Busy weekend and new milestones!!

Thanksgiving weekend and it was so nice to have the time to enjoy family and friend

The table was set!

The turkey, and stuffing was cooked!

And everyone was fed!! We were lucky to have my folks, my sister Nancy and her hubby Mike, Sarah and our friends Tom and Ann join us for dinner. Plenty of food and fun for all!!

Lukas and Amy joined us for dessert a little later in the evening. Unfortunately Jess was home sick and missed out ( I sent leftovers don't worry!!) Lukas having a chat with great grandpa.

My nephew's Michael and Travis stopped by for a visit and Travis hung out with Lukas. It was great when Luke drooled on his jacket.....you would have thought the jacket was tarnished for life by the look on Trav's face!!! After that he armed himself with a Kleenex, so he could wipe as needed!!! I guess he forgets what he looked like as a little boy!!!! WOW was he a drooler!!!!!!

Here in the wooded wonderland we have had a lot of trees come down in the last couple years. In years past ( when we were younger!) we could take care of all the wood. We love a nice warm wood fire in the stove. Well, on Friday my niece and her hubby and 2 kids, (and their younger backs) came to split the wood for us.

Both Lindsey and Cody carried a lot of wood to the piles. I was surprised at how long they kept at it!!!

But sooner or later it had to end!!

You can see by the state of their clothes how hard they worked.

So they came in and kept me company for awhile. Cody started out being picky about the chex mix but that didn't last for long.

On Saturday with Jesse on the mend, he Amy and Lukas came for a visit. Amy and Lukas came earlier with Jess to follow. Before he got here the girls decided to run a couple of errands and grandpa agreed to stay home with Lukas.

I KNOW!!!!!!

Anyway just before we left g-pa helped with giving Lukas some lunch. He did a really great job and Lukas ate like a champ for him. There was only a little motorboating right near the end and that is when Dave turned it back over to me.

Today Lukas turns 10 month old. It is so surprising how much joy he has brought to our lives. He constantly amazes us with all he is learning and how fast he is learning it. He is ALL OVER the place. He is a really good natured little one. He is so full of smiles. He is holding at 2 teeth, but I think there are more coming soon. Ask him where his nose is and he points to it and will point to yours also. He loves to play paddy cakes, and explores EVERYTHING!!!

But, the really big news is............

YUP!!! he is walking. The biggest problem is that he is not aware of it!! He turns and just takes off. Doesn't care what might be in the way. He will be standing at the table turn and go for the couch, and that is 4 feet away. He is keeping everyone busy covering corners and protecting his noggin as he goes!!!

All in all a great Thanksgiving weekend. Hope it was like that for all of you!!!

WHEW!! that was a long one!!

Turkey...NOPE Owls!

I know I should be talking turkey......hehe, but I think I'll talk owls instead.

As you know we have heard them a few times in the last few months, and even saw one fly away a few weeks ago. Well, today I was heading down the drive, and as I have said before I tend to look up a lot!! I was REALLY surprised to see Hootie sitting in the tree. Guess she is keeping an eye on the nest box. The new camera arrived and the plan is to install it this weekend.....come rain or shine.!!!

I guess she just wanted to say HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!!

May you and yours have a great Turkey Day!!!

Prepping for the holidays!!

So it is almost Thanksgiving and I think I just may be ready for it!! One part of the holiday meal in my family has always been sauerkraut and dumplings. I know not your normal Thanksgiving fare. So last year Sarah went to my mom's to get a lesson in dumpling making. Now for those who don't know..........Sarah LOVES to cook........NOT!!! But she decided to give it her best effort. Here she is with my mom using the dumpling cutter.

Sarah breaking an egg. Aunt Janet was there that day to learn also and to lend moral support!!. I think someday she will get over the trauma of watching Sarah and this egg!!!! :)

This is the finished product. Now all we need is the kraut!!! It should be noted that NO ONE in my house will eat this, but really that leaves more for those who will!!!! Now can she remember how to do it????

HMMMMM.....wonder if I should ask???? Naw maybe mom will remember!!

I posted the pictures above as a reminder to be thankful for family and traditions. I am so looking forward to spending the day with family and friends. The BIG bird is thawing in the fridge and the cupboards are full and ready to go Thursday morning. But the thing I look most forward to is seeing and being with Ya'all!!!

And just for fun.....Sarah went to spend a day with Jess, Amy and Lukas a couple weeks ago and this is a video she took. Hey, he loved it!!!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING !!!!!!!!

Love to all!!!

