Summer top 10

1. The Lake

We spent a ton of time this summer enjoying my parents cottage. At the lake Trevor swam, had picnic lunches by the beach, got to see Gigi and Auntie auntie lots (who give super yummy snacksa),built towers in the sand, wakeboarded, went on Uncle Al's big boat, went on the Sea Doo, played at the Island, went fishing, rode bikes up and down the super long street, got to take tubbies with our cousins and just in general got to spend lots of quality time together hanging out.

2. Ethan's House

Hanging at Auntie Amy's/Ethan's house was "super duper" fun. They have a great big yard with a swing set and huge sand box. Their driveway is "giant" long and has a "super fast" hill at the end which is just perfect for racing on scooters or bikes. The boys creatively added water to the whole equation and sped through their puddles to create huge sprays! Ethan, Trevor and Isaac spent most of the days enjoying the out of doors. Sleeping in Ethans lighting Mc Q.ueen bedroom was always a bonus too.
We had such beautiful weather this summer, it was never really too hot to be outside. I enjoyed watching Trevor have so much fun with his cousins and I also enjoyed getting to spend time with my littlest nephew Tyler! Of course, the best part for me was getting to spend so much time with my sister.

3. Riding a big bike all "by myself"

Conquering riding a two wheeler was a huge accomplishment for Trevor this summer. It was soo fun to be able to go on bike rides with him riding a big bike. He is SOOO very proud of himself and we are pretty sure he thinks he is the "BOMB" of a bike rider. Most recently he has demonstrated to us many "tricks", his favorite being driving with 1 hand. You can't help but giggle at this little clown. And wearing a helmet is always something he remembers, even if it is just for a 1 minute ride. (It sure does this Mommy's heart well).

4. Bible schools

Trevor went to 2 different bible schools this summer and loved both of them. We are fortunate to have a CD of one of them. He loves the music and talks frequently about them. They have spurred on his interest in memorizing bible verses. Accomplishing memorizing the Lord's Prayer has been a joy for us as parents and you can see Trevors face explode with joy whenever he is able to say it all by himself. Seeing his little personality in new situations and around new children was so encouraging to witness. I was at both bible schools and he was great staying with his class instead of in years past running to me. You go little man, so independent.

5. Reading

With Mommy being a bit under the weather for a good portion of the summer, Trevor needed to have some activities where Mom could visit with the couch. He took more of an interest in his Leap Pad and in reading books. He cracks me up, going to the library to him is just about as much fun as gettting a new toy. He goes from book to book as though it doesn't get better than this book. He is currently into animals that swim in water and Dr. Suess books. His current favorite book is, "One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish".

6. Lots of firsts

First sleepover, "All by myself" at cousin Josh's. First dentist appointment. First soccer team. First time swimming in deep water, first time jumping off the side of the pool and first time putting his head all the way under the water. First sales job: selling cookies and popsicles at a garage sale.

23 weeks down, 17 weeks to go

Wow! The weeks just seem to be flying by. Little "skittle" continues to do flips and flops and this continues to make me smile. I go to the dr. tomorrow for a check-up and to schedule an ultra sound. I am anxious to get another sneak peak at our little skittle. We are going to be surprised about the gender of this little one.

Trevor is starting his 2nd week of school and continues to love it. He is becoming a little man so much more. We played UNO tonight and it had been awhile since we played. He now has no troubles identifying the numbers 6 and 9 and we have added the word cards in too. It is so fun to see him be competitve and see his little face light up when he wins. He does fairly well also when he looses. We are working on the whole concept of humility and saying, "good game" if we win or loose.

We are spending most of spare time riding bikes. He is now into doing tricks on his bike. It makes my heart skip a few beats when he attempts some of these. I would really like to know how his mind thinks up some of them. He is sure a brave little boy.

We started Sunday School this week and prasie be to the Lord I am not his teacher this year. He was very excited this week to have a visitor with him. Trevor has managed to sit through church most recently also and we are so thankful to be able to sit and listen through and entire service now. In a few short months this will probably not be the case. :-)

Work is going fine, always an adjustment time in the beginning for students and myself alike. :-) Today I had a little boy cutting unsucessfully for about 3 minutes before I realized I had given this left hander a right handed scissors, OOPS! Amazingly, his sucess sky rocketed when I supplied him with a left handed scissors, who would of known?

Loving this fall weather. We are looking forward to buying 3 cords of fire wood this year. We LOVE to have fires and are all looking forward to snuggling up to lots of them this fall/winter.

My bed is calling me, I hope to update with some favorite summer memories and photos!~

1st day :-)

Oh what a great day it was...more later! :)

Back to School

Yes it is true, the good ole school schedule is back into action over here. It has been a bit of an adjustment for me, Trevor on the other hand is doing great.

Yesterday Trevor had his 4 year old check up and got 2 shots, or as we called them, "medicine in his arm." He was so brave, he even thanked the nurse and doctor for their services. The Doctor proceeded to tell him and myself the importance of wearing a helmet at all times and shared with me some pretty frightening stories. We are generally fairly good about helmet wearing but you can guess he will be sportin it at all times now! :-) Thanks Doc for the good reminder.

We also had preschool orientation yesterday morning, it is going to be a great year there it feels like. Just that we can pray for each other and openly talk about that is such a comfort to me. I am hoping he can make some new friends here too.

Our little buddy is growing up soooo much, it seems these last 3 months have been huge for us. Some of my favorites that come to my mind our his morning wake ups. He will come into our room, (Daddy is usually already long gone to work) and crawl up onto the bed.....he will gently shake my shoulder and say "wiggle, wiggle, Good morning." He then proceeds to ask for white milk, a show on TV and a blankie on his piggies. Yes in that order every morning. Another favorite is lunch time. We typically have peanut butter and jelly. Each time I ask if he'd like his bread cut into triangles or squares and EVERY STINKIN time the goof ball asks for circles. EVERY TIME he tells me he can do it. At least he is consistent right? He also is very into us watching him do all sorts of things. He waits until we are both looking at the sames times and will continue to ask until he has both of our eyes glued to him. No more keepin an eye on what we were doing, he wants to show us his accomplishments with our 100% attention. Good thing he is getting a brother or sister soon to share the attention with. :-) Speaking of which he is getting asked whether it is a boy or girl. He rather consistently stated he would like a boy. After many a conversation we have convinced this dude that God gets to decide a boy or girl and either one will be good. :-) He is riding his bike all over the place now, we have even gone for bike rides and he really does keep up quite easily. We still do have the occasional request to ride in the bike trailer though too! ;)

All in all it has been a fantastic summer, enjoyed by all of us. Pictures to follow soon.

