Merry Christmas everyone!

We've finished opening a crazy amount of gifts. Which makes me think, were we really this good this year? But now that I think about it it really has more to do with how blessed we are to have so many generous family members.

Why is this fun?

Neil's favorite game lately has been to put the bucket on his head and walk around until he runs into something.

MOPS crafts

Mom isn't the only one who gets to do fun crafts at MOPS. Here's Ben with the Merry Christmas apron and snowflake he made.

Stop growing

One of those times when I think can't they stay that small and sweet forever.

"Goal, Goal, Goal"

Last weekend we set out to the ice rink for the open ice time to see how Ben might do on a pair of skates. Unfortunately the rink was already full so we had to settle for watching a local team play. The boys were just as happy to watch the action. On the home front, the boys have been practicing their stick work daily. Neil chants "Goal, Goal, Goal" the whole time.

Heather cooks!

Everyone is pretty familiar with the fact the Brian does all the cooking in our home. Something that receives much praise and envy from every woman I meet. For whatever reason I decide I would cook dinner tonight. To everyone's surprise it was actually good. I'll call it zesty chicken bake. In typical good dad form Brian gave me an over abundance of praise and now I've agreed to try to make one dinner a week. We'll see how it goes.

Thanksgiving - Michigan style

Happily running around to visit family and friends

Well, it was a jam packed 4 days. Wednesday we got to spend a day at Al & Sarah's. The girls played so nicely with the boys it was actually a relaxing evening. Thursday it was off to Busia & Papa's for a feast fit for a king or at least two little princes. Also Neil's first birthday was celebrated with a birthday polka. Friday we had a chance to catch up with old friends which was soooo much fun, but Saturday morning was not so much as we nursed our hangovers. Thankfully Saturday was at Grandma's and we were met with plenty of comfort food to make us feel like new again. Not to mention the little cat naps we were able to catch. To all who made our trip such a pleasant experience - thank you much.

Sienna's favorite memories

Playing ball. Scratching my back on the twelve-foot lilac bushes until they shook. Frolicking on a Lake Michigan beach with crinkly hair and chicken legs while trying to catch fish. Playing ball. Sleeping on the bed when we went tent camping. Getting a good nub scratch. Playing ball with Asia on the beach, even though she always got the ball first in the water, but she didn't on shore. Rolling around on the grass to get the stink off after a-day-at-the-spa. Playing ball. Taking long walks in a Minnesota park – without a leash. Swimming in the stinky, muddy pond at the dog park. Oh, and playing ball.

She was a beautiful dog. We loved her and will miss her.

Neil's First Birthday

Neil got to start his day with a present from Grandma. A very fun ball popper that amused both boys all day long. Before dinner we opened presents from our friends the Wassons. Then after dinner we had cake – and baths.

Neil seemed to enjoy the cake.

Halloween '08

Ben & Neil greeting trick-or-treaters.

The boys had the pleasure of passing out candy to all their neighborhood friends. And Brian passed beer out to his. They also enjoyed treats and cool toys from Grandma & Great-Grandma.

Heather is trying to figure out how to recycle the fireman costume. Next year Neil can be the fireman and Ben can be a policeman, then Neil can be the policeman and Ben can be a burglar the following year. Not sure what to pair with a burglar after that. By then the boys will have their own opinions about what they want to dress as for Halloween.

Woof-woof.

Walkin' part 2

Neil took his first steps today!!! Brian was able to coax him from the couch to the chair in our living room. Hard to believe it was only a month ago he started practicing. Now if we could just teach him to go down the stairs. He still thinks head first is the best way.

Fall Camping

This post is about a week late. We went to Galena, IL for Brian's birthday and to appreciate the fall colors. We did get to see some colors, but we seemed to have missed the peak or it is yet to come. Mostly this trip seemed to be accident prone. The accident started with Heather smashing her thumb in the door. (No it wasn't broken, but it felt like it.) Brian bumped his head twice - once on the roof of a playhouse and once on the electrical box. Then Neil bumped his head on two different tables. Brian and Neil then had matching goose eggs. The only one to not hurt himself was Ben, but he was suffering with a molar that's been trying to come in. On a positive note we did have a fun dinner at Dirty Gurt's. They have a very cute waiting area that consists of a row of toilets. The burgers and jambalaya were good. Sadly we forgot to take pictures this trip.

