Easter!

This Easter was really quite special. As our faith deepens Easter has a renewed meaning to us. As a family it is so important that Maddy understands why we celebrate these holidays and for her to understand that it's not all about bunnies and candy. In an attempt to share the Easter story with her, I purchased a set of Resurrection Eggs. It is a set of 12 plastic colored eggs, in a plastic egg carton. Each egg contains a symbol in sequential order of the story leading up to the Crucifixion and Resurrection of Jesus. I couldn't believe how much of it she took in and enjoyed. By Easter Sunday she was a pro and could tell you something about each symbol and it's meaning in our faith.

To kick off the weekend, I decided to host a get together for the Mom's group and their children. Friday morning we had brunch ..... we enjoyed tons of great food, fruit and cupcakes. The kids played outside on Maddy's new bouncy, bounce. We told the story of Easter with the resurrection eggs and just enjoyed some time together. By 1pm or so everyone had gone home and Maddy was passed out asleep by 1:30. Friday night my Mom came up for the Good Friday services at Loudonville. We love this service so much and think it truly captures the mood of the evening. We sang songs like Jesus Messiah, Once Again and so many others that brings you to tears. Each person is given a 3x5 card to write down their sins, guilts and fears that they want to hand over to God. Each pew is led to the front to hammer their sins to the cross. Its an amazingly beautiful sight at the end when the cross is covered just from sins of Loudonville. On Easter Sunday the cross is wiped clean and draped in white silk cloth.
On Saturday we were invited out to dinner and to a hockey game with the Williams family. (Nate, Jen & Juliana- friends from Church). We shared a pizza and then went over to the Times Union Center for a family faith night and hockey game. The River Rats beat the Senators, the girls got to meet Dora and jump on a bouncy slide. Amazingly, Juliana and Maddy made it almost all the way through the hockey game. They seemed to love it and really got into all of the chanting and the wave. We had such a nice time and it was such a blessing to spend some time with friends.

We were up early on Easter Sunday..... services were amazing and well attended. After service we went to Oneonta to celebrate. Tony (Bill's Dad) and Liz hosted it at Tony's house. Bill's family from Saugerties came, my Mom and Merritt, Kelly, Tyler and Carter. It was a great crowd and everyone pitched in for food. We ate Turkey, Ham, stuffing, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, Lasagna and veggies. We were all too stuffed for dessert but we had everything from apple pie to chocolate cake and cookies. It was a fun filled weekend and very busy but great to spend it with friends and family.

Gram from Tennessee comes to visit!

Ginger (Bill's mom) came to visit us for a week to celebrate Maddy's 3rd Birthday and to spend some quality time with all of us. It was a busy week with Maddy's party, Church, soccer practice,a visit from out of town friend and work but it was so nice to have Ginger there and have her see what we do in a fairly normal week. It's always sad to see her go and wish she was closer, but look forward to our next time together!

Maddy turns 3!

On Saturday March 28th, we celebrated Maddy's 3rd Birthday with friends and family. Bill and I thought this year we would do something fun with her friends and have a party at Bounce N Party. The kids had so much fun playing games, eating pizza, popcorn and juice and BOUNCING on all of the attractions. Bounce N Party is located in Malta up near Saratoga Springs and is geared towards preschoolers. It's not too overwhelming but fun and safe for children 2 -6 years old. The best part about it... is we didn't have to do any work. We only had to bring the cake, so it was a breeze and the kids seemed to have so much fun.

We also enjoyed the weekend with Ginger, Mom & Merritt, Kelly, Tyler and Baby Carter. Ginger came to visit for a week from Nashville for Maddy's birthday. We had a great time with her and Maddy thoroughly enjoyed her visit with Gramma "C" (Gram from Tennessee). Maddy had a wonderful birthday. She was given her first motorized car from Hamma & Grandpa Mernon, a pop up Dora house from Aunt Kell & Uncle Ty, and a portable bouncy house from Gramma C and Grandpa Mark and Grandpa T renewed her soccer lessons. So, needless to say it was a lavish birthday, but she has really enjoyed everything.

As I reflect back on the last 3 years, I can't believe how fast time goes by. Maddy has enriched our lives in every way and she is growing into an amazingly talented and loving little girl. She is such a blessing and everyday is a new adventure!

Madelyn - we love you so much, and wish you a very Happy 3rd birthday. You are such a bright light in our lives and our entire family. We look forward to all the years to come.

Love you, Mommy and Daddy

Sugaring Off!

