The Bender Family

Summer Pics

 Safety First.......gay yellow floating device but safe for a wild man like himself!

 This was Coy's favorite place....The Creek.  The first day we went there he didn't have his "Gay Yellow Suit" on and the creek is deep in some spots so he went under.  Didn't stop him from enjoying his day though!  Hard to scare this one!

 I am not going to lie...I look really happy in this picture but when I got to the top of the DUNES I had an attack.  I believe I could be afraid of heights.  I called it a sickness and my husband called it a weakness.  Whichever the case may be......in this pic all I was thinking about was my way down. 

 My kids had a GREAT week with UNCLE JOSH.  I think Josh enjoyed them as well.  He bonded so much with Brooklyn that I think he may want to have a girl.  Kelly could be a tough sell.......LOL. 

 At this moment in time Coy fell in love with his Pa Paw all over again!  Both kids LOVED the ride (and yes I am still finding sand in interesting places) but Coy has said 1000 times since the ride "Going to the Sand Dunes, with Pa Paw"  It is too cute.

Brooklyn started gymnastics this summer and so far she loves it.  The first night, we got there and we had a pleasant surprise....Reagan John was in the same class and we didn't know it.  So it is going well for both of them.  This week the instructor put Brooklyn's hair in a pony tail......doesn't she know we DON"T do that?  IT HURTS!  Actually it went well, now for a few hours a day she wears a pony.  SMALL STEPS is what life is all about!

2-years old and loving it!

  Such good friends they are.....do you believe me?  I am lying now but maybe one day they will be very good friends.  Just not now on Coy's 2nd Birthday.  In Coy's defense...Brooklyn's mean voice is very scary.  Rider is Brooklyn's BBF at school..so I have been asking her "Would you talk like this to Rider"  She replies "No, mom Rider is my friend!"  What is Coy's chopped liver? 

 Coy's Party was very nice....this pic makes it look like he got too much/he probably did but he truly loves it all.  He got lots of outside stuff and he enjoys the "GREAT OUTDOORS" very much!

 This was Aunt May's gift to him....ESPN...pretty cool.  I let May have her moment shortly after receiving this gift....but everyone knows that I am the baseball team leader, team captain, and the one and only coach that knows the in's and out's.  LOL!

 I know what this looks like....an ugly cake!  But Brooklyn and I worked very hard on this cake....and it may not be anything to look at but WOW was it tasty!!!!  How much fun would it be to nail the looks and taste on the first try!?

 Brooklyn, Coy, and I bought the dads and grandpa's airboat rides from Joe's Airboat Rides in Fairbanks Park.  It was a fun time.  I wasn't sure at first bc the boat was loud and went fast.  But ended up very fun....I would recommend it to everyone once!  Joe was a very nice man.  At one point when the boat was only drifting, Joe let Coy drive...this was scary bc Coy seemed to enjoy it greatly!

 Coy and Sophie enjoy each others company..so THEY say....they were both acting rather shy at Sophie Mae's Birthday Party.  That is truly all Coy talked about prior to the big day and then we get there and he was a stud of few words.   

 What a beautiful 2-year old.  She is the sweetest thing.....actually I am not sure to be honest who is cutest....Lisa or Sophie.  Lisa is pregro with twins and she is cute as a bugs ear.  We had a good time even though the pool was in the 70's!!

Just so you all know.....My 2nd Annual Fuqua Auction will take place on Nov 10 and 100% proceeds go to the Red Cross.  i am in this mode....if you would like to help in some way let me know. 

Hot Days in Bullskin!

 THEY ARE SO CUTEBUT WE ARE HAVING 'FIGHTING ISSUES'  They are so mean to each other.  Is it what brothers and sisters do or is it something that should be worked on?  Who knows everyone has a different opinion.   

 This is "My Little Camper"!  Kyle put it on and this was a good thing bc now every night when going to bed he says to me "I Dads little camper"  And can I just say he is a happy camper......he has been sleeping til 8:30. 

 We have been swimming at Mike and Kathy's a lot lately bc it has been so hot.  True Confession:  It makes them very tired and they sleep a long time!!!

