Labor Day at the Lake

Every year we look forward to bringing in the Fall season with a trip to the Lake in PA.  Our close friends, the Bowlins, have been hosting Labor Day up there for 9 years.  We started going the Labor Day after our wedding 6 years ago. It is a weekend of eating, drinking, fishing, nature walks, ATVing and game nights.

Oh, how things have changed since 7 kids have joined us.  We squeezed in one walk, maybe an hour of a game (Wits and Wagers--a new favorite thanks to Maggie), little fishing occured, the ATV was a big hit with the big kids and less drinks were consumed since we were all getting up by 7am!  We did get to relax though.  Since the babies still nap a lot and the big kids can entertain themselves, we were able to enjoy some good quality adult time.   Thanks dear friends, for a wonderful time!

Jake and Colin chillin' lake side.

 Yep, this is about what they did all weekend.

 The new Mama!

Ainsley showing the way to find sticks for the fire.

 Movie time!

 Patiently waiting to roast their marshmallows!

 Tom explaining the physics of fire.

 Still not fond of the fireworks, so we watched from the porch. 

But no tears this year!

 Then we went inside to hide from them.

 Dress up time!

 Ready for some food!

 As you can tell the big kids were not in the mood for a photo shoot.  After much coaxing this is the best shot we got.

 The babies were in good spirits though!

 A little sibling love.

 Abby partied way to hard.

 Packin' up!

First Foods

Even before Colin was born I told myself not to rush one minute of his babyhood.  One big thing being starting solids.  It is always an exciting time for parents and it seems everyone (including us with Whitney) jumps the gun a little bit.  Our pediatrician really recommends waiting till 6 months and I had every intention of doing so.  Little did I know that my boy would be huge and and start showing all of the signs of wanting to eat!  He is almost 5 months, approaching 19 lbs and would grab food off my plate if I let him.

So, I decided to start this little, big man on solids.  I had done some reading and decided to go with the thoughts on not starting with rice or oatmeal cereal.  It is supposedly hard on their digestive track and it being a little sweet, making the baby happier with sugary tastes.

Colin's first food was avocado. Avocado has so many health benefits not to mention high in fat, helping to keep them full.  You will see in the video below Colin's reaction. He was mainly indifferent but also gave me the most adorable look of "Mom, what are you putting in my mouth.  This tastes nothing like your milk"!

I made all of Whitney's baby food and am excited to do so for Colin.  The process is pretty simple.  Once the avocado was really ripe I threw it in my Vitamix with some water and pureed it to a creamy texture.  One avocado made 16 oz of food!  After the recommended three days between new foods, I introduced zucchini.  I simply steamed two small zucchini's, put them in the Vitamix and it produced 16 oz of food.  Zucchini is a watery vegetable and little easier to take down. Today Colin chowed down on 3 oz.  His verdict is still out on the avocado but I am going to stick with these two for awhile before moving on.  Next up will be acorn squash donated from my parent's neighbors the Pumphreys who have the most amazing garden!

The Little Things

It has been exactly one year since I started this blog.  A daunting task that I admired in others and didn't know if I was up for it.  I am so glad I took it on for thousands of reasons.

We always seem to remember the big things in life but it is the little things that slip through the cracks.  I know that I have a few faithful followers but really this blog is for my family.  Something for Tim and I to sit down and look over and remember all those little moments we shared with our kids that may otherwise have been forgotten.  And for our kids to remember these moments too but also to read about how proud we have always been of them and how much we have loved them every step of the way!

So for my 60th post I am just posting a few pictures of the little things that happen here at home that just make my heart sing!

PGA Comes to Kiawah

There has been much anticipation for this trip to Kiawah.  We've been talking about it for about a year and a half.  Kiawah has hosted other big golf events but its first time hosting the PGA.  My parents generously hosted 15 of us for the weekend. My whole family, the O'Neill family (Casey we missed you!) and close family friends the Ptaks.

  Everyone spent a day or two or three at the event.  A highlight of the weekend was Bubba Watson and Ricky Fowler were staying right next door.  You would have thought it was George Clooney and Brad Pitt the way we were spying on them! (Speaking from not the biggest golf fan.)  But really it was fun to have 'celebrities' next door.  Cole made the bold move and got in with Bubba's brother-in-law then he and Haley made their way to the beach one evening to grab some autographs.

Here's our paparazzi shot

Probably the biggest highlight was Tim making his Hobie Cat television debut.  He sailed his boat down towards the tournament to see if they would catch him on film.  Back at the house my Mom, Cheryl, Sue and I jumped up and down screaming as they had a good 10 second segment of him sailing down the coast.  Then a few commercial breaks later they showed him again taking a break on the beach.  Very exciting!

Besides golf we all enjoyed good food, great conversation, hours spent at the pool and some at the beach.  It was an awesome time and many great memories were made! I just wish I had more pictures of everyone.  Still working on my blogging skills.

The best part for me was I got to stay for a total of 12 days!  We came down a little early for the event.  Everyone flew or drove in for the long weekend.  Tim headed back to VA to go to work on Monday morning and then flew back for the last weekend.  I haven't had this long of a vacation ever as an adult.  Probably, the last time was when I was 19 and spent 3 weeks in Europe with Ingrid.  It was incredibly relaxing.  My parents helped me so much with the kids and even let me sneak out for a girls night with Morgan and Rebekah and then for an afternoon at the spa.  Tim and I also got to have a nice dinner out to celebrate our 6th anniversary.  Thanks Mom and Dad for two great weeks and for all your help!

Whitney's first time playing Wii

 Celebrating Brady's Birthday!

 Mani/Pedi from Aunt M

 Watching Sis in the pool

 Loves the water breaking on his feet

 LOVES the pool

 She would stay in all day if we let her!

 Happiest little man

Date Night

4 months

Our little man is now 4 months old and growing so fast.  He weighs 17 lbs 12 oz and is 26 inches. Somewhere between 90-95th%.  We have moved to size 3 diapers and 9 month clothing.

He is an extremely efficient eater and is ready to play.  He loves to watch Whitney and it is just so amazing to see how he looks up to her already! He gets the biggest smile when she comes around.  He always wants to be part of the action but gets frustrated when he can't really play yet.  He is getting better with holding on to things and we just introduced the Exersaucer, which is a little bit of sensory overload! He is a drooling machine and is always chewing on his fingers or a toy.  The doctor didn't think the teeth were close to coming through but I bet it isn't much longer.

So far I would swear that he and Whitney are the same baby.  Both so calm, great eaters and sleepers. Not to mention how similar he looks to her as a baby.  The only boy difference so far is he is really loud.  When he yells out he just sounds more like a boy.  Also, he is a pincher.  When I am feeding him or holding him he is pinching me and it hurts!

Though he is growing so fast and I am trying to soak in the baby stuff, it is so exciting that he is more interactive and responsive to us.  The baby giggles are just heaven!

I really want to grab this but I can't!

 Big Sis showing me how it works.

Thanks guys, I really love this thing!

 Happy Man!

 Oooh, this feels so good on my gums!