Fall is Upon Us!

Well, the leaves are changing, the weather is getting cooler and the Gallegos family is outside with spoons, knives, the bed of a truck and pumpkins. What can I say, we are building memories for a lifetime! So, as you can guess, we carved pumpkins this afternoon. Now, I remember carving pumpkins as a kid. There were no fancy carving knives or stencils. We simply made triangle eyes, a triangle nose and a grimace smile that only a mother could love. However, the times have changed and our kids aren't carving the same pumpkins their parents did. This is the stencil Isaac chose for his pumpkin. Yes it is a dragon and he is making a dragon face. And the orange thing sticking out of the pumpkin is the fancy carving knife that I was talking about earlier!
And well, Jordan didn't want a normal face on her pumpkin either. She chose this witch stencil.
So, do you think they carved them! Of course not, but Patrick and I were up for the challenge and I have to say that they didn't turn out half bad. The kids like them so I guess that is all that counts. So, if you live in the area and want to see some cool pumpkin carvings feel free to drive by. And if you live far away, we are always up for company so you are welcome also.

So, here is a picture of the kids and Patrick with the pumpkins all carved. And "YES" I think Isaac is playing with scissors in this picture.

Finally, after all the excitement the boys were worn out and this is where I found them after cleaning up outside. What can I say, they needed a nap. So here's to Fall, pumpkin carving, and naps on the couch on a Saturday afternoon with dad.

Love Ya and God Bless, Tara G.

Hiking with the Fam

About a month ago we went hiking at a place called "The Ledges." We knew about this place but just never had made it out there. So, one nice brisk evening we decided to pack up the kids and head out there. It is actually only about 5 minutes from our house and after we got there, Patrick and I couldn't believe that we hadn't gone before. There were some really nice trails that were even pretty good for the kids. Overall, we had a really nice evening. So, here are a few pictures we caught!At this point we were at a look-out spot and as you can see it was a really nice sunset. And from this view we are eye level with the trees.

Patrick and the kids catching a nice view.

I even got them to take a group shot!

And this shot was taken during the hike. It looks like it was dark but we were actually just in the trees. Trees are something that we really love about Ohio. And obviously we weren't very prepared because Patrick and Isaac were both wearing sandals.
Love Ya and God Bless, Tara G.

We Ran The Bird!

Well, this morning we "Ran the Bird." We ran the Akron Marathon/Half Marathon. The mascot for the run is the Roadrunner, therefore the saying "Run the Bird." And if you want to get technical, I personally only ran half of "The Bird." LOL! This was Patrick's first marathon and he did an awesome job. There are a lot of hills and that is what makes this marathon a more challenging one. His overall time was 3 hours and 40 minutes. So we would like to share a few pictures we caught throughout the day.

The following picture was taken after we got home.Here is one of Patrick, after much hydration, food and stretching! (The color was starting to come back to his face!)
And we managed to find these really cool shirts for the kids. The front reads "If you think the Roadrunner is Fast......"
And the back read "You should see MY DAD!" They wore them to the race and they looked so cute.

And a picture of Patrick, Jordan and Isaac after we got home.Unfortunately, I forgot the camera so the next few pictures are courtesy of Patrick's dad, Gene. Thanks Gene for being on the ball.

Patrick greeting the kids about 10 minutes after he finished.

With hugs and kisses.

I did run the the half marathon and I have to say that is was pretty hard. The hills really make a difference. Gene caught this picture of me when we were waiting for Patrick to finish.

And here is a picture of Gene with Jordan and Isaac. (With their roadrunner fans. Isaac's was moving too fast to be caught by the camera!)

Also for fun and amusement, like the run itself wasn't enough, there was a huge blow-up roadrunner. And we couldn't help but take our picture in front of it. So in the following picture you can really only see the legs of "The Bird" but that is okay.

Well, here is to another road race down. Congrats to Patrick for a great first marathon. We'll see if he EVER does another! LOL Also, a HUGE thank you to the Allen Family and Vasquez Family for coming down and supporting and watching us. You truly are great friends.

Love Ya and God Bless, Tara G.

Isaac's first day of School!?!?!? (And second!)

