A Wonderful Thanksgiving!

I can't believe that it's already the 1st of December! Where did November go?
It's Sunday evening we we're just getting settled back in from a very busy, fun Thanksgiving break. We've done a lot of traveling in the last five days, but it was all worth it!

We left Nevada on Wednesday and headed to Emmetsburg. We were excited to get back to see Uncle Marc and meet his girl friend, Amanda. It was so great to finally meet her. It was great to see KD, Marc's dog too. :) Mom and Dad had a wonderful supper for us. They even babysat for us so we could meet up with a few friends.
On Thursday, we headed to my Aunt Danita and Uncle John's house. The food was amazing! It was so great to see some of my mom's side of the family. Tate loved it too because they have lots of John Deere tractors! He was in heaven!
On Friday morning, our best family friends, Emily and Keegan came out to Mom and Dad's. Tate and Keegan had a blast.

 

 

Later in the day on Friday we headed three hours to Creston to Mike and Jean Ann's. When we got to town, we stopped and  saw some of Blair's friends and caught up with them for a little bit.
Blair requested A&G pizza for supper and we just played for the evening and went to bed early to prepare for another day of travels.

On Saturday, we left Creston and headed to St. Joe to see Aunt Maagie and the gang. We were actually celebrating Christmas, and it was a great first one of the season. We had Aunt Maagie's favorite fried chicken and then played at her house for the afternoon. Even the adults had fun as we played several games of Rumikub. It brought back lots of memories. Susan, Ashlei, and Baby Ali were there. We finally got to meet Ali. She is so adorable and such a happy baby. Later Jim and Diana came and joined in on the fun! :) It was a great day!
On the way back to Creston, we stopped at Grandma Janis' house for a quick visit. We were there long enough for Tate to drag out all of Papa D's farm toys and to enjoy some of Grandma's left over turkey.

 

 

 

This morning we got packed up and before we headed out of town we had a quick breakfast. We were home by 12:30 and had a busy day of unpacking, laundry, and a little Christmas decorating. This is the first time in several years that we put up an artificial tree. At breakfast this morning, we were discussing how we were going to stop and pick up our tree. Jean Ann told us that they had a tree that they were no longer using and said we could take it. We did! We put it up today and it looks pretty good! I was impressed. So after putting it all together and propping it up on a box, I have to say that I love it! \It feels like Christmas at this Taylor house! :)

And tomorrow we start The Elf on the Shelf tradition with Tate. Tonight we read the book and talked about what we're going to name him. Tate wanted to call him Roller-Coaster" (haha Random), but we settled on Bronco. So Bronco the Elf will arrive tomorrow morning! He was excited when he went to bed, so we'll see! :)

Now, I know I'm a bit crazy but BRING ON THE SNOW! :)

Papa D

The last week or so has been very busy!

This past week we had to say good bye to Papa Dick (Blair's Grandpa). He passed away on Saturday.  He was a great guy, and I've heard even more stories about him this week that proves this. The services were very nice, and the Taylor family is pretty amazing.  Tate obviously doesn't understand it completely, but he does ask me lots of questions about it. Papa D is discussed daily in our house because everytime Tate plays "farm" he mentions Papa D. According to Tate, every tractor and truck usually belongs to him.
He will be missed greatly.

Halloween was a lot of fun! We carved pumpkins with Nana and Papa Taylor. They were here last week to babysit for a couple of days. On the 30th, we went to Baxter to trick-or-treat at Dennis and Jan's and Heather and Troy's. And on the 31st we did out trick-or-treating in Nevada. We only walked our big block and then we came home and handed out candy!

Tate loved all the Halloween festivities this year!

Jake & Sophia

Well it's Sunday evening, and we're settling in to watch the Broncos game. We had a wonderful weekend with some great friends.
Yesterday morning we went to Cedar Rapids to the Scheckel's. We had tickets to see Disney Live, featuring Jake and the Neverland Pirates and Sophia the First (Two of Tate's favorite Disney shows). It was such an awesome time and the kiddos loved it! They shoveled popcorn in their mouths and kept their eyes glued on the show the whole time. The best part about it was that we dressed them in their Halloween costumes, and Tate and June became Jake and Sophia for the evening! It was adorable!
After the show, we had a wonderful dinner out and then went back to the Scheckel's for more playing and relaxing! We headed home today for naps and a low-key Sunday!

Thank you Beth, Jared, and June for the awesome weekend!

This was directly after nap. I love their expressions. It's as if they are both saying, "Mom, why are you doing this to me?" HA!

Cute little pirate!

 

The Taylor's!

