Our Boy

It's been a while since I've posted, so I thought an update was in order. I have pictures from my birthday party coming soon, but in the meantime I wanted to show off our sweet little guy. He makes us smile and laugh so often and those times have been especially treasured this week.

Malachi got to help me set up a cake this past Saturday. Normally I wouldn't suggest taking your 2 1/2-year old to set up a wedding cake, but it just worked out that way. Thankfully, Aunt Meg was there to supervise and keep him out of trouble (and out from under the cake table!).

This is what I found a couple of weeks ago when I went to wake Malachi up from his afternoon nap. I took a few pictures, turned on the light and left the door open for about 15 minutes before I had to WAKE him up! He is definitely well-trained in the art of sleeping!

Marathons of 2008

Last weekend was Erik's final marathon for 2008 and I just want to brag a little on his accomplishments. I'm really impressed by his dedication to and enthusiasm for his hobby. He even gave up Dr. Pepper, Taco Bell and Skittles in order to run better!

Erik's season kicked off in Indianapolis on May 3rd at the Indy Mini, a half marathon (13.1 miles). He finished in 1:27:54.

Just two weeks later, on May 18th, Erik ran the Cleveland Marathon and finished in 3:13:32. Thanks, Blake, for coming along to help cheer and keep me company while I waited for Erik to finish. Great job, Erik!!

Erik ran the Akron Marathon on September 27th and finished in 3:25:49. He even received a free pair of running shoes after completing this race!

His final marathon of the year was in Elyria, OH, (near Cleveland) on November 2nd. Erik finished in 3:26:33, which is a very good time...especially since he was sick all week and wasn't feeling completely up to par by race time! Thanks, Megan, for coming along to help cheer and take care of Malachi.

Trick or Treat!

Malachi had a blast trick-or-treating this year. He went up to all the houses by himself and said, "Trick or treat, smell my feet, give me something good to eat!" (Thank you GranMols for teaching him the trick-or-treat rhyme!) After about 3 houses he looked in his bag and said, "Wow! I got a lot of candy! I have like 5!" It's so fun to see him growing up!

As you can see, even Grammy Litter got in on the fun. I think Malachi was a little scared of her at first!

Malachi loved seeing his big cousins Maggie and Riley dressed up, too. Of course they gave him more candy.

Then, at Grammy Jane's house, our little lion started getting tired and found himself a cave to hide in. He refused to call it his "den" and insisted that it was his "cave".

As if one night of trick-or-treating wasn't enough, we had a "Fall Fest" at church on Monday. Malachi loved playing the games and got even more candy.

This was my favorite game to watch. Malachi had to try to eat the donut off the string without using his hands. Very funny!

Malachi's favorite game was busting the bubbles with this sword.

Erik wanted to dress up a little, too. Scary, huh?

Lucas, Malachi, Corinne and Isaac after story time. Malachi wants to make sure Corinne is his girl. Isaac just wants more candy!

They even put our little lion in a giant bubble. We all had lots of fun!

Circle S Farms

Okay, even though this happened a week ago, we had so much fun that I thought I should share! Last Wednesday, Erik, Malachi and I went to Circle S Farms in Grove City. They have a barn full of hay to play in (complete with a slide), a wagon ride out to the pumpkin patch where Malachi chose his very own pumpkin to take home, some animals to see and pet, lots of places great for photos, a corn maze and a sunflower maze, and Malachi's favorite...the Scarecrow Cave. The Scarecrow Cave is really just a maze of hay bales stacked up with some fencing on top to close them in. We had a great time and will probably make a trip to Circle S an annual fall tradition!

To Get Rid of Hiccups...

This past weekend Bainbridge celebrated the 41st annual Fall Festival of Leaves. Malachi was lucky enough to hang out with his Aunt Megan all weekend because I had to help out in the store. Now, according to Malachi (who got his information from Aunt Meg), the cure for hiccups is to eat cotton candy. Needless to say, he has a new favorite food (if you can classify cotton candy as food), a new favorite ride (the Dizzy Dragon) and a new favorite thing about living in Bainbridge (the festival).

We had a busy weekend at the store and a great visit with Aunt Meg. Tomorrow morning we'll be glad to drive through Bainbridge without detouring around the rides and food stands!

Photoshoot at the Falls

These are a few pictures from Malachi's second annual photoshoot at the falls (up Falls Road from our house). This has always been a favorite place of my family's for special photos, and I am lucky enough to have a sister who's a photographer and gives a great family discount! Kelsey did a great job, in spite of Malachi getting muddy and me falling while carrying him and bumping his head on a rock on the way down.

These are a few pictures I liked, but not my favorites...I'm saving those for gifts and Christmas cards!

Kindermusik

Malachi has been taking Kindermusik class with Miss Kelly (Stauffer) at the Racquet Club in Chillicothe this Fall. He really likes the "School House" where he can experiment with crafts and play with various toys. October's theme is centered around creativity and construction.

He made a robot during craft time this week. He loves the singing and the games during class, too. He especially liked the "magic blanket" this week.

We also took a field trip last Friday to a pumpkin patch.
Malachi spent most of his time playing hide-and-seek, although he did stop long enough to pose for a few pictures.
Heather and I tried our hardest to get a cute picture of Malachi and Corinne, but this is the best I managed. It's really difficult to get two kids to cooperate and smile at the same time!