Playing Catch Up

Time has slipped away from me all together since the Summer.  School and schedules and life have kept me from taking any pics of the kids that weren't on my phone, much less putting them on the blog.  But since this spot is for them to keep up with their life, I thought I should get things back up to speed, because there's been a lot of things going on and milestones hit that they will want to know about...I hope, haha!

The boys started school!  Griffin is in ALL DAY Kindergarten and Sawyer is going 2 mornings a week to God's Gifts Preschool in Oswego.  They both have adjusted wonderfully  and are doing great! I love the great schools, teachers and friends they have!

GRIFF

Griff has done so great in school!  I couldn't be more proud to see worksheets come home with his handwriting, hear all his songs and listen to him sound out words as he starts to read!  As a former grade school teacher, this makes my heart want to burst!  He gave us "first timers" a scare with a few yellow cards pulled at the beginning of the school year and we remained super calm and collected by assuming he was headed straight for jail and calling his teacher (rookie mistake).  She put us at ease, assuring us that this happens with everyone and has had great behavior since!  He loves his new friends, playing with Charlie at recess, going to Library, playing and reading Star Wars, computer class and all the fun dress up days that come with Elementary school!

 

A drawing Griff brought home from school...he LOVES him some Star Wars!

Griff and I on his back to school date to sushi with Ry & I.

BEANIE

 

Sawyer is attending God's Gifts where Griffin went his first 2 years for Preschool!  I absolutely love his teachers who tuck him safe and sound in to our car after each day.  He looked so small that first day in, waddling with his back pack!  He always tells me he will miss me when were in the drop off line but he always gets right out and has quite the tales about what he did while he was there.  Sawyer also had two major changes in his life moving into this Fall.  He is working on potty training (poke my eyes out, still not going great) and also he switched over to a gluten free diet!  He's done great on it and I think is feeling much better so that's been a huge blessing!

 

Elmo potty and gluten free muffins, OH MY!

New BIG boy hair

Cute little red frosted mini muffin in his class pic!

CROSBI LU LU

This girl is quite a character!  I am in love with watching her explode into being a toddler!  It is way too much fun to dress her and watch her try to talk and play with the boys.  I am trying to enjoy each sweet step as I know I am only going future away from this baby stage, so when she lets me rock her before bed I savor the *moment*.  She is saying a few words, loves to move and grove, walks, runs, hops, skips and jumps...haha!  She doesn't miss a beat.  Oh and she seems to love shoes and chocolate...I think we're going to be good friends Cros!!

 New Addition: Our Hoop

It's been super fun for Ry and I to pass on our love of basketball to the kids and the last two seasons we've been a family of avid bulls fans!  It's been on our bucket list to get them a hoop and now that we are in a place we hope to stay we couldn't wait to get one in the ground!  Thanks to help from the grandparents and the boys b-day $$$ and a little man power from "dad life" AKA: Ted and Jason, we were able to cross it off!  We are hoping to hear the steady thump thump thump of dribbles for years to come from our driveway! 

ABBI

 

This Fall has been wonderful and exhausting all in the same breath...hello real life, right??!!??  I am loving this stage with my family but it also a never ending cycle of work.  We have had a horrible round of the flu, hand-foot & mouth and colds.  Ryan and I have talked about wearing face masks and rubber gloves in the home (kidding...sort of) but hopefully we're just getting this all out of the way.  I am trying to remain up beat.  Bleh.  I have had a few great nights with girlfriends, one to hear one of my favorite authors, Shauna Neiquest, speak and one to drink wine a paint pumpkins.  I am so thankful for friends, these nights keep me sane as we can rehash the good, bad and ugly of being moms!  

This is me saying, "we will never ever ever get back together" to the flu.  It's that simple, right!

RYSKI

 

Ry has had a super busy Fall.  He is seriously such an amazing dad, provider, hard worker and friend.  We are all of blessed to have him heading our family.  This month Ryan applied for and received a promotion to Director at Con Agra!  I couldn't be more proud of Ryan and am confident he will do great in his new role!  He's also been working through an extensive list of to do projects in our new home and he's been super patient with me as I keep adding to it!  Ha ha!  We have painted walls & cabinets, put in canned lights and hung fixtures and pictures.  We have moved endless boxes and it's been a lot of work to get set up in our new place!  I need to post some pics but here is a small project he did in our bedroom because he loves me and he goes along with my crazy whims!  A polka dot wall! He and Griff started basketball tonight too and he is coaching!  Ha ha!  I can't wait to hear the stories!

