School's Out for Summer!!!!

We had some fun on our first day out of school! I got out at 11:00, went and picked up Sadie and Brooks, headed to Cobe's school to get him and the fun began. We picked up pizza and Chase came over. Chase and Cobe went to a party at Crazy Bounce and I went to visit Gpa Hains in the hospital. After that, Brooks, Jake, Jeffrey, Chase, Cobe and I went to see Speed Racer. It was 2 hrs. and 15 minutes long. I got bored until the last hour, then it got really good. The boys all seemed to enjoy it. After the movie, we came home, grilled hot dogs and ate outside. The boys got up a great game of baseball with Ryan. We have some tired kids tonight! Tomorrow morning, Cobe has another baseball game, then we are heading to the Boeves for some guitar hero and grilling out. Can't wait for the summer activities to begin!!!!!!! Haven't posted pictures in awhile, so here are a few from our outdoor fun:

Jake

Jeffrey

Sadie

Cobe

Brooks

Chase

Sadie

Ella Pearl

Brooks

Cobe

Baseball, baseball and more baseball

3 games this week makes for a busy week! Cobe's team played the Tigers last night and won 12-2. They asked Cobe to pitch in the last inning b/c it was 12-1 at that point, and I think they thought they'd let a 5th stringer pitch. He said no! I couldn't believe it. I thought he should have tried it, but he was too nervous. I pumped him up in case they ask him again. I told him they could always take him out if the other team got too many runs. :-) Tonight he has another game against the Phillies to make up the one game that got rained out. He and Ryan are headed there now for us to soon follow. And Saturday is his third game of the week against the Mets. The games are fun to go to so I don't mind them as much as I thought I would.

Updates from last post: Grandpa Hains got horrible news yesterday, then better news today. Yesterday they told him he most likely had 1 if not 2 tumors because they could not get to his bile duct at all to drain the bile that has backed up in him. They did a CAT scan after they couldn't do the procedure they intended to and told him to expect the worst. They also said there was nothing they could do for him. There were many a tear shed last night. But the doctor came in at 6:30 this morning and told him that the CAT scan showed no tumors at all. Wow! God is good and prayers were answered! Is he out of the woods? Most likely not. They also took tissue samples to send to pathology, so the results from that are still pending. And something is causing the bile duct to be so blocked that the Dr.'s can't even get to it. He was having another surgical procedure done today at 4:30 to drain the bile through a tube in his side to give him some relief. A specialist had to be called in for that. Please continue to pray that they find answers for Grandpa's illness and that it is not life-threatening.

Sadie is better today. 1st day of no fever since Sunday! Yay! She is majorly congested, but we can deal with that.

Wanda sent a CarePage update today as well plus it was all over the news that a helicopter in training crashed into Spectrum and the helicopter was on fire, so they had to evacuate the building. How horrible! She said all of the pediatric units were evacuated, but not the cancer ward were Odee was b/c he still needed to receive his chemo. Please continue to pray for him.

We had another showing last night so I had to bust a move to clean by myself since Ryan was out of town. I am sooooooooooo glad he is home. We haven't heard any feedback yet from the showing.

My mom's retirement party is tonight in NC. So wish we could be there to celebrate with her. Jeff and his family and Brent were able to go. I tried to work out going, but life gets in the way sometimes when you live 880 miles away. Congratulations Mom on a hugely successful career!!!!!!

Off to dress the kids warmer- it always seems 10 degrees cooler at the ball fields than it is at home and since Cobe's game is starting so late, I am sure we'll still be there after the sun goes down.

Last day of school/work tomorrow!!!!!!!!!!! Yippee-yi-yay!!!!!

We covet your prayers

Please pray for Ryan's Grandpa Hains. He has surgery tomorrow at 2:30 to figure out what is causing all of his problems these past two weeks. He is 88 and weaker than usual, so many prayers are needed. Please pray specifically that whatever is blocking his bile duct is benign and easily fixed with a stint.

