MERRY CHIRSTMAS!!!

Christmas Morning 2011...

Enjoying the day!!!

Paul's party at school- note the beautiful centerpieces that each of the children made!












Yummy treats!













A chance to visit with Santa...













...and enjoy a special book that he brought just for Paul!

Christmas tree hunting at Wilbert's Tree Farm...

















getting out the ornaments...

and decorating the tree!

Pancake Breakfast with Santa at St. Ambrose Church...the pancakes were yummy and meeting Santa was even better!!!

We would be remiss if we didn't capture a glimpse of a typical morning in the Brooker household with Paul (at 3 1/2)...

While most children would be asleep in their beds...

Not our son...















A closer look will reveal...

Paul's favorite spot to sleep...not sure if this would be considered a preschooler's "man-cave?"

This says it all...hope everyone had a great Turkey Day!

Inspired by preparations for his Thanksgiving luncheon at school, Paul insisted that we create some headgear for our own Thanksgiving dinner.

Yum...nothing better than a beater covered in homemade whipped cream (except for maybe the bag of popcorn eaten before or the piece of pumpkin pie shared with Mom afterward)...Thanksgiving has become a new favorite holiday in the Brooker house!

Happy Halloween, 2011!

Kudos again to cousin Owen for sharing the coolest shirts...

What's for dinner?
Pillsbury Hot Dog Mummies
Orange Jello
Macaroni and Cheese

Not necessarily the healthiest...but rather Halloween-ish, wouldn't you say?

Ready to TRICK-OR-TREAT!!!

Paul trick-or-treats with his friends Kaitlyn, Aiden, Brooke, and Ella.

Paul's Halloween Party at School:

Paul enjoys festive party treats with his friends...

Paul chats with his buddies Spiderman (Nicholas) and Superman (Levi) to see if they would accept a Pterodactyl on their crime-fighting team...

Paul began his baseball class on Saturday, October 22 at Frozen Ropes. He is enjoying the 1:1 instruction from Coach Todd, as he is the only kiddo in the class this session. He has been working hard on his throwing, catching and hitting...click PLAY to catch a glimpse...

Celebrating Dad and Uncle Bob's birthday on October 10~ Happy 34th to two of Paul's favorite guys!

Goodbye Summer...Hello Fall!
School is now back in full swing and we find ourselves settling back into our "long-lost" routines. Paul has moved up to the "3's" Class at school, and has enjoyed spending time with old and new friends, (apparently he has invited his whole class to our house for dinner and to stay overnight???), as well as exploring the weekly themes that his teachers so creatively design. He has developed quite a patriotic spirit, and can often be heard belting out "God Bless America" or "The Star Spangled Banner" in the front lawn or in his room (when he is supposed to be going to sleep). One of his "indoor" pasttimes is reading books (and even catalogs); here he enjoys a Curious George book with Dad.

"Rainy Boots:" Paul has been anxiously anticipating the rainfall that would finally create a puddle big enough to warrant the use of his new galoshes. This was the perfect opportunity...

"Boyz in the Hood"- PJ takes Alex, Paul, and Aiden for a cruise around the neighborhood in the Mustang.

Our annual visit to The Apple Farm in Victor...the "3 Pauls" wait for the wagon to take us up into the orchard...

Mmmmm...Macintosh...applesauce, apple crisp, turnovers, cider, cinnamon donuts...the list goes on and on...

Paul enjoys his visit with Henry Fehnel...Henry is going to be 1 in just a few weeks. Paul was excited to share his toys with him and he is looking forward to teaching him how to play baseball!

More Summer Fun, 2011

Since we returned from our trip to Cape Cod, Paul has had a number of "Summer Specials..."

The first was a visit from his cousin Owen...

Jumping in to Canandaigua Lake...

Lunch with Aunt Lynne and Uncle Roger, who were visiting from California...

Miniature golfing at Brady's "fore-th" birthday party...

Celebrating Grandma's birthday- ever since his own birthday, Paul has liked to help others blow out their candles...

Enjoying Seneca Park Zoo with neighborhood friends...

Paul's favorite animal (right now) is a monkey, so of course he loved the primate house. He also had fun in the educational center acting as a veterinarian for a stuffed lion cub. Afterward, he stated that someday he'd like to be an animal doctor. Hopefully he can fit this in with his other aspirations of becoming a professional baseball player and a garbage man...

Summer Vacation: Boston and Cape Cod
Paul "hams it up" with Auntie Leah when we went to visit her in Boston. Paul especially enjoyed playing with Riley and Murphy, Auntie Leah's cats!

Paul pauses from his baseball practice to pose in front of the hydrangeas at our vacation rental in Eaton Village, Ocean Edge Resort in Cape Cod. We had a wonderful week on the Cape- especially when Grandma and Grandpa Palmer came to visit for a few days!

Here are some glimpses of some of the fun we had...

We enjoyed not only 1, but 2 Brewster Whitecaps games at Stonybrook School. The Cape League has an impressive list of "graduates" who are now major leaguers.

Digging holes in the sand at Breakwater Beach...

A day in Woods Hole...













Paul enjoyed the seal show at the Woods Hole Aquarium...















and inspected a tugboat on the pier...

One of the highlights of our trip was meeting Auntie Cari and Tim for dinner in Hyannis...

Paul enjoys building a sand castle with his new friend, Bridget, at Flax Pond in Nickerson State Park. Recommended to us by Bridget's parents, this is a small freshwater pond with a roped-off, sandy-bottomed swim area. The water temperature was in the mid to upper 70's, so it made for a great morning of waterplay!

Paul says goodbye to his new friend...maybe we'll see you again next year!

Fishing on the Fourth of July...

...can make a boy very tired!