 

FAMILY FUN

In October we went with my family to Florida for a longish weekend.  It was a great chance to be all together as a family without outside distractions and lots of sunshine!  We even got 2 all grown up nights out because our old babysitter from Naperville just moved to Florida, AWESOME!  We rented a boat one day, did a trip to the zoo, swam and just hung out.  Each big kid couple also planned and made a meal complete with dessert and drink of the night so that was a fun new twist on the vacation and got us all involved!  I wouldn't say we got a ton of R & R (haha!!!) but we had a blast!  

On the boat ride

Cousin LOVE.

And last but not least, no Fall is complete without your annual pumpkin farm trip and ours was so fun this year as all 3 of the kids could participate and enjoy it!

Nothing makes me happy like petting zoos, pumpkins and Fall fun!  Nothing, that is except for Christmas decore...haha!  I am already thinking ahead!  That's a long story short...or maybe for some of you a short story long, but that's what we've been up to!  Here's to staying healthy and enjoy the rest of the Fall!!

Weekend Away

So blessed to have a weekend all to myself with this man...

and these friends....

to make memories and laugh and catch our breath in an all adults weekend away at the lake.  We ate out, went to the vinyards, went to the beach, the boys went for a run (and lost poor Mike), slept in, hot tubbed it and just sat.  It was a breath of fresh air and just what we needed to recharge the batteries.  It's so awesome to have such great friends who we love to be around, with or without kids.  God is just so good, this was totally a highlight of our summer!!!

Sweet Grandma Norma

As I posted early in the summer, this year we lost my sweet Grandma Norma.  It was truly a blessing to get to see her go to heaven as she fought for several years with dementia and is finally up in heaven, I am sure right next to Grandpa Rusty, just as she should be.  Below, is her obituary and the talk I gave at the funeral.  I just had a few people ask me to post this, and hopefully someday my kids will find this an interesting piece of their history.  Their GREAT grandma was quite a lady.  Above she is pictured with Sawyer, who is undeniably a RICHARD.  The most heart breaking thing for me was that she was too far gone by the time I had children to know my kids.  She would have adored them all but I know this little red head would have held a special place in her heart, as she was a red head and so was my grandpa (Rusty...ha) and all 4 of his brothers.  Can you imagine the trouble my Great Grandma Cora had to deal with??? AH!  One is all I can handle right now, haha!  I wish I had a pic to post of her in her younger years, she was a beauty!!  Love you Grandma.  You were are someone I would like to shape my life after and I am so blessed to have been your granddaughter.  You are missed and loved.

Norma Elaine (Newsham) Richard passed away May 28, 2013 at The Arbors of Lincoln at 9:30 in the morning.  Norma was 85 years, 3 months and 13 days old.  She was born on a farm west of Ashland on February 15, 1928 to George R. and Genevieve (Marks) Newsham.

Norma attended District 41 rural school and graduated in 1945 from Ashland High School and in 1973 from the University of Nebraska, Lincoln.  She continued her life long love of learning with a career in education for 20 years.  Thirteen were teaching in rural schools and seven for the Ashland-Greenwood Schools.  Even when she formally left teaching in 1980 to work for Sapp Brothers Petroleum, she was a welcome sight at the Elementary school as Mrs. Claus each Christmas, always sharing her talents as a poised speaker and animated reader.

On July 29, 1951, she was united in marriage to Raymond L. Richard.  They celebrated just shy of 56 wonderful years together before Rusty passed away July 26, 2006.  Norma was the true definition of devoted wife, who well understood the meaning of “in sickness and in health” spending countless hours caring for and supporting her husband.  To their union four children were born: Douglas, Wayne, Bradley and Connie.  Their first home was in Aurora, Nebraska, later moving to Lincoln where they spent 11 years.  In 1967 the family moved to Ashland where they resided until Rusty passed.  Both Norma & Rusty loved their hometown and were well invested in it.  Norma was a member of the Ashland United Methodist Church and the United Methodist Women and she held many offices, including Matthews Chapter #42 O.E.S., Chapter BD, P.E.O. President, member of the Ashland Arts Council and member of the Ashland-Greenwood School Foundation Board.  She was also the Ashland Stir-Up queen.  Norma was more than generous with her time and talents as a community member, neighbor and friend.  She was also never short on cookies, baked goods or homemade rolls if you dropped by for a visit or meal.