Isaac has been in school for 2 weeks now and I have been meaning to post pictures of his first day. When we woke up we got ready and I was ready to take pictures. The only problem was that the battery in the camera was dead. So, I decided that we would just take pictures AFTER school. That sounds like a good idea, right! Well, after we got home he put on a new pirate costume and wouldn't stand still for anything! So, after running around for a little bit his God Mother asked if she could take him out for lunch and have some fun for the afternoon. Isaac was beside himself and was running out the door before I could catch a good "First" day of school picture. So the next 2 pictures are of him running around and playing in his pirate costume. Sydney also took to the pirate activities and in this picture Isaac is trying to put her pirate hat on.
Other than pirate pictures, none were taken on his official FIRST day of school.
So, on his second day of school I was ready with the camera (full battery and all.)

(He eventually put on shoes and THEN we were off to school!)

And here is a picture of him in the car waiting for drop-off. He is sticking his out of the sun-roof. He was very excited.

Ya, I know, probably not the safest picture ever taken but I do want to say that we were not driving at the time in which this picture was taken! (That is a special note for any CPS workers who may follow our family blog!) HA HA HA HA HA HA

So here is to a great year of preschool for Isaac. Good luck "Big Guy" and have a blast!

Love Ya and God Bless, Mom and Dad

This is how we Roll!!!

What are we doing now that Jordan is in school all day? Well we are trying to stay busy that is for sure. Isaac and Sydney are definitely getting some nice quality time together that is for sure. I caught this video of them playing together yesterday afternoon.

As much as we miss Jordan during the day we are still having fun and enjoying the quality time together. As you can see, Sydney is not only getting quality time with her brother but also a good workout in some days. We hope everyone is getting back into the school routine.

Love Ya and God Bless, Tara G.

1st day of School

Well, yesterday was Jordan's first day of 1st grade. She was very excited needless to say. I got up an hour before her bus was scheduled to arrive and sure enough if she wasn't already dressed, hair fixed, and shoes on waiting at the front door for the bus. (An HOUR early!) However, she still needed breakfast and her lunch made but other than that she was ready. So after a few minutes of getting all of the extra stuff done she was ready for the day to begin. So, with 45 minutes to spare we headed outside to wait for the bus.

Here is a picture I caught of her. It was a beautiful morning and a great way to spend the extra time together. I thought this was a really cute picture of Jordan and Isaac. They were holding hands at the end of the driveway just waiting.
And FINALLY, the bus made it and she was in a hurry to get on. She didn't even want to turn around at the bus or anything for a picture. What can I say, she was a "Girl on a Mission."

So, this left Isaac Sydney and myself to play for the rest of the day. We had a pretty good time. So at the end of the afternoon we headed to the front yard to wait for her arrival back home. We were going to be her cheering section when she got off the bus. Too bad for us that her bus was a HOUR late! This always happens apparently. So I caught this picture of Isaac and Sydney playing while we were waiting.

And When she got home we were there with welcome arms (and some freshly made Rice-Krispie Treats!). She was excited, hungry, tired and hot. What can I say, it was an extra long day for her. So here is a picture I caught of her getting off the bus. Her friend Carter gets off at our house also. He lives across the street so that is fun for her also.

So, here's to 1st day's of school. How exciting it is for everyone. Isaac starts in a couple of weeks and he can't wait. We hope everyone else's 1st day of school went well also.

Love Ya and God Bless, Tara G.

One last Outing

On Monday Patrick took off work and we wanted to make it a family day. So we headed towards Cleveland to "Memphis Kiddie Park." This is a park created JUST for little kids. If you are over 50 inches there are only 3 rides you can ride. There are not a lot big kids and everything is close together. Also, there are rides that even Sydney can ride. And let me tell you, she enjoyed every one of them. Now, don't get me wrong, this is no big fancy amusement park but it is perfect for little ones (especially ours.)

This is the welcoming sign as you walk into the park. Yes, a very fancy entrance. It is kind of like a gate that is open ready for cattle to run through. (This is our type of entrance. The kids can just run right in and jump on a ride as quickly as they can. Meanwhile, Patrick and I are trying to get tickets purchased in order for them to legally ride the ride!) First ride of the day! "The Rocket"

"The roller coaster" This is one of the 3 rides that adults can ride also.

"The Train" It really just goes in a big circle but another one that parents get to ride. (I should have rode the roller coaster with them!)

"Horse Drawn Carriage"

Isaac on "The Airplane."

Jordan and Sydney on "The Boats."

I thought this was a cute one. Sydney is standing ON the safety gate waiting for the other two to finish their ride.

Patrick and Sydney on "The Carousel." This was by far her favorite ride. She would cry every time we took her off.

So now it is back to the school schedule and routine. This was a good chance for us to spend some time together on the last weekend of summer. I hope everyone had a great summer. Love Ya and God Bless, Tara G.