Last week Kyle's brother, Chad, and his family (Courtney, Luke, AnnaMay) came up from Oklahoma and rented a cottage in Holland. Since it was an hour drive for us, the kids and I stayed out there most of the week. Kyle was there for a few days, but had to travel to Chicago and Minneapolis for business. It was so much fun (a little chaotic at times because of the nine kids--the oldest being 9!) to spend that much time with family!
Our best attempt at a family picture--not an easy feat with this many people and 9 kids! Each family wore a different color. Green - Jim and Judy (Kyle's parents); Brown - Chris, Heather (Kyle's sister), Skydra (baby), Stone, Olivia, Eliani and Blaze; Blue - us; Orange - Chad (Kyle's brother), Courtney, Luke and AnnaMay
Sunday afternoon on the beach. It was freezing! Don't you love how you can see Chad and Heather all bundled up in the background, Kyle and Maguire in long sleeves...and then there's Ashlyn in her undies! She had gotten her clothes wet when she jumped in the water (following her crazy "twin" cousin Blaze no doubt!) and I had brought a sweatshirt for her to wear, but she wouldn't have it. Where in the world does this girl come from?! I was wearing a tank top, long sleeved shirt and hooded sweatshirt with jeans and was one huge goosebump! Good thing the rest of the week was much warmer...
AnnyMay and Ashlyn checking out baby Skydra
The three sisters...in law :) Jim & Judy offered to watch all the grandkids Thursday night so we adults could go out together. We had SO much fun! I don't think we've ever all hung out without the kids, unless it was just around the house after the kids were in bed. Unfortunately it still wasn't ALL of us because Kyle wasn't there, but we had plenty of fun without him ;)
There's this new super modern hotel/restaurant in downtown Holland where we went for dessert (after a great dinner at BoatWorks on the lake). The restaurant has a terrace where you can eat overlooking downtown. We thought we missed it, but I think we caught a pretty gorgeous sunset! Thanks a TON, J & J for allowing us to go out together!
I'm so excited and incredibly honored! Etsy is hosting a Handmade Kids challenge/contest with seven categories. I entered this set of blocks into the Kids Home Decor category and then sort of forgot about it. They've just announced the 40 finalists for each category and my FAM friend Melanie was sweet enough to let me know that I am a finalist! I'm still in a bit of shock that my blocks were chosen. So, for the next 2 weeks, registered Etsy members can vote once in each of the seven categories. I would LOVE your votes! If you're not a registered member, you can easily register for free at etsy.com. Here is the link for my category: http://www.etsy.com/voter_list.php?room_id=16