Pumpkin Patch

We took an opportunity to visit one of the local farms' fall festivals. We had a really nice time petting the animals, climbing on a tractor, and jumping in a bounce house, but missed out on the donuts. We (by we I mean mostly Heather) made up for it by eating a whole apple pie this weekend. Don't worry we used plenty of Purell after visiting all the nice animals.

Walkin' & Talkin'

We've been battling cold (from MOPS) and having some much appreciated company keeping us busy the past couple weeks. So this past week has been all about saying 'Hi' and waving for Neil. As of Friday, he wasn't really showing any interest in practicing walking. This is what he's picked up just over the weekend.

Return to MOPS

Today Heather & the boys got to start the fall semester of MOPS (Mothers of Preschoolers). The theme for this year is Adventures in Mothering. It's a welcome distraction to the regular routine and a great way for Mom to recharge her batteries. Ben and Neil will be able to meet new friends independently since they are in separate age groups this year.

Wisconsin camping

Heather & Ben enjoying the campfire.

The boys playing in the swimmin' hole.

Following our trip to Minnesota we stayed in Merrymac, WI. Pretty fun campground we had all to ourselves since it was after Labor Day. The boys got to see their first toad sorry no photo. And Ben got up close and personal with his first cricket. Mom is always worried he'll try to put them in his mouth.

Ben and the cricket

MN nice - really

Heather & the boys with our wonderful hosts the Kuebelbecks.

Ben showing of his bounce house skills for our dear friend Laura.

Mike & Abby trying to get Ben to show a sense of urgency when running the bases.

So we headed back to our old neighborhood Golden Valley for Labor Day. The Kuebelbecks were kind enough to allow us to park our RV in their driveway (were waiting to hear how the electric bill fares). They were hosting the third annual wiffleball tournament. It was great to spend time with our former neighbors and our friend Laura. The neighborhood is looking really spiffy thanks to all the new roofs and siding following the hail storm they had this year. Ben got to see his first dear in the nature center down the block. We spotted five in all. The boys had a lot of fun and so did mom & dad. Were already checking our calendar to see what next year looks like.

More birthday fun

Ben riding the motorcycle his godfather Nate sent him.

The long journey begins

You may be thinking the journey refers to the trip we're about to take to Minnesota. Actually it's the journey of potty training. Today Bennet was able to go in the potty for the first time. For those of you who have changed your fare share of thousands of diapers you'll get why this needed to be it own entry.

Also thanks to Godfather Nate for the cool motorcycle. He's been up and down the block with it a bunch already.

Two-rrific birthday

All the boys having Tool Time together.

Ben opening a gift from his godmother, Morgan.

Ben seemed to enjoy his special day very much. He was a really good big brother and shared his new toys with Neil.

Digging to China

For Ben's 2nd birthday, one of the very nice gifts he received was a sandbox from his grandma. So here we are putting it in. Ben couldn't wait to get in there. It was super easy to put together (very important considering how little time we have for projects without the boys "help"). I think it took us less than an hour. Ben is in love with it. He played right up until dinner and immediately asked to go back out after dinner. (It also came with a very nice cover that ties down in a effort to keep out all the neighborhood critters.)

Ben turns 2!

Grandma with Neil.


Ben blowing out the candles.

Brian helping Ben with his new scooter.

Our latest RV trip was back to Detroit to celebrate Bennet's upcoming 2nd birthday. We stayed at Busia & Papa's driveway again. (We're contacting Woodall's Camping Directory to get their entry added next year.) Happily on Friday we were also able to spend time with Gwen & Kate's acting fans and were able to keep the paparazzi at bay. Ben had a great time with the girls, if he keeps this up he'll be known as a ladies man. On Saturday for the party, Neil got to show off all of his new teeth and standing skills. Ben's homemade, egg-less cake featured the green dog in the helicopter from one of his favorite stories Go Dog Go. All and all the party was a lot of fun – great food and company.

