Henry Ford Museum

The trip to this museum we love was especially good this time because of a LEGO exhibit.  Nathan was totally inspired, and everyone loved getting a chance to do some Lego building at the end!

Swimming!

Maybe the biggest perk of the trip for the kids ... swimming at the hotel pool!

Ford Factory Tour

While some kids stayed at the hotel for a nap, Nathan went with Greg, Grandma and Grandpa to the Ford Factory Tour.

Tour of the Ren Cen

A couple days before Thanksgiving we took an overnight trip.  On the way to the hotel, we went through downtown Detroit.  It was our first time going to the GM Renaissance Center ... a huge building in downtown with a glass elevator.  The tour felt painfully long, but the view was great!

My awesome mom and dad!

The kids were so excited to see a car straight out of "Cars 2"!

The Detroit River

On the other side of the river is Canada! 

Corn ... Our Favorite Vegetable

It was really fun to have grandparents here for the proud moment of Joshua's First Grade Thanksgiving Play.  He was the Corn ... a very important role!  We were so impressed, the teacher had had them memorize all of the lines!  By the time it was over, Joshua could recite the whole play for us ... including who said each part ... at dinner. 

Sharing Our New Hobby

Mom and Dad Luthy came for Thanksgiving this year!  One of the fun things we got to do was share our new favorite hobby with Dad.  We went and did some shooting at a beautiful shooting range just north of where we live. 

 

 

Election Morning at Big Boy

 

Greg gets the day off of work on big election days, so we try to make the most of it!  Our tradition is to get up early and vote, and then head to Big Boy for breakfast.  Greg says his body can only take the "potato pancakes" every two years.

Halloween -- the Never-Ending Celebration!

Class parties ... the church Trunk-or-Treat ... by the time we get to actual trick-or-treating in the neighborhood we were so tired of putting our costumes on we almost didn't make it.  =)  Actually, the kids are at such fun ages for all of this ... if I can just stand it! 

Nathan's First Recital

Nathan's First Piano Recital

He played a cute witches song and the theme from Star Wars.  Caroline May is his great teacher!

Pumpkin Carving

Remind us next year NOT to print off stencils from the internet!  We've never used so many toothpicks (while children weren't looking so they wouldn't know how what bad shape their pumpkins were in) to hold pumpkins together in our life!

Halloween Costumes

Elizabeth as Snow White

Joshua as a Ninja

(We found at Wal-Mart the ninja backpack with swords, and then trust Greg to help come up with the rest of the outfit from things we had at home.  An inside-out skeleton costume, black socks with holes cut in them for his hands, a belt from a piece of fabric we got at our wedding from someone international, and a t-shirt + YouTube tutorial for the mask!)  Joshua was born to be a ninja!

Nathan as a Dementor

What a crew!

Halloween Playgroup

What's not to love?!

 

A fun Halloween playgroup at the church where Elizabeth got her favorite new accessory.  =) 

Life's Real

I was flipping through pictures of October and thinking what a great month we had...until I came to this one! Then I remembered that October wasn't the totally glossy picture the rest paint it to be!  These are days' worth of dishes from when the dishwasher died.  Within a week or two (if I remember correctly) we had the dishwasher break and need replacing, we got a flat tire in the middle of a soccer game, and maybe that's when the basement flooded too.  Maybe I should take more pictures of life's realities ... to make us more accurately grateful for the good times, and not so hard on ourselves when our current life isn't as glossy and we seem to remember the past.  =)   

Soccer Season

Soccer worked out great this fall for both Joshua and Nathan.  Just a six-week season, with practices for each of them at the same time and location and games on Saturday mornings.  Both of them do really well, so it was interesting at the end of this season to have Nathan say ... "I don't think I need to play soccer again.  I think playing at recess is enough."  When do you encourage a boy in a sport they really could be great at, and when do you let the eight-year-old make the decisions for himself?!

 

Fall Yard Work

Thank goodness we've only got one real tree with leaves ... because it alone is quite the fall project!  Even Jack, the neighbor boy joined us to rake leaves this year.  (Especially when we bribed him with scones and hot chocolate when the job was done.)

Zombie Tag

 

Somewhere along the way Elizabeth picked up the game "Zombie Tag" from Nathan and Joshua ... and now no one can play it with the flair she can!  We've even seen her trying to teach a member of the bishopric how to play it in the hall at church.

Reading with My Sister

 

My Girl

 

Sweet Boy

 

Loving the Leaves

Today when I carried Aaron outside ... he squirmed to get down.  He crawled straight over and sat himself in our leaf pile.  It's so fun to discover the joy of simple things all over again with a baby!

Waiting for the Ice Cream Truck

After school Joshua dashed inside to grab his wallet and a book to wait for the ice cream truck he thought was coming.  The truck never came...but I don't think he noticed.

A Girl and Her Pony

Elizabeth has a thing for ponies.  She watches "My Little Pony" every day.  (What other children in our family like the show at least as much as she does.)  We've even all got pony names.  When we got our swing set, the fact that is came with a pony was nothing short of miraculous.  Elizabeth spend time out with "Twilight Sparkle" almost every day ... riding and feeding and talking to her.

 

She's most notorious, though, for her boots from Grandma Franson.  

We even plan her Sunday church outfits around them.  They are definitely her trademark look!

First Cider Mill of the Season

First trip of the season to a favorite cider mill...

The reality ... we accidentally got there after they closed!  After seeing animals, throwing rocks in the stream, and a berry fight up and down a nearby trail we stopped at the grocery store on our way home to snag some donuts.  Nights like this are definitely some of our family's happiest times together.

Monkeys in the Tub

 

Bath time is requested by these two kids every day!  Aaron crawls turbo-speed into the tub and stands there making loud sounds to let us know it's what he's hoping for.  Elizabeth loves it because she allowed to use one of her best skills ... spitting.  (I find her out on the deck spit cleaning the deck furniture.)  If only we could keep Aaron sitting down.  He's fearless ... and especially loves sticking his face in the small stream of water coming out of the faucet for a drink.

Walking Partner

 

Making the most of the last warm days with my walking partner.
Having something to push makes it so much for purposeful!

Primary Program Boys

Morning of the Primary Program ... Love these Brothers!

My Turn

 

Favorite Feature:  Cup Holders that Heat and Cool!

Enjoying the Perks...