Archive: August 2012 | View all recent posts

Home Again in Ohio
They, whoever 'they' is, say "Home is where the heart is." I don't know if I'd go so far as to say Marion, Ohio is where my heart is, but it sure feels comfortable every time I go back. Things just feel a little more relaxed there. Where Dallas can often feel busy, congested, competitive, and somewhat materialistic, Marion has a slower, relaxed, community feel to it. I miss that sometimes. It could just be that I get all nostalgic when I go back about my childhood and growing up there, not to mention I'm usually on vacation when I'm there. It probably is that, but either way, I always look forward to going 'home' for a bit whenever I get a chance.
This time Kylie and Saige came with me, and as an extra bonus, Kylie's parents made teh 6 hour trek from Indiana to spend 5 days with us while we were there. I can't say enough about one of my good HS buddis, Michael, and his wife Amanda who let us all crash in their house for the week while they were on a family vacation with their kiddos in Michigan. What a blessing it was for us to have a free place to stay and just hang out with Kylie's mom and dad. And, like like we planned it or somethin', whenKylie's parents left on a Friday afternoon, the Styers returned home that night from vacation, so we got to spend some R&R time with them, too. Awesome sauce.
Here's a few images from our stay back in O-H... I-O!
First up, playground time with Saige and the in-laws...
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"Grammy" helpin' Saige across the rubber bridge. |

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Saige gettin' ready for her own American Ninja Warrior tryout on the rings... |

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... but not until "Grandfather Garry" (btw, his self-chosen nickname) gave it a run first. |

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Oops. Head-banger. Oh, and if anyone wants to give it a shot, the wooden support beam to Saige's left (camera right) says "Call 387-6477 and ask for Lee". Lemme know how that goes. |

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Kylie's dad... still a big kid at heart. |

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Columbus Zoo day! First up, ridin' the stationary baby rhino, of course. |

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Saige's goin' through a crinkly nose phase right now. You can see it a little bit here. Love that crinkly nose face. |

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Saige's chariot came with a driver. |

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Finally some AC in the aquarium. |

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Fishies are funny. |

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I don't have a lot of images like this of me just hangin' out with Saige, unposed. Love these kind of images so much more than any of the posed images of us. |

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So sweet how she was afraid of the penguins, but Grandfather Garry helped her work it out. |

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Me with my brother and my dad. This is the first time we've all 3 been in the same place and in the same photograph together since my wedding in January of '09. |

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Early morning bed-head reading in the big window bay. |

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Saige loved Michael & Amanda's daughter's boots. She woulda worn 'em all day if we hadn't finally pried them off her feet. |

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This image is such a true vignette of life on this trip; Kylie's mom playing with Saige, her dad looking on adoringly, and Kylie enjoying the parenting break spending time on her iPhone. [grin] |

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Future doctor who plays games and wears someone else's fashionable boots in her spare time. |

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Giving Barbie a check-up to figure out why she's so thin. |

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There's that crinkly-nosed face again. |

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Love. This. |

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Peek-A.... |

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...Boo! |

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Kylie checkin' out some animals at the Wings of an Angel Organization's Angelpalooza event. |

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Children of the Beans impersonation. |

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And finally, Michael & Amanda's friends were sweet and invited us to come hang out at their daughter Ava's birthday party along with the Styers. They even gave Saige a little gift bag even though they'd never met us. |

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Michael and I and a couple guys doin' the guy thing at the party. It's much more of a workout these days with the extra baggage. Oh, and the blue t-shirt and khaki shorts? Yeah... not planned. |

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Saige & I and Michael and his som Cole. |

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Then and Now
It's bittersweet to see these two images. I've barely blinked, and already 16 months has passed. Obviously I know she's grown since we first brought her home from the hosiptal, but it's hard to fathom how much until I see this. |

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Glory Days... Sort Of.
Was back in Marion, OH last week. I grew up there, and it will always be 'home'. While I was there, Kylie, Saige and I were invited by proxy to a birthday party for a sweet little three year old girl who's the daughter of some friends of the friends we were staying with. Got to bust out a football and play catch with a couple of the guys for a bit. My high school quarterbacking days felt like they were 20 years ago. Oh, right... they were 20 years ago. In any case, I miss outings like this, and it was fun to visit with our formerly athletic selves... only now it feels more like we're in slow motion. Good times. |

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