What a Par-Tay!

Happy Tuesday, Everyone! We are right in the middle of birthday season around here, and it has been a busy and wonderful time! Yesterday, we officially added another teenager to the family, and I'll post about that soon. First though, I'd like to share with you about the *Birthday Party* we had for the kids this past Saturday. It was a lively and LOUD time, but I'm so glad we were able to do it!

We abandoned the idea of big birthday parties several years ago because it just got to be A LOT. Part of that is because I was allowing it to be bigger than necessary, but it was also because we have four kiddos who all have birthdays within 15 days of each other. At the party the other night, one mom (who doesn't know our family well) commented about how brave I was to throw a party for four kids at once. I told her that it's either throw three separate parties or one big party, and I decided one big party would be easier than three separate ones! 

Anyway, we haven't thrown a big birthday party in eight years, so why this year? The simple answer is that I wanted to do something special this year because it was Brenson's 13th. However, when I started thinking of kids we could invite, so many of them are mutual friends of both Bren and Bri. I didn't like the idea of inviting some of Bri's friends and not others, so I thought maybe we could just do a teen party. But then, I completely lost my head and decided we should do a big party for all the kids!

I talked to Chris and the kids individually about my idea, and they were all on board with it. We basically planned the whole thing in about 10 days because last Saturday was the date that worked with our schedule. I also called Tia and asked her to help me chaperone. Overall, though, my goal was to keep things simple and fun for everyone!

We quickly got a guest list together, and I sent out this invite to parents:

The week before the party was packed with something every day and each evening. We were thrilled that Lisa and Chloe came into town and were able to attend the youth devo with us the Friday before. The day of the party, Brenson had a basketball game that the girls and I didn't attend. We stayed home to get the house ready for our guests and met up with Mom, Lisa, and Chloe for lunch. 

Just before 5:00pm, our guests began to arrive, and our house quickly filled up and got LOUD. I knew the weather wouldn't likely be conducive to being outdoors (and it wasn't), so we had set up tables in the living room for the teens. Most of the younger kids ate in the dining room, and many of the adults just had to stand. We served pizza, veggies, lemonade, and water . . . I tried really hard to keep things simple, and it worked out great!

Blake, Zach, Harvey, Oliver, Jaxen, Brianna, Easton, Gavon, Allen, Brenson, and Jordan

Deon, Julia, Koda, Caroline, Brecklyn, Sadie, and Brooke

Several adults joined us, including Grampy, G-Jo, Lisa, Ross, Tia, Jen, and Jenny. Like I've already mentioned a few times, it didn't take long for the house to be just roaring with noise. I think this wore Grampy out a bit as he asked me to go ahead and cut the cake so he a G-Jo could leave 😂.

Before we cut the cake, though, we had to sing!

The kids were not thrilled to have all their friends singing to them, haha. 

We got the cake from Costco, and it was delicious!

After eating cake, it was time for some games! I had told the kids that I wanted the youngers upstairs playing (with Tia supervising). They started with a game of Catchphrase.

Sadie, Julia, Brooke, Jordan, Deon, Blake, Caroline, Brecklyn, and Koda

Meanwhile, downstairs I had told the teens that I wanted a group pic before starting games. It wasn't an easy task, but we got it done!

Reese, Allen, Brenson, Gavon, Jaxen, Oliver, Chloe, Zach, Easton, Harvey, Bri, and Adelyn

The teens started with a good old fashioned game of Spoons! I had them take down the tables and sit in a circle on the floor because I wasn't trying to have broken tables, chairs, or otherwise in my house!

Once the games got started, the volume in the house somehow got even louder, and Grampy and G-Jo decided it was a good time to make their exit. We are grateful they were able to come!

G-Jo and Brecklyn

Other games the upstairs crew played included Mastermind, Scrabble, and Headbandz. At one point, we had a group upstairs, a group in the twins' bedrooms, and a group playing in my bedroom. The younger kids were definitely here, there, and everywhere.

Jordan, Blake, Deon, Koda, Julia, Caroline, Sadie, Brooke, and Brecklyn

So silly!

