The Beards

Waiting for the mail.

2011-12-22T13:23:00.000-08:00

Payton's latest obsession is with getting the mail everyday. If anyone else tries to get it she starts screaming and has been known to throw a punch or two. Yesterday was in the upper 50's and she decided that she was going to go out and sit in the drive way (dressed in her princess outfit) and wait for the mailman to show up. She was not going to be denied her duty of getting the mail.

First she had to go and check to make sure that they mail was not already here. Every time she gets out of a car she must run and check the mailbox no matter what time or day it is. She does not yet understand that no matter how many times she checks on Sunday that there will be no mail.

Since there was no mail yet she decided to pull a chair out of the garage and park herself in the driveway until the mail was here. Luckily it only took 20 minutes or so before the mail showed up.

Once she can hear or see the mail truck she decided to go stand right next to the street to make sure they don't try and put the mail in the mailbox.

Finally the mail has arrived and the wait is over.

Nothing like the satisfaction of a job well done.

If we are ever over at your house and you have mail missing you now know who the first one to check should be.

November in Review

2011-12-11T12:50:00.000-08:00

Well it has been over a month so I figured I might as well update everyone on our November. I started out by taking the kids to Snowdays which is held at the Cleveland Indians baseball field. In the winter months they turn the field into a giant ice rink and build a snowtube hill for everyone to sled down. I got preview tickets, through the bank, which only let a select few in for the first night. That was nice because there were only a hundred or so people there so there were no lines to wait in. Despite a little rain, we had a lot of fun and the kids are wanting to go back again.

Here are the three older kids going down the make shift hill on snowtubes. They actually turn some of the bleacher seats into a giant hill which you then ride down in snowtubes. It is also nice because you don't have to carry the tubes back up as they have a lift that does that for you.

Here a Brooklyn and I sitting in the restaurant taking a break for some hot chocolate.

The boys doing the same.

This was Nolan's first time on the ice and despite a few falls he actually did very well. By the end of the night he actually was able to stay up and move around the ice with no aides or help.

Maddux on his first trip around the track. This was only his second time out and after 1 or 2 laps he actually was able to go around the track, although not as fast as his sister (she doesn't let him forget that either).

Brooklyn showing the boys how to get started. She is actually quite fast around the ice and can do so without the help of a cone or a rail. I was surprised at how good she was.

They also had some games that the kids could play, underneath the stadium, and the boys actually spent quite a bit of time at the radar toss. I think Maddux may have actually hit 44 or 45 which is pretty good for a 7 year old. I believe he had the record for the night.

The kids in front of the Indians scoreboard. They would actually show you on the big screen going down on the tubes.

The hot dogs made an appearance and the kids had to get there picture with all three.

Then on Thanksgiving we decided to head to the zoo for the day since it was free to everyone. The weather actually was pretty decent and most of the animals were outside for all to see. We ended up going with most of the kids and had some friends come along with their kids. It was an entertaining way to spend the morning and take advantage of the weather.

With all the animals that the zoo has, the playground was the most popular spot at the zoo and was the venue for most of our visit.

Most of the kids on top watching the seals and otters swim around.

Maddux and Nolan taking a break to pose for a photo opportunity.

Payton showing a little crack while sitting on top of her Uncle Spencer's shoulders.

A couple of grizzly bear cubs playing around.

Nolan enjoying the sunshine and just happy to be there.

For the Christmas season they decorate the branch I work at which provides for some good photo opportunities.

I think this is the biggest present the kids have ever seen. Payton kept wanting to open it and see what was inside.

They also put up a couple different trees which overlook the bank lobby and provide a little extra Christmas spirit. We get people that come in all day just to look at the decorations.

November also marks the beginning of basketball season. Brooklyn and Maddux have both played three games so far and are yet to lose. Brooklyn has a very good team and has won all three games by more than 20 points. They actually stop keeping score once the lead is 20 just to promote good sportsmanship. I don't think that anyone has scored more than 8 points on them yet. Maddux's games have been closer and he is having a lot of fun. He has gotten a lot better since last year and is one of the leading scorers on his team. It is so much fun to watch them in action and see how they play against other kids their own age.

Brooklyn is not known for her ball-handling skills but has been given the opportunity to work on it due to some larger leads. Her coaches are very good at giving everyone the opportunity to learn all positions and really have some fun. It helps when you have multiple girls who can handle the ball and know how to play.

A year or two ago and Brooklyn would not have even thought about going for this ball. She has gotten a lot more aggressive and continues to improve every game.

I love the look on the other girls face in this picture. Brooklyn's lock-down defense creates fear in the opposition. I am sure that is not actually the case but the picture does show different.

Brooklyn is one of the tallest girls in the league and has shown that she does have some hops.

Maddux leading the fast break. He is one of the quicker kids on the team and can also bring the ball down the court with him. If you have a kid at this age that can dribble and get to the basket it is such an advantage. We are lucky in that we have 2 that can do that at any time.

I am lucky enough to be one of Maddux's coaches and really enjoy spending time with him and the other kids while they learn the game. I really enjoy coaching and being able to have a hand in these kids development.

Well the Christmas season is upon us and we wish you and your families a happy and safe Christmas.

Happy Halloween!!

2011-11-05T12:45:00.000-07:00

Our Halloween weekend started with a Halloween party at our Church on Friday night. The kids got to dress up in their costumes and go around to the different rooms playing games and collecting candy. The kids always have fun and it is a nice, safe way to warm the kids up for the real thing.

Payton in her witch costume ready to get some treats.

Nolan sporting the wolverine costume with flip flops.

Maddux (as a zombie) and one of his friends, Christopher, as a pirate.

Brooklyn as a fashion mod scarfing some cotton-candy.

Then Saturday I took the kids to the IX Center's Trick-or-Treat Street for some good safe fun. They set up a mini neighborhood for the kids to trick-or-treat through and then have lots of carnival rides for them to ride. We went last year for the first time and the kids really loved it. It is nice that they offer discount tickets through the kids school so it is some very inexpensive fun.

The kids at the entrance in front of the giant pumpkin.

The kids with the big scary skeleton.

Shaggy and Scooby made a special guest appearance and the kids had to get a picture.

Payton in her froggy costume. She had an accident in the witch costume and had to make a last minute change.

The boys on one of the mini roller-coasters.

Then on Monday it was time for the real thing. It was a little cold but we were dry and the kids had a blast. It is always fun trick-or-treating with the cousins and provides for a lot of fun.

Cannon, Nolan, Maddux, Brooklyn and Brynnley getting ready to be turned loose on the neighborhood.

Cambrie and Payton excited to get some candy.

Maddux with his football buddy AJ.

This is what the first 45 minutes looked like. It was a mad dash from house to house to get as much candy as possible. Nolan wore out after that and started taking some houses off because he was tired. As you will see in the next picture, the hustle paid off.

This is the stash that was collected for the night. I don't know that they have ever gotten that much candy. It was crazy because the bags that Maddux and Nolan were carrying actually filled all the way up and they started dropping candy. It was a lot of fun and we will be eating candy for the next 6 months. We hope everyone had a safe and Happy Halloween and got lots of candy.

The Greatest Show on Earth

2011-10-26T17:43:00.001-07:00

Last Saturday the kids and I decided to take Jennie to see "The Greatest Show on Earth". Brooklyn had won tickets last year and the kids had a blast so we figured we would let mom in on the fun this time. Once again it was a great show and the kids had a blast. It is a pretty reasonable show to see and one the whole family will enjoy. Here are some pictures from the night.

I don't know how they do this stuff but you could never get me to ride a bike on a tiny wire over 100' in the air. The stuff they do on this wire is incredible.

Look it's a family full of clowns.

The muscle men.

Maddux wanted me to get this picture to see how good his Uncle Spencer is with a jumprope.

You couldn't pay me enough money to do this.

Have you ever seen an elephant do a headstand? I have.

The elephants are really the main attraction of the show and this was their grand finale. It is kind of cool because the day before the show starts they actually parade all the animals thru the downtown streets on their way to the arena. The only bad thing is that it is now done at 6:00 in the morning. It use to be done during the middle of lunch hour but for some reason they decided to change.

This kid can fall asleep during anything if tired enough. He made it through the first hour and a half of the show but missed the last half hour and the best parts. I guess when you are really tired nothing can keep you awake. I still remember him falling asleep during the Justin Bieber concert. If 25,000 screaming girls can't keep you up then I guess nothing can.

Back into Soccer Mode.

2011-09-25T15:44:00.000-07:00

Now that the kids are officially back into soccer mode I figured I would blog about their past two games. Brooklyn and Maddux are both playing U10 as there was not enough interest to form a U8 and U10 teams. That means Brooklyn is playing against 7 year olds while Maddux is playing against 10 year old. Both are doing quite well and having a lot of fun. Nolan is now playing against all boys and doesn't have to worry about running into little girls any more. He is clearly the biggest kid out there and can't always stop his body from charging into someone else.

Brooklyn executing a perfect throw in from the side-lines.

Brooklyn and her new aggressive self. She is not afraid to get in there and mix it up with the other girls. She even scored a goal in her second game of the season. That tied her career high for goals. She almost broke that record last week but didn't get quite enough mustard on the shot to get it past the goalie.

Speaking of goalie Brooklyn has played a little bit of that position for the first time ever. She has actually done a really good job so far and is yet to be scored upon yet.

Although Maddux is the youngest kid on his team and one of the youngest in the league he is doing very well and can hold his own. It took his coach a couple games to realize that he can play but now he is one of the better players. He went from playing 1/2 of the game to playing the entire game and playing of offense. He never gives up and runs all over the field chasing the ball where ever it may be. He is yet to score this year but it is not due to a lack of effort. He really has quite a few kids who don't really know how to play and where to be for the pass. This allows the other team to double and triple team Maddux when he has the ball. At least he is having fun.

Maddux running over his opponents on the way to the goal. As you can see there are three defenders to one Maddux.

Nolan with the wide open shot on goal. He may not be the best player on his team but when he gets going no one is going to get in his way. If they do, they usually won't the next time. He doesn't do it intentionally but is just so big and once he gets going it doesn't take much to knock smaller boys over.

Here he is again leading the charge.

We are hoping the weather will cooperate over the next month and allow the kids to get all their games in. They go up until Halloween weekend but already had their first rainout and the further we go the less likely they are to play those games.

This is the next generation of soccer. This is Payton with Atticus and Finn watching their older brothers who all play on the same team. Payton can hold here own against the boys and loves to hang out with her "friends".

2011-09-04T17:04:00.000-07:00

Well now that we are officially into school and summer is almost over I figured I would update everyone on what we did this summer to keep us busy. Most of you know about the trip to Bora Bora and our week in North Carolina but here is what I have not blogged about yet.

The Warrior Dash

In June, Jennie and some of her family members ran in the Warrior Dash alongside some friends. It is a 3.10 mile obstacle course filled with water, mud, fire, trails and obstacles. They do these races all over the United States and she would recommend you participating if you ever get the chance. There are thousands of people who participate in these races and provides for a really good time. This is what you can expect to look like after the race.

Here is Jennie at the finish line jumping over a trail of fire.

This was obviously before they started the race. Jennie heard it was a good idea to wear some type of eye protection when going thru the water and mud. This was all that she could find around the house. The funny thing is that it wen right along with the theme of the race. The idea is to dress up in the most bizarre outfit you can imagine and run the race in that. They award prizes for the best costumes at the end of the day.

Cleveland Indians Game

We managed to catch a couple of Indians games this year which was a lot of fun for the kids. Thanks to Mitch Talbot and his wife, a pitcher for the Indians, we got to go down on the field and watch batting practice before the game. It was a cool way to see the players and I was probably more excited that the kids to be at that level. We got to sit with some of the players families and there was a very cool fireworks show right after the game which surprisingly enough the kids enjoyed. Our kids don't always do that well with fireworks.

Nolan along with the Indians mascot, Slider.

Down on the field with the boys during the Indians batting practice. Most times the stadium doesn't even open up in time to see the Indians hit batting practice so we felt extra special to watch while everyone had to wait outside of the gates.

Grady Sizemore and Sandy Alomar during batting practice.

The Cleveland Corporate Challenge

Jennie had the opportunity to participate in the Cleveland Corporate Challenge of behalf of PNC Bank. She was discovered a couple of years ago and has been a staple ever since. The event is a month long Olympic style competition that faces the different corporations in Cleveland against each other in a series of 15 or 20 different events. Most teams are always lacking girls so once they find an athletic one, insert Jennie, they usually all upon them many times to help in various events. This year Jennie got to do kickball (above picture), dodgeball, volleyball, basketball, tug of war & the obstacle course. She helped PNC Bank to capture its 6th consecutive Corporate Challenge Cup.

A little action from the sand volleyball court. They actually finished third in this event with a pretty poor team. Personally this looks like an attempt at the Michael Jordan pose.

The African Safari

For Payton's 3rd birthday we took the kids to an African Safari off the coast of Lake Erie. We got a good price on the tickets and went along with Tacie and her kids as well as Liz and her girls. It was very cool because you got to drive your own car through the preserve and could find the wildlife from the inside of you own car. I would say from the comfort of your own car but there were some times when you didn't feel all that comfortable. There were giraffes, elk, deer, llamas, water buffalo, bison, alpacas and steer looking animals all waiting for some pellets or carrots. This is a great shot of Maddux feeding a giraffe through the sunroof of the car. It was also nice because you could drive through as many times as you wanted for the one price.

I am not sure what these animals are but they had some massive horns attached to their heads. We tended to keep the windows up when driving by these guys as we were not all that excited to have them hanging around. One car actually lost a windshield to this animal a little earlier in the day. It was shaking its head to get the flies away and hit some poor guys windshield in the process. The crazy thing is that the guy had the whole thing on video as he was recording them feeding the animals. Of course there is a huge sign upon entrance into the preserve that states they are not responsible for anything damage that happens to you or your car.

Here are all the kids that went that day.

Maddux and Nolan riding the ponies that we on hand. They also had camels that you could ride and I think that Payton was the only one who would not get on that.

Strongsville Carnival

Every August the city of Strongsville puts on its Homecoming Days and a carnival comes to town. The kids love going up and riding the smaller rides and playing the different games. It wasn't until last year that I got the three oldest kids to try all the rides and figure out that they loved them. Nolan will go on anything as he has no fear but the other kids usually require quite a bit of persuasion before they get on. The crazy thing is that once they get on they love it and want to go over and over again.

This was one of the weaker rides as you can tell by Brooklyn's enthusiasm and the boys fake smiles.

This is the favorite ride of the carnival : the Mummy Ride. It took a couple of hours to get Brooklyn on and once she did it the first time she had to do it over and over and over again. With there being no line I be they rode this ride over 30 times in a row. I just love Nolan's expression and he was the only one who would raise his arms up on the ride.

Summer Fun

As in the past, the trampoline got a lot of use this summer. Some of the kids have gotten a little more daring and started trying different degrees of difficulty while on. Maddux has gotten quite good at back flips and front flips; not sure where he picked those up from.

Of course any time that Maddux and Cannon are doing something Nolan has to be right in the middle.

Maddux with his best Spider-Man impersonation.

Sports Highlights

Cedar Point and the end of Summer.