Also, please pray for Ryan's uncle Odee (Arend Lenderink) He was just diagnosed with Leukemia on Friday and started chemo on Saturday. Please specifically pray that he is pain-free as he has been in severe pain for weeks and pray that the chemo works to fight his cancer.

And please pray for Sadie as she is still sick with a fever.

We all know from experience that God is good and He does deliver through prayer. Thank you!

4 more days!!!!!!!!

Wow! Each year I can't believe how time flies! 4 more days of the school year, and it seems in some ways that we just started this year. In 4 days, I will have a 3rd grader, a kindergartner and a 3-schooler! I can't be getting that old! :-) My work schedule changed for next year too- still only teaching 2 classes a day, but they will be in the morning, so I'll have the whole day free which will be nice instead of having to watch the clock all morning anticipating going to work. I'm sure it will be much nicer.

Pretty low-key here today b/c Sadie is still sick. She has perked up a ton this afternoon, but still had a high fever this morning. She slept all morning, but hasn't wanted to sleep again this afternoon, and she ate lunch and has been snacking as well, so I am assuming she has turned the corner. I ran some errands this morning- got some hanging baskets and some other flowers to plant as well as dropped off a planter for my porch for the greenhouse to fill. I hit Wal-mart, Party America and the dollar store before heading home. When I got home, the men of the house went to the Kaat fields to practice ball, and Sadie and I planted our flowers. She rode her bike for awhile too. I washed all the bedding- sheets, blankets, mattress pads, pillow shams, stuffed animals, etc. on Sadie's, Brooks' and our bed to hopefully get all the germs out of here. Poor Cobe is the only one who doesn't get clean sheets tonight! Haha- That's what he gets for sleeping on the top bunk!

Saturday, Lisa and I went to Tangier Outlet Mall in Howell, MI, and we put a hurtin' on that place! We got lots of shopping done. I have gone down 2-3 sizes in clothes lately (Yay for me!), so I needed a whole new summer wardrobe. Yesterday, I spent a few hours going through my closet and all my drawers and trying on clothes. It was nice to weed out so many old things and replace them with new things! Thanks to Missy too- she gave me some of her clothes that she has down-sized out of. It's funny though how I go and blow so much money and when I get home I think.... hmmmm.... still don't feel like I have anything to wear! :-) I live in shorts and t-shirts all summer though, so I guess I'm set!

I think the pool in our new neighborhood probably opened today, so we will start hitting that soon. It looks like the weather will be too cool for the next few days, but hopefully by the weekend!!!!!!!!! Looking forward to some good pool days and beach days this summer! FREE fun times will be top on our agenda!

We are going to grill some burgers and dogs, so I think I'll go start getting that ready. I'm hungry!

Fun Party Night

Wow! We had such a great time last night in Saugatuck. We hung out at the Corner Bar first with Bells, Overbeeks and Everses, then headed to Mermaid's for dinner. I was so impressed with Mermaid's- we had 18 in our party for dinner, and they served us right away, got all the orders right, gave us all separate checks, and the whole dinner went great..... for us anyway. Mary Jo called me at some point right before we got our food and said they had taken the kids to Russ' for dinner, and Brooks threw up 4 times in the restaurant after he ate. Ewwwwwww! I felt horrible that she had to deal with that. She said not to come home because he seemed fine after he threw up. So we stayed. :-) After Mermaid's with the gang (Bells, Overbeeks, Everses, Doans, Turners, Holsteges, Bekins, Lamers), we left and went to Wally's. We met up with 8 other friends (Boeves, Koopmans, Drneks, and Overwegs) who originally were supposed to eat at Mermaid's too, but ended up going to Corner Bar for dinner. We hung out at Wally's for awhile, then we went to Marro's. We only stayed there a few minutes b/c half of our group (mainly the guys) couldn't get in, so everyone left and went back to Corner Bar. We sang, danced, and had a great time. It was a late night!!!!

