A great weekend with great friends and great bread!

We were blessed to spend the weekend with Dan and Kate in Detroit. The ladies did some shopping and we had an amazing dinner (at 11pm...we've still go it!). If you are ever in Detroit you MUST eat at 'Slows' bbq. Amazing, simply amazing! We had a great time at the Pistons game on Sunday..even if they lost during the last seconds! We are so thankful to have such wonderful friends!
Today the kids and I made homemade bread and I caught them on video putting in the most important ingredients....enjoy! (my sound isn't working...can you hear the video??)
The crazy purse is my latest knitting project (thanks for the sewing help mom!)

Sweet Abby Jane

Another late post is for my sweet Abby Jane. We celebrated her 'special day' on Wednesday this week. This is an especially sweet day for us because we finally had all of our babies at home. Our family was together, and together we would stay! Abby is such a joy, and fills any room with her love of life and love of others. She is truly amazing. Needless to say there was a lot of pink on her day that included pink roses (ok, I brought her to the grocery store to pick out flowers...she has good taste!) and pink frosted cookies. She choose funny meals too: raisin bran for breakfast, rice for lunch, and homemade mac and cheese for dinner. We are so thankful for the joy that Abby brings to our life!

Last Weekend!

As this weekend approaches, I realize I did not post from last weekend!!! We enjoyed a wonderful weekend with my parents in town. They had not been here since the kids' birthday! We had lunch at 'Froggy's' and attended the St. Patrick's Day parade downtown. The kids loved the flying candy!! After that we packed up our sugar shocked kids and went to GR for the circus. It was a kids dream come true, complete with tigers, clowns, elephants, cotton candy, and popcorn! It was 3 hours long, and they loved it!! What fun!! (sorry about the red eyes...my computer has 'issues')

Butterflies and Ice Cream!!!

Today we went to Grand Rapids to see the Butterflies at Fred Mejier Gardens. This is an annual tradition that we have done since the kids were 1! Today our amazing friends Kate and Jack joined us. It was fabulous as always! The kids loved looking for and finding the butterflies in their "field guides". It was fun to watch 1 year old Jack experiencing the sights and sounds for the first time. We enjoyed lunch in GR afterwards. When we returned to Holland, a sure sign of spring met us, today Captian Sundae (our favorite seasonal ice cream store) opened for the season. Granted, it's about 30 degrees out, but we loved every mintue of our ice cream. Spring is on the way!!

You know I love my t-shirts: Today I came upon an amazing website 'Wild Olive Tees' that sells the most awesome christian t-shirts I have ever seen! My favorites are 'such things' and 'transform your mind'. Check it out (see button on my sidebar).

Sophie's Special Day and Tiger Socks

Monday we celebrated our strong, smart, caring and funny Sophia's special day. Again, we are so thankful for her, she has come so far from the tiny little bundle we took home 5 years ago this week (and even farther from her tiny beginning). Sophie loves to snuggle, and I savor every moment! Sophie loved her special day and selected two versions of PB and J for breakfast and lunch and CHEESE pizza for dinner. It was a wonderful day celebrating Sophia Grace.

Abby Loving her daddy!!

I was able to finish Noah's other tiger sock this week too. He wore them proudly to school today! Love it!

Special Friends, a special day, and a special sister

This past weekend our special friends Tonia and Elle flew in from Annapolis, MD for a visit. We hadn't seen them since July so it was extra special. The kids picked up right where they left off, and were holding hands, giggling, and squealing throughout the entire weekend! Tonia and I also picked up where we left off chatting, laughing, and shopping! It was wonderful, and went way too fast!

Sunday was Noah's "Special Day" which is the day he came home from the hospital. He was excited to select his dinner of spaghetti and meatballs (Olive Garden) and celebrate how he has grown! What a special day it was when he came home, and I am thankful every day for how strong, healthy, loving, and tender he is.

And last but not least, happy birthday to my wonderful sister Martha, yesterday, March 8. Love you and miss you girl!!

Starting to Read

Happy March! Yesterday the kids started, "reading" at preschool. We have started to do sight words with them at home, and they were really excited to learn more. The teacher sent them home with a reading page (aka short poem) to read to us (moving their finger from word to word) 10 times. They return the paper and exchange it for another one, etc. Before long they will be bringing home books! Where did my babies go?