Spring can bring some very unpredictable weather in Upstate NY, but the good news is all the snow has melted!!!! Yeah!!!!!! Bill and I spent the last few weekends cleaning up the yard from the ice storm in December. We had piles and piles of downed pine branches and basically just a big mess. So, this weekend we were looking forward to having a little fun. Saturday night was "Date Night" - Dinner at Bangkok Thai and then to the movies. We saw Duplicity. (We don't recommend it, the ending was so not worth sitting through the movie) Sunday we made it to early service and then started our new Sunday School Session. Our Voyagers group is led by Pastor Mike and Cindy and we are doing the Love and Respect Series. We are really excited about it, but see already it will be a ton of work. We're just looking at it as an investment! Our Voyagers group is amazing, many young married couples and so many of our friends. It should be a great session. After Church we jumped the car to head down to Cooperstown for a Sugaring Off Pancake Breakfast at the Fenimore Farmer's Museum. For those of you who don't know, Spring is also the beginning of Maple Sugar Production and there are many early Spring festivals and breakfasts which feature homemade Maple Syrup. (Bill's Favorite!) We had breakfast and then took a tour of the school from 1845, the blacksmith shop and a ride on the vintage Empire Carousel. It was a great day, but you will notice in the pictures it was SNOWING.... Yes, It was SNOWING and very cold. We made the best of it but can't wait for Summer to arrive!

Maddy's Big Girl Room!

Since Maddy will be turning 3 a week from today, we thought a Big Girl Room was in order! Thank you to Gram & Mark from Tennessee for supporting the cause. She is so excited and very proud to show anyone who might come to visit. She's even sleeping in her bed with out any trouble, so that makes it's all worth it.

Enjoy!

The Girls Get Together!

We went to the Connie's and Jen's house for some play time for the Girls. Maddy really enjoys her friends and they always have lots of fun. Connie planned a nice morning, with a craft project for the girls and a beautful lunch for the Mom's. We had a nice time, but we usually feel like we've run a Marathon after getting the girls (and the boys :) together. They are so loud and love to scream, which is so cute but really hard on the ears. We always have a few strong personalities that go at, but it just makes things more interesting. Thank you to Connie for having us all over!!

On Monday we went over to Jen's for a nice relaxing morning. Maddy and Juliana played dress up, made sticker pictures, and had fun with Play Dough. Jen and I had a chance to chat and work on some Mom's stuff. It was a great morning and so great to get out without fighting all the snow. Spring has Sprung!

Maddy on her Big Girl Bike!

It was so nice to be able to get outside on Sunday. I think it just made it into the 60's, but it was glorious. After Church and then lunch, we came home to a few chores. Bill and I spent a couple of hours cleaning out the garage, organizing closets and watching Maddy ride her bike. She loves to get all of her "stuff'" on (helmet, knee pads, etc) and ride her "Big Girl Bike". It was such a treat for her just to be outside. We spent a good bit of time working on "watching out for cars" and teaching her how to cross the road. She seems to be getting the hang of it.

This morning we woke up and it was SNOWING, I think we have a couple of inches of the ground right now, so hopefully it will melt soon. Spring cannot come soon enough!

Steelhead Fishing on the Niagara!

Well, Maddy and I weren't home for more than a day from Delaware, when we started packing for Daddy's fishing trip on the Niagara River. Friday night we piled back in the car for a long car ride to Niagara Falls. When we left it was raining and very dark so it took us almost 6 hours. Yuck! We were happy to arrive safe and get to bed. Bill had to be up early to head down to Devil's Hole for some world class fishing. I was very concerned about the weather. It was only in the teens and very icy, and I was definitely not too big on him climbing down in a huge gorge a few miles downstream from the falls. But I guess these are the types of things you deal with when your married to an outdoorsmen. When he arrived at Devil's Hole he realized the steps to get down in the gorge were impassable. They were completely covered in snow and ice and very dangerous, so he decided not to chance it.. I am so glad he used his best judgement :) Despite his disappointment. He found another fishing spot closer to our hotel and with a trail that was easier to maneuver. He fished in the morning with no luck, and then came back to spend most of the day with us. We had a really nice time visiting the NY side of the Falls and touring Goat Island. The Falls are amazing in the winter and there are no tourists which was even better. We also visited the Power Vista power plant, which had a nice museum and some things for Maddy to play on. Later that afternoon, we headed back to the hotel and he went back out fishing for a few hours. Unfortunately, no luck! When he returned from fishing, we decided it would be fun to go over to the Canadian side for dinner and to get a view of the Horseshoe Falls all lit up. The only problem was Bill had his Motorcycle Learner's Permit Driver's License and we didn't bring Maddy's Birth Certificate. So, getting into Canada might be tricky. We decided to try it anyway. We pull up to the Border and I give them our Driver's License and the officer asks us a few questions about our plans in Canada and then asks for Maddy's birth certificate. I told the officer that we had forgotten it, and she said "well can I speak to her." I pulled the car up, and rolled down her back window. The officer asked her name and she answered right away and then she asked who we were and she said with such conviction "Mommy, Daddy, Daddy!" (Not sure why she repeated Daddy twice, but it was sooo cute.) The officer even laughed and said "well, she said that without any hesitation so go on and have a good night." We ended up eating at the Skylon revolving restaurant and had the most amazing view of the Falls. It was a fun night!

