Last Day of First Grade!

We can't believe we now have a second grader!  Time flies.  The class I teach next year as seniors were second graders when I started here.  That means Buddy will be in high school before we know it! EEK!

Buddy's First Turkey

Buddy shot his very first turkey this year!  We got him a small shotgun, so Daddy could take him during youth season.  He didn't like shooting it at first because it kicks pretty hard.  He got used to it though after some practice in the yard.  Daddy helped him call one in, and he shot it perfectly (right in the head).  It was a 24 pound Tom turkey.  Since then, he has also shot a smaller Jake turkey.  We aren't sure who was more excited, Buddy or his Daddy!

Easter 2015

Although we didn't get any organized group shots of the kids at Easter, I did get a few action shots during the egg hunt!  A big thanks to Grandma and Grandpa who brought over 60 eggs for the kids to hunt for!  Half of them had cash!

Sissy was cute as can be with her shades on running around looking for eggs!

Little bro didn't look for many eggs because he was too busy opening them and shoving candy in his mouth!

Can you see the frustration on Buddy's face?  I think he is saying something like, "Where are the eggs Grandpa told us were over here!!??"

Drew was the big $$ winner.  He found the most eggs with cash!

Alli is running in the background trying to find her $$ eggs!.  I think Grandma is walking around  wondering where all those $$ eggs are that she hid!

St Lucia

Mom and dad took a much needed adults only trip to St. Lucia.  We went with some good friends of ours.  It is such a beautiful place as you can see in the pictures!

The view of our resort from Fort Rodney.

We got to try some tropical fruits with the locals.

We went zip lining in the rainforest.

Here we are at the volcanic, sulfur, mud bath.  Our skin is still soft nearly a week later!

Swimming Lessons

Now that the twins are 3, they can take swimming lessons without parents being in the pool!  They seem to really enjoy their teacher, Eric.

They have been to the pool a lot, so they have pretty much mastered the skills (head under water, blowing bubbles, kicks, etc) in the class already.  But, it is good for them to have some structured classes, since Buddy gets to do so many activities (basketball, soccer, baseball, etc).

They were having trouble listening last week, so we had to talk about how to behave.  Let's hope this week is better.  They cried when I told them they wouldn't be going to swimming lessons anymore, if they couldn't listen!  They just feed off of each other when misbehaving.  It was funny to watch Eric try to keep them in line.  One would start wandering away in the pool and while he was telling them to get back on the wall, the other one would start misbehaving.  This is exactly why they will NOT be in the same class in school!

Jayhawk Valentine's

For Valentine's day this year, we headed to watch the lady Jayhawks play basketball.  We have been to a few games already this year, and they are tons of fun for kids.  They have a play area set up before the game where kids can make posters and shoot hoops.

Sissy loves to pose with the cheerleaders and dancers!

A pic with Baby Jay!

After halftime, the Jayhawks came out in their Valentine's outfits!  Their shirts had light up hearts on them!

Bowling Party

We decided on a bowling party for Buddy this year.

He had to have a Minecraft cake!

Little bro bowled for about half of a game before he got bored!  There were not enough buttons to push, apparently.  Although, he did find the reset button a few times.

Sissy enjoyed bowling.

Here is the group of party people.  I was worried they might get rowdy and bored, but they all were great!

Seven

Happy 7th Birthday Buddy!  You are a strong-willed, stubborn, smart and goofy ball of energy.  It is hard to keep up with you most days, but we love you very much!  You are definitely a first-born child with all of your perfectionistic tendencies.

100th Day of 1st Grade

The first graders dressed like 100 year old people for the 100th day of school!  It was a cute idea, and there were several good costumes.  Buddy looked great with this mask on!

Here is Buddy with his good friend Ava.  They make a cute old couple!

Snow Fun!

While Dad and Buddy were hunting, Mommy took the twins out to play in the snow.  This is the first time they have had much time outside to play in the snow EVER.  It has always been such a pain to get them all geared up and out the door.  Now that they are older, it is easier!  They had fun, but only played for 20 minutes or so because the wind was howling!

Here, they are having a snowball fight!

Here, they are riding on the sled!

A special pic

I saw a picture like this (with the quote) a few years ago and immediately wanted one similar for the twins.  So, this past summer I took some pictures of them walking through our yard holding hands.  A few weeks ago, I finally got around to putting it together with the words.  I think it turned out cute.  Daddy thinks the quote makes it seem like they were mistreated or something.  Lol.  I just think it symbolizes the special bond that they (and other twins) have.  I have a couple of prints that I will frame and give to them when they are older.

Basketball Star

Buddy played in a basketball league in a nearby town in November.  He loved it!  I'm not sure he loves it more than baseball, but he still had lots of fun.  One of the area high school boys was his coach, so Buddy thought that was pretty cool.  He is now starting another league with boys from his class.  We had our first practice last night, and it seems like it will be a great team with lots of parents willing to help out.

Here is a little video of his mad skills.  Lol.  Disregard the fact that he took 10 steps without dribbling.