Fun at Grandma & Grandpa's House! Unfortunatley, the wagon photos are the only ones I took when the kids and I traveled upstate last weekend, but as you can see it was a huge hit with the kids. Whenever Grandma stopped, Nolan wanted more!

A lot of years...

Mandy and I have been friends for so long...we were trying to figure out exactly how long when we were together last weekend, and I think we decided that it was 5th grade (so, since we were 10). The Fipps' were on the Island for a visit and stopped by, and after Eva beat McKenna up for a while (and Eva is 2 months younger than McKenna, although you can't tell by her size!) they had to say goodbye. :( But Mom and Mandy got to see each other the very next weekend at the Fair for some time without the kids and hubbies!

A Visit from the Gaffneys

We got to see Aunt Janeen, Ryan and Sofia this past weekend! Here are some pictures of Nolan and Ryan enjoying donuts together...always a good bonding experience when chocolate's involved!

Fishing with Daddy

We actually got 2 trips to the bay in today...Daddy came home from work and we walked down to the bay for a little fishing. As usual, Nolan had fun throwing rocks and going in the water. Chris caught fish on almost every catch, and Nolan got to reel a couple in. He thought they were pretty cool up close, and even held one!

An afternoon at the Beach

We got a little time at the beach this afternoon, since Jordyn had to leave for a doctor's appointment. This is the only photo of them together, and of course getting them both to look in my general direction at the same time is an impossible task...guess this will have to do.

Snacks at the Beach

When we first got to the beach, McKenna was only interested in one thing...food. She had her snack at the beach (O's and goldfish with a little sand on the side). When Nolan saw the close-up picture on the bottom left, he said "Kenna dirt"...'yes, Kenna is eating dirt". She did get interested in the sand and water after her snack, but unfortunately I couldn't get pictures in the water and hold her hands at the same time. Maybe next time!

Come Here, Ducky!

Of course, Nolan's fascination at the beach was the boats, and throwing sand. An added bonus was the "duckie" that swam by while we were there. I was helping McKenna stand in the water, and didn't pay much attention when Nolan started saying "duckie, duckie"... and when I looked up, sure enough--there was a "duckie" swimming by. I'm lucky it wasn't a mean one...I had no idea it was there until it was on top of us (it came to within 5 feet of McKenna and me). And after it swam by, Nolan was yelling..."come here, ducky!" (that's the picture on the bottom right)

DON KING lives with us too!

Well, in addition to Oscar the Grouch, it seems that Don King has moved in...quite the hairdo, McKenna! She'll LOVE these pictures when she gets older!

Daddy's Girl

We went to Jordyn's Christening today, then the party for her after the ceremony. All the kids were in the pool, and of course that included Nolan. McKenna skipped the pool, but did get to swim in the bathtub! The picture inset at the bottom is from Nolan's attempt at repotting a plant...dirt everywhere! Time to move that plant...

OUR NEW SWINGSET!

Daddy built Nolan and McKenna this very cool new swingset in our backyard! We need to get another toddler swing, so for now they have to take turns, but as you can see they LOVE to swing! And we're going to put up a cargo net around the sides of the platform, and a few more finishing touches that the kids will enjoy as they get older (Daddy has big plans for lots of cool stuff to add)...THANKS DADDY!!!

Independence! Nolan is loving his newfound independence as a result of figuring out that he can use the stool to get things that he wants. He's starting to carry it around, to get up and be nosy about things he can't see (unfortunately, the stove is included in that one...so he's not allowed to put the stool in front of the stove--but we cook on the back burners anyway and shoo him away when anything's cooking).

Oscar the Grouch

We officially have Oscar the Grouch living with us in place of our son, Nolan. He pretty much refuses to have his picture taken (just after the picture in the middle, he started shaking his head, saying "no, no, no" to the camera). The only way I can get a smile out of him is to get him in the act of doing something he probably shouldn't be doing (like playing with the light switch in the other pictures). Oh well...rest assured he does smile, just not for the camera!

A new hairdo!

As you can see, McKenna has a new hairdo! She sported the look quite well, and the only downfall is the post-nap bedhead. Actually, the pictures on the top left and right are post-nap (her bangs are down and the pigtails are standing straight up), and the two pictures on the bottom right are post-pigtails...what a look!