School Time

***Warning***
Mainly my entries are "Hey, this is what we're up to everybody!" (Usually with a billion pictures to accompany the event...no matter how hard I try to scale back:) Well, this entry is a tad more reflective, so read on at your own discretion......

Anna and I have been pretty consistent in using Ben's down time (2 hour afternoon nap) effectively. We usually use this for lunch time and school time, which is mostly like a craft time, but Anna loves to call it school. I try to incorporate educational things, but hey, I'm not going to push it. She just turned 3. For the record, I do think Anna is such a smartie (as if I hadn't mentioned that before) and could be "taught" many things, but I also know that now is the time for natural discovery, make-believe play, and good BOOKS! (I can see how books are really broadening her vocabulary. Right now one of her favorite words is "bonjour." Also, I noticed today that she's trying to figure out how to use "sensitive" and "boring" in sentences...she's come close. I think she almost knows what they mean.)

So, during school we have painted - see above - and talked about mixing colors to make different colors. We made paper plate masks (her idea) and Anna got some scissor practice in - see below. We often play with play-doh and make different objects, and compare which snake is longer, shorter, etc. We talked about seasons, and plants growing, and made "pine-cone people" as Anna called them from a nature walk we took. We've done lots of different things, but I'll stop there. I love it. Anna loves it. It's priceless creating and discovering things together.

It's amazing watching my kids grow and learn and develop each day. Ethan has always been such a hands on, AMAZING dad, and we shared the parenting responsibilities pretty equally until now. (A lot of that was because I was still in school too.) So, now it's mainly me and I am finding such fulfillment and peace in that. I've been thinking about motherhood a lot lately and all the joy I am experiencing through it. (Wait, I've always found joy through motherhood since Anna was born...well, realistically, since she was about 3-4 weeks old. I'm just experiencing something different having just moved, not knowing many people, and it being just me and my two little sweet potatoes all day. It's wonderful.)

I'm just so grateful that I am able to stay at home with my sweeties and take care of them, learn from them, and try to teach them, not just educational things, but spiritual too. I'm grateful I get to experience all their little milestones with them. I'm grateful that I can tell Anna and Benjamin "I love you" anytime I want during the day (and it's pretty often). I am grateful to be a mom, and to have two of the sweetest kids in the world. I know this is what I am meant to be doing right now. Maybe I'll use my degree and be a teacher down the road, or maybe I'll teach piano lessons again someday. But right now, I love being able to devote myself full time to Anna and Ben-Ben.

Plan A Vacation To Clio TODAY!

Hello, hello! Just a quick blog to officially invite anyone and everyone to the sweet little town of Clio, Michigan. Let me just tell you a little about the area: It's a measly 10 minutes away from Birch Run which has a HUMONGOUS outlet mall. Also 10 minutes away is the town of Frankenmuth, which is a Bavarian looking town. (Frankenmuth has the world's largest Christmas store that is entertaining to walk through even if you're not buying anything, and 2 hotels that have indoor water parks.) It's a very fun, touristy kind of place. The actual city of Flint (15 minutes away) offers most things you'd find in a big-ish city: 2 good malls, many restaurants, a handful of museums, and more. Also, only 45 minutes away is Detroit, which I hear has some pretty fun stuff as well. PLUS Detroit has a major airport (for our family and friends living farther away). And for those of you who are LDS, that means there is a temple a mere 50 minutes away from here.

Of course, the main reason I'd assume you'd want to visit is because of Anna and Benjamin, and let me just say, I am positive they will not disappoint. Sometimes I just can't take their cuteness...they are both at very fun stages.

So far, we've had my parents and Chuck here when we first moved in. Then Melissa, Ashely and KC came down for Labor Day weekend, which was also Melissa's birthday. (Pictured above is KC and Anna swimming in the pool at our apartment.) Last weekend Melissa came down again (YAY!!!) for a fun-filled weekend which included a trip to the Children's Museum that Anna was sooooo excited for. We have a few other visits lined up over the coming month, but I just wanted to make sure everyone knew they were invited. :-) Just to reiterate, we really are adjusting well to life down here. It's been fun. Moving has many exciting, refreshing aspects to it, but it would be nice to see all the friends and family we left behind...and those we didn't live close to in the first place. Anna really gets so excited when someone comes to visit. She is quite the hostess and always offers up her bunk bed, although mainly she just tries to convince you to sleep in it with her. Silly girl. Well, I'm sure you're all just dying to come visit now, so feel free to give us a call or e-mail. :-) Have a beautiful day!!!

