Dennis Roland Witham III

A few days ago I had one of the more amazing experiences of my life.  I was able to be at the birth of my nephew- Dennis Roland Witham III.  Given that my two never cooperated with the "natural birth" thing, this experience was extra special to me.  To watch my sister become a mother and my brother in law become a father was a remarkable transition.  I will forever be greatful that I was able to experience such a special and important time in their family.  It was beyond words to be able to watch my sister do something so incredible and be so strong throughout the process.  It was a long haul (after 42 hours of labor he did finally arrive), but totally worth it, and I can say it was nice to be able to come home to my house and get a complete night of sleep afterwards;)  Here he is- absolutely perfect and beautiful! Born September 17, 2010 at 8:44pm- 8lbs. 11oz. (I think, I was a little tired by this time).  The first several pics are just after birth and the bottom few are the next morning- him getting his first bath and the proud big cousin Noah holding him.  Amy & Dennis, you have already become wonderful parents and I know that will continue with each stage!

First Day of PreSchool-2010

 This was Noah's first day of Preschool, so he is officially growing up.  He was so excited for school, a little disappointed that he didn't get to ride the bus, but overall he did so well!  I found this back pack at the LLBean Outlet for a STEAL... I had intended to just take off the embroidered letters, but I realized that they were actually Noah's initials backwards, and since he can't read does it really matter?  

Rick Charette- 2010

Yesterday we went to the Maine State Wildlife Park to see Rick Charette.  Of course, we were running late and I was irritated to see how many people were there ahead of us and how far away we would have to park.  After parking we ran into the Franck, Bosse and Reed families (we all parked right next to each other!).  We stayed at the park way longer than we planned, but the kids were all having such a fun time and we were enjoying catching up with old friends! Oh, and Rick Charette was the same as I remember when I was younger:)

More of Noah's Photography

I just added about 57 more pictures that Noah has recently taken (I had to pare it down from 155).... check it out.  I still think that some of his pictures are so cool... Gabe and I were trying to think of what that game show/show was where you are shown a picture really close up, then you would have to guess what it is while they zoomed out... there are a few in here like that:)

Route One- Ellsworth to Brunswick

We finished up our mini-vacation by taking Route One on the way home.  We stopped in Bucksport at Fort Knox and the observation tower, which Noah handled better than I had thought.  We also made a stop in Belfast to get Noah a new pair of sneakers (apparently he is now a 10.5 and we had been making him wear size 9 sneakers... oops).  And, no trip to route one would be complete without a stop at the Maine State Prison store... 

Mount Desert Island Visit- 2010

Last summer we didn't make our annual visit to the region, because we had a few things happening, and this year we went really late in the year. Needless to say, we were happy to be able to spend some time here this year.  We stayed at the Claremont Inn in Southwest Harbor for two nights to be able to attend a wedding. On Saturday we visited the Mt. Desert Island Oceanarium and was able to have a brief visit with our dear friend Audrey.  The kids spent Sunday at the Blue Hill fair while Gabe and I did wedding things.  Sunday night my wonderful cousin Hillary came to watch the kids for the evening, then stayed with us for the next day.  Thank you, thank you Hillary for helping out and putting up with us for the day!  We loved having you play with us for the day!  On Monday we hiked Bubble Mountain to the balancing rock, as you can see from the pics, Noah wasn't too interested in it at first, but we did eventually get him to stand and "push" the rock. We had a picnic lunch in Northeast Harbor (while Noah slept in the car) and walked up to the bakery for some really good treats:)  Afterwards, we drove around the island and played some mini golf and set up our tent for the night.  We spent Monday night camping and had a cold trip to the top of Cadillac Mountain for the sunset followed by really good, but expensive, ice cream at Ben and Bills:) 

Matt & Rachel's Wedding- Southwest Harbor, ME

Last weekend we were lucky enough to attend Matt & Rachel's wedding in Southwest Harbor!  We try hard to get to Mount Desert Island once a summer, so this was a great reason to go this year.  What an amazing weekend!  We joined the festivities on Saturday for the cruise around Somes Sound, followed by the wedding and luncheon Sunday afternoon and the "Barn Party" on Sunday evening. Thank you to all of you who watched our kiddos while we were able to enjoy ourselves, catch-up with old friends and relatives AND enjoy some amazing food and hospitality. I only remembered my camera for a few of the events, but it was so beautiful there I am sure you get the idea:)  Thanks Matt and Rachel for a wonderful weekend!  Congratulations!!