All Day in the Pool!

We're off to Chicago for the day!

Amber and I love to plan! So we decided it would be a great adventure to go to Chicago for the day. I must say first of all, that I am SO glad we borrowed my parents suburban for the day. Our car does not have air and it would have been MISERABLE! So thanks Mom and Dad! (I'll try not to get jealous!)
Our first stop was the Lincoln Park Zoo. It's "technically" free to go, but if you drive you have to pay for parking. What a cute zoo! All the attractions were very close and there was always something to do or look at. Unlike the Detroit Zoo where you have to walk 3 miles to find something! The only problem was that it was HOT! So, all the animals were sleeping or in their caves. We kept joking that the kids had more fun going through the water jets, climbing in a jungle gym, and watching a juggler! Oh yeah, and we saw a few animals!









Caleb did great throughout the day! At this point, he was a little hot, tired, and hungry!










I think giraffes are one of my favorite animals! They are so cool looking and quiet!










After the zoo we drove to the Rainforest Cafe for dinner. You would think that the kids would LOVE that place. I do! It is such a fun place to eat! Well..I forgot that my kids are afraid of thunderstorms. And what do they have simulated every few minutes....thunderstorms! They also were afraid that the animals on the wall were going to eat them. At this point of the day, the kids were hot, tired, and starving! And so were the adults! I think my girls cried through most of the meal, but after they got some food in their bellies they seemed to do a little better!
After dinner we went to the parking garage to get our cars. Those of you who have been to Chicago know where this is going I'm sure. We thought we were only going to have to pay $13 for parking if we got our ticket validated. Well.... Rainforest did not validate tickets so we ended up paying $25 for parking! Yeah..we'll know for next time!

All in all it was a FABULOUS day! The kids did great for the most part and it was an adventure to go just for the day. We got home at 12:15am but it was nice to not have to pack half the house to stay over night somewhere! I would do it again in a heartbeat! We had a great time with our good friends!

Father's Day

The last time we were at the beach was Father's Day 2 years ago! Eliza was actually the same age as Caleb! We decided it would be fun to go again. We really should go more often but we are just not beach people! But once I saw how much the girls loved it, we might go more than once in 2 years! We started our day at church where Shawn got to sing with his dad and my dad. It was so worshipful to see over 100 men singing so strongly in praise to our God! After church we got packed up and took our lunch to the beach. It was actually not as hot as we thought it was going to be and the water was only 60 degrees!!
Eliza wasn't much for the water but she loved the sand. Adrianna just dove right in! She didn't care how cold it was and we practically had to drag her out of the water to go home! I think she is going to be a little water frog just like her daddy!
After the beach we went to this really yummy Chinese place for dinner and then over to my brother and sister-in-law's house for a bonfire. I must say, their house is so cute! Erika decorates really well and I love her style! The girls played with Hershey, their chocolate lab puppy and the neighbor girls. It was a really fun day celebrating our dad's!













I can't even believe how far out they went! That's Shawn and Adrianna!































I was trying to think of some profound tribute to write about my dad, Shawn's dad and Shawn but I am not eloquent with words! I am just thankful first of all that Shawn and I have our dad's in our life. There is no question about their willingness to support and help us out whenever we need it. They are there in a heartbeat!

To my Dad: I have thought of you my entire life as Mr.-fix-it. No matter what needed to be repaired, you always had a creative way to make it look like new even if the repair was difficult! Your talents and eye for making things has always amazed me! One of my greatest memories is doing all the musicals together. I was always so proud to say, "My dad built those sets!". I am blessed to have you in my life and I am blessed to have you a part of my kid's lives. They love their Papa! Thank you for being there for all the things I have done in my life. Thanks for sacrificing and working hard so we could have whatever we needed. I love you!

