One and One and One is Three

Aquarium

2012-02-12T14:04:00.001-08:00

The Aquarium has been like a second home since arriving in Tennessee. It's Olive's first choice of things to do when we have a day to goof around. Here are a number of aquarium pics.

Play-Doh fun

2012-01-30T05:19:00.001-08:00

Olive loves to get out her bucket o Play-Doh and that's what we did last night. Is there any better smell than a freshly opened Play-Doh tub?

This blog was done exclusively from Daddy's iPhone.

Christmas in Tennessee!

2012-01-13T10:31:00.000-08:00

Thankfully Santa was able to find us in Tennessee. He even ate the cookies we left him. And somehow he managed to fit a giant giraffe in his sleigh for Olive. Her favorite!

It was nice to have everyone in our new home for Christmas.

4th Birthday!

2012-01-12T10:16:00.000-08:00

Sorry we are bit late on our blog posts, we are just getting out from under the boxes of our move to the Smoky Mountains of Tennessee.

The moving crew took a break from all the unpacking to take Olive to the Ripley's Aquarium in Gatlinburg for her birthday. Olive loved the penguins, sting rays and sharks. And no one got wet!

We then came home for presents, cake and the Birthday Story.

Happy New Year!

2011-12-31T18:22:00.001-08:00

Birthday and Christmas pictures soon...

Sledding

2011-12-06T05:31:00.000-08:00

First big snow of the season meant sledding! It was nice fluffy snow and we all had fun paying on the hill in the neighborhood. Thank goodness for snowpants and warm coats, though!

Cosmic Bowling!

2011-12-04T21:48:00.000-08:00

While Will was home visiting Olive got her first taste of bowling! We went down to Tusayan with Amelia and Pam and let the girls try to knock down some pins. Olive didn't do too bad...I only beat her by 8 pins! (Maybe I'm just that bad at bowling....) Anyhoo...Go O!

Happy Halloween!

2011-10-31T21:02:00.000-07:00

Olive had a fun day celebrating Halloween with a little party at her school and then a night of trick or treating in the park neighborhoods. The mean kitty is going to sleep well tonight!

Pumpkin Carvin'

2011-10-30T12:52:00.000-07:00

Time to carve the pumpkins! Olive and Amelia drew out the design and Pam and I provided the knife skills. I think they came out pretty nice, all in all!

Mean Kitty Unleashed!

2011-10-29T21:02:00.000-07:00

Trick or Treat season is here again and tonight was the big Halloween Carnival at the local school. Olive has been wanting to be a "mean kitty" since July and her wish was finally fulfilled. While she might not look super mean (with a fluffy blue bow in her ears) she made sure to tell everyone that she was mean and then showed them her "claws." We had a fun time playing games and even came home with a win from the cake walk.

Pam and I were Pink Ladies...(the outfits were more flattering in person...)

Pumpkin Festival!

2011-10-17T12:00:00.000-07:00

Olive and I accompanied our partners in crime, Pam and Amelia, to the Pumpkin Festival down in Chino Valley. We had a fun "fall day" even though it was well into being 80 degrees outside. The girls had their faces painted, went on a hayride, and visited the petting zoo. We ended the day with a cart full of beautiful pumpkins and two tired 3 year olds!

Random Cuteness

2011-10-16T12:47:00.000-07:00

Just some random pictures of Olive (and one of Pop Pop) that had no real theme but were cute enough to post.

Arizona's Great Outdoors

2011-10-08T18:43:00.000-07:00

Pam and I decided to take Amelia and Olive out for a hike last weekend. We ventured out to Sunset Crater and then took a short hike part way up Mount Humphreys in the San Francisco Peaks. The weather was beautiful and the girls were a hoot. We have had a fun summer hanging out the the ladies!

Trailer Life

2011-10-07T18:36:00.000-07:00

While in Indiana we had a nice hotdog bonfire roast up on the Ohio River near Rono. The weather was great and Derby Labhart cousins stopped in to roast some marshmallows...

Aunt Pop's Fishery

2011-10-05T18:17:00.000-07:00

Great Aunt Pop said we could come out to her house and try to fish for some bluegill in her pond. We expected Olive's attention to last about 10 minutes fishing. We were shocked when she kept it up for at least an hour and a half! We ended up catch and releasing at least 10 fish. We had a really fun time and Olive is still talking about it. Thanks Pop and Darryl!

