Family Pics 2013

Our family pictures were extra special this year because they were taken at Sharon Mills, the same park Kyle and I got married at a little over 7 years ago on a beautiful sunny day in July. In my eyes, this nature wonderland equals perfection.  From the trees, water falls, flowers, and river, every thing is so tranquil and peaceful. We've been back many times since we got married, and each time brings back some of the best memories of my life....and creating new ones just adds to the happiness this beautiful place brings us :-)

The weather was cooler than expected, so Brett had to wear his sweatshirt throughout the entire photo shoot. Oh well, he still looks pretty darn cute, don't ya think?

Clearly hamming it up for the camera, can you tell?

Three Cedars Farm!

Last Tuesday, Rachel and I decided to take Molly and Brett to Three Cedars Farm to pick out pumpkins and enjoy the fall afternoon together. The weather was perfect - not too warm and not too cold - with just enough crispness in the air to feel like a true fall day. I love this time of year!!

As soon as we got there, we climbed on the wagon for a hay ride out to the pumpkin patch!

I have to admit, I was a little disappointed in the pumpkin selection. About 90% of them were either rotten, squished, or bruised (yuck!). But, there was no turning back now! Brett was on a mission to find his perfect pumpkin and we weren't leaving until he did! :-)

Look how cute these two are! I love that Rachel and I basically grew up together (we met in 7th grade) and now our kids get to grow up together too :-)

When we got back from the pumpkin patch, we explored the farm a bit (and bought some bigger pumpkins at their outdoor store), ate delicious doughnuts, and explored the kids area. And just my luck, right after taking the train pictures below, my camera battery died. I was so bummed because the kids area was the best part! There were farm animals, play structures, slides, tractors, and the coolest part....a huge sandbox full of corn! We will definitely be going back next year with a charged camera ready to capture ALL of the wonderful moments :-)

"Choo! Choo!"

Randoms :-)

I'm still trying to catch up on posts from this summer....so here are some pictures that I meant to post a long time ago! :-)

One weekend this summer Kyle decided to set up the tent in the backyard and take Brett 'camping'. Kind of like a trial run before the real thing :-) Brett was beyond excited and couldn't wait for their adventure to begin! I was excited to have the house to myself, but my gut told me it wouldn't last all night....

Brett was one happy camper!

Camping isn't what is used to be...now you can bring your DVD player and watch movies! Brett loved every moment of his camping adventure....until about 10pm when he was ready for his bed :-) Yep, I was right. Maybe he will be ready next year for the sleeping part!

I picked Carolyn and Norah up from daycare one afternoon after it had rained...and there was a huge puddle in our driveway. Brett started riding his bike and quickly realized that it would get stuck in the puddle, and if you kept peddling, water would spray up behind it. The kids had a blast taking turns spraying each other, to the point that I eventually had to refill the puddle with water from our sink!

Another warm day when the girls came over I set up the sprinkler....kids and water always seem to equal a great time!

I babysat Hazel one afternoon, so here the kids are waiting to make banana bread :-) They were very excited, until I took too long and they were off to find something more fun to do....

...like hiding in Brett's bed together!

In September we spent the night at Uncle Matt's in Chicago one night. And being the wonderful uncle that my brother is, he surprised Brett with some legos! 

My brother loves video games so much, he made his own arcade machine! Here he is showing Brett how to play Super Mario Brothers. And yes, I became addicted that night! One of my favorites from when I was little!

That's it for now, but hopefully I will be posting again soon!

Soccer Time!

Last summer when Brett was 3, we signed him up for soccer in Ann Arbor and Kyle coached his team. Kyle did an awesome job and loved sharing his passion with Brett....however most days Brett just sat on the sideline watching. He didn't like sharing his daddy with all the other kids, had a hard time concentrating for that long (45 minutes), and all in all just seemed too young to really get into it. Fast forward a year, and here we are again, hoping that Brett will enjoy soccer a little more, be a little braver, and maybe, just maybe, participate in the game at the end of practice. Well....we will see :-)

On the way to the first soccer practice, Brett was excited, a bit anxious, and had lots of questions for us. "How many kids are going to be on my team? Are you going to play with me, daddy? What is a Jersey?" We calmly answered all his questions the best we could, and drove up nervously to the field. Well, I don't know if Kyle was nervous...but I know Brett was and I was too. I wanted so badly for him to have a good time and not let his anxiety get in the way like it sometimes does. I wanted him to have fun and feel proud of himself...not scared and insecure. We were one of the first families there which was nice because he got to meet the coach and his two boys, and watch all the other kids arrive. The kids were given their Jersey's and then it was time for the fun to begin. Because it is a PreK group,  Coach Kevin encouraged parent's to participate during the warm up's....Brett was a little unsure at first, but soon got into the fun and loved kicking the ball back and forth with his daddy!

Then it was time to pick a teammate to pass back and forth too. Brett loved that part as well and did awesome!!

Next the kids lined up and took turns making goals. Brett had some great kicks and the coach even commented on how well he was doing! So far soccer was going great and I was one happy mom!

Unfortunately, the fun didn't last though :-( The last 20 minutes of practice the kids play a real game of soccer against another team, and the parents are asked to stay on the sidelines. Brett became extremely anxious and worried about what was about to take place. We were able to get him out on the field a few times, but he just jogged way behind everyone else and never even attempted to get near the ball. No more smiles, no more excitement. He had been so happy just a few minutes earlier, and it broke my heart to see this transformation. The good news is that he tried something new, and although he got stuck in his anxiety at the end, he still did it. Even though he was scared he went out on that field and attempting to do something that was way out of his comfort zone. And since this was only the first day of soccer, I'm hoping that each time he will get a little more comfortable, a little more confident, and maybe I'll even get to see that beautiful smile out on the field too!

Wedding Fun!

A couple weeks ago we headed to Wisconsin for my father-in-law's wedding to a wonderful woman named Roberta. They are very much in love and it was so great to see John so happy. Brett was asked to be the Ring Bearer which had us excited and anxious all at the same time! He took the job very seriously and ended up doing amazing (and I'm sure the M&M's promised afterwards didn't hurt either!). You should have seen his proud face as he carried the rings down to the alter...priceless! I didn't take any pictures during the ceremony because it was such a small wedding and venue (at a Bed and Breakfast) and I didn't want to make a scene...but I'm hoping the photographer got some good shots that I can post later! 

Here is my sweet little boy at the Bed and Breakfast :-)

My handsome boys waiting for the wedding to begin.

The moment Brett and his cousin Lily saw each other for the first time (in over a year!), they gave each other a big hug. Too cute for words!

 I was able to snap this quick shot of Lily and Roberta's grand daughter...so precious.

More hanging around :-)

After the ceremony we went outside for appetizers and champagne...and the kids did great! Here Brett is teaching Lily how to play a game :-)

Our little stud hanging out with the ladies :-)

The legos we brought were a big hit!

There was so much going on, this is the only shot I have of John and Roberta...right before they cut the cake :-) 

Brett had fun hanging out with his cousins the day after the wedding! Out of like 10 pictures taken of the 3 of them, this was the best shot :-) Hey, atleast 2 out of 3 are smiling!

We stayed with Kyle's mom while we were there and greatly enjoyed her nature filled back yard! 

Kyle and I in our Packer gear for the game....too bad it didn't bring them good luck! Oh well, we had fun anyways!