This morning we slept in until 10:00, then I called MJ to check on Brooks. She said he was fine, but Sadie had started throwing up and had a fever. Ewwwwwww again! She said she was back sleeping, and for us to still come for lunch. Once we got there, Sadie seemed better, but is still running a fever. I am hoping it stops with those 2 and doesn't travel through Cobe, Ryan or myself. We had a delicious lunch and headed to the new house to see progress. They are still working on trim, so more of that had been done. That must be the slowest part of the building process b/c there is so much trim, molding, library paneling, etc. in the house.

Now we are home, Sadie is back asleep, and I may be headed there myself right now!!!!

Memorial Weekend

We started off our holiday weekend at Cobe's baseball game. They played the Cardinals and won 6-0. It was fun b/c Lynette and her boys came to watch, Tonya and her family were there b/c Collin is on the Cardinals, and Tim and Chase came as well to watch. After the game, Ryan, Cobe, Chase and Tim left to go see Iron Man in Grandville. I came home and gave the other 2 a bath and put them to bed.

Tomorrow, Lisa and I head to Howell to hit the outlets b/c I was frustrated by not getting a lot of time there yesterday. It definitely got me in the shopping mood, and I only had about 45 minutes to shop. I went to Aeropostle (I was with 7th graders remember!!!!!) and got 2 shirts, so I want to go back and hit the million other stores I really wanted to get to.

Then we'll head back to get ready for a big night out on the town in Saugatuck. There are 30 of us going out in Saugatuck- I can't wait!!!!! We have a group of 18-20 and a group of 8 eating at Mermaid's first, then we're all heading to a bar after dinner to meet up with a few more friends. So looking forward to it!!!! No big plans for the rest of the weekend- Cobe is supposed to walk in the parade Monday morning, so I'm sure we'll go to that if the weather cooperates. Right now, they are calling for thunderstorms, but I haven't been able to tell what time of day they are predicting them for. I hope to pick up some flowers and hanging baskets this weekend as well to brighten up the house a bit.

Dateline tonight is on the Janet Chandler case so I am off to watch that- a lot of Holland cops are on it supposedly and Lisa's dad, Ken, served on the jury for this case, so I am interested in watching it. Have a great weekend!!!!!!

Detroit Tigers

Cobe and I had such a great day at the Tigers game. It was a bonus that they played so well and won 9-2 (especially for Cobe's sake). We took charter buses and left school about 8:15am. We went to Howell to the outlets and shopped a little (a very little- didn't have much time), ate lunch and got back on the road by 11:20. We made it to the VERY LARGE stadium about 12:30 for the 1:05 game. I had 7 kids in my group, and they were very well-behaved and easy to watch. All the kids seemed to have fun. Of course we had to blow some money on Tigers souveneirs for Cobe, Brooks and Ryan. Our bus made it back safely and all the parents came quickly to get their kids, so I'd say the day was a success..... for the 2 buses that were with me anyway. The other 3 buses that went straight to the ballpark had some angry parents because they were way later getting home than us because they couldn't find their buses after the game. And about 30 kids/chaperones never even made it to the game b/c the last charter bus never showed (it hit a deer on the way to our school and had to be towed). So those poor kids had to go see a movie instead. Bummer!

Off to work now- last day this week- 4 days next (and those aren't even full days!!!!) YAY for summer break!!!!!!!

Preschool Graduation

Brooks graduated tonight from preschool and earned a diploma. I took a ton of pictures, but unfortunately, accidentally deleted most of them. Ugh! Boeve said you could see the improvement Brooks had made since 3-school. Last year at his program, he curled up in a ball on the floor and all the kids had to walk around him. This year, he stood where he was supposed to, but did not sing a single word or do a single motion that he was supposed to. Oh well- at least it's progress! :-) Haha Here are a few of the pictures that didn't get deleted- they are all from the playground where all the kids went after the program.





Sadie got to spend the day at Lovie's house. She was pleased to tell me all of their adventures. She was so tired from missing her nap, that she went right to bed at 4:00 when we got home, and went back to bed right when we got home tonight from the preschool program. Thanks Missy for tiring her out!!!!!!

