Sarah and Greg's Wedding

Sarah and Greg had a beautiful outdoor wedding at a Ski Resort in Wisconsin.  The weather was absolutely perfect and the ceremony was very special.  Some highlights were the personal letters they read to each other before reciting the traditional vows, the music which was lead by Charity, the communion taken by Sarah and Greg, and of course the reaction of Greg to Sarah coming down the aisle.  She looked gorgeous!  After the ceremony we rode the chairlift up the hill and had a champagne toast.  Then we went back down to the lodge for dinner and dancing.  We hung out with Jeff and Charity most of the night, but also reconnected with some old friends.  We especially enjoyed seeing Jessica again, catching up with Carrie from Augustana, getting to know Heidi and her boyfriend David better, and sitting around talking with Sarah's small group from Chicago.  The next day we got to see the apartment that Sarah and Greg will be living in and visit some more with Julie and Jessica.  We even did a little furniture rearranging because that's the kind of friends we are.  Congratulations Sarah and Greg! 

Carly's 1st Birthday

The Fab Five, the five babies born to us Augie friends in 2008, are now all turning 1.  We went to Carly's birthday party this past Saturday.  It was nice to see Kim and her family.  Leah and Carly didn't interact, but Jadon had fun playing with the other kids that were there.  The highlight was finding and playing with a real frog.  He also enjoyed eating dirt and worms (dirt dessert).  Leah had fun climbing on Carly's new sandbox and watching her open all the presents.

Jadon Takes his Cousins for a Ride

The Sackett's Visit

Stephanie and her family came all the way from Grand Rapids to Sterling for a visit.  They stayed for 2 days and we went swimming a few times at their hotel.  We also had a tea party, played in the back yard, walked across the pedestrian bridge, went out for Spaghetti pizza, and went to a couple parks.  The kids had a lot of fun and I really enjoyed time with my sister.  We had some good conversations and even went out for a drink one night.  I wish we lived in the same town so we could do it all more often.  

Sarah's Bachelorette Party

On Saturday Charity and I drove into Chicago to celebrate Sarah's last week of being a swingin' single.  We met up with everyone at the D.O.C. Wine Bar in the Lincoln Park neighborhood.  We had a private room with a fireplace in the back and enjoyed some wine flights and delicious food.  Thanks Heidi and Julie!  Then we went to La Taberna Tapatia for tapas.  We enjoyed lively conversation, especially reminiscing about how God brought Sarah and Greg together and how their relationship progressed.  We didn't get too crazy, but we definately had fun girl bonding time.  One week from today Sarah will be walking down the aisle!  

Ms. Independent

Leah is almost 15 months old, but she's convinced she's a big kid like Jadon.  She follows him around and tries to do everything he's doing.  Her favorite activity is climbing.  She's quite the little daredevil. She's a proficient walker and now tries to run.  She loves to do backbends, especially when you hold her close and ask for kisses.  In this picture she's feeding herself.  Leah has definately entered the toddler phase and keeps us well entertained.  

Last and First

Thursday was Jadon's last day of preschool for the year.  All of Ms. Kim's 2 yr. old classes met at Sinnissippi Park for playtime, sundaes, and goodbyes.  Most of the kids lined up in the first picture will be in Jadon's class next year.  Jadon had fun running around with all his friends, especially Brecken.  At the end, he gave Ms. Kim a big hug goodbye.  That afternoon Jadon got to enjoy his new favorite pasttime, driving his ATV and pulling Leah.  He's really good at steering and stopping, and Brian follows them closely so it is safer than it probably looks.  That evening Jadon had his first experience with organized sports, playing soccer at the YMCA.  He's on the Orange Kangaroo team.  They had 25 min. of drills and then a 25 min. game.   Jadon did great with the drills, but when he saw 14 kids chasing after the ball during the game, he shrunk back timidly.  We'll see what happens in the next 5 weeks.  

Mother's Day

We celebrated Mother's Day with my mom in Gurnee.  Jeff, Jordyn, and Woolfe came out in the morning and made a nice breakfast.  We all had fun watching Leah follow Woolfe around and try to work up the nerve to pet him.  We got to hear all about Jeff and Jordyn's cruise and share about our trip to Vegas.  We are blessed to have such a wonderful mother.  We love you mom!  After spending a week away from my children, I realized that I really do love them and enjoy their presence.  Thank you God for my beautiful kids and the whole experience of motherhood!

Viva Las Vegas

This past week Brian and I enjoyed our Christmas gift from my parents, a trip to Las Vegas.  We haven't gone on a real vacation with just the two of us since our honeymoon and it was so nice to get away.  We stayed at the MGM Grand.  Their symbol is the lion and as you can see, everything in Vegas is larger than life.  On Sunday night, we had dinner and walked the Strip.  I have always wanted to see all the themed hotels, so exploring those was really fun.  All the risque ads and prevalent pornography was a downer, though.   On Monday Brian and I got dressed up and went down to the Wynn and Encore hotels, 2 of the newer and nicer ones.  We had dinner and just enjoyed the ambiance.  Tuesday night we saw a classic Vegas show, The Legends.  5 impersonaters performed, Jay Leno, Whitney Houston, Madonna, the Temptations, and Elvis.  It was really fun.

More of Las Vegas

The weather in Las Vegas was perfect.  It was upper 90's all week and we enjoyed hanging out at the pool during the day.  Our hotel actually had about 5 pools, several spas, and a lazy river.  They played great music  and it was both fun and relaxing.  On Wednesday we took a break from the Strip.  We rented a Mustang convertible and drove through Red Rock Canyon.  All the amazing hotels in Las Vegas were dwarfed by the majesty and beauty of God's creation.  We hiked for about 3 hours.  On Thursday, Brian's birthday, we saw Cirque de Soleil's water show, O.  It was the most amazing thing I've ever seen and it was the highlight of the trip for me.  Friday night we met up with one of Brian's coworkers and his friends.  We went to a Comedy Club and laughed a lot.  Later that night, Brian and I went dancing.  On Saturday we traveled back to Illinois.  We had a wonderful vacation, but we were ready to come home to our children.  My parents watched them all week and it sounds like they had their own fun vacation with Grandma and Grandpa.  Thanks Mom and Dad for watching the kids and giving us this much-needed vacation!

Fire Station Field Trip

On Thursday Jadon's preschool class took a field trip to Sterling's main fire station.  They got to see and learn about all the different fire trucks for city and rural fires.  They saw where the hoses are washed and hung, the lounge and the lockers. One of the firefighters got suited up and even breathed through his oxygen mask, so that the kids would not be afraid of him in case of a real fire.   They even got to see a firefighter slide down the brass pole several times.