Yo Gabba Gabba!

We took the boys to the Yo Gabba Gabba Live concert. It was mostly for Cooper, but Jackson had a great time, too!


Juice, in my tummy, party party!

DJ Lance and the crew -

Cooper & Daddy

Cooper waving Goodbye

Halloween and Hockey Party

Jackson and I went to the Carolina Hurricane's Season Ticket Holder party. It's like a behind the scenes event - he had a blast!

Shooting the puck on the ice -

Riding the zamboni -

Jackson and I on the bench -

Looking down from the press box -

The boys on Halloween. It was cold and rainy, so they didn't last long trick or treating!

Zoo Visit

During Jackson's trackout we took a family trip to the zoo. It was an overcast, dreary day but we ended up having a fabulous time! The weather scared away the crowds and we stayed dry and comfy. Here were some of our favorites -


The boys checking out the seals:


Jackson was scared of this ostrich!


Cooper's favorite!!

This reminded us of our Bailey. :-)







This was so fun - we got to see the bear right as the zookeeper had left out all her food - she was so excited to eat!

Kindergarten!

It's a big month for our house, Jackson started kindergarten!! Since we are in year round schools, he will go for 9 weeks, and then have 3 weeks off in October. We are already planning some fun family activities. He is loving school, he seems to have a great teacher and a great group of kids with him. Here's some pictures from his first day -







And a couple of other pictures from our summer fun -

Cooper's Hemiplegia Camp

Cooper was lucky enough to be one of 39 kids selected to attend a camp through UNC. It was called "Helping Kids With Hemiplegia", and involved the kids wearing a cast on their dominant arm for 6 hours. They were paired one on one with an OT or PT graduate student for the entire camp (10 days). The therapists made it so fun - music, crafts, dancing, etc. Cooper had a rough time because he is so young, but he did it! We hope to be lucky enough to be invited back next year, as we are already seeing improved use of his right hand! Here's some pictures from the camp:

Hitting a pinata:



Riding a bike:



With his friends, Landon and Macie:



Petting a therapy dog:



With his awesome therapist, Kim:

RIP, Sweet Bailey Boo

We unexpectedly had to say goodbye to our dog, Bailey, yesterday morning. We'd known since early November that she had thyroid cancer, but we were not treating it and just waiting, since she was 13. She was still a hearty eater, playful with the boys, and loveable. Yesterday morning she suffered a seizure and we decided not to let her suffer anymore. It was very, very hard for Jeff & I. She has been in our family since before he & I were engaged, she's always been a part of our adult lives. I wanted to share some favorite pictures of our sweet Bailey Boo.

Thanksgiving 2010

This fall has really flown by! The boys have been busy with school, and in early November Cooper had his tonsils and adenoids removed. It was a tough recovery that affected our whole family, we are SO happy to have him back to his old self.

We enjoyed a fabulous Thanksgiving holiday with Jeff's family - John, Cathy, and Kevin, at Bald Head Island in NC. The night before we left Jackson performed in his school's Thanksgiving program. His Indian name was Broken Arrow, and he helped the teachers design his costume. He was so excited to have a solo - he got to come forward and place a pear in the cornucopia.




The next day we picked the kids up from school and left for Bald Head. It was so relaxing and calm! You take a ferry there, and both boys loved that. Once we got there Papa met us and our vacation began! We had alot of fun playing on the beach, doing puzzles, playing Wii and eating!!!






On Saturday, we did some sightseeing and Jackson climbed to the top of the Bald Head Lighthouse "Old Baldy" with me! He was the ONLY one who would go with me, I was so proud of him - 108 steps! Once we were up there we saw some awesome views of the harbor.






We were sad to come home, but it was nice to be back in our own beds!