Chicken BBQ

This past weekend was the churches annual chicken BBQ. So, GiGi and Bumpa got to the church early to help prepare the food...Bumpa was on chicken duty...and GiGi, well she was on "everything" duty. The food was delicious and the kids had a really good time. Alex ate really fast because he wanted to get into the bounce house. There was a polka band...and I know it may come as a surprise, but Olivia was the most interested in the music. She danced and danced...as a matter of fact, she got her cousins to come out and dance with her, and GiGi well, she was not that far behind. At the end of the afternoon, both Alex and Olivia were just so tired that they "crashed" together.

Fun at the Farm

We continue to stay busy at the farm. The kids enjoy their daily golf cart rides "over the bridge" to look for berries, swimming in the pool, and playing on the swing set. Today, Alex and Olivia helped break the green beans in half after Ali, GiGi and I picked and snipped the ends of the green beans. Bumpa and I tried to get Alex and Olivia to stand in the tractor wheel so we could get their pictures, but they wouldn't, so Bumpa had to do it himself. Well, I guess I should get back to helping Bumpa...we are going through scrap. Until tomorrow...

Summer Time Fun

The summer has gone by very fast. It was filled with a lot of fun days and time with family. We were able to have Ali & Anna with us for a week, and toward the end of the week, the rest of their family joined us. GiGi & Bumpa were able to join us for a Tigers game in Cleveland...to bad the Tigers couldn't even score a run. At least we got to see Pudge in one of his last games as a Tiger. Now we are spending a week on the farm with Alex & Liz...keeping GiGi and Bumpa on their toes. The two girls have been helping GiGi cook & pick green beans, and all three kids have been doing their "jobs" cleaning the back room. I am sure we will have many more adventures to write about during this week at the farm.

Disney Family Vacation

This year we decided to take a family vacation to Disney. We went there with Dale's sister Debbie and her family and were able to spend a week in the land of magic...and it was truly magical! We left on July 5th to begin our adventures and had a week full of fun planned for the kids. We were able to dine with characters each day we were there which was a pretty cool treat. We hit Donald's safari breakfast, Cinderella's Royal Table, Princess Storybook dining at Akershaus, Chef Mickey's, and The Crystal Palace. Olivia LOVED spotting and pointing at the characters and princesses, however, once they got close or it was time to get her picture taken...she got shy! Then they would leave and she would talk all about them. By far, her favorite characters were Goofy and Pluto, and her favorite princess was Ariel!
Her favorite rides were Buzz Lightyear at Magic Kingdom, Toy Story Mania at Hollywood Studios, but the best for her....Cinderella's Carousel (we did this ride at least 20 times and each time she just had to have a purple horse) and each time it was over we heard...AGAIN, AGAIN! She also liked the Tea Cups, but again, she needed a purple tea cup and if one wasn't available, she would get mad.
She really got excited about the parades, especially the SpectroMagic parade at Magic Kingdom, we saw it three times and each time was just as magical for her as the first.
She also really enjoyed swimming, especially once we got her a lifevest to wear in the "big" pool. She was very independent and wanted to do the swimming all by herself. She even went down a waterslide that was at the pool all on her own!
I could ramble on more and more about our trip since we had such a great time, but I won't bore all of you with all of the details.
Sorry there are soooo many pictures, but I promise that that is only a fraction of the 550+ pictures that we took.

Memorial Day Parade

Each year, Avon Lake has a Memorial Day Parade on the street behind our house. It has been a tradition going over to our friends house, drinking coffee, eating doughnuts and watching the parade. This is the first year that Olivia did not cry when the band played. She really enjoyed the candy that was thrown at her...she opened and ate SEVERAL pieces. After the parade, there is an honoring event at Veteran's Park just down the street on the lake. This year there was a fly over by military planes...which was really neat to see. It was such a nice day that Buddy got to go into the water which made him very happy.

Memorial Day Party

This year we decided with our good friends Sandra and Craig to begin a tradition of getting together every Memorial Day weekend. This year we had it at our house. We had a great day and decided to have a cookout. Lots and lots of food and fun was had by all. Dale tried to start a bonfire...but the wood we had was not dry enough and the only thing we got was a lot of smoke. We can't wait for next years gathering.

50th Anniversary Party

On May 24, 2008, Dale's parents celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary. We had a celebration with them first at church for mass, where Father Dave did a blessing for their marriage which was absolutely beautiful, followed by a reception and dance. Dale's brothers band played music, with his nephew rockin it on the drums. Dale's dad got up to sing a few times and several of Dale's cousins joined the band playing many different instruments. It was a beautiful day, a great celebration, and it was wonderful seeing family. Congrats Frank & Dorothy on 50 wonderful years of marriage!