensive.  This year, they were all due for new lunch bags and

backpacks as well.  I usually order really nice ones that last two years,

but this time we just went to Children's Place and Old navy, where they

picked some stuff out.  As soon as we got home the got to work seperating

their own supplies into bags.  Ready or not school is starting soon.

Beautiful Sunset

Yesterday afternnon we finally got a really good rainstorm, that lasted longer than
five minutes.  After dinner the sun was back out, and everything was dry again.
We played in the front yard, and enjoyed the most beautiful sunset.  It was raining
somewhere in the distance, so it made it even more beautiful.

A new look

This is something we worked on this weekend.

We decided since we were mounting our new TV on the wall, it would be a good

time to re-paint out family room and Kitchen.  It went pretty fast, and turned out nicely. 

The color is really more gold, it's way off in the pictures.

Books

We are a family of readers.  This summer we've had plenty of time to enjoy a few
good books. I thought I'd share some of the kids favorites, in case you've got some
kids who also love to read.

Trevor -  Just read the first two books in The Archer Legacy, by Richard Newsome
He loved them, and can't wait for book three to come out next spring.  Lots of action,
many different countries, and tons of adventure. 

Griffin - Is currently reading book five of the Artimis Fowl books, by Eoin Colfer.
He  is addictited to theses books.  Each book is over three hundred pages. 
He gets on new one on Tuesday (our library day), and by the next week he is ready
for a new one.   Lots of action and adventure, and magical creatures.

Savannah-  Is starting to really enjoy reading.  Her favorites seems to be
Dr. Suess books.  More than anything she enjoys being read to.  We've
recently started to enjoy  Francis books, by Russell Hoban
Our favorite so far is Bread and jam for Frances.  It reminds me of savannah's
picky eating.  Savannah thought the story was funny.

I've been reading to the kids as well.  The first book we read this

 summer was The Candymakers, by Wendy Mass this was such a fun book!

  We all love candy, so this was perfect for us.  It was filled with mystery too, some

 nights the chapter  would end, and the kids would beg to read more just to find out what

happened next.

I am currently reading Aliens on Vacation, by Clete Smith to the kids. 

 So far, it is intresting  It seems (after only four chapters) a little slower than other

 stories  we've read.  Hopefully the story gets better as we go on.

Look

First off, Trevor is offically a Webelo now.  Here he is getting ready to leave for his first meeting.

Next, we wanted to show Grandpa Pat the display show box we got for Trevor's Pheasant.

Pain, pain, go away

I've been having really bad leg pain.  The other day I watched some videos online
and finally decided I must have shin splints.  I decided to take a few weeks off of
running to help them heal.  Today I had an appointment at Creative Therapy.
The guy who was woking with me said it was not shin splints, it was problems with
my calfs.  He did a super strong vibration massage, then did Kiensio taping on my
legs.  I feel a relief of pain already.  My legs feel so supported.  The tape should
stay on for about 3 days.  I have a Doctor appoinment on Thursday, and if I can
get my Doctor to write a prescription for physical therapy, I'll be able to go
back a few times for some massages and strength training.

Hopefully, I'll be back to running in no time  :)

10 years old

Today our baby boy  turned 10 years old.  Seriously, this seems crazy to me.  How did
he get to a double didget so fast?  He opted to have a small family celebration
instead of a friend party. My awesome friend made his cake once again, it was
fantastic! He was thrilled with it.

While our family was visiting, they gave Trevor some gifts. 
A feather body from a  Pheasant (Trevor collects feather, so this was really cool)
A Barnes & Noble gift card
A lego space shuttle kit
It was so nice of them to bring him gifts!  He felt very special.
In the evening after Karate, he came home and opened more presents.
Money from Grandpa John & from grandma Linda
A gift from the family who made his cake a book, and two very cool Star Wars figures.
A movie from Mom & Dad, and a gift for a trip to a local amusment park this
weekend from us too.

After dinner, we went to the park close to the time it got dark, and played
some soccer.  He had a really good day.  It's  so nice to see him smile.
Since then he's spent most of his b-day money on :
A new fishing rod & bait (can't wait to go fishing in Idaho with
Grandpa John)
A magic kit
A game for the wii

The Fab 4th

We started the day with some early morning painting.  Each year we paint a flag
on the driveway. This year there were a few extra helpers.  Early on, Grandpa and
amp; Uncle Russell went to pick up Krispie Cream dognuts for another high
calorie breakfast  :)
It got hot rather quickly, so we all took turns working in the heat to get the
flag painted.

We all went to the movies, and saw the New Transformers movie.

It was a great way to stay cool during the hottest part of the day.

After that it was time for our bbq.  He had lots of yummy food, then went out

front to first light off some sparklers, then some small firecrackers that Uncle

Russell had bought for the kids enjoyment.

Another round of visitors

My brother and his family left Friday morning.  We quickly started cleaning up,
preparing for another round of visitors.  We agreed it felt a little like running a
hotel  :)

Saturday evening Patrick's Dad, Brother, Sister, and Brother in-law arrived
at our home. His sister brought her dogs, so Cody was pleased to have some
new playmates for the second time in one week.  Not much went on the first night.
Just some hanging out.

Sunday after everyone had a  good breakfast of biscuts and gravy, we headed
over to the Pork & Brew to try some bbq.  It was HOT out!!  We survived
the heat, and actually had a pretty good time.  Good food, games, rides, and good
company.

We spent the rest of the day at home relaxing.  We had dinner, and enjoyed

eachothers company. We made smores for dessert, and played in the backyard until it was dark.

    The kids all watched a movie with Grandpa, while

all the other adults played a fun game. 

Pictures of our visit