A Day at the pumpkin patch and my Aunt's=0)

The whole gang of kids=o) Three of my aunt's kids go to Faith school, and they had a PD day. And it was Ethan's off school days, so he got to come along again. He came last year too and we had a blast!
I felt a little guilty because this was the second year that I took Ethan but not Seth. But it was because my aunt's kids had a PD day last year too and Ethan wasn't in school yet. On the plus side, Seth had a field trip that day at school and had his friend over to play after school for a few hours. So he still had his own fun. But he nicely reminded me that it wasn't really fair and that he'd never been to the pumpkin patch before and Ethan's gone 2 times. When I reminded him of the fun he had that day/evening, he said, "Okay, it's just a little bit fair".
Two of my aunt's in on the picture too
Ethan's attempt at taking a picture of the adult gals=o) Unfortunately my head is a bit chopped off, but this was the best out of 2 that he took.
Making his own mini pizzas.
Chilling out in the kid's lazy boy chair;o)
Decorating cookies. Spreading on the icing...
Tasting the icing to make sure it's okay...
Enjoying the taste
The finishing product. Good job Effie!
All the kids showing off their mini pizzas
In the car before dropping him off.
He has so many different facial expressions, he cracks me up!
A final one when I dropped him back off at home. Ethan wanted to go to ABCD's(aka McDonald's) for supper, but on the way, he decided on Wendy's instead. So it was a fun filled full day with Ethan. So great to spend some one on one time with him! I remember before Ethan was born or old enough to come along, Seth and I used to do many one on one dates. Soon enough it will be Chloe's turn while both boys are in school full time=o)
Here are the pumpkins Ethan chose=o)

Happy First Birthday Sweet Chloe=O)

Today was Chloe's first birthday. Wow, has time ever flown by! I was looking thru some of the first pictures of her from the hospital and then at my parents when she was just 3 days old. What a fun and exciting time it was=o) We were so excited to have a little niece/granddaughter in the family! I can't believe how much Chloe has grown. She is such a tall little girl, but very lean. She makes me smile every time I see her. She is such a sweet, happy, fun loving girl=0)
The above picture is the evening of when she was born.
Her first trip out of the house to Papa and Grama's
Look at those chunky cheeks! You could just eat them rite up!
She was so alert rite from the start.
Her first bath at the hospital=o) I remember being there pretty much for the whole visiting hours time;o) I just held her, and then went next door to visit my friend Mel V. who just had a baby shortly before Chloe was born. So a big happy birthday to Brie today too=0)
This was at Seth and Ethan's swimming lessons. She knew once I got there, that I would take her out of her stroller. If I sat down for a few minutes without taking her out, she was lean towards me, put her arms out and try to get my attention.
Waving while at the beach up North at Little Europe.
She absolutely LOVES Squeakers=0) And Squeaks is so amazing with kids! He lets them pull and poke and hit and yank on his and he just sits there or looks at them and gives them kisses.
Little friends=0)

Auntie Sue and Chloe
This outside box/container that my parent's store the outside chair cushions in was the perfect playpen for Chloe;o) And we let Squeakers join her too. They had fun for a bit, but then it got a little too crowded for their liking.
Happy at supper time after a full, fun day of beautiful weather and time at the beach playing and swimming.
And I just had to add this picture of her hair. Look at her curls=0) I LOVE them! She takes after me with curly hair;o)
Out for supper in the park in Bracebridge. Every year we all go to this park and have either Bill's pizza or KFC. It is such great fun and we all love it!
Again, Happy Birthday to my sweet niece Chloe! I love you very much! It's been a fun year watching you grow up and learn new things=o) Your first smile, your first laugh, your first tooth, your first haircut, when you first could sit up on your own, when you crawled and stood up for the first time, when you finally learned how to clap your hands, when you learned how to play peek-a-boo. The whole family has rejoiced along with your mommy and daddy and brothers over all the new things you do!
I pray for the Lord's blessing on your life and that you will grow up to love and serve Him!
I also look forward to having tea parties;o)

My Birthday, in July-a bit late;o)

