A Moment

On our way home from vacation, we stopped at Culver's for lunch.  Adelie was able to remove the top from her little milk carton all by herself.  So proud and excited, she jumped up from the table, did a little dance, and sang an original song about taking her top off.

Love this girl.

Love her enthusiasm.

Love that she's singing this song at 4 and not 16.

T-ball

Staley played t-ball for the first time this summer.  After her lack of enthusiasm for soccer, I wasn't sure how t-ball would go.  Although she only had 2 practices and about 6 games, she really enjoyed it.  She learned the fundamentals of the game, was able to hit the ball from the tee, almost made an out one time, and never ran the wrong direction around the bases, so I consider that a win.

She had encouraging coaches and a few school friends on her team, which made the experience even better.

Adelie and Briggs made some friends amongst the siblings, so they really enjoyed t-ball too.

I think that baseball is definitely a better fit than soccer.  I little more structure, a little less aggression needed, and a little more time to socialize on the bench.  Staley learned about the game, was always enthused about playing, and is looking forward to next year.  That's a win in my book!!

4th of July

There may have been some tears.  Some tantrums.  Some heat.  Some unsuccessful photo attempts.  Some difficulty getting out of the house in a timely manner, resulting in this mama walking several blocks with kids in tow to get to our parade watching spot since the parade route was blocked off.  But amidst the sweat and tears, we still managed to have another wonderful 4th of July.

Briggs loved his 4th.  He LOVED the parade.  He waved...and waved...and waved at every vehicle that passed.  He identified every tractor and fire truck and police car, but he picked his favorite as the "bubble truck" (which was a float that had a bubble machine blowing bubbles off the back).  He also loved the food, the cousins, and the fireworks.  And I loved the 3 hour nap that we both took.

Although the day started off a bit on the dramatic side, Adelie pulled it together for a fun day as well.  She liked the parade (especially the candy), playing with her cousins, glow bracelets for the fireworks, and sitting with Uma to watch the fireworks.  Although Staley didn't cover her ears at all during the fire trucks at the parade or the fireworks, Adelie did.

Staley enjoyed all her cousin time and staying up late for the fireworks.  She was also very enthusiastic about making things for our celebration.  She made a number of 4th of July signs and pictures, and was super-enthused about making the pretzel rod sparklers from her Aunt Sandi cookbook.

Adelie enjoyed helping make them as well, and they turned out really cute.

A parade, play time with cousins, good food, good naps, and fireworks.

Indeed it was a happy 4th!!

Question of the Day

While on vacation, we let each kid pick out one small thing to buy.  Can you guess which of my children chose a little car?  A sparkly mermaid finger puppet?  A face painting kit?

Can you guess which purchase I'm already regretting?

#whatwasithinking

#momentofweakness

#somanyplans

#therestofmysummer

Pentwater 2017

We just returned from another fun and relaxing week in Pentwater.  (Well, as relaxing as a vacation with 3 young kids can be anyway.)  Although the weather was a little cool and a little cloudy, we still spent most of our days at the beach.  The kids didn't mind the cool weather--it just meant more sand play and dune adventures.  Like every other year, Pentwater is all about beach time and family time and traditions.  And I love it all!!

Briggs loved the beach.  He loved the sand and the water and the snacks.  Briggs had watched us pack up all his sand toys and trucks.  When we got to the beach on our first day, Briggs looked around and asked, "Where's the sandbox?"

Adelie's favorite beach activities included sifting through the sand for jewels (small, polished white rocks), playing with Aunt Maggie (my mom's sister), and catching ladybugs.  She also loved dressing like "twinsies" with Carolyn since they had matching swimsuits.

Staley loved going on "dune adventures" with her cousins.  They would head up into the sand dune to build forts, make spy clubs, and explore.  When it was warm enough, Staley also LOVED going into Lake Michigan to play in the waves.

The kids had so much fun with their cousins and "beach cousins" (my cousins' kids).  There were 18 kids in all, ranging in age from 7 months to 12 years old.  One day, we ended up with 3 pairs of swimsuit "twins" among the cousins.  How fun!!

On the coldest of our days in Pentwater, we skipped the beach and headed to a farm market and petting zoo.  It was SO much fun and there was so much to do!!  We spent the entire day there playing and seeing the animals.

Briggs loved the barrel train rides and the giant sandbox.  He also enjoyed playing on all the different wooden playsets like the pirate ship, the tractor, and the train.

The big kids loved the giant jumping pillow, the wooden playsets, the spinning hamster wheel

to run in, and all the animals to see and feed.

Adelie was our most resourceful child.  Since we didn't buy any animal feed, she would find all the feed that other people had dropped on the ground and then give it to her siblings and cousins to feed to the animals.  She had more fun finding it than actually feeding it to the animals.

And the birds really liked Staley's shoes.

There was so much to do and it was a great way to spend a non-beach day.

This year, we had to switch up our living arrangements.  Because there are now 7 adults and 7 kids with my brothers and their families, we had to split into 2 houses instead of one.  We stayed in our usual house with Evan and his family while Erik and his family stayed with Ethan in a house down the street.  We still spent all our days together at the beach and our evenings together at our house, but it was a little different not living all together this year.

Evening time was still family time when we would all gather at our house for dinner and playtime.

Pentwater traditions remain the same every year.  We get together with the whole extended family for spaghetti night and s'mores night.  We walk into town for ice cream.  We always make time to go to our favorite stores and play games after the kids go to bed.

