First Day of School 2011

I know I say this every year, but I hate it when school starts. We really did have a great summer and the older my kids get the more intense their school work load seems to become. As a result we don't get to have as much "play" time. This was a non transition year, meaning everyone was at the same school and in the same routine as last year. 8th, 6th and 4th grade. It was a good first day for everyone, except me. It was too quiet and a bit lonely. I'm counting down the days until the first break.

Dayton turns "10"

Dayton is the happiest kid. He's easy to please, goes with the flow, likes to do just about everything, can play with anybody, and he makes me laugh on a regular basis. He wanted a Ferb cake this year and I was successful in honoring that request. Unfortunatley his birthday also fell on the first day of school but he faced it like a trooper. I offered to let him skip school and do something fun but he didn't want to miss the first day. He started collecting quarters over the summer with the candy shop money and had quite the collection. The girls got him a state quarter map so he could put his collection in a cool spot. He needed new roller blades and really wanted a remote control car. His facial expressions pretty much sum up how he felt about his day. Happy Birthday, Dayton! You are one amazing kid and I am so honored to be your mom.

Butterfly Garden

We visited a Butterfly Garden and it was so cool to see the butterflies come down and land on the cue tips soaked in sugar water. Alexa was our butterfly magnet. She caught more than anyone. She was willing to share and made her siblings and cousins very happy.

Abigail of Stonington

My mom read the kids stories from these huge books she got from a friend. This particular story was about a dog and after she read the story, grandma told her grand kids about Abby. My kids were the only ones to see Abby and don't really remember her very well. Abby was our dog growing up. We got her when I was 12 years old and we had to sign a contract stating we'd be willing to give up our allowance to have and take care of a dog. She had one litter of puppies and we all named at least one of them before they were sold to other families. I can't remember what I named mine, to the great disappointment of my children. Grandma showed the kids the picture of Abby and her puppies and then showed them where she is buried in the yard out back. Abby lived I was 27. She was a great dog and we all loved her. She was mom's 6th kid and she knew it. Abby would go for rides in the car with my mom and when one of us would come too, we'd have to make her sit in the back, which she didn't like, or let her sit on our lap because that was where she rode. We loved Abby. It was so fun to see how enthralled the kids were to listed to a story told by grandma. Loved it!

Cousins

The Dayton family reunion was held at my parents house in North Canton, Ohio this year. There were 25 of us and it was a blast. We were packed into the house but I think a good time was had by all. My kids loved getting to spend time with their cousins. As the oldest 3 grand children it made for a lot of younger kid time which they thoroughly enjoyed. All the kids slept on the floor in the living room, which was the game room when my brothers and I were younger. We didn't have any furniture in that room for several years and many a monopoly game was played on that floor. Nathan and I were on an air mattress in the fruit/furnace room. The most quiet and cool room in the house. We ate yummy food, experienced some fun, new places and wished for more time to be together.

Clay's Park

We spent most of a morning and afternoon at Clay's Park. It's a man-made lake with a zip-line, canoes, kayaks, huge inflatables, sand and a slide. It was a beautiful day and there was something for everyone. I tried out the zip line with my niece, Ally and lifted my feet up a bit early. The result was large chunks of my skin missing from the tops of my feet. Needless to say, after that experience I decided to watch from the beach. The kids loved the inflatables, some liked the zip line, they had a hard time paddling the canoes but gave it a good effort. Unfortunately, we had to leave due to a pretty serious thunderstorm. But this was definitely one of the highlights of the reunion.

Running with Matt

My brother, Matt, is training to run the St. George Marathon on October 1. As part of that training, he needs to log some long runs. I had started running a few months before the reunion and was able to complete 7 miles, which was half of the distance he was planning to run on Saturday morning. I figured I could go with him and then someone could come and pick me up when I was done. We left at 5:20am and ran from my parents house to the Hartville Chocolate Factory and then over to Lake High school and home. 14 miles. 2 hours and 30 minutes. I ran the whole way, minus a few hills and a bathroom break at the high school. I can't even begin to express how good it felt to do something that seemed so unattainable. Matt did most of the talking. He ran at my speed, which is way slower than his. He's a good 7-8 inches taller than me. I came home looking like I'd jumped into a swimming pool fully clothed and then walked in the door, I'm a sweater. But I did it! Our running didn't end there. We ran another morning and did 7 miles and the morning before he left we ran the steps at the McKinley monument. 12 times up and down plus a run up the grass next to the steps. I don't think I walked down stairs normally for at least a week. Best of all for me was being able to spend that time with my brother. It was completely comfortable. I didn't feel like I needed to meet some expectation he had set for me. I knew he and I both were just doing it for the experience and I hope to have the experience again. I'm not sure how long I will keep up this running but it may be motivating to try for a marathon just to run it with Matt. As a side note, it would have been fun to run with more of my family members. Maybe next reunion more of them will be willing and able.

The Dayton Family

We had some family pictures taken during the family reunion. All in front of my parents house in North Canton, Ohio. Quite a good looking bunch of people, if I do say so myself.

The whole Dayton clan. "D"

Bekah, Jonny, Matt, Elizabeth and Miriam

Josh, Jake, Ally, Analise, Natalie, and Megan

Jamie, Jordan and Hazel

Lindsey, Gavin, Taylor, and Jake