Weird Feeling

It is Sunday night, but it doesn't feel like Sunday night. The kids don't have school tomorrow- teacher workday for K-5 teachers, so Cobe is off spending the night at his best friend Chase's house. I still have a regular work day tomorrow, so it just seems like he should be at home. Yesterday was Chase's birthday, so Cobe got invited over tonight to Chase's family party. Brooks slept ALL afternoon, so I am sure he'll be up until 11:00 or so before he can get back to sleep. We had a nice, relaxing day though. We went to church, went by our new house- they have about 1/2 of the trim done- doors are up, lights were on, so it felt a little more finished, then came home to work on the MASSIVE book report that Cobe has due this week! (Haha- Hey Em!!!!) For some reason, there have been a lot of tears shed over this book report. Ryan and I have been trying to help him, but I guess we are just too dumb because according to Cobe, we don't understand anything about how to do this report. Every suggestion we have come up with hasn't been right. So today, I sent him to his room and told him he was on his own if he wasn't going to accept the help I was willing to give him. Thank goodness he changed his tune when he came back down and thanked me profusely and from then on, all my ideas were good ones. Hmmm.... teenage hormones in such a little body! But he worked his little butt off all afternoon making a great poster. He had already done the rough draft as he read the book this past week, so it was a matter of him writing out his final draft, gluing some pictures on, and drawing a picture. He got it all done except for the picture, so we can manage that tomorrow night. Phew! Glad homework is almost behind us for a year- I am afraid we're going to have some long years ahead of us b/c Cobe would rather be doing anything else besides homework. I hope Brooksie has a different attitude about it, or else I'm doomed!

I made dinner and no one was really around to eat it- Cobe was gone, Brooks and Sadie were sleeping, and Ryan wasn't hungry, so I packed most of it up and Ryan took it over to his grandparents. I made terriaki pork, broccoli casserole, scalloped potatoes with sour cream and chives, and golden brownies. I wasn't about to let it go to waste. Ryan's grandpa Hains is not doing too well. Mary Jo and Carol noticed that he was really yellow looking and thin last week. He went to the doctor and he said he was jaundiced. He underwent some blood tests and an ultrasound. The blood tests showed an inflammation of the liver, and he'll get the ultrasound test results back tomorrow. Please pray that it is a simple virus causing this inflammation and not liver cancer, hepatitis or something else serious. He has not felt well and hasn't had much of an appetite either. I talked to Grandma today and she thought he was looking less yellow and feeling somewhat better today than he has been.

Lisa came over after dinner and we went for a long walk. It is nice to not have a schedule- I look forward to summer so we can experience that freedom daily. I am going to watch her girls in the morning while she works, then she'll watch my kids, then we are going to hit the pool tomorrow afternoon. Same plan as usual with the kid-watching, but Aliyah and Cobe will be in the picture tomorrow since they don't have school.

Well- I have two little ones to get to bed. Even though Brooks won't be tired, Sadie will be. Hope everyone has a great week!

Baseball- Whitecaps and Pirates

We decided to go to a Whitecaps game last night- it was a beautiful night and lots of kids from Cobe's school were going to be there (reading program night). Another elementary school was there as well for their reading program, and we knew lots of those families as well. It was a really fun time. We got to sit with Lynette and her family and the Tresemers. It ended up to be a double header, but we only stayed for the first game because it started getting late and Brooks was ready to hit the road.

This morning the Pirates (Cobe's team) had another baseball game- they won against the Athletics (13-5), and he scored 2 runs. He was excited! I had to work the concession stand the whole game because each team has to take a turn if they are the visiting team. About half the parents end up working the stand at some point. I dreaded it, but it wasn't too bad. I could see the field from where I was working so I saw Cobe up to bat 2 of his 3 times. I probably saw more of the game than normal b/c Mary Jo and Jim were keeping up with Brooks and Sadie instead of me. Thanks a ton!!!!