Loving the summer

We can't believe it is already mid summer. I really wanted to be more faithful about blogging this summer, but hanging out with Trevor and attempting to keep all my cookies inside have been my focus instead. I miss blogging more, but something tells me that the above mentioned were worthy causes.

We have been enjoying the weather and out of doors to the fullest this summer. Trevor loved anything involving water, slip n slides, sprinklers, pools, lakes, etc.

Baby VanderMeer#2, "little skittle" is growing and doing well. So well that this Momma is a bit exhausted and looking forward to trimester #2, that is when the energy level increases, right?
:-)

Back to enjoying the last 6 weeks of summer vacation, more later.

How hilarious is this cutie

Ethan is my 4 year old nephew. He is an energetic little dude who comes up with some hilarious things. Here are a few of my favorites.

He will say hi and ask questions to just about anyone who will answer him. A few days ago while at the Lake he starts chatting it up with some adults he doesn't know. The adults answer him and chat a bit, then head back up the street to continue on. As they are walking away.....

Ethan: "Stay healthy."

He apparently has told his dad when he leaves for work in the morning to be patient also. :-) He asked me a few weeks ago why my hair was turning black like his moms' hair. However instead of using the word why, he substitues the word for? So it went something like this. "For your hair gettin black like my moms?" It should be noted that both his mom (my sister Amy) and I attempt very much so to cover up our brownish hair and replace it with blonde highlights/lo lights. Leave it to the 4 year old to let the cat out of the bag!

He splashed me in the water also and informed me that it was an accident. He continue to explain to me, "Uncle Pam, axidents happin and it is OKAY!"

He wear one shoe while using scooter because he explains that it just falls off anyways. The way this guy scooters is at the speed of lighting so I can see why shoes fly off his piggy toes.

Oh boy do I love this little one, he sure keeps me laughing.

Tiny talk Tuesday

Warning to Gigi: you will consider this gross talk and should consider passing over this entry....I love you!

We needed to take a pit stop on the way back from Michigan yesterday. My Aunt Joy was riding along with us.

Trevor: Auntie, what did you do pee or poop on the potty?

She politely answers giggling all the while.

Trevor: I pee and poop at the same time, it was amazing!

Yes, my dear little almost 4 year old it is amazing to do both of those at the same time, I am glad you consider it so spectacular for that to occur. You continue to brighten my days and bring so much joy to my heart. :-)

There is someone else in our home who is getting bigger too!

Indeed we are so blessed to announce a miracle growing within this Momma! I am nine weeks along and we have been able to see and hear a heartbeat. We are overjoyed to welcome this batch of fun into our family. Trevor is quite excited about being a big brother. However, he has requested a sister who is a boy. Hmmm, we obviously need to talk about sister=girl.

I have been feeling rather sick and am trying so hard to remember to be thankful for these positive signs. It is difficult for me because I will often set out to accomplish somethings off my list for the day and in the end not be able too. I am soo exhausted. Again all good signs and all things to be thankful for. Thankfully, Trevor is at a rather easily entertained age and has been fairly gracious during my "throw up days".

Trev asks each morning if it is a Mommy and Trev day (ie summer vacation for me) and also if today is a "throw up day"? He is a little trooper. I try real hard when I am feeling okay to make it a fun filled day for him. :-)

So mid January will not be filled with the Winter time blues, but rather welcoming a new little miracle to our home. We can't wait to meet you little one. I am open for names on what to call this one, as we hope to not find out the gender till D day. :-) A fellow blogger referred to hers as a little bean, I do like that, but I kinda feel like a copycat....so any great ideas out there are welcomed. :-)

Do you want to see me biggger?

This is a phrase that has been frequently used by our almost 4 year old. He is WAY excited for his birthday and continues to be astounded by how much taller he is getting.

He no longer needs his steppy to reach the sink to turn on the water, he can even now reach the toothbrush and toothpaste, "all myself". He can also on "tippy top toes" reach the towel to dab the excess water off his mouth after brushing. He is on his way to seeing his whole face in the mirror also (so far we are just waiting for his chin to be seen).

He is apparently getting too old for tubbies. He now prefers taking a shower "all himself". The best part for him is washing his hair all himself. He even sings in the shower, usually Step by Step, with a continual repeat on the phrase, "Oh God you are my God and I will follow you all of my days." I must also record that he uses a loofah sponge. I know it is hilarious, the funnier part is that his daddy uses one too.

He is also amazed that his arms are getting longer too. He now needs one arm to buckle his seatbelt all himself. He can reach his basket of books and coloring stuff all by himself in the van too. Oh and the power window button, (not cool).

Trevor has mastered riding a two wheeler, thanks to his cousin Anika's gentle coaching. His dad helped him to seal the deal after coach Anika's lessons. Trevor can don and doff his helmet now independently.I am forseeing a few ouchies and band aids this summer, but that is okay we have Diego band aids, so its really quite fun for Trevor.

So my almost 4 year old Trevor, I will always want to see you bigger. Daddy and Mommy will always be here to celebrate these bigger times with you and we are cherishing them all along the way. This picture was taken when you were a week old. I recall saying can you believe how big he is. Four years later, we are still saying this. We love you almost 4 year old!

P.S. Someone else in our house also happens to be getting bigger, more on that in a later post. :-)

Who is countin?

Who is counting down the days until this? I have 4 1/2 days left until my 10 week vacation... I am just saying not like I am counting or anything? Ho hum ho hum it is off to sunnin Trev and I will be in just 4 1/2 short days. :-)

Help Wanted Please

Is there anyone out there that would please come and plant my flowers....actually wait a minute could you please go and decide which plants to purchase and then where to plant them and then plant them. It would be great. This task seems a bit overwhelming to me at the present time.

Trevor had a bit of a bug this past week and it translated into 1 1/2 days off of work for me (which is almost 1/2 of my work week to begin with). Seeing as if I only have 9 more days till summer vacation, these 1 1/2 days are of extreme value to me. I was back to work Friday however there were no students and most of the teachers I needed to touch base with were in meetings.

Pretty much I just need to hang on and bust my buns like crazy for 9 more days and then sit and sun those same buns for the next 2 1/2 months. WHOOO HOOOO 10 weeks of chillin like a villan...now that is what I am talking about!

