Happy 3rd Birthday Ethan Buddy!

My little boy, who does not like being called little, is now 3 years old. I can not believe it. It seems like just yesterday I was holding my newborn bundle of heaven on earth. Ethan's precious little nose was squashed and one ear was bent in. He had the most perfectly round head and perfectly groomed hair. He is sweeter today than the day he was born. He has a beautiful, kind heart. He is sensitive and compassionate, while still being strong and brave. He is imaginative and makes up crazy stories. He is hilarious and cracks everyone up! At 3, he is interested in skateboarding, swimming, super heroes, animals, and anything outdoors.

Ethan got to open his presents from Gigi a couple of days early. We use Skype to talk to Gigi once a week and always when opening her gifts. She sent Ethan an adorable Mickey Mouse robe, a hilarious little green men alien costume, lots of t-shirts, pens, crayons, etc. Gigi always includes something (or lots of things) for Olivia on Ethan's birthday, and vice versa. The kids love that costume and they both look so cute in it!




















The day before Ethan's birthday we went to our friends' house to go swimming. We spent a lot of time in the pool and Ethan is convinced he can swim all by himself and jump in without a life jacket! Boy does he stress me out. Olivia did a great job practicing some swimming techniques that Melanie was teaching her. We always have a great time playing with Wesley and Hunter!



















On the morning of Ethan's birthday, Daddy went and got donuts (a tradition) and then Buddy got to open his presents from us and Olivia. Daddy and Mommy gave Ethan a Handy Manny tool belt with tools, a Mickey t-shirt, and a puppy from Build A Bear. Olivia gave Ethan a Batman action figure. We spent the day playing and stayed close to home. Melissa, Ellie and Natalie came over for lunch. When Daddy got home from work we went to dinner at Ethan's favorite restaurant - McDonald's. Then Nana, Papa & Grammy, and Granpa & Grandma came over for cake and ice cream. We were surprised with Ethan's cake choice. He kept changing his mind, one day it was Spider Man, the next Diego, another it was Super Man. His last and final choice was Nemo. The cake an ice cream was tasty, but Buddy wanted to open presents. Nana gave Ethan a Lego zoo set, Papa & Grammy gave him a Step 2 workshop tool bench, and Grandpa & Grandma Mary gave him a fishing pole. Christina and Marianne sent a gift of games (checkers, tic tac toe, bingo). Ethan also loved getting a gift card to Meijer from Sasha. He used the gift card and the birthday money from Uncle Schaz and Aunt Andrea to buy a large Batman figure that has a weapon on his arm that spins around and glows with the bat sign and a 3 pack of other action figures (Flash, Weatherman, and Mirror Master). It was a great birthday celebration - simple and filled with people who love him!

















The day after Ethan's birthday we went to the Blouw home for a visit. Sasha was there and gave the kids a lesson (always so much fun) in painting. We had lunch on the lawn and the kids had a wonderful time playing. Ethan loves to use Sam's scooter! And we ended the afternoon with face painting.

Berlin Fair

Kids' Day at the Berlin Fair was so much fun with friends Ellie and Natalie! Ethan loved feeding the goats, Olivia not so much. We saw a kangaroo, lemurs, macaws, alpacas, and camels right when we walked in! The girls, Ellie and Olivia, tried desperately to get the bunnies to hop over our way, but had no luck. Then we were off to ride the carousel (three times - once with friend Zoe and her brother McCoy), the "Berry Go Round" (very similar to a tea cup ride), and the truck ride. We walked through the barns that were full of pigs, cows, and sheep. The kids played a fishing game and I was so proud of Ethan for holding the pole like he was really fishing, instead of how he needed to hold it to "catch" a fish to win the game. Luckily everyone "won" and Olivia chose Princess jewelry and Ethan chose a sword. Sometimes my children are so predictable. Before leaving we enjoyed some yummy french fries and cotton candy!














No, ethan couldn't go on the SpiderMan thing but he sure did want to.















Natalie, Zoe, Ellie and Olivia.

Camping at Hoffmaster

We were all so excited about the kids' first camping trip! We headed to Hoffmaster with the Nave pop-up camper, which had been set up at the end of our driveway for over a week. Olivia and Daddy rode in the truck pulling the camper and Ethan and I drove the Jeep. After getting the camper set up and everything unloaded we walked the trail to the sand dunes and beach. Unfortunately, as so often is the case, Ethan fell while running "super fast" down the trail. He gets going and is usually either watching his super fast feet or his shadow and usually ends up falling. When this happens and his knees get scraped up he never wants anything to touch them so he hikes up his shorts or, sometimes, just takes them off. So this is how he walked the entire way to the beach - when Daddy wasn't carrying him! Poor kid.



















Once we arrived at the sand dunes, Scott and the kids had a great time running up and down them! There was a fantastic view of the lake from the top of the dunes. The kids were not at all phased by the lake water temperature and were quite content to dip in a bit with their clothes on.














Back at camp we cooked hot dogs over the fire for dinner (Daddy in his glory), played at the playground for a while, and at some point the kids attempted to climb trees. Then it was time for jammies and smores.


















The next day we went to the beach where Olivia was such a little environmentalist pulling any piece of driftwood out of the water and Ethan took complete joy in chucking every piece back in! We also took a wonderfully long nap, went to the visitor's center (which Ethan kept calling "the stinky place" even though it didn't stink at all), had dinner at Fricano's on Muskegon Lake, did some exploring around the campsite, ate smores again of course, and hit the hay!



















The kids slept so well in the camper and loved the whole experience. We really had a great time and we are all looking forward to going camping again next year! In fact, Scott has many more camping trips planned...

Grose Park with Friends

We also went to Grose Park on one of the cooler days this month. We went with Melanie, who is the Nanny for Wesley and Hunter, and Melissa and Ellie and Natalie. We had a little celebration for Hunter who turned 3 on July 4!
Olivia, Hunter and Ethan.















Wesley, Olivia and Ellie.

A Day at Sasha's Beach

Usually we spend quite a bit of time at Sasha's beach in the summer. This summer has been cooler than normal. The kids have been missing it and so we finally made our way there last week. We met Elly and the boys there. Olivia loves to run up and down the beach just along the edge of the water. She loves to do this on any beach. Watching her do this is one of those things that will forever be in my mind -an image of her as her most true self. She always looks so full of joy and life when she is running along the beach. Ethan just loves to squish his fingers in the wet sand. He also loves to roll in the sand. When we are at Sasha's beach the kids all love to play Simba. They go into the tall grass and growl, acting out different lion tales. Hopefully we can get there again this summer. Oh, and I must note that Ethan has changed his mind about what he wants to be when he grows up - it used to be Santa. Now he wants to be a SURF BOARD when he grows up. That kids cracks me up!