To Everything There is a Season

This expression came to mind when I was trying to determine what to write on this blog post.  Thinking about the purpose of this blog, it was to share information about my kids with my family and friends that lived across the country.  Due to the other social media outlets I am on now (Facebook and Instagram), they have taken the place of maintaining this blog.  I would love to keep in touch with all of you.  You can find me on Facebook as Steph Mackey and my Instagram profile is krcsmom (Kyle, Ryan, Carter's Mom).  Thanks for reading and following our adventures over the past 7 years and 1,368 blog posts.  I truly appreciate your support!!

Mom's Birthday Celebration

My Mom is turning 70 on Thursday.  I wish we could be there on the actual day to celebrate with her, but since we couldn't, we celebrated this weekend.  We served cupcakes and coffee after church and took her out to Cassidy's for lunch.  We had a great time together this weekend! :)

Happy 70th, Mom!!!!

I love that we finally got a picture with my Mom.  Typically I'm behind the camera and we don't get one together!

Elsa (and Ella) made the cupcakes and cake for Mom.  They did a fabulous job - they were delicious!

We had 5 kinds of cupcakes plus a cake!

Grandma and Grandpa with their boys at Cassidy's for lunch today:

I haven't made jewelry in a while, but this necklace has special meaning behind it.  This is what my Mom and boys say back and forth all the time.  I love that! :)

Happy, Happy Birthday, Mom!  We love you so much and thank you for everything you do for our family!!!!

Spring Cleaning | Bedroom Makeovers

I officially wrapped up my spring cleaning yesterday, about 2 months prior than normal.  I was on a mission this year and I was plowing through it as quickly as possible.  It feels so good to have my house cleaned, organized, and purged!  The upstairs bedrooms all got makeovers this year and the boys love their new rooms!

Carter's room was previously a grayish/blue with red accents.  It required a complete paint job.  Evan took the boys up north and it was a complete surprise when they returned home last weekend! :)

Ryan's room just had the stripe added (harder than it looks with tape that didn't adhere properly and allowed the paint to bleed!  Again, this was done last weekend, and it was a surprise to Evan and the boys.

Our bedding matches our master bathroom towels and decorations perfectly, something I didn't even take into consideration when buying them.  It feels good to lighten and freshen up our room.  Evan went to work last Friday with one bedroom and returned home to another.  It was a productive day for me! :)

January Instagram

The month of January came and went in the blink of an eye.  I can't believe how long it's been since I've done a proper post.  Here's a snapshot of our month of January:

Ryan and his science fair project:

Mom/Ryan date at Pizza Hut after his 10 year doctor appointment:

Evan and I at a Wild Game in the Bolander Suite:

Charles and Beth joined us for the game.  It's been forever since I've had a chance to catch up with Beth; it was great to see her again! :)

Carter ate 3 1/4 lb. cheeseburgers (with buns) and fries for dinner and then had a 'small' bag of popcorn afterwards.  We have a growing boy on our hands!

My team at work volunteered at Second Harvest Heartland and packed over 6,000 pounds of food:

Evan took the boys sledding one day in early January:

Evan and his boys tubing at Elm Creek Park Preserve:

Me and my boys:

Our super-fun day tubing:

Celebrating Evan's birthday:

Ice cream cake for our favorite ice fisherman:

Pizza as big as his head makes Carter very happy :)

Our visit to Great Grandma Elsye in Bemidji:

Visit to Grandma Elsye

We made the trek to Bemidji to visit Great Grandma Elsye this weekend.  The boys look forward to the pool time at the hotel.  We used to make the trip in one day, but then decided that 10 hours in the car in one day made for antsy kids and frustrated parents.  We all do better spreading out the driving over the course of 2 days!  I have pictures with Grandma Elsye on my phone, I'll update with those tomorrow...  For now, here are some hotel photos:

Evan and his boys swimming:

Hot tubbing boys:

Ryan jumping in - the water in the pool looks like glass:

Carter's turn:

Boom!

 

Boys with the pool all to themselves:

Carter is getting to be a stronger swimmer all the time.  He is able to stay down long enough on a dive to get all 4 dive toys in one dive.  Not bad for 7! ;)

The boys wanted to explore on the ice today before we left.  With the sun shining, it was deceiving.  We walked down to the ice and the windchill was -19 and we were freezing.  Needless to say, we didn't last long exploring down there.  We'll do a better job of that when we return in August! :)

December Instagram

One last December Instagram post... :)

Ryan's Friends at the Wild Hockey Game:

My boys and I:

Silent Night at the Kroschel Church on Christmas Eve:

My boys and I at the Waterpark of America, staying at the Radisson, waiting for dinner:

Hot tub, lazy river, waterslides, surfing, we kept very busy the 3 days we were there! :)

New Year's Eve at home.  Evan perfectly prepared jumbo shrimp and we all toasted the New Year! :)

Boys were out cold before 9:30.  Evan and I didn't make it to midnight, either!

Christmas Day and Waterpark of America

We spent Christmas Day at my Aunt and Uncle's house again this year.  It was a delicious meal, like always.  The kids had a great time playing and the adults always enjoy visiting.

Our group photo:

Stairstep cousins, not in order.  Carter-(almost 8), Noah-(almost 9), Ryan-10, Olivia-11

Slingshot:

Bunker Beach Water Park Season Passes:

Bunker Beach Pass and Xbox gift cards:

We went to the Waterpark of America on the 26th, the same day the guys left for Northern MN ice fishing:

We spent Friday to Sunday there, and the boys had a lot of pool time:

Ryan tried the surfing several times - he was getting pretty good by the time we left:

Grandma and Carter on the lazy river: