Visit with Meemaw

John's mother and step-father traveled to Pennsylvania this weekend to visit.  The boys had a terrific time with their grandparents and were sad to see them leave.

Clean Up at the Park

Bryce's cub scout group went to a local park this afternoon to clean up litter.  It was a perfect day to help make the environment cleaner!

The Cub Scouts (and Landon) took a break from cleaning up to pose for a picture.

Second Grade Skating Party

Bryce's school hosted a skating party tonight for the second and third graders.  Bryce told me he only wanted to stay for an hour but he had so much fun that we stayed until the end of the party.  In this picture Bryce is showing off his dancing skills on the skating rink!  He is definitely his daddy's son.

Bryce posed for a picture with a group of his friends.

Fall Field Trip

Landon's class went on a field trip today to a local orchard.  He had a terrific time!  He went on a hayride, picked an apple, fed the pigs, and learned about bees.

Landon loved gathering the corn at the orchard.  As he was collecting the corn, I noticed that he put a few pieces in his coat pocket.  When he got in the car after the tour, he put the corn in an empty water bottle and made his own maracas.

Landon and I stayed at the orchard after the tour ended so he could play in the corn box.  I think he would have been content playing in there for hours!

Five Year Well Check Visit

Landon had his five year well check visit today at the pediatrician's office.  He is doing great, but he's still a peanut!  He is in the 25th percentile for height and weight.  We were hoping that he would reach the 40 pound mark so he could transition to a booster car seat but he didn't reach it.  He still has two more pounds to gain until he can use a big boy seat belt!

Landon was amused by the hearing test.  It doesn't take much for him to laugh!

Landon's 5th Birthday Party

We celebrated Landon's birthday today with a bowling party.

Landon was so excited about his party!  It was a chaotic afternoon, but all the kids seemed to have had fun.  All of the kids were enthusiastic about singing happy birthday and it could be heard throughout the entire place.

Bowling was fun for everyone!

All week, we have been explaining to Landon that the purpose of a birthday party is to celebrate his life; it's not about presents!  We also worked with him on how to open cards, then a present, and the importance of thanking friends for a present.  Well, that training went in one ear and back out the other!  Opening presents was a frantic, chaotic, overwhelming experience.

Fall Soccer

Landon has been enjoying playing soccer for the past few weeks.  John volunteered to be the assistant coach, and Landon is enjoying his time on the field with Daddy!

Landon in his soccer gear.

Landon and coach John

Lunch at School

I went to Bryce's school this morning for a a volunteer and PTO meeting.  After the meetings, I took some photos for the school's yearbook.  Here is Bryce eating lunch with a few friends.

Bryce in the school lunch line.  He enjoyed one of his favorite lunch items from the cafeteria - chicken fingers.  It must be a popular choice because there were a lot of lunch buyers today!

Playing with Landon

While John and Bryce were at a Cub Scout function today, Landon and I went to the park to play.  I took him to Bryce's school playground so he could become familiar with the kindergarten playground.  Next year, Landon will be playing there everyday!

Landon had a lot of fun on the helicopter ride.

Popcorn Sales

Bryce's Cub Scout troop is in the middle of their yearly fundraiser, which is selling popcorn.  Bryce and John sold popcorn today with Colin outside a convenience store .  Bryce did a great job asking customers if they wanted to buy popcorn or make a donation.  They were successful and sold over $400 worth.

Happy 5th Birthday Landon

Happy 5th birthday Landon!  We love you!

Family Day

Today was a great family day!  Almost the whole family got together at my parents house.  Unfortunately, Megan was back at college so she couldn't join us!  It was great to visit with everyone, especially Vince, Kathleen, and Chris.

All of the cousins LOVE Chris!  Poor guy didn't get a break because all of the cousins wanted to be with him.

The boys were all running around outside and playing, but they took a break to come in to eat.

Happy Landon

Landon was so excited after Bryce left for his first day of school.  He had a day to himself with Mommy and Grayson!

Welcome to Second Grade

Bryce started second grade today!  He likes his teacher, so he's off to a good start!

Here are the kids in the neighborhood getting ready to get on bus!

Cub Scout Welcome Meeting

The new Cub Scout year has begun.  The year kicked off with a pool party, and the boys had a great time together!

Art With Jess

I had a few errands to run this afternoon, so our neighbor Jess came over to watch the boys.  Landon loved drawing and painting with Jess.

Landon in His Robe

Landon has been wearing his robe around the house lately.  For reasons that are unknown to me, he feels he needs to be completely naked under the robe!  These silly boys!

Evening at the Park

It was a beautiful evening so we spent it at the park.  We took a long walk around the perimeter of the park.  I thought this was a cute picture of Bryce and John!



Happy Landon posed for a picture during our walk.

PLaying with the Eckards

We went to Aunt Lisa's house to play with Emily and Aaron today.  The kids decided to wear fishing boots and play in the creek behind Lisa's house.  They had a blast! 

City of Brotherly Love

We went to Philadelphia for vacation for a few days.  We stayed in a hotel in center city and walked to see all of the Philadelphia attractions.  The highlight of the trip was a bus tour of the city of Philadelphia.

Swim Lessons

Bryce and Landon have been going to swim lessons for the past few weeks.  Surprisingly, they are really enjoying it!  Landon is definitely ready to move onto the next level.

Bryce also had a great time with the older kids.

Happy Birthday Hayden

 Bryce and Landon were invited to our neighbor Hayden's birthday party.  Hayden's uncle owns Twin Pines farm, and that is where the party was held.

 The highlight of the party was a tractor ride around the farm.  I can tell Bryce is getting older because he didn't want me to sit near him on the ride!

Hayden's very creative Mommy made awesome cupcakes for the party.  They looked good and tasted even better!

Gettysburg Visit

I had to work this afternoon and I asked my parents to watch Bryce and Landon.  My parents took them to Gettysburg, and they spent the afternoon touring the National Military Park.  The boys had a great time!  They're looking forward to another visit to Gettysburg!

Bryce and Landon posed for a picture with Abe Lincoln.

The boys enjoyed lunch and dessert at Friendly's.

Summer Scouting Events

Bryce has been busy this summer with Scouting activities.  In the beginning of the summer they visited a local nursing home to play bingo with the residents.

In June, Bryce and John had their first camping experience at Camp Tuckahoe.



Earlier this week, they went back to the nursing home to celebrate the 101st birthday of a few beautiful women.  They helped the women blow out all 101 candles!

Fireworks

Bryce and Landon make their own fireworks this morning out of glue, glitter, and ink dabbers.  I had fun making one too!  Landon taught us how to make the fireworks out of glue and glitter because he made them in school this past year.  I think I will be cleaning up glitter for the next month!



Bryce was meticulous about making perfect fireworks with the glue.  He did a great job!