Fourth of July and A Special 90th Birthday Celebration

July kicked off with more fun for this Sutko fam. The 3rd was Heidi's sister and brother-in-laws annual 3rd of July celebration. So off we went to join in the festivities. And not only did we get to attend this year, but we talked Ang and her family into making Omaha a pit stop on their trip back to Kearney. Grant loved staying up past dark, sitting in lawn chairs with his cousins, and watching the fireworks. The picture that comes to mind when I think of this night is him in his mini lawn chair, neck cranked back, perma smile in place, loving every minute of the fireworks show. So between great food and drink, a ton of kids, and a relaxing evening with family and friends-we could of just ended there and said we had a fantastic 4th. But we were off the next morning to Mausbach's to decorate bikes, trikes, and strollers to participate in Heidi and Tommy's neighborhood 4th of July Parade. The kids loved participating in the parade but even more fun were the games, prizes, firetruck, and food set up at the end. I myself absolutely loved the quaintness of this celebration for our country's Birthday. (Somehow I have misplaced all the pictures from this first 2 events :( Another fun tid bit of this holiday is that we had been teaching God Bless America to Grant. He knew every word and loved the song-hated to perform it when asked-but was adorable to hear when he did. He still will every so often ask "Mom (or Dad) is this a God bless America day?" I think this is what he calls the 4th, but it's still makes me smile to hear him say it in this manner. :) So after the parade we were all off to Kearney to celebrate my Grandpa's 90th Birthday. We spent a lot of time hanging out in the courtyard at St. John's, swimming and relaxing at Nick's Dad's place, and seeing aunts, uncles, and cousins we had not seen in awhile. We were able to get my Grandpa out of the home for a bit and have his actual celebration at my parents. He was one pooped man by the end of the day!

June

June seemed to fly by, but looking back we did enjoy the month that kicks off summer fun. The weather wasn't too hot yet so we went to the zoo a lot. We also did the pool here and there, enjoyed our backyard, and had a wonderful extended weekend in Kearney. I finally remembered my camera on one of our zoo adventures and lucky for me the kids were being pretty cooperative for a little photo shoot. These pics make me smile because it really depicts Grant and Hadley's personality right now...goofballs! Grant is just silly most of the time-singing, making silly faces, trying to make us laugh- and wanting to learn anything and everything he can. Questions, questions, and more questions come when talking with Grant...and he likes to talk...a lot. And we continue to hear a lot about Casey (his imaginary friend) and her family. He also has embraced his big brother role. He loves to be a big help to his sister, sometimes a bit munch. As for Hadley, she may be just as silly as her brother. She loves to giggle, she drives her brother crazy by getting into everything he is doing, and is becoming so independent. Voicing her needs and wants is nothing new from her, she will let you know...and let us know if Grant is getting in the way of that. Can't believe she is almost 1!

At the end of the month we went back to Kearney and had an extremely relaxing time at Nick's Dads. Most of our time was spent out back enjoying the water, beach, and deck. I read a book and worked on my tan (something that rarely happens these days) so this Mama was very happy. We were able to spend a little time with my Grandpa Iversen, who is still at St. John's and my Grandma too. Morning's are great there because his courtyard has a swing set, fountain, and great shade-so the kids can just play and we can converse. Probably one of the best parts of the weekend was getting the boat out and getting some quality time with Mimi, Papa, and Grandpa Mark on the lake. The afternoon was beautiful on the water, Grant tubed-including a fun ride with his Mimi. :) We had a good dinner at Lakeshore restaurant and then back on the water for a little evening skiing and boat ride. Grant had a blast because his Twit cousins were back for the weekend too, lots of boys and lots of fun.

Grant also came across all this in his closet and was ecstatic...he had everything to be Woody. And was for many days there after. :)

We love Batman

These two goof balls are two peas in a pod. Grant asks to see Will at least three times a week and we were fortunate to get to see him quite a bit this summer while Will's Mama was on summer break. A little shout to our teacher friends who we love to spend time with in the summer! Grant was at Will's earlier this day and asked to bring his costume (which is Will's home). While when Will came over to have smore's that evening, he liked Grant's Batman costume. Neither would agree to be Robin, so we have here Batman and Batman.

Memorial Weekend

The majority of our Memorial weekend was spent in Clarks, NE with the Douglas Family. Sunday was spent at Nick's aunt and uncle's-the Dexter Farm-it involved swimming, tractor rides, bug catching, fried chicken, and even a big summer storm to end the night. Let's just say Grant was in bliss the entire day-what little boy doesn't love a day at the farm and a tractor ride! Then Monday a memorial at the cemetery that recognized Nick's Grandpa Douglas, then out to Nick's other aunt and uncle's-Greg and Mary's-for some more food and fun. That day's highlight involved Grant getting to Jet Ski with Nick. The weekend was fast but relaxing and exactly how summer holiday's should be spent...with lots of family, lots of food, by some water and put those together usually entails a lot of fun!

Enjoying the Beautiful Weather

May has been gorgeous and we have been taking full advantage of it. We always love a trip to the zoo. But we have also been enjoying our swing set and the backyard. Hadley loves to take as many trips as she can around the house in the wagon and Grant continues to love to swing (and having Mommy pretend to eat his toes), this brings giggles galore. Then of course Hadley wants to play and more giggles are produced. We've even been able to get out the kiddie pool, which both kids love. We've enjoyed picnic's at the park and picnic's in the fort of the swing set.

Hadley's 9 Month Update

A little late on the appointment but today we had Hadley's 9 month appointment (she actually turned 9 months on April 23rd). So our big girl did just fine and we were so happy there were no shots! As far as stats: 29 3/4in tall (97%), weighed in at 19lbs 6oz (75%), and 18 1/4in head circumference (95%). And at 9 months Hadley is pulling up on things, eager to be wherever her brother is, loving to swing, be tickled, and wrestle with her Dad and brother. She's a great little sleeper and so easy to put to bed. She likes her blankie and her knuffle bunny. Her giggle is contagious. She waves, she claps, she's working on "so big". And of course we love to pieces. :)

A little getaway to KC!

At the end of April we had a great extended weekend down in Kansas City. With the whirlwind of events in the last year, Nick has been the only one who made any trips to KC. So we were all pretty excited for a return family trip. We had a fun weekend spending a little quality time with family and getting to see some good friends we have been missing. We visited Crown Center, roamed the plaza, ate good food, swam a lot, and ended the weekend with a cool and rainy Trolley Run. This was Grant's first year as a participant in the kid's races and he loved it. Hopefully, we can get back for this again next year. A few other tidbits from the trip-Grant got a harmonica and loves it, Hadley was adorable in her swimsuit, the Embassy rocks for family vacations with young kids, and I can't express how important these little getaways are for a family. Everyone came back so refreshed and rejuvenated!