I guess I will just have to wait 9 days to decide about flowers, etc. I am certain I won't be so overwhelmed by having to not work 4 days of the week! :-) More time to bond with my almost 4 year old and plenty of time to pick out flowers, where to plant and to plant oh and probably weed too! :-)

Waiting

Well we are again waiting to find out if a little miracle is growing inside of me. The waiting is most definately the hardest part for me. I want to be positive however, for me, it is such a fine line between being positive and getting too excited. So, I am attempting to just be. I can say that this time around I am not as wrapped up in whether or not things worked. I am trying to mimick my husbands attitude of if God wants this to happen it will but if not it will be okay too. Let's just say if it does I think we will have a party, big time party that is.

I was rather sick while pregnant with Trevor. I remember vividly during my 50 minutes commute up 294, stopping on the shoulder, opening my door, puking and then continuing on my voyage. It was not fun, but at the same time every time I chucked I said THANK YOU LORD as it was such a great reminder that all was well inside. (So dear friend who is 9 weeks prego remember that or maybe break into the doxology or a little praise ye the Lord, hallelujah). And please friends if I am pregnant ya'll remind me to be shoutin AMENS to Jesus if/when/while I am a chuckin! :-)

Bloggin or Braggin

Someone very dear to me recently explained her dislike about blogs. She thinks it is bragging. So I am just putting out a disclaimer that I am not trying to brag rather the intent of my blog is record memories and thoughts for years to come. It is kinda like a online scrapbook to me. As we all know, you can choose to read it or not. I am not looking for oohh's and ahhh's rather just sharing the joyous and everyday occassions in our home, if you read closely you will also notice that I share the not so joyous moments also. So please know that I am doing this more to be to share with Trevor or any future children what life was all about when they were younger. Being as my mom died when I was 8 years old, I at times long to know what life was like for her at this stage in the game. I am hoping to be here when my children parent, but if I am walkin the streets of gold I hope this blog will be a glimmer into what life was like back in the day! ;-) Now back to braggin, I mean blogging.

Oh yah, does anyone know how to make the strike throughs like I have seen some do? ;-)

Trevor's talk

I overheard Trevor trying to get Daddy's attention today in the bathroom, mind you Dan was in the shower at the time. This is what I heard.....

Trev: Daaaaaddddyy, please you look at my butt?

Daddy: (hesitantly) Why?

Trev: To see if it is "dirrrty", cuz I wipe it all my-"suff"(myself).

Daddy: Yep, it looks super clean to me.

Trevor comes running into the kitchen.

Trevor: Mommy I not need you anymore.
Thank goodness I knew what was going on or I probably would of gotten teary eyed!

Me: Why not?

Trevor: I wipe my butt all myself and Daddy said it is not dirty....I a big boy now, not need wipe my butt anymore like babies!

Me: Oh great job Trevor you sure are a big boy!

Trev: Yeah Mom, I 3 1/2, pretty soon I be 4, then I be 5.

This little guy is growing up so fast....this morning he made his own strawberry jelly sandwhich and tonight at dinner he also buttered his own roll.

Trev: Mom, I not need your help Mom, I do this all myself, see Mom.

My GRANDma

This Mother's Day I was handed a gift. The gift was great but not as important as the giver is. You see, the giver is my Grandma. She is a woman of generosity, prayer, encouragement and love. Generous with her time, volunteering often for various organizations, visiting the sick, cheering the elderly, assisting where she can with VBS decorations, bringing delicious meals to her family and friends, attending her grandchildren and great grand children's sporting events and programs, helping wherever she can with the family bakery, entertaining in her home, volunteering in numerous church functions....this list could go on and on forever. I admire that even in her retirement years she continues to serve others with acts of kindness. Her servant spirit hasn't retired, in fact it has stepped up a notch!

Generous with her resources as well. She is often sending encouragements cards, emails, letters. She generously gives to her family in abundant ways. Often times she will bless us with various grocery items. It is not unusual for her to drive the 30 minutes we live apart to bring us bread, homemade soup, cheese ends (she get these for a steal of a deal, I get my bargain blood from her, it was apparently a recessive gene), homemade banana bread, my favorite broccoli cheese chicken casserole, Wal*ts raisin bread, snacks for Trevor, etc. She sews buttons on our clothes and hems clothes for us. Once Dan's favorite pair of pajama pants was pretty much torn to shreds, she sewed patches into it to hold it together. She clips coupons for me and lets me know where milk is cheapest, etc. She will clip a newspaper column on how plants create less allergens or whatever. She is always thinking of others. She remembers us all on our birthdays, at Valentines Day, and Christmas. I laugh at her sometimes because she remembers how old people who have long been deceased would be or would of been married. She invites us over for her homemade meals and often will treat us to meals at restaurants as well. One of my favorite memories of her generosity is when she and my Aunt (AJ) blessed me with a beautiful bouquet of flowers. It was the day my best friend left to go and live in Ukraine. It was a hard day/time for me and they knew that and wanted to cheer me up.


Grams is a woman of prayer~! She prays for each of us in her family daily. She is a prayer warrior and her speech is often filled with, "I will pray to that end". And I know without a doubt that she will pray for whatever the need/praise is and will do so numerous times. She follows up and asks how whatever praise/petition she has being answered! She knows her Bible inside and out. We are able to talk frequently on the phone thanks to cell phones...She is so quick to encourage me with scripture and will also gently rebuke me with the same! ;-)

Encouragement may be her greatest gift to me. She almost explodes with encouragement. She notices if you have a new shirt on, if you get a new hair color or style, new jewelery and will quickly compliment on it. She has written so many letters and notes to my very dear friends, yes that is what I said, she writes notes of encouragement to my friends. What a woman, huh! She often will remind me that my mission field is Dan and Trevor. She aches with me when my heart is hurting and rejoices when I am excited about something. She enjoys music, it ministers to her and she will often use it to encourage others. She gives me a hard time for not having curtains in my front window and I promise you the day I get them she will be invited over and she WILL sing the Doxology when she lays her eyes on them!

Her heart contains so much love for her family and others. She invests in peoples lives and receives such a huge blessing by doing so. She beams with joy when her whole family is together. We are very fortunate to be able to spend lots of time together during the summer months at a lake Gramps and Grams first found 40 years ago! Ever since then, her entire family has enjoyed going to the Lake and being around one another! She came to Trevor's preschool graduation ceremony last Thursday. She was thrilled to be there, so thrilled tears flooded her eyes as she watched. She whispered to me, "I sure hope I am here to see him graduate 8th grade!" I assured her that if she wasn't she'd have the best seat in the house, looking down from the streets of gold!

