McCoy Turns Twwooo

 

Last weekend was a special weekend -- my little nephew turned the big TWO!

After work/school, we went straight to my sister's, with a few stops of course.  We stopped at Applebee's and watched the Cardinals dominate a game in the Playoffs.  After checking into our hotel, we made it to Kimberly's well after McCoy had gone to bed, at around 10:30 p.m. We visited until after midnight and made a trip across town to our hotel for the night.

 

I will have a lot more photos to post when I get the pictures from sister's camera from the weekend.  These are just some I had on my phone.

 

On Friday night, I came out of the bathroom in our hotel room to a pitch black room.  I crawled into the bed I was sharing with Keane, and asked why he had turned off the Blue's hockey game.  No answer.  Maybe he was saying his prayers?  I reached for Keane to see how he was laying so I could cuddle up next to him.  I felt his head, he was facing the outside of the bed.  I started to feel him arms, because there was still no talking from him.  As I was feeling from his head to his shoulders, I stopped.  I felt Kaden's sports necklace! 

 

"Is this Kaden?!" I asked.  And the room filled with giggles.  They thought it would be a fun trick to play on me.  Keane had warned Kaden that he might get his butt pinched, and Kylie thought that he might have gotten a kiss on the cheek.  I'm glad I realized it was Kaden pretty early on, haha.  Oh, the jokes they love to play! 

 

Saturday morning, we got up and had a free hotel breakfast where Kylie's first waffle landed on the ground.  We made it back to Kimberly and Lonnie's and by that time my dad had made it to town (my mom and brother went Thursday morning because they were out of school/work).  We visited an orchard and in the afternoon we had a birthday party for the birthday boy!  I will elaborate on both when I have the pictures to go along with it.

 

 

The following pictures are some that my sister sent to me from her phone.  McCoy has grown so much!!  He is such a little toddler now.  He communicates so well.  He understands and comprehends what people are saying and what is going on around him. 

"Who's birthday is it?"
"Mine."  -McCoy
"How old are you?"
"Twwwoooo." - McCoy

 

 

 

This little MU Tiger hat is what we got him for his birthday.  When he first saw it, he said "football," put the hat on his hand, and picked up a foam football to throw.  He later learned that it goes on his head!

 

Timber!

 

Our Sunday feat was this tree.  There was a dead elm tree at Keane's brother's that he wanted down.  It's a win/win -- they lose their dead elm, we gain firewood. 

 

 

 

 

 

Cutting wood has turned into quite the regular activity that we find ourselves doing every autumn/winter.  I suppose it isn't as much as an activity, but rather a chore that must be done as we warm our house with a wood stove and need the wood to stay warm.  It's always fun to be in the woods.  The kids explored along a path through the trees, I rested on the tailgate of the truck in the sun (until it was time for me to do some work, of course), while Keane methodically cut the tree down, and his brother supervised.

 

 

The tree fell slowly, pausing a few times, before it came crashing to the ground, making a loud rustle and thud.  There weren't too many limbs, and with ten hands and a tractor, the part of picking up sticks didn't take but ten minutes.  We put them all into a pile to make a bond fire for Keane's niece who turns sweet sixteen in December.

  

 

Keane's niece and I loaded the truck bed with as much wood would fit, and piled the rest to get later.  Keane's brother pulled some of the large limbs away from the tree with his tractor, so they will be easy to get to and cut up the next chance we get.

 

Oktoberfest in Oktober

There is a festival in Hermann that lasts all four weekends in October, called Oktoberfest.  A group of us decided to head that way on Saturday.  This consisted of two guys Keane works with and their significant others, along with the mother and stepfather of one of the guys who graciously offered to drive us hooligans around for the evening.

We stopped at a small, hole-in-the-wall bar to watch the Mizzou football game, who won by the way!  There we had some cold brews, a few of the crew (disincluding me) had their popular apple pie shot, and Keane and I enjoyed a delicious burger.  After that game, and by the time we made it to Hermann, the Cardinals game had began.  Now, Hermann is known for their wine, and their wineries.  However, instead of going to a winery, we opted to go to a bar with some televisions, luckily got a table, and cheered along with the crowd as they brought in a win, too!

As evening rolled around, we went to our favorite eatery in Hermann, Wing-A-Blazin, for some wings, of course, and some other fried food.  We then tried out another small tavern, which was quite full, and played a few songs on the jukebox.  Before we headed home, we walked across town to the first bar we had been to, only to head upstairs where there was a very people-polluted the dance floor.

