Fun in the Sun

We've been able to really enjoy the sunshine the last week or so and do some fun things. First off, we were officially introduced to two precious little babies. Brother and sister, Keegan and Mia are just about a month old. Their parents are friends of ours. Marie had been talking for a few days about getting to see them, so we cooked up some yummy food to take over to the family. Both babies were under 5 pounds when they were born and had gained at least a pound since then, but as many of us know, we soon forget just how small and amazing newborns are. Marie did wonderfully. She got to hold each of the babies and seems to be quite the pro.


Once we had dropped off supper, we decided to meet up with our friends Matt and Honnie and their one-year-old, Kailyn to get our own. Kailyn and Marie had lots of fun playing silly games. Despite the usual distractions, we did get the kids to eat a little.


With the much awaited sunshine and warm weather, we were able to get into our garden. We planted all the little seedlings that Marie had been growing down in our basement. Joey and Marie decided to help, though the actual planting got boring pretty quickly. They had much more fun just sitting in the dirt and emptying their shovels on top of each other. The garden is already half-filled and as Jon would say, there aren't nearly enough green beans in yet!


This week was also the last week for Atrium, a Montessori based preschool / catechesis program that Marie has been attending at church this year. Though she started out a little unsure last fall, she is quite the pro now and loves seeing her "Atrium friends." She was sad to learn that we wouldn't be going for a while, saying that "Waiting until next fall was too long to wait."

After Atrium, the kids and I went to the University of Michigan Botantical Gardens. They have a wonderful Children's garden. We had packed our lunches and enjoyed them under the shade before getting into just some of the fun things to do. They have slides and other climbing items, a nature's music area, a play kitchen and garden section, a sand plot and babbling brook, a small theater and other little nooks for kids to pretend. And, I know we didn't see everything. All this is not to mention the actual gardens and the small vegetable plots. I hear that later in the summer, the kids can actually pick some of the produce for themselves. We'll have to check that out....








By the time we were finished, I had two very tired kids on my hands, which meant it was a good nap afternoon. Ahhh...you just have to love good nap afternoons.

We are spending our extended weekend with the Shibata's in Ohio. We hope that you all enjoy this "first" weekend of summer as well.

This may be an indication that the kids see us in front of our computers a little too much...


It seems like the silliness reaches a new level once the kids have on their pajamas. Could it be that they are purposely attempting to avoid bedtime??

The stuff we've been up to...

I can't say that we've been up to all that much...but we must have been doing something. Hmm...let's see...

The kids always enjoy being outside and especially going for "walks." There is a small (~1/4 mile) pathway around the homes in our little neighborhood where we can walk and ride bikes. There are a couple of sections that are pretty steep and Marie is still tentative, but otherwise it is just right for her. As soon as we start heading to the end of our driveway, Joey runs off toward the path...a bit of a problem considering you have to walk on the street a bit to get there. Joey's other favorite thing to do is to stop and wave at all our neighbors' dogs who are invariably outside barking at us.

So much for Joey getting some exercise...

Jon and Uncle Mark were also able to assemble and erect the new basketball hoop. It is still a little tall for the kids, but not too tall that they can't make a high percentage shot with a little bit of help from mom or dad.



Our play structure is also a favorite place to be when we're outside. Both the kids love the swings. Joey can climb the ladder to the slide by himself...though we always make sure to be right beside him. Marie has been pretending a lot. The upper level has become her little house lately. The other day, she was grilling hot dogs up there for me. When I asked if we could have some vegetables with them, she graciously offered me some leftover asparagus. (Asparagus is the one thing she insists that she doesn't like.)


Marie has also been doing a lot of pretending in the house. Here is "Firefighter Marie" at the firehouse waiting to get a call for help. I'm not sure why she needs to type while she is waiting for the call. Maybe she is the 911 operator as well. When a call for help (made by mom or dad) does come in, she politely asks if we can wait until she gets on her fire gear.

Obviously, the Lego bin is her fire hat and the large ball is what holds the water for the fire. The small teapot is...just in case she gets thirsty. She "spits" out the fire and then heads back to the firehouse, ready for the next call for help.


On Saturday, we spent almost the whole day outside. Thanks to Uncle Mark who let us borrow his pickup truck so that we could haul three loads of mulch back to the house. It seemed like we just kept remembering other areas that needed it! Of course both Marie and Joey were a big help. We almost finished all of the landscaping, just a couple more small sections. Needless to say, we are very glad that this is an occasional job.



Other than that, Jon has been spending a lot of time in the garage after the kids go to bed. Since he got the Camaro, his goal has been to make the Blazer driveable so that he can sell it cheap or give it away. The more he works on it, the more he finds to fix, the more he is really glad he got the Camaro when he did. He has fixed a power steering fluid leak, replaced almost all the brake lines, and has just uncovered that he needs to replace the fuel lines as well. He enjoys it so much, that I'm not sure he's really that disappointed...

