saying good-bye

our whirlwind weekend is at an end. at least i remembered that i didn't have any pictures with my parents! they (the pictures) are better than nothing. (i am wearing my brand new "short and sweet" t-shirt from the smucker's store.)

we had plans for brunch out. since maddux' dentist appointment (getting a spacer for the molar he had pulled a while ago) was right across the street from our restaurant, we took the whole gang to his appointment.

big pop and manning snuggled up on the couch for a little minion movie viewing.

sharing the love.

this kid just loves using utensils and is pretty impressive with a knife and fork.

now that we were (very) full, we went over to the mall to walk it off a little. big pop works for a company in the sears family and gets a discount so i asked if we could borrow his discount for a little back-to-school shoe shopping.

big pop helped maddux come up with a hands-free way to carry around his shirts and he was only too happy to help manning out.

the kids were pretty excited for a night of vbs (at the preschool) after we dropped off big pop and grandma at the airport. manning couldn't wait to wear his new shirt.

and just a few more pictures before they left.

even with me!

we loved having them visit. they haven't been here since last thanksgiving so we were due. love.

puzzles are addictive

one thing i got from my mom is a love for puzzles. she started this one but couldn't stop. matt came to join her (even though he makes fun of me for the hours i allow myself on one every christmas). serious bonding.

manning and i took the snuggling observation option.

the kids were feeling bad about grandma and daddy's inability to complete the puzzle and jumped in to help. love.

pool time

we have had great weather all weekend and the pool was a great choice today. love.

special sundaes

mason was given a special sundae glass/bowl at a birthday party a while ago now and he wanted to make sure that we used them during grandma and big pop's visit. we planned for ice cream and picked up some special toppings at the smucker's store yesterday. we had four of the ice cream dishes for the kids and they could not have been happier.

matt and i were going to have a date night, but the kids have vbs at another church all next week and we are going to have dinner out every night on our own so we stayed home tonight. love.

football hall of fame grande parade

it is early. we are tired. but it is parade time! the boys and i loaded up in the backseat and we were off. we did stop to pick up some "peace, love and little donuts" on our way. we saw these donuts for the first time at the parade a few years ago and only got around to trying them in the past year. yum, yum!

before the attack.

happy, happy boys. (notice the "manning" jersey on the guy behind manning.)

each year we are a little smarter. this year we brought a football to throw in the street while we waited. mason was really excited to play catch with big pop - and maddux too.

mason outlasted big pop and maddux so daddy stepped in to relive them.

madelyn had her own way of staying busy.

manning too. this boy loves his raisins.

charger colors represented.

once the sun came over the roofs, we were blinded! that is one tip we forgot - do not cross the street so that you don't have to look into the sun. oh well.

mason finally took a break and manning saw an opportunity.

our animal lover was very excited for the ponies.

grandma is not a fan after waiting on him when she was a teenager.

maddux had to take a break from the super long parade.

excited for the angry birds.

kung fu panda! (we have never seen the movie but they love the idea of a kung fu panda.)

the highlight (for both of them, i think) every year.

it was hot this year for this long parade. we were all ready to go home and cool off. while grandma loved amish country, i think this was pretty special for big pop. love.