June 2021

With things getting back to normal we signed back up for our membership to the YMCA. The kids were excited to go to the outdoor pool to try out the diving board. 

For our 14th anniversary we started out with a drive to Georgetown to try out a local bakery that I have been following on social media for years but have never tried (except a couple of birthday cakes). We got a variety of different treats, but by far the cream horn was one of the best things I have ever eaten. The kids tried macaroons for the first time ever. 

Next we continued the drive up north to play Top Golf. Landon loved it and at one point he even hit 80 straight balls. It takes Brinley a little longer to get into the feeling of swinging the clubs.

We were able to get some pictures made by a friend at the arboretum. I think that they turned out great. It had been quite a while since we had gotten actual family pictures made. 

The kids did such a good job with their pictures too! 

I started this puzzle on Memorial Day and finished it after working on it for a few weeks. I really enjoyed this picture of the soldier returning home. I love living in America and all the freedoms that we have because of all those brave men and women who risked their lives in wars for us. 

I was asked to help make some cookies for a gender reveal for my sister-in-law. They are due with twins later this year. I made these up for a little treat for all the people that could come to the reveal. Jennifer and MiMi went to the reveal where they found out that they are expecting a boy and a girl. 

While Jennifer was at the gender reveal I was with all my co-workers trying to raise money for the Survivor Picnic at our fundraiser at Talon Winery. Last year we were not able to have the fundraiser or Survivor Picnic for all of our patients. We were all so excited to be together again for the Luau for Life fundraiser where we raised over $14,000! We are so excited to be having the picnic again this year.

More baseball games for the kids. The season is starting to wind down and the tournament is beginning to be played. The kids have developed so much this season. I am extremely happy with all the hard work that they have been putting in at home and practice to get better.

In the next to last game of the season we had some people unable to make it to the game because of traffic problems so we had to start the game with only the Heflin kids in the outfield. Usually we play with four outfielders, so this was a considerable disadvantage. We were playing a really good Cubs team that has some good hitters. Not a single player got more than a double with only Brinley and Landon in the outfield and they actually had quite a few hit out to them. I was so proud of the way they played and it actually kept us alive in the tournament because of all their hard work. Coach saw how hard they had worked and gave both of them a game ball. 

The garden started to have some cucumbers come in so that means it is time to start canning some veggies! Thankfully my mother was able to find some lids for me because I hadn't been able to find them for months. 

The kids started summer camp so Jennifer and I dropped them off one day and decided to go play a round of golf. We played the little par 3 course in town and I carried Jennifer's clubs the whole time. I felt like I was her caddie.

More pool time for these two kids. They were both so excited about playing at the outdoor pool. I just wish that the YMCA on our side of town had an outdoor pool instead of a splash pad.

We also spent more time out at SkyZone. Landon rediscovered how to climb the rope bridge and the kids have fallen in love with the game dodgeball. They both are really good at dodging the ball, but both really struggle with throwing it. 

Brinley's first week of summer camp and she was sent home with a yard sign that said she was the camper of the week. Landon earned his the very next week. The kids both really loved going to summer camp. That was a huge relief because we didn't have any other options for the kids to do over the summer with us both having to work. It also helped that they are both quick to make friends.

We actually traveled up to Ohio for my cousin's wedding. I started off the trip by waking up really early and running a 9K in honor of my ninth year being a father. It was a struggle, but I got the steps in before Jennifer and the kids even woke up.

Then we headed to Northwest Ohio for my little cousin's wedding. The kids were supposed to be in her wedding last year, but they had to cancel because of the pandemic. They actually got married last year in a private ceremony and then celebrated their first anniversary with their reception. Landon was ring security and Brinley was the leader of the flower girls. She was in charge of three little girls. They all did a really great job in the ceremony.

At the reception and I got put at the kids table where I belong. Just kidding. We just had the majority of the kids.

The kids all acted great for the wedding. Grandma and Grandpa were excited to have all the grandkids together for the event. 

