Lake MI

We enjoyed a long weekend by Lake Michigan recently.  Brent and his dad enjoyed an afternoon of golf while the kids, nana, and I enjoyed the warmth of the fall sunshine!  The resort we stayed at had a water park which the kids LOVED!  Ace discovered that he loves swimming, but not as much as he enjoys water slides!  :)  Brent, Karen, and I also had the chance to tour the Kohler showroom where I dreamed of kitchen/bathroom remodels!

Heading out toward Lake Michigan.

Forcing a smile for mom!

Finley found a bunch of shells that she plans to take to show & tell.

AJ enjoyed the sand...

and was lucky enough to find a dollar bill on the beach!  "Money!"

Running to see how chilly the water was!

Brrr!

So busy!

Sand angels!

So cute!

Ha...this makes me laugh!

WHOA!

Cartwheels in the sand!

Good one Finley!

The waves were crashing in all weekend...until it was time to go home of course!  :)

Should I Be Worried?

Yes...Finley got her first note sent home last week...

and I couldn't help but think of my brother when I read it!  :)

Not really for any specific reason, but it brought me back about 20 years!  

When Brent read it, he cracked up and said "OH...I loved recess!  

This would have been something sent home with me!" 

We had to talk with Finley to find out what happened.  

She insisted she didn't understand what she was supposed to do...

which appeared to be tracing and reprinting on her own.  

But she stuck to that story and we just reminded her that if that really 

was the case, she needs to raise her hand and ask a question then.  

She is going to school to learn, not just play at recess.  

Oh...to be five again!  :)

Locked...

When we get home at night, this is our routine:

• I get out, take the daycare tote, backpack, and my stuff in the house
• Ace gets out of the van
• Finley unbuckles AJ, and they both get out of the van
• Either play outside or in the house until supper is ready

One night we did all that...but AJ didn't get out.  This is how I found him:

HA!

Do you see the evil look on his face?!?  :)

This is when I realized he had locked the doors...with my keys inside!

I learned that evening he can follow directions very well when needed!  :)

Happy Anniversary

So eight years have passed by with the blink of an eye!  

We were both very happy on Oct. 1, 2005 

but Brent insisted on a serious pose!  :)

I always tell Brent NOT to get me anything and each year he gets me flowers.  

I feel it's a waste of money; he feels I deserve them.  

Each year, I find myself wishing the flowers would live longer.  

He knows me better than I know myself at times!

I am thankful for a husband that loves and respects me.

I'm thankful for a husband that provides for his family; 

and goes to work everyday with a smile on his face.

I am thankful for a husband that comes home every night with patience in his heart.

I am thankful for his loyal friendship.

I am thankful that each of my kids got his sensitive heart and positive outlook on life.

I am thankful he is a man that knows and loves God.

I could go on and on...

Happy Anniversary - I love you!

Happy Birthday AJ

AJ turned TWO a week ago!  He chose to have a basketball themed party...even though when it came time for his party he said "no party" and that he was "one"!  

Easy cupcakes this year!  :)

That ball rarely leaves his hands!

Time for presents!

I love this!

Ace thought Jesse needed some earrings for the party!

Monkey see; monkey do!

We passed out cupcakes, started to eat them, and then remembered that we needed to sing "happy birthday!"  You'd think after all the parties we've hosted, we would be pros by now...

AJ was bashful as we sang to him!

So sweet!

Good job buddy!

We got him a hoop...patiently waiting for Daddy to open it!

Go AJ!

Going in for the dunk!

Who is that hiding in the box?

He spent at least an hour shooting over, and over, and over...

...and over!

Happy 2nd Birthday, AJ!  We love you!

Basketball

AJ is "boy" through and through!  He loves tractors, trucks, lawnmowers, etc.  Recently, he has become obsessed with basketball!  Obsessed.  He correlates the WI Badgers with basketball...so his John Deere tees have been given a break and the washer has been busy keeping the few Badger tees that we own clean!  :)  He dribbles well...for a one-year-old!  He likes to pretend to shoot, pass, and dribble in our living room.  I wonder if he would enjoy watching some of my old HS games?  I know I have some VHS tapes in the basement...

Look at this...sitting on the basketball while holding the football!

Dribbling!

Looking to pass the ball...

And taking a well deserved break!  

We really should find him a youth basketball!

Camping, Part 2

We were able to fit in one more night of camping before school started.  This time we had a lake in our "backyard" rather than a softball field (aka: sandbox).  The weather was beautiful and the kids, once again, had a blast!

The path from our site to the lake...picture perfect!

The kids spent most of Saturday playing in this water.  

Swimming, skipping stones, searching for frogs, etc.

Ace became quite the "frog hunter" that weekend!

My boys

Finley enjoyed having another girl to play with!  :)

And these two hunted frogs with the best of them!

HA!  Love this!

Couldn't keep him away from the water!

Sprinkler

I was home with the kids for a couple days one week...both days were beautiful so we spent almost the entire time outside playing.  One afternoon the golf course had the sprinklers on...and Finley and Ace begged me repeatedly to run through the sprinkler.  In the end, I finally gave in...

It was a little bit of a run...

They reported that the water was VERY cold...

And the pressure created red welts on their skin!  HA!  They haven't asked since!  :)