Back to the Manger!

In case you haven't heard, Hannah and Ben were in a Christmas musical last weekend at church. Ben sang in the choir, and Hannah had a few solos and a speaking part.
Gram and Pap came up to visit and see the play, they thought it was great!

On the set, in front of the "church" for the annual Caroling Outreach.


Jefferson wasn't left out, he got this really cool balloon and spent lots of time with Grandma.


Meet Betty, from 1958. "Well, God has supplied all my needs so far. I have so much, a loving family, a good home, swell friends-I can't help but want to share with others" She was more than perfect for this role!


"Holy Guacamole!"

The time machine that visited several Christmas Caroling Outreach's in the past, including the birth of Jesus.


Merry Christmas Everyone!

Kid in the Fridge

Hey! It's me Jefferson. Sometimes I do really funny stuff, like most two year olds.

Today I was hanging out in the fridge and mom though it was too cute, and told me to stay in there so she could get the camera. Then, I even decided to smile really nice. Sometimes I'm a really good boy like that. And I like being a big boy.


Pretty soon I won't fit in the fridge, and my mom will be really sad. Glad we got these pictures of me!


Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Halloween!

Halloween weekend was lots of fun! We did some new things this year: watched Casper the movie, which the kids loved; went to a Halloween party at Kidz Club, totally fun; and added another kid to the school parade!

Hannah wanted her face decorated, very pretty! And her pumpkin she designed.


Dressed and ready to go...almost, we still had to empty the pillow cases of pillows for our bags!


Jefferson suprised us all and put on some courage, and his Thomas costume! "I'm not crying" he kept saying. We were SO proud of him.


MARIO! He was so funny with this on, totally a ham.


The best way to end all this fun, lots of candy! Three pounds of it each for Hannah and Ben.

Out in the Patch

We made it to the pumpkin patch on a totally perfect autumn day, and Grandma Hampton happened to be in town! We headed straight to the field behind the fields, where the biggest and the best are.

Grandma was glad to have a little buddy!


The boys check very thoroughly to make sure the pumpkin is spotless, and worm free!


"This One" he says.


We also finally hit another area gem, Skaneateles lake, for some lunch at a local hamburger joint and to see the gorgeous lake, it's perfectly clear.


This was a really great day. Now we are getting ready for Halloween...and trying to talk Jefferson into wearing a costume, we'll see what happens!

Apple Picking...Whaaaaat?

On the hottest day of the fall season yet this year, we went apple picking not too far away. It was very busy, and not all varieties of apples were ready yet, but we still picked quite a few (as in 21 pounds).

It's a good thing daddy came along, otherwise we couldn't have reached the good ones!


Ben kept cool in the shade.


Jefferson was just a sweaty mess, but he didn't seem to mind, apple picking got him out of his afternoon nap. He was super cute saying, "apple picking, whaaaaaat?!"


When we got home with all our apples, we went right to work to make our first ever apple sauce. I peeled the apples while Hannah and Ben sliced and diced with butter knives.


It was delicious, hope you get out and enjoy the season! Next up, my favorite: pumpkin picking!

Three to School

Thursday was the first day of school for all the kids! Hannah is a school pro going off to 2nd grade, Ben was super excited for Kindergarten (so excited he couldn't sleep the night before), and Jefferson went to preschool with mommy for the first time.


I hope he always looks this happy to be going to school!


Oh, she is so grown up sometimes.


All the kids had a wonderful day at school, and we're still getting the smaller details out little by little. On the homefront...peace and quiet, and I feel sane again!

Fair Day!

We haven't been up to much lately around here. Just hanging back and enjoying the summer. One of the best ways to enjoy the end of summer here is to check out the state fair, which we have not done in a few years. It was Jefferson's first time, and we're pretty sure he loved it!

We saw plenty of all these fun animals.


Jefferson went "fishing" and picked out an adorable purple monkey for his prize.


We tried to see as many free shows as we could. One of them was "Zuma Zuma African Acrobats". Maybe you saw them on America's Got Talent? They were pretty awesome.


Hannah managed to handle herself around the stinkiness long enough to see some pigs. The babies were very cute.


