Halloween weekend

We had a family night on the Thursday before Halloween and carved pumpkins and watched The Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown. Keira loved getting her hands dirty and pulling out the pumpkin guts...but Liam wouldn't touch them. All he wanted to do was put the "lid" back on the pumpkin when we were done.
We started out Halloween day by going to Hollyfest, which is our town's annual festival. It just happened to fall on Halloween this year. We spent most of the day there playing on the moon bounces, making crafts, playing on the playground, enjoying treats and visiting with friends.

Liam and Keira painting luminaries (looks like Liam might be a lefty like Mommy!)

After Hollyfest, we headed home for (wishful thinking) naps and quiet time, before the evening festivities began. Some of the kids' friends (and cousin Maggie and Adam) came over for pizza dinner and then we all headed out for trick or treating. This year the kids picked out what they want to be for Halloween, and Keira was a turtle and Liam was Tigger.












Keira understood Halloween last year, but this is the first year Liam got it, and they both had a great time. We trick or treated for a couple of hours, and then headed home. We ended the night going to our neighbor's house for a (30th) birthday celebration.

Conner (pumpkin), Tucker (Army man), Liam and Keira trick or treating

On Sunday the kids' friend Cameron had his 3rd birthday party at the New Hope Valley Railway station. To start the party, we took an hour long train ride with the steam engine. We were on the caboose for the first half of the ride, and then the train stopped to move the engine to the back of the train, so we were in the front of the train on the way home. It was cool to get an up-close view of the engine hooking up to our train car. After we returned, they had the birthday party on the stationary caboose at the station. The railway also has a Santa train in December, so since the kids had so much fun, we are planning on doing that one too.

Keira and Issac get a front-row view of the steam engine hooking up to our car at the half-way pointKeira, Liam and Chris checking out the scenery from the upper seats

Liam is a big boy!!

It's official...Liam is potty trained! He's been potty trained for a few weeks, but I didn't want to jinx it by putting it in writing just yet. :) We started out with naked potty training over a weekend, and we weren't sure he was going to get it at first. But the following Wednesday night, something clicked...and he's been doing fantastic ever since! We even went to the zoo that Thursday (armed with 5 pairs of pants/undies just in case!), and he only had one accident. For the past month, he's had relatively few accidents, and is now asking to go potty (before it was more us making sure he went every hour or so). We were worried about training him because we heard boys were hard, but he was very easy and caught on quickly. We're so proud of him...and he's proud of himself!

State Fair

Friday, October 23rd we went to the Raleigh State Fair. This was our 2nd year going, and we again had a great time. The animals are always the highlight of the fair for the kids...we visited the rabbit barn, the main building where the cows/calves were (unfortunately the line was ridiculously long, or we would have milked a cow!), and the kids favorite place, the poultry tent.... which is where they can hold the baby chicks and ducks (Keira is shown holding a baby duck below).
We also went to the petting/feeding zoo, which the kids just LOVE. They fed the goats, camels and other animals carrots. After feeding the animals (and washing hands!), we grabbed dinner and walked around to the rides. The fried foods are always big at the fair, and Chris and I decided to try fried cookie dough and chocolate covered bacon...which were both really good! The kids had fun on the rides (below with Chris on the whirly worm), and it was overall a fun time at the fair!

Light the Night Walk

On Thursday, October 22nd we participated in the Light The Night Walk, which is The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's evening walk and fundraising event. We walked in honor of my friend Emily Shimpach who is living with CML (a type of leukemia). Emily is a friend of mine from Wisconsin, so we (of course) wore Badger red! Emily's daughter Ava is 2 days older than Keira...and Emily found out she had CML when she was pregnant with her 2nd daughter Jenna. Luckily Jenna was born healthy and recently celebrated her 1st birthday. We walked with the hope that a cure will be found and Emily can celebrate many more birthdays with her family! A huge THANK YOU to everyone who donated to our team!!

Trip to Northern Virginia

The weekend of October 15th we went to NOVA for a visit with family and friends. We headed up Thursday night and stayed at Chris's parent house. On Friday, Chris worked from the house in the morning, and then had lunch with his boss. While he was doing that, the kids and I met Regan and Indie at IKEA for shopping and lunch. It was great to see my sister and my nephew.... what a cutie! Saturday was a whirlwind tour! Saturday morning we met Chris, Regina and Natalya Maletick for breakfast. Natalya is ten months old, and it was the first time we got to meet her. We then headed to the Browning's house for playtime and lunch (and to meet their newest addition Sam). Keira and Liam had a great time playing with the girls, and it was nice to catch up with Jon and Sherri. After a few hours of visiting, we drove to the Engelbrecht's house to celebrate Nicole's 6th birthday and Tyler's 4th birthday at their pirate party. After the birthday party, it was nice to spend the night at the Engelbrecht's and not drive any where!

