Tess & Elm

Meet my friends, the Kennard’s! I met them last May and when we started house-hunting. So yes… it took us a year. But we were looking for something very specific… and they found it. In Osawatomie! They get a little town life, while having land and a pond in their backyard!

I love finding a connection with my clients. With the Henes’, Luke was a K-Stater. With the Hamed’s, they had a connection to my former Wichita State boss. And now with the Kennard’s, I found out that Kamern was a former Pittsburg-Colgan Panther, a hated team by anyone from my hometown - and played a game in Sedan (probably against my brother) at one point. Somehow these connections make everyone feel like an old friend. And I think that’s the best part of this gig.

So major congrats to my friends and their growing family! I’m thrilled for you! ❤️

As I said to everyone I hugged this weekend…

“This has been wonderful… and awful… and I love you, let’s do it again… but not like this.”

It doesn’t make sense, the joy we all have being together despite the true reason for being there. My aunt Sherron passed away at the end of March and we celebrated her life the best way we could this weekend, and the way she would have wanted it - in her home, FULL of people, full of laughter, full of food and drinks. At every turn, there was a memory, a certain smell that only could be from uncle Steve and aunt Sherron’s, and a reminder that she wasn’t there.

But she was. I know she was.

As my mom said in her eulogy, quoted from a family favorite (Winnie the Pooh), “How lucky I am to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard.”

We are the luckiest.

The good luck charm!

Snagged my Tess from school for a few hours to watch Tess (Heal) and the come from behind to beat Tech in the second round of the tournament!

An exciting game and always a fun (and quick) yearly event for me!

Go Cats! 💜

Reece’s last basketball game… and in rolled the whole fam!

Pretty lucky.

game

Let dance competition season commence!

Showcase is a pre-comp to prep for the upcoming season and fun to actually see what the girls been working on all year! Sloane and Tess both were fantastic as were all of the girls - time to get this show on the road!

*Kudos to the dance teachers. Just … thank you!
**Double kudos to the parents that do the rest. You know who you are. 🤗

And just like that… our baby girl is 10.

Tess is what we didn’t know we needed until we had her… keeps us on our toes… still requires me to give her a play-by-play of her calendar every night before bed… can spit out random sports knowledge (my girl!)… loves a good Netflix binge (Stranger Things, Bella and the Bulldogs)… desperately wants to be her sister while saying she doesn’t… can roll her eyes so far back in her head, I worry they won’t come back down… loves her friends… wishes her dog loved her more… has a stash of skincare she never uses but has to have… can talk your ear off if you’re not careful 😂… gives the best hugs… and when no one is watching, let’s me hold her like she was 2.

I love her! She makes me tired, but our world would not be the same without her!

Happy birthday, Tess! 🎈

Sloane’s first WPA dance at East (not to be confused with the WAP dance that I mistakenly called it… 😬)!

More than halfway through freshman year… it’s flying by and I don’t love it. 😞 But love her. And Walker is great, too! 😉

25 and a half years ago, these two young kids had no idea what lie ahead of them. Six months later, they started dating…

And now here we are! Matt said we’ve been together longer than we’ve been apart. ❤️ Time, man…

(Sure wish I had this photo in a digital copy. It would tear in two if I pulled it from this frame! 😂)

#2001

The best way to start a new year is with lots of laughter!

Spent 24 hours with these ladies in the place we all met and as always, it was good for the soul!

Grateful for what brought us together 20+ years ago (while missing a few) and that we still find a way to be together, despite the craziness that is all of our lives.

Thank you, friends!

The Nutcracker with my girls!