Camping

Probably like many of you, we have bins of camping gear in the basement that comes out once every summer or two. Well, I'm happy to say we dusted off our gear and made it happen this season. Brian and I went with the kids and our friends, Sarah, Greg, Julie, Jeff, and Charity, to Palisades State Park this past weekend. I was nervous, but the kids slept great and, for the most part, behaved really well. We're so thankful that our friends who don't have kids yet still want to hang out with us. We had fun hiking, playing games, cooking over the fire, having a group devotion, and just catching up on each other's lives. Jadon and I had fun playing "chase the football". We also went on a nature hunt for something God created. Greg found a white fuzzy caterpillar and helped us make a home for it in a jar. Jadon held it in his lap the whole way home. (Mr. Fuzzy only got dropped once.) Well today after lunch we noticed him forming a cocoon. Even though we all know that this is what caterpillars do, Brian and I were shocked and amazed. Anyway, the fun of our camping trip is lingering on as we watch the metamorphosis of Mr. Fuzzy.

Tanners 1

Last week the kids and I went to Tanner's Orchard with our friends, Anita, Dale, and Charles Johnson. Tanner's is my favorite fall spot! The kids had fun looking at all the different scarecrows, feeding the goats, and playing on the huge playground. We picked a couple apples and had lunch.

Getting Cheesy

Leah and Jadon are hamming it up for the camera. Leah now sits up by herself and Jadon is pictured here playing with his new Classic car that he got from a neighbor. After church on Sunday, Brian and I took the kids up to Monroe, WI for the Cheese Days parade. Jadon was squealing with delight and both kids were so good all day. It was a gorgeous day and we had so much fun on our family outing. Leah is finally on a predictable schedule- yay! She goes to sleep at the same time as Jadon, too. Now I'm just hoping she'll start sleeping past 5:00am.

Visiting Friends

Last weekend Leah and I went to the Chicago Burbs to visit some friends. We hung out with Art, Libby, and Joaquin Guerrero. Joaquin is 3 months old and Leah had fun holding his hand and breaking in all his toys. I also got to see my childhood friend, Kate Kneifel. We walked around the old neighborhood and reminisced. This was the first time I had seen her in 3 years. The last picture here is Jadon and Leah swinging at the park. Jadon constantly says, "Push me higher and faster than Leah." This weekend we're enjoying a much needed low-key weekend at home.

Benton Harbor

This Labor Day weekend we stayed in a huge beach house on Lake Michigan with my parents, Stephanie's family, and Jeff & Jordyn. We kicked off the weekend with a Fiesta party on Friday night. Each day we hung out on the beach; the weather was perfect. I should have taken a picture of the staircase down to the beach. Those 200 steps were the only drawback to this vacation spot.

Sitting Around is Fun

We enjoyed sitting around the fire pit in back of the house, watching the sunsets and the goofy kids. On Saturday night the kids opened presents from Grandma and Grandpa Pins and played a pinata. Claire and Rachel put on their dress up clothes and all the kids enjoyed a ring pop. My favorite times were sitting around the fire or playing poker after the kids went to bed. I haven't laughed that much in a long time. Thanks for the memories my people...

Milestones

Jadon had his first day of pre-school today. He is in a 2 yr. old class that meets for 2 one hour sessions each week. Last week Jadon went with me to orientation and got to play with all the toys. He loved the stimulating environment. When Brian and I dropped him off today, he happily said goodbye. This picture was taken after I picked him up. Needless to say, I think he's going to thrive in pre-school.

Leah hit some milestones last week. She got her first tooth and started getting into the crawl position. She rocks back and forth and even gets up on her hands and feet. Look out world, here she comes! After our crazy month of travel, Leah had become overdependent on the pacifier for her happiness, so last week I took it away cold turkey and she's doing much better. She's much less fussy and is sleeping through the night more consistently.