Summer Days ...

Another summer day, another day to find our way out onto the water. Xander was out with his CLS buddy Jack, and Aunt Kelly had the day off from Sawyer. So Connor, Sawyer and I went to Jacobson Park to play and spend some time on the paddle boats ...

Big Boy

Look who's as tall as his Aunt Kelly these days ...

A Day at the Pool

Grammy was nice enough to invite us out for the day at her club pool. The boys always have a great time swimming and playing.

And snacking, a lot of snacking ...



Sawyer trying out the new for this year slide in the family pool ...



It's early days yet, the pool was practically empty ...



Xander going off the newer slide ...



Splash ...



"Video" he asks, wanting to know if I got it all on video ...



Diving board fun ...



Connor's turn ...



Sawyer just likes to float, thanks ...



Connor being silly with Grammy's hat while cousin B looks on ...



A little basketball and dive sticks in the lap lane pool ...

Mr. Cool

Sawyer out with Aunt Kelly today at the 3D movies. It's hard life, he says, sipping on an icee and eating Sweetarts.

Dressed Up

Today we said good-bye to the boys' Great Grandma JoAnn, who passed away this week. The boys have spent a great deal of time with her over the years. She was Pappy's mother, and we often had family holidays at her house or saw her at family holidays at Grammy and Pappy's house. We would also stop over at her house occasionally with some good food (she liked to eat out like us), and to visit. She liked watching the boys ride her golf cart, which always made her smile. And she loved sitting outside under the shade trees sharing stories and just getting to visit with her family. She will be missed.

Our boys are fortunate that funerals have not been a big part of their lives. When they were younger, we just knew it was something that they would not handle well, that their loud vocalizations would cause distractions and not be appropriate for the environment. As they get older, and our extended families get older, we're going to have to start introducing them to more real world events like funerals.

This was the first time we'd ever attempted to take them to both a visitation and a funeral, and they managed to do pretty well. Xander even offered a light-hearted moment by saying "Good job, Mommy" after I had read a poem during the service.

But the clothes, that took some time and effort in the days leading up to the service. I made four different trips to stores trying to get them ready for the day. They don't do well in typical dress clothes (texture issues, button issues, general fit issues). They are 11, and both over 5 feet tall. They did not fit into Chaps size 16 dress pants and shirts. We tried those first. And even tried the size 18, too. Eventually, I ended up driving to the outlet mall outside of Louisville to the Under Armor outlet. Thank goodness for dress / golf clothes made by athletic apparel makers. Youth XL dress pants with adjustable waists, and youth XL polo shirts. We opted for tennis shoes, since they hardly ever dress up and their feet still grow at least one size every year (currently 9 in men's). In a few year's, they can just borrow a pair of their Dad's shoes!

Also please note the lovely American flag pin on Xander's collar. That doesn't belong to him. But a family member who was wearing it noticed how much Xander admired it, and offered it to him on one of our breaks outside the funeral home. He was so happy and proud to wear his American flag pin all day long!