Field Trip to Frederick Meijer Gardens

It's been a couple of years since I've been at the gardens but we had the chance to go again with Bryan's preschool class about a week ago.

Bryan's class - he's on the far left in the back

Raking leaves was super fun.

Checking out his leaf shape.

Pretty cool, right? Have a great week!

Halloween Fun

For years now, since Elizabeth was about 3, the one time of year that I really enjoy sewing is at Halloween. Over the years, it's become a little more challenging but it's always fun and rewarding. Bryan had a whole list of superheros that he wanted to be, but when he accompanied me to the fabric store, he found the costume that he wanted and thus became...

PRINCE CHARMING!!!

Isn't he as handsome as you've ever pictured him? :-)

We had to have a few discussions about the sword, but let's be honest, that is really what sold him on the costume.

Our BUSY weekend began with Bryan's Harvest Party that I was in charge of on Thursday. It went great and the kids seemed to have a great time.

Bryan with his wonderful teachers.

He's made several friends already this year and really enjoys Tuesday, Thursday and Friday mornings.

Friday took Eric and I on a trip to Stratford, Ontario with a group of 44 high school students, so Grandma Kregel filled in for me and along with caring for Bryan for the day, showed up at the girls school to help with costumes and attend the parade. While it was hard to miss a party day, I was so thankful that they were in good hands. Ashlynn was our Annie and a perfect one she was.

Elizabeth was Ginny Weasley from the Harry Potter series; one that she's on her fourth time through.

Saturday morning was pumpkin carving time and as always we had some interesting requests.

Elizabeth carved her own this year and really did a great job.

Ashlynn's required a bit more help.

and Bryan was content to just watch his take form.

At noon, we joined Eric's Grandma for lunch for our traditional passing out of candy at Sunset Manor and Village. The kids did great and helped bring a lot of smiles to many people's day.

This time is a highlight for all of us.

Great Grandma and her great grandkids.

We always try to make a point of stopping to see this wonderful prayer warrior when we visit Sunset Manor and Village. From there we headed to visit my Aunt Marion and then over to Great Grandpa and Grandma Kregel's to surprise them.

A stop at Great-Grandpa's for a quick visit with him and Brenda's cousin and some trick-or-treating in the halls.

Last, but certainly not least was trick or treating with some very good friends; a definate highlight of the day. Bryan took his role as Prince Charming quite seriously and spent the evening trying to woo Rapunzel who as a fourth grader was not easily won over.

Watch out for the giant spider! Hope your Halloween was memorable with lots of laughter

and fun! Happy Halloween! :-)

Trip to Chicago

For one last hurrah of the summer, we decided to take a three day family vacation to Chicago. The kids had never been to the museums and it had been a long time since either Eric or I had been to them. We stayed at the Country Inn and Suites in Schaumburg and commuted into the city for 2 days.

Museum of Science and Industry.

While in the Chicago area, we had the chance to visit with some friends that we don't see often enough. They carved out some time and invited us for dinner, even though it was the night before school was starting for their boys. It was definately a highlight of the trip.

At the Field Museum, they have a great family exhibit downstairs that the kids loved! Here they are collecting corn from the stalks.

Three happy kids. Will they ever get tired???

In front of the Field Museum

Enjoying a picnic lunch at Millenium Park in Chicago.

We had a wonderful time as a family and came back ready to tackle another year.

Birthdays!!!

What a fun week we have had!!! We started the week with the Grand Rapids fireworks on Sunday night. The kids loved having ALL of their grandparents there as well as our adopted sister/cousin for the summer, Alex, and Shari and Alivia in from Indianapolis.

Bryan rode to the fireworks in style, but poor Grandpa! It was around 85 degrees. Is there anything grandparents won't do for their grandkids. I didn't even want to hold his sweaty little hand. :-)

We found two tiny little spots kitty corner from each other and settled in. It was tight, but...

it got tighter when we all had arrived. It turned out to be a really great spot to watch from.

Grandma and the Grays keeping cool, (or trying to) at the parade on Monday morning.

Grandma planned ahead and brought the sun visors. It was HOT!!!

Monday was a very special day at our house as we were remembering 7 years ago when we welcomed Ashlynn into our family. Not everyone gets a parade and fireworks for their birthday, but I'm really glad that this one does!! She is such a gift of joy and laughter to our family.

A pretty excited little girl once we finally got the sparklers to light.

She lost her tooth just days before her birthday. Look at that smile. :-)

Sparkler time! We decided that fireworks two nights in a row was just not going to happen so we made our own instead.

On Wednesday, we all headed to up to Mom and Dad's place to celebrate another special birthday. Happy Birthday, Shari!!! We rarely get to celebrate together anymore so it was a special treat.

A day at the beach was a nice treat during the heat. The temperature was perfect. Even Mommy went in, which is rare for a woman who would rather be just about anywhere than the beach. Sand and sunscreen... Yuck! It was soooo worth it.

The kids are bracing for a water fight between Mommy and Aunt Shari.

The kids love the time they spend at Kairos with Grandpa and Grandma.

My sweet, sweet boy

Two girls and their mom.

Two girls and their dad

My sister and friend.

This fun little guy, the youngest of the Kregel clan got a lot of attention over the weekend. As always, our time together as a family was enjoyed and savored for the gift that it was.