Camping/Canoeing Trip

For Labor Day weekend and our 8-year anniversary (yes, how romantic), we decided to go camoing at Morgan Livery in Monroe. We set up camp on Thursday night and then when we woke up on Friday, we went canoeing down the Little Miami River. It was K's first canoe trip and she handled it very well. She sat in the bottom of the canoe and then would go from side to side putting her hands in the water. C had a blast up in the front with his paddle. He would ask "Daddy, can I put my paddle in the water now?" We canoed for a couple hours and the kids were pretty beat after that. We sat around and did "camping stuff" like smores, foil dinners and skipping rocks. We woke up Saturday morning and packed up camp and came home. It was a great time and we would definitely recommend this place to anyone.
Camping Pictures

Other than that, we have been plugging along. (work, school, primary, Young Men's, etc...) Everyone is doing well and trying to enjoy the nice weather before the cold weather comes.

Can You Believe K's 2 Years Old?

Whether or not you believe it, it is true. Our little K turned 2-years old today. It seems like just yesterday we brought her home from the hospital, 4 lbs 7 oz. Not even as big as a bag of sugar. Now she is 2. Daddy's taking this one hard. His baby girl is growing up.

Thanks to the Glass side of the family, K is quickly becoming a "Princess Fanatic." We just had our little family birthday party. We had one of K's favorite dinners, Broccoli and Pasta with cheese and walnuts. Then we sat and opened all of her presents. She got plenty, and they all were some sort of princess stuff (from princess dolls to princess clothes to dress up clothes, and yes, princess panties (Thank you Grandma Glass)). After opening all of the presents and playing for a bit, we got to dig into some of Mommy's famous (thanks to Meredup) peanut butter pie. After loading the kids up with sugar, we quickly ran them upstairs and put them to bed. How mean is that? Oh well. Enjoy some of the pictures.

K's Birthday Pictures

Okay, We Are Back From The Beach

Sorry it took so long to get these downloaded. We have just been busy and haven't had the time. We had an absolute blast at the beach. I think the motto of the week was "Do a whole lot nothing, and eat a whole lot of everything." We were able to spend every day out at the beach. It rained one night, but that was while we were all inside asleep. We would go down to the beach for a couple hours in the morning before it go too hot, come back to the beachhouse (about 200 yds from the beach) and have lunch, nap or swim (your choice), dinner (together with everyone and each couple got one free night of Grandma babysitting so they could go on a date), and then relaxing or hot tubbing for the rest of the night. It is always so good for the kids to be able to spend time with family since we are not real close in proximity to any of them.

We drove down to VA on Sat and stopped at Grandma Glass' house for the night. Sun morning we woke up and went to church at the ward where Drew was baptized and were able to see some old friends. What a treat it was to be able to see the family that introduced Drew to the Gospel and all the other people that were still there. After church, we headed down to the beachhouse and got there about 3:00ish. We then spent the week "doing a whole lot of nothing, and eating a whole lot of everything." We left after dinner on Friday night and headed back up to VA to spend the next 2 nights with Granddad and Nonnie. It was so good to get to spend the day with them. C helped Granddad wash Nonnie's car and then just hung out for a while. Everyone (Zach - Stepbrother, Terra-stepsister, and Geoff-stepbrother-in-law) all came over for dinner and to hang out. We love all of them and they are so good with the kids. We are just waiting for Terra and Geoff to have some kids of their own (hint, hint). We got up Sun morning and hit the road for the long 8.5 hour journey home.

The last 2 pictures are proof as to how much fun the kids had on vacation. They were just worn out from playing non-stop for over a week. Thank you to everyone. We love all of ya. Enjoy the pics.

Beach Pictures

Off to the Beach!!

Is it bad when every one of your 3-year old son's prayers involve some sort of reference to the beach? During his quiet time today, he was "caught red-handed" packing his clothes to go to the beach. We leave on Saturday morning, and that couldn't be soon enough. He even made up a beautiful tune about the beach. It went something like "Beach, Beach, Beachie, Beach. I love the Beach. I love, love, love the Beachie Beach." He even called Grandma Glass and sang it for her. We can't wait for a week of doing absolutely nothing. Exercise will consist of the 200 yd walk to the beach from the house, the walk down the stairs to the pool in the backyard, maybe a stroll to the clubhouse, and possibly a walk down the beach to Chincoteague to see the wild horses. Sounds lovely doesn't it?? Oh, it is!!!!! We will let you know how it goes.

Here is a picture of C from the Primary Activity Day that our Ward had (Jana is the Primary Pres, so they had to go). All of the kids dressed as pioneers and had their pictures taken. Not too shabby for a boy who HATES to get his picture taken now (new phase).

Boy Scout Camp

http://share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=0AZtnDhs2atmL1w

Here are some pictures from Boy Scout Troop 180's camp week at Camp Friedlander in Loveland, OH. Everyone had a blast and a special thanks to Barry Croker for getting everything planned. We are proud of our boys and it was a blessing to all of the leaders to be able to spend parts of the week with them. (* Parents- You should be proud too.)

More Pics from trip to VA

http://share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=0AZtnDhs2atmLzo

Here are some more pictures from our 4th of July/Drew's Birthday/Tracie's Birthday trip to VA. We had an amazing time and can't wait to see family again NEXT WEEK at the beach.

Where has Summer Gone?

Another month has come and gone. It seems like summer just started, when in reality it is just ending. What happened to the days when summer lasted half of the year? I guess that's what I get for grwoing up in the south. We have had an eventful summer. Between visiting family in Texas, visiting family in Virginia, trips to the museum and the MetroParks, I think we have had a lot of outside time. Yet, we still have one more big trip left this summer and it involves us spending a lot of time outside. Our annual trip to the Outer Banks in NC is coming up and I can hardly wait. The kids ask me everyday, "How man days until the beach?" You'd think they were just a little excited about the prospect of a week of nothing but sun and sand. What can I say, they get it from their mama.

I love summer. I love the sun. I love sitting outside in the grass. I love grilled food. I love a hot car. I love flip flop tans on the top of your feet. I love the smell of freshly cut grass. I love the extra daylight. I love the smell of sunscreen on my kids faces. I love the squeals of kids when the ice cream truck comes running up the street. I love getting into a pool that has been warmed by the sun. I love fresh vegetables. I just love summer.