This guy definitely enjoyed s'mores night.

We also continued our tradition of trying to get all the cousins together for a picture with everyone looking in the right direction and smiling.  This was a pretty successful attempt!

Since the sunset comes after bedtime for our kids, Zach and I got to enjoy one of my favorite Pentwater traditions--Michigan sunsets on the beach.

I love our weeks in Pentwater.

I love that my family loves our weeks in Pentwater.

I love that we are carrying on the traditions of my childhood while making new ones along the way.

Thanks, Pentwater, for another great year!

See you next year!!

Screen-Free Summer

We've been having a screen-free summer.  For the past month, the kids haven't watched any television shows or movies.  We've always had limited screen time for the kids, but I thought taking it away completely would be met with some resistance.  Instead, I don't think the kids really miss it at all.  The other night, as a super-special family treat, we decided to take all 3 kids to see 'Cars 3' in the movie theater.  It was a special State Farm night with cheap movie tickets, popcorn, and drinks.  It was Briggs's first movie theater experience.  All three kids were super excited, and our night of family fun went perfectly EXCEPT...

1.  Briggs took an hour and half to fall asleep for his nap.  Therefore, we couldn't leave early enough to grab dinner before the movie like I had planned.  I guess popcorn and fruit snacks for dinner is better than nothing.
2.  Staley is always a little anxious about watching new movies, especially on a big screen.  She was covering her ears during the commercials before the previews even started.  She asked me no less than 20 times during the commercials and the previews if the movie was starting.  I had prepped her about the two more "intense" parts of the movie that I had read about, so she continued to ask me throughout the movie if it was time for those parts yet.
3.  Although I had mentioned to Adelie that she shouldn't drink her whole drink right away or she'd have to go to the bathroom, she drank it immediately.  Then she had a bit of a melt-down when she needed to go to the bathroom halfway through the movie because she didn't want to miss any of the movie.  Crying child #1.
4.  Briggs became a little bored about halfway through the movie.  He decided that the best way to combat boredom was to keep telling us he needed to go to the bathroom...because public restrooms and the chance to flush apparently are way more fun.  Briggs and Zach made no less than 4 trips to the movie theater bathrooms during the movie.
5.  Staley had what I can only describe as a panic attack when the movie ended and the credits began.  I'm not sure what triggers this reaction, but Staley always wants to leave or turn off the television as soon as a movie or show ends.  Because we were sitting towards the back of a crowded theater, I thought we'd just wait a bit to let the crowd thin out before getting up to leave.  My screaming, crying, hyperventilating, out-of-control daughter apparently thought that waiting was not a good idea.  Crying child #2.
6.  As I was already frazzled from Staley's epic melt-down, Briggs thought the best way to help the situation would be to scream almost the entire ride home because he wanted the toy train that had fallen on the floor that I couldn't reach while driving.  Crying child #3.

By the time we got home from our night of "family fun", I decided that:
1.  I needed a stiff drink.
2.  We really need to help Staley come up with some better coping strategies for movie anxiety.
3.  The rest of our screen-free summer should probably include movie screens too.

On the plus side, it was a cute movie that everyone seemed to enjoy.

Growing Up

My kids continue to grow up right before my eyes.  It's fun to see them change and develop into their own little people, but it's also bittersweet as I see these innocent days of childhood slipping past so quickly. 

Staley is starting to grow up.  She wants privacy when she's using the restroom or changing.  Although she and Adelie still play together often, there are some occasions where she prefers to read silently in her room rather than play with her siblings. She's been asking about having a room of her own, and is starting to ask for new clothes rather than new toys.  Staley is starting to outgrow some of our favorite summer activities.  When we went to the Farm Park for princess day, she didn't want to dress up, opting instead for a tiara that she removed as soon as we entered the park.  She has requested not joining us for toddler time at the pool unless she can bring a friend. When we go to the park as a family or with one of Adelie's friends, Staley takes on a more "caregiver" role rather than a playmate role.  I see her interests changing as she becomes more and more of a "big kid."  I love her independence and her willingness to be a helper, but it makes me sad to see her leaving some of her younger ways behind. 

Although Adelie isn't changing quite as much as her siblings right now, she also continues to grow up.  She will now do quiet "reading" time in her bed or on the couch for 20 or 30 minutes at a time.  She wants to wash herself up at bathtime.  She is getting her shoes on the correct feet more and more often.  We have been doing "learning time" most days while Briggs naps, and Adelie now knows almost her entire upper case alphabet.  (She still usually misses one or two letters each time.)  Adelie is also growing in faith.  Of all my kids, she says the most heartfelt prayers at night and will often pray throughout the day for things like help finding a missing toy or for her leg to feel better after she's gotten a scrape.  Her sweet, thoughtful nature is still so evident in all she does.

Of all my kids, Briggs is changing the most quickly right now.  He is leaving behind his baby-ness and is becoming more and more little boy every day.  He is done with diapers (when he's awake).  He is done with his high chair, now wanting to sit in a booster seat at the table.  "I do it mineself" is something we hear all the time, whether it's taking off his clothes, washing his hands, or climbing into his carseat.  I feel like every day I'm cleaning out clothes or toys or books or baby items that he has outgrown.  I love his growing independence and his little personality and his ever-increasing verbal skills, but my baby is leaving behind his baby ways.  I want to hold on, to slow it down, because all too quickly he'll be the one too big for toddler time and I'll be the one wondering where the time went.