Henry's 6th Birthday Party

Henry wanted to have an "Angry Birds" birthday party this year. What fun! I had to get a little creative to pull it all off since I couldn't just go to the party store and get Angry Birds plates, napkins, etc. I bought an iron-on transfer off ebay and then put it on a plain blue t-shirt for Hanks' birthday shirt. I can't believe he's SIX already!
We had Cindy make our cupcakes again and I just asked for plain, bright colors. I bought the cupcake toppers off of etsy and they turned out really cute!

Henry wanted "Corn, fruit and chips" for his party food..."with something else like hot dogs for everyone else to eat" since he doesn't eat meat. Cracked me up. My mom brought the fruit kabobs and he was so excited about them and asked for his picture by them. They were so fun looking!
I made these favor bags after finding some templates on line. They turned out super cute and were really easy.


Josh and Johanna were LOVING their cupcakes! I was thrilled when Josh chose black. :)

Sylvie and Henry...headed to kindergarten
together this Fall.

Pinata candy!

Josh and Jos with their Push Pops...lovin' life.

I believe this present was Playmobil. Henry got Playmobil, Phineas and Ferb toys, art supplies and crafts, a gift card to Build-a-Bear, an Angry Birds backpack and an Angry Birds game...he was so thrilled with everything and very appreciative.

Abby and Bebe...headed to third
and second grade this year.

Blueberry Picking 2011

We made our annual trip to the Gold Barn this year on July 14th to pick our blueberries. We went with my mom, Rebecca, Luke and Josh on a gorgeous afternoon. We picked around 25 pounds this time around and most went right into our freezer for the winter months. Our kids LOVE frozen blueberries and wanted to stuff our freezer full. We might go back again before the Summer is over and get a few more pounds.

Camp Geneva

Abby was blessed to be able to go to Camp Geneva again this year. She went with cousin Bebe again and they chose to go during the week that Joel Tanis was there, along with others from the "Come on Over" crew! Abigail had such a fun week learning about God, singing songs, playing in the pool and at the beach, doing crafts and just having fun with old and new friends!
Abby's in the top row, middle, in the white shirt. Her cousin Bebe is on her right.
Bebe, Abby and their counselor this year, Kara. They had a great time with her!
The kids had an awesome opportunity this week with Joel Tanis. Joel painted the top of this amazing painting, based on Psalm 42:1. Every camper got to paint a flower or creature at the bottom. What a cool thing! I know my daughter well too - I picked out which flower I thought would be her's before she showed it to us. It's just so "her" with the multiple, fun colors. I'm still hoping that we get the opportunity to purchase a print of this picture!

Grand Haven Triathlon

Colin took part in the Grand Haven Triathlon again this year on July 10. He did awesome! The kids like to go watch this race because it ends by a great park. They also love to watch for dad and cheer like crazy once they see him! Next BIG race...Steelhead Ironman Triathlon in August.

4th of July 2011

Another great Fourth of July this year! We celebrated like we usually do with a parade and picnic at the cottage. The kids are at a great job for the parade and really love it. Johanna had a blast on the scooter, she's a maniac on that thing! The picnic was great too and then there was a lot of time spent on the beach since it was such a gorgeous day!

Happy 6th Birthday, Henry!

Happy 6th Birthday, Henry! Today my sweet, loving, sensitive, artistic Henry turns six! I remember clearly six years ago when he was born (on a Sunday) completely unexpectedly three weeks early and now he's SIX! I love this boy so much. Birthday party pictures to come...

Strawberry Picking

On Monday, June 20, the skies were overcast and it wasn't too hot so I packed up the kids and met my mom, Rebecca and Josh at the strawberry fields to pick berries. The kids did a great job, each picking at their own pace and we came home with a bursting flat of berries that were quickly eaten, made into pies, mashed and frozen. The kids had fun...Johanna the most fun of all I think!My almost 8 year old! (Notice Josh's red chin in the background)

My kids have always LOVED fruit and Johanna is no exception!

Henry did an awesome job picking the berries!

So did Abby, but she kept giving all the ones she picked to Grandma.

Josh liked to eat them too!

Jos LOVES her boots and wears them all the time!

Happy 1st Birthday, Luke!

Little Luke celebrated his first birthday on June 4 with a "Very Hungry Caterpillar" themed party. Rebecca did an awesome job throwing a great party for the little guy! We had such a great time celebrating Luke and what a sweet boy that he is!

Isn't this cake awesome?

The cute favor buckets that Rebecca put together.

Johanna and Joshua in their Hungry Caterpillar outfits. They are TROUBLE together! :)

This caterpillar was made out of 12 circles that had a picture of Luke at 1 month, 2 months, etc.

The birthday boy was loving his presents!

About ready to dig into the cake!