Back to Michigan for Halloween

So the first couple months in Indiana was a little strange. We were back and forth from Indiana to Michigan in order to tie up some loose ends with the house and other things that were going on. The best part was that we were back in Michigan for Halloween. We could carry on our tradition with my buddy Collin. So far, since we were both born, we have gotten together at some point on Halloween to get pictures. But, because Evan wasn't feeling good that weekend, we had to cancel our date with Collin. We didn't want to pass any germs. Maybe next year.

This year, I was an angel. I had these cool wings and a halo and Mommy used the dress that I wore for Aunt Mindy's wedding and sewed on some fuzzy things on the bottom. It worked perfect.

Evan was tiger. He didn't do much walking while we were trick-or-treating. He stayed in the stroller most of the time. He was to little to eat candy anyway.

AAAHHHH, Miss Hannah. I miss her.

Before the night was over, we had to stop and see my friend Anthony. He was a pirate this year. We made a perfect 3. A pirate, a tiger and me, an angel.

More Visitors

Later in October, the Sampsons came to visit us. Terre Haute has a lot of parks. One of the parks is a skateboarding park. Christian brought his skateboard and when we there on Saturday. It was a great day. A little chilly, but the sun was shining. Of course, Daddy and Uncle Tracey had to stop by Starbucks on the way and buy their coffee.

Christian can do lots of cool tricks on his board. There obstacles that he could side on and hills to go on. Here he went flying up the edge and landed on his feet, on the top.

While Christian was skateboarding, Mommy, Aunt Chelle, Anthony and my brother Evan went to the other side of the park to play on the swings and slides. I love to swing, I could have someone push me all day long. Mommy took Evan down one of the slides, and Evan didn't listen to the person who was standing at the top saying "Please keep your arms and legs on Mommy's lap at all times". Evan made the mistake of letting his foot slip off Mommy's lap and he sort of got it caught behind him. He was OK after a couple of days and our first visit to the doctor's office. What a Baby! I just think that he wanted the sympathy.

My cousin Ian even came down to visit. It was good, because I hadn't seen him in while. It had been like a whole 2 months since the wedding. It was a little cold the weekend that he brought his parents down, but we still got outside to play and took a nice long walk.

Pumpkin Carving 2009

We took our pumpkins home and a few days later, we carved them. This was Evan's first real time cleaning a pumpkin by himself. Daddy cut a hole in the top of the pumpkins and then Evan and I took spoons and tried to clean out the guts of the pumpkins. It was a little hard for Evan to manage. He thought it was much easier to reach in with his hands and pull the stuffings out.

I enjoyed trying to get the stuff out with my spoon and watching Evan reach in the pumpkin. He could almost fit inside the one that he was cleaning.

Our First Visitors

So we packed up and headed for Terre Haute. Daddy's company that he is working for provided us a very nice apartment. It was a great surprise see it. It is an upstairs apartment with 3 bedrooms. It wasn't long and we had our first visitors. Uncle Mike and Aunt Mindy came for a visit. They were married back in August, so now I can officially call him Uncle Mike. It was a great weekend.

We tried to find a Cider Mill to go to. But cider mills in Indiana are not like cider mills in Michigan. This one was the closest to Terre Haute. It was very small and they weren't making cider, but they did have a great little pumpkin patch. I got to crawl around in all the pumpkins. These pumpkins were just about as big as I was.

Maya liked the little pumpkins. They weren't big enough to carve, but they fit in her hands really well. We decided to buy a couple larger pumpkins and take them home to carve. All in all, there are a lot of things that we need to learn about Indiana. First is that their cider mills aren't what we are used to.

Moving Day. Ugh!!!

After a great summer, Daddy found a job, which was great. But, it is in Terre Haute Indiana. WE ARE MOVING. This will be Maya's and my first experience with having to move. It wasn't so bad. I didn't have to help at all.

Daddy got a call from ThyssenKrupp Presta in the middle of August and had an interview the next day. A couple days later, Mommy and Daddy went to Terre Haute for a second interview. ThyssenKrupp called Daddy a couple days after that and offered him the job. He accepted and we started preparing for the move, which was happening in a couple of weeks. Labor Day weekend, we loaded what we needed for a week in the car and van and drove to the apartment the company got for us. Daddy started work on Sept 8th and then we went back to Michigan and loaded up a truck the next weekend and headed back to Terre Haute to our new home.

Looking back on Summer 2009

This summer was the best. Daddy was home every day. His company was shutdown, which left him out of a job. It might not have been so good for him, but it was great for my brother and me. He was home every day during the summer so we had a lot of fun! We went to the Zoo in Toledo, Ohio, twice. We made it thru the first half the first day. We saw a bunch of animals and it was a little hot, so some animals weren't out in the open. You had to do a little searching because they were lying in the shade. Behind me is a rhinoceros. They have 2 big horns on their noses.

