Tunneling Through

We just HAD to get outside today.  It has not been the most joyous of days..weeks..so I figured a couple of hours outside would do every one of us good.  We have some serious mounds of snow at the end of the drive way and I decided it would be fun to tunnel through them.  We had built a snowman.  But I may or may not have made him to big and I could not lift the middle section up.

 Adelyn coming through the tunnel for the first time.

 Jojo coming through

Little B.  Didn't get a good one of him because the girls were standing in the way.

 Miss Adelyn working on the roof.  Tomorrow we are going to make it bigger and possibly tunnel through the other side!!

Showing off our hard work :)

 

 We came in at 6:00, everyone was starving so I threw some food on plates and this is what Eric and I ate.  Eric was NOT impressed.  Apples and peanut butter, what's not to like?!

Attempting…Ice-Skating

To start off with.  One of our worst mornings in a looooooong time.  I had dropped Brecken and Joelle off at my parents and I actually went home.  Then I decided I couldn't stand the thought of being in the house.  So we went back to GR.

When we had MNO last month we thought it would be fun to take our older kids skating.  We planned a day and 4 of us could make it.  We went to the Parsley Mediterranean Grille for lunch.  Um.  Yum.  Soo good.  We headed to Rosa Parks afterwards to watch our cuties skate...err...walk with skates on.  The skate rental is a little walk from the rink so you have to walk there..with your skates on.  We couldn't believe how well the kids balanced and walked with the skates on..but then when we got to the rink, it was a whole other story!

 I couldn't decide which of these I liked better.  So I posted them both.

She looks like a cute little old lady

 The boys attempting to skate..  Chloe was already off skating around the rink ;)

4 little cuties...

 3 little cuties

 

aanndd 4.. 

 

 aanndd we lost them all.  Ha.

  

Adelyn decided this was "her" acceptable form of ice-skating :)

 

 My pretty little lady and I.

  

 Trying to get a picture...with 8 people on skates.  Per William "It is slippery!" ...and Adelyn isn't picking her nose.  The next picture (not published) is of her brushing her hair out of her face..

 Bahahahahahahahaha.

 

The “C’s” in my Life.

After a terrible, rotten, no-good day I have determined all I need in life are things that start with the letter "C."  Those kids, I tell ya.  {I will call them kids after that statement.  Thankfully, I can also call them children.}

Eric and I read about Christ this morning.  I had a wonderful time with Christian friends over lunch and ice-skating.  I stopped for Coffee and Candy this afternoon.  LOUD Christian music on the way home from my parents (I can not find a "C" substitute for parents..)  Supper with my Children and my Chap (it's a reach, I know).  Again, fellowship with Coffee and a Christian friend this evening.

When I came home my husband had these on the counter for me.  Cupcakes.  Can I get an "Amen!"?!

If I'm having a bad day, or a bad moment, please, PLEASE give me something that starts with "C."

The Pukes.

This is my little lady after she woke up this morning.  Cheery. Happy. Her normal self.

This was after we went to the grocery store.  She has never (in her ENTIRE life) fallen asleep on the couch.  I knew she had a fever before we went to the store.  But I desperately needed food.  Like desperately.  This was also right before she woke up, 2 minutes after she fell asleep, and vomited all over my micro-suede couch.  Surprisingly, it all came out, with little difficulty.

After lunch (or a little bit of water, for A) everybody went down for a nap.  She fell asleep for approximately 2 minutes and projectile vomited water/stomach acid all over the carpet.  Poor baby.  She came downstairs to sleep on the couch.  This time I wised up and covered it in a blanket first.

All in all it lasted 8 hours.  She slept, mostly, though the night.  She woke up around 4 for some water.  Then went back to sleep until 7ish.  No one else got sick.  Praise the Lord.

Cookies, Cuties and Chickens

This is what trying to watch a movie is like at our house.  When everyone wants to sit by (or on) Momma.  Fun.

I thought everyone would like to help me make some cookies today.  Boy was I ever right ;)  Everyone loved helping to pour things into the mixer, turning it on, eating things etc.

Sampling the finished product.  They were White Chocolate Cranberry Oatmeal Cookies.  I hate white chocolate.  Still do.  It's grody.   Everyone approved except for me-but that didn't stop me from eating them.  Joelle actually ate them, too.  Probably because they had cranberries in them and were not overly sugary.

These pictures are from 2 different days.  But Adelyn is constantly putting something on over her clothes or in her hair.  And she always asks to have her picture taken ;)

I roasted this lovely bird for supper.  Soooo yummy.  Isn't the steam coming out of it neat?!

Attempt 1, Day 1::Potty Training Joelle

Iamagluttonforpunishment.  I know.  

Joelle always tells us when she poops.  Lately, she's taken it to a new level.  Anytime she farts..or THINKS she has to poop, she will whine about it and tell me about it until it actually happens.  After a couple days of this I got real sick of it.  I put her in undies and said if you want to complain about something, complain about potty-training.  Oohh boy.  That girl is one stubborn individual.  She loooves to sit on the toilet.  But she REFUSES to go on it.