Meanwhile, as teens were eliminated from the Spoons game, they migrated into the dining room to join the Apples to Apples game going on in there. The teens were much more focused on their games than the younger kids, and they had a blast! So much laughing and chaos!

You may notice in the photos that the teen girls were outnumbered by the teen boys. We had invited several other girls, but they couldn't make it for one reason or another. We were thankful for each person that came!

Brianna, Chloe, and Adelyn

Bri and Chloe

Right about 8:00pm, parents started arriving to pick up their kiddos. Even though we asked for no gifts, several brought cards or small gifts for the kids which we opened once everyone (other than Lisa and Chloe) left. While the party was certainly crazy, several of the teens helped pick up trash and clean up the kitchen before they left. And then Bri and Chloe started cleaning once the other guests had gone! Of course, I stopped them, but I thought it was so nice of the guests to help with the mess. They were all polite and a pleasure to have in our home!

Lisa and Chloe stayed for a good bit after everyone else left so we could visit. Brianna and Brenson brought us this stack of cards from Apples to Apples that they (along with their friends) had deemed inappropriate for one reason or another. Lisa and I laughed so hard looking through these cards! 

It was such a fun night, even if it was crazy and a little deafening. We were very pleased with the turnout and just grateful to be able to host friends. 

Now, I don't have to do this for another eight years, right?!?

Back to the Books!

I've probably said this on here before, but one thing I did not anticipate when becoming a parent was how difficult the education decisions would be. I kind of just took for granted that we would send our kids to public school and that would be the end of it. But things have been MUCH more complicated than that, and I pray constantly that we are doing the things that are best for our kids.

When we put the twins back into public school for first grade, I was pretty confident that we would keep them there through third grade. We are really just taking things one year at a time, and for this year (2nd grade for Brooke and Brecklyn), we have decided to keep them at our favorite local public school, Catalayah Elementary. 

On August 16th, we were able to go to Catalayah and meet the girls' teachers. Open house is so different than it was a few years ago. We have to sign up for a specific time to go to the school so that there are only a few families at the school at a time. It's kind of lame, and definitely takes away from some of the excitement of open house!

Brooke and Brecklyn are ready for 2nd grade!

Brecklyn was so excited to find her desk and move a few things into her classroom.

Her teacher is Mrs. Wallace, and we just know it's going to be a wonderful year!

Brooke was also excited to see her classroom, even though it wasn't fully set up yet. 

Brooke has Ms. Desy (who we know from years past).

She matches Brooke's energy!

School started on Thursday, August 18th. Brooke and Brecklyn were excited but not nervous. I'm always thankful for that!

Brooke

Brecklyn

Ready for 2nd grade!

Even though the big kids had been doing some school work for a few weeks, I went ahead and took their first day of school photos on the twins' first day of school. 

Brianna (7th grade)

Bren (5th grade)

My crew ready to tackle another school year!

Love these four!

Daddy with the crew

 Mommy with the crew

We all went to Rise and Shine with the girls, and it was nice to see all the teachers we know and love in that building. Brianna and Brenson were very popular . . . Brianna really enjoyed it, but Bren not-so-much :-). They were both happy to see their names on the Runner of the Year plaques in one of the main hallways. 

Brooke and Brecklyn both had a great first day, and their teachers even sent me these photos of them to mark the first day. 

Brecklyn

Brooke

I mentioned this in another post, but LIGHT Academy started school on August 1st. We were in Kansas City that day, but it didn't stop Bri and Bren from beginning their studies. 

The flexibility of homeschool is great, and we enjoy "doing school" in various environments as needed. 

It seems a little strange to many people that we homeschool two of our children while the other two attend public school. I don't know how long this arrangement will last, but for us right now it is exactly what we need. I'm so grateful to have the freedom to do what is best for each child in my family, and we are looking forward to a great school year!

Little Blue for Two!

In this post, I shared all about our experience with getting Covid a week before the kids were supposed to go to bible camp. Thankfully, they both tested negative in time to go! There was lots of talk about potentially missing out on it this year, and along with that talk were some tears (from Brianna). We were all happy for them that they got to go!