2011-08-25T16:22:00.000-07:00

With school starting this week and summer almost over I decided to take the older kids to Cedar Point for one last hoorah and to end the summer in style. The kids had never been and are not getting into some of the rides so I figured it could be a fun day. Plus it gave me an excuse to go and ride all the rides. I wasn't sure how the kids would do since the rides were quite a bit bigger than they were use to but I figured they could still have some fun and would maybe surprise me. It was kind of funny because on the ride there I could sense the nervousness in them. I don't know that they said more than 10 words the entire way there and that is highly unusual for these kids. With Cedar Point being one of the best amusement parks in the world I know they have heard about it from friends and TV but I don't think they really knew what it was and how big the rides were. We took the kids cousin, Cannon, to make an even 4 and hoping that he would get Maddux on some of the rides. To my surprise the one person I was worried most about freaking out, Brooklyn, was the only one who would go on the good rides with me. I think the Cannon factor had the opposite effect on Maddux. With Cannon not wanting to go on most of the rides, Maddux was also hesitant and skipped most. I think I could have talked Maddux into them but when his older cousin, who he really looks up to, won't go then he was out as well. But Brooklyn was my rock and went on every ride that I wanted to. I was very shocked and proud of her as she has been the undaring one in the past. Anyways, the day was a lot of fun and I think the kids had a real good time and the bigger rides will hopefully grow on them as they get older because I am going to need someone to ride with me.

The Millennium Force was the second ride that we went on and is arguably one of the best roller coasters in the world. Brooklyn was the only one who was brave enough to ride although I almost had Maddux bribed with a Milky Way. The roller coaster takes you up and drops you over 300 feet and reaches speeds of 70 + mph and is one of the best rides I have ever been on. Brooklyn absolutely loved it and would have gone on again had it not been for the hour and a half wait.

Cannon, Maddux and Brooklyn on the swing ride. One of the few rides that the boys would go on.

Maddux did find one roller coaster that he really liked, the Gemini. It is an old roller coaster and a decent little ride for those less adventurous.

One of the three water rides that the park offers. Two of the three rides will drench you and if it would have been about 10 degrees warmer, would have been great. The kids really liked these as we spent a couple hours go on these over and over again.

Brooklyn cooling off by running through the fountain. This was a popular spot for a lot of kids that day.

The kids riding the lift which takes you from one end of the park to the other. The kids were dying to give this a ride.

Maddux and Cannon alongside a hot rod which was parked outside of the Johnny Rockets restaurant.

This is Cedar Points newest addition, The Windseeker. The ride takes you up 301 feet in the air and swings you around at about 35 to 40 mph. The boys wanted nothing to do with this so Brooklyn and I were on our own. Not a super crazy ride but the height does provide for a nice view of the park. We actually rode this one at night and got to see the park lit up which was nice.

The Millennium Force initial drop. If you look close enough in the picture about half way up the hill you will see the ride actually stopped on the hill. Some bozo decided it would be funny to undo his seatbelt and didn't realize that a safety precaution forced the ride to stop once he did that. They had to come up and reset the ride which kept them on the hill for about 20 minutes. Not sure what that guy was thinking but I am sure the couple hundred people waiting in line were not happy with him.

Well with summer officially over it is time to turn our attention to school and soccer. I know that Jennie is glad to have the kids back in school and on a set routine. The summer really went by fast but we had a lot of fun and are glad we got to spend time with family.

A Week at the Lake

2011-08-18T15:46:00.001-07:00

This past week we traveled down to North Carolina to have some fun at Jennie's Uncle Jay's lake house on Lake Gaston. We went with Jennie's parents, sister (Rachel and her family), brother (Spencer) and brother (Greg and his family) for a week of adventure, swimming, jet skiing and blowing off some steam before school starts back up in a couple of weeks. Jennie drove down with the kids and rest of her family on Sunday and I flew down mid week to join them. The weather was perfect and the lake water was surprising quite warm. The kids had a ton of fun and always love spending time; aka: having sleep overs, with their cousins. We are very grateful to Jay and his family for letting us spend the week on the lake and using their boat and jet skis. It was well worth the 10 hour drive and numerous bug bites. I don't think the kids wore anything other than swim suits the entire week. It was a lot of fun and we are blessed to have family with the resources to do these kind of things. The following are some pictures from our week.

This is just about everyone sitting on the dock. This dock actually has a bunch of fish swimming around it and you can bring bread and other things and feed them if you want. There were some pretty good size fish swimming around and we even saw a turtle and a water snake. It was kind of funny because we actually went there twice (because we forgot the bread the first time) and we told the kids to make sure they didn't fall in or the fish would eat them. Well the second night we went back Nolan got a little too close and ended up falling in. The water was only about a foot deep but he freaked out because he thought the fish were going to bite and eat his legs. The look on his face was priceless and I only wish I had the camera running when it happened. You could see the look of panic and fear in his eyes. It only took him a minute or two to get over it but he thought he was fish food for a good minute or two.

Maddux and Nolan climbing a tree down by the docks.

This was the first trip to the dock and Nolan and his Uncle Spencer pretending to feed him to the fish. He was actually asking to be hung upside down above them and then once he started he had other ideas. I bet if you asked him now he would probably have different thoughts.

We also did a little relaxing while we were up there.

Brooklyn practicing some volleyball with her cousin and Uncle. You have to love the outfit. There were a couple of days where this is all she wore. Nothing like some long chicken legs.

Jay's neighbor was kind enough to let us take his boat out on the lake one night to see the sunset and just cruise around.

The zip line was one of the highlights for the kids (and adults). I wondered if it would hold the weight but to my surprise it was very solid. We tried to get the kids to go from the top but most would only go half way up. I actually had Maddux up to the top and holding on the the handle and then he looked down and changed his mind.

Spencer and I launching the kids into the lake from our shoulders. I am not sure how it started but before we knew it we had all the kids in the lake asking to launch.

The raft was also a very popular attraction. The kids loved to play sharks and minnows with Grandpa and Spencer. Nolan didn't make it very long in this round.

Brooklyn swimming around in the lake waiting for someone to play with her.

This is the candy thank you that we made for Jay and his family. We were so grateful to them for letting us use the house and just wanted to make sure that we said thank you. I don't know how many times the kids tried to get the treats for themselves.

Nolan holding a catfish that Greg and the boys caught off the dock. He wouldn't hold it without the glove which is one better than Maddux who wouldn't even stand near the fish.

Maddux and Grandpa cruising around on the jet ski. I actually let Maddux drive with me on board and he actually did quite well. He drove all by himself and I just held on just in case. He had a lot of fun driving the jet ski and is a little speed demon in the making.

Here is the view from Jay's backyard and off his dock. It is really a very nice set up and perfect place to spend time as a family. Here are the kids jumping off the dock into the lake to cool off.

Maddux showing off his spinning cannon ball abilities.

The look on Cambrie and Payton's faces relays how the week went. There was something for everyone to do and everyone had a great time.

Again we thank Jay and the Rannels family for letting us come down and spend the week. We had a great time and was a nice way to end the summer. Now it is time to get back on a schedule and get ready to start school next week. Where did the summer go?

10 Years and Bora Bora

2011-08-05T18:48:00.001-07:00

I finally have all the pictures downloaded and almost all the video from Jennie and I's trip to Bora Bora so I figured it was time to post them. Jennie and I celebrated our 10 year wedding anniversary on June 16th and I surprised her with a trip to Bora Bora for just the two of us. My mom was kind enough to fly into town and watch the kids while we were gone for the week. While the travel was very long the trip was well worth it. It took us the better part of an entire day each way as the island is down in the South Pacific. It is probably the most beautiful place we have ever seen and while we love our kids, it was nice to have a little break just to ourselves. We got to do some snorkeling, took a safari tour of the island, rode jet ski's around the lagoon and just spent some time relaxing. The island is truly a honeymooner's island as you knew there were lots of people there but very rarely saw that many of them at any given time. I think just about everyone that we talked to during our trip was on their honeymoon. I would love to go visit again but think I would pick one of the other islands to stay on. It was crazy because after about 6:00 at night it was completely dark and there is no night-life on Bora Bora. I heard from some of the other couples that the different islands offer different activities and some have more to do than others. Anyways, here are some of the better pictures from our trip. The water was absolutely amazing and Bora Bora is tabbed as having the most beautiful lagoon in the world.

This is a show that was put on at the hotel we stayed at in Tahiti. Tahiti is the main island in the French Polynesian islands and the one that all flights arrive and depart from. The one night we stayed there they had a local tribal dance show which included a lot of fire and song. It was a great show and I wish that we could have seen more.

Here is our resort from the plane ride in. It is crazy because you fly into a little army airstrip which sits right next to the actual airport. The airport is basically an outside bungalow that is no bigger than our house. You then catch a boat and it was about a half hour ride to our actual resort. That was one of the most breathtaking half hours I have ever seen. It was nothing but turquoise blue waters and little remote islands.

Here is the view out of our bedroom. I wasn't going to go to Bora Bora and not stay in an overwater bungalow. We could jump right off our deck and snorkel in the lagoon. The room also had pieces of glass in the floors so you could look below and see the local fish swimming underneath you.

One of our excursions was a snorkeling trip that took us to feed and pet the stingrays as well as swim with some sharks. The stingrays were like puppies and would rush up to you as soon as you entered the water. In most spots the lagoon is only a couple of feet deep so you could walk for miles in the water. The stingrays would swim all around you and come up right out of the water to see who was there. It was pretty amazing because the guide as feeding the stingrays by hand and would get kisses from them. There were some really big stingrays but they were as gentle as could be.

Another day we took a half day tour around the island on jet skis. The guides then took us to a coral reef where you could walk around and see the coral life. It was a great way to see the whole island while riding in the most beautiful water I have ever seen.

Jennie sitting on the dock as we watched the sunset. While it was disappointing that the sun set by 6:00 every night, the view was amazing.

This was a safari ride that we took of the island. The guide took us to the top of the mountains on the island and showed us all the hot spots. This was a hill that you drove on top of and could look out over the entire lagoon. He decided that it would be fun to park on the middle of the hill on the way back and take a picture. This hill was almost straight down as were a lot of hills and roads on the island. It was amazing some of the roads that he drove up on to get us to different remote parts of the island. The guide was extremely funny and gave us all the good facts about the island and its history.

One of the safari stops was a top a hill that was home to a couple of US Navy cannons. During World War II the United States set up posts and camps on Bora Bora to keep an eye on the Japanese. They installed 8 cannons on the island to cover each side just in case. The cannons were never fired but still sit there to this day.

This was on the way down from the cannons and is a great view of the little cove and a small town on the island. Just another amazing shot of this beautiful island.

Here is Jennie just outside of a little art shop that we stopped at up on the middle of a mountain. There is just a little white house in the middle of no where and the couple who lives there are artist and sell various paintings and clothes out of there home. It was kind of cool because they have quite a few pictures in the store of Pierce Brosnon, who is a big fan of their work. He visits Bora Bora quite regularly and always stop by their shop when in town. Jennie bought a couple of wraps for herself and Brooklyn, which were made by their 7 year old daughter.

This is the view from the floor in our room. There were glass squares all throughout the bungalow that let you see into the lagoon and the fish swimming below. I decided to go snorkeling and see what type of picture that Jennie could get.

This is the view from the top of our resort and shows all the overwater bungalows that they had. I think every resort of that island had overwater bungalows and they all seemed to be full with people. A very popular commodity and the best way to stay on the island. Nothing else quite compares.

Well those are the best of more than 500 pictures that I took. I am hoping to get some of the video posted in the near future. I got some good video of the tribal show as well as us swimming with the sharks. I took an underwater camera and got some good footage. If you ever have the chance to get over the The French Polynesian islands I would definitely recommend it. It will be the trip of a lifetime and is well worth the day of travel to get there. it was so nice to have some alone time with Jennie and just being able to relax and do whatever we wanted. I am grateful to my mom for sacrificing her vacation time to watch our kids for the week. I know that she had a very busy week and was probably out of her comfort zone but I also know that the kids had a blast and are still talking about her visit. She had activities planned for them every single day and I don't even know if they really missed us. We hope that everyone's summer is going well and will be updating the blog with all that we have been up to this summer. Now that we have a little break in the kids sports there will be some more time to catch up on some other things.

Jennie's Driving Adventures.

2011-05-19T04:48:00.000-07:00

Just thought I would post some pictures from Jennie's short trip to Brooklyn's basketball game last Saturday. She was sitting at a stop sign when a Ford F150 decided to back up right into her. Lucky for her it was a Strongsville police officer so he made sure the situation was taken care of. She now has a rental, which the kids like better because of the DVD player, as she waits for the van to get fixed.

Our Easter Weekend

2011-05-02T16:56:00.000-07:00

Well our Easter weekend was extremely busy and full of fun. It started off Friday night with some of Brooklyn's friends coming over to dye Easter eggs. I think some of their fingers may still be colored. It is always a lot of fun to dye eggs but can leave quite the mess.

Maddux and his pink hands.

Brooklyn with her new eyeballs.

Nolan couldn't let them have all the fun.

Then with Saturday being the day before Easter there were no games scheduled for that week so I took the three older kids to the IX Indoor Amusement Park. It is a giant indoor building filled with over 60 different roller coasters and rides for the kids to ride. We have gone for the last 4 years and the kids have a blast. It is nice because you pay one price to get in and then can ride all day long. It is like an indoor fair. We ended up staying for close to 7 hours this time and I was extremely worn out by the end of the day. It was however quite entertaining because for the first time we spent the majority of the day on the adult and big kid rides instead of the little kid rides. The kids were a lot braver and found out, after going on some of the rides once, that they really liked the bigger rides and they were better than the little kid rides. We ended up having to go on some rides over and over again; and these were rides that they wanted nothing to do with in the past. This way I didn't have to just sit and watch but could instead ride with them.

Here are Brooklyn and Maddux on the flying swings. I can only take so many rides that just spin around and around.

Nolan and Brooklyn at the end of the giant slide. You don't have to be a rocket scientist to tell who won. Maddux is not even in the picture yet.

This was one of the boys favorite rides and one that really surprised me. The ride is called the inverter and takes you up and hangs you upside down. I was very surprised that not only did they ride it but they had to go on it multiple times. I did it once and had my share of being hung upside. It is definitely different doing it when you are young and then again as you get older. It just isn't the same. I love this picture because the kids are looking right at me and smiling while they are hanging upside down. The white planks in the background are the ceiling.

Brooklyn and Nolan getting ready to ride the angry caterpillar.

While there we took in a magic show and when the magician asked for some help Maddux was the one he selected. He had Maddux first balance a long feather on his hand and then asked if he could do it on his nose. It actually made it quite awhile before it fell off.

One of the few little kid rides that they went on.

This is the effect of playing Plants vs. Zombies too much on the computer. This is the Zombie look from atop the Ferris Wheel.

I really wish I would have thought of this earlier. By the time I thought about taking video we were on our way out. I did manage to get a little video of them while on the tornado.

Then on Sunday we went over the Grandma and Grandpa Kerr's for a good ole Easter egg hunt and some dinner.

Since it was raining we had to have the hunt inside the house and made the kids wait in the garage until all 260 eggs were hidden.

Payton going through and checking all her loot. This was the first time that she really got into the hunt and didn't stop after the first couple of eggs.

Brooklyn finding an egg in the wreath.

Payton and her blue mouth after eating all of her treats that she found. That girl can put the candy away.

Couple pictures of Brooklyn and her budding sports career. Now if I could only get Jennie to take some pictures of the boys. I am going to have to find a way to do that while coaching their games.

Brooklyn with one of her friends working on her pitching technique. She has really gotten excited about sports this year and really seems to like softball.

I had to put this picture up to show you the size of some of the girls that she is playing against in basketball. It is 3rd thru 5th grade and there are really some big girls out there. This is the girl that Brooklyn had to guard during the game and you can see the size difference. There are some real monsters out there. She is starting to get physical and can play some lock down defense when she wants to.

Anyway, we hope that you all had a Happy Easter and are enjoying your time as we wait for Summer to approach. We are very busy with everything going on right now but wouldn't change anything. It is such a blessing to be able to watch and help the kids with their various activities and we look forward to many many more years to come.

Celebrating the Life of Grandma Laura Beard.