Perhaps the greatest demonstration of her unending love was in the way she loved my Grandpa. Oh she wanted the best for him and loved him with all she muster, even in his declining days. I recall several occasions when walking was getting more difficult for him to do and she would encourage him to do the exercises the doctor recommended. Reluctantly Gramps would do them however, when she would walk away or leave the room he would stop. His hearing was going but he would listen and look for her to come back into the room and start pumping the iron again, clad with a grin on his face. :) They joked around with each other all the time, it was soo cute to witness this. She would make arrangements to get Gramps the help he needed to participate in the things he loved. She made sure he did as much as he possibly could until he couldn't anymore. She was so sad to have to admit that he needed to be in a nursing home to have his needs met. I remember many phone conversations when tearfully she would say, "I just wish the Lord would take him home, so he won't have to suffer anymore." She made sure she gave him the best possible care she could till his last days here on earth. She spent lots of time with him there, visited him everyday and in between was quick to call the nurses and get updates on how he was. Although she misses him dearly, she is thrilled he is walking the streets of gold, freed from his earthly ailments! I was in awe of how they loved each other so much till the very end. I will never forget while he was in the nursing home, Gramps reached out for Grams hand to hold. Grams glanced at him and together they beamed with joy. They loved each other so deeply! We are able to laugh about all of his fun personality characteristics and are so thankful to have so many memories with him. (More about Gramps in a later post).

Grams, Gigi, Greta has blessed my life in far more ways that I commented about here. I wanted to be able to write about this so that Trevor can someday look back and see all that his Great Grandmother means to me and what an amazing woman of God she is! She is most definitely an awesome role model to me as a mother, wife, grandma, sister and friend. She has blessed so many and I have no doubt she will continue to until the Lord calls her to her eternal home.

Thanks Grams for who you are and for your example! I am proud to call you my Grandma. I love you!

Random Quiz about me

http://www.quizyourfriends.com/takequiz.php?quizname=080506101628-200047&

Feel me better

Trevor had such an exciting day today. Actually lots of exciting things have been happening these past few months. I will be sure to update this blog more as time allows in the next few weeks.

We have begun playing soccer. At first we were really hesitant about it. Trevor stated, "I now know their names, Mom, I not go on the field, I not know thier names." So there you have it. If you know Trevor at all, when he has his mind made up, really you might as well not even try to convince him otherwise. He is a determined little guy. (I keep reminding myself how great this personality characteristic is and how this can be used later in his life to glorify God). :-) For now, we will just continue on. Anyhow, sorry about the side track there.

The season opening game was last Saturday. Trevor graced the field with his presence for approximately 14.4 seconds. This past Wednesday I decided to go with the bribing route. After all, I couldn't justify paying $80 for a cool soccer uniform and no actual playing/learning of the sport. Here is how the conversation went.

Me: Trev, if you go on the field for practice today and listen to your coach, Mom will get you a very special prize.

Trev: What the prize MOM?

Me: You get to decide, what would you like the prize to be?

Trev: Hmmm, I THINK

Trev: Hmmm, I know Mom. I go to Gun Lake, feed the ducks with Grandpa and Grandma and see Ethan.

To myself, I think fabulous...I was intending him to say a new movie, out for ice cream, Mc Donalds or something a bit cheaper than a $65 ride to and from Gun Lake and seeing Ethan.

Fast forward to 4 minutes into practice.

Trev: Mom you so proud of me I practicing on the field?

Mom: Yes, great job buddy!

Trev: Mom, we go Gun Lake and see Ethan?

Mom: Yes Honey! (inside I think grrrr, I really hoped he would forget)

Trev: (approximately 9 times during practice) You see me Mom, I practicing, I go see Ethan, that be fun Mom!

So I must be true to my word and hopefully one of these fine days we will be able to get him his reward. He has been asking about 339 times a day when we are going. I knew I shouldn't of let him decide the prize, note to self!

He did fantastic today in his game also. He went from 14.4 seconds of on the field time last week. To team captain, calling heads for the coin flip and playing the ENTIRE TIME. Now if we could just get the offense/defense thing down, we'd be progressing quite well.

For now, I am absolutely THRILLED he is enjoying it and that we aren't paying $ to have him sit and watch.

Does this mean I am a soccer MOM? Oh OH OH, that is too cool! I am loving every minute of it. Even the $65 reward.

After we came back from his soccer game today....

Trev: Mom, I tired, I close my eyes on the couch for little bit, that feel me better Mom.

Mom: Okay, but just close your eyes for a little bit

Trev: Okay, not long long time, just little time.

Mom: Sounds like a plan STAN.

Trev: MOM, I NOT STAN, I TREVOR!

Mom: Happy snooze buddy.

Trev: MOM, not snooze I just close my eyes, feel me better!

Mom: Okay, sounds great, I hope you feel me better ! :-)

Announcing Tyler Allen

My sister and brother in law welcomed this little bundle into the world on Tuesday. He is so precious and a great baby so far. He has tons of dark hair that I personally love to spike! ;) He has got such little facial features, absolutely adorable! He was 9lbs 5 oz and 21 inches long.

The miracle of a new baby just keeps getting sweeter and sweeter for me. Knowing now the series of miracles that need to occur to make a baby possible reminds me of Gods incredible power evidenced through this, his creation.

This little boy is welcomed by 2 funny loving, busy brothers. What a fun house he will grow up in. Hang on Tyler buddy, you are in for the ride of your life!

Cha Ching Cha ching, another nephew to add to our list. That makes 6 nephews and 2 nieces. Looking forward to all the fun.

This is THE sweetest thing ever

Sorry about the sniffles in the background, it was a tearful moment! Ethan is an awesome big brother!

just added

Some of my favorite songs. Yes, I do know that I have totally showed my age by my choice of songs. And, YES, I am okay with it.

I am back

Just needed a little blogging break over here.



All is going well in our home. We are all healthy and enjoying the signs of spring all around us. I actually sun burned the back of my neck on a walk Monday. It didn't feel pleasant but none the less it was a sure sign of the warm summer sunny days ahead. Oh, I am so looking forward to the summer months. The combination of getting to spend all my days with Trevor and not having to work sounds delightful.



We are currently looking into some preschool options for Trevor. We contemplated and sought much advice regarding having him be the oldest or the youngest child in his class. We have opted for the oldest in his class. The pre-k were I wanted to send him wants him to wait another year so that kinda sealed the deal for us. Him not attending that school really put a wrench in our plans for next year. :-( In my spare time I will check out other options for him.



