Apple and Raspberry Picking at Tougas!

Jeff decided to take an impromptu vacation day yesterday and what a gorgeous day it was - the weather felt like summer! Evan had his first "early release" day from school so we made the most of it and headed to Tougas Farm to do some apple picking. We were also able to squeak in at the tail end of raspberry season - raspberries are mine and Evan's favorite fruit, so we were in heaven! I think we ate just as many in the orchards as we ended up taking home!!

Visit with Memere, Auntie Elaine and Uncle Bill

We had a nice visit with Auntie Elaine, Uncle Bill and Memere a couple weekends ago. What a beautiful fall day! Auntie pulled out all the stops as usual complete with a "Make Your Own Sundae Bar". I'm not sure who was more excited, Jeff or the kids! We always have such a nice time visiting in Taunton and the kids just love to see Memere. Unfortunately she was a little under the weather that day so I didn't get any pictures of her with the kids. Uncle Bill took us on a boat cruise as the sun was starting to set - what a great day it was!

Sterling Fair

Riding the Carousel!


Jeff racing Evan down the huge slide!

Hiking Mt. Wachusett

We had a nice Labor Day hike up Mt. Wachusett (told you I was almost a month behind on posting!!) This was Sophia's first time hiking on her own. She did great! She started out in the pack, but by about half way up the Mt. she wanted out of the pack and to do it on her own. She did surprisingly well!

Ev's 1st Soccer Game!

I am about a month behind but better late than never! Ev had his first soccer game early September and he is loving it! He actually told us he is disappointed that he only gets to play one soccer game each week. He seems to have some natural ability and is quick as lightning. (maybe he'll follow in his mother's footsteps as a future soccer star!! ha ha - Dad/Grampy stop laughing. :) More like his Auntie Meg or Auntie Kelsey's footsteps!!) Anyways, he is having fun which is what's most important. And Daddy is learning the game right along with him as Coach! Here are a few pics of his first game.

Adding this tidbit in as an afterthought...for those Holdenites like Ca and Ing...do you recognize the Coach (grey shirt on the right) in the first picture?? Leisel Heinold...former WRHS soccer player! Her son was on the opposing team. We also played a team this past weekend coached by none other than Dennis Hazelwood!!! All the former Holden soccer stars coming out of the woodwork to coach their kids...and then there's Jeff who has never played the game before....we're in trouble!! :)

Ev's 1st Day of Kindergarten!

Well, the little man is off to Kindegarten this year. I must say, I don't think I have ever been so proud of him in his life. He did SO great his first day. He had been been very nervous to go to his new school and up until the night before had been telling us that he did NOT want to go to Kindegarten and definitely did not want to ride the bus. Yesterday morning came, and he put on a brave face and seemed ok as we walked up the street to the bus stop. He even seemed a tad bit excited yesterday morning while getting ready. But when the bus came, in typical Evan fashion, he dug in his heels and yelled, "I'M NOT GOING!!" I am really glad Jeff has been hitting the gym again lately because this is where Daddy stepped in, picked Evan up and literally carried him onto the bus and plopped him down in the aisle! Not necessarily the way you want to send your 5 year old off to school for the first time! But it was what needed to be done. We watched him find a seat, sit down, no tears, brave face. It was a long day of waiting to find out the verdict - thumbs up on school, or thumbs down?
Finally 3:30 came and Ginny and I drove to school to pick the kids up. Evan came running with the biggest smile on his face. And no, he wasn't smiling to see me. He was smiling because he LOVED school! Hooray! He proceeded to tell us all about his teacher (who I happened to have for first grade eons ago), how he made 3 new friends, how he loved eating lunch in the cafeteria, and just how much fun in general he had at school. He told us that he "was a little scared at first but now I love Kindegarten and I am not scared to go back!" In fact, he then proceeded to tell me this morning over breakfast that he was glad he wasn't staying home with me and Sophia today because it was boring and school was much more fun! Here are a few pictures of the 1st day (yesterday in striped shirt) and then today (light blue shirt). Today he even posed and smiled for me on the bus so I could get some more bus pictures. (Needless to say him being carried by his father onto the bus yesterday didn't make for a great "1st time on the bus" photo opp!) Hooray Evan! So very proud of you!! :)

Ev's 1st Trip to Fenway Park!

