The Nutcracker

We went to a Children's Nutcracker Luncheon from the Cincinnati Ballet this weekend.  It was a great way to introduce our budding culturalists to ballet. 

The kids all dressed up for our special date downtown.

Molly and Gavin were a little suspicious of Nutcracker, but we did manage a picture with him!

Molly posing above with some of the sugar plum fairies.

And, a children's luncheon wouldn't be complete without ice cream!  Yum!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Hope everyone had a happy turkey day!  The kids had a great time visiting with Uncle Jon and Drew and Auntie Jill.  It was a fun weekend filled with football, basketball and lots of wrestling.



I promised Gavin that we'd make a pilgrim hat before Thanksgiving weekend was over.  We made his hat tonight, and he wore it for Thanksgiving dinner leftovers.  We made Molly her own hat, too.  Say hello to Mister and Miss Pilgrim.

Balluminaria!

We enjoyed a festival of hot air balloons this evening.  It was a perfect warm evening to enjoy the sights.

Had to share this last photo, since it is classic Molly these days.  Our two year old girl is quite a firecracker.

Take a Hike!

Last weekend, we took the kids hiking at a scenic gorge here in Ohio.  Molly spent most of the time picking up "interesting" sticks and rocks.  Gavin enjoyed climbing and scrambling on any rocks that he could find.

We finished off the day with lunch and ice cream at a nearby dairy farm.  That was certainly the highlight of the day!

Ohio State Football

 A couple of weeks ago, Gavin went to his first Ohio State football game.  The Buckeyes played Indiana.  Mommy cheered for IU while Daddy and Gavin rooted OSU to a victory.

In addition to the football, Gavin really enjoyed watching the OSU marching band, especially seeing them script Ohio.

Towards the end of the game, we had quite a treat when some of the trombonists made it up into the stands to play right next to us!

Happy Halloween!

We started the Halloween festivities with a visit to the Cincinnati Zoo for Hallzooween.  The kids had a great time wandering around the zoo and trick or treating with their cousin Eva.  

The highlight was definitely watching the polar bears enjoy a pumpkin snack!

The kids also enjoyed a ride on the zoo carousel.  Molly chose to ride on a gorilla, and Gavin chose a shark to make Auntie Jill proud.

Then on Halloween night, the kids hit the neighborhood trick or treating.  We couldn't believe how quickly they learned the ropes and gathered lots of candy.  

Happy Halloween!

Fall Fun!

Fall is our favorite time of year.  We're having fun discovering new adventures in Ohio to celebrate the season.  A couple of weeks ago, we went to Old West Fest with Grammy and Grandpa.  

Gavin enjoyed the excuse to get out his Halloween costume from last year.

Molly had fun on the train with Daddy.

Afterwards, we went apple and pumpkin picking at an orchard that Daddy used to go to as a little boy.

Hope you're having a great fall!

Happy 2nd Birthday, Molly!

Molly turned 2 on September 14!  She is such a big girl now.  Some of her favorite activities are playing in her kitchen, taking care of her many babies, and wrestling with her big brother.  She also started a gymnastics class in September.  She's the youngest child in the class, but certainly not the most timid.  Next time you see her ask her to demonstrate her moves . . . crayon rolls, bear walks, somersalts or wall walks.  She's quite the little tumbler!