5 perfect 10's

Happy 50th Birthday to me!

Wow, I don't feel that old!

What a great reason to get together for a special dinner on the patio with wonderful friends!  We had a local chef come prepare and serve us a dinner of all my favorites.  Filet, scallops, creme brûlée, It was all so delicious!  Eric was our sommelier for the night, pouring us a tasty glass of wine with each course. The kids were all included as well.  They had a dinner of roasted chicken and fettuccini noodles.  

Turning 50 hasn't been too bad so far.  It was the best birthday party I've ever had!

First day of school

Back to school!  

Already?!?

The summers seem to go faster and faster every year!

We have 2 in high school!!

Nick is a sophomore, 

Sam is a freshman,

and Ben is in 8th grade.

They are off, we're  looking forward to a good school year with lots of growing minds and boys!

A staycation and trip to Springfield

Eric took a week off and we enjoyed a staycation for part of the week, and traveled back to Springfield to visit the Horns for a couple of days as well.  

We got to town in time to visit Grandma Bonnie and have a yummy dinner out at Longhorn Steak house.  We caught Grandma Bonnie up on all of our summer happenings and the upcoming school year.  School is close to starting, later this week. 

The next morning we had breakfast at Bob Evans, a favorite of Ben's!

Then we spent the afternoon at Eric's Aunt Jackie's farm.  We hadn't seen her in many years, it was a really nice visit and fun to catch up.  Grandpa Dan and Grandma Jill met us there too.  Later that night we had dinner with Grandpa Dan and Grandma Jill and her 3 boys, their wives and fiancé and got to meet the newest member of the family, baby Lane.  Unfortunately I didn't get any pictures at dinner, we were all too busy chatting and holding sweet baby Lane!  It was so good to see everyone.  Our boys really like to hang out with Jill's boys, it's cute to see them interact together as Jill's boys are all so kind to our guys.  

Before dinner we took the boys to Scheels, a sporting goods store, and more! in Springfield.  The boys have been before with their grandparent's, this was Eric and I's first time.  That place was crazy!  Ben and I rode the ferris wheel, we bowled, did some target practice with toy guns, and shopped a little, too!  

After a restful night's sleep, we met Grandma Bonnie for breakfast and one more visit before we headed back home.  It's always good to see our family, we are fortunate to live just a few hour's drive away!

 The following day Eric's cousin Brenda and her family came to visit from the Chicago area.  It was so good to see them as it has been several years since our last visit.  Brenda and Eric were always close friends growing up.  Brenda came to visit us when we lived in Illinois and Arizona.  We spent the afternoon floating in the pool, grilled out dinner, and ended the night with a fire.  The next day we took them out on the boat for a sunny and breezy afternoon of swimming, lunch and snacks on the boat.