The Little Red Hen

Hey kids,
Daddy here. Yesterday was the 2nd grader performance of The Little Red Hen and this year Izzy got the titular role! I went to school to see the play at 2 and met Tia, Great Grandma Dorthy and Mom there and we got seats in the front row. I gotta tell you guys that after 10 years of watching you in plays and different performances, I never get tired of it. Izzy, you were awesome as the Little Red Hen. You did your lines really well and sang nice and loud. I'm so proud of you for getting up there and doing these plays and things in front of people. It takes so much courage to do that and you guys always do so good at it. I love you guys,

Daddy

Weekend Recap

Hey kids,
Daddy here. This weekend started off pretty awesome. Cory and I took is Iz and Mackenzie to the family dance on Friday. There were tons of kids there jumping around dancing and just having a great old time. Cory and I chatted, had a beer had some laughs and eventually even took the kids to ice cream before we headed home. The next morning, Jake, Alex and I got up early to go see the 9 a.m. show of Captain America Civil War. I personally think it was one of the best Marvel movies yet and another outstanding Marvel theater-going experience for Daddy and the boys. What about Black Panther though?! Spider-Man?! So many good parts to list, I can't wait to buy that and watch it again. After the movie, the boys and I headed home and grabbed some pizza before I had to head out to a remote at the Beadman. While I was doing that and the boys were at home, Mom and Iz he had tea and lunch with the ladies of our family for an early Mother's Day celebration. When we finally all got back together it was about time for dinner. Mom and me were both in the mood for Chinese food so we headed over to the mall and got some Chinese food, came home and watch Star Wars. I love our family. That's a good day right there. Sunday was Mother's Day and I was reading at 9 so we met Grammie and Papa at church for the Mother's Day Mass. It was also the last Knights of Columbus breakfast before they go on hiatus for the summer. So after Mass we headed over for breakfast. We had a nice visit with Grammy and Papa and Uncle Jay even showed up to have breakfast with us. After breakfast we headed home and Mom and I went out with Natasha, a real estate agent to look for new houses but didn't find any we needed. The search continues. By the time we're done looking at houses it was about time to eat again so we took Mom to Puerto Vallarta Mexican restaurant for dinner. I love that place and I'm glad mom does too. When we got home, we gave Mom her Mother's Day gifts Alex and Jake got her a nice cross is he got Mom a nice coffee mug with a Bible passage on it and I gave her a lighthouse with a Bible passage on it. I hope you guys realize one day I truly special and wonderful mom is. We are so blessed and lucky to have her in our lives. She does so much for this family and each of us individually. She truly is a treasure. Much of a mother's work goes unnoticed so I hope when you guys get older you'll realize just how much hard work and dedication it takes to be a mom and appreciate yours that much more. She's pretty great. I love you guys, Daddy

First Holy Communion

Hey kids,
Daddy here. It's been said that the sacraments are the way that God communicates with us on a daily basis. There are only seven sacraments and most of us only get to take part in six of them. So, being able to share in someone else going through a Sacrament is a special treat for us. Sunday was the culmination of all is he studying and practicing has she got her first Eucharist. A few weeks ago, she went through her first reconciliation. I'm always curious what a 7 year old says during their first confession. I remember I asked Jake when he went through it and he said, "Do I have to tell you?" And I said, "No it's between you and God." Before we went to church, mom and I had a special gift for Iz.

We got the first pew because if he and I were doing the first reading. We did awesome. The Region's sat right behind us as Mackenzie and Mrs. Reagan we're doing the second reading. They also did awesome. When it came time for communion the first communion kids got to go first and Izzy was the first in line. She was very nervous, but we had practiced many times at home and she did it perfectly. I'm so proud of you Isabella for making the journey to accept the Body, Soul, blood, and Divinity of our Lord Jesus Christ. Every Mass we attend is a remembrance of the first Eucharist. We are joined with Him in that moment and we are so very blessed to have a merciful Savior. Seeing you take your first communion filled me with pride not only is your daddy but as a member of our faith community. May you always walk in His light. Also, you did a great job with the line and didn't make a bad face. After church, it was time for pictures.

After pictures, there was a reception over at the school. We hung out for a few minutes, just long enough to get a few more pictures.

Then, it was up to Grammy and Papa's house for the big party! We had a great time visiting with all of our friends and you guys splashed and swam and ran around and had a great time. Papa grilled burgers and hot-dogs and mom made her famous twice-baked potato salad. With our bellies full, we headed home and prepared for Monday. Another great weekend and another wonderful memory for the MansClan. I love you guys,

Daddy

Annie

Hey kids,

Daddy here. This year, the school play was Annie Jr. It's the first time Mom and I have seen a St. Joseph School play that didn't feature Alex. However, Jake stepped up big-time and filled the role of Oliver 'Daddy' Warbucks.

Izzy was a little orphan girl and was totally adorable.

So for the last few weeks the house has been filled with songs from the musical and Mom and I have both been singing them Non-Stop. I heard the performances on Wednesday and Thursday both went well and was excited to see it on Friday night. We sat down at our table with Grammy and Papa and great grandma Dorothy period after mr. Softener let us through the auction with a few laughs we got ready for the performance. The Lights Went Down, and the show began. Now, I practiced with Jake many times helping go over lines and get the right inflection and pronunciation down and I have to say Jake, you absolutely killed it! You did such a great job dude and I'm so proud of you. You sold your lines, you sang beautifully and got all the jokes and all the tender moments perfectly spot on.

