FaThEr'S dAy AnD mOrE bEaCh...

Well, we had a pretty great Father's Day...The kids made Breton mugs and picture frames and were very excited to give them to daddy!! This last week both kids came d0wn with a fever that lasted about 24 hours!  As long as I kept motrin and tylenol in them they were fine.  Kaylin was a lot more mellow than normal and told me that she feels all "wiggly" (aka...dizzy)...so cute!  Anyway, we didn't take them to church so Breton and I just switched off!  Then, with it being his only day off, we went to the beach with pretty much the whole office!  It was just so nice to spend the day together!  So...Thanks to our wonderful father's in our lives and for all that they do!

Breton...always playing some kind of game! :)

I guess this is Kaylin's new pose!!

YAY!!!  Dax finally decided it was ok to step in the sand!  I don't really know what sparked this change, but he did it!! We were pretty happy about it...hopefully this wasn't a one time thing!! :)

We shall see...!!!

GrAnD hAvEn BeAcH...

The past couple of weekends we have been heading to the beach for some family time!!! Breton works such long hours in the summer so we try to take advantage of the time he has off!  The beach is only about 45 mins. away from us...it is crazy because you feel like you are in a completely different state!  It's this cute little beach town with surf shops, local restaurants, a pier, etc...  Such a nice little getaway!!!

Little Man!

Kaylin LOVES to play with Rob!  She seriously will follow him around the beach and beg for him to take her out into the water...he is such a good sport!  

Making "sand" angels!

Dax still will not touch the sand...he stays on the blanket or has to be held the whole time...What is the deal with my kids?!! (Thankfully Kaylin grew out of that!)

Our little fam.!

JoHn BaLL zOo...

A few weeks ago, Sarah and I took the kids to the zoo!  It is great having another friend out here with kids the same ages as Kaylin and Dax!  We have been having lots of fun finding new adventures for the kids and just having another mom to hang out with!! :)

Petting the Sting Rays!

Having a little picnic after our busy day! 

OuR dAyS iN gRaNd RaPiDs...

Well, we are finally out here in Grand Rapids with Breton!!!  It is SO nice to be together again!  So since we don't have a crib out here we figured this might be a good time to try a big boy bed for Dax!! (Not that I am in any hurry though!)  We found this Lightning MQueen toddler bed on Craigslist for $50...mattress and all!!  He has been doing great in it, except now he can get out himself...so now we just have a safety lock on the door to keep him from coming out!!  Anyway, he loves having a CARS bed...such a big boy!! (Now I just need to work on the binky :))

Kaylin helping me make brownies...well, more like eating the brownie batter!

(And being silly!)

Kaylin, Dax, Haley, Alan, Chris, and Conner!

It has been so nice this summer because Kaylin and Dax have met such cute friends out here!  The apartments that we live in have a huge grassy area in the back and our next door neighbors have 2 boys and the neighbors across have a boy and a girl!  All 6 of these kiddos play every single day...sometimes for hours and hours!!! It really has been the greatest thing!  Here they are playing water games and having a picnic!  Our neighbors have been SO nice and welcoming!!!

Well, here it is...my bargain shopping day at a neighborhood yard sale!  And the Total was $18. 50!  My list of items includes:

-Traveling suitcase for Kaylin

-Polly Pockets gallore...including accessories, cars, castle, etc.

-2 Barbie dolls + tons of clothes

-Barbie Furniture set

-2 puzzles

-3 Fisher Price Learning toys

-Alligator Xylophone

-2 Leap Pad Readers

 -Musical Lawn Mower

-Tigger and Pooh Car

-Trampoline

I only brought out a small bin of toys for the kids so I was pretty happy to find all of this for under $20!!!  However, I probably used half a container of Clorox wipes to clean it all off!!! It was all in really great condition, but I had to do it for my own peace of mind! 

KaYliN's LaSt DaY oF pReScHoOL...

Well, Kaylin finished her 1st year of preschool on May 21st!  I can't believe my sweet girl is growing up so fast!  I swear it was just the other day that I was teary eyed driving away on her 1st day...knowing this was just the beginning of her not being by my side 24/7!  She has grown up so much (as you can see in these 2 pictures) and I ask her almost everyday if she will still be my best friend when she becomes a teenager!?  Her reply is, "Yes mommy...You are the Best mommy in the whole world EVER!" (If only she will remember this, right?!!) And then she tells me..."I am growing up sooo much, but I am still a kid!"  Ohh, I just love her to pieces!  She says the funniest things and has such an imaginative and curious mind!  Along with that comes a very STRONG personality and some days can be quite challenging (which I am sure many of you mothers know all too well) ...but she really does bring us SO much joy and entertainment and I wouldn't trade it for a thing!  

Kaylin's Preschool Program!

Uncle Mikey came down to see her!

Kaylin with her teacher, Mrs. Elna Heap!

Singing her little heart out!

It was so much fun to see her sing and do all of the little hand motions to all of the songs!  They were all so darling and it was pretty funny because Kaylin was definitely one of the loudest singers!  Such a cute thing to watch!  Thank goodness for video...that way Breton could see it all too!   

KaYliN's DaNcE rEciTaL...

Well, on May 16th Kaylin had her first dance recital with Center Stage! Ms. Kim Delgrosso was her teacher and she did such a great job with all of the girls!! They danced to songs from Aladdin...all the girls dressed up as Jasmine and the one boy in their class was of course Aladdin!  It was SO cute and Kaylin did such a great job...I was so proud of her!!!  My little princess!!! :)

My Birthday Dinner at Happy Sumo!!

ThE fiRst HaLf oF mAy...

Well, Breton left for Grand Rapids, MI on April 19th to head out for another summer!  The kids and I didn't go out until 5 weeks later...Ugh!!!  Way too long to be away from each other, but I guess those are the sacrifices you make especially now that the kids are older!  Kaylin had her dance recital and preschool to finish up before we left!!  Anyway, I didn't take a ton of pictures during this time, but here are just a few!  Our daily routine for the first few weeks went a little like this:  go to the gym so Mommy could work out (for my sanity :)), go to the park or play outside with Sophia and Oliver,  preschool, swim lessons, dance, naps, and any other errands!  Thank goodness I had my sisters around because they would come over almost everyday...I loved it!!!

Breton decided to fly home for 2 days because 5 weeks was just too long!  Here we are at the airport after 3 weeks of not seeing him! 

Kaylin and Dax so happy to see daddy!!  

Playing at the park!

Sophia, Oliver, and Kaylin!

Spending endless hours outside playing with the sprinkler, riding bikes, etc...!

Worn out after a long day of play!! :)

So the kids did 3 weeks of swim lessons in May and they did such a great job!  Dax was a little nervous the first few days, but he soon loved it and couldn't wait to get in the water for his lesson!  He looked so cute and so big in the water!  Kaylin was a little fish...swimming across the whole pool, floating on her back, and of course jumping off the diving board!  Now if I could only figure out how to get them to do so well outside of their lessons!!  :)  Too bad we have only been to the pool once so far out here in Michigan...and it is June 19th!  The weather hasn't been too great so far...I am dying for some sunny days!!!