We also were able to visit Jack and Jill, Aunt Pop's pet donkeys.

Sum Sum Summertime

2011-10-03T21:11:00.000-07:00

Olive loved the pool and she loved hanging out with Aunt Beetsy!

Kentucky State Fair Day

2011-10-02T17:18:00.000-07:00

We had a great time at the Kentucky State Fair this summer! We ate, rode carney rides, ate, looked at livestock, ate, people watched and ate. I even ventured to try a Krispy Kreme doughnut burger...lets just say it was interesting. Olive had a blast. She loves a fair!

Summer Fun

2011-09-30T17:07:00.000-07:00

We spent a wonderful week at Grandma and Pop Pop's in at the end of August. We had a blast in the pool, taking walks up town, and visiting the star of the show: DADDY!

Olive and Daddy

2011-08-22T12:48:00.000-07:00

After 4 and a half long months Olive and Daddy finally got to see each other. As promised, Olive gave Daddy one of her world famous "knock-down" hugs. Daddy couldn't believe how big his little girl had gotten. There has been lots of fun in the pool and everywhere else at Grandma and Pop Pop's house. More pictures to come...

California Visitors!

2011-08-06T18:42:00.000-07:00

An old friend from Sequoia, Angela, stopped by for a quick visit with her little girl, Mckenzie. She was at the end of a long visit with her family in Page but we were glad to have them for a couple of nights. We went to the playground and for ice cream with another local a family who carries a "Sequoia past." Their little girl, Elanna is in the ice cream picture. Reminiscing about Three Rivers makes me want to visit our old stomping grounds!

Wednesday Nights

2011-08-04T20:00:00.000-07:00

Pam and I discovered that the local school is the place to be on a Wednesday evening...especially if you are under the age of 12. There is soccer practice, softball games, people working in the community garden, and lots of kids on the playground. We have had a nice time enjoying the summer evenings in the community with Olive and Amelia!

Blue Bikey

2011-08-02T18:27:00.000-07:00

We decided that it was time to move from her trike cruiser to a big girl, two wheel bike. Her only stipulation was that it would be her favorite color: blue. It is a bike to grow on but she is getting pretty good at maneuvering around the driveway.

Tumble Time!

2011-07-31T18:23:00.000-07:00

Each year a woman comes up from Phoenix to teach tumbling to the preschoolers. Olive loved it! I only wish she was here year round.

More Grammie Time

2011-07-30T18:10:00.000-07:00

We had a great time while Grammie Gail visited! Olive enjoyed showing off to her around the house but I did try to get her out to the rim a few times. We really appreciate her coming out to keep us company for a few weeks!

Like the Monsoons of Sumatra...

2011-07-11T06:00:00.000-07:00

Monsoon season has hit Northern Arizona! It is so nice to finally have some weather other than wind. Olive has been quite happy that her favorite puddle has returned to the driveway...

Grammie and Olive

2011-07-08T08:00:00.000-07:00

Grammie, Olive and I took a trip to Mather Point to see the ole canyon. It was pretty hazy due to a windy day but the view was beautiful none the less. Olive has been enjoying having Grammie out to visit and we can't wait to show her more things around our home!

Happy Day of Our Nation's Birth Parade!

2011-07-05T21:08:00.000-07:00

Happy 4th of July! Olive and I were excited to take Grammie Gail to her first Flagstaff 4th of July Parade. Olive had a fun time collecting treats and watching all of the crazy entries pass by.

Folk Music Festival

2011-06-25T19:32:00.000-07:00

Today was a day in Flagstaff with Pam and Amelia and ended up going to the Flagstaff Folk Music Festival. There was lots of nice music at each of the venues but the highlight for the girls was the Italian Ice. That and running in circles and throwing pine needles in the air...

June Fun!

2011-06-15T20:04:00.000-07:00

A couple of weekends ago I went to go to a live Prairie Home Companion show with Pam and Emily. It was fun to hear Flagstaff and the Grand Canyon featured broadcast! Our friend, Della, was even interviewed by Garrison Keillor about working at the park!

