Autumn Leaves

What do you get when you take one HUGE leaf pile and add two giggling little girls? Lots of great pictures and a whole lot of fun ...











Here are a copule of short video clips of the fun ...


Here is Daddy blowing the leaves on top of the girls ...

Katie played DOME soccer!

As part of the fall town league, each team was given the opportunity to play a game in the DOME in Bridgewater. Katie's team played on Tuesday ... they had a blast! Katie did super ... actually listened to her coach, followed directions, paid attention, and did really well. She played goalie for a while, and actually ~DOVE~ for the ball!!! She knocked it away, the other team rebounded and shot it in as she hadn't gotten up yet ... but we were proud as punch at her effort! Daddy treated her to an ice cream at Skinner's after the game for trying her best :)

Excuse the picture quality ... again Momma forgot the 'real' camera & only had her phone camera to capture the moments!

Katie waiting for the action to begin ...


Trying to get into the scrum for the ball ...


Coach putting on her goalie jersey ...


Katie waiting for the opportunity to save ...



Peering over the boards at the game (she had to stand on something to see over the boards, LOL!) ...


And a quick side note ... Katie and Mackenzie are actually at an age where they can play a game together, by themselves! Here they are in their room, playing Hi-Ho Cherri-o!

Visited Jake at UMass Amherst :)

Finally we were able to get out to visit Jake at UMass-Amherst! The campus is beautiful, and H~U~G~E!!! Jake took us on an abbreviated walking tour, pointing out the buildings where he has classes, his dining hall, etc. Of course I forgot my camera, so the pictures I took were all on my phone. I think my favorite building is the Old Chapel ...



Here is Jake's dorm building, Webster Hall ...


Jake's dorm room is good sized, and remarkably clean for two guys! LOL Here are pictures of Jake & his sisters in his dorm room ...



Here is one of the three of them outside ...


After our tour of the campus, we had to walk back up 'the hill' to get to Jake's dorm ... what a killer! No wonder the kids are all so skinny, LOL! Jake gave Katie a piggy-back ride & Daddy gave Kenzie one ... no one was left to haul my sorry butt up the hill, so I had to huff & puff on my own ... UGH!


Here is a shot of Jake & Shawn goofing around


We took Jake to Target and bought him some Halloween decorations for his room, some snacks, gatorade & iced tea, and a new jacket ... then we took him to dinner at the Amherst Brewing Company. Food was great! We didn't get home until after 11 p.m., but it was so great to get out there and visit! Now to get Jake to come ~home~ for a visit, LOL!

Soccer!

Katie is playing in the East Bridgewater town soccer league this fall. She is in the instructional age group, which is kindergarten and grade one. The main focus is learning the basics of soccer and having FUN! Katie is starting to get the hang of the game, and even gets a kick in now and again. Here are some pictures of the season so far ...

Katie playing goalkeep ...


Katie's BREAK-A-WAY!!!! ...


Waiting for the game to begin ...


Little sister Kenzie cheering Katie on ...

and not happy that *she* can't play yet ...

Jake loves it at UMass!

Jake is settling in at UMass Amherst, and really enjoying himself! He is thinking about joining a fraternity (Alpha Delta Phi) with one of his friends. He's joined a fencing team, a flag football team, and (no surprise) an intramural soccer team!

These are Jake's first semester classes:
Greek Civilization
Art History
Anthropology
Theory of Relativity
French Film
Dean's Book
Quite the course load! Says the food is good in the dining commons :) Also said (during one of his fairly infrequent phone calls LOL) not to expect him home anytime soon, LOL. Yeah, I guess he likes it out there!

Welcome to the world, Olivia Ann!

My niece Holly & her husband Dave welcomed their first child into the world this morning. Olivia Ann was born at 11:30 a.m., weighing in at 7lb 15oz and measuring 21" ... Mommy, Daddy, and Olivia are all doing well.

KINDERGARTEN!!!

