Thomas 2009!

This past weekend John, Henry, and I ventured out to Boone, IA to see a real life Thomas the train engine! Bea enjoyed the weekend at Papa and Nana's, she rarely gets them all to herself.

After a quick trip through the mall in Des Moines, we checked into our hotel. It was quite busy - they were hosting three wedding receptions that day and had several girls soccer teams in house. We became acquainted with some of the soccer players at the pool. Henry tried so hard to be part of their games and fun, but had to settle for watching the many "chicken fights" from the side of the pool.

After breakfast the next morning we drove to Boone, which is only about 45 minutes from Des Moines. It is a darling little town that has a pretty busy little train depot. There was plenty to do besides ride the train, which was suppose to be the main attraction. Henry enjoyed running through the hay maze, bouncing in the bounce house, playing with the largest train table I have ever seen, meeting Sir Topham Hatt, and finally having Thomas take us on a train ride. ALL ABOARD!!

After a teary goodbye to Thomas and Boone, IA, we drove home. Henry was asleep before we got on the interstate and slept the entire way home. We were excited to get Bea. She had a great weekend as well. Just like her cousin Carolyn, I think she is a dog lover, if she could talk I think she would ask for a puppy.

It has been awhile!!

It has been a while since my last blog entry, I really have no excuses! The kids are doing great. Henry still loves his school and Bea is so happy with her new babysitter. John and I are keeping busy with kids, still unpacking random boxes that constantly appear out of no where and of course, there is always work. I am happy to report I love my new job. Everyone there is so nice and rheumatology (like all autoimmune diseases) is super interesting. I did get an opportunity to visit my old job this week, it did make me miss life in the hospital for a minute, but being home with the kids is a priority right now. John is still busy at Deere and was recently elected to the school board!

September has not only been a busy month, but also a fun one. We celebrated my Dad's and Carolyn's birthdays, went to the circus last weekend and today Henry had a birthday party to go to. It was the first party he was invited to by himself, without John or I to supervise,so we were a little nervous. He did great. I suppose this will be the first of many to come - he is growing up so fast!

The final finishes were put in the basement last week, so I am happy to report it is officially complete! We are really enjoying it. Henry has a place to spread out all of his toys and be as loud as wants, which is pretty loud sometimes. We also have some new neighbors. The neighborhood is a little less quiet now and Henry has some new friends to play with - even if they are all girls! There will be two more families moving in this month, we are really looking forward to it.

Bea is doing great. She loves her big brother, he can always make her smile. Soon she will be 6 months old!!

Next weekend we will be heading to Boone, IA to visit a "real life" Thomas the train engine. I will take lots of pictures to post. Below are a few pictures from the circus and birthday party, as you can see from the photo, Henry really enjoyed the popcorn at the circus.

Until next time...


Will and Bea

Joshy and Carolyn at the circus

Papa and Carolyn's birthday

I think the popcorn is gone!

The circus

New School, New Job - Whew!!

I have neglected my blog the last couple of weeks for good reasons - we have been busy (and John has been out of town)! Henry started a new school a couple of weeks ago and I am so relieved to say that he really likes it. I was a bit apprehensive about it because he enjoyed his last school in Heidelberg so much and requested to go back there on several occasions, but he made friends the first day at his new school and hasn't looked back. Bea also started at a babysitter a couple of days a week. Henry used to go to her last year and she was anxious to have Bea with her. Like Henry, Bea is is also very happy with her new surroundings. Finally, I started a new job this week. I am working two and a half days a week in a rheumatology office. Honestly, I was extremely nervous before I started, but now that I have a couple of days in, it already feels like home. So, I think everyone is where they need to be and we can finally take a deep breath and relax for a while!

Henry on his first day of school.

We have managed to fit in a little fun. Carolyn, our niece, visited last week and we enjoyed doing several things with her. She and I saw a movie, got a pedicure, painted at a local pottery store, went shopping with Nana, and had a cookout and campfire at Papa's place on the river. There was also a little carnival in town, so we enjoyed a few rides and games as well. Henry was really disappointed when she went home, as were we.

Henry walking Booker.





As for our Beatrice, she will be 5 months next week!! Her little personality is so sweet and she could not be any more beautiful!!