Off to fold laundry before heading to Saugatuck for the evening. I should try to sneak in a nap as well, but there is no time for that. :-)

What's a mom to do?????

I am sitting here listening to..... absolutely nothing but my fingers clacking away on the keyboard. Ryan got home from work, packed up the kids, and left. We have another showing tonight (worthless- people still have a house to sell themselves), but it bought me some free time in my house. I don't know if you other moms feel the same way, but free time ALONE in my house doesn't happen much, and when it does, I SO enjoy it. I get free time quite a bit to go do stuff- run errands, go out, whatever else I may need it for. But rarely do I get free time in my house- love it! What did I do so far? Clean for the showing. Even that doesn't bother me since nobody is here to mess it up. :-) I cut up some fruit, and now I am posting this. If I had a bigger chunk of time, I could clean out closets and drawers or something fun like that. Haha

House update: our house is drywalled and the ceilings are done. The trim guys started today with the trim. Now that they are inside, it does seem to go slower, but according to our builder, we are still ahead of schedule. I have picked out the flooring, cabinets, counter tops, tiles and hardware for most of the house. I only have the paint colors and lighting left I think. Plus Sadie's bathroom floor and counter top. I am really pleased with how everything is coming together. The interior decorator I am using is excellent and having one has helped me more than I thought possible. I can't wait to see everything come together!

Cobe lost his baseball game on Tuesday night. His first loss (they lost 10-2 to the Braves) wasn't really upsetting to him like I thought it would be. I thought he'd be bummed, but when I told him I was sorry they lost, he said, "Why?" I guess I"m glad he reacted that way rather than being mad or sad about it. They really had a pitiful game and never got any energy or momentum going. Oh well- there's always next time. :-) He plays again Saturday.

We only have 10 days of school left- 2 of those being delayed start days and one being a half day. Also, one of the days (Thursday) we are going to take the 7th grade to a Tigers game. I got permission for Cobe to go with us, so he is pumped, and I am MUCH more excited about going since he gets to go with me. I can hardly wait. I had no idea that Comerica Park had a ferris wheel and carousel. The teachers think the kids won't even want to watch the game b/c there is so much to do inside the ball park. We are taking charter buses and stopping in Howell for an hour and a half on the way for outlet shopping. My kind of field trip! Then we'll head to stadium for a 1:05 game. I am so excited!!!!!!

This weekend brings a night out with the family tomorrow night- we may go see a movie and go out to dinner or something fun anyway. Brooks really wants to see Speed Racer, so I'll have to check and see where that is playing. Then Saturday evening brings a night out with Rob and Missy to Saugatuck. We are going to go early evening so Missy can share her favorite shops with me and then go to dinner somewhere. I am looking forward to a laid-back but fun weekend. Hope yours is a good one!

Randomness

I had a wonderful Mother's Day! I got several very sweet cards from each kid, my mom and my husband. I got a dozen red roses from my husband and kids, a clay pot and photo album from Cobe, and a picture frame with Brooks' picture in it from him. I am truly blessed to have such a wonderful family.

Yesterday was the last "real" BSF- next week is a fellowship and sharing night, but no lesson to prepare for it. It seems like I won't know what to do with my Monday nights from now on- 32 weeks of BSF each year. I always look forward to all that I will learn, even though sometimes I dread going. I am blessed each week that I go. Next year is the study of Moses, so I hope I can work out going for my 5th year. Tonight we have another baseball game- we play the Braves. We are heading out the door pretty quickly to make it to that. Some pictures:

Lynette emailed me this one of Cobe from the game on Saturday- thanks Lynette!!!!!
Brooks accomplished the goal of learning to ride his big "2-wheeler" and he is proud as punch that he can do it. It is torture to get him off his bike now that he knows how to ride it.

