Fall Traditions

Autumn is the best. No doubt about it. I love the cooler weather, the traditions, and the delicious food. We went to Schwallier's Country Basket for the fourth year in a row. It just keeps getting better. The kids love petting the animals, the slide is as slippery as ever, and the kids can never get enough of the cider and donuts. We got both apples and pumpkins from Schwallier's this year. I love the pop of color the pumpkins add to the front porch alongside the bright yellow mums.

This year Andrew was a bit wary of the animals. He walked right into the goat pen but then proceeded to yell, "No thank you!" to the animals. Paul helped him overcome his fears to pet the bunnies and feed the goats. Vince and Kate especially loved the hay bales. Vince was brave enough to jump down two tiers in one go! Kate said her favorite part was choosing pumpkins. She walked all over the patch searching for the right one. Now it's time to enjoy the "fruits" of our labor.

Splurging for Family Memories

Sometimes it's worth it to pay for the expensive, not in a carton, ice cream so you can see your kids get it all over their faces. Because no matter how hard life with kids can be, it's certainly sweeter with them in it.

February Tidbits

 We did our best to brave the February weather. We got quite a bit of snow which made us go a little bit stir crazy. The cold weather also got to Vince and he came down with the flu. Once he recovered we got back into the swing of things. I made a carrot cake (just for the heck of it) and Vincent volunteered to peel the carrots. It was like the angels were singing and I was in heaven as he did the dirty work. Don't worry-- I know I'm a lucky lady!

Snow, squishy grass, or sunshine, we tried our best to get some outdoor time. Being cooped up doesn't sit well with these little ones. We also made a special trip to visit the Ohio Griffioens. They were all singing in church and we decided to join them so we could have an excuse to visit. We ate some yummy food, played Bonanza, 7 Wonders, and Qwirkle, sang, watched Inside Out and enjoyed some good old fashioned family time. We actually had some beautiful 60 degree weather during our visit so the kids got to run around outside too. A pretty good start to the month so far!

January Recap

Can you believe such a tiny little bean could disrupt life so forcefully? With the nausea, exhaustion, sensitivity to smells, bloating, and irritability... Well, let's just say it's a miracle we made it through January!

That being said, we still did our best to make our most of the cold, dark, Winter days. We barely had any snow until January hit. The first snow we played in was half freezing rain. When we went to dig we found that our yard was completely iced over and crunchy. The kids had a blast stomping around the yard. I couldn't get enough of how cute the kids looked in their snowsuits!

Wintertime also means lots of indoor playing. The kids would drop whatever they were doing when Dad walked in the door to run and tackle him. They quickly learned that Paul is the best indoor jungle gym you could ask for. We did our best to get out a few times. Our biggest outing was a trip to the bowling alley. The kids loved it! When I was pregnant with Vincent I bowled a 180. I was hopeful that this pregnancy would lend itself to a similar outcome... but I barely broke 100! I didn't mind though because I couldn't stop laughing at how hard Vince had to work to carry his bowling ball to our lane. He was a trooper and didn't complain once!

Another notable event was a special girls night I took with Heather. We went to the Detroit Temple together! It was her first time going and we were the only ones there for the evening. It was fun to get the special attention for Heather's first trip. The workers were so kind and the spirit was strong. Going to the temple is always amazing. We celebrated afterward with some Dairy Queen. Delish!

Other than that, January was filled with lots of puzzles, books, and playtime. I love this stage of life. The stage where we have no real commitments. We do what we want. We wake up when we want. We play all the time. It's just so fun!

The Entire Month of December in a Single Post

 I am way behind on blogging. So here goes the abbreviated version of the busiest month of the year.

I started the month with a series of illnesses. First was a sore throat. Then came DOUBLE pink eye. My right eye was swollen shut during the worst of it. I was pathetic and cried and made Paul stay home from work so I could die in my room. As the pink eye resolved I developed a sinus infection. Great way to start off the month, right?

I recovered from the plague just in the nick of time to celebrate birthday #26. Pumpkin pie is slowly becoming a birthday tradition for me. It's just so darn good.

 

 

 Next up was the Wyoming Ward Christmas Party. Santa always makes a debut at the party and the kids loved it. Kate was a bit wary but Vince was a champ and gabbed to Santa about how much he wanted Rescue Bots for Christmas.

Throughout the month we kept busy indoors. We did a lot of building with legos, playing with instruments, getting dressed up, baking, reading, and made the occasional trip to the indoor park at the mall and the Grandville library. 

 

Another highlight was making gingerbread houses with our church friends. My friend Kate headed up the idea and she did a phenomenal job. I think the kids ate more candy that day than they did on Halloween! Sadly, I only snagged one dismal photo of the event.

 

Another item of note was seeing real reindeer! Thank you KDL for being so awesome!

 

Christmas morning came and the kids were so excited. I love that the older they get the more they can anticipate the holidays and traditions we have. We opened presents, sent Vince on a hunt to find his train set, and ate caramel sticky buns. Sooo good! Nana and Grandpa Griffioen joined us that afternoon. We celebrated Christmas dinner with a fiesta. My friend, Christie, makes delicious homemade tamales so we ate those alongside guacamole & chips, Spanish rice, corn, and jarritos. My parents stayed the night and on the 26th we tried the Shark Tank restaurant, Tom & Chee. It was hit with the fam. 

 We ended the month at the library where they had a countdown and new years celebration at noon. The kids made hats, party streamers, and blew into kazoos until they deteriorated from massive amounts of spit. It was a total hit. 2015 went out with a bang!