Ganyard Hill Farms

This last Saturday, Grayson and I went to Ganyard Hill Farms in Durham for some good old fashioned pumpkin picking.  Or so we thought... there were so many things to do on the farm!  Grayson got to run through a "corn bin", slide down a hay shoot, pet farm animals, take a hay ride, pretend to "milk a cow", remove corn from the cob (with a hand crank of some sort), climb all over tractors and, of course, pick a pumpkin.  Technically, he picked two - one for me and one for himself.  He would have stayed on the hay ride all day, if I would have let him.  He kept talking about grandpa "papa" and the tractor at my parent's house.  All in all we had a wonderful morning.  He was so worn out we had to sing "Old McDonald" all the way home.  (It was a long 20 minute drive!)  

Labor Day Weekend

Labor Day weekend we were in Oklahoma enjoying time with our families. Grandpa and Grandma took Grayson to the Oklahoma Aquarium in Jenks. We all had a great time seeing the fish. Grayson really loved seeing "Nemo". We eventually had to purchase our own "Nemo" from the gift shop.

One of Grayson's favorite things to do when we go home is ride the tractor with Grandpa.

We also got to go to the OSU game. The weather was perfect! Grayson loved seeing the Cowboys play football...

We also got to see his cousins over the weekend. They both loved riding bikes and playing in the driveway at Gigi and Papa's...

Grayson's First Day

Grayson started preschool this year. He is going to Cresset Christian Academy in Durham. It was perfect timing, because the week he started school, Ryan started his new job with American Airlines in Dallas. Ryan is loving his new job and Grayson is loving going to "school" like a big kid.

Summer 2010

Well, I wish we could say that we had more pictures from this summer. But, it has been a pretty uneventful season. Ryan spent the summer staying home with Grayson and looking for a job. The boys had a lot fun going to the pool, museum, and the library. We did find out that we are expecting our second child the day after Thanksgiving! It is going to be a girl. We are really excited and Grayson can't wait for his baby sister...

May 2010

In May we took Grayson to JCPenny's for some pictures. Both grandmothers love portrait pictures, so this will probably become an annual event. They really enjoyed getting to pick their own pictures out from the session.

I had an IIDA conference in Myrtle Beach, SC in May. So, we skipped Ryan's graduation ceremonies and spent some extra time together as a family... Grayson loved playing in the pool. He really became a fish this summer. At times it was really hard to get him to leave our local swimming pool.

My parents came to North Carolina for Grayson's birthday. We joined the Museum of Life and Science in Durham for his birthday. He loves going and exploring everything. Especially, all of the noise makers...

more of the museum...

Happy Birthday G!

Spring 2010

Easter felt like it came early this year... it is amazing how the little things in life can feel so different. Every year our church throws an Easter Egg Hunt at Oval Park in Durham. This is our second year to go and we love it. Ryan and I don't know if Grayson enjoyed picking up the eggs or watching the other kids more. He is really observant. When the egg hunt was over we stayed at the park and played for awhile. Grayson loves going to the park, it is one of his favorite things to do. We ran into some good friends of ours, the Flemmons. Grayson, Tye and Kaitlyn really enjoy playing with one another.

At the beginning of May we had a really beautiful streak of weather, so we went to Duke Gardens for a picnic. Grayson loves to run and tackle people. So, we tried to capture it on camera.

We had a wonderful time...eating, playing and smelling flowers.

Winter 2010

This last winter we really enjoyed playing with our new swing that Grandpa gave Grayson at Christmas. Grayson was all smiles for weeks!

In January we had our first snow of the season. It is no where close to what Ryan and I are used to, since living in the northeast, but it is just perfect for Grayson. We got all bundled up and spent more time crawling than walking in our new snow shoes... they were a little big.

Ryan, Ben and Tim all had the same Spring Break this last March, so my parents took us all (the whole family) to Steamboat Springs for a ski trip. We had a wonderful time! We got to see my Uncle Jerry and Aunt Janet while we were there too. Grayson did not ski this year, but he is ready to go again soon.

As spring weather set in, we enjoyed using our deck and eating yummy local ice cream, from a local creamery, Maple View in Hillsborough, NC.

Christmas 09

Last year we went home during the Thanksgiving holiday, so at Christmas time we stayed local. We ate Christmas day lunch with some good friends of ours, the Flemmons, and enjoyed relaxing around the house. Grayson helped me cook breakfast Christmas morning and put together a yummy dessert to take to the Flemmons for lunch. Although the "Crockenbouche" did not look as lovely as some of the pictures on google, it tasted great! Grayson really liked the cream filling...

A few days after Christmas, my family came to visit. We had a wonderful New Year's holiday.

Grayson loves getting to see his grandparents and uncles... he also LOVES his swing!

Fall 09

Last fall was pretty busy for us. Maybe it is the season or just the beautiful weather, but we took advantage of every weekend. These are just a few of the pictures that we took over the fall...

Grayson loves sour cream and vegetables...much to the dismay of his father.
Our first day at the park as a family... at least we know that sand won't kill him.

Grayson loves helping Mom cook! We were making apple pies for our church small group with some of our produce from the crop share...

I spoke at an ASID conference at the beginning of October in Wrightsville Beach. We spent the whole weekend at the beach and loved playing in the sand and on the beach...

Ryan and I love going to college football games, so we jumped at the chance to go to USC (University of South Carolina) in Columbia, SC. It was a little warm that day, but completely worth the trip. Grayson loved watching the football players and people in the stands.

We took our first set of family pictures at the end of October. There were so many great pictures we ultimately purchased the rights to the pictures. If you live in the Raleigh area, you should definitely check out Jen Arthur photography! She is amazing.

Just some more pictures from the session...

Grayson was a monkey for Halloween last year. His costume was a little big, but he did not care. We had a wonderful time Trick-or-Treating with our church small group, even if we did not understand how to get candy...

In November my dear cousin, Mandi, got married. I could not have been happier for her!

We spent Thanksgiving in Oklahoma this last year... these are a few pictures from Thanksgiving at the Schwenk's.

Thanksgiving at the Friske's...

Go Pokes! We watched the Bedlam game at my parents house with our extended family.

Summer 09...

Last summer Ryan spent the summer in Boston working for Biogen Idec. It was not easy to be apart from each other, but we made it through. We did get to take a trip over the 4th of July holiday and see him. My parents came up to Boston and joined us for the trip. It was great to see Ryan, Grandma and Grandpa. I loved the city. It was so beautiful and inviting.

A little taste of Harvard... what a beautiful campus!

Seeing the city with Grandma and Grandpa...
We spent a day in a local garden with Grandma...enjoying the weather.


Even though it rained most of the trip, we enjoyed great food and getting to see the city.


We spent a day at the Boston Children's Museum...Grayson could not have had more fun!

Mom's little construction worker...

Cars, cars and more cars...

On July 3rd we ventured out and took a walking tour around Boston. It was amazing to see all of the history one city has to offer...

GO RED SOX...this was Grayson's first major league baseball game...

Last summer I had two cousins get married...one in June and another in August. We took our second trip home in August for the wedding and enjoyed playing in the pool at Grandma and Grandpa's house...

Ryan was done working for the summer, so it was nice to spend time together as a family again.

Grayson loved helping Grandma water her flowers and play with the water hose.

More time in the pool...