I remember the day you were born...

That was then.....


This is now.....



6 years ago today my little Chloebear was born. I remember that it was Sunday and we had lunch at the Pastor's house. It must have been painfully obvious that I was ready to be done being pregnant because the pastor's wife suggested that I drink some castor oil to see if we could get labor going. It sounded good to me, but I didn't exactly know what castor oil was for. We stopped at Meijer on the way home and I picked some up. Put Abigail and Joshua to bed and I drank my concoction of castor oil and orange juice. It was TERRIBLE!!! But...after 4 hours of unpleasantries I started having contractions. Bob and I went to the hospital in the middle of the night. The doctor, who happend to be the same guy that delivered Joshua, wanted to make sure that I was really in labor and told us to walk around the hospital for a few hours and they'd check again later. We saw every inspirational poster in the place. When we finally went back to the labor floor they checked me and sure enough I had progressed enough to prove that this was it. After 2 completely natural births I decided I was ready to try an epidural. Unfortunately for me it didn't take on one side and I felt totally gyped. They finally got me all numb just as it was time to push, what a waste of a needle in my back. When Chloe came out the cord was wrapped around her neck but it was really short and the doctor couldn't get it off. She was a little purple and we didn't hear her cry right away. It was very scary for those first several moments. Bob had a very worried look on his face and he was just praying. The doctors did what they do best and Chloe's apgar was totally normal the second time they did it.
We are so thankful for our Chloebear. She has this snuggly little way about her and people just fall in love with her. That could cause some trouble in about 10 years. Good thing she'll have Joshua and Josiah to be watching out for her. Chloe loves to play with baby dolls and stuffed animals. She always has purses and bags filled with stuff that she feels the need to carry around with her. She has a sweet spirit mixed with a little mischief and spunk. :) She is the special gift that God gave us 6 years ago and it is my privilege to be her mama.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY CHLOEBEAR! I love you!

Josiah's 1st day of school

Today was Josiah's first day of preschool. He was so excited! He will be attending 3 mornings a week. Maybe it's a 4th child thing but when I dropped him off he went directly to the table where the kids were playing, looked up and said, "Bye mom." That was it. No kiss. No clinging to my leg. He was ready. I think that's good....isn't it. When I picked him up his teachers said that he did great. They said it was like he had been there all year. He really enjoyed painting and loved playing outside! He even gets to eat lunch at school and that is really cool. I think it is going to be a great experience for him and we are very thankful that he has this opportunity. He's looking less and less like my baby everyday!

Christmas Memories 2009

This is my chronological photo documentation of Christmas.

It all began on Saturday, December 19. We had "Early Christmas" at home; I even made monkey bread to make it really feel like Christmas.

We got Mario Kart for some family fun. The boys tried it out and discovered that it is a little tricky and we'll need some practice learning how to get the cars to go in the right direction. :)

I included this not because it's a great picture of me...only because it is literally the only photo taken in the entire two weeks that includes me! Isn't that how it always is?

Josiah got his own shaving kit for Christmas. Bob gave him some pointers and now he's a pro! He remembers to shave everyday...can't say as much for his daddy!
This is what happens to little boys when they stay up late the night before Christmas and then expend a great deal of energy opening their presents. Couldn't even stay awake long enough to eat his monkey bread...don't worry it didn't go to waste. I ate it. :)
Here we are at Bob's parent's house on Christmas Eve. We enjoyed some yummy pizza and had fun playing with Uncle James and Cousin Faith.
As always we observed the Dutch tradition of eating our chocolate letters on Christmas Eve. Joshua had his devoured in about 10 minutes. Yummy goodness.



I just love this picture of Abigail and Bob. People have been telling us how much she looks like him since birth but I REALLY see it in this shot.
Christmas day after attending church with Bob's parents. We've found that if we let the kids pose for a wacky picture....

...then they do better for the real one!

We enjoyed a nice Christmas dinner and then it was time for shenanigans with Uncle James!
We rounded out our time in Grand Rapids with some shopping, bowling and a visit to the children's museum...and I forgot to bring the camera. Then we headed to Kalamazoo and spent time with our dear friend Barb and her family and also with Chuck and Kathy and their family. Finally we said good bye to Bob, who is staying in Michigan for the month of January, and headed down to Dayton for New Years. The children were ecstatic to see their buddies and had a wonderful time! Joshua and Keith figured out how to get connected on their DS's and played lots of games together.