The pirate kids
(back) Liam, Rose, Tyler, Keira, Nicole
(front) Joe, Corinne, Madeline, Adam, Marie

Sunday morning we had breakfast with Brian, Brandy and Zoe Loomis... before heading home. It was great to visit with friends and family, and of course we didn't get to see everyone we wanted to. We'll be back up for Christmas, and hope to see more people on that trip!

Trip to Blacksburg with the kids

So I'm a little out of order blogging....oops!

The weekend of September 19th we went down to Blacksburg for the VT/Nebraska game. Chris has been excited for this game since last season when he and his sister Tiffany were in Nebraska for that game. During the tailgate we had a great time hanging out with friends, checking out the other tailgates and visiting the duck pond. After tailgating, Chris and his sister Cheryl went to the game, while I took the kids back to my friends Marc and Erin's house. Marc's daughter Kaitlyn came back to the house with us, and she and Keira watched a movie, while I watched the game on TV (and Liam napped). The kids and I left the house to go back to campus for post-tailgating with a few minutes left in the game. As soon as we got in the car, we turned on the radio just in time for the Hokies to score a touchdown in the last minute to win the game! It was fun to drive through Blacksburg with everyone honking horns and excited about the win! A special thanks to Marc/Erin for their hospitality!

Getting Hokie tattoos before the game (Liam, Keira, Erin and Kaitlyn)

Liam and Keira at the tailgate
Walking through the duck pond...Liam, Kaitlyn and Keira
Keira crashed post-tailgating!

Visit from the Engelbrecht's (click here for more photos)

Hokie family tailgating!
(back) Jeff, Tyler, Poppie, Keira; (middle) Cheryl, Chris; (front) Nicole, Liam

Jeff, Cheryl, Nicole and Tyler came down for a visit the weekend of October 2nd...and we had a great time! On Saturday we went to Durham for the VT/Duke football game. We headed to the game around 9am for a little bit of tailgating with the Triangle Alum Club before the noon kick-off. The game was HOT, and unfortunately a little too close for comfort, but still a fun time (and a "W" for the Hokies!).

Nicole, Tyler and Keira visiting with the Duke Blue Devil before the game

The McNierney's in our Hokie gearCheering for the Hokies!

On Sunday we went to the Amazing Acres Farm by our house to visit the animals and pick out a pumpkin. The kids got to feed the goats, pet a rabbit, play a few games and see several other farm animals. It was a beautiful Fall day, and nice to spend it outside. We had a great weekend with the Engelbrecht's and are glad they came to spend the weekend with us!

Liam, Tyler, Keira and Nicole

Field trips

The kids have taken two field trips so far with their pre-school class. The first one was to the fire station. They have been to fire stations before (while Chris was a volunteer), but this is the first time they learned some fire safety and got to see the firemen get dressed. The kids learned that they should go to the window if there is a fire, and how to "stop, drop and roll". Keira was great, but Liam got scared as soon as the fireman put on his mask and ran and jumped in my lap. We are planning another trip to the fire station with some friends soon so Liam can see them in their outfits again. In case there is a fire in our house, we want to make sure Liam won't be scared of the firemen and hide under the bed!
The second field trip was to the Great Harvest Bread Company. The kids got to learn how bread was made (and even helped knead some), tasted a few different kinds and we picked out a few loaves to take home (the cinnamon swirl was the best!).

Trip to Blacksburg

Chris and I went to Blacksburg the weekend of October 10th to visit friends and watch the Hokies play Boston College for Homecoming. Gramps/Grammy watched the kids, and we had a nice weekend getaway. There were 12 of us that rented a house in Christiansburg, and we took the Hooptie Ride to and from Blacksburg. We had a great time in the Mystery Mobile (which was definitely needed, as there was a lot of partying going on!!).

Our party mobile...
(back) Tiffany, Iris, Leah, Chris
(front) Susi, PoppieThe girls at the Hokie House! Iris, Poppie, Tiffany, Leah and Erin

It was great to catch up with friends (and family), and watch the Hokies play a great game! Saturday was a long day....we started tailgating at 8am, game was at noon, we post-tailgated for a few hours, and then headed downtown...not getting home until after 1am! Unfortunately that's the last trip we'll take to Blacksburg this season, but we'll see the Hokies play ECU (in Greenville) in November.

