Remembering Mom

It's been 15 years today since Mom passed away. It is hard for me to even relate to that point in my life anymore. It was before I was married, before I was a mother, before I had a career, before I had anyone else to think about but myself. It makes me sad that she doesn't know the life that I have now.   You never grow too old to need your Mom. But I am rich in many ways and I actually have Mom to thank for growing me closer to my loving God. When she passed away I was a bit lost in my soul and the only way I could survive was to pray. I thank God for His peace and love in leading my life from then on. I am blessed by Him and blessed to have had Mom in my life for 21 years.

As Mom was always busy, I kept myself busy today too. The kids and I went to Autumn's school for a Christmas bazaar in the morning, where she was able to "shop" for the family with her own money. From there we met Kerrie (Grandmom) and Michelle and cousins, Hope and Adi, at Red Robin for some lunch. Michelle is going to have her 3rd little bundle in 5 days and we are very excited. A new baby in the family! Hope took this picture of the 3 of us and did a pretty good job!

Adi (4), Autumn (6), Joshua (2) and Hope (7)

We then ventured to Kohls for some Christmas shopping. The store was mobbed although I think everyone cleared out of the picture for this shot!

As we drove home it was snowing and this was what we saw when we pulled up the driveway.

The kids were excited to get bundled up after Joshua's nap and head outside.

Making our first snowman of the year.

They did a great job with Daddy!

Christmas is coming...

We have gotten into the Christmas spirit around here! This weekend we enjoyed a nice visit with Aunt Nancy and Uncle Tom. We traveled to Lancaster to see "The Miracle of Christmas" show at Sight and Sound Theater. A great way to remember the true meaning of the season!

Sunday we cut down our Christmas tree. It was almost 60 degrees out and by far the warmest day we've ever been to the tree farm. We got a Frazier fur and it's a beautiful tree.

We began decorating the tree tonight. Joshua and Autumn were a big help and we had Christmas music playing and a cozy fire in the stove. I'll post pictures when it's all done!

Halloween

Finally posting some pictures from Halloween. Sorry about the un-seasonal background. Blogger is giving me a hard time changing it.  The first shot is Autumn's parade at school. Too cute!! We spent Halloween night at MomMom's house...it rained but was a fun time anyway. And the next day we had fun with Brooke. The kids got lots of loot but luckily have forgotten all about it by now (although Mommy and Daddy haven't, much to our waistlines dismay!)

Catching up

Fall is upon us which means time to celebrate Autumn's birthday! We have had a fun couple of weeks, stretching out the birthday celebrations between friends and family. On her actual birthday, we had some family photos taken as well as some feature shots of the birthday girl. When she got home from school we headed to Red Robin for a fun birthday dinner.




























I love this picture. Autumn happily put on this crown that Aunt Carolyn made her (she made the adorable t-shirt too) before leaving for school on her birthday. I was sure that she'd have it in her backback when she came home but she came running off the bus with not only her crown but stickers on her sweater proclaiming her special day. I relish this age because soon enough she's going to be too "cool" to be different from her peers. But for now it's just pure innocence and happiness. How I wish I could bundle her up and keep her believing that she is a beautiful princess forever.














The day after her birthday we had family over for a cake and presents. Grandparents, great-grandparents, cousins and aunts and uncles...we have a houseful when everyone is here. She loved it!















Finally, last weekend was her "friend" party. It was a highlight of the day when Tootsee the clown arrived with balloons and played games and had treats for all of the kids.














She loved Autumn's "6" shirt, but since she was looking at her upside down in this picture she teased that she was 9. Lots of giggles.
















Taking a swing at the pinata.













She made lots of fun balloon shapes.















Brooke wanted an elk balloon. She settled for some antlers. :-)















Tootsee did a great job of making Autumn's day special! We can hardly believe Autumn's 6 already!!!!

Big Day

Today was Autumn's first day of kindergarten. We got ready last night with a bath, clothes set, bag packed and lots of excited anticipation. We read "The Night Before Kindergarten" and it was not unlike Christmas Eve given her excitement level.

Autumn and Joshua headed happily out the door at 12:20pm for the 12:32 bus. We took lots of pictures in front of the house and then headed to the end of the driveway to wait and look for the bus up the road.

Patience is not Joshua's strong suit.

Finally at 12:45 bus #17 arrived. Autumn happily hopped aboard and somehow I kept it together as I walked back up the driveway and into the house with Joshua. I think she and I were both ready for her to reach this milestone.

She came home full of smiles and stories and said "I can't WAIT to go back tomorrow!" The favorite part of the day was the bus ride. She was sitting in the front seat on the way home and later revealed that she talked to the bus driver almost the entire 25 minute. Chris and I both laughed and rolled our eyes at that conversation..."If you go down that road my friend Sydney lives there, and if you go straight on that road it takes you to my Daddy's work, and this is the way we go to the Promenade from my house...." But the driver was very sweet and waved and said "Bye Autumn!" when she got off the bus.

We celebrated her homecoming with cookies and milk and stories about Mrs. Oakes and her day. She is going to have a great year!

Down the shore

We enjoyed one last summer hurrah in Ocean City, NJ over the weekend. We headed down Sunday morning and had a gorgeous day. The beach was mobbed as the second to last weekend before Labor Day but we found a primo spot to plant our umbrella.

The water was a warm 76 degrees and felt really nice.

We found some shade under the music pier.



We hit some rides on the boardwalk Sunday night. The kids didn't hesitate to go up on this humongous ferris wheel...meanwhile the 10 year old behind us panicked at the last minute and got out of line. It didn't phase them but we WERE up high.

High above Ocean City we could see for miles.

We woke up Monday morning to drastically cooler temps. But by late morning it was warm enough to head to the beach for some shell collecting. Well, that was the plan. Autumn ended up wading right back into the water, fully dressed, to jump in the waves. The pull of the ocean.

Joshua strutting his stuff on the beach.

We stopped for custard on the boardwalk for one last treat before heading home. We all had a great time and promised the kids we'll stay a bit longer next year.

We're so proud