Holiday Time 2014

We've been to alot of states in a short amount of time between late November and early December. We drove to Indiana for Thanksgiving, and had some great quality time with Matt's side of the family. Let's see, we hit Missouri, Illinois, Indiana and Ohio along the way. Then, on December 1st, my grandmother Dorothy Youngblood passed away from this life and moved on to party in heaven. I know she was smiling down at us as we honored and remembered her vibrant life in Lawton on December 4th. It was bittersweet to be able to catch up with family on my side whom I have not seen in years. And Oliver got to be the big cousin for once! He had fun entertaining Evie and Jillian. On December 6th, Oliver had his yearly visit with Santa at the Stepping Stones' pancake breakfast fundraiser at Applebee's. Oliver wants a drum set (nooooo!) and a motorcycle with marshmallows on it (I don't know. Don't even ask.) We will drive back down to Lawton next week to spend Christmas with Nana and Pa-Pa, and Aunt Jennifer and BF Sasha will be there as well!
Wishing everyone peace and joy this holiday season. XOXO

Overdue for a family pic!

Oliver 4, Jillian 18mo, Evie almost 3

Smiles for Santa

Halloween 2014

And we are off on Wednesday for a family road trip to spend Thanksgiving in Indiana! Wish us luck!

Oliver was the Red Power Ranger Samurai this year. And it is incorrect to just call him a Power Ranger (to save you from being scolded as others were). ;) Here is Red with his trusty steed, Preston.

Even Grandpa Jerry got into the spirit. Oliver LOVED Grandpa's costume.

Here is the trick-or-treating group this year. Maggie Griffith is Wonder Woman, Samantha Whaley is Glenda the Good Witch (it is incorrect to call her a princess, fyi.). Charlie Griffith is Captain America. And, Red Power Ranger Samurai, who refused to wear the correct mask trick-or-treating.

Yes, even Mom and Dad got into the act, per request of the Zerrs for their annual Halloween Party. Matt is Maverick (complete with authentic old-time beer ;)), and I am a KISS reject. Just kidding, I was Jem, the cartoon rocker from the 80's. And I was "truly, truly, truly outrageous!"

OSU Homecoming 2014

It is November and I am not even posting about Halloween yet! We wanted to share with you pics from our visit to Stillwater during OSU's Homecoming weekend. You might be over all of the OSU photos by now - but we're not! :) No good parent or OSU alum should miss a chance to take their child to his/her first homecoming experience! Several of us from the Lawrence/Overland Park, KS area made it down for the "walk around" festivities on Friday night. The house decs were in their full glory, and cheese fries were had by all. We all had tickets to the game on Saturday. That was the only low point of the weekend! It was a great trip overall, and we even got to spend a short (very short) amount of time with Nana and Papa who drove up to hang out with O on Saturday night!

Obligatory house dec pic. I think this was in front of the Farmhouse fraternity. To be honest, they all look alike after awhile! Doh!

Oliver will ALWAYS stop for a photo with cute girls. Always.

Hotel room fun.

Game time. It was so hot. Too hot to make it past halftime.

Yes, we lost the game. But, at dinner (date night) on Saturday night, Matt and I received this fortune that made it okay. Thanks for Nana and Papa for entertaining Oliver in Edmond for the evening!

#1 Poke Fans!

Pokes in Lawrence Fall 14

Yes, Oliver may have been a Jayhawk fan for KU Homecoming. But, when the Cowboys come to Lawrence, he is quick to don some orange and shout "Go Pokes!" with the best of 'em. Well, okay, he did get really excited about seeing Big Jay. But also equally excited about seeing Pistol Pete. So, at this point, I guess it's sort of a draw as to which team he feels more allegiance to. In the end, he'll probably end up a K-State fan. ;)

What's a football game without a little tailgating?

I understand now why our tickets only cost us $10 each.

Friends are color-blind.

Closest he has ever willingly been to Pistol Pete -while smiling! 

KU Homecoming Parade - Here comes the band!

Oliver and the rest of his class at preschool got to march in KU's Homecoming Parade down Mass Street last Friday. It was so much fun and they all did great. Oliver picked the sousaphone (I don't know what that is) and walked all the way from 13th street to 7th street! I got a few pics with him and his "girls" but somehow failed to get one with his BF Charlie. I'm hopeful someone got a photo they will share with us as Charlie was the band leader with a great hat and leader stick (I also don't know what that is called. My general knowledge of marching bands is seriously lacking).  I am pretty sure the Jayhawk brainwashing has been signed, sealed and delivered after this event. Le sigh. Oh well, at least it means Oliver will be close by when he goes off to college. ;)

Marching and waving.

Got the politician wave down!

The naughty TX player that was in a "time out"

With Izzy and Ayana (who go back and forth as his preferred gf depending on the day).

Ayana was winning this day. ;)

Until the KU cheerleaders came along. Always a ladies man.

Showing off his moves for Ayana.

Florida Fun and other travels

Lots of excitement the last couple of weeks. I had to go to Washington, D.C. for a work conference. This means I got to see my sister in her native habitat. And, of course, Nana Karen had to fly out as well so she could see both daughters at the same time. We had alot of fun being tourists for a day and eating good food and keeping good company. It was also nice to see Jen's BF Sasha, who works half of the time in San Francisco these days.

