A Special Friend

A week ago we lost our special friend, our dog, Gertie :(

She was as much a part of our family as anyone.

She lived a good 12 years and we're really missing her.

We don't know exactly what happened to her but she started losing weight in the late fall, but was still eating and fairly active.

She got sick last Sunday, we took her to the vet on Monday evening (he was not sure what was wrong with her but did mention she may have a tumor in her abdomen based on what he saw on the    x-ray), and she died early Tuesday morning.

We are still very sad and miss her so much. I expect to see her when we get home, or around the lake, or at the back door for supper. There is some peace in knowing that she died under her favorite bush and Jeremy buried her close to that bush.

We'll always remember her as loving the outdoors, always puppy-like, and a big sister to our boys!

"I think dogs are the most amazing creatures; they give unconditional love.

For me they are the role model for being alive."

- Gilda Radner

Who Needs a Vacation when you Have This?

My goodness, what a beautiful day.

We packed a picnic and took the boys for a hike in the woods behind our house.

Who needs a vacation when you have this (on a Monday evening to boot):

Heading out!

Heading toward the creek

Crossing the creek

We found a nice place by the creek to set up our picnic. The boys weren't as interested in eating as they were in playing in the water.

It's hard to believe this is all on the other side of the lake, just a 5 minute hike from our doorstep.

I have a feeling this is going to be a fun summer.

Finally, a Post!

You would think that I would have more posts in the winter since I'm inside more often, but I really can't believe it's February already.

Since our 'winter' has been mild, we've been keeping busy with things like:

Building puzzles

Pancake breakfasts

Basketball! (that's Jackson jumping)

Remodeling (this is the rental house we help manage - we have a wonderful couple staying in there for 4 months. The place needed a lot of TLC before they arrived in January)

Enjoying the little bits of snow we've gotten.

Playing trucks

Having fun at school (Jackson with buddies)

Watching my car turn 100K mileage (and wondering if it's time to start thinking about a new vehicle)

Getting hair cuts (and hiding behind palm trees so we don't have to get our picture taken :)



Celebrating Catholic Schools Week

 Building dioramas for Catholic Schools Week

Science fun

And Kindergarten visitation day for Jude (just can't believe he's headin' to Kindergarten this fall!)

And a date night for me and my guy (friends invited us to a semi-formal dinner/dance - we had a really nice time)

So, you can see we've been busy; not a lot of opportunities for updates.

February is proving to have as much fun in store, so it might be a while till I update again!



Lots of Updates

It's been a while since I've posted and I have some good updates and photos - they're coming. Not right now, though - soon!

I did just want to highlight a new blog link I posted under my "Other blogs" list on the side of my blog - this is one of my students/advisees and a really cool gal - check out her travels in France!

Just so we remember....

Just had to make note of today:

January 7, 2012

1:23pm

49 degrees

Sun is shining, windows are open, fresh air filling the house.

If this is any indication of winter, I say, "Stick around!"

2011: Looking Back (from the kids' view)

Thought I'd take a minute and ask the boys what their highlights from 2011 were. Well, that led to us looking though almost all of our pictures from the year. Looking back, it was obvious that we had a great year with many new and fun adventures. I wanted to post everything, but that's kind of what this blog is for, so if you want a detailed list of highlights from 2011, spend some time browsing the blog :)

Here are our Top 3 lists:

Jackson's highlights:

1. Playing basketball

2. Riding the Phantom's Revenge at Kennywood (with Uncle Nate) and the water slides at DelGrosso's (with Evan)

3. Playing with Zach

Jude's Highlights:

1. Sitting in the firetruck that was parked just above our house during a car accident in the winter. 

 2. The Tumblebus at Zach's birthday party.

 3. Starting preschool. 

Family highlights:

1. The robin's nest outside the boys' bedroom window.

2. Aidan!

3. New York City