Family date night

Tonight we had a family date! First we went back to Home Depot to pick up some paint. I got to drive the cart again!
Next we had dinner at Red Robin.
And a little coffee at JP's. Mommy and Daddy taught me how to smell the lids on the coffee canisters and now that is usually the second thing I try to do when we go to JP's (the first thing I usually do is check out the machine with the chocolate-covered espresso beans).

Fun at home

I find lots of ways to have fun at home!
It's easy when I get to have friends over!

Visit with Christi

Today Mommy and I had brunch with our friend Christi. After eating yummy food at Panera in the Rivertown Mall we walked to the play area. This play area was a lot bigger than the play area at our mall in Holland and there were a lot more kids. I was a little nervous around some of the older boys but I had a lot of fun. I even went down the big treehouse slide with Mommy's help!We stopped to use the family restroom before leaving and I washed my hands for about 3 minutes straight. I really love the kids-sized sink!What a fun morning!

Fun and laughs

Mommy and I have a lot of fun together!

New hairstyle

Today Mommy did my hair in a new way. She said I look like such a big girl!

Shortest vacation ever

Mommy says, "Tonight was a unique night. Through a series of circumstances involving the sickness of 400 Hope College students and the cancellation of the Nykerk Cup, our friend Lindsey offered us her parents' hotel room free of charge. We decided to embrace the spontaneity and take advantage of the pool and hot tub access. So, we quickly packed together a few things and headed to the hotel. After checking in and explaining the bizarre circumstances, we quickly got into our swimsuits. Lillian thought this was great fun! We made our way down to the pool only to discover that a birthday party was taking place and the pool and hot tub were overrun with kids. We promptly returned to our room, packed our things, and went home. It was certainly the shortest vacation in our history, but still a fun little adventure nonetheless."

Snapshots from our evening

Daddy has a class tonight, so Mommy and I spent most of the evening just the two of us. We did have a nice dinner as a family, though, and some other silliness.

Shopping tip

Mommy says, "Today we had some errands to run and one of our stops was at Jude 3. For those of you who are not aware, Jude 3 is the new Christian bookstore in Holland that the former owners of Baker Bookhouse started. It is located on the north side of town near Wal-mart. I had been in the store once before but had not made it to the children's section. It is great! They have a pretty good selection of products but the real attraction is the giant train table, kid-size benches, tables with toys, and other fun things for kids. Lillian loved the bench the most!"

Warm Fall day

I spent lots of time outside today! Mommy and I raked leaves this morning, I played outside with my friend Ella after that, and the whole family worked outside this afternoon. It was a beautiful day!Guess what? I like pumpkin pie!

Patience

Mommy says, "Tonight we had a nice dinner at New Holland with our friends Bryan, Jen, and Anna. I wasn't as persistent as I sometimes am in taking pictures, so we'll have to see if Jen wound up with any good shots to share. With no offense to the Van Hals, the real excitement took place after we left. We got stopped by a train. Not just any train. This was a loooong train. 134 cars to be exact. Seth would have been thrilled."

Lillian's first presidential election

Mommy says, "Today Lillian experienced her first Presidential election! And it is pretty exciting because either way the election results come in, history will be made. The three of us went to our polling location immediately after Dan got home from school and thankfully beat the crowds. Lillian was very cooperative. Afterward we picked up Dan's new glasses and went to Starbucks for our free coffee. Mmm.... coffee!"
"Next we ran some errands including a trip to Home Depot. I must say, we typically prefer Lowe's but Home Depot definitely has cooler shopping carts!"
"Lillian LOVED driving her race car cart! She was even using both steering wheels at some points! Here she is checking her blind spot..."
..."and waving at the pedestrians."
"Today is all about choices, right? Well, Lillian likes to have her choices too. Apparently she is agonizing over this one."
"We'll see what the rest of the evening brings!"

Election day fun!

Mommy says, "This became a tradition of mine back in high school. If you are a bit of a nerd like me you will enjoy coloring in the states as results come in. Click here to download it for yourself. Let the fun begin!"

Working with Lillian

Mommy says, "Every Monday afternoon Dan comes home from school, grabs his laptop, and spends a couple of hours working at the church. Every Wednesday afternoon Dan comes home from school and I spend a couple of hours working at the church. This schedule works for us and allows Dan and me to have uninterrupted time at church as well as gives him some solo time with Lillian. Today, however, all three of us spent some time at church together. We simply had to capture the occasion on video. It still cracks me up. Enjoy!"

"And a couple pictures too."
"P.S. Praise the Lord - Lillian slept perfectly last night!"

Welcome home Daddy!

Mommy says, "Well, last night was another hard night for Lillian. I really am hoping that this has all been because of going to bed later and not that she is just becoming a difficult sleeper. She has typically been a very good sleeper. Ho hum. I guess we'll see what tonight brings. We did have a fun day together, though. Lillian and I went to church in the morning and then she napped while I ate lunch and did some scrapbooking. We had a nice, quiet afternoon and evening.""Despite her sleeping troubles we have had a really fun weekend together.""Dan has been great about calling this weekend. It is always great to hear from him. In just a short while he will be home. Hooray!"

Happy November!

Mommy says, "Once again Lillian had a rough night. I think this was a combination of going to bed late and being away from home. We've been trying to prepare her for the time change by going to bed a little later each night, but it hasn't been going as smoothly as we hoped. Lillian and I spent the last couple hours of the morning snuggling together in bed, which is something we pretty much never do. My neck was a bit sore but it was sweet. Later in the morning we ran some errands at the mall and had lunch with my friend Kate. Then it was time to go back to Holland for a quiet afternoon at home. Dan comes home tomorrow!"