A Nice Day Before the Cold

We were fortunate enough to have a decently nice day last week before the bitter cold set in. That day we were watching our nephew, Jaxon, and also got a brief visit from Mandy's sister, Jess, on her way into town from college. So we packed everyone up and headed to the park just down the street from our house. The boys had a great time, and we all enjoyed the fresh air. And surprise, surprise...Jess had her camera so we have the photos to prove it.



Brendan loves the park:






The boys trying to figure out how to use this particular piece of playground equipment:

Jaxon's got it!

Belle even got to join in the fun:

Daddy and Brendan taking a rest on the slide and enjoying the warm sunlight:

An epic sword fight led by Aunt Jess. So not safe, but so much fun. Luckily there were no casualties in this battle:

Our Funny Boy

Though he may get mad at me one day for posting these, I just couldn't resist. Brendan loves to play hockey with Daddy. In fact, he wants to play this literally every day. He wakes up in the morning and after saying, "Morning, Mommy" or "Morning, Daddy", his next line is almost always "hockey puck" or "hockey stick." You could say he's almost as dedicated as his Daddy is. On occasion he will ask us to open his "manimals" (that's Brendan-speak for animals) that are kept in a plastic container. He can't open it himself. So we do, and usually leave him to it. Mostly he plays with the animals in his room, but on days when he's feeling creative he'll come running out of the room with the container on his head! The first time I witnessed this, he grabbed his stick and puck and when I asked him what was on his head, his reply was: "hockey melmet, Mommy" (Brendan-speak translation: hockey helmet, mommy). He likes to wear his "helmet" every once in awhile, and we hope that his head doesn't grow too big one day and we have to take a trip to the ER to have it removed. What a story that would be!

Happy Halloween!

Daddy goes away to deer camp every year on Halloween so we enjoy a little Mommy and Son time while he's away. This year we were super-busy with a Halloween party on Halloween Eve with family. We were also invited to join the Whitlock's for trick-or-treating so we weren't all by ourselves. I've never seen so many trick-or-treaters in one neighborhood. I was worried because Brendan has recently shown a terrifying fear of anyone in masks or with excessive costumes. All in all, he handled it better than I expected. He broke down in "I'm scared" tears many times, but he would recompose himself after each fright was away. Each time I would think...this is the one that will scare him enough that we need to leave. I asked him a number of times throughout the night, "Are you ready to go bye-bye now?" and he would answer with "No, Mommy." Though, when scared, he would run quickly into my arms and say: "bye, bye now." But as soon as the scary thing was gone, he would refuse to leave. Ah...the joys of an unsure 2-year-old. Hopefully next year won't be as scary.

Helping Mommy make pumpkin bread for Daddy on his trip:

Brendan shows off his "pum-min":

Enjoying part of the loot:

Brendan's entertainment while we hand out candy. (I love that one of his arms is stuck in the door in this pic):

Handing out candy to trick-or-treaters:

Hanging Out with the Pier 1 Crew

Got together a few weekends ago with my Pier 1 girls and their husbands and kiddos. We haven't really been able to get the whole group together since the newest little ones were born. I never would have thought in a million years that I would find 5 of my very best friends at my work. Odd. It was so nice to just hang out with all the families. Really low key, but so much fun. It makes me really look forward the years ahead when we can watch our kids grow together, and they will all be friends (hopefully). Love all you guys!

PS. Seriously missed the only members of the group who couldn't make it this day: Katie, Robbie & Bobbie. We'll have to do it again very soon to include EVERYONE.

Josie & Brendan watch as Maddie shows off her strength:

My future daughter-in-law, Josie :)

Paul, Alicia, and Maddie:

Brendan shows Josie how to correctly use his tunnel:

Christopher the airplane. Or was it clock?:

Good-bye kisses:

Annual Birthday Camping Trip 2010

Every year around Mandy's birthday we go on an annual camping/trout fishing trip. This year we went to our original location of these trips: Montauk State Park in Salem, MO. We had unbelievably beautiful weather! It was a gorgeous (and sunny) 75-80 degrees every day and the lows dropped down to the upper forties--perfect for sitting by a campfire. Though the fish were a lot more finicky this year than usual (we suspect that they are being overfed in the hatcheries), Ryan managed to catch his limit every morning we fished. Mandy hooked a number of fish, but was only able to bring in just one. No worries! We had plenty to eat.

We were joined on this trip by some of our favorite people. Mandy's brother & his fiancee were able to join us, along with 2 of their friends. Her sister and and a friend were able to make it as well. And our good friends were able to make the trip this year, too, Jessica and Dave. It was so much fun to spend time with such great company. We talked, and laughed...A LOT! I couldn't have asked for a better birthday gift. Here's to turning 30!


