Class of '88 Reunion Weekend

Well, it's finally here! The much anticipated Paul Blazer Class of 1988 20th High School Reunion Weekend! Things got started last night with a cookout/tailgating get-together prior to the Tomcat home football game. It was a festive start, and a excellent warm-up for the big event, which is tonight's dinner and dance.

Even the "products" of Class of '88 members got in on fun of the gathering! Look at those smiling faces!

Hiking Rock House Trail

Yesterday, we took our first hiking trip together as a family. We traveled to nearby Wayne National Forest to explore the Rock House Trail in the Vesuvius Recreational Area. We chose it because it's short (.8 miles), paved, and includes a cave (technically a "rock overhang," but close enough for the girls' purposes!)

Here we are at the beginning of the trail. What a pretty start!

It didn't take us long to get to the Rock House. The girls enjoyed running ahead on the trail, and were especially pleased to see the humongous rock formations at our destination.

Aunt Donna came with us, too. Here's a picture I took in the darkest, most remote area of the Rock House. Aunt Donna was the adventurous one who lead the girls to this area; I think they enjoyed the potential "scariness" of it!

As you can see, there are lots of photo opportunities in the Rock House! In fact, we took lots more pictures than what I've posted here. It was a really fun family outing, and I hope we get the chance to go hiking more often soon!

We checked out the lake before we left. We walked down this long pier and saw lots of people fishing and some lovely woodland views. Chris found out that they rent boats there, too, so maybe we'll be posting pictures from a lake adventure next time!

Caroline Starts Ballet

After two long years of observing Jordi in her class at the June Conn School of Dance, Caroline finally attended a ballet class of her own!

Last week, Nana took Caroline shopping to get her very own, brand-new, leotard & ballet slippers. Doesn't she look so grown up?! I took this picture as we were waiting in for class to start. She was very eager to get started!

Here she is after class, posing with Jordi. You'll be happy to know that Caroline was the most well-prepared of all the 3-year-old novice ballerinas in her class! She never wavered in her focus on the teachers, and performed all her moves with determination and purpose. Quite precocious!

Caroline's Cookie Face

In this picture, Caroline is wearing the evidence of one of the perks of having Aunt Donna live with us:

Aunt Donna is, overall, a wonderful cook, but her speciality is baking. A couple days ago, she made a batch of her renowned chocolate chip cookies. Caroline's smile is no understatement, folks! These cookies are awesome!

Jordi's First Day of School

It seems like only yesterday that we were bringing her home from the hospital, but our little girl actually started kindergarten today!

Here we go, getting into the car for our first morning trip to school!

We ran into Jordi's friend from ballet, Little Emily, on our way into school. These two have known each other since they were three years old; isn't it nice to have a friend's hand to hold onto during such a momentous occasion?

Once inside, we joined in the annual "Boo Hoo Breakfast," an aptly named event for the first day of school! Luckily, Jordi was too excited for tears. The only thing I wanted to cry about, however, was not getting there early enough to actually sit down & enjoy eating together before Jordi's big day!

Once the bell rang, it was time to walk Jordi down to her classroom. (I love this picture!)

There she is, ready to begin her formal education journey. Bye, Jordi!

You'll be happy to know that Jordi had an uneventful - and, therefore, great! - first day of school. She brought home several papers to show us, and even got to lead the lunch line, which she said was her favorite part of the whole day. It was a tiring day, though, so I didn't get any protesting tonight about the earlier bedtime that we've imposed for school-nights. In fact, I think I'll skip the Olympics myself tonight, and get some much needed rest. After all, we've got to get up & do it all over again tomorrow!

Card from Grandma

Both girls got a card in the mail today from their Grandma Henri. Getting mail with your name on it is such a treat to them! I can tell that Caroline took Grandma's words to heart. Just listen to this video I made of her "reading" what Grandma wrote to her!

Too sweet!

Meeting the Teacher

Jordi will start Kindergarten later this week, and last Friday she had her first official visit to her new school for a meeting with her new teacher, Mrs. Wyse. We had to wait our turn out in the hall, so, of course, I took a few pictures!

