'Be ba book'!!

These days as soon as Jaxon sees Dave he smiles(because that's just what he does) and says, 'Be ba book'! Translated, that means 'Read a book!' Whether at our house or theirs, both boys love to have their Pa read to them. I wanted to catch a picture of Dave reading to them, but as soon as I got the camera out, Jaxon was ready to smile! I couldn't resist posting this picture.

After several attempts he finally stopped looking at me and got back to the business at hand, 'Be ba book'!! As you can see, Aidan has a second book for Pa to read as soon as the first choice is done.

Jamie and his boys! Trying to get everyone to look at me and smile is next to impossible! I can only imagine what it's going to be like taking family pictures at Christmas when everyone is here.

Jaxon is definitely our smiley boy....they light up his entire face! And of course they light up ours too...you can't help but smile when you see him smiling!

Happy Birthday dear girls...

Dear Avery and Sophie.
Today you are celebrating your second birthday in heaven my dear girls. Grandpa will be looking on, so proud of the two of you and enjoying your presence there.  I am sure that my friends Irene and Debbie will be there too...since they won't get to celebrate birthdays with their own grandchildren here on earth. Heaven is a dearer place since you got there.....and earth a little more sad. You're in my thoughts today as I think about your Mommy, Daddy and your little brother Kai.

Know that you are remembered and loved even though we had to say goodbye too soon. See you on the other side.

Raining Leaves

After a beautiful fall with lots of warm, sunny days, this past week the storms came....rain, wind, and then more rain. As I looked out the window on Friday I realized that it was raining leaves in our backyard. We have three big maple trees and the leaves were swirling through the air and then forming piles in unexpected places....I quickly grabbed Dave's camera and captured some of the sights....the planters are empty now and ready to be taken in for the winter.

The red leaves were so brilliant against the green of the violets and evergreens.

 

In some places the ground was totally covered with a carpet of the red leaves from our Japanese Maple tree.

  

These two leaves seemed to stuck against the trunk of the tree and just as I was taking the picture, the sun peaked out from behind some clouds and was captured on the leaves.

 

Summer is definitely over and this weekend all of the deck furniture and even this water fountain were brought into the garage to dry off before being tucked away in their winter homes in the storage room. But along the way, I enjoyed capturing the memory of the day it was raining leaves.

The cutest Halloween visitors ever!

On Saturday night we had the cutest Halloween visitors ever!! A little bear and a University of Michigan Basketball Player were there to collect some candy!

Unlike tonight(it's windy and raining outside....brrrrrr) it was a beautiful clear evening.

Jaxon wasn't too sure what it was he was supposed to be doing.

Aidan on the other hand knew exactly what it was all about. Even after I had given them several chocolate bars, he kept looking at the box, hoping I might give him more. I do love being a Grandma!

Celebrating Mr. Kai

One of the fun things that we were able to do while Heather and Matt were down was celebrate Mr Kai with a shower for friends and familyI(thanks for organizing it while I was in Turkey Megs!)

It was great to have my sister and her two daughters-in-law along with her grandson come meet our newest family member.

Heather was literally 'showered' with gifts of all kinds.....clothes, toys and books came in packages of all sizes!(make that mostly bags of all sizes! I am not the only person that loves using gift bags)

Ev supervises a 'meeting' of the second cousins!

It was so much fun having everyone come and celebrate with us! The house is strangely quiet tonight but the walls hold wonderful memories. Thanks for the visit Matt and Heather! Come again real soon.

Kai comes to visit

Since getting home from Turkey our house has been full.......it's been awesome! You see, Kai came to visit, along with his parents of course. It's incredible to see how much he had grown in the two weeks since we had seen him over the Thanksgiving weekend.

He's starting to smile which of course melts the heart of anyone nearby.

Watching football with Buppa is a mandatory activity for all Beck Grandchildren.....

Mornings are his best time it seems. He loves to smile, tries to coo and generally just welcomes the day with a grin.

Bathtimes are no longer traumatic for him. His favorite time is getting his back washed....can you tell? He is just hanging out and loving every minute of it!

Thanks Heather and Matt for coming down and spending the week with us. You just barely left but already the house seems so quiet. Come again soon!

Istanbul not Constantinople

Istanbul was Constantinople
Now it's Istanbul, not Constantinople
Been a long time gone, Constantinople
Now it's Turkish delight on a moonlit night.

Friday morning we were at the Antalya Airport bright and early....and wearing matching outfits!!! Purely by accident but funny just the same!

We were headed for Istanbul(and not Constantinople! Couldn't help but think of that old song.) We only had a few hours there but got to see some amazing sights of the city, starting with a view of the impressive skyline of this city that is in both Europe and Asia.

It is on the Black Sea which somehow touched a heart string of mine since my grandmother was born on the Black Sea and my mother grew up close to it for her early years.

This was our first view of the famous Hagia Sophia, a former Orthodox patriarchal basilica, later a mosque, now a museum...built in 532 and the largest cathedral in the world for almost 1000 years.

The Blue Mosque was built between 1609 and 1616, during the rule of Ahmed I. Like many other mosques, it also comprises a tomb of the founder, a madrasah and a hospice. The Sultan Ahmed Mosque is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Istanbul.

It really was a most amazing structure....and pictures really don't even begin to show how magnificent it was.

There was so much more to see, but I just wanted to give you a glimpse of a most incredible day! We're home now and life continues on...but I will cherish the memories!