Dumbarton Oaks Gardens in Georgetown

Quality time with Mom, Sasha and Jen at her apartment

While I was away for work, Grammy and Grandpa Coles came to Kansas to hang out with Oliver. Then, they took him with them on the airplane back to Fort Myers, Florida! Say what?! Yes, Oliver had his first plane ride without mom and dad there, and I'm told he did great. He had so many great adventures - a pirate ship cruise, swimming like a fish in the pool, dancing to live music at the beach, and so much more. I missed him so much that Matt and I got on a plane 3 days after I got back from D.C. and met them in Florida. And, Matt and I even got to sneak away to Sanibel Island for 2 nights to celebrate my birthday. It was such a fabulous time and a much needed getaway for all of us. Even the late night arrival back home didn't put a damper on the trip. Thanks to Grammy and Grandpa for their always amazing hospitality. And, Oliver was up and at 'em early the next morning for his first day in his new room at school. Yep, he's a Pre-K'er now. So big and brave and not scared of anything these days that I can tell. And, no, I didn't get a "First Day" pic. Be glad I got him there fed, clothed, and sort of on-time that morning with no meltdowns!

Ahoy, matee.

Loud in color and life.

Oliver has a 6th sense about the ice cream cart. He always knows it's coming 10 minutes before it gets there.

Look out Ricky Fowler!

Pool time.

Flying Oliver. Okay, so this might not be as entertaining to you viewers. But let me tell you, Dad and Grandpa were getting a major arm workout.

Our Sanibel set up. Nice. very nice.

I am not usually one to spend most of my time in the actual ocean. I'm more a laying out on the beach while looking at the ocean kind of girl. But it was so hot, and the water was so perfect, that I think I spent the majority of the time in the water (paranoid a shark was going to take me down, but in the water nonetheless)!

Sanibel Island Inn Pool. Perfect spot to rinse off the ocean, while looking at the ocean.

Sanibel sunset. Just perfect. All of it.

Summer 2014

It's been a blast. I will be sad to see this summer come to an end. There were many fun memories made the past couple of months.

When life gets rough I like to hold on to my dream

Of relaxing in the summer sun just lettin’ off steam! - Olaf the Snowman

There was the 4th of July.

Complete with a waterslide into Lake Dabinawa.

There was family lake day with the Zerrs on Lake Perry. Complete with a little rain storm.

There was also a Parents-Day-Out Lake Day as well. ;)

There was pool time with friends.

And the revelry of the World Cup (which Matt got to experience in downtown KC at Power & Light).

There was Vacation Bible School with Charlie at First United Methodist Church.

And the Touch A Truck night at the Douglas County Fair.

There were even 2 (2!) birthday parties with pony rides! How those parents will top that next year, I have no idea!

Like Olaf, we're big fans of summer!

Turning 4 is awesome!

Here are some more highlights from Oliver's birthday month. Grammy and Grandpa came and brought new golf clubs with them for Oliver's birthday gift! And, the kid can hit! He's a natural! Now we just have to work up the nerve to take him out with us on an actual round at the course and see if his interest can hold for at least 9 holes! :)
Oliver also got a "new" bike for his birthday. Well, it's new to him anyways. Matt's business partner has taught 3 kids how to ride on this bike, and was kind enough to loan it to us for kid #4! Oliver is eager to pedal downhill, but is kinda lazy when it comes to pushing uphill. We are working on it (He may have his mom's genes when it comes to bike riding).
Aunt Meghan came to visit us the latter part of Oliver's birthday week - and she gave Oliver a new soccer goal and ball to hone his skills. There have been lots of goals scored already and has come in handy during World Cup '14 Fever (but why does it have to last a WHOLE month???)!
And, last but not least, Nana and Pa-Pa chipped in to give Oliver a big boy bed for turning the big 4! Oliver adjusted right away and loves it. I am still adjusting to seeing him in an all-growed-up bed in the mornings. Where does the time go (sniff, sniff)???

Oliver's 4th Birthday Party!

I know, I'm slacking. Forgive me bloggers, for I have sinned...it's been a month since my last posting. That's because the Coles house just will not stop this month! I know lots of exciting things have happened...Oliver went to Nana and Pa-Pa's for almost a whole week; my law school friends came to visit (it had been 7 years since we all have seen each other); and I went with Oliver's class to the Topeka Zoo (Grammy & Grandpa got to go too). But nothing was more exciting than Oliver's birthday party this past weekend. We went to Lawrence Gymnastics Academy for the 2nd year in a row, and Oliver and 17 of his closest friends went wild and had a blast! How do I know they had a blast? Well, have a looksie at the photos I *attempted* to take of Oliver during the party...

He is the human blur.

He finally sat still for the (almost) group shot.

And then at dinner with our nearest and dearest after the party, here is his face when I asked if his party was fun.

(Still kinda blurry. Hmm, maybe it's user error after all). :)

His real birthday is Wednesday, June 11th, so more pics to come!