great weekend at Kuipers Landing

Here are just a few pics- I hope to get more from some other people too!

Sam and Kara playing catch...(can you spot the ball??)

Kevin taking Josh for a little Kayak ride

Josh eating watermelon- Kara taught him how to spit the 'seeds'/ spit, it was sooo cute.

All the kids really enjoyed jumping/crawling on the mattresses in our room. We actually snapped a picture when all 5 kids were in there.

House looking good

Garage not quite done, but the house looks great. We are really happy with the colors.

In other news....

Bunk beds! We got a really great deal on this twin over full bed. We don't have a full mattress yet so we just have our other single on the floor. Sam loves it- yes that is him under the blankets. He also can't wait till we get a full mattress so he can sleep with Joshy- my boys are big cuddlers. It does make our nursery room a bit crowded...but then again, all our bedrooms are crowded.




We have been working hard with Joshy on his numbers and colors, but he doesn't seem to care whereas Sam loved learning. However, Josh does love to color- sidewalk chalk, crayons, markers....he loves to color and say MAKE! He also has learned the color pink, so I really liked this picture- pink crayon, ballerina picture, and his big truck next to him.


We have had lots of fun times at Meijer gardens, sometimes with other friends and sometimes just us. They really like to watch the fishy swim (which is ironic since Sam is still afraid of the fish STICKERS and now also the fake spiders...) but despite Sammy's fears we always have a lot of fun. Josh loves playing in the sand so it is always a real treat for him!

Ottawa and Chandra's wedding

Here are just a few pictures of Ottawa and Chandra's wedding. We had a great time- the first day we got to see Chandra's house and the rehearsal was a lot of fun....but we forgot our camera! Saturday we saw the changing of the guard and toured the parliament- I put a few pictures of that. Then of course we had the wedding which was also lots of fun and really beautiful. I had quite a few photos but here are a few! Oh- and the kids did great- Aunt Sarah said they were well behaved and it was fun. (She says they were well behaved! But yes, it was our boys she was taking care of....) Grandpa and Grandma also had lots of fun with the boys when they took them to a farm on sunday- that would have been fun to see, MOOO!

Conversation with Sam

Sam: Mommy, is today Sunday?
M: No, today is Tuesday. Sunday is when we go to church.
Sam: No, I think today is Sunday because the sun is out. So it is SUNday.

The House

Our big project is painting the house. My dad and KEvin have been working hard scrapping and prepping. Today, dad started painting. You can sort of see the color, but as soon as it is all done we will take some more pictures.

Fun weekend

We love the trampoline!




Here comes the ball grandpa!


Where'd it go??


CHEERS!

Sunday June 17 @ 2:38AM

Early this morning (or late last night...) I had woken up to go the bathroom when all of sudden I heard a load ROOOOARRRR! It even woke kevin up which is pretty amazing. SO I go in Sam's room and say, "Are you okay?" His response: "There was a big spider coming at me so I roared it away!"

Yea, it is kind of funny, although when I think about this two much I realize that:- it was probably from watching Toy Story (the scary toy kind of looks like a spider) AND instead of my child crying when he is scared he chooses to ROARRRR!

It's a great day to be alive...

More fun times at the gardens!

Haitcuts and twins ??

Josh- age 20 months after his haircut:



Sam age 24 months with his haircut:


Josh age 20 months before haircut:


Sam age 20 months:

Catch up!

Sorry it has been awhile since I posted. We have had a lot going on with family and friends. I also have been working an extra day a week while Kel is on maternity leave. Soooo...here are some things that have been going on: I am not the only one who has been enjoying the new washing machine! The boys love playing outside and Sam is GREAT on his big boy bike. Finally, we had family in town May 19 when Nicholas graduated from Calvin. The family stayed at a hotel and the boys loved swimming. We don't swim much so it was a real treat- and they are doing great with learning how to swim on their own!

I pray for you and wish I could do more,
But more I cannot do from far away.
Like leaves before the wind we cannot stay,
Ripped dancing, dancing to the forest floor.
I wish I could your ailing health restore
And bring you to the strength of yesterday,
But all we mortal souls can do is pray
That God might alter what we have in store.
The beauty in our fragile life is love,
The only thing that makes the moment matter,
The golden thread that binds us all in light.
I wish, I wish I could your pain remove,
But like a wall the truth my will must shatter,
And so I send my prayers into the night.

Tulip Time

Yes we did manage to make it one night to downtown Holland. We watched Jaclyn dutch dance and than just walked around. It was a good time- Josh really enjoyed throwing sticks into the little ponds, and Sam loved running around in the gazebo with daddy, grandpa, and Missy.

Sickness

Last week- Monday through Saturday- Joshy was sick. Vomiting, diarrhea, and very lethargic. No one else ever got sick, but it is tiring taking care of a sick child especially when he looks so pitiful with those big brown eyes! Sam was great and would give Joshy hugs and listened to us even though Josh was getting tons of attention. Now...back to normal....sort of. Remember what it was like to be sick as a kid and you got everything you wanted? Especially lots of TV and your mommy caring you everywhere? Well, even though he is better Josh wants to watch "show" and he screams (VERY loudly) when I won't carry him around the house...and of course, the boys are playing together again, which naturally leads to fighting. I shouldn't complain. It is great to have my Joshy back and his goofiness. He lost quite a bit of weight and now is ALWAYS hungry. He had a bowl of cereal and two waffles for breakfast! Anyway...that is what is happening at the VanSchepen's!

Hockey Net

We were fortunate enough to receive several "old" toys from Aunt Wilma and Uncle Rob (they have two older boys) . By far, the favorite is the hockey net. Sam has been playing with it for hours! We have had VanSchepen's over and they enjoyed it, and last week even the Knoesters all played some hockey!