Never Ending Snow-ow Fall....

So it has snowed A LOT this winter.  Actually that's kind of an understatement.  I heard on the radio this morning that since Dec. 1st to today has been 82 days and of those 82 days, it has snowed 60 here in Michigan!!  What?  That is some serious snow weather!  I think someone at church told me we have had 90 inches of snow this winter so far!  Yowza!
 

Not to mention that it's been in the teens for what seems like ever!  Everyone here is a buzz with the fact that next week it's suppose to get up to 32 degrees.  I mean seriously?  Are we really getting  excited about 32 degrees?  But we are!  Amazing what you can get use to, and what you can become excited about! ha, ha
 

Zack said our mailboxes look like a hobbit hole.  (Poor Mailman need some off roading gear.)  The snow is up over the top of them.  And when he uses the snow blower it just blows snow into a giant snow wall.  It can't even launch it over the top anymore.  Talk about a winter wonderland!
 


Sadly the kids haven't even gotten to go out and play in all that snow too much because it's just been too darn cold. But once in a while they just can't resist the call of the snow and they brave  the chill.

 

So we have been spending a lot of time indoors, which at times has been really fun, and at times a little trying.  But we are making the most of it!  And we still LOVE Michigan despite the cold weather.  It has been really beautiful with all the whiteness. 

This is kind of a sad picture considering how terrible the Broncos did in the Super Bowl, but Oliver and I made a cake.  It was pretty tasty!


Everyone enjoyed it!!
Well, can't wait until next week when it's going to be so warm we can bust out our swimsuits!  Okay, maybe just one less layer!  Stay warm!

Our baby is 2!!

 Our baby boy August turned 2 this week.  So crazy how time flies.  So I thought I would do a little post about him and the things he likes right now for memory sake.  He loves to be outside, which of course right now isn't so great with all the snow. But mostly he loves going down slides and going on the swings.  Both of which took his older siblings much longer to enjoy than 2 years.  In fact neither of the other 2 like swings much still. 

 But our little August is fearless.  He climbs, he slides, he does it all!  He also loves to wrestle with anyone lying on the floor- just a cautionary tale for anyone that may happen to visit......
And he also loves to chase and be chased around the house.

 August is also very loving!  He will hug just about anything we tell him to. 

 He love, love, loves his brother and sister.  And he will mimic just about any and everything they do- like it or not.  In fact today we were dancing in the living room to music and all of a sudden I hear, "shake your booty, shake your booty!"  A line he often hears Ruby say.  He has also taken a shining to "Monsters" like Ruby.  He is always saying, "Oh, Oh no, a Monster....hide, a monster."  And he loves to play hide-and-seek.

 We are finding he is a pretty happy go lucky guy except when he is sick, then watch out- grump city.  But he has inherited Ruby's stubbornness, something we are hoping will only be a phase.  Fingers crossed.

 His favorite foods include grapes and strawberrys, cheese and fruit snacks.  He also loves to play with all Ruby's princess things.  And barbie is probably his favorite toy right now.

 Lately he has been talking up a storm and is stringing more and more words together.  His newest phrase is, "I wike this Mama, I weally wike this." 

 And of course not to be forgotten he has a stuffed wolf that he loves.  He loves it so much he has almost bitten the nose right off it.  I don't know what we are going to do when it comes off. 

Anyway, we love our little pumpkin and all his crazy ways.  Can't wait to see what year 3 will bring!

Brrrr....freezing in Holland

 Last Saturday we went to the town of Holland to check out an ice-sculpture contest they were having in their downtown area.  We thought that sounded kind of cool, so we bundled up, packed the kids in the car and headed out.  Some of the sculptures had been done the day before, so they were a little melty, but some were still being created which was fun to see.

 That being said, it was seriously COLD out there.  I mean cold.  The wind was whipping up and it was chilly.

 So as cool as the sculptures were, it was sort of a peek and dash situation.  There was no lingering longer to watch.

 It was suppose to be a little warmer that day, but it sure didn't feel like it when we were out.  But it was fun to get out and stretch our legs a little and see something different.  And of course the kids were rewarded by stopping at the toy store there!  Leave no toy store left unexplored is there motto!

 But we also went out to see Lake Michigan.  We had been told that the lakes look neat when it's winter too.  So we drove out there to see. And it was really interesting and beautiful.

 All the ice and snow mixed with the sand was really cool. It was kind of like being in the arctic (not really) with all the ice chunks in the water. 

We even saw some people out ice fishing on one of the inlets that was completely frozen over.  That was fun. The kids got out for a minute, but quickly did an about face when they realized how cold it was with the wind.  ha, ha. 

