The Last Three Months

Yes, we're still here.  Rather than try to totally catch up on everything, I'll just mention some highlights. 

First of all, Go Tribe!  I'd like to think the reason the Indians are all of a sudden good somehow is because of our arrival to Cleveland. 

Courtney had her 30th birthday back in March - yes, the big 3-0.  Unfortunately, since she's the one in charge around here, I'm not allowed to make fun of her age (she's almost 2 years older than me).  So I'll just say she turned 30 and move on.  I let Luke pick out a present at the store for Courtney without any help from me.  I knew it would probably end up being something random that Courtney wouldn't want, but I figured it'd be the thought that counts.  So what did he end up picking out...

...That's right, a rubber chicken chew toy for pets.  Oh well.  It's "the thought that counts," right?  Luke also picked out a Thomas the Tank Engine card for her. 

I had to go to Florida for a couple weeks on business in April for a trial.  My mom came up to Cleveland to help out Courtney with the boys (we really had to twist her arm to come see the grandkids... yeah, not really!).

I was home in time for Easter, and the boys had a good time painting Easter eggs and going on a Easter candy hunt.

...They found the chocolate bunnies in the dryer with the aid of their "treasure map."

A few weeks ago we went to a park and got a few good pictures.

It was also a few weeks ago that I had to mow the lawn for the first time this year.  Luke decided he wanted to help.  Gotta start 'em young!

And finally, just a few other random pictures from the last three months.  Leo wasn't very happy here, but he looked pretty cute anyway.

 
Here he is again with a dramatic gaze out the window.

And just a few more to finish things off (in case you haven't seen enough already).

Courtney has been taking a lot of pictures on her iphone lately, so I'll have to do another iphone picture post soon.  

A January Photo Update

Seeing as it's almost March, I thought it'd be a perfect time to post some pictures from... January. :) Life's been good. The big news around here is that Courtney was called as the Primary President at church (i.e., she's now responsible for the 2 hour Sunday School and other programs for all the kids age 18 months to 11 years old - about 75 kids on any given Sunday). It's quite the responsibility, and I know she'll be great. It definitely has made us that much more busy at home!

And now for the picture update (which is initially heavy on Leo content):



We spent a Saturday down in Columbus to go to the temple and the COSI science museum.  Luke was having some issues with the sun in his eyes in the car.  We took care of that:

Courtney took the boys to a nearby mall while I was at the temple.  Yes, Luke is the one flying through the air in that second picture: 

I then took the boys to the COSI museum.  I didn't get many good pictures, but they had a great time as always.  We could probably spend all day at that place:

 
Coming soon... February pics!

Luke is 3!

Last week, we celebrated Luke's third birthday!  He was pretty excited for his birthday this year.  We waited until the weekend to have his party so that his Grammy and Pappy and a few cousins could be here.  On his actual birthday, Luke and I went out to breakfast at IHOP before I went to work. 

On Saturday, we all went to the Science Museum here in Cleveland.  Unfortunately, our camera curse continued and for some reason our memory card didn't save our pictures from there (we returned the memory card for a new one this past week... gotta love Walmart's return policy).  We also had fun hanging out around the house and getting things ready for Luke's party. 

After church on Sunday, we had Luke's birthday supper of hot dogs and macaroni and cheese.  Then it was time for his birthday cake... you'll never guess what kind of cake he wanted. 

...That's right, a dinosaur cake!

I must say Luke got a pretty good haul from his birthday presents.  He was actually a little scared at first of one of the dinosaurs he got from his cousins, but he's getting along pretty well with it now. 

Oh, and Leo thoroughly enjoyed the festivities as well.  He's become best buds with Lindsay, one of his cousins. 

Christmas 2010

Though we've been married for almost five years now, this was the first time we've actually hosted Christmas.  My parents, Kari, and Mark came up to Cleveland for a few days and we all had a great time.  What made it especially fun was Luke's excitement for anything and everything to do with Christmas, whether it was the Christmas tree, lights, Santa, presents... and even egg nog.  Seriously, the kid couldn't get enough of the egg nog. 

Pictures do a better job of telling the story than me, so here we go...

Shocking I know, but we had a White Christmas here in Cleveland.  Here's Grandma getting nailed with a a snowball, courtesy of Luke...

He thought it was pretty funny...

On Christmas Eve, we had a little program where we sang some carols, read the story of Jesus' birth in the Bible, watched a short DVD about the Nativity, and then let the boys see their new stockings (made by their Grammy!) and open their Christmas Eve present (pj's!). 

It's safe to say that Christmas day was a success with the boys, they thoroughly enjoyed opening all their presents. 

Not surprisingly, Leo was content enough to just play with the wrapping and packaging!

And there we have it... the Christmas post only a month late!