Mason Homecoming 2016

I still can't believe our boys are freshmen in high school! With that comes a whole new chapter of experiences! And the first one was Homecoming weekend! There was the football game on Friday night and the dance on Saturday. We had told the boys that they were welcome to go to the dance with a group but there would be no going with a date. Connor really had no desire to go to the dance but was interested in hanging out with the group beforehand at dinner. So he joined Ty, Mia and a couple of her friends and did dinner with them before coming back to the house to hang out with a couple of buddies. Ty and Mia had a great time at the dance meeting up with friends from water polo and swim. I was anxious all night to hear how it went and sure enough he had had a great time! Here is the crew beforehand!



Note to self: Always run the boys dance attire by Jack first! I had no idea it's a fashion faux pas to wear a belt with suspenders!!! How would I know as no one I know has ever worn suspenders before this night! Yes, they both serve the same purpose of holding up your pants but for skinny Ty it didn't occur to me that you would no longer need anything to keep your pants fitting nicely around your waist! lol! Lesson learned!!!

It's all about the Jack...

Once in a blue moon Jack will take a photo with his phone. It's rare. It's sad in some ways because he's traveled to some fabulous places for work and had some amazing experience but just never thinks to take photos. Well as I was going through the few photos that he had taken the past couple years that managed to get onto our computer, I decided to throw them into a post. Some are really great memories that I know he'll be happy to look back on...

It's no secret that when it comes to college football Jack follows BYU and Notre Dame. Here's Jack with Tyler Eifert who had played for Notre Dame before being drafted to the Bengals here in Cincy. As it turned out Tyler is from Cincy, and his dad actually does work as a contractor for LUX. So when we were attending a LUX golf event, Tyler was accompanying his dad and Jack was introduced to him. Funny, the following year we ran into him again at the same event! I don't think Jack has ever felt so short...haha!



Jack spent many weeks in Italy over the course of his time at Lux but this particular weekend trip to Venice was to celebrate Michael and his upcoming wedding. These two have been best friends for a long time so I was so glad they got to have this time together before Michael's big day!



@ Library of Congress for special dinner



enjoying the view from his room in Puerto Rico (without me...)



Jack was at a work event in Scottsdale, AZ (Paradise Valley) when he took these photos at the resort he was staying at. Reminders of where he grew up...



I had to laugh when Jack sent me these photos while attending a Nascar event at the Auto Club Speedway out in CA. He happened to walk by some of the Housewives who were there too...and of course were being filmed. I guess you never know the crowd you'll run into at a Nascar event...




Maui Jim event...at least that's what he tells me... lol!



Guys trip in AZ in honor of Ty Bailey. Jack was thrilled to outfit many with new glasses as you can see...



Fun times at the Kentucky Speedway and meeting Jeff Gordon.



Just a day on the new job...



Well this falls very short of capturing all the fun times he's had over the past few years without me but there are a couple special trips here he'll be happy to look back on!

9.17.2016

Someone's a year wiser! And that someone is me! We started the day golfing as a family which, well...is the only thing about the day Jack and I would have changed...haha! Or perhaps we should have stuck to Top Golf but with the unseasonably warm weather we've been enjoying it seemed crazy to not be out enjoying it! Unfortunately Jack and I weren't golfing our best and then you add a couple boys who hadn't been in a while and a girl who desperately wants to drive the cart, well, it made for a bit of chaos and many extra minutes spent looking for lost balls but... we were all together and that is something that doesn't happen often these days with Jack being away most of the time! We ended the day strong though with a delicious dinner at Tony's, a Cincy favorite for me! Of course it wouldn't be a complete birthday without ending the night with some angel food cake!!!





Here's also a shot that was taken of the sweet ladies I use to serve with at church who took me out to lunch in honor of my big day! I'll miss each of them. They all are such amazing women who exemplify the definition of service.

Summer In Ohio....still going strong...

I don't know how it happens but like clockwork, each year when school starts the morning temps suddenly drop, the air starts to smell different and the trees and bushes start to show a slight change in color...small confirmations that fall is just around the corner and school should be starting. Well that didn't happened this year! It's been hot! Even after a picture perfect sunny Labor Day weekend teaser with no humidity and perfect temps in the 80's we are right back into the sweltering 90's with heavy humidity. Last summer we could hardly find the sun through all the gray and rain and this summer we have plenty of sun but can practically drink the air it's so thick! I guess I shouldn't complain though as I'll take a sunny day over a gray one all...year...long!!! So now that we are almost midway through September, I think it's time to close out our final summer in Ohio with a quick entry!

We spent our first day of summer vacation hanging out with dad for lunch! I have to say we will greatly miss the 10 minute commute Jack has to work here! I don't know that we'll ever have that again!



Few things scream summer to me more than having fresh flowers in the house from our yard. I'm happy to report that my lilies that I transplanted from Seattle continue to thrive here but unfortunately every summer they choose to bloom during the same couple weeks we are out in UT which is a total bummer since from the moment their stems first start to pop out of the soil around Easter I start counting down until I have the beautiful flowers in my home! This summer I was able to salvage a few last blossoms along with a couple stems of gladiolas that were still around after our return from UT. My hydrangeas that I like to refer to as "super sized pom poms" this year decided to take over the front yard as you can see from the photo but what beautiful arrangements they provide in the house. I can't remember the names of the flowers in the pink and white arrangement that grow in my garden but I LOVE them and they also smell so good!



I wish I could say my golf game improved drastically this summer but we didn't make it out nearly as often as we would have liked with all the change going on. I can say golf reminds me a lot of bowling...balls in gutters and absolutely no consistency...URRR. Regardless, Jack and I aren't giving up and look forward to spending many beautiful days golfing in Florida...and improving our game.



Everyone always enjoys going to Top Golf though! No time wasted looking for lost balls here...



It's hard to believe Kings Island and Soak City will soon be distant memories but it has sure been fun living in a town with a great amusement park and water slide park!





Tennis anyone? After getting totally drenched running to our hospitality tent we enjoyed a fabulous dinner and a great match between Andy Murray and Milos Raonic with Murray winning. Getting to experience the Western/Southern Open here in Mason has been a nice treat!



While the boys were busy with scout camp and youth conference, Sage enjoyed spending time with her girlfriends doing a little swimming, baking, and climbing... She's sure going to miss these sweet girls!







The boys and Sage did a last season of summer swim here in Mason. Although the boys were gone for half the season between Utah, Youth Conference, and scout camp, they still enjoy it and I love seeing all three of them in the water! Since the boys missed high adventure this summer due to being out in UT, they decided to attend scout camp in a last ditch effort to attempt working towards Eagle. The jury is out if it will prove to have paid off...



As I was looking through one of Sage's photo albums from when she was a toddler I noticed I use to take a photo of her in all her dresses! I was so happy I had such a big assortment of her dressed up in these cute dresses. Afterward, I decided I was going to make a point to try to capture a couple photos of her after church this summer! Here's what we came up with. Love this sweet girl and love our summer memories! Looking forward to what lies ahead for us next summer in Florida!!!