hangin' out, catchin' up, playin' & enjoyin' family

Well, we are FINALLY away! I guess you could call it vacation, but we've learned a long time ago that visiting family is not a vacation; nonetheless, it is a joyous and a MUCH-NEEDED time away from everyday life, and it is ALWAYS so good to spend time and catch up with the people we love and who love us so much.



Our first stop away was my parents' house in Delaware. Both of my sisters and my brother were going to be all together over the weekend. Before everyone arrived, we got to enjoy some days alone with just Grandma and Papa. The weather was absolutely remarkable, so we took full advantage of it and spent a lot of our time outside enjoying this gift of good weather. This made for some very happy kids!




Ivy and Owen helped Grandma feed the birds.

We went for bike rides.

We drew pictures all over Grandma and Papa's driveway.

We blew and chased bubbles. Because there was not enough bubble blowing wands to go around for all of the kids, Papa Snack turned his creative juices on creating these homemade wands to use (a key ring on a popsicle stick).

Ivy and her girl cousins then got busy playing inside. They turned this part of the steps into their house and car.

Letty had her own fun commando crawling all over the floor...

...and pulling herself up to this basket to leaf through the magazines in there.

Letty also enjoyed all of the attention and love that she got from many...

Of course, there has to be some wrestling matches as well...

...and some just plain fun and memorable times shared with one another.

I am so thankful that we had this time to hang out, catch up, play, and enjoy being a family.

thanksgiving craft

I found these little turkey basket craft kits at a local store and thought it would be a great and do-able craft for Ivy, Owen, and me to do together. They were so easy to make!


After we made the baskets, we decided that we would fill them with special treats to give to others as a way to encourage them to have a great Thanksgiving holiday. We decided that there were enough baskets to give to all of the girls in Ivy's dance class and enough left over to give to all of the kids' cousins when we see them in a few weeks.

We found dance-themed silly bands to put in the baskets along with some Reese's peanut butter cups (only the BEST candy ever) and miniature candy bars. Yummy!

Ivy also had the idea to make her own little cards to include in the baskets so that everyone knew who the baskets were from.

Praise the LORD! O, give thanks to the LORD, for He is good, for His steadfast love endures forever! ~Psalm 106:1

our fort

Owen could watch the television ALL DAY long if we allowed him. BUT, Mommy has set a rule to prevent this from happening..."No cartoons after breakfast." Once we sit down for breakfast, the TV goes off, and Owen has accepted the rule.


Fortunately, Ivy and Letty are not as hooked to the TV and are content finding other things to do and play with.

After breakfast, we turned our kitchen table into a play fort...

...and then since all 3 kiddos were in the same spot at the same time, I took this moment to snap a few pictures to possibly use for our Christmas card.

I think someone is working on some more teeth. She continues to suck her cheeks in to make kissy faces! :-)

we be rakin'

I love this time of year! I love being outside to soak in the last of the warm sun for a while and see all of the beautiful and bright colors of the leaves on the trees. There is nothing like this time of year here! BUT, the beauty of the fall season does come with a price...RAKING!

We weren't sure whether Owen would be able to go out to rake today as we discovered that when we came in from playing last night, Owen had lost his shoe outside. Owen and Ivy had been playing in the leaves, so we thought it was going to be like trying to find a needle in a haystack. Fortunately, we found it right away!


Last year, Nathan and I (mainly Nathan) developed a system for gathering up all of those leaves that has really made raking easier and faster.

Not only do we put our kids to work :-), but we also use a tarp to rake our piles of leaves onto the tarp to pick them up and dump them.

It's not ALL work for our kids though...we do allow them to a little fun too while Daddy and Mommy do the work!

While we were outside working hard and having fun, our Lil' Letty was inside having a party of her own - in her crib fast asleep! :0) Next year, we'll be sure to put her to work, too!

Happy Raking!