November brought lots of bowling! We discovered a new favorite family activity for Dad's birthday (Novemeber 1st) and Nevin's 9th birthday (November 14th). For Dad's birthday Mom thought she'd surprise us all, and went out on a limb hoping we'd all enjoy it... can you believe we've never been bowling!? It was a smashing success, and Nevin begged to do it again in two weeks, for his birthday.

The birthday boy who won't show his teeth. :)

Twinkling Brown Eyes.

Noah- first one to get a strike!

We love our brown eyed girls.

Aliza was so proud to get to wear bowling shoes the second time around. She had a blast rolling the balls down, despite all the gutter balls. :)

These two made us smile with their stark different personalities. Best friends since Day 1, Nolan is easy-going and Nevin has a fiery-competitive spirit. Nev would bend down low and wish the ball to go straight. Nolly would just lEAN.

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The Cake is now a new family favorite. We are so excited to try it in different flavors. Compliments to Angela who came up with the whole idea herself!

Chocolate ice cream. Chocolate Fudge. Oreo cookies. Repeat x 2

...Autumn Begins...

September brought the beginning of Autumn, and the last of the Queen Anne's Lace, and changing leaves made for a pretty photo shoot.

...September 2009...

Our blog is in dire need of updating, so, since pictures are worth a thousand words, here is the last 3 months in pictures... Starting with September.

Mom's birthday was September 6, so we spent a family day at the zoo, which turned out to be loads of fun!

What the Boys Do During School Hours...

.... this is how it started. Innocent enough. We got a lot of laughs, and 3 pairs of grass-stained jeans.


...Then Nevin had to try....

... the next day, with the spoiled tomatoes from the garden, the got another idea...





... they got Noah pretty good. :) (Notice his tomato-stained pants near the end of the clip)

Our Fairy Princess

Summer is coming to a close, and our little fairy princess has one more wish to make before the leaves start to change...

Joining the Mowing Force

Nevin recently joined our mowing team. :) He got into his mind that if he saved all of his money until he is 10 he'll be able to buy a $250 iPod touch, but in order to save his money he needs to be making some, so he asked Dad to teach him to run the John Deere. Dad happily obliged. The hardest part was getting the clutch down to start the tractor.

All on his own at last! :)

Another Annoucement...

We are happy to announce the engagement of Ashlee Rene Willeke to Daniel Franklin Wells. July 27th, 2009