Introducing........

Wow, I can't believe that I haven't written ablog since Easter! I guess we have been a little busy around here. For one thing, we have added a new member to our family. Lane Skyler Mirock was born July 27, 2011. He is such a sweet little guy and fits in perfectly with our family. In fact today he is 4 months old. We have so much fun watching him smile and coo. He is currently discovering his hands and learning to roll. His big brothers love him to bits!


We were adventurous enough to pack up the clan and drive 16 hours to Illinois for Thanksgiving this year. The drive was remarkably easy and uneventful (except for my accidental swig of little boy pee 2 minutes before we arrived home).

We visited all the families and had a great time. We were able to visit great grandma Mirock. She was so excited to see the kids.

No Thanksgiving is complete without a self carving turkey.

Asher and his best bud, cousin Colin. This dynamic duo has trouble written all over it.

My attempt at a family portrait using a remote control.

A visit to the apple orchard.

Crafting and pink champaign. It doesn't get better than that!

A family portrait. Look how big our family has gotten! They are so much fun and we can't wait for Christmas.

My LIttle Easter Bunnies

Don't they look so cute in their matching Easter outfits? And yes, I even made them go to church. They may have spent the entire time eating snacks on the floor but hey, we should get points for going, right?

Breakfast Cereal

Daddy and Ash

Daddy and Ash are helping me do some test shots today. First, we have to start with a silly hat (Ash's idea - and he hand picked the hat too).A little smooch.
Playing catch.
Hanging upside down (a signature daddy maneuver)
On the shoulders.
Another quick smooch...
Practice our "tiger face"
Phew, that was exhausting!

Is Your Mom A Frigate Bird?

Me
A Frigate Bird

When I came downstairs for breakfast this morning Pierce looked at me, patted me on the stomache and said "Mom, you look like a frigate bird!" I guess I'm proud that he knows what a frigate bird is, but I'd better rethink my outfit.

2 Little Astronauts

For those of you that don't know Pierce. He's really into outerspace. I mean REALLY into it. He can spout off facts about cosmonauts, satellites, space missions and meteorites like nobody's business. He wants to be an Astronaut someday. The only things he's worried about is the space food. He's pretty sure he won't like it. When we heard that our local airport museum was having a space expo, there was no question. We had to go. The kids got to meet a real astronaut, Rick Mastracchio, and have him sign his autograph. He even told Pierce about an astronaut friend of his named Pierce (spelled Piers). This was the big time. THE time to ask any astronaut related questions. When the big moment arrived Pierce was a little star struck and wasn't able to ask any questions, but he did get a great souvenir to take home.

In another section they had samples of Tang (they thought it was pretty tasty for space food). There was a booth with meteorite samples that read "One Sample Per Earthling". Pierce had to check to make sure he qualified before taking one. They found out how much they weigh on the moon (Pierce - 8 pounds, Asher - undetermined due to wiggling and jumping). They made straw rockets (ours went 36 feet) and got to try on a space outfit. Pierce thought it was pretty cool, but said it was stinky. Asher wasn't about to let us leave without letting him try it on too. He drew quite the crowd. Several people came over to take a picture of him in his outfit.

We had a great time exploring outer space and the kids immediately fell asleep on the car ride home. Not a bad way to spend a Sunday afternoon!

Christmas Vacation

We had a wonderful 2 week Christmas Vacation with our family in Illinois. Here are some of the highlights from our trip!

Surprise! Uncle Kevin was married at his "engagement party". The boys were two of the cutest little ring bearer's that you ever saw.

Pierce was so excited to get his favorite cartoon character (Iron Giant) for Christmas. Thank you Oma!

Asher and Oma

Thanks for the great piano Oma. We now have a nightly lounge act around our house.

Pierce's new hero "Kevin the Army". He insisted that Uncle Kevin wear his uniform to Christmas so that he could see it and ask important questions.

Pierce went "ice skating" at Pappy's house. You can see that he has inherited my aptitude for the sport. Notice the turned ankles and general floppiness. Now you know what I look like on ice skates. Maybe I just need 2 big guys to hold me up. Hmmm, that might solve my problem.

Having a blast with Pappy at the Chicago Museum of Science and Industry.

Playing with colors at the museum.

Touring the Jelly Belly Factory with Pappy. Hats were a requirement for all.

A kid in a candy store!

Pierce sure loves his Grandma!

Christmas morning! Can't you just feel the excitement.

Grandma in her glory with baby Asher and Colin fresh out of the tub.

Sledding is hard work.

Pierce loves his "babies". Although little Colin doesn't look too happy about having the love squeezed out of him.

What a great Christmas. We hope the everyone had as much fun as we did. Happy New Year!