Totally Tube-u-lar

Chase experienced his first tube ride while on one of our many trips to the lake house in Granbury, TX this year. I was kind of nervous and excited all at the same time when I was putting him on the tube. While we expected him to squeal in excitement like he normally does he just laid there and stared. He wasn't scared or excited, he just laid there looking at the lake and wondering what the heck was going on. He only rode for a few minutes because I was worried about his neck and back. The life jacket had him positioned awkwardly and with the few little bumps we went on I was worried he might get hurt. He loves the water and the boat but needless to say was not all that thrilled with the tube. Hopefully next year he will have more fun and maybe we can get him on a pair of skis!

Tis the Season

Tis the season to celebrate mine and Jonathan's birthdays and anniversary. This year I turned 27, Jonathan turned 29, and we celebrated 7 years of marital bliss! It is soooo crazy to me to think we are that old and that we have been married for that long.

My birthday was kind of a bummer except for the fact that Jonathan surprised me with a new video camera. Presents aren't something he usually does and I loved that he put in the effort. I have been complaining that I hated our huge camera we have and that I would love to take more family videos but that I hated dragging that big thing around with me. Jonathan picked up on my complaining (or should we say subtle hints) and made my day with my new camera...well, almost. I ended up returning the one he got for one that I liked better but it was the thought that counts. I hopefully didn't discourage him from picking out more presents for me in the future. (Like maybe some new diamond earrings, just another subtle hint!)

Chase and I surprised Jonathan at work and brought him a balloon with some warheads, a whoopie cushion, and finger football all attached. They were all gifts I thought he could have some fun with at work and to my understanding they have already been put to good use. His real gift was a laptop that he bought early.

For our anniversary we went with his parents to see the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. (see post in blog) We also ate at the same restaurant for all three occasions. It's is our ultimate favorite here in Kansas City because it reminds us of Texas. It's called Wil Jenny's. The entire restaurant is decked out in TX pictures. It is fun to look at the walls and see how many places we recognize. All in all we had a great time celebrating these momentous occasions.

Us at Wil Jenny's (waitress=bad photographer)

Chase getting a taste of his first lemon

No sour face, just a big grin

Crandell Family Pictures

It has been several years since my entire family has all been home at the same time and this summer it finally happened. 12 Adults and 15 Children all in tow made for a fun yet interesting photo session. Of course it had to rain on our parade! After hours of prep getting everyone ready and all in the same place to take outdoor pictures we had a lovely summer storm. So off to a tiny screen room (it had the best lighting) we all went to begin the whole process. After gathering in as many groups as we could think of and taking more pictures than you would ever need we decided to try out a new spot. Yep, now onto the family room couch armed with a power light to torture our poor children some more. Once we took another million pictures the storm had let up and someone had the wise idea to head outside to the front yard to add to this wonderful photo session! And as the sun settled so did our family photo session. Let's just say it's a good thing we won't be doing this again for at least another 4 years!!! Anyway, here's how they turned out...

The whole Crandell Clan

Crazy face clan

Howlett Family

Schaub Family

Strom Family

Watson Family

Hoyt Family

All 15 Crazy Grandkids

Grandkids

First word....of course

I have been meaning to update everyone on Chase's first word! He has been saying it for about a month now and I love hearing him say it all the time. What is it you ask? Mom of course! That's right he knows who his favorite is and wants everyone else to know it as well. I find it interesting that he says mom mom mom rather than mama but I will take it either way. He obviously feels to grown up and sophisticated to just say mama.
He has also been doing an army crawl for about the same amount of time. He started by pushing himself backwards and then slowly learned how to pull forward. He is now army crawling around the entire house and always finds the smallest things the vacuum missed. I guess I just have to stay up on the cleaning and vacuum more frequently. The army crawl is a little annoying to me because he can get up on all fours and rock back and forth but whenever he wants to be on the move he lays on his tummy and uses his elbows to pull himself forward. He is a daredevil already and continually crawls and teeters on the edge of things. If he's on the bed he crawls to the end and looks down below and does the same thing on the stairs too! It's a bit frightening for mom and dad but not for our little Chase man. As much fun as we are having watching him grow there are days when I long for my tiny baby too. I guess that means we might be ready for baby #2!

Kiddie Parade

Another long time running tradition in the Crandell family is the annual Kiddie Parade held during Oregon Trail Days. Every year growing up my sisters and neighborhood friends would come up with a lavish theme and make costumes for the kiddie parade. I was anything from one of the three little pigs to a Chinese princess. In keeping with tradition we have always added our own children to the parade as well. This year was Chase's first annual kiddie parade. He was an army guy with his boy cousins and the girl cousins were flowers. I am not sure he really understood or enjoyed this tradition but hopefully he will grow to love it! The kids even made the front page of the Star Herald which is the local newspaper. I hope to plan ahead next year and have a cute theme in which all of his cousins can participate. So be sure and keep posted for next years unveiling. By the way if anyone has any cute ideas please feel free to share.

Riverside Zoo

As a little girl I remember going to the Riverside Zoo and seeing the white tigers, feeding grape dum dums to the spider monkeys, and nearly falling into the pond with all of the scary sucker fish! Maybe not the fondest childhood memories but memories none the less. While visiting family this summer back home I decided Chase needed to make his own memories of the local zoo as well. Little did I know that my hometown zoo is not the greatest compared to the Omaha zoo which Chase has already visited. While not impressed by the animal exhibits he was thrilled with the recently added splash pad. Even the freezing cold water couldn't keep my little man away. He would sit and play until the water would stop for a minute or two when I would rush him to a waiting Grandma Ree and a nice warm towel to wrap him up in. However, as soon as he saw the water spurting again he would kick his legs and nearly throw himself off her lap. It was a fun time had by Chase and all of his cousins. Let's just say that Chase's memories of the Riverside Zoo will be completely different than my own.

Firework Frenzy

The 4th of July is a holiday not forgotten with the Crandell Clan. Every year our family gets together to celebrate the fourth in good old Gering, NE. What could be better than several adults and even more children running around playing with fire and explosives?!?!?!? It is also a time of year that Jonathan loves just as much as Christmas. We started this year off by traveling the few miles it takes to get into Missouri to buy the "good fireworks" as Jonathan would put it. We spent the evening as a family buying, lighting, and watching Jonny light up the night. I was worried that Chase would be scared but after a few loud bangs he was totally used to it and got excited watching the explosions of color. He even tried helping get things organized but Jonathan didn't like his little helper because he was afraid that his precious fireworks might get ruined. Chase's favorite were the little cheap ones that have the effect of a strobe light. I think it was because they were super bright without all the noise. Once in Nebraska we had to buy even more fireworks! We were able to make it in time for my cousin Justin's firework show he does annually on the third of July. Not only is it his favorite holiday but also his birthday. He put on an awesome show that was an hour long and was better than most professional shows. Chase just laid back and watched the whole thing. He would kick his legs in excitement and even let out a little giggle here and there.

On the fourth we got together at Jama's with all the Crandell's and the Allred's for a BBQ. It was great seeing everyone together again and we even took a typical Crandell Family Reunion picture. We made it through the evening with only a few minor burns but tons of fun and memories to hold on to. All in all this firework frenzy was one never to be forgotten!