And...Benjamin tried his hand at balloon darts to win himself an Angry Bird. He did pretty well, but daddy had to step in and help out at the end, the Angry Bird wasn't free you know...


We all had a great time, tried some yummy food: shrimp on a stick, corn dogs, grilled corn on the cob, fish lollipops, fudge, a burger on a glazed donut, and ice cream of course. It was such a good day, the kids are already planning their trip back next year!

Donated!

Today Hannah gathered up her courage, contained her excitement, and sat still for the biggest and most special hair cut in her life so far.

Before, someone will surely be lucky to get this hair.


After, she looks great! So grown up, totally ready for 2nd grade!


We are so SO proud of her for doing this, it makes me tear up a little! Hope you are having a great summer, love you all!

Family Vacation 2011

This year's vacation was quite an event. Cousin Val got hitched on Saturday the 9th and Stacey's family was back in Warren for the 4th, so we decided to make a week of it.

Destination 1: Niagara Falls

We started our trip the Saturday before Independence Day with a visit to the Buffalo Zoo. It's not the biggest zoo around, but they have a great variety of animals, a fairly open layout and a bunch of kid-friendly fun.

Jefferson loved the waterfall in the rainforest exhibit. We told him we were seeing a big waterfall that day... not that one.


After checking in to our hotel and dropping off our bags, we crossed the border into Canada. We had dinner at the Rainforest Cafe, then walked down the hill to see Niagara Falls... and a ton of other tourists. Americans and Canadians were a slim minority.

Again, Jefferson enjoyed looking at the waterfall - the right one this time - and Hannah and Ben enjoyed their first international experience. Our decision to cross via the Peace Bridge turned out to be a fantastic one. The Rainbow Bridge was suffering hour long delays.


Destination 2: Warren

The next day we headed down to Warren to see Stacey's extended family. We went to a beach on the Kinzua Dam Reservoir and on the way Jefferson pointed out a few more waterfalls. We tried to coordinate with everyone else, but apparently Verizon hasn't sent the "can you hear me now" guy out there yet.

After a quick bite of pizza, Julie stayed with Jefferson and prepared some food for the next day's picnic; Stacey and I took Ben and Great Grandpa to see Cars 2; and Grandma H took Hannah miniature golfing with Aunt Dottie, Uncle Kevin and the boys. We all met for ice cream afterwards (which Grandma got for free after a hole-in-one on number 18. Hannah and Ben got to stay up late to see the fireworks, too.


Independence Day is a big day in Warren - it's parade day. People set out chairs days in advance to stake out the best spots along the parade route. Grandma H put ours out on Friday... for a Monday parade... and she wasn't the first one to do it.

Anyway, we had a great spot other than the view of the leather-skinned-smoking-drinking-bikini-and-short-shorts-wearing-middle-aged-lady across the street. Other than that, all the usual parade participants were there: color guards, veterans, marching bands, bagpipe bands, boyscout troops, girlscout troops, and best of all, Shriners with Zem Zem cars.

After the parade, Uncle Brian hosted the barbecue and lead us on a hike through the woods.


Destination 3: Erie

We pass by Splash Lagoon every time we visit Pittsburgh, so we decided to stay in Erie this time and check it out. It was great! There was a fun area for Jefferson to play, lots of great tube and body slides, tons of water shooting and dumping gadgets and best of all - no need for sunscreen.

That night, Grandma H watched a movie with the kids so Stacey and I could meet Rob and Elizabeth for a night on the town including a nice dinner, mini golf and ice cream.


The next morning, we headed out to Presque Isle and rented a Surrey Quadracycle. Despite only having 1 gear ratio and 3 people peddling, we made it all the way to the Perry Monument and back within our 1-hour rental period.


After lunch we said good bye and thank-you to Grandma H and took a walk on the beach before heading south.

Destination 4: Pittsburgh

We finally had a few days to relax. Granted, we went to playgrounds and the game preserve, Stacey and I had a night out alone to celebrate our 7th anniversary and Uncle Tim continued his birthday extravaganza; but it was much more laid back then the first half of our vacation.