The second time that we went to the zoo, we started at the fish aquarium and explored the second half of the zoo. I like the aquarium. There were all kinds of fish and snakes and turtles in there. I liked getting really close to the glass on the fish tank. When this fish saw me, it swam right up to the glass and stared at me. I stuck my tongue out at it, but the fish didn't stick its tongue out back. It was really neat though.

This is just a statue of a gorilla. Don't worry, it isn't real. The real gorillas were sleeping and the big male in the exhibit just sat there with his back turned to us, so we couldn't get a picture of him. Besides going to the zoo, we also went on vacation at Higgins Lake, went to the beach for a couple of days on the west side of Michigan, and we also had our annual weekend in Lake City with my Aunt and all my cousins. It was a great summer. If you ask Daddy, he will say the same thing. He will say, "I was laid off at the perfect time (May). The weather was great and I was able to spend the whole summer with my family instead of going to work."

My First Wedding

This summer, I was in my very first wedding. Aunt Mindy (Gena's sister) got married to Uncle Mike. He is a really nice guy and I like him a lot. I was the flower girl. I got to wear a pretty white dress with a big red bow on the back. The wedding was at a park along Lake Erie. It was a great day. The sun shone and it was a little warm. Thankfully there was a breeze or it really would have been hot.

The wedding and reception were both right at the park. Mommy and Aunt Heather also stood up at the wedding and Mommy sang. It was a really special day. I loved being in her wedding.

West Coast Michigan Beaches

This summer, we did something a little different since Daddy wasn't working due to being laid off. We took a short overnight trip to the beach. We drove to Grand Haven, Michigan with our friends the Sampsons and spent 1 whole day at Grand Haven State Park just laying on the beach and playing in the sand. The first day was very sunny and warm. There was a breeze coming off the water that was a little cool, but as long as you were in the sun you didn't get cold. When it was getting time to eat supper, we drove to Holland, Michigan and stayed in a hotel for the night.

The next morning, we drove to Holland State Park and hung out at the beach there for most of the day. The weather wasn't quite as good the second day. It was cloudy, windy, and a little chilly, but a good day anyway. We had a picnic on the beach and played in the sand and water again. We headed back home in the later afternoon. We stopped by our usual restaurant with the Sampsons, Cracker Barrel, for supper on the way home. By the time that we made the 2 1/2 hour trip across the state, we were all very tired but glad that we got to hang out on the beach for a couple of days.

My 3rd Birthday

On July 17th, I turned 3 years old. Mommy made a cake for me and put 3 candles on it that I had to blow out. We had a fun little party with our friends and some family over. It was really cool. It was also another milestone for me because......it is the last time that I get a paci. Mommy and Daddy tried to take it away when I was 2 years old, but I just wasn't ready. Now that I turned 3 and I am a big girl I don't need it anymore.

For my birthday, I got my friend Anthony and my buddy Christian and we went to the Candy Store in Wyandotte. It is a store that has nothing but candy in it. We all got 5 dollars to spend, which bought us a bunch of candy at the Candy Store. Most of the candy was wrapped individually so they only cost a few cents a piece.

After we bought our candy, we went to the park along the river. I like this park, they have a lot of fun things to play on. Anthony and I like to peek thru these windows. There are several slides and different ladders and tunnels to climb on and thru. The best part is that I was with my friends.

My birthday was great! We ate cake and ice cream, went to the Candy Store and then went to the park to play. It was such a special day.

July 4th, 2009

This year for July 4th, we stayed at home and had a picnic with our friends the Bobbitt's. We went to a park in Riverview and had a picnic, then went fishing. This was my first experience going fishing. I had never gone before. It was really cool. Daddy put a worm on the hook for me and then casted the worm out into the water. Then we sat on the bank and waited for the bobber to go down, which means that a fish is taking the bait.

It wasn't very long and the bobber went down. Daddy gave the fishing pole a little jerk and then handed it to me. I had caught my first fish. It was huge. I reeled it all the way to the shore. This thing was a monster. I could barely hold it up. I wasn't going to touch it though. It was all wet and slimy. Daddy took the fish off the hook and let me pet it a little before we tossed it back into the water. It was the only fish that we caught.

In the same park, is a fire station. This is where firemen and fire trucks are stored. Uncle Jerry took me over the fire station and we got a tour of the fire trucks. The nice firemen opened up all the doors and let us climb inside the fire truck. Mommy took a picture of the Bobbitt's on the bumper of this truck. It was really fun.

The big, red fire engines were really cool. They had lots of doors on them and they were all shiny. They were so clean and shiny that I could see my reflection in them.

