Milk and Bookies

A friend, Ashley Kelley, hosted a service project here in Winston Salem. It's a national organization called Milk and Bookies. Kids come and choose a book they would like to donate. I was able to help with the service project and had a blast doing it. I really want to try this in NY. You can even do this for a birthday party. If anyone is interested in hosting one or finding out more information, here is the link: www.milkandbookies.org. I stole these pictures from Danielle's blog, oops. This is the real Disneyworld Belle! How cool is that. Belle is my favorite Disney princess. She arranged for local celebrities to come and read stories to the kids.

Grandparents Day

Grandparents day was on the 12th of September. We are almost exactly a month late in posting this; however, we feel it is never too late to thank those who have done so much for us. We love you all!

Grandma and Grandpa Porter

I have so many memories of my Grandpa and Grandpa Porter. I remember sleeping over at their house with cousins and playing hide-n-seek. That was my favorite. I always hid in the same spot, and so did grandpa, but we still had fun. I also remember going camping and fishing with them. Yes, Wyoming was the spot. I love Wyoming and everything that goes with it: the Snake River, the swimming,the fishing, the canoeing, eating the fish and you get the point. In fact, I already wrote about this a few weeks ago. I will always remember my grandma's contagious laugh and the stories as well as the memorized poems that my grandpa told around the campfire.

One of grandpa's poems

I don't

My parents say I must not smoke,

I don't

Nor listen to a naughty joke.

I don't

They make it clear that I must not think about intoxicating drink.

I don't

To dance and flirt is even wrong. I don't

Some chase women, wine, and song. I don't

I kiss no girls, not even one. I don't even know how it is done. You wouldn't think I had much fun.

I don't

Grandma and Grandpa Cottrell

I spent a lot of time with my Grandma and Grandpa Cottrell. So even though they have both been gone for a few years now, I have very poignant memories of my time with them. I remember playing jewelry store with my grandma and listening to records. I also remember all of the delicious food, especially the soups, that she would make. Some of it was for us, but most of it was for the neighbors. That's how my grandma was, always looking for someone she could serve. I love her for it. My grandpa would have us work in the garden with him and pick the fruit from the abundance of fruit trees. My grandpa also took time to help me learn how to draw. I still love to draw and I think my grandpa helped me to realize that talent of love for art. Before my grandpa died he wrote a three page little booklet for his grandkids.

Here are some suggestions from it.

Be kind. Remember that those around us suffer from loneliness, experience failure, struggle to pay bills, worry about health problems and are often weighted with trouble. I ask you--be kind. It is the greatest gift you can give and it costs you nothing.

Pray not for things, but for wisdom and courage.

Learn to listen. Opportunity sometimes knocks very softly.

Love, Elyse

Memory with Grandma Pessetto

When I was about 15 I remember having a family reunion in Wyoming. We rented four wheelers and rode all over the place. Every time we came back to the cabin, Grandma was happy to hear about our adventures and to make sure we had enough food to eat. We also played games around a camp fire and had a lot of fun being together as a family.

Memory with Nana and Poppy

One of the many little-kid memories I have is of sleeping over at Nana and Poppy’s house in a tent! Nate, Devin, and I were the first to use it. After a hard day of playing in the yard and jumping on the neighbor’s trampoline, Poppy set up a red tent that looked large enough to sleep ten. I brought in my sleeping bag and was all ready to crawl in when, to my surprise, Poppy brought in a cot. I had never seen a cot inside a tent and wasn’t quite sure what to do with it. Poppy explained that you sleep on it and I, after some hesitation, repositioned and crawled into my sleeping bag.

The next morning Nana and Poppy made waffles and let us put as much syrup as we wanted on them. I purposefully made a waffle island in a sea of syrup and ate every last drop. It was a great weekend.

Love, Steve

A welcome addition

I may get a bit sentimental here. If you start feeling queasy...well, I warned you. I had to post these because I just received them. This is my brother Royce and my sister-in-law Rachel. They are a great couple and so perfect for each other. They both love sports, doing puzzles, the outdoors, and reading. Don't worry, they also have enough differences for a healthy, well-rounded relationship. She looks like a princess in this picture, and Royce looks like her knight in shining armor. I feel so grateful that Rachel is a part of our family. She and I have some commonalities and she is someone I would've been very good friends with had we roomed together or served together in the mission field. Don't worry Rachel, we will have plenty of opportunities to get to know each other. I'm sorry to inform you, but you are going to be seeing a lot of me around. I looked at this picture for a couple minutes and felt overwhelmed by all of the people that I love. Looking at the people I love in this picture makes me so grateful that family is eternal: no empty seats! Look at the man in the bottom right hand corner. That is my grandpa. Don't you love the face he is pulling?! Click on the picture for a better view. My family

Wake Forest vs. Duke

Wake Forrest won! I must say that is all I know about the game because I didn't any (I almost wrote much, but had to cross that out)of it. I guess that's what happens when you go to a football game with good friends. Why watch the game? Having a good time is 100% about the people you are with. Oh, and it rained most of the game. We were drenched. We made ourselves look like die-hard season ticket holders because we stuck it to almost the end of the game. Great stuff. I can't wait for the next one.

Oh how I love the water. My extended family started going to Wyoming every year long before I can remember. They now go over Labor Day weekend. We would run the Snake River, sometimes take the canoes and kayaks to a nearby lake, and swim at a pool in Astoria or Jackson Hole. My family also enjoyed going to Lake Powell once a year. I think that is where I would like to retire one day. The funny thing is we still went back every year after coming home more red than a ripe tomato. Steve also loves the water. Growing up, he enjoyed going to nearby beaches with his family and life-guarding at Walden pond. He also enjoyed going canoeing and sailing. He actually took me sailing on our honeymoon. I can't wait to go again. We were not able to go to Wyoming with the rest of the clan this year, but made our own fun filled water weekend. On Saturday we went to Bolton Pool and played in their spray ground. We thought this might be fun for Chase. Unfortunately, the water in the spray ground was a bit too cold for any child or grownup to enjoy. We smiled long enough to take the picture and then made a mad dash for the bigger, much more comfortable pool. Isn't this a great picture of Steve and Chase? On Monday we went to the beach with our friends, the Footes. This is Chase in the sand, his favorite part. Don't try to tell Chase that sand doesn't taste good. He didn't stop after one handful. If you can't read our sand art, it says Labor Day '10. Steve's shoulder is a little sore from attempting to surf. He did pretty well for his second or third time. Surfing is hard, just ask anyone who knows how to do it. He's looking forward to giving it another go. We also rented a boogie board, which was fun. I personally liked swimming the best. We enjoyed spending time with the Footes, and with each other, and look forward to another water filled Labor Day weekend.

We didn't see a bear

We went hiking in Pilot Mountain, which is the same Pilot Mountain referred to in the Andy Griffith show. Next time we go we'll have to get a pack for our big man Chase, who has grown out of his little man infant carrier. We are having so much fun seeing the sights unique to North Carolina.

8 months old!

Chase is 8 months old! As far as I can tell he is 28" and weighs 19 lbs. It can be hard to get his exact length when he tries to eat the tape measure.