Peaches...

This morning all of us were well rested and ready for the day. We have been waiting for pick your own peaches to be ready so I called the "Harvest Hotline" at the local orchard and there you have it...

I called Mom to see if she wanted to go with us and we went. The kids really enjoy picking fruits at the orchards, well at least they like to eat them...LOL

On our way back to the tractor with our goodies!!!

Here are our prize peaches...

A first that Daddy was actually here for...

Today was a big day for a big boy...Seth lost his first tooth!!!

Here's to hoping the Tooth Fairy brings you good fortune!!!

Farm Fun at the Fair...

Richie took Grace to gymnastics on Wednesday and Annie mentioned to Richie that farm fun at the fair was that afternoon. She contacted me and of course, we are alway up for a field trip. We went last year with them as well and the kids had a blast. This year Seth got to go with us and he was looking forward to seeing the animals and trying something new. They started out stamping farm animals on a coloring page and coloring...

Then we moved on to seed spitting...LOL Only on the farm...hahaha Grace was not very successful, but Seth went right over her shoulder and made it in the hula hoop!!!

Next was calf roping. I will have to say, I don't think my kids are farming material. hahaha

Grace roped her ponytail. LOL

Abby was the only one to make it!!! Go Abby!!!

The final project was soy bean planting. Each of the kids planted 2 soy beans in this bag that we now have to plant them in the backyard according to them...We will see how that goes!!!

As always we had a great time with Annie, Abby and Olivia. Thank you ladies for inviting us and we look forward to next years fun on the farm!!!

Baseball...

Richie has been playing on a baseball team this summer and Seth is usually at ALL the games with him. Well, I was joking with Richie one day about how we need to get Seth a jersey with their logo on it or something...well, the team did exactly that!!! How cute is this...

Yes, they both have the same number, "10"!!!

The kids really enjoy watching him play...Grace is finally getting into going to the games now, where we can actually sit and watch. Pretty soon she might have a jersey of her own...LOL

More family...

Last weekend my cousin, Taylor, moved to St. Louis. She transfered to UMSL and her boyfriend is starting his first year of med school at Wash U. We are super excited to have more family in the area. My aunt and uncle came up from Florida to help her move into her new apartment and on Sunday Mom had a brunch for everyone before they went back...

This is Mom and her sister Aunt Bug...

Taylor, we are glad you are in the neighborhood...if you need ANYTHING please don't hesitate to call.

Snakes, lizards, Chameleons....

Sunday, was the BIG party!!! This year we went to Tye-Dyed Iguana (www.thetdi.com). We have seen them at a few school functions and they are really cool. It is very educational and the kids love the hands on...

We started out with a lizard of some sort that was smooth on its back and spiky tail. Then we moved on to a boa constrictor.

Next was a Madagascar Hissing Cockroach...

Next was the tortoise....

On to the Mexican Tarantula...Yes, that is Mom holding it!!! LOL
Preston being a daredevil!!

This was my favorite, Wembley, the Chameleon. Did you know that they don't change their color according to their environment...it changes according to their mood!!!

And last but certainly not least, Aphrodite!!

Yes, that is an 80 pound albino burmese python around Seth's neck!!! I will also have you know that being the "brave" mother that I am, I touched/held every single animal (except the cockroach and spider). That DOES include the snake...See, I have proof!!!

I must have been out of my mind...hahaha

I hope everyone had a great time and we sure do appreciate everyone coming out to help Seth celebrate this 6th birthday!!!

Happy Birthday Seth!!!

Saturday was Seth's 6th birthday, and of course, anyone that has kids knows they get the works on that special day!!!

To start this, I have to tell you the night before I was in the car with the kids and Seth told me he wanted breakfast in bed....I about died!! I asked him what he meant and he said, " you know, Mom, like I gave you on Mother's Day". I joked with him that to get breakfast in bed would require him to stay in bed longer than us...hahaha

So, that night I was making cupcakes for his party after he went to bed and called Richie to tell him what Seth had said about breakfast. (Richie makes waffles from scratch on special occassions) He told me he would work something out. (I was thinking a bowl of cereal in bed...LOL) Nope, he came home from work and made the batter for the waffles, put it in the fridge and set the alarm for 6:30am (hoping Seth would still be in bed). Well, it all worked out. Seth got his breakfast in bed, in style (whipped cream and all)...

The day started out great, it was raining all morning, but it was great until noon. It finally stopped raining, BUT the power went out. I called the electric company and they said the power should be back on by 6pm...WHAT!!!! We made the best of it (Richie had to work), made videos on the phone, colored, all around fun...I was starting to get worried about 5pm because Mom and Dad were supposed to be coming over for dinner (Seth picked homemade pizza for his birthday dinner). Mom had come to pick up Seth to take him shopping so they were at her house. I called the company again to make sure the time hadn't changed...it didn't. So, Grace and I are hanging out in Seth's room playing with the race track and the power came back on (5:45pm). Talk about cutting it close!! Mom and Dad brought Seth home and we made some homemade pizza for dinner!!!

Happy Birthday Buddy!!! We love you lots and more!!!!

Comparison...

The day after we got back from Michigan, I was running some errands and decided to call the dance studio where Grace took ballet to see if the pictures from the recital were in...Low and behold!!!! Here it is.....Drum roll please...

Grace, age 3

Me, age 4

For my records...

Ok, before we went to Michigan the kids had a dental appt. This was the first actually dental appt for Grace were she got her teeth cleaned. After the episode six months ago, I was a nervous wreck about this, wondering how she was going to act...Well, not sure what I was so worried about!! She acted like she had done this a thousand times...hahaha

And for the record, Seth had a cavity and a loose tooth!!! So, upon our return to Illinois he went in to get the cavity taken care of and was an absolute trooper!! They used laughing gas on him and it was hilarious!!

For Mom's records...

I mentioned that while we were in Michigan we stopped by Mom's high school. They are tearing it down to build a new christian school...this is what is left...Ottawa Hills High School (main enterance)

Class of 1969's finest!!

Love you Mom!!! I am sure that there are a lot of good memories from there!!

Last...

but certainly not least, no trip to Michigan is complete without visiting my Nana. She passed away 4 years ago and when we go up we stop by to give her a flower.


We love and miss her dearly...

Michigan (part 3)...

I know this is getting really long, but we had a blast and want to share with you...Sunday the weather was a little chilly to go back to the beach with the wind, so we decided to go to the Fredrick Meijer Sculpture and Garden Park (http://www.meijergardens.org/). This place is amazing...We started out walking through an indoor garden area that had different rooms of flowers and sculptures...here is Grace making a wish

Richie and Seth walking through the rainforest room...

On our way to the Children's Gardens we passed by this sculpture and someone told Mom that it was the "Mad Mom" sculpture...LOL

The children's area was fantastic. There was so much for them to do...water, playing house...

And of course a door...this was their favorite part

Then we headed over to the farm area, where they had some activities for the kids. The kids looked for egss that the chickens laid, hung clothes out to dry, pumped water, and painted the barn...

The kids had a great time!!

Mom and Dad had a good time too watching the kids from the porch!!!

Now on to the sculpture park...this was our first stop, "The American Horse"

A spade! It is amazing what people consider art!!! LOL

These were sooo cool...men sitting down made out of metal letters. The kids were looking for the letters that spell their names!!

A closer look...

We had such a great time in Michigan, Seth kept asking us if we could live there!!! hahaha Richie even said he could sooo be a snow bird, to be honest with you I could to, because winters in Michigan are too much for me!!! LOL We are all looking forward to our next trip up there in a month, so prepare yourself for lots more pictures!! hahaha