Grace is walking

Updates from the last couple months

We have had a busy end of the winter and begin of spring. The time has gone so fast that I have not had a chance to post anything new on here. We just got back from a great weekend with friends and I thought today would be a great time to get caught up with my blogging. This will mean putting off some laundry, oh well. This post is going to take me all day, with all the photo and video uploads, breakfast, lunch, taking care of the kids, picking up the house after being gone all weekend, this should be interesting. I hope someone enjoys it.

To begin...Grace's first birthday. Jim and Debby Clayton were able to come out and visit the first week in March to see us and join us in the celebration for Grace's birthday. Her birthday was on March 2. We had cupcakes that evening, but we saved all the rest of the fun for Friday night when my family could join in the fun. It was great to have everyone together. I made Grace's favorite meal, okay so maybe it is not her favorite meal, but it is a meal she will eat that adults also enjoy, Manicotti. Debby picked out a delicious cake from Cold Stone Creamery, strawberry ice cream with yellow cake. It was so delicious, and I would like that same cake for my birthday(Seth I hope you are reading this). Everyone enjoyed the cake. Grace received so many wonderful gifts for her birthday, most of which Elliott and I enjoyed more than Grace that evening. Thankfully, Elliott has been sharing her gifts with her, and is very sweet in teaching her how all the toys work. He also loves reading to Grace the books from Uncle Dave and Aunt Amy. All of the clothes she received I have enjoyed. It is fun getting spring and summer clothes for her, girls clothes are so adorable and fun! Click here to view some of the photos from that day.

While Jim and Debby were here we took Elliott to the Grand Rapids Public Museum to see a Dinosaur Exhibit. It was interesting for children and there were so many interactive activities. Elliott and Grace also went on the carousel, which was Grace's first time riding. There are also a couple of random pictures of the kids at home. Click here to view some of the photos from this day.

As many of you know my husband Seth has become very fond of fishing. Actually, "very fond" does not describe it, it is more of an intense love for the sport. He has been out many times this season to try to catch a Steelhead and has some luck, he has gotten two. One he caught while his parents were here, which we were able to enjoy for dinner one evening. One he caught while he was fish with our brother-in-law, Joel. Which we also enjoyed for dinner one night. Click here to view some photos of the big catch.

As I said earlier, we were invited to a cabin with friends this past weekend. It is a great little cabin in Cadillac, MI. It is located on a narrow piece of land where the river runs. It is so wonderful to hear and see the river anywhere in the cabin. The guys and Elliott took some time to fish. Emily and I spend time inside reading and chatting, due to the cool temperatures. We were able to get in some hikes in the afternoon while the sun was out. The girls enjoyed rides in the backpacks. We also played games and enjoyed great conversation. We enjoyed our time with friends and our time away, and even though it was pretty cold it was a great "Spring Break." Click here to view photos from this trip.

Everything else that is going on with us seems pretty ordinary, but I will share the latest news for anyone who doesn't know. Grace is walking as you can see. It is very exciting watching her develop so well. We are so thankful for healthy children. She is very curious, and loves to explore everything with her new found independence. She is also saying all kinds of words, some of her favorites; daddy, mama, elli, ball, bottle, and baby. Similar to Elliott she loves music. If there is music on she is dancing and moving around to the beat, it is so funny. Elliott is doing well. He is loving school and will be moving on to Kindergarten next year. Elliott loves Grace and most time loves helping her with everything from walking to reading books. He can be a real pest to her sometimes as well. Overall we are doing great and we are so thankful to God for family, friends, our health, and our jobs. We are so blessed!

Caleb Matthew

Last weekend we traveled to Iowa to visit our new nephew, Caleb Matthew. It was fun to visit and meet the new addition to their family. Brad, Molly and Caleb are doing so well. There were many family members visiting for his baptism. We played games, swam at the hotel and hung out at Molly and Brad's house. It was a good time. Here are some pictures from the weekend.

Winter Fun

Today we went to Sarah and Joel's for Sunday dinner.  We also went snowshoeing in a park by Sarah and Joel's house.  We had a great time, it was nice to enjoy the outdoors.  Elliott fell a few times, but liked walking around.  Grace enjoyed the ride!  She stayed nice and cozy in Seth's down jacket. 

Click here to see some photos. 

