whirlwind weekend

This weekend we got to pack in as much fun as possible!

We started out with pizza and meeting the brand new puppies at Chris & Mindy's house on Friday night.

They were born on Monday, May 12.  Marie and Bennett loved getting to cuddle these cuties.  They are so young that they don't even have their eyes or ears open yet.

 

 Next, we drove over to Spencer so we could spend some time with Papa & Grammy.  

We attended an open house at the hospital in Spirit Lake as well as spent some time with a realtor looking around at possible neighborhoods for us to live in.  

Meanwhile, the kids were busy packing in as much fun as possible with Papa & Grammy. They played ball, had a fire with s'mores, and made a few trips to the park.

Relief in Sight

The past 6 months have been rough for our little Benny.  He has been dealing with ear infections and fluid in his ears that just doesn't go away.  It makes him irritable, off-balance, and we noticed his speech was affected so we began having his hearing tested every month.  Just as we thought, he was experiencing a simulated hearing loss due to the fluid in his ears which therefore affects his speech development.  

Yesterday was his first ENT appointment and the doctor agreed with us - tubes are necessary to help Bennett feel better and hopefully stay better. 

Next Wednesday we will be having surgery early in the morning.

We are hoping and praying this gives our guy some relief! 

Here Comes the Graduate

Tuesday night was Marie's Preschool Graduation Ceremony. 

Her class has been practicing for months and they were all so excited for their big night!

During the ceremony they sang songs, recited poems, and received their diplomas. 

Marie had wonderful teachers this year: Ms. Bonnie and Ms. Brittany. They were very patient and caring and always had such wonderful things to say about Marie. 

Marie got close to several new friends and she was lucky to have her best friend, Trey in her class again. This is the last class they will have together as they will both be moving on after the summer.

 

Grammy, Papa, and Grandma Nel joined us for the celebration as well. We enjoyed ice cream and Marie's favorite place afterwards.

Next fall Marie will be entering Pre-Kindergarten at Holy Cross Catholic School.

She is looking forward to her new adventure. We visited her new school this past spring. Marie likes that her new school is a real school with a lunch room and library. She thinks the kitchen play area looks like a lot of fun, and she is excited about the class pet. 

Congratulations Marie! We are so proud of you!

Mother's Day

Today I had the pleasure of waking up to specially made oatmeal with chocolate chips and coffee.

Marie and Daddy carefully prepared breakfast while Bennett surprised me with new earrings he picked out himself!

After church we enjoyed brunch at one of our favorite restaurants.

Can you tell Marie made a few trips to the chocolate fountain?

The kids spent some time picking more flowers for me and enjoying the view of the river.

After naps and a few rain showers we headed to the park and ran a few errands as a family.

Marie and Bennett, I'm so thankful I get the opportunity to be your mom. 

Both of you teach me new things every day.  

Being a mom is the hardest and most rewarding job I will ever have.

Thankfully, your Grandmothers have been good examples for me to follow.

never a dull moment

Andy is officially done with nights (yeah!) so we have had some more family time the past few days. Here is what we have been up to!

We were the lucky recipients of May Day Baskets from our neighbor girl, Sydney.

The kids were so excited and wanting to eat the candy all at once. 

Someone figured out how to sneak his basket and hide behind the chair so he could eat a few more pieces...stinker.

We enjoyed a few days at the park between the cold and rainy weather we had last week.

The kids love the park and it is hard to drag them away every time...especially Bennett. It's not the best part of my day or his when I say it's time to go home.

Bennett has also been mowing our yard a lot...over and over and over. 

Too bad he isn't cutting the grass!  He is just yelling 'bubbles' over and over and over thanks to Aunt Liz and Uncle Andrew's early birthday gift for him.

Sunday was a full day for us!  We visited Sheldon and then Van Beek family to celebrate Mother's Day and Abby's birthday.  The kids played with their cousins and had a blast with a game called "Head Bands."

On the way out of town we got a call about visiting some 3 week old puppies...of course we said yes!

The kids jumped out of the car, sprinted to the puppy barn, and cuddled all the little cuties!

It was hard to walk away without one...

While at the acreage we also got to pet, feed, and even ride a few horses!

This has been Marie's dream for soooooo long.  She has been asking about riding a horse for months! 

This girl definitely has a love affair with them and it's pretty neat to think that maybe she gets this from her Grandpa Rick.

After this busy busy day we made our way back to Sioux City but not until we stopped for delicious strawberry shakes and dinner at Bob's Drive Inn in LeMars...one of my favorite stops.

 And then there's Gus...he's been along with us for all of our adventures but he still gets worried he is going to be left behind.  Every week after I get groceries he jumps up and sneaks into his kennel while the groceries are still inside just in case we are heading out.

Life has been busy and it's not slowing down anytime soon! 

"Just one thing and then I'll go back to bed..."

At about 8:45 every night, Marie tip toes out of her room to share some sort of random information with this that can't POSSIBLY wait until morning.  She prefaces the statement by saying " I just NEED to tell you one thing and then I'll go back to bed."

sporting her "Merida" wig from the movie "Brave" along with her bow & arrow

I started keeping track...they were just too good to not share.

"Do you know what my favorite colors are?  They're pink and purple."

"Don't have a nightmare tonight, ok Mom?"

New Easter Dress

"My legs don't have enough milk so they are hurting. So we need to drink more milk tomorrow, ok mom?  More milk!"

"Mom, tomorrow I want a pop tart for breakfast. But remember, I will take the crust off first."

"When it's winter again next year and the snow is sticky I am going to build snowman. Is that ok with you mom?"

"Mom!  I can't speak bear!" ---for the record, we are pretty sure she was sleep walking during this statement.

"Mom, I really love being a big sister. And I'm so good at it!"

 ***

It's never a dull moment with this little girl in our house!  

 

 

Play time!

Late on Friday night we welcomed Aunt Liz, Uncle Andrew, and Cali for a little visit.

The kids woke up on Saturday morning and ran to Aunt Liz ready to play.  Andrew was busy all day with a softball tournament so the kids and Aunt Liz played all day long. 

They even got to open up early birthday presents!

Grammy & Papa also visited on Saturday for a little play time. 

While we were out to lunch, Aunt Keri and Uncle Paul stopped at the restaurant to eat with us, too!

It was such a fun weekend full of many people we love. 

Gus and Cali had plenty of play time in the back yard too....we have to giant hole from their digging to prove it.

When Liz & Andrew left on Sunday, the kids were pretty sad to see them go.

They love all their aunts and uncles so much and really treasure all the time they get with them.

Each one has a different connection or bond and we are so blessed to have such a great family who loves them so much.