Kevin's Birthday!

Seriously! How am I married to a 38 year old!

We had such a fun birthday celebration with Kevin! We went to a place called Hidden Cove about 30 minutes from here. They have inflatables, bumper cars, go-karts, rock climbing, mini-golf, arcades, and more. We were there for 6 hours! A good time was had by all!


We were the only ones on this inflatable. In fact, it wasn't very busy so we moved freely through the entire place without having to wait in lines or be crowded. Kevin had as much fun as the kids. I was so proud of Patrick. He typically won't go in bounce houses, but because it was only his family he got brave. It was so good for his stability and his nervousness. I love to see him try new things!

Ella Jane was very cute. She couldn't stand up at first, but tried and tried until she could walk across the bouncer. Of course she was laughing so hard it wasn't easy to stay standing.

Putting giant mallets in their hands typically wouldn't be the best idea, but I'm happy to report that no one got hurt!

Patrick got on the go-karts, another first for him! Again, so proud of him trying new things!

Isabelle did great on the rock climbing wall. She got pretty high before letting go, but tried over and over. I'm pretty darned impressed! No fear of heights in that girl!

Mini-golf was interesting with 4 kids. Isabelle has the perfect golf attitude... lousy! She was crabby with every bad shot and then finally smiling when she got a good hit. At one point she even threw her club on the the ground! "I hate golf. I hate golf. I hate golf. Nice shot! I love golf!" The boys kept moving ahead and not really following the rules, so we just decided to throw rules out the window and play for fun. Jack and I each got a hole in one!!! (Daddy didn't -- Ha HA). It's not exactly easy to play a real game when the little ball stealer (a.k.a Ella Jane) kept running off with our golf balls. Pretty funny!

Ella Jane walked along with brick border as if it was a balance beam. We were pretty impressed by this. She has a daring side to her!

Kevin enjoyed his chocolate chocolate cake!

Happy 38th birthday Kevin!

Over the river and through the woods....

We just spent a week at my parents house in Michigan. We had a wonderful time. We had perfect weather, went on lots of fun outings, and spent time with family.

Patrick and Parker John are good Buds. Ella Jane and McKenna seemed to have a lot of fun together. It's nice to have cousins so close in age.
Papa loves having his grandchildren around. In this picture he is holding his youngest (of 8) grandchild, Gabryelle. She's now 7 months old and a total joy! Isabelle loved being the big girl with all the girl cousins! McKenna is 2 1/2. She said the cutest thing to Isabelle. "I love you Isabelle. Can I taste your ice cream?" Smart girl!

We spent a morning one morning at a nearby nature center. The kids enjoyed the hike in the woods with Papa seeing all the animals and birds. The center rescues local wildlife. We saw owls, hawks, bobcats, deer, and more.

My parents neighbors were very generous to let us use their pool every day. The big kids love being in the water!

There are a few kids who live on the same street as my parents. Lauren is Isabelle's age (but about a foot taller) and Katie is Jack's age.

We got to go to the annual Howell Balloon Fest. It was amazing! After going on a few rides we sat down and watched close to 100 balloons lift off. It was a beautiful site and this picture does not do it justice!


For any of you who have known me before adulthood you will remember my New Kids on the Block phase. As teenagers my good friend, Becky, and I loved them! We went to as many concerts that babysitting money could buy and even tried chasing them down at hotels and in their bus after concerts. Yes, we were THOSE girls! So, this past year when the guys announced they were having a reunion tour Becky and I knew we had to go! We went to the concert in October and again in June. It was so much fun reliving such a fun part of our teen years. It may seem a bit dorky to most of you, but it was very nostalgic. At least this time I didn't loose my voice! Now instead of thousands of screaming girls the concerts are filled with thousands of screaming moms wearing bad mom jeans, with their bad mom haircuts, and driving mini-vans! Pretty funny!

New Kid on the Block

Our dear friends Mike and Melissa Hurley had a new baby girl. Morgan Elizabeth was born on June 16.
We feel blessed to have this new baby in our lives and look forward to watching her grow up. We had Maddy (big sister) with us for some of the time Mom was in the hospital. She's doing well and adjusting. My favorite line of that week, "Mrs. Biegler, I just don't feel like myself today". AWW! Ella Jane is absolutely obsessed with Morgan. I think it must have something to do with Morgan being smaller than her! We let Ella Jane hold Morgan and when I tried taking her back Ella Jane held onto Morgan with all her might, and screamed, "my baby Morgan!" She wants to love her a little too much!

No more pencils, no more books.....

So, it's official I have a 4th grader and a 2nd grader! How did that happen!?!?

