Suzanne McGrath Photography

Six on Sunday

Hello!  Welcome to week 3.  My streak will end next week, though.  But I'm here tonight so let's get started.

 

1.  I actually don't feel like I have a lot of juicy info for you this week.  We've just been plugging along at our normal pace.  Work, school, tennis, soccer, swim, volleyball, and soccer.  All is well, though, so that is good news.

2.  This was a crazy busy weekend for us!  The hubby and #3 spent the weekend in Memphis at a soccer tournament.  In fact, they still are not home yet.  I know their games were decent and they were evenly matched, though they did not come out victorious.  Oh well.  As long as they had fun it's all good.

Meanwhile, I was at home with the other three girls.  Saturday started with an early morning trip to the grocery store before #4's volleyball game.  They won all three games so it was really fun to watch!  #4 just LOVES volleyball and spent time outside both yesterday and today practicing her overhand serve.  Her goal is to master it before the spring season starts.  I hope she can do it!  After volleyball, we picked up #2 at home and met #1 at Old Navy.  The goal was to find each of the big girls something to match the rest of us for family pictures.  We were victorious!  We celebrated with a Starbucks run which is when I found out we were going to host the Homecoming After Party.  The rest of the afternoon was spent doing the usual and making the house presentable.  (Our cleaning crew only comes once a month.  That day is tomorrow.  That means the house was NOT in good shape.  AT ALL!)  

But the afternoon didn't end there.  Nope!  I had family pictures at 4pm (so fun!) and then picked up #4 to head down to the Nelson-Atkins for Homecoming pictures.  (#1 went to Bishop Miege Homecoming so most of the kids live down near the plaza.)  After a few quick pics (it was cold!) we headed home for the rest of the night.  The homecoming crew didn't show up until about 10:20pm which is AFTER my bedtime.  

Then today started out bright, and cold, and early with an 8am soccer game for #2.  They won easily and it was actually a fairly boring game.  After her soccer game I raced home, grabbed breakfast, and headed downtown for more family pics.  It was a bit chilly but warmed up as we were down there and we found some great new fun locations!  I headed home for lunch and then #2 and #4 and I went to #2's indoor soccer game.  Sadly they did not win but it was much more fun to watch!  Even #4 enjoyed the game and watched the whole thing.  Plus, it is always so fun to watch indoor games because the parents all sit together and talk and laugh.  We laugh a lot!  But it was nice to get home because I knew I was done for the rest of the day.  We did a little baking, cooked dinner, and just generally hung out and it was a lovely afternoon.  

Phew!  No wonder I'm tired.

3.  Homecoming.  She had a fun night.  And she was so excited because her date was tall enough for her to be able to wear heels:)

They showed up around 10:20 or so and I kicked the boys out at 12:15am.  I was exhausted and ready for bed.  Plus, I knew I had to get up before 7am today.  Nobody seemed to mind so it was all good.  Most of them seemed to have curfews and were on their way out, anyway.  But, I have to say, I'm not really excited to host another After Party any time soon!

 

4.  Next Thursday #1 and I are headed to Hawaii!  We leave at 6am but land at 1:30pm due to the 5-hour time change.  That part is nice because we'll get to enjoy the late afternoon/evening that day.  Friday is going to be spent on campus which is right in the heart of Honolulu.  We're not renting a car.  I'd like to figure out the bus because that's the main mode of transportation for college kids.  But if we fail there is always uber.  I'm curious to see the campus because from what I can tell, nothing has changed much in the last 50 years.  Seriously, the dorms look like the dorm I stayed in my freshmen year at Nebraska.  And that dorm was torn down last year because it was so outdated.  Ha!  Anyway, at least she will have a really good idea what she is getting herself into after we spend the day touring and talking with people in the Environmental Studies program.

The next two days we're going to surf, hike Diamond Head, and snorkel.  Oh, and eat sushi at least once.  Hopefully more than once.  Yum.  I know I'm probably just encouraging her to love Hawaii even more, but if I'm going to fly 10 hours from home, I'm going to make the most of it!  And damn, do I love me some sushi and surfing?!  We leave Sunday night at 10:30pm and land in KC at 5pm Monday evening.  So while the time change going there is awesome, it really bites the big one coming home.  Luckily I can sleep a little on planes but #1 isn't very good at it so this will be  a good test for her.  Wish us luck!

5.  We have conferences for the girls this week.  We've got to hit two schools for three girls all on Wednesday night from 4:30pm to 7:30pm.  The hubby and I will split up at the high school but grade school is right smack in the middle of there.  Then the hubby will have to hit middle school on his own Thursday morning.  It's a bit crazy logistically but it is what it is!

