Some of Maya's "Sisters"

Maya has made some great friends in our neighborhood, which is nice since she's the only girl in the family. All of the girls in this picture don't have sisters, so they're kind of sisters to each other:

Boys

Boys.....















.....you gotta love 'em!!!

Pinewood Derby 2009

Jordan was excited to participate in his first Pinewood Derby. He is very competitive, so he was disappointed when his car won 2nd in the Wolves' race. He helped Aaron build the car, but they put the weights on the back of the car instead of the front, which was probably why Jordan didn't place higher--right? :)











Maya and Ryan kept themselves entertained by running around the gym with other kids:

Fathers and Sons Outing 2009

This was Ryan's first Fathers and Sons Outing. He had a great time, although he was a little nervous about sleeping in a tent overnight.









Jordan had a blast playing capture the flag, hanging out with the other boys, and doing the obstacle course:





















While the guys were gone Maya and Mom had fun having a girls' night (with Eric, too). We watched movies, enjoyed some yummy treats, and had a sleepover in Mom's room.

Utah Trip April 2009

We went to Utah for 3 weeks during April.

We happened to stay in Salt Lake at a hotel just a block away from the hotel where Aaron's best friend Eric Chock and his family were staying (we didn't even know they were in Utah until we got there). Our Eric was named after him. Here they are together for the first time:



Eric's son Clayton and Jordan had a blast swimming together at the hotel:





Eric's in-laws (who hosted our wedding reception in Chicago) were also at the hotel so we got to see them as well. Here is Cris with Sierra and Alexis, hanging out with Maya in the hot tub:



Ryan LOVED to play with his cousin Isaac, who is only 10 days older than him. They got along very well!



Jordan and Maya had the greatest time playing with their cousins Jesse, Josh, and Samuel.



We were able to enjoy watching my brother Dave coach his son Enzo's soccer team:



Here is Enzo running for the ball. His team won their division championship.



Zaley is Dave's youngest child and Maya's only girl cousin her age in Utah. They had fun when they got together:



Here are Eric and cousin Benson saying hi to each other (they're 6 months apart):



The kids LOVED playing with Aunt Tori...



....and her good friend Maggie:



The reason we stayed in Utah for an extra week was so that we could be there for Benson's baby blessing and also see Aaron's parents. There was quite the turnout for the blessing:



We loved seeing so much family and we wish we lived closer to them!

Jordan Upward Basketball Winter 2009

Jordan enjoyed talking with his coach when it was his turn to be on the sideline. Many times he would actually lean against him and watch the game:









Jordan loves to play basketball! His rebounding, dribbling, and shooting really improved this year. He also had MANY steals! Our Air Jordan lived up to the great #23 on his jersey--just as he has since he was born:





Of course, Ryan kept himself (and us) entertained in his own ways during the games...



...even outside the building!