Snakes

We were in the backyard, down by the river the other day and came across a couple snakes. We tried to catch them but they were too fast for us, and if I admit it, I was a little freaked out! But Mike came back with us the second time, and good old daddy was able to help the girls catch one of them.

 



Our Pre-school Graduate!

We officially have a Kindergartner in our house! Allie had her Pre-school graduation this past week. I know it sounds cliche, but it literally feels like just yesterday that she was having her first day of school. We put her in the dress that she wore on her first day, about a week ago, and it was so much shorter on her. She must have grown 3 or 4 inches since September.

 

Allie had a lot of fun on her graduation day! We brought her some carnations which she was thrilled about!

 

The kids sang some songs for us that they had learned this year. Then each one was called forward to accept their "diploma," shake hands with the teacher, and have something read about them. Allie's favorite thing about Pre-school was learning.

 

This is Allie's teacher Ms. Debbie! Allie loves her.

 

Allie had a great year. She made a lot of nice friends, learned how to read, and has gotten more confident with new situations. I'm sure she'll do just fine getting on that bus for the first time in the fall!



Recent Happenings

May has been busy, but fun! We had a baby shower for one of my longest friends, Katie! She is due with her first little baby boy in August.

 

Allie was invited to her first birthday party for a classmate. She had so much fun at this Wreck-it-Ralph themed birthday party!

 

I had a meeting with Mary Kay and Hannah loved that she helped build a tower out of Lego's. Hannah LOVES Mary Kay!

 

We went to Noah and Nathan's 4th birthday party. It was a John Deere Themed party and the kids got to go on a hay ride!

 

We have arranged marriages planned for all these kiddos. It can work for them all to stay in these four families;)

 

I enjoyed having a lunch date with this little lady!

 

I love spring! We're gearing up for summer too. We just made our annual paper chain to count down to vacation. The girls are looking forward to a fun filled summer!



Mother's Day

I love these girls! I'm so blessed to be able to be their mom. They are seriously so much fun. I really enjoy hanging out with these three characters and I not only love them, but I really like them! They have such fun and sweet little personalities. My days are filled with joy and laughter because of these ladies. I'm thankful to God for the blessings they bring!

 

We had a packed and funfilled mother's day! I played music at church so I had to be up bright and early. After church we had lunch with the Epley family. Kathy set up a very nice breakfast/lunch for everyone!

 

Kathy has nine grandchildren. Joseph is the only one missing from this picture!

 

After the Epley's, we left for Jeff and Tara's where we celebrated mother's day and the twins 8th birthday!

 

My mom has 7 grandchildren!

The kids loved playing this dance game!

 

It was a great day!

 

 

Today, Allie's pre-school had a mother's day tea party! My mom, Kathy and I all had a great time sipping tea and eating snacks with Allie. She was most excited about getting to stay at school for lunch!



Nature

A lot has happened around here in the past few weeks. We've been trying to spend a lot of time outside. That's why I love Michigan so much; I appreciate the seasons! Being couped up inside all winter helps us take advantage of the outdoors when the weather gets nice!

 

We had a robbin build a nest on Mike's ladder last year, but it happened to be the ladder that was pretty high up. This year, another robbin built a nest on the lower ladder, which is awesome cause it's only about four feet up off the ground. So we have had a front row seat to this nest!

 

Here is the baby just about a day old:

 

And here are two of the babies less than two weeks later! They grow so fast. One of the eggs didn't make it. We found it in the grass and put it back in the nest but the mama bird kept pushing it out.

 

On Monday I was able to go on a field trip with Ava's class to Indian Springs. Believe it or not, it was freezing! The problem was the wind. But the kids still had a great time!

 

My tulips were beautiful once again this spring! So beautiful, in fact, that I used a bunch of them for a baby shower I helped out with!

 

Here's the centerpieces. Those forsythia are from my neighbor's yard!

 

 

 This little guy we named Alvin. He lives in our porch! Mike happened to catch him one day. The girls love this!



National Anthem

I am so proud of Ava! She got up and sang the National Anthem for her school's morning announcements and she wasn't even that nervous! And she did a great job. She stayed on key the entire song. That's not easy!

Way to go girl!

