February 11, 2009

Skip to today.... February 11, 2009.... Wow.... couldn't quite get back to this... A lot has happened in the last couple months... Uncle Rob lost his mom and two brothers in a house fire/murder that devastated our family... So sad... There has been a lot going on with them and we are all trying to help out as much as we can.I'll try to back track as best as I can remember....Georgie turned 2 with a birthday party along with Dad and Justin too and family at our house!! He is quite the little man!! We had gotten both kids a new Arctic Cat Jeep over the summer that they love... George drives it better than Savanna. Greg always took them for rides around our house on his three wheeler and when the kids got this, George just started doing the same... It has a seatbelt on it and most times they wear their bike helmets when riding it!! Too cute...Aunt Marcy, Uncle Jimmy, Amara and Dama were at our house for Thanksgiving.... All I can say is "the dynamics of this family are unique..." and "the unfolding of your words gives light"... We had a ball together... They witnessed first hand the Friday shopping in Grand Rapids... ha ha...Christmas... Logan was with us for two weeks this year... Greg threw out his back or should I say ripped muscles in it and was down for the count... Not a very fun Christmas for him... He had to take the snowmobile out for a test run in Grand Rapids before going to pick up Logan and got it stuck in really deep snow... Won't do that again and it really laid him up for about a month... I had a cold on x-mas eve so that somewhat put a damper on the May family x-mas eve festivities... We were the first ones to leave. All three kids woke up x-mas morning to find that Santa did come!! The saying this year was "If no one gets presents... no one gets presents"... The kids got lots of toys, tent, fishing poles, etc. Logan got clothes of course, movies, sleeping bag, etc.We headed to TL by 2:00 p.m. x-mas day to try to make it for dinner with Gram Vic, Gramp Stanley, Blake, and the Bentgen family... We were late.... Couldn't quite get out of the house on Christmas day... But that was okay... We spent the rest of our x-mas vacation at the cabin... Savanna and George love it up there... Blake and I took Logan for a snowmobile ride to Strongs for a day... Trying to get her to learn to ride by herself.. She was a little frightened to drive on the trail with me behind her on the sled still. Put her on the straightaways (power lines) with two trails.Uncle Blake and his buddy, Brandon followed us home from TL. Dad, the boys and Logan all spent a day at Craigs Cruisers... Logan and I went shopping of course too and the boys went to a motocross event at VanAndel.Gina babysat for us a few weeks in January of 2009. Now she is off to the Americorp for a new adventure!! Dama was with us a lot too over the holidays and January helping out with the kids!! We all love having her around!!We ventured over to Port Huron for a weekend in January to visit the Bergers and everyone.. Jeff, Stephanie, Carson and Jeremy were at our house for the weekend before.Dad and I, Savanna and George went to the cabin by ourselves for the first time in a long time the end of January. We took you for a snowmobile ride everyday!! You loved it!! I took Savanna to the bar with me a couple of afternoons like I had over x-mas. She was live entertainment to the bar patrons!! I put money in the jukebox and played her favorite songs (Taylor Swift, Firecracker and Kid Rock) and she sang and danced for everyone!! She was quite the hit and had a ball!!3/19/09.... Milestone for Savanna last night.... Didn't pee her diaper!!!!!!!! Yeah!!3/20/09 .... Two days in a row!!??June 23, 2009 (just the day that I am writing all this)We decided to stay home for Memorial Day this year rather than going to the cabin as we had in the past.... We had a ball together and relaxed at home... We went up a week later though for Uncle Blake's high school graduation party. We actually dropped Sav and George off at Dama's hotel with her on Thursday night for two nights... Aunt Marcy and Uncle Jimmy brought you up on Saturday afternoon... Don and Bethany came for the weekend... Boat got launched and cabin lawn got mowed/cleaned up... Bethany and I helped Victoria with the party food as she had just had surgery on her hand again.. Sav and George had a blast at the party!! The bugs still love you though... You came home looking like you had the chicken pox. You only spent one night at the cabin. Georgie woke up and said "we are at the cabin" in total amazement.... Then 30 seconds later "Banna... We are at the cabin".... 30 seconds later he was racing out to our bed yelling "we are at the cabin"... They so love it up there...Sav and George are at such a great age right now!! You both are amazing!! When you ask George what his name is he tells you "Georgie Porgie"... When you ask him what Savanna's name is, he tells you "Savanna Banana"... He is so funny... He wakes up smiling and talking a mile a minute. People tell us that they can't believe he is only 2-1/2... He talks very well. I think his mind races so much and sometimes he can't get it all out too!! Ha ha... This year he is a master of his Arctic Cat jeep. He drives it one-handed sometimes with his play lawnmower in the passenger seat. Earlier this spring it was quite the fight to let his sister ride also. We had to learn to share all over again in the midst of throwing himself on the ground for his temper tantrum!! He is the master of his tricycle (the one with the special tires that his dad put on for him after his mom ran it over!!). And he doesn't let Savanna ride that too often either... It is HIS bike... Our garage is a collection of bikes. Right