Grandparents Day

Today my mom, dad, and grandma came for a visit. We had lunch, opened some fun gifts from mom and dad, played, and visited. The kids dressed up as Batman and Robin and had fun attacking grandpa. It was a nice day and a cherished visit with my grandma.

QC Half Marathon

We did it! Anita and I have been training since the beginning of August, doing long runs together every weekend. I hit some walls and there were moments I wondered if I could run 13 miles, but I got stronger and built up my endurance so that by race day I felt very confident that I could do it...and enjoy it. Today I ran the QC Half Marathon with Anita and my father-in-law Larry. Larry and I stuck together the whole race and ran it in 1:55.10. Anita ran it about 10 minutes faster. It was a gorgeous day and I felt great. It was a wonderful experience!

Larry and I at mile 4 waving to our fans.
Anita at mile 4.
Our fans. They are all watching the hot air balloon in Keith and Vicki's yard. (There were hot air balloons all along the course.) Brian and the kids, Anita's family, Brant's family, and Vicki and Keith came out to cheer us on.

Here we are sprinting to the finish.

Here's Anita after the race. (Brian and I are in the background.) Anita's husband Mark took most of these pictures. Thanks Mark!

Construction Party

Jadon's friend Isaac turned 5 and had a construction themed party at his house. After having some playtime and lunch, the kids did a scavenger hunt in the backyard to find a hard had, tool belt, and tools. Then they got to hammer their nails (wooden golf tees) into foam. It was a great activity. Afterwards they went inside to have birthday cake shaped like a hard hat. Isaac's mom Lori planned a great party and all the kids had fun!

Tanners '09

This was our 3rd family trip to Tanner's Apple Orchard with Deb, Brant, Amie, Kylie, and Dylan. We enjoyed apple cider donuts, looking at all the scarecrows and pumpking displays, feeding the animals, playing on the giant playground, going for barrel, pony, and tractor rides, and of course, picking apples. Leading up to this trip I read a lot of apple books with Jadon. He got it in his head that we were going to make an apple pie, so he wouldn't eat any apples in the orchard. He kept saying, "No, it's for the apple pie." When we got home, he helped me bake one. It was kind of neat eating an apple pie with apples that had been picked that day.

Tailgating at Tanners

Peekaboo Grandma!

Just after we finished our last activity, picking apples, it started to rain. We headed right to the vehicles and ate our picnic lunch in the van. It was perfect timing and quite cute.

Teaching Again

It's been 4 years since I taught elementary art and now I'm back in the classroom. I'm teaching just 3 elementary art classes on Friday afternoons at Sterling Christian School. I've been waiting to get some pictures of this before blogging about it, but I get so busy and focused on the work, that I forget to take pictures. Finally I snapped this photo this past Friday before leaving my last class. I've been working with the 5th & 6th graders on observational drawing and this week they drew wildflowers from my friend Anita's yard. It's been lots of fun and a nice creative outlet for me. Also, I bring the kids with me and they provide childcare which makes it all possible.

Some Cute Moments

I caught the kids doing some funny things today.

Leah, our little monkey, climbed onto the dining table to take one last look at the books waiting to be returned to the library. She really liked Pirates Don't Change Diapers. The baby girl in it makes extreme facial expressions which Leah imitates.

When I went to wake Jadon up from his nap today, I found him sleeping in his closet, in a makeshift nest of blankets and stuffed animals. (I'm pretty sure my brother liked to sleep in his closet when he was little, too.) Before posting this update, I went upstairs to check on Jadon, who I put to bed 2 hours ago, and he was again sleeping in his closet. He's my gentle giant that likes soft, snuggly things.

The Petersons

I babysat Brecken in my home for a year and a half and he and Jadon became best buds, but I took a break from that when Leah was an infant. Krista recently had another son, Micah, and decided to go back to work just part-time. I agreed to watch her kids 3 afternoons a week and have been doing it now for a couple weeks. Jadon and Brecken have a lot of fun together, while Leah is obsessed with baby Micah. Yesterday Erik and Krista dedicated Micah at our former church, Faith Family Fellowship's, outdoor service. We wanted to be there for the Petersons and reconnect with friends from Faith Family. We had a very nice time.

1st Day of School

Jadon went back to pre-school today. He goes to a 3 yr. old class at the YWCA with 2 teachers and 18 other classmates on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9-11. As we approached the school this morning he said, "Uh oh, we're getting close...I don't think I can do this." He was feeling shy, but as soon as we saw Brecken and entered the class room, he felt more at ease. He separated easily and had lots of fun on his first day.

Saugatuck '09

We spent another Labor Day weekend with the Pins family at a beach house in Saugatuck, MI. When we pulled into town, Brian and I took our kids out for lunch and shopping in the artsy downtown area. Then we headed to the beach house where we met up with my parents, Steph and her family, and Jeff and Jordyn. The first night we had our annual Fiesta party. The kids opened a pinata and my parents gave gifts to all the kids and grandkids. The next day we spent a lot of time on the beach, made s'mores in the evening, and had Casino night after the kids went to bed. On Sunday we spent more time on the beach and played games in the evening, Guesstures and the ever controversial Ungame. We left Monday around lunchtime. I had lots of good talks with my family and this was a fun last hoorah of summer.

Jeff was the big winner this year.

R&R

We had beautiful weather all weekend and really enjoyed the private beach. It was a short stretch of sand, but still fun and relaxing. The kids enjoyed playing in the tide pools and I had fun playing in the sand. I've never been much of a beach person because of my sensitive skin, but I am developing a real love for it. I think I could easily spend an entire week doing nothing but sitting on a beach. I love to make sand sculptures, play with the kids, and just enjoy the sound of the waves. Jordyn and I even enjoyed a long run on the beach early one morning.

We also had fun relaxing at the beach house. Jadon and Rachel would always share a chair for movies. We call them our twins since they're only 3 weeks apart in age. All in all we enjoyed a lot of R&R this past weekend. Thanks Mom and Dad for another great vacation!

Leah either had sand in her tush or didn't appreciate being photographed in her birthday suit.

Aww, Brian enjoyed a rare moment of calm snuggle time with Leah.