Then, the big day arrived. Ben served as the ring bearer for Val and Greg's wedding.


Vows were exchanged, pictures were taken, cookies were eaten, legs were shaken and there was much rejoicing. If that wasn't enough, the next day, gifts were unwrapped and more cookies were eaten.


Finally, what would a vacation be without an amusement park. And what better park to go to in Pittsburgh but Kennywood. All three kids bumped up a height restriction group, although Jefferson opted not to take advantage of this and skipped the Jackrabbit. Ben rode the Racer for the first time, Hannah rode the Phantom's Revenge for the first time and Stacey and I rode the Sky Rocket for the first time.

Satisfied with our new experiences, we finished the day with an old tradition - Kennywood fudge!


It was a long and eventful vacation, and the best part was getting to spend time with our friends and family.

Vacation may be over, but summer is just peaking. More fun to come!

Father's Day Gifts

We always want to make sure that daddy knows he is extra special, so we get him really good gifts. This year he got what he wanted and a few suprises.

But I'm totally sure he wasn't expecting a giant paper mache copy of his head. Which made it all the more fun!

He had a great Father's Day with his great kids.

Last day for Ben

The preschool years are over for Ben, I can't believe how quickly they came, and went. He always seems so grown up as it is, now it's even more so.



We enjoyed watching Ben make his own friends, learn about many interesting things, come home with funny library books, and forget his teachers names over and over again. He's moving on now, he's already done with kindergarten transition days and feels at home already there. Love ya Ben!

It's Finally spring!

Well, it's been spring for almost two months now, but last week really felt like it, with the ending of torrential rains and warmer temps.

Ben was finally able to start playing some t-ball, and he's really liking it!

It's so nice to have your dad as the coach. Go number 9!

Mother's Day also happened to be a really nice day, so we headed to Lake Ontario to Fair Haven State Park.

The water was beautiful to see, and we had fun walking around. Leaving was the least fun, especially for Jefferson. I don't think he'd of minded at all if we left without him, but I couldn't leave my baby on Mother's Day!

So, hope your enjoying your spring, next up-planting the garden!

Proud Little Tapper

The time of year has come again when I break out the curling iron, the panty hose, the sparkly eye shadow...but not for me! It was Hannah's dance recital. This year she chose tap over ballet or hip pop, and she is quite the tapper.



Her class danced to "Happy Birthday" to fill in the November month for the calendar themed recital. Apparently Thanksgiving doesn't have any good tap songs. She was very good on stage this year, only occasionally needing to look at the teacher in the front row.

You can always tell the after recital smile, she was very proud of all her hard work this year, and so are we.

Congratulations on a great year of dance Hannah!!!

Catchin Up

I think you all know that we are very busy people. And you can really tell that we're even busier than normal when we haven't posted in a month. But, we've been doing important and exciting things. We'll fill you in up to date.

Stacey celebrated her 29th birthday party at Gram and Pap's with all the food and presents that go along with it. (I really didn't mind not having to make my own birthday cake!) We also celebrated with Aunt Juls at her baby shower. We are SO excited to have a new baby in the family!

As soon as we got back it was activities again. Ben took part in a super hero's class at the Y that I helped with. We took a field trip to the fire station, Ben is tall enough on his own, this only exaggerates it more!

Not too later we (as in Thad and I) went to visit my dad. We made a quick stop at the Kennedy Space Center with Bev and Eric as our guides. We pretended to go the moon on a simulater, ate some "space dots" and called it a day.

It was like a little family reunion. Love ya mom and dad, and Julie too...!

We headed to the river to go on Wild Bill's Air Boat Rides to see some alligators and other wildlife. We sure did.

We ended our trip with a visit to Universal Studios Island of Adventure. We really wanted to check out the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, but apparently so did the other zillion people in the park that day. We rode one coaster, looked around in the candy story, saw the two hour line to go in Hogwarts, and left. We spent more time in the rest of the park while beating the heat, 87 is TOO HOT for us northerners.

We are now home and getting ready for our spring schedule. Hannah has her dance recital coming up, Ben is starting T Ball, with daddy as his team coach, and Spring Break/Easter are on it's way!