Keean's Baptism

Keean was baptized this Saturday.  Grandma Floto and Uncle Rob & Aunt Yolanda plus kids came to Maryland to attend along with a few school friends and ward members.  Keean has definitely grown up over the past eight years to be a fine young man.  We are proud of his choice to be baptized.

Keean & Jamie

All of us at Keean's Baptism

Monique & Keean

After the baptism, we had a small dinner at the house with everyone.  Keean spent the time playing football with his two good friends who came to see him get baptized.

President's Day @ Mount Vernon

We are trying to take advantage of living on the East Coast during a holiday. With everyone off for President's Day, we decided to go visit Mount Vernon. We have wanted to go for some time but Monday was the perfect opportunity. Everyone was willing to go ( a first) and the cost was free for the day. ( saved over $80 in entry fees). We got there early and I am glad we did. It seemed half of DC had the same idea! :). The kids had a great time. They saw the mansion, visited a 16 sided barn, saw a colonal band and soldiers perform, and most importantly they visited the gift shop. The best part of the trip for the kids was learning what a "necessary" is and visiting one to get warm.




The family gets ready for a fun COLD at Mt Vernon.




Posing for Dad outside the Visitor Center.




We got tickets to tour the Mansion and waited in line to tour the house.
Pretty impressive even for the kids.




The kids outside the back of the Mansion.
Keean was upset because he wanted to go see something else.



To cheer Keean up, we let him take a picture of us with the Potomac river in the background.



The kids standing in front of Washington's Tomb.

Next holiday we are thinking of visiting either Ford's Theater or the International Spy Museum. I think you can tell which one the boys want to visit.

Troop 1846 @ DS Berry

Yesterday Aedan's Scout troop traveled up to the Naval Yard and visited the DS Berry. The Berry is a retired Destroyer ship. The boys got a private tour of the Ship and were allowed to sleep over on it. The boys loved having the ship all to themselves. The Boys spent the night exploring the ship and even watched the movie Battleship.




Aedan & Jamie at the DS Berry



Aedan at the Helm of the Ship.



Sleepover anyone? The ship had bunks three high. All the boys got a real feel of what it is like to live on the ship.

Virginia Trip!

This weekend we traveled to Virginia to visit the Shenandoah National Park. It was a lot of fun but we were not able to camp over night because all the sites were full. It seems over half of the East coast must have had the same idea. All hotel rooms & camp sites within a hundred miles were complexly booked. Next year we will plan well ahead if time.



The family at the entrance of the park.




A view from the Skyline Drive. It is a 103 mile road along the mountain top. We were there near sunset and it was amazing! The fall colors were just beautiful. Red, Orange, Yellow, oh my!


We also stopped at the Luray Caverns. It was a bit expensive but the hour tour was awesome.






Just one of many pictures we took in the cavern.


The kids also decided to do the Rope Adventure Park. It was a three story metal structure that the kids were harnessed into.



A view of the metal beast! The kids spent over 90 minutes playing in it. The only left when they decided it was time to eat.




While the boys did the rope park, Monique & Ireland attempted the Giant Garden Maze. It covered several acres.



Ireland in the maze.

New Addition to the Family!

Monique's has been playing the piano for many years. Her wonderful talent has been a blessing in our family. She has been working on teaching all of the kids. The boys have been taking lessons for a while and Ireland has just started. With Ireland in school, Monique decided to pick up a few additional students. Our first piano was purchased at a yard sale many years ago. It has been a great piano and we will continue to use it for lessons. After many years I decided it was time to get Monique a Grand Piano. After looking for months, I was able to get a great deal on a Yamaha G1 piano on Craigslist. It was a massive amount of work arranging the payment and move but it was worth it. The piano is finally here, looks great, and has provided the kids extra motivation to practice.




New Grand Piano!

Soccer Shots!

Here are a few pictures from our soccer game this past weekend.


Harrison playing goalie! He is only two kids who are willing enough to play goalie. He is getting better each game.



Harrison "playing" in the field. He really gets into the game.



A great motivational Half-time speech! :)

Citizens of the Month!

On September 28th, the Elementary school held an assembly for the citizens of the month. This year only one kid was nominated per class. Both Keean & Harrison were selected as their class's award winner. It was great that two of our three kids were selected in the first month. Now lets hope Ireland is selected soon.




Keean with the School's Vice Principal.



Harrison with the School's Vice Principal.



Both boys with their awards!