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Parade, Panic, and Bustin

We kicked off our 4th of July celebration with a parade in downtown Greeley, CO. The parade was fun, for about the first hour. The last 50 minutes challenged the interest of the kiddos ... okay, Greg's too. As you can see, Cassidy was very interested in it for a while.

After the parade, we spent the remainder of the day at the Greeley Stampede. It is a carnival/rodeo/etc that runs a couple of weeks each summer in Greeley. We had two highly memorable moments for us at the Stampede. First, we couldn't find Cassidy for about 10 minutes. That's right, we lost our daughter in the middle of a fair. She wandered about 40 yards away, getting closer to one of the music stages. It was not a fun experience. Thankfully, Cassidy was the least disturbed by the situation. It reminds me how imperfect I am as a parent. We are grateful that God watches over our children.

The other memorable moment at the Stampede was Mutton Bustin. This is actually a fun memory. Mutton Bustin is a scaled down version of bull riding. Replace the adult with a child between the ages of 3 and 7 who weighs under 55 pounds. Replace the bull with a sheep. So... Carson (and his youngest CO cousin) got to go Mutton Bustin. They only allow about 45 kids to go Bustin each day so we had to sign them up on a list (don't want to overwork those sheep) and sign our child's life away on a consent form :) Carson held on tight for about 10 yards before falling off, without injury or getting trampled on. The first thing he said afterwards to us was: "Can I do it again?"

Take Me Out to the Ball Game

We are visiting Greg's sister and her family in Colorado this week. After church on Sunday, we headed over to Denver to catch a Rockies game. As you know, Carson played on his first baseball team this past spring and he was on the Rockies. So he was excited to see the big Rockies in their stadium. We try and make a point to see games in stadiums we haven't been to whenever we are in town. The count is up to 14 now that we hit up Coors Field. It was a hot day, but we were fortunate to be in one of the few shaded rows. The game was kind of crazy, 16-8 was the final score with the Royals on top.

Carson finished a rather large shaved ice all by himself. It was warm, even in the shade. His big cousin David is behind him; Carson adores him.

Cargo (Carlos Gonzalez) is hitting a bases-clearing double here. This was before he made a good catch whilst crashing into the center field wall and getting carted off the field.

Mommy and her big boy.

The next blog post topics will include: July 4th parade, "10 Minutes", and Mutton Bustin!

A Magical Dinner

Last month some friends of ours invited us to dine with them at the exclusive Club 33 at Disneyland. It was a very unique and fun experience. The food was terrific, it truly is a fine dining restaurant. I do love me some chateaubriand! The atmosphere is one of a kind and so very memorable. It was relaxing to get out of the hustle of the crowds to enjoy dinner for a couple of hours. Chatting it up on the balcony after dinner, just peering out over New Orleans Square, was pretty cool. I kind of felt like a fly on the wall watching, unnoticed, the crowds bustle on by.

Thanks friends for the great day.

Game 7

He is learning lots of good things during his first season of baseball.

Carson is 5...tomorrow

On the eve of my oldest turning 5 all I can do is sit and wonder how much has changed in the last 5 years. Who I am this evening was not who I was on that Wednesday night on my way to the hospital. Life has happened....what have I accomplished?
My first born will be 5 in a few short hours. Am I as good of a mom as I wished I would be? Have I been humble enough to admit I am not? Have I shown Carson all the love he deserves? How have I wasted time on me instead of investing more in him? Have I put my love for him above my Heavenly Father? What have I taught him? Have I shown him Jesus? How have I shown him Jesus? How have I become a better mother?
Oh, the questions....too heavy for Tuesday night! 5 years.... 5 YEARS.... Oh, how I love you my sweet boy!
Happy early Birthday!

Ahhhhh, Cassidy

Cassidy is two. Has been for a couple of months now ... seems longer. With new sentences like: "No, I do it", or "No, you do it", and "No, it's mine" (have you noticed they all start with NO?) Cassidy has become familiar with the time-out stair. BUT, all that attitude, stubbornness and independence could not overwhelm the tenderness of her heart. She kisses boo-boos, hugs crying brothers, gives butterfly and eskimo kisses and has a contagious laugh. She exudes joy and even though she can cry at a moments notice the precious words of "I love you daddy" and "I love you mommy" far outweigh those stubborn baby blues!