Ok totally wacky...Tracy and I bought these sweaters for the girls completely independent of each other. Even matched up the right color for the right buddy. When we discovered what we had done Jeremy's only comment was, "scary." :)
Best Friends Forever!
New Year's Eve festivities!

After the kids went to bed on NYE I enjoyed playing some euchre with our friends (no one in Boston plays euchre!) Got to bed way to late but enjoyed every second (only thing missing was my honey). New Years Day I set out on my journey home. 1 mom, 4 kids (including 1 that was puking), snow flurries, engine light turned on....but in the end we made it safely. The bad news is that the check engine light was indicating a serious problem and my mini is now getting a major repair. The good news is that it is completely covered by the warranty and the dealer gave me a loaner until it is done.
Praising God for all the many ways He blessed our family this Christmas! And wondering what He has in store for us in 2010.
Merry Christmas and a very happy new year!

Literally Speaking

Last Sunday Josiah clearly demonstrated that he is in that stage where he takes everything literally. He wanted to wear his handsome clothes to church and after he got dressed I said, "Hey Buddy, you look sharp!" A few minutes later I heard him talking to Bob. "Daddy don't touch me...I'm sharp!"
Just a little while later in church the Pastor told us to turn to one another and "Pass the Peace of Christ". The gentleman in front of us turned around looked at Josiah and said, "Peace." Josiah looked up at him and said, "I'm not peace, I'm Josiah." I laughed out loud at that one...mostly because it's ironically true.

Buckeyes...my holiday staple!

Buckeyes - It's as easy as 1, 2, 3!
1 lb Butter/Margarine, softened (I like to use Blue Bonnet)
2 lbs Peanut Butter, creamy OR crunchy (I like to use Skippy)
3 lbs powdered sugar
6 bags semi sweet choc chips
1/2 block paraffin wax

Beat butter and peanut butter until smooth. Add powdered sugar in small amounts until completely combined. It always gets too thick for my little hand mixer and I have to finish with a wooden spoon. Roll into balls and chill or freeze.
Melt choc chips and wax in double boiler. Dip balls into choc. using a toothpick or skewer. Chill or freeze. ENJOY!

If you don't want to do the choc chips and paraffin you can use candy melts or the dipping chocolate that you can buy now. I have tried several different methods and while others might be easier, I prefer the choc chips.

Look for "Gulf Wax" when searching for the paraffin. You should be able to get it at Wal-Mart or your grocery store might have it as well.

Have Fun!

We had a BALL!

Last night we attended the Bureaucrat's Ball, a Harvard event, and had the most wonderful time! I've been rushing around trying to put my outfit together for days and yesterday all my planning came together. It was so much fun to get my hair done and put on my beautiful dress and my sparkly shoes. Bob was also looking very handsome in his tux! The event was held at the Harvard Faculty Club which was very elegant. The only downside to the night was that it was snowing so my fabulous strappy shoes were completely and utterly impractical and somewhat ridiculous to walk through the snow with...but it's the price we pay, right girls! There was dancing of course and fancy little cakes and desserts that were scrumptious! It was just all around fun! Bob and I really enjoyed the time together. I'm looking forward to the time when I can put on my little red dress again but the clock struck midnight and the dress is back in the closet, my strappy shoes are put away and the ever so heavy chandiler earrings are back in the box. I'm comfy cozy in my hoodie sweatshirt, jeans and fuzzy boots. :) Dressing up is so much fun but I'll never trade in my tennis shoes for heels...not even ones with sparkles!

Many hands make light work...sort of.

We have several large trees in our yard and they have been bare for a few weeks. The kids and I have raked them into piles twice but we never got the yard waste bags to actually take care of them. We had a nice Sunday afternoon last week and Bob decided it was time to get rid of the piles. So we all pitched in and filled 30 yard bags and three trash cans full of leaves. It took about 2 hours but the kids hung in there and worked hard! They were even enthusiastic about it most of the time. :) It was nice to complete the task together and the yard looks MUCH better. I hope the kids will be as excited to shovel snow!!!