Golfing with Dad

Monday night we all decided to venture out to the golf course and ride along in the cart with Rob while he played 9 holes of golf. The girls were pumped b/c we had only really been out to the golf course one other time this summer with Rob and that time we just walked with the stroller. This time we were able to drive the cart and ride along. It was a REALLY windy night so we all found hats and wore them to try and keep our hair under control. As soon as we got out of the van Karys' took off through the parking lot. I managed to catch it b4 it got too far ;) She spent a while holding onto it but eventually took it off. Gracies was the perfect fit and stayed on the entire time!

It felt good to get out and swing the ball but I think Rob was golfing under a lot of different conditions this night....three ladies watching every swing, the crazy wind, rushing b/c ppl were letting us play through....but hopefully he had as much fun as we did!
The girls faces were priceless as they watched the hundreds of birds flying through the sky! It is crazy to think they are already beginning to group up for the big migration south. Gracie told me today she really wanted it to snow....really!!! I am definitely not ready for that yet, and what happened to my California baby!
The girls were so intent on keeping score and writing on the score card. Everytime we stopped they would say "Get out, Mom" and assume thier posts at the scorer's table!
They were so good and just had so much fun keeping score, driving, and cheering for daddy! The stuff that comes out of thier mouths is just hilarious and just so innocent and heartfelt sometimes! I love nights like this as a family!
A BEAUTIFUL picture of Gracie! I just feel like this captures so much of her! She loves to giggle and laugh and is just really starting to come out of her shell and develop such a personality! She freely gives hugs and kisses and has such a care free and tender heart! Hard to believe she goes to pre-school this week! AHHHHH!Rob lining up his shot on one of the final holes....still holding out for him to join the PGA circuit ;) I just realized this summer how much those crazy good golfers make!!! I think he could make the cut!

Visit with Grandma and Grandpa Great

On Monday, we were in Lennox for the morning so we called up my Grandma Norma and Grandpa Kenny to see if there were going to be around and we could bring all the girls over to visit. They thankfully were, and Grandma thankfully had some of her AMAZING cookies to share with us as well! I think Karys tried to get three of them down when mom and dad weren't looking! It was great to see the girls interact with my grandma....they loved playing with her "costume" jewelry and sitting on her lap. They even talked about the cookies and the beads later that afternoon. God is just so good, and I see that in family design. The girls are so blessed to have so many great grandparents, and I am amazed at how they just accept all of them and are so excited to call them grandma/grandpa and are just drawn to one more person who loves them so much! What wisdom lies throughout generations, what legacy lies in ours.....we so hope to continue that legacy of love, family devotion, and faith.
Dad helping to get the ladies all situated for the big photo...what a task it always is to get everyone looking and smiling in the right direction at the right time! They were so eager to crawl up on Grandma's lap!
Gracie holding Leah...she still calls her a big wiggle worm! Let's see how this works out in a couple of months when Leah is big enough to walk away.
Karys had to have a turn to, but it won't be long before they are the same size! Karys just loves having someone younger to try out all the things Gracie does to her.
Here they are looking a little more comfortable and a little bit happier....for now anyway!

Checking out the grapes that Grandpa Kenny is growing out back on the side of his shed. He uses these mainly for the homemade wine that he makes....i think?
Rob and Karys going in deep to find the grapes....
Everyone was out in the yard to check out the grapes and the flowers
The girls both got to taste one...they are not qutie ripe yet and were still pretty bitter. Karys ate hers with only a little face, while Gracie quickly spit in out right into the grass with an awesome face that I would have loved to catch on camera!
The girls posing for a pic by the pink flowers that matched Karys' pants....Gracie was bummed b/c we couldn't find any blue flowers to take a pic by that would match her pants ;) Nice hair Karys!

LifeLight Festival 2008

We headed out to LifeLight on Sunday evening with family and friends to take in the Natalie Grant and Casting Crowns concerts. It was fun to reminisce about it since last year Sarah was pregnant and the year before I was pregnant when we went! I actually went into active labor out at the LifeLight festival 2 years ago during the Casting Crowns concert on that Sat. night. I ended up in an ambulance for a while and in L&D in Sioux falls that night. I always get stuck though at 4-5cm so I ended up going home to OC and walking in that hospital forever and finally being given Pitocin that Monday morning to bring Karys out! Wow...crazy to think she will be two this week! That is an entirely different blog in itself!

So anyway, we had a great time! The music was great and although it was windy the weather really held out to make it into a really nice evening! We did have the opportunity to go back stage during the Crowns concert but by the time they took the stage it was well after 10pm and all three girls (Gracie, Karys, and Leah were all sleeping). Guess so is the season of life we are in ;) Maybe next year!

Sarah, Rob, Grant and Baby Jaydon all hanging out taking in the GOOD music & GOOD friends!
Our self portrait...we reall faired pretty well this weekend. At one point with 4 kids around us (Gracie, Karys, Leah and Jaydon) I remember Rob looking at me saying, "Is this really what you want life to be?" He giggled....so did I....I guess only God will know and HE will probably be laughing the hardest ;)
Just a pic of Karys cashed out on the ground before Natalie Grant had even finished. Rob and I actually tag teamed during the Crowns concert to take a girl out who came flying around the corner and almost stepped on Karys' head. The lengths you will go to protect you kid I guess ;)
Our friends Amy, Grant, and Baby Jaydon. It was Jaydon's first LifeLight and he slept through the entire thing! He loved it!

