OOOPS!

Ahh, I am losing it....in the last post I forgot to explain exactly why Brayden is MY boy. So here it goes....here he is opening his presents...

Thrilled to get a Mickey Mouse jump rope.

Playing outside with the chalk sprayer, didn't work, had to return it. :(

Now here it is: my boy jump roping with his helmet on... I have to admit this was probably the best choice. His first round of jumping resulted in his head on the concrete. I guess I forgot how complicated jumping can be...coordination with twirling the rope and jumping at just the right time. I demonstrated for him, then had him take a turn. He was concentrating so hard at watching the rope hit the ground, so he would know when to jump, he completely fell over, with his head catching him on the fall. I have to say, it was so scary to the point, I didn't even laugh, I really thought he was going to have a concussion. We iced it and back he went, this time with his helmet on. I think he is a tad accident prone, just like his Mama!

These are some of my favorite pics. from the weekend:

Ellie and Brayden cozy on the couch.

The kids trying out B's new dance mat.

Ellie talking to Grandma Wagener and telling her all about her NEW shoes!

The girls and their new shoes!

Danielle's new kicks!

That's MY boy!

Whew! Last week was a busy week! I don't know if it was because it was the last week of Summer....but I am glad things are going to slow down, and we're headed for our vacation! These are a few of my favorites from last week. Brayden had his first soccer practice!! I was so pumped, I get to be the assistant coach, and my friend's husband, Brian, is coaching. I get to do all the fun stuff, without having to plan anything! I love it! Here is B putting on all his gear, I forgot how long it actually takes to put on all the soccer stuff, especially for a now five year old! :)

He had to make sure it all worked, by running through our house. I let it slide, because he was so excited. I bought the stuff over a year ago because the indoor center was having such a great deal! I am hoping we can squeeze the cleats through this season, he was complaining that they were too tight, but theoretically they should fit! Hopefully at least one of the girls can wear them eventually too.

Here I am diligently working with the kids (I think we were listening to coach Brian). I got four of the kids and Brian got the other four. There's only eight on a team at this age. I told Brian after practice that he has to have Brayden on his side because he just whined and complained and told me he already knew how to do everything. :)

Brian with the other half. I am bummed we are going to miss the first two games because we will be on vacation, hopefully Brayden won't be benched for the rest of the season. :)

AHH, Friday, the 4th, was Brayden's B-day. I was very excited to have a fun day and let him choose what he wanted to do. We started out with a fancy Birthday breakfast. He chose "special" waffles (not the frozen ones we have everyday), with fruit and cool whip. I have to say, it was mighty tasty!

His sisters enjoyed them too! Then we were off to the mall to meet the Mommy's group for a meet-up at the play place. It was a good time!

Ellie taking control and driving the plane.

Brayden and Keegan in the helicopter. After the play place, we headed to Toys-r-us, with Keegan in tow, to get B's birthday crown and balloon. (He's part of the B-day club, so he gets this plus a $3 coupon)! So fun, it is always a wonderful idea to take four kids into a toy store by yourself! The lady there was really nice and gave ALL the kids crowns and balloons. While we were waiting for all the balloons to be blown up, B fell and cut his arm on something (I still don't know how he did it). It was somewhat deep and bled all over his shirt, and when he sees blood, he FREAKS out! This kind of put a damper on the whole experience, but we all made it back to the car alive.

B ticked off, Keegan, Dani and Ellie with their crowns. (Note: the balloons are all shoved in the back, I tried to be safe, I couldn't see out the back, but I thought that was better than having them bounce or be thrown, all over the van).

If you look closely, you can see B's scratch. Next, we were supposed to meet Daddy for lunch at Round Table, but first we had to make a stop at the house for a cold wash cloth and a band-aid. I tell ya, that makes all the difference in the world! After lunch, Keegan played at our house, B opened his presents, then we went out for a family dinner. All in all, I think it was a good day for a new five year old!

New post below

It took forever to upload B's party pics. It is under the river posting, I had to go back and edit it.

The River

As Summer winds down, we are trying to take advantage of the last hot days that we have. We headed to the river where the kids could swim and play to their hearts content!

Brayden, Dani and Kent. I think B is freaking out about the bugs/bees.

Dani thrilled to be near the water!

