The First Day of School!

Happy First Day of School!  

And in our house, that means one thing.

Every year for our first day of school, my mom made cookies.  

I thought it was just normal.  Then I learned the secret.

On Charlie's first day of Kindergarten, I called my mom and told her that I made cookies for Charlie's first day of school.  She laughed and said, "You know why I did that, right?"

"No."

"It was the best way that I could get you all of your kids to sit down at the table and tell me about your first day of school.  And it worked.  So I just kept doing it."

Thanks, Mom.

And today after school, the tradition continued in Omaha.

It was our first summer in Omaha!

Hello Blog World!

We just celebrated our first Omaha summer.

It was very much like other summers, just without the weekly cousin pool parties.  Not to fear though!  We just made the cousins come to us. 

And as today is the first day of Gretna schools, which means I have a little more blog time,

 here's a little piece of our summer.

Enjoy!  And don't forget to buy your fresh picked Nebraska corn on the cob on the side of the road. 

It's delicious.  :)

CAA and Harmony's 39th and 37th birthday!

Charlie turned 16 and now has a license!

Danny learned to swim in the deep end of the pool!

If you come and visit us, we WILL take you to the Omaha zoo; it's fabulous.  :)

Charlie entered the workplace. 

Cousin pool party after you move to Omaha?  You bet!  We make it happen.

Seventeen years of marriage.  And I know; we look way too young to have a 16 year old. 

We almost are.  :)

Summer goes too fast.

And kids grow up even faster.

So now it's time to make cookies for the first day of school.

Because some traditions never die.  :)

Omaha is still here....and we are still in it. :)

Hello my loyal seven followers!  I apologize for the lack of blog posts. 

We have been busy living life and not writing about it. 

(I realize that not writing will make my following go down and not up.  I'll do better.)

What have we been up to?  Well, we went back to KC twice since I last posted. 

Once for Easter.  Once for the Temple Dedication.

We stayed with Rodney and Kim over Easter.  They are fabulous hosts, I have to say!  Crepes for breakfast, private Open House Temple tours, girls day out shopping....need I say more?  :)

Thanks, Rod and Kim!  We loved staying over.

And it was a great trip!  We saw friends, celebrated Easter with the Ames and Miskimins families and toured the new KC temple. 

My George loved the temple; as we were leaving, he leaned over to me and whispered,

"Guess what, Mom?  Sometimes I feel pretty good.  But, right now, I feel better than I ever have."

I love that boy more than I ever knew possible.  How did I ever get so lucky as to raise George?

It was a great trip....but a part of me felt sad.  It was the first time in my life that I was in Kansas City and felt like a visitor.  I love KC.  I love the trees and the rolling hills.  I love the people and I love going to lunch with a friend.  I love knowing where the best bbq is (Jack Stack), where to get your nails done (Jennie Potter) and who to see when you feel sick (Dr. Eubanks-Meng).  I

 held it together until the very end, and then I got teary eyed. 

It's hard to leave your hometown.

But, as we drove back to Omaha, I tried really hard to count my blessings.  And count them I have.  Here are a few.

Our family is all together. 

We are financially responsible for one house, not two.

CAA loves his new job.

We love the Gretna Branch.

The flowers in our yard are starting to bloom, and we get to guess what color they will be.

The kids doing great in hard Nebraska schools.  There are no sissy's in Nebraska, let me tell you.

Nebraska promises great corn on the cob this summer.

My high school friend, Meagan, lives in Omaha and she and I had lunch together.

There is a spot on I-680, on your way to the Winter Quarters Temple, that looks just like KC.

Our family is all together.  That's a big one, so it gets mentioned twice.  :)

I felt better, and I have felt better since that Easter trip.

Last weekend, we went back to KC for the Kansas City Missouri Temple Dedication.  We stayed at Holly and Bryan's house (who are also great hosts!) and I got some Brielle time.  Nathan and Joy made us a fabulous Southern brunch.  We saw the Temple Celebration and went to dinner with Spencer and Amy.  We sat on a crowded bench with Nathan, Joy and Ricky during the Dedication.  We had lunch with the Meng's and Romines'.

