Summer 2013 {Weeks 8 and 9}

We have had the most fun and BUSY weeks of the summer so far!  Grandma and Grandpa Smith, Aunt Sara and Uncle Kris, and Aunt Karla and Brooke and Isaac came from Indiana and Ohio to spend a week with us!  It was so much fun!!!!


First, Lily was working on riding bike with no training wheels.  She's definitely getting close!

We also squeezed in a summer school session with the neighbors before the family came.  Here, Oliver and Taylor were practicing cursive letters.

Tuesday morning we finished up the last-minute things we had to do before Grandma came, and then, played Uno while we anxiously waited....

Grandma took us out to Braum's the FIRST night she was here!  (She must know that some certain people in this family love ice cream!)  :-)

Brooke and Brahm became quick friends.  She loved playing with him and taking care of him, and he loved the attention!

Two different afternoons we went to the pool to cool off.  Good thing we have a family of fishes!  It was a great way to spend the afternoon!

Brooke, Isaac and Brahm played ball with Grandpa one night....oddly enough, we had two different evenings where 20+ people came over to have supper and hang out, and both nights, it poured and stormed!  I am NOT complaining though--we were so thankful for that much rain in July!!!

The kids swam in the rain, and then came in for a rousing game of Uno!

Dark clouds another morning.  Just beautiful.

The REAL reason everyone came down was for the family reunion on Grandma's Smith's MOM's side of the family.  It was here in Newton, and so Joel's family came for that, and we were able to go as well since it was just down the street from us!

One night, Grandpa and Brahm played ball....

Sara and Lily took a picture in the photobooth....

 Even Uncle Kris convinced Lily to go in with him!  Truth is, Uncle Kris has won his way into Lily's heart, and wow does she love him!

 

Another beautiful morning.  Karla took our family pictures a few miles out of town and it was the perfect cool, cloudy morning for it.  We are so thankful for the rain and cooler temperatures this year!!!

Aunt Sara also checked Lily's heart and lungs with her stethoscope.  Lily has a fascination with nurses, so this was so fun for her to "hear" what a heart and lungs are supposed to sound like!

We are so thankful that everyone came to visit us.  And guess what?  In two weeks, we get to go visit THEM! 

Summer 2013 {Week 7}

This week was the least-busy week of the summer so far, and while that was nice and relaxing, with the heat and extra time at home...we all lost our tempers a few times more than we should have.  Myself included.  We'll gloss over that part for the purpose of this blog post, so here are some of the highlights of the week! 

Brahm figured out he likes turning on lights this weekend...

and REALLY doesn't like it when you stop him.  

 

I took this picture of Brahm while we were eating ice cream (which is a nightly occurrence at our house) and it looked SO much like Oliver I could hardly believe it. 

 

Taylor and Mason came back!  The kids were so excited to get working on their "house" again.  Oliver and Mason were busy building bunk beds for them all the sleep on. 

 

 

Lily taught Brahm to paint the other day.  Seriously, the things this kid gets to do.  And he actually didn't make as big of a mess as I worried he would! 

 

We went and swam at the big pool again when the temps reached 106...pretty much the only way to cool off! 

Oliver decided he desperately wanted to make money this week.  He painted several pictures, set them up on the table, priced them at $1-2 a piece, and starting selling.  THANK YOU to those of you who bought one!  He was thrilled and has started adding to his tool collection with his profits.  The entrepreneurial spirit does NOT come from me. 

We had two new tenants move into apartments #6 and #9 this week.  (Actually, Joel found old house numbers and gave them to the kids...they immediately wanted them on their bedroom doors...so we told them we'd start charging rent.)  :-)

Joel and I had a chance to go out on a date before we brought our photobooth to an event that raised money for the Harbor House in Wichita (a safehouse for women).  It's always a great event and so fun to do--but we had a sna-fu with a camera and it was not good.  NOT good at all.  One of those nights you choose NOT to put your sign up so people don't know whose photobooth business that is.  Yuck. 

 
Finally, I got a tip from a friend that there were some great buys north of Newton a ways...so we took a morning and made a small roadtrip to find some bargains.  I bought 3 old white vintage windows, and two old school desks (that needed a LOT of work!) for $10!!!  The kids have been asking for "slanty desks" for their rooms so they can "work"....and here they are working on the final touches. 

Next week, 2 aunts and Grandma and Grandpa Smith are coming, and we are SO excited to see them!!!

Summer 2013 {Week 6}

Hooray for nice weather!  We had an absolutely beautiful week of 80-degree temperatures, which for July in Kansas, is UNHEARD of!!!  We also had lots of fun with friends and family this week:

Oliver and Lily's friends, Taylor and Mason, left AGAIN to go away for a week, so as soon as they did, Oliver built a plane so that he could catch up with them.  We checked out their flight times and wrote down the plane number, just in case he spotted it from above.  Oddly enough, Brahm ended up being the test pilot for that flight....and Oliver decided that the plane probably wouldn't have flown well after all...

 

The good part about our friends leaving is that we got to have Brahm's friend, Gavin, over two different days.  We LOVE Gavin, and the kids had such fun with him!  He and Brahm went grocery shopping with me one morning, and they even tried resting for a while together!  (note the word 'tried'.  This last approximately 2.7 seconds.)

 

My parents came over one night so Dad could help Joel finish siding on one portion of the house.  HOORAY that our siding is getting SOO close to being done!!!  And the bonus?  We have a multi-colored house for a while!  

We had some other fun friends come to our house one morning for lunch and a play date.  7 kids, and Lily was the only girl....that was a LOT of energy!  But we love having Braden and Luke, and Levi and Griffin over!  (And somehow, the boys decided their shirts needed to come off....)

Oliver and Joel playing cards.  You can't be a true Smith if you don't play cards. 

The fourth of July is a HUGE hit at our house.  It is one our kids' favorite days of the WHOLE year!  They LOVE fireworks!  We finally went to a tent and bought a basket of them, and then spent the next two nights lighting them off.  Brahm got in on the fun, too!

 

 

 

 (Brahm dropping poppers, followed his immediate reaction...)

 

 

 

(Oh, after picking out fireworks, we had to stop by Twisted Cow to try their new Greek Yogurt soft serve!  Nothing wrong with a little market research, right?)

 

My brother Tyler and his family came somewhat unexpectedly for the week and stayed with my parents.  We were THRILLED they came, and were so excited it worked to see them one evening!

 

My hilarious nephew Elias, and me.  This kid cracks me up.

  

Finally, two summer-y pics of Brahm.  He makes the "beep" sound when he pinches his chest.  Crazy kid.

 And blueberries. He loves them.  And asks for them after every nap, 

along with his milk, of course....