Sunday morning, Bill was up early to head out fishing. It was only 15 degrees and icy, unfortunately he had no luck this trip, but enjoyed being outside and learned a lot about Steelhead fishing on the Niagara. Better luck next year!

Here is a picture of the Skylon Tower! The Elevator ride is so scary!

Off to Delaware to see Mimi, Darlene & Ed!

We just returned from a wonderful trip to Delaware to visit Mimi, Aunt Darlene and Uncle Ed. Mom, Maddy and I spent a few days with them and did a little outlet shopping. We had a great time with everyone and it is always so good to see them.

Mimi has had a pretty rough year with having to move out of her house after 26 years, hip replacement surgery and then to find out she's battling cancer. She is living in Delaware and is undergoing her Chemo treatments. She is doing so well and is gaining a pound each week. She looked great and Maddy had fun playing with her great grandma. I think the highlight of the trip was when she got to paint nails, put on lipstick and got a necklace from Mimi. She also loves the Dora books she got from Aunt Darlene and Unlce Ed. All in all it was a great trip and we are so thankful to spend the time with Mimi. Can't wait to see them at Dan's wedding this summer!

Vacation in the Keys!

On January 30th we flew down to Ft. Lauderdale for a week of fun in the sun. We would be seeing my brother, sister before the 2 hour car ride to Key Largo. Of course, the trip started out crazy, we sat on the tarmac at the Albany airport for 2 hours and 40 minutes before taking off to Newark. Once at Newark we missed our connection and ended up staying the night in the city. We had to be back the airport for an 8am flight to Ft. Lauderdale, but we had no clothes to change into, no toothbrush and a 2 1/2 year old to boot, so needless to say it was not fun! We finally made it into Ft. Lauderdale at 11am on Saturday. We would be greeted by Dan and Maria and cold, cold weather. We couldn't believe it, but it was only in the 50's. Yikes!!!! Well, we made the best of it, picked up our rental car. Stopped by Nova for a quick visit with my sister Alex and stopped in to see my Dad on the way down south.

Off we went, headed south for some major relaxation. We arrived in Key Largo about 4 o'clock and checked into our condo. It was amazing, more beautiful then we could have ever imagined and now we really felt like we were on vacation. We took a tour of the grounds, went to the grocery store and went out for an amazing dinner at the Fish House. One of the best restaurants in the Keys. (The Key Lime Pie is to die for!) Of course, we crashed that night and were up early Sunday. We spent some time at World Wide Sportsmen, we all got a chance to hold a few famous wild birds, and we spent a little time by the pool. My brother and his girlfriend, were on their way down to spend a few days with us, so we were really looking forward to their arrival. Monday we spent out on a boat with them, and Maddy caught her first fish. It was AWESOME! I hooked it with her Dora fishing pole and she reeled it in. She was so excited and screaming, it was absolutely the highlight of the trip. We spent the whole day on the boat, we caught a ton of fish and even got a little sun. Tuesday we spent by the pool and the family headed out in the afternoon. Wednesday morning we went to Key West, we had a great day there, we went on a trolley tour ride, ate at Sloppy Joe's, visited Mel Fisher's museum, watched the sunset at Mallory Square and fulfilled a life dream for me. Bill bought me a necklace that I've wanted since I was a teenager. It is a silver necklace with a rare coin from the sunken ship The Atoche. It is so beautiful and was an amazing early Valentine's Day Present... Thursday morning we went to Theater of the Sea, and spent some time picking out a vacation house to retire in. Thursday evening my Dad and Sister arrived. We enjoyed the time together and went out on a glass bottom boat tour on Friday. Before we knew it, it was Saturday and time to check out. We had a great time, just wished the weather had been a warmer. I can't wait to go back.