I put her in undies at 10:00 on Tuesday, brought her to the bathroom every time she asked (which was every 5 seconds).  We had books in the bathroom, we sang songs, I told her I would dance if she peed.  Nothing.  The second I start making lunch (around 12:00) she peed.  And she didn't pee a lot either.  She made a little puddle and freaked out about her mess.  I cleaned it up.  We made it to nap time.  I put a pull-up on her.  Of course it was soaked.  After nap, we continued our tradition of sitting (but not peeing) on the toilet until supper time.  Cue the pee.  I started making supper and she was playing trains.  She proceeded to pee down our furnace grate.  Again, not a ton, just enough for her to freak out about a "mess."  She had one more minor accident after dinner and that was that.  

Enter Wednesday.  She was in undies from the moment she woke up.  Which was about 9.  We went to the bathroom 345,293 times...no pee.  Eric came home at noon so I could run Brecken to the doctor.  I think I had left for 20 minutes when Eric sent me a text "She peed all over the floor."  I got two more of these texts, while at the doctors office.  I got home and Eric informed me "She is NOT ready."  I said "who holds it for 3 hours, anyways?!  How is that not ready?!"  Alas, I couldn't take it.  She was refusing to go on the toilet and I hate cleaning urine up off the floor.  We tried for 24 hours.

Someotherday.

Valentine’s Party

Some friends put together a sweet little Valentines party for the kids.  Lots of people came and we exchanged Valentines, had treats, played, rode bikes IN church, had story time and played some more.  Some of the "babies" riding their "bikes."

Miss Sophia scooting around

 BEST friends.  Aren't they adorable?!

Adelyn INSISTED upon wearing her helmet.  I told her she didn't have too but she really wanted too.  Safety first, folks.  I didn't get to snap very many pictures of the kids.  We had a few attitude issues with our oldest and I had to wrangle the two youngest.  So there you have it.

We had fun and that's what counts :)

Valentine’s Day

We have a yearly tradition of going to the beach and eating dinner for Valentines day.  I asked Eric if we could skip it this year because we were mid Biggest Loser and I didn't feel like ordering junk food.  He said that he really wanted too (and I did too...but BL...) so off we went. 
Eric was planning on picking up our traditional 84 East and I picked up the kids foods.  Rotten Ronnies.  In true 84 East fashion they forgot to give me silverware.  Again.  2 years running.  Last year I used a baby spoon I found in my purse.  This year I found a (adult sized) spoon in my glove box.

B and J enjoying their McDonalds.

Adelyn J.  Complete with chicken nugget in her mouth.

My favorite boy and I.  I know I am slightly blurry but my other option I looked 4 feet taller than Eric.  No thanks.

This is my (current) most favorite dessert ever.  It has a pecan/chocolate/brown sugar crust and is a custard like top with eggs, sugar, butter and chocolate.  And I don't like chocolate.  Silk Pie.  Yummy.

Byeeeeee Josh

Josh had to leave on Thursday, in order to be home by Friday.  My sister worked Wednesday night so we had our good-bye supper Tuesday.  We had to snap some (candid) family pictures before he left.  Lets just say this.  My family is special to me, in so many ways.

Josh and Momma

Like I said.  Special to me, in so many ways.  I'm not even sure what they were doing..  They both just started doing it.  

aanndd again.

Ah yes.  That's better.  Normal ;)

Uncle Josh and Adelyn J

 I'm not sure who is funnier...Adelyn being a cheese ball, Josh acting scared or B crying.

Not bad ;)

Thursday morning we went downtown Holland to get breakfast.   I was snapping pictures left and right and holding the camera at weird angles trying to get everyone.  Wasn't working.  So this is what we got.  And still no Brecken.  Oh well.  He was there.

We miss you, Josh.  Come home soon.

Gymnastics Finale

Adelyn had her last Motor Movement class today.  Love the classes Zeeland Rec puts on.  So much fun.  She has had it once a week for 10 weeks.  The last class you were allowed to bring your siblings in, for the last half.  Sooo cute.  B and J both LOVED it.  They thought they were soo cool.

 Darla had a little obstacle course set up for the kiddos.  Off they go!

Our kids would LOVE it if we got a trampoline.  The neighbors have one and they think it's a blast.  Someday...when we have a bigger back yard.

Balance beam.  Brecken thinks he can do everything.  And he pretty much can.

I'm pretty sure Joelle stayed on the trampoline and the mats the whole time.. ;)

Braving the tunnel

Circle time.  Joelle missed the memo.

Darla started handing out their awards.  I told Brecken and Joelle to sit by Adelyn and this is what she did :)  Love these kiddos.

 

Good job Adelyn!!

I have Adelyn signed up for gymnastics this summer.  They are only offering one class because it is Darla's last one!  She is finally retiring.  Soo sad.  Everyone is going to miss her.  She's a good friend of Eric's mom and has been doing the gymnastics/motor movement classes at Zeeland Rec for FOREVER.  It will be hard to find a replacement for her, that's for sure.