Wild times with Sonia and Erin

It still takes a long time for Erin and Sonia to drive to our house, but at least it's only 200 miles as opposed to 300 miles!  Next time, we'll be smarter about routing them around the Detroit rush hour instead of going through it.  True to form, Sonia fell asleep literally three minutes from our house.  When they pulled up, Charlotte and Peter practically leapt into the car with excitement.  Sonia slowly woke up and reached out to touch Charlotte smiling face as if to check if she was still dreaming. When she figured out it was reality, the three cousins had a gleeful reunion.  Those three really get a kick out of each other.

When they get together, there is a lot of running.

Had to put Peter in the Kyrene de la Mariposa t-shirt in honor of our beloved Tempe, Arizona elementary school!

Sonia and Charlotte had a little too much fun playing beauty parlor that morning and had insisted that Auntie Ernie put in no less than a dozen barrettes in their hair.  That's why they both looked a little like the Olympic gymnasts.

Sonia smiled even though she was not a fan of the super loud noise made at the farm across the street at the demolished an old concrete driveway.  We thought it hilarious that someone who could make nearly as much noise on her own would be so sensitive to it coming from another source!

Ring around the rosie!

Gotta watch a little Huckle (Busytown Mysteries -- a huge favorite of these three) for some downtime.

I ran down to the basement to get something and when I turned to head back upstairs I found them waiting for me like this.  All those little feet just cracked me up.

More running -- this time in their superhero capes!  Super Sillious, Captain Chaos, and Batman (Peter refuses to be called any other superhero name) harassed the kitten more than actually saving anyone, but they looked good doing it.

Charlotte also decided her name was Captain Knucklebuckle.  I'd say that's fitting.

Go, Batman, go!

We took Sonia to nearby Bear Creek Park and had a blast.

Best seesaw ever!  Charlotte actually took this picture (under Daddy's guidance).

Saturday morning, we drove out to Stony Creek Park.  The wind was a little wild, but it was nice and sunny.

Uncle Corey tried to help Sonia cross the monkey bars, but they didn't get very far.  You can see the lake in the background.

The girls are getting so big!  To bad their jackets spoiled the effect of their matching outfits.

Daredevil Charlotte is getting good at climbing all sorts of different ladders.  There are a million different fun features to this playground and each time we go we discover something new!

Goofballs!

This seesaw gets lower marks than the one at Bear Creek Park, though.  It didn't handle differences in weight very well.

Sonia spun her mommy on this goofy thing.

And then, she spun Charlotte on this crazy cup thing.

Teamwork!  We swish the kids could be together for Halloween because they would be hilarious as the Wonder Pets.  Charlotte would be perfect as Linny, Sonia would be Ming Ming, and Peter is a natural as Tuck, of course.  Alas, I think my kids are headed toward Batman and Princess as their costumes this year.  Not sure what Sonia is planning.

There's a cool elevator feature that gently lowers a kid down and then rises back up for the next rider when the kid dismounts.  The kids think it's hilarious.

That afternoon, we headed out to Berkley to see Brad and Amanda.  We watched the Michigan State game, grilled brats, and watched the kids run around like crazy in the back yard.  Declan wasn't there, but little Harry entertained us all in his absence.  I didn't get any good pictures that afternoon other than this one of Harry as he went from kid to kid, begging for bites of their frosted brownies.  They fed him like a puppy and Harry loved it.

We packed a lot of fun into those two days.  Erin has all the photos of our quick trip to the Rochester Cider Mill, so watch for those on her blog.  Thanks for coming!  Come back for a longer stay next time, and we'll show you more of Rochester and Oakland Township!!

Introducing Michigan to the Evans side of the family

Well, both of my parents have been to Michigan (and to Rochester) before, but this was the first time they came here to visit us in our new home.  They came to check out the new digs and help us knock a few things off our to do list.

While we were frantically painting and repairing the Tennessee house in preparation for putting it on the market, I fantasized that someone in Michigan was doing the same to the house we would buy.  NOT SO MUCH.  This house is fantastic -- don't get me wrong -- but has a buttload of wallpaper and finishes that need to be updated.  Most of all, we wanted to make the kids' rooms feel like home for the little squinkers.  Grandma JoJo and Grandpa Spike to the rescue!

I didn't take very many pictures (we were too busy!), but I did get some shots of Grandma JoJo attempting to teach the goofballs how to shuck corn (bought from the nearby farm market).

Do Charlotte's legs look long or what?  Alas, Grandma JoJo had to do most of the actual shucking, but at least she tried.

I know I need to post more photos of the inside of the house, but here is one shot Mom took of me in my awesome new kitchen.

We took my parents to nearby Bear Creek Park.  It has the coolest and springiest four-seater seesaw I have ever seen.

Charlotte likes the bouncy dinosaur.

Super slider!

Grandpa Spike and I used our long legs to help out the kiddos on the see-saw.

And here is a shot Mom took of me on top of the shelf above the front door.  Yes, that is faux marble wallpaper.  I can't wait to take it down once I figure out how.  It was filthy  dirty up there, so I was vacuuming it before adding a few decorations.

I'll post more photos of the painting work Mom and I did later.  I'm planning a whole "before and after" post but need to take all the "after" photos first.  Thank you for all your help, Mom and Dad!  We can't wait for you to come back to just hang out and check out the rest of the town.

Get well soon, Anuradha!!!

We were really sad to hear that a dear friend of Corey's cousin, Erin, is in need of some good vibes to be sent her way.  We're thinking of you, Anuradha, and hope you feel better very soon!  Charlotte drew a picture of her beloved new Halloween bouncy ball that she scored from the treasure chest at the doctor's office this morning.  She added a rainbow on top, because she thought it would cheer you up.

I'm confident Peter would have happily scribbled his artistic vision of Batman for you on a piece of paper, but unfortunately he conked out on the couch.  Transitioning out of a regular afternoon nap is rough-going, even for a tough guy like Peter.

Please get better soon and we can't wait to meet you!

Love,
Charlotte, Peter, and their assorted animals and parental units

Charlotte's latest conquest

Charlotte's latest conquest: 4-year-old preschool!  Last year before kindergarten.  Here she is, ready for her first day and wearing her new "twirl skirt" that I sewed for her.

Oops -- looks like it is time for a 5T shirt!

Gotta test out the twirling properties of the skirt!

That poor teacher.  Does she know what she is in for?

Watch out, Junior Preschool . . .

. . . 'cause here comes Peter!

With Batman along for the ride, of course.

Grand fun in Grand Rapids and Grand Haven

The week after Camp NanaB, we took off for the western side of the state for a quick visit with Stephanie, Don, Quinn, and Maisie at their new house in Grand Rapids.  The house is gorgeous and perfect for entertaining a wild group of toddlers/preschoolers.

We started with a ride in the gator.  Quinn is really good at maneuvering that thing all over the terrain.  His backing up skills are especially impressive.

Peter couldn't quite get the hang of driving and Charlotte preferred being chauffeured, so Quinn did most of the driving.  On one of the trips around the yard, he and Charlotte packed up some shovels and headed to the vacant lot next door to help dig the basement for a new house.

Story time with Aunt Stephanie!

Water tables are always a hit with this age group.

The next morning, we headed out to a beach in Grand Haven on Lake Michigan.  The sand was sugary soft and the water was nice and warm.

COWABUNGA!

WAIT FOR MEEEEEEEE!

The whale spout hairdo slays me.

Poor Maisie -- never a fan of group shots!

The kids spent an inordinate amount of time dumping bucketfuls of water on a huge sand pile that a previous beach visitor had built.

We headed back to GR for lunch on the deck and then hightailed it back to Rochester to get ready for the big move into our new house.  Thanks for a fun time in Grand Rapids, Aunt Stephanie and Uncle Don!