Fun Around GR

Will and Alex hit the town this week. Grandma and Grandpa took them to the Botanical Gardens on Tuesday to see the holiday displays and the trains. Then on Wednesday, we went to the Public Museum. The boys rode the carousel two times and we were able to go to their story time which was very cool. It was in one of the theaters in the museum and they projected all the illustrations on the screen on stage. They also had a volunteer playing the theater organ to add some "mood music" to the story. Both boys sat through it and seemed to enjoy it.

Such a good helper

Checking out the trains with Grandpa

It was an arts and crafts kind of day...

Meijer Penny Pony at the Museum

First Carousel Ride

Alex in Lights

I saw a cute idea for a holiday baby photo on Pinterest so I decided to give it a try this weekend. Alex had fun playing with the lights. The first photo was just taken with my phone and doctored on Instagram. The others were taken with a normal camera. I think they turned out pretty cute!

I love the toothy grin!

Christmas Tree Day

Today was Christmas Tree day! We headed out to Hart's Tree Farm in Rockford around 9:30 this morning. It was a very cold, blustery day. There were even some snow flakes in the air. It was so cold we didn't wait around for the hay ride - we just walked up the hill to the Fraiser Firs. The Fraisers were a bit smaller this year than in the past, but we found a nice 7' tree. Will was really into the process and Alex tolerated it. 

Once we had the tree loaded in the car, we drove into downtown Rockford for our traditional hotdog lunch at the Corner Bar. We got there right when it opened so we didn't have to wait for a table like we have in the past. After lunch, we brought the tree in and let the branches fall. Will really wanted to decorate it - he couldn't wait! He did a very good job decorating, although he liked to bunch ornaments up on the same branch. Especially if they were similar (2 cupcake ornaments on the same branch).

Alex was very curious about the tree, lights, and ornaments. It could be trouble. Will was barely crawling for his first Christmas so he didn't grab at the tree much. Alex was already grabbing and shaking the low hanging ornaments.

A cold day at the tree farm

Lunch at the Corner Bar

We beat the crowds

Ready to decorate!

Will took his job very seriously

Weekend at Grann's

This weekend, we went to Detroit to visit Grann. We got in Friday night and the boys had so much fun playing with all the toys in her basement. Will loves her shopping cart and food and Alex really liked the musical table.  Will had fun camping out in the guest room with mom and dad.   

On Saturday, Grann took the boys to Sommerset so Phil and I could go to Ann Arbor for a while. We didn't go to the game but we were able to see some friends, walk around, and watched part of the game at Ashley's. Grann wore Will out riding the moving sidewalks, the mini escalators, and the elevators at the mall. After we got back from Ann Arbor, we all went out to dinner and then let the kiddos play some more.

On Sunday, we went and walked the trails in the morning.  After lunch, we packed up and headed home.  It was so nice out that Phil and Will were able to go to Calvin to walk around for a while before dinner.

We are looking forward to a short work week!

 

Will really wanted to play in the snow we got last week!

Gymboree

Alex had his first Gymboree class yesterday.  As expected, he loved it!  Will was also around 10 months when he started.  Will's classes were always pretty small - only about 5 kids.  Alex's was huge by comparison with 12+.  He had a great time exploring and seemed very interested in the other little kids.  He would crawl into a group of them, plop down, and start taking their toys (nicely).  He also made friends with some of the other moms... although, one of the dads did scare him a bit.  He really liked pushing the air log, playing on the parachute, and the bubbles.     

So happy!

He loved the bubbles!

Public Service Announcement

As the holidays approach, we thought we'd take the opportunity to remind everyone that kids don't need a lot of toys... sometimes a cabinet full of bowls, pans, and cookie cutters is all they need to keep themselves entertained for hours.

Will learned how to open the child proof latches on all our cabinets.  They played like this for a solid 45 minutes.  It only took 10 minutes to clean up... it was totally worth it!

Sick Household

This weekend we didn't do a whole lot. Will was sent home from school on Friday with a temperature and he was under the weather all weekend. Kristen was also recovering from a cold. So we stayed in, read a lot of stories, and just got some things done around the house. The big outing for the weekend was another birthday celebration with Oma. Katie and Will were in town for a quick visit and Phil and Will wanted to see her as well. So we went to the nursing home for a small "party" on Sunday afternoon.

Will was still feverish this morning and now it looks like Alex might be getting it as well.  Poor kiddos! 

Fireman Alex

Making Pasta

Happy 100th Birthday, Oma!