I've still been working more than I'd like. It is going okay, but I definitely don't want to be working this many hours when the summer really hits. I'd rather be gardening, having play dates, heading to local orchards and generally being outside. I also wrapped up my weekly volleyball league last week. I figure as long as my joints continue to hold up I might as well keep playing! It sure was great getting to play somewhat more regularly and at least then I'm assured to get some exercise once a week.


A few kid stories to finish up our update...

As the kids are getting ready for bed and we are picking up toys in the living room. Joey sits down on the floor, hits himself on the head, says, “Goo,” gets up and starts running around the stairs. (He’s playing duck-duck-goose all by himself.)


While eating supper, Marie and Jon were racing to see who could finish their drink first. Marie finished before Jon.

Marie: Daddy, I winned.
Jon: You mean, I won.
Marie: No, I won.


Marie: I’m putting my head on my arms. I’m dreaming that tomorrow will be a better day.
Peg: What was so bad about today?
Marie: Joey.


Marie is having trouble listening and gets a timeout. She heads for the stairs. Joey, who frequently blows his nose himself, asks for a tissue. He promptly takes one and hurries it over to Marie in her timeout.


Marie: Mom, I want a baby sister.
Peg: You do? Well, we’ll have to see.
Jon: What about a baby brother?
Marie: I already have a baby brother.
Jon: What about another baby brother?
Marie: Well, I don’t know about that decision.


Peg: I’m thankful for everyone’s hard work today and how everyone helped out. (To Marie) You were a big help today, weren’t you?
Marie: Yeah.
Jon: Was Joey a big help?
Marie: Not at all…he would just take the gardening tools and run off.


Marie: Mom, I love Daddy. But most of the time, I love you.

Spring...

It is three weeks past Easter Sunday, but as Marie noted this morning, the priests are still wearing white. So, I don't feel as bad about just now getting around to posting some pictures of our Easter fun. Grandma and Grandpa Meinhart and Uncle Matt all came to Michigan for the long weekend. The kids, especially Marie, had a blast with the usual Easter activities, coloring eggs, hunting for eggs, and making other fun Easter items (resurrection rolls). Joey even got in on the fun this year. He was especially tickled when he discovered that some of the plastic eggs had M&M's in them!






Uncle Mark and Aunt Sarah were also in Michigan, so we had most of the Meinhart family together. The guys were able to make some progress on the installation of a new basketball hoop. The previous pole broke at the base this past winter during some heavy winds. The decision was to relocate and start from scratch, which meant digging, mixing cement, and placing the new pole base. Other than getting rained on, it was a success.


A little over a week ago, Jon made an exciting purchase. His Blazer has been close to being on its last leg for quite some time and so Jon has occasionally been looking around at what type of car he might get to replace it. He ran across a VERY well kept car with relatively low mileage, given that it is a 2000 model year. It is red, which wasn't his first choice, but he just couldn't pass up the chance to be the proud owner of a Camaro.

Speaking of things that are red, now that it is April, baseball season is in full swing. We've actually been able to catch the Cardinals on ESPN a couple of times. Quite frankly, this makes us all happy. "Baseball" is one of Joey's favorite words and he can almost say "Albert." (We are still working on words such as "Daddy" and "Please.") Marie is starting to catch on to the whole concept of outs and scoring runs. It definitely gives us a reason to break out the Cardinal shirts that were in our Easter baskets. Thanks, Easter Bunny!



This past week, we had a nice visit from Aunt Jess. It was a fairly busy week, but she was such a good sport. It was great having her here for a few days, especially since we don't get to see her all that often. Marie absolutely loved it and is wanting to know when Aunt Jess can come back again. I don't blame her. Jess probably read at least 10 books a day and also took Marie to the library for story time and to Dairy Queen for lunch and ice cream. Talk about an awesome Godmother!

Marie and Aunt Jess came home from story time with a little tree, so we were able to plant that on Friday. We also got around to planting some seeds for early garden starts. The kids try to convince us to go outside pretty much anytime it's not raining, and sometimes when it is. We've learned not to go close to the outside door or mention "shoes" or Joey will want to go out. It is often a struggle to get them to come back in, especially for nap time. Marie asked today if she could go swimming. We are definitely looking forward to summer!




In other news, Jon has finished his course for this semester and is very relieved. No more studying and doing homework into the wee hours of the morning. However, I have been really busy at work lately and have had to put in some extra time. The director of my group resigned to start her own company and there is another engineer in the group that is set to go on maternity leave in a couple of weeks. My workload immediately went up, but I'm planning to do whatever is in my power to make that temporary.

March Birthdays and Shibaby Shower

March has flown by and though the entire month was during Lent, looking back, we did a lot of celebrating. Here's the rundown...