6.  I'm ready to sit my ass on the couch and drink a glass of red wine.  So that's where I'm headed.  Have a great week!

Six on Sunday

Hello!  How was your weekend?  Did you get snow?!  I know a lot of the upper midwest and Colorado got snow today.  Crazy.  It seems too early!  Anyway, I'm gonna get going...

 

1.  I don't think I talked about my up-coming girl trip last week, did I?  Anyway, if you call the end of January "up-coming", we are on the same page.  My girlfriends from college and I are all meeting up in San Antonio for a long weekend.  I'm so excited!!  It's been far too long since we've all been together and I can hardly wait.  If you have any suggestions of fun things to do or great places to eat, I'm all ears!

 

2.  I've been pretty busy lately with senior pictures and family pictures.  Just this morning I had the pleasure of meeting a family originally from Iceland to shoot their son's senior pictures.  We met down in the West Bottoms and got to see some crazy stuff from weird people.  I loved it!  Last weekend I was downtown with friends from our daycare days.  That was really fun to see their boys so much older.  I've also done a maternity session and a couple other senior girls.  Once I get all the pics edited I'll have to post a few.  

 

3.  My mom was down this weekend to watch the grandkids play their sports.  She was able to squeeze in three soccer games and one volleyball match.  Sadly, she missed my niece's soccer game because it was at the exact same time as #4's volleyball game yesterday.  And after sitting outside for three other (COLD) soccer games, my mom had had enough.  I can't blame her.  It was a chilly weekend.   

Last night my sister and her family all came over for dinner and a fire.  We had so much fun sitting outside roasting marshmallows and making s'mores!  The kids played flashlight tag and ghost in the graveyard.  (I even got in on the action by plotting with #2 to scare the little kids.  SO FUN!)  We are hoping it stays nice enough to be able to use the fire pit on Thanksgiving night and maybe rope in a few other adults to play.  I have to say, it scares the crap out of me to play because I don't like being scared.  I only like to DO the scaring!

 

4.  My mom and I took the little girls shopping yesterday.  After I had them try on clothes, we realized it was necessary.  They barely had any pants that were long enough anymore!  We went to Old Navy and Scheel's.  We ended up being very successful - thank goodness.  Shopping with kids is not for the faint of heart.  I think they were in the dressing room for 30 minutes at Old Navy.  I kept running back and forth looking for different colors and sizes.  But in the end we persevered and they now have enough clothes to get through the week.  Phew!  And, we have our color scheme for our family pictures.  Now I just have to figure out WHEN we are going to do our family pictures given our crazy travel schedules the next few weeks.  

 

5.  Today #2 had a soccer game.  While we were driving there it started misting.  By the time we got to the fields it was raining.  By the time I walked over to the fields at the start of the game, it was full-on raining.

Exhibit #1: 

Mind you, it was also 39*.  Fahrenheit.  Cold.  I was wrapped in a sleeping bag with my umbrella tiled to an angle.  It was coming down GOOD.  Finally, with about 2 minutes left in the half, the sky just lit up followed half a second later with a crack of thunder.  Game cancelled.  Thank goodness!  (The girls will have to play that game again.)  Like the hubby said, Girls = 0, Parents = 1.  By the time we got to the car, we were all soaked and #2 couldn't feel her fingers or toes.  

 

6.  This sight made me chuckle:

I call it, You Know You're a Ski Family When...there's a pair of goggles from 1976 on your counter because one of your kids tried using them while chopping onions.  Too funny!  Seriously, where did she even FIND these?!

Anyway, we had the BEST dinner tonight.  The hubby and big girls had meatball subs with melted cheese, the little girls had spaghetti and meatballs and I had zoodles and meatballs.  It was delicious and such a perfect Sunday night dinner after a cold, rainy soccer game!  I love Sunday night dinners because everyone is at the table and we laugh and sit and talk much longer than any other night during the week.  These little, seemingly mundane, moments are the ones I really treasure.

 

7.  BONUS #7!  I have set a goal to be finished with Christmas shopping by December 2nd this year.  And when I say finished, I mean FINISHED.  I want ALL gifts, even the easy gift cards purchased.  EVEN the tip for the Cleaning Ladies.  All done.  (That doesn't mean everything has to be wrapped, just purchased.)  So, I have everything mapped out and lists made.  I'm probably about 1/3 of the way done, too.  I'm loving the feeling of having a plan.  I can't purchase everything yet because of return policies, but that's fine.  It just feels good to have a plan, you know?! 

Anyway, that's all I've got tonight.  Stay warm and dry!

 

Six on Sunday IS BACK!

