Fall and Halloween

This fall we were lucky enough to get a cool Jeep for the boys.  Vince's cousin Ethan outgrew it so we get to enjoy it for a while.  The boys think it is pretty cool.  We still need to work on steering while accelerating, but I think next summer we will get it.  We also dressed up for Halloween and Vince helped pick our theme.  If you do not know, Vince loves to cook (Giada is his favorite chef to watch) and when we gave him his costume options, he picked being a chef.  We then wanted to do something with Dominic that would go along with Vince, so being that hot dogs are his favorite food right now, that made the most sense.  We thought it would be easy to find a costume for him, but there were none his size anywhere.  While shopping at Meijer Nick happened to see a dog hot dog costume and the best part was that it was only eight dollars.  Dominic was not a fan of wearing, but we were able to get a couple of pictures of him in it.  Enjoy.

 It even has a radio that plays real music

 I am a hot dog!

Stroll N Roll

We participated in our 3rd stroll n roll this year.  This year they had it at Fredric Meijer Gardens and it was a perfect location.  The last two places have been good, but this was the best.  The weather again was not great, but we all had a great time.  This year the Stroll N Roll raised $28,000 dollars!  That is really amazing to me.  We will continue to do the stroll n roll because first, it is for a great cause, but second it is so nice to be with a group of people who care so much about the cause.  Thank you to everyone who has ever donated to team D hats, we truly appreciate it!

 Getting ready to walk

 It misted most of the day

 Michigan really is beautiful in the fall.

 Someone was not excited to have his picture taken!

 Thanks Uncle Chris for taking this picture!

 The green houses

 Beautiful fall flowers were all around the walk

 Silly boy

Go Team D Hats

Docks

We got one more great weekend up north this fall!  The weather was great as you will see in the pictures.  We got the docks out and got to have some fun too.  The boys really love it up there, I think just as much as Nick and I do.  At the end of every year, I always feel we did not get enough time up north, so I hope next year we get to spend a lot of time on the water.  Torch Lake is my most favorite place to be.  It is always just amazing!

 Yes, it was the beginning of October and Nick is in the water with shorts!

 Working hard

 David and Nick went for a swim after it was all done

 Dominic loved throwing rocks, just like his big brother.

 Vince was very brave and went pretty far in the water.  The weather was amazing!

Papa and Dominic throwing more rocks

Homecoming Parade

This year for the Olivet homecoming parade Vince got to be in it.  He rode on the Wee Ones float, the theme this year was Villains.  He had a great time and I even got to ride on the float too.  Nick and Dominic watched and were able to get some good pictures.  We went on to win the football game and overall had a great season.  We went pretty far in the playoffs.  Both boys love to watch the games, but the most fun they have is watching the half time show.  The Olivet band is great and they put on a great show this year.  They even had a mini school bus with their show, which Vince was very excited about.  Go Eagles!

 Vince and one of the Olivet College Helpers

Preschool

Vince started preschool this year and after a little hesitation he loves it.  Nick was able to take him on his first day and it started out well, but ended with tears.  I was able to sneak out of school for a few minutes to go and pick him up that day with Nick and again we were met with tears.  He did not cry the whole time, but it was a big step for him.  He is our little one who has always been a little hesitant with new people, but Miss Carey and Miss Mickey have been wonderful!  Now Vince asks to go to preschool pretty much everyday and loves to tell us all about it when he gets home.  Here he is on his first day!

 Eating a good breakfast before school!

 So excited :)

Lightning McQueen backpack

Go Blue!

Well this season was not exactly what we were hoping for, but the boys still enjoyed watching all of the games.  Hopefully they will give us a win this weekend in their bowl game, we are going to have to record it for the boys being that it is starting at 10:30.  We got them matching shirts after kids day this year, so here are a few of them in their cute shirts. :)

 They not only like football, but they clean too :)

 

Avery Wedding

The Avery wedding was wedding 3 of 3 for us this summer and it was a great one to end with.  All of the weddings we went to this summer were great and all had their own special touches that made them beautiful.  For this wedding it was near the Traverse City area so we stayed with my parents and had a good time.  Justin and Alicia are a beautiful couple and we wish them the very best!  I have to say of all the weddings I have been to, including ours, their music was the BEST!  For those that don't know the Avery family, there is a lot of musical talent and most of their friends are super talented too.  It was truly impressive and I don't know if it will ever be topped.

I also want to take a moment to remember Dianne Avery in this post.  Dianne was Justin's mom and had been diagnosed with breast cancer earlier in the summer, unfortunately she lost her battle with cancer about a month after the wedding, but at the wedding she was doing great and I will always treasure that.  The Avery family has always been very special to us and she was an amazing woman, who I have always looked up to and loved very much.  She was one of the kindest most loving people you will every meet and made an impact on everyone she met.  She is truly missed, but will always be in the hearts of the people who knew her.

 Nothing could go wrong here :)

 We had a bit of a water incident, Dominic and a plastic water cup do not go well together.  On a side note, instead of helping, Nick's first reaction was to a) laugh and b) grab the camera  :)

 I love this picture of the 4 of us.

 Me and Dianne

 A very sweet moment between Justin and his Mom

 The newlyweds 

 We danced until late in the night

More dancing :)