Around The Home

We are just loving summer! Even though the pictures aren’t a representation of it, we are in our pool every single day and sometimes twice a day! We are just LOVING being together as a family out there, but also having people over for pool parties! We are thankful that God has given us the pool as a tool to build relationships with people!

One very exciting thing happened this past week…I had my first book-signing! It was an incredibly fun day spending time at the Christian bookstore I used to work at, catching up with friends and family, and signing some books. I could not have asked for a more perfect day!

Well, really, the pictures say it all this week…

As Dan says, nuts don’t fall far from the tree!

Just love this girl SO MUCH!!!

So Mazy struggles to poop on the toilet. We still have to put a diaper on her, even though she’s been potty trained since February-ish! I know it sounds crazy, but really, forcing someone to go poop when they deal with constipation is not a good combination. So we stick with the diaper when she has to. ANYWAYS, so we told her, if she did go poopies on the toilet, we would take her to the carousel. Lo and behold, one day she had to go so bad, and so Dan quick plopped her on the toilet, and sure enough, she went! Right away, she KNEW where we were going to go! So we did…

But she hasn’t gone again since…

Enjoying the warmer weather at the local splash pad!

Mazy refused to wear any other shorts/pants, so the flower pants with the flower dress it was!

This girl and her many crazy faces!

Mazy is really into airplanes, so I decided to take her to the Grand Rapids airport! It was one of those trips that felt like everything was going wrong, but really, we had a blast in the end. It started off with a 1 hour 15 minute standstill on the highway, 5 minutes into our trip. Mazy was a trooper, but it sure was LONG. We FINALLY made it to the outdoor viewing area, but the planes were too loud and it had started to rain and was super windy. Bummer. So, we went to the observatory deck inside the airport, but the view wasn’t great, so we stayed there for a bit, until Mazy wanted to go back to the outdoor one and just stay in the van. So we went back and that was okay, but the traffic had slowed down on the runway. BUT. We still had fun!

Mazy just tucked herself right in, watching her favorite show!

Hanging out with friends at the Conference Grounds!

Mazy thought her blow-up zebra needed cheez-its too 🙂

Mazy’s bath-time artwork. To the left are railroad tracks, then it’s our family. I am the “redhead” in the middle of the picture – and to the right and left are Dan and Mazy, who are significantly smaller than myself. Hope she isn’t trying to tell me something! She spent so much time and thought on this!

Saturday was an exciting day for me – my first book-signing! I was a tad nervous, but I truly had no reason to be! We went to Dan’s parent’s for lunch, where my mother-in-law bought me a cake – how thoughtful! Then it was off to the signing!

So thankful to see dear friends there!

THANK YOU for all of those who came – thank you for all of your support and love through the years!

My old co-workers!

And one of the best “bosses” you will ever have! I say “bosses” because is more than that – she’s a friend. A friend who cares deeply, loves big, and lives everyday to it’s fullest! Thank you for inviting me down, Lorraine!

Thank you Elaine for the table decor!

After the book signing, we completed a wonderful day by visiting with Tim and Brenda. Our time with them is always so life-filling and heart-overflowing! I just LOVE this picture of Mazy – it is a representation of how i feel when I am there – in the quiet and peace of a loving home, with the sun shining in!

Yesterday, a dear friend and her husband, from when I worked at the bookstore, came to visit! Thank you Bev, for stopping by!

I had put a side-braid in my hair, so Mazy needed a braid too! My first successful french braid in her hair – and she LOVED it!

This week we are looking forward to visiting our friends and “family” back in Minnesota! Can’t wait to jump back into life there for a bit and catch up with friends! And I have the opportunity to do my second book signing on July 4th! Lots to look forward to this week!