 



Reading list

I love to read. There are usually 2 or 3 books piled up on my night stand. I typically have one good fiction book that I'm reading, as well as some great non-fiction books. I just had to take a picture of the pile I have accumulated recently. Yes, there are six books there that I am currently reading. AND I'm in Numbers and James in the Bible, so add 2 more! Although since this picture was taken, I have finished two of these books. So back down to 6. I really do love to read. I just wish I wouldn't get in the habit of starting more than one book at a time. And these all happen to be non-fiction, so I'm in the market for my next fiction book. If you have any suggestions, please let me know!

 

 

Can you tell what stage of life I'm in right now!? Sheesh, you'd think I'd have this mothering and wife thing down with all these books!



Women's Retreat

Retreat: 1. a withdrawal, as from danger

2. a safe, quiet place

3. a period of seclusion, especially for spiritual renewal

 

Hmmm, what kind of retreat was it that I went on? Mike can be dangerous at times. I mean, he is murderously good looking. But no, that's not what it was. Gull Lake was a very safe and quiet place, but I'll have to lean more towards #3. This weekend for me was definitely a time of spiritual renewal.

 

The retreat was incredible. It was such a peaceful and rejuvenating time away. And there were some amazing ladies who came along. We traveled over to Gull Lake, which is amazing! Our condo was so beautiful. There was also a pretty sweet rec center where we played a few games of my favorite sport!

 

There were three sessions. Suffering, Contentment, and Gratitude were the topics. The worship time was great. The skit was hilarious. It was just an amazing weekend to be a part of. We were able to have about an hour and a half quiet time on Sunday. It's very rare that I take that much time along to spend with God, and it was awesome. I really should set aside more time each week to do that, because it is so refreshing.

 

I'm so grateful for the women in our church that have a desire to keep God first. It's amazing to be surrounded by a group of people who are wonderful examples of loving Christians. I feel very grateful for the weekend we were able to have.

This is the condo that I stayed in! The upstairs had a living room and small kitchen surrounded by five bedrooms. Each bedroom had it's own bathroom! It was beautiful. Jackie and I room together!

I was able to do the session on contentment. God was very faithful in providing the words for me.

 

This was called "The Tab." It's where all of our sessions and worship times were held. 

My mom and me:)

This was the sweet rec center. It had four bowling lanes, an indoor tennis court, a track and exercise area upstairs, and a rec room with a pool table, ping pong table, and some other games. It also had a rock climbing wall!

Lauren picked out some great songs!

 

It was an amazing weekend!



Mike in Trinidad

Mike had an amazing time in Trinidad and we sure did miss him! I'm so glad he's back home. He came home Monday night, we had a few days together and then I took off for a women's retreat with my church, which I'll post about later. Here are a few pictures I stole from Katie! The team did an excellent job loving on the people in Trinidad!

 



Long Week

Mike left for Trinidad last Monday. I am really excited that he was able to go. He went with the youth group of our church; about twenty juniors and seniors and five other leaders. He has been preparing for the trip since November. The gals were going to be visiting an orphanage during the day, while the guys visit a mens' prison. Then at night, they are putting on a VBS for kids in the city. The whole team returns home in two days (Monday). So altogether, Mike is only gone 7 days. I am really missing him! I don't think I quite grasp just how much he does around here. When he comes home from work, at 5 PM every night, he does so much with the girls that I frequently take for granted. He diffuses arguments and fights, he takes Hannah to the bathroom countless times, he plays with the girls or talks with them while I'm making dinner, he helps with the bedtime routine and typically stays in there longer than me, answering thousands of questions. And he's overall just a much more patient person than me. I REALLY miss him! I need to express to him when he gets home, just how much I appreciate the "little" things he does around here. On top of all that with the kids, the faucet started leaking this week. I put a bowl under it. One of the light bulbs in the girls' room went out, it's just a little darker until Mike gets back. The trash and recycle bin had to be taken out Tuesday night; OK I did do that! Anyway, we love that guy and are so grateful for him!

 

My week has really been going well though. I have some awesome parents and in-laws that have helped out. Tuesday, the girls went to my parents in the morning while I grocery shopped. Then my dad took them again in the afternoon so I could make a Target and Starbucks run with a friend!

Thursday night, my parents took the girls again so I could go to music practice. Then today, I had my hair cut and colored, which took three hours, so my mom had the girls. Then this evening, I went to dinner and Starbucks for a girls' night out and my in-laws watched the girls. So that has been extremely helpful. It is tough work being a single mom for a week. Hopefully Mike took some pictures of his trip and I'll post them when he gets home!

 

Oh and here's my new hair cut and color!