the little things that keep us sane...

finally finding a good home for our games...

 

 cute little bag on a nail next to the games...

...to hold the little pieces that escape and I find later

(so I don't have to open 3 different game boxes at that moment,

 or be tempted to just throw those silly pieces away!)

my life as a momma this morning...

(wanted to get this down as all of these things are pretty typical at some point in our house, just happened to all be at once this morning.  love our life and kids and wouldn't trade anything, just gonna need some extra chocolate today!)

:: tired - all 4 kids up last night and I took a lot of it.  (S does lots of nights too so I am not complaining here, just stating what last night was)
:: terribly congested - picked up the crud last week from the kids (hoping it just stays in my head and doesn't go to my chest where I have to deal with asthmatic stuff)
:: thought we were up early this morning, but when I got the kids to the breakfast table it was 5 minutes later than normal late
:: the special breakfast that I promised the kids was met with turned up noses, even though they scarfed samples of it down in the store and begged me to get it
:: the clever (I thought) suggestion I gave to G was met with that "Mooooom!" scoffy stare that will only get more frequent as she gets older I am afraid
:: said/strongly insisted "stop messing around and EAT!" about a hundred times
:: stuck poor H in his high chair with puffies while the big kids ate and I got lunches ready...he likes watching the big kids, but I kinda left him there after they were finished so I could get things together
:: told G&W not to fuss about the simple bagel they were getting in their lunch because of time constraints, but then agreed to cut up apples which takes me longer to get ready
:: remembered to heat the water for S's coffee, but not actually brew it (thankful he was ready quickly this morning so he could do this part and pack his own lunch, thanks honey!)
:: remembered the apple for W's applesauce day (don't remind S of when I forgot it for G in kindergarten), but forgot an assignment that G needed to do for her book group - gave her 5 minutes to quick try to complete it before leaving for school
:: since we had to look for W's other tennis shoe everywhere, tearing up all sorts of things and kind of going crazy about it, and S finally found it in his hat and mitten drawer (why, dear W?!)
:: had to continuously tell C to wait with his request for an apple so we could get Dadda and G&W out the door (was giantly annoyed that he kept asking every 3 minutes!)
:: didn't fully unpack the van last night so sweatshirts were in there when the kids needed to put them on
:: so very thankful that we build in a 10 minute window for traffic on the way to school...we needed every one of those 10 minutes this morning (know S probably drove super fast too)
:: thankful it was a morning S could bring them to school so I didn't have to try to get H and myself ready either...they wouldn't have made it to school before lunch
:: since I haven't had a shower in 2 days and am in very comfy but very ugly pj's
:: rushed to the couch for our routine wave out the front window where I think I broke a smile for the first time in an hour
:: finally cut up an apple for C, put H back in his high chair to feed him real breakfast, and ate the leftover special breakfast the kids didn't want
:: H scarfed down his breakfast like I haven't fed him in 3 days, but C threw a impressive 3 yr old fit about the peels still being on the apples (I have been transitioning him from peeling the whole thing, and usually take about half the peels off, but forgot)
:: ignored C at first, but then crabby about a whole apple going to waste and me not wanting to eat it after 3 other bowls of granola/yogurt, barked "would you eat it if you could do it in front of kids tv?!"
:: C stopped fussing immediately and said "yes."
:: and he ate the whole thing just now while watching a kids show on PBS
:: thankful H played so nicely so I could contemplate the rest of the day (and type this) while C watched tv...
:: there are dishes on the counter from last night, ummm and the night before (although not on the table, thanks to new rule!) that need to be done
:: there is a basket of clothes that needs to be folded, and one that needs to be re-folded since H of course empties that one vs the non-folded one
:: there are floors to be picked up and swept/vacuumed
:: there is a sewing/craft project that I so want to get to for H's rapidly approaching 1st birthday (how. can. my. baby. be that old already?!!!)
:: yet most of that will have to wait as I will probably need to bring H in to the dr for an infection that most likely came from the anti-biotics for his ear infection from last week
:: so off to call the dr and try to load the dishwasher (there are no spoons left) and get ready (probably not a shower though this morning though, that will have to wait for H's nap later) and get C a drink of water and change H's stinky diaper and answer C's five hundred 3 yr old questions.......