The ceremony and reception were at a golf course, so of course I brought Landon's golf clubs. Preston quickly became attached to Landon at the hip. He is such a good little boy. We just played around on the putting green and it was a big hit with all the kids. Thankfully no kids got hurt either with all the clubs being swung and balls all over the place.

My forever wedding date.  

We stayed in Columbus for another couple of days before returning home. We very rarely come to Columbus without visiting the zoo. We went all over the zoo and I think we saw almost every animal in the place. The giraffes are always a big hit with the kids because they get to feed them. 

I think Olivia enjoys playing with her cousins more than she enjoys the animals. She is distracted with playing with them instead of watching the animals.

More zoo pictures. We even headed into the aquarium to see the mommy and baby manatee.

More zoo pictures and we even went on the dinosaur boat ride. If you have never been to the Jack Hanna Columbus Zoo then you definitely need to go. It is a really nice zoo.

More of the dinosaur land at the zoo and the carousel which is one of Olivia's favorite things at the zoo. 

I even got a late Father's Day gift of my favorite meal in the world, Giordano's deep dish pizza!

We set up a pool in the backyard for the kids to play in. We also took a look at the vegetables that Olivia planted in her garden. 

They also had a giraffe sprinkler that they put up too. The kids didn't like it as much because they said that it was too cold.  

The kids and I played catch in the backyard and had to meet some of the neighbors because both kids threw some balls over the fences. We also went out for some ice cream at a local spot. The kids all had some blue cookie monster ice cream. We also spotted some cicadas before they disappeared again. We also found out that Landon is absolutely terrified of cicadas for some reason. 

Grandma and Grandpa watched the kids so that we could all get away to spend some adult time. We ended up going to a little mini golf course. We played 36 holes of golf. Jennifer had two hole in ones, Andrea had one and I had two as well. 

After taking Jennifer to Indian Staircase the month before I talked her into taking the kids to give it a try. Landon loved it. Brinley said she was scared and didn't like it. Both kids did really well though.

After we got to the top we stopped and had a snack. Jennifer dropped one of her Cheeto's and these two ambitious ants decided that they were going to carry it back home. We watched them carry this Cheeto around for a couple minutes and then it abruptly ended when they got too close to the edge and it fell off the side of the cliff. We even headed down to the overhang and saw a small waterfall.  

We got lost on the way down and we ran into a family from Ohio. They told us that they had just gone this other way the day before so we followed them. We ended up climbing down the roots of a tree, but sure enough the path led right back to the parking lot. We even spotted these beautiful flowers on the path. 

The kids most favorite part of hiking in the gorge was that we stopped by Miguel's Pizza. It was the first time that we had taken them to eat there. Everyone got there own choice of toppings and we all enjoyed it. I thought mine was the best with a bbq sauce base, pepperoni, bacon, and sweet potatoes. Miguel's is also best when served with an ice cold Ale8!

Last year in the middle of the pandemic we couldn't find a pool for the backyard anywhere. The kids would have loved this last year, but now that we are going back to the YMCA this is kind of underwhelming to the kids. Now they just keep asking for a large pool to be put in the backyard. 

Every 56 days I make my way back to the blood center to donate a pint of blood. It is the least that I can do to help others in need. It is so easy and it can save a life. I will always be thankful for donors and I always make it a point to thank people when I see them with a donation shirt on. 

We made a trip to the movies to see Cruella. It was really good and I would highly recommend it. The theater's air conditioning was broke and they offered us refunds if we wanted to leave but we stuck it out. For a treat we were going to stop at Steel City Pops, but it was closed so instead we headed over to Rally's for a quick treat to cool off. The table would have fit right into Cruella's color palate. 

We had a lot of fun during the month of June. The kids spent a majority of the month at summer camp, but thankfully they really enjoyed every day that they were there. They were excited each morning to get up and go back. They made a lot of friends. We had a lot of fun on a long weekend in Ohio to celebrate with family. Baseball season came to a close which opened up our nights. Now to enjoy the rest of summer break! Thanks for reading and God bless!