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! I have not had much to post until now. We recently returned from a Christmas trip to Raleigh, NC. We had a great visit with Seth's family. It was so fun for the kids and us to spend some time with Papa, Nonna, Uncle Dave, Aunt Amy and Cousin Brenna. We had a wonderful Christmas celebrating together. One memorable moment is when we received our matching Christmas pajamas. This certainly will not be forgotten as we will be wearing them each Christmas we are together. We also spent some time enjoying the amazing weather in Raleigh, we went to the park and we on several walks to soak in the 50-70 degree temperatures. On our final day Elliott and Grace got to enjoy the local children's museum. There were so many fun things to do and the hour and a half we had to spend there went by way too fast. One of Elliott's favorite moments was when the pilot asked him to come and see the cockpit. The pilot was so friendly and let Elliott ask all kinds of questions. Over all it was a great holiday season.

Check out our pictures here.

Girl's Weekend

My mom and sisters and I went to Chicago last weekend. We left of Friday morning and met Molly at our hotel. We then drove into downtown Chicago. We spent the afternoon shopping. We ate dinner and went to the the Broadway musical, Wicked. It was so fun. The costumes and sets were so elaborate and the music was very fun. We crashed when we got back to the hotel, but we were up bright and early for another busy day of shopping. We had great success at Ikea and other stores in Schaumburg, IL. We went out for dinner and went back to the hotel for games and girl stuff. We had a car packed full of stuff, unfortunately we did not take any photos of this. Sarah was especially successful at Ikea with new furnature. Click here to see photos from our trip.

Elliott at Saugatuck Dunes

Here are some pictures from a Sunday afternoon hike with the Schreuders.  Click here.

Halloween 2008

We had a busy day visiting people on Halloween. Grace had a pumpkin costume that she wore for part of the day. She also had a princess costume that she wore. Elliott was a police officer for Halloween(costumes compliments of Nonna and Papa)! We visited Great-grand parents during the day between naps. Then we stopped by the Hallelujah Party at church before going to our friends house for dinner. It was a very fun day. Click Here for some pictures of the kids in their costumes.

Elliott's Bible Story

This evening Seth asked Elliott if they talked about Bible stories at school. Elliott replied, that they did. We asked which story they talked about today, expecting a short response, but instead Elliott told us this. "We learned about Abraham and Sarah. The visitors told Sarah she was going to have a baby and she laughed and said, 'I am too old.'" We proceeded to ask what the baby's name was and Elliott said, "Isaac." So we asked Elliott what this teaches us about God. Elliott responded this, "Well God said, 'Let's call them babies and give them to everyone'". It is so fun to see Elliott learning, maybe not fully understanding, the stories of the Bible. This also taught Seth and I how important it is for us to teach these to children. They are so hungry for knowledge at this age and they can remember so much, it is amazing!

Smiles

Grace

Peek-a-boo and the johnny-jump-up got a couple smiles and laughs out of Grace.

Pictures are up!

I am so excited because the kids photos are up on the photographers website for online proofing. They turned out very cute, but I realized it is much more difficult to get two kids to be cute at the same time.  Click here to view. 

Elliott's Jokes

Monday

My work outside of the home is done for a while. Now, I have so much to do at home. I have to do a lot of cleaning today and this week. I did find some pictures of the kids on Kari's(the photographer) blog. Check them out!
View some of the pictures.

Picture Day!

Today Grace and Elliott were photographed. Grace's six month pictures and Elliott's 4 year. It went pretty good. Grace got a little fussy. I am hoping that some of them turned out well. As soon as they are on the website I will post the link. Otherwise there is nothing new here. It is Friday and though most people are looking forward to the weekend, I am not. I have to work. I will be working my 24 hours worth of work in the next two days. I guess it will be nice to get out of the house, away from my normal responsibilities and I am very thankful for the work. Seth will be home with the kids. Those are long days for him, but it is a great way for him to spend quality time with Elliott and Grace.

Well, I am excited to tell you that with the help of my brother-in-law, I learned how to post a link to more photos. On my previous post check out the Pictures and Links and you will see pictures from this fall.

I am sorry to report that I do not have any new pictures to post today. We recently set up a new computer and Seth has not downloaded the program for photos. That is on the list of things to do this weekend. Look for new pictures next week. We have a busy weekend. We will be going out for dinner Friday night for a friends birthday party. Saturday we have been invited to a neighbor's house. these are some neighbors we do not know very well, so it will be great to get to know some new people. Right now Grace is ready for a nap. Have a great day!

Pictures and links

I am officially a Discovery Toys Educational Consultant. I am so excited to be selling these quality and educational toys. I grew up playing with the toys and games from Discovery Toys and I can't wait to bring them into my own home for Grace and Elliott. Check out my website: http://www.discoverytoyslink.com/eclayton

Here is Gracie sitting up. I think she was so happy to have a little peace and quite while Elliott was at school.