The Nitty Gritty

In October, our parents, Lana, and Trish came to Van's baptism! We had an epic time together. We ate good food,  had some Beyblade battles,  played Aggravation, went on long walks, and explored some of Warrensburg. We also got to perform a 45 minute concert, visit Kansas City, and watch the boys in their primary program! It was an unforgettable weekend.  1. Our gig at the Old Courthouse Music Series Last spring we sang at the Open Mic night at a local coffee shop here in Warrensburg. Afterward, a man named Eddie Osborne asked if we had about an hour's worth of music and if we would perform at his annual music series at the Historic Courthouse. We said "Sure!" You guys! It was soooo fun! We scheduled to perform the same weekend as Van's baptism so our family could be there too. The venue was lit only by candlelight. There were no microphones, just our voices and Isaac's ukulele. I can't wait to do it again next year! Here is a link to one of our songs  ...

This boy....... is 10!!  I can't believe it's been a decade since I gave birth to William. It was such an easy birth--he was only 5 lbs. 5 oz. and was out in 3 pushes.  I didn't know my heart could love so big so instantly. I have such fond memories of his first year. I lived close to my BFF Trish. We would take our boys on walks at the West Jordan park, walk them to the library for baby story time, and trade off babysitting so we could sub and earn extra money. I would walk him to Gold's Gym and drop him off at the child care so I could do a fitness class. We read lots of books and sang and danced. I didn't miss teaching at all. I loved being a new mother and staying home with my sweet boy. William is such a deep thinker, much like his father. I remember him asking me questions about God when he was a sunbeam and thinking "I don't remember wondering about God this deeply until I was in high school." He is very sensitive and empathetic. When...

I often find selfies of Van on my phone. He loves making faces and videos. I found these on my laptop that he took with Photo Booth: I can't believe this boy is 8! It seems like yesterday when we first met him.  Soooo much chubbiness. Here's some when we lived in Utah: And Arizona. As Van called it, "Ozone-uh" For Van's birthday this year, we had a Beyblade party. Our friends the Huff's came over and we had a Bey blade battle. It was so much fun! The greatest thing is that Van won the battle!! We ate pizza and I made a rich vanilla cake decorated like a beyblade. He also requested breakfast in bed. He told me "The reason I wanted breakfast in bed is because what if I grow up and I don't get to be a dad? Then I'll never get breakfast in bed." He said at least five times on his birthday, "I'm a lucky boy!" Van's beyblade cake.  Van...