2011-04-06T18:16:00.000-07:00

Laura Lee Beard December 28, 1937 - March 29, 2011

Last week we lost a very special person in my Grandma (Great Grandma) Beard. While it was nice to get together with family and celebrate her life, there was definitely a different feeling being there without her being there. Even though she will be missed by all we are grateful to know that we will see each other again. This is not good-bye but instead a see you later.

I am so grateful that we lived so close to her over the last 9 years and loved having my kids know who their grandmother was and be able to spend as much time with her as we have. I can remember as a little boy being so excited to go visit my grandparents and I saw that same excitement with my kids. Now it may have been the fact that my grandmother always had a gift for them, would take them out to eat, and usually took them clothes shopping; but I think that some of that was also being able to spend time with and get to know their great grandparents. I am so grateful that they had that opportunity and that my grandmother also was able to see them grow up a little. I have so many memories of my grandmother from turning me lose in the garden, to taking me skinny dipping in the creek, to helping her make dinner, to visiting her at her store and being able to go pick out the clothes that I wanted, to having her visit us while in Montana, and being able to take the kids down 3 or 4 times a year, that I truly feel blessed to have been a part of her life while on earth a and am comforted by the fact that we will be reunited again one day. One story that I shared at the funeral and will always remember about her involved my grandfather, a baseball and a bat. My grandfather had peaked my interest in baseball and had me in the yard one day throwing baseballs to me to hit. I remember hitting one ball right back at him and hitting him right in the eye. I dropped the bat and ran into the house, into the back room, crying. Still to this day I remember how bad I felt. I felt as though I had really done something wrong and was in trouble. I remember her coming back and getting me telling me that everything was going to be ok and that grandpa would be fine. After a little coaxing she finally got me to leave the back room and go see grandpa. I will never forget going into the kitchen and seeing him standing there with a steak on his eye. He took it off and his eye was all swollen and already black and blue. I will remember that entire story for as long as I live. My grandmother was a very strong and independent woman but had such a big heart and was always looking for ways to comfort and help others. She was very giving of her time and often volunteered to benefit others. She touched the lives of so many people and will be missed by us all. I have no doubt that she is in a better place and has moved on to the next phase of her life. She is with Heavenly Father now and can continue her works along side Him.

The following is just a compilation of pictures from our recent trip to Indiana in which we remembered and celebrated her life. The fist slideshow was pictures of her life and our lives with her. Thanks to my cousin, Sierra, for putting the pictures of my grandmother together and creating disks for everyone to take. There are quite a few pictures that I had never seen and am grateful to now have them in my files.

Grandma we love you and miss but know that you are in a better place and Heavenly Father must have needed you back with him. We are blessed to have been a part of your life and grateful to know that we will see you again one day. You have left a strong legacy here on Earth and we are all proud to be a part of your family.

Our Monthly Update.

2011-03-21T17:45:00.000-07:00

Well my monthly update is starting to become a habit and I apologize for not updating more. Things have been really busy at work and by the time I get home I am exhausted and not in a blogging mode. With the kids starting up sports again things are going to get really busy. I will try and do better but make no promises. Maddux has been playing in an indoor soccer league to get ready for the Spring league which starts in a couple of weeks. He was asked to play by some of his friends and really enjoys it. He is on a pretty good team and they have not lost yet. I think I may look into it again next Winter as it is good exercise and get them out of the house. He has played 3 games so far winning two and tying the other.

Here he is tracking down the ball.

Not sure what is going on in this picture. He either really has to go to the bathroom or is preparing for a hard rebound to come right back at him.

I am not sure what you call this kick but all I know is that you can see the ball (blue spot) at the top of the screen. He was standing about 15 feet away from the goal and appears to have kicked the ball straight up and hit the roof. Again, not sure what he was going for here.

Here are Payton and Nolan dressed in aprons, made by Connie, ready to go to work and help out in the kitchen.

Here are our two little chefs helping make dinner. Nolan has often been one to volunteer and help Jennie or I but now Payton has gotten into the action. They really like to be a part of the process in helping make dinner or whatever we are preparing.

Payton has become very fond of using the potty and we may be weeks away from being completely out of diapers. She has been sleeping through the night and waking up dry which has made us very proud. She loves to sit in front of the TV on her potty and do her thing. I personally think she just likes the treat. It is funny because she will go to the bathroom 4 or 5 times in 20 minutes. I think she is just going little bits at a time to make sure she gets a treat after every time. I guess whatever works is fine as long as we get her out of the diapers.

Sometimes you just have to push a little bit. I think she must be trying to get one of those tootsie rolls that her Uncle Greg promised her. She really has no shame in going wherever or in front of whomever may be there. It will be really nice when she is out of diapers for good (for Jennie).

Finally we have Maddux with another missing tooth. We were very happy to see this one go as it has been dead for the last 3 years of so. He hit it on a chair and it had been black ever since. He lost this tooth while brushing his teeth this morning and really did lose it as it fell down the sink and into the drain. He is hoping that the tooth fairy will take a note in leu of the real thing. I think he will make an exception.

Our Monthly Update.

2011-02-23T17:55:00.001-08:00

Well I know that everyone has been wondering what has been going on with us since our last blog a month and half ago. Everyone has been fine but the monitor on our laptop computer died and we can't download pictures on our desktop so we had to go out and get a new iMac. We are now back in business so I will update you on our last six weeks. We haven't been super busy which is nice as we gear up to the Spring and all the sports that go along with that and Summer. The next 4 or 5 months are going to be very busy for us.

Valentine's weekend Brooklyn and I continued our yearly tradition of hitting the daddy daughter dance. A night out on the town with dinner, dancing and ice cream. Brooklyn has a group of friends who accompany us and this year Greg came with Addysen and Brynnley. As usual the night was a lot of fun and something that I will always remember as the years keep whisking by. It is something that Brooklyn and I look forward to every year and are glad that we have something like this to participate in.

Brooklyn and I ready to hit the town. As you can tell we are dressed to impress.

Brynnley, Brooklyn and Addysen getting ready to cut some serious rug. It took a little while for Brynnley to get warmed up but once she started, there was no stopping her.

Brooklyn and Addysen demonstrating some of the Justin Bieber moves. I felt sorry for Addysen because she wore some shoes with 2 or 3 inch heels and they could not have been comfortable at all. At least she will now know for next year and can wear something a little more comfortable.

Greg and I with the girls on our way home. It is nice because because they bring in a professional photographer to give everyone a picture together and then the girls each get a flower (or two) on the way out. It is really a great evening and something special that we look forward to every year. A couple of years and I will get to take both of my girls.

For Martin Luther King weekend I took the kids to go visit my grandparents in Indiana. Jennie had to stay for Church responsibilities but I like getting down to see them any time I can. It is so nice to be so close and have the means to head down there whenever they allow us. We also lucked out as we got snow the night before we went down and were able to spend some quality time on the hills with the sleds. Although it was a quick trip it is always good to see my grandparents. We are blessed that my grandfather is still alive and that he can get to know his great grandkids. He may not spend a lot of time playing or interacting with him but I am grateful that our kids have the opportunity to know their great grandfather.

It wouldn't be a trip to Great Grandma and Great Grandpa's if there wasn't some type of present. My grandmother always seems to find the perfect gifts for the kids and it gives them something to do while they are there. They love to play in the basement but need other things to do as well.

Brooklyn on the bottom of the hill after one of her rides.

Maddux cruising down the hill. I don't know how he can see anything with his hat covering his eyes.

I think Nolan had the best time; at least until you see the next picture. He has the best facial expressions of anyone I have ever seen.

This is after an encounter with a tree. I got going so fast and didn't know what to do so he just hung on and ran right into the tree. His face slammed right up against the bark and left him with a little reminder. I will say that Nolan is one tough kid because after about a minute of crying he grabbed his sled and headed right back up the hill. I think the snow and cold may have numbed some of the feeling and he was more scared than anything. This picture is about 5 minutes after we got back. He was one wore out little boy.

Basketball season has also ended for Maddux and Brooklyn and now we will shift our focus to soccer, baseball and softball. Maddux will start playing in an indoor soccer league next week which transitions right into the regular league. Baseball will be right around the corner and Maddux will be one busy boy. Brooklyn will we playing in a Spring basketball league and then start soccer in April. Nolan just got done with his first session of swimming and will start karate next week. He will also play soccer in the Spring with the other kids. Times are going to be very busy and will only get busier as Payton gets older and the kids get into different things. I keep telling Brooklyn that she needs to hurry and grow up so she can start driving everyone all over the place. I only have pictures of Brooklyn playing basketball as I coach Maddux's team and Jennie is not one to take pictures.

Brooklyn sprinting down the floor to get back on offense. This may be the fastest that I have ever seen Brooklyn run however I do think the picture adds some speed on as well.

Brooklyn has started to get a little more aggressive and I do have proof. At the beginning of the year she really didn't want anything to do with the ball and would shy away. Towards the end she started to get into the game a little more and even scrapped with some of the other girls. Jennie believes there may be hope for her yet. She still has a long way to go but she is slowly making progress.

We couldn't have a six week update without a picture of Payton. She is getting so big and a blast to be around. She is the girl version of Nolan. A quick funny story from the other week about her. Jennie has slowly been trying to get Payton out of diapers but has had very little luck. She will wear her "big girls" every once in awhile and will sit on the toilet but doesn't do anything once on there. Well the other day we hear her calling for mommy and wasn't sure of where she was. Well we found her sitting on the toilet going poop. She had taken off her pants and diaper and got on the toilet all by herself. It was her first time and she couldn't wake to call Grandma to tell her the good news. Grandma has typically promised the kids a treat for the first time that they use the potty and Payton wanted to make sure that she collected on that promise. Her treat of choice; fruit snacks. We were very proud of her and hope to be out of diapers in the near future.

One last picture of Maddux, who just lost one of his front teeth last week. If it had only been the black one. We have been waiting for 4 years for that thing to fall out and it is still there.

Now that our computer situation is back up and running I promise to get back on the regular track with our blogging. We will be getting very busy and should have plenty to talk about. We hope that everyone is doing fine and will talk to you all later.

Maddux's 7th Birthday

2011-01-11T07:38:00.001-08:00

Saturday marked Maddux's 7th birthday and does he know how to throw a party. He went roller skating over the Christmas break for the first time and decided that he wanted to do that for his party. The next thing you know we have 21 kids and 10 or so adults at his party. It was a lot of fun and I know Maddux had a very good time. It is amazing at how fast the time goes by and how quickly Maddux has grown up. He is a very mature little man and has been such a blessing to our lives. He does very well in school and is our little athlete. His teacher routinely compliments him on his maturity and willingness to help out with any and everything. The following are pictures from his party as well as a photo story of his life.

Maddux with his friends and cousins during his special birthday dance.

Maddux cruising around the rink. The first couple of laps he goes around holding onto the side but as soon as he gets his roller legs warmed up he is all over the place. He did very good for his second time out.

Liam, Maddux and Cannon taking a break. They were playing a sound that Maddux does not like so he had to come off the rink and cover his ears.

Here are the "Beliebers" showing their support for Justin Bieber. They actually left during the cake because the DJ played a Justin Bieber song.

Here is a quick recap of Maddux's life in pictures.

His very first birthday and family picture. Look at Brooklyn's red hair.

Maddux and Brynnley with Grandma Elaine and Margie. It is funny because I think Brynnley still makes that same face today.

Maddux when he had some curls (18 months old). I know that Jennie was very sad to see those go.

Maddux at one of his first trips to the zoo (4 years old).

Maddux's bad boy days in karate (5 years old). He was one mean looking kid.

Maddux doing his best David Beckham soccer impersonation. You gotta love the mohawk.

This is one of my favorite pictures of Maddux. I told him to look at the camera and waive the it was perfect.

Maddux standing on third after hitting a triple. Baseball might be his favorite game to play.

Maddux is the king of the beach in Clearwater, Florida.

We are so grateful for Maddux and the blessing that he is in our lives. He is a very special boy and we are glad to have him in our family. Thank you to all of those who took part in his birthday and helped make his day special.

They may stink but still a good time.

2011-01-06T18:40:00.000-08:00

And the streak continues. It has now been 10 or 11 CAV's games in a row that I have taken the kids to and they have been selected to do something. I will tell you that kids are key to getting hooked up at the games. That Tuesday a guy from my work gave me his tickets to the Magic game so I decided to take Maddux. When we got to the game we ran into a guy I know, who is the head of security for The Q, and he upgraded our tickets down to the lower sections. He then asked if we wanted to go down by the locker rooms after the game to meet some of the players. Of course I said yes for the both of us. So after the game we went down and met him and he took us underneath the arena and hook us up right outside of the locker rooms. We stood there and waited for the players to make their way out. We ended up meeting all but 2 of the CAV's players as well as 5 or 6 of the Orlando Magic guys. It is so different to see them in that environment. Most of them came out with their children and wives and were more than happy to sign autographs and take pictures. They were really like big kids and were having as much fun as the kids were. We ended up staying until almost 11:00 at night but it was well worth it. Maddux had made a sign for the game and was able to get quite a few autographs on his poster. It is now framed and hanging in his room. I think I may have been more excited to be down there than Maddux actually was. He didn't recognize most of the players but was very excited to see his favorite player Anthony Parker and Antwan Jamison. The following are some pictures from that night.

Maddux getting his hair spray painted before the beginning of the game. Every time we go to the game the kids have to get their hair colored, a tattoo and have their face painted with CAV's themed things.

Anderson Varejao signing Maddux's sign. This is Brooklyn's favorite player.

Antwan Jamison signing the sign. This is probably Maddux's second favorite player.

Anthony Parker (left) and Jamrio Moon after the game. It was funny because Maddux wasn't into the whole thing until Parker came out and walked over to him. Then his face lit up and he got super excited.

Mo Williams. It was cute because his wife and three kids were down right by us and they were running all around just taking everything in.

Maddux standing next to Varejao right outside of the CAV's locker room.

Maddux and his sign at the end of the night. Brooklyn helped him make it during the day and they were very excited for him to take it to the game. We tried to get him on the Jumbo Tron but had no luck. He held that sign up every time when there was a break or timeout during the game.

Last night Maddux and I took his friend, Holden, and his dad to the game as an early birthday present for Maddux. It was Antwan Jamison bobble head night and we were hoping for a CAV's win on this night. The minute we walked in to the arena we had two girls come up and ask the kids if they wanted to be ball kids. Maddux and Brooklyn have done this in the past and we were very excited for the boys to do this. They get to go onto the middle of the court and have the starting five hand them a game ball which they get to keep. Maddux ended up getting the ball from Daniel "Boobie" Gibson and Holden got one from Mo Williams. They were very excited and it made their night. They had a ton of fun and were smiling the whole night. Here are pictures of them from last night.

Maddux and Holden with their balls during the game.

Here they are on the Jumbo Tron, at last.

Boobie Gibson giving Maddux his ball at the beginning of player introductions.

Maddux and Holden after getting their hair painted and faces painted.

The following video has a very funny story behind it. Jed and I told the boys that they either had to get their pictures taken with the CAV's cheerleaders or they had to dance with the Scream Team in front of everyone. The choice was easy as they wanted nothing to do with the cheerleaders. They actually ripped the pictures of them out of their programs and tore them up. Every time they saw a cheerleader they shyed away and yelled at them to leave, your typical 6 year old boy response. Anyways, here is there minute of dancing. If you watch towards the end of the video one of the dance members tries to get Maddux to go down on one knee and pose for him. Maddux wanted no part of that and you can actually see him shake his head no. They even had another guy come over and try to get Maddux to do it but he would not budge. Holden on the other hand as no problem and even busts out some street dance moves.

