Opening the Pool . . . A Family Affair

EEWWW! Can you believe how gross our pool looked after the winter cover came off????

Caroline started working right away. :)

John knows all about how to get a pool back to swimming order. Here, he is teaching the boys how to check the chemicals.
Caroline sure likes to skim and vacuum the pool. . .go for it!!!

Jake and Luke are taking a break . . . playing some volleyball with the net Grandma and Grandpa gave us for the pool. Thanks G'ma and G'pa. . .the kids LOVE that thing!!

All the hard work was worth it!! It's still a little cold, though. Our pool heater is being replaced thanks to our home warranty! :)
Look at that nice water now!! No more EEWWWW!! :) Good job guys!!!
Oh. . . . and look who has no crutches and no boot!! Yay for walking on two bare feet!!!

Good Reminder

Last Friday, Luke, Caroline, and I were involved in an accident. We were sitting still on a relatively busy street waiting to turn left into a friend's driveway. A young girl was playing with her radio and didn't see that we were stopped and she smashed into the back of our van. Luckily, no one was hurt. She was driving a little Lexus and I can't imagine that it can ever be fixed. The front end was so smashed in. (I wish I took some pictures, but I was a little too shaken to do that.) I am feeling so blessed that there were no injuries. Our van is very much dented in the rear, but we can get that fixed.


It really is a good reminder to me to always be on the defense when driving. Even when we are doing what we should be on the road, there might be someone else who is not. Very scary. It is also a good reminder to me that God is in control. For a few days after the accident, I found myself afraid to drive anywhere, as if someone was going to come out of nowhere and crash into us (that is what it felt like the other day!) I found myself actually being too cautious. A good friend came to our door on Monday and wanted to tell me to not be afraid. . .that God knew that was going to happen to us and that He is in control. We do not have to be afraid? How wonderful and freeing!! (we still need to be careful, though)

Phillipians 4:6

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.

Favorites on Fridays . . . Like Oprah's "O" List, But Not Really

Favorite Lipstick : Bare Minerals (ripe fig color)

Once again, you probably think I'm silly getting all excited about something like lipstick. During the "there might be lead in your lipstick" scare all over the media I decided to switch to a safer brand and I am so glad I did. I love this lipstick. It stays on all day and feels like I'm not wearing any. One tube has lasted me about a half of a year!

Luke's Haircut

Well . . . thank you for keeping your fingers crossed for me! Luke got a haircut!! This is him on the way to get his hair cut. . . sound asleep.
After weeks of trying to get him to cooperate, his hair looks great!! For some reason he was so afraid of getting it cut this time. I decided to take Caroline to get her hair cut after school so she could be a good example. (she begs me to get haircuts!!) I told Luke we were going to get Caroline's hair cut and he could get his cut if he wanted to. Of course, he said, "no", but as Caroline was getting her hair cut, Luke got more comfortable with the idea and he got his cut with no problem. Yay!!! Look at how handsome he is!! :) Caroline was so proud of him! (They got balloons and suckers after to celebrate.)

Our Wet Wednesday

This week John is at a Christian camp in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin with his eighth graders for their class trip. They usually go to Timber Lee, so this is something new for him. He said it is going well. It didn't rain too much. Looks pretty, right??

Here is where Lake Geneva is . . . not too far from the Chicagoland area.

Luke and I stayed home all day. We got a lot accomplished, including cleaning out this front hall closet.

What a blessing it is to have all of those big bulky coats out of there and into storage!! (be thankful for the simple things, right??)

Bring on summer!!!


Caroline had a Tinkerbell birthday party to attend, but I didn't get any pictures because one of my friends took her there after Kindergarten. It was at a ballet studio and the girls all dressed up as fairies.

Jake had a baseball game (in the drizzling rain). He was excited because he pitched another "no hit" inning. He got to slide twice! (he loves sliding)
Oh. . . and they won. 8-1

It was a good rainy day. . . What's in store for tomorrow??. . . carpool, dentist, mulch, bills, birthday party, John's arrival :), tutoring, and my main goal is to cut Luke's hair. We are having a little issue about that. I like it rather long, but there is a point when it is just too long!! Keep your fingers crossed for me!!

Fun Playdate

Today, Caroline had her buddy Alix come over for a playdate. They made chocolate chip cookies with Luke, played the Wii, and had a picnic. They also sat by the pool just wishing I would let them swim. brrrr! Friends are such a blessing!! (Luke thought he was having a playdate with Alix . . . when I asked the girls if they were having a fun playdate, Luke answered right away and said, "Yes! This is fun!")

Kindergarten Mother's Tea

Last Friday, Caroline's Kindergarten class had a Mother's Tea, which was just too cute for words. They put on a little play for us called "The Garden". It was about a little flower who was not as big and beautiful as all the other flowers in the garden, but the farmer ended up picking her and taking her to a sick little girl to brighten up her day. This made the little flower feel a sense of purpose. "God has a purpose for all of us." How true!!

Caroline was a little bunny in the garden.

The kids served us heart-shaped cookies and other little treats.
They made us special keepsake plates.

Here is Caroline with two of her very best Kindergarten buddies, Alix and Emma.And here is Caroline with the best teacher in the world. . . Mrs. Kremers. We love her!!!

This time with Caroline was truly a blessing to me!!!