These pictures are not in order, sorry.
My day started off with a fabulous video from my friend Megan's kids singing happy birthday to me=o) It was awesome! Totally started my day off great!
Next, I went bowling with Susie, Seth and Ethan. The boys had a great time! And I had a blast watching them. We also went to the gospel lighthouse first so I could find something for my dear friend as a going away present.
After bowling, I went to meet my dear friend Sue K for coffee and a final visit before her and her family moved to British Columbia. Her husband, our previous Pastor, received a call from BC and so off they went. I miss Sue dearly! She has been such a blessing in my life and I can't say I enjoy the huge distance between us, but God has been there for me and so I can continue on. Thankfully I can and will still remain friends with Sue=0)
When I left my visit with Sue, I headed off to my aunt and uncle's place for a BBQ. Apparently it was a party for me. I received gift cards for groceries, which were wonderful! Thanks again for hosting(Ron and Cathy) and throwing, organizing(Jenny) a party for me=o) I love being so close with my family!

Waiting to see if he hit any pins
Sue K and myself
Ethan waiting to see if he knocked any down=o)
Friday nite, I had a party with my family. It was supposed to be at my house for supper and a movie. We ended up at my parents place due to me having a nice fire at my place due to my stupidity. I had bought 4 pizza's from Little Caesars for $5 each. I ended up putting them in the oven to keep warm. I made 3 huge blunders! First, I left the pizza's in the box. Secondly, I turned the oven on to 350. Thirdly, piled the boxes on top of each other and the top one was touching the top broiler. My parents came in, my Pop gave me a hug, and then told me he smelled something burning. Once he was done hugging me, I saw smoke coming from the one burner. I opened the oven to find a nice fire going on. My Pop told me we had to get it out. I told him I had a fire extinguisher, so he asked where(rite above his head), and put it out. Once it was out, we were just about to take it out when it started on fire again. So Pop extinguished it again, and it finally stopped. Meanwhile, my house was filling up horrible with smoke! My eyes and throat were burning. So were Pop's. My kitchen was a mess from the extinguisher stuff! My smoke detector went off and because it is electrical, it wouldn't turn off for a LONG time! We opened windows, had to throw out all the pizza's due to the extinguisher stuff, and I ended up crying, feeling like a not so smart person. Due to all the smoke and the smell, we decided it was best to go to my parent's place so that the 3 little kids didn't suffer any.
We ended up having a great time there. My brother ordered and picked up some new pizza's from Pizza Hut. I was still a bit down in the dumps, feeling sorry for myself. After a bit, I sucked it up and had a good time! Thanks again Ma and Pop for having it at your place=o)
The boys with their popsicles after supper.


My beautiful cake made by my dear sister Jennifer! Thanks Jennifer=o) It looked and tasted fabulous.
Seth being silly
My beautiful flowers from a gal at work. She brought them to work for me and made me supper on the Thursday nite. We work together every other Thursday. I felt very special!
My other beautiful flowers from my Ma and Pop=o) I've never really been a flower kind of person, but I think it's because I figured I never would get any. When I do get them, I feel so special and loved!
Jamie and Chloe=0)

My friend's handsome little men

My friend Penny is awesome! We can sometimes go without talking or seeing each other for months, or a year. But as soon as we reconnect, it's like we've never stopped talking. I love that about some friendships. She has 3 older kids from her first marriage. They are awesome! And I was first introduced to them about 8 years ago now, so they were much younger. It's been fun watching them grow up. Her oldest is 16 and driving now. It makes me feel super old!
Now she has 2 more kids with her 2nd husband. I remember the morning of my brother's wedding, I got a text at 5am telling me she was on her way to the hospital. But she didn't end up having Danny til the next morning. Here is Danny=o) He tends to be kind of shy around me, but the more I visit there, he is really starting to warm up to me! It does me a world of good to know I haven't lost my 'special' touch with kids;o)

Love his dimples!
He loves his baby brother, Roger

Here is Roger. He is a smiley little guy. He is only 2 months old and already weighs just over 14 pounds. He's a chunky monkey, but oh so sweet and squishy=0)




Just look at that double chin, eh? And his gorgeous eyes!