To Shawn's Dad: It was always hard for me to imagine having another Father figure in my life. I didn't ever know what it would look like so I didn't know what to expect. I am so thankful for the way you raised your son to be a God-honoring man. To have a serving heart and to love without condition. Shawn definitely learned that from you! Thank you for always being there to offer advice, even though we might not take it, we still appreciate it! Thank you for spoiling the kids and loving them. It means a lot to have you in their lives! Love you!

To the Daddy of my children and the love of my life: You are an amazing dad! My heart is assured every time I see you with our kids, playing with them, and just loving them. Thank you for working hard to give us a good life. For being willing to be pulled in so many different directions with so many expectations. For having the desire to be home and putting that a priority. You constantly teach me how to have a serving heart and give of myself when I don't really want to! Our kids will have a godly role model to look up to and try to be like. I'm glad you finally have a son to show how to be a man! Though Eliza might take after your love of hockey!
Thank you for daily trying to live for Christ and loving us in the process! I love you!

Happy Father's Day!

Letting go in more ways than one.

Eliza has moved up into a "big girl" seat! She was very excited! We took pictures of Adrianna when she got her seat so we had to do that with Eliza!









All 3 of the kids have LOVED this floor gym. It has been a lifesaver for me! It kept them entertained for a while and it has so many different colors and textures to learn from. It's funny how the baby toys now all of a sudden start to look like so much fun to play with! The girls try to get under with Caleb and help him play with the animals that are hanging. It will be sad to see this go!



As I said in my title, I have had to start letting go of a lot of things these past few weeks. It has been an emotional ride for me. It first started with the reality that Caleb will probably be done nursing soon. He had an ear infection a few weeks back and did not eat very well so my milk supply started to diminish. He also has a lovely set of 5 VERY SHARP teeth that cause him to bite. (enough said!) He also is not finding as much comfort in nursing anymore. He really likes solid food especially if he can chew it. It is just very sad for me! I realize that sometimes babies wean themselves and others need to be weaned. I was really wanting to go longer, at least try to nurse as close to a year as possible. I have read and heard many people say, "Oh, you will have your body back, You will have more freedom to do things, & he is getting too big for it." I understand all these comments but I can always have those things. I can't always nurse my baby. Once it's gone, it's gone! I am praying about letting go of it and relishing the success we had doing it for 7 1/2 months. He is still not totally done so I have a few more weeks to work on my letting go! I have been much more attached to the sentimentality of it with him for some reason. Hmmmm......

My next thing I had to start thinking about was letting go of Adrianna! I got a letter in the mail from her school for next year and it just told me that she would be in AM Kindergarten and it also gave a list of things she would need. I know I have issues that made me cry over a piece of paper, but once it begins, there is no stopping it! She will be in school every day for a half day. Her time with me is getting less and less and it is really causing me to cherish each moment and really place her in God's hands.

AND, Eliza got a new seat! No more baby seats for her! She is also doing really well with peeing on the potty! We are still working on the pooping thing.

So, the letting go of things continues. It's not all negative..it has to be done. That doesn't mean it doesn't make me sad though! It is a happy sadness sometimes if that makes sense! I am still in amazement at the incredible love my God has shown me in giving me 3 sweet and amazing children. It causes me to sit back a revel in God's grace, His kindness, His provision, His sense of humor, and His all consuming love. Wow...it blows my mind sometimes!
At least I have the hope and assurance that I can let them go into God's hands and that is the best and safest place they can be!

Mini-Golf

Last Monday we went to Craig's Cruisers with Shawn's parents, his sister Sheryl, and our nephew Keegan. Shawn's mom treated us to a yummy lunch and mini-golf. Thanks so much! We had a great time!

The girls had to have their pink ball to golf with! Everything has to be pink around here!





I thought I would throw in a picture to prove I was actually there! I'm usually the one taking pictures because I love it so I don't take pictures of myself! Caleb did pretty good hanging out, literally! It got kind of warm towards the end so we went back inside about halfway through the golf game.