Katie is now a kindergarten student :)

Yesterday we got to go to the school and meet her teacher, Mrs. Lasdow (who, coincidentally was James' kindergarten teacher!!!!) and see her classroom. She was so excited, and very disappointed that she didn't get to stay the rest of the day, LOL. Here she is getting in to the car to go meet her teacher ...


Today was her first day of school, and she had a wonderful day. She gets to take a snack to school every day, and today she chose a capri sun juice bag & peanut butter crackers. She says that is what she wants to bring every day, LOL. We'll see if that lasts! She brought home a picture of a raccoon and a cute little 'first day' poem that are hanging on the refrigerator!

Here she is posing for the first day of school, first with her newly learned military salute & then in her cutest goofball pose ...


Here is the "look at my cool butterfly t-shirt" pose ...


Had to have a pic with sissy ...


Walking down the driveway, first picture her feet aren't touching the ground, LOL!!



Here she is standing with the other girls at the bus stop ...


And finally, getting on to the school bus for the very first time ...

We have to walk to the corner (one whole house away LOL) for her morning pick up, but in the afternoon the bus drops her off at our driveway! YAY!

Had a SUPER vacation with the Griffins!

We always have a great time traveling with the Griffins, and we had a wonderful time staying with them at their house in Fort Worth :) All four girls got along fabulously ... and the adults had just as much fun together!

We arrived late Saturday night, and on Sunday we all went to NRH20 - a cool water park! Everyone had a blast, got too much sun, and we arrived back at the Griffin house very tired.

Monday we went to a mall in Grapevine, Texas (cool name, huh?) and bought Katie her 'first day of kindergarten' outfit! We also went to another store & bought Shawn some new shorts & t-shirts for his birthday. The girls treated us to a 'fashion show' that night, here are some pictures of the grand event ...


Even Scott got into the action ...


Tuesday was Ella's first day of school, and that was pretty exciting! She has a long day, but she was a trooper. Katie was *very* jealous that Ella started school before she did. Tuesday night we had a babysitter watch the kids & the grown-ups went to Buca deBeppo to celebrate Shawn's 40th birthday ... it was a blast!!

Wednesday we hung out in the morning, and left for Lawton, OK, after lunch. We attended James' family day activities on Thursday & then hung out with him at our hotel suite. On Friday the Griffins drove up to Lawton and we all attended James' graduation from basic training at Fort Sill. It was a very emotional day, and after saying goodbye to James in the late afternoon, we headed back to the Griffin's.

Friday also marked the day that Jake moved in at UMass-Amherst! Unfortunately we were not there to help him move in, but we were there in our hearts. He's all moved in & loves it :)

Saturday we hung out at the Griffin house after going out to breakfast at the "Snooty Pig Cafe" ... how's that for a great restaurant name??? We ordered in Mexican that night, mmmmmmm!

The girls were practicing their salute, so we got a picture of all four girls doing a military salute ...


Sunday we packed up and came home. We left the Griffin's house at about 11 a.m., stopped at Sonic for lunch, then dropped off the rental car & got to DFW with plenty of time for our 2:55 flight to Charlotte, NC. Had a 3-hour lay-over in Charlotte, so we relaxed and colored w/ the girls, then had a leisurely dinner & got the girls dressed in their pj's. We boarded the plane for our 10 p.m. flight, only to sit on the runway for more than an hour waiting for severe thunderstorms to pass through the Charlotte area. We finally got in to Providence around 12:45 a.m., picked up our car, and made it home around 2 a.m. It was a long day!

A huge Thanks, Y'all! to the Griffins for extending their hospitality. We plan to return the favor next summer when the Griffins come up North for a visit :)

A few more random shots ...
Kenzie and Brenna playing together

Ella and Katie eating lunch

Graduation Day ... times two!

So, on Sunday, June 1st, James and Jacob graduated from E.B. High School. We are extremely proud of both boys. As many of you know, James has already enlisted in the U.S. Army (and actually shipped out on June 17th). Jacob will be attending the University of Massachusetts - Amherst this fall. He'll be majoring in History and minoring in Film Production, in the Commonwealth College program (and living on Orchard Hill).