Henry at the river

Tiny Tumblers!!

This week has been pretty ordinary. Our days have been filled with unpacking boxes, organizing, hanging pictures and playing outside as much as we can. Henry did have a class at the Family Museum this week called Tiny Tumblers. The first day was a little chaotic, but he quickly caught on to standing in line and taking his turn. Today, the last day, parents were invited to a performance by the children. It was absolutely precious! Henry was really proud of his new skills, and rightfully so, he was awesome! Below are a few pictures from our budding gymnast!

Fun with the moving boxes!


Bea taking a break from unpacking!

Look at our Henry!



Balance Beam!

Here we go again!

On Thursday our sea shipment arrived from Germany. Amazingly, only one item was broke and everything else was in great shape. As I am writing this blog two days later, I am happy to report we only have the office and our bedroom to organize! Needless to say we have worked nonstop since Thursday morning. My Dad, Will, and John's parents came to help and then Henry had a sleep over at Papa and Nana's to give us some extra time to unpack.

John, Will and my Dad did take some time for fun last night and went fishing. John and Will caught 7 or 8 fish each and my Dad caught only 2 - I think he spent most of his time helping the other two!

We also did some kite flying this week. Below is a picture of our new Spider Man kite. I had forgotten how much fun kite flying is!

Bea is doing great, as usual. She is talking all the time, rolling over, and starting to play with small toys - although her favorite past time is watching Henry play.

Below are some pictures from the move.


Our container in Germany.


Arriving in Bettendorf.


Goofy!


Kite Flying.


Tie Dye!

Our Beatrice is Four Months!!

I cannot believe our beautiful little girl is 4 months already - and what a 4 months it has been. We celebrated this week by going to the zoo, spending time with family, playing in the backyard, and going to the beach!

We have been thinking of things to do everyday to escape the noise coming from the basement, so the zoo is always a winner - I think we go there at least once a week. This week, we went with our friends, the Novotnys. It is one of the last times we will see them before their new adventure begins in Dallas next week. Good luck Novotnys, we will miss you!!

We also ventured up to Dubuque one day to see all of my Aunts and Uncles. Little Blake was there too, so Henry had a buddy during lunch. It was the first time I had seen some of them since I returned home from Germany, which means they had their first meeting with Beatrice as well!! After our lunch we stopped by my sister's for a little more play time, needless to say, Henry was asleep before we were on the highway again.

Our arts and crafts project for the week was tie dying tee shirts at Papa and Nana's. My sister and the kids were down, so all of the kids did one; even Bea managed to do a onesie!! Unfortunately, I do not have a picture of the kids modeling them, but they turned out great, especially Carolyn's and Bea's. I will be sure to get a picture for my next blog. Later that day, we headed out to the beach. Henry had not been to a beach in quite some time, so it was like another first for him! After swimming, making sand castles, and having beach races, the kids buried John in the sand (lucky John). After long showers, everyone was exhausted and slept very soundly, despite the horrible storm we got that night!

Below are a few snap shots from the week, enjoy.

This week our basement will be completed to the point where we can move some belongings down there, so our sea shipment is scheduled for delivery on Thursday! We cannot wait to have everything in one place again. Beds, dressers, clothes, toys, pictures - yippee!!

Henry also has a class at the museum this week, Beary Big Fun Camp! He is really looking forward to it.

Until next time - cheers!!

Weekly Update

On Saturday, we traveled to Colfax, WI to celebrate my Great Aunt Ruth's 80th birthday! The weather was wonderful and my Aunt Ruth looked amazingly young (see pictures below). We look forward to celebrating with her again next year!

Earlier in the week we visited our friends in Iowa City, caught up with some good friends who were in town for the John Deere Classic and were able to see another All Star Game. Unfortunately, Will's team did not win this round of "playoffs" (if that it what you call it), so his season is done. The good news is he has the rest of the summer to catch up on his fishing, which he loves to do!! Below is a great picture of him stealing home base. He had an awesome tournament, both defensively and offensively. We are already looking forward to next year.

As for Bea, she is growing up quickly. This Wednesday his her 4 month check up, I am anxious to see how much she has grown.

Below are some pictures from the week, enjoy.