Super Snowman

Trevor and the kids had a blast building a super snowman last night. Apparently it is 9 ft tall. Fun times!

Impact Basketball 2013

The girls both had their last games of the season today. This was Kianna's first year playing basketball. She was fun to watch. She runs around the court with a constant smile on her face. She is quite aggressive, plays excellent defense, boxes out, and even scored baskets a couple of games. She is already telling me she wants to play again next year, which makes this mommy proud!

This was Kaylee's 3rd season playing basketball and we have seen great improvements each year. Her dribbling, catching and passing improved immensely over the season. I believe she scored at least one basket every game this season. She continues to get more aggressive. She was one of the more experienced players on her team and it really showed.

Today was really exciting. Our game went into overtime. We were down by 2 points with 8 seconds left on the clock. Kaylee got the ball and swished it. We ended the game with a tie thanks to Kaylee's shot. It was an AWESOME way to end the season. Go Bulldogs!!!

Weekend in Iowa

Empty couch during the party

Da Girls

Funny Faces

Sisters, Grandma, Mom and I

Da Boys minus Trace

Showing Grandma the memory book I made her.

Kianna lost her first tooth!

Birthday Boys

Bryker with his new penguin Dreamlite

Naked boys (I told them to cover their privates for the picture)

We went back to Iowa this weekend to help my Grandma Carie (GG) celebrate her 90th Birthday. My sister, Stacie, organized an open house. My grandma had a steady flow of friends stop by to visit with her. Grandma said she didn't know she had that many friends and was very honored. In addition, my sister, Shelli, and her boyfriend, Scott, flew in from Florida and we came from Michigan. We had an ongoing joke during the party regarding the fancy couch Stacie rented. She had hoped to have my grandma sit on it during the party. However, Grandma liked sitting at the kitchen table and so there she sat while the couch remained empty, at least it was empty when I took the picture.

The party ended with Kianna losing her first tooth literally as we were getting our coats on to leave. She has been wanting desperately to lose a tooth for quite sometime. I don't think she could have been any more excited to have finally lost one. Apparently, Aunt Shelli had made a deal with her that if Kianna lost her tooth before the party ended that she would give her money. Aunt Shelli kept her word and Kianna scored $20. I think at that point we were all wanting to lose some teeth. When Kianna returned to school she brought in her tooth so she could receive a tooth necklace, a sticker, and whatever other special rewards they get. She is still smiling a week later about losing her tooth!

The party was on the perfect weekend for our family as it was also Mid-Winter break for the kids. They didn't have school on Monday or Tuesday, which meant we got to stick around for a few days. We stayed with Trevor's sister, Sam, and her family in their new home. It was fun to be able to spend some extra time with them. Trace LOVES playing with Bryker and so do the girls. Kaylee LOVES playing with Bruxen and helped feed him several times, as did Kianna. I think Kaylee is preparing for her babysitting years already. On Sunday, we got to celebrate Bryker and Trevor's birthdays, a few weeks early, with some yummy buster bar, a dance party, and some Wii time.

On Monday, we managed to visit with a few friends. The Grimm's, recently moved into an old farm house, which we hadn't seen yet. We stopped by their new home, got a tour, and visited for awhile. From there, we took my grandma out to lunch and then back to Sam's place to hang out for the afternoon. My grandma gave me the perfect gift, a framed poster which I now have hanging in my bathroom. It reads "Wash your hands and say your prayers because germs and Jesus are everywhere." How perfect is that!? I love it! We finished off the day with dinner at The Issa's house. We are blessed with good friends and family. There is rarely a dull moment when we are back in Iowa.

We made it back to Michigan on Tuesday, just in time to eat dinner and head to Kaylee's basketball practice. Let the week begin...

Valentine's Day 2013

At school today was "Crazy Heart Hair Day", so the girls had fun going to school with some seriously CRAZY hair.

This year I decided to try a new idea I found on Pinterest and "heart" my family.  What that means is that everyday, beginning on February 1st, they woke up to find a new heart on their bedroom door. Each heart contained a word or phrase about something we love about them. They looked forward to reading their new hearts each day. On Valentine's Day, they found a heart filled with chocolates waiting outside their door, which was another fun surprise. In addition, Daddy brought the girls and I each a bouquet of flowers and Trace got a new car for Valentine's Day.

Trevor got a sitter for us to enjoy a night out, which is always appreciated. We went to Ann Arbor for some yummy Thai food and then watched "Safe Haven". We had a great night out, but the best gift of all was that Trevor left his iPhone at home. I'm kind of a smart phone hater, so it was an awesome act of love. It was just he and I for 5 hours of uninterrupted time. I loved it!!!

A little known fact is that Valentine's Day is also my half birthday. Until recently this was not a big deal. However, in school the kids get to celebrate their half birthdays and so they wanted to make mine special. Kaylee made me peanut butter toast for breakfast and then after school the kids let me pop a couple of balloons that had special messages inside. It was a sweet gesture and a GREAT day.

Silly Kids

Trace and Kianna have been having some fun dressing up lately and this is what we have found recently...