Scout's Lucky Day

My friend Julie always takes such pity on our dog, Scout, for all that she has to put up with - mainly constant "attention" from Larson. I know that Scout lets Larson sit on her, pull her tail, and chase her around for all of the bits of food that Larson sneaks her way, and, for days like today - when the payoff is BIG....

No Instruction Manual

I know, because everyone tells you before you have kids, that children don't come with an instruction manual, and "Oh, how we wish they did". What people did not tell me, is that they also don't come with helmets, and "Oh, how I wish they did."


This was from a flying leap, headfirst, at the corner of the couch. Ouch!

Secily, has not yet needed a helmet (thankfully!) She has been busy being a little person in a big world,


She is working on lifting her head up,

And is getting to know Scout a little better!

Halloween Festival

Tonight was the Halloween/Fall Festival at church. Ryan will be working on Halloween night, so this was our big night to dress up.

Here is our sweet little bumble bee:






And our cute elephant:


And here they are after the festival.....we had one tired pachyderms!

Cleanliness is next to Godliness...

For Larson's sake - let's hope not!

He loved playing in the mud this past week.

Have you ever had the bathtub look like this after only 20 minutes outside? I don't think I ever have.

Because the Earth is 2/3 water.......

That's right, the O'Brien slogan of the '80s still lives on in our hearts, and we are proud of it!
We had a great afternoon last Saturday on the lake when Bryan & Eraina took us, & Jeff & Chandra, out in their new Air Natique! It is an awesome boat!


The weather was perfect, the lake was calm, we had a wetsuit & a dry suit, a stereo in the boat (that you can hear while riding), food, family.....what more could you ask for!?


Larson LOVED "driving" the boat with Uncle Bryan,

and riding in the bow with Uncle Jeffy,


but was a little uneasy when Ryan was out wakeskating. He kept on saying "Daddy" and then pointing into the boat! Funny!
(Don't Chandra & I look like we are having an interesting conversation!)

It was Secily's first boat ride & she was a champ. Here she is with Aunt E, learning the ways of the water, becoming a young "boat chick".

Happy Birthday Linda!

Happy Birthday, this October 16th, to my mother-in-law Linda! I have to take a minute and say how much I love my Mother-in -law. As a fairly young married woman, I hear all sorts of stories from my friends, colleagues, and acquaintances of how terrible their M.I.L.s are, how they don't get along, how they have nothing in common, etc, and every time I hear those stories I am so thankful for Linda.
Linda has welcomed me into their family with open arms. She is so fun to be around - (did you know that she knows how to dance...on stilts!?), and has taught me so much already. I am so thankful for how she raised my husband, and for the incredible impact I know she will have on my kids.

So, Happy Birthday Linda! Thank you for being a wonderful Mother-in-law!!!

The True North Strong and Free

Well, we just got back from our 10 days in Canada. We had a GREAT time! Thankfully the kids were terrific on the plane rides both there and back (thanks in part to one of the best purchases that we have ever made...the portable DVD player!)

It was so wonderful to spend time with my parents,


to have Thanksgiving with my Dad's family at the farm,
to see Erik & Yuriko and their adorable puppy Chaco,

play in the leaves,

to visit with my sweet Canadian friends,
and, of course, to stock up on all of the canadian goodies that we can't get down here!






I will have to post more pictures of the Canadian Thanksgiving Day - Larson had his first taste of quad-ing (American Translation: 4 wheeling) and he LOVED it!

Happy Birthday Dad!

Happy Birthday Dad!!!

Here is a list of some of the things I love about my Dad:
1. He is a positive person.
2. He makes everyone around him feel loved & cared for.
3. He loves ice cream!
4. He always has time to chat.
5. He likes to try/learn new things - for example, when my brothers were learning to barefoot - he learned too. When we were learning to snowboard, he learned too. When we were learning to do backflips on the trampoline, he learned too. And now, he is learning bits of Chinese, Japenese, and Korean.
6. He is a "Mr. Fix-it" type guy.
7. He makes family time fun. When we were kids he was always making the most boring of things - dinner time, getting ready for bed, family devotions - fun.
8. He knows a ton of random, obscure songs & poems.
9. He likes to laugh.
10. He enjoys life.

Happy Birthday Dad! I love you!!