We started the month with a fairly substantial snow. After talking about it all winter, Marie finally got around to building a snowman. She had previously been too distracted by the sledding hill. The snowman turned out to be a snow-woman who went by the name of Alyse.


For my birthday, the whole family went out to eat (no cooking!) at Olive Garden. Marie is quite the fan of eating out and got a big kick out of the fact that we had the same waiter as we did during our last visit. The waiter also remembered us; we chose to believe for good reasons.

By the time St. Patrick's Day (Jon's birthday) came around, all the snow was gone and it seemed as though spring had arrived! It was the first day that the kids and I were able to eat our lunch outside on the deck. The birthday celebration didn't get too rowdy this year as Jon worked all day and then was required to participate in a designated chat time for his course this term. We enjoyed another of Jon's favorites, chorizo for supper and Marie had helped to make the requested birthday dessert, apple crisp. The night came to a close with one of Joey's current favorite games, duck-duck-goose (though not usually pants-less).





The day after Jon's birthday, we got things packed and left for a trip to visit the Shibata side of the family. We drove as far as Aurora on Thursday and stayed the night with Grandma and Grandpa Shibata. We got to be the first to lay eyes on their new kitchen. (Very nice!!) The highlight of the drive for Marie was getting to stop and have pizza for supper. After getting back in the car and a few minutes away from our destination, Jon took a drink of the bottle of milk he had gotten with his meal. Marie chirps up from the back, "Dad, what are you drinking? Beer?"

Friday morning, everyone got ready and drove the rest of the way to Pittsburgh. We met with the rest of the Shibata clan (Jess, Joel, and Jenn) at James and Jaclyn's house. The grandparents graciously offered to watch all the grandkids while the rest of the adults went out for lunch to celebrate March birthdays. That Friday happened to be a milestone birthday for Aunt Jaclyn, and she chose to go to the Hofbrauhaus a somewhat new German restaurant in Pittsburgh. Good beer, good brats and kraut, and live music made it a fun outing. When we returned, the kids were all happy and three of the four of them were sleeping!

The rest of the afternoon was spent hanging out and enjoying the nice weather. Marie has taken quite the liking to little Gracie. She took every opportunity to hold her...and Gracie was a very good sport! We picked up some fish from a local fish fry and celebrated with birthday cake before the day was done and we made our way to Aunt Jess' house to spend the night.


On our way to Aunt Jess' house, we witnessed a car being pulled over after driving through a red light. Thinking that this would be a good teachable moment, we pointed out to Marie the flashing lights and started to explain that the policeman had to stop the person who wasn't following the rules. Marie thinks for a moment and says, "And give him a timeout?" Yep, a timeout.

On Saturday, we started the morning by taking Marie to an urgent care facility. She had been up multiple times through the night complaining that her ear hurt. We found that our suspicions were right on, she had an ear infection. We got her on antibiotics and you never would've known there had been anything wrong with her....thankfully.

So, we were able to stick with our plans of having a baby shower for Aunt Jenn, Uncle Joel, and Shibaby. All of the ladies, including cousins Anna and Mary and Grandma's longtime friend, Mrs. Churchill, went to lunch at Atria. Then we all went back to Aunt Jess' house and met up with the menfolk. They hadn't seemed to have missed us too much. We had cake and punch and there was a great number of presents to watch being opened.







After the baby shower, we got outside a little more to enjoy the spring weather and then transitioned right into Easter fun. Aunt Jess had gotten crafty items for the kids to make Easter bags. And, what's an Easter bag without an Easter egg hunt!




On Sunday, we went to church and started our drive back to Michigan. We must have really worn the kids out because we were only a few minutes into the drive before they were both asleep. About five hours and only one potty break later, we were back home, safe and sound.

Before embarking into April, we had one more (milestone) birthday to celebrate. Last Saturday, Aunt Sarah and Uncle Mark came over to celebrate Uncle Mark's birthday. We were also going to be joined by Sarah's brother, sister-in-law, and nephew, but it turned out that Gurewens had come down with a fever that day. It was a pretty low-key party, we grilled some porkburgers and put together some salads. We then had blonde brownies with ice cream (also lovingly made by Marie). If you look closely, you can see that we were also joined remotely (over Skype) by Grandma and Grandpa Meinhart, who were also eating blonde brownies in Illinois.




Spring weather is certainly here in Michigan. We've been getting outside quite a bit; both the kids love it. Joey likes to get out every kind of ball possible (football, basketball, baseball, golf ball, tennis ball...) and Marie likes to go for walks and look for new flowers sprouting. They both enjoy swinging and going down the slide.

As for me and Jon, we are staying busy keeping up with the kids and at our respective places of employment. Jon has also been putting in long, late hours with his course (only a few more weeks!). I was on campus (U of M) as a speakerat a Women in Science and Engineering (WISE) event and have been known to play volleyball on occasion. Overall, everything is well and we have much to be thankful for, especially this upcoming joyous season of Easter!!