Sully turns 10!

Sully, our sweet, sentimental, starting to push the limits oldest child turned 10. We are so proud of him. He takes his leadership position in the family in stride and is most successful with his sisters right by his side. We spent the day cleaning the basement so we could get him an air hockey table which turned into an absolute fiasco. I think he loved the fuss we made over getting it all accomplished on his 10th. The darn thing was so heavy that we had to solicit the help of our innocent neighbors, the employee from the shop, and finally, our other innocent neighbors, but we did accomplish the hard HEAVY work. We skipped all engagements that evening in order to celebrate as a family, something we all really cherished. 

Happy happy birthday to my sweet first born, I love everything about you, even when you test me with innocent drops of swear words and goofiness... oh to be 10! 

Codplay in Chicago

Dave and I had the best weekend in Chicago. After a jam packed May, it was exactly what we needed; a flexible agenda, a couple of shows, fabulous weather, great dinner reservations, and a rooftop pool. 

We explored, ate, drank, shopped, rode bikes, walked, and just enjoyed being away and together...I'll let the photos do the talking... so many selfies! We LOVE Chicago. 

The only downfall was a tornado warning in Sioux Falls at 2am that sent Nicole and the kids to the basement. She handled it like a champ, thank God for her! 

It's amazing to go, but even better to get home to our crew. 

Dinner at Aba.

Corner room with a lovely bouquet.

Meandering

Vacation Dave. 

Divy bike rental was a success! 

Lake Michigan stroll on an amazing day. 

Google Maps, always. 

Cindy's for the view. 

Coldplay with 59k others. 

Mastering our selfie game...trying to, I should say. 

Adios Lor...for now.

Lor returned to Colombia last week. Neither Dave or I anticipated the connection we would create with Lor when he arrived 10 months ago. He not only impacted our lives, but also but the lives of our extended family, friends, and neighbors. Our hearts have grown tremendously. Thanks Lor, for what you’ve done for us… see you soon.

We had all knew the departure was drawing near and Lor really handled it like a champ as he made his way around the city paying tribute to all of the people who have played a role in his time and success in Sioux Falls. He gave us his last few days, just being together. His departure happened to overlap a trip Dave and I had scheduled to Chicago, so Mag and Anna came to soften the goodbye for all of us. The tears that came upon our final exchange were heavy and real. The kids were so sad because we were all sad, and once Dave and I had left the tears didn't. It was so hard. Like all things, it came with trials and growth on all ends, but ultimately, it was an incredible experience, we are so thankful we took the opportunity to host and grow as a family.

Lor has big plans, they include grad school in Missouri, so he will be back in July to collect the things he left in our basement (:)), and to visit some of his friends before moving to Columbia in early August. I'm so proud of him for pursuing his dreams and pushing on with school. It definitely takes a lot of the sting away knowing he won't be gone for long. And let's be real, he will never actually be gone, this is just the beginning.

Thanks Lor, for what you’ve done for us… see you soon.

Catch with Sully. 

Sweet duo. 

Afternoon at the pool. 

McKennan Park

Muniver crew. 

Lor and I. 

Lor with us and our partner family, the Kimbers.

These two :).

All four in the most tender photo. 

Kinder Graduation on Dave's 60th!

We had a week of celebrations and fun. Piper, my sweet, feisty Piper graduated kindergarten, Dave turned 60 and the kids had their last day of school, all in two days. My heart and body was pulled in every direction. 

Piper has come so far this year, she loved school and her teacher, has so many friends, does a great job of dabbling in Spanish and is reading in English. She is so ambitious to figure things out and often does it independently. Its not all roses though, trust me ;). She adds so much spice and sweetness to our crew and we were all so excited to watch her walk across the stage. 

Dave turned 60! We tucked it into all of life's other excitement, just as he prefers. We had a triple party for him, Sully's upcoming 10th and Lor's upcoming departure. This mama's heart can hardly handle it all. I'm so thankful for all of these reasons to celebrate, but I'm also emotional, so it came with tears of everything. 

We are so lucky to have Dave as ours, most guys don't get the privilege of sharing their special day with their oldest's 10th and their youngest's kinder grad, but he handles it in stride and with pride. Our bedtimes are early, but we get so much joy out of our friendship, family, and life together. Here's to many more great years of fun.

xoxoxo

Proud Pip

Piper and her fan club. 

Last day of school pic. 

Piper loved Sr. Naranjo and was so sad to say goodbye. 

Heading to the bus stop to see Elin 
in an attempt to cheer up. 

Lor with Mag and I.

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Birthday buddies. 

Our bookends. 

Family hug- so many emotions. 

Wicked! in Omaha!

Dave and I actually purchased Wicked! tickets 14 months ago thinking the show was in 2021, much to our surprise, we were one year off! Ha! Fortunately we discovered this before we ventured down to Omaha. Nevertheless, we had great getaway. We stayed at a great hotel with a rooftop pool and the weather was hot and we soaked up some good family time. 

Wicked was fabulous, the talent it top notch, the kids love the special effects and story line. We love that Omaha theatre is so accessible and plan to keep attending. 

The walk to the matinee. 

Photo op in front of The Barker building. 

Fam photo, never enough ;.

Omaha!