Daddy and his scotch:

Uncle Shane learns to chop wood:

"Happy Birthday" serenade:

Daddy and Dave...ready to catch some fish for dinner:

Mommy's birthday sign. Thanks Jessica!!!!

Mommy and her best friend, Jessica (pregnant with twins, I might add). Love her!

Uncle Shane and Aunt Lilly's crazy game...they're ready to play!

Aunt Lilly creates fire:

Eckert's 2010

We have not posted since early August, and there is a reason. We have been BUSY!!!! Ryan's sister, Tory, got married September 25 and Mandy has been putting her all into helping out with the wedding. We are glad to announce that the wedding was a beautiful success (it was a gorgeous day) and Danny and Tory are officially Mr. and Mrs. Danny McCorkell. (We hope to post pictures of the wedding later, but we didn't take any ourselves...gotta wait for the bride's copies).

Now life will slow for us for a little while. At least, that is our wish. We were able to spend some family time together this weekend and we went for our annual trip to Eckert's Farm. And as is tradition, we dressed Brendan in his Halloween costume to take some pictures. After the photo session, we ate some good country food and made our way to see all the animals. Brendan was a little too timid to get too close, but was able to name many of the animals that we passed. He's still reminding us, the day after, that he saw a "big camel." It's amazing to see how much he has learned just since last year. We then stopped to watch the pig races which Brendan loved. Each time they would let the pigs run around the track, Brendan would yell: "Go! Go! Go!" So cute. We then picked apples from the tree and found our perfect pumpkins: a daddy pumpkin, a mommy pumpkin, and baby pumpkin. We ended up with a beautiful day and another day full of memories.

Spider Brendan poses with a "scarecrow man."

Brendan drive a tractor:

The closest Brendan got to the animals. Watching Daddy feed the goats:

Uncle Shane and Aunt Lilly:

Brendan's ride around the park...Daddy. (Notice the beautiful blue sky.):

Our ride to pick apples:

Brendan picking his own apple off the tree:

Brendan eats his own apples this year, too!:

NaNa and BawBaw pose with Brendan (well, he watches them pose). Saying, "Cheese!":

Searching for Mommy's perfect pun'kin:

Uncle Shane found a winner!:

Holding "Baby" Pumpkin:

Fun Time with Daddy

Mandy has been so busy this summer that it has been hard to do things together as a family. But she was blessed with a Saturday off of work last week, without anything written onto the calendar. So we took advantage and went to a local aquatic center, just the three of us. We had a blast. There is a huge kid pool that was 4 feet at the deepest, water jets that shoot up from the ground, and a large wading pool that had a playground in the center with a giant bucket of water that would fill and then dump over tons of water. Brendan was a little afraid of that particular part of the aquatic center because it made a loud noise every time it would dump. His favorite part: a lazy river that circled the park. Going in we thought he'd lose patience easily, but we were pleasantly surprised. They had double rafts with one side closed in on the bottom so he could sit next to Mommy and enjoy the ride. As we'd pass under bridges that would drop water on us, we'd all scream. It was so much fun! After we took a break to eat some lunch he ran up to the river, pointing and shouting, "Raff! Raff!" (raft to those who don't understand toddler-speak). So we did it again. With as little time as we get to spend together, what with working opposite shifts all week and constantly staying busy with other life demands, it made this day seem all the more special.

Another Play Group Activity

Last week we were able to take the kids on another play group activity. As it was far too hot to be outdoors, we decided to visit a place called Monkey Joe's. Our friends Katie and Bobbie had been there a number of times and had recommended it as a good place to take the younger ones. So they joined us, along with Jessica and Josie. What a fun place!

It is an indoor location with wall-to-wall bouncy houses. They assign age levels to each house to keep things safe. For example, Brendan and Bobbie played in the ones dedicated to ages 3 and under. For most of our stay at Monkey Joe's, Brendan was OBSESSED with the quarter machine play car (even though I never put a single quarter in the slot). No matter where I would drag him around the location, he would sprint his way back to that toy car. We had to learn a number of lessons in sharing as other children would want to play in it...and B was reluctant to give it up. After about an hour of getting in and out of the car, I was finally able to coax him into the bouncy houses (with a little extra motivation from Bobbie). He would jump a few times, fall down a lot, and then be finished with each house.

All in all, it was a fun day. Some life lessons were learned, and we were able to spend some time with friends while still staying out of the terrible St. Louis humid summer heat.

Brendan driving:

Jumping:

And falling:

Josie, sliding down the slide like a big girl

Bobbie, cheese-in it up: