More backyard excitement

It seems like every summer we have a tree that falls down and, therefore, some extra excitement for the kids to watch in the backyard.  Last summer was the highlight with the crane that hauled our giant tree away.  This summer we have been blessed with a lack of such events (Lord willing!).  However, the flooding of previous summers led us to the realization that we have a crack in the foundation of our house.  Today a team arrived to dig up the dirt around the foundation and repair it.  The kids were getting ready for swimming lessons and were very excited to watch all of the commotion. 

 

Don't you love what Caleb rigged up to help him see out the window?  Slightly dangerous but highly resourceful, I think.

The excitement never ends at the DuPuis house!

Carousel

We spent some time at "the big mall" aka "Grandma's mall" and since the day just called out for something special, we let all three kids ride the carousel.  This was Liam's first time and he was not interested in riding one of the animals that moved, so we sat on the bench together instead.  When I look at these pictures I am overwhelmed with joy and thankfulness that these three beautiful children call me "Mommy!"

 

 

 

 

 

 

Builders, part 2

Remember when I said the kids were getting to be good builders?  Today they really had a chance to put their skills to good use!  Dan brought them to a Build & Grow clinic at Lowe's and they made race cars!  After going to Lowe's so often for kitchen renovation trips lately, the kids were really excited to go there and have some time that was all about them!

 

Builders

The kids are getting better at building with blocks.  Maybe it's the inspiration of the construction going on around them!

Minions, blueberries, and oreos!

The minions coached the kids as they painted this morning.

The next picture is blurry but you can see how much Caleb loves his crown from VBS!

After swimming lessons and lunch we went blueberry picking.  This has become a summer tradition of ours and the berries are delicious this year!

 

 

 

 

After swimming lessons and blueberry picking the kids were beat!  We went home for naps and then Dan took the "big kids" to VBS.  Liam and I had a fun, quiet evening at home.  It was strange but special to be home by ourselves and Liam even got spoiled a bit with an Oreo for dessert.  Isn't he adorable?!

If you want an extra dose of cuteness check out the video below.

A day of firsts

Last year Lillian had a great time at swimming lessons and Caleb was eager to join her this time around!  Since participants must be four or older, we signed both kids up for two weeks of lessons beginning today!  I love it that Lillian was looking out for her little brother at swimming lessons and that Caleb was so excited to be there with her!  The photo below was not staged - they both sought each other out and grabbed hands at the end of lessons!

Today was another "first" for Caleb as he attended his first night of VBS!  Dan led the music and was a group leader and made sure that Caleb and Lillian were well taken care of!

While Dan, Lillian, and Caleb were at VBS, Liam and I got to hang out with my friend Kate and her son Luke!  Luke and Liam are only about a month apart and it was fun to watch them play alongside each other!

Thank you, God, for friends who can pick up where they've left off... even when the busyness of life interferes with spending as much time together as they would both like!

Happy 4th Birthday, Caleb!

After a fun party yesterday, today we celebrated Caleb's official birthday.  It was fitting that his birthday fell on a Sunday this year because Caleb loves "church day!"  After church we ate lunch (including leftover finger jello!) and played outside in Caleb's new sand box.

 

Isn't this the coolest sandbox ever?!

Lillian was so excited to give Caleb the present she picked out for him!

They both had fun trying out Caleb's new block set.

We let Caleb choose a place to eat out for dinner or dessert and he chose Logan's, which came as no surprise!  Everyone had a great time!

 

 

Caleb James, you are our sweet, crazy, silly, loving, happy little boy.  Happy fourth birthday!  We love you so much! 

Caleb's 4th birthday party

Today we celebrated Caleb's 4th birthday with a simple party with family.  With a kitchen under construction and super high temps, we really went simple this time and I think it made the day that much more enjoyable!  Lillian and Caleb helped me create "dirt" for his cake and they were so happy to be included!

When the family members arrived the kids immediately started playing.  They were having so much fun playing that we never even got to the games I had planned.  I figured if everyone was already having a great time there was no need to change a thing!  After a good amount of playing and some yummy pizza for dinner, Caleb opened his presents.

This was probably my simplest cake to date and it was just perfect for my little digger!

Caleb, Lillian, and Gabriel were eager to try out the new toys!

I got the idea to make homemade play dough "boulders" from a booth at the craft fair in Houghton Lake.  I loved how they turned out and how much fun the kids had playing with them!

 

 

Happy Birthday, Caleb!  I am so happy we could celebrate YOU today!

Progress and a dilemma...

We have appliances!  We're making progress!  However, in the process we determined that the contrasting wood finishes of our cabinets, floor, table, slider, and window trim are a bit much. 

The first step in solving the problem is to sell our current dining room outfit and replace it with a darker, more modern dining set.  We listed the furniture on craigslist and it is supposed to be picked up tonight!  Next we will go out shopping and hopefully find a beautiful, dark, modern table to take its place.  We are grateful to Dan's parents for the beautiful cherry furniture they passed on to us six years ago and for their blessing to replace it at this time.

Our next project will involve the sanding and staining of the sliding doors and kitchen window.  We might have out work cut out for us!

Moving day (again)

Boy, oh boy, did I pick the wrong day to clean up my other music classroom!  As I mentioned before, I accepted a part-time teaching position next year, which I am very thankful for.  However, my new position will have me teaching in a different building than the two I've been in for the past few years.  So, I cleaned up one of my classrooms back in June and returned to campus to clean up my second classroom today.  Unfortunately this coincided with a 90 degree day and my classrooms are most certainly not air-conditioned.  The kids love visiting my school so Dan kept them entertained while I packed.

Perfect summer day

I am thankful for another beautiful summer day - complete with water fun, blooming flowers, fresh raspberries, and lots and lots of playing!

 

 

 

Boxes, boxes, and more boxes

Liam had fun playing among the boxes today as Dan and I finally collapsed them and brought them to the recycling center.  It will be nice to park both cars in the garage again!

Coming home

After a great week up north with Dan's family we were excited to come home and see the progress on our kitchen.  Hooray!  We have kitchen cabinets!

 

Despite our excitement, we were also overwhelmed at the thought of cleaning and organizing our now dust-filled kitchen. 

 

Thankfully the boys were ready to nap and we were able to get some work done.  I found some plywood in the garage and was able to clean it up to serve as our counter top for the next several weeks.  In two days we will have appliances again!