It's just another day

...du, du, du, du, du...slippin into stockings, steppin into shoes, dippin in the pocket of her raincoat... Love that song. I just had to record something that Olivia said this morning, "Last night I had a dream about spring. There were so many butterflies and flowers I couldn't count them all!" Is that the sign of a happy kid or what? So absolutely endearing. Meanwhile, Ethan broke the Jesus figure off his crucifix. That can't be a good sign. I'm just kidding, he is the sweetest boy in the whole wide world. I also wanted to post some pictures of little cute things that happen in our home like any other day. Dressing up happens often. Ethan is usually in his cowboy coat (the best $5 we ever spent!) but this day he opted for a piece of winter gear...and that's about it.


















Mmmmm, chocolate pudding.














We usually head to the zoo a couple of times a month. On this particular day we went with Melissa and Ellie & Natalie, Sasha (who bought all of the kids baseball caps) and Elly and the boys.














Cute hats - thanks Sasha!



















On one particularly hot day the kids played outside in the kiddie pool.

Red, White, and Blue - Thank You!

Memorial weekend was filled with beautiful weather and lots of fun! On Sunday we went to a cookout at Mike and Mary's. Olivia, Ethan and Parker ended up getting their clothes all wet because we weren't planning on it being so warm and they wound up playing in the play pool. Meanwhile, Jacoba was eating dirt.

















On Monday I took the kids to the parade on Main Street. As we waited we could hear the band coming from afar and Ethan was tapping his stroller tray like it was a drum. I will be somewhat surprised if he doesn't play the drums one day, he really likes them. When the marching band went by both kids put their hands over their ears. We saw the biggest tractor ever, lots of fire trucks, and horses. They thought it was great that they were thrown candy. After it was over (those Coopersville parades only last about 8 minutes) Ethan said, "where's another one parade?" He really liked it and wanted to see more! Here is a picture of them waiting for it to start. Olivia can barely fit into the stroller anymore!

Preschool Finale

Last week my little baby girl, not so little anymore, "graduated" from Preschool. It's hard to believe that her first year of school is over. And even harder to believe that in a few short weeks she'll be 5!! But we'll have to get to that later or I'll just start sobbing. The end of Preschool party was a lot of fun. There were outdoor activities like "painting" the brick walls and bubbles. There were indoor activities like beauty shop, complete with nail polish and lip gloss (both of which Ethan participated in) and yummy fruit salad snack. Both kids had a great time. Mrs. Mills and Mrs. Wurm ("she's not really a worm, that's just her name")were surely sad to see such a smart, sweet, quiet student leave.























Olivia does not like nail polish. Can you tell?

Spring is lingering

While there is something to love about each season, spring is especially magical. Rebirth, growth, blooms, fresh colors and scents engaging all of our senses. In years past it usually felt to me that spring flew by so quickly, but this year spring seems to be lingering a bit longer - and we are loving it!

Mother's Day was bittersweet for me. Of course I am blessed beyond measure with two healthy, kind, loving, smart children, but I miss my mom and having her in heaven and not here is selfishly hard on me. I was greeted in the morning with breakfast in bed and the newspaper. The kids came rushing in with hugs and cards. We invited Nana to come to church with us and after that we went to the mall and ate at Panera Bread. The kids rode the carousel and had a great time looking at the Disney store and Barnes and Noble. My favorite part of the day was when Ethan and I were goofing around and he spontaneously said to me "You're my best friend." I just teared right up. I am not delusional in any way and know that he probably has no idea what that means but I am going to hold on to that moment for as long as I can. Bless his little heart.















I made a morning jobs chart for the kids and they are liking it so much! They love putting on the stickers. It helps me out because I just say "how are your jobs coming along?" instead of asking repeatedly "did you do this, did you do that?" This way they take action and responsibility for getting their tasks done in the morning. Look at how happy they were at the end of week 1!












Recently we celebrated my nephew Jarek's 4th birthday. He is such a mini-Craig! They look so much alike and act so much alike.















I also visited Scott's sister Ashley's baby girl, Violet Sophia. She is such a precious little peanut. So tiny. Can't get over that beautiful dark hair.
















Here are a few more pictures of the kids rolling on the ground laughing (one of my favorite things to listen to), wearing their gorilla masks they made at Storytime, and on a trampoline at a friend's house. Enjoy!

Other Happenings

Some other things we have done lately include going to the zoo with Olivia's friend from Preschool, Ellie and her sister Natalie who is Ethan's age. The four of them get along wonderfully! And Melissa and I have a great time together too. Here are some pictures from the warm day at the zoo...

Scott and Andrea recently celebrated Jacoba's first birthday. Ethan and I went while Scott stayed home with a sick little Olivia.

As for me...I have been really enjoying my Bible study on the book of Romans. I love the friends in that group so much. I also was able to attend a photography workshop. I learned a lot. I absolutely love photography and dream of one day making it a career. But for now, I need to put all of my attention, energy, focus, and heart into the most precious jobs on earth - being a Wife and Mommy. I am looking forward to walking the Fifth Third River Bank Run/Walk 10k this weekend. Someone recently asked me why am I going to walk 6 miles? Well... for my health, to be fit, to be moving, to be doing, to be participating... to be a verb rather than a noun.

Daddy Daughter Dance

On Thursday night Scott and Olivia went to the Daddy Daughter Dance. This was the second year they have gone. I can't believe Olivia was just 3 last year when they went and started this beautiful annual tradition. Olivia was so excited all week long anticipating her date with Daddy. Olivia was so cute getting ready. She had to have on a necklace and an old watch that Great Grandma gave her out of the old toy box at her house(Olivia loves that watch!). I snapped a couple of pictures before they left and Ethan just had to get in them too. When Daddy and Olivia headed out the door, Ethan and Mommy went to McDonald's for ice cream sundaes. We saw lots of other Mommies and sons there. Ethan liked riding in Daddy's truck with Mommy driving. We also stopped in to Family Dollar to check out the summer toys because Ethan just did not want to go home.

I absolutely loved hearing about Olivia and Daddy's date. The dance was in the Middle School cafeteria and there were quite a few couples there. They got their picture taken (can't wait to see it!) and danced a few slow songs ("You Look Wonderful Tonight" and "Love Me Tender" etc.). Then Mrs. Gomez, the DJ, started playing some participation songs (is that what those things are called?) and apparently Olivia did not like that and thought they were crazy. So they headed for the snack table where they found yummy brownies. After that Olivia wanted to go to McDonald's for ice cream sundaes (another part of their tradition) and she was "hungry for french fries."

Scott mentioned how last year Olivia was so carefree in her dancing - spinning, twirling, falling on the floor, first on the dance floor, etc. - but this year she was a little more self conscious. Oh no! Not already!