 

The Scheckel's!

Popcorn!

 

Football, Family, & Fall

Of course this blog post is LONG overdue, but we've stayed pretty busy so I have plenty to share. The school year is well underway, and we're loving the start to fall.

It's Bronco and Cyclone football time. Tate loves football. He loves watching and 'playing' it. I think I hear "Hut, Hut, Hike" about 50 times a day. I know this makes his Daddy happy!

So here's what we've been up to in September:

 

The Scheckels came to tailgate with us.

The moms and the kiddos.

Beth and June, Emma and Esdon, and Mommy and Tate

 

Go Broncos!

 

 

We also spent some time in Emmetsburg at my parents. Tate is always in heaven there. He loves the lake and is always right by Papa's side. A few weeks ago, my dad was sick. I'm so thankful that he's ok. Tate loves his papas!

 

Tate and Papa Tim grilling

 

 

 

Today we spent the afternoon at Center Grove Orchard with Ryan, Janelle, and the kids and my parents. The weather was perfect and there is SO much to do there.

 

 

 

 

 

I'm feeling so blessed this fall. We have so many things to be thankful for! Now let's just hope that fall last for a very long time, and winter stays away for awhile!  

 

 

 

July & August

Alright, it's time for a catch-up blog entry. You would think that since it's summer I'd have all this free time, and post on here all the time. For some reason it's harder for me to keep it up in the summer.

We've had such a great summer, and it has just flown by (I think I say this every year). We've spent time at the lake in Emmetsburg, played with lots of friends, went to Chicago, and so much more.
Tate has been loving summer and plays outside constantly. He loves anything to do with water, and can't get enough golf or t-ball.

I guess the best way to share is with pictures!




WATER!! Tate LOVES everything that involves water. He and Daddy washed the cars and he even had to wash his truck.

 

 

 

We got a new tractor from Papa Tim. He's been all over the place with this thing! 

 

 

 

We spent the week of the Fourth in Emmetsburg! We swam, played in the lake, and watched the fireworks.

 

We went to Chiago for the Cubs game with Papa and Grandma Taylor. We had a blast!

 

 

 

Now our summer is coming to an end and it's time to start thinking about school. Tate will head back to Deb's in a week! I'm sad that my time with him is ending, but I'm hoping for a wonderful school year. 







 

 

Taylor Reunion Weekend

This weekend was the annual Taylor Fam Reunion! We decided to make it a long weekend and head down to Creston on Thursday. I helped Jean Ann with a little catering, Blair played golf, and Tate just played like crazy!! Ryan, Janelle, Kayson, and Cora came for the weekend too. It was a lot of fun!

On Thursday, our good friends, Jenni, Cody, and Henry came over for visit! It was so good to see this little man. How stinkin cute is he?!

Tate loved Grandma and Papa's pool!

 

He waited all day on Friday for Kayson and Cora to get to Grandma and Papa's!

Tate tried so hard to be just like Kayson! He loves his big cousin!

On Saturday, the Taylor reunion was at the lake in Diagonal. It was so nice and the kids loved it!

Katie was such a great help. She and the boys threw rocks in the lake! Tate had a blast!

We love Katie!

Ice Cream!

And sparklers to end our fun with the BIG Taylor Fam!

 

Today we had lunch outside

and made ice cream!!

 

 

We had a wonderful, long weekend. Thank you Grandma and Papa Taylor! We love you!
 Now we're looking forward to celebrating the 4th of July! We are loving this summer thing! :)

Catch Up Time

I'm just now realizing that it's been forever since I've posted! I was uploading pictures this evening and thought I better get some on here. The pictures help me remember what we've been up to!
It's been very crazy, but it's a very happy time for us because SUMMER is here and this means we get to spend lots of time together as a family.

So in the last month....

Tate and Mommy went with  my co-worker, Emily, and her daughter to Seasame Street Live. Tate loved it! He sang along, watched, and enjoyed "ice cream balls" (Dippin Dots).

We got to spend a little time at the lake! It was cold and rainy, but that didn't stop Tate and Papa Tim.

 



We've been working on potty training. Let's face it- He's NOT interested! This is one of the only times he's even sat on it. "I just wear a diaper, Mom!"

 



The nice days have been pretty rare, but we've enjoyed a few!

 

 

We've had lots of ice cream! The ice cream truck is such an awesome treat. We can hear it's music for about an hour before it finally gets to our block! I think it's just the coolest thing! Tate and Daddy LOVE it too.

 



 

 

 

Now I've promised myself that I'll keep up with the blog this summer! :) Let's see if that happens!