Chillin' and a Grillin'

Grandma, Aunt Anna, Uncle Bunny, and Evelyn came over for a cookout a few weekends ago. The weather was perfect, the kids had a ball, and it was fun to enjoy a relaxing Sunday evening together.

Back to School

Sydney had her first week of preschool last week!

 This fun, sassy girl lights up our world. :)

Way, Waaaay Past Due

Just in time to wish a very special someone (Brooke) a big HAPPY BIRTHDAY, I realized that I didn't post pictures from our spring trip to Gatlinburg with Brabe (Brooke + Abe). We had an awesome time and filled a lot of fun in over a three-day weekend! A few reasons why we love hanging out with them...

1. They love outdoor adventures, including not-so-leisurely hikes in the Smoky Mountains. Fortunately, we all made it up to a peak and a beautiful waterfall. Unfortunately, my crocs did not make it. 

 #2: They play hide and seek with us in hotel rooms. That is Brooke inside that cabinet!

#3: They spoil us with fudge, Chupa Chups suckers and hotel room discounts.

 #4: They love games as much we do!

 #5: They have amazing kids who are SO SWEET and GOOD to our kids!

We love you Brabe!

Special Friends

We headed north from the lake on Saturday to visit my BGSU roomie and longtime friend, Mary, and her family. It's always so special to have those friends that you don't see or talk to every day/month, but when you do it feels like no time has passed at all. I left with a full, happy heart and the kids left exhausted from playing with every toy in the house. Thanks for a great visit Rood family... hopefully it won't be so long until we see you again!

Could these twins, Molly and Addy, be any cuter?! Big brother Connor was adorable too. :)

The Lake

Our Labor Day weekend was spent relaxing at the lake. There is never a shortage of laughs when the family gets together. From the discussions of recurring dreams, to the late night game of Balderdash and the two-dollar flea market challenge, it's always a great time being together. It is nearly impossible to get a good picture of all seven cousins! Most of the pictures end up looking like this...

Ballerina

Sydney is taking ballet this year with her good friend, Elle. She had her first class on Thursday and loved every minute of it. She came leaping out the room with big, proud smiles!

Go Reds!

 Daddy's love of baseball is quickly wearing off on us...

 

Thoughts of a Three Year Old

I want to put Sydney's little voice in a bottle and keep it forever, so that I never forget the way she puts things into words. Most of the time, it's her sweet observations about the world around her that is music to my ears... but tonight was a little different. She was having trouble and couldn't get a show to work on the dvd player, so she loudly exclaimed "DANIT!" (pronounced dan-it). Andy and I looked at each other wondering if we heard her correctly just as she repeated it over again. A lesson on using, "oh golly or gosh" instead quickly ensued. :)

Stricker's is Super Fun!

Our Sunday drive this past weekend took us to the most adorable, charming amusement park called Stricker's Grove. It is a private amusement park that is family owned and operated. It is only open to the public four weekends a year (lucky for us, last weekend was one of the them!). The weather was perfect, the rides were just the right size, and the sweet corn was mmm, mmm, good.

Happy Birthday, August

Our family got together to celebrate August's first birthday! It's always fun when the seven cousins, three aunts, three uncles, mimi and papa get together.

Talented Aunt Cecilly (dandelionjelly.blogspot.com) made these uber-cute, delicious treats!

Indian Summer

We took a fun trip to the 800-year-old Sunwatch Indian Village this weekend...

Busy Bees

We've been very busy trying to enjoy every last minute of summer break! KI has been one of our favorite places this summer. We have two little coaster enthusiasts and it's been so much fun meeting friends for play dates!

What Happens When You Have a Big Sister

Several things come to mind when I see my sweet Reid like this...

#1: He is a really good sport. 

#2: This is Sydney's sneaky payback for when he snags toys right out of her hands. 

#3: We definitely need more boy dress up clothes!

Big Bugs & Binoculars

We used our binoculars to see all of the big bugs at Discovery Gardens today!

Dairy Farm

While daddy was competing in a local bass tournament on Sunday, the kids and I headed to a dairy farm!

 

Mimi and Papa were driving home from the lake, so they met us for lunch along the way!