New Hairstyles, New Toys

So Ben isn't the one with the new hairstyle. He's still working on overcoming his baldness...which I personally think really works for him. I mean, he pulls it off. hehe And he doesn't actually have any new toys either. BUT, he recently realized he can get his feet in his mouth (unless he's just had a meal) and really loves playing with his toes. Ben makes a pretty mean growling sound, and just gets so determined to get his feet into his mouth...it's scary sometimes. So animal like.

The exersaucer isn't new, but it's new to Benjamin. (It was Anna's - thanks again Granny.) He's been playing in it for awhile now and loves to be all grown up, standing tall. Anna tends to overcrowd it with toys to "make Ben happy" which usually just overwhelms him. He does love bouncing in it and trying to convince his hands to go where he wants them to...toward the toys. (The little hat Ben is wearing is Ethan's favorite.) Finally, just to mention all the pictures, Benjamin is still a very, VERY smiley baby. It's so easy to get him to smile, I just love it. So handsome, just like his daddy. I love my smiley little man!!!

Anna does have a new hairstyle...see above. She is growing out her bangs. So for the time being, we just clip them to the side. It's a whole lot of forehead to get used to...when you're used to bangs. I think it makes her look older. Perfect for achieving the mature, 3 year old look we were going for. I'll be honest, this was mostly, well completely, inspired by the fact that my mom was the one to cut her bangs. I'm just too nervous to do it. (Anna had fun making silly faces while I took pictures.)

In the first picture Anna is holding two little cut-out guys that were an unintentional part of craft time/school time. We were cutting out different shapes and were making objects out of them...houses, cars, etc. Then these guys happened. Anna named them Uncle Andrew and Uncle Alex. They had great fun together until "Uncle Alex" fell off the couch and had to get his arm bandaged (with tape). They had to take a rest after that. Anna's creativity and imagination INSPIRES me, AMUSES me, and AMAZES me. I love her!!!

Visiting Good Friends

The weekend before classes started we took a little trip down to Indianapolis (a measly 5 hours away now) to see my friend Elizabeth and her family. We had lots of fun, and the kids traveled so well. There were fun places to visit, new friendships made among our kids- Anna still asks when she can see her "new friends" again, and yummy food (thanks Liz and Adam). Elizabeth and I have been friends FOREVER. Well, at least since Sunbeams. *Sunbeams is a church class for kids 3-4 years.* We haven't even lived in the same town since 2nd grade, yet our friendship has stayed strong. After the kids went to bed the first night, Liz and I spent the next few hours reminiscing - sorry Ethan and Adam. Hehe...I'm sure you guys loved hearing about all our random stories...or not. It was so good to see her, and to finally meet her almost 2 year old twins. Her kids, Hanna and Noah, are aged (is that a word?) right between Anna and Benjamin, and they all played together beautifully. Well, Ben just laid there mostly, but I'm pretty sure he was wishing he could move around more. Above is Anna and Hannah playing in their kiddie pool. We had the typical Indiana weather while we were there: HOT and HUMID.

We went to the Indianapolis Zoo. Anna has known what a zoo is for a year and we were so glad to finally have the chance to take her to one. We saw everything including the dolphin show. Anna was in heaven! Luckily there was a sprinkler park so Anna could cool off and keep going. I think the monkeys impressed her the most. There was a little baby monkey that a few monkeys were fighting over, and Anna was just so interested and concerned. Ethan and I were probably most impressed with the walruses. Wow! The experience fulfilled all of Anna's expectations...and ours. (Anna's background info came from an Elmo's World show.)

The Indianapolis Children's Museum holds a special place in my heart. Seriously! I remember going there many times on field trips and with my family when I was younger. It was amazing. I was curious to see if it still held it's magic into adulthood. Most definitely! These pictures just don't give it justice. (It is one of the largest children's museum in the world.) Anna got to experience so many cool, hands-on exhibits. Above she is riding the carousel, and is so proud that she was brave enough to choose a horse that went up and down. Anna and I crept into an authentic feeling tomb, and we saw mummies and other Egyptian artifacts. She learned about rivers and water flow. She was mesmerized by the many intricate doll houses. The real life train was fun to walk through, but once the engine started making noise and blowing smoke, Anna was not so into it. She tried picking up one of the dino bones, but realized it was much too heavy for her. (She loves dinosaur stuff.) And the final picture is of a life sized bathroom that teaches proper hygiene. Of course that made me think, "How many kids have had their germy, grimy hands on all this stuff?" We saw so much more and we were only there for 2 hours. I want to go back sometime without kids :-), or at least with older kids. I LOVE THAT MUSEUM!

