Saturday Projects

 Saturday was a day full of projects at our house. Andy worked all day on our new entryway floor.  

He ripped up an area of carpet and put down some laminate flooring that matches our kitchen floor. 

It was a big project that we have been wanting to do since we bought the house.

Andy had lots of help from the kids, too!

 

While Andy worked on the floor, the kids and I played outside. 

Marie has been working on her own project - riding her bike on the hills around our house.  She has been practicing in our garage, then moved to our driveway, then a flat parking lot near our house, and she is officially able to go down on the sidewalk past 2 houses, turn around, and then make it back to our house.  She is so proud of herself and we are proud of her too!

 

We also made a family tree canvas to hang near our front door.  

We needed a new one that included Gus. 

Marie loved helping me get it put together. 

 

After a quick supper we headed the park until sunset.

What a busy Saturday!

Friday Night Lights

On Friday night we made a quick trip down to Omaha to watch Andy's cousin, Hunter, play in a high school football game. It was the perfect night for a football game. 

The kids absolutely loved being able to be at the game, watch and cheer for our #44, and of course eat concession stand snacks. 

We also got to see his mom & brother Jackson.  

Bennett and Jackson hit it off right away.

 We also got to visit with the new baby in the Mueting Family - Kinsley Sheldon.  Andy's cousin Courtney and her husband Dustin just welcomed her to their family 2 weeks ago - Marie was in love.

 

 What a great night!  

Ahhh Fall

 We woke up Sunday morning to crisp cool air blowing in through the windows. 

Immediately we had the idea to take a hike at one of our favorite parks. 

So, after french toast and a nice big pot of coffee we took off for our hike!

 

We really love spending time outdoors...in any season really. 

Marie & I spotted a giant spider that was yellow and black. 

Benny watched turkey vultures fly overhead.

We played at the park and hiked through tall, tall grass.

 

We all took turns throwing the pheasant scented dummy for Gus while he searched through the fields. This dog would play fetch every second of every day if possible. 

It's so fun to watch him be trained by Andy.  Brings back so many fun memories of the two of us training Charlie. 

 

The boys split off to do some serious training while the girls played at the park some more and searched for butterflies.

Marie & I have been spending so much time playing "pretend' lately.  Even on this walk while we were consumed with nature we had to pretend that we were Pocahontas searching for treasure. 

This big imagination of hers continues to grow and grow.

 

We had such a wonderful morning enjoying our hike and each other. 

Andy is currently finishing his last night of his 2 week night float. 

We have 2 weeks of him working days and then another 2 weeks of nights. 

We are so thankful we have 2 weeks of a regular schedule ahead of us!

Poor Bennett

After Andy left for work on Friday night, the kids and I decided to go the park.  We spent time swinging, eating a little picnic, and went down the slide a time or two.  During one of the trips down the slide, Bennett's leg got caught and twisted behind him.  He cried and whined a bit but I thought it was mostly due to him being tired. 
We went home soon after and noticed he wouldn't walk.  I stood him up and he immediately lifted his left leg and wouldn't put pressure on it.  I wasn't too worried so I waited a little while and then after about 20 minutes or so he was starting to appear in pain.  

I texted Andy and he suggested to bring him in to see him at the hospital.  Unfortunately when we got there Andy was called to a c-section.  

We ended up being seen in the ER by several physicians who work with Andy so we were well taken care of.  Andy came down and was able to be with us as Bennett got some pain medication and an X-Ray which showed a fracture in his tibia.

He doesn't have to be in a full cast, just wrapped tightly with an ace wrap bandage and we are managing his pain with Motrin and Tylenol.  Bennett was such a trooper through the entire ER visit.  Marie kept busy with popsicles and asking many questions. We didn't get back home until about 10:00 pm so the kids and I were all exhausted.

He can't walk on his leg but is able to crawl. Today he started putting tiptoe pressure on it while standing.  He seems annoyed that he can't get around easily but overall he is handling this pretty well.

