Visit from the Appledorns

On Sunday Annalee, Dan and Miles stopped by on their way home from Annalee's parents' house. They helped us eat some of the leftovers from ZMT, and we had a blast catching up with them and snuggling with baby Miles. He is such a sweetie! It is absolutely amazing how fast babies grow; I just saw Miles a few weeks ago and he's already so much bigger and has started smiling and is making new sounds. He is still a snuggler though, and I got some good cuddling time in with him. Nathan was very curious about this baby that Mommy and Daddy were taking turns holding, but didn't seem too phased by it. It will be so much fun when the two little guys will play together.

Todd and Miles


Nathan checking out Annalee's zipper pull (he has recently discovered these and loves to unzip things).

Nathan checking out Miles.

Baby Miles! Isn't he adorable???

Sweet newborn snuggles

Nathan was very intrigued by Miles' bouncy seat, and had to figure out how it works:

Zoo Mob Thanksgiving 2009

On Saturday we hosted the 11th annual Zoo Mob Thanksgiving (the eighth year that it's been at our house). This is one of my favorite days of the year! All of the Zoo Mob members who are in Kalamazoo for Thanksgiving all come over for a big potluck Thanksgiving dinner the Saturday after the official holiday. Prior to the event, Todd coordinates who is bringing what via email, and we typically get all of the traditional turkey day dishes plus some extras. Todd smokes delicious meats, I am in charge of house prep and clean-up, and everyone else pitches in with food, drink and shennanigans.

Joey supervising the smoker and enjoying some beautiful sunshine.


Todd and Joey

Jen and Anne getting the tour of Nathan's kitchen.

The whole crew at dinner!

Dig in!

Nathan's first ZMT

Relaxing after the feast.

Jess, Katie and Anne

Andy relaxing on the couch

Rock Band

Stuart and Erin brought Rock Band with them for the weekend, and after we finished eating and cleaning up, we all rocked out!



Erin takes her drums very seriously, but it pays off--she is awesome!


Nancy was a star behind the mic.

Todd on lead guitar

Nathan and Grandpa crawled around and played together while the rest of us were jamming.

Fun with Daddy

Daddy and Nathan have a lot of fun together. N thinks Daddy is pretty darn silly! Here are some pics of them horsing around on the porch during the family photo shoot on Thanksgiving:

Family photos

Some family photos from yesterday...

Michael, Alex, Erin and Avery


Do you think these three are related???


Uncle Stu got Nathan to snuggle for a brief moment before N had to go off and explore the world some more.


We decided it would be fun to get a group photo of the kids--this did not go over well with any of them! :)

Last year we took a family photo on the porch, and N was in my belly. It is amazing how much has changed in a year, and how much I have to be thankful for.

Jord, we debated the ideas of dressing Milly up as you, or photoshopping you in to this group shot. I'm sure you're glad to know that we did neither! We miss you and can't wait til Christmas when you can be in the group photo for real (although we still may dress Milly up!)

Thanksgiving

Yesterday was Nathan's first Thanksgiving! Nancy and Dan cooked up a delicious feast at their house, and Dan's older brother Tom, his wife Clem, their son Michael, his wife Erin and their two children Alex and Avery came down from Rockford to celebrate with us. Stu and Erin came in from Chicago. Jordan couldn't make it home for the holiday--he celebrated with his crew out in Colorado by snowboarding all day and grilling turkey kabobs in the parking lot at Keystone (not a bad way to spend the day).

The best action is always in the kitchen!

Nathan enjoying all the toys at Grandma and Grandpa's house.

Alex had fun playing with the boys' legos and train set.

Sweet little Avery

Avery thought Todd was pretty silly.

Mmmm... dessert!

Alex and Clem checking out the action in the kitchen.

Nancy working her magic--she is such an amazing cook!

The newlyweds. :)

Hmmm... trouble in paradise?!?!? ;)

Serving up the caramel apple pie that Erin made for the celebration.

SO yummy!

Nathan's first turkey dinner. He loved it and ate a huge portion--not even one yet, and he already knows how Thanksgiving works!

Wait a minute, is that my kid in the turkey roaster???