Christmas with the Rinke's

We spent a few days with Great Grandma and Great Grandpa to celebrate Christmas.

Mom helped me open presents.
And Grandpa helped me! Thanks, a new tractor!

Momma was so excited that she got a "Snuggie" in the "As seen on TV" gift exchange.

Waiting patiently to open more presents while playing tractor.

"THOMAS!!"

Wii, wii, wii, all the way home!

We got such a kick out of watching Momma, Daddy, Uncle Don, Aunt Brenda, Ashley, and Grandma playing the Wii.

Aunt Brenda and Grandma box.
Someone should tell Dad that he is playing boxing, not Dance, Dance Revolution!

Still boxing!

Now Dad is working on his golf swing.

Here is Ashley bowling.

And Grandma.

Look at the concentration. Strike here we come!

Nice form Don.

Christmas with the Rio's

Christmas Eve 2008

And no, we're not twins.Before bed, we worked on our pool skills. We taught Grandma everything we know.

Why does Mom always insist on a Christmas picture? Doesn't she know that we have toys to play with and presents to unwrap?!

Look what we got! A hand-carved rocking horse!

"Don't bother me right now, I am playing with my choo choo!"
I could ride this pony all day!

The Rio Cuzins with Papa

I like to make the most of my unwrapping. Slow and steady wins the race.

Yeah, a ball ball.
Christmas Overload. Time for a nice long winter's nap.

Thanks for Family

A reflection on the things that we are thankful for:

Eachother
Grandpa's cool cars

My new pedal tractor

Dad & Mom (and their beautiful duet)

Grandpa and his shop

(And of course all of our family, but these were our newest pictures)

Good Times

Here is our playdate with Megan and Michael, the twins from next door.

Enjoying a snack

There's nothing like getting cozy in Mom's lap with a good book

I have finally found a good use for my little brother.

Hey, is that bubbles?

Happy Halloween (a few days late)

Mom and Dad were gone over Halloween, so we were at Aunt Lisa and Uncle Aron's house for Halloween.

Aunt Tracy came to visit and see us all dressed up.

So, where is all this candy they tell me about?

Cops and robbers (Mom had a mask that I was supposed to wear but I didn't like it. They were lucky that I wore the hat.)

Meanwhile, here is what Mom and Dad were up to in Florida:

Playing in the ocean.

Hanging out at the beach.

Grilling shark and steak by the pool.

Going Alligator hunting in the Everglades. (Supposedly, Mom also held an alligator, but we have yet to see the pic to prove it.)

Riding an airboat.

Chiling on A1A-Beach Front Avenue!!

Resting on multi-million dollar yachts. (Traci & Connie)
Working at the boat show.

So Sad

We had to leave a post about a tragic incident that occurred. You may have remembered our post about this awesome playground in Island Park. It was built by the community of Winfield and lots of hard work went into the fundraising and building of this playground. It had many unique features, including handicap swings, sand tables, a smaller sized playground and much more.

Unfortunately, a week ago, due to some careless teenagers this is what happened to this beloved playground.
Since it was made out of petroleum products they had to just let it burn and now nothing remains. We are glad that we got to experience this awesome castle before it was destroyed, but now we also know what we are missing since it engulfed in flames.
They say they plan to rebuild it. Let's hope that it is bigger and better!

Punkin' Patch

Yesterday we took a little trip to the pumpkin patch with our MOPS group. It appears to be the same pumpkin patch where the "Come and See" bloggers went. Although our pictures aren't nearly as impressive as their video, we wanted to share how much fun we had.

Here we pose, just like we did last year.

Dominic ready for a train ride.
Riding the MOPS train. We are the boys in blue: Dominic in car 4 and Jude in car 7.

What a relaxing train ride.

What's wrong with this pumpkin?

Preschoolers love to climb.

Here is Jude learning to milk a cow.

All the moppettes in the corn barrel.

Giddy-up horsey!

Ride 'em cowboy Jude!

Hammering golf tees in the pumpkin.

We have the best Mom. She was the only one who let her kids play in the wet sand!

Checking out the chickens.

The donkey liked Jude. He came right up to him.

Jude checking out "Bill the Horse".

And, yes, we did make it to the patch to pick out our mini pumpkin.

We got to pick out our very own pumpkins.

And here we are with our friend Ethan and our precious finds.

Look a scarecrow!

OOOOhhh, a tractor!!!