Good Buddies

Here are some pictures I took of Ellary and Maverick over the last couple of days. What great buddies!

Ellary's First Words

For only the third or fourth time in her little life, Ellary tried to repeat words back to us today. It all started when I was helping her take her socks off this morning. "Ssssocks," she said with a little lisp. And it wasn't just once but several times. Kris and I then began recalling words Ellary has spoken and realized that we haven't put them down anywhere yet...So, why not here first?

The list:

1. Dadda

2. Momma

3. Hi (hidada) Then her arm goes up high in the air and she waves only her fingers, up-down, up-down.

4. More. More like, "mo".

5. Please. A slight variation of this.

6. Dog. Now she says it more than ever since we've had Maverick.

7. Fish

8. Shoes

9. Socks

Goog job, little girl. Keep up the good work!

Meet Our Dog

Meet our new dog! This is Maverick and he's a 3 year old Great Pyrenees that we adopted from a family in Flint, Michigan. We couldn't be more pleased...well, Kris might say Maverick would be a better dog if he didn't shed, drool and huh-huh, do his business. But hey, no one's perfect, right? So, let's dwell on Maverick's awesome traits for a second here.
First of all, he's a great family dog. The girls love to pet him, lay on him, walk him and feed him. He is also very patient with Ellary who has pulled on his hair, tugged his ears and nose, jumped on him, and given him endless hugs. Maverick just sits there or politely gets up and walks away.

Secondly, he's house trained and walks really, I mean REALLY well on a leash. When I spoke with Amy, the woman we adopted Maverick from, I asked her how Maverick did on a leash, and I thought, wow-he's too good to be true. Walking well on a leash is a very important thing to us because we go on a lot of walks, and I promised Kris that's how he'd do his business so he doesn't make a mess in our yard. So far, so good!

Thirdly, Maverick looks like a big, fuzzy, cuddly polar bear (120 lbs and about 3 ft tall) but has a bark that would make anyone think twice about breaking into our house. He has even chosen to sleep outside our bedroom door, just in front of the front door and at the foot of the stairs. This trait will come in handy for those evenings Kris is gone late, or when he's on work trips.

Fourthly, Maverick's very easy going, and borderline lazy. No yippy, yacky, hold me and pay attention to me every second of the day dog here, although, Maverick has bonded particularly well with Kris. Mav will choose to sit by Kris, and watches for a reaction from him and then responds to Kris.

So, how did we find such a great dog? Kris was checking out the pet section of Craigslist and found Maverick there. The family looking to find him a new home couldn't keep him anymore for medical reasons. They did an awesome job raising him and we are so grateful that they did!

2 Memorable MSU Games (Although MSU may not want to remember them!)

Alyson experienced her first live football game with Kris two weeks ago when MSU played Central Michigan. She was so excited to accompany her daddy! They took the CATA bus to the stadium, watched the whole game (even the disappointing ending when MSU blew their lead and lost) and then walked all the way home (about 1.5 miles!) Believe it or not, Alyson came home with a smile on her face and a little more red in cheeks.

Kris and I took a little jaunt to South Bend last Saturday morning, leaving the girls behind with a good friend from church, and watched MSU play Notre Dame. Honestly, Kris and I didn't mind so much that MSU lost because we had a great day together (almost 12 hours!) Kris showed me the sights on campus including, (sorry if this sounds a little sacrilegious) Touchdown Jesus, the Basilica, the main building also known as the Dome, and the Grotto. You can take a virtual tour online by going to www.nd.edu/campus-and-community/sights-sounds/virtual-tours/. Ironically, Kris and I unknowingly arrived at the Dome just in time to witness a Notre Dame tradition where the marching band trumpet players lined the Dome balconies and played the ND song. It was amazing! Hope you enjoy the pics...

Don't mind the very large belly!

Last Two Weeks

During the last two weeks we celebrated two birthdays (Kourtney's and Jessica's), started school and went to the circus. Kourtney also had her first field trip-an adventure in picking apples at an orchard that will be documented in a later post.

Kourtney was excited to turn 5 years old this year and ecstatic to start kindergarten. She has adapted well to all day school and loves her teacher and classmates. I turned 30 years old on my birthday and celebrated with a relaxing day spent mostly at home and then at Maggie Moo's for some birthday ice cream. Later that week we celebrated Koco's 5th birthday for the second time at the circus (I returned home from Colorado around 6:oopm on her birthday). Kris and I remember going to the circus as children, but never under a big top like this one. It held our attention as well as it held the kids. The highlights of the circus included the trapeze artists and the elephants.


Take notice that Kourtney is wearing the dress I wore for my first day of kindergarten...Seems like Alyson just wore it on her first day of school! Well, enjoy the pics!

Kourtney's Birthday

(Thanks for making the cake Jade...It was a pleasant surprise and Koco loved it)

Jessica's Birthday Told you it was a relaxing day!

1st Day of School

Koco was so excited to find her name at a table in her classroom.

The Circus..Fun, fun, fun!.

It's difficult to know how to start this blog...Usually we post things as they happen chronologically, but to do so now seems a little inappropriate. So, in advance, I apologize for skipping around, but I am sure you will understand.

About three weeks ago we received the grim news that Kris' mom, Eleonore, had passed away very unexpectedly. It came as a shock to everyone, and within a few hours of hearing the news, our little family had boarded two different airplanes out of Detroit and were on our way back to Colorado. We felt like we were on an emotional and physical roller coaster the next two weeks, but those first couple days were especially difficult. Not only had Kris lost his mom, but he also had to take responsibility for making all the funeral home and memorial service arrangements. We found that looking at various pictures from Mutti's numerous tin-fulls was the best therapy as we remembered the wonderful times we spent with her and how her contagious smile seemed to beam from every photo. After four busy days of planning and coping the best way we knew how, Mutti's services were held Friday, August 28th and Saturday, August 29th. Many people attended, cried, reminisced, supported and helped. Thank you to you all...

We are so grateful to have had the support of friends and family who showed their love and condolences by helping take care of Alyson, Kourtney and Ellary, who sent letters of sympathy, who prepared meals for our family and attended the services. We are appreciate you all very much.

We realize Mutti is gone from our sight but not from our hearts, nor from our memories or future. We know we will see her again. As, Alyson, our 6 year old daughter testified one day, "Jesus died and was resurrected so we can live again someday."

Here are some photos we'd like to share in honor of Mutti...