Kentucky & Louisville Zoo

This weekend we went to Louisville, KY to visit Lucas' brother Derek and his wife Emily and to root on the runners in the family during the Louisville Marathon and Half Marathon. It all started on Friday...Lucas took a half day at work, so we loaded up the Tahoe, dropped the dogs at the kennel, and settled in for a 7+ hour drive to Louisville. After listening to Barney for about 4 hours, a couple naps, pit stops, and a little crying we arrived in Louisville. We had decided to stay at a hotel, so we checked in and Lucas took Cassidy for a swim (she was a little wound up from the ride!). We relaxed after that long, long drive. On Saturday morning we headed over to Derek and Emily's house for some bagels and coffee. Then Lucas and I took the girls to the Louisville Zoo. We met up with my parents and had a great adventure. The Louisville Zoo is very nice and we went early enough that most of the animals were out and about.

It was great afternoon. After the zoo we went to Cumberland Brew's for lunch, which was nice. I had a delicious grilled chicken salad with apples...yum! Then we went back to the hotel so the girls could take a nap. They were quite tired from our morning and afternoon. My parents visited for a bit and then headed home. After naps we met up with the Hart family and headed to Wick's for pizza...we enjoyed the Big Wick, which is a ridiculous 10lb. pizza.

On Sunday we headed to downtown Louisville to watch the finish for the marathon and half marathon. Caleb, Vickie, Janette, and Christine participated in the half marathon. They all did really well. Bill and Tom Ryan participated in the marathon. Bill had his best marathon time ever and qualified for the Boston Marathon. Yay! After the race we headed back to the hotel for some naps and then headed to the James' for a birthday celebration for Bill and Vickie. We had a lovely time. The food was great, especially the birthday cake! Yum! What a lovely evening. Then it was back to the hotel for bed. We woke up early Monday morning, packed up our things, and headed back to Michigan.

7 hours later...we arrived home, unpacked, picked up groceries, and relaxed from all that driving...

Pumpkins

Happy October! I have to say that I absolutely love summer and warm weather, but Fall is such a beautiful time here in Michigan. There are colors everywhere and the weather is crisp and clean, with occasional smell of someone burning leaves. It is apple season too! YUM! With that being said, we took the girls to Johnson's Giant Pumpkin Farm. We had never been there before so we weren't prepared for all the activities. We are planning on taking the girls back...maybe a weekday evening, so we can enjoy some of the activities. They have a tractor train, a soybean maze, a small petting zoo, warm donuts, and cider. We just walked around and picked put a couple pumpkins. I think Cassidy would enjoy the tracto train, so we may go back during the week when it is a little less busy. It was a fun experience though.

Last night we had Sunday dinner with the Hart clan, the Ryan's, and Perla (Aunt Vicki, Uncle Terry, and Cameray's exchange student). Aunt Vicki made a roast with potatoes and carrots. Then we had apple and pumpkin pies! Yum!

It is the last week of soccer. Lucas' last game is Thursday, October 9th. It seems like this season took so long, but flew by at the same time...

Have a beautiful day! Enjoy!