Grandpa Bill

We've been going up to Idaho a lot lately. Jon's dad had been fighting cancer for 6 years and was not doing very well. It was nice to cherish those moments with him knowing we didn't have very much longer. At the end he couldn't get out of bed so we and the grandkids could just lay beside him and hold his hand. It was very tender and

very sad. Two weeks ago, Jon's mom called and we knew it was the dreaded call. We drove up that night so we could all be together. The kids took it very hard even though they were expecting it. It was comforting to be together as a great big family and talk and laugh and cry. I'm so thankful for my knowledge that we will all be together again someday and that I can comfort my children with that knowledge. We will miss Grandpa Bill so much. He was a great Dad and a great Grandpa.

Watching a slideshow of Grandpa with his grandchildren

Maddie, Olivia, and Sam thrilled to sleep on an air mattress

Lots of grandchildren watching cartoons in the kitchen

Maddie and Calli bought the same shirt without planning it

Dad standing with his boys a couple of months ago

Bees baseball game

For Mother's Day, mom wanted tickets for all of us to go to a baseball game together. It's not that she loves baseball, it's just fun to go to a game as a huge family and it was.

Max really likes events for the first hour then he gets bored fast. Jon and Max
Here mom is talking to Lyssa in Denver. Her family couldn't come because of the distant thing so a phone call is second best. Lyssa e-mailed everyone and got the baseball info. for Mother's day, so she did all the "leg" work. This is Max, Seth and Joshua.

Maren is just too cute eating her hot dog. I think between all of us sharing food, we ate everything they had. The kids love that part. We had peanuts, churros, nachos, popcorn cotton candy etc. UGH.This is Tanner closing his eyes on purpose because he knows I'm taking a picture of him.
Here's Donovan and Gram (kinda), Dad, James, Joshua, and Maddie. Fun times!

Maddie gets her braces OFF

Maddie only had braces for 8 months. She may have to do phase 2 after all her permanent teeth come in. They're looking good. You can't even tell when she has her retainer in and she only has to wear it at night and 4 hrs in the day. Her orthodontist doesn't want her taking it to school when school starts again because it's too hard to keep track of. I wish they did that when I had a retainer. I remember searching through the McDonald's trash when I accidentally threw it away!

Seth plays t-ball

Seth started t-ball last month. It's either really boring to watch or really funny..depending on the moment. The kids are 5 and 6 years old so this is their first year playing baseball. They sometimes run around the bases the wrong way or skip bases. One boy was charging to first and then he stopped to tell his team mates how he swung twice and missed the ball then he finally got it. In the meantime, the first baseman got the ball and was waiting at first which didn't concern him at all, he had a great tale to tell. If you're any position besides 1st, pitcher, or catcher, you basically just stand around, that's the boring part. Seth has enjoyed it for the most part and has learned a lot about the great American sport of baseball.
Maddie and Max were very "supportive" of Seth playing his game. The park had some great trees so they played in those most of the time. Tanner was actually sitting beside me really supporting him but I didn't get a picture of that. Poor Tanner.

In this video, Seth is the "pitcher" behind the coach who is pitching the ball. All he needs to do is throw it home since it's the last batter. Good try.