However, the best part of the trip was getting to spend time with good friends. It was great staying with Liz and Adam for a few days. I loved seeing our kids play together. The twins are adorable! It was so nice catching up. Thanks for a great weekend guys.

Ethan's First Day of School

Today was Ethan's first day at UM Flint's Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) program. So far, so good. He liked it AND he's already been studying for a few hours this evening. Good job babe! Eth has 40 classmates and a small group of professors he will be working closely with for the next 3 years. On Monday, they had a team-building day that really helped to "break the ice" and get rid of some of the stress of the unknown. They emphasised time management, and the time commitment needed for the program. Whew, good luck! I'll be as supportive as possible.

Our first week here Ethan took all of us on a tour of campus. (That's why Anna is in all the pictures... no she didn't accompany Eth on his first day, but Daddy and Anna would have liked that too.) I thought campus was beautiful. The White building is where 99% of Ethan's classes will be, and was just recently built. There is a river running through campus, so of course Anna thought we had to try out the bridge. We went to the bookstore and got a little UM flag for Ben and Anna's room. Anna was very impressed with the escalator's and thought Daddy's new school was pretty fun. We all shared a few gyros for lunch at the Pavilion's food court. It was a fun day.

Settling In...

We're getting all settled in to our new place and Benjamin has been unfazed (see above). Overall, it's been fun, but a bit overwhelming at times.

For example, Anna has been going through many big steps right now. She's in a new "house." We're still explaining to her what an apartment is. The second day here, we were leaving the main entrance to our building and she said, "But dad, I don't want them to go into my house." She thought the whole building was hers, and wasn't happy that one of our neighbors was entering it. Anna also got a big girl bunkbed when we moved in. She loves it. The first night in her bed, about two weeks ago, she cried a little and came out once. We explained that she couldn't come out, or she'd have to sleep in her crib again, and she hasn't done it since. What a big girl! (She also hasn't cried since that first night.) Also, I have FINALLY got around to potty training Anna. I think she's been more than ready for a while. But man, what an inconvenient process. So, we've had many successful experiences, but then put it on hold for a little trip we took. :-)

We've been out into the Flint area, about 15-20 minutes away, and have really liked it. We were expecting much worse, but I guess we've just avoided those parts of town. Above are some pictures from the Flint Children's Museum that we got a year membership for. It's very nice with many fun, educational things for Anna. It's also exciting for us to be around so many more options for shopping and restaraunts, not that we've had much time (and soon funding) for either. Coming from Marquette, the Flint area seems like a booming metropolis. The population for the actual city of Flint is only 125,000, but many cities, including our own, run into eachother in Genesee county. The population of the county is 445,000. I just googled that information...I know, sad. All for the sake of the blog.

In our own little town we have a few beautiful parks very close to our house, including a "castle park" just like the one at Lower Harbor in Marquette. Anna was very excited to see we have one here too. There are a few rivers running through the area, and Anna loves trying out each bridge. We have a little strip mall right next to our apartment with a few convenient things: a store, a bank, a dollar store (Anna and I bought bubbles there today), a Little Ceasars, two local family resaurants, a dollar movie theater (if we can just find a babysitter now), a hardwear store, and a few other things. The town's library is just across the street from us. Yay!

We've been swimming at our apartment's pool a few times in the two weeks we've been here. Anna loves it and has made some friends there. We've met a few of our neighbors in our building and everyone is so nice and friendly. The girl who lives across the hall from us has a little boy Anna's age, and a little boy Ben's age. Fun! We plan on getting them together to play this week.

Last week, after we opened an account at the bank right next to us, we picked up a pizza and brought it back to our apartment to try out our picnic tables. (Anna's idea.) It was a beautiful day, as in, not hot. After lunch, we tried out this bike trail that begins right behind our apartment and goes all over town and country. About 26 miles of trail? Beautiful.

So, everything is going very well. Ethan starts classes on Wednesday and we're going to miss him so much. But the kids and I have lots of things planned for us to do and learn and experience. Also, I am really liking apartment life. Maybe it's just new and exciting for me now, but I hope the excitment doesn't wear off. Of course there are things I miss about our house and being home owners, but listen to this list: we can take our trash out whenever we want, we don't have to shovel or mow, when something needs fixing we just call the manager, we have a swimming pool, and even though we're in a smaller space, I really like having everything close and easily accesible. It's also forced me to be even more organized. I know, I know, how could that even be possible? (I love organizing things for those of you who didn't know this about me.) So yep, life is good and I'm sure I'll keep you posted on it.