Hanging out with my old college roomie and sorority sister Jenn, Friday night at Champs

Pre-school

Keira and Liam are taking a pre-school class through Wake County Public Schools. It meets once a week for an hour. It's not a lot of time, but since they've been in full time daycare since they were 12 weeks old (and only home for a few months), we figured this would be enough for this year. It's parent-involved, so I am there for the hour and help the kids when they need it. They've enjoyed meeting new kids, learning new songs and doing the art projects. Their teacher is Ms. Sue and they really like her. The first class they learned about the letter "V" and made a volcano as their art project (below). The class runs for the entire school year, and they have several field trips as well.

Vacation - Part 4 (Atlanta)

Thanks to the generosity of the Walters' family....Chris and I went to Atlanta for the weekend while the kids stayed in Williamsburg. The kids had a great time over the weekend, and we are very thankful for the weekend away!

Liam, Keira and Adam swimming at the Queenslake pool

Chris and I flew out of Richmond on Friday and went down to Atlanta. We arrived late, so we just went to the hotel and got a good night's sleep to get ready for the Saturday festivities. Saturday morning we took the MARTA downtown and went to Centennial Park to look around and catch a bit of College Gameday. When we got off the MARTA we ran into the Dragoncon parade...which was quite interesting. It's a convention for comic books/trekies/sci fi/etc...so you can imagine it was a little crazy! We did get to see some storm troopers and the entire Harry Potter cast before moving on to Centennial Park. Downtown was packed, and there were a lot of Hokie fans (few Bama ones too). We left Gameday a little early and took a tour of the World of Coke. It was a fun tour, and which ended with trying over 40 Coke products from around the world. (after hitting the bathroom) ... we took our sugar buzz and walked around downtown a little more and grabbed a bite for lunch. We then took the MARTA out a few stops, where some friends picked us up, and we joined them for tailgating. It was a beautiful afternoon, and Dan and Lindsay threw a great tailgate at their house. About an hour before gametime, we all piled in the cars and drove downtown to get ready for kickoff. We did a little more tailgating in the parking lot and then headed to our seats. It was a great game (despite the Hokie loss) and we had a fun time. We flew out on Sunday, and headed back to Williamsburg to get the kids.

Chris, Poppie, Marc and Erin at the downtown tailgate

When we got back to the Walters' house on Sunday night, the entire family was at the pool for their year-end pool party and BBQ. It was a great way to end our vacation, as we finally headed home on Labor Day - Monday, September 7th. We had a great vacation, but it was nice to be home and sleep in our own beds. I think the kids and the dogs agreed!

Vacation - Part 3 (Williamsburg, VA)

A quick drive from Richmond, we arrived at the Walters' house in Williamsburg on Wednesday night in time for dinner. More cousins for Keira and Liam to play with! On Thursday, we went to Busch Gardens for the day...and what a fun time!! They have a new Sesame Street area, and the kids were able to meet all of their favorite characters. Liam was a little shy, but loved seeing the characters if someone was holding him. He kept asking for Big Bird, and unfortunately that was the only character who he wasn't able to meet. Keira got to ride her first roller coaster, and although she wasn't sure about it at first, she loved it. We also spent a lot of time in the sprinklers at Dragonland, which was a favorite of Keira and cousin Adam.

Adam and Keira get a big hug from Cookie Monster
Liam, Madeline, Adam and Keira with Abby

Chris, Poppie, Keira and Liam with the Oscar bushKeira's first roller coaster! (Chris and Keira are in the car right above the tree)

Vacation - Part 2 (Richmond, VA)

We left the lake house on Monday, August 31st, and arrived at Chris's parent's house in NOVA just after 10pm. On Tuesday we went to the playground, visited IKEA and then headed down to Richmond to visit (my sister) Regan, Ryan and Indie. On Wednesday Regan and I took the kids to the gardens at Lewis Ginter and had a great time! There was so much for the kids to do! They had fun playing in the little houses, the water/sprinkler area, the sandbox and climbing in the big tree. The photo below is in the big treehouse (and trying to get all 3 kids looking at the camera at the same time was like herding cats!)...

(back) Regan and Poppie
(front) Indie, Keira and Liam

It was a quick visit, but great to see my (not-so-little) nephew and spend time with my sister! On Wednesday afternoon, we hit the road again....

Vacation - Part 1 (New York)

So here I am slacking again...it's been a while since my last post, so a lot to catch up on! Since I am at home, and Chris can work remote, we decide to take advantage of our flexibility, and go on a (nearly) month-long vacation!

Our first stop was Chris's family's lake house in the Adirondacks, upstate New York. It's a 12-hour drive from Raleigh, so with two kids, two dogs, and trying to avoid the DC, Phili, and NY rush hours... we decided to break up the trip. We left Raleigh on Wednesday, August 12th after Chris's softball game, and arrived at Chris's parent's house in NOVA around midnight. We spent the night there, and hit the playground near their house in the morning to burn off some kid energy. Around 9am on Thursday we started out on our 8-hour trip to NY, and made it to the lake house by dinner time. There was a full house at the cabin, and we all had a great time with family over the weekend!

