Caleb's Graduation

 

Friday evening, Paige went to her boyfriend Caleb's high school graduation. It was quite a long way away to his house, and quite a long graduation ceremony. Paige wore her cute Vietnam dress and Andrea took her to get some cute desserts and balloons for Caleb. There may be more pictures coming, but Paige hasn't received any yet.

Indiana Fever Home Game vs Portland Fire

 

For Andrea's birthday this year, we went to Indianapolis to watch a Fever game. We've been following Caitlin Clark's career for a few years now, and we wanted to see her play in person at a home game. The game we picked was somewhat convenient for Andrea since she was flying back from Kansas City and it was possible for her to stop there on the way back to Florida. 

We had some lunch at a local Mexican restaurant and then went to the stadium as early as possible so we could do some shopping and find some Fever shirts and souvenirs. 

Our seats were in a good spot across from the Fever bench and we were only four rows up from the floor. It was close enough to be a great view, but still a little elevated so we could see all the action. 

Prior to the game starting, I noticed us on the jumbotron and grabbed a picture of us on it, we were celebrities!

The Fever won the game handily and it was a nice game to see in person, however we were very disappointed that Caitlin Clark did not play. It was a last minute decision to sit her for the game because her back had been bothering you. The rest of the team played well and I guess we'll have to go to another game some time to see Caitlin play.

Happy Birthday to Andrea, we love you!

Just the Kids in Florida

While Andrea was in Kansas City, it was just us kids at home in Florida. We had to take care of ourselves and Millie Mae too, but we all survived while she was away. We even were a little productive. Connor worked on his DJ skills with his new DJ board, Paige did a lot of school work and studying, I worked on work, and Millie went on lots of walks and runs with us. 

Paige and I also cleaned up some stuff around the house including doing a full detail on Andrea's car for her Mother's Day gift.

We are proud of ourselves for surviving, and we are happy that Andrea is home and we're all together again.

Andrea Visits Kansas City

 

Andrea went to Kansas City for quite a long visit in mid-May. She stayed with her mother to help her out with some appointments, ran errands, planted flowers, and also to just hang out and enjoy some time together. It was a productive visit, and they also had some fun together while she was in town. The family spent some time at Amanda's house with her dogs and her pool, and Andrea went to a couple of Graydon's baseball games as well.

Mother's Day 2026 - Lunch at TPC

For Mother's Day, we had lunch at TPC to celebrate Andrea together. It was a fairly chill weekend otherwise, and nice to have everyone together.

2026 Tennis Banquet - Paige's Sophomore Year

 
This past week was the tennis banquet and Paige and Shawn went to the banquet this year. The banquet's always been at the Marsh Landing club in the past, but this year it was at the church near their high school instead. It was a very nice setup with food from a local Mexican restaurant. 

Paige won an award for the best overhead on her team and her team captains gave her the "Life of the Party" paper plate award. 

Solo Driver! Paige Drives to School by Herself

This morning was the first time Paige drove herself to school and I snapped a pic of her before she departed. She's been riding with Amelia all year and while she's enjoyed their time together, it's nice to leave on your own time and on your own terms. She does not love driving, but she certainly likes the independence and freedom it provides. 

Connor - Home for the Summer

It was a bit more difficult than he anticipated, but Connor got all moved out by himself last week while wrapping up his first year of college as well. He studied hard his last week and got a 97% on his final Accounting exam, finishing the semester with a great GPA while balancing his work, exercise, fraternity, and friends. We could not be more proud of him, he's grown so much in many ways over the last year and experienced so much. 

He had planned to chill out until Saturday to move home, but a huge storm was forecast on Saturday so we encouraged him to wrap it up on Friday instead. He got his car packed full of junk, floor to ceiling, and he still had to leave a few things behind. He checked out of the dorm and made it home late Friday and got all his stuff in to our rental house and in to his room. We got a desk from Grandma and Grandpa for him, made up a bed and re-arranged things so he would be comfortable over the summer. It's fun having him around again and he's got so many exciting things coming up soon. In the next few weeks he's planning to just relax and catch up with friends.

Amelia Island Birthday Celebration for Paige

 

Paige and four of her friends went with us to Amelia Island for the weekend to celebrate Paige's birthday together. Abby, Payton, Kendall, and Keira all packed in to a rental van so we could make the hour drive together. It turned out we are so bad at packing that Andrea had to drive separately in our SUV so we could bring everything for the weekend. 

When we arrived, the girls changed in to their dresses and did the required Tik Toks and Instagram worthy photos before we departed for dinner. 

There was a bit of a wait at Marche Burette, but we managed to get tables outside and enjoy the live music, the ambiance, and of course, the delicious steaks.

After dinner, the girls changed in to comfy clothes and then explored around the resort. They had planned to play mini-golf but it had just closed when we arrived, so they went over to the hotel and went out to for a walk on the beach.

When they got back, the played some board games and then made a Jeopardy style game to compete and study together for their upcoming AP exams.

Saturday morning, the girls were up bright and shiny in the morning and ready for some adventures. I drove them to the downtown area where there was shopping and a shrimp festival. Unfortunately a huge storm was blowing through around noon, but the girls didn't let it slow them down, they just grabbed umbrellas and piled out of the van in to the rain.

While they were away, Andrea and I went to the Nature Center to look at the animals and have a nice quiet lunch together. 

The girls ate lunch at a restaurant downtown and then we picked them up and brought them back to the house so they could change into drier clothes. The rain stopped around two and it was nice a cool, perfect for some mini-golf. 

When they finished golfing, we picked them up along with a couple of pizzas and spent the rest of the evening playing games, watching movies, and goofing off. 

There were two rooms for the girls, but they preferred to all be in one room together, so they dragged a mattress in to the room with the king bed and all piled in the room. I don't think any of them slept all that well, but they had a good time.

Although there were a few hours of torrential rain, it was actually a pleasant and cool weekend in Amelia Island otherwise. The girls are all funny and adorable together, and we are so happy that Paige has such a nice group that she can celebrate with. 

A huge thank you to Andrea for organizing the weekend, booking the rental van, ordering sweets and treats, and coordinating everything. It was a memorable weekend and we hope that Paige has lots of happy memories for her sweet sixteen birthday.