The kids finished school! The last day was pajama day. They went for only an hour and had breakfast with their teachers and classmates. It was a great year for Isabelle and Jack! I'm so proud of how well the did. (Time for me to shamelessly brag.) They came home with straight As (again) and glowing reports from their teachers. Isabelle will continue in the gifted program next year. The gifted program does not start until 3rd grade, but Jack will be doing math with the gifted teacher; who is starting a new math program for kids in 1st and 2nd grades. He ended the school year with 98% in math and similar percentages in other subjects. He was honored with a special award for straight As the entire school year! He also got an "Excellence in Citizenship" award (basically for being such a nice guy to teachers and kids). Isabelle ended the year with mostly As and one B, one quarter. She was awarded with high honor roll and an "Excellence in Education" award that was signed by Barack Obama! We are so blessed that school has been easy for them so far. I hope they continue to enjoy school as much as they do now. Over the summer they are expected to finish work packets that will turn in the first day of school. Jack is thrilled that he will be having the same 2nd grade teacher, Mrs. Fuss, that Isabelle had 2 years ago as well Ms. Newman the gifted teacher that Isabelle has and will continue to have.

Splish Splash!

We decided very last minute to take the kids up to Key Lime Cove Water Resort in Gurnee. We didn't tell them where we were going until we parked in front of the hotel. Kevin and I told them we were going out to a tree farm to get new trees for the yard. The were MISERABLE sitting in the car thinking all we were doing is getting trees! You can imagine their surprise and excitement when they realized what they were really doing! It wasn't easy packing or loading the car in secret. It was worth the effort. Everyone was thrilled!

Ella Jane liked the water! She was a little hesitant at first, but soon decided to it was great! She really liked the "bath" that had a slide. She also liked to watch the giant pineapple fill with water and dump on the the kids below. Every time she saw it dump she would put her hands to her mouth, gasp, and say, "oh no! I'm scared!".

Isabelle loves water, loves the slides, loves swimming, loves it all! We get the biggest bang for our buck out of her! She went on even the fastest and biggest water slides. Mommy was right there behind her. She reminds me of myself when I was a kid.

Patrick was very hesitant at first of the water. He stuck to the kiddie pool, but pretty much stayed in one spot. Something like this is an overload for his senses, with the movement, noise, water, etc. His occupational therapist loved that we did this with him. Finally the second day he got brave enough to go on a raft down the Lazy River with Daddy. They did this several times. He did go on one baby slide. It wasn't easy to get a picture of him actually in the water. He did spend a lot of time on the side watching, which is also good for him. He did a great job, especially since big crowds and lots of noise is often difficult for him.

Jack enjoyed himself also, but he's not as much of a dare devil as his big sister. He stuck to the wave pool and lazy river. I think he must have gone around that lazy river more than 100 times during our stay. He was the first asleep when we got back to the hotel room.

Jack on the lazy river again (see the center of the pack).

The Bowl Slide is supposed to be the fastest and scariest at the park. It's so fun! Here are a couple shots of Kevin and Isabelle coming out at the bottom of the slide.

In the end we had a great time! Everyone was very tired when we left. 75% of the kids were asleep in the car (Isabelle managed to stay awake). Everyone slept well last night, as you can imagine. I think the most worn out of the family were Kevin and me!

Springtime Fun!

It's been a busy month, so I haven't done much blogging. Here's a little snapshot of what we've been up to.
For the first time in 15 years Mom and I spent Mother's Day together. It was lovely. We went downtown, did some window shopping on Michigan Ave., and then had Afternoon Tea at the Drake Hotel. It was a great way to spend the day!

Isabelle's gifted class has a garden at the school. Because of mom's talent with gardening they invited her to spend the morning with the kids working in the garden. Jack was lucky enough to join them. They planted some bushes, spread mulch, and did some weeding. Everyone really enjoyed having Baba there.
Isabelle's 3rd Grade Gifted class with Baba


Of course the nice weather means being outside as much as possible. Patrick and his friend, Maddy, are learning how to pump their legs on the swing. It will be nice for the Mommies when they master that!

We got a new Gazebo for the backyard. It's been so nice to sit back and relax, bug free! Now, I just need a pool and I'll be all set! (I wish)

I threw a little "Baby Sprinkle" for my dear friend, Melissa, who is having her second baby any day! The ladies and I had a lovely time. The peonies were in bloom and the weather was perfect for an afternoon in the Gazebo!

My Baby is Getting Big!

Ella Jane is changing so much lately! I love it and hate it all at the same time! This is such a fun age, but she's growing much too fast. Everyday she has new words and phrases. She loves singing, reading books (Ella the Elegant Elephant is her favorite), and most of all being outside! She has mastered the ladder and slide, rides her little "bike" and completely falls apart when it's time to come in. My only complaint is that I want to freeze time just for a little while.