The Golden Wolf

Tye had his last tournament of the season in Kansas last weekend. It was a bit bittersweet. It will be nice to have some free time but I must say I really enjoyed getting to know some of these parents. They have a level of committment that Tye and I have. They are intense about basketball as we are. Tye played well last weekend. He made a few 3's and played some great defense! It was fun! I will never understand how people can live in Wichita because it is so hot and humid. It is unreal how hot it is. We were not prepared for it. When we got out of the car to fill up our gas the the heat shocked us. Tye was so funny he is like I am not farmer I am a city boy. He said that because of the eneventfulness of the drive. Kansas is very flat! Not the most exciting road trip. Originally just Tye, Tye jr. and I were going to go. At the last minute Luke and Alyncia decided they wanted to go too. I am so glad they did. We had so much fun hanging out! Joking in the car. We kept saying things and Luke for a few hours told Tye he was a "Golden Wolf". None of us paid much attention to it. I figured it was from a movie. Finally after a while we are like Luke what in the world is a Golden Wolf? He said remember mom you said when you believe everything you say you are a golden wolf. I said no Luke I said you are gullible! We got quite a kick out of that one. Kids are so innocent and funny! That really do say the darndest things.
We went out to eat, swimming, we went to the Alley which is like a Fat City and we had a blast! It is the best family fun we have had in a long time. On the way to the games there were signs about seeing the Largest Prairie Dog in the World! Alyncia was just obsessed with seeing this so we stopped on the way home. She was a bit impatient and was like is it in 10 miles or in 30,00 miles. I guess we need to work on number sense since she slightly under and over exaggerated that. Of course it was a statue. I will post pics later. There were some beautiful birds and a 5 legged bull. Again, except for the swaggering heat it was a lot of fun! It really made me reflect on what is truly important. Before we know it the kids will be grown and gone and all we will have left are these memories and I want to make sure we have so many wonderful memories that they overflow and the kids look back and reflect on what great childhoods they have. I want them to not be able to just have 1 best memory but to have many, many wonderful memories! I am so lucky to have a partner who is willing to put our children first and embrace the joys and yes of course the trials of parenting.

Some Days

As summer is winding down I have mixed feelings. On most days I am sad because I thoroughly enjoy having my children around. I like to go swimming with them, staying up late to watch movies, or just hanging out. However, today I must say I am looking forward to the fact that school begins in 19 days. Yep I am counting down. The house is a mess. I just do not understand how we go to bed with a clean kitchen and are only up 2 hours and it is destroyed. I will tackle the kitchen in a bit. We leave for Kansas tomorrow for a National Basketball Tournament for Tye. I am trying to get all our laundry done and of course the spin cycle goes out on the washer. So all my towels are beyond drenched! So now the question remains how in the world am I going to get all my laundry done by tonight when our washer does not work? I am not a snooty person. I really don't mind the laundrymat however there really isn't one close to here and I have so much other stuff to do I just don't know if I have the time to get down to one.

Of course my lovely children are not making it any easier on me. I think kids have a radar and know when parents are tired and stressed and then that radar goes off and they do everything they can to get under my skin. Luke and Alyncia have been fighting like crazy. It honestly is not her fault. They have very different personalities and for some reason she just really gets to him. I have tried reasoning with him. We have tried time outs. We have tried the reward system and nothing seems to be working. So in an effort to keep all our sanity, he is going to stay with grandma and grandpa while we go to Kansas this weekend. Maybe they just need a break. I hope so. I am an only child so I often worry whether any of this is "normal" sibling behavior or if I really need to start worrying. Some Days I tell you!