Then, on Friday, June 13th, Katelyn graduated from the E.B. YMCA Small-Fry preschool. She was sad to leave Miss Toni, Miss Karen, and Mr. Jason behind, but is very excited for kindergarten in the fall!

Katie's big girl bed ...

So a couple weeks ago we noticed that Katie is really getting too big for her toddler bed. We needed to get the twin bed we were storing at the warehouse out of there, so we decided there's no time like the present! Here are some pictures of the big girl w/ her new bed, and the stuffed animal 'beds' that Daddy hung up for both girls ...

CDH Awareness Day

March 31st has been declared Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia Awareness Day in 30 states. I would imagine that most of you have never heard of this birth defect. I hadn't heard about it either, until a good friend of mine received this diagnosis for the baby she was expecting. However, CDH is statistically more common than many other defects and diseases that receive regular attention from the medical community and society in general. It is also one of the least researched!

Here is a link to my friend's blog, where Cadenne Hope's journey with CDH is explained in detail.
http://kariabi.blogspot.com/search/label/Cadenne

This little baby girl is a true miracle, showing how truly wonderous God's blessings can be. It's truly inspiring and awesome to read of Cadenne's short time on this earth ... and the pictures will blow you away, I don't think I've ever seen a more beautiful smile :)

Feel free to visit this page: http://breathofhopeinc.com/ to find out more. The bee displayed on that page has become sort of a symbol of the awareness campaign. If everyone tells ONE person, think about how many more people will have at least HEARD of CDH by next year at this time!

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Easter 2008

We attended church at First Baptist in Wollaston, Rev. Mike gave a wonderful sermon as always! The girls were dressed in their sweater sets that Auntie Vivian gave them for Christmas, along with spiffy new cowboy boots as a tribute to Clyde.

They had a wonderful time at church ... from the "time with the children" sermon to playing in the nursery, and of course the egg hunt on the lawn outdoors afterward!

We then went to visit Uncle Mark at the cemetary, and then to Auntie Nancy's house for Easter dinner. Another wonderful Easter celebration :)

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Maybe this is my lucky year??

Ok, so you know the e-mail ... "enter to win the grand prize!" ... well, I got one from Southwest Airlines ... the "Permission to Play sweepstakes" ... grand prize is a trip for your immediate family to the grand opening of the new water park 'Aquatica' built by SeaWorld. Write a 150-word essay on why your family deserves to have fun!

Now, I know we're busy, but I guess we're actually one of the four busiest families in America ... because WE WON!!!!!! Oh, my GOSH! We are going to Orlando, courtesy of Southwest Airlines and Busch Entertainment!!! I think we're all still in shock! Here's what we're getting ...

6 round trip airline tickets on Southwest Airlines
2 hotel rooms for 5 nights
6 2-day passes to SeaWorld
6 2-day passes to Aquatica
6 meal vouchers
6 "Dine With Shamu" tickets
and a family prize pack!!!

Holy Smokes!! I priced out the airfare alone, for the six of us it would cost about $2000 to fly to Orlando on those days ... and that's with special internet-only fares! EEEEEK! Everyone is stoked ... Katie has a 'ring calendar' and rips off one ring each night ... then she tells me how many "sleeps" until we leave!

One really awesome thing is that the boys are able to go with us :) We had been so wanting to take the whole family on a trip before the boys graduate, but with recent events we weren't going to be able to afford it. Now we are doing it!!! Oh, my GOSH!! I'll update as I get more details :)

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Princess Walls

For her birthday, we gave Katelyn some princess stickers for the bedroom wall. Today we did a good spring cleaning in the girls' room & then put up the stickers. The girls are thrilled over the result ... hopefully it will inspire them to keep their room a bit cleaner (ya right)!







For anyone who hasn't seen the window seat/shelving wall that Shawn built in their room, here is a picture of that as well ...

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