Susan's baby shower

 

Thought it would be fun to open up this blog with an old picture I just saw on Facebook and don't remember seeing before... Michael with some of his Hurlburt cousins: Alec, Seth, and Brandon. Alec's a first cousin and Seth and Brandon are actually sons of Michael's cousins-- so second cousins?  Anyway, fun to see their smiling faces...

Alicia made the "Little Peanut" banner. Susan plans to use it in her baby room décor.

We recently hosted a baby shower for my stepdaughter Susan. She and her husband Jay are expecting their first child (a boy, we think) in January. Susan, Jay, and Susan's "old" high school friend, Tanesha, drove up from Kentucky in late October to attend and let all the Wisconsin relatives (including us!) see her baby bump.

 
 






Susan recently shared with us a sonogram picture of her little cargo. What a sweet face-! Baby on board!

Anyway, here are some pictures taken the day of the shower:

Sally made this super-cute elephant garland (elephants were our theme)

Grandma Jane sharing in the fun

Susan with her brother Jonathan's family

So happy to have my sister attend

Me with my little sweetheart. Leila couldn't get enough of Susan and Jay...

Baby blanket from Grandma Jane

Sisters

Susan and Jay with the diaper cake Alicia made

Almost a 3 generation photo...

Precious little sweater from Grandma

Tanesha, Susan, and Leila



 It was really nice fall weather that day so we spent some time outdoors, afterward...

Packer shirts and flannel!

Baby Boston

Emma with her little pal Teddy

Gabe and Leila

Sally and Boston

It was really fun to have so many close relatives come out and wish Susan well on this next big adventure in her life. As I mentioned in the photo, Jonathan's girlfriend Alicia helped with the food and decorations; Sally and Ann brought some yummy things to eat, too.

 

Here are some more fall photos:

 

 

Me walking

Leila in art class (I've been volunteering)

Leila and friends trick or treat. We caught a ride on a hay wagon pulled by a tractor. Fun.



Anyway, thanks to everyone who came and celebrated with us... even those "in spirit"!

Lovely October

And now we're into October-!

It's beautiful here... just chilly enough for a fire in the morning, but not yet cold enough to freeze off all of the flowers. Lots of golden fall color...

Love the hills and fields

The view down our hill is my favorite

I took the girls to a pumpkin patch awhile ago, forgetting how expensive it is and how we really don't need to do that anymore, now that we live in the country. And sure enough, Leila spent the most time just digging in the sand in their play area. But we did get to have a hay ride, and the next day we walked up to Johnne's farm and picked *free* apples.

Emma picking apples

Apple pie time!

The obligatory pumpkin carving

Hey girls; look more excited about the hay ride-!

Leila's favorite activity at the pumpkin patch???

We did have one snowfall, but it didn't last long. Leila made the most of it, though.

Notice the pajama pants

I'll close with some pictures from what we've been up to the past few weeks...

Brother Bill by Dad's retaining wall

I decorated for Halloween... love my pumpkin made out of a book

My lumberjack

Michael using the Bobcat to help Jon push this tree over

Dad still at work on his many projects

I have a few Halloween decorations...

Love my girls

Homecoming

Leila's growing her hair out

I finally went for a fall horseback ride! Thank you Jessy K.

Michael using the Bobcat to haul firewood

Our new door

Painted the kitchen, finally! This was all dark wood.

 

Happy October!!!!!

Kids Home For a Visit and Adam & Jess's Wedding

September! So far it's been cold and rainy. On the bright side, this September has also been livened up with fun family visits and events.

All of us together

We recently enjoyed a week-long visit with Susan, Jay, and David. They came to attend their cousin Adam's wedding in Holcombe.

My oldest stepson, Jonathan, with girlfriend Alicia; stepdaughter Susan with husband Jay.

Susan knitting a baby blanket... love it

Don't run David over with the Bobcat, Jack!

3 generations, shooting hoops

Jackson "driving" a tractor

Jay told us he could do a flip on the trampoline. Here's the photographic proof that yes, he can!

Susan, Jay, and baby BOY :)

Everybody loves David

 

The cousin who got married, Adam, is the oldest son of Phil (Jon's brother) and Jill. He married Jess, his girlfriend of five years, whom we've gotten to know at various family get-togethers-- most memorably, 4th of July's at Phil and Jill's cottage on Lake Holcombe. Jess and Adam live in Minneapolis, but it was decided they would marry at their Grandpa Neal Schroeder's hobby farm in Wisconsin (Neal is Jill's father).

 

We knew this would be a memorable event because we'd heard how much work had gone into cleaning up and decorating an already very nice property. The dinner and dance was to be held in a barn with a loft.

 

We were NOT disappointed. It was amazing how much love and attention to detail was put into the wedding preparations. Phil and Jill, Jess's parents, and many other friends and relatives had worked for weeks to create a clean, comfortable, personalized, and very posh space for the young couple's big day.

 

A beautiful day

Jon's brother Phil with wife Jill and their two sons. Blonde-haired Jacob is on left (his girlfriend Katie in red dress). The other couple, older son Adam and girlfriend Jess, are the ones who got married

Aunt Kristen helping set up the dessert table. Kristen is married to Jon's oldest brother, Brent.

Tables on the ground level of the barn

Posing for the wedding photographer

Some seating in the loft. Notice the benches made from blankets spread over bales of hay

 



 I'm guessing there were around 350 guests-- family members but also many friends of the couple. Vows were exchanged under a big old tree in the front yard that provided shade and atmosphere... branches were strung with magical details like strings of tiny mirrors and old bottles filled with wildflowers.

The food was GREAT. Adam and Jess have a couple of chef friends who helped orchestrate a fabulous picnic-style meal. Instead of wedding cake, family were asked to bring their favorite desserts, so the selection of sweets was amazing. Jill must have been collecting plates for awhile, because every place setting featured a different patterned plate... the effect was homey, eclectic, and fun. Mason jars with a wide selection of colorful fabric "warmers" were used for drinks.

Anyway, what a party-! It was a lot of fun. I wish I'd taken more pictures, but frankly I was too busy enjoying myself :). So was everybody else.

Jonathan and Alicia

I should mention before closing that the kids are back to school. Michael has began his sophomore year of high school, Emma's an 8th grader, and Leila is in 1st grade. So we're busy getting back into the school routine.

Breakfast before the school bus

PS: We will be hosting a baby shower for Susan toward the end of October; she plans on making a special trip to Wisconsin to attend. Hopefully we will see some of you then!