HAPPY ANNIVERSARY!!!

12 years ago today I married my best friend. Happy Anniversary Debbie! Thanks for 12 great years and many more! I love you!

Hersheypark Happy!

This past weekend we had friends in from New Jersey. Deb went to high school with Christa and Steph and has remained good friends ever since. They have visited every couple years since we've been married and they love coming to Amish country. Friday we had a day planned for Hershey Park. With temps in the mid 90's and heat index over 100, it was going to be a HOT one! I'm not going to lie...I'm not a huge amusement park guy and with the forecast...not looking forward to it. They boys couldn't wait to ride the rides with Gabriella and Ariana. We figured the water park would be packed, so we hit the rides first. Gabriella is 5 and Ariana is 3 so there were plenty of kid rides with Gavin. Blake wanted to ride the "bigger" rides but was great with the little kids too. Blake, Gavin, and I finally got to the roller coasters! Comet was the only one Gavin was allowed even though he wanted to ride them all! Blake and I got to go on Lightning Racer several times with NO LINE! Part of my dislike of amusement parks is the lines...just not worth it. On a Friday in July there were NO LINES! It was great! We ended the day at the water park and realized how old we're getting when we went to wake up on Saturday! :)

Saturday after work we went to Outback steakhouse for dinner and headed to our favorite ice cream spot for desert...The Strasburg Creamery!

I can't believe he just said that!

One of the reasons I started a blog was to record the fun things they do and say. I certainly wish I would have started earlier because there have been some "good ones" that I just forget about. While Pa and Muno were here this past weekend, we were talking about some of the stories.

Blake goes to Good News Club at school and Debbie helps out, so Gavin goes too. When Gavin was 3 the leader asked who is someone that is VERY important in the Bible that starts with the letter "J". With Gavin raising his hand and making those "pick me" sounds, she called on Gavin. All proud of himself, he said "Derek JETER!" Well, Jesus was the correct answer, but at least he knew his J sound at 3 :) He has since received Bible story books and has memorized a few. It's his turn to read the Christmas story this year so we'll see how that goes! :)

Visit from Pa and Muno

Last weekend, Deb's dad and step mom came in for a long weekend visit. We always have fun when they come just hanging out at the pool, going to Outback, or hearing them talk about "Assault & Battery" (Blake & Gavin). Friday we had a nice drive through Amish country and went to Strasburg Railroad...sort of. We didn't do the train ride this time because of time but did walk around and the guys took the little train ride. We headed to the Strasburg creamery for ice cream and then to their hotel pool. Sunday was the big day. The boys won the Halloween costume contest for the Barnstormers and part of their prize was a "first pitch" this season. Since Pa and Muno live in New York, they don't always get to see the ball games, school activities, and other fun stuff that the boys do. They saved their pitch so that Pa and Muno could watch. We headed to the game on Sunday night and the boys did great! It was a great night for baseball (not sure if there ever is a bad night) and the Barnstormers won! They headed home Monday morning and looked forward to some "Peace & Quiet"!

Pigging Out!

Monday night the boys and I went to see the Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs with Rick, Garrett, and Chad. The Iron Pigs are the Phillies AAA team and it was our first time at Coca Cola Park. As usual we got there early...even in the heat! Temps were in the triple digits Monday and wasn't much cooler by 5:30. The boys were excited to get autographs from John Mayberry Jr, Brandon Duckworth, Andy Tracy, and...Dominic Brown! He will be the next great Phillie in the 2011 season. Ryan Madson was also doing a rehab start so we were excited to see him warming up. We usually don't eat at the games because of the cost, but they had corn on the cob that everyone was raving about. OK, had to try it...and it was fabulous! I know corn on the cob is not your typical ballpark food, but this is the Iron Pigs. In the end it was a great night...time with family, good food, autographs, and the Pigs won! Definitely need to make the trip back to Allentown!