All in a day...or 2

Hello, hope you all don't mind if I take over the blog again. I know grandma writes about me a lot but sometimes I need to set the record straight!!! So, what is new with me. I have 2 teeth and I am pretty sure that I may be getting some on top now. I love sticking my tongue out and up and sucking in my top lip. I can stand for a long time without help, and whenI forget I can't walk yet, I take a couple of steps between things. Sometimes I forget I don't have anyone there and go for it!!! Yesterday I took 3 asteps between dad and G-ma. I love sitting up on my knees, and especially like to bounce to music. Aunt Sarah has some cute videos of me but, g-ma hasn't gotten them yet. I make all sorts of different sounds.....ma, da, goo, na, ba, and the all important blah. Grandma wants to believe that when she asks me I point to my nose....man do I have her fooled!!! Oh, and I am not a happy kid, NOPE NOT me!!!

One of the newest things I like to do is drink from my sippy cup. Of course after you take a few swallows it is WAY FUN to flip the straw and spray a little water. You should try it sometime it is a real hoot!!!! I am pretty impresssed with myself!!

I have also figured out the gumball machine. Now not only can I get them all out but I can put them back in. That is when I don't decide to chase the balls all around the room. I LOVE to crawl up on them and then bat them with my hand and chase after them again!!

Just curious

Do you all find the stem on an apple this fascinating.

And, just so you know the stem is not the tastiest part.

Now as you all know toys are great fun!!! I love getting new things.....but holy cow do I love a good box. They are so interesting. I was happy until it kept getting stuck on my foot.Oh and please forgive g-ma for talking and laughing so much in this video. I am not the most patient person ,I now know what I want I just don't have the words to ask for it....so I point and in my own cute, adorable, non- whinny way ask for assistance in getting what I am looking for!!!!

I love playing hide and seek with my daddy. He is sooooooo funny. Grandma says that I really light up when he comes home.

Aunt Sarah bought me this really cute lion. I get all giddy when dad fly's me at him. I also like crawling on him and then watching him bounce back up!

The curtains on the front door are on a magnetic curtain rod. Last night g-ma unwrapped them so they could hang down like normal. She must have forgotten about me!!! I innocently crawled over to the door where I always play and one tiny tug on the curtain and this is what I get!!! I have to say I wasn't too happy with her in that moment!!!

In closing I will turn it back over to g-ma. Bye for now!!!

So if you are all sick of me bragging about Lukas now would be a good time to quit reading!!! I sure am smitten with this little guy. I am feeling a little tender hearted for the v-burg edition today as the lady who sat for Lukas from the time Amy went back to work is no longer available to watch Lukas. He sure will miss her and her kids, and Jess and Amy have had to scramble to find someone who can take over. Then today was supposed to be her first day and her little one is sick. I just wish they could catch a break!!! I remember how hard it was to be away from the kiddo's in the first place. In closing I hope she knows how lucky she is to have the chance to watch this sweet boy!!!

Want to keep busy??

So shall we try a week in review?

First on the agenda was cleaning out the owl box and seeing what we can do about the nest box camera. Dave lugged the ladder down and and made the long climb.

He found that a squirrel had been trying to make a nest in the box. He removed all the leaves and then it was time to check the camera!!! :( He tried but he couldn't do it.....so the new one is on the way!!!

Brace yourselves...this one is in color.

Next, was to cover the beast.. We decided that with the new trailer we wanted to make it warm and cozy for the winter. So once again, up he went!!

Here it is all settled in for a long winters nap. Don't look too close though as someone and I shall NOT mention who, that is may and I say MAY have put the VERY SMALLEST of holes in the new cover.

She would NEVER do such a thing!!!

My mom has just 2 things left in her garden. These are her brussel sprouts. I think they are really cool looking. I think they look like palm trees. Now let's eat!!!!

On Sunday Sarah, her BFF Renee, and Rens mommy Robin hit the road to..................

HERE!!!

Of course , for anyone who has been there, we didn't find much worth buying!!

We had a couple of dressers, a bed, TV stand, table and chair and MANY trinkets. We travels in comfort thanks to the mega cab and we were able to fit it all in the back. I will say that the outside employees must have had a long day, because they were not even remotely helpful!!!! And yes, I did park as far away as I could get!

Oh, come on you knew better!!!!

Of course there would be a picture of Lukas in this thing. I am waiting for a copy of a few that Sarah took this weekend. She went down to watch him while Jess and Amy worked and she had a ball. He will take a couple of steps between two people now.

Man, are they in trouble. This is one BUSY boy.

Well, just a little update......were you bored?? Oh, well I try. Heading down to watch my little guy and I hope I can keep up!!

Oh and lets keep this fine fall weather coming!!!

This was a big weekend at the Wards...Jesse was participating in the Iceman bike race in Traverse City. He and Amy asked us to watch Lukas for the weekend!!! It ended up being a beautiful weekend in many fronts. First we got to have Lukas and the weather was beautiful. This race usually has about 2500 participants, this year they had 4000. In November you never really know what the race will hold for weather and so they thought it would be easier if Lukas stayed here. It ended up being like 70 degrees here this weekend....who would have thought???!!! OH well, it worked out for us!!!!!

