Summer Leftovers

One of the highlights of the summer was the Hoffmans moving to Akron!  They had been living in Arizona, which meant that we only got to see them once a year at our Suite Retreat.  Now we get to see them once a week (at least)!  Micah and Eleanora get along swimmingly and are adorable together.

Micah giving Eleanora a toy back in 2009

Hannah went through a phase where she insisted on wearing her sunglasses all the time.

More of the kids playing outside together.  Micah may be in his pj's.

Micah likes to say, "Mo-om! You're not going to believe what Hannah's doing now!"

We had to start removing all the books from Hannah's room at bedtime and naptime.  She would stay up reading to herself for ages, then fall asleep on her books.

Several times this summer we met Scott at a park after work and had a picnic dinner.  Last night we made it extra special by getting ice cream afterward.

Hannah LOVES to swing.  She would probably swing for at least an hour a day if she could find someone to push her.  She says, "I 'anna 'wing! Up pup pup 'way!"

Miscellaneous

I have a new video to post of Micah, who is now four and a half years old.  But I took it with the actual video camera instead of just the digital camera.  I haven't done that in so long that I've forgotten how to make the file small enough to put on here.  So, maybe you'll get to see that later.

My next plan was to go through my picture files from the summer and see what tidbits I have neglected to post.  But google is not cooperating with me.  I finally managed to get a few pictures uploaded.  Hopefully the problems will work themselves out soon.

Micah and Hannah have gotten in the habit of playing in the backyard together, often while I'm doing dishes or prepping dinner.  They prefer to be barefoot.  There's something so sweet about my little barefoot kids playing together in the dirt.  I just love it!


They are trying to catch a glimpse of the ice cream truck going by.

 

It's like he's comforting her: "There, there.  Mommy will never buy us ice cream from the ice cream truck, but at least she bakes us cookies!"

After a rainy day, we went out to splash in puddles.  I pulled boots out of the basement for Hannah, and she quickly became obsessed with them.  We had to hide her boots to keep her from wearing them to church.

I'm Trying!

I know it's been 2 weeks since I posted!  I'm having trouble getting my pictures and videos to upload, but I'm trying!

Bike Ride

We went for a family bike ride last night.  We rode through Kent to get ice cream, then on a trail until Micah started getting tired.  Family time is great. :)

NH Part 4 - the last one, I promise!

So, if you've been playing along at home, you know that as of Wednesday afternoon Eric, Lucy, Micah and I were at camp in Meredith, NH.  Gramme and Poppa were at their house in Northwood, NH with Natalie and Hannah.  Meredith was at work in Boston.  Scott was at home in Ohio.  Then, Scott took a plane from Akron to Boston.  Meredith picked him up at the airport (during rush hour traffic).  Eric drove all the campers home, and - voila! - ten family members all reuniting in Northwood!  (in a 2-bedroom house...hmm...)
We had a great weekend all together with swimming, boating, eating seafood, and watching Olympics.

Nat and Hannah reading together

because one flotation device is never enough

lunch time!

NH Part 3: Wanakee

Wednesday afternoon, Eric, Lucy, Micah, and I set out for Wanakee - the church camp we attended as kids/teenagers. "You-n-me" camp was three days and two nights. We slept in the rec hall, which is pretty "cushy". It has electricity, running water, and it's the closest building to the dining hall. I wasn't sure if Micah would embrace the experience of camp or return to being shy and clingy. It turned out to be a little bit of both.

 Some of the highlights were: swimming, canoeing, crafts, animals, campfires, and lots of songs and games. (These are the same pictures I posted on facebook.)

waiting for s'mores

s'mores!

Uncle Eric and Lucy making up their own craft

Micah LOVED feeding the bunnies

really, Micah?  good grief.

lunch at Monkey Island

finding blueberries

Lucy and Micah inspecting something in the water

playing "frog detective" with our awesome counselor, Ashley

Ashley with her never-ending-energy leading the kids in an action song

And just for fun - here's a picture from 1989 (I think).  I'm on the far right, and the girl next to me is Trudi.

Here we are, over 20 years later, bringing our kids to camp!  (We also went to camp together in high school.  We found our names together on murals in the art barn.)

NH Part 2: Blueberries!

On Wednesday morning we went blueberry picking.  Hannah suprised us by getting right to work and filling her bucket!  Micah put a few in his bucket, but most of his went in his mouth.  :)

Gramme and I made muffins when we got home.

Eric, Lucy, and Natalie arrived soon after we got home.  They were just in time for a lunch of blueberry muffins and yogurt!

Another mini-series: NH Part 1

In case you were wondering, I give JetBlue (the airline) my seal of approval.  Their tickets were so much cheaper that even with the cost of gas and parking we were still saving enough money to make it worth the drive to the Pittsburgh airport.  They had free TVs with lots of channels on the back of each seat, free snacks and drinks, reasonable leg room, and you get a free checked bag.

Now, on to the trip!  I flew to Boston (via Pittsburgh) with the kids on Monday.  I think everything went well...but it was over a week ago now, so I've kind of forgotten already.  On Tuesday, Gramme and the kids and I made a stop in Dover to visit my former coaches at the gym, then we went to the beach!  It wasn't overly hot or crowded.  The kids played in the water a little bit, but mostly enjoyed the sand.

 I'm sure you're noticing that Hannah is wearing the same 12 month sized bathing suit that she was wearing last year at the beach.  The funny thing is that it's still baggy on her!

Gramme, Hannah, and an overly-friendly stranger