Brooks' "girlfriend" Kennedy got to spend some time at our house yesterday. She is in love with Brooks and he likes her too, even though I only overheard him telling Cobe that when he didn't know I was listening. He won't admit it to me. :-) She's a cutie!
Sadie was pretty thrilled to have her here as well. Sadie, Kennedy and Maya

This was what Brooks did everytime I tried to take a picture. Kennedy was begging him to get in a picture with her, but he refused. She kept saying, "I really want a picture of us together Brooks for my mom." So cute! Mister sly-guy kept hiding behind a broom so I couldn't take one! He was WORN OUT last night from having to show-off for her all afternoon! After she had dinner with us, he asked when she was leaving. It whipped him trying to impress a girl for a full day! :-)

Exhausted!

I'm whipped tonight. We have had a busy week- parades, crazy work schedules, baseball, etc. It has all been fun, but I am paying the price tonight. Today started with Cobe's 9am baseball game. I first swung by Rodney and Liz's to see the baby and pick up Landon to take to the game with us. That baby Olivia sure is a cutie! I can't remember any of my babies ever being that small (which they were) but my brain can't comprehend taking care of such a little peanut! We went to the game- Brooks was thrilled to have Landon along to play with! Those two are cute together. Cobe got "walked" every time up to bat- never hit one, but he didn't strike out either. ;-) His team won again. I'm hoping for his sake his winning streak continues! I left during the 6th inning to rush over to the high school for Maya and Aliyah's dance recital. Unfortunately, I was exactly one minute late and walked in the exact moment Maya's ended. Ugh! But at least I got to catch Aliyah's and Josee's and several of my students' dances as well. We left there, came home for lunch, and left again for the parade. Sadie loved every minute of it. We cut out a little early from the parade, headed to Meijer to pick up a few groceries, went and checked on the new house, delivered some jewelry from my party last week, and came back home. Two guys came from Ada to buy my china cabinet and hutch that I re-listed on Craig's List Thursday night. After they left, we ran and picked up some dinner. See why I'm tired? :-) I made a jello salad for tomorrow's lunch in there as well at some point. After the kids' bathed, I put them to bed- it was 7:42. Funny thing.... they are all quiet as mice and needed to be in bed that early I think. And I'm heading there myself REALLY soon.

Happy Mother's Day to all of the wonderful mothers I know. Being a mother is definitely the toughest job I have and the hardest role in my life, but it is also the most rewarding. I can never thank my mom enough for all she has done for me over the years- sorry for never appreciating it enough as I was growing up. I had NO idea what you had to do to keep our family safe, happy, healthy, well-fed, well-dressed, active in sports and church, doing well in school, ETC. ETC. ETC!!!!!! THANK YOU MOM- I now appreciate it more than you know!

I also pray for those mothers who have lost children and those children (no matter how old of a "child" they were) who have lost their mothers.

Happy Mother's Day!

Recent Pictures

Here is the only picture I could take of Cobe today- he wore a hat this morning, a hood at the parade, and hid from me numerous times. I caught him by surprise to snap this one as he ate his lunch.


This is Sadie the other night- I was trying to get a picture of Cobe and he wouldn't let me. She is always a willing model.
Presley came over this morning, and we had a blast with her. The girls played so nice together and were SUPER easy- I didn't have to intervene once. They are so cute together. We went for a walk, then they played with babies or "went shopping" the rest of the time.
And Brooks was quite the ham at lunch. He was saying all sorts of stuff to try and be funny so Maya and Sadie would laugh at him. He posed willingly for me, so I thought I better take advantage of his good mood and turn it into a photo opportunity.

Can you believe this head of hair? She is scary! Such wild hair and it matches her wild personality. After lunch, we put pigtails in to calm down the mane a bit.

