Chilly Memorial Day Weekend

Our Memorial Day was packed with travel and family time.  Andy had the weekend off so we thought we should take advantage of it and get out of town for awhile.

We started out by heading to Spencer to visit with Grammy, Papa, and 

Aunt Liz.  Marie was so excited to get on Papa's boat!  Too bad the weather didn't cooperate, but we still got our boat ride, ice cream, and Arnold's Park adventures in between the rain showers.

Marie played with Aunt Liz until she nearly fell over from exhaustion.  Bennett had a blast being adventurous with his new crawling skill and hamming it up for his audience, and Gus was a fantastic puppy on his first visit to Grammy & Papa's house.  

Next we went to Rock Valley to join the Van Beek family for our annual trip to the cemetery.

The kids take their cleaning jobs very seriously.

 

This was Marie's 2nd time here to visit Papa Rick and Bennett's first.

Marie was filled with questions this time and left feeling a little confused but understood it was a special place to visit and an important day for Mommy. I look forward to continuing this tradition with them as they get older and hope they find comfort in it like I do.

It was great to spend time with family and we are looking forward to June - full of travels and fun summer time adventures!

The Big 3-0!

Andy turned 30 this past week!

He is now a man in his 30s married to a girl in her 20s :)

well...at least for a few more weeks.

We had a great celebration week for him filled with some of his 

favorite treats: macadamia nut cookies and strawberry rhubarb pie

-and-

favorite past-times:  landscape and yard work, baseball game, and boating.

 

Happy Birthday to the greatest Dad and Husband around!

Bennett at 11 months

Bennett is 11 months old and loving it!  He has done so much growing in the past month it is unreal.

He has 4 teeth, he is moving around, pulling himself up on furniture, opening cupboards and drawers, and causing quite the mess.  He loves playing outside and especially enjoys the swing and sand.

 He continues to be kind of a momma's boy.  

He thinks his sister is hilarious.  

If Andy walks by and doesn't pick him up Bennett causes quite the fuss. 

He and Gus are continuing to want the same toy at the same time but they figuring out how to share with each other. 

We will be celebrating his 1st birthday next month!  

What a year it has been!

Our Charlie Boy

We said good-bye to our dear Charlie boy on Saturday.  We kissed him, patted his head, scratched his ears, let him know how much we love him, how much fun we have had with him, and how much joy he has brought to our life.  We thanked him for watching over us and let him know that we will be okay.

 Char lived his life to the fullest. 

He ran as fast as he could through every field, chased every rabbit he could see, and flushed as many pheasants as his nose could find.  He was a favorite napping buddy for all of us, loved cuddling in blankets, lived for his evening walks, and stole many granola bars and bananas. He had this amazing ability to know when he could be hyper and crazy with people or when he needed to be calm and collected making him a great big brother to Marie and Bennett. So many people would comment on how good he was with children.

Char loved being home.  

He knew several of them as he made many moves with us.  As long as we had his bed and our couch - he was home.  He took his job as guard dog very seriously, especially if Andy was gone and I was home alone with the kids.  I will never forget him sleeping in the hallway in between our room and Marie's room when Andy was gone for a medical school rotation. I would invite him to his bed every night but he would insist on staying near both of his girls.  

Char was the greatest dog.
When he came to us, he needed us.  He needed a home.  Charlie has been a part of every major event in our adult life...our engagement, wedding, graduations, buying our first home, medical school, and birth of our children. He was such a part of us and soon we were the ones who needed him.

Our home doesn't feel the same.  We miss him very much. Marie is making sense of it the best she can. She knows he is in heaven. She knows he can look down and watch her play.
Even in his last days, he was taking the time to teach Gus how to be the family dog.

Char spent his final days at home...exactly where he loved to be.

Charlie

February 15, 2005 - May 18, 2013

Mother's Day

Our Mother's Day weekend was a full one! 

Aunt Katie flew in to spend some quality time with Marie and Bennett.  They both loved their play time with Katie.  Even though Marie has been fighting a virus since Thursday,  we still were able to pack our weekend with some fun.  

We made it out to the farmers market, got our flowers planted, went to brunch with Papa & Grammy, and played outside. 

My mother's day was full of so many things that I love.  I got to devour several different kinds of desserts, read a magazine out in the sun with no interruptions, go for a walk with Bennett, dance & sing in the band shell at the park with Marie, ate breakfast in bed with Charlie, and played outside with Gus.   

Being a mom has been nothing I expected and everything I could ever hope for all wrapped into one. Recently when asked what she would be when she grew up, Marie answered, "A Mom."  I am hoping she thought of that because she sees how rewarding my job as a mom really is. 

However, she did ask me recently, "Mom, why do you do so many things with only one hand when you tell me to use both of my hands?"
I laughed and said, "Because Mommies don't always have both hands to use to get a job done."

She replied, "But doing things with one hand is harder isn't it?"

Today is one of those days where I don't have both hands to get jobs done...a sick girl, new puppy potty training, old dog, and clingy baby boy.  Although the jobs seem harder today and my hands are full, I am so thankful they are not empty.

Picture Perfect Day

 Sometimes we get those days where everything seems to just work out.  And when those days happen, I try really hard to soak in every moment to the last drop.  Sunday was one of those days for me. Nothing extraordinary - just family time.  The weather was nearly perfect, we had well-behaved children, our aging dog showing signs of spunk, and our puppy along for his first family adventure. 

there is nothing like digging in the mud

Bennett had fun feeling the sand and trying to keep his hat away from Gus

Char enjoying the view from the long hike

the windy day provided the perfect opportunity to fly Marie's kite

 2 thirsty kids after a lot of playing

 

Exhausted from the fun afternoon

Life with Gus

This has been quite an eventful weekend with our new addition, Gus.  It has been a weekend full of potty training, playing, and prying puppy teeth off our hands and feet.  So far, he has been a very good little guy. 

He is sleeping in his kennel in the garage at night. He whines for about 5-10 minutes but then goes to sleep.  He hasn't had any accident in his kennel at night yet.  To help him sleep away from his litter mates and mama, we have a heartbeat sound app on an iTouch.

He and Marie have already bonded.  He follows her around the house and yard just waiting for her to tell him what to do next.  And, when he doesn't do what she asks him to do, she just picks him up and makes him do it.  Marie is accepting some responsibilities too.  She helped Andy fix up the "Dog Barn" in our back yard, she takes Gus out to go potty when he starts to sniff around, and she is good at making sure he has fresh water and plenty of cuddle time. She doesn't love his sharp puppy teeth but she is learning how to offer Gus an alternative, such as a toy, when he tries to nibble on her toes or fingers.

Bennett and Gus are getting along pretty well too.  Bennett prefers Gus when he is sleeping and Gus prefers to chew on Bennett's ears. The two of them tend to want the same toy and the same time.  Maybe this will get Benny to move a little more...

Charlie is doing pretty well with the new addition, too.  He gives Gus a little attention once in awhile.  Gus likes to follow Charlie around the house like a little brother following his big brother who is way too cool to pay attention to the little brother...

Welcome to the family Gus - we love you so much already!