2012 CCS marathon...

Our family once again participated in the annual CCS marathon to raise money for the school.  The money raised is used by the PTF to purchase and update equipment, supplies, and other things needed to enrich the students' education.  I really don't care for fundraisers (would make an AWFUL saleswoman), but this one is very important for the school and for our kids as students there.  Plus we don't have to peddle cookie dough or coupon books, we just do our part to participate and ask people to support us and the school.


G was particularly excited this year because it is the first year she knows how to ride a two-wheeler without training wheels.  S would the boys in the bike trailer, and H & I would help out with the registration and check-in table this year rather than biking.  Most of G's riding has not been long distance so S and I were prepared to do just as much as she was able to. 

Although when the day dawned we weren't even sure we wanted to leave the house - it was 28 degrees F out!  Cold, cloudy and windy, the high wasn't supposed to get much above 40 degrees F.  But we bundled up in winter gear, packed up and headed out.  And we were so glad we did!  What a great day with the CCS community...everyone cold and bundled (hot dogs and hot chocolate helped!), but smiling and biking and walking and running to support a great school.  And we were so proud of G as she biked all the way around the lake (3 miles), which was her farthest bike-ride to date.

We completed and mailed thank you letters this morning, which G & W were as excited to write and help with as they were to call family members to ask for pledges.  They both raised a great amount of money for CCS.  Thank you all for your support and generous donations!!!

ready to go!

so. cold.

2012 Marathon family photo

Here is a look back at the previous marathons that we participated in:
2011 Marathon
2010 Marathon (SUCH different weather!)

a humbling lesson...

Last week as G was getting out of the van at school, she realized that she had forgotten her backpack.  On this particular morning I was tired, fighting a bad cold, and not in the mood for forgetfulness.  I scolded her, but agreed to go back and get it for her since it was library and she had a note for the office from us as well.  (Plus I can go and get it for her since I am at home...I know that there are many families that don't have that luxury.).  I grumbled and fumed the whole time - I mean, how could she forget her whole backpack?

Backpack was delivered with big hugs and smiles from my daughter, but there was definitely a lecture about responsibility after school.

Then we get to Sunday.  Sunday mornings are especially busy since we have to have everything ready for church and Sunday school and get the whole family dressed presentable and out the door on time.  S and I usually get a majority of the things ready on Saturday night and this was the normal case this past Sunday.  But we were running a little late and it was a big rush to get out the door.  When we got out of the van at church I realized that I forgot my Sunday school bag (I teach the 2-3 yr olds)...the whole thing.

Big. Slice. Humble pie.   Thank you, Lord.  May we all have a little more grace with each other, since the Lord grants it to us continually.

(thanks to an extra teacher's manual at church 

I was able to make due and teach my class...

I know those are lessons that 

G must learn as well.)

house updates...

Before I update you on the many kiddo and family things that have been happening, I thought I would update you on our house.  We have done some major updating last summer and this summer, and are excited with how things turned out!

Last summer we did a MAJOR remodel project.  And it all started with a few cracks in the linoleum floor in the kitchen 3 years ago...=)  Things never are as simple as replacing the floor.  It kind of snowballed to new appliances, re-arranging the kitchen, new cupboards, new floor throughout the main level (since most of it was connected), and extending the entryway by enclosing the large stoop we had outside the front door.  All things we wanted to do, but wanted to be efficient about it.  Which meant waiting and saving and getting the whole sha-bang done last summer.  Now, S is not super handy-man, but he learns easily and can follow directions well and we do have super handy-men in our family so the original thought was to take the time and do a lot by ourselves with help to save $$.  Then we found out we were pregnant.  And my very smart husband started researching contractors. =)  We found some wonderful guys through a reference from church friends and they started in on 7/11/11, and finished 8/23/11. 

I wanted to wait to blog about it until it was all done, but then realized I never did.  sorry!  But I did keep a Picasa web album updating family with progress pictures and I think that pretty much tells the story.  Here are the final before and after photos!

Kitchen:  changed from peninsula to island layout, updated appliances, cupboards and floor.  LOVE it!  It flows so nicely for our family and is such a beautiful space where we spend a ton of time. (favorite parts?  bedsides everything?  granite countertops and pantry...and ice maker in the bottom freezer fridge...oh and the lights above the island, and the new dishwasher...and the floor...)

Entry-way:  As much as we love the kitchen, this might be our favorite part of the whole remodel.  It completely changes how we function in this space!  Before whenever you came into the house or had guests come in it was crowded, doors hit doors and there was always snow and mud tracking towards the dining room since you had to walk in that far to get everyone in and close the door.  Plus there was not much room for coats let alone backpacks!  Now we have room to breath, a wonderful tile floor to track snow and wet in on, and places to put everything.  (favorite parts?  totally the built-in bench for all the kids stuff and the pretty red front door...)

There were some outside things that we wanted to get to as well last summer, but the budget just couldn't squeeze out any more.  So painting the house and the deck and patio waited until this summer.   The painting was necessary due to the remodel last summer - we just left it primed until we could decide if we wanted to do a new paint color, rather than paint it twice.  The patio had a dirt inlay that the previous owner had beautiful flowers in, but with our kids that just didn't work and we tried a few different things but it basically was just weeds and grass and a pain to mow.  And the deck had quite a few board that were bad as well as all the railing spindles.  So much that we had a number of them snap in half and we wouldn't let the kids out on it anymore.  S cut and laid pavers to get rid of the patio inlay (with some help from Papa B!).  We had the same guys that did our remodel last summer back to put on a smaller maintenance free deck for us (more lawn for the kids to run!), and they did a great job again.  The kids liked seeing Mr. John and Mr. Harvey and the project was done in a couple of days.  For painting, while Steve offered/threatened to pick up a brush and start many times this summer, we ultimately decided that the time wasn't work it with the kids being the ages they are and we got a recommendation for a house painter from a friend at church.  He was a one man crew, very nice, and very particular (which was so nice to find since my dear husband is quite particular when he paints as well), and in 4 days our dear house was beautifully covered in Sherwin-Williams "peppercorn."  Here are the before and after shots!

Front of the house:  1st photo is the front of the house after we moved in (whose car is that?! =), the 2nd photo is after the remodel last summer with the entryway bump out, and the 3rd photo is after it was painted. (favorite part?  how the entryway remodel looks like it should have always been there and how the trim and red front door just pop with the new paint color...)

Back of the house:  1st photo is after we moved in, 2nd and 3rd photo are before we started working on things this summer (we had already moved the bridal veil spirea bush to the front of the house and taken out some of the flower beds for more lawn for the kids to run on), and the last photo is after all the projects are done.  (favorite part?  how getting rid of the grass makes the patio feel twice as large, and how getting rid of the little bump out on the deck makes the backyard feel so much larger too...)

(Least favorite part of all of this?  The endless hours of making decisions for all of this.  If we were going to do this, we wanted to do it right so we wouldn't have to re-do it in a few years, plus that darn money is always a factor.  Almost as bad as choosing baby names...)

There is one more big addition we added

 to the backyard this summer, but it deserves

 a post in and of itself here soon! =)

coming around again...

(doing my best to channel c.e.b. minus the professional talent, fabulous camera and dreamy lens...=)

So.  Life is busy with 4 small kiddos.  This is an obvious statement.  =)  Things were starting to get to me a while back and something had to give.  And this little space of ours here was it.  At the time we were having a few computer issues and blogging required a lot more effort to get accomplished so I decided that I was just going to forget it.  I wanted to blog and even stored up all my ideas for posts in my head thinking I would get back to it in a month or so, but then 2-3 months passed and I just decided that I couldn't make it work.  So I would post new pictures on Facebook every once in a while, but I didn't even post much there either.  And I was fine with this decision until last week.