Here's Jordi outside her new classroom, posing by their bulletin board. (At least I think it's their bulletin board! Their classroom is decorated like the ocean and this is the only one with fish on it!)

You can tell by the look on her face that she's very eager to meet her new teacher!

I took this picture as we were walking back to the car after the meeting. Go, Hagar Wildcats!

Jordi has Kinder Camp to attend today (Monday) and her first full day of school is Wednesday, August 13. Please keep her in your thoughts this week - these are big moments for our girl!

Happy Birthday, Grandad!

This past Wednesday was Grandad Tim's birthday. We celebrated with a delicious dinner of Judy's spaghetti followed by a homemade cake, baked & decorated by the birthday boy himself (with help from Jordi & Caroline, of course!)

The girls are smiling so much because they "tricked" Grandad into making his own birthday cake by telling him that he was making it for our neighbors, who happen to be big UK fans. Then - surprise, Grandad! - it's really for you! As you can see by the expression on their faces, they were quite pleased with themselves for "pulling off" such a hilarious joke!

Our Last Day of Vacation

Last Friday, the last day of our Lexington vacation, the Pullems & Halls all traveled to Berea for a cook-out hosted by the Osborns. Chef Scott was in charge of the menu, and we all enjoyed a wonderful meal of grilled steak, salad, & veggies. Even more enjoyable was spending time together with such good friends!

We don't get all three families together very often, so I'm glad I got this picture of all seven kids at one time: Chloe (5), Tyler (3), Caroline (3), Miranda (8), Nathan (6), Austin (8), and Jordi (4).

A moment in time, captured for posterity!

Jacobson Park in Lexington

Tim & Judy had been telling us about this park & it's remarkable playground for awhile. During our recent week in Lexington, we finally made it there. As you'll see from these pictures, it was well worth exploring!

Here's Jordi in just one small section of this enormous fortress-like play area. Honestly, it may have been the largest playground we've ever been to!

It was full of turrets and tunnels - it was almost like a maze in some spots! I took this picture of Jordi in one of the many narrow hidden stairway areas.

Despite the heat & humidity, both girls had a lot of fun exploring the "castle playground," as they called it. I think we'll wait until the weather cools off a bit before returning!

Ice Cream Truck in Lexington

Despite knowing nothing about ice cream trucks, the first time Jordi heard that distinctive bell, she knew something exciting was on its way!

This picture is from our first experience with the ice cream truck. As soon as I told her what the bell was for, she immediately hustled out to the sidewalk and flagged down the driver. As you can see, she was very grown-up about the whole thing, even ordering to paying by herself!

Luckily, the next time it came by, Caroline hadn't gone down for her nap yet. (Actually, she was supposed to be napping, but wasn't asleep yet and heard the bell; Dad took pity on her and let her get up & go outside to get an ice cream with her sister. One of the perks of being on vacation, y'know!) Anyway, both girls were very happy with their afternoon ice cream treats! Yum!

More Vacation Pictures

We're back home in Ashland as of this afternoon, so it's time to do some catching up on our blog posting.

Let me start with pictures from our trip to a local pool. We had a few days of stormy weather, but luckily things did clear up enough that we were able to enjoy 2 fine pool days during our week.

This was our pool of choice on both occasions. It was really fun for the girls, as you'll see from the following pictures...

That's right, folks - you're eyes are not deceiving you - there's a pirate ship in this pool! How cool is that?! The ship, combined with zero-depth entry and average overall depth of 2 feet, makes this a wonderfully kid-friendly place to spend the day!

I can't tell you how many times Jordi went down this slide! Believe me, it's just as fun as it looks!

Caroline, however, was not ready for all that water in her face from the slide and was, therefore, more content to spend time with one of the two friendly alligators guarding the ship.

It was just so great that both Jordi & Caroline could go anywhere in that big pool without the water being over their heads. I was really impressed by all the features at the Woodland Aquatic Center. In addition to the kids' Pirate pool, there's also a diving pool, a lap pool, and concession stand. I would highly recommend a visit here to anyone with younger kids!