The Kassel Family Project Life 365

The new Explorer is starting to feel like ours.

John helped to welcome three new members to Troop 706 today.

It is hard to believe that three short years ago, the boys in the back were crossing over that very bridge. Now, they are all accomplished Scouts welcoming the next group.

When John came down the stairs today in his usual shorts and hoodie, I almost said, “WEAR REGULAR PANTS!” I stopped myself because “pick the right battles” flashed through my head. Teenagers…

We found this in one of the seat pockets in the truck when we were cleaning it out. It is the map for the license plate game from our trip to Rhode Island in 2017. Laura found the license plates for the states outlined in pink and John found the ones for the states outlined in blue. I think I am going frame this.

Andy took the kids to see Wynton Marsalis at the Missouri Theatre this evening. It was definitely a great experience for the kids. John sent me a message just a little after the concert started that said, “This is awesome!” Our small city provides some great opportunities and I am glad that we get to do things like this.

One era ends and a new era begins for us Kassels. The 2007 Explorer Sport Trac that we bought when John was six days old leaves us today to go to Jeremy. We bought her with just under 42,000 miles and she leaves us with just over 232,000 miles. She saw us through a lot of life in those 13 1/2 years, and we will miss her.

Let the new era begin (after the sticker shock wears off)!

Andy and I took a few hours off today to go to St. Louis to pick up this year’s Madagascar order. While there, we could not resist trying all the different variations.

Throw in some tasty chicken from Gus’s World Famous Chicken, and it was well worth the short trip.