Tigers, Pirates, and Birthdays........Oh My!

The weekend started with a Friday night football party at our house. Our Missouri Tigers played the Nevada Wolfpack on ESPN Friday evening. We had a few friends and their kids over to take in the big game. The Tigers won the game and we all had a great time. The kids really enjoyed themselves. Cali made a new friend, Lyla, and Cade ran around with Max, Parker, and Drake. Our next game is a huge Thursday night ESPN game vs. Nebraska on October 8th. Come on Tigers........we need that one!

On Saturday Cade had another soccer game. The Pirates were 3-0 heading into Saturday's battle vs. the Liberty Strikers. The boys ran into a brick wall and got walloped by a final score of 6-0. It was a very ugly game from start to finish. Our boys just were not ready to play. The other team was good, but not 6-0 good. It was a very disapointing game to watch. So now the Pirates are 3-1. The good thing is we play again this coming Saturday so we have a chance to bounce back.

Today we celebrated my dad's birthday. We stuffed ourselves at lunch and then enjoyed hanging out for a few hours. Here are some pics from today's celebration................

After the party Cade had soccer practice and then we had a baseball meeting this evening (already planning for next season). Another weekend is over with :-(. They go by way too quickly. This week is going to fly right by. Cade has his birthday party next Saturday. Good times await!

WEEKEND WRAP UP

We had another great weekend! It started on Friday night with the Pirates football game vs. Grandview. We ended up sitting in the "Pirate Suite". With the suite you are allowed to have 12 people total. We also had about 8 pizzas and all kinds of drinks, candy, etc. Cade had some buddies in there and they loved it! They thought they were so cool! The Pirates dominated and easily won the game. Here is a picture of the three amigos........Cade, Noah, and Parker.



On Saturday I worked at the bank until noon. Kim worked her tail off and cleaned the entire house and did a ton of laundry. I came home and mowed for a while before we took off for a soccer game down in Raytown. The boys played a great game and won 5-3. Cade had another goal and played well overall. The win was a costly one though. Towards the end of the game Parker, one of our best players, went down with with a knee injury. They took him in today and found out he has a sprained knee! Ouch! He will be out for a while. The boys are going to have to step it up a notch with Parker out. After the game a group of us went to Buffalo Wild Wings for dinner. It was nice to hang out and laugh, eat, watch college football, etc. Cali was perfect and Cade had a blast with some of his teammates.



Today we made the dreaded grocery store run and then settled in for the Chiefs game (another close loss). I finished up the mowing and Kim finished up the laundry. Cade had spent the night with a buddy so he came home and then ended up leaving again b/c another buddy asked him over to play! He is Mr. Social! Kim and I had a lot of "Cali time" the past 24 hours which has been nice. The kids are finally in bed and we will be doing the same soon.

Earlier this week the kids put some scarecrows outside. Here are a few pics of them with the new decorations. Yes, Cali has on her gymnastics outfit..........she wears it all of the time! Too cute.

LIFE'S A CIRCUS!!

A couple of nights ago the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus was in town. We picked Cali up from gymnastics and headed towards the Sprint Center. When Cade was little we took him to quite a few circuses. This was Cali's first one. She was so, so excited! We were excited for her. We all had a great time! Cali was pretty much overwhelmed in the beginning. Once she got used to all of the activity she let loose and danced, sang, clapped, etc. Cade was Mr. Cool the whole night. He enjoyed it all, but he does not let his excitement show like Cali does. I was personally amazed with all of the colors! It was a late night, but a fun night. Enjoy the pictures below.....................

WEEKLY UPDATE

It is a beautiful Sunday afternoon here in Platte City. The windows are open and the fresh air is circulating throughout the house. Cade, Cali, and I are sitting here watching the high-powered Chiefs (kidding you know) take on the tough Baltimore Ravens in the first game of the year (Kim is making the Target run). Right now it is a closer game than I had expected. We'll see what the 2nd half brings.

If you read my last blog post you know that Cali has been going pottie. As a reward we took her and Cade to Build a Bear down at Zona Rosa. Cade made a cool Missouri Tiger while Cali picked out a cute puppy dog. They really enjoyed themselves and we enjoyed watching and helping them.

