Should I Be Concerned...

That this little gal

informed me this morning...

"Mommy - I wanna be a rock star!"

Thank you to Gerald and the crew of "Sid the Science Kid" for inspiring my daughter to NOT want to be a scientist but to be a rock star.

Top Guns Part II

Last Friday we traveled to the Air National Guard in Springfield to see Cousin Jack (the same one from this post) have his final flight as pilot of his F16. They are moving his planes to another state and these pilots said goodbye in style!

It was VERY loud, intense, amazing and, according to Andy's Uncle John, who was a fighter pilot in Desert Storm, "sooooo illegal!"

This picture does not do it justice, but this is Cousin Jack's "finale" - flying overhead, approx. 200 feet above us, going Lord-Only-Knows how many miles per hour (Andy approximates 300mph)...
IN-BETWEEN 2 LIGHT POLES!
It was A-M-A-Z-I-N-G!

Our Jack giving a thumbs up!

Will agrees!

Brooke had a good ole' time too...as long as her headphones were on! "Too Loud!" She said all day!

We congratulate Cousin Jack and wish him all the best in this next chapter of his career!

Let's Just Say...

All the hard work was
TOTALLY
WORTH
IT!

Just wish I could spend it all shopping!
Argh...school tuition...

Why Didn't Anyone Tell Me...

That a Yard Sale was
SO.
MUCH.
WORK.

In case you didn't know, let me tell you

A YARD SALE IS A LOT OF WORK.

Summer Daze

Not many pictures to be had. We have had a lot of fun but I have not been as ready with my camera as I should be.

We have done some of this

and this

and some really good this


I hosted Kristin and Ju for our annual Summer Shopping Trip
(yeah for an outlet and Ikea about 30 mins from my house!)
and we all hosted the Mitchell Family from Tennessee and few days last week.
Again, no pictures. Dumb.

This week the boys are at VBS and LOVING IT while Brooke is NOT LOVING the nursery at the gym by herself. Ugh.

And this Friday and Saturday belongs to my 1st ever Yard Sale, compliments of my childrens' enormous wardrobe, my in-laws moving and me letting go of ALL my baby gear.

Andy says "You won't even make $100."

Them's fightin' words.
I will let you know who wins.

One Of Those Days

It has been one of those days around here.

Majama Day in the morning for the kids, while Mommy did some cleaning.

Ran errands and had lunch at one of our favorite (nasty) spots - Cici's Pizza.

Play for the boys, nap for Brooke in the afternoon while Mommy did more cleaning.

The boys decided to "run laps" in the family room tonight. From the front door to the window, one straight shot, 50 times for Will, 60 times for Jack and then 70 times for Will. All the while Brooke running around like a chicken with her head cut off yelling numbers.

Then I find this...

My prayer is that they will always long for these days and always want to be this close.

Just another one one of those - unforgettable - days.

Top Guns

A few weeks ago Angela and I had the idea of our families going to the Dayton Air Show.
We thought perhaps Andy's Cousin, Jack - a National Air Guard Fighter Pilot based out of Wright-Pat in Dayton - might be able to get us all some tickets for this past weekend.

Did.He.Ever.

As luck would have it, one of the engines in one of the Blue Angels planes went kaput after they reached Dayton on Thursday. After another engine was flown up from Florida, Cousin Jack helped install the new engine so they could make show time Saturday afternoon.

We all quickly became "Blue Angels VIPs." Holla!

Parking up front (as in drive on the runway to get to our section!), air-conditioned tent, free food and drinks and front row seats to the shows.

That.Is.How.We.Roll.

On a sad note, this was the last show for cousin Jack, as his planes get removed from Wright-Pat in less than 2 weeks (we will go up for his final flight - should be AWESOME!). So we got to see his plane up close and see him decked out in his flight suit. The boys think he is really cool!


Showing the boys where the bullets come out!

Cousin Jack's plane - see his name!

Thanks, Cousin Jack, for an awesome day!