Izzy was awesome as the little orphan girl and totally cute. I know how much we all enjoyed the play but I have to say on a personal note, I really do love watching you perform Jake. I can't wait to see the play next year and where your immense talent will take you. I love you guys,

Daddy

XVII

Hey kids,
Daddy here. This weekend Mom and I will celebrate our 17th wedding anniversary. That's a pretty amazing feat, if I do say so myself. I hope and pray that someday (in the far distant future) you guys find someone who makes you as happy as your Mom makes me. I remember when I asked her to marry me and hoped she'd say yes, I remember in that moment that I could not wait to spend the rest of my life with her. Marriage is about many things, and it's important to know that it's not going to be all rainbows and magical unicorn days. There are trials and tribulations that come with spending your life with someone. I'm very glad to have found a person I'm willing to go through all the joy and all the heartache with hand in hand forever. I love Mom so much, and I love spending time with her. Tonight we went to dinner at Market Street Steakhouse.

It was awesome, and delicious. After dinner with Mom, I feel again like my cup is full. I'm so very blessed to have her and you guys as my family. I love you guys,

Daddy

Homemade Haircut

Hey kids,
Daddy here. So I mentioned to Jake that he should shave his head for the part of Daddy Warbucks in Annie and he continually said, "No way Dad!" So, I'm getting ready to leave work the other day and Mom had asked me to get a bald cap for Jake for cast pics tomorrow. Beore I could get out the door I get this pic...

With the caption, "So, this happened." Yes, at 12 years old he decided to shave his own head with my clippers. Fear not, I was able to salvage that mess.

Looking good, SteveO. I cant wait to see the pics and the play in a few weeks. I love you guys,

Daddy

Weekend Recap

Hey kids,

Daddy here. This weekend was an elusive 3 day weekend for Daddy. I took Friday off so we could get the house underway before heading out of town.  Papa came by the house and Al, Papa and I headed out with a load of stuff to find a storage unit. We eventually found a place and when signing the papers, we met Stephanie. Stephanie likes to talk, a lot. So much that we have started calling people to talk too much, Stephanie. Weather that person is Mom, Al, Iz, Jake, or me. Stephanie!
After we got our stuff settled in and the house cleaned, we got on the road for the 3 1/2 hour trip to Brentwood.
We passed a few places to get snacks and before you know it, we were in the middle of nowhere and all of us were starving. Mom and Al were the first two to start squawking about the lack of snacks but before long, Jake and Iz got in on the action. Izzy piped up from the back seat with, "Daddy. My tummy is grumbling." When we finally emerged from the nothingness we were almost there, so we got to Grandma's house and when we walked in she said, "Are you hungry. I got fried chicken from Safeway." SCORE! We gobbled down the chicken and had a great visit with her. I tell you guys, you really don't know how much a simple visit can mean to parents and grandparents. I hope you always remember that just being there for them is such a treasure. She was so glad to see us and kept saying how happy she was. It made it all worth it.

After a few hours, we headed to our hotel. It was a nice place with a pool and while Mom, Jake and Iz headed for the pool, Al and I hit CVS for some snacks. We had some snacks by the pool and headed up to our room. We polished off the snacks in our room and tucked ourselves into bed.
Saturday morning, we got all ready and headed to Starbucks for some coffee. We realized after we got our order that they had forgotten Jake's order. There were too many people in line to wait, so we made a plan to come back after. We headed back to Grandma's house and visited a little more and I got some really cool info about our family tree.  Eventually it was getting later in the afternoon so we hugged and kissed and headed out. The plan was to go and check out the Muir woods, but let's just say the parking was a bit crazy, so we headed to the beach instead.

The beach is never a bad choice and we had a great time. Any guesses on who got wetter than they planned to first? If you guessed Jake, you'd be correct, lol. We stayed for a bit and splashed around in the "You people are mean!" water before deciding to begin the trek home. Mom and I decided to stop for dinner first so we wouldn't have grumbling tummies on the way home. We picked Denny's and had a good meal. We jumped back in Moya and headed home. Mom and Izzy passed out in about 15 minutes and the boys and I talked all the way home. Thanks for keeping me awake, fellas. I appreciate it so much.

Sunday, we went to 9am Mass and it was good since it was Divine Mercy Sunday. We headed home, changed our clothes and you guys and I came up to the radio station. Mom had some stuff to do at school, so we went our to do errands. We came up to the radio station to see if there were any more all you can ride wristbands for the Midway as Al was going to meet some friends there. We got the last one! When we left, I let each of you guys drive for a little bit. Don't worry, I worked the pedals when Izzy drove, lol. Al is getting better and better at driving, and Jake is doing pretty good too. We headed over to WinCo for the big shopping trip. I normally hate going to the grocery store, but you guys did such a great job of running around and getting what we needed it went pretty fast. When we got home, I was pretty wiped so I sat down on the couch and fell asleep. Al put the groceries away and when it was time, we headed over to Round Table for Al to meet up with Hunter, Bree, Nancy, and Thomas for some more Midway madness. Jake, Iz and I headed home and met Mom. We went for a walk and when it was time, picked Al up and returned home to wind the weekend down. I fell asleep feeling very thankful and happy that we had another great weekend. I love you guys,

Daddy