Yesterday we celebrated Oma's 100th birthday! We went to the nursing home after lunch for coffee and sweets. Oma was wearing her new birthday sweater and Chanel No 5. She was very fancy!

There was a cake for all the residents and staff in the common room. We celebrated in the family room. Oma received so many flowers - her room looks and smells amazing! Kristen made Dzelten Maize (yellow sweet bread) in the shape of a 100. Art sent some homemade Latvian rye bread up from Atlanta and Aunt Mara made little sandwiches. There was also Piragi and a chocolate whipped cream cake. The Doves came down from Leland for the party and Ilze's friend Ilze (not a typo) also came by. Some of Oma's Hospice nurses came in with flowers for her and joined the party. One of them even learned some Latvian songs and she and Oma sang together.

It was a very nice party - Oma really seemed to enjoy herself. We are going to do another small party this weekend as well. When you turn 100, one party just isn't enough!

Oma with the cake for residents and staff

Oma and Barb Dove

Dzelten Maize (yellow sweet bread)

Oma and her girls

The Men

Oma and some of her nurses

Oma and Carmen - Roommates!

Fun with Friends

This weekend, the fun started on Thursday night. (Technically Wednesday night for Halloween...) Our friends were in town from Virginia. We decided that no restaurant could handle 10 adults and 12 kids under 5 so we went to our friends' house for pizza instead. So much better! The big kids had fun eating at their own table and playing with all the toys. The little kids liked sitting in a circle and crawling around. And the adults were able to have fragmented conversations.

On Friday, we went up to dinner at Ramona's Table... it had been quite a while since we had been there. We took the boys to swim lessons on Saturday morning. While Alex napped, Phil took Will downtown to walk on the skywalk. Saturday night, Miss Celia came over to watch the boys while Phil and I went out to an amazing dinner with friends. Our friends Mike and Cara had won a dinner for 8 at a silent auction. It was at home of one of the partners in Mike's law firm. He cooked us an incredible meal including roasted tomato and goat cheese appetizers, shrimp, filet w/ chimichurri sauce, butternut squash soup and a pumpkin jelly roll with cream cheese filling for dessert. The herbs and vegetables all came from their garden.  The food was fantastic and it was nice to have a grown-up evening with friends. On Sunday, we went out to Blandford Nature Center to go for a nature walk and then had an all afternoon fire.
 

Helping the neighbors with some yard work

The Big Kids

10 Months Old!

Alex is 10 months old today! Here are some of the milestones from the past month:

- He has started to stand unsupported. It only happens when he isn't paying attention and only lasts for a few seconds.
- All he wants to do is "finger walk" around the house. And he knows where he wants to go and will get upset and redirect you if you stray from the path he has in mind.
- He is almost completely transitioned off of baby food. He eats a lot more table food now and is very good at picking up diced fruit and ravioli.
- He started to wave which is another favorite activity - He played on the breakfast food at the mall for the first time
- He is up to 4 teeth

Here are some pictures with his froggy. Will also loves to play with my camera (we are getting him his own for Christmas) and is actually getting pretty decent with it!

Nice photo, Will!

Happy Halloween!

We had a very fun Halloween.  It started with a special Halloween breakfast: toast cut into the shape of a pumpkin w/ apricot jam and banana jack-o-lantern face, yogurt with Halloween sprinkles, and fruit cut into the shape of ghosts, bats, and pumpkins. Will liked it so much, he asked to have his lunch cut into fun shapes as well.  After lunch, the kids put on their costumes and we went over to the Hofmeyer's. Rain was in the forecast so we didn't know if Alex would make it out for trick-or-treating or not.  The boys got some good treats in their pumpkin.  Will had a piece of candy and Alex played with his.  Then we ran over to visit Oma.  Again, they each got more candy in their pails.  Everyone at the nursing home loved their costumes!

After their naps, we got things ready for dinner.  We had our neighbors and their kids over for a quick bite before we went out.  They were all so excited.  It was quite a crew!

Then it was off for trick-or-treating.  We met up with some other friends, but they couldn't keep up with Speed Demon Will.  He had no trouble keeping up with the older kids.  In fact, he ended up leading the bunch.  It was really funny to see him sprinting from house to house with his little legs.  He was the hit of the neighborhood.  Everyone was very impressed with his determination. 

After about an hour of trick or treating, Will said "this little astronaut is getting tired" so we went home to sort through his loot.      

Enjoying his Dots

Two Astronauts

Sharing a moment with Uncle Ken

The Crew