Summer Fun - Still Catching Up

Finding something fun to do this summer 

when Grant was still in a cast

took a little effort.

We spent one day at the train museum

which also has an awesome play zone with mazes.

Emily and I enjoyed a two day orientation

at UK in June.

 These two students were some of her first college friends.
Of course, they've drifted apart
as they've made other friends this semester.


I saw this view a lot this summer.
That's Emily up front.

And this is what happened to Emily's car this summer.

Thankfully no one was hurt.

It happened in a parking lot 

when a guy backed into her car.

Being without a car for several weeks 

while the Explorer was being repaired

meant John and Emily once again

had to share a car or resort to walking.

They survived.

And the car was returned looking as good as new.

Fun at the pool

Celebrating the removal of his cast

with a first jump into the water in July.

We snuck in a couple trips

when everyone was able to swim together.

I'm sure this won't happen very often in years to come.

And fun at a friend's pool

Water parks make for an exciting day with friends

Loaded up with fireworksand headed to a party at the farm

for Fourth of July.

The city kids weren't very impressed with our fireworks,

but they LOVED the goat that was born early on the morning of the party.

She was only a few hours old when this picture was taken.

I named her Betsy Ross.

And John entertained our friends 

with the snake he found in the woods.

Some headed for the house

the instant they heard John caught a snake.

But others wanted a closer look.

Father's Day gift from us to David...

Okay.  Sorry for the lack of posts.  I think my computer is fixed.  Again.

Hopefully I can work on catching up again!

When The Computer Works

When the computer is in the mood to work, 

I can load pictures to the blog!

Grant's class took a field trip to the bowling alley.

This was in May at the end of fourth grade.

These guys are best buddies.

They are such a sweet, nerdy bunch.

You cannot help but laugh at their conversations.

They even chose to dress alike for the field trip.

Who needs a pillow when there's a dog close by?

Kids making a water slide

This was at a Fourth of July party

Grant's handiwork

Although he made an awesome flag from M & M's,

it made the thought of eating them less than desirable.

I mean, he's not the most diligent hand washer.

And he did touch every single piece in the dish.

I hope your Thanksgiving was good.

Thank you to everyone that helped make 

the Simms Family Thanksgiving happen this year!

First Buck

Grant shot his first buck last Saturday.

I think he will have to wait a lot of years

to shoot another one like this!

He was excited to say the least.

Computer not working well.

Phone not working well.

(of course)

The lack of posts is due to technical difficulties.

Hopefully, they will all be fixed soon.

The Good And The Bad

John and Emily's high school graduation

brought awards in the form of

certificates, medals, tassels and plaques.

They received awards as pictures, cups, pens and even money!

But who ever heard of a graduation award

given in the form of M & M's?!

Not sure what that prize was for,

but John sure enough got a bag at graduation...

and it was the BIG bag too!

I think their favorite keepsake from graduation

was the one their parents gave to them.

Neither of them knew what their gift would be.

John received a nice watch, and Emily got diamond earrings.

I hope they can look at their gift for many years to come

and remember what a significant milestone this was in their lives.

It might not have held the sentimental significance as their gifts,

but their graduation cake was a very tasty way

to celebrate their achievements too.

This picture makes it seem as if these two actually like each other.

Hahahaha!!!!

The best part of the celebration was being able to share it with family.

It was fun having so many here to share the big day.

After so much fun and celebration,

it was quite a sudden turn of events

when Grant stole the show that afternoon.

He was so excited because graduation day also happened to be

opening day at the pool.

After lunch, he rode his bicycle to the pool to see if his friends were there.

But he never actually made it to the pool.

Instead, a neighbor found him lying on the sidewalk after his bicycle broke.

And, sadly, his bicycle was not the only thing broken.

So was his thumb.

Grant spent the first half of summer with his hand in a cast

and unable to get in the pool.

He survived though.

 We spent a lot of time at the zoo

and at the amusement park riding roller coasters.

He said his thumb felt better when we ate at Steak N Shake.

He also mentioned that cupcakes made his thumb feel better,

so we ate cupcakes too.

But after six weeks or so of exploring museums

and other non-water places....

it was once again time to head off to the pool.

Only this time we rode in the car...

so as not to break another bone getting there!

Grant - The Unvarnished Truth of the Real Boy

Somewhere in the chaos of caring for the zoo

Grant has grown into quite the grown up young man.

He has so many funny and quirky things about him.

His second favorite thing to do is mow the lawn.

His most favorite thing to do is collect money
for mowing the lawn.

If allowed, he would mow the lawn every day.





He loves to hunt deer with his dad.
More about that another day.

 Grant is the kid that lays his clothes, including socks,

on the floor in anatomically proper position.

Who does that?!

He's the one who now keeps his room as messy as all the other kids

even though he used to love a clean room as much as his mom does.

 😭

Grant is the builder of all things LEGO

Reportedly this is me driving my car.

I think I look slightly crazy here.

He's a basketball hating

soccer loving

goalie playing kid.

 "Good game. Good game.  Good game."

I love when they do this at the end of the game.

He's such an easy going independent kid.

He loves to tell jokes.

And he loves bathroom humor

way more than I think he should. (sigh)

He loves to read....BIG books...

like Harry Potter sized books.

Even though two short years ago he was barely reading anything.

And now he's working on his last year at Bowen Elementary.

Our time at Bowen has definitely reached burnout level.

For Grant.  And for me.

I don't help much with PTA volunteer work this year.

I barely make an appearance at the school.

A definite sign of parental burnout

would be the fact I forgot picture day.

This is what wore on picture day.

Yup. I'm that parent.

Grant was obviously elated with this situation.

It spared him wearing nice clothes to school.

Grant also seems burned out with elementary school.

And why wouldn't he?

He's been dragged there continuously

since he was only a few weeks old.

Grant chose not to participate in band this year

since it meets during recess.

He didn't want to miss his last year of recess time.

And we were fine with that choice.

He's not doing BETA club like his older siblings did.

He's not participating on Safety Patrol either.

Nor did he participate in the Reflections program.
Or the Canned Food Drive.

The one thing he is doing?

Quick Recall

He loves it.

They've not had a match yet this year.

They recently held try-outs and 

now are beginning to practice.

So being the fourth and last child

seems to have some definite ups and downs.

But overall, I think Grant has a pretty easy life

at the zoo.

And I think he's a pretty amazing kid.

Even if he does love his bathroom humor a bit too much.