First baby photoshoot

philip-BW
Originally uploaded by 5fifty5

Here is my sweet nephew. His name is Philip and the funny thing about that is he really did Fill-Up this bowl. I was feeling guilty, apologizing and clicking away. He and his mommy were such good sports and didn't protest at all during Na Na's first baby photoshoot.

football

Branson decided he wanted to try playing football in the place of soccer this season. We signed him up, went to the weigh in where he received his shoulder pads, helmet and other gear. We also found out who our coach would be and when practice started. Just so happens it was the following day and it was a scorcher. The boys warmed up and did a couple of drills. Branson has been at QB, running back, defensive back and rt guard. I think he really wants to be the QB but when they gave him the ball he scored 3 touchdowns in a row. I could tell by the fist pump afterwards he got a taste and I hope the adrenaline gives him the fire he will need to endure. He is finding out that football is tough and learning to shake off the pain isn't coming quickly. Luckily, our coach is enthusiastic and seems to know when a laugh will bring more motivation than discipline. It won't hurt them to sweat a little because most of them have spent the entire summer inside playing video games.

Wild Adventures

We spent the 2nd weekend of August over at Wild Adventures theme park with our friends Jack, Missy and their boys. We planned the trip as a back to school treat for the boys and turns out it was a treat for the adults too! Jack, the oldest one of us, gets on every possible ride. This work out great for those of us who have outgrown the ability to go round and round.
The park has lots of fun family rides, some big, fast coasters and even a few I wouldn't dare ride. Having Spencer there to ride with boosted Branson's bravery and he surprised us by being all about any ride he was tall enough to ride. Mr. Cautious was raising his arms
in the front seat of the coasters like an amusement park pro. We enjoyed a train ride through a safari animal attraction, we watched a high-dive act and were waterlogged from splash island
by the end of day two. The boys took their turn in life size Rock um-Sock um robots
and we ended a long, hot day by cooling off in the arcade. Fun was had by all and I will confess it took me 3 days to recover.

weekend adventures

We had a fun family weekend beginning Friday night. We rented Diary of a Wimpy Kid, turned out all the lights and finished off 3 bags of popcorn. On Sat, we went fishing in the lake in front of Granmommies house taking advantage of the slight break in the 100 degree temps we have been experiencing. I was the only person who caught anything and that included a good size snapping turtle.
I thought I had caught the biggest fish in the lake and Branson was blown away. Granmommie stayed behind to put together her famous lasagna and we all ate like little piglets later that night. We bought a new game called Fact or Crap at ToysRus earlier in the day, so we played for an hour or so before we headed home for the night. Michael won, of course!
I called my parents to invite them for supper but they had 5th Sunday with another church in town so they wouldn't be able to come. So I drove over to their place instead and spent a few hours. We sat out on the screened in porch talking and watching butterflies enjoy the butterfly bush. On my way home, I stopped by the Market Place to pick up some chops for supper and let me tell you they were some kind of fine. Branson said that was the best steak he had ever eaten and I guess thats the ultimate compliment.

Third Grade

School got off to a late start this year due to the opening of the new high school. We were officially back beginning Aug 23rd and we are very excited at our house. We found out during open house that Branson would be in Mrs. Bryant's class. I thought maybe she was a new teacher but to our delight it was Mrs. Chamber's. She had gotten married over the summer and I was ecstatic. She is an awesome teacher and probably the most coveted in the 3rd grade. I had been praying for Branson to get a teacher who would be able to make it fun and keep him interested in learning more. She made me cry, of course, during her welcome speech by saying the kids were part of her family now and they would forever be. Branson came home on Fri. saying she let them scribble on side B of their math sheet(side B is the homework side) in class and I could tell he thought that was about the coolest thing ever.