summer swings

these are a few of our favorite things

in no particular order...

our favorite things from the 2010 ionia free fair
#1 finally discovering the joy of rides

#2 fresh lemonade...pure sugary goodness

#3 "dumbo" ride
wait time is a mere fraction of what it is at disney world - ha ha

#4 a boy who agreed to wear a "handsome shirt" just for his mom
{yes, the boys call them "handsome shirts"}

#5 adults who buy wristbands just to ride kiddie rides

#6 a contented toddler who is happy to just chill with her snack

#7 time with cousins

#8 another boy rockin' a "handsome" shirt
{if you knew how often they refused to wear nice shirts, you'd understand...}

#9 riding high with a cool uncle

#10 having a ton of fun closing down the fair

a whole lotta sand

on our way home from camping,
we stopped at the sleeping bear dunes for the dune climb.

and what a climb it was...

hill after hill...

but the views were awesome...

lake michigan in front of us, glen lake behind us

now for the best part of the dune climb...

no matter how fast you came down, it was still fun!

now it's technically the sleeping bear dunes...

but i think it could be renamed to the sleeping children dunes

cuz it sure tired them out!

a weekend away

this past weekend we went camping at yet another fabulous spot.
see for yourself...

across from our site was a great area for the kids to play,and just beyond that you can see lake michigan.

we had lots of fun just hanging out by the water...

and taking lots & lots of pictures {obviously - ha ha}...

before we left we bought a bike attachment for ryan -

best investment ever!

we weren't slowed down by training wheels on a dirt road

and we didn't have to listen to josie & ryan fighting in the trailer.

ahhh, peace & quiet :)

our view every night...

don't be fooled -

our trip wasn't just playing in the water, biking & catching great sunsets.

oh no.

we had a skunk get into our garbage.

2 raccoons scare the skunk away and then get into our food bin.

{note to self/tim - put bin in car next time!}

we had a sick kid late at night who managed to ruin 2 sleeping bags & 1 pillow.

{yuck}

perhaps too many s'mores around the campfire??

although a certain 7 year old thinks that

it was because she was FORCED to walk so much that day.

and while she walked she turned around A LOT

and that made her really dizzy.

walking or s'mores - we'll never know...

either way it was a fun weekend up on the leelanau penninsula!

day at the museum

the other day we headed to the children's museum...

as you can see not all were impressed with the new exhibit -

you're never too old for curious george, right?
{or maybe it was the "smile for a picture" that they objected to}

thankfully, there is one exhibit that everyone LOVES!

but the best part of the museum,is just chillin' with the kids{amidst the mass chaos of day camps on a field trip - ha ha}

or maybe the best part is the fun mirrors - ha ha

cuz mirrors never get annoyed with endless pictures!

either way, i think these kids thought it was a
pretty fun way to spend a gray summer day :)

just dance

next to christmas and her birthday,olivia's FAVORITE event is...

summer dance clinic

attemping

josie is by no means close yet.
althought i'm hoping for a breakthrough any second now - ha ha

but at least she is attempting...

and sometimes she even attempt to be a boy...

stay tuned,
it's gotten happen eventually, right?

welcome back {to the noise}

today olivia & garrett both got new sets of ear tubes put in

and their adenoids taken out.

it was LOOOOOOONG overdue.

neither could hear very well,

and they both talked super loud.

everything went great -

they both got the slurpees that they remembered from before.

the first thing olivia said in recovery was "when can i get my slurpee" :)

and yes, they both "lost" the slurpees on the ride home.

and i'm happy to say that our deductible will be totally worth it.

garrett claimed i talked too loud.

and the vacuum cleaner was way too loud for olivia.

welcome back to the land of the non-hearing impaired...

we can finally turn down the tv!

hopefully you'll understand why we ask for a little bit of peace and quiet

every once in a while!

we heart the beach

there is so much to love about the beach...

and that's why we're going back TOMORROW!!

decade

july 15, 2010

a whole decade of being married!

here's to many more - love you!

finally 4

dear ryan,
it seems like just yesterday this was you...

you were an adorable babyand yes, you LOVED to eat!
fast forward and now you're FINALLY 4!!!!!

you've been so excited about being 4
for a very LONG TIME.

this morning when i asked you how it felt,
you just shrugged your shoulders.
what's up with that??
attitude isn't allowed till at least 4-1/2 :)

you celebrated your birthday with lunch at taco bell with daddy
{cuz mommy doesn't go there - ha ha}

your real celebration was a few days early with a some of your friends.

you specifically asked for a BOYS ONLY party.
eventually you gave in and let your sisters come :)

one of your friends gave you water guns -plus enough for your friends!
you all stayed busy for a very VERY long time.

i really can't belive you are 4 ryan.
you've changed so much this past year ryan!
you went to preschool and officially joined the ranksof the "big kids" who go off to school.
you started making your own friends and had real big boy playdates.
you tried t-ball and soccer this springand discovered how awesome it was to get treats after each game -not to mention the coolness of having your own powerade during the game!
you became obsessed with super heroes and their true identities.you often pretend you are peter parker, bruce wayne and more recently harvey dent.and once in a while, you are krypto the superdog or bathound.

but no matter how much you've grown up this year,you are still our little ry guy.you still make us laugh a zillion times a day.you are still our little bruiser of a boy.you still amaze us with your crazy antics.you are still a sweet little brother and a super sweet big brother.
we love you ry ry.
x o x o

someone {we love}

we met someone new the other day...

this little someone was very patient with all our snuggling {and photos!}

josie was especially intrigued by this sweet someone

what a little miracle!

introducing a new little someone we love!
our new cousin...
hannah elizabeth vogel

july 5, 2010

7 lbs 11 oz
19.5 inches

welcome to the family!!!