A smile costs nothing, but gives much.
Another school year. First grade! Unbelievable.
After shooing Rebecca off of the steps, "Becca, I want a nice picture by myself for my first day of first grade, please," he does this. Strange little man
Success.
We love you, Bubba! Have a great school year!
Sundays are for napping, praying, playing, & family time. We took Sunday on the road last weekend to "the big zoo". The weather was the most beautiful I can ever remember on any of my lifetime excursions there. It was also the busiest I have ever seen! 
This jaguar had been hanging out in his cave but sauntered up to the fence, sat down, & looked straight at us upon our approach. Compared to the ones at our local zoo that pretty much are just always asleep on a rock, this one's antics were met with great enthusiasm.
Inside the rainforest... can I get some personality, please?
Besides the fun with animals, there was also a significant amount of fun with cousins. Cara's family joined us for the afternoon & we had a great time together.
We made our first ever trip inside of the butterfly & insect pavillion. It's a no stroller area, so we've always avoided it in the past. We decided we couldn't wait any longer! Ironically, out of all the exhibits we visited, this was probably the one where I MOST wanted Teresa to be contained. Oh, well. She got a big kick out of every.single.butterfly.
There were some pretty wild insects to check out, too.
Ice cream: the perfect part of any Sundae. ;)
Nothing kicks off the school season like the Husker Marching Band. We've trekked down to Memorial Stadium the last few years to join the sea of red while we watch their pre-game show & listen to their first half-time show at the end of their band camp week. It's always a lot of fun... & a much simpler way to give the kids a taste of the Husker experience. (minus the football, of course!)
This year it was on the brink of pouring rain when we left the van, so I left the camera behind just to be safe. But here's the last bits of the gorgeous sunset & the kids post-show. She looks a little bleary-eyed here, but Teresa hasn't stopped cheering "Go Big Red" ever since!
The kids stayed to play in the treehouse & around the big yard with Grandma while Darren & I headed up to his cousin Mark's wedding. (Where I neglected to take any pictures.) We returned to the kids slumbering in their beds & Dad vowing to send Andrew home with a harmonica... & he sure did. It's actually pretty fun to play & only occassionally over-the-top annoying. ;) We went to Mass with them the next morning. Here's Rebecca outside with the new St. Francis statue. Andrew was able to sit up in the choir loft to sing with Red Grandpa & "loved seeing all the little people down below like ants".
We wrapped up the visit with a trip to Pizza Hut. It was always our Sunday evening excursion growing up, so I was kind of nostalgic. 
Lemonhead
Sleepyhead 
One of these days I'll get around to scrapbooking (not just blogging) again & I want to remember that this little lady LOVES music. Teresa sings along with songs on the radio, joins us when we sing, makes up her own songs, & in general just prefers to have music in the background. During the Easter season, we got in the habit of singing the Regina Caeli after lunch right before her naptime. Now it automatically puts her in nap-mode. She joins us to sing (especially the Alleluias) & she starts her good night hugs all around during the last note. So sweet.
We held our 4th annual family reunion on my Dad's side last weekend. Well, 4th since we've started again this round... it used to just be every holiday at Grandma & Grandpa's that we'd get to see this gang of seven kids with their spouses with their kids with their kids' spouses with their kids' kids. Now we've added some kids' kids' kids. That makes for quite a crowd! Since Grandma & Grandpa have passed & since this crazy group could barely squeeze into their house now anyway, we meet at the park. There's lots of jungle gyming & duck chasing
story telling & laughing,
chowing & grinning for photos with your mouth full,
chatting & relaxing,
singing & guitar playing
Nothing says Grandma's like a BIG potluck. I think they should make a different kind of plate for a family potluck so you can take one of everything. Or maybe that would require a tray...
Some family I see often, some I see once a year at this reunion, others who came this year I hadn't seen since our wedding! That's the beauty & trial of a big family: it's hard to find a time that works for everyone, but even with just half available it makes for quite the crew!
It was so nice to see you all! Hope to see you again next year... or before!
Even after a full day of fun, we just hadn't had enough of our cousins yet. So we brought Liz, my goddaughter, & Max home with us for three days. We kicked off our adventures with peanut butter banana smoothies. Yum. Their brother has a peanut allergy so it seems whenever they have the chance, they love to indulge. Max proceeded to just go after the jar with a spoon!
That afternoon we gladly welcomed Darren home & headed out to the county fair. We saw lots of amusing animals,
watched the impressive model trains,
& rode some rides.
Who's going to win?
After enjoying the racing pigs & live music we had to share a funnel cake. That's my signature fair fare. It's just not complete without one.
We did some playing at home including a couple rousing games of Boggle & Taboo. Taboo's a lot more amusing when two of the players are still learning to read!
We couldn't resist enjoying the beautiful weather with some fun at the park.
Check out that ensemble if you can... she was wearing a onesie with her horsey jumper when I dressed her in the morning. She added a pink tutu underneath before we left for the park. Such a fashionista.
We met Auntie Cara & the boys for a picnic,
& then headed to the Splashpark & pool with them that afternoon.
Teresa INSISTED on going down without any assistance & pretty much ran a non-stop circle down the slide, through the pool, up the steps, & down the slide again for a straight hour & a half.
Max & Andrew raced their torpedoes down the slide before they raced their selves. 
What a crowd. The one on the end looks like our cousin James, but it's really just another little boy at the pool fascinated by our underwater torpedoes. He decided to join the crowd.
We had lunch out at Grandmother's complete with a coloring contest for one last blast on Friday,
& then headed home for block creations. Check out this replica of the fair complete with the train, music stage, pig racing, petting zoo, funnel cake stand, ticket center, & in the middle the SuperShot ride. 
We finished up with a little craftiness & made a pinata to celebrate their brother Joe's birthday. Hope you liked it, Joe!
We're so glad you could visit Liz & Max. Come again soon! We love you!