The firemen let us crawl inside the cab of one of the fire trucks. We felt like real fire men. We spent lots of time at the fire house. They even gave us cool firemen hats to wear. But, after a while, we seen all that we could see and then we went and played at the park for a while. We swung and went down the slides and then the Bobbitt's came to our house and we grilled ribs and relaxed the rest of the evening.

It wouldn't be July 4th if we didn't see fireworks. On Sunday, Grandma came over and we went to a local place and watched the fireworks. They were really neat and we were able to get really close to where they were shooting them off.

Here Mommy, Evan and I were enjoying the fireworks while Daddy took a picture of us.

Our Summer Vacation

This year for summer vacation, we went to Higgins Lake State Park. It was only my 2nd vacation since I am only 1 year old. Yes, Mommy and Daddy took me on my first vacation last year when I was only a few months old. We spent 4 wonderful days swimming and hiking and just hanging out.

This was our campsite, where we set up the tent. It was right on the edge of being in the sun, not to far from the bathroom, and not far from the lake. I thought that I did really good this year. The first morning, I woke up before it got light and wouldn't go back to bed. I was a little scared since it was so dark. Once it started getting a little light. Daddy took me for a walk, which I fell asleep on.

Every morning, we would get up and eat breakfast in our food tent. It was a canopy with screens on the sides to keep out the bugs. The weather was great every day. The sun was shinning and Maya was enjoying a bowl of cereal.

Here I am at the beach. The water was a little chilly since it was June, but it was still fun to play in. I liked sitting in the water and digging in the sand. Mommy and Daddy would take Maya and I out into the water in order to get cooled off. The water was really shallow for quite a ways out. It was over my head, but Maya would walk on her own feet and the water was up to her shoulders. We spent a lot of time at the beach. We walked down the shore and found a part of the beach where there wasn't anyone else so we had a large spot all to our selves.

When we are on vacation, we like to go hiking. Maya loved to run in front of us and lead the way. She was always looking for snakes and frogs. They had a nice hiking trail that we went on. It ran along a lake for a while and then when it circled back toward the beginning, we went deeper into the woods.

Since I was only 1, I didn't get to walk along the trail. I got to ride in backpack. It was a nice ride. It was so nice, that I fell asleep. Maybe because the hike was right during my morning nap and that had something to do with it. I did get to see most of the hike. It wasn't until the end that I fell asleep.

At night, we sat around a camp fire and enjoyed the fire and made smores. I had to go to bed early, so I didn't get to eat many smores. Maya really liked them as you can see from her face. She liked to lick the marshmallow and chocolate off the graham cracker and then eat the graham cracker.

That's What These Legs are For

A couple of days after my 1st birthday, I took my first steps. It was in our living room and the steps were very small, but I took them. Mommy got them on still pictures, so if you would flip thru them really fast, you could see my take my first steps. I decided to spare everyone that momentous occasion and post a video after I had been been practicing for a couple of weeks. This is my preferred mode of transportation now. I hardly ever crawl anywhere now. I am still a little unsteady at times, but luckily I have a nice padded rear end to land on. It won't be long and I will be running.

Another Birthday Party

A few days later, on the weekend. Mommy and Daddy had another party for me. Not all of our family and friends were able to make it, but there was still alot of people there. The weather was great, it was sunny, but with a nice breeze so it wasn't to hot. Daddy put up the canopy that we use when we are camping and put the food under that.

We had all kinds of food. There was vegetable's, fruit, carmel corn and crackers and cheese. Then we had ice cream and cake also. The cake had a picture of me on it. By the time the part was over, most of the food was gone. It was a wonderful day.

The best part, was that I got to smash another cake in my face and make everyone laugh. Mommy and Daddy made my own cake with blue frosting this time. It didn't take me long, and I had it all over my hands and arms and face. Birthdays are GREAT!!!!

I turned 1 year old

On June 2, 2009, I turned 1 year old. This was my very special birthday cake that Miss Cindy made me. They were over for supper on my birthday, because they were not able to come to my party a couple of days later. Miss Cindy and family watch my sister and me when Mommy and Daddy both have to work on the same day.


It was really good. It was a chocolate cake, covered in white frosting with different colored letters on it. It didn't take long for me to figure out that I was suppose to put my whole hand in it. I even grabbed a little bite before the candle was lite and they all sand happy birthday to me.

As you can see, I really enjoyed the cake. Before it was all over, I had it all over my face in all over my hair. I had to get a bath afterward because wipes weren't going to do. I got eat all that wanted from my cake. The best part was that the more I smeared frosting and cake all over my face, the more everyone laughed and cheered. Normally I get in trouble when I do that at the dinner table.