"They can't all be happy" March 2012

One last weekend...

August 29, 2009

We had one last weekend in Ocean City before the summer came to an end.  We filled it with time at the park with Maddyn, Max and Morgan, a visit with good friends, rides, ice cream and of course lots of chicken cheesesteaks from Kessel's

oh and one airplane ride for Carsten...




back to Kessel's again...

to the boardwalk with the McAnaney's

ice cream with Maddyn and Micah McAnaney



Carsten attacks his first ice cream cone...

one last time at the playground...waiting patiently for Morgan
there she is....






Summit Days!

August 27, 2009

Some weeks it's only 1 Day and others we get 3, but either way we all love Summit Days!!  Chris has been able to work a few days a week in Summit (only 10 minutes from home) since we got back from Germany and it has been fabulous to say the least.  We see him in the morning, sometimes home for lunch, but most importantly home before 6 so we can actually eat dinner together.  Today, he met us at the park for a quick visit, and it hit me how great life is without a commute!   Of course, all good things must come to an end, and sadly our Summit days are winding down as the office will be closing.  As Grace & Jack say these days..."you get what you get and you don't get upset"! Easier said than done....

Some pictures of today's "Summit Day"

I think I deserve it....

August 26, 2009

As you may remember, Grace was a very picky eater until she was about 3 and we all know Jack and his many" food challenges", shall we say, since forever!! So the way I look at it, I was due for a good eater and I think my prayers may have been answered.  Could it be? I actually have a child who wants to eat and who practically leaps out of his chair for more food? (as you'll see below) I will continue to hope and pray he stays on the right track and loves to eat and I'm taking the last couple of weeks as a good sign.  He'll probably eat me out of house and home and I couldn't be more thrilled...bring it on!



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You'll never forget....

August 25, 2009

...but you do!  Maybe some Mom's remember their child's first words or a favorite song they had.  But, do they remember the sound of their voice as they said those words, or how they danced to that song?  I was reminded this week that I've forgotten!! The one thing I do remember is always saying to myself, "There's no way I'll forget that...."

My project this past week brings me to this posting....If you could see my dining room table as I type this you might understand a little better.  There are over 3o small black video tapes scattered on top.  Most of them unlabeled and waiting to be viewed (and organized).  If I was lucky and had a free minute back when it happened, I would take them out and label them right away when they were finished.  Unfortunately, that didn't happen very often.  Therefore, I'm left with hours of videos to sort through spanning a 6 year period!  

At this time I would like to take a moment and thank my Dad for teaching me a VERY valuable lesson when it came to videotaping.  As far back as I can remember (when video cameras were too heavy for most of us to lift and sound on them was a huge bonus! haha)  my dad would immediately say the date as soon as the camera started rolling...EVERY single time!!  It actually became a joke in the family and we would all laugh, saying "Oh, here he goes again..."  Well, I've now realized that I do it myself on my own videos.  At first it was more of a chore, trying to remember it, but then it became more of a routine and now it has really come in handy! It's there almost every time and I'm so grateful!    

Now instead of having to rely on other factors (i.e weather outside, which house are we living in?, how many kids at the time, was I pregnant?, how pregnant was I? was it the old kitchen, or the new kitchen? are there cousins around? how old do the cousins look?) to determine the month and year of the tape, I can now just wait to actually hear the date!!  Thanks Dad!! 

As annoying as it might be....I must make more of an effort to get the video camera out, even if it's just a minute or two!   5 years from now I'm sure I'll watch things again with the same excitement! Part of me is glad I don't fully remember it, because when I see them it's like watching it happen for the first time all over again!   (Maybe I'm just getting old.....)

Note: just don't forget the date!!

Here's a few quick videos I just couldn't resist.  They made me laugh, hope they make you smile too!!!













Road Trip!

August 13, 2009

1700 miles, 15 rest stops, 1 hotel, 3 ear infections and a whole lot of fun!!!  What can I say other than it was truly an adventure and we are so glad we did it!  Yes it started on a rough note having to find an urgent care in the middle of Ohio, but we managed and as soon as the antibiotics started flowing, life was good again and we were back on track.  The kids were expert travelers and only asked once "Are we there yet"?  They also asked what country we were in, but that's to be expected these days when we travel anywhere. It was so great to catch up with friends and watch our kids play together.  It's been a while since they've all been together (and some meeting for the first time!) so it was a great experience and we would do it again in a heartbeat.  Maybe next time, I'll just pack some more drugs!!

Thanks to Jim, Jackie, Colleen and Andy for making us feel like family and treating us so well! We can't wait to return the favor and hopefully make it a tradition!!


Grace, Ryan and Jack

Indianapolis Children's Museum



Bed time!





Time flies....Jillian, Avery, Grace...December '04


Jillian, Avery, Grace.... August '09






Yummy S'mores


 



Road Trip in Review by Jack, Grace & Carsten

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Happy 1/2 Birthday!

August 14, 2009

I will always remember how my friend Eileen from work (which seems like another lifetime ago!) suggested that I celebrate (in some small way) with my kids on their 1/2 birthdays!  Her family did it growing up and she said she will always remember that.  Seeing as my kids "whole" birthdays seem to span over a 2 month (in some instances 3 month) period,  I'm thinking we should probably just stick to an annual celebration.  With that said, it is Carsten's 1/2 birthday today and I figure this is a special one!!  

I've tried to explain this concept to Jack but he just keeps asking "What's his number again?" and I have to answer "0" which he thinks is hysterical.  So for today, he is 6 months old and it may take another 6 months (when Carsten is a whole number) for Jack to really understand it.

Can't believe we are halfway to the big "one".  Carsten is full of surprises and he's making it hard for us to really believe he is only 6 months old by some of the things he does....

For Example:


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