Way to Go, Anna!

For the last week we have been teaching Anna how to ride her bike without training wheels.  It has been such a good life lesson - We are not only proud of her for physically being able to ride her bike, but most importantly working hard to accomplish a goal.  Every night she asks us if she could go out and practice. Practice paid off!  Also, when she would feel us let go of her side, she would giggle to herself because she was sooooo excited.  

Fun Times!

 

Super Bowl Fun!

Thanksgiving Feast at School

Anna felt the love from her family at her school's Thanksgiving feast.  Grammy, Grandpa, Grandma, Daddy, Mommy, and Bobby all came to her feast. What a wonderful morning!  When we got home, Anna even had Lily participate in the festivities. 

Happy Halloween!!!

Anna got great use out of her Halloween costume this year. She transformed into a Dolphin Trainer for Zoo Boo, school, and trick or treating. She may have found her future career.

Annual Camping Trip

We had beautiful weather for our camping trip this year at McCormicks Creek State Park. The nights were a bit chilly, so we were thankful to stay in a Cabin with Aunt Rosie at night. We went on walks, played in tents, went on the playground, and enjoyed spending time with family.

Fun with Momma and Daddy

This weekend we went to an apple orchard and picked apples. Not only was it Anna's first experience, but it was Momma and Daddy's first time, too! Gala apples are in season, and boy are they crisp and sweet- Yummy! We have so many apples that we'll have to make applesauce, apple crisp, apple pie, apple butter, apple EVERYTHING HAHA. We went to a Colts game together so Anna could experience her first game. Thankfully we had 4 tickets for 3 people so Anna had some extra room to move around. She loved the game and we made it through till halftime.

PRESCHOOL!!!

We started the morning off with breakfast at Anna's favorite bagel shop, then headed off to school. I had rehearsed in my mind what I was going to say when Anna was clinging to my leg as we dropped her off at school for the first time... let's just say that I didn't need to use my tricks. Anna was happy go lucky and went right in the building without me. Jake and I actually laughed it off bc she was so sure of her self walking into school. Didn't even look behind at us. TOTALLY ANNA! We love our little sweet cheeks.

Festivals and Fairs Galore!

Below are some pictures from the State Fair.

The New Addition to the Akin Family!

Nicholas Park Yust has entered the world, and we are enjoying every moment spent with him. He is precious! Anna can't get enough of her new baby cousin... she wants to hold him all the time.

Learning to Fly a Kite

 Everyone had fun watching the kite floating in the wind

Even Grandpa was enjoying the kite flying Unfortunately the session ended when Jake had to jump into the COLD lake with his clothes on to rescue the drowning kite.

4th of July Weekend 2011

We took a family trip to the pool and Anna showed off all her new swimming skills from lessons. Getting thrown up in air by Daddy was one of her favorites.
 We also had one last get together at Jake's childhood home. Everyone was in town and we enjoyed talking about our favorite memories of the house. We even had a slide show to bring back some fond memories of their childhood. Below is a picture of Sierra, Olivia, and Anna on the back porch during the party. Anna was using Grandma's binoculars to watch birds at the birdfeeder.

We wrapped up the weekend with a trip to Lake Wawasee. Anna loved the jet ski and speed boat ride. She also enjoyed spending time with mommy's girl cousins on rafts in the water, and played an intense game of UNO with mommy's boy cousins.

Summer Fun!

We just got back from spending time with family at Great Wolf Lodge in Cincinnati. It had a rustic, cabin like hotel, an awesome indoor water park, and an outdoor splash park pool. A great time was had by everyone!
Spending time at the zoo with my cousins, Grammy, and Aunt Christie
Painting the exterior of the house with Daddy

Grammy and Grandpa enjoyoing their summer

Easter 2011

For the first time, I think Anna understood a Holiday! She knew that she was going to play with all her relatives and hunt for eggs. She was a speed demon collecting all the eggs, until she realized there were treats inside. Then her hunting stopped suddenly for snack time. Also, Anna got her first slinkey, but of course she calls it "sneaky." Too cute! Below are some pictures from the day.

BUTLER BULLDOGS

We went to Uncle Bobby's Butler Baseball game vs. Purdue. We were a bit confused because there were so many Bobbys. They all looked like him since they were in the same uniform and hat as Bobby. Also, BlueII made an appearance and we felt like we were in the presence of a celebrity.