And I loved it.  And I drove away from KC with a happy feeling in my heart, no tears this time.

I will always be a Kansas City girl.  But, right now, I'm learning that life is an adventure.

And sometimes those adventures take you to Omaha.

And that's a good thing.  :)

 



Double Digits

Turning ten is a big deal.

And George turning ten just makes me smile.

Where has time gone?

George, age 4

Celebrating with George is just delightful.  He is truly my middle child, and like his birth order suggests, he's very easy going and is really happy with just about anything.

George after he opened one of his presents.  (We open presents in the morning.)

It was all seven Harry Potter books, to which he said,

 "All of these for me?  And they're even brand new!" 

My heart grew when he said that.

George, at lunch on his birthday.  I brought in Subway and a Sprite for lunch.  One of the boys at our table told me, "Hey, Mrs. Ames!  Did you know that George is the most popular quiet kid at school?"  I said, "Really!  Is that true, George?"

He said, "I guess."  :)

George blowing out the candles.

Ten is big stuff.  And George has a heart that's even bigger than ten.

How did I ever get to be so lucky?  :)



One House

When we moved to Omaha we left three acres, and a house on those three acres, for sale.

It made me nervous beyond nervous to leave that house.

"What if something happens to the house and I'm in Omaha?" 

"What if it doesn't sell and we are stuck with it forever?" 

"What if it DOES sell, and then I really live in Omaha?"

These were all things my head and my heart were saying.

And guess what? 

Things did happen and I was in Omaha.  And we dealt with it.

We had contracts and interested people that fell through and it felt like it would never sell.

And after seven months on the market, it sold and now we really live in Omaha.

And I am okay with that.

I'm more than okay.  I feel blessed and grateful.  It's not the best market to sell a house in and somehow everything turned out okay.

Good-bye, Woodland Circle!!  Thanks for seven great years of memories.  :)

And as CAA said, "Normally this time of year, I'd be getting my first sunburn of the season, mowing.  This year I also got my first sunburn, golfing Tiburon for the first time.  Not a bad way to go."  :)

And now I am ready to finish my Spyglass basement!! 





Camping, anyone?

Life is never boring in March.

Giving birth to two children in one month will change your life forever.

And first, a word about my little boys.  I love having my last two children both be boys.  They are friends.  They love each other.  They are as different as their hair color and they share the month of March to celebrate their birthdays.

And we have partied.  And I have been exhausted.

On March 10th, we had 19 boys over to our house to celebrate a combined birthday party for my George, age 10, and Mr. Danny, age 7.  We had a camping theme, with a tent in the yard, hot dogs, camping games, a pinata.  We were so busy we didn't even get to the s'mores. 

No worries.  Charlie's friends took care of the leftover hot dogs and s'mores.

But, I digress.  Here are a few pics from the fantastic (if I do say so myself) party.

George playing Whipped Cream Hat

My beautiful balloon banner.....floating away.

Danny enjoying some new toys from the party. 

Birthdays come just once a year.  And that is worth celebrating.

Lucky Number 7

Yesterday was a big day in our house.

Because Mr. Danny turned 7.

On Friday, I brought a birthday lunch to Mr. Danny at school.  His choice? 

 Subway.  Good choice, Danny.

Then we went to recess.  And I got to watch Mr. Danny play soccer with his friends.

I was not allowed to play, but I was allowed to watch.

(I kicked the ball once and Danny let me know that the Mom's come to watch, not to play. 

He was polite when he told me to stand over by his teacher, please.)

And my heart was happy as I watched my Danny run the entire 20 minutes in the Nebraska wind.

Yesterday we had donuts, went to see The Lorax in 3D and had a Shrimp Dinner. 

All because we are lucky enough to watch this guy blow out his candles in Skittle topped cupcakes.

Seven is supposed to be a lucky number.  It's also the most magical, according to Harry Potter.

But, to me, watching Mr. Danny be seven is the best of all.

We love you, Danny!!!  :)



I love Pinterest

I have discovered Pinterest!  And it is fabulous!! 