Silly cousins...Keira, Liam, Tyler, Nicole, Chelsea and Nate

Most people left on Sunday, but we enjoyed the lake for about two more weeks before heading south again. We did a lot of swimming, boating, skiing, tubing, playing in the sand...and overall just relaxing. The dogs really enjoyed themselves too, and for the most part hung out on the beach with us while we were playing. Conner decided he liked to swim and did a lot of swimming too (Riley wouldn't touch the water!). While we were at the lake, we celebrated Chris's birthday (August 14th), Oma's birthday (August 17th) and Liam's birthday (August 24th). I wrote about Liam's birthday in a previous post. And thanks to Oma, Chris and I enjoyed a date night to see Harry Potter, and a day date to visit our friend Jason in Vermont. While we were in Vermont, we went to visit the Magic Hat brewery and several brew pubs. Jason is a homebrewer, so we were also able to sample quite a few of the beers he's been working on lately. Next summer we hope to go for an overnight trip, so we can really enjoy all that Burlington has to offer (i.e. lots of brew pubs that didn't open until 4pm!).

Poppie (left) and Chris (right)...neither of us had been water skiing in a few years, but were both up on our first tries!

Chris and I at the Magic Hat brewery (Burlington, VT)

Liam and Keira having fun in the hammock

Keira and Chris tubing

On Monday, August 31st, we left the lake, and started our road trip back home....

Keira's first haircut

I know she's 3, but Keira finally got her first haircut. She has refused to get it cut or trimmed until now, and I was afraid to do it myself until she was on board. She finally agreed to get a trim, and went with me to the hair salon. I got mine done first, so she could see the process. She was very excited when she got in the chair, and was very good for Lindsay! Now that she knows it won't hurt, she said she'll let me trim it...so we'll do it at home until she's ready for a much shorter 'do!

Liam is 2!!

Liam has had the year of the endless birthday! Since Keira loves to ride her tricycle, we decided to get one for Liam, and gave it to him in July so they could ride together. Liam can't quite reach the pedals, but is learning to steer in the meantime (as I pull him with a dog leash attached to the handlebars!). At the beginning of August, Gramps and Grammy were in town and gave Liam his birthday presents while they were visiting. Then we arrived at the lakehouse in NY mid-August... The cousins weren't going to be around for Liam's birthday, so we decided to celebrate Oma and Liam's birthdays early while everyone was still here. Liam's side was Cars and Oma's side had margarita glasses. (photo below)
Finally his true birthday arrived, August 24th, and Liam officially turned 2. We made him waffles for his birthday (photo below) and had an ice cream cake for desert. He's had a great birthday and I can't believe our baby boy is already two years old!!

Visit to Hilton Head

Barb has a time share in Hilton Head, so the kids and I went for a long weekend to visit everyone. We left Saturday morning and stopped on the way at my mom's for lunch with her and Nana. We then spent the rest of our time in Hilton Head hanging out on the beach and the pool. A great time was had by all!! Keira and Liam had fun with their cousins, and I had a blast with mine (and my aunt too!).

Good times on the beach

(back) Barb, Keira, me, Liam, Brian, Jen, Deb
(front) Haley, Tessa, Ethan, Kylan

Kids having fun in the condo with their cousins
(left) Haley giving Liam some tattoos
(center) Tessa showing off her tattoo handiwork on Keira
(right) Kylan and Liam with their tattoos

Liam's big boy room

We've been working on Liam's room for quite a while, and it's finally finished! He is still adjusting to his big boy bed, but it getting better about staying in it. Or we pick him up off the floor as we head to sleep and put him back in his bed. :) The stripes took a lot of time, but they were totally worth it, and look great! I pulled the colors out of the beautiful quilt my friend Andrea made for Liam when he was born.

View standing at his doorway (straight ahead)

View from the doorway to the left
View from his bunkbeds

His ceiling is full of stars that glow in the dark, complete with the constellation Orion (of course!).

We also have been working on the back yard, and Chris built a box around the playset and we replaced the mulch with sand. It was a lot of work (moving nearly 2 tons of sand by wheelbarrow around the house takes a little time!)...but it turned out great, and the kids love their new (huge) sandbox.

This photo was taken a few weeks ago and it's amazing to look at the grass (or lack there of) in this photo. With all of the rain we have gotten lately, or backyard is actually a yard and looks much greener than the photo!!