Then last week, Olive had her first swim lesson at the William's Pool. She and Amelia had a great time. Olive even got kudos from the instructor for her "bubble blowing ability!"

Flower Power

2011-06-01T08:00:00.000-07:00

I took advantage of my family being here to get some flowers planted. I do NOT have a green thumb so hopefully the Olive has the touch.

Red Rock Country

2011-05-30T03:00:00.000-07:00

While Beetsy was with us we took a weekend down to Sedona. We had great weather and took a jeep ride with "Buzzard" which was quite an experience. We learned some interesting (and random) things about the area and saw some great views. Sedona was great!

Beetsy Arrives!

2011-05-29T11:00:00.000-07:00

Beetsy came out to join the action for a week! Let the craziness begin..

Pop Pop and Grandma: Week 2

2011-05-27T20:40:00.000-07:00

We spent the second Saturday with Grandma and Pop Pop sitting in the front driveway watching the neighbors have a yard sale. It was pretty entertaining. Our house became the official hangout spot for some of the local kids.

It was such a nice day we decided to take the shuttle bus out to see some of the canyon...

River Time

2011-05-17T19:05:00.000-07:00

Last week I took a work trip down the Colorado River. It was a little cold but a lot of fun. We performed evaluations on commercial river trips, watered a re vegetation project, and even stirred a compost toilet down at Tanner Rapid..yuck. Thanks to my coworker/friend Emily for the fun time and hiking out the BA with me!

Jack Hannah and Choo Choos

2011-05-16T05:00:00.000-07:00

While I was away for work, Pop Pop, Grandma and Olive had a big weekend seeing Jack Hannah, riding the train and exploring the South Rim area. (Grandma sends a special thanks out to Jack Hannah who inspired her Kentucky Derby win with "Animal Kingdom!"

Grandma and Pop Pop

2011-05-14T08:24:00.000-07:00

Grandma and Pop Pop came out to visit (and spoil) Olive for a while. We have had a good first week!

Princess Party!

2011-05-01T21:31:00.001-07:00

Olive had a big day today attending a "Princess Party" for her friend Hannah's 4th Birthday. The kids played games (Olive even won a pair of stunning ladybug sunglasses during "pass the parcel") and ate lots of food and cake. There were princesses (and a few superhero boys) everywhere!

Easter Day!

2011-04-25T05:00:00.000-07:00

We had a nice Easter hanging out around the house. We were excited to see that the bunny made a trip to our house during the night! Hope all of our friends and families had wonderful days...

(Before and after shots below)

GET THE EGGS!

2011-04-24T11:00:00.000-07:00

Saturday was the day for the Lion's Club Easter Egg Hunt! Olive and Amelia did a great job grabbing as many eggs as they could as the whole hunt lasted about 20 seconds. There were lots of cute dresses but it was so cold, everyone had to wear coats and sweaters...Easter weekend weather I suppose...

Egg Day

2011-04-23T20:17:00.000-07:00

Today was the day to dye Easter eggs! The eggs came out quite nice, if I do say so myself... After the decorating I hid them all in the backyard for Olive. I felt we needed to prep for the Community Easter Egg Hunt (more like a Chaotic Egg Scramble) that was happening later in the day...

Who Doesn't Love the Playground?

2011-04-18T20:33:00.000-07:00

Pinch Pots!

2011-04-17T07:42:00.000-07:00

Olive had a nice Saturday hanging out with our friend Amelia and her mother Pam. The "oh so fashionable" girls even took a crack at making pinch pots out of clay. We now have a work of art that will grace our house for years to come..

Of course no spring day would be complete without bubbles...

Snow in April?

2011-04-10T21:38:00.000-07:00

We had a bit of snow fall over the weekend which was a surprise for Olive and myself. We spent most of the weekend hanging out inside and doing "projects." One of Olive's projects was making a seasonal door hanger. Now, Easter can begin...

O's First Haircut

2011-04-02T15:29:00.000-07:00

We finally decided it was time to get Olive's haircut. We took a trip to Flag this morning, ate an early lunch at a restaurant called "The Lumberyard", and watched about 6 trains go by. Then we headed to Headlines 2000 to get her little locks cut off...She did great and was very excited to get a "big girl" haircut!