Last week I had to go through pictures of W since he was going to be the Very Special Person in Kindergarten this week.  He needed to bring 10 pictures of himself showing how he has grown, his family, and things he likes to do.  I LOVE looking through old photos so this was a lot of fun.  I remember doing the same thing for G when she was in Kindergarten (seriously, that statement right there just bowled me over as I typed it...how can we have a child old enough to already say "when she was in Kindergarten"?!!!), and I remember doing a blog post including all the photos we picked out for her.  So I got on the blog to find that post.  I didn't find it with the search function so I had to just start paging through posts like this and this and this and this and this and this.  Now I wasn't just looking at old photos of the kids (which I had been doing for the last hour plus), I was looking at the stories that went with them that I took the time to write out.  It was a digital scrapbook of our children growing up...which is exactly why I started this blog in the first place.  How could I let this go and not make it a priority?

So you are going to be seeing me more in this little space of ours with some new stuff and some old stuff (I never stopped taking pictures this summer, so now I will just try to tell some of the stories that go with them before I forget =), and hopefully we will be able to look back at 2012 someday and see all the normal things that happened to us and not make the comments "what happened to them?  didn't H have some 'firsts' that year?  didn't C learn how to pump by himself on the swing?  didn't W have a birthday party?  didn't G take swimming lessons?  didn't they go to the state fair!?"

 

2012 first day of school...

Are you ready for first day of school pictures for TWO kids at Calvin this year?  (momma may not be ready, but here they are!)

 Grace ready for 2nd grade!

 Willem ready for Kindergarten!  (really?  really?  he can't be big enough for this already!)

Everyone with Aahma Bruin!  She happened to be at our house for Grace's first day of Kindergarten and enjoyed sharing in the fun so much she asked if she could come for Willem's too!  It will be great to have her around for Carsten especially these first few days - I think he is going to miss his older siblings a lot!

 

Grace and Ms. Walstra

 

 Willem and Mrs. Bierma

 Waiting for first day of school chapel to begin.  The kindergarteners all get to sit with thier families until the end, and they have a parade behind the teacher to the classroom - a great way to avoid the crying at the classroom door separation.  Willem had NO problems!

After school picture by the Calvin sign!

 

 And after school backyard picnic with Mrs. Lynne and Aahma.  Lots of exciting stories to hear about thier days!

school things...

School stuff is out at Target already, and I refuse to go to that corner of the store.  Seems WAY too early!  Although I know the rest of the summer will fly faster than I am ready for.  So maybe I should post about a few school things from last year before the new one creeps up on me...

OK, for posterity, I have to tell you how a PBS show that saved my sanity this past year.  With G going to school every day, and having a bit more homework, we had to figure out how to squeeze play, homework (for first grade homework every week G had spelling words, memory verse and then just needed to read read read), and normal daily life into those few hours from after we get home from school until bed.

We first said no tv during the week.  At least take that out of the mix.  We then said no to errand running/visiting other people's houses as we found a few times that we tried to go to someone's house after school (or a big Target run), we wouldn't get school things done and everyone would be overtired and bedtime would be crazy awful.  (an aside, after we settled into somewhat of a routine, this no going anywhere "fun" during the week got everyone crabby so we started Fun Fridays, which is a whole 'nother post in and of itself)

We knew we wanted to make sure schoolwork was done, so at first we tried doing homework right away after getting home from school.  That didn't work - G needed to unwind and play right after school otherwise the tears and frustration came out way too early.  So then we tried letting them all play until supper and then doing homework afterwards.  This did not work on my end as there were too many times that supper got delayed for whatever reason and then we were frantically trying to do schoolwork before bed and tears and frustration came out from everyone at that time of the day.  So then we tried letting them play for a while after school and sitting down to do homework before supper.  This brought out fussing and more fussing because who wants to stop playing to do school stuff when she had already been at school all day!  There were many days in these trial shots that we would all get frustrated and I would throw my hands up and set them in front of a video just to reset everyone, including me.

