Summer 2010

We've had a busy summer so far. The day Brendan finished school we headed up to Michigan for 10 days. Andy had a Bosch training class in Farmington Hills where most of our family is so we got to do a lot of visiting while we were there. It was the first time all of my sisters and I have been together in about 5 years. The kids also got to see all of their aunts, uncles, cousins and second cousins, many of them hadn't met Maddie yet, it was a lot of fun! On the way up to Michigan we stopped for 2 nights in Charlotte, NC. The boys are big NASCAR fans and the Charlotte area is home to many racing shops so we spent a day touring some shops and museums and the boys were SO excited! We spent 2 nights in a brand new hotel in a great location and it had a fun pool! When we returned home after our trip Brendan & Dylan had a week of Scout camp where they had lots of fun! This week is vacation Bible school and then we get to rest and enjoy the summer a bit. Next weekend Andy's brother and family are coming for 4th of July weekend, all of the kids will have a great time playing together. We're really looking forward to their visit. Maddie starts swimming lessons on August 2. She will be in the 3's class. She loves the pool but I'm not sure how she'll do with a (stranger) swimming instructor carrying her around the pool. Andy went back to work in May and was in his walking cast until a couple weeks ago. Now he's walking without crutches or casts, he's very happy to be free of them all. His ankle is still a bit sore and gets swollen if he's on his feet a lot, but he's continuing to get better. Here are some pictures of our summer so far.

March & April

We have had a great spring so far. The weather has finally started warming up and we've been enjoying a lot of outside time. Andy has been off work since the middle of March due to his foot surgery and will probably be returning back to work sometime in May. He's recovering well, but is getting frustrated with having to use crutches all of the time. We've enjoyed having him home with us. Maddie is especially enjoying seeing Daddy more. Brendan is doing great in school and brought home all A's and B's again. He is also still enjoying scouts. Dylan is also doing great in school and loves learning. He is also enjoying scouts as well as his horseback riding therapy each week. Maddie continues to entertain us each day. She is talking so much! We finally took the front off of her crib and converted it to a toddler bed. She is doing really well not trying to escape. We are slowly working on potty training and she is slowly getting it. We're looking forward to our pool opening up so we can do a lot of swimming this summer. The boys start swimming lessons this weekend.

2010 So Far

I haven't posted since the Christmas post, so I will update you on our year so far. In January we celebrated both Andy's birthday & Brendan's 10th birthday. For Brendan's birthday weekend we had a fun weekend getaway to Myrtle Beach. We stayed in a hotel and the kids had a blast! We also visited with Papa & Donna and Papa helped the boys start their pinewood derby cars for cub scouts. Brendan really enjoyed his special birthday weekend. February has been pretty exciting so far. We had SNOW, yes snow here in South Carolina. The last time it snowed here was 10 years ago, the night Brendan was born. We got about 2 inches here in Mt. Pleasant and further inland and up in Myrtle Beach, some areas got up to 6". We were all out the night it snowed at 8:00 p.m. having a snowball fight and playing in the snow. The kids had so much fun. The next morning we were out again building a snowman. It melted very quickly but it was very pretty and very fun while it lasted. The best kind of snow, the kind that goes away quickly:) This weekend we had the big Pinewood Derby race for the boys Cub Scout Pack. It was a lot of fun and the boys had a great time making and racing their cars.

Chuc Mung Nam Moi! & Happy Valentines Day!

Christmas 2009

Happy New Year to everyone! We had a wonderful Christmas this year. Santa was very good to the kids. The boy's got a very special present this year, guinea pigs. One for each of them. They were VERY surprised. Dylan has been asking for a guinea pig for a couple of years now, so you can only imagine how thrilled he was! The day after Christmas Andy's brother and family came for a few days and the kids all had a great time playing together. We wrapped up the holidays by celebrating Andy's birthday on the 2nd.

December so far

Wow, where has the time gone? I can't believe it's been as long as October since I last updated. The Holiday season has definitely been busy for us. But we are enjoying this Christmas much better than last year. As you may recall, last year we moved into our new house the weekend before Christmas and didn't really have time to decorate, bake, sent Christmas cards, etc. So this year we are really enjoying doing those things. Maddie is also having a lot more fun this Christmas season. Last year she was still a bit "shell shocked" since we only came home in September, and the move shortly after didn't help matters any. She is really enjoying all of the Rudolph and Santa specials, she is LOVING helping me bake cookies. She often walks around the house (along with her brothers) wearing either her Santa hat or reindeer antlers, has quickly caught on to "ho,ho,ho", and is obsessed with snowmen which she pronounces "heyman". It's unfortunate that she won't be seeing a real one where we live. I have posted some pictures from this month so far. Stay tuned for Christmas Day pictures.

Halloween 2009

The kids had a fun Halloween yesterday. Dylan was a road closed sign, Maddie was a little fairy and Brendan was a race car.