Olive the cowgirl

2011-03-30T18:23:00.000-07:00

Olive is a big fan of the horses used for patrol on the South Rim. Her favorite horse is Rio. We often go over to the coral to feed the horses carrots or just to say hello. Today Ranger Katie was at the coral and asked if Olive wanted to sit on Rio. Olive hopped right up. How long until Olive asks for a pony?

Puzzler

2011-03-16T05:00:00.000-07:00

One thing that keeps Olive busy is puzzles. The stack of jungle animals is one of our favorites.

Bike Time

2011-03-14T05:00:00.000-07:00

This is how Olive and I will be getting around the village this summer!

Outside Again!

2011-03-12T16:09:00.000-08:00

The beautiful weather has us hopeful that Spring has sprung but we aren't counting our chickens... We did spend much of our Saturday morning outside on the back deck playing with the ole water table.

Sledding!

2011-02-28T19:27:00.000-08:00

Olive and I had a great time sledding this weekend with our friends Pam, Matt and little Amelia! It took some coaxing but Olive eventually went down the hill with me. Then she of course LOVED it!

Painting, Snow and Telephone

2011-02-22T18:34:00.000-08:00

Just a some pics from the last few days.

Olive has been quite the painter. We barely have room to display all of her colorful artwork!

The canyon is covered in snow...it is of course beautiful!

Olive "talking" on her phone. (She just started a ballet class, hence the leotard and tights which she didn't want to take off.)

Snow Stroll

2011-02-20T09:32:00.000-08:00

We have finally received our first good snowfall for 2011! The whole fam took a little stroll around the block today to get out of the house. (We were beginning to get cabin fever!) Olive caught snowflakes on her tongue and enjoyed throwing snowballs at us. Now we're back home for some hot cocoa!

Happy Valentine's Day

2011-02-14T06:15:00.001-08:00

Floyd Collins O'Malley

2011-02-13T19:06:00.000-08:00

Introducing our newest family member, Floyd Collins O'Malley.

Olive has a fondness for cats and Molly has been looking to fill a hole left by our sweet Bucky Cat. So yesterday we went to Flagstaff and rescued this sweet little kitten. He purrs a lot and is warming right up to everyone, including old Hamilton.

Squeaky clean

2011-01-30T19:02:00.000-08:00

She always seems to be extra cute after a bath.

Wide World of Sports

2011-01-10T13:16:00.000-08:00

We spent the weekend watching football and playing hockey and baseball. Tonight we will watching the BCS Championship Game. Go Ducks!

New Years in Indiana

2011-01-08T07:51:00.000-08:00

A few days after Christmas Olive and I made a trip to Indiana to visit the family. We had a full week celebrating a late Christmas, going to Olive's big birthday party at "Pump It Up", and playing with all of our cousins on New Years Day. Even Will's Mom, Sister Beth, and our niece and nephew (Aurora and Jackson) made the trip down from Northern Indiana to visit. We had a great week and wish it didn't have to end! It is nice to get back home and to see Will, though!

Happy New Year!

2010-12-31T16:50:00.000-08:00

As the train rolls into 2011 we wish you all a Happy New Year!

Meery Christmas!

2010-12-28T21:34:00.000-08:00

Santa made it to the Grand Canyon and Olive was thrilled to find a dog, a cat, a pig, 2 mice, and a mule from the Jolly ol' St Nick.

We had a busy day opening presents, with Olive helping Mom and Dad open their presents as well. Olive likes to open a gift and immediately get the present out of the box to check it out. It was fun to see the Holiday through Olive. She was such a good girl.

Birthday Girl

2010-12-24T20:47:00.001-08:00

It was quite a day for the Birthday Girl. We opened lots of presents and got to see a movie in Flagstaff. As you can see, through the wonder of Skype, Olive got to open presents in front of family. Thanks to everyone for the nice gifts, Olive had a great day.

Right before bedtime, Olive left cookies for Santa and carrots for the reindeer.

We miss you all!

Happy Birthday Little O!