My mom came over to see Lukas and say hello to Amy. I think she enjoyed her time with us!!! And yes, at this point Amy was still smiling!!! It was the first time they were leaving Lukas.

Sarah came over after work to see her favorite little man. It was nappy time for both!!!

Both rejuvenated and it was time to play!! I only wish I had the energy of a 9 month old. I love that he is so inquisitive. He inspects everything......and I mean EVERYTHING. He sure is fond of aunt Sarah and she always makes him smile!!

On Saturday morning Lukas helped me take down the Halloween decorations!!. Actually, having him here made me realize how not childproofed this place is!! HEHE. All you have to do is crawl after him to see things you never saw before!!!

Grandpa took him outside to watch the birds. He was really fascinated by them flying around!

Even when he was inside he was intrigued by the birds.

He can be very intense when he sees something he likes!!


OK, so maybe it was necessary to try and eat the door also!!

After all the birdwatching it was time to take a little bath.....And as you can see he is not to happy about it!! You can see the 2 teeth he has now!!

I know it is wrong but, I couldn't help it when I saw this shirt.

He really was no trouble at all, but how cute is it.

He is taking after his grandpa and put the gate to a safety test. He shook it, he rattled it, he climbed and chewed on it.......and it held up well. He also found that if you throw something through the bars they go all the way down the stairs! :) He is now ready to go with grandpa to work and take on those desks!!!

And who says you have to take the popper out of the toy box to play with it. I was surprised how fast he figures things out. And everything is at full force. He loves to pull everything out of the toy box. One of his favorite things to do is take one of his toys or a empty pop bottle and hit it around on the floor and chase it around. He gets to it bats it and then crawls as fast as he can after it. He also takes out his cars and when he pushes them around he makes a vroom sound. He really only makes that sound when he is pushing something. It is so much fun to just sit and watch him. He also talks the entire time. I can't wait till he has his words, because that brain is thinking all the time and I want to know what he is talking about!!

He was outside helping grandpa with his truck and the sun and warm weather seems to have worn him out!!

We made a stop at Great grandma and grandpas house to say hello!! As you can see Prince acted as a guard dog !!! Lukas was missing Schaffer.

Once again on Sunday the weather was awesome.....it is what we have been waiting for through all the rain and gloom that was this fall!! Lukas decided to help with some of the raking.

After he learned about the birds he decided to share all that information with aunt Sarah.

He had a lot of stories to tell about his weekend with grandma and grandpa. I can only hope they were all good stories.

Jesse had a good race and he and Amy had a great weekend. I know they missed having Lukas with them. We had a great weekend with Lukas here and he seems no worse for the wear.

He constantly amazes me with his curiosity,and good naturedness (is that a word?) We had so much fun having him here. He is so full of smiles and like I tell everyone, his whole face smiles. He was busy from the time he got up till bed time....I see why we have children before we are old!!! Or should I say older..LOL. We look so forward to watching and sharing in all this little guy's life and learnings.

Thanks to Jesse and Amy for letting us share their time with Lukas.

Lukas musings

Hello again, Lukas here. G-ma came down again and she asked me to fill you in on all that happened while she was here. My second tooth finally came in but as you can see it really has not made much difference in the drooling front.....Hey, I am doing the best I can!!!!

I have found that playing with my shadow on the wall can be really fun. I especially like it against the red wall!! It's sort of like Peter Pan and his shadow........can someone sew it to my feet!!!!

I am also very fond of my blow up beach ball....it chases me all around the room and I have many moments of fun with it!! G-ma also wanted me to mention that I can kick the ball with a little help from mom or dad. I am also climbing the steps and I love it when mom chases after me as I head up to get my pj's!!!

I have to admit that I am not always a GOOD BOY!!! Sometimes I don't stop doing things I am told that I am not supposed to do. I don't see what is so wrong with hanging on the cabinet door!!!???? Right after this g-ma made sure I listened to her!! Man she wasn't much fun!!!

Aunt Sarah gave me this last Christmas even before I was born. Now I really believe she got it so I could make plenty of noise for mom and dad. I really like it and have fun driving it around. Just imagine the fun I will have when I can walk. I am working on that...I can walk around furniture and I have noticed that while I am standing holding on to someone....they let go to see how long I can stand alone........hmmmmm they are really tricky.



I am also a great supporter of Lance Armstrong and his livestrong foundation I find his bracelets very entertaining.



Here you can see it is a lot of fun!!!

I have 3 cats to play with at my house, Kitty, Otto and Leo. They are so fun!!! Otto doesn't really like this game but the other 2 really enjoy it.

I just can't get enough of this game!!!

Well, that is pretty much it for now. I am going to head up to g-ma and g-pa's house this weekend and if we know g-ma she may take a few pictures of my visit!!!

See ya soon!!!