GO South Burlington!!

Hey everyone. So, in our little newspaper we get for South Burlington there was an interesting article. In the Family Circle Magazine they recently announced (it will be in the August issue) their Top 10 best communities to live in and raise kids. Crazy enough, South Burlington was one of them! They used several things to make their decisions. The towns they picked all have top-rated schools, affordable housing (not sure if we agree that THAT is true??), and good jobs-along with a slower, easier pace of life and a lot less stress. They also said that the communities know and care about their neighbors and have real pride of place.

Way to go South Burlington! We were really excited to hear that bit of information. We sure like what we've experienced so far. 3 Cheers for South Burlington, VT!

We are really late.

So, we are really late in posting this blog. I thought I would tell y'all what we did over the 4th weekend. See, I told you we were late... Dustin has some really good friends at work. He met most of them while he was in Dallas. He met one woman there and they clicked. She is hilarious and we love her! So, on Friday afternoon we went to her house. Danielle and Clifford Spooner are their names. They live in St. Albans, which is about 25-30 minutes from us. So, we hung out with them and their son and his family. (Also great people!) The adults chatted and enjoyed the outdoors while the kids played in the kiddie pool. We had a cook out that night (yummy) and they set up tents in their backyard for us to camp out! After we put Norah to bed we cooked s'mores by the fire and Macy and Tate enjoyed them (Sorry Norah!). Once all the kids were in bed, we got in their hot tub! It was great! We talked around the fire until we were basically falling asleep (well, me anyway) and then in the morning we made breakfast outside. It was so much fun! I'm sorry I don't have any pictures. I forgot to bring my camera! Thanks Danielle and Clifford!!!!!!!

From medium to big?!?

Well, my little boy turned 4 yesterday. Of course, if Tate could read he would say that he is not little. The way he describes it Macy is big, Norah is little, and he is medium. (I get in trouble a lot because I forget this very strict rule.) He told me this morning that he thinks he might be big now but he is not sure. He has to think about it. (Just a side note, Norah cherishes being little.)

It was great day. We went to Mt. Philo and hiked to the top with the Smiths' and Dilley. The park has a road to walk up to the top or a trail. We took the road as we were pushing 2 strollers. The Smiths' pushed their kids in their stroller. Macy hiked the whole way up. Norah, of course, hitched a ride in the stroller. Tate on the other hand tired quickly, leaving me to carry him on my shoulders. (Luckily Dilley was there to help alternate with me pushing Norah up in the stroller and lugging Tate on our shoulders. See above picture of Tate being carried to the top by Dilley.)

After that we returned home to presents and strawberry cupcakes with blue frosting. As you can see one of Tate's presents was Hungry Hungry Hippos. A good part of Sunday afternoon was spent with Melissa trying to keep Tate and Norah from cheating. Tate would start catching the marbles before Melissa said go. Norah kept sneaking marbles from Macy's pile and put them in her own. Poor Macy, the stickler for the rules, couldn't win. They all had fun though.

Pedro

So, I thought I would post some pictures of our dog Pedro. Some people don't even know we have a dog. We have had him for 2 1/2 years. He was a feisty puppy (not too bad) but now he is a lazy teenager (aren't they all??). As you can see from the pictures he pretty much lays around and sleeps most of the day away. What a life!!

Sam Mazza's Farm

So, a few weeks ago we went to the Mazza's Farm for their annual Strawberry Festival. It was a ton of fun. They had great kid activities and yummy strawberries! You can see from the pictures all the things the kids were able to enjoy. I think they probably liked the pony rides the best. This farm is a great place. They have year round produce you can pick and a bakery (YUM-O!), as well as a flower/greenhouse area. It was lots of fun!