Gobble gobble

We had the best time in Tennessee for Thanksgiving!  We got to see all of our Nashville cousins (I guess I forgot to take pictures)  and then we headed east to Rogersville to Grandma and Grandpa Saunders house.  Drayton had so much fun and so did we!  Can't wait til we get to go back again.

Love sweet cousin time!

some excited boys waiting to go on a tractor ride

Grandma and Grandpa had a huge pear tree.  Drayton enjoyed pilfering through the rotten ones on the ground.

Tate grew a little impatient with the 3 mph ride

definitely not the most flattering picture of Drayton I've ever seen

Drayton LOVED the tractor!  He really loved getting to drive it with Grandpa.

he hates messy hands

Staff retreat

Well, never really got around to doing a summer post.  I might not ever.  But I really wanted to do a post about the wonderful staff that we have the great blessing to be around.  This past summer, the 50 girls and boys that make up our summer staff were unbelievable.  Ty and I were encouraged, as well as challenged by them.  We definitely count ourselves blessed to have the opportunity to know them!  And for sure, we are blessed that Drayton has so many wonderful examples of what Christians are and do.  He absolutely loves them.  Towards the end of the summer, he would get to where he could recognize them and say their names (to me, rarely to them). 
He got to see them for the Cheuk retreat, but the staff aren't quite as free during that, so I was really excited to get to see them and catch up with them and for Drayton to get to spend some time with them again.  They are all just so sweet to love on him and pay him attention.  And he ate it up!

he loved just getting to run and run in the wide open

Drayton really enjoyed playing with Ryan or "rhino" according to Drayton.

John worked really hard to get Drayton to say his name this summer.  He even endured being called John John in an attempt to help him say it.  Staff weekend, Drayton would say John John whenever he saw him but never to his face of course!

I'm guessing this is maybe how the wagon was broken

Very rarely will Drayton just rest his head on someone's shoulder, but he really enjoyed being held by Stefanie.  He will get to be around her much more this next summer!

Such a great group! 

Most of those pictures were compliments of Kelsi Cowan.  Unfortunately at camp, I don't take too many pictures. 

Beach

Shortly after Italy, we went to the beach with my parents for a week.  It was a great week, but Drayton was kind of funny about the ocean.  HE didn't really like the feeling of sand on his hands, and the water sometimes scared him.  I'm thinking next year, he might enjoy it more.  But he always enjoys some good Cookie and Slappy time and he loves being with Caden and Tate!

pretty good cartoon catching spot

we got to go out on a boat to watch some dolphins jump!  It was one of those times where Drayton was not real animated while we were on the boat, but afterwards, talked about jumping dolphins for a while!

a bunch of tired boys

he wanted to wear a bandana like mommy

we requested no full body shots, and they delivered!

to me, this is classic Drayton full on running stance.  He gets that elbow up high and powers his little legs to take short fast steps.

wouldn't you love to know what they are saying to each other!

just a boy with his tractor and some sand

Some of my favorite times are when they want to sing songs together.  This was a particularly funny one.

Flashback to Italy

Now that I got my Halloween post done, it's time to go back to the end of August for our Italy trip. It was the first time I'd left Drayton for longer than a day, and it was pretty hard, but we all did pretty

well considering! Ty was Mr. Mom for the 10 days and did a great job. He and Drayton had some good Father son time!

These are all out of order.

overlooking Florence

Mom and the pack mule in the Roman Forum

These signs definitely should have been switched.

They are so embarrassing.

At any given moment, you could have seen us trying to figure out the map.  This poor man asked the wrong people for help.

Kristen was thrilled Mom was changing her pants in public at the water taxi depot.

Mom couldn't take the B.O. from the smelly backpack man any longer at the Trevi Fountain.

It was a great trip with some wonderful memories!

After much anticipation, Halloween

So, I just remembered I never put up his real Halloween costume. He was a spider!!

I was scared to ride by myself so Drayton came with me.

I loved watching him run to the houses!!

Just want to make it clear, this was not our dead baby, or our yard.

Happy Halloween!

I