It has been a fun day so far. I didn't have to work today, and the kids had a half day for Tulip Time. Presley came over this morning to play while Kristen went to her ultrasound. (I am not going to spill the beans Kristen b/c I noticed you haven't posted your news yet!!!!!) We had plans to go to the parade, but it started POURING. We nixed those plans, but about 1:30, it stopped raining and we decided to go for it. So glad we did- the weather was perfect for a parade and Lisa had put down blankets so we had good seats. Wendie and Missy brought plastic bags/tablecloths and put those on top of the wet blankets so we could still sit on something dry. The parade seemed short, but the kids enjoyed it and their trip to the Peanut Shoppe for candy & treats! After the parade, we went to Chase's and picked him up. He came back here to play and the boys are in the basement now being loud. They played basketball for quite awhile before coming inside.

Another showing tomorrow... SPONTANEITY people! SPONTANEITY!!!!!! At least our house is still clean from Monday- just a little wiping down/straightening up to do tonight after the kids go to bed.

Tomorrow is another half day- I have to work though. This weekend brings more baseball and another parade, and hopefully I can make it to Aliyah and Maya's dance recital as well. We are having a mother's day lunch after church at Jen's, as well as celebrating Jake's and Braelyn's birthdays. Looking forward to the weekend and to summer- only 16 more days of school and 4 of those are half or delayed start days! YIPPEE!!!!!!

The Haircut

No, this is not it.....


Boy, oh boy, did we have a traumatic 18 hours at our house! Cobe got his hair cut last night and you would have thought the world was ending. His hair has needed cutting for some time now, but he wouldn't agree. He finally agreed on Sunday that he would have it trimmed. Well, I called Lisa and told her to cut it all off once he got there, which she did. She regretted it though and felt like it was her fault that Cobe was so upset WHICH IT TOTALLY WAS NOT HER FAULT!!! But I knew how she felt, I felt horrible for making him so upset. He said he was so embarrassed to have hair that short because his ears were too big. Poor little guy got his mama's ears, but they are not nearly as bad as mine were. He looks adorable to me with his short hair. He was so happy when he got home from school and seems to really like his new short do now. It only took him a day to recover! :-) Brooks was so sweet and said to me in front of Cobe, "Mom, I really like Cobe's new haircut." I think he thinks it is cool now. I will have to try and snap a picture of it tomorrow- he was not about to let me do that today!!!! The picture above is from Jennifer -thanks Jennifer! She took it of Cobe on Friday at their walk-a-thon celebration. This was the last picture taken of him with his long hair.

Cobe had another game tonight- his team beat the Orioles 13-1. He scored a run and had a good play at 2nd base as well. He was up to bat 4 times (walked three and struck out once). He seems to be getting the hang of this game. It was a fun night because Lynette was there, Tonya was there, and Medendorps were there because all of our boys were playing on different fields. So I enjoyed myself since I could run my mouth! Grandma and Grandpa Hains even made it to the game. Grandpa got beaned with a foul ball from another field- hit him right in the hand and then hit his knee. Ouch! We left the game and met up with Jen and her boys at Old Mill for ice cream with Jim, MJ, and the Hains. We took Landon and Bailey with us, and Chase and his family met up with us there as well. The kids had a blast wrestling in the grass. Cobe's team plays Landon's team on Saturday morning- the rivalry heats up because both teams are undefeated!!!!!! :-)

We had yet another showing yesterday. We did not even want to bother- it is the same indecisive family that has already gone to see Amanda's house 3 or 4 times. They have 4 kids, so I already tried to tell the woman our house would be too small for them. But she arranged it with our realtor, so we had to show it. Ryan cleaned the house from top to bottom before we found out it was definitely this woman, so I felt bad that he put so many hours and effort into cleaning it. It really is frustrating when you know you have a showing for someone that you know doesn't really want to see it. I think Kyle said this lady's realtor said he has shown them over 60 houses, and they still can't find one they like. Hmmmm..... seems like to me they must have more time on their hands than I do! I have decided that people need to be more like us, the Bells and the Lauritzens- see something you like- boom- make an offer that day! :-) Why can't someone be spontaneous with our house?????? Aaaaahhhhh, I can only dream about what it will be like to never have another showing again -EVER!!!!!!

Hopefully I'll be back tomorrow or the next if I can sneak in a picture of my little boy's cute new haircut!!!!!

