Happy Turkey Day!

This year for Thanksgiving was a Hrodey year, and since Pete has to work on the Friday after Thanksgiving, we invited everyone up for a UP Thanksgiving! Pete's parents, Kelly, and Drew came up on Tuesday, and Mark came up Thursday morning. We started our Thanksgiving morning off with our annual Turkey Trot...except it was a little different this year than it was the past three years in California. There was snow on the ground and it was raining/snowing, so we decided to leave the boys home with Grandma... and it was a good thing we did! It was definitely a cold, wet run, but it still felt good to get out and run. When we got home, Mark showed up shortly after, and he had our new TV in tow!! We hooked up the TV, watched the parade, made Thanksgiving dinner, and everyone showed up around 3 (Mark's parents, aunt & uncle, and his brother & girlfriend all joined us). We had a wonderful dinner with everyone, and we are so thankful that everyone was able to drive the roads to join us. The best part about this Thanksgiving was that we were in Michigan with our family, so we had a lot to be thankful for! Hope everyone else had a wonderful Turkey Day too, and congrats to Amanda, Allen and Harper for Holden making his presence into the world on Turkey Day!!!

Charlie goofing off.

Drew LOVED Charlie's car. I think he was in it all week! At least we know what to get him for his birthday!

Charlie wanted yogurt, so I told him he had to take one to Drew too. He grabbed two of them, ran into the play room and said, "Drew! Drew! Yogurt." It was so cute!

The best pic of the two them I could get the whole time.

Having some mac & cheese for lunch.

Ummmm....yeah... I think the boys like Sesame Street.

Our new TV! We love it!

Our fancy table.

Mark's brother, Eric's, girlfriend, Stacy, made all these yummy, adorable Thanksgiving treats!

Charlie thought Payton needed some homemade crescent rolls while he was in his kennel during dinner. He would shove an entire roll through the holes in his door.

Playing a hat game with Uncle Mark.

Drew's and my attempt at a self portrait... at least we got Mark in the background too!

Love this picture! He wanted me to take a picture of him, and this is what we got!

Reading the Trucks book with Grandma.

Story time before bed with Grandpa.

Shenanigans and Payton

Here are a few pictures from the week before Thanksgiving. Charlie has been really into playing and snuggling with Payton lately. Payton tolerates it, but definitely walks away from him after he's had too much. They really are cute together!

Snuggle time with Payton.

Helping Payton chew on his bone.

"Mommy, picture!" Charlie likes to get right in front of the camera for me to take a shot of him.

Reading with Daddy.

Pete taught Charlie how to put his hands in his pockets. He also loves carrying around bags and wearing his Lab boots.

Gazing out onto the lawn on a cold, Marquette afternoon.

Opening Day

Pete's parents came up to spend the weekend with us so that Pete and his dad could go out hunting opening day together. One of their traditions is to have powdered donuts in the morning for breakfast. Well, it didn't take too long for Charlie to notice them! He grabbed the bag off the counter one morning, brought them to me, and asked me to help him open the bag. He loved wearing Grandpa's orange hat everywhere we went, so we got a cute picture of him in the hat with his donut. The men hunted all day, the women shopped, and we enjoyed some quality time together at night. It was a great little visit!

The guys coming home after a cold first day hunting.

Grandpa working on ABC's with Charlie after hunting.

Laughing!

Just some cute pictures of Charlie cracking up while Pete tickled him. There's nothing better than the sounds of his giggles!

Moving Wood with Dad

We had some wood delivered the other weekend for fires this winter, and Charlie loved helping Dad stack the wood. It was just too cute, so of course we had to take pictures!

Pushing the wheel barrel.

Scoping out the pile to get a good piece.

Dad helped him find a good one.

Taking it to the wood pile.

Such a big helper for Dad!

He tried to fill in the holes, but when that didn't work, he set them on top like Dad did.

Iceman Weekend with Drew!

Last weekend was the Iceman bike race in Traverse City that Pete's parents help to run every year. We've never been able to go to one, so Charlie and I packed up the car on Thursday, headed downstate, and spent 4 days with Mark, Kelly, and Drew. We didn't get to see too much of Grandpa and Grandma because they were busy working, but we were able to spend some meals together. When we got to town Thursday, Charlie and I went to the resort to visit Grandpa and Grandma for a bit. That night we had dinner all together at Mark & Kelly's. Friday, Drew had a fever ;), so Kelly called in to work and we got to have a Wildcat Day (a tradition Kelly had when she was at Northern where you stay in your jammies all day!). It was a good day for one too because we got snow Thursday night! Friday afternoon we ventured out to Sam's Club, then took the boys over to the resort to check out all the activities going along with the Iceman. On Saturday, we took the boys over to see some of the bike race, had lunch at the Red Mesa Grill stand during the race, then headed home for a nap. We laid pretty low the rest of the evening. Sunday we went over to Grandpa and Grandma's and spend the day with them. Monday morning Charlie and I cleaned up our mess at M&K's house, then headed home to Marquette. It was a great weekend, and we are so glad we got to spend so much time with Mark, Kelly & Drew. Usually it's a quick visit with them, but this time was much more fun! Thanks for all your hospitality, Mark & Kelly! So glad we live closer to you guys now, and we can see the boys grow together! We love you!!!

Charlie was so excited for Uncle Mark to come home. He waited for him by the door!

Our first snow in Michigan! Charlie was pondering what to do about it.

Story time with Aunt Kelly. We did this a lot!

We tried Play-dough for the first time. I told Charlie to smile for the camera...and he did!

Jumping up and down with Aunt Kelly.

Uncle Mark gave Charlie and Drew Spartan stickers for game day.

My first picture with Uncle Mark! I really love this guy!

The boys bundled up for the Iceman. They were not too happy about the puffy coats, but they look dang cute, don't they?

Had to take a picture of the race. No clue who this guy is though.

One of Charlie's only smiles during the race. He was very cranky....until he feel asleep.

Luckily we found this big tractor to keep the boys happy when they were melting down.

Sitting in the back of Grandpa's new truck with Grandma. I love this picture!

Enjoying the beautiful day in G&G's yard.

Grandpa & Grandma are measuring the boys each time they come to the house so they can see how they grow!!