october 2015

When your daughter loves leaves more than most people love pretty much anything, October is a good month.

family pic / visiting grandpa at work for his birthday / trench coat in the leaves / strawberry halloween baby

more leaf fun / nora takes youth group / snuggles with gg / even more leaf fun / selfies with aunt jackie / sleepy snuggles on uncle derek

nora's friends: summer 2015

Just some very important pictures of Nora with her best buddy, Brandon.  

happy birthday, gg!

You guys, look how cute my grandma is:

 

...and today she turns 80! We actually celebrated with a surprise party (planned by her four daughters) a few weeks ago. 

Happy Birthday, GG! We love you!

 Here are some of my favorite shots:

hugs after the big surprise

famjam

cousins

nora and some of her fave aunts

whats up just hanging out in a field i don't know

"Excuse me, sir, that's my GG up there!"

jilly just jillin

finn

nora just totaling blue steeling

ugh, c'mon dad

cuties

gg clicked her heels and then...

check this: starting with GG: Bethany Grace >>> Grace Christina (skip the babe for a sec) >>>> Tina Jayne (back to baby) >>>> Eleanor Jayne #namechain

everybody (kind of)

       

lake nostalgia 2015

As I have previously mentioned, we have a long history at the lake.  This trip, we re-enacted two of our favorite photos.   Here's my mom (age 27) and Derek in 1986 vs. me (age 27) and Nora in 2015 (same spot):  

 
And here is me and Isabel in 2012 vs. me and Isabel in 2015 (same spot):

Conclusion: the lake is so great.

eleanor jayne gets baptized

Eleanor Jayne got her first sacrament on April 11, 2015. It was a day filled with family, cake, cookies, and grilled cheese bars.  Nora wore her great-grandma's baptismal dress from India (also worn by her great-great-aunt Margaret and great-aunt Susie). I wish I had gotten more pictures of more family members with her, but the camera got lost in the party shuffle.  She didn't cry at all during the actual baptism, but we had a near-disaster during mass (crisis averted by very creative holding on the way to the changing table) and the dress and baby remained intact. 

Party Time: Grilled Cheese Bar

We had assorted breads, butters, cheeses, and toppings ready for everyone to assemble their own sandwich (with combination suggestions), and 2 griddles ready to go.  It was a hit, regardless of this conversation I had with my dad the day before:

Dad: Are you sure you want to do a grilled cheese bar?

Me: Yes.  Why?

Dad: Because it's weird.