Happy Halloween

  

from General Grievous (Isabelle), Jango Fett (Christian), and Ninja Boy (Carson)!

My School Photos Were Never This Cute…

I might be bias but I think they are going to be the cutest Kindergarteners in the whole damn yearbook!

Summer Has Come and Gone [and we welcome Fall with open arms]

Last time I posted I was welcoming summer, now I am welcoming fall.  I have pretty much given up on blogging during the summer months because it is just impossible to find the time. When I wasn’t busy working, I was busy enjoying the sun with my wonderful family. Summer 2011 was full of Zoo trips, Tigers games, Mini Vacays, Beaches, and Family.  Here are a few of my favorite pics from Summer 2011.

It’s sad to see my favorite season go so fast but with these three smiling faces, every season can’t be far from perfect.

A Great Way to Start Summer

Summer weather finally seems to have arrived and we kicked off the summer with a Memorial Day weekend packed with fun. On Saturday we made a quick overnight trip to Ubly for my nephews birthday party and managed to fit in a bonfire later that night with the Franzels. The kids had a blast playing with all their cousins at the party and enjoyed making many smores for themselves and a few for others at the bonfire.

On Sunday, we squeezed in a quick trip to Hawk Island before the storms started. We were there long enough for the kids to get some time in at the Splash pad,and dry off at the playground.

On Monday we headed to Detroit to watch the Tigers take on the Twins. It was extremely hot and we made it to about the fifth inning before the kids were asking to go home and hit the pool. So that's what we did.

All Stitched Up!

Isabelle had her first trip to the ER last Friday. It was a gorgeous day and I happened to be off work so I took the kids for a picnic at the park and to the 4H Children's Gardens in East Lansing. Isabelle was running around when she tripped and hit her leg on a concrete block. I wasn't right next to her when she fell and initially when I heard her crying I figured she would shake it off and be up and running within a minute. But then I looked over at her leg and to started to freak out. There was a lot of blood and what appeared to be a large hole on her knee.

So if you can picture Isabelle screaming, me frantically trying to get the boys in the car and her knee wrapped in a blanket, Christian crying because he was scared for her, and Carson crying because he was having so much fun and absoultely did not want to leave then you might start to picture the chaos that was happening. The conversation on the way to the hospital went something like this:

Carson: "I want to go back right now. I didn't even get to do anything yet. It's not fair. Can't you give her a band-aid? This isn't fun...."

Isabelle: 'Mom, am I going to die?" (at our age it's easy to forget how irrational a child's fear can be)

Christian: "Carson, be quiet. Isabelle's knee is really bloody. She needs to go to the doctor."

In the end, Izzy went home with 5 stitches in her knee and what appears to be a traumatic experience for her. For the first 12 hours she wouldn't get off the couch and I was not allowed more than a couple feet away from her. Then I had to carry her from place to place and could be out of the room only for very brief periods of time. We finally got her to walk on Sunday afternoon and she is almost back to normal aside from a slight limp.

Hopefully this can be her first AND last trip to the ER. I know she's a tough little girl but I'm not sure I'm tough enough to handle another one.

Adventures In Dog Sitting

Aunt Jeni asked the kids if they'd like to dog sit while they were in Florida and of course they jumped at the chance. They all really enjoyed having Paris and Beyonce for a few days but Isabelle, being the animal lover she is, spoiled them rotten. She gave them a bath, took them for walks, played with them outside, and was often found curled up on the couch with one or both dogs. They were all very sad to see them go home. I definetly see another dog in our future. Here's a few pics from their visit.

This last picture is too cute not to share-- Carson after he found out the dogs were going home the next morning.

Frankenmuth Fun

Between working and taking care of the three little munchkins time seems to fly by, so here I am five weeks later...

We decided to celebrate Carson's birthday this year with a trip to the Bavarian Inn in Frankenmuth. He resisted a little at first because he really wanted to go to Chuck E Cheese (again) but I was bound to convince him that there are plenty of fun places that are a little less crazy and hectic- one where parents actually supervise their kids. Within a few hours of being there he looked at me and said "This is way cooler than Chuck E Cheese Mom." Mission successful.

We all had a great time swimming in the pools, relaxing in the hot tub, playing games in the arcade, putt putting, and hanging out with family. Aunt Jeni, Uncle Dave, Nicole, and Jesse met us there in the evening and it was great to hang out with family we don't get to see often enough. Overall, I'd say it was a very successful birthday. There were only two complaints- one from all the adults because the karaoke was down (it's pretty much tradition to have a few drinks and watch/sing karaoke when there) and one from Christian who said that next time we should probably stay for the whole weekend.

The kids were not the most cooperative when it came to me taking pictures of them (as illustrated by their goofy faces) but here a some photos I managed to snap: