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...