Norma is survived by sons and daughter-in-law; Douglas and Renee’ of Lincoln, NE;  Wayne and Suzanne of Naperville, IL;  Bradley and LuAnn of rural Ceresco; and Daughter and son-in-law Connie and Mark Hanson of Wayne, NE;  grandchildren: Robert and Rochelle Richard, Abigail and Ryan Eccleston, Andrew and Julie Richard, Alison Richard, Michael Richard, Stacey and Mike Sanders, Megan Richard, Jennifer and Cody Bobolz and Nathan Hanson; seven great grandchildren: Reagan Richard, Griffin, Sawyer and Crosbi Eccleston, Cooper and Claire Richard and Kennedy Bobolz; one brother, Jerry (wife Jan) Newsham of rural Ashland and many nieces, nephews, and cousins.  She was preceded in death by her parents George and Genevieve Newsham, husband Raymond Richard, brother Dale, of Lincoln, sisters-in-law Nerine Newsham (wife of Dale) and Roberta Newsham (wife of Jerry), and George M Newsham (newphew).

 From the funeral:

I am sure you have all had a moment where one of your five senses serves as a time machine and takes you right into a memory, like for an instant you are actually in a place so scared and happy and you haven’t literally moved an inch.  The hoppy chorus of certain songs can take me right back to my college dorm and the smell of strong coffee brewing transports me to my parents kitchen in the early hours of morning.  Taste is a big one for me though.  I consider myself to be somewhat of a “foodie” and by that I don’t mean I’m a gourmet food coinsure, I just mean that I love food.  And I am pretty sure that my obsession with all things delicious started at my Grandma Richards house.  Give me a bite of a gooey caramel roll or a snickers bar or green bean casserole and there’s only one place I go…tucked safe and sound into the kitchen of my grandparents yellow house, right in the middle of Ashland, Nebraska.  And that is such a sweet spot to be, if even for just a minute.  Food was something that my Grandma used to show and spread love.  She was the first person I ever heard talk about food, well before the days of the cooking channel, in a way that signified that each item she was making was because it was someone’s favorite or met someone’s special dietary requirement.  She worked tirelessly so that each family member arrived to a meal with their favorite dish displayed on the table. For me it was always orange fluff, but if I am being honest, how could I narrow it down to one thing.  Others in our family are crazy for her homemade pizza, roast and potatoes, from scratch runzas, dinner rolls and I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the famous Christmas cookie platter which took her weeks to assemble and was overflowing with sweet sugary confections.  She planned menus for weeks before an event, writing endless lists, and scanning her recipe books and magazines for ideas.  She sent my grandpa to the store and enlisted him to prep for hours on end as she blended, baked, rolled, cut and mixed.  At the end, no one beamed with more pride than my Grandpa over the feast she had created.  They were quite a team.  The term “labor of love” is the only way I think I can describe a family dinner at her house and if you knew my grandma, you know this is how she approached everything that she did, she always labored with love.  She took on life with determination, a fine attention to detail, a sun up to sun down and beyond work ethic, a cleanliness which was next to Godliness…she was organized and prepared and ready with notes and clever tid bits she had collected, and most importantly she had a deep desire to serve and bring joy to those she loved and those who needed to be shown love and she loved the Lord with her whole heart.

To be honest, even with all these amazing qualities, it still boggles my mind how she got to everything.  She was a farm girl who fell in love with an adorable red head.  She was the mother of 3 wild boys and one sweet baby girl.  She was the wife of a diabetic, and being one myself I know the sacrifice and fear and trails that the spouse of one faces day in and day out.  She was a working mom and she went back to school to earn her degree in the midst of all of that chaos.  She was a teacher and a friend and the president of PEO.  She was a baker, a record keeper, and a snow village collector.  She was the hostess with the mostest, always running to the treasure trove she called the deep freeze for a treat she could thaw for last minute company.  She was Mrs. Claus and Mrs. Richard.  She was a gem and one of kind and I am just grateful to haven known her.