Trevor had his first soccer practice Wednesday. He spent most oops correction ALL of the time on the side lines watching the other boys play. Repeatedly he told us...."I not know their names, what their names are?" , "I can't play, I not know their names." As much as my dutchness was adding up the pennies it cost to play in the league and not liking it......My heart did smile a bit seeing his reluctance to play. We will see if he does ever step foot on the field. If not at least we will have the experience of watching a team sport. Lets not talk about the $ behind it all. Lets say we will treasure the uniform (shorts, socks and shirt) that the $ paid for. Lets also not mention that I could of clothed him for 2 seasons at least with these $. :)



Trevor is almost done with his preschool program for the year. He has loved it and we are amazed at how he reports EVERYTHING that happens to him at school to us. He is enjoying books so much these days, it has been really fun to have him "read" stories to us. He is never really short on words, even when reading books to us. Lately, his new favorite thing to do is his "homework". He will sit at his little desk with his paper and markers and talk to himself about what he is drawing or what letters he is writing. The finished product looks like someone was testing all the markers to see what color they liked best.

I will update more about our winter musings soon. Maybe a wordless, photo update! :-)

Cold Tangerines

I was a privileged to receive a copy of this book from a blogger friend of mine, Sarah.

I really enjoyed reading this collection of stories, written similar to little blogs. She writes openly and honestly sharing her true feelings. She has a way with words and creating very descriptive pictures of events or times in her life. She aims to find God in so many times I wouldn't even be thinking that way.

Perhaps the most thought provoking paragraph I read was this,
"Nothing good comes easily. You have to lose things you thought you loved, give up things you thought you needed. You have to get over yourself, beyond your past, out from under the weight of your future. The good stuff never comes when things are easy. It comes when things are all heavily weighted down like moving trucks. It comes just when you think it never will, like a shimmering Las Vegas rising up out of dry desert, sparkling and humming with energy, a blessing that rose up out of a bone-dry, dusty curse."

I know the above to be true however, I needed this reminder in huge ways. It so reminds me of the song, "He makes all things beautiful in HIS time." Maybe the song should go on to say that HE can make all things beautiful if we surrender "these things" to Him. It is easy to see and feel this way after the weighted down moving truck times but truly is what I'm aiming for is to see the joy in the midst of the moving truck times. I have just come out of a moving truck time in my own life. I was challenged by a very dear friend of mine to find the joys God was filling my life with during this time when I felt like a dark cloud was all I was seeing.

It is my hope and prayer that the next moving truck experience that comes our way, that I will be able to get over myself and truly see the good stuff that God has abundantly blessed me with.
I also liked the way the book jumped around from different times and places in her life. It was easy to read and pick up for a few 5 minutes here and there. It did leave me wanting to fill in some of the spaces. Mysteries like what happened once she moved to Michigan, was she a pastor of a church, the position she left that one day, did she return the uncomfortable prickly chairs, how was the rest of her pregnancy, what about her husband...we didn't hear much about him, what was Henry like, what was being a mom like for her, etc.

There were times I laughed so hard it was great. Maybe it even made"God belly laugh." The comments about scrambled eggs over the top of your jeans, the story of collecting pennies, and writing in pencil. Some other favorite comments were about family vacations and how your family is the best version of family because there aren't distractions, the red tree that she didn't notice for weeks and how on Sept 11 she and her husband sat shoulder to shoulder and the chapter of the love of a mother and son.

It was a fun, easy read book that reminded me to seek God and joy in the ordinary events of our lives.

I encouraged my dad to write a book similar to this one. He celebrates everyday something. He has joy overflowing from his heart on most days!

Tiny Talk Tuesday

Trevor made a palm branch leaf at MOPS last week. He came out of MOPS and......

Trev: Mom, we show Jana (my sister)

Me: Sure we can show Jana, when she comes back from school.

Trev: Mom, show Jana.

Me: Yes, Trev we will.

This exchange went back and forth for quite some time. I just finally ignored the broken record.

Later in the evening we were at church and Trevor spotted his MOPpets teacher.

Trev: Mom, I show him (we are still workin on pronouns) Show Jana.

Me: Sure you can show her.

Trevor runs over to her as he is waving his palm leave and says...

Trev: Show Jana

MOPpets teacher replies: Yes, HOSANNA, HOSANNA.

Yes, it is me who is the slow one, Trevor wasn't saying "show Jana", rather he was saying HOSANNA! Oh dear me, that is why he probably kept repeating himself.

Amazing!

This is a beautiful "Letter from my Father". Each verse encompasses an incredible truth and every one is a promise to you and me from our Heavenly Father. Take some sweet time to reflect on each of the ways that the Lord loves us, protects us, treasures us, redeems us, comforts us, watches over us, saves us and calls us His own. Absolutely amazing!

My Child~
I know everything about you…Psalm 139:1
I know when you sit down and when you rise up…Psalm 139:2
I am familiar with all of your ways…Psalm 139:3
Even the very hairs on your head are numbered…Matthew 10:29-31
For you were made in my image…Genesis 1:27
In me you live and move and have your being…Acts 17:28
For you are my offspring…Acts 17:28
I chose you when I planned creation…Ephesians 1:11-12
I knew you even before you were conceived…Jeremiah 1:4-5
I determined the exact time of your birth and where you would live…Acts 17:26
You are fearfully and wonderfully made…Psalm 139:14
I knit you together in your mother’s womb…Psalm 139:13
And brought you forth on the day you were born…Psalm 71:6
You were not a mistake, for all your days are written in my book... Psalm 139:15-16
I have been misrepresented by those who don’t know me…John 8:41-44
I am not distant and angry, but am the complete expression of love…1 John 4:16
And it is my desire to lavish my love on you…1 John 3:1
Simply because you are my child and I am your father…Matthew 7:11
For I am the perfect father…Matthew 5:48
Every good gift that you receive comes from my hand…James 1:17
For I am your provider and I meet all your needs…Matthew 6:31-33
My plan for your future has always been filled with hope…Jeremiah 29:11
Because I love you with an everlasting love…Jeremiah 31:3
My thoughts toward you are countless as the sand on the seashore. Ps. 139:17-18
And I rejoice over you with singing…Zephaniah 3:17
I will never stop doing good to you…Jeremiah 32:40
For you are my treasured possession…Exodus 19:5
I desire to establish you with all my heart and all my soul…Jeremiah 32:41
And I want to show you great and marvelous things…Jeremiah 33:3
If you seek me with all your heart, you will find me…Deuteronomy 4:29
Delight in me and I will give you the desires of your heart…Psalm 37:4
For it is I who gave you those desires…Philippians 2:13
I am able to do more for you than you could possibly imagine…Ephesians 3:20
For I am your greatest encourager…2 Thessalonians 2:16-17
I am also the Father who comforts you in all your troubles…2Corinthians 1:3-4
When you are brokenhearted, I am close to you…Psalm 34:18
As a shepherd carries a lamb, I have carried you close to my heart…Isaiah 40:11
One day I will wipe away every tear from your eyes…Revelation 21:3-4
And I’ll take away all the pain you have suffered on this earth…Revelation 21:3-4
I am your Father, and I love you even as I love my son, Jesus…John 17:23
For in Jesus, my love for you is revealed…John 17:26
He is the exact representation of my being…Hebrews 1:3
He came to demonstrate that I am for you, not against you…Romans 8:31
And to tell you that I am not counting your sins…2 Corinthians 5:18-19
Jesus died so that you and I could be reconciled…2 Corinthians 5:18-19
His death was the ultimate expression of my love for you… 1 John 4:10
I gave up everything I loved that I might gain your love…Romans 8:31-32
If you receive the gift of my son Jesus, you receive me…1 John 2:23
And nothing will ever separate you from my love again…Romans 8:38-39
I have always been Father, and will always be Father…Ephesians 3:14-15
Come home and I’ll throw the biggest party heaven has ever seen…Luke 15:7

