First Time Mini-Golfing 6.20.11

So I am still attempting to catch up on the blog, so please excuse the summer posts.  :)  Back in June we were invited to Mikey's birthday party which happened to be at a mini-golf place.  The kids had never been mini-golfing before, so we knew it would be fun for them.  Needless to say, they both had some interesting "technique." 

Cole checking out his ball in the hole

Mia posing

Intense concentration and interesting grip :)

Waiting her turn

Cole excited to get to the next hole

Again, interesting technique

Cole loved this one where the water took the ball down

Playing hard

The birthday boy

Melissa and Mikey

Make a wish!

Fall Pictures

By now most people have received our Christmas cards so I can finally post these pictures.  Each year I swap taking pictures with my girlfriends Kristy and Melissa.  A special thanks to Kristy for taking our pictures once again this year.  I have kept these under wraps since early October, so it is nice to have a chance to finally post these and to update the blog.  

These were taken on a beautiful fall day in downtown Naperville.  I would love to say both kids were super-cooperative, but Cole is still a bit resistant to getting his picture taken and required quite a few bribes.  :)  Either way, I am always happy to have a nice family photo we can look back at in years to come. 

Mia-5 Years Old

Cole-3 Years Old

LOVE these two!

And our card this year...

Cole's School Pictures

This is a little later, but here is my sweet Cole's fall pictures.  Doesn't he look like a little man?

This one cracks me up!  The kids don't look particularly thrilled, but I will tell you that Cole LOVES school and his teachers.  :)

Happy Halloween!!!

Happy Halloween from Jessie and Buzz Lightyear!

Father's Day at Cantigny

Father's Day is a bit of a bittersweet holiday.  It's hard since my dad is not around, but I also feel fortunate to be able to celebrate what a good dad Cort is to our kids, to celebrate my grandpa who is a wonderful father, grandpa, and great-grandpa, as well as Cort's dad who is a great dad and grandpa.  This year we headed to Cantigny to celebrate.  They had an art show going on as well as all the typical neat things to see there-the beautiful gardens, the tanks, and the museum.  Here are some pictures from the day. 

Mia participating in an art project

Cole checking out a fountain

Noah on one of the tanks

Mia's turn

Cousins!

Cole and Dad

Papa B. and Cole checking out a tank

Mia giving her best "Miss America" wave

Claire

The cousins again

Brushing up on some history

We spent a good amount of time in the First Division Museum.  The kids were suprisingly interested in a lot of the artifacts there.

I'm not sure if it was the information that was so interesting or the fact they were holding these unusual things called "phones with cords," but the kids were entranced during this part of the museum.

And a beautiful flower to end the post!

Fishing with Great-Grandpa

This past June Mia and Noah had their 2nd annual fishing trip with Papa B.  How amazing is it that they have an opportunity to spend such quality time with their Great-Grandpa!  The dads (Cort and Mike) went along as well.  The kids had a great time fishing and Mia even caught a blue gill.  I have fond memories of fishing with both my dad and grandpa growing up and I am happy that my kids will have the same.  :)

So proud!

Mia and Papa B.

Hello, Hello? Anyone Still Out There?

So I have fallen off the face of the Earth with my blogging.  I really have no excuse other than life is busy!  I've pretty much been absent all summer and some time before that, but I am hoping to do some catch-up. The thing I love about a blog is being able to look back at things we did, watching the kids grow, and having those memories.  I need to get back on track with that!  So I am slowly going to do some catch up and highlight some of the fun things that have been going on in our lives over the past 6 months or so.  So start checking back in because over the next couple of weeks there should be lots of updates, starting with the ones below...

Mia's Dance Recital

Like I mentioned previously, Mia had been taking dance for around 10 months and finally had a chance to showcase her hard work at her recital. Mia's class danced tap to a song called "Wake Up." The performance was at the local high school on the auditorium stage in the BIG auditorium. I wasn't sure how she would react and I wondered if she would be nervous. Well, if she was, you couldn't tell! She seemed to love being on stage and did a great job with her class. It was definitely a proud mommy moment! When the recital was done she was already asking what song she would be dancing to next year. :) We were not able to take pictures at the actual recital, so the ones of her on stage are from the dress rehearsal. They aren't the best since the lights were so bright, but you can get an idea.  

Mia in the "waiting room" with Pam where all the girls waited until it was their turn to dance 

Mia and Erica 

Sammy and Mia 

Final bow after the show

Venessa had the idea to get the girls flowers that matched their costumes.  The bouquets turned out beautiful! 

So proud of my girl! 

Family pic 

Mia and Daddy 

Cole congratulating Mia 

Congratulations Mia on your first dance recital! We are so proud of you!