now I think we have 5 tricycles and 2 bikes with training wheels on. He rides his 2-wheeler (that Uncle Don got him at the scrap yard) but hasn't quite mastered the brakes yet. The boy has no fear!! He loves to be naked outside too... He has learned that he has a "peter" and loves to pee outside in the grass (hey whatever works for potty training). He is doing some going on the potty too but Mom and Dad aren't pushing him. He is signed up for school too this fall (Young 3s) but think we will hold off as we never sent Savanna (as I didn't know about it... Didn't matter anyway as she wasn't potty trained).... Or he could go the second semester too. Dad just got a new three wheeler and all he wants to do is ride or work on it with his dad... He gets into his dad's tools and is sometimes more of a hindrance than a help.... but that's ok!! We can't keep him in the house... He always wants to be outside. He is always doing, moving, something, etc. He is very big into "Thomas the Train" after getting one for Christmas from Gram and Gramp Ellis...Dad got them a new swing set/jungle gym this spring also that is quite awesome. Took him a couple of weeks to put it all together.Greg and I went on a four day sabbatical this spring also (Dama babysat). We went across to Port Huron and stayed with Jeremy overnight and hung w/ the boys for a night. Then we drove around the coastline of Michigan. It was very interesting to say the least as neither one of us had ever been on that side of the state's lakeshore. We couldn't get out of our Standish hotel fast enough (as in too afraid to shower even). We were amazed with the town of Presque Isle. And couldn't wait to take a shower at our cabin (which is scary because the water is so bad). I can't think of the name of the road that we were on when you get to the town of Cross Village but that was amazing too. We had a great trip and got some much needed conversation in. We decided that year 6 of marriage had been hard on us!! Or maybe a long, cold winter too!! But we are still here together and I am so glad we are. Business has been good and bad for Greg. He had four houses in the spring Parade of Homes this year which was awesome and sooooo huge. But the economy is so bad that everything has slowed right down. We are still making it though!! I am still working 3 days a week for Pete Bosch... This August is my 20th anniversary.Dama taught them that week that we are a "team" and we all put our hands together and say "go team"!! We are also all best friends!!Savanna.... What a hoot you are!! You too amaze us everyday with the things you say and do!! We are still working on potty training you. We have taught you to "squat to pee" outside which definitely isn't very ladylike but perhaps a necessity. I don't know if you hold it too long or what. You always seem to just "pee a little" in your panties before we get to the potty. But then again, everyday is getting better. Some days you have no "accidents" while other days we want to pull our hair out. Always peeing.... Except for this one time you pooped your pants maliciously.... We were outside in front of the garage and I asked you if you had to go potty and of course you said no. So you walked around to the front step of the house... I of course followed you and questioned you again. You then lipped off to me and told me "no mom"... So I moved onto the side of the house where the hose spicket was doing something and you went around back to the play set or somewhere in the back of the house and proceeded to poop your pants and then came out and told me. I think steam could have rolled off me, I was so mad. But I did not spank you. I took you into the house and cleaned you up, threw away you underwear as I was not cleaning it up (boy you were mad at that), gave you a lecture, and you sat in your room for sooooo long. Kelly, the neighbor girl came over to play with you and I wouldn't let you come out. You came to the house door twice (as Dad, George and I stayed outside) and wanted to tell me you were sorry... It was very hard to send you back to your room... but I did the first time and the second time I came in to talk to you. I think you were "grounded" in your room for at least an hour in order for me not to beat you!! I was so disappointed and wanted to show you that it was wrong. So far so good. You haven't done it again!! You are very excited to go to school in the "fall". You know that "Fall" comes after "summer". The other day you literally folded your hands in prayer and looked to the sky and said "Dear God, could we please have a dog to clean up Georgie and my food that we drop on the floor". It was sooo funny. Then you told me where babies came from too which was hilarious. Savanna mastered her two wheeler bicycle with training wheels this spring... She uses her brakes and goes FaaaaaaST!!Logan just got here for the summer on Saturday, Father's day... She is here for like six weeks with us. We are planning on being up at the cabin for 20 days in July which excites her very much!! Logan and Tessa (the neighbor girl) are babysitting Savanna and George this summer!! We asked her and she wanted to make the extra money!! She may be helping Gram Vic and Dama too this summer scooping ice cream. She got straight As on her report card the last semester of school which we are soooo sooo proud of her!! She loves to read books. We just went to the library yesterday and got her four new books to read while she is here (or over the next week). She needs braces and her mom asked us to take her to the dentist to get her teeth prepped for that. We didn't have a very fun time at the dentist. She found out she had 12 cavities.... YIKES.... So we are working on getting them fixed etc...