We had a great time and if you ever plan on going to a basketball game, or any other game for that matter, I would strongly recommend taking some kids with you as they are the key. I am willing to lend ours out, for a small fee, as I believe they are good luck. I know other people who have taken their kids and not been chosen to do anything. I just hope the streak continues because Maddux has come to expect these things and I don't know what he will do when he is not asked to participate. I think he believes this is part of the game and happens every time. Anyways, we have a ton of fun and I know the boys had the time of their lives. They stayed awake the whole time home talking about the night and Maddux was still talking about it tonight. Now if we can only get the CAV's to win a game.

Our Christmas Story

2011-01-02T17:29:00.000-08:00

It's about a week after Christmas but things have been very busy around here. With Jennie's brother and sister in town with their families there has been a lot going on and I haven't had a chance to update our Christmas holiday yet. As usual the kids got lots and lots of stuff. Although they didn't get their number one wish list item, IPad, they did get plenty of new toys and gadgets to keep them busy. We are grateful to be surrounded by family and love to spend time and visit with them.

Christmas Eve we went over to Jennie's parents for a great dinner, a little Christmas play, by the children, and a night of opening lots of little presents. Bill and Connie have boxes of little gadgets and toys that they wrap up and let the kids take turns picking and opening a present. Then they can trade each other for things that they want. It is a lot of fun and the kids love opening all the presents. It is an hour of straight chaos. The above picture is of all the kids in their costumes ready for their production.

Nolan as one of the Three Wise Men. He has some of the best facial expressions ever.

Maddux as one of the cows in the stable. This is Maddux's new smile. He use to have such a good smile and then went to the fake smile and now this one.

Payton as the other cow.

Here are the kids on Christmas morning right before all the fun. It was funny because we got home late from Jennie's parents the night before and told the kids that they couldn't come out of their room until 8:00 on Christmas morning. Well they were out right at 8:00 but had to wait until Payton woke up to open presents. Jennie told them they could go through their stockings while they waited. Well when Jennie and I came out into the living room they had all the presents separated into piles ready for opening. They were so excited about Christmas and wanted to make sure they were ready to go the second Payton woke up.

Payton with one of her favorite presents. A ladybug pillow pet from her Uncle Spencer.

Brooklyn is a Belieber and has the new shirt to prove it. Her favorite present was a digital camera / video camera. She now loves to take pictures and video different events throughout her day. She also got a paper jamz guitar, some bags with iron-on emblems, some shirts with a peace symbol, some new pajamas, a stop sign and some books and other small things.

Brooklyn and Maddux with their paper jamz guitars. We just need some drums and a lead singer and we could have a band.

Payton with her favorite present. She got a baby doll that moves and makes noises. She saw this thing in the store and loved it. We also got her another baby that plays peek-a-boo as you walk by. She got some new clothes, a couple of play food sets, some play kitchen stuff and her pillow pet.

Nolan with her Bat Cave. This was the one thing that he really wanted and loves playing with his figures. He also got some clothes, some action figures, a remote control car, a frog game, some spy stuff and some games and pieces for the Wii.

Here is Maddux with his favorite present; a Super Hero Squad Wii game. He also got some clothes, some other Wii stuff, a paper jamz guitar, a Justin Bieber board game (that is right he is a Belieber), some spy stuff, some CAVs shirts and some other toys and gadgets.

This was Payton's favorite gift from the night of presents at Jennie's parents house. I also have a picture of Jennie with the same umbrella hat on but she threatened me if I posted it. If anyone wants to see it I will send it to you. It can be our little secret.

For New Year's Eve we went over to Greg and Tacie's for a night of games and lots of food. I was surprised as all the kids made it to midnight. I think this is the first year that Maddux made it. He is one that once he is tired nothing can keep him awake. He has fell asleep during movies, basketball games and the Justin Bieber concert. We had a very fun and busy 2010 and look forward to more of the same in 2011. We want to thank everyone for everything and wish you all a healthy and prosperous 2011.

Tis the Season.

2010-12-24T10:52:00.000-08:00

This has been a very busy week for us and we have had lots going on. Here is a quick recap of all that we have done.

Payton was helping Jennie make pretzel jello today and some of the jello fell on the floor. Not wanting to waste anything Payton quickly hopped down and started picking the jello up, with her mouth.

This is the better view as you can see her sucking it all up. She didn't even think twice about it.

Uncle Steve also came up, from Indiana, and paid us a visit. It was great to see him and be able to spend the day with him. The kids keep him busy with games the whole time he was here. You will notice that they are all standing in order from tallest to smallest (also oldest to youngest). It won't be long before some of them start to switch places and Steve starts his downward decent.

Every year the city puts up lights and we always try to get out and get some pictures with the kids. We didn't get too many as it was very cold and the kids were freezing. Here they are sitting in the gazebo in the middle of the lights.

The kids standing in front of the candy cane tunnel.

The children also put on a little remake of the birth of Jesus for all the parents. Connie got the costume set last year and it is perfect for the kids. The kids had a lot of fun and it was great to see them tell the story in their actions.

Here is Maddux as the Shepherd.

Nolan as one of the Three Wise Men.

Finally, we have a couple of pictures from the kids latest games. They have a two week lay off due to the holidays. Here is Brooklyn getting into it with one of the other girls and tying her up for a jump ball. One of her bright moments of going after the ball. Most of the times she is content with letting someone else go after and get it.

Here she is playing some lock-down defense. It isn't a foul if they don't blow the whistle. Brooklyn and this girl keep getting into it the whole game. When on Brooklyn was on offense this girl kept grabbing and holding her so she couldn't move. The refs weren't paying attention or calling anything so Jennie told Brooklyn to get physical right back with her. The next couple of quarters was a lot of pushing and shoving between the two girls. The refs still didn't call anything and let it go on. It was nice to see Brooklyn get physical and push back even though it was frustrating her because she couldn't move anywhere without being grabbed.

Maddux ran into a pretty good team that could really dribble the ball. They had two kids that could dribble and move around with the ball. Even though they kept it close they ended up losing by 8. Here is Maddux playing defense against one of his baseball teammates, Conner. They are both first graders playing in a 2nd grade league and are holding their own quite nicely.

Well we hope that you are all having a great holiday season and we wish you all the best for 2011.

Brooklyn and Maddux Hoops.

2010-12-13T15:13:00.000-08:00

Now that the kids are three weeks into the basketball season I have finally decided to post about their games. Both Jennie and I are coaching the kids as both teams didn't have coaches and we just can't say no. It is a lot of fun and we like being a part of their progress. Maddux is 3 - 1 through 4 games while Brooklyn is 1 - 3. While I would like to say that is must be the coaching, Maddux's team seems to have some better athletes than Brooklyn's. Brooklyn's team did get their first win last week and they were very excited. I will also say that two of Brooklyn's losses were by a 10 - 11 score and could have gone either way. There aren't a lot of pictures of the kids but here is the best of the best. It is kind of hard for one of us to take pictures, with the kids, while the other one coaches.

Brooklyn sprinting down the court on a fast break.

This time she is just content with running down the court with the rest of the girls.

Maddux and his team getting ready to start the game.

Brooklyn playing some lock-down defense. She is quite the defender and now just needs to go after the ball once it is shot.

Maddux playing the same type of lock-down defense as his sister. Maddux plays very good defense and just needs to work on his offensive game. He likes to jump up and down and clap his hands instead of moving to try and get open. I don't know where he learned to do that but we must break him of this habit.

I hope to have some more pictures in the next coming weeks and will keep you all updated on their progress this season.

A Beard Home Makeover.

2010-12-05T17:27:00.000-08:00

This process started in August and is finally just about finished. We have wanted to paint the outside of the house for quite some time and finally have everything painted, minus a couple of trim boards. It does make quite a difference and glad to have it finally done. Below are some of the before and after pictures of what it looked and looks like. I don't notice much of a difference to the front, as it is mostly brick, but the back is significantly different.

This is before. The boards on the roof use to be blue and this is when we were deciding on what color to paint the house. There are actually two different tones on the siding. You will notice the tape on the big window to edge around the board. I put that on the last week of July when things were still sunny and leaves were on the trees.

This is the end product. This is sometime in October and you will notice that there are no more leaves on the trees. Everyone said the tape would be very difficult to get off but it actually came off pretty easy, just ask Jennie.

Here is the back of the house. You will again see the two tones of paint as well as some primed spots throughout. Those were from repair work we did 3 or 4 years ago when removing some vents and an A/C. It looked like that for that long before we did anything. It probably would have been a lot sooner if those spots were on the front of the house.

Here it is after painting. Much, much cleaner and better looking.

The back corner by the patio before.

The after picture. We still are undecided on what to do with this area as we would like to clean it up a little more. If we stay in this house for any period of time we must do something to clean this up. This is an eyesore in the backyard.

Last month we also had someone come in and patch the walls and repaint the whole back of our house. While we were repainting Jennie decided to put up new curtains and decorate the walls a little bit. We ended up blowing up pictures of all the kids to hang up. It really turned out nice and is a huge improvement.

Jennie's new curtains.

We also had the kitchen, laundry room and back bath painted as well.

We then framed some of the kids art work and hung them up in the playroom for all to see. The kids were really excited to see their work up on the wall.

We also had a shed put up in July to help clear out the garage and give us some more room. We found a guy who use to build them for Lowe's and we got a real good deal. It makes such a difference having the shed and being able to keep the garage clean.

We painted the shed to match the house.

Here is what the garage looked like before the shed.

And here is what it looks like now. It is nice to be able to park the van in the garage and makes a huge difference for Jennie and the kids with the snow.

Well it did take quite awhile and we are glad that it is done. There always seems to be something to do when you own a home and now we must decide on what to do next. We love being able to personalize our home the way we want to and grateful for all of those who help.

Tower City Annual Tradition

2010-11-29T16:48:00.001-08:00

The has sort of become a tradition for our family every year around Christmas time. We head down to the Tower City Mall, in downtown Cleveland, and watch the Toy Solider and other Christmas activities they put on every year. The kids enjoy heading downtown and love to spend time with their cousins. We were fortunate enough to have Uncle Spencer in town this year and he joined us for the evening. The kids really love it when Spencer comes into town even if it is because he brings his IPad and IPhone for them to play on. We always have a good time and are glad that we can share it with our family. It just wouldn't be the same without everyone there. The above picture is really good of the whole group. It was kind of funny because neither Cambrie nor Payton would take their eyes off of the Toy Solider. They wanted to make sure that they knew exactly where he was at all times.

The Beard family with the Toy Solider and the Fairy Godmother.

Some of the kids in front of Bruce the Talking Spruce tree.

The kids with Rudolph the Red-Nose Reindeer.

Brooklyn, Maddux, Payton and Nolan sitting in front of the fountain.

Kenzie and Brooklyn with the Princess.

The kids looking out and watching the show. Thanks to Tacie for the idea to go down below and get this picture.

The setting for the show along with all the other characters that were involved.

If you are even in Cleveland around the holiday season we will have to take you to the show. Our family has a lot of fun and the more the merrier.

The Big Dawg gets Hitched

2010-11-25T06:22:00.000-08:00

Well it only took 32 years but the "Big Dawg" has finally been tamed and Jennie and I had the opportunity to be there as witnesses. On November 19th, 2010 Brian "Big Dawg" Bogdin and Shelby Richardson were married in the Salt Lake City Temple for time and all eternity. We are so happy for the both of them and wish them the best in their new journey. Due to some Delta issues we almost didn't make the wedding. We boarded the plane in Cleveland and then preceded to sit on the runway for 30 minutes as we were told the Detroit airport was so busy and they wanted to wait for things to clear out. So we get to Detroit and of course of connecting gate is on the other side of the Detroit airport so Jennie and I are running across the airport to make our flight in time. We show up at the gate about 5 minutes before the plane is suppose to leave and they won't let us on. There were actually 8 of us from the Cleveland airport who were connecting on that flight and they wouldn't let any of us on. The plane was still sitting there and hooked up to the tunnel but because they locked the door a couple of minutes early they would not let us on. There was almost a fist fight between two customers as they were upset and had to be split apart by the police. What makes matters worse is the ticketing representatives at the gate were not really interested in helping anyone out. They booked us on a flight the next morning that would get to Salt Lake at 11:00 which would have been an hour after the wedding. They were not willing to look into other options and instead gave me a number to call on my own. I called and complained from the gate and spoke to a supervisor who was able to get us on a flight to Las Vegas that night. We had to sleep in the Las Vegas airport, which is not comfortable at all, and then caught the 6:30 flight out of Las Vegas into Salt Lake City. We got into Salt Lake at 9:00, tracked down our luggage, which happened to make the original flight, and then picked up our rental car right away. We got changed in the airport bathroom and drove straight to the wedding. We arrived about 5 minutes before it started and were able to see the whole thing. It is funny how these things work out. If we would have had one person in front of us waiting for a rental car we would not have made the wedding. It turned out to be a long 48 hours for us as we had a luncheon after the wedding then pictures and a reception after that. We didn't get to sleep that night until about 9:00 (11:00 our time) which made for two very long days. Even though the trip was short and filled with challenges we were able to get there safely, be there for our friends and returned home to our children.

Big Dawg and I at the reception hall before pictures. You will notice the glazed look in our eyes as neither of us slept the night before and still had a long night ahead of us.

Jennie with Big Dawg at the reception hall. It was a very nice house that was well decorated and the perfect place for a wedding reception.

Here is the Bogdin family outside of the Salt Lake City Temple. We love them and appreciate their treating us like family during the entire weekend.

Big Dawg with his proud papa. He looks like one mean dude but is one of the kindest and nicest people you would ever meet.

On Saturday we had the chance to meet up with some old friends and catch up on each others lives. First we went and had lunch with Mark and Jill, who are friends of mine from Price, UT. They took us to a place called Rodizio Grill which I am addicted to. If you are ever in the Salt Lake area you need to make a special trip to this place. They have people who walk around with skewers of different meats and seasonings and shave out pieces right at your table. It is all you can eat and you don't even have to leave your seat to get food. The food was awesome and well worth the trip. Then we got to meet up with Jennie's college softball catcher and her family. Finally Jennie was able to meet up with an old family friend from Ohio who had moved to Salt Lake. It was a very quick and busy trip but Jennie and I had a lot of fun. It was Jennie's first time away from the kids for more than a couple of hours and she did quite well.

We were able to drive around and go to a couple of places that Jennie wanted to stop and while out we decided to drive by a couple of the smaller Temples in the area. This is the Oquirrh Mountain Temple in South Jordan. It is one of the newer Temples and is located on a ridge that overlooks the Salt Lake Valley.

Here is the Jordan River Temple which is where Jennie's brother, Aaron was married. The night before we were to leave the Salt Lake area was hit with about 10 inches of snow. It had just started to come down when I got this picture.

This is one thing that I miss being in Ohio, the mountains. This was before the big snow storm. The entire mountains and surrounding area were covered after that.

Jennie and I at the Salt Lake Temple after a morning session.

I know it looks like the sun but this is actually the moon from 35,000 feet. We were on our way from Minneapolis to Cleveland when Jennie noticed the moon out of her window. The picture almost looks like the sun setting over the ocean but is actually the moon over a pillow of clouds.

Anyways we had a very good trip and despite some obstacles we made it there in time for all the activities and were glad to be a part of this special moment in Big Dawg and Shelby's lives. We are so happy for them and look forward to being a part of their new family. We are grateful to Jennie's parents for taking the kids while we were gone and enjoyed the time to ourselves. This was our trial run for Jennie and I's trip this June without the kids.

Fight Night

2010-11-16T18:05:00.000-08:00

Here is a our version of Friday Night Fights. This is the boys the other night going at each other. Maddux was being a good sport and not going all out but Nolan had no problem giving it all he had, that is until Maddux got him with the knock out kick. It won't be much longer until Nolan is able to take out Maddux.

