Exploring

Last Friday, Grandma and Grandpa came down to spend the night so we could go to the picnic pops at Cannonsburg. The boys had a lot of fun with them! And we had some excitement before we left - we had a fairly large hive removed from the outside of our screened in porch. It was fun to watch the guy in his full bee suit. 

 We've been doing a lot of exploring around our neighborhood. Phil discovered a great playground not too far from our house and we have taken the boys 4 times already. It has a lot of neat equipment that we haven't seen before. The boys love it. We've also visited the library and took our bikes to the Celery Flats to ride the trail. We are getting to know our neighbors and Will spends most afternoons and evenings running around with all the kids.

View of the hive from our kitchen window

Fun with Grandpa

King of the Playground

Surprise at Sunset

Bubbles!

Taking a break at the Celery Flats

Tough Decision: Piece of candy now or the possibility of the ice cream truck later.... Instant gratification won.

Fun in Ann Arbor

The boys and I went over to Ann Arbor for the day to visit Aunt Maran and Cousin Allie. We got up early and the boys had breakfast in the car. We got there just before 9am and spent some time playing at their new place. Then we walked to the playground and let the kids run around for a while. We went back home for lunch and had a surprise visit from Uncle Josh. William was so excited to see him! The kids enjoyed Popsicles on the steps. After Allie went down for her nap, I took the boys to campus to run around a bit. We ran into our East Grand Rapids friends and they joined us at the cube. Will thought it was pretty fun. Alex really wanted to push as well but he didn't quite understand that the giant cube could also knock him over... We made a quick stop in the diag to run around before heading home. It was a very fun day!

King of the Playground

So dirty, but so cute!

Swings!

So sweet

The best we could do...

Allie's first popsicle

Pushing the cube

The Diag

Official Goodbye to Anderson Drive

We had a very busy and very fun weekend. On Friday, we drove up to Grand Rapids in the afternoon for closing on the Anderson house. We stopped by for one last look and Will was invited to stay with the neighbors while we ran to the appointment. They had a great time making Kool Aid play-doh. Closing went well and we went out to dinner with our neighbors at Big Bob's. Then we went back to their house for Popsicles and final goodbyes before driving back home. When we got back, the neighbors behind us were out so the boys got to play on their play equipment for a while before bed.

On Saturday morning, we took a family bike ride up to the Farmer's Market for breakfast and shopping. We had muffins and omelets and picked up a few things.  The boys played on the playground for a bit and we ran into two families we knew.  Then we rode back and took the boys to the pool.  Alex and I left after about an hour, but Phil and Will stayed for another 45 minutes or so.  They love the water!  We grilled out for dinner and enjoyed the patio.  After the boys went to bed, we sat out with the fire.  Phil went in at one point, and found Will looking longingly down on the patio from our bedroom window.  So he was invited back down for roasted marshmallows and a firefly hunt.

On Sunday, we drove over to Kalamazoo College and walked around their small campus for a bit.  We packed a picnic lunch at ate at the tennis facility and watched a few matches that were going on.  The highlight of the trip was the fact that Will got to see a train go by.  In the afternoon, Phil and Will went back to the pool.  We got a few things done around the house: hung some pictures, changed some light fixtures, etc. 

Fun with Friends

Saying goodbye is hard to do

First Popsicle

Fun with play-doh



Enjoying the fire

I got one!

On the hunt...

Letting them go

Alex loves to say "Cheese"

First few days in Kalamazoo

We've had a busy first few days in the new house.  On Thursday morning, the boys and I unloaded a few more small items from the moving truck.  Then we went to get our pool membership and ran to the grocery store.  Then we went to pick Phil up at work.  We ran home, finished unloading the large items from the truck, ate lunch, and dropped off the truck.  Then we dropped him off at work and went home for naps.  After the kids woke up, we went to the pool for the first time.  The boys had a lot of fun!

On Friday morning, the boys slept in and I was able to do some more unpacking.  After breakfast, we unpacked some toys and then went to the pool again.  We got their right when it opened and had the place to ourselves.  We got home in time for lunch and then the boys took good naps.  When they woke up, we played outside and waited for Grann to arrive.  William gave her a tour of the house and we waited for Phil to get home.  We grilled dinner and ate out on the patio.  Then we went for a walk to explore the trail through the neighborhood.  After the boys went to bed, we did a lot of work in the house and got a lot of things unpacked. 

On Saturday, we did some playing in the morning and walked to the Farmer's Market.  It was very nice - there was a good selection and a lot of vendors selling breakfast items.  Then went to run some quick errands.  We picked up a few things we needed for the house and then grabbed lunch while we were out.  After naps, we took the kids to the pool again.  Each day, William got a little braver although he still likes to stay close to the steps.  We ordered in dinner and started a fire in the fire pit.  Then we started hearing the music from the ice cream truck.  Will was so excited (it was his first ice cream truck experience).  After the kids went to bed, we continued to work and were able to clear out the garage enough to get both cars in.

On Sunday, we did a few more things around the house and then took Grann to see Phil's office.  Then we drove to downtown Kalamazoo to walk around for a bit.  In the afternoon, Phil and Will went back to the pool.  They also ran to the park near our house to play some basketball.  After dinner, we went for a family bike ride.  Alex got to ride in the Burley for the first time.

Enjoying the kiddie pool

Early morning swim

Checking out the trail behind our house

Dinner on the patio

Good night for a fire

Patiently waiting for the ice cream truck

Yum!

Enjoying the fire pit

Back at the pool

Downtown Kalamazoo

Downtown Kalamazoo

Alex's first ride in the Burley

Family Bike Ride

Quick stop on the trail

Watching the underground sprinklers

Moving Day!

Moving day was last Wednesday. Despite having to make two trips to Kalamazoo with the moving truck, everything went really well. We are mostly unpacked and settled (pictures to come) and are enjoying our new house!

Going for a short ride

Playing with his friends while the truck was packed