Jack O'Lantern

I think this was the first year we carved a jack o'lantern!  Cole thought it was pretty cool but would not touch the pumpkin's insides! 

Vermont- A Walk around Burlington

On Sunday we walked along Lake Champlain and down Church Street before having lunch and heading home. It was a gorgeous day.  Cole and Dominic really had a lot of fun together, running down Church street, being silly.  We just really had a nice time with everyone and I  look forward to the next time we are able to get together!

Cole loved pushing Aidyn in the stroller. Ethan did have to keep a close watch on them though. Aidyn kept hanging over the edge to watch Cole and he almost got flipped several times!

This was the first weekend I heard Aidyn say "Cole" and he said it often. It was often preceded by the adorable toddler babble.  So you know he was saying something to Cole but we just couldn't tell what it was! : )

Vermont- Dominic's Birthday Party

This past weekend we visited our family in Vermont as Dominic turned 3!  Darcy and Keith threw a cute Harry Potter themed party for him (as you can tell by those wonderful glasses Cole is showcasing) and a good time was had by all.  The drive to Burlington is...interesting when my only goal is to keep Cole and Charlotte happy...for 3 hours, but it is worth it being able to see Aunt Dawn and Uncle Brett, Darcy, Keith, Dominic, Samantha, Chris, and Jarod.  Aunt Dawn and Uncle Brett were wonderful hosts and Ethan, Katrina, Aidyn, and B/C/C (too much typing of names!)   stayed over their house for a night.  We had such a good time at the party and then hanging out with Aunt Dawn and Uncle Brett.  Great conversation, good drinks, and great food! : )  I am glad we live close enough to be able to make these events.

Everyone was thrown into the leaves at one point or another. Look how happy the boys are!

Where's that Uncle Keith?

Charlotte.....just smile a little bit....please?!

Truly, the winter jacket and hat was not necessary so the hat came off after awhile.  She did love to munch on that spatula though!  Charlotte was very tired and right before cake she fell asleep for an hour and half. So I was not available to monitor picture taking of cake and presents.

Cole is so good with dogs....big and small. For that I am grateful we had Brew and that he is around Dakota often. Charlotte on the other hand is already really nervous and afraid of dogs.

Pumpkin decorating!  Cole globbed all of his glitter glue on top of the pumpkin. It still isn't dry!

Awww! I love this shot!

A squeeze, some laughs, a scare, and relief

On Sunday seven of us Sevins squeezed into one car and headed on down to Boston to enjoy the Boston Children's Museum and then a walk around the city. When I say, squeezed, I do mean literally...but it worked and we all got down in one piece!  First we had to stop to put air in the front tire...and get water...and then stop for gas...and then we were finally on the road!  Brendan and I are trying to get our money's worth out of our silly $120 family pass purchase. We bought that in January in a moment of monetary weakness when we thought I was going to be using it a lot more during maternity leave. Yea...not so much. Plus, then, Lisa and Rob kindly informed us that Londonderry library has $2 passes available. Oh well!  We had fun at the museum...Cole definitely has his favorite rooms now...the golf ball/slide room and the self propelled energy room.  Aidyn I think liked it too!  We wandered through the windy streets of Boston and made our way to Fanuel Hall for lunch and fun.  At one point we heard a man yell "Blue overalls and a plaid shirt!"  Then we heard the acapella group stop singing and a man say "A little boy, Gavin, has wandered away from his parents.  Gavin? Gavin? Please come back to the pumpkin table." I was frozen in shock as I saw this father whip through the crowd looking for his 2 year old son. It was horrible to watch.  The crowd in the marketplace was literally so quiet all I could hear was this father looking for his little boy. Thankfully he was found after 10 minutes in Urban Outfitters no less. It was a horrible, heart wrenching 10 minutes and Katrina and I just looked at each other afterwards with tears in our eyes, thankful that the little boy was ok and thinking how we would be if one of our own had wandered away (or worse, taken).  Luckily this turned out happily.   The relief part of my story not only comes from the little boy being found but Cole's sense of relief on the way home.  He kindly informed us as we got on the highway that he really, REALLy needed to pee.  We got off the exit at Target, Cole did the pee-pee dance as he waited for me to get out of the car, we ran in only to find the bathrooms closed for maintenance. We ran over to the other bathroom to a long line of people. Before someone could offer to let us go first, Cole said, "I need to go pee!" and before I could think of more questions to ask to distract him, the poor little guy couldn't hold it any longer and went in the middle of Target. Oh, I had to laugh because here we have several people saying, "Oh, it's ok, you're a big boy, It's hard to hold it sometimes, isn't it?" And didn't say anything...he just stood there with a big look of relief. : )

We hadn't see Katrina, Ethan, and Aidyn for so long- it was great to hang out with them! Can't wait for Vermont this weekend when we squeeze into the car for 3 hours! Woo-hoo!
My pics are out of order so bear with me! : )  Here are Brendan and Katrina displayed there mad pumpkin painting skills. 
Aidyn kept peeking out of his stroller to try to hold Charlotte's hand.
Spiderman...Spiderman...doing the things Spidy can....Cole got a Spiderman balloon from a street performer.

