Catching up

(I just published this post and realized it's very long and has a LOT of pictures...enjoy!!)

It has been busy at the Hotel Brockman. I'm nearly 2 weeks behind on the blog so I'll try to catch up.

Two weeks ago, the hotel got a small face lift (in preparation to add some major curb appeal for the big sell next year). My dad came over to paint the front of the house and take it from drab to fab! Here is what it used to look like (Please disregard the snow. This was the picture of the house the day we brought home Kenley)

and here is the house now (minus the shutters which Clay wants to replace).

We went with a very nice yellow called "Gilded Shores." It is clean and bright. We are very pleased with how it turned out and if I get the flower bed spruced up and some other small landscaping things done, it should have wonderful curb appeal.
Here are a few pictures during the face lift to show a contrast in the old and new colors and to show how hard my dad worked. I felt horrible as the weather was HOT HOT HOT for painting but he came early in the morning and left around lunch.

Then two weekends ago, we had a wedding for Clay's cousin. We dressed Kenley in what I call her "Sex and the City" outfit and I tried to match our outfits too (Yes, I'm that kind of mom). I thought we all looked cute.

Kenley did very well at the wedding and reception. She met a lot of people and had fun playing with her cousin Sophia at Grandma and Grandpa's table. Here she is meeting her Great Aunt Micki from AZ.

Sunday that weekend found us back at Grandma and Grandpa B's campground for some family time and some pool time! This girl LOVES LOVES LOVES the water!!!

She also likes the Cozy Crab float. She just kicks her legs and floats about. We also put some water in the splashy part and she just goes crazy splashing and eating the water. After a busy Sunday, we headed home. However our car had more than us 3 Brockmans. We brought home the Lokkers (Aunt Val, Uncle Scott, and Sophia) for the week.
My SIL and BIL stayed with us this past week. They also volunteered to watch Kenley all week so she didn't go to the sitter. This allowed Kenley to spend more time with A. Val, U. Scott, and her little cousin Sophia. It was so fun to see the girls together. They had so much fun playing all week. Here are a few pictures to show all the fun they had together...

They also had some special storytimes together...

and enjoyed meal times together...

It was definitely fun with two little ones around!!! We had lots of fun family time over the week. Clay and I took Wed, Thurs, and Friday off to visit. On Thursday, Grandma and Grandpa B also came up for some big family photos and some fun filled GRANDDAUGHTER TIME.
Here are some of the family pics we had done..

We also had a nice lunch out at FlatTop and some play time at home..

Then Friday was my MIL's big BIRTHDAY, so we all packed up in the car and headed to Springfield to celebrate. We started with a trip to her office, then lunch at Steak and Shake, and finally some good times at the campground (oh and yes of course, more time in the pool).

After another busy day, we headed home tired but very happy. However we were also a little sad as this was our last night with A Val, U Scott, and Sophie. They headed north to WI on Saturday morning to spend the week with his family. We were so glad they came for a visit and we had so much fun!! We definitely can't wait to see them again in Nov for Thanksgiving!! It is truly amazing to watch the girls interact. I can't imagine how it will be in Nov when Sophia is 1 and Kenley is almost 1.
Saturday day returned to normal at the Hotel Brockman as we did laundry, cleaning and shopping. However, we had another milestone for our big trip to the grocery store. Since we moved Kenley to a big girl car seat in the Traverse (due to her LONG length), she gets to be a big girl when we go shopping too. She got to sit in the cart for the first time and LOVED it.

Now today (Sunday) we are finishing up some other things and preparing for another fun filled week and more company. My Aunt Rachel is coming to stay with us and watch Kenley as the babysitter took the week off and I still need to work. I'm sure I will have some posts of her time with Kenley coming this week, so as always, stay tuned!