Fall

Well, the blog has been down since August, but it is back up again! I’m suddenly very behind…

Since then, B got her red belt,fall-karate-red.jpg

and her red-brown belt.
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M continued to be her crazy fun self with her clothes.
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B also participated in many tennis tournaments,
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and even won some trophies (this was her first trophy).
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B rode her bike to school for the first time,
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and the girls jammed on their guitars.
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We went to the beach,
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to the fair,
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and we had some Halloween fun.
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And B and I had a great time seeing The Sound of Music together!
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Next up…the holidays!

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Michigan

At the end of July, we went to Michigan to visit family and say goodbye to my beloved Grandma. Early flight – the girls did great on the way there and back!
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We visited family a lot – the girls LOVE their cousins…and they made sure their cousins knew that…
You’ll just have to take my word for it, I didn’t take many pictures. I do have some of time spent at the beach. B and I went to a rocky beach while M napped.
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She even practiced her karate a little…it was a bit tricky on that beach!
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We also spent some time in Lake Michigan. Jason and I never ventured in further than shin high – brrrrrr! But the girls had fun!
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The girls played badminton. M’s game face…
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The memorial was lovely. And heartbreakingly final.
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July

Continuing with the seemingly necessary (these days) monthly posts…July was full of more activities! Grandma & Grandpa visited, B started 2nd grade and lost a tooth, M went to her first theater movie, J got a year older…

The month started with a visit with Grandma & Grandpa, which meant lots of fun trips to various museums, bowling, playing in the rain, and lots of Boberry biscuits!
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Grandma & Grandpa’s last day was B’s first day of 2nd grade(?!?)! Of course, we had to shop for the outfit first (fortunately for me, B loves Target, their clothes, and especially the dog).
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First Day! I actually had to wake her up!
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Doesn’t everyone read while lying on the hard floor after the first day of school?
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B participated in a local tournament, and won two out of three matches!
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We also took M to her first theater movie – Minions! She was very well behaved and had a GREAT time! The girls wore their minion dresses, of course.
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And right before we left for our trip to Michigan, B lost another tooth!
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June

Another random group of photos…June was full of end of year activities (B finished 1st grade), Father’s Day, Sesame Street Live, and tennis! But first, isn’t she cute?
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Sesame Street Live was first – a family outing everyone loved, especially since Grover was the star of this show!
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B also participated in her first tennis tournament!
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Father’s Day started with brunch, and was filled with just plain relaxing…and playing with the new Star Wars potato heads…
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A local art museum has a summer series for kids, where each week they have a new art/craft activity. The first one I took M to (B was in school) was a little over her head, but she had fun!
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We finished the month with the end of 1st grade. First, the end-of-year celebration, where they had special “reader’s theater” – where they each play different parts while reading from a book. In one, B was a mouse, and in the other, she was the boy who cried wolf.
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Then, the last day of school. Lots of tears before school…
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But she had a GREAT last day, so lots of smiles at the end.
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Her fantastic, amazing, awesome, spectacular (I could go on for days – she was crying because she wanted them to be her teachers forever!) first grade teachers!
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May

Yep, I’m behind…Life is full…But isn’t this a sweet picture? :)
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To try to catch up a bit, I am just going to post some random pictures from May, which just so happen to generally represent our random activities for the month. OF COURSE we went strawberry picking…more than once. M and I went the week before Memorial day, and all three of us went the day after Memorial day (got there when they opened so we could pick strawberries before taking B to school). See those white baskets in the pictures? In our two trips, we filled 5 of those baskets – plenty for freezing for smoothies!
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B dressed up for 70s day at school wearing one of my childhood dresses – that’s authentic 70s right there!
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We rode bikes and played on the playground and generally enjoyed spring.
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B tested for her purple belt (and got it!), while M showed us she will be ready for karate soon too.
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Jason, M, and I went out for lunch while B had a weekend makeup day at school – a rare outing with just the three of us.
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Know anyone else who dresses up as Queen Guinevere to read?
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My big girl, growing so fast.
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Beach!

My absolute favorite time of year to go to the beach is April/May. Seriously. It is less crowded, less hot, and still loads of fun. Now, I will admit that the pool is a tad on the chilly side at this time of year, but to avoid the crazy crowds and heat, I’ll suck it up. And make sure M learns to swim as soon as possible.