Can you even believe it?!  I'm back!  While I never intended to take a 5 month break, it was really needed.  We had a super busy month of May and then summer hit and I would rather be sitting at the pool with the family on Sunday nights rather than blogging so that's what I did.  I'm not sure if this will go back to a weekly deal or every other week or monthly, but I'm not going to worry about it.  I enjoy having this little corner of the internet and that's all that matters!

So, sit back, relax, and pour yourself a steaming cup of coffee or a nice glass of wine.  This is gonna be long!

Let's go back to where I left off.  May.  A busy month for the kids!

The high school season wrapped up for #2.  We were so happy to get to watch her play soccer for her high school.  I was even more happy that the weather was finally nice and a sleeping bag wasn't required of me.

 

My mom made it up for a busy weekend watching her grandkids.  She made it to #1's EKL (East Kansas League) swim meet:

By the way, Blue Valley West won that swim meet which was a really big deal.  It was so much fun!  #1 also swam at State again this year.  And yet again, she came in 9th in breaststroke.  Ugh!  But she had fun and made the 200 Free Relay so that's all that really matters.  Especially because she has officially decided she does not want to swim in college.  

 

Here is my mom with #4 after volleyball.  I think volleyball is #4's favorite sport - but tennis is a close second:

 

 

We did some work outside.  I got my garden planted.  Sadly, it just wasn't our year.  We were gone so much that it was hard to keep the pests away.

 

I finished my deck refresh.  I love the rug I painted!

 

We had a fun surprise for #3.  Her BFF surprised her with a visit from Ohio.  It was so great to have Addy for two nights!

 

Yep - #3 graduated from grade school.  It feels strange to only have one kid left at SRE!

 

Last day of school for the girls.  Two in grade school:

 

and two in high school:

 

I let the little girls host some friends for the last day of school.  They had a blast eating subs and swimming:

 

The hubby and I sent the girls off to Hilton Head for a week to vacation with the hubby's parents and brother.  They had an absolute blast!  They navigated their way through two different airports with plane changes each way. I was slightly nervous but knew they had each other so it would work out and it did.

Meanwhile, the hubby and I traveled down to Arkansas for the weekend.  We had a great time with my mom and Jim.  I hadn't golfed - my own ball and not a best ball - in YEARS!  I may actually pick it back up again in a few years when the Littles are a bit older.

Finally, we started building a crushed gravel patio and fire pit:

See?  I told you this was going to be long.  That was only MAY!  Here comes JUNE...

Remember how #3's BFF came to visit in May?  Well, Addy's family was gracious enough to host us for two nights while we were driving to Washington DC.  Sadly, Addy was in Boston so #3 missed seeing her but we still had a blast!  We had two fires and roasted marshmallows, toured OSU, ate lunch at an adorable little bar in Short North (can't remember if that's right?), went to Pins were we bowled, and just enjoyed experiencing a new city.  This picture was taken at Jenny's - a delightful ice cream place.  (Seriously, so good and AWESOME flavors!) 

 

While we were in Ohio, we celebrated #2's 15th birthday!

 

We spent a week in Washington DC.  We stayed in a row house in Eckington.  I could write an entire blog post on that place!  But I won't.  We saw a TON of sights so I'm not going to list them all.  Here are the girls in the back of the White House:

 

And here is a picture of Mt. Vernon.  I absolutely loved this day!  The history was fascinating.  So much so that I promptly bought a biography on George Washington and read in a couple weeks.  So good.

 We also spent a night in Weems, VA with the hubby's aunt and uncle.  This is the view from their back porch.  It was simply stunning.

 

After 18 hours - each way - we spent the remainder of the month relaxing.  I even learned how to make pizza on the grill!

 

And this was our view almost every single night.  #4 begged her sisters to join her at the pool and quite often one or more of them would, but not always.  She LOVED swimming!

 

Phew.  Let's move onto July!

We celebrated the 4th down at my mom's house.  We had a couple wonderful lake days!  (We were missing #3 who had a better offer to spend the week with her friend in Pensacola.)

 

As is tradition, my mom hosted the kids down to her house for a couple long weekends.  The littles went first with their cousin:

They had a great time.  They golfed (duh), rode go-carts, went tubing on the lake, built pillow forts, and went out to the dinner one night.  (Or more - can't quite remember!)

 

The hubby and I "celebrated" our 21st anniversary:

OK, that's really all the celebrating we did.  The kids made us a delicious chocolate peanut butter cake.  It was all good!

 

Then, my mom hosted the big girls and their cousin for a long weekend: 

They went shopping, tubing, golfing, got their nails done, and went to eat.  They loved getting spoiled!

 

AUGUST!  It was a busy month.  But a good month.

