Our first family vacation! A weekend away....

Ryan and I took Easton on his very first weekend get away! We went up to the Portage Point Inn in Onekama, Michigan. We have gone there for the past 5 years with some friends from Farm Bureau Insurance, Ryan's work.

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We left Friday afternoon and arrived in Onekama after a very quick 2 hour drive! We had time to socialize with everyone and then had dinner at the Inn. Ryan and I called it a night early to go watch the debate, we're old geezers! :-)

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Saturday we got up and had breakfast at the Inn and then brought Easton for a walk in downtown Manistee. There are a few stores in downtown Manistee that are true gems that Ryan and I look forward to visiting every year. The lady at the wine store (Moving Spirit) always seems to remember us....so either we leave a lasting impression on people, or we're raging winos and she can't believe the amount of loot we take home with us from her store....either way, it was nice to show off Easton to her. She remembered us coming in pregnant last year for a fabulous bottle of Prosecco to celebrate our baby's arrival with, a bottle we have yet to open because I ended up nursing Easton, so our celebration booze had to be put on hold (booze while nursing = biiiiiiiiig no-no!) We're going to crack it open on his birthday instead, hehe! We're still using it for its intended purpose, celebrating our babe's arrival into the world, right?! ;-)

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After hitting up our favorite stores, we took our small fortune of wine, stored it underneath Easton's stroller and strolled the river walk along the Manistee River. Easton loved the walk. We spent a lot of time pointing out the small fishing boats, carefully hand crafted sailboats and large cargo ships to Easton as they drifted on by us. We had worked up an appetite by that point and headed to a lovely lunch.

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E-man and mommy on the river walk

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Watching the boats come in....

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Daddy and E-toe taking a break from all of the walkin'....

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Another one of Ry and his "mini-me"

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Tomfoolery at the fishing stand. I spy some delectable little pigs. I think someone is missing a sock!

(Note: The sock was eventually located after the taking of this pic)

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Just having some fun in Manistee!

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After a nice long nap for all of us, we ran to the pool where I helped Easton show his daddy all of the cool moves he has been learning in swim class! Daddy was impressed!

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"Dad, seriously, can you tell her to turn down the cheese-factor? This one is way off the charts. I will not smile if she is going to act like this, it is embarrassing."

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"I told you I could float papa!"

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Then we suited up for another walk, this time to Lake Michigan! Easton got his first glimpse of the big lake and got to sink his feet in the sand, he was quite fascinated with the feeling of his toes in the sand.

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Laying his head down on daddy's back, still sleepy from his nap....

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Welcome to Lake Michigan Easton!

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Looking out over the water, watching the waves roll in....

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Getting our feet wet, he didn't know what to think about the sand, the texture had to feel so weird to him!

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More "air" shots, he thought it was so much fun, I wish you could see his face, he was grinning ear to ear and giggling up a storm!

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We spotted some jet skiers!

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All packed up and ready to hike back to the Inn....

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After that we got dressed up and went to Acadia Bluffs Country Club for dinner (Acadia Bluffs is one of the top 10 golf courses in the country. Personally, I think their raspberry apple pork tenderloin is better than their golf course, hehe! I kid, sort of....You should have seen this golf course - breathtaking with the most sensational view of Lake MI!) And then we called it a night. We headed home Sunday morning after a quick breakfast and a brief farewell to our friends.

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A wonderful time away with my boys. The perfect little getaway.....

Houston, we have a crawler!

Easton has been doing the army crawl and crawling backwards for a while now. But as of last night, he is a zoomy little forward crawler, the "official" crawl. Oh boy, Mama's gonna have a heartattack and needs a baby gate asap! ;-)

Our little "weepublican"

Easton says....

"VOTE....

....My future depends on it!"

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A few more shots of Easton in his McCain/Palin onesie:



To those of you who are saying to yourselves right now, "Oh no she didn't"

All I can say is, "Oh yes I did! I went there!" :-)

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And then, quickly, Ryan and I brought E to the Blandford Nature Center last Saturday and we had so much fun! Easton loved riding on his daddy's back, especially when Ryan would skip or hop down the trails, Easton thought it was hilarious! Here's a few shots!