We went for two weeks – the girls spent the first week with Nana and Poppa while we worked. I have to admit, sitting on the porch overlooking the beach while working away on my laptop is waaaaaaaay more fun than doing the same thing in an office….I think the girls enjoyed their time away too. I’ve seen pictures, but truth be told, I am not exactly sure what all they did. They played outside a lot, went kayaking, checked out bluebirds nests and baby bluebirds, and generally had a marvelous time! Here are a few pictures.

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We got them back on Mimi’s birthday – had to celebrate the big day!
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Then it was time for us to also have some vacation – time to play in the beach and the pool! I got up early a couple of days to see the sunrise, and also stayed out to see the sunset. At this time of year, neither are over the water, but still pretty! Here are a few of my sunrise pictures.
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The girls loved the heated pool and the beach. B was especially fond of the beach…I took a lot of pictures, but mostly only on a few different occasions. The rest of the time, I tried to just enjoy! Some in the late day light.
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Yoga anyone?
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While M napped, B and I generally went down to the beach to jump waves, look for shells, and read books.
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We also had fun in the condo, went and saw the butterflies at a local butterfly house, played goofy golf (no pics), and played Frozen, of course…
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On Mother’s Day, Mimi and I were treated to brunch on the beach!
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And while M napped, B hung out with me on the Lazy River. Know any other 7 year olds that will happily spend over an hour just floating along a lazy river? Me neither. I am very lucky!
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Sunset pics to say goodbye to my beach…
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On our way home, we stopped to see Grandpa Bill. We will always treasure getting to see him one last time – a special visit for all!
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B turns 7!

Happy Birthday to my big girl! It is hard to believe she is already 7. The birthday girl with all her presents…
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We had a laid back but fun day, complete with brunch (her choice), opening (and playing with) presents, and her choice for birthday dinner: steak and buttered potatoes, followed by cake, of course. This year, she decided she did not want me to make her cake, and instead chose a pink and purple princess cake that came with a crown and scepter.
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And when you are the birthday girl, you get as big of a piece of cake as you want (and yes, she ate the whole thing!).
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There was also a party at the skating rink with her bff Sam, who also has the same birthday, and pretty much ALL their friends. Apparently, a party for Sam and B, especially at the skating rink, is too exciting for anyone to want to miss! The birthday girls!
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M skating!
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Cake!
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And when that many friends come to your birthday party…
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B had a GREAT birthday!

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Easter!

My girls in their Easter best…
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M’s silly face.
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Baskets!
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And Easter just isn’t quite Easter to me without some egg decorating fun…
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…and some egg hunts! It is so much fun to watch all the kids and see the delight on all their faces!
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BFFs!
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After brunch Easter morning, we came home to discover the Easter bunny even found time to leave eggs at the house for the girls’ own private Easter egg hunt! That bunny is so sneaky…
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Time Flies…

Honestly, I am not sure what happened to March. Last time I posted, it was mid March, and now suddenly it is mid April…Apparently I only took two pictures in March with my real camera too – seriously, I don’t think that has happened since before B was born. But, it is not as if I stopped taking pictures – I just tend to take more with my phone.

So, let’s see, what have we been up to? Well, the girls went to the dentist. B is an old pro, but even she was a bit nervous since this was a new dentist (pediatric dentist near the house). While it took some coaxing, M finally acquiesced…with a little help from puppy…
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…and some cartoons (that’s what she is looking at)…
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…and some bribery…
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I increasingly think B has Jason’s teeth and M has mine, and this trip to the dentist only furthered that opinion. I have never heard a peep from any dentist about making sure B is careful to not eat sticky foods or making sure B pays extra attention to her back teeth, and yet with M, the dentist made sure to tell me that. Hopefully those coatings they put on teeth work well…

And B received her green belt! All the snow delayed things a bit, but she got it eventually!
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Then there was St. Patty’s Day, and of course, the girls got in the spirit!
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M and I went to a hockey game with some friends. We stayed the whole time – even through overtime, and she had a blast! She even scored a hockey puck! We had some pretty good seats too!
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And while a puck or a player hitting the glass made everyone else jump, M was not phased in the slightest!

