First Day of School

We made it through the first week of school. The kids are going to a brand new school and boy oh boy is it nice. They have smart touch screens, Mac computers in every class, and the classrooms are nice and big!

Jared has Mr. Phillips as a teacher and is just psyched to have a male teacher two years in a row. He really loved Mr. Deck last year and it is looking like he is going to love Mr Phillips and 5th grade too.

Drew had a rough year last year and was really crushed by his teacher. We prayed so hard for an amazing teacher this year that could love him for him and build him back up or Mama was going to homeschool him. Well...his teacher is awesome. Her name is Ms. Hoover and she has been so amazing with Drew this first week. For those of you who don't know Drew is severely dyslexic and has struggled but that is another post all together. Drew loves her and continues to tell us that, "...She loves EVERYONE in the WHOLE class no matter what...she calls all of us her friends..." God is good and we are continuing to pray for our Drew and feel blessed that God chose Ms. Hoover for us she is so sensitive to Drew and sincere. We can't wait to see how the year goes. Drew also had an amazing learning specialist last year Tammy and again God is Good....Tammy is at the new school and is going to work with Drew again. We LOVE Tammy and she really loves Drew.

Delaney....What can I say but Kindergarten (half day...afternoon class...thank goodness because I know I am not ready for her to go all day and we enjoy our mornings together) Again, God blessed us with an amazing teacher that many of my friends kiddos have had and loved her. Mrs. Marcheze...Delaney loves her and looks forward to school everyday. She is so grown up with her backpack on when she blows me a kiss and then heads into class. Ahhhhh...

started....The kids are all in Gold Rush t-shirts because the school handed them out and asked everyone to wear them the first day so that could take a school picture since it was the schools first day....You will also notice that Laney is not in the boys picture because she had 4 hoursHere are pictures of the kids first day and another we took of all of them before school before she went....Grammy and Papa were visiting with us for the week and were able to be here for the kids first day...the kids loved being able to share it with them! There is a great picture with Papa but I think the one with Grammy is on her camera...I will try to get it and put it in...Enjoy the pictures xoxoxo

Come on now boys....I know summer is over but school will be fun!

Drew 3rd Grade / Jared 5th Grade

Jared and Drew with Papa...We love you Papa!!Look how big she is...It feels like she was just learning to crawl...Our last first day of Kindergarten picture...Hmmmph
Waiting for the teacher with "the girls"...no boys to be found
they were climbing the dirt mounds
girls will be girls and boys will be boys :)
Delaney is first in line with her teacher Mrs. MarchezePictures in front of the school

Durango the End of the Saga!

I ended the last Durango post with Gramma Jeanne on the couch after hurting her knee saying, "I just pulled the ligaments...It will be okay!" Next morning we get up and I ask her how are you doing and she tells me she is good and it is even not bruised. But she can't put weight on it so she asks if I will lotion her up...No problem! Lotioning and oiling, lotioning and oiling (sorry got lost in my head that was a line from The Sandlot...focus Alison) As I am getting close to the knee and I see that is COMPLETELY bruised...not bruised...crazy woman...TOTALLY bruised. I call my Dad in again and tattle on her again and that is when it is time to take her into an urgent care...Sounds good so Paul and I took the kiddos to the pool. We were hoping to dirt bike again but that was looking grim so I started thinking...Hmmmm...what do I love to do in Durango...RIVER RAFTING!!! The kids were on board (i'm so funny get it on board...never mind) So we scheduled our trip and headed into Durango.

What about Gramma Jeanne you ask...okay so the Dr. could not see any breaks on the X-Ray but since she is old...what sorry I meant a young blossoming flower...they wanted to do an MRI to make sure they didn't miss anything. And, sure enough they did and she had a perfect T break on her leg right in the tibia (for those less knowledgeable about the bones it is the bone that is from the ankle to the knee and her break was above her shin). They finished up with her and put a splint on her, gave her a few drugs, and told her to see her doctor when she got home. From that moment on my Daddy officially named her...

TINY TIM
"GOD BLESS US...EVERYONE"

In the meantime we headed to the river rafting place and Mom and Dad got done just in time to meet us there and take a few pictures for us...All the kids were super excited and we had a whole boat to ourselves...AWESOME!!!

The Picture We Purchased....LOVE IT! Look at all those Studs...

Getting ready to go...in case you had trouble putting that together :)

Gramma Jeanne straight from the ER...Still looking good woman!

Drew showing everyone what to do if you fall out...or what not to do...not to sure :)

As you can see we had a great time rafting and the kids can't wait to do it again! We were getting ready to leave the next morning but really wanted to try and get one more ride in so we decided to wake up at O' Dawn Thirty to ride again...Drew and Gramma Jeanne stayed home. It was gorgeous outside here are some pictures my Daddy took of us and the last one has been photo shopped by my Dad see if you can pick out the thing in the picture that doesn't belong:)

Did you guess...Yes it was Gramma Jeanne...dirt biking is a definite no no on crutches. But we all know Gramma Jeanne hates to miss out on anything...but Drew on the other hand is happy to miss things for his sleep. Then we left afterwards and headed back to Denver. On our way we found a waterfall and stopped with the kiddos so these are the last pictures of the trip. It was super fun and we loved every minute...Thanks Gramma Jeanne and Poppies you are awesome!! We had a blast! Nothing better than a weekend of memories! (I really like explanation points can you tell??)XOXOXOXOXOXO

My Faithful Blog Readers...

Hello to all my faithful Team Marien readers. I am so sorry I have not updated. We have been on a mini getaway again, came home, had friends visit, goal setting conferences for school, last day of summer fun, Grammy and Papa came to visit, first day of school, and more fun!! It is no excuse but my days have been full and by the time I hit my bed and open my computer and wait for it to connect to the wireless internet (20 seconds), I am already drooling on my pillow :) HOWEVER; I have so much to talk about such as, Durango Part III, Steamboat Springs, Fun with our 24 hours with friends Kristin & David, the kids new school, last day of summer fun, Grammy and Papa visiting, first day of school for the big boys, and Laney's first day of Kindergarten to say the least. So stay tuned and Durango III will be up tomorrow and everything else to follow quickly after because I have 3 hours a day with no children. Yes, I could clean, grocery shop, and a million other mama bear outings but why would I when I can blog? So check back, grab a coffee or soda (Gramma Jeanne) and enjoy the ride....See you tomorrow....xoxoxo