Love, Your Abba, Almighty God

Holes Blankie

Dear Trevor,

This dear blankie is so precious to you. It travels with you to each babysitter and you cuddle with it each and every chance you have. You wake up each morning hugging it and it is attached to you for the first half an hour each morning. You also go to your holes blankie when you are sad or being disciplined. Holes blankie has wiped many of your tears away. You used to have George a monkey that you were equally attached to about a year ago. Somewhere in the last year holes blankie has replaced George.

Love,

Mommy

Spring IS around the corner!

We have been enjoying the temperatures that have soared above 32 degrees. Apparently, Trevor's idea of the temps not being below 32 is to enjoy every opportunity. For the past 2 weeks, nearly every day we have gone on a bike ride around the block. It only takes about 20 minutes as long as all our neighbors have shoveled their side walks :-) ...However, it takes about 5 minutes to get all bundled up (yes we even manage to get the helmet on in between layers). 20 minutes for "the ride". And another 5 minutes to take off the winter wear. I then require another 20 minutes to "defrost". When we first began this bike riding in freezing weather I would reverse the van out of the garage, shut the garage door and let him do circles in the garage. I sat in the van reading and staying semi warm. Trevor had the time of his life doing this but the novelity has worn off and we have now stepped up to the real deal. I try to remind myself that

a). it is good exercise for both of us

b). we are building memories

c). hopefully we are freezing any germs we accumulated during the day

d). we will both appreciate the months in which we don't have to bundle to go for a bike ride.

Today he wanted to play basketball outside with Daddy. Oh how we are looking forward to spring time. I must say though that I did enjoy the dusting of snow we received yesterday and today. Yes, he has my scarf on in this picture because Daddy's scarf was in the wash on this day. Yes, he also asks each time for me to take his pictures. He is a boy after my own heart.

Preschool Picture Day

Sweetheart you are quite the ham these days...

Getting ready for pictures yesterday morning you were rather clear in what you wanted to wear...

Trev: Mom, I want to wear "some fin" with lots and lots of colors, that make me happy.

Also you were quick to give input on how to style your hair.

Trev: Mom, do my hair all crazy, really really tall......lots of spikies.

Mom: Okay, but it is super chilly outside so we will bring a comb to school with us.

Trev: Mom, you al' mos got the deer (almost forgot).

Mom: What are you talking about...

Trev: Deer for my hair

Mom: What? Can you show me what you mean.

Trev: (He goes into the closet and retrieves the hair mouse we usually use to make his hair spiky. ) Here Mom here it is, the deer you silly goose.

Mom: Silly that is called mouse.

Trev: Mom, we go deer hunting and I called it deer.

Got the connection there friends :-)

Still alive and well over here

Not too much to report over here. All is going fine, a tad on the chilly side but we aren't frozen YET! We had a great week. Dan loved the story book....even got a little emotional on me. It was fun to see his reaction and even better because it was FREE. Gotta love it. Valentine's Day found Trevor and I bundled up and enjoying a chilly bike ride around the block, dodging some neighbors UN shoveled side walks. We even shoved Trevor's helmet on top of the layers. I did take a few pictures and will post them soon.

Trevor enjoyed his Valentines party at preschool. I enjoyed watching him sign his name while loudly declaring T R E V O R for each classmates Valentine. He made it through 18 of the 27 we needed to sign, I fought back the tears. I kept thinking my little boy is growing way too quickly. Fun times though.

Today we enjoyed watching Uncle Paul play basketball, always a highlight for Trevor. He is quite vocal about his emotions and feelings of various plays. He will usually repeat whatever he hears being spoken around him. Today it was "COME ON". A not so cool call on the part of the ref had a few parents objecting and Trevor decided to chime right in. It was really hard not to laugh out loud while explaining to Trev about talking kind. Something tells me we might be revisiting this discussion time and time again! ;-)

We are in the waiting stage with the baby thing again. We will find out this coming week if our last procedure was successful. Otherwise we have decided to take a much needed break from the medical aspect of all this. I can't even begin to describe how emotionally draining and physically time consuming all the blood draws, doctors visits, ultrasounds, picking up prescription x y and z, scheduling things, arranging for Trevor's care during above mentioned appointments, etc has been. I took a picture of all the drugs we use in a month, I know others have many more....But I wanted to be able to document this time and also have a visual in case we ever go down this path again. ;-) So thank you everyone for all your prayers and encouragement, they have meant so much to both of us. We cherish the relationships God has blessed us with. We'll continue to lean on HIM for the wisdom and strength to make the next decisions.

We are off to enjoy a little dinner together!~

One more thing

How terrible dear Trevor that I forgot to mention that you also can recite quite a few memory verses now. Thanks to your fantastic Sunday School teacher, (uhh, that would be Mommy). Just kidding, it is that you seem to have an amazing memory for events and also things we tell you. Off the top of my head, I think we probably have about 8 verses down pat. Mommy made this super handy, A-Z bible memory verse cards project at MOPS last month and boy has it helped us step it up a bit in this department. We are also loving using this book with you as well, it is the children's version of the Catechism. Mommy has been learning lots right along with you! Love you little man!