I love the yummy desserts that I will probably never make.

I adore the beautiful crafts that I know will never happen in this Ames house.

And I am in awe of the talented people that can turn a toilet paper tube into a gift giving idea.

I am not one of those people.

I just love their talent.

But, my favorite thing about Pinterest?  The quotes.  They make my day.  They make me smile.  They make me think, "Someone else feels that way, too!  Who knew?!"

And here are a few of my favorites.

Thank you, Pinterest. 

And everyday is a Diet Coke day, especially if it has crushed ice and some cherry or lime.







Let it snow!

Good morning, Blog World!  We have big news!!

IT SNOWED....AGAIN!!  :)

And the Ames children are thrilled that they can use their new snow boots and snow pants....for the second time this winter. 

Nebraska is easing us in to our move.  Thank you, Nebraska.  I appreciate it.

And Danny and George say thank you for the snow.  It brings great brother bonding time.

And while the boys are outside, Abby and I will enjoy the quiet....and maybe make some cookies.

Sounds good to me.  :)



I love my boys

I heard this saying once.

It goes like this.  "There's a Special Place in Heaven for the Mother of Three Boys."

It made me smile when I heard it. 

And today I believe it.

This morning, during the rush of getting out the door, I was talking to my family.  And I didn't think they were listening.  So I looked at 15 year old Charlie and said, "I don't think anyone is listening to me."  He looked up and sincerely said, "What did you say, Mom?  I wasn't listening."

True Story.

Today I went to Beach Day in George's class.  He wore his swimsuit in the classroom.  It was adorable.  He talked to me in the classroom.  Then it was lunchtime, and I had lots to do, but I thought, "Harmony, these are the moments.  Don't wish them away.  Stay and eat lunch with George."

So I asked him, "George, would you like me to eat lunch with you?"  He sweetly looked up at me and said, "No thanks."  Then he walked away with his friends.

True Story.

Today after school, I tried to give Danny a hug and ask him about his day.  He looked at me and said, "Mom, you're embarrassing sometimes, do you know that?"

Three for three.

And on days like this, I just remember that there is a special place in heaven for me. 

I never thought I would have three boys.  I often say that God smiled when He sent me Mr. Danny.

And I think He knew exactly what He was doing.

Why?  Because I couldn't imagine my life any other way.



What makes me happy?

Merry Christmas!!  Happy New Year!!  Happy Valentine's Day!! 

Wait a minute....I'm not that far behind.  Just a little bit. :)

And that's a good thing.  It shows that we are busy making Omaha home.

And that makes me happy.

What have we been doing?

We had Christmas!  And not just any Christmas....Finnish Christmas on December 23rd with 15 people for our Salmon dinner.  The Christmas Play on December 24th with just our little family.  And Uncle Spencer, Aunt Amy, Alycia, Lillie, Davis and Cal on December 25th.  Then Grandpa Allen and Grandma Ulla on the 26th.  Then some KC friends, Ali and Tori came, too!  And Alycia and Lillie stayed and we learned that Mound City is the halfway point between KC and Omaha and that Mound City has a lovely McDonald's to meet at.


Do any of my KC friends like McDonald's?  I'll meet you there anytime.  :)

What's the moral of this story?  We had visitors for our first Nebraska Christmas!!!!

I cannot tell you how happy that makes me!!

I was worried that I might be sad not being in KC for Christmas.

But, I was okay.  We were okay. 

And that makes me happy and grateful.

What else is going on?

Charlie has joined the speech team.  Last week was only his second meet, and he made it to finals!  We always knew that speech was Charlie's strength.

Abby is playing basketball on the Gretna Branch YW team.  They call her Jellybean.  And she is her lucky number, 15.  The team's cheer is "Gretna's Got GAME!!"

George and Danny have found friends in Connor and Andrew.  They're brothers, too, and they love playing together.

I am really busy with Relief Society and I'm making friends here, too.

CAA and I eat lunch together every Wednesday.

We've planned three trips back to Kansas City in the next four months.

Life is good.  Life is getting back to normal.

And that really makes me happy.  :)