Brooksie's New Skills

Here are some pictures of Brooks on his little bike. He is already a pro and can pop wheelies! He is quite comfortable riding without training wheels even though he has only been at it a few days. The next step will be to get him on his bigger bike. :-)



Is this a proud face or what???????

We have had such a great weekend- CALM which is why it has been great! Saturday Cobe won his 2nd baseball game (6-2), so that was the highlight of the day. The fireworks were canceled once again Saturday night b/c it rained all afternoon/evening. So we stayed home. It was nice to be home with just us. This morning, we went to Sunday School and church and then over to Knollwood to see the progress on our house. They have drywalled the entire house and are ahead of schedule. It is looking good! We hit Subway then headed home to eat. Sadie went down for a L-O-N-G 4 hour nap, and Lisa and I went for a walk. Cobe went to Onstott's to play. When I got home, Tina, Luke and Micah came over which was nice b/c I haven't seen her in forever. We got to catch up and chat for awhile, then Ryan and Jason took Cobe, Brooks and Jake golfing. Sweet! Free time for me! We were going to go downtown to Kinderplaats and to take pictures of the kids in the tulips (for the calendar mom!!!!), but once golfing was suggested, off they went! Fine by me... the tulips will be there tomorrow, and I didn't know that Sadie was going to sleep until 5 o'clock! She is still in snuggle mode and is on the couch with blankets watching Little Bear. I am going to go try and throw something together for dinner so it will be ready when the golfers return. Hope everyone has a great week!

The Slumber Party that Wasn't

I thought we would be going to Cobe's baseball game tonight and then meeting up with some people for the Tulip Time fireworks, but the storms predicted changed those plans. It stormed mid-afternoon, so the fields were too wet to play and it is storming again now and raining hard, so I guess it is a good thing they postponed the fireworks until tomorrow night. It was a beautiful afternoon though after it stopped raining. Once all of our plans were canceled, the boys both wanted friends to spend the night. So Cobe invited Chase and Brooks invited Evan to come over. All was well until it neared bed time. They had all had so much fun- the big boys hibernated in the basement, and the little ones had been riding bikes outside, then watched a movie upstairs. But then Evan decided he wanted to go home, and Chase decided he wanted to go home as well. Cobe ended up going to Chase's to spend the night instead. No, we aren't mean to the kids when they are here- I promise! :-) They both just got a little homesick.







Sadie had a fun day with Kendall as well. They play very well together. Sadie was worn out tonight after trying to keep up with the diva all day! ;-) Rob said Missy did very well during her surgery. I hope to talk to her tomorrow to hear her say how easy it was so I can have it done!!!!!!!!

Brooks surprised me tonight and showed me that he can indeed ride a 2-wheel bike. This has been a touchy subject because he has never been interested in learning to ride his bike without training wheels. Cobe was 3 when he learned, so I kept pushing Brooks to try. He had absolutely no interest... until.... we went to his bike-a-thon last weekend and Evan was riding a 2-wheeler around like a pro. It must have sparked something in Brooks because he had been practicing all week by himself without even asking us for help. This afternoon, he called me outside, and he took off on his bike. I could not believe it! So he got to show Evan tonight when he got here that he now too can ride a bike! Boy was he proud! He hasn't showed his dad yet, so he is saving that surprise until tomorrow morning.

Cobe has another baseball game tomorrow-don't know yet if the fields will be dry enough to play on. His coach seemed to think that they may still be too wet, so we'll see. I hope he gets to play! We will try to go to the fireworks tomorrow night if the weather cooperates. Tulip Time equals rain every year for some strange reason!!!!! Have a great weekend!

A Favor

If you are reading this, can you stop a minute and surround Missy in prayer? She is having her Lasik eye surgery done today at 1:30 and of course is nervous. Please stop a moment whether you know her or not and pray that the surgery will be a success and that Missy will feel a calm due to the many prayers that surround her. Thank you!