Hopefully he heals quickly so we can get back to normal!

Fun at Spencer Fair

We headed to the fair in Spencer this weekend with 

Grandma Nel, Papa, & Grammy.

 It was so hot we just kept on moving right along barely stopping for anything...except to pet as many animals as we could find,

 

moo at the cows endlessly,

 

ride the carousel,

 

fly a plane or two,

 

ride the ferris wheel,

 

and of course eat as much as we could!

Bennett loved the fried mac 'n cheese (as does his mother) and root beer floats.

Marie enjoyed her chocolate shake and kettle corn. 

We also devoured a bloomin' onion and salted nut rolls.

 Ahh fair food.

Andy & I went on one "adult ride" as Marie put it.  

I love riding scary amusement park rides with Andy - he gets so nervous and half the fun is watching him.

The last adventure was the big slide. Bennett was sound asleep in the stroller so Marie, Dad, and Mom went down together. 

We wrapped up our day with popcorn and football.

It was such a fun way to spend a Saturday and a rare day off for Andy.

Andy is working nights right now so we are in an odd schedule.  He is pretty much always tired with this schedule and sacrifices sleep so he can play with the kids. 

The kids are missing him, I'm missing him, and he is missing all of us.

We will be ready for this schedule to be over!

Goodbye August, Hello September

With the weather being so hot the past few days we said goodbye to summer the best way we know how...swimming in the lake and tubing behind the boat! 

Saturday morning we took off for Spencer/the Lakes for one more trip on Papa's boat for the summer. 

First we stopped at the new Boji Bay restaurant to go down the big slide. Marie loved it, Bennett tolerated it, and Papa went down nearly as many times as Marie. 

 

It's no secret my kids love water, but this trip proved it even more. Bennett and Marie both spent a long time swimming and playing on the tube.

 Bennett was a little dare devil crawling all around the tube, swimming with the boys, and even trying to climb out of the boat.

 After all that swimming we headed back to Spencer for a little football and tailgate fun.

Bennett caught onto the games immediately while Marie played with her own rules and Gus ran around the yard.

 Aunt Katie flew into town for the weekend too so the kids had a great time playing with her. She even came back to Sioux City to play at our house for awhile where we pulled out the sprinkler for one last time this summer.

After all that fun we brought Katie back to the airport.

Marie was so sad to see her go...she loves her time with her aunts and uncles.

All in all it was a great Labor Day weekend!

Getting Along

 So It's been 3 months since Charlie passed away.

Every day is different for us. 

Some days are easy where we don't even think about him being gone and other days where we drive by a familiar gravel road and choke down a big lump in our throats.

He has left a hole in our home and even though our house is loud, busy, and crazy most of the time, it still feels like a big black cuddly dog is missing.

Marie has spent a lot of time talking about Charlie.  Nearly every night at bedtime she prays for Charlie to get better in heaven, she hopes another family will get to have him when he is better so they can love him like we did, she reminds me that we can't see him but he can see us, and she makes sure to tell me that he loved her the best because they liked to cuddle. 

For her first birthday she received a stuffed black lab from a dear friend of ours which she has named Charlie.   

This has always been a favorite stuffed animal but it now has even more meaning.

 

 We are a family who needs a dog.

So thankfully, Charlie advised us to get Gus. 

He and Marie run and play together until they are completely out of breath. 

We love to walk him, play fetch with him, cuddle with him, and take him swimming.

It is interesting to see how he is different with the kids. 

He plays with Marie much like a little brother - gets into her things, chases her, bothers her, and follows her around. 

Bennett & Gus like to play near each other, share toys, and Gus is always concerned when Bennett is crying. Much like Charlie was with Marie.  They sneak away and get into trouble together - finding water and getting dirty and making a mess in every room.

 

 Gus is a good dog. 

He had a short time with Charlie but it is clear he learned a lot from him.  

He is growing quickly and we are so happy to have him in our family.