I love this picture because the look on Keegan's face is priceless! It's like he is saying "Dude, do I HAVE to have another picture taken with these girls?"!










Adrianna actually did really well golfing! She was focused for about 9 holes and then started hitting the ball in however she could! She is very detail oriented and really wants to do well. I did not have any expectations of actually playing golf or following the rules to a "T". I wanted us to just have fun hitting the ball into the hole and learning how to take turns. The girls did pretty well with that!






Hockey anyone?!











Can you just hear Eliza saying "I CAN DO IT MYSELF!".











Little All Stars!











So our Summer begins!

Long time no see!

It has been a LONG time since I have blogged! I really have not had much inspiring to say! We are just livin life and adjusting to our summer schedule. Shawn has been home more often which has been really nice. It is always a little bit of an adjustment having him home during the day since he has to re-learn our routine. I must say that this year has been a pretty easy transition. The girls love having him home and I love having him home for many reasons. It's nice to have adult conversation throughout the day and have someone to share responsibilities. Plus he is just fun to be around!

We have had a lot of fun already this summer and we are trying to enjoy this freedom before marching band starts July 6th. We are looking forward to our day trip to Chicago this coming Saturday! An overnight getaway is still in the works!

My goals for this summer are to stay consistent with my bible study. It's much harder for me when I don't have an actual class to keep accountable to. It is very hard to find time and to discipline myself to do it when I have a million other things to do. It is something I desire strongly but I really have to fight for it. Another goal is to get our downstairs bathroom remodeled. Anyone want to come peel wallpaper?!:)
I also want to keep up with some school time with Adrianna. She is the kind of girl who will get to Kindergarten and say "What? I learned my letters?"! Eliza is also getting to that point of being able to learn and know her letters and numbers. It will be fun to do some stuff with her too!

Both girls are loving playing outside by themselves lately. This is a new privilege for them and they do really well of staying in our yard and playing pretty well together. They have a little girl next door that they play with often and she has an underground pool! We also have new neighbors on the other side of us who we are trying to build a relationship with. They are from Cuba and they are very hospitable! They just got a new puppy and it is the cutest thing! It's a cocker spaniel and it's name is Brenda! Much more friendly and safer than the pit bulls that used to live there!
I must say, it is out of my comfort zone to reach out to them. I really want to but I guess I am afraid! Afraid of rejection, afraid I won't be able to understand them when they talk(they have very thick accents), and afraid I won't be able to show them Christ when it is most important. I am praying God will use me in spite of myself!

Caleb is growing like a weed! He is rolling over both ways finally and is starting to sit up somewhat. He still needs to be propped up with something but is doing better. He has also started to pick up cheerios from his tray. This makes me VERY happy! Now I can put him in there and he can occupy himself for a little while so I can make dinner!

I am going to try and update more frequently but I find it getting harder to do especially with Caleb getting more mobile. It's getting busier..is that possible?:)
I am loving my life and so thankful that even when I question that, I have my God to help me through each and every moment!

All About Caleb

Caleb is finally getting back to his normal, happy, content self after his ear infection. Boy, have I missed him! He has recently starting rolling over both ways and seems to not get as frustrated when he is playing on the floor.









He LOVES bananas! Actually he really wants to chew his food since he is now working on his 4th tooth. The food I made for him is just not good enough since it slides right down! His recent loves are cheerios and yogurt.









Wide eyes of wonder! I really just want to eat him up! He just hangs out most of the time and is very content. Those cheeks are to die for!








He has also recently been sitting up with a little help for about 5 seconds. This makes me very happy since they doctor was concerned about his trunkel support at his 6 month checkup. This was also his first time sitting on the grass. He reacted the same way he does with anything else....wide eyes and a look of "Is this supposed to impress me?"! :)
We are enjoying him so much and I am anxious to see how his little personality will start to come out as he gets older. He rarely makes much noise probably because he can't get a word in otherwise!

A sign of things to come!