Memorial Day 2009

On Monday, we celebrated Memorial Day by relaxing and taking it easy around home. Ryan worked until about nap time (he had a lot of fertilizing to do at the college that is nearly impossible to get done during the week) so the kids and I were on our own for yet another holiday. I planned on taking them to a parade, I just wasn't sure which one until Monday morning when we headed to downtown Holland to watch our local parade. The kids brought the things that great-grandma had given them earlier in the week - an American flag for Kailyn and a pinwheel done in red, white and blue for Will. It was a pretty windy, but gorgeous morning so we put on coats and had a great time!

After the parade we headed to Target to do a little shopping. Some things we needed and others, well not so much. One of these items were little bubble wands with a fan so you just press a button and here comes tons of little bubbles. The kids had used one up at the cottage with my mom, but I don't think Will ever got a turn to try, but boy does he love it!!! He was pretty obsessed with "bubbles" yesterday and it kept them busy most of the afternoon!
While Ryan was making dinner I set up the kids with some toys out on the deck so they didn't need to come in, but we could still know right where they were. We peeked out and there they were working on a potato head together, Will right on the table so that he could reach all the pieces:)All in all, it was a good day. We ended it by taking the kids to play on the new playground at Dunton Park and then to Captain Sundae for some ice cream!!!!

Riding with Uncle Aaron

Last night while I manned my garage sale, Ryan took the kids out to the fields to take a ride in Uncle Aaron's big tractor! This is an annual thing that we do with the kids and since I wasn't there to take pictures, I only have a few to post:) Afterwards the kids helped him stake and prune some of the trees that they planted last week!

Family Days!

This past weekend, my parents took the family to a cottage on Windfield Lake near Carson City. They had purchased a weekend from a couple at church for a fundraiser. We had a great time relaxing, playing games and of course EATING. Our kids don't have their own fishing poles, so Ryan used my dad's pole and took turns letting the kids reel it in! They both thought it was fun and now play that they are fishing with sticks at home:)

A precious moment!
Me and my siblings goofing off! My sister wanted one of the kids to sit by her and none of them wanted to at the moment so I decided to fill the need - then Josh decided to get in on the fun too!

Blowing bubbles on the deck! It was a little cool Saturday morning and incredibly windy, but God blessed us with sunshine in the afternoon and a beautiful Sunday morning!Will is obsessed with tractors and will just sit playing on one for a long time. I was surprised it took him until Saturday morning to find it!
Even though it was cool and windy we made the most of the weekend and took the kids for a short boat ride Saturday morning. Daddy became a pro at paddling with two different length ores!The paddle boat was up next and the kids loved it! Kailyn even wanted to help pedal:) We even took it to a little park across the lake to play on Saturday night before we got them cleaned up!
Even though there were yummy cinnamon rolls to be had on Sunday morning, my "cereal monsters" wanted a bowl of Honey Nut Cheerios! Two of a kind:)On Sunday morning my parents took each of the grandkids out for a paddle boat ride. The water was super still and the sun was shining for a beautiful morning!Cousin time! The girls had a great time "fishing" with Brook's Barbie fishing pole!

Trees!

These are just a few pics of the first planting of 280 trees! The kids and I were able to go and help for a little while and they loved helping:)Will makes a bee-line for any and every tractor that he sees! This one was no different!

I guess Aaron was on the phone a lot this particular evening. He drove the truck to load the trees at the holding warehouse and then they dipped them in "goo" (which is what Kailyn coined it) and then they planted them!
The kids enjoyed helping Ryan in the dirt!

And only 600 more to plant on Saturday........

Dora Adventure!

Today we were able to attend Kaitlyn's 3rd birthday party! It was a Dora and Diego themed adventure and as always Lindsey blew it out of the water! Almost every toy, book and games were centered around Dora or Diego. We had a great time seeing some old friends and the kids especially loved the Dora outdoor adventure that Lindsey put together!Kaitlyn and her Diego and Dora cake!

My little ones using the blowers to celebrate!
Lindsey put together a little show to get the kids started on their adventure. They needed to help Diego find the keys to the Animal Rescue Center - she even had all the music and everything:) Before heading outside each kid got a backpack with various items they would need on their adventure.My little explorer ready to start the adventure!After they jumped on the rocks over Snake River - the kids needed to look in their backpacks to find something that would wake up the sleeping monkey that was in their path! Inside the packs they found whistles, so that's what Sydney and Kailyn are doing in this picture.My little star catchers, catching stars just like Dora and Boots!In the mucky muck the kids found keys that they needed to fish out with a fishing pole. Hopefully they could find the one that opened the rescue center for Diego! Of course the birthday girl had the privilege of having that one. Once the key was fit perfectly in the lock, the garage door opened and the kids got to do a pinata of Dora! We took home a lot of candy!