We left our house at about 7:00am on Sunday, July 10th to head toward camp. It's a four hour drive from our house, so we stopped for worship services and lunch in Lamar, Missouri on the way up. I was still on the struggle bus from having Covid so recently, but I was able to help Bri get her bed all set up for the week. Chris helped Bren.

Ready for a great week in Cabin 1!

So happy to be there!

Yay for new cabins!

After getting the kids settled at camp, Chris, the twins, and I drove over to Overland Park (about 45 minutes) and checked into a hotel. We then went to Olathe for worship services that evening before turning in for the night. On Monday morning, the girls and I dropped Chris off at work for the day so he could finally meet some of his co-workers face-to-face. My plan was to have a fun day with Brooke and Brecklyn, but I just needed to sleep. I slept while they watched TV until time to check out of our room, then we went to lunch. After lunch, we went to Antioch Park upon the recommendation of Leah Thrasher. This was a park I played at as a child, so it had me all in my feels! 

Brecklyn, Brooke

Brooke, Brecklyn

This park has a path all around a pond that we took. It was so humbling for me because I kept having to stop and rest on the way around. It was beautiful, though!

There were lots of playgrounds to keep the girls entertained, and I was thankful for that. I sat on a bench while they played, and thankfully they were understanding about that!

After a few hours of play, we picked Chris up from work and headed back to Oklahoma. I slept pretty much the whole way home.

While I took it really easy all week continuing to recover from Covid, the Big kids were having a great time at camp! Russ sent me this gem of Bren, haha!

Bri was thrilled to be with some of her close friends!

Camp life!

Charlotte, Bri, and Lydia

Bri's crew!

Cabin 4 girls!

Memories to last a lifetime!

On Friday, July 15th, Chris, the twins, and I headed back up to camp to pick up Bri and Bren. Since camp last year, Bri had been asking to attend two camp sessions this year. We told her if she would save enough money to pay for one session on her own, then she could attend both. She saved the money, and that told us how serious she was about it! Bren was not interested in more than one session because, in his words, "I lose enough sleep in one week!" Haha. 

We didn't want to drive back and forth four separate times for Bri to attend two sessions, so we made a plan for her to stay with some friends on Saturday night after we all stayed at a hotel on Friday night. Even though I wasn't super at ease with this arrangement, Chloe was staying with the same friends and that helped me feel better. 

Once we picked Bri and Bren up from camp on Friday, we took all the kids to a park near our hotel. I was still weak and struggling to do much, but the kids had a blast playing!

Brianna, Brecklyn, Brooke, and Brenson

This park also has a pretty water feature.

What a tree!!!

So glad to be reunited with my babies!

After a *hot* time at the park, we grabbed some dinner at a local hibachi place. My appetite was still meagre at best, but this hit the spot.

The next morning (Saturday), we made a Wal-mart run and spent a few hours at the laundry mat to get Brianna ready for another week at camp. After lunch, we dropped her off with the Halls and headed back to Oklahoma.

I was thankful that Sarah sent me a few photos that evening. It helped put my mind at ease!

Brianna, Chloe, Leyha, Kylie, and Vaneza

Having a great time!

I wasn't concerned at all about Bri going to a second week of camp. The girl loves people and loves camp! Photos like this make me smile.

Bri and Makenzie

The following Friday, Chris and I agreed that I would make the trip to pick Brianna up and bring her home. He{understandably} didn't want to miss another day of work, and I was finally feeling well enough to venture out without him. Brooke was going to ride along with me but woke up not feeling great, so Brecklyn took one for the team and was my road-trip buddy.

Of course, Brianna was wiped out after two weeks of camp. She slept all the way from camp to Joplin!

We stopped at Chick-fil-a for some dinner. Brecklyn was pretty happy to have her sister back home!

I'm so grateful that my kiddos have the opportunity to go to bible camp, build relationships with like-minded people, and grow in their knowledge of God's word. I sure miss them when they're gone, but I also recognize what a great opportunity it is for them.