Baseball, BBQ brisket, bathingsuits and the Beattys!

So crazy and wonderful things happen in Kansas! Yesterday was one of those crazy wonderful days!



I tried to be a good mom and took the boys to the pool in the morning. They had a blast and were really good. (Even my wild 1 year old!) We came home just in time for lunch, and after I had the kids settled in, I checked the phone for messages. I noticed that my dear friend Denise had called but left no message. I quickly called her back to find out they were in St. Louis heading west and wanted to meet for dinner.

I insisted they stay here so the kids could play and swim. They reluctantly agreed. At about 4:00 that afternoon they rolled in. We were so excited to see them. Mike even managed to leave work early! Denise and I took the kids to the pool while Mike and Troy picked up some BBQ for dinner.

It was so great to see them! Denise is one of those people who never ceases to amaze me! Even with her six kids, she accomplishes so much! She is the scrapbooking queeen! She sews the most amazing Halloween costumes for the whole family and she is a great cook! (I also love that she gave up a law career to stay home and raise her kids!)

It was so fun to catch up with her family and to finally meet little Katie. What a doll! My boys were in heaven with so many fun kids to play with. Mike loved spending time with Troy. We had a wonderful BBQ dinner from Oklahoma Joes - great stuff! (Thanks Troy!)

I abandoned them though to go to a Royals game. One of my cute friends called earlier in the week with an extra dugout seat right on first base because her husband hadn't wanted to go. We had a great time at the game and the Royals even won!

Troy decided he wanted to get an early start for the drive the next day. So at about 2:30 am he began loading the van up. By 3:00 am the kids were loaded in and they were on their way west. (And I thought 5:30 was getting up early!)

It was too short of a visit, but I'm so glad they came. Maybe next time I can bribe them to stay longer... any ideas?

Henry's Birthday

Saturday was Henry's 4th Birthday. It was a great family day. Mike only had to go in to the hospital for a couple hours, and was able to be home for the birthday party! Here are some of the highlights... Henry's Pirate Ship cake.

Mike and Clifton set up the slip and slide for our home made water birthday party.

4 year olds really don't expect much when it comes to party activities. A slip and slide, a sprinkler and a slide with a hose seem to be plenty!

The play set was the pirate ship.

Hot dogs, cake and Cheetos were the perfect accompanyment to a chocolate pirate ship cake!
That evening we took the family to the Royals game. It was a great game. The Royals beat the Giants and there was a great home run in the 7 th inning so we got free ice cream sundays!

The Truth...

So It's time I come clean.


I bought a wii for Mike for father's day. I bought a star wars lego game because I know he loves playing it at my parents house. I also bought him guitar hero. I told him it was because I was sure he would like it and it has lots of music he likes on it.



I lied.


The real reason I bought it was for me.

I've never been much of a video game person. I only beat Super Mario Brothers once and I used cheat codes to do it. (That was back on the original nintendo.) But now I'm hooked. I can't stop. Mike even begged me last night not to completely disrgard our children all day while I played. (I only play when the kids are in bed.)


I feel much better now that I have this secret off my chest.

Why I love Kansas

So tonight was our first tornado warning here in Kansas. It was pretty exciting. Mike and I took the boys on a walk to drop of some brownies to Scott Morris. He helped me with George's birthday party - another post for another day... It is about half a mile to the Morris home. The boys were on their bikes, Mike and I were walking, and Clifton was in the backpack.

The sky looked a little ominous and we knew that there was a storm comming in tonight. It was warm and incredibly humid. We dropped off the brownies and began our walk home.

As we began walking the tornado sirens started going off. For those of you who have never experineced a tornado siren, they are incredibly loud high pitched almost wailing sound. There are numerous towers throughout the area from which the sirens are broadcast.

The rain had not yet begun and there was no wind - not a good sign in tornado country. We began walking faster, and the boys began riding their bikes faster. We had walked maybe a block with the sirens going before a 20 something guy driving an SUV pulled over. He asked if he could give us a ride somewhere. I thanked him and said we were close to home.

We then began jogging and the boys were flying on their bikes. About 1/2 a block latter, a woman in a mini van pulled over and told me that the funnel sightings were in DeSoto (about 25 miles away) so I had a little time. She also asked if she could help. I thanked her for the information and said that we were close to home.

We were still jogging when another woman in another mini van made a U-turn and pulled along side us. She asked if we were close to home and if she could help get us home. At this point we were only about a block away. I thanked her, and told her we lived just around the corner.

We hurried home and I quickly put away the loose toys and wiggle cars in the backyard so the wind wouldn't throw them around. Mike came out and told me to get inside. The boys were all down in the basement eating brownies and watching footage of a funnel cloud comming up I-35 - not too far from where we live.

Fortunately soon after, the National Weather Service ended the warning, and the excitement was over.

Now we have a wild and beautiful thunderstorm roaring overhead.

The most amazing part though was the genuine concern from the people here. I couldn't believe that three complete strangers would all offer to help us in less than 15 minutes. By helping us, they were potentially putting themselves in danger by being away from safety while transporting us.

There really is something amazing about the people here in Kansas...

Utah CF Walk!

Alta made a video about the Cystic Fibrosis Walk in Utah and I think she did a great job. Here it is!

Great Strides With Elliot's Angels