Memorial Day

On Memorial Day, we went to the splash park in Hastings with Grandma and Grandpa.  

Monroe heading straight for the water

Monroe ventured out and then got trapped when the water came back up.

Grandma and Monroe getting wet and loving it

I love this one!

SO CUTE!

After playing in the water, we swung on the swings.  She loved this too!

First Day of Summer

Our first day of summer was an eventful one.  We blew up Monroe's pool and played around in the yard.  Her pool was the perfect size, and she had no fear of the water.  

Daddy was getting her with the garden hose.  She loved it!

That evening, we went to the park so Daddy could run and Monroe and I could play.  She loved Kid's Kingdom.  

Daddy and Monroe sharing a yogurt pop

We look forward to our summer together as a family.  Hopefully, we can make everyday as eventful as the first day.

Mmmmwah

Until recently, Monroe has always given open-mouth kisses.  Then, last week, Grandma taught Monroe how to pucker up.  Now, she makes this adorable face when you ask her for a kiss.

Mother's Day

Mother's day was wonderful this year.  On Saturday morning, I went to a salon and got a pedicure and manicure with Emily Johnston.  We signed up for the extra relaxing pedicure not knowing what it was.  It was definitely worth the extra money for the head-to-toe pampering.  That night we hung out as a family and Zach gave me my gift from Monroe--a pair of Sperry shoes.  I love them!

On Sunday, we drove to Hastings for the day.  After church, we went to Taylor's for lunch.  My favorite part of lunch was the Banana's Foster.  I started and ended my meal with a helping of it.  Later, we all went to Emily Shuck's graduation party.  Everyone had a great time! The food was delicious, and we had plenty to entertain us.  The men were playing a competitive game of PIG while Monroe ran around and tried to get in on the game.

Unfortunately, I forgot my camera in GI, so I have no pictures of the day.  When we got home that night, I had Zach take some pictures of Monroe and I so I had some of Mother's Day.

I love her kisses!

Cozy Coupe

For Monroe's birthday, Zach and I got her a Cozy Coupe.  It had been recommended by a couple friends at school whose kids love them.  We are definitely glad we decided to get one for her because she loves it!  She is so proud of herself when she gets in and out of it on her own.  And, she loves to be pushed around.

Changes for next year

In the last week, Zach and I both found out that we will have different teaching assignments next year.    

This year, Zach taught 7th and 8th grade math at the Success Academy, which is the alternative middle school.  It has been a very trying and difficult year, but Zach has had a great attitude through it all.  When job openings posted, he applied for a high school math position.  On Monday he found out that he got the job.  The specifics have yet to be determined, but he knows he'll be teaching geometry and algebra.  He is most excited to get back to teaching math instead of dealing with behaviors.

This year, I taught 5th grade for the fourth year in a row.  After four years, I decided I was ready for a change.  Next year I will be teaching 3rd grade at the same school.  I will miss the independence of 5th graders, but I won't miss their attitudes.  The part I am most excited about is having a smaller class.

Julie's shower

On Saturday, I helped host a baby shower for my sister-in-law, Julie.  Emily Shuck, Emily Johnston, and I hosted it together at Julie's new house in Lincoln.

The invitations for the shower.  So cute!

Baby Runcie banner

Food table

Julie opening her gifts

The hostesses and the mom-to-be 

We had a great time at the shower.  Everyone is excited to welcome Baby Runcie in a few weeks.

Weekend in Lincoln

Last weekend we drove to Lincoln to help my sister and her family paint and decorate their new house.  They moved from Lincoln to Eagle, which is about 15 minutes east of Lincoln.  Their house is going to be a wonderful place for our large family to gather.
 While we were there, we got to watch Karter play a soccer game.  He did so well.  He even scored his first goal.

Practicing before the game

Monroe watching her cousin

Karter getting after it.  Notice his tongue in his cheek in the next picture.  He did this every time he was working hard.  That's a Burkle thing.

The stud soccer player!

Later, Kaiya and Karter had to pull up chairs so they could talk to Monroe while she ate.  They both adore her!

The men went golfing after the soccer game.  Jess and Rod live off of the 6th green of Woodland Hills Golf Course.  After they played 6, they stopped by to say hi.  They gave the kids rides in the golf carts.

The next day, the moms decided it was our turn to get out of the house and leave the kids with the men.  We ended up going to a sushi restaurant because none of the husbands are too fond of sushi.  We each ordered two rolls and then we shared them all.  I think we each had our favorites, but they were all delicious! And, it was great to get away.

That night, we met Zach's family in York for Derek and Dustin's 25th birthday celebration.  It was great to see everyone, but Monroe wasn't herself.  She wouldn't eat anything, and she was grumpy.  When we were getting ready to leave, we noticed that Monroe felt hot.  She had her first fever.  It ended up lasting through Tuesday afternoon.
It wasn't a great way to end the weekend, but we had a fun time with both sides of our family.