summer fun!

Wow, June just flew by! Andre is knee deep in Bar prep, so Rhett and I are squeezing in all the summer fun and saying our goodbyes to Boulder. Some favorites:

 A trip to the goat farm! Rhett was a little scared at first, but he eventually warmed up and thought it was hilarious when they jumped on things. Downside: we smelled like goats for the rest of the day. 

Rhett found it disconcerting that the goats loved to eat my skirt, but I was loving it

 From the goat farm we were off to community day at the fire station, which was serious business for Rhett.

 We love our neighborhood water day! Slip n slide all day every day!

 We stood in line for an hour to get five free pizzas when Lebron's new pizza shop opened. Definitely worth it. 

 At least three times a day, Rhett snuggles with his stuffed animals and calls me into the room to say "awww". This day was so cute I took a picture and Rhett had to make sure Owl was looking at the camera and smiling. 

 Climbing boulders in Boulder 

 The Pearl Street train is our favorite! Rhett hammed it up and waved to all the tourist and homeless people we passed.

 Soaking in our last days of having this gorgeous creek in our backyard. 

 Open house at the local airport! Future pilot in the making. 

 An evening picnic at our favorite park--Rhett looks at this picture and belly laughs because he thinks he is so funny. 

 Missionary Nana and Poppy came to visit on their way to the mission field! We took them to the bike park where Rhett showed his strider skillz. 

Ice cream cones with Nana!

 Rhett surprised us with his bravery at a family BBQ when he let Bob take him for a ride on the ATV. He even asked to ride again. Our timid boy is growing up!

Our best garage sale find (probably ever)? $5 for an entire box of wood train tracks and trains. Rhett (and Andre) are in heaven. 

bolder boulder

This was the year I proved I'm a true Kaiser and that I really live in Boulder. Andre runs the Bolder Boulder 10K every year, and since it is literally in our backyard, I figured it was my year, too. Nagging shin splits hurt my training, and my run definitely wasn't pretty, but I did it! From the Doritos, cotton candy, and jello shots on the side of the course to the bands, belly dancers, and slip n slides, it was a good time. Now I can wear my BB shirt with pride!

If you're ever in Colorado on Memorial Day, come run with us!

The speedsters as they left for the starting line. 

Feeling pretty great after finishing in Folsom Field with 50,000 of my best friends.

Random, but this is how Rhett played one morning. This is his "super pose", apparently

law school graduation!

We've had May 7, 2016 circled on our calendar for three years. Graduation day! André wouldn't let me make a paper chain, but the excitement was definitely there. The entire weekend was a blur, and it still feels a little surreal that he's really done with school (especially because he's still in the law library every day studying for the Bar). But he did it! André Kaiser, J.D.!

The weather forecast was a little dicey for graduation day, so we snapped some pictures around the law school a few days before. I'm so glad we did! We came out of the ceremony to a huge thunderstorm and torrential downpour, so everyone hid undercover while we waited for busses to take us across campus. It was a little chaotic, so pictures didn't really happen. And the few group pictures we took are lost in the shuffle, but we are still soooo grateful for everyone who came.

On actual graduation day, we managed a few pictures before the ceremony. Rhett was so excited for Daddy to graduate!

I regretted holding Rhett like this as soon as I picked him up, but hey, awkward family pictures happen.

Our traditional graduation jumping picture. It's now on hiatus until Rhett graduates. 

Just a junior weatherman hanging out  from the rain with Nana and Poppy 

We had a fun family BBQ (inside, rain) that night. We loved being around so much family and are so grateful for the Treasures and all the Kaisers making the trip to be there. 

I seriously can't believe we survived law school. I don't think I would recommend starting with a one month-old baby, but we made it! It was hard, it was grueling, it was rewarding (especially for André, but for the whole family too). I'm so proud of André and all the long days and nights he put into class, extracurriculars, internships, etc., while still being a great husband and dad.

cruising!

Our deal for law school has always been that we'd treat ourselves to a kid-less trip after Andre graduated. Well, the day finally came, folks, and it was magical! I don't think we're converted to becoming official "cruisers", but it sure was a fun and relaxing vacation! You want copious amounts of pictures? Sure, if you insist!

Walking onto the ship! I had crazy eyes of excitement for the first day.

This is right after we got onboard, but we recreated this scene every single day. Guy's Burger Bar was by far the best food on board (trust us, we tried.)

 Cruise food is no joke, but it's often quantity over quality. They kept bringing us extra food one night (an entire entree and two sides because our waiter said we "just had to try it") until there wasn't room left on the table. 

 Our first stop was Catalina. It was a little cloudy, but we loved checking out the cute little town. Golf carts everywhere! That's our ship in the background.

 Buffaloes everywhere! Andre was in good company. Apparently buffaloes run wild on other parts of the island, but we settled for the fake versions in town.

Our biggest vacation success was mastering the art of the selfie

 Palm trees! Beaches! Sand!

 This is what happens when it's your birthday on a cruise. At least Andre didn't have to wear a ridiculous hat while everyone sang to him.

 Andre also got roped (aka I volunteered him) to be a VIP in a big show. It basically meant we got to sit in the front row and he did the YMCA and a dance solo and it was amazing.

 Our second stop was Ensenada, Mexico. This is our new retirement plan. The beaches are gold!

Riding horses on the beach. Definitely our favorite part of vacation.

 We also loved La Buffadora, which is considered the most beautiful of the four blow holes in the world.

And because you can't go to Mexico and not eat tacos--they were as delicious as expected.

We spent an extra day in LA after our cruise and spotted a baby whale and its mom on our walk one night.

Definitely a trip for the books!

little moments: april

also known as "Rhett-isms". Having a toddler is a daily exercise in randomness and the unexpected.

Boulder boy excited after a hike

Biking boy!

He was motivated by a granola bar for the last few hundred meters, but he made it!

Rhett posing in front of our "General Conference Word Wall" He put a sticker on the card each time he heard the word and loved it!

 "I look like Nick!" (from Zootopia) when putting on a new church shirt. True, he really did.

Cookie Face with toddlers=serious entertainment

Just a bucket head kid

Fishing is serious business.

"Look Mom! I'm making a suspension bridge!" I should tell him to stop playing with his food, but what two-year-old talks about suspension bridges?

A perfectly sized ice cream cone.

Ice cream party to celebrate Andre's last day of classes.

Snow in late April + work deadlines + cranky boy = mid-day hot chocolate. of course.