Bye Bye 2009

What a fantastic way to wrap a wonderful year!

We beat the snow in Asheville to make the long flight to the UK.

Santa met us in the terminal.




As soon as we landed in England, we whisked away up to the Midlands to see Nan Partridge, Uncle Tony and Aunt Yvonne.

Then we got excited a bout hanging out with Grandma and Grandad Partridge....

Granny Bate.....

And all Dudes Partridge.

John still reigned supreme, even though the squirrel costume didn't make the trip.

And wouldn't you know they saved some snow for us when we got home...

Hope your Holiday was Great!

Happy New Year!!!

HALLOWEEN!!!!

The story of the squirrel king started when we brought John home to Asheville shortly after his birth. We noticed that the squirrels in our yard started acting very strangely. They were constantly on our porch and frequently peering in our front door, hoping to catch a glimpse of John.

I remembered the hundreds of poor little squirrels that lost their lives at the hand of Grandpa John and Uncle Pete, only to become a fine batch of Squirrel Stew. I thought, oh my, the Asheville squirrels know the plight of their fallen Warner Robins brothers and they have come for my first born. And of course, they will make him their king.

All hail, John, the Squirrel King.

So that's the story behind John's costume. You can see he tested it out to make sure the tail was fully functional.




We had some pictures with Nan and Mom.

And then we teamed up with the leader of the Trick-Or-Treaters, DJ Lance Rock, AKA, Deacon.

These two were cruisin' in style, showing all the kids here on Brucemont how to really work that cuteness factor.

Laid back. With my mind on candy, and candy on my mind.

Aww, yeah.

And Yeeee-Haw!!!!!

In Loving Memory of Granddad Bate

When I started to write down the things that made Granddad such a special person in his Grandchildrens’ lives, it became pretty clear that while this is a very sad occasion, as we mourn the passing of a man that we loved very much, this would also be an occasion where we will all share a laugh and a smile, because it is impossible to think of granddad without feeling a sense of joy and happiness. That’s what he was all about. Most of our greatest childhood memories involve granddad, because he was always there to share in them, always there to cheer us on, always there to make us laugh, and always there to love us more than anything else in the world. I don’t think I ever saw him without a big infectious smile on his face, and I certainly never heard him say a bad word about anyone. He just loved life, he loved his family and he loved his friends.

His family was always so important to him, and he loved and cherished every moment that he spent with his grandkids. I can remember the sense of utter jubilation that I would feel when Mum would announce that Nan and Granddad are coming to stay for the week, and even though he was older and wiser than us, we knew he felt the same way. Granddad took his greatest pleasure from spending time with the people he loved, and we all felt the same about him.

It is hard to think of Granddad without talking about his passion for DIY. But as I thought about this more, it really wasn’t the actual DIY activity that gave him so much pleasure, but rather the knowledge that he doing something to help someone he loved. When they would come to stay with us, I would regularly return home from school to find the landscape had been significantly changed, and there were shelves in places where I didn’t realize it was possible to put a shelf. Where some people choose to express themselves through Art & Graffiti, Granddad left his mark on our world through shelves and self-assembly furniture.

Daniel and I were fortunate to have spent several Christmases with Nan and Granddad, and he really loved that time of year. He was just like one of the grandkids really, sneaking under the Christmas tree to squeeze his presents, and waking up at 5am in the morning to “make the tea” (which provided ample opportunity for some more present squeezing). He would sit there watching the people he loved open their presents, sharing in their joy with a big smile on his face, but the second that somebody opened a package with the words “assembly required” blazoned across it, his eyes would light up and he would hoist the package over his shoulder and head off to the garage for a period of light hammering. Whenever I think of Christmas, I think of playing with my new toys in the living room, the smell of turkey wafting through the house, and the sound of distant hammering accompanied by Nan’s voice saying “Will you put that down ‘Arry and come and eat your dinner?!”

Granddad, you have brought a tremendous amount of love, joy and laughter into our lives, as I know we have into yours. Your Grandchildren love you and thank you for all of the wonderful memories you have given to us. May you rest in peace, safe in the knowledge that we will always remember you with a smile, rather than sadness, because we know that you would only ever want to bring happiness into our lives. We all hope that one day, we can be as wonderful a grandparent to our grandkids, as you have been to us. We love you.

PUNKYN

You can see that Booface loves the punkyns!!! (that's how we spelled it on Grandpa John's van)

Here are a few pics from John's visit to the pumpkin patch.

We can't wait for Halloween where we will really be working that BOO face!!!

Go DAWGS!

I know the Dawgs didn't play this weekend, but that also means they didn't lose.

We are also trying to get pumped for this coming weekend's bout against the Gators.

If only adorable looks could kill....

In All Their Glory...

Finally got a shot of those pearly whites!

There is an upper incisor starting to poke through as well!

Go West Young Man!!!

So John and I took a trip to Portland, Oregon last week to visit with some friends and to attend the wedding of my very good friend, Caroline,

Mommy and Johnny got all gussied up for the event and we had a great time!

Caroline was a BEAUTIFUL bride and she married the Luckiest guy in the world, Dorian.

We were so glad to share in their wonderful day and wish them every happiness for the future!

John and I also had a chance to visit with my landlady, Myrtle, from my time in Portland.

She is doing great and we were so glad to spend some time with her!

We were so very fortunate to stay with our good friends Josh and Keely(and their little pooch, Belle). Their hospitality went above and beyond and we thoroughly enjoyed our visit with them.

Not only is Portland a great city but it is filled with some of our favorite people. How lucky we are to have such great friends in such a beautiful place and we certainly hope to be visiting there more often!

Away we go!!!

He crawls. From what I understand from other parents, life as we know it is over.

Behold.

9 Months Update

Whoops, I mean 10 months!

At John's last check-up he weighed 17lbs 3oz and was 29 inches long. That puts him in the 75th percentile for babies his age! He is a long and skinny little boo.

It's been pretty busy here for John lately, so let's see what the little man has been up to....

Here is John showing that little bear who is boss!...

From the last post, you've heard that he's got two teeth coming in at the moment...

He's working on his crawling...

And snuggling up to his Auntie Lauren during her visit...

And rooting for the Bulldogs with his buddy Mary Adelyn.

Stay tuned for more fall fun!!!

The Phantom Menace...

...Or what we here at the Manor refer to as.........................TEETHING.

Here's what I mean. We have been under the assumption for several months now that John is working on some teeth. Lots of Drool? YES. Chewing on Everything? YES. Unexplicable Fits of Hysteria? But, Of Course. That's the Menacing part. Now here's the Phantom part - NO TEETH. Not even a bud.

So I'm thinking: drool, chewing, crying - that's just regular baby stuff, right? I just need the excuse of teething to explain the whiny, soggy state of my son.

But then.......In just two weeks we have two teeth!!! Let me tell you that they are very difficult to capture on film. But they are finally here!