Our family and the big tree

Here we are. all together, after our visit with Santa. The tree looked a lot bigger, brighter and prettier in person. Dontcha love Q's reindeer antlers (or "anklers" as she refers to them). I think they really make the shot!

A Visit With Santa

On Saturday (12/13), we visited the Connor Cousins (Andee, Mina and Will) and Uncle Curt and Aunt Mary in Canandaigua. We went out to lunch, visited with Santa and gave him our wish lists, hung out at their house and went sledding on their back hill! It was a lot of fun and here are some pictures.

Quinlan's Birthday - Part 3

We celebrated Quinlan's and Will's birthdays today with a picnic-fare lunch, dessert and of course, presents. It was fun end to all the birthday celebrations.

Happy Halloween!!

Happy Halloween from the Lady Bug (thank you, Aunt Susie), the glittery butterfly and Buzz Lightyear ("to infinity and beyond!").

At 4:00pm on Friday we decided that the pumpkins still needed to be carved. So we did it! It is a lot easier with those great pumpkin carving knives but the guts still make me gag! I filled a big bowl with them and gave them to Josh and Dana (who live across the street). Dana roasted the seeds which were pretty tasty!

Reilly decided that she, too, needed to march in the Halloween Parade at school. She couldn't wait to be a ladybug and when I told her that it was only for the big kids she cried until I put her in line with Quinlan. It was a cool but sunny day. So she marched with Quinlan until it was time for Quinlan to go back inside and then she found Max and marched with him. Max's classmates thought our little Ladybug was the cutest thing!! And it probably was against the rules for her to be in there but whatever. She didn't hurt anyone and she was very happy to be included. Plus, she is cute and that doesn't hurt either!

Here are Quinlan (the pink Butterfly) and her friend, Finn (the astronaut) with the rest of the a.m. kindergarteners leading the parade.

We had fun this Halloween. It was hard to tell which neighborhood kid was which and they were all in such a rush to get to every house. It was a beautiful evening and when everyone got home (and after Mommy went through the bags to get her favorites) it was brushing teeth and off to bed for three very tired kids.

(L to R): Quinlan, Ryan Wade (Harry Potter), Ryan Springer (Ballerina), Connelly Springer (Football Player), Max and Megan Wade (witch).

Quinlan's birthday - Part 2

Here are some pictures from Quinlan's birthday party. We had a whole bunch of kids enjoying hotdogs, pasta and cake. Her theme was "My Little Pony" and she got a few of those. I made the cake (which didn't turn out exactly as I would have liked) but a good time was had by all and Quinlan got some nice gifts.

Quinlan's birthday - she's 6! (Part 1)

We celebrated Quinlan's "real" birthday with spaghetti and meatballs and cupcakes. She had a great day at school and at dance class. A party with her friends (who all just happen to live in our neighborhood - how convenient!) is scheduled for this Saturday. Then there will be another party with her cousin Will Connor (who's birthday is 10/30) in November. Sounds like she's got this party-thing down to a science. And too many parties are never a bad thing!

Just a little nostalgia - here she is on one of the first days she was home from the hospital. I didn't have a digital camera then so this one isn't dated, but isn't she sweet?! I can't believe it has been 6 years since she was born. It is hard to remember her that small but she's still a little doll.

A Party at Aunt Trisha's

We went to Aunt Trisha and Uncle Dick's house on Panther Lake for a party on Saturday. It was a beautiful drive up north (if you can believe we can get any farther north in this state!). The sun was shining and the trees were full of color. After we got there, Uncle Dick took Chris, Max, Quinlan and Reilly for a ride in his little boat. They were looking for his "big" boat, but it is parked for the winter. Then we had lunch and a party for Quinlan's birthday (just a little early). We had cookie cake and Quinlan opened her gifts. There were a lot of nice things. Then the kids watched a movie, Chris and Poppy napped and I tried to catch up with Mima, Betsy, Aunt Kath (up from sunny NC -why? I have no idea) and Aunt Trisha. It was fun!

Aunt Kath took this picture of Reilly and the one of Quinlan (below).