He's a beautiful boy, isn't he!? ;-)

Ridiculous self-portrait. I, obviously, am a fan of these for whatever reason, I'm not quite sure. (Ryan's too tall, we couldn't fit his head in! Ha!)

Easton and Dad sharing a laugh after hoping to the trails....

Enjoy our little "Indian Summer" all....I don't know about you, but I am tired of 80 and sunny and am ready for the crisp air, sweaters, apple cider and pumpkin patches, bring on Fall!!!!

Move over Phelps....

Move over Michael Phelps and make way for Easton Loucks. Ryan and I decided Easton can be either the next Olympic Gold Medal Swimmer or President, we haven't set out sights too high for him, have we!? *wink wink*

So, as I am sure you now know, Easton's first swim class at the YMCA was today and boy did we have a blast! Easton loved swimming in my parent's lake this Summer, so Ryan and I knew we had to continue to get E in the water. The class was fantastic, there were 3 other kids in the class (2 boys both a little over a year old and a little girl that is 11 months). Easton was the youngest and the best swimmer, believe it or not! :-) The goal is to not only have fun, but for the babies to eventually be able to swim by the end of the class, can you believe it!?

We started out singing "All the babies in the pool" (to the tune of "Wheels on the Bus") and we swam the babies along with the flow of the water in a circle and then we continued our lesson by beginning to teach them to kick, hold on to the side of the pool and to "crawl" up onto the side of the pool. We also did a bit of going "under" the water, helping them get used to getting their ears and faces wet and we also began teaching the babies to float! Easton was the best at holding on to the side of the pool! Our little babe is SO STRONG! The instructor couldn't believe our little 8 month old could hold himself up on the side of the pool with no assistance, all of the other babies had trouble! Easton was also a master floater! The instructor kept praising him and even used him as an "example" for the rest of the class because he was so good! Move over Phelps!

We are so excited Easton is a "natural" in the water as Ryan and I are both water lovers. Easton had a blast (and I did too, if you couldn't tell!). He smiled and laughed the whole time! It was a really great experience and we can't wait for next week's class!

I leave you with some pictures! I took some pictures of Easton in his "warm up" suit before we left for class and then I took some of him (and myself, I'm a loser) in the locker room after the class, I was hoping to take some in class, but uh, leaving your baby with a stranger in the pool while you go get your camera is frowned upon! ;-) Hehe! Hopefully Ryan will be able to come observe us during a class and take some pictures!

Easton before we left for class.

"Hey Phelps, I betcha you don't have puppy dog ears on your warm up suit, do ya!? BOO-YA!" Easton says. Awfully cocky for someone going to his first swim lesson, don't you think!?

After the lesson, all wet and revved up! This kid did NOT want to get out of the water!

"Seriously mom, you're embarrassing, but you begged and pleaded for me to smile for one of your utterly ridiculous self-portraits of us, so I will oblige. Just remember this favor I did you when I am 16 and want a brand new convertible please."

Easton absolutely ZONKED on the car ride home after his big swim. When he woke up, he was all riled up and looked so cute before lunch, so I snapped a quick pic!

ANNNNNNNNNNNNNNNND....I am the WORST MOMMY EVER! I did not post anything about the INCREDIBLY special birthday that we celebrated yesterday! Ritzy and his brother, Bentley, both turned 4 years old yesterday. I cannot believe they have been in our hearts and homes that long. Time flies! Ritzy, you own a key to my heart. You are such an incredible little companion. You are your daddy and I's little furry pride and joy and we love you so much. Happy BELATED Birthday. Hugs and Kisses, Mom, Dad and Easton.

Do know that, although I did not mention Ritzy's birthday ON THE BLOG yesterday, we did celebrate his birthday. It was not forgotten, I just forgot to post about it. He received presents and had birthday ice cream, a day enjoyed by all! Smooches Ritzybutt!

