Summer Begins to Wind Down

The summer season is beginning to wind down. We were super busy but stayed local this past weekend! Canyon began his first week of fall soccer. We also enjoyed a neighborhood block party (and the kids got to stay up late watching movies outside on the big screen in their sleeping bags). But the major events telling us that summer was over was Canyon's open house at school and Presley's "hopping up" party to become a Chameleon (Pre-K) at her school, Hopkins Early Learning Center.

Haddon and Rizzo Annual Get Together

The Haddons and Rizzos ventured to Minnesota this year for our annual get together. We had a busy weekend of frisbee golf, boating and tubing, fishing, swimming, water balloon fights, tennis matches, long bike rides, fires, games, and general catching up. It's so nice to spend time with good friends. And we even got to watch the local air show!

Grandma Wanda's 90th Birthday Celebration

On the weekend of 08/08/08, approximately 45 grandparents, cousins, parents, kids and family of Grandma Wanda joined together from around the country (and world - Kathy surprised us from Australia) to celebrate Grandma Wanda's 90th birthday in the Villages, Florida. And to celebrate the joy she has created and brought to her family. The weekend was filled with pool parties, golf outings, puzzle creations, mass, and a fun family dinner. Of course it went by too fast but what a great celebration!! it also brought Ron, Kathy, Don, and Annie together for the first time in many years.

True Blessings in Amelia Island

We had an amazing journey to Florida the week August 5th..... in many ways. We started off the trip with a 3 day journey to Amelia island for a true vacation of relaxation with Ron's cousins, the Kesslers and their kids. We swam at the pool, played in the ocean, built sandcastles, searched for seashells, and bonded with our cousins. Amelia Island is a beautiful destination where we spotted turtles on our beach and enjoyed sunrises (or at least Ron did). But most fortunate of all was our last day. On our way out of town heading towards the second leg of our vacation at the Villages, we were struck by a small pick up truck that ran a red light. Canyon and Mom took the direct impact of the crash. However, we were so, so fortunate for side air bags, child seats, and Onstar. We escaped with only minor cuts and abrasions. Our car was totaled but Avis gave us another rental car and our cousins were nice enough to drive us to Jacksonville to take us there to pick it up. I had tears of joys for days and continue to have tears of joys for our true blessing and new appreciation for life. Thank you God! Thank you for life!

Kohls Family Reunion in MN

We headed to Bay Colony Inn in Nisswa, MN for the Kohls family reunion. The Michigan Kleeves and the California Kohls crews arrived on Wednesday. Overall, we had a great turnout with 31 attending. The weekend was filled with Euchre and Bunco tournaments, watersliding, tubing, great family dinners, late night bonfires (for some), pedicures, sunsets, and catching up. The kids had a blast playing with their cousins. Mom didn't take enough pictures but here are a couple excerpts from the weekend.

Grammie Comes to Visit

Grammie came for a short but fun 48 hour visit. During her short visit we packed in kids sports activities, a trip to urgent care, a visit to the cool Treeology exhibit at the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum, games and puzzles, and a day on the boat. Grammie was very brave and Mommy even got to go wakeboarding this week.

Presley's Skyhawk Soccer

Presley has been looking forward all summer to her first summer soccer camp experience that went for 1 hour each day for 5 straight days. Presley was super excited for camp each day but we are still learning about what elements made her the most excited. Was it experimenting with her uniform in the field, determinedly playing goalie even though there are no goalies at her age, taking (and avoiding) pictures, wearing her favorite soccer shorts, receiving her award, hiding from another soccer kid admirer, or actually getting some good kicks and touches? It was definitely an interesting experiment and we are anxious to see how her interest in team sports progresses (or not) over the coming years.