2010-12-24T00:01:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday to our wonderful little girl. It's hard to believe she is 3 years old. We love her more everyday and Molly and I are so thankful that we have her in our lives. We also are thankful for our families who also love Olive so much.

Enjoy a look back at the year in pictures. So much has happened. I tried to pick pictures that didn't make the blog, but there is sure to be a repeat or two.

Early Birthday Party

2010-12-18T19:18:00.000-08:00

We had an early birthday party for Olive. It was a good time that included cake, ice cream and a PINATA! OLE! Thank you to everyone that came! We had a wonderful time.

A Pig, a Dog, a Kitty Cat and a Mouse Please

2010-12-06T20:18:00.000-08:00

Tonight was the Visitor Center's Holiday Open House! Olive had a good time listening to the local school children sing Christmas songs about the Grand Canyon but she mostly enjoyed running around with her friend Amelia. When it was her turn to talk to Santa, I was surprised when she hopped right up on his lap and told him she wanted, "a pig, a dog, a kitty cat, and a mouse." She is a girl who knows what she wants!

Fa La La La La!

2010-11-29T19:13:00.000-08:00

We had a happy Saturday morning getting out the Christmas decor. Olive had fun putting the ornaments on the tree...Its in her blood, you know... She keeps telling us it is, "MY Christmas tree..." The season has begun!

Happy Thanksgiving!

2010-11-28T09:33:00.000-08:00

We had a nice quiet dinner at home with just the three of us. Molly made some of our favorite Thanksgiving dishes, followed by the apple pie the girls made. Delicious!

Olive also took a spin on the lazy Susan.

Olive the Baker!

2010-11-24T20:35:00.000-08:00

Will requested an apple pie for Thanksgiving and Olive delivered! She helped with the whole thing. Can't wait to eat it for turkey day!

Olive reads to Hamilton

2010-11-20T08:11:00.000-08:00

One of Olive's favorite books is the "I'm Sorry" book. She "read" it to Hammy the other night.

Happy Halloween!

2010-10-31T20:24:00.000-07:00

It has been quite a Halloween week up at the canyon! Olive had a school Halloween party early in the week and Olive kicked off the holiday with her friends. Then on Saturday, we had a bake sale to raise money for Molly's Susan G. Koman Breast Cancer Walk. The bake sale was a lot of work but it was fun. Molly and Robin even put on a turkey and bee costumes and rode around trying to drum up business. (Hula Hoops were also utilized to attract attention...)

Finally today we went trick or treating with some friends and had a great time. Olive, as you can tell, was Snow White (thank you Grammy Gail for such a great dress!!!), Will was "Alan" from the movie "The Hangover" and Molly was a witch....

Another Indiana Visitor!

2010-10-31T14:30:00.001-07:00

Our second visitor from Indiana, Grammy Gail, came to stay with us for a while at the canyon. Olive enjoyed hanging out and showing off throughout the week. We even were able to try on the beautiful Halloween costume Grammy made. Olive is going to be a cute Snow White!

Indiana Visitors

2010-10-31T14:12:00.000-07:00

The Southern Indiana family made a visit in mid October. We had a good visit (as usual) despite some crazy storms. (Who would have known they would have brought tornadoes out here!) We braved the weather, took a quick trip to Flagstaff and Betsy and I even squeezed in a mule ride. Can't wait until they come back!

More Portland Fun!

2010-10-13T18:48:00.000-07:00

We made the big trip to Portland to attend Pop Pop Dewey's induction into the Portland Sports Hall of Fame. We had a great night celebrating the honor at the ceremony. Congratulations Pop Pop Dewey (a.k.a. The Godfather)!

While we were in Portland we made sure to take advantage of all the fun stuff that we can't find around Northern Arizona. We made a trip to a local playground, the Portland Children's Museum, and the Sauvie Island Pumpkin Patch where we picked out a nice big pumpkin for Pop Pop Dewey and Grammi Kim's house. It was such a fun time, we really hated to leave.

A day at the zoo

2010-10-03T13:33:00.000-07:00

One of our most enjoyable outings while in Portland was a day at the zoo. Olive was a good girl and had a blast looking at all the animals. Her favorites were the water animals and the giraffes. We also took a ride on the zoo train.