M also continued to demonstrate her colorful clothes preferences, and her mad puzzle skills.
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We finished up March with B receiving her first green belt stripe (she actually earned her green belt in February, but didn’t receive it until March due to the weather). Sporting her new black uniform!
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Over the course of two weeks (not even that really – more like 10 days), we had FOUR winter storms roll through. Not exactly what we are used to…

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Once we were finally home from our trips, it was time to hunker down for the storms. Jason picked the girls up early because the daycare was closing early. By the time I got home, this is what I found…apparently they got an early start on the “snow ball” fights…
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Unfortunately for the “snowball fight” dream, Snowstorm #1 brought mostly ice. The kids didn’t let that faze them – it made a perfect sledding surface on our steep driveway!
The hardest part was helping M…the kids had no trouble walking up our steep driveway on that ice, but the adults were a whole other story. We had to get creative with ways to get M up once she slid down!

M started with this adorable hat…
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but switched to her Frozen hat because it covered her ears more (it was a bit nippy/windy).
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Belly slide!
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I don’t have many pics of B sledding because I mostly took video of her and her buddy H, but they had a great time! I convinced them to stand still long enough for this photo…
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Snowstorm #2 was the least exciting. It mostly snowed a little before dark, melted on the roads, and created a giant mess when the temperatures subsequently plummeted (causing another two days of missed school). “It’s snowing mommy!!”
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M was a little less interested in playing in this snow (I had to coax her outside for this picture), but B and I couldn’t wait to get outside!
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Because pretty much all of the rest of our snowstorms happened while she was asleep, B loved getting to play in it while it was coming down.
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My cherry tree looked so pretty with the snow…
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Then came Snowstorm #3 (and another two days of missed school) – the surprise storm. This storm caught so many by surprise that some kids were already on the school buses when school was cancelled for the day!
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This snow was mostly “dry,” and thus impossible to build anything with, but with a little work (just enough handling to melt the snow to make it stick together), the kids had some great snowball fights! The girls had great fun chasing each other, and even more fun when H came over to join in the fray!
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Taking a break…
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M had to change her hat again…
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Worn out!
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That afternoon, we made cookies and took some over to H’s house – we found him outside with his dad playing with his remote control truck – lots of fun with that thing in the snow!
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And then came Snowstorm #4…the big one. Here is our yard around 5 PM, followed by a picture about 5 hours later (and about 2 hours after the snow started).
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A panorama of our yard the next morning.
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We got about 6″ of heavy, wet snow – the trees were NOT happy!
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Our river birch literally creaked in the wind (pretty high winds during the storm and after). I am very happy it made it through this storm!
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The trees many not have been too thrilled, but we were all excited! We had power (which was more than I could say for several hundred thousand in the area), and fun snow to build a snowman!
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Of course, we HAD to build Olaf. We did such a great job, B expressed her excitement by promising all kinds of good behavior! I shall forever cherish being the “hero” in her eyes that day.
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B felt Olaf would be lonely, so she made him a friend – baby snowman.
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After that, we headed to the neighborhood hills to sled. Over and over and over and over – everyone had a blast!

That afternoon while M napped, B decided we needed to try to build Marshmallow. I convinced her that mini-Marshmallow would do – no way we had enough snow or experience or strength even to build him to size!
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After two weeks of snow (and missing 8 out of 10 days of school), where Jason was out of town for most of that time (he left right after Snowstorm #2), we were ready to GET OUT OF THE HOUSE! It was only a trip to Chikfila, but it was still nice to get out!
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We even tried Hibachi that night, and we had a blast! Good thing we did too, because we were once again housebound for the next couple of days – B got the double whammy of school illnesses. Both the stomach bug and a sore throat/cough/high fever were going around, and she caught them both…at the same time…
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She was so worried about getting sick with me out of the room, that when I went upstairs to give M a bath, she came along just to be close.
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Fortunately, the worst of the stomach bug was gone after the first day. The high fever was no fun either, tho. And dealing with all of this while Jason was out of town…well, that just plain sucked. Fortunately, M did not get sick (other than a little stuffy nose)! So, after missing 10 out of 12 days of school, B finally went back. Yay! She is not a happy camper when she misses school. Despite her ridiculously high fever that Monday, she actually argued with me about missing school on Tuesday – she felt she could go. I overruled her, and was glad I did. She just wasn’t quite well enough.

Now, Jason is back home and things are slowly starting to get back to normal. Bring on spring!!

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