Meghan & Kevin

After a week of very unpredictable weather including lots of rain and even some hail, on a beautiful sunny Saturday August afternoon, in a remote and picturesque Vermont location at the end of a long dirt road and at the top of a hill, my brother Kevin got married to his best friend, Meghan.  No detail was missed.  Every flower, sign, napkin, food choice and drink was a perfect reflection of the happy couple.  Their family and friends were gushing with love and excitement for the two of them as they officially began their lives together.  Kate was lucky enough to be their flower girl.  While there aren't really any pictures to capture her excitement (I think the 180 adults doting over her was rather intimidating hence the serious face and lack of smiles), she did enjoy this special role and I hope she will remember it for years to come.    Luke stayed home with a babysitter - a decision I do not regret - but he was there in spirit as seeing so many of my father's relatives for the first time in many years certainly confirmed for me how much he looks like a Duff.  

Here are a couple pictures from their talented photographer, Amanda Perkins, to help me remember the wonderful day that it was.

 Aunt Meghan, welcome to the family.  We are honored to have you! 

Uncle Kevin, thanks for including us in a special way in your wedding day.  We are very proud of you and love you very much.

Here's wishing you both a lifetime of love and happiness!

Always, 

Allison, Kurt, Kate and Luke

Mani/Pedi

As part of the wedding festivities, Meghan invited Kate to join the ladies for her first salon Manicure and Pedicure.  She loved the pampering and her time with the girls.  She may not have been able to have a mimosa, but she also loved Kathy's homemade blueberry muffins.  I think she ate 5!

Luke at Lake Pineo

There are so few "Luke" posts.  Here are a few of our happy guy playing in the sand at Lake Pinneo on our trip to Quechee, VT in August.

He moves a mile a minute and climbs like a monkey, so keeping him safe is quite a work out and it is rare I have a free hand to snap pictures of him.  He is growing up fast though so I need to be better about it.  He really enjoyed the beach and was very brave in the water.  We want to find a place for swimming lessons over the winter months so both kids are even more comfortable, confident and safe in the water by next summer.

Winnie the Pooh

It was a rainy and dark morning, so I decided it was a perfect day to take Kate to her first movie!  We had been talking about it as we saw the commercials on TV.  And Kate was collecting stickers on her sticker chart towards this special outing with Mom.   We drove to a huge AMC super theatre in Skokie that was basically empty.  My rookie mistake was letting her pick out a special snack from the concession stand - as opposed to bringing something special from home.  And then being suckered into the larger size popcorn upgrade for free.  Clearly I was thinking with my empty, no lunch pregnant belly and not my head!  Her excitement over the popcorn basically over took her interest in the movie and I was convinced she'd have a stomach ache from eating so much.  I do think she enjoyed the experience.  I was excited to share this grown up first with her and look forward to more mother daughter outings in the months and years to come.

 Outside before the show posing with the movie poster.

 Perched in her seat waiting for the show to start.

Posing for the camera.

First Library Card

After camp today I took Kate to get her first Library card.  We arrived just in time for a story time with complimentary juice boxes and chocolate bunny cracker snack packs so Kate was instantly excited.  She picked out two Madeline books that we had not read.  Here are some pictures of the new library card holders and their selections in the park outside the library.