*I just have to add this story because I want to remember it along with this day.  While we were driving out to the lake, a song came on the ipod and Zack said, "when I hear this song and drive through the snowy forest like this it makes me want to rock out in a sleigh!" 
Me:  "What?"
Zack: "You know, it's just like a really good sledding rock song!"
At this point I was busting up laughing so hard.  Even as I type this, I'm laughing to myself.
Me:  "Ummm.....I didn't know there was such a thing as wanting to rock out while riding a sleigh."
Zack: " Oh yeah,  don't you ever just get that feeling.  I think I'm going to make a new genre of music, Sleigh Rock.  Get a band together and make some songs.  The first album can be called "Sleigher" get it?  Ha Ha Ha Ha"
Me:  "Oh my gosh, you are so strange.  Never have I heard of someone wanting to rock out on a sleigh.
I seriously laughed my head off for a good 10 minutes.  I couldn't stop.  It was so ridiculous!  Oh how I love that strange man of mine!!  ha, ha ha

Summer Photos I forgot to download

 So apparently, I forgot to download our summer photos from one of our cameras.  Oops.  And there were some fun memories, so I couldn't just let them go.  Above is Ruby, Auggie, and Grandpa eating some icecream.  I love that August looks like he is getting a lesson on how to eat it.  He's so intent.

                                                         Bubbie reading a book to Ruby.

 August had a blast going down the slides this summer!  Zack's parents have a playground behind their house, so we spent a lot of time there.  The kids loved it!

                                                    Look at that face!  What a cutie!

 Oliver got to try out a dunk tank at a 24th of July (Pioneer day) celebration.  He loved it to our surprise! 

 My Dad and Ruby trying to put training wheels on Oliver's new bike that he got for his b-day! 

 We went to the zoo for Ruby's b-day.  They have a big pond out front with this cool dragon statue in it. 

                                                             Looking at the Kangaroos

                                              The Little Princess on her 4th birthday!

His Maturity will astound you

You know your child is getting older when he can grow and wax his own mustache!!

When did our little boy get so mature?

 Such sophistication.  Aren't we all so glad that mustaches have come back in style? (Please tell me that none of you are growing one, please, I beg you.)

You can almost imagine a young damsel tied to the railroad tracks somewhere.  Mu-ha-ha.

The End of Summer

 Okay, so I know this is a little past the end of summer, but I'm still on the quest to entice people to visit us here in Michigan!!  :)  So I thought I'd show a few of the last things we did here this summer.
First up, BLUEBERRY picking!!!  Oh yes, happy day!  To be honest I wasn't ever a huge blueberry person until we went blueberry picking in MA.  Do you know how amazing fresh blueberries right off the bush are?? 

 If you don't, you should.  They are so delicious!!  And they just so happen to have places to pick in Michigan too.  YEAH!  So we headed out one day and got us a bucket full o' bliss!!

                                                         Just look at those beauties!!

 We also went to a few fun farmers markets.  It was so much fun to walk around and see all the delicious things there.  If we were made of money, we might have actually bought some of them!  ha, ha.  Okay, we did splurge on a few tasty things like a yummy watermelon!  But just look at that little diva next to Zack with her heart shaped sunglasses.  Love it.

 There we so many fun colors and veges that you don't see at the store, the kids had fun exploring new things.

                                    Okay, one more pic of the diva, I wish I could have gotten a closer picture, so cute.

 We also got a pass to the Fredrick Meijer Sculpture Gardens.  This place is amazing!!  It's like 130 acres of gardens and green houses plus they have this huge children's garden with all sorts of things to do.  They have a big water area shaped like the great lakes that kids can float boats in.

                                                  Kids + water= a good time had by all!

                                                 Plus they had beautiful gardens of course.

 And a giant tree house with a little tea party area.  We had to rip August away, I think he could have stayed there all day!

 And Lastly, Art Prize.  Grand Rapids has this huge art festival every year all over the down town area.  It started 5 years ago, and has turned into this HUGE event.  It's 3 weeks long and artist come from all over and set up their art and then the public can go around and explore and vote.  At the end of 3 weeks the public votes pick the top 3 winners and they win a cash prize. $200,000 I think to the winner. (The panda above is make out of old bike tires, cool eh?)

So there are huge things all over town, plus stuff set up in the museums and in restaurants and shop windows all over the city.  So you just walk around and experience it all.  It was SUPER cool.  We went 3 times walking around and I think we only saw a fraction of it all.  Plus there was such a wide variety of art that there was something for everyone.  Plus it's all free which is cool. (Above is a huge dragon that was make out of recycled parts plus it was built on 2 tractors, so it could actually drive down the road.  It was cool.)

Well that's a few of the fun stuff we did at the end of summer.   I know everyone is now booking their flights for next summer to come see us!  ha, ha