Build a Bear....Cali and Cade picked out their animals.

Cali is making a wish before she puts the heart into the puppy dog.

They wash off their animals and then display the finished products.

This past week Cali and Taylor had another gymnastics class. Cali loves it! She comes home and shows us all of her tricks. Cade had a great week at school as well. He loves his teacher and loves the kids in his class. He is doing very well so far in the 4th grade. Yesterday Cade had another soccer game. They won the game 7-3 and Cade scored 2 goals. That is 4 goals total so far this year for him............and the team is off to a 2-0 start! Go Pirates!

Last night Kim and I attended Mamma Mia! at Starlight Theatre. It was a terrific show! The music was great and it was much funnier than I had expected (we had not seen the movie). To top it off, it was a beutiful evening! We went with a group from the bank. We took a very nice bus down and back.......it was the perfect way to travel.......... in style!

This week we are taking the kids to the circus on Wednesday night. It will be Cali's first circus. On Friday night the Pirates play at home again so we are looking forward to seeing the game. Between work, school, and our other activities, the week should fly right by. I will finish with a couple pictures of Cali Liu "performing" as she does on a regular basis. I could see her on the Starlight stage some day!

What a Labor Day Weekend!

This Labor Day weekend is coming to an end............It has been busy one! Last week Grandma went in to have knee replacement surgery. She is recovering very well and is now at home. Now the long, tedious therapy sessions begin...............Here is a picture of Cade and Grandma:

On Saturday my buddy and I traveled to St. Louis for the big Missouri-Illinois Arch Rivalry game. My Tigers were underdogs in this one but came away with a very convincing 37-9 victory! We would have had a blast regardless of the outcome, but the big win made the trip even better! Nice job Tigers...........

While I was gone on Saturday Kim and the kiddos stayed very busy. Cali and Taylor are going to be flower girls in cousin Vance's wedding in November. On Saturday they were fitted for their flower girl dresses..............here are some pictures of them. They look so pretty!

We had a major break through this weekend..........Cali went on the big girl potty! We have been working with her for a long, long time! Tammy has even been trying to coax her in to trying it. Cali is so head strong that she has resisted time and time again. On Friday at the hospital she wanted to try it and she did it twice! Since then she has been doing it all weekend and is now wearing big girl panties! We are so proud of her and she is so proud of herself! Cali being Cali, she does go potty in style:

Tomorrow our beloved Tigers kick off the season vs. the Fighting Illini from Illinois. The "Arch Rivalry" game is held in St. Louis at the Edward Jones Dome. We have won the past 4 years in a row, but are 7 point underdogs this year. We lost a lot of talent from last year but we do have a strong contingent of players that should be able to step up and fill those holes nicely.

Last year a couple of buddies and I made the road trip to St. Louis for this big game. We had a great, great time. Of course we were victorious so that helped things out! It was a last minute decision but two of us are heading back down for this year's battle. It is a nationally televised game starting at 2:40pm on ESPN. Be sure to tune in to see what happens. I just hope for a great game (and a Tiger victory!).

We hope to see a lot of Derrick Washington running into the end zone tomorrow.

Sean Weatherspoon is a MAN..........cannot wait to see what he does in tomorrow's game.

CALI'S 1ST DAY OF GYMNASTICS

Today was Cali and Taylor's first day of gymnastics together. This was something that Boca wanted to take them to once the girls were old enough to do so. Their teacher was Miss Kelsey. According to Boca the girls did very well. They did the trampoline, balance beam, the straight bar, forward roll, etc. Cali was wiped out when I picked her up from Boca and Pop's house. It is kind of strange because for years we have always watched Cade and his activities.........soccer, basketball, flag football, baseball, etc. Cali has always tagged along watching "Bubby" play or practice. Now she is going to have an activity of her own! Here are a few pictures from their first day of class!

The girls with Miss Kelsey

The girls are hanging out waiting to start their class

Cali does her forward roll

Cali on the trampoline

Cali on the balance beam