Tuesday, January 31, 2012

A few fun winter shots!

Do you know who this is?



Snapped these pictures last weekend when it looked like winter around here! Today temps were in the 50's!

Answer: The picture above is Sophie, for the first time Abby selected a brown winter coat, and Sophie picked the pink one!

Monday, January 30, 2012

Another wonderful week!

With a half day and a day off for the kids last week was full of lazy afternoons and snuggles! Can't beat that! What a great way to spend the last full week of January, and lead in to a busy week of kitchen cabinet refacing and pre birthday excitement!
Ernie's new favorite spot!! On the half day we met Tom for lunch, Abby couldn't stop snuggling him and Noah joined in the fun loving on Sophie! Thursday afternoon the kids made a 'nest' to snuggle up to watch a movie. While the girls were at art class Noah and I got a chance to relax at Barnes and Noble! Saturday night while Noah was at a slumber party (they girls went to one Friday night) we went out to Mexican and I snapped a picture of beautiful Abby with her crimped hair! Sunday morning the girls snuggled up in the chair while the snow fell outside!

Sunday, January 22, 2012

Our week in pictures

We had a busy, but wonderful winter week! Last Sunday we went sledding at a school near our house. On the way home we went out to the beach just in time for an AMAZING January sunset! Monday-Thursday Noah took snowboarding lessons in Grand Haven. He learned so much and had a blast (as I type this on Sunday he is back out there having fun!) It was a very cold a snowy week, the bottom L picture was taken of Grand Haven State Park on our drive to his lessons. Friday for our "hot chocolate" tradition I made the kids 'melted frostys' (family fun). Yumm! It was such a fun week!

Tuesday, January 17, 2012

Go Noah!!




Noah is taking snowboarding lessons this week in Grand Haven. After two days he is doing great with the tow rope, and awesome at boarding down the hill! It's amazing!!

Last week in pictures

I'm running behind with the blog, but here is a collage from last week....



A foggy morning at the garden, Abby drawing from her bird drawing book, beautiful snowfall, catching snowflakes, snuggling up to read "Wonderstruck" while daddy is in Vegas, a quiet night of reading for me after the kids are in bed. What a beautiful week it was.

Sunday, January 8, 2012

Weekend Love















We had a wonderful weekend that included the ice carving competition downtown Holland (even though temps were near 50!), individual time with each kiddo (I took Abby for a milkshake, Tom took Noah downtown for hot chocolate and to view the ice carvings, and Sophie to have a milkshake), the Lions game (bummer!), and lots of snuggling. We even got our tree taken down (finally!). Weekends are a gift, we loved every minute of this one!

Saturday, January 7, 2012

Gifts

This morning at basketball Abby was putting on her shoes (slower than Sophie's velcro ones). Sophie sat down and said, "Want me to start tying this shoe?" Abby, "Sure, thanks" Teamwork, a gift.
The kids brought home their Christmas gifts for us yesterday. They made them over a period of 5 weeks in art class at school. We LOVE them. They learned about southwestern storytellers (google Helen Cordero and southwestern storytellers...very cool!) The premise is that it is an object, the teller, is telling a story to a smaller object, the teller. Helen Cordero created the first one for her grandfather who always had kids on him listening to his stories. The objects can be people or animals and the listeners can be placed anywhere on the teller. They are amazing!! We love reading to our kids and this is such a treasure!

L-R: Sophie's (turtles), Abby's (turtles), Noah's (daddy and Noah)

Friday, January 6, 2012

My word for 2012: Look

2012: Look

“I have to learn how to see, to Look through to the Largeness behind all the smallness” -Ann Voskamp
This is the quote that sparked the idea for my word for 2012. Look, Looking, really seeing. I can see this word being the focus of my life this year for many reasons. The quote reminds me to look through the chaos and clutter that sometimes threatens to overwhelm moments to see what is important. What is key. What needs to be seen. It will help me focus on what needs to be done at a given time, and what can wait. I had considered making this year #2 of ‘yes’ because I feel I can still improve my ability to say yes to my kids. Saying yes to more snuggles and less dishes, yes to playing catch in the yard while dinner waits 10 minutes, yes to jumping in the pool just to enjoy some laughter. Saying yes in these instances will be easier when I am looking at these moments, the largeness, the important things. Yes dinner can wait. Yes the dishes will still be here later. Yes I am listening. Yes I am looking at what is important. These two words go hand in hand.
In 2011 I looked at and recorded 1000 gifts and blessings in my journal. To start 2012 the list continues to grow (1,091 to date). I want to use my word to continue to look for and make note of the treasured moments that fly by so fast. To capture them on paper, with my camera (maybe more regular blog posts are in my future), and in my heart. I will look for blessings, and savor them.
Finally I wonder how many times a day I hear the phrase “LOOK MOM!” I hear it so often I think I become immune to it. Occasionally I grunt a reply, or mumble something about “just a second”. Not as often as I would like do I stop, turn, and give my undivided attention to the child that has an item of wonder to share with me. Sometimes it’s a drawing, sometimes it’s a trick on the monkey bars or in the pool, sometimes it’s a beautiful fall tree (actually, that was WOW, but Look works too!), or as I heard about from Sophie this morning a squirrel “looking for food in the snow”. I want to hear my kids, stop and turn my body, look them in the eyes and look, really look at what they want to show me. I know the day will come where my kids don’t really want to show me everything, so for this year I want to soak in their wonder and really look.
This year, 2012, I will look and really see what is important in my life. I will look and I will treasure what I see.


(photo collage: a few of my blessings from the week: kids playing in the snow, darling green birds downtown Holland...right Tom?, snack at the beach on Wednesday with grandpa M., sun on my morning walk, a heated basketball game in Noah's room)

Tuesday, January 3, 2012

SNOW!









We finally have snow for the kids to play in! They dropped off their backpacks after school today and headed straight to the backyard! Happy Kids!!


ps: love my new camera lens (pics taken from inside the house where it's warm!!)