Artistic Endeavours

Here's a picture of an alien that Ben created at his Parks & Rec class today. The theme was Outer Space. Other crafts included making a moon rock (gluing colored tissue paper to rocks) and a multi-media outer space picture (drawing with a white crayon then painting with blue paint). This was all very fine, as far as Ben was concerned, but as soon as he spotted the toy vacuum – he knew what he wanted to do instead.

Rough start has a smooth finish

Ben with cousin, Meg.

Neil with Grandma.

Ben with Mandi, Grandma, Great-Grandma, and Sue.

So our trip to Michigan started with some unfortunate news. We got a call from our storage place early Thursday afternoon informing us that our RV had been broken into. After some scrambling on Brian's part we were able to fix the window and the screen so we could continue with our plans for the weekend. Friday morning we headed to Hillsdale, MI to enjoy family and BBQ. Donna & Dan really out did themselves with an abundance of great food. The boys also had a chance to show off their swimming skills with the help of a great new duck flotation device for Ben. Luckily, Busia brought Ben some new outfits since the one he was wearing got a little wet. The dogs even had a good time since they were lavished with attention from Kate, Meg & Paige. So I thought the boys would handle all of the driving better if they weren't forced to be in the RV two days in a row. The plan was to head to Norm & Joan's that evening after their bedtime so they could sleep peacefully as we drove. Our conclusion: It is best to drive in the morning and early afternoon. Saturday we were able to borrow Joan's car in order to visit Great-Grandma's new condo for the first time and to celebrate her 77th birthday. We had a great time visiting with Grandma, Aunt Mandi, Mr. T, Sue Basta, and of course Great-Grandma. Here new home is really lovely. It is so satisfying to see how much pride she has in her home. Her surrounding community and neighbors seem to suit her well. Sunday we made our way home and it was a very easy drive since the boys traveled well.

Hillsdale, IL this weekend... Hillsdale, MI next

So late Friday morning we decided on the spur of the moment to go on a trip this weekend. We checked our Woodall's directory to see what our state had to offer. Being new to the guide we wanted to see what their idea of a 5W campground was like. So we headed straight west on I-80 to the only 5W campground in Illinois. It proved to be very nice. We had a opportunity to camp directly on the pond, enjoy the paddle boats, relax in the swimming pool and check out some very big, fancy RVs that were there for a rally. Oh, and harass the ducks.

Also very exciting news – Neil is officially crawling now!

Bennet looks for employment

With the price of gas these days, everyone is going to have to pitch-in to support our new pastime.

Story in the park

Bennet got to enjoy his second Story in the Park of the summer courtesy of Plainfield Park District. Today's selection was "Harold and the Purple Crayon". For craft time Bennet made his own book by pasting purple cutouts of boats, balloons, and other items from the story. Mom helped him draw a picture of his bedroom on the last page which included his current bedtime friend, Sparky. There was also grape-scented, purple play-dough to play with. Bennet is becoming quite grown-up. He was able to resist the temptation of eating it (mostly due to mom's watchful eye). Neil of course also enjoys the sights and sounds of our outing.

Ahh – our first entry

Now that we're RV owners we thought it was time to start a blog of our travels and latest happenings. For our first trip we went to Indiana Beach and met our friends the Wassons. As we loaded up and headed out the first song that came on the radio was "Holiday Road". This may be have to be a new tradition for the start of each trip. Traveling was good and the boys were great. We did have a pretty good down pour on Saturday morning, but we managed to make lemonade. We had lots of fun at the water park with the boys, but didn't get any pics there. It's enough to try and keep track of the boys without keeping the camera dry too. We took our time on the way back and stopped to have lunch and hit a neighborhood park. We also went for ice cream. Bennet is trying to improve his milkshake devouring time. He really goes at it like it's his job. All for now.