Charlotte's driving? Oh no!

Walking is coming soon!  But first she has to learn how to crawl.

Going home (sort of)

On Saturday we went down to Salem (MA) our home town from June 2002 to September 2007 to visit our friends Rick and Cyn who were hosting an Oktoberfest party.  The party was lots of fun and it was great to see those two who we don't see often enough.  Before the party we walked around Salem for a bit..I have to admit I felt teensy bit nostalgic...afterall it was our home for 5 years.  We had a great time in that area...Brendan and I had an apartment near the center of the city for the first two years which was so much fun...lots of parties!  The latter three years we owned a townhouse on the outskirts of  Salem. It was where we really settled down, had Cole, and became a real family.  As we drove the familiar streets, it felt like we never left.  I love our home in Londonderry but Salem will always have a place in my heart.  I think Cole felt the same way. As we drove by our old townhouse to check in and see what changed (nothing in a year!), Cole said, " Why did we move? I like our old house. I want to go back."  He was smiling as he said it so I think he was playing off of what I was saying but it was cute at the same time. We had some really great times there that I'll never forget.

This is a house one street over from our old apartment. I always loved this house, the look of it, the fresh flowers changing with the seasons.  
Charlotte was all snuggly in her stroller and was content just looking around!  We had a picnic, of sorts, on the common, where we all got our fav food from the town and enjoyed the going-ons around us.
When this statue was first put in, I scoffed at the tourists that thought it was fun to pose in front of this. Now, being a tourist myself, I felt it only necessary to have my picture taken in front of it. 


I had to take a picture of this fire station.  The doors were closed because the trucks had just left on a call but when we lived in Salem we spent many hours hanging out with the fire fighters, riding the trucks, calling the ice cream truck over with the flash of a siren, that I had to take a picture for memories sake.

A reminder to myself from...myself

Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is life not more important than food and the body more important than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life.Matthew 6:25-27

As I was driving to work this morning, the sky was covered in those wonderful wavy clouds that are so typical of fall. I drove over the Merrimack River as I crossed the NH/MA border, looked to my left and there were hundreds of sunbeams shooting through the clouds, illuminating the river and the trees below. It was beautiful and it reminded me of God's hands over this world.

With all of this craziness of the election, of work, of life in general, it is very easy for me to become bogged down with worry. Worry about what this country will be like if the election does not go my way, worry about providing for my family, about heating bills, about my kids....the list could go on and on. I admit worry consumes me sometimes and it should not.

I need to always remember that GOD is in control. He always has been and always will be.

He has a plan for this world and I take comfort in knowing that. So, no more worries about how this country will be if the election does not go how I want it to. There are actions I can take....voting...writing/calling whatever government is elected to make my voice known on the issues...involving myself at the community level. I plan to do all these things.

My peace comes from knowing my God is my strength, not mankind.

On Monday Applewood was closed so I was able to stay home from work and work part of the day from home. The other part of the day we visited Robyn, Morgan, and Gavin and had such a good time! We went to a local park where Cole and I worked on his "pumping" on the swings- he's such a big kid now!  We also went to my favorite toy store ever, Stellabella Toys. It's a good thing we are not closer or I would want to be in there all of the time! Ha-ha. The store had a display of stuffed animal birds from the Audobon Society. Each bird, when pressed, would "whistle" its respective tune. Cole and I were ecstatic to find the bird that sang outside our windows all spring...a Blacktailed Chickadee! We hadn't known what kind of bird it was and it was exciting for both of us to learn its name.  Cole and Gavin had a good time together as always.  Robyn and I had little time for girl talk as always with running after wayward children, but I cherish every time we get together.  It is always so much fun.

Enjoying the Fall...

Who knew Londonderry had a fantastic nature trail right in the heart of the town? I didn't and I lived in the next town over practically my entire life! Armed with a map, water bottles, and a promise to Cole that we might see some wild animals, we started on what turned into a 3 mile hike through the woods. It was wonderful except for the pesky mosquitos (what part do they play in the food chain, and why do we need them?!).  Cole started off thoroughly enjoying the hike but became bored and tired after about a mile. He is 3 after all!  Toward the end his interest peaked once again when he and Caden found enjoyment in pushing leaves off of the small bridge into the stream below.    We found a long rock wall, that is very common in Londonderry, and always intrigues me.  I mean it was in the middle of the woods and you've got to think that someone years and years ago took hours, days, months to build this wall to keep his animals in the confines of his/her property.  I love to think of that-- the history and the people that were here before us.  So amazing....    

Anyway, now that we know that this place is here, we can go back often and longer-- there were lots more trails we   didn't get a chance to explore.