Justin Bieber Concert

2010-11-13T16:47:00.000-08:00

I decided to get the kids an early Christmas present and take them to see Justin Bieber in concert. Both Brooklyn and Maddux love him so I thought it would be a fun surprise to take when he came to Cleveland. So this Thursday we headed downtown for a fun filled night of some Justin. I didn't tell the kids where we were going and even once there they weren't sure what they were there for. They didn't actually realize that it was going to be Justin Bieber until he got on stage and started singing. The concert actually wasn't all that bad but I wouldn't be sad if I don't have to do that again any time soon. There is just something about 25,000 screaming girls that I am not all that fond of. My ears were still ringing the morning after. The kids had a very good time and despite getting home at 11:30 they did a very good job at getting up and ready the next morning for school.

There were a couple of opening acts and then Sean Kingston came on before Justin Bieber. Justin was ok but I thought that Sean Kingston put on a better show than Justin did. The kids also liked Sean as they know a lot of his songs from listening to the radio.

This was Justin coming out for the start of his show.

It is amazing that a skinny little 16 year old boy can drive millions of girls wild. I have never been inside a building that was as loud as this concert was.

Justin floating above the crowd singing his songs. I was surprise at how many of his songs I actually knew. I can thank the kids for that one as they play his song over and over and over.

This was everyone holding up their cell phones during one particular song.

Justin along with his band and other members.

Justin performing his last and most known song "Baby". He wasn't moving so well by the end of his concert as he twisted his knee during the middle of the concert. Maddux just couldn't make it through the whole concert as he fell asleep for the very last song. Jennie asked him the next morning how the concert was and Maddux replied it was good but he didn't sing "Baby". I don't know how he did it but I can't believe that Maddux fell asleep being as loud as it was. The place was going nuts and he didn't even move.

The worst part of the whole night was getting out of the parking garage and getting home. We parked on the first floor of the garage and it still took us over an hour to get out of the garage. It was absolutely ridiculous. The concert got out at 10 and we didn't get home until 11:30. Overall it was a very fun night but one that I won't be doing again any time soon. I think next time I will let Jennie take them.

Fall Family Pictures

2010-11-10T19:11:00.001-08:00

Here are some family pictures that we took a couple of weeks ago. We wanted some updated pictures of all of us so we headed out to the Metroparks. These are the best of the shoots.

The whole Beard family.

Brooklyn and Addysen.

Maddux in black and white.

Sibling love.

Jennie with the kids.

Jennie and Ted.

Payton with Grandma.

Grandpa with the grandkids.

Payton and Cambrie.

Maddux and Nolan down by the river.

All the kids.

Jennie with Payton, Maddux and Nolan.

Mama with her kids.

Dada and his boys.

Jennie and Payton. Look at that face.

Happy Halloween.

2010-11-06T19:27:00.001-07:00

Well it is only a week late but I am finally putting our Halloween weekend pictures up. We had a very busy weekend and got way too much candy. Both Brooklyn and Maddux kicked off the weekend with Halloween parties at school. Brooklyn then had a party Friday night at one of her friends house. We then tried to take some family pictures Saturday morning but due to Brooklyn's attitude and lack of participation we were not successful. Her and Jennie fought all morning about what Brooklyn was going to wear for the pictures and it just went downhill from there. Brooklyn cried the whole way to the spot we were taking pictures and then had to change again in the van to what Jennie wanted. We did get a picture of two of all four kids before Brooklyn had had enough. We ended up taking a couple of pictures without her and then came home. I then took the other kids to the IX Indoor Park for Trick-or-Treat Street. You won't see Brooklyn in any of these pictures because of the choices she made earlier that morning. They had houses set up where the kids could go trick-or-treat and then some rides for them to ride. The kids had a lot of fun and started their haul of candy. We ended up staying for about 4 hours and then decided it was time to come home and get ready for the Church Halloween party that night.

Payton, Nolan and Maddux hanging out with the pumpkins.

Here they are again on top of the miniature ferris wheel.

Maddux and Nolan riding the dragon roller coaster. They love to keep their arms up for the entire ride.

The kids at the top of the regular ferris wheel. They loved it because the top of the ride is actually in a glass enclosure outside of the building and you can see downtown (where dad works) from up there.

Daddy with his little girl.

The kids driving cars on one of the rides. They did also get to do bumper cars which Nolan and Maddux loved. They got to go by themselves and had a lot of fun ramming into all the other cars.

That night we then headed over the the Church's Trunk-or-Treat Halloween party. They do a chili cook-off, games for the kids, and then everyone decorates and passes candy out of the trunks of their cars. There were actually quite a few people there and the kids were able to fill their bags up with candy and treats.

Brooklyn and Payton trick-or-treating outside. Brooklyn did a great job at taking her around to all the cars and making sure she got plenty of treats.

Maddux and Nolan posing for a picture as they walk across the stage to show off their costumes.

Brooklyn going for a donut during one of the games. I got some good pictures of the kids and their cousins at this game.

Then to wrap it all up we took the kids over to some of their friends house for a night of trick-or-treating. The weather was very cooperative and the kids got way too much candy. I think we may still have candy left over when next Halloween comes around. It is amazing at how much candy one kid can get in a two hour period. We had a lot of fun and the kids will have candy forever.

Payton as Wonder Woman.

Nolan as Spider-man.

Maddux as Darth Venom. That is right he was Darth Venom; a combination of Darth Vader and Venom. That is what happens when you wait to the last minute to decide what you want to be for Halloween. He was very indecisive so we had to concoct something from what we had.

Brooklyn as Cleopatra. Her latest obsession is with Egypt so when she saw this in the store she was hooked.

Here is Maddux and Nolan with Liam and Carter as the crime fighting squad. It was funny because after about 8 houses Nolan was tired and ready to call it quits. The bigger kids had run ahead a couple of houses and Nolan was lagging behind. Then he caught up to Carter, one of his friends, and got his second wind. The two of them spent the last hour and a half running all over the place going from house to house. They all brought it quit the haul. It was good for them to hang out with their friends and helped speed the pace along a little bit.

Anyways, it was a lot of fun and if anyone needs some extra candy just let me know. The kids won't even know that it is missing. Hope you all had a safe and Happy Halloween and don't eat too much candy.

Last Weeks of Soccer.

2010-10-27T18:54:00.000-07:00

Well soccer has officially ended for the fall and now it is onto basketball, but before we go here are some pictures and updates from the last couple of weeks. The kids played on some really good teams this year and I look forward to watching them develop even more next year when they are on the same teams. Brooklyn has become a little more aggressive and managed to take quite a few more shots than her previous years. Maddux is starting to understand the game and is quite the goal scoring machine. Nolan loved playing in his first year. He had a really good team and managed to score quite a few goals this season. I was also very fortunate that I was able to see all but 2 of Brooklyn's games this season. The last couple of years I was not able to see very many as Maddux's games were at the same time. I love watching the kids play and am so proud of all that they did this season. Here are some pictures over the last couple of weeks.

Brooklyn booting the ball out of there while on defense.

Last year Brooklyn would have never thought about dribbling the ball down the field. She had a really good coach that worked well with the girls and really helped Brooklyn develop some offensive skills.

Here is that new found aggressiveness coming out. In the past she would shy away from contact and now she has no problem getting in there and throwing her elbows around.

Maddux lining up to tee off on the goalie. Maddux has the best foot on our team and often will score from quite a ways out. He has started to learn that he can kick the ball over the goalies head and score pretty easily. He finished the season with two big goals in his last game. I wished I would have had a video camera so I could show everyone.

Maddux getting ready to stop those goals. I was asked if he was going to play football because of how far he can throw the soccer ball. He throws a lot farther than he can punt right now and has impressed some of the refs this year. He will throw the ball to midfield or further which is a big asset to the team. Most kids are not able to clear the ball and often give up goals as a result. Maddux can throw it past everyone and can help lead to a break away for one of our players.

Maddux leading the charge down the field.

Nolan and his rock star hairdo. Nolan has really picked up the concept of the game and does a good job at using his size to get wherever he wants to go.

One of Nolan's favorite parts of the game is the high-five after a goal. Here he is the first one back after one of his own goals. He usually haves to give high-fives to every one of his teammates before the kick-off.

I love this picture of Nolan running down the field during his game. I was very proud of Nolan this year and look forward to seeing him build his skills. He had the chance to play in one of Maddux's game because we were short kids. We only had 5 kids show up and you must play with 7. Him and his friend got to play the entire game and were able to hold their own. What was really impressive was the fact that they played on a normal size field for the first time and were able to run around the whole time with no subs. He even had a couple of moments where he was able to dribble the ball down the field and through the other team. Not bad for a 4 year old going up against 7 and 8 year olds. The only downside is that he played his game right after Maddux's and both him and his friend were worn out. They still managed to win but not in the convincing fashion they are accustomed to.

Brooklyn finished the Fall season being undefeated. They tied two games and won all the rest. After suffering loses in the first two games of the season, Maddux's team did not suffer another loss the rest of the season. They ended up tieing two games while winning four including their last three. Nolan's team really didn't have any problems with any of the teams they played. While most teams have one or two decent players he has four on his team that just dominate the games. They are very aggressive and know how to play the game and what to do with the ball. There were many games where the other team didn't get the ball on our side of the field. They won most games by double digits and really had a lot of fun. I really do love watching them all play.

Here is Brooklyn taking care of Payton at one of the boys games. Brooklyn has turned into quite the big sister and has started to watch after and take care of her little sister. She has even changed a diaper or two.

I can't leave Payton out of this post so here is a little update from her. Payton is into the stage where she loves to take her pants and diaper off and run around naked. We figured there was no better time to start her on big girl panties and she loves them. We just have to make sure that we keep an eye on her as she loves to walk around naked and has not yet learned how to control her potty times. Jennie and I can't wait until we are finally out of diapers.

The Greatest Show in the World.

2010-10-24T19:28:00.000-07:00

Last night we used the tickets that Brooklyn won at the CAV's game to go to the Barnum & Bailey Circus. Brooklyn took her two brothers and cousin, Addysen, to partake in her night. It was a lot of fun and I think the kids really enjoyed themselves. Here are some pictures from the night.

This is what your mouth looks like after a night of sno-cones.

All the kids getting ready for the show to start.

This was Nolan's favorite part of the night. He loved the elephants.

The tightrope walkers did some pretty amazing stuff.

One of many clowns that were there.

Brooklyn just had to have a picture of Terminal Tower all lit up in purple.

It was a very fun night and I am glad that I got to be a part of it. Thank you Brooklyn.

Nolan Riding his Two-Wheeler.

2010-10-18T19:26:00.000-07:00

This past weekend Nolan decided that he was going to be a big boy and ride his big boy two-wheeler. We took the training wheels off his bike and moved him to the backyard for some practice. It took him a couple of times to figure out the brake thing but is doing just fine. He needs to work on his balance a little bit but that should come with practice. The above video is his first three rides which were actually pretty good. I love the excitement on his face after his third ride. He was so excited that he did it, all he wanted to do was run up and give his mom five. He is getting bigger and bigger by the day. You also have to love Jennie's willingness to push him on the bike while holding a little baby. She really can do it all.

Brooklyn's CAVs debut.

2010-10-10T16:04:00.000-07:00

This Thursday I took Brooklyn to our first CAV's game of the year. It was a preseason game but I got some really good tickets for really cheap and couldn't pass it up. The kids really don't care if Lebron James isn't there anymore but just love to go and do all the kids things and watch the mascot. Well Brooklyn was selected to go down at halftime and participate in a skills challenge. They selected 4 kids and Brooklyn was the only girl. She was also the youngest as the boys were between 10 and 12. I think her height must have fooled the selectors as maybe they thought she was a little older. So at halftime she got to go onto the main court and show off her skills to everyone who was there. The kids had to dribble down the floor around some stationary players, then pass the ball through a tire and then make a layup. Then they had to come back doing the same thing. I was very surprised that Brooklyn even wanted to do it in front of all those people. She had no problem getting out there and even talked into the microphone a little bit. Well she was the third kid to go and did not disappoint. The announcers pumped up the crowd for her since she was the only girl participating and the place went crazy when she started. She took her time going up the court but was the only one who made her basket on the first try. She then took her time coming back down and it took her 5 tries to make her final basket. She ended up finishing 2nd out of the four boys and only lost by 2 seconds. The winner was a 12 year old boy who finished in 39 seconds compared to Brooklyn's 41 seconds. If she would have made her final layup in 3 or less tries she would have beat all the boys. I was very impressed by her skills and proud that she did as well as she did. She had a lot of fun and was very excited about her accomplishment. They gave her a bag full of CAV's merchandise as well as 4 tickets to the Barnum and Bailey circus for her efforts. I am just glad that I was able to get it all on video. She was very excited to call Jennie afterwards and tell her what she had done. I will tell you that if you ever go to a game make sure to bring a child and get there a little early. Every time that I have taken one of the kids we have gotten to do something. Whether it was being on the court to take pictures, getting a ball from the players, having our seats upgraded or getting to play on the main court, the kids have always been chosen to do something. It was a very fun night and one that Brooklyn will remember forever.

Here is Brooklyn with all her loot after the game. She was also given one of the t-shirts that they throw out during the game by the CAV's play-by-play radio announcer. He ended up getting one and threw it right to her.

Here is Brooklyn's favorite player, Anderson Varejao. Both times Brooklyn has got to go onto the court to get game balls he was the player who gave her the ball. He has crazy hair and is called the "Wild Thing" because of his hustle and effort.

Here is the team mascot, Moon Dog, who the kids are probably most excited to see at the game.

Brooklyn up on the Jumbo-Tron right before her skills debut. You will notice the big guy taking a picture right behind the kids, that is yours truly.

Anyways, I look forward to taking the kids to some more games during the season and hope our run of good luck will continue. It makes the game and their experience so much better when they can be a part of some of these other activities. I think I may be just as excited when they are chosen to participate.

A Night Out At the Ballpark

2010-10-01T03:33:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday Brooklyn, Maddux, Nolan & I had a night out at the ballgame with their cousins. There were 7 kids, myself and then Greg and Tacie. We had really good seats and the weather was quite nice. It was suppose to be fan appreciation night as it was one of their last home games for the year but fan appreciation night and the Indians are not all that impressive. However, the kids had a lot of fun and the Indians ending up winning the game (hasn't happened all that often this year) so overall it was a very good night. The kids could pretty much run all over the ballpark and do whatever they wanted as there was not many people at the game. We had 3 rows of field box seats to ourselves which made things for us really nice. In between every inning the kids could run down right to the dugout in hopes of getting a ball or prize being throw out. They also got to mingle with Slider, the Indians mascot, as well as the racing hotdogs (Ketchup, Mustard & Onion) during the game. I didn't get a picture of it but Slider actually came up and gave Brooklyn a kiss on the head just before the game started. She was pretty excited about that.

The girls chowing down on some York Peppermint Patty M&M's during the game. I don't know how many bags of candy the kids ate that night but it was enough that I was not bothered about getting cotton candy at all.

Nolan taking in his first Major League Game. I don't think he really cared about being there as much as he did just hanging out with his cousins and being a part of the crowd.

Maddux with glove in hand. I don't think he took that thing off once during the whole game. No matter where he went or what he did he always had his glove on. Unfortunately, despite having very good seats right on the third base line we didn't have a foul ball come even close to us. One of these days we will get one.

Anyways, we had a really fun time and even though the Indians stunk it up big time this year it is always good to get out and spend a night at the ballgame. Maybe they can turn things around in the next couple of years and bring some excitement back to the city.

Soccer Updates.

