Visit from Family!

 After living here for 17 years, we were so happy to finally have Jill and Zerin and their kids come visit us.  The kids were beyond thrilled to see their cousins.  Peter hardly remembered them but warmed up immediately and although in his words, "It's hard to remember all their names!" he loved having so many playmates.  He told me, "I like the littlest ones best."  It's true, Nathan and Jared were so sweet with him.  Having a 5 and 8 year old play with you, give you piggy back rides, and treat you with so much kindness and tenderness, is pretty special. They are all such great kids.  The visit was simply not long enough.

Most of the time no one wanted to leave the house.  They were perfectly content to stay home and play and eat.

We got a few of them to agree to a trip to Detroit.  We only had a few hours so we went along the Detroit River between Belle Isle and the Ambassador Bridge and into the Renaissance Center and then drove past a few other notable sights like the Detroit Tigers Stadium.

At home it was water games and football most of the time.  They also developed a version of gaga ball on the trampoline that lasted for hours.

We also got a few to agree to a walk in the woods.  It was such a perfect day for it - not too hot and no bugs, which is a rare miracle for the forest at this time of year.

And just like that, in less than 48 hours, the visit was over.  So much more we wanted to do.  They will have to come back again.

Summer Begins

 School is official over and we're off to camps.  Benjamin to drumline camp, Christian to soccer camp (although he was sick and missed the first day), and Bella to pioneer trek.  She was so unhappy about it.  "Our ancestors suffered on their journey west, why should we have to go through that?  Why do we purposely make ourselves suffer?!"  As if walking a few miles through the woods could in any way compare to the hardships those pioneers had to endure on their 1,000+ mile journey to Salt Lake. I think she'll have a wonderful time.  I hope so, anyway.  Living without her phone for a few days and living the life of a pioneer and learning about her heritage along with all her close friends could be really wonderful if she lets it be.

I had wanted to buy her an outfit for trek online for $40 (included bonnet, dress, and apron).  She didn't want it.  She thought it was ugly.  So we chose fabric at the store and I sewed her outfit.  It didn't really match, but she loved each individual piece, so she wanted it that way.  On the morning of the trek she switched hats and decided not to wear the bonnet.  I was frustrated and made her at least take a picture with it to document the hard work and the $90 in fabric and supplies that the whole outfit cost.  I thought she looked really cute but that was not a hill I was going to die on.  She went without a bonnet and I moved on with my life.

The friend from whom we get eggs is on vacation.  We have been left in charge of the chicks.  So fun!  They started out as the cutest little yellow fluff balls and have grown so fast!  Peter loves going over there to see them.

Bella's dance recital was last week too.  She did such a great job. I was so proud of her.  She looked beautiful up on stage and the performance went great.  She and her friend Carolin took the class together and I really loved that they could do it together.  Sorry for the low quality stage photo.  Photography was against the rules so I had to sneak a quick one without taking time to focus or frame properly.  Bella is second from the left.

Passport to Safety

Saturday was our town's annual safety day.   Police cars, ambulances, fire trucks, etc. all on display for kids.  There were police K9 demonstrations, a "jaws of life" demonstration where they cut open a car, police horses, bike safety course, etc.  Peter had a great time, although he was a bit shy with so many strangers.  Many times he avoided things that he initially wanted to do once a volunteer came up and offered to help.  I managed to get a couple fun pictures anyway.  After a while he declared he'd had enough and asked to go to the library instead. 

When we got home, Peter took a nap and I got back to work sewing a skirt for Bella for pioneer trek next week.  I was still working on it when Peter woke up, so he wanted to help.  He loved seeing how pressing the pedal made the sewing machine run so I let him help me a little, but that wasn't working very well.  I finally set aside the skirt and suggested we make him a little something.  I let him cut the fabric and showed him how to thread the needle and then he pressed the pedal as I moved the fabric around and we sewed him a little bag for his toys.  I would have made it more elaborate if he'd been a little older, but the simple pillowcase style bag suited him just fine.  He loved it so much we ended up making three, each with different fabric and slightly different sizes.  He was so excited.

Girls Getaway

My friends and I had been planning our long weekend away for so long it felt like it would never arrive, but then suddenly it was time.  Kelly took a couple days off work and I drove to the Pocono Mountains to meet with many of my friends from college.  We're 20 years older but we still get along wonderfully and it was an amazing weekend of hiking, kayaking, shopping, eating and mostly lots and lots of talking.  We hadn't all gotten together like this in over 10 years.  The last girls getaway, I took Bella along because she was still nursing!  This time I also managed to get over to Manhattan by myself while I waited for some of my friends to fly in.  First time ever in downtown NYC and it was amazing.  I can't wait to get back there.

The hike was literally called "Shades of Death."  Some in our group decided that was a bit too much for them and we opted for the one that took us to Hawk Falls instead.  It was gorgeous.

I have the best friends.  They are kind, funny, intelligent, and fun.  It made me really miss the days in the dorm.  Everyone is killin' it in their current chosen spheres and it was so fun to catch up.

Not pictured: the Amish farmer's market, the trashy flea market, and the thousand toll roads I had to get on and off as I attempted to find my way around New Jersey, New York, and Eastern Pennsylvania.  Made me so grateful that Michigan is toll road free.

While I was gone, Kelly shuttled kids to a soccer game, a piano recital, an art class, church, and a band concert, while still trying to work, make food, take care of a toddler, and be bishop.  A huge thank you goes to him for all of that.

Last thing - how do you know your have a toddler in the house?  45 pictures on your camera roll that look just like this:

It was so fun to be gone for a while, but I sure missed snuggling with this little cutie.  It's really good to be home. 

They're Off!

 Benjamin got his braces off on Tuesday and he looks amazing.  Well...his teeth look amazing.  That hair is another story.  I made the promise to myself before I ever had kids that I would never fight a battle over hair.  Hair is just hair and they can do what they want with it and I realize even more now how there are so many bigger battles to deal with.  However, would it ruin some grand eternal plan if I had a teenage son who liked the clean cut look?  Anyway, take a look at those teeth.  Aren't they gorgeous?  $3,500 well spent, I guess.  We're very happy.  I can't wait for Bella to be done and have a similar happy result.