cc meet at Tom Sawyer

Well, the day didn't start out too well.  Ollie was a bit on the grumpy side but he quickly turned it around and had a lot of fun running around and hanging out with the "runnin' guys." 

 He was telling David some really important things... I'm sure it had to do with the race plan :)

 and they're off...

 Oliver just loves playing with the team.  We are so lucky that they love on him and call him Coach Oliver. 

 My favorite coach :)

 If you look close you can see Oliver in the mix with the guys.  He was loving every second.

After the races were over he had someones stick that they use to roll their sore muscles.  Apparently he's been watching them close because he knew exactly what to do.  He must have had some sore shins :)

skyping with gramma H

I have never been more thankful for technology than I am when I get to watch Oliver skype with gramma and papa.  It is so hard being away from all of our family but knowing we get to see some of them and interact from far away is amazing!  Up until recently Oliver wasn't too into skyping, he would talk a little, try and figure out why he couldn't touch gramma and play peek-a-boo but eventually he would grow tired and go find something else to do, but our latest chat with Gramma was awesome.  He was showing off with all of his tricks, jumping, running, rolling, headstands and laughing at himself.  He would make sure the computer was were he wanted it and then show gramma his latest tricks.  My favorite part of skyping is when he tries to hug and kiss the screen. It just melts my heart.  So very thankful we are able to do this.

 

cleaning up creasey

One Labor Day a big group of people got together to clean up Creasey Mahan and get it ready for the Rumble through the Jungle cross country meet the next weekend.  Ollie and I decided picking up sticks was definitely a job we could help with!

 We did need to take a quick break so we could sit on this bench... it was very important...

 And then there was the bridge...

 and the stream...

finally we ended up on the swing.  

We may not have been that much help after all but we sure had fun on our adventure through the nature preserve!

daddy's shoes

David had left his shoes and socks in the living room after he got home from school.  Oliver decided to give them a try.

GG & Nan's 75th Birthday!

We have been so blessed to have these 2 women in our lives.  When my Mom met Tom they were like a match made in heaven.  I was so incredibly happy for her but not only did we get our funny and quite quirky Papa, we also adopted the most loving and adorable GG.  She is one of the kindest and most generous people I know.  I am proud to call her Grandma and so thankful that Oliver has such a wonderful GG to visit when we go home.  

But GG doesn't come alone, there are 2 of her :) Probably the cutest twins on the planet. When I first met "The Girls" I wasn't sure how anyone could tell them apart.  But over time I've gotten to know them both and while they have an amazing relationship they each have their own special traits that we love about them.  I love sitting and listening to their stories.  They both have a special gift at make everyone in their lives feel special.  It was an honor to be a part of their 75th birthday celebration!

 The food of course was incredible.  Sandy organized a feast of goodness!!

 The guys hanging out before things get started.

 Someone gave the girls these sparkly sunglasses... they were rockin'!

 The kids are so lucky to have GG and Nan in their lives!

 GG and her three kids.

 We love you both so much!! Happy Birthday GG and Nan!!

final days of summer

Well, summer finally came to an end.  Here are pics from our last few summer days.  Can you believe how big he is?!

 I had an incredibly hard time going back to school. I think that may have been why I avoided posting for awhile.  There just aren't any words for how I felt.  I know kids go through some separation anxiety but honestly I think all three of us were going through it.  The first few days back Oliver was screaming mad, held onto my neck for dear life and had some really bad days.  People always say that they get over it after you leave but Oliver wasn't.  He was miserable all day which did not help me get through it either.  We were both a mess! And on top of that I was missing David after spending every day with him and he was missing us. Summer is so wonderful but going back is next to impossible.  

I am happy to say however, that we did survive.  Not only was it hard to be away, Oliver also got Hand Foot Mouth within his first week of being at daycare.  Talk about a exhaustion and emotional overload! But like I said, we survived we made it over the hump and are finally into a routine.  I can't say that I like it any more but it's manageable.  If I have to work, teaching is where I need to be.  I get lots of time off to be with my baby and I get to leave work at 3pm.  We will make it and he is making lots of friends at his school.  Every morning I just take a deep breath and we do what we have to do (until I win the lottery of course!).

cushions

One of Ollie's favorite things to do is pull the couch cushions onto the floor to jump on and roll around.  He was having a lot of fun with Daddy, pretending to be asleep and then WAKING UP!

airshow

While we were home for the garage sale we found out BG was having a free air show.  We knew the boys would love that so we made a quick stop.

 Josh was so lucky to get to sit in the cockpit with a real pilot! He was beaming from ear to ear!

 

Our little pilot getting off the plane.

 Oliver loved the "copters!"

 They all got to drive the army truck.

 

Emma was clearly not as thrilled as the boys but she was a trooper :)

.

 Finally, we got to see a firetruck up close.

 Joshua was hanging on the fireman's every word and asking lots of questions.

 While Oliver was much more interesting in driving that "big ol' truck!"

It was a fun little trip. Next time we'll have to plan to spend more time there.

garage sale

Every year Pemberville has a huge community garage sale.  This year some of us decided to put together a garage sale at Sandy's. Luckily Oliver and I were able to come home for the big event! While the selling was a lot of fun, Carrie and I had a blast finding tons of deals.  The fun didn't really begin until we found the ultimate garage sale must haves... fanny packs!  We learned from watching our customers that if you are the real deal, you have a fanny pack.

 Mom and Carrie collecting all of the cash.

GG helped keep Oliver entertained! He also got to play lots of ball with Derr and sit on Sandy and Scoot's big TRACTOR!! It was a crazy but really fun weekend. Somehow I didn't take many pictures, I must have been busy rocking my new fanny pack :)