Memorial Day Parade

We were invited to participate in a neighborhood Memorial Day Parade with some good friends.  It was so small town Americana and we loved it!  The kids got to actually ride around on pavement... one of the things we lack living in the country.  After the parade we enjoyed drinks and popscicles.  It was a great way to celebrate the day!

A sad ending...

My previous post showed 7 little ducks and their first few hours on earth.  Seeing those 7 little ducks waddle down to the water behind their mother is just about as good as it gets.  But there is another side to the story... mother nature can be a beast.  One week later, there are no baby ducks.  Wes and Grandpa Otto saw one disppear right before their very own eyes when they were down sitting on the pier at the tank and a bass literally swallowed one of the baby ducks whole right off the top of the water.  I was in pure disbelief when they told us, but they both are sticking to that story. We don't know the exact fate of the other 6 ducks, but we do know they are no longer with us :(  

Mama duck did it all on her own...

We've had ducks on our property for as long as I can remember.  When Wes and I first started dating we'd come over to "the tank" to water trees and feed the fish and ducks. There's something about ducks that I've always liked... it's probably the fact that they are so low maintenance, but I admit there is something peaceful about the way they glide across the water all day long without a care in the world.
With the ducks, we get duck eggs.  Mama duck usually waddles up to our house and finds a place in the flower beds to make a nest and lay for a  few weeks.  The eggs usually don't make it.  Between snakes, racoons, and other country critters, something usually gets the eggs when mama duck gets off the nest and she then waddles back down to the tank to get on with her life.  On a few occasions, Wes has taken a few of the eggs out of a nest and put them in an incubator to hatch out.  Up until Easter, we were down to two white ducks and a mallard that called our tank their home.  We had about 8 ducks hatch out from eggs that Wes incubated from the mama duck that was laying eggs by our front driveway.  They were born right around Easter and Wes put them in the large quail pen until they were able to make it out on their own.
Well wouldn't you know, mama duck started another nest, this time in the back flowerbed by the back door.  She was well hidden and obviously very diligent as this is what Wes found when he got home from Port O'Conner on Tuesday.

 Mama Duck hatched out 7 baby ducks!

 Way to go mama duck!

 Waddling down to the tank, aka home.

 Their first swim.  They were naturals!

They are so cute!  The whole process is just amazing.  

A trip to the coast

We decided to keep the kids out of St. Paul's this week.... gives them a bit of a break before they start back for the summer.  Wes was ready to take a trip to Port O'Conner, so he decided he'd take the kids Sun - Tues.  My vacation days are very limited so I wasn't able to make the trip, but Mimi and Popo went along and by all indications, everyone had a grand time.  

 Not exactly sure what this was all about, but it was a pretty awesome sand castle none the less.

 Boat fishing.  The big news reports I got were that Avery fought a big sting ray for about 30 minutes before it broke the line.  Caleb caught 2 crabs!

 Wes had a little help when seining for bait.

 The lighting is not the best on this, but they were obviously in silly moods.  They loved feeding the fish leftovers to the pelicans.  Wes said they were asking all the people cleaning the fish at the bait dock if they could have the "guts" to feed to the pelicans.

 Filling in his mama on the days events.

 Wonder if she had the Old Maid?  Not sure, but she sure does look a bit scary.

 The fisherman... this guys has it down.  He'll be shadowing his daddy in no time.

Ahhh.... retired life.  Popo and Mimi were able to make the trip down to POC and provide a little back up in supervision.

Matagorda Fishing

With Thursday being the last day of school and a smooth water forecast in Matagorda for Friday, Wes and grandpa Otto planned a day trip to Matagorda and were game to take A&A&C along.  Wes's day trips to Matagorda require an early rise time so when the alarm went off at 3:00am, we loaded up kids in his truck for the trip and then I headed back to bed.
It was a successful day as you can see above!  They fished off the shore and the kids got to be beach bums for the day.  One of the best parts was the fresh fish for supper paired with fresh veggies from the garden.  Good stuff!

Kindergarten Graduation

A&A had a memorable Kindergarten graduation, one they will forever have to remember as their inaugural year in the educational system.  What a blessed year it has been!

 Ahh... the cake!

 The graduation ceremony kicked off with a short presetation by the kids where they repeated short lines that recapped their school year.  The bands on their head represent a certain gem that was put on the castle in the back ground.

The kids came out in their royal mantles that they were surprised with at the beginning of the year.  After the presentation, they headed for a wardrobe change and the parents were entertained with a slide show of the past year as well as a slide of each child that showed a baby picture and their graduation picture.

 Austin James Maurer... 2012 St. Paul's Kindergarten Graduate

 As the teachers presented the kids with their diploma, they were each described with a characteristic that the teachers said the child had taught them throughout the year.  Austin's word was "gentleness"... so fitting!

 Avery Grace Maurer.... 2012 St. Paul's Kindergarten Graduate

 Avery's word... "nurturing".  She's a little mama at school too!

 After the diplomas, we were entertained by our Kinder graduates with song and dance. 

 Toppe, Gpa, Candice, Steve, Jack and the graduates

 A major highlight of the night was an appearance by Baby Jack.  A&A&C were so excited to have him share this special day with them!

 Doug, Dorothy and Kelcie joined in on the Kindergarten action.  It was so great to have them there!

 Mimi, Popo, A&A&C!  So blessed to have so much family support!

 A&A, our grads.  Each child received a cap and gown, graduation medal, and special chalis.

 In cap and gown.

Maurer Party of 5!

Huskers Tball

Austin finished his first step toward the big leagues...  a season of tball.  It has been quite an entertaining season and one where we've seen some impressive improvement from game 1 to game 12.

 Austin was a very serious batter.  He was much more relaxed in the backyard at home but seemed to tense up a bit and gave a lot of thought before he swung the bat during a game. 

 Showing off his speed!

 Ready to run.

 It always helps to have your dad giving you some support on the field.

 Our Husker, # 10.

 I didn't catch a picture of his most graceful slide.  Sliding became a game highlight for the boys.  They loved challenging their mamas to get white pants clean after each game.

 Austin & Brady Rau enjoying pizza after the last game.

 Austin, Barrett Kohring & Brady Rau - coaches kids

 Trophy time!

 2012 Tball Huskers!

Picture of champions!

Our little Husker had a great season.  He was in his prime at 2nd base.  He had several outs from fielding the ball and touching second base for the force out.  He had 4 outs alone in the last game.  We're proud of him!