Just like on the show, the kids needed to look out for Swiper the fox, who's always trying to swipe our stuff! Jeff's brother posed as Swiper and Kailyn wanted to have her picture taken with him:) Thanks Lindsey, Jeff and Kaitlyn for an awesome morning and Happy 3rd Birthday Kaitlyn!!!!

Silly Monkey!

Will has been really into putting one of his blankets on his head lately. He usually puts it over so that he can't see and he looks like a little yellow ghost. This time he just set it on his head and walked into the kitchen. I thought it was too silly, so I grabbed the camera. He even stood still and smiled for me:)

Spoiled Mommy

For Mother's day, we just chilled out as a family! We had a few plans, but mainly we planned to take it easy and take our time as a family getting ready in the morning and going out for an early lunch! The kids (and Ryan) surprised me with a gift - an adirondack type chair that reclines and some peachie O's (my favorite)! I felt so totally spoiled and loved- thanks guys! I love you all so much:)

Planting Party

Saturday night we had a planting party in honor of Chad and Libby's wedding! We planted 200 little pots and some bigger ones with impatients for center pieces, the altar and various other places! The weather was a little cooler, but that couldn't stop the fun! Both Chad and Libby's parents came, along with Chad's sister, brother-in-law and their son, Mason (who will be walking down the aisle with Kailyn at the wedding). In about an hour, we had everything planted and we switched gears to food! Chad and Libby bought some pizzas and breadsticks and we all ate to our hearts content! Thanks again Chad and Libby:) We had a great night of fellowship and getting to know their families better - it's clear to see why they are both such amazing individuals! Anyway, the kids also had a great time playing (although Will felt a little jealous and left out once Mason and Kailyn had some time to warm up to each other!). We ended the night with brownies and ice cream and the excitement of the upcoming wedding!!! The bride and groom excited to have this big job finished with all the eager helpers!

The kids playing outside while we planted. Kailyn really hit it off with Mason!
Look at all those flowers! They are going to look great as center pieces at the reception!

Uncle Chad and Aunt Libby taking their jobs seriously. The kids just adore them! Thanks Mason for letting us adopt them, even though they belonged to you first:)

The last dance

Thursday night we went to see our last dutch dance of the tulip time season! We figured the night was beautiful and we had nothing else planned. We watched Aimee and Miss Erin from church! Ryan took the kids to the fountain and we had a wonderful family time with my parents afterwards:)

Kailyn with Miss Erin from church who works in the 2's and 3's room!

Volksparade 2009

I guess the third year is a charm! I was finally able to go the the Wednesday parade for Tulip Time, it wasn't rainy or too cold this year. The weather was perfect - I actually almost cried when I checked the weather that morning because all threat of rain was gone and it was going to be a beautiful day! Thank you Lord!!! We had Ryan take the car to work (in case it rained, I had a way home) and to layout blankets along the parade route on his way to work. However, I was forgetting that I had a T.R.I.P. order to pick up and I needed it to pay a bill that was due! So, I left a half-hour earlier than I was going to so that we could walk up to Rose Park and pick it up. By the time I got there I needed to shed my coat and re-adjust the backpack that was carrying everything from sunscreen and toys, to diapers and our picnic lunch. We wanted to get downtown by 10 so that we could watch my cousin, Leslie, dutch dance. We even stopped to make a car payment on the way and mailed that payment I was talking about. By the time we got to the pedestrian bridge along River Ave, I had Kailyn walk it so that I could take a break from carrying the backpack. We made it in time to watch Leslie and do a little shopping and even return a book to the library! We found our blankets and had our picnic lunch once they closed off the streets! The location that Ryan chose was awesome and there were even bathrooms near by for the little ones! Thanks babe!

After lunch, while we waited for everyone that was going to join us- the kids had a wonderful time watching the fountain and trying to get wet!
Kailyn and her friend, Kennedy, had a great time watching the dutch dancers and dancing in the streets together!Everybody ready for the parade to begin!!

Kailyn was so excited about the parade and had a wonderful time! As you can tell she is very happy! After the parade, the kids and I walked home and were met by my mom and sister and her kids. They stayed for dinner and then Kailyn and I went with them to watch Aimee dutch dance! What a way to end the awesome day!

How does your garden grow?

This week we took the kids to TeBos Gardens to pick up some flowers. We thought the kids would really get into it and we were partly right. They loved walking down the aisles and looking at all the colors, but the real hit was Rosco, the dog!!!