Although we didn't get to look out over the beautiful hilly land of grapes and sip on a beer-drinker's wine, it was a really good time with good company. 

Kylie plays ball

Saturday was Kylie's very first basketball game.  And they all did great.  Her team had only had 3 practices before their first game, and they only scrimmaged for the last 20 minutes or so of the last practice, so it was a little hard to tell how they would do in an actual game.  All the girls' aggression really came alive once they were on the court with another team of girls. 

 

They tended to follow whoever had the ball, but for the most part, they followed most of the rules...you know, besides always dribbling, staying in bounds, and those sorts of things.

They didn't technically keep score, but I did and our team won 18-8.  Kylie got 6 of our points!  When Keane's mom asked Kylie how many baskets she made, her answer was, "six or seven."  Keane has really been working with her on her layups, so every time she would get the ball, she would dribble out (and across the center court line) only to turn back around and come up for a layup. 

 
(My phone compresses my videos when I upload them...some day I will have full video clips to view)

Kylie's team only has a total of three games this year, so we'll see if they go undefeated!

Go Shooting Stars!!!

Kollin's Birthday Party

Kollin's birthday evening was a success.  There was a birthday banner and beautifully decorated oreo cookies made by my momma!  There were everyone's favorite dessert -- brownies, with 13 candles.  There were family and gifts.  Kimberly, Lonnie, and McCoy had sent a birthday card (and $20.00) that arrived on time.  It was the neatest card, with light-up candles on the inside that go out when you blow on a sensor, and then a "happy birthday" tune plays. 

v






Kollin's gifts consisted of some candy and fruit snacks, two new shirts, a couple books, Halloween socks, and a Canon PowerSHot ELPH 330 HS for vlogging!

He opened his camera and was checking it out, when a ring started sounding.  Nobody reached for their phones, so Kollin searched for the source of it.  The sound was coming from the box his camera came in.  He picked it up, grabbed the cardboard that lined the inside of the box, and discovered his brand new smart phone, the Samsung Galaxy Mini!

 

We all enjoyed a wonderful breakfast for dinner at Kollin's birthday supper request.

This year, turning a teenager and all, was a very special birthday for Kollin.  And to top the night off, the Cardinals won Game 5 of the National League Division Series!

 

Bow Hunters

Saturday morning, a storm was rolling in so no hunting took place for our family.  On Sunday, however, Keane and Kaden woke up early and headed for the stands.

 

Around 7:50 a.m., two deer passed by an opening in the woods, standing in a field about 20 yards away from Keane and Kaden.  Kaden spotted them first and whispered, "Dad, Dad, Dad!  Deer!"  Keane said he turned to look at the deer, and noticed Kaden was still watching the deer as well.  Keane told Kaden the deer was 20 yards away and that he should stand up and get his bow ready. 

 

The deer started to walk past the opening, so Keane made a noise and the doe stopped in perfect fashion, looking into the woods.  Keane doesn't remember now if he told Kaden to go ahead and shoot, but Kaden shot using his 20-yard pin and hit the deer in a great spot.  The deer ran off and Keane and Kaden were able to talk about their excitement, how Kaden's legs felt like Jell-O, and gave each other some high fives and smiles. 

 

They were going to get down from the tree when they heard a deer blow.  A brief time after that, two more deer appeared.  A button buck walked directly under Kaden's stand, and a doe walked directly to Keane's left, which Keane aimed and shot at, shooting perfectly, exactly 25 minutes after Kaden made his very first bow kill ever!

 

I got a call from Kaden asking me and Kylie to come help him find his kill.  Kylie and I bundled up, hopped on the four wheeler, and because of Keane's strict verbal instructions, hassled with my cocker spaniel who wanted to follow, and was finally able to tie him on a rope.  Off we went, crossing fields, two electric fences, as well as hills and a creek.  

 

I drove directly where Keane instructed me to go, but when I checked my phone, I had missed calls and a voicemail from Keane asking me to bring something else that I had not brought. 

 

After a trip back home, we found Tanner had broken the rope and was running around the yard with our outside cat in leaps and bounds after the broken rope.  I grabbed what I needed to and amongst frustration, wearisome obstacles, including moving Keane's pickup because some calves were scared to walk past it and Donn was trying to feed the cows, and a few bad words on my part (sorry, Kylie), we finally made it back.  This time, in order to avoid traveling across a bumpy part of the field, I drove to the far back of the field on a mowed path...