Phone number, name and birthday

Dear Trevor,

You are growing up so much right before our very eyes. I recently decided to start teaching you how to spell your name, say your phone number and your birthday. You sometimes tell me your phone number when I ask for your birthday. :-) The important thing is that you know 'em all. Well, except for the middle 3 numbers of our phone number, you get the area code and last 4 digits everytime, just not always the middle 3. I am so proud of you and amazing continually and the amount of information your little mind can hold.

Love,
Your Mommy

Shhh, don't tell.

I have a Valentines Day surprise for Dan...I made him a digitial story book on Shu*tterfly. I am anxiously awaiting his arrival, my only concern is that he might open the mail if he gets home before I do. I have been asking all sorts of strange questions to him lately about what time he is getting home from work, etc. It was super easy to do. I had a coupon for a free one, otherwise they are a bit costly, but if you consider that I used over 85 pictures in it, not bad. I am a big scrapbooker but this really speedy and perfect for a special Valentines day gift. I also can say that I have tons of pictures of the 2 of us and of the 3 of us, even just since 2006 when I went digital. ;-)

P.S. I think I may just have figured out how to post a picture from the Internet, thanks to the help of Firefox!

Makes my heart smile

As you can see hear, Trevor is inheriting this characteristic from me, clipping coupons. We save oh so much money (we even try to find steals of deals for other family and friends) doing this. Not to mention, it is also a great fine motor/visual motor activity for the Occupational Therapist in me. Go buddy go, get the good deals. You make me one proud Mamma, not just for this but in so many other areas too!



Pictures forth coming, apparently blogger is having some technical difficulties...or maybe it is just me !:-)

Trevor's talk

Trevor: Hey Mom, wanna do the HOLY pokey?

Me: You mean the Hokey Pokey...

Trevor: No Mom, Holy Pokey, like Holy, holy, holy, merciful and mighty! (Which is one of his old favorite songs).

Me: Okay, I'll do it, but we need to call it the Hokey Pokey.

Trevor: Okay, Mom next week I do that!


Today was a day off for me, Trevor had preschool. I told him this morning that after preschool it was going to be a Mommy and Trevor day. He informed everyone at preschool of this, as well as anyone we saw exiting or entering the building (and because of voting today there were lots). When we got home, I decided to make a picture plan for him of how the day was going to go.

Me: Trevor, what would you like to do today?

Trev: Hmm....I got an idea

Me: Yeah what is it?

Trev: First we eat chocolate cookies, then we eat ice cream, then we watch a movie, then we go swimming.

Me: Well, how about we play with play do, sing songs, read books or play a game?

Trev: Okay Mom, that fine with me! We eat ice cream af-fer 'at? (after that).

Me: Sure, honey we can have ice cream after nap time.

Trev: Going swimming?

Me: No, it is too cold to swim.

Trev: I not cold Mom, I go un-ner (under) the water and I warm.

5 stars for Children's Museum

By far, one of the best things we spent money on this year was a family pass to all Childrens Museums. We have about 4 of them within an hour from our house. We have been to 3 out of 4 of them and they are all great places to explore, packed with really unique exhibits. My personal favorite was an exhibit where you got to dig up dinosaur bones.

Trevor had a blast at the car wash...he got to change the tires, license plate and wash the windowns.

Trevor demonstrated his COOL DUDE dance moves ice skating with socks on. I even watched the staff spray pledge down to make it slipperier.

It is true, Uncle Paul and Mommy had as much fun as you did here. It is one of those times I found myself saying, this is too cool, I didn't get to do this when I was a kid. So I was reliving my childhood here.

Uncle Paul and Ethan posing inside their new constucted house!

Super duper family fun!

Trevor's dear Great Grandma Gigi spotted a flyer describing an event at a local forest perserve with mushing dogs. The 3 of us decided to venture out and check it out. It was a chilly day, but so worth it. This place was a gorgeous preserce, definately one we will visit again. Trevor got to pretend to pull the dog sleds, pet the huskies, get his picture taken with the huskies and watch the dogs pull the sleds. I am not so much an animal lover, but this was REALLY cool. Huskies have beautiful bright blue eyes and shining coats! It was fascinating to watch and hear them get harnessed up for the run, they instantly barked and get really excited. I think we have ourselves an animal lover in Trev, I wonder where he might get that from? (HIS DADDY)

Here are a few picture from the day:

We love the snow!

Friday was a snow day. Trevor and I enjoyed shoveling our neighbor's sidewalks and driveways. Notice the size of Trevor's shovel. It is actually perfect for Trevor.
We attempted snowmen, but the snow wasn't good packing material. Trev and I shoveled these "big bumps", one for the start of a Daddy Snowman, Mommy Snowman and a Trevor Snowman. When Daddy came home from work he built this little snowman with Trevor. Trevor was sure to inform us both of the importance of a carrot nose. :-) Please don't laugh too hard! ;-)

Trevor's talk

So, our little cuite pie came up with some more funnies, well one was not really funny at the time, but now I can laugh about it!

Mom and Trev are out running errands during a recent SNOW DAY....this is what I heard from the back seat. Trevor would cough a bit shortly followed by another pretend cough. This went on for about 2 minutes.

Trev: Mom, I got a question.

Me: Yeah sweetie whats your question?

Trev: Your butt make noises when you cough?

Me: (trying to not bust a gut outloud)...no Trev, what are you talking about?

Trev: Mom, listen. (He then proceeds to cough and toot at the same time) Hear that MOM? My butt making noises when I cough. Your butt make noises Mom.

Me: No, honey it doesn't (not totally the truth).

Trev: Mom, does Daddy's butt make noises?

Yesterday, we were all looking forward to Josh's bowling 6th birthday party. It was time to take a little snooze before the party, Trevor didn't think that was such a good plan. He complained about my request...

Me: Trevor, please listen to Mommy and don't complain....it is time to take a nap. When you wake up we are all going to Josh's party.

Trev: (sighing and walking to his room dramatically) FOR JESUS SAKE MOM!

Me: (shocked and totally mortified) What did you say? We do not talk like that Trevor. (trying to desperately think of how to teach a 3 1/2 year old why this isn't okay).

Trev: Mom, you say for Pete's sake....I say Jesus sake, I like Jesus, you like Pete.

So apparently, I should erase for Pete's sake from my vocabulary. Guess I just better sick with "Oh brother, oh nuts".

