Kelly Visits

My sister in-law Kelly and her girlfriend Penny flew out from San Francisco to shop and visit us for a couple days this past weekend. It was a gorgeous day on Sunday, so we drove into Manhattan and enjoyed all the chaos of Soho...which included a hole in the wall Chinese Restaurant in Chinatown (delicious) some pinkberry and Cy attempting to join in a street band with Mike's old harmonica.

Happy Birthday Jenn

Last night "the ladies" went out to dinner at the Cheesecake Factory in honor of my good friend Jenn, who was celebrating her birthday. After a long day of testing at my Doctor's office and getting a flat tire from running over a screw the size of my finger, it felt better than ever to get out of the house and talk with friends. Happy Birthday Jenn, I love you!

Labor Day

For Labor Day we met with a few friends at our local beach for a day of fun in the sun.

Nature Hike

Madi and I decided to attend a little tour of our local Marshland Conservancy nature walk, which is only about a mile from our house. This place is just beautiful and has free informational nature programs a couple times a month...I highly recommend the locals check this place out. It makes for a great Sunday family activity. We learned about different insects, trees, flowers and other plants. Here are a few pictures Madison took.

Finding the Force

I'm not sure what Cy was dreaming about, or how he got into this position, but a few hours after putting him down for bed this is what I walked in to.

First Day of 8th Grade

I can't believe I am the mother of an 8th grader. I refuse to believe I am that old. I warned her that this was the worst year of my school career and to brace herself for the worst...hopefully the girls at our little school will be a little less harsh than most 8th graders. ahhhhhhh Regardless, Madi looked gorgeous on her first day of school and I'm sure will have a great year.

Summer Parties

As the last few days of summer break creeped up on us, a friend invited us over to her house for a little water party for the kids. Madi helped me make some colorful miniature cupcakes for the event. Cy enjoyed hanging out with his buddies and getting wet.

The grown ups went to a local lake for another wake boarding birthday party

Weekend in NYC

This weekend we stayed the night in the city to enjoy some great weather. We visited a little outdoor fair in Midtown and played around in Central Park at the splash park. At the fair we got some great deals on a Turkish silk rug, handcrafted jewelry, and sunglasses. To top it off, I was serenaded by this man with great lip syncing skills, how I love the adventures and people in New York. You can't help but love the name of his shop.

Knoxville

This past weekend while Madi is partying up with her friend in Maine, Me Cy and Mike flew down to Knoxville. We stayed with his brother and sister in law (Neil and Anne) and their conveniently aged daughter Luella, who's just a bit older than Cy. Luella is what some might call (that would be me) a genius. She is not even two, but can speak and share her feelings and her summary of the day in full sentences, not to mention a little Spanish too.

It took Cy a couple of days to figure out how to cooperate and play with her rather than play around her, but he eventually warmed up to the idea. They got along so well, and luckily Mike was able to capture this in a video. I have to apologize for how stupid I look in it though, if you didn't understand the thrill of seeing Cy being affectionate you'd think he landed on the moon. Note to self: stay out of the picture.

We took a trip into downtown Knoxville so I could do some work at the Farmer's Market. While Mike was watching Cy, they came across this St. Bernard(ish) Dog. Cy, who typically loves animals felt a little intimidated as you can see in this three part reaction shot. Cy wasn't too thrilled when the dog managed to slobber on his cheek and shoulder...ick!

Cy and LuLu

Luella joining Cy in a sympathy scream
Me and Anne

Look Closely.....see anything in the tree?

No worries, just a little Smoky Mountain Bear. As a result I was a little on edge during our leisurely hike!

Sharing With His Pal

Last week some girlfriends and I met up at a gorgeous lake in NY with our kids. As my friend Jenn and I were feeding out little guys, we looked over and noticed Cy feeding Cal his edamame treats. This is what a Mother likes to see!

Serious Personality

Cy certainly isn't in need of a sense of humor. This kid is showing so much personality lately.

Horse Riding

While Mike, Cy and I were in Kansas, Madi stayed in Utah to attend a horse riding camp with her cousin Sophia.  They were lucky enough to get personal training and have loved sharing this experience together.

Football Talk

While visiting Mike's hometown in Kansas, we drove by the high school football field and Mike proceeded to tell me and Cy in a very macho voice "That's where I used to play football".  Cy thought it was the coolest thing to say and tried and repeat what Mike said over and over.  I got the tail end of this macho mimic.

Manhattan, KS

Mike, Cy and I topped off our summer break in Manhattan (Kansas) visiting his parents and attend Mike's 20 year reunion. Madi wanted to attend a horse riding camp with her cousin Sophia, so she stayed behind. We had a great time hanging around Aggieville, found an awesome shop where you choose your own prints on American Apparel t-shirts, and hiked the Konza Prairie.