This is the best pic. I could get of all three of them, pretty sad, I know.

Ellie worked very hard at watering all the sand with her water pail.

Happyp 5th Birthday Brayden!

My little boy is five years old today! We had his family party last weekend, and man was it fun! Ellie is ready to swim and play!

Daddy getting the girls prepped and ready to party!

YAY for the water slide!

Pizza in the backyard, does it get any better than this?

I got a shot of all the Dads and the kids! Samantha Seaboldt, Keegan, Danielle, Ellie, Kent, Joey and Bryan Seaboldt, Kelly, Owen, Ally and Brayden (rolling down the hill).

Joey Seaboldt

All the Great-Grandparents.

Dairy Queen, Mickey Mouse ice cream cake!

Eliette and Brayden

Great-Grandpa Petrousek

Brayden loving his new truck from Auntie Helen!

Happy Birthday Brayden, I love you!

Playdate with Laina and Marin

Last week when Kent was out of town, my friend, Leigh, came over for dinner with her two daughters. Once again, I uploaded my pics. backwards..... Riding bikes at the end of the evening. Brayden let Laina wear his helmet, so he is wearing his skiing helmet. I know, what a gentleman. :)

Jumping in the bounce house.

Danielle was obsessed with baby Marin! She LOVES babies. Kind of scary considering Marin is 7 weeks old and weighs just over 7 pounds. Dani wanted to share her baby doll with her, which was almost as big as Marin!

EVERYONE checking out baby Marin!

Before Leigh came over I put the kids to work shucking the corn that my neighbor gave to us. They thought it was pretty cool, all except Dani, who didn't do ANYTHING. If you notice she is just watching and playing with her baby, this is very typical of that sneaky girl!

Ellie hard at work.

Brayden getting the job done.

Leigh, thanks for a fun evening, and I still need the recipe for that salad please!

Yep, that was us!

Bike ride anyone? If you are an almost five year old who has just learned to ride without training wheels this might sound like a grand idea! However, an hour long bike ride for a new rider without training wheels seemed a little daunting to me. BUT Brayden was raring to go and I didn't want to discourage him. Off we go, the girls in the double jogger and B cruisin' on his bike. Before we left B let me know,

"The weee hill is cancelled."

I said, "That would be nice, but that's not a choice, we don't have any other way to go." I convinced him to push his bike up the hill and walk beside me, he did great! However, after smooth sailing for a while, he crashed right before an intersection. I tell ya, if my boy knew bad words, he would have been using them! He was stomping, screaming, crying and yelling. Of course he thought it was my fault that he crashed. One of my neighbors actually stopped and asked if we wanted a ride home! I said, "Oh no, this is so normal we'll be fine, but thanks." (This wasn't even 1/4 of the way into our walk, but I was determined). We cruised along for a long time, we only had three minor crashes, and he was able to hold himself together. Finally we neared the end of our walk and B was so glad to be close to home. He took off, with me yelling after him, "SLOW DOWN, PUT YOUR BRAKES ON!" He was long gone, cruising down the weeee hill, and I saw it all coming in slow motion...... he swerved a little and went head over handle bars and bit it HARD on the pavement. I ran down the weee hill with the girls, I got to him just in time after he stood up and I could see scrapes, scratches and blood everywhere. It was so sad! Honestly, I am so surprised this hadn't happened sooner. He hobbled over to me and the first words out of his mouth were, "I'm never going for a walk with you again, I am staying home!"

I couldn't blame him, he was a mess! At this point it was good we were close to home, because B had to sit in the stroller, Dani walked and I pushed and dragged B's bike the rest of the way home. Neighbors stopped and stared, people looked out their windows (not kidding) to see what in the hell was going on, a screaming banshee, and a lady just trying to get home!

I tell ya, we used almost every band-aid in the box, two different types of medicine, and lots of frozen vegetable bags to make the boy feel better. After an hour he went to bed and was fine. He woke up the next morning, got dressed in a polo and khaki shorts and I had to laugh out loud. He has scabs all over his face, looking like a tough guy, but still dressed preppy!

Here's my boy after medicine, shower, band-aids, and ice.

So if you heard someone screaming bloody murder, that was just us having a pleasant, evening bike ride/walk.