We took Evan to the Futures at Fenway minor league game on Saturday and we had a fantastic day! We came up with an extended version of the popular baseball song..."buy me some peanuts and cracker jacks - and throw in some chicken fingers with fries, and cotton candy, and ice cream in a baseball cap, and a frozen lemondade"! Fortunately for us, not only did they substantially discount the tickets to this event ($10 per seat for seats that were 4 rows up from the 1st baseline - we're talking Red Sox bleacher seat prices in the '90's!) but they also discounted the prices of some of the food too....it was a great, affordable, way to take Ev to Fenway Park! Definately a memorable day for us all!

Sophia Turns Two!!

I feel awful that Sophia's 2nd Birthday was over a week ago and I have yet to post about it! To be fair, her British cousins arrived the day after her Birthday and we have been very busy visiting with them ever since. Sophia had a wonderful Birthday celebration which lasted a few days! We took a trip to the zoo with a couple of her little friends the day before her birthday, and the day of her birthday she had a visit from Nana with bagels for breakfast, a visit with lunch and cupcakes from a couple more friends, and dinner and cake with Mommy, Daddy and Evan. She opened her new kitchen set from us that evening, and the other highlight of the day was opening the musical Princess vanity that arrived from Aunt Linette, Uncle Dave and her cousins Jason and Derrick. Meg and her family arrived from the UK the next day and we had a big family gathering over the weekend with lots more fun, presents and a Princess cake! I would say that Sophia celebrated like a Princess for sure!!!

Mid-Summer Update!

I am not sure where the summer has gone so far! It sure has been a sunny and hot one, which has been great for the kids! We've pretty much spent our whole summer so far at the Holden Pool, every morning for lessons and afternoons at "free swim". Evan took an Arts & Crafts class and tennis lessons the first session and we are now half-way through session two...Evan continued with tennis lessons this session which he seems to love, and is also taking swim lessons. He has been a bit apprehensive in this new swim class, as it takes place in the deep end of the pool, the kids are mostly 6 years old-going into 1st grade, and he is no longer doing the "fun" things like diving for rings and using noodles! After all the swim classes he has taken, it was high time he start learning the actual strokes rather than just playing in the water - I know, mean Mom and Dad!! Anyways, we have spent a good portion of our weekend there practicing swimming in the deep end, and going off the diving board and the slide, so hopefully he will feel more prepared and comfortable for this week's class.

Sophia is getting ready for her 2nd Birthday in less than two weeks! It is hard to believe in some ways that she will be two, but in other ways, she is acting much older! She tries to do everything Evan does and is constantly on the move. She has made it very easy for me to stay in shape this summer, without even having to stick to a set work-out routine!! Her latest antic as most of you have heard is that she learned how to climb out of her crib. For about the last month now, she has been in a toddler bed. It was rough at first, with about a week of crying in her room each nap and bed time, but she quickly learned that she needs to stay in her bed and in her room for sleep-time and we now have peaceful bed routines again! Thank goodness- out of all the parenting issues, I do NOT cope well with sleep issues. Although I was not ready to deal with Sophia's crib climbing at such an early age, I am now actually glad to have that milestone behind us!!

Thankfully both kids are healthy and happy and are enjoying their summer. We had a fantastic "staycation" last week with Daddy and did lots of relaxing at home along with some fun day trips sprinkled in. I will attach a few pictures and videos below. Probably my next post will be after the big Birthday. I am sure we will have lots of pictures of Sophia with her family - especially her British cousins! We are anxiously awaiting the arrival of the Cantillon family in less than two weeks now. They will be visiting for 2 weeks and the kids cannot wait to spend the time playing with their cousins! And Auntie Kim is counting the days until I can finally meet my "not-so-little-anymore" nephew Jack! He is 5 months old and mobile already so I am prepared to be chasing him around the room to get my hugs and snuggles in!!!!