I was invited to celebrate my friend, Carmen's, 40th birthday was a super fun group of girls down at the Lake of the Ozarks.  I didn't know everyone but it didn't matter because they were all so awesome!  We went out to dinners, ate delicious breakfasts and snacks at the cabin, spent a LOT of time in the water, and just relaxed.  It was so perfect.  Oh, and we drank a "few" beers:)

 

Next, my sister got married!  It was beautiful and perfect and fun and so special.  We love and adore Jason and couldn't have been more excited for the two of them!  

Anyway, the wedding was in Vail, CO.  We drove out Thursday and had all day Friday to do something fun.  So we decided on a hike.  The reviews said it was fairly easy.  You know what?  They were full of shit!  It was HARD.  I think it ended up being 9 miles round trip and hiking in the altitude is no joke.  My sister ended up turning around and taking the Littles with her.  So smart.  The hubby, #1 and #2 and I persevered.  But damn! it was long.

 

This was the summit.  The views were stunning.

 

Friday night we had dinner at Bol.  It's a great restaurant/bowling alley.  I loved it.  And then Saturday was the wedding at the Betty Ford gardens.  It was just spectacular!

 

Here's the whole family - all snazzy in our pretty clothes:

(Ignore the cut off feet.  I had someone take our picture since I was the photographer and she cut off our feet.  Oh well.)
 

 

As soon as we got back home, school started.  Gross.  None of us were ready.

Here's the big girls on their first day:

 

And #4 - the last kid in grade school which means the latest to leave the house:

 

SEPTEMBER!

Per tradition, we capped off the summer with one last lake weekend.  We had beautiful weather and it was the first time all summer all six cousins were together.  They were thrilled and had so much fun together!  The lily pad was new this year and it was a solid investment.  So glad we bought it!

 

Gamma even got in on the fun:

 

The next weekend we turned around and headed to Lincoln for the football game.  The hubby's parents were kind enough to stay with the kids for us.  Even though we suffered a loss, we still really had fun hanging with our friends!

 

This has been a super common sight - a kid on a skateboard.  Both #3 and #4 are into this and I have to say it's pretty adorable.  

 

OCTOBER!  We're just about caught up.  Phew.

We finished the patio and fire pit a few weeks ago.  To date we've had two fires and LOVED it! 

The plan is to build a sectional couch to go in the corner behind the fire pit.  I have the cushions - just need to build the frame.  Most likely that won't happen until next spring.  But that's OK.  We just pull out the lawn chairs and we're good to go!  

 

I feel like we're just about caught up.  School is going well for the girls.  

Senior year for #1 - can you believe it?  She seems to have a much easier load this year vs. last year even though she is currently taking four AP classes.  She ended up dropping Calculus and signing up for College Algebra instead.  I think that was a super smart move.  She does not love math and does not need it for college.  She's still swimming full time.  

Sophomore year seems to be shaping up well for #2.  She's in one AP class this year but doing well.  She's also in Algebra II and chemistry and those classes are no joke!  (I hated them with a passion!)  She's driving more but she and #1 share a car so she's been taking the hubby's car quite a bit since it's a little smaller than my Suburban.  She's still playing soccer and driving herself to practice.  

Middle school seems to be working out OK thus far.  But let's face it, I don't know of any kid who escapes middle school truly unscathed.  (Well, #1 seemed to do pretty well.  #2 not so much.)  So my fingers are crossed she remains above the fray.  She has a group of girls she is going trick-or-treating with and they are all making their costumes together on Friday.  She's still playing soccer though I'm not convinced she will stay with this team long-term.  We shall see. 

Fourth grade is going really well for #4.  She doesn't seem to mind being the only one of her sisters at SRE.  She really likes her teach and so do we.  All of our girls have had her!  She's still playing volleyball and tennis.

We've been talking colleges for a couple months now.  #1 has officially toured University of Nebraska-Lincoln, University of Colorado-Boulder, Colorado State, and Wyoming.  However, none of those places float her boat.  So, we are heading off on a reconnaissance mission to Honolulu, Hawaii.  Yep - you read that right.  University of Hawaii-Manoa.  I kept thinking Hawaii would be a floating idea - something that sounded cool until she really started thinking about it.  But nope.  She's serious.  So we're taking her seriously.  This will be our last college visit until she receives her acceptance letters and finds out how much each school will really cost.  But if she/we can swing it, and she loves it as much as she thinks she's going to love it, she will be jetting off to Hawaii next August.  I just, I can't even...

Phew.  That's my longest post ever!  I almost made it to 2,000 words.  If you stuck with me this long, thank you.  I hope you had a great summer and your fall is shaping up nicely.  'Till next time, 

Suzanne