2010-09-22T18:36:00.000-07:00

Another two weeks have gone by and soccer is now in full swing. The kids are adjusting to the different rules and fields and seem to be having some fun. Last week Brooklyn tied 2 -2 and this week they won 6 - 2. While I can't say that Brooklyn has much of an impact on the game she seems to be having a lot of fun and is getting a little better and a little more aggressive. She has come a long way from a month ago when she didn't want anything to do with her first practice or playing this year. Maddux's team has gotten better each of the past three weeks. Last week they lost 5 - 3 due to the fact that they had no subs for the game and the other team was subbing out 4 players every couple of minutes. They were actually leading 3 - 2 going into the 4th quarter but just ran out of gas. You could tell that the kids were spent and had nothing left in the tank. They were all standing around and walking for most of the quarter. We have one of the youngest teams, as we drafter all 6 year olds when most other teams drafter 7 year olds. We didn't know any of the 7 year olds so were given 3 who never played soccer before. Then it is quite a big adjustment for the 6 year olds to play on a much bigger field. Then this week they actually tied 2 - 2 and played much better. We have noticed a big improvement in their game and as they get in running shape and learn the rules will become much better players. This is just building up until the Spring league when the games count and tournament play begins. Nolan's team has continued to dominate their competition. While most teams have 1 maybe 2 kids who know how to play and are good, we have 4 and are just dominating teams. Last week the other coach was complaining because he kids couldn't even get the ball on the other half of the field. He finally asked me if I could switch out one of my better kids to make it more fair. It didn't matter because we switched out with one of the other good kids and continued the game. Nolan has shown signs of soccer skills but is just as happy to run behind and watch everyone else score. He loves to give the high-fives after goals with each teammate. I have been very lucky this year in that none of the games so far have overlapped and I have been able to watch them all. I was not able to watch Brooklyn very much last year so this is a nice change. Well here are some pictures from the last couple of weeks worth of games.

Brooklyn

Here is proof that Brooklyn is getting a little more aggressive. There is still hope yet as she is not afraid to throw her elbow into the other team to try and win the ball.

Brooklyn kicking the ball to her team ahead. She is starting to develop a little bit of an offensive game and seems to be picking up on some of the different concepts and strategies.

Brooklyn before the game.

Maddux

Maddux kicking the ball through his competitor. He does have a big foot and tends to kick the ball as far as he can instead of dribbling it up the field himself. He was able to do this when he was younger and just beat the other kids to the ball but on the bigger field he needs to learn to pace himself and use the skills he has developed.

Maddux and dad waiting for some action at the goal. At this age the goalie position is not very exciting. You are lucky to get a shot or two at you during a quarter.

Maddux looking for the right time and angle to take the ball away from the other player. He is very good at tracking down the opposing player taking the ball away from them.

Maddux breaking down to get ready and take the ball up the field.

Maddux right before game time.

Nolan

Nolan during his favorite time of the game, snack time.

Nolan working on his throw-in technique. There are not many good action shots of Nolan so we have to take them where we can get them.

Nolan and his rockstar, soccer hairdue.

Outside of last week at Brooklyn's game Payton has done very well at the games this year. She is getting to be quite the big girl and can entertain herself now. We didn't want to exclude her from the blog so here are pictures of her at the games.

Payton

Here Payton is just hanging out and watching the game.

Payton in her seat right along the sideline.

Sucking down some ice from her water bottle.

This was last week during one of her rough spells. For a little while she just sat on the sidelines by herself and threw a tantrum. In fairness to her Brooklyn had an 8:00 am game so she was woken up and gotten ready before she is use to.

Anyways I will try and get some video one of these works as the pictures don't always do their hustle and effort justice.

Visit to Great Grandma and Grandpa Beards.

2010-09-14T19:24:00.001-07:00

Last weekend we made a quick trip down to my grandparents house to visit with them and take a trip to the Children's Museum in Indianapolis. We had originally planned to go down on Saturday morning and come back on Monday but due to the unexpected death of a good college friend of mine, we didn't go down until Sunday. I flew to Salt Lake City for his funeral and couldn't get back until Saturday night. Even though the trip to Indiana was a quick one it was good to see my grandparents and the kids had a blast. The kids were able to play and swim with the neighbors kids all day Sunday and then we did the museum thing on Monday. We are lucky that my grandparents neighbors are so thoughtful and invite us over to play anytime that we are in town. They have kids of the same age and our kids play well with them. I think every time we are there they are having some type of party with friends and/or family but always very hospitable and welcome us in. It is a good way for the kids to spend their time there and helps get them out of the house. I am glad that we live close enough to my grandparents and have the opportunity to go down and visit with them whenever we want. It is good for the kids to get to know their great grandparents. My grandfather seems to be doing well and is still strong and it is always good to seem him out and about. Here are some pictures from our visit to my grandparents and the Children's Museum. If you are ever in Indianapolis and have children this is a great and inexpensive way to spend an afternoon. There are unlimited things to see and lots and lots of stuff to play with and do.

Nolan's 4th Birthday.

2010-09-09T19:31:00.001-07:00

Last week our big boy, Nolan, turned the big 4. It is just amazing at how fast the time has flown and how big he is getting. He loves to follow his big brother, Maddux, all around and is his little shadow. He will even wait for Maddux to pick certain things out, at the store, so that he can pick the exact same thing. Maddux is a great sport and doesn't seem to annoyed by it yet. For Nolan's birthday we had pizza at our house and then went over to play some indoor, monster mini golf. The kids had been to this place a couple of weeks before and Nolan loved it. He couldn't stop talking about it and just had to have his party there. They had a pretty decent arcade for the kids to play in and win tickets for prizes. I think we had about 15 kids there and had a lot of fun. We then came back to our house for ice cream cake and then called it a night. It was a lot of fun and I think the kids had a blast. Above is Nolan just before blowing out his candle of his cake. Nolan has some of the best facial expressions and this time was no different. Someone is way excited to blow out his candle.

Here are Maddux and Nolan in matching outfits that Grandma and Grandpa Kerr got for them. I think they have worn these shirts every other day since they got them. It seems like they always have these on.

Nolan with probably his favorite gift of the night. His Uncle Greg bought him a giant dart gun with about 20 darts. His old gun only had about 8 per round and then you had to reload. This one has about 3 times the darts and then as an added bonus at the end you can shoot a giant dart. I think Maddux loves the gun just as much if not more than Nolan.

Here is Payton tossing the footballs into one of the games in the arcade. She didn't get any in the tires but I was surprised that she could at least get them in the game. She had no idea what she was doing but had a ball doing her own thing.

Nolan getting ready to ride the virtual roller coaster. This ride usually cost $3 a ride but the owner gave Nolan a free ride since it was his birthday. I was talking to the owner and he said that the ride cost as much as a new Mercedes would. I guess that is why you have to charge $3 a ride.

Maddux intensely driving his car while eating a sucker at the same time.

Here are some past pictures of Nolan to take you down memory lane.

Nolan this past summer at Disneyworld with his buddy Donald Duck.

Last summer, 3 years old, at Clearwater Beach in Florida.

Nolan showing everyone where the gym is.

Nolan (2) and Maddux (4) matching boys. As you can see Nolan started imitating his brother at a young age.

This is what happen when you mess with Maddux on the trampoline.

The day that Nolan learned how to ride his bike for the first time.

Nolan has always had a special place in his heart for the Wiggles.

Nolan has some great pictures while he is sleeping.

Nolan as a frog on his first Halloween.

Nolan's 4th birthday also was the first day of Nolan's preschool. He is doing the Joy School with some other kids from Church and absolutely loves it. Here are a couple of pictures from his first day of school.

Nolan with his SpongeBob backpack showing how big of a boy he is.

Nolan and Emma before loading up for their first day. Emma is one of the girls that Jennie watches everyday who is Nolan's same age. I think Emma made it a little easier for Nolan to go that first day being that he knows her very well.

Well we are very grateful for the joy and energy that Nolan brings to our family. He is always keeping us on our toes and absolutely loves his big brother, Maddux. We look forward to many many more birthdays and are exciting to watch him grow up and develop his own personality.

Soccer is back in the air.

2010-08-29T18:44:00.001-07:00

The soccer season is upon us again and this year Nolan is finally able to play. It took him a couple of practices to get use to the idea but is finally happy about finally being on a team. It helps that I am one of his coaches and he has a good friend on his team as well. Everyones first game was this weekend and the Beard family went 2 - 1. I decided to spike Nolan's hair to celebrate his first game.

Here are Maddux and Nolan during Brooklyn's game. Neither of them could wait for their games to start. I actually got pretty lucky this weekend as I was able to watch all three games. I don't think I caught very many of Brooklyn's games over the last two years as most were at the same time as Maddux.

Brooklyn's team won 2 - 0 and Brooklyn actually played pretty well when in the game. She moved up this year and is playing with 10 , 9 & 8 year olds. They are also playing with full soccer rules and are starting to have to learn the game and the different positions. She seems to be on a pretty good team and her coach really seems to know what he is doing. It will be fun to watch her develop playing for someone who really knows what he is doing.

Brooklyn actually played a little more aggressive than in past years and was not afraid to get right in there and take the ball away from the other team. Here she is getting right in the path of the other player and took the ball away from her.

I was surprise that Brooklyn actually showed some offensive aggressiveness during her game. She has never been known for her offensive skills but actually went to the goal a couple of times and had a couple moments of dribbling the ball up the field. She usually just kicks it once and is happy with that. Maybe we will see this part of her game develop this year.

Nolan just hanging out during Maddux' game.

Maddux's game was a little different of a story as his team really struggled. He is now playing with 7 year olds but is playing on a much bigger field. I think that was the main difference as they were all tired midway during the second period. We have no one on our team who played on the bigger field last year so the kids really didn't know what to expect. It was funny because at one point in the second quarter we asked who needed a rest and all 7 players raised their hand. At least they now know what to expect and we have an idea, as coaches, on what we need to work on. They lost 4 - 1 and really were worn out by the end of the game. This is a picture of Maddux playing goalie and stopping a shot on goal.

Although Nolan isn't much of a player yet he was very excited to be out on the field and was the leader of the high-fives after every goal. He does have some pretty good players on his team and they won their game 12 - 0. He is the biggest kid on the field and just needs to realize that he can go where ever he wants and do what ever he wants. He is not afraid to get in the middle of things but tends to back off after he gets the ball out of the scrum.

I kept trying to tell Nolan to run to the goal when his teammates have the ball so he could get ready for a pass and then score. Well he took it as running right to or in the goal and then just waiting for something to happen. We will have to work on this with him so we can get him some easy goals this year. At this point he really doesn't care if he scores as long as he can give high-fives after his team scores.

This might be Nolan's favorite part of the game. This year he finally gets his own treat and drink after every game.

Have you ever been this tired? This has nothing to do with soccer but this is how we found Nolan after Church this afternoon. He fell asleep in the car on the way home but woke up once we pulled in the driveway. We told him to go into his room and get changed before we ate. Once dinner was ready we went to see where he was and this is what we found. He managed to get his pants down to his ankles and then just couldn't take anymore. He fell asleep right there in the middle of getting changed.

Well next week will be an off-week as we celebrate Labor Day so it will be a couple of weeks before we have any soccer updates.

Back to School.

2010-08-26T19:17:00.001-07:00

Well school is officially back under way as of this Tuesday. Brooklyn is in the third and Maddux is now in school all day as a first grader. I am still trying to figure out where the summer went. It went by so fast and now we have to get back into the swing of school and soccer. It was funny because the first day of school I asked Maddux what was the best part of his day and this was his response, "Lunch, recess and gym." What a typical boys response. It will be nice to get back into a regular routine and on a somewhat normal schedule.

This is Jennie on her way to school every morning. This is how she loads up all the kids and walks them to school. It is very nice having the school in the same neighborhood that we live in. It is a five minute walk to and from school each day.

Here are Meghan and Lauren (friends of Brooklyn and Maddux who Jennie watches after school each day).

Our Florida Family Vacation.

2010-08-14T08:30:00.001-07:00

Well I finally have all the pictures and video uploaded from our trip to Florida a week ago so thank you for those who have been waiting. We participated in Disney's "Give A Day, Get A Day," which gave us free tickets into Disney World. We hadn't taken the kids before so figured it would be a good way to end the summer and have some fun. We were lucky that Jennie's grandparents house was still in the family (made it by a week and a half) and we were able to stay there for most of our trip. We ended up leaving Cleveland Friday night, after work, and made it do to Clearwater Saturday afternoon. The drive was fairly uneventful outside of the speeding ticket that I got at 2:30 in the morning in Virginia. I have since found out that Virginia is pretty strict on its tickets and could cost me a pretty penny. Some people just have a need for speed and I seem to be one of them. Other than that little hiccup the ride went very well. The kids did great and slept most of the ride down.

The first couple of days we just hung out at the beach and an outdoor pool that we found. The weather was perfect and despite a little afternoon shower every day we spent the majority of our visit outdoors. We then headed over to Orlando to start our Disney trip. We stayed at the All-Star Movies Resort and spent the first day walking around there and swimming in the pool. We then spent the entire next day at Disney World. We got there a little before the park opened up and ended up staying until they closed at 11:00. It was a very long day but the kids had a blast. I was surprised at how family oriented the park was. I think there were only 3 rides that Payton couldn't go on. Other than that we rode on every ride at least once and most twice. The kids especially loved Space Mountain and Splash Mountain. The first time Brooklyn saw Splash Mountain she wanted to do with the ride and would not go on it. The second time she decided to go on it and absolutely loved it. I was surprised at how much they liked the rides and their lack of fear to go on them. That was my main concern going into the day and they loved every minute of the day. We then stayed for the Electric Parade at the end of the night as we got great seats for the show. The day was extremely action packed from beginning to end but was worth every single minute. Both of the boys fell asleep before the bus even pulled out of the park to head back to the hotel.

We then went back to Clearwater to get ready for the trip back home. We did manage to visit the Tampa Aquarium which I was a little disappointed with. It is touted as one of the best in the United States and I guess I was expecting a little more. The kids had a good time, which is the important thing, but I wouldn't have spent the money if I would have known what to expect. We had another uneventful trip back home and made it back to Cleveland Saturday afternoon. Overall it was a great trip and may be the last trip to Florida for quite some time as we no longer have any ties down there. We are grateful for the opportunity that we had to go and visit and grateful that we made it down and back safely.

Here is a photo recap of our trip and week in Florida. I apologize for the number of pictures but had so many that I just couldn't leave any out. We got some really great pictures of the kids down on the beach with the sunset. There are also some great pictures of Payton's first trip in the ocean. She absolutely loved the ocean even after a couple swallows of the salt water. Maddux loves going out as far as he can and make it a couple of times out within 10 feet of the swimming buoys. Of course Nolan wants to be just like his big brother and follows and does whatever Maddux does. Brooklyn is just happy to be there and just does her own thing. I hope you enjoy the pictures as much as we do.

Here is some video of the kids jumping off the diving board at the pool. I was surprised at how comfortable they were jumping in and some of the things that they could do. As you will see in one of the clips Maddux has no problems doing flips off of the diving board. Brooklyn is still just about running off the board into the pool but Maddux has the jump and form all down. Nolan has no problem going off the diving board but was not able to pass the test of swimming one length of the pool.

Sorry again that this took so long to get posted but I hope you enjoy. We have a blast and had the perfect vacation to end the summer with. Now it is time to turn our focus to soccer and school which start next week. I am so glad that we are fortunate enough to be able to do these type of things and just hope that these memories stay with the kids throughout their lives.

Payton and the hopefully not so terrible twos.

2010-07-25T20:28:00.001-07:00

This past Tuesday we celebrated Payton's birthday with some friends and family. It is hard to believe that she is already two. The time has gone by very quickly. She has developed quite the personality and has a little fiestyness in her. She is not afraid to slap people around and roughhouse with her siblings. She says lots of words and is into everything. She can easily lock and unlock doors which has made things very interesting. We always have to keep an eye out on the front door as she quietly lets herself out into the front yard. She really is a very good girl and we all just lover her to death.

Taking a big ole bite of her birthday cake.