With Grandma leaving us here on this side of heaven I see the generations handing over the baton and things shifting.  Our family is changing and as weddings and babies spring up our family is growing.  What gives me an ache in the pit of my stomach is to know that my kids won’t know this truly remarkable woman who happens to be their great grandmother.  But then I realize that something as simple as what to make for dinner can turn into an opportunity to share Norma with the next generation.  So every time I make one of my kids favorites for dinner, every time I sit down to scheme and dream out my Christmas card for the year, every time I read a story to my babies in an animated voice or tuck away notes, photos and documents in labeled boxes so that they will have them someday, every time I pull out treats to serve to company (even if mine are store bought), every time I cherish the fact the there is finally a baby girl in my arms to buy baby dolls for, every time I fall more in love with the sprinkle of freckles that are spreading across the bridge of my own little red heads nose and give into his mischievous grin, every time I shake my head in an exhausted smile over my boys, every time I work really hard to accomplish something or do something kind for someone else I have a little bit of Norma right with me.  And my kids will naturally know her even though it’s not in a tangible human form.  We will pass her down to the next generation, to Regan, Griffin, Sawyer, Crosbi, Cooper, Claire, Kennedy and any other “baby Richards” that may come along through small acts of generosity and love and lots of stories. 

My grandma lived the kind of life that God asks of us…full of joy and full of getting through the hard things and coming out stronger and full of dependence on him.  That is a life to be celebrated and I pray that through my actions for the rest of my days I will do just that.

Thank you for coming to celebrate the life of my grandma and I know nothing would honor her more than for you to go home this week and make someone you love their favorite cookie.

This. is. summer.

There hasn't been a ton of blog updating this summer.  It could be because we have been going, going, going NON STOP, it could be because we are trying to unpack and settle into our new home on Norway or it could be because I am running after 3 small, curly, wild and adorable children.  Most likely a combo of the 3.  This summer, as per norm, we're spending a lot of time at the beach and back and forth from it.  It's single handily everyone in our family's favorite place on earth.  Even Crosbi loves the sand and the waves rolling up on her piggies more than I could imagine...maybe it's because she knows how to work a polka suit, ha ha!

Here's a brief update photo style check list of our summer bucket list...

Sun, sand and some posed beach pictures are a must!

Plenty of park play dates!

Home DIY projects with lots of head aches and a studly hubby who rendered it all....CHECK! 

Celebrating our favorite holiday in our favorite place.

Grand Beach, 4th of July, new sweet niece Claire.

Crosbi Kisses 

and red, white and blue outfits...done and done!

Sleepy porch style breakfasts with jammied kiddos and golf carts dressed like the Turtles Van...Hello??? YES!!!!!  What else would you expect??

One more lost tooth and one giant hole preventing the ability to eat corn on the cob was checked off our list!  Tooth fairy visit (although almost forgot by a very sleepy fairy) was a success!

A visit from one tiny cousin to another to catch up on all things Lucille is always a "MUST"

#thelucilles

 

This is my cousin (and dear friend Amy's) daughter, Ollie Lucille and both our girls are named for our Grandma Lucille. (As is Amy LU)  They were a hoot and half together and I can't wait to watch them grow!  Spending time with Amy as a mom was such a JOY for me, I've loved getting to spend each new phase of life with her and this one will probably be my favorite!  Now to get her and her hubby to move next door????

On their visit we adventured quite a bit...

to Chicago to visit our cousin Molly and see Ali's new hood...

We also ate swanky brunch and meanderd around the farmers market in Grand Haven!

SIDE note:  This man with this little girl LITERALY kills me.  They are so cute togther.  Don't tell him, but it only makes me love him more!

We headed home and CLOSED on our house, so we officially have an addy!!!  

WOOT WOOT!!! 

(check, check!!!)

and then we packed it back up for the lake and MORE family!  We had a great weekend with my dads whole family in Grand Beach!

Kayaking and looking cool!

After kayaking and looking hot and tired with Coop!

Matching outfits, unwilling participants and family photos...we got that one crossed off!  They may not have loved it, but the moms and Aunties loved all the Richard GREATS in chevron.  Rusty and Norma must have been grinning ear to ear watching "cloud side".  

And last but not least we can check off dressing up and running around and baffling our sister with crazy antics.  We've been busy, but our list is no where complete!

We still need to get one 3 year old potty trained, road trip it to Nebraska, and spend our last full week of summer loving on Griff before he starts ALL DAY KINDERGARTEN.  

Easy Peasy as Griff would say.

I'm going to start praying now. 

ha!