Cole Reunion 2010

The 4th of July weekend started with a highly anticipated family reunion. I was so excited to see some of the cousins I hadn't seen in 10-12 years and we had such a great time. The weekend started with a wedding, then a day at the pond, games, fireworks, more games, food, food, and more food! It's crazy to see how much our family has grown since back in the days when all the cousins would watch movies in grandma's basement. Now all those cousins have kids of their own and it was a lot of fun to get to meet all of them. I could go on and on about the weekend, but I'll keep it short and share of few (ok, more than a few) of my favorite pics :)

In Stitches

Well, pretty much everyone has heard the story by now, but I got pictures so I might as well blog about it! The night before I was to have a wedding cake done and a family reunion to pack for, my two older kids were playing outside. I was busy in the house trying to get things ready, but checking on my kids every few minutes. All the sudden one of the little neighbor boys comes running in to say that Garrett had been hit on the head with a rock and was bleeding. I got outside to see Garrett running toward me with blood gushing down his face. Great! I got him calmed down and was trying to clean him up, but he wouldn't let me get close enough to really see it. That....and it wouldn't stop bleeding. Apparently a little girl who is always visiting our neighbors got mad and threw a big sharp rock right at his head. The funny thing is she wasn't mad at Garrett, she was mad at the other boy. It's amazing how much those head wounds bleed, even if they really aren't that big. I finally got the bleeding to stop but he still wouldn't let me get too close until Todd got home. Once we finally got a good look at it we decided we had better take him in. So, we packed the kids up and headed for the acute care office. One strapped down traumatized kid, six stitches, and one prescription for antibiotics later, we headed home with instructions not to get them wet for a week. Great....that would be easy in the middle of summer with a day at the pond for the reunion! It might have been easier if it wasn't in his hairline where I couldn't stick a waterproof bandage. A week later he got the stitches out (this time he took it like a champ), and he's happy to be swimming again with no restrictions or dirty looks from mom!

Before stitches....

After stitches....

Fishin' with Daddy

The kids love going fishing with Daddy. Especially when it's not too hot and there is lots of shade. A few weeks ago Todd took Garrett out one night and the rest of us got to join them a couple days later. Just outside of town there is a little pond that they stock with bass and trout, just for 14 and younger to fish out of. It's great to go early on because they can catch plenty of fish (which we throw back) so there isn't a lot of lag time for them to get super bored. Todd said he thought they caught about 9 fish the first night they went, and they caught almost that when we all went. So much fun!

Sage n' Sun 2010

I love Sage n' Sun. Good food, fun for the kids, seeing everyone you know from this town....good times. This year was no exception. This year I decided to take the kids downtown to the kiddie parade, something we've never done before. I kept debating because Todd was out of town and wouldn't be able to join us, but I'm so glad we went. It was short and sweet and the kids were happy, because they got candy. :)

After the big parade on Saturday, we headed to the courthouse for yummy food and to check out the booths. Either I forgot my camera or just forgot to take pictures....but here's the aftermath. Garrett talked us into getting his face painted, which Lauren decided wasn't for her. Aunt Lindy spoiled her with a princess wand and crown.

It was a great weekend, made even better because Daddy no longer does the security at night and could join us on Saturday! :)

LAST day of SCHOOL!!!

I can't believe how quickly Garrett's first year of school flew by. We loved having him in school and it helped him in so many ways. He'll always be my shy kid, but he made so many friends and really came out of his shell this year. We are so grateful for his Kindergarten teacher, Mr. Klepec. He was the kind of teacher that could be strict when he needed to be, yet he had a lot of fun with the kids. Garrett brought home a scrapbook of the year, and it's been really fun to see how much he progressed this year.

Mr. Klepec
Mrs. Roy

Fun Run and Field Day

When Garrett's elementary school sent home a note saying that they were having a fun run and that parent's were invited to join in I got really excited. I thought it would be great to strap the girls in the stroller and join Garrett. Plus...they were having a parent lunch and field day on the same day, so I figured I'd just hang out at the school most of the day. Unfortunately the note we got the day before said the Fun Run started at 9:00, and when I got there found out that they were actually close to finishing up. Bummer. So instead I waited it out at the finish line.....and waited....and waited..... See, Garrett's a good runner, but apparently not a a DISTANCE runner :). All the sudden I see him sprinting toward the finish line and pulled out my camera just in time for this shot: He informed me later that he had a side ache and got really TIRED! :)

That afternoon we joined them for Field Day. I had gotten to know all the kids in his class fairly well by volunteering for an hour each week in class. It was fun to spend the afternoon with them snapping pictures to share with the other moms I know. Here are a few of my favorites of Garrett...