She has some of the best facial expressions that you will ever see.

Here she is tearing open her presents......

.... and here is Brooklyn playing with them.

I decided to post a couple of pictures of her life so far so you can all see how big she has gotten.

Minutes after birth already reaching to give daddy a hug.

Here she is dancing all over the bed.

This might be her favorite thing to do. She absolutely loves the swing and anyone who will put her in and push.

On a nature walk at the "Backyard Preserve".

Playing some baseball with her brothers at Brooklyn's soccer game. Again, you have to love the facial expressions.

Sucking down some candy from Grandma Wendy.

She also loves "lippies" and thinks she is big enough to do them herself. If I am ever missing my chapstick I know right where to go.

We are so grateful to have Payton in our lives and thank Heavenly Father for her every day. We love having her in our family and look forward to watching her develop into a pretty young lady.

Sports Update.

2010-07-18T17:06:00.001-07:00

Last weekend Jennie had the opportunity to play for PNC Bank in the kickball event of the Cleveland Corporate Challenge. Every year all the companies in the Cleveland area compete in about 14 events that make up the Corporate Challenge. Not to brag or anything but the bank has won the whole thing the last two years. Well they are always in need of athletic girls to participate and they discovered Jennie last year for basketball. This year she has played in softball (3rd place), kickball (1st place) and will play again in basketball this week. It was an all day event but the kids and I had a lot of fun watching the games, playing around and taking nature hikes. Hopefully they can do just as well in basketball. Here are a couple of pictures of Jennie in action.

This is the whole team along with their biggest fans (the rest of us).

Jennie rounding third and heading home.

Applying the tag to make sure she gets the out. They had Jennie playing first as she was the only girl who really could both field and catch. It makes a huge difference when you have a good girl in the infield.

Jennie placing her kick right down the third base line. That is the easiest place to kick and get on base as long as their is no one else on.

Maddux' baseball season has also ended. Now I must debate if I want to move him up to players pitch or let him play in coaches pitch for another year. We need to work on his fielding if he is going to move up and play in the 10 and under league. He also needs to get comfortable playing with a hardball and not the soft one. I think his hitting is good enough to play and we just need to polish his fielding skills and he will be okay. He had a very good year this year and I had a blast coaching once again. He hit the ball very well and made some very nice plays in the field. His concentration was a lot better this year and he really matured from the past season. I can't wait to watch him progress over the upcoming years. Here are some clips of him hitting this year. I also put one of hit getting out so you don't think all he does is hit "bombs".

Payton is too young to participate in sports yet but she loves to jump on the trampoline. Pay particular attention to her hair as she jumps. The static really makes it stand up.

Here are a couple of pictures of Maddux in action this baseball season. Thanks to Bill and Tacie I was able to get some good pictures of him in action this year.

Maddux in his ready position in the outfield. Not much action in the outfield but Maddux was always ready if the ball came out there.

Trotting home on one of his homeruns this year.

Just after contact on one of his shots.

Look at that follow thru. He always seems to hit the ball very hard whether it is on the ground, in the air or on a line. He has great hand and eye coordination and doesn't swing and miss very often. He is our little slugger.

4th of July Weekend.

2010-07-08T17:58:00.000-07:00

We had a very entertaining and fun filled weekend spending time with family and doing lots of fun stuff. We kicked the weekend off by going to one of the kids friends birthday party. They hired Jungle Terry to perform a live show with some different animals. It took Nolan about half the show to get warmed up to the animals but by the end he was having a blast. It was kind of funny because he didn't want to pet the turtles, the bird or the hedgehog but when the snakes and tarantulas came out he had no problem touching them. Anyways it was a lot of fun and the kids really had a good time.

Brooklyn holding Mr. Box. If it looks like she is getting ready to eat a hamburger that is because Jungle Terry told the kids that is how you hold the turtles.

Here are Nolan and Brooklyn touching the corn snakes.

Maddux petting the tarantula. I was really surprised that all three kids had no problem touching him.

This was a 14' python that the kids loved. All the kids pet the snake and even got the chance to lift it up. All three got right in there with the rest of the kids and they all lifted the snake up and set it on top of their heads. It was kind of fun to see them interact with all the different animals. I just hope they don't try to pet one in the wild if they ever have the chance.

As part of the party Atticus' dad set up a zip line in the backyard. This may have been the biggest hit even though it took Brooklyn and Maddux some time to warm up to the idea. Nolan had no problem and absolutely loved it. Brooklyn was next and as you will see in the video mastered the grass-skiing technique. Maddux was the last to give it a try but after his first run could not get enough. Here are some short videos of the kids and their zip line rides.

Nolan on one of his many many rides.

Maddux on his second run. The only way we could get him to go down the first time was to hold him as he went. As soon as he figured out that is wasn't all that bad he didn't want to get off the thing.

Brooklyn might have been a little too tall because she ended up dragging her feet on the ground every time. Jed said he would raise it up next time for her.

Sunday night we had everyone over to our house for a BBQ and then watched the fireworks from our backyard. It is nice not having to go anywhere and deal with traffic. The kids ran outside all night with their sparklers and we set off a few fireworks of our own.

Then Monday we went over the Greg and Tacie's and BBQ again while the kids spent most of the day in the pool. It was very hot so they had a blast doing their thing in the pool.

Nolan just hanging out having some fun.

Maddux and Nolan having a little water fight.

Brooklyn catching a ride on the seal.

Nolan came out on the wrong end of the water fight and had to be comforted by his big sister.

All in all it was a very busy weekend but was also nice to spend time with our family and just kind of hang out. We had perfect weather and spent the whole weekend wearing out the kids. I know they slept very good that Monday night. We are grateful to all of those who fight and have fought to protect our country and enable us to do the things that we love.

Grandma Elaine Memorial and Campout.

2010-06-30T16:25:00.000-07:00

Well I know it is a couple of weeks late but here are some pictures from our recent trip to Washington DC, Maryland and Marblehead for camping. On Friday we went to the DC Temple in the morning and then went over to Spencer's Air Force Base to participate in his sports day. The weather was perfect and playing basketball and softball on the bank of the Potomac River was a great way to spend the day. It was also nice that we won both games and did so quite convincingly.

Jennie and I in front of the Washington DC Temple. The weather was quite different from the first time we were there. No snow flying horizontally in front of us.

Nolan holding the program for Grandma Elaine's memorial service. It was a very nice service and great to hear all the stories and memories that people have of Grandma Elaine. She was a great person and touched many peoples lives. We are glad to have been a part of her life and will miss her very much.

Addysen, Kenzie, Brynnley and Brooklyn sucking down some Diet Coke in Uncle Ken's backyard. We are grateful to Ken and Helen for opening their home for everyone to hang out for the weekend. It was nice for all the kids to spend time with their cousins and aunts and uncles. There is never a dull moment when everyone gets together.

A family outing wouldn't be any fun without some smores.

Abe, Brooklyn, Maddux & Nolan at the cemetery where Grandma Elaine's service was held. What a good looking group.

After spending the weekend with everyone in Maryland we came back to Ohio and headed up to Marblehead to go camping. All of Jennie's brothers and sister were in town with their kids and weren't sick of each other yet. Despite a couple of minor delays due to weather and some malfunctioning lights we finally made the trip to the banks of Lake Erie and continued the fun. Due to some other commitments, Jennie and I actually never camped out but the kids were able to spend 2 nights with all their cousins. Jennie and I thank those that watched over them and made it possible for them to spend time with everyone. I know they had a ton of fun. I think the highlight of the trip was the setting free of Angie. You had to be there to get the whole story but the kids were given a mission to help set a little girl, who was tragically killed years ago, from the evil spirits. They got to go on hikes, hunts and various other missions to help set her free. It was a lot of fun for them and kept them quite busy. Outside of the bugs it was a very good trip and something that I wouldn't mind doing on an annual basis.

All the grandkids (minus a couple of babies and Emmy) at the boat dock into Lake Erie.

Brooklyn trying to make the biggest bubble that she can. These kept the kids quite entertained during the day.

I love this picture. This is during the kickball game and I turned around to see where Payton was and she was laid out on the towel taking everything in. I couldn't have staged it any better.

Nolan absolutely loves the sand and spent the whole time at the beach rolling around in it. It didn't seem to phase him at all as he had the time of his life. I love the expression on his face. He is such a character.

Payton and daddy on our nature walk. I just wish I had someone to carry me around on their shoulders.

Even though it was a very busy week it was great to spend time with the whole family and get out and do stuff. We are so fortunate to have such a close family and treasure the times when we can all get together. We just wish that everyone lived closer so we could get together more often. Thanks to all of those that helped make the week possible. We had a blast.

Beard Highlight Videos and Pictures.

2010-06-23T19:44:00.000-07:00

Now that school is out and the soccer season has ended it is time to turn our attention to summer and baseball. I am working on getting Jennie to take some more pictures and video but did manage to get a little bit out of her. Maddux is doing very well in baseball and turning out to be quite the player. He has gotten much better at fielding and throwing and has always been able to hit the ball. The following are two of his at bats from this season. I think he has only gotten out once and that was because I threw him 2 horrible pitches in one at bat and he swung at both. He is not gazing out into the outfield anymore and has gotten a lot better at paying attention to the game. We have a very good team this year and have been putting the hurt on the other teams. It will be fun to watch him and the rest of the team progress over the year. I love coaching and am thankful to have the opportunity to work with these boys.

After this game Maddux had the quote of the day. He was talking to his Grandpa Kerr and he asked Maddux how he hit today. Maddux replied, "good". So he then asked him, "well what did you hit" to which Maddux replied, "BOMBS". I wish I had audio for it because my typing doesn't do it justice. It was one of the funniest things I have heard.

Another solid swing and line drive into the outfield. The only thing I need to work on with Maddux is getting him to run after he hits the ball and not watch it. He likes to see where his ball is going to go before he runs. I told him that once he starts hitting it into the trees he can then stand and watch it. He has a couple of triples this year that could have easily been homeruns if he would have ran right away. He hits the ball very hard and is my best hitter on the team.

I also managed to get a little video of Maddux's last couple of soccer games. He had another very good season and continues to enjoy the game. He is a goal scoring machine and very exciting to watch. It will be interesting to watch him play in the fall on a regular size field and one with goalies.

This was the last game of the season and even though the video doesn't show it Maddux dominated this game. This is the team that they played the first game of the year and lost 8 - 2. Maddux had a bad game and they had one boy who took over the game. Well this game was a much different story and Maddux's team won 10 - 0. Not only did Maddux score 9 of the goals but he also get their good kid from doing anything. I made sure that Maddux shadowed him everywhere he went and didn't let him get any kicks off. Maddux truly frustrated the kid the entire game and didn't let him do anything.

I wasn't able to get any video or pictures of Brooklyn's last games because she did not play in them. She was sick for 2 of the last 4 and didn't play. The other 2 were played on Sunday so she didn't go to those either. They did finish in 3rd place and had 6 or 7 wins this year. A huge improvement from the 2 wins in the prior 2 seasons. So while I don't have any video of that I am posting a video of her cupstacking during a family talent show while we were in Maryland.

The kids love these cupstacks and they have gotten tremendously better in the couple months that they have had them.

I couldn't leave Nolan out and love this video. I was sitting at the table downloading all the sports videos and Nolan was just sitting there eating an apple and watching TV. His facial expressions were priceless so I turned the camera on for awhile. He is such a funny boy and does some of the funniest stuff.

Thanks to Tacie I now have some decent pictures of Maddux playing baseball. Just thought I would post a couple so you could see him in action.

Here he is just after contact on one of his two triples last night.

On his way to third base. I love the kid standing in the background just watching. That is so typical of these boys at this age.

Standing at third, instead of home, waiting for the next batter to drive him in.

Great action shot of Maddux hitting his second triple of the game.

Maddux playing first base (looks like we may need to refocus on the game and not the crowd). He has done a much better job this year and is a lot more into the game then he was last year.

Well I will continue to work with Jennie to get some more pictures and video up of his games. If nothing else we will continue to invite Tacie to his games.

Brooklyn's Baptism.

2010-06-21T19:25:00.000-07:00

June 18, 2010

This past Friday we were able to celebrate Brooklyn's decision to be baptized. The timing couldn't have been better as Jennie's whole family was in town after remembering her Grandma Elaine in Maryland. We decided to do the baptism this weekend as everyone was going to be in town. Brooklyn has been very excited to get baptized and had a wonderful time. It was an honor for me to be able to baptize her on her special day. The day was perfect and we appreciate all Brooklyn's friends and family who came to show their support for her decision.

Our whole family just after Brooklyn's baptism.

Addyssen, Brooklyn and Cannon waiting in line for some ice cream cake.

The whole family (minus Donovan). It was so great to have everyone in town and I know that Brooklyn really loved spending the time with her cousins and aunts & uncles. We are grateful for all those who participated in the ceremony and are blessed to have such wonderful family. Now we will look for Brooklyn to be an example to her siblings and friends. She has made the decision to be like Christ and we are grateful for her dedication and faith. She is truly a great person and developing into a fine young woman. We are so blessed to have her as a part of our family.

School Field Day.

2010-06-06T18:00:00.000-07:00

This past Friday was the kids field day at school. They do this at the end of every year as a way for the kids to blow off some steam and have a little fun. This year I got to be a team coach for both of the kids. It is a lot of fun and a good way to start the weekend. The whole day is filled with different relay races with the kids going against all the kids of their same grade. The kicker is that the team coaches also get to participate in the races. There is everything from a sack race, to carrying balloons, carrying a plunger with a rubber ball on top, to putting on extremely large clothing, just to name a few. It was a perfect day with the sun out and shining. We didn't win but did make a big improvement from the year before. We ended up finishing in 4th place for the day; last year we finished 7th (out of 8 teams).

Brooklyn running down the course carrying a balloon without using her hands. Everyone had to do this and then the coach would run down and had to sit down and pop the balloon to end their time.

Brooklyn, Meghan and Alex making their funniest face. These three girls have done soccer and basketball in the past and have become very good friends. They are all going to be athletes and will be fun to watch as they get older.

Payton just catching a ride from Meghan. What a way to travel.

Brooklyn doing the sack race. I choose to save myself the embarrassment and not post the pictures of me doing this (not a pretty site).

Maddux running the "Statue of Liberty" race. Not sure what he is looking out and how he managed to keep the ball on the top while not paying attention.

Maddux in a flat out relay race. Notice how far out in front of the other kid Maddux is. They both started from the concrete but Maddux is quickly a good couple of strides ahead of the other boy. That is quite the burst of speed.

Well we have made it through another year of school and are ready for the summer. I know the kids are ready for a break and really did a great job this year. As much as they like school I know they also like to play and are excited for some of the plans we have set for this summer.

Memorial Day Campout.

2010-06-06T16:44:00.000-07:00

Last weekend some of our friends invited us to join their annual Memorial Day campout with their family. Little did they know that the invitation would add 20 people to their campout. Not only did we bring ourselves but we also brought Jennie's parents, Greg and his family, and then some of our friends and their 3 kids. While there was a lot of people there it turned out to be a lot of fun. At times I bet there was close to 50 or more people there. This is a family campsite that they meet at 3 times a year and I am just glad that their family opened it up to us and welcomed us in. We all had a lot of fun and it was a great way to spend the weekend. There was lots of good fun, fun on the lake, games and perfect weather. We couldn't have asked for better weather as it was mid 80's the whole weekend and lots of sun. Here are some of the better pictures from the weekend.

Nolan got caught watering the lawn. Him and Tristan were not afraid to drop their shorts no matter where they were or who was watching.

Here he is getting ready for the water fight. I just love the expression on his face. Cannon would throw and bucket full of water at Nolan and he would try to fight it off with his stick.

Breakfast at the campfire. I think they may have worn their bathing suits the whole weekend.

