Utah....Again....

I've lived away for FIVE years, I'm used to it right....Yes....but still incredibly weak when I find cheap airfare! The big reasons for the trip were my grandfathers 87th birthday party and my sister Donna's baby shower. Both were wonderful events spent with lots of family. It was a lot of fun in THREE short days.
Isn't this a wonderful picture? I love my grandfather! The day before I flew out I picked up his life story and became completely engrossed (this made for a very late packing frenzy). I love the story of how he met and fell in love with my grandmother. This line I think sums it all up, " We both wanted a large family, and we made this prediction: A crazy boy marries a crazy girl and they have a dozen crazy children."
He recieved a PhD in "Radiation Biology" so it was amusing to read his tales of late night experiments with fish. I kept tracking down Seth in the house to read different parts of his story that seemed very applicable to his/our siutation:) They made it through school with kids, we will too!

She's going to be a mom! I'm so excited for Donna and Bevin and for this new adventure in their lives! Lucy and Anna/Gwen are going to be little cousin buddies. I was hoping to catch a glimpse of a huge belly but none such excited. Just a cute little ball. Stinkin' willowy sisters....they hide those babies so well.

I will be a new aunt X 3 in the next few months!

The Ackerson Girls (missing Monica)
Lucy did well on her second cross country trip. I prayed hard for a miracle but she remained a clingy mamas girl. Poor Grandpa heard an earfull when I ran to Walmart with my mom for a few minutes.


I tried to let her crawl as much as possible during our layover. She wouldn't go back in the stroller to go down the jetway to the plane so she happily crawled down.



The Thackers joined us for Sunday Dinner and we ate the best homemade ice-cream ever, thanks Mike!

There was true joy in our home with our return. Matthew and Lucy couldn't get enough of each other! Don't worry Utah, we'll be back in December!

Cousin Steven

My little cousin Steven just moved to Ann Arbor to start a PhD in Engineering. He's not little or young (just a little over a year younger than me) but I have an image of him as this little kid running around with my little brother and it's stuck! He stayed with us his first week here before he could move into his place. My boys were all over him and would track him around the house. It's nice having family here and getting to see a friendly face at Sunday Dinner.

8 Months and MOVING!

Miss Lucy now pulls up on everything. She took her first (and hopefully last) roll down the stairs. I'm so grateful we put pad and carpet on them! She was really upset but a minute later she was on to something else.
She loves to eat baby food but will have nothing to do with a sippy cup. Sometimes I have to remember she's not a newborn, she just wants to nurse!

Kindergarten here we come!!

The first day of Kindergarten FINALLY arrived for Charlie! He has been looking forward to this for years. The best part about his school is that it is so close we can walk. I was not looking forward to this but it has been wonderful! They only offer "full day" kindergarten at his school but you can send them for half if you choose. Of course they do everything fun in the afternoon so after two days of half day Charlie now goes from 8:45-3:45. We miss him around the house but he can't get enough of it. He loves new friends, "centers", gym, library, and of course his Friday homework.

He was up at 7:00 and ready to go with back-pack on at 7:15!

Seven Months and Crawling!!

To honor her seven month birthday, Lucy learned to crawl and her first tooth saw the light of day! She has already discovered the wonderful world of the bathroom trash can and has become stuck under a chair. Mobility has brought lots of excitement to her life and mine, as I try to re-baby proof our home.