July 4th Weekend

We had a great July 4th weekend spending it at my grandma's cottage on the lake in Indiana. It was the perfect weekend to spend together as a family before Jim headed off to Boise, ID for a month while the boys and I stayed back in Kalamazoo. We always have a great time there and here are a few of the highlights.

A Weekend Away!

This past weekend Jim had a conference on Mackinac Island and I was able to tag along. Thanks to Jim's parents on Thursday and my mom the rest of the weekend, we were able to leave the kids at home and have a trip, just the two of us! We had a great time and it was very relaxing, just what we needed. The boys had fun at home and kept grandma busy:) The Grand Hotel - where Jim had his conference and presentations.
Our Hotel

A New Addition!

We are excited to announce that we are adding to our family! At the end of December/early January both Ethan and Caleb will be big brothers! Everything is going well so far and Ethan is especially thrilled to be a big brother again. He is constantly kissing and hugging my belly - so precious!:)

When the boys are gone.....the women paint!

This past weekend Jim, Ethan and grandpa Jastifer left to go to the UP camping and fishing. My mom, Jim's mom and myself thought it would be a good idea to finally get my bathroom painted! It looks like an entire new bathroom and I love it! Thanks to both of the mom's for all their help - it looks fantastic! Old bathroom color... Let the painting begin!.

The new bathroom color and decor (still missing a few things)!!

Caleb recently learned how to sing the "A-B-C" song and it is so hard to get it on camera! Here is the best one I have so far:)

Someone is excited to go camping with daddy and grandpa this weekend....

Had to try it all on :)

Preschool End of Year Program

Singing songs
Ethan and his teachers:
Ethan's preschool class had an end of year program for the parents. They sang songs and then they took us on a hike that they take everyday. Ethan did not do much singing, but we kid of figured that was going to be the case:) He absolutely loves preschool!

Party in the Park

On Wednesday our playgroup headed to "Party in the in Park" in downtown Kalamazoo. The kids all received a free book, snack, and drink. Readers took turns, some dressing up as a character in the book they read, reading different famous children's book to different groups of kids. We brought a blanket and had a fun time listening for an hour as some familiar and unfamiliar books were read. The weather was great to top things off - it was a great morning for the kids!

Growing Boys

This week the boys both had their well-child checks. We feel very blessed to have such healthy boys! Here are their stats.. Ethan

Weight: 40 pounds - 80th percentile
Height: 43 inches - 94 percentile. Caleb

Height: 36 inches - 85th percentile
Weight: 29.4 pounds - 66th percentile
Head Circumference: 51 cm - 97th percentile

Birthday Extravaganza

Sunday , May 8th - Caleb turns 2! Since it was Mothers Day as well, we had a small get together to celebrate both occasions. Caleb, as you will see, was not all that impressed about turning two.

Opening presents

He disliked being sung to and kept yelling, "I don't want to!" during the entire song.
Thursday May 12th - Ethan celebrates his 4th birthday at preschool. He had so much fun baking cupcakes and decorating them, but was more excited that his preschool friends sang to him!:)

Baking cupcakes!

Friday May 13th - Ethan turns 4! We spent the day as a family, letting Ethan open our presents to him and picking out where he wanted to eat for dinner. He wanted to eat at "the place where you get your own food like jello" (aka- Old Country Buffet). He had a great day!

Aunt Kelly sent presents!!

Sunday May 15th - Ethan and Caleb's Birthday Party! It was raining, but that did not stop the boys from having a good time - even Caleb this time:) Thanks everyone for making their day so special!!Yes, I made this Mickey Mouse cake. Can you tell?!?! I had fun though, the boys liked it and everyone ate it up!

The birthday boy!

Happy birthday to our wonderful boys! We love you!!

Until next year.....:)

Typical day outside with my boys...

The joy of boys!!:)

Spring 2011

The boys are outside pretty much all the time during the last few days and loving it! I finally feel that spring has sprung and we are taking full advantage of it. The other night, we were getting out all of our spring/summer toys and lawn equipment and Ethan felt the need to jump in the sprinkler right then and there! It was hilarious and yes, he was soaked when he was done, but you couldn't wipe that smile off his face, it was priceless!!Dirk, the bunny we have been watching for the last couple of weeks and pretty much the boys best friend :) Jumping in the sprinkler in 50 degree weather and he could have done it all night!

All done, but loved every second of it! Caleb got a haircut (and yes, he screamed the entire time!)

Ethan loves reading to Caleb. They pull their chairs together and read books - it is so sweet!