Shakey Shakey

Today we made some shakers; much fun and dancing followed.

Here are some scenic shots that I took yesterday and today.

Summertime Arrives+Worm Reduction=YAY!

We finally received some warmth over the last few days, most noticeably today. And double bonus, the worms are finally starting to ease off a bit (and I can actually stomach being outside). The kids were eager to wash Mommy's car for her. Much fun and frolicking with the hose occurred. Lucy had fun adding rocks to the bowl to wash.

Owen earned new underwear--he chose Batman and Spiderman.

This week will be busy. Usual "Tonia Day" Tuesday, the Mommy has a graduate credit to take Wednesday and Thursday in Traverse City, so Grammy Baleiko has graciously taken Wednesday's child supervision duties, and the kids will again go to Tonia on Thursday. Next week will be even more interesting; the boys go to day camp! Mitchell will be there full day all week, and Owen has his own special Preschool camp for a few hours on Tuesday and Thursday of that week.

Wedding Fun

Ken's brother Brian got married over the weekend and Ken had the honor of being a groomsman for him. It was great fun! While Ken and I enjoyed the wedding, the kiddos enjoyed some quality Grammy time. The kids had a ball and I think Grammy recovered quickly. :)

June bugs

The levels of Forest Tent Caterpillars here in Boon is absolutely REPULSIVE. I hate going outside because I honestly fear that small children....heck, even my house may be carried away by these wriggling creatures. There is no number to describe the sheer volumes of these furry leaf-eating worms that have overtaken our surroundings. The kids are coping, but it is a struggle to enjoy outside time with them because a) the worms are everywhere, they even fall as if from the sky, b) they cover pretty much every surface in our yard (we usually cannot see the concrete near the front door due to the caterpillar carpet, nor can we find the garage, playset, or playhouse.... and just forget about the sandbox!), and c) they are on the kids toys too.
Soooooooooooooooo.... I am trying to take them to different parks for playtime, but its hard not to enjoy your own yard. Today, while trying to ward off the worms, Mitchell successfully biked on his 2 wheeler, no training wheels. YAY! An accomplishment to say the least when you have very little flat surface on which to pedal.


Owen successfully "kept his trophies" all day (aka kept his pants dry/poopless, for all you non-pull-up people out there). Potty training has definitely been LONG and slow with him, but today was a welcome success for everyone.

Lucy is talking, talking, talking. She is also walking everywhere, and demanding to do everything for her very own self. Today she was breaking land-speed records trying to walk down the driveway and down to Papa Denny's house. She was a woman on a mission to say the least...maybe she was trying to outrun te worms. Every day she walks outside and spends about 5 minutes squatting down looking at all the "bugs" as she calls them. Then later when she spots one that has crawled on her she freaks out, crying out "Bug! Bu--g!" shaking whatever appendage they have attached to. Apparently she tires herself out, cause she zonked out the other night... too cute of a shot to pass up.

Starting Summer with a ....

Over the weekend, Owen and I bumped into a kids' day with the local fire department. He got to climb in and "drive" all 4 engines, even sounding the siren and blowing the horn. Needless to say, Mitchell was a bit bummed that he wasn't with us. All was right with the world when the Selma Fire Dept once again showed up to do practice exercises on the old Rogers' farm house. Mitchell got to investigate the trucks tonight and see the firefighters in all their gear. With a new Chief, the department is very hopeful they will get to burn the farmhouse down before the end of the year. Let's keep our fingers crossed for that!!!!!

Kindergarten Graduation

Mitchell successfully completed his Kindergarten year with Mrs. Manley. He has become quite the author and reader. Mom, Dad, Grammy Baleiko, Grandma Rogers, and Papa Denny were all in attendance to cheer Mitchell on. We're very proud!

Turtle!

Ruthie, this post is for you--

Last weekend Ken caught a turtle on the way home from work; we were able to let the kids meet Mr. Turtle while he crawled around in a bin. Later, I wrote their names on its belly before we set it free (Ruth and I had our names on a painter turtle in our days...I think we named it Kelly???).