Daddy Daughter Prom

Last week was the big night and they had a great time again this year. Riley was very excited about her dress (I paid right around $2 for it brand new! I love Kohls clearance + a 30% off) and the shrug that I let her borrow (Yes it was a little big but it is depressing that she can almost borrow some things of mine). The best part of the night was that Riley danced with Matt! She typically runs around with her friends but she danced with her dad and they had a blast. Carter and I stayed home, watched a movie and cuddled :)

Paying it Forward

So it was announced by a town near us last week that they were launching a Pay It Forward campaign. Ever since I saw that movie years ago, I have wanted to be better about that. We really try hard to raise our kids with the understanding of the importance of giving/volunteering. It is not always about the "getting." I will fully admit that I have always been timid when it came to doing anything big as far as paying it forward. I have bought someones food before and other small things here and there. However, when I read about the Pay It Forward thing Holland is doing, Matt and I decided to make it a priority. We printed some of the cards and had a family discussion. We asked the kids to help us make a list of things we could do for people. We wanted to do it more than once and just make it a habit. It makes us feel so good to do something for someone else that it is almost addicting. I am proud to say that we have already done several things in a week, although we never have the Pay It Forward card to leave for them! We will get better at that!!
* (The idea behind the card is for people to log in when they receive the card, tell what someone did for them and then pass the card on...thus paying it forward)

I hope many others are just as inspired as we are!

Good Intentions

I really had good intentions of blogging everyday this week. Well, as you can see, that did not happen. As it does every day, the time went too quickly.

Last weekend, I took my Girl Scout troop to an event called Junior Uniquely Me. The girls learned about self esteem, being unique and how they are all different. It was a great couple of hours and the girls had a nice time. There were several troops there so the girls were mixed up to meet new friends and they were pushed out of their comfort zone. It was neat to watch them but cannot believe how fast they are growing up. Some of the girls have been with me for 4 years so it is fun watching them grow up.

Rileys Excitement

So, tonight when sitting down for dinner I heard Riley say to Carter, "I cannot wait for next Thursday!" So I asked her why, while in my head asking myself what I forgot to put on the calendar. She replies, "It is tomato soup and grilled cheese for lunch at school that day!" WELL OF COURSE! How could I not know that? And of course she is talking about next Thursday not the one in two days.

I love that girl! She loves her grilled cheese and tomato soup :) It really bothered her that Carter could care less with his reply, "I will have cold lunch that day then."

Five Little Snowmen Fat...

This is Carter's rendition of his book, Five Little Snowmen Fat...

Winter

Carter and Riley love winter as much as I do. They are outside as much as possible and I am so glad they enjoy it since we have a long winter in Michigan. They love sledding, building snow forts and shoveling! Carter shovels the entire driveway in 20 minutes. I love it and know I must enjoy it while I can because someday I will have to beg him to do it. Here are some pictures of Carter out in the yard working on his snow fort one afternoon.




This is a video of Carter at Van Raalte last weekend on his new snow board thing. Of course in true Carter fashion, he was able to do this on his second try. I envy his ability to be good at what ever he tries to do :) He did not get that from me!

Bake Off 2010

Here are the photos of our entries into this year's Bake Off.


Riley's Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cheesecake (It tastes awesome!) She tied for 5th place.


Nora's Almond Cookies These took 2nd place

New desks!

The kids both received a desk for their room as a gift. They were both so very excited about this gift and they have had a great time getting them into their rooms and getting all of their stuff into them.


THis is a picture of a table that my mom and Dan found for Matt for Christmas. It is made from a real porthole that was salvaged off an old ship. It is such an awesome piece to add to our home.

More Christmas parties

Christmas continues around here for at least a week every year with all of the family parties. We are so lucky to have such wonderful parents/grandparents and extended family who we spend the holidays with. We ate lots of food, played lots of games, baked some delicious goodies and made some awesome memories. Here are a few pictures from the fun times.