Visitors to Portland

2010-09-30T07:57:00.000-07:00

After having Pop Pop Dewey and Grammy Kim come to visit us at the Canyon, we returned the favor this week. This will be part one of what has been a fantastic week.

Our first day in town we went over to the Oregon Coast. We have had gorgeous weather all week - except for the day at the beach. We were like a pack of drowned rats. The only one who didn't seem to notice was Olive, who enjoyed every minute.

Visitors from Portland

2010-09-15T11:39:00.000-07:00

PopPop Dewey and Grammie Kim for a visit last week. As you can see we read and hiked and read some more. Olive is finding she can get anyone to read her a story if she asks nicely.

We will be heading to Portland to visit at the end of the month.

Playing around the house

2010-09-04T13:46:00.000-07:00

Just a few pictures of Olive having fun around the house.

The first few are of a fort that Olive and Mommy built in the living room. The other pictures are what Olive did with the stickers Grandma sent her.

Party at the Auqaplex

2010-08-31T21:04:00.000-07:00

We took Olive to one of her school friend's third birthday party. It was held at the Flagstaff Aquaplax. Olive had a great time in the lazy river, on the slides and just splashing around the water. She also enjoyed a very big piece of birthday cake.

Dance Party

2010-08-26T10:28:00.000-07:00

Molly and I have always done a lot of dancing around the house and we are trying to get Olive in on the act. She comes about her moves naturally.

Weekend in Sedona

2010-08-17T09:39:00.000-07:00

We have some friends who have a place in Sedona and they were nice enough to let us use it this past weekend. We had a great weekend that included hiking, swimming and relaxing. Even Hamilton got to get in on the action.

Olive enjoyed our hike of Merry Go Round Rock and really loved sitting in the river. Playing with rocks was the favored activity on the hike and in the river. Sedona is a beautiful place and we can't thank our friends enough for allowing to spend the weekend at their house.

Olive the painter

2010-07-31T19:25:00.000-07:00

Olive comes home from school almost everyday with a new project that she has created. She also likes to paint, color and build at home. Today she worked with a new medium -- watercolors!

Fun and messy!

Afternoon showers

2010-07-25T14:58:00.000-07:00

It's Monsoon season in Northern Arizona and what could be more fun then going outside and jumping in some puddles?

By the way, this is blogpost #200 since we started this crazy journey back in April 2007.

Climber girl

2010-07-23T11:59:00.000-07:00

Olive loves a trip to the playground and lately has really enjoyed climbing. She really loves the 'climbing wall'. Mom and Dad are learning not to freak out while Olive climbs around like a little monkey.

4th of July Weekend

2010-07-05T08:23:00.000-07:00

We had a busy 4th of July weekend that included 2 parades, watching a hot dog eating competition, and lots of bouncing in a bounce house.

4th of July parade in Flagstaff.
Olive sat for the whole parade.
Here comes the fire engines.
Olive and Mom.
Star Wars guys.
Wave that Flag.
Olive in the bounce house - the highlight of the weekend.
Jump, jump, jump.
Bounce, bounce, bounce.
Mmm, snow cone.
Pouting after a turn in the bounce house.
Hot dog eating contest.
Olive cleaning up after the competition.
Tusayan Light Parade.
Happy 4th of July!

Vacation: Part 6

2010-06-28T07:00:00.000-07:00

Our last few days in Indiana were spent around Grandma and Pop Pop's house. Olive played in the pool, their swing set, and at the playground at the local school. Will even got to play with one of his former toys (Clown Head Sprinkler/AKA Uncle Daddy). Olive and Will even caught lightning bugs (a first for both).

Uncle Daddy

New Monster!

Lightning bugs!

Beetsy with a yard frog...

Vacation Part: 5

2010-06-27T19:00:00.000-07:00

We know that no one really cares about us but Will and I had a great time in the Keys while Olive was gallivanting around Indiana with the family.

Vacation: Part 4

2010-06-26T11:10:00.000-07:00

Another exciting thing little Olive got to do was go to Holiday World and Splashin' Safari with Grandmaw, Pop Pop and Beetsy. She enjoyed going on her first amusement park rides and waterslides. It is a super nice "family fun park" and a good time was had by all!