 I realize Coy has two swim devices on but he is swimming well for two years old, huh!  The yellow swim suit on top is very gay looking but it keeps him afloat!

 Summer Fun!

I hope you all are having great summer and also you had a wonderful Father's Day.  Brooklyn and Coy are blessed with a AMAZING Dad and they realize this as well!!!

Happy Summer!

 Thumper is such a good rabbit......and he has a new friend.....maybe I should say grandfriend......this is Benny and he is 6 years old.  This is old for a rabbit.  I am afraid that we will wake up one day and he will have passed but what can I do?  This is a picture of Thumper after a bath.  He was about to meet Benny for the first time.

 Benny is a very beautiful rabbit....I am sure a real "rabbits man" in his day...if you know what i mean!

 This is minutes after Coy pooped and peed outside.  After he pooped Brooklyn said "Coy, what are you doing.....you are not a dog!"

 Steve Boyer got the kids this trampoline for Christmas....we just put it up and they both LOVE it.  They are both good at it but Coy Bear is AMAZING for a 2 year old.  And it makes them super tired.....everyone wins!

 He loves to play outside.  His favorite phrase no matter what he is riding is "I'm stuck mom"

Don't guess...I am just going to tell you.  We went out to breakfast at Bob Evans this AM and Paw Paw asked them (kidding around) if they wanted to go for a swim?????  My kids need work on "kidding around." 

Too Far behind to catch up...

Mushroom Season Funnies:

#1:  While traveling home discussing the upcoming MUSHROOM HUNT my daughter says "Mom, when I find the mushroom am I going to shoot it like dad shoots deer?" 

#2:  While Brooklyn and I dressed to hunt mushrooms.....her dad planted a few already picked mushrooms on a stick for her to find....when she found the 2-3 mushrooms she said, "wow dad, that's odd, these mushrooms grew over sticks!"  She is very hard to pull one over on!!

 Yes, this is the future of the Hansel name....Brady and Angi are having a BOY!  We are very excited, boy or girl doesn't matter.....but HE is doing well and ANgi seems to be feeling loads better.  I saw Angi the other night and she is very cute.  I thought I was cute but let me make something very clear......when you are little to begin with a little belly is ADORABLE!  Take a look, this little guy is CUTE! 

 I started a bath for Coy and then couldn't find him....he jumped in the tub with his clothes on!!  Does he look like his clothes are a huge problem? 

 We BORROWED this JEEP when Brooklyn had a friend over...but haven't been able to give it up yet.  They are so cute together....it is a two seater so they drive into the sunset together a;most every night!

  I didn't say it was always a safe and peaceful ride....all I said was that they enjoyed riding together!!

This is our YEARLY Easter picture....they are so cute about 1/4 the time. 

Spring Break

I enjoyed my week with my kids very much....I am looking forward to SUMMER!  

Coy Bear had is surgery today.  It went well..but he is going to be tender for awhile.  He is sweetest thing....he wasn't sure why dad, mom, and him were leaving togetherer (EARLY) but he thought is was fun..until we got to what looked like a hospital....then all bets were off...really the day went smoothly...besides him throwing up down my shirt seconds after drinking 2 cups of juice!!!  Needless to say, I wore scrubs home. 

We had a great Easter..when we were searching for baskets Brooklyn was funny....she said "HMMMM mom, I have to think like an Easter Bunny!!"  Mom prepared a wonderful meal with the help of her family and so did Kelly.  It is always great visiting with the family.  I have a family member that has stayed away for awhile.....but he has been coming to mom and dads lately.....and this makes all of us happy.  I understand that The Hansel's are pretty crazy but sometimes you have to look past such things!!! 

 

Spring has Sprung RIGHT?

    Aren't they the cutest? Kim and John tied the knot Wednesday, March 25th.  And John looks like he is loving me taking his picture but that wasn't the case.  But life is a bitch..when grandkids come he will be glad I took a few pictures for the family.  All kidding aside it was a great evening.  Good food, cake, and family what else could you want?  It made me happy to have all the Osborne's together at Mom and Dad's house.  We bought them a Wii for their wedding gift....this is either a really good family gift or a really bad family gift.  Kyle gets REALLY mad when I beat him.....

