Molly Lost Her Firsth Tooth

Big moment at our house...Molly lost her first tooth! Yes, she is 7 1/2 but she is just now finally losing teeth! She pulled it all by herself when she got home from school, with Todd and Brett cheering her on. The only problem was that she doesn't like the idea of the Tooth Fairy, Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, etc. coming into her house while she is asleep. So, she left her tooth pillow and note to the Tooth Fairy on the coffee table in the living room so the Tooth Fairy wouldn't have to go into Molly's room. Well, it worked just fine and Molly was so excited that the Tooth Fairy left her a dollar bill that "didn't have any wrinkles" (it was brand new)! The sad part is that the tooth was in a plastic bag and somehow it ended up on her bedroom floor (she says she was looking at it). Well, her mom the compulsive cleaner, apparently picked up the plastic bag not noticing the teeny teeny tiny little tooth in the corner and threw it away. So, I feel horrible but I think we've learned our lesson about putting lost teeth in the tooth box and not leaving them in plastic bags on the bedroom floor!

Here is a picture of the very proud toothless girl!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN

We had a fun Halloween and hope you did, too! The kids both had parties at school and then they hit the streets to fill their buckets! Molly was a 50's Girl (thanks for making her adorable skirt and belt, Nana) and Brett was Scream (I don't like that he is growing up and wants to be something scary; I tried to get him to be a fireman but that didn't fly!). Although they had fun Trick or Treating, they really enjoyed being at our house to answer the door when the kids came to our house. Here are a few pictures from the night:

Our New House Guest - Henry

Well, Henry has been with us for almost a whole week and he is adjusting perfectly and we absolutely love him! In fact, for a couple of days I wasn't sure that I was going to be able to give him to Kim and Don. But, our house just isn't big enough for two dogs and he'll love living at their house so I guess I'll give him to them (as long as they let me visit every once in awhile).

He had a "spa" day before he came to our house so his hair is really short now and his nails are clipped! The first day he was a little nervous and wandered around trying to figure everything out. However, the next day he was part of the family and especially likes sleeping in Molly's bed. I'm sure who likes that more, Henry or Molly! Todd took him to the golf course for the first time today and he hasn't yet learned to come back when he is called so I don't think he'll be going back any time soon but now we know that we have to work on that before he goes to Arkansas.

Now, Elly liking Henry is a completely different story! She is not a huge fan of having another dog to share the attention with and has actually been pretty depressed this week. She is used to being the "princess" of the house and just really doesn't like having another dog around who also gets loved on. So, although the people in our house will definitely be sad when Henry leaves but Elly will be much relieved to be the dog of the house again!

Here are some pictures of him from this week.

Looking Forward to Getting Henry

My sister and brother-in-law have adopted a Golden Retriever from a girl that I work with and we are going to have the privilege of having Henry live with us for a month before he makes the trip to Arkansas to be with his new family! He is adorable, although a little wild! We are picking him up Saturday morning and he going straight to the "doggy spa" for a bath, pedicure and grooming. It's definitely going to be interesting to see what Miss Elly thinks about our new house guest! The kids are really excited...they have a countdown on a daily basis as to how many more days until we get Henry! Todd and I are kindly saying that Henry will be attending "Uncle Todd's Boot Camp" for 4 weeks (we'll see how much discipline he wants to absorb)! Here are a couple of pictures of the cute guy.

Playing with Our Cousins

We visited Newton this weekend to watch cousin Brody play football and we had a great time playing with Brody, Boone and Berkley and seeing Grandma and Grandpa! Here is a cute picture that Grandma took of all five of the grandkids on the porch swing. As you can tell, we are all the best of friends!

Molly, Boone, Brody, Brett and Berkley

Rock Chalk Jayhawk!

I hope everyone had a wonderful and relaxing holiday weekend! Todd and I celebrated our 11th anniversary by going to Kansas City for dinner on Friday night (thanks to Pat & Jeff for keeping the kids)! As most of you know, my favorite restaurant is Olive Garden and that is exactly where we went to dinner and, of course, I enjoyed a Peach Bellini to commemorate the occasion! Todd played in a golf tournament on Sat. and Sun. so I spent the days trying to keep the kids occupied (Brett was so "bored"!) -- I was definitely ready for school this morning! But, the highlight of the weekend was Todd, Brett and I went to the Jayhawks home opener and it was fabulous! There were 52,000+ people there and the atmosphere was incredible! It was horribly hot but once the sun went down it was gorgeous. And, we sit right by our kids Jeff and Kerry and their adorable kids Grant and Kennedy and it was so much fun to get caught up with them! Plus, the nachos, dippin' dots, limeades and pizzas were good, too! Molly has no interest in going to a game unless she only has to stay for he first quarter ("they last too long")! So, she stays home with a favorite babysitter and plays -- it works out great for all of us! And, last but not least, the final score was KU 40, Florida International 10! ROCK CHALK JAYHAWK!

Ottawa Wins State!

As you know from an earlier post, Brett's all-star team made it to the State tournament in Haysville, Kansas! Well, after a great 5-day family vacation/baseball tournament in Haysville, Brett has earned his badge of honor and is a STATE CHAMPION! The Ottawa 9-Year Old All-Stars made their way through the tournament undefeated (5-0) by run-ruling every team they played in 3 innings and emerged victorious! It was fun time and a memory that Brett will have forever!

VICTORY DOG PILE! - Brett is on the right (#42)

This is the cake that my friend Annette made to celebrate the occasion!

Here is a video from the tournament: All Stars 2008