Bentley (L) and Ritzy (R) the day after we brought them home!

Ritzy and Bentley at 10 weeks old.

Ritzy after learning "sit pretty"

Ritzy with his family this Summer. A very proud big brother, we're proud of him for how well he has taken to Easton and the special bond they share.

Someone told me it's all happening at the zoo, I do believe it, I do believe it's true....

Wowzers has it been a busy day for Easton! It has been a whirlwind of activities for our little dude! This morning, Easton and I met up with our buddies Vanessa and Avery for Walker Library's "Laptime" and it was so much fun! Easton loved all of the songs (especially when he could jump, clap and stomp his feet!) and stories! He was all smiles and giggles! He can't wait to go again (and neither can I, it was so fun to see him enjoying the class!).

Then after lunch and a short nap Mommy and Daddy invited Grammy and Grampy to go to the zoo with us! It was Easton's first trip to the zoo! We were a little disappointed that quite a few of the exhibits were closed and a good portion of the animals were put away, but we had a good time enjoying the ones that were out and about! Easton especially loved the penguins! Daddy put him up on the glass and he just laughed at the penguins and started to shriek at them (he also enjoyed listening to his own voice echo in the aquarium! Ha!) and he also enjoyed watching all of the fish and the beautiful multicolored sea anemone. It was a really fun trip! The petting zoo was closed, but we visited the barnyard animals anyway and we reached through the fence to pet them. They were so excited we came down to visit them. When we came over to the fence, the goats, sheep, cows and other goofy animals all flocked to us like a big hoard of fur, hooves and horns, they all were excited for attention and some back scratchin' (one goat in particular was very fond of me, which was cute at first, but then weirded me out!) and then after all of that excitement we chased a couple of turkeys on the way out....a good way to end the afternoon!

Tomorrow Easton and I are going to embark on a new adventure, we will be starting our first parent/child swim class at the YMCA! I cannot wait (and Ryan is jealous!)

Easton was completely and utterly enamored with the fish!!!! He is shrieking in delight in this picture, as if to say to Ryan, "Dad, look at the big one!!!!"

He's fascinated!

Checking out the penguins with dad. "Why are those birds so dressed up poppy?"

This is what Easton was seeing....

Grampy's turn to show E-man the penguins!

Yes, his germaphobic mother did wash his hands after he held on to that grubby piece of glass! Egads! The zoo is not the place for a germaphobe!

Little E-dude gets heavy, so this seemed like a good idea, much to mommy's dismay.

Mommy and her little Tussle butt. Good golly, I look like I belonged in the petting zoo! If Easton didn't have such a darn tootin' cute look on his face, this picture would not be on here! But precious E-toe wins over my insane vanity!

Petting the goats. This is the goat that singled me out as his "person"....cute, for a while....

That's all for today, I am hoping to get some cute shots tomorrow from swim lessons, don't know how I will be able to take pictures, but where there is a will, there's a way. See ya!

Grampy, don't you have any paying customers to take pictures of!?!? *wink*

Easton and I stopped in to my parent's studio today before we ran grocery shopping, we just wanted to say "Hi"....But Grampy loved his little Tussle's outfit so much, he had to take pictures. So we threw Easton on a set quickly and my dad captured these delicious little morsles. The bottom one he is sucking in his bottom lip, he is doing that a lot lately because he loves feeling his tooth that is coming in! :-) I can't wait to surprise Ryan with these tonight, he'll just die!

Our baby boy is 8 months old today. Seriously!? Time flies....You're growing up way too fast our little E-man....slow down....what's the rush?

Rocka, rocka, rocka

A caterpillar rocker was bought for Easton. We put him on it one time the day we bought it and held on to him and rocked him a bit and boy it must have made an impression on him because the next day when we went to put him on it, we didn't need to hold on to him and we didn't need to rock him, he could handle it all by himself. Boy did he remember how to rock....It is his new favorite thing....rocka, rocka, rocka!