Thanksgiving and yesterday...

Finally getting around to post a picture or two from Thanksgiving...we drove a little under 2 hours south and were in Newburg, MD with Brad and his wife, Stefanie.  The weather was amazing as was the food.  Stefanie sure outdoes herself in the kitchen!  Too bad I didn't get any pictures of the spread she made...

The boys enjoyed some soccer

Well, most of the time anyway...

Levi decided to play his own game...into the street, so we found a better way for him to play.  He didn't mind, as he's a sucker for a piggy back!

Thanks Brad and Stef for hosting again...does this mean I'm signed up to host next year?? Gulp.


On another note...it's been not so warm lately, but the boys are really enjoying a new gift from the "Other Coopers" at our church.  It was a cold day when we set it up, but they spent almost 2 hours out there in their new "fort" and were sad to come back in.

A busy day in October!

Today was a beautiful morning.  Crisp air, a light breeze, the sun was shining.  A perfect morning to be outside with the boys.  We went to both playgrounds in our neighborhood...which involved driving the "pirate ship", looking out for dolphins and whales, swinging on the swings on tummies like airplanes (thankfully there are two swings), and playing fireman on the pole.  Then we came home to climb a tree in our front yard.  Jacob did his own climbing.  Levi got a boost!

Next up was a trip to Homestead Farm with Jacob's preschool.  Poor Levi stayed home 1) because it was naptime.  2) because it was a special time for just Jacob and me together.  We had a great time--but it was REALLY windy.

Many of the pumpkins were rotting, and Jacob's sneaker made that discovery almost as soon as we stepped off the hayride!  SPLAT right on top of a nasty pumpkin.  We also had two tripping incidents, which made me very thankful that Levi wasn't there--since he is a little lacking in the coordination department...

After this incident, Jacob asked if he could rub his hands on my pants...um, NO!

And, yes, I know that the last two pictures were almost identical...except that Jacob has an inquisitive look on his face in the first one and a wonderful little smile in the second one.  Maybe only a mom would care, but, it is MY blog!

Here's my little pumpkin...I can't believe you are already four.  I cherish the time we have together.

First Day of 4 year old class!

My boys are growing up SO fast and Dave and I love them so much.  Jacob is strikingly handsome with clear blue eyes and eyelashes that reach to the sky!  (I almost said "reached to heaven" because we read the Tower of Babel story from his Bible at night time and now he is obsessed with trying to build a tower to Heaven...hmmmm, maybe we need to revisit that story??)

Our Levi has the sweetest cheeks and the most adorable brown puppy-dog eyes.  He sure does miss Jacob when we drop him off for preschool!  The first week he didn't take any naps, just asked "Where's Jacob?".  Truly a sweetheart! 

We feel so blessed by these two wonderful boys that love each other so much!

Way too long!

It's been WAY too long since I wrote on my blog.  Pathetically long.  I told myself I wasn't going to be "one of those people" that creates a blog and never adds to it.  Well, what can I say, that's me!!!!

Our family just go back for our first real vacation together....we joined the Yodis and Gummelt families in Corolla, North Carolina last week and had a great time! 

We had some rough surf, a great thunder and lightning storm, awesome kite flying and some sand castle making (and destroying, thanks to Levi:)!  It was great to see old friends and kick their butts in some card games (hey, it's my blog, I can lie if I want to...)

The kids had a great time together--especially when it involved fruit snacks and/or popsicles

We had some ugly weather one day of the trip and our fam went to the Currituck Lighthouse.  The view was amazing, even with the heavy fog, thick humidity and the mosquitoes that love me no matter where I am!

Jacob thrived on the girls (and fruit snacks)...and Levi was happy to join in too :)

I just love seeing Jacob and Levi together, and how much they love each other!

Now for a good laugh--this was our attempt at getting 6 kids under 4 1/2 to look at the same place at the same time...

Last, but not least, this is one of my favorite pictures that I got (even though the lens was fogging up).  Great smile, Pete and Mark!

A great Wedding--Bron and Liz

Part of our weekend included going to the wedding of a great friend of ours from Penn State.  We've prayed for Bron to find a wife, a great wife...and we're happy to say that God answers prayers!  Dave and I have never met Liz before the big day, but we repeatedly hear what a selfless sweetheart she is, committed to God and I'm pretty sure the only person that can make Bron smile ear-to-ear!

Saturday night we went to the- Landis Valley Museum to witness the nuptials AND dance the night away-something we haven't done in years!  (I definitely felt a bit rusty!)

One of the first things I saw when we arrived was a beautiful backdrop for a wedding, second was a beautiful way to start a marriage....

Here are the expectant men all in a row...

The big moment....here comes the beautiful Bride!

The long awaited kiss...and Bron did not let the crowd down.
(Yes..I know that the picture is horribly blurry--pretend I intended that (the only reason I'm posting it is because I do actually think it's a really cool picture.)

Announcing Mr. and Mrs. Bron Irwin!



Bron gave a wonderful toast to his new bride....

We were honored to be part of your wedding day and had a great time catching up with the PSU crowd! 

And for anyone that knows Micah...

Bron and Liz, thank you for including us in your wedding day.  We are so happy for your both.  God bless your marriage.  Bron, it's so great to see you smiling--ear-to-ear!

Happy Anniversary to US!

This past weekend Dave and I got to go away--just the two of us!  We haven't done that since Jacob was born--and, yes, that was almost 4 years ago!  We stayed at a B&B in Lancaster called The Hurst House. 

Here is the beautiful view from our room--with it's own private balcony.

Saturday started off with a tour of lots of different shops and stores.  Our first stop was quite interesting--we stopped at an Amish furniture store and ran into a couple we knew from FBC back in Doylestown.  Next we ended up in Kitchen Kettle Village--a great outdoor "mall" with live music and tons of interesting places to visit.  On our way back to the B&B we stopped along the road to get some pictures.  I have always loved old barns, covered bridges and sheep--must be the Bucks County in me!

Today, Tuesday, is our actual anniversary.  This afternoon I was on the phone when I heard the doorbell ring.  I was very excited--maybe the UPS man was here to bring me a present--I love presents, but usually the only surprises I get are the case of Pampers that I signed up to automatically receive from Amazon.  When I opened the door there was no one there--but there was a surprise!  This beautiful vase of flowers--a dozen roses only part of the colorful display!  Dave parked around the corner and was hiding next to the front porch; he's always been good at surprises!  Here's to 8 years together and countless more to go!  I love you.

A big that you to Me-mom and Pe-pop Buzby for staying with the boys this weekend.  My parents took vacation days from work and sacrificed their time so that we could go away.  Thank you mom and dad!  P.S.  I hope you are recovering ;)