Here are the kids playing in the small pool that was brought to help keep cool. I think it was used more as a watering hole to refill their cups and buckets but did help the kids stay cool during the days.

Jennie cooking lunch (hotdogs) in the campfire.

It may have not been the healthiest weekend for eating but the food was so good. Saturday night was fried chicken night. They had two huge cast iron pans that they use to cook all their food for the weekend. The next morning we cooked bacon and eggs in the same pans. I think we had 5 pounds of bacon cooking at a time. We cooked the bacon first and then used the bacon grease to fry the eggs and then even experimented with a little fried french toast. It was a heart-attack waiting to happen but tasted so good.

Brooklyn displaying her Chinese jumprope skills.

The kids playing "Hands Down" waiting for dinner to be done.

Maddux jumping ship to go join the "pirate ship".

Grandpa and Nolan going out in the "pirate ship" to wreak havoc on the lake.

A look at one half on the campsite. I think at one point their were 5 trailers, a bus, and 4 or 5 tents set up. Every night people would leave and more would show up.

Addysen pulling Brooklyn from the algae covered lake. It wasn't like this everywhere but there were spots with lots of moss. I was really surprised that Brooklyn didn't mind being out in the water and algae. I would have thought that she would have freaked out.

Brooklyn, Addysen and Brynnley going out for a cruise on the lake.

This was probably the hit of the weekend. There was a raft that they could go out on and jump off into the water. Thank you to Shad for being willing to take them out and spend hours out there with them.

Jennie and Payton watching the kids on the lake.

Nolan hanging on for dear life. He loved hanging out in the water.

Ty with the boys going for a little boat ride.

Payton standing in front of the camper just taking it all in.

Well we had a great time and again appreciate the Nye's hospitality for inviting us to join them. I guess we will wait til next year if they had as much fun as we did. If we don't get invited back we will know the answer to that question.

Two more weeks and still no losses.

2010-05-16T17:13:00.001-07:00

Well another two weeks have past and the Beard kids are yet to lose in soccer. Brooklyn's team went 1-0-1 and Maddux went 2-0. Brooklyn's team has had a dramatic turnaround as they have gone from worst to first. They are the number one seed heading into the tournament. Quite a change from being at the bottom of the league last season. Last week was very cold and rainy. You could tell that the girls didn't want to be out there and were very sluggish. The game ended in a 1-1 tie but on the bright side Brooklyn scored their one goal. That is just her second goal ever. Then yesterday they played the best team they have seen this year and ended up winning 1-0. The game was very defense centered but they did manage to score a goal in the first quarter. With that win they are the only team that has not lost this year and should have a first round bye in the tournament. They have a very good chance of winning the whole thing. That would be the perfect end to a season and team that has seen great improvements over the past year.

Brooklyn lining up to take a goal kick. One of the perks of playing defense.

Here she is tracking down the ball preparing to clear it up the field.

Maddux and his team continued their dominance of the U6 soccer league. They went 2-0 with two very impressive wins. Last week they won 10-0 with Maddux scoring 8 of the goals. Then yesterday they won 8-2 with Maddux scoring 7 goals. He is very aggressive and always going after the ball. While other kids are looking around and waiting for someone else to do something Maddux is off to the races. Jennie and I were talking the other day about how fun it will be to watch him play on a regular field. He has definitely mastered this league.

Maddux dribbling up the field with only one player to beat.

Maddux leading the pack on his way to one of his seven goals.

This is the sight for the majority of his goals. The only thing standing between him and another goal is a wide open soccer field.

Next week I will try to get some video of the games so you can see the real deal.

Brooklyn's 8th Birthday.

2010-05-10T18:33:00.001-07:00

On Friday our big girl turned 8. It is amazing how fast the time has gone by. It seems like just the other day we were holding her in our arms. It has been such a pleasure to watch her grow up and develop into a little lady. We started out the morning by having Brooklyn's favorite breakfast, french toast. Then I took her out for lunch at Pizza Hut with her best friend Riya. Then we had all her friends over to our house for pizza, games, movies, fingernail painting and some cotton candy. Brooklyn then had 5 of her friends stay up all night and have a sleepover. It was such a fun time and I know that Brooklyn had a blast. We got extremely lucky as the weather was calling for severe thunderstorms all night and we really didn't get much at all. It allowed all the kids to spend most of the night outside playing on the trampoline and swing set while burning lots of energy and having a lot of fun. It was also very nice for us to have them all outside instead of running all around inside the house.

Here is Nolan with the marshmallow gun not knowing exactly what it was.

There was a lot of wrestling going on outside and here is Maddux getting dominated by Meghan.

Cannon getting beat up by just about everyone. You can see Maddux trying to help out but the boys were outnumbered and not very effective.

Brooklyn and Riya swinging on the swings.

This is everybody but 3 of the kids. I think we had a total of 20 kids at her party which made for a lot of kids and a lot of fun.

Bill was kind enough to bring over his projector so the kids could watch a movie on the wall. They watched Brooklyn's new favorite movie, The Princess and the Frog.

Brooklyn and Riya all cozy on the couch watching the movie.

Cotton candy machine was a big hit and a lot of fun for the kids. It is a little messy but I would definitely recommend it to anyone having a party. It is very cheap and makes a lot of cotton candy.

Not only was it Brooklyn's birthday but it was also her best friend Riya's birthday. Not only do they share a special friendship but they also share a birthday. We were glad that her family allowed her to spend the night with Brooklyn at her party. I know Brooklyn was very excited to have Riya over and is excited for Riya's party next week. Well another year has past which not only means that Brooklyn is another year older but also means that Jennie and I are another year older. It is amazing how fast the time goes by and we are just blessed to have Brooklyn in our family. Brooklyn, we love you very much and wish you a Happy Birthday. For those interested Brooklyn will be baptized on June 18th. We will have Jennie's whole family in town that week and are excited to have them share in her special moment.

And the Wins Keep Coming.

2010-05-02T19:26:00.000-07:00

Well the kids have played two more weeks worth of soccer games and went 3 - 0. While Brooklyn had a bye week last week Maddux won 10 - 2 with Maddux scoring 9 goals. This week marked the first time this season when the kids played at the same time so I went to Maddux's game as Jennie coached Brooklyns. Maddux won again 9 - 0 with Maddux scoring 7 goals this game. He is just all over the field and usually a lot quicker and more aggressive to the ball. Some times I feel bad for the other kids because they don't have a chance against him. He had one goal this game where he blasted one of the other kids with the ball. The kid would just stay back by the goal and try to kick the ball out when our team got close. Well one time he wasn't quite quick enough and Maddux kicked it as hard as he could and drilled the kid in the side. The ball went in the goal and needless to say he didn't stand there the next time that Maddux came near.

This is Maddux breaking away from the other kids in route to one of his 7 goals.

Here he is getting right in the middle of the action while most of the other kids stand back and watch.

I was able to watch the first quarter of Brooklyn's game and they were up 3 - 0 when I left. There has been a big improvement with her team from last year. They are scoring a lot more goals and are playing better defense. They have doubled their win total from the last two years and are no longer the worse team in the league. It is fun to watch because the girls are having fun and it is nice to see their work pay off. The team that Brooklyn played yesterday was actually short a girl so Brooklyn got to play for them the first half and then another girl played the second half.

Brooklyn trailing the play just in case. She has become a very good defender and is starting to get a little more aggressive in her play.

Brooklyn right in the middle of everything helping her team get the ball out of there.

Nolan and Payton hanging out at Maddux's game.

Nolan is so ready to play soccer and should get his chance in the fall.

Payton just having a seat waiting for the game to end.

I love Payton's facial expressions.

1 Weekend, 2 Wins.

2010-04-19T16:58:00.001-07:00

Well it is officially soccer season again even though we started off playing in the snow this weekend. What better way to start the season with a pair of wins. That is nothing new for Maddux but Brooklyn's team matched their win total for all of last year; and they did it in their first game of the season. It was a very good way to start the season and hopefully will be a sign of things to come. You have to love Maddux's haircut in the above picture.

Maddux beating the rest of the kids down the field for the ball.

Here is Maddux leading the fastbreak on route to one of his 7 goals. I don't know what the final score was but I do know that Maddux's team didn't allow a single goal.

Maddux again racing down the sideline with the ball.

Brooklyn playing some stellar defense in helping her team to a 3 - 1 victory.

Brooklyn practicing her dance moves trying to keep warm. Notice the left hand position. Remind you of anyone? It is not uncommom to see Jennie strike the exact same pose.

Brooklyn measured this one up and kicked it with all her might. It is actually a very good play as long as she is on defense, which she was. An easy way to get the ball out of your area and back towards the other teams goal. She just has to make sure that she doesn't wind up and miss the ball. She has been known to do that from time to time.

The pregame huddle. It was a very cold morning and even featured moments of snow fall. Nothing like starting off the season in 40 degree weather.

Brooklyn was not a fan of the weather as it took my sweater to get her to stop crying and get on the field. Once she started running around she realized that if she wanted to stay warm that was all she had to do. She ended up shedding the sweater during the first half.

Payton and Maddux doing their best to stay as warm as possible. They made it through the first half and then sat in the van for the rest of the game.

We did have some beautiful weather the days leading up to the cold weekend. It was in the 80's for much of the week which allowed Payton to take a ride in her swing. She loves the swing and does not like it when others are in her swing. I love the facial expressions she has in these pictures. She is having the time of her life.

I think this is probably my favorite one.

Another good one. We are all hoping that the weather comes back soon so we can get back out there and enjoy the sun.

Grandma Wendy Visit

2010-04-11T16:36:00.000-07:00

Last week my mom came for a visit with Blake and Ashlynn. It was their spring break and we were happy to have them for a visit. I just feel bad because I couldn't take any time off of work and the kids were in school so they had to find stuff to do on their own during the day. It was still good to see them for a week and I know that our kids loved having their cousins around to play with.

Grandma Wendy with Payton.

The grand kids minus Payton. She was not in a picture taking mood that morning and we were not going to fight with her to get in the picture.

We were lucky that the weather was so nice and the kids could spend most of the time outdoors. The trampoline, basketball hoop and water hose got a lot of good use last week. Here is Maddux clamping down the defense on Ashlynn.

The kids were very creative in turning these storage bins into miniature pools. The water was extremely cold but the kids didn't seem to mind getting in. Look at those muscles. Maddux has free tickets to the gun show if anybody is interested.

In addition to all the playing outside Blake and Ashlynn got to go to the Great Lakes Science Center as well as the Natural History Museum. I think they were a little bored with them but we tried to make up for it on Saturday when Grandma Wendy and I took all the kids (minus Payton) to the IX Indoor Amusement Park for a whole day of roller coaster riding and games. It was a long day and the kids were spent by the time we got home but we all had a lot of fun. Here are some pictures from the day.

Dad and Nolan on the giant indoor ferris wheel. Nolan and Ashlynn were the only kids who were brave enough to get on.

Here are Nolan and Ashlynn enjoying the ride. They really liked it when the ferris wheel went above the roof and was actually outside.

Here are the boys on the spinning bears. I use to be able to ride those all day long but now I will limit myself on the number of spinning rides I go on.

Brooklyn and Ashlynn getting ready to spin around and around and around.

Blake and Maddux on the twirling dragons. This is one of the two spinning rides that I actually did go on. It was mainly so I could get some good action pictures. You can tell by the look on Maddux's face that he is having a blast.

Maddux was very hesitant to get on his first ride but once he did he was ready to go on anything. This is about the third adult ride that he went on and I was very surprised that he went. This was the inverter and was a ride that swung you to the top upside down. There was one point when we hung upside down for about 10 seconds before the ride came down. I felt bad for Ashlynn who really wanted to go on the ride but was about 1/2 inch to short and the guy wouldn't budge. Maddux had a lot of fun and had no issues with this ride at all. It is funny because he is so hesitant to go on the rides but after he actually gets on the first ride that is all he wants to do the rest of the day.

Maddux and Ashlynn going on a caged ride that you can spin around and around in circles. I didn't think they would actually cause the cage to spin around but that was all that they did.

Here are Blake and Brooklyn waiting for the kiddie rides. They had zero interest in going on any of these adult rides and had to just sit and wait them out. I felt bad for Nolan because he wanted to go onto all of these rides but was too short. The two people who wanted to go on all the rides, Nolan and Ashlynn, were the two who couldn't go because of their height and the two tallest, Brooklyn and Blake, wanted nothing to do with these rides.

This was the ride that started it all for Maddux. Once he went on this he wanted to go over and over again and then wasn't afraid of anything. I was actually surprised that Brooklyn actually went on this one. I love Nolan's look while on this ride. He had his arms raised the whole time he rode this and most other rides. He is a true roller coasterer.

Here is everybody getting ready for take off. Notice that Nolan's arms are raised and ready to go.

They had a live tiger show which the kids really enjoyed. Well I should say all but Nolan. He fell asleep about 2 minutes into the show and slept on my shoulder for the next 20 minutes. I guess he just needed that power cat nap to get his second wind. This is a white tiger standing on her hind legs with arms folded.

This was Maddux and Nolan performing in the backyard circus as a lion and a tiger. They got to play dead and then jump through a hoop.

Brooklyn and Maddux feeding a baby goat. They had this huge petting zoo where you could fee some goats, sheep and cows.

Nolan feeding a sheep. He was hesitant at first but had no problem after the first bite.

Brooklyn, Maddux, Blake and Nolan on the caterpillar roller coaster. Ashlynn wanted nothing to do with this as it was "boring".

Brooklyn, Maddux and Nolan racing down the giant slide. As you can see Maddux won quite easily. I also think that he might have gotten a little bit of a jump on the other two.

Brooklyn's reflection in a mirror on the carousel.

Blake riding the carousel and you can see Maddux's reflection in the mirror.

Brooklyn riding her horse.

This was one of the last rides that we went on and one that I hope I never have to go on again. The only reason I went on was because they weren't going to let Nolan on without an adult and I couldn't break his heart. I barely fit into the seat and it was very herky-jerky.

Well we all had a lot of fun with Grandma Wendy and the kids and just wish that we didn't live so far away. The kids had a blast playing with their cousins and already miss them. We thank them for coming and hope that they has as much fun as we did.

This is Why You Don't Mess With Maddux

2010-04-06T19:36:00.001-07:00

If you think Nolan looks bad you should see the other guy. This is what happens when you mess with Maddux. Nolan and Maddux were jumping on the trampoline when all of a sudden Jennie heard Nolan crying and holding his head. She didn't think too much of it until a couple minutes later when he was still crying. When she saw his face this is what it looked like. He had a bump the side of an egg on his eyebrow. His whole eye was almost swollen shut. I can't believe that it didn't cut him as hard as he hit. That kid has the hardest head.

A view from another angle. The pictured don't do the size justice. I couldn't believe how big that bump was. The funny thing is when I got home and noticed it I thought he had just woken up. When I got closer I noticed that his eye was huge. It didn't seem to bother him too much until I asked him if he wanted to see what it looked like. As soon as he saw his eye in the mirror he started to cry. I think he actually scared himself.

This is about 3 days later. The eye was still swollen and had started to turn a little purple. Never mind the scratches on his neck. He had a rough run in with a tree.

Here is Nolan 6 days later. The swollen was gone but the eye colored up quite nice.

If the eye and scratches weren't enough Nolan decided to take on Maddux one more time. Once again he lost that battle and ended up splitting his bottom lip open. They somehow knocked heads again with Nolan taking the worst of it. Why not add fat lip to a swollen eye and neck scratches. I am just glad that he didn't have a doctors appointment at all during this time because someone would have thought that Jennie and I were beating him. It is amazing how much punishment he took in a week and still just keeps going on. He is one tough kid. However, as big as Nolan is it will only be a mater of time before the roles are reversed and he is the one dishing out the bumps and bruises.