Projects

Our weather is cooling down which means projects are beginning at the Smith household. Those of you who know Neal, know that he cannot sit still for very long. He always has to have some sort of project going. So lately he's been patiently (well sort of) waiting for the weather to break so he could begin his next project...the backyard. We have a big blank canvas back there right now and are looking forward to creating our own "outdoor living space" so we can sit back there and relax.

So Neal's first project was to build a shed to store his tools for the backyard (hopefully a lawn mower for our new yard).

Neal and Frank began to build the shed...

...while I worked on sewing curtains for the living room and Tyler and Mollie dressed up in the scraps of fabric and danced around the house.

Fire Safety Day

Last night one of our neighboring towns had their Fire Safety Day. Tyler just loves anything that moves, so we took him out there to see all the trucks.

Here Tyler got to go inside a SWAT truck. The driver of the truck told him (and Neal) all about how much he loves to run things over with the truck (that costs $400,000)!

Tyler also got to sit inside a Medevac helicopter. Little does he know, about a year ago he almost had to take a ride in one himself.

Later that night, we were standing near the helicopter when they got a call, so we watched it take off just feet away from us. It was really neat (and nerve racking) to be so close while it was taking off.

Here we're enjoying some yummy (ok, maybe just edible) hot dogs for dinner.
At the end of the night, they had a burn demonstration where they set a small living room on fire to show how quickly a fire can spread. It was enough to make you have nightmares. The whole thing only lasted a little over 2 minutes and the whole room was engulfed in flames. Very scary!

Neal's Birthday Party

We celebrated Neal's birthday last weekend and we wanted to do something fun for the kids, so...we went to Chuck-e-Cheese. Crazy I know, but we had fun and so did the kids.

Snack Time

I gave Tyler a quick snack while I worked on the laundry today. I think he thoroughly enjoyed it!

Maybe I should have fed it to him myself...Oh well, what's the fun in that?

kids...

Soooo...I was sitting in my classroom today when a second grader walks in for his reading lesson. He takes one look at me and says, "Are you tired today?"
I said, "Why, do I look tired?"
And he responds, "Your hair is messy, like you just got out of bed."

Wow! The brutal honesty of a 8 year old. And the sad part is, I was feeling pretty good today and thought I was having a decent hair day. Oh, well. It gave me a good laugh anyways ;-)

Good News!

In August I took Tyler to see the cardiologist for his 6 month check up. Since his surgery last summer, we have been getting good reports from the doctor. However, at his August appointment, the doctor said he heard a clicking sound coming from Tyler's heart which he thought was a problem with one of the valves. I was told to come back in a month for some further testing. So for over a month, Neal and I have been nervously waiting to get this testing done to find out what was happening with our poor boys heart...again. Well, we went back to the cardiologist on Thursday and we are happy to report that Tyler's heart looks great and the doctor was mistaken about the sound he was hearing. So thanks to everyone's thoughts and prayers, our boy is healthy and we couldn't be happier.

While at the cardiologist, I took a picture of Tyler getting an EKG. He has grown so much since the last time we took his picture getting an EKG at 2 months old.

Indiana Trip

At the end of July, we took a trip to Indiana to visit our family. We really enjoyed our time seeing everyone. Here are some highlights of the trip.

Here we are having fun in my parents backyard. We enjoyed just relaxing and watching the kids. My parents have done such a nice job landscaping back there and Mom's flowers look great.


Tyler and I took a trip to Chicago with my parents and brother Chris. We had fun going to the zoo and taking the architectural boat tour down the river. The second day we were there, Amy and her family joined us for a trip to the aquarium.


We also spent an afternoon at Potato Creek with friends and family. We went for a walk and bike ride on the trails and had a picnic in the park. It was a nice change for us to be around all of the "GREEN" trees and grass.


For part of our vacation, we spent some time up at the lake with Gary and Dianne. We had fun playing in the water and on the boat. Tyler went for his first tube ride behind the boat which was a much calmer ride than when the dads went out on the tubes! I think we had a few sore daddies after all of the flipped tubes and crashes in the lily pads. Tyler also got to play in the sand for the first time which was NOT his favorite thing to do. Poor kid just does not like to get his hands dirty! That's okay, I'm sure before long his daddy and grandpa will take care of that problem once they get him out working in the garage.


Of course while we were in Michigan, we had to check out Grandpa's car and go to a little car show :-)


A fun time was had by all and we look forward to going back soon!

Neal Barefooting

First time after 15+ years, i got up on the 3rd try!!

Visitor

About a week ago, I looked out the front window and found this visitor on our front porch! At first I thought Neal was playing a trick on me, so I walked outside to get a closer look, but it was the real deal. A "gopher snake" about 4-5 feet long. It stayed curled up on the porch all day and I stayed locked in the house...ALL DAY! When Neal came home, he rescued us by catching the snake and taking him out to the desert. I tried to get a video of Neal catching him but we were both dancing around the porch trying to stay away from the snake, so it wasn't possible!

Happy Father's Day

Happy Father's Day, Daddy!

You are the BEST dad a little boy could ever ask for! It has been an amazing 18 months with you.

You were the first face I got to see when I was born.

You watched over me when I was sick.
You make me giggle, even when I'm not feeling well.

You make me so happy when you play games with me!
You teach me how to put things together.
You give me the ride of my life when you take me in circles around the house. Don't tell Mommy, but her pushes just aren't the same.

You are so patient when I want to help you work on your projects.
You bought me my first quad! I enjoy riding on it but I like your quad better!
You make trips to the store a silly time.

You are my favorite teacher, playmate, and role model. I have learned so much from you already and you bring joy to my life each and every day.

I LOVE you, Daddy!

Love,

Tyler