Trevorisms (borrowing from Emily)

I need to blog quicker about Trevor's comments. Here was one from yesterday. Side note, Chicago is an amazing city and one we need to frequent more often! The 3 of us went to Chicago yesterday to visit the Museum of Science and Industry (more for a later blog)! Anyhow, while driving around the city, Trevor spotted a statue of someone important....

Trev: "Look, Mom a KING!"

Me: "Oh, WOW, he sure is huge!"

Trev: "Yeah, he is big and giant and HE is born for you and me! "

Thank you Sunday School for teaching him, "Come on ring those bells, light the Christmas Tree, Jesus is the KING, born for you and me!"

It is so crazy how they know the things they do. I am not sure we have ever talked about a king/statue and yet he knew what it was and that he made the connection to Jesus. It sure is awesome to see the wheels spinning and light bulbs switching on!

Side note, he had a little program with his Sunday School class at Christmas time. The whole extended family was there, Aunts, Uncles, Grandparents, cousins, etc. Trevor darling decided that he wasn't so interested in participating. Instead, he thought making circular laps to and from his teacher (myself) was more up his alley. I turned him in an about face manner and directed him back to the steps where he was to be praising the Lord. He finally decided to stay on the stairs, however he positioned himself in such a way to view the 2 girls playing the flutes that his back side was facing the auidence 97% of the time. He did however do a fantastic job of putting his ornaments on the tree at his assigned time! We even got it all on video!

Dear Trevor

Just a little note to you on this lovely 4 degree day. Today you went to Preschool and on the way there decided to inform me that you would rather go to the babysitters house. I asked why and your reply was, "because Mrs. _____ is a cutie." (You sure made her day!) Once, I informed you that there was not a choice in the matter, you obliged. You were rather excited to go to Preschool today because this week you are learning letter "O". You decided to bring an orange and you were even more excited that your show and tell fit in a special pocket of your backpack or as you call it, "packback."

Mommy picks you up from preschool on her lunch breaks. (a bit crazy of me, but worth every cent of the gas money and every second of the 1 hour trip there and back) You are always so excited to see me and coming running to me for a big giant huge HUG! Usually your teachers share with me all sorts of fun things you did that day. Today, however, your teacher asked if she could talk with me. I have to admit my heart started beating a little extra harder as I anticipated what Ms. Dawn had to tell me. She told me that while playing DUCK D*UCK GOOSE that you didn't get a turn so your teacher was "planning" a turn for you. You immediately started crying hysterically and screamed "I don't want a turn!"

We aren't totally sure what was the deal with your dissatisfaction with this game. I do remember about 1 1/2 months ago when we played with your Sunday School friends.....Another speedy little boy tagged you and you didn't get a turn to be the ducker, you were really sad about it but that was the last we heard of it. (Trust me, if you are still thinking about it, we are sure to hear, you are sure to always speak whats on your mind, don't get me wrong, we love it!) So, my dear Trevor your Mama's heart dropped a bit that you were sad/upset. When you are said my little dude, I am sad. You did report on the way home regarding Duck D*uck Goose and mentioned , "Mama, I cried a little bit." We chatted a bit about it and together we decided that next time this happens, you could tell your teacher that you don't want a turn. Awww, Trevor you melt my heart.

Who is looking forward to these days?

Ooooohhhh those summer days!

I am preparing to do some major scrapbooking and was trying to decide what pictures to print and I came across some fun summer memories.

Here is to the warmer weather and outdoor fun! Ice cream cones, pool parties, the Lake, slip n slides, softball games, camping, etc!

Only 4 more months till the good times begin!

from generation to generation

Today was a memorable day in my world...I registered my child for school next year. The first "Christian Education payment" was made today, starting what will probably be the next 13 years + of such payments for us. The best part of it all was that this very same school is where I went to school for 9 years and also where all 4 of my siblings went to school. So here begins the "next generation."

We went to meet his teacher this afternoon and see his new room. His teacher asked him what he liked to do and he promptly replied, "I like to listen to my mommy and dad." The teacher smiled and said, "oh isn't that just so sweet." I half smiled back and said yes that is really sweet, now if we could just practice what we are preaching we would be golden. He noticed the penguins displays all around the room and was rather vocal about how much he liked the penguins. Trevor enjoyed perusing through the various art supplies. He almost appeared amazed: Look Mom, "my ________ Christian School has crayons." Each new treasure he spotted was more exciting than the one before. He was quick to also notice that his new preschool had the letter "T" displayed in many places. Today he also noticed many businesses that have the letter T on them.

Yesterdays big YAY Trevor was that he wrote MOM all by himself. Now, his own name we havn't quite accomplished but he got MOM down. I think the attraction to MOM was that I say big line down...slide up slide down and big line down. He now has the lingo down. :-) The slide thing was a big deal....remember how he loves sliding.

Tomorrow is Trevor's turn to bring a snack to school. He first wanted to bring pudding with strawberries and blueberries on it. I went along with it for awhile and just tonight convinced him to bring chocolate chip cookies. He went to the closet and got out the Ch*ips *A*ho*y cookies and said, "Not these choc OOO late ones, Mam, the ones you make all yourself." So, yes it is almost 10 pm and I am waiting for the last batch of Oatmeal Chocolate Chips cookies to finish baking. Here is the recipe for the most (as Trev would say), "yummy in my tummy" cookies:

MIX:
1 c. brown sugar
1 c. white sugar
1 c. oleo (refrigerated) (I used 1 stick maragine and 1 stick butter)

ADD and MIX:

1 egg
1 c. oil
1 tsp. soda
1 c. flour
1 T. milk
2 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. salt

ADD and MIX: 2 more cups flour (I at a time).

ADD and MIX:
1 1/2 cups quick oatmeal
1 1/2 cups broken corn flakes

MIX BY HAND: 1 (12 oz.) bag of chocolate chips (I use milk chocolate)

Drop by teaspoon on cookie sheet. Bake 10-15 minutes at 350 degrees.

Enjoy with a cold glass of milk!

Pics I had in include

Okay so I take lots of pictures, it brings me joy and I really enjoy scrap booking them and blogging with them! Here are some from sliding with the in-laws that I just couldn't resist including.

Peek a boo Ellie, your mamma wants to make sure you are nice and warm, we'll have to tell her to make a spot for you to see next time! ;-)

The 'fam' anticipating their turn.



Do we know that guy the deer getup? :-)

Feel the love!

Fun had by all!