A Busy August!

August was a busy month for us. During one of Debbie's visits, we discovered a new favorite place for the girls called Run, Jump, and Play. It has indoor swing sets and inflatables galore. They had a blast!

That same weekend, Brandon and I returned to Miami University and had a great time visiting our old, favorite spots. This picture was taken at Kona where we discovered a new, scrumptious drink...carmel appletinis! Yum.

We've done a little bike riding with the girls now and then. We justify our big breakfasts at Bob Evans with all the pedaling we do!

The August weather has been so mild that we've been able to do a lot of outdoor playing. Lauren has been riding her bike with training wheels and Sami likes her stroller walks. Both girls love bubbles and sidewalk chalk. In this picture, they're wearing their pink converse from Aunt Robin.

Just before school started, we took a mini-trip to Indian Lake. We stayed the night in a cabin with my mom, dad, and sister's family. It was a little chaotic with 6 adults and 4 little girls under age 4, but we had some good times. When we arrived to the cabin, we realized that we had forgotten Lauren's shoes! I rushed out to the dollar store and bought flip-flops she could color herself. What a find! She was so proud of them.

The weather was rainy, but Lauren loved pulling in her first blue gill with Papa.

Since then, school is fully underway. I am teaching in the afternoons this year. Lauren attends preschool full-time, and she loves it. She'll be ready for kindergarten for sure! This also affords me some special one-on-one time with Sami during the morning. Just after school started, Brandon and I visited the camp where we met. We reunited with friends after 15 years. Debbie watched the girls for us again, and everybody had a great weekend. Nowadays, we're loving the change of season and even had a picnic in downtown Lebanon this past weekend. Of course, we followed it up with a walk to Whit's Frozen Custard. Delicious!

Until next time!

Fourth of July

We had a great time in Youngstown on the 4th. The 5 hour drive went smoothly, and the girls slept well, despite the fireworks. This was our first out-of-town stay since Christmas, and this time we didn't have to drive home at 1 AM!

Brandon and Lauren caught this frog in the creek. We nearly had her convinced to kiss it, but I guess she didn't believe that whole prince thing.

The Canfield parade was a blast. Lauren came home with more candy than she could eat in a year. What fun!

Thanks to Debbie, both girls were decked out in festive attire. Lauren is showing off her very first face-painting in this picture.

I think the glitter visor suits her, don't you?

Robin and Dana made the trip home to celebrate with us. They went on many, many walks with their nieces while waiting for the parade to begin.

It was a chilly morning so we wrapped Sami in an extra T-shirt. She's trying on Robin's sunglasses in this picture.

Who knew the best donuts on the planet could be found at the Canfield parade?

Summer Fun

Sami and I are hanging out in the baby pool at our fabulous YMCA.

She loved the water playground. Brandon, on the other hand, was not excited about the freezing water. He's laughing about his predicament in this picture. Eventually, he made it off the playground, but not before getting nailed by some very chilly sprinklers.

Lauren had just come down the slide and was loving every minute in the pool!

No, Brandon isn't forcing her to do this. Sami dives into the water at every opportunity. She loves blowing bubbles!

This picture was taken at Caesar Creek Lake. It was the first beach experience for both girls. The day was overcast and chilly, but they didn't seem to mind. Swimsuits or not, they were getting wet!

I absolutely love this picture of Lauren. She was so excited to be here. She kept asking if it was the ocean. We'll visit a real beach someday soon, but for now, she was totally impressed with this one.

This was our first attempt at family fishing. Unfortunately, we didn't catch anything. Not even a nibble! We abandoned the fishing for time at the beach instead, but we'll give it another try in the near future.

In June, we visited our alma mater during Miami's reunion weekend. We threw caution to the wind and skipped the kids' naps. (That's about as wild as we get these days.) We spent some time playing in the uptown fountains.

The girls are standing under Upham Arch. Legend says that couples who kiss under the arch at midnight will wed. Worked for us! Incidentally, Miami broke the world record at Upham Arch for the most couples renewing their vows on the day we visited.

In this picture, Lauren is sporting her favorite green goggles. A must-have for dashing through the sprinkler.

Sami loves the sprinkler too. Notice, she isn't wearing a bathing suit. We didn't think she'd be interested in running through the water. Obviously, we were wrong. She stood right in front of the sprinkler with her mouth open.

Lauren got a butterfly kit from her Aunt Tiff. We're attempting to release the butterflies here, but Lauren had some trouble saying goodbye. She chased them all over the yard until they finally escaped over the fence.

Welcome!

With so many friends and family far away, I wanted to create this blog to share our daily happenings with you. We hope you enjoy hearing about our adventures, looking at pictures, and seeing a little of life as we know it.