I then read a book called Steady Days which talks a lot about being an enthusiastic mom at home and also routines.  They had example routines in an appendix and I was just going to flip by them because as much as I know routines are good, I sometimes feel defensive and cramped in when told to make or follow them.  But the routine I flipped by happened to have a school aged child and a toddler so I looked.  And low and behold after school there was 30 minutes of tv time.  GASP!  These kind of books never have tv time in them!  Good mothers don't let their kids watch tv!  GASP GASP!  (OK, by the way I don't believe that at all, we regularly watch kids shows and videos in moderation, but most "mothering" books that I have read seem to believe that screens are evil.)  But that got me thinking that maybe the only reason we said no to the tv was because someone else said that is what we should do and maybe we needed re-evaluate.  Thus we came to the "routine" that worked for us:

• we came home from school, G unpacked her bag and took care of her things and I got a snack for everyone
• the kids played or did whatever until 5:00pm
• at 5 they could watch the PBS kids show "Wild Kratts" (we liked this because they never complained about stopping play to watch tv, and this show has a lot of animal information and the kids actually learned a lot, plus it gave me a half hour to take care of H or start on supper)
• at 5:30 they turned the tv off, NO FUSSING (if they fussed, they couldn't watch tv tomorrow)
• then it was chore and homework time (I would have the boys pick up some toys, and G would sit at the island in the kitchen and read out loud to me, or look at her spelling words, or her memory verse, while I finished up supper) with the same NO FUSSING rule
• we then ate supper and could relax afterwards before bed

The PBS show provided the relaxing fun downtime the kids needed, and provided a great demarcation line for playing and getting homework and daily chores done without all the fussing and drama.  Who knows if the same routine will work this year with W being in school too (PBS is known to change their schedule, I don't know if I can help 2 kids with homework and make supper in a decent amount of time so we are not eating at 8, and there is still C&H to help and take care of too!), but I know that we'll figure out something that will work for us, and hopefully quicker and with less tears than we did last year!

That right there is probably enough for a blog post in and of itself, but during the month of May and the last week of school in June we had the opportunity to do a lot of things with G school-related so I am going to share those here too.
 

G's class had a Family Afternoon where we could come and see some of the things they had been working hard on all year.  We got to visit the library where G read us one of her favorite classroom books. 

We also got to spend a lot of time in the classroom and listen to Mrs. H talk about their year and things they had learned as well as play some math games and look at their animal projects.  Fun afternoon for all of us!

I also got the opportunity to go on a field trip with G's class in May to the Bell History Museum.  It was a short afternoon trip so our neighbor Mrs. L helped me out and watched all the boys so I could go (Thanks!!!)

May also brought the end of the year music program which Mrs. L was able to attend with us. (hear a song here!)

Then during the last week, the school had a field day where they split up into teams, played all sorts of games, had fun with some bouncy castles, got pizza for lunch and popsicles (the fancy kind!) at the end of the day.  W and I (and H =) got to go too as they invited next year's kindergartener's to come and play in the bouncy castles and watch the field games.

One of the teachers told me a story about G from that day.  The teams also had to come up with cheers, and G was on the pink team.  They were trying to think of some rhymes with pink and one of the 8th graders said "pink pink we are pink you all stink" and G looked at her and said "we shouldn't say you stink, that isn't very nice"  And the 8th grader looked surprised, said ok, and they changed it.  The teacher was touched by G's ability to stand up to an 8th grader and voice what she thought was right.  She told me that she hoped G would be able to continue that as she meets more challenges in life.  I sure hope so too!!!  They had beautiful weather and a great time together as a student body outside of the classroom.  These are the days that they are going to remember when they grow up...

crawling...

Our dear little H decided once again not to be like normal babies.  Normal babies start sitting up around 6 months.  Nope, not H.  He decided to crawl...kind of a cross between an army crawl and the butterfly stroke, but it gets him around and he gets faster every day!

happy father's day!

Happy Father's Day to my wonderful dad, my great father-in-law, my amazing husband, and all the other dads out there.

I think my favorite part was seeing how excited our kids were about Father's Day and how they wanted to plan all sorts of special things:  baseball gloves, a special crossword puzzle, a few extra holes of "golf", and homemade angel food cake with strawberries and ice cream...good day with dadda!

I am so blessed.