  Aunt Judy made a cake for them......mmmmmmm it was good.  Hadn't had one in awhile and forgot how tasty they are.  We brought home 3 pieces b/c Brooklyn liked it too.  Guess who ate all three pieces?  Maybe next year when Kim and John get their "WEDDING CAKE" out of the freezer they could share a slice with Brooklyn because it was me who ate them!!  HA HA!!Only those who have tasted Aunt Judy's cake would understand. 

Can I just tell you that my kids are nuts...Coy is talking in sentences and it is too cute.  But they both LOVE to be outdoors.  Kyle could be in for it this summer.  We moved our swingset over to the new house and we cannot keep them off of it.  It is great they like being outside but it is not great when you have to bring them in kicking and screaming.(ask mom!!)  They do not get along so well most of the time so I thought I might post a picture of them that looks like they are BBF's!  They are not now but they will be someday....hopefully in the near future instead of the far future or Brooklyn may be bald b/c Coy loves to pull handfulls out when he is upset!!  We were on the way to school Tuesday and Brooklyn and I see the same crossing guards every Tuesday and Thursday......Tuesday Brooklyn said out of nowhere said.....Mom I want to hear their voices.  Is this odd to anyone else? 

They love hanging with their dad.  Today Brooklyn and Kyle went to church and Coy and I stayed home....Coy cried at the back door for 5 minutes.  Am I that terrible?  Last night we were all downstairs and next weekend Kyle's place of employment is hosting a Easter Egg Hunt so we bought eggs so we could practice.  Kyle hid them first...took Brooklyn 20ish minutes to find them all, then I hid them.....it took her 15ish minutes to find them, then she hid them for us and I'll be danmed if we weren't looking for them 30-35 minutes later.  She kept saying "I am tricky" "I am sorry you can't find them guys" "I can't remember where they are at"  This activity put things in perspective for me....have great expectations for her b/c she has high ones for you!!!

OH HAPPY DAYS..

Kathy's post made me chuckle....but does anyone else think she may have a sickness?  Not only does she blog and blog funny almost everyday but now she is blogging for me!!!!  All kidding aside I want to thank everyone for their kind words.  This GOLDEN APPLE experience has been a great honor but it has forced me out of my comfort zone.  Which is not always bad....I could talk all day to my 5th graders but adults and also question asking ones at that, has really stressed me out!!  BUt I do appreciate it.  A lot of hard work goes in to this program and all I have left to do on my end is a SPEECH in front of 500 plus community members!!  OH my heavens...not sure I will make it....I want to make my school proud but I get cotton mouth just thinking of it.  Brooklyn came to present the GOLDEN APPLE to me on Wednesday and she has it all figured out. Preschool said THursday "So I hear you are one of the best teachers ever....Brooklyn tells me only 5 teachers got the Golden Apple......"  I answered "SHe and Grammy have been discussing this award in great detail!  Ha HA.  It is nice to have a supportive husband, family, and staff.   

The Bender Family is ready for SPring.  We moved our swingset to the new house and we have to bring the kids in kicking and screaming.  I am glad they enjoy the great outdoors but all good things must come to an end! 

HIJACKED!

This is Kathy McCloy... I have officially hijacked my friend Julie's blog to give you some HUGE news...

JULIE WON A GOLDEN APPLE AWARD!!!!  YIPPPEE!!!!  GO JULIE!!!!

I'll let her fill you in on all the details, but I knew she would jack around and not blog it right away and I COULD NOT STAND the thought of all her friends and family not knowing!  For now, here's WTHI's big surprise!

I'm so proud of you Julie!
Okay people... now comment and leave her some love!!!

Zumba

Zumba may be cool right now but just b/c you participate doesn't mean you are cool!  I am guessing I was the butt of many laughs last night.  It is really something but if I look 1/2 as good as the instructor then I am going to stick with it!!  WOW!  To refresh memories for you guys...I have 2 right feet!!

 

If you are wondering this is the result of a bath supervised by my 1 year old.  Here I was trying to get the basics finished quickly and Coy Bear thought I needed all these items for a relaxing bath.  All of this came out of a nearby cabinet.