Monday, October 26, 2009

Ellery with her good friend, Brady. Give him some space, girl!









On Sunday we hosted our 2nd annual Pumpkin Carving party. We had a great time with good friends and neighbors and actually managed to carve out a few interesting jack-o-lanterns. Darin took his creativity to a new level this year and used his drill to make holes all over one of the pumpkins.

Thursday, October 15, 2009











Last weekend Ellery had her first soccer game. She loved the practice and was all smiles as she ran and performed her practice drills. Then the game started. The first five minutes she was happy--chasing the ball, running across the field and even managed to get in a kick or two. Then the tears started. . . .and continued throughout the remainder of the game. She did NOT understand why she wasn't getting the ball and why her teammates were not just giving it to her. Haven't we been talking about sharing everyday for the past 3 1/2 years of her life??? She has FINALLY begun to grasp this concept, only to have her parents and coach tell her to, "be aggressive and go get the ball on your own! No one is going to share with you, you must TAKE the ball"!!! AAYYYY--YYIIII-YIIIIII!!! Why did Darin and I not realize that this might be an issue? Welcome to the wonderful world of pee-wee sports!!

Monday, October 12, 2009



The children enjoying ice cream on the luggage cart before leaving.


The ice cream was brought to us by a staff member who thought the children might enjoy this upon departure. What great service!!




The only famliy picture we managed on our trip, taken by a friendly staffer.




While the Ritz Carlton is not our typical hotel brand, we took advantage of Darin's conference venue and stayed a few nights. I have to put in a plug for this hotel. Beyond the exquisite lobby, restaurants, and pools, this hotel is an exceptional place for children. They have a fantastic program called "Ritz kids" where they host childcare, arts and crafts, games, and cooking experiences for children aged 5-12. While our children did not meet this requirement, we appreciate the idea of having a separate place for the children to express themselves. The service here is difficult to beat and they try to accommodate all needs, including those of the children. Much appreciated by this household!!!

Thursday, October 08, 2009
















Pretending to be a spider across the webbed course.




















Here are a few pictures from a visit to "The Mosi", which is a fantastic children's museum in Tampa. I LOVE the pictures of Darin and my sister having a tug-of-war. . . .my tiny sister actually beat my husband, but to his credit, the sides were not even. Double click the pictures to check out the great expressions on their faces(look at these competitors)! Ellery LOVED this museum and could have spent the better part of the day playing in the interactive kitchen display--a great outing for little ones, as well as big kids(i.e. Darin).

Monday, October 05, 2009









A trip to Florida would not have been complete without a visit to Disney World. Ellery has been to Disney Land a number of times, but this was her first visit to Disney World. Her first comment as we began our journey through the park, "Wow--look at Cinderella's beautiful castle!" For those of you who have not been to Disney World, the princess castle at the heart of the park is quite large and grand. Her absolute favorite part of our visit was visiting Ariel in her grotto--this child ADORES Ariel.

Sunday, October 04, 2009






We had a great trip to Florida and made it home safely, although we are all a bit jet lagged. Here are a few pictures from our first day, which included a trip to the Tampa Aquarium. I failed to get a picture of my nieces, but did manage to take this sweet one of my sister and baby Justin(what a great baby)!