 

where Kylie spots a deer.  A deer with a backpack next to it.  Had they found the deer in the meantime?  No, that is Keane's arrow in the deer.  Keane got a deer, too?!"  I called Keane, who was frustrated that I drove right up to his deer that he wanted to surprise us about.  I had all that I could handle at that moment, and in order to calm down, I took a short walk to where Kaden had been trying to flag us down, while Kylie drove the four wheeler to her brother. 

 

We walked into the woods where we met up with Keane, and we picked up where the last blood trail had been found.  Evidently, the deer had traveled across a mowed field, and the blood trail was no longer as visible.  With a few circles, backtracking, and a zigzag pattern, we made it to the next set of woods, where, unbelievably, we started seeing blood again. 

 

A few yards into this set of woods, the blood trail led us straight to Kaden's doe! 

 

It was a special day.  Kaden experienced his very first bow kill (he has already shot a squirrel, a rabbit, a buck, and a button buck with his gun) with his dad.  And to top it off, Keane doubled up with him!

 

 

 

 

 

 

13

Dear Kollin,

It's easy to remember how old you are since you were born in the year 2000.  Not that I would have a hard time remembering if you weren't, but I like that on your birthday, your age is always the last digits of the year. 

I always want to remember you as the cute, chubby cheeked toddler walking around the house with your binky hooked to your cloth diaper, kicking the ball around the house, and kicking at the cat.  I also want to remember you as the little boy who sat on mine and Kimberly's laps on the front porch swing learning to say "kuck" when you saw a truck, or when you saw a car, or any moving vehicle, and when you'd say "bap" when it was time to take a bath, or when you'd see a lake, or any body of water. 

 

 

I also want to remember you as the smart little kindergartener who got in trouble for talking excessively to your friends in class.  Or the kid who always exceeds the school's expectations on all your grades and tests.

 

 

But I also never want to forget you now, as the intelligent, kind, and handsome young man that you are.  You have so much talent and so much potential for your future.  In honor of your 13th birthday, here are 13 of my favorite things about you at this point in your life:

1) When we stand up to hug, your arms reach above mine.  I love this because you're growing so much, but it also makes me sad that you have grown so much.  As of this year, you are taller than both of your older sisters.

 

2) You are a proud, proud uncle to McCoy.  You say that you can't wait to have a little boy, but that you want him to be just like McCoy.

 

3) You want everyone around you to be happy, and I think you're selfless in every way.

4) You're such a "thinker" and you are constantly coming up with ideas and websites to make quick money.  I know you're going to go far in life with that attitude.  You love to brainstorm when the family gets together, and you always ask to play games because you enjoy spending quality time with your family. 

5) I can relate to the fact that you are a picky eater.  I was once the exact same way.  I also have faith that one day you will like more foods and appreciate how delicious food can be.

6) You chuckle, shake your head, and look down when we ask you anything about girls.  Kimberly and I hope you know that you're always welcome to talk to us about anything at all.  It's likely that we'll understand, and we may have some good advice for you.

 

7) Your dimples.  This will never change.

 

8) Your sports inclination.  You have always loved going outside and playing sports of any kind.  You played soccer when you were younger, which was really cute.  You then were really interested in wrestling.  You travel an hour to play in your baseball league throughout the entire year.  You can hit some crazy trick shots in basketball.  And you are running like a champ.

 

 

9) You love videos and video editing; so do I.  You usually can be seen with a video camera, and that is what you asked for this year for your birthday.  You will excel in this, and I can't wait.

10) Kaden and Kylie love you.  They look up to you, and talk about you a lot.  "Can Kollin come camping with us?"  "Can we invite Kollin, too?"  Whenever you are around, I don't see much of you or them.  That part I don't like, but I love that you guys get along so well.  And they still call Lenox a leopard bunny -- I think that's what you called him once?

 

11) You always take interest in what is going on around you.  You are a good listener, and you are really patient, like our father.

12) The way that I have to take a moment now to guess if it is you or Dad that answers the phone when I call.

13) You are the little brother I always wanted, and you are perfect.  I wouldn't change one single thing about you.  I am proud of you, of your accomplishments, of your personality, and your kindness and care for your family and friends. 

 

You are now the age that I was when I was blessed with you as my little brother.  Embrace these years, because they are fleeting.  You will look back one day and remember these days as the ones when you really grew, learned, made (and sometimes break) friendships, and really found yourself.

In this day and age, I am nothing but a click away.  You can text me, call me, email me, instagram me, facebook message me, snapchat me...but more than anything, I hope you always know that I'm here for you.

Happy Birthday, Kollin.  Welcome to your teenage years!