Fall and Halloween 2016

We sure do love fall here in NM but this year was a whirlwind of events!

First off, soccer.  So much fun!  Asher played on slightly more competitive team this year and loves it, and B is playing his little heart out too.  We love watching them and being outside in the beautiful weather makes it even better.

Asher and Beckett both participated in the jogathon at Chamiza and ran their little hearts out.  I love it when it coincides with Corey's Friday off.  It's way more fun when we get to cheer them on together. Go Reitz boys! We also did the 'Balloons Aloft' at their school, followed by chocolate milk and doughnuts before school.  Good times. 

Then there's Halloween, of course.  I bit off a little more than normal this year and made up costumes for everyone.  The boys were all Jedis and the boys were Padowan Jedis (complete with braids, although it hurt them to try to put them in, and even then they didn't stay long), and little Dawson was our very own adorable Ewok.  It was so much fun, seriously.  I don't even mind all the time I put into sewing them, and I am NOT what I would consider skilled in sewing.  At all.  The boys had a blast with it and looked so great.  Corey didn't mind it either, so we all had a great time dressing up this year.  In a nutshell, the boys were able to dress up a few times, get way too much candy, go to the local pumpkin patch, carve pumpkins and have a great time.  Bonus that we as parents were able to have a little fun alongside them. Yay for Halloween!

Next, this past month had family.  LOTS and LOTS of family, but all at the same time.  It's truly unprecedented for us.  We will always take what we can get though and loved seeing everyone so much.  Jen and Josh and their family were here and we were able to go to a Mass Ascension with them, and Laurie and Kylin and kiddos came up for a very quick couple of days.  The days they were here, the weather didn't cooperate for some awesome balloon time, but that just means they will have to come and see us again and for a bit longer next time!  We did all get a good Dion's run in, and hung out at Explora too.

Oh!  And drumroll...…...Mr. Asher Reitz was given his Webelos and Arrow of Light Award!  So much work gets done that last year of Cub Scouts and he worked hard to get it in.

Balloon Fiesta 2016

Oh, Balloon Fiesta.  How we love you.

This year was so much fun.  As usual, we kicked off the festivities the Friday before the Fiesta started at the kid's school with Balloons Aloft.  Every year a couple of balloons come to each elementary school to lay out the balloons on the field, inflate, and then launch before school starts.  The kids look forward to it every year, and we've fallen into the tradition of running to get donuts and chocolate milk afterwards, before school starts.  The kids loved it...the balloons, the donuts, and running wild with their friends as balloons float up to the sky.  I love that we have unique events like this that make living here special.

Balloon Fiesta itself was also lots of fun for us, particularly because we had company this year.  Without fail, most years we hear from friends or family that they want to come, but rarely does it actually happen.  But, this year, well, let's just say it happened!!  My sister Jen, and her family let us know they were coming a few weeks back.  Then, my sister Laurie called and said she'd be here in a couple of days for the Balloon Fiesta too!  I couldn't believe it.  That's right, not one, but two families coming out to NM.  We were thrilled!

The morning after Jen came up, we went to a morning Mass Ascension (it was our fall break also, so kids were home and Cor took the day off).  It was fantastic.  Loads of balloons bubbling up from the ground all around us.  Spectacular.  It was cold, but we've definitely had colder BF mornings in years past.  Afterwards, we had Blake's breakfast burritos and snuck in some needed naps later in the afternoon.  That evening, the boys all headed out to the UNM game and had a great time.  Jen and I stayed home with the little buddies so they could get to bed at a normal time (and so we could eat some ice cream and watch t.v.).

Laurie and family arrived that night too (but unfortunately were in a hotel so not as close), and Koleson and Kylin just made it to the game.  The boys loved seeing their close-in-age cousins and being able to hang out.  We had soccer games the next morning (Go Asher!  He had a great game), which was cancelled due to thunder, lightning and rain after about 9:45, so we headed home and regrouped. Laurie's crew were at the Mass Ascension waiting for the go ahead for the balloons, but only one group was able to go up...dang!

We met up with them later at Explora, to get some family time in, and further exhaust all the poor kiddos who'd been up since before dawn.  They did great though and had fun playing.  We hit Dion's later on for dinner with everyone. It was everyone's second meal there already, but nobody seemed to mind, haha.

The weekend went by SO fast, I can hardly believe it, and now the house seems so quiet without all the cousin fun going on.  We miss everyone already and really hope they all come back again soon.  It was amazing to have my sisters here in my home to hang out with, I love them and their families and just wish everyone lived closer so these times weren't so rare.  But, I'll take what I can get.

Now, on to enjoying fabulous Fall in NM...

Labor Day Weekend 2016

Labor Day weekend was a much needed break from the norm.  On Thursday night, we went to a Lobo Football game.  It was Dawson's first and he was amazing!  He seemed to be entertained by the noises and all the people, and even the game.  He was a total champ that night, and we think we'll probably do it again.  Corey and I had a random, fun jaunt to Target on Friday after a nice lunch at Il Vicino but before the kids were out of school and ended up finding an ice cream maker!  Necessity, right? We've just never had one and were excited to find it sitting there, marked down, just waiting for us to take it home.  The boys were really excited about it too once they saw our find.  After being unable to book a sitter on a holiday weekend we ended up making ice cream that night, which was a huge hit! 

Saturday, Asher had a soccer tournament, so we enjoyed watching him play his heart out and that night Corey made his first batch of root beer with a kit we gave him for his birthday.  Yummm.  We decided it could be fizzier, but it was tasty and will hopefully be the first batch of many.

Monday, we relaxed at home then went for a fun bike ride with the family.  I'm always surprised at how long it takes us to get out of the garage for one of these jaunts.  Once we finally make it out, it's always worth the effort though.  Dawson was my little passenger and did great, although his favorite part was definitely our stop at the park.  We topped off the weekend with a barbecue and some Wii.  Good times! 

Piano Boys

This year, the boys both started piano lessons with Jackie Walker, an awesome lady from our church. They were both excited and a little nervous to try something so new and different.  I'll admit, it was a little rough at first getting them to practice and helping them through the frustration of doing something new and sometimes hard (and I know this will continue on and off, sigh...), but I think they are both really enjoying it now.  I love hearing them plunking out a new song and I love hearing them confidently playing one they've practiced at.  These pics are (sadly not great...I forgot my good camera!) ones I took at their recital in May.  Asher played the Star Wars theme song, and Beckett played Blue Suede Shoes (along with others, but these were their favorites). The boys both did fantastic!  They were both proud and satisfied with their performances.  It's so awesome to see their love for creating and understanding music beginning to blossom.  Over the summer,  they both played more on their own, and even started playing songs they like by ear.  Awesomeness.  Beck started tinkering with 'Come Thou Fount' (my favorite) without realizing it was a real song, he just thought it sounded familiar...we were surprised to say the least.  He also figured out parts of 'Hedwig's Theme', the main theme from the Harry Potter movies.  I printed out some sheet music for 'Come Thou Fount' and Asher can now play it, as well as a Newsies song, and others from the radio he's been figuring out on his own by ear.  I'm so proud of them and I love it when they want to go and play because they simply enjoy it.  Lessons are about to start up again in the next few weeks, and I'm looking forward to seeing what new songs they start playing this year.  Love my piano boys!