A Day with My Cousins

Ok so I am only staying over here in the place they call "the real OC" for one night, but I thought while I was here I would take the liberty of informing all of the VandeLune followers about what happens when I come to town and up the kid count to 3! I am sure most of you know me...my name is Leah Grace Roe, I am 10 months old, I can stand by myself and crawl with the best of them. I love to eat, especially fruit! And I love to shake, throw, or put in my mouth anything and everything I can.

So Dad and I got in the truck this morning and I really had no clue where we were headed, no one bothers to tell me anything they just assume I am not going to care I guess. Whatever, I guess I usually don't. Anyway, I fell asleep like 5 seconds after the car was moving and the next thing I know Dad is looking at me through the window...and so is aunty Erin! Yes! I am pumped now, she is like my favoritest aunt ever...but wait what is she doing here and where am I? I don't know but where ever I am Dad is putting a lot of stuff in Erin's car, now he's hugging me and telling me I better not learn to walk...but Dad, I thought that was the plan? I am confused but hey Dad is smiling, Erin is smiling...might as well smile. Wait a second, Dad is putting my carseat in the car and now me in the car too. Ok, so I am going with Erin...that's cool, I got my binki and cup-I am set for a while. I decided just to take in the sights on this car ride. Didn't say a word the whole way to OC. Guess I needed some quiet before I entered into the chaos right? Just kidding.

When we got to OC, Gracie and Karys were standing at the door waiting for me! Yay! I love playing with my cousins! But once I got inside Karys was like all up in my face all the time, talking to me like I was a baby or something...I am almost 1 you know! Erin and Rob tried to tell her to give me some space. I like a little room to crawl around...but yeah, she just likes to tell me hi like 300 times....she and Gracie both got me hooked up with some great toys though and we had lots of fun playing in the living room! I love this place...I got grilled cheese for lunch, got to jump on the trampoline-or should I say be jumped-with Gracie, and took a really short nap in my own crib. I couldn't stay sleeping long, thought I might miss something! Then after I helped Karys wake up Gracie, we played somemore...Karys likes to take my toys, but thankfully Gracie always gives me something else. We had an awesome supper, chicken, more fruit and even some ok veggies. And then the best part...we got to ride in the bike stroller and go to the park. I was really getting tired, but I loved this! I got to sit with Gracie, she held me really tight the whole way. We swang and slided and I was spent. I fell asleep when Aunty Erin was talking to a lady who moved to OC from Sri Lanka! I did wake up for a bath and some more play time before bed....but as we speak I am sleeping and down for the night!

Erin tried to trick mommy and tell her that I had been crying all day and that she better come and get me...but my mom knows me well! She knows I am an angel and would never cry...right mom?

The girls were busy playing doctor and I was having a blast finding so many different things to play with. Thank goodness they aren't trying to give me a shot!Uncle Rob driving the ladies to the park in the bike stroller! He is such a funny guy And good at changing diapers!Me and the girls in the stroller...we were nice and cozy in there and they took good care of me on my first bike ride!Gracie being silly in the bath tub...have to admit I was pretty tired at this point and ready just to smell better and get my jammies on.

3NN Reunion

Back Row: Stacy Kanis, Jess (Ortman) Mowry, Kim Tjeerdsma, Chassity (Pelland) Deur, Jaime Meyer Front Row: Tracey (Halma) Branderhorst, Me, Wendy (Marlow) Visser

So after that great meal...you know the BLTs with fresh p-b-matoes! We headed down to pella for the weekend. The main reason for going was to hook up with Bryan and Tracey at some point bc they were back in the area visiting family. Because they were back we were also able to connect with the rest of our college friends. My freshman year was a memorable one. I lived on the third floor of north hall. About 8 of us freshman became really good friends and in that process grew close to the 6 sophomore girls who lived on our wing as well. Last year was the first year we all gathered at Chassity's to reconnect and just reminisce. this year we did the same thing. Chass, being the social worker/counselor that she is, had the idea that we take turns sharing our highs/lows of the past year. Basically a life update and then a time for question answer before we would move on to the next person. It was great! So nice just to reconnect with old friends and just hear where they are at in life and what God is doing/showing them in that season! It was a blast...I fell asleep even mid-conversation b/c I just didn't want to go to sleep and miss the precious time we had together. However, we did decide that b/c next year will be the 10 year anniversary of that fresh/soph year we are really going to celebrate for a weekend!

Love you girls! Thanks for the conversation, laughs, and memories!

Our first trip to a garden

So in trying to update the blog I am going back a little ways, but I figure better to do that than to leave anything out. So yeah...I think we need to go back to the Thursday before we went to Pella. We were going to have BLTs but didn't have any tomatoes so we headed out to the Schuiteman garden to grab some and found some amazing goodies while we were there. It was so fun to not only watch the girls experience the garden but also just to be reminded of how many foods we eat are grown. I know that sounds weird, but sometimes I think we take for granted all of the fresh produce that we enjoy just from the aisles of the grocery store! Thanks God for the amazing process of growth! Prayers for the farmers and ppl whose jobs and livelihoods depend on the growth and production of those things. Anyway, enough of my rant...check out these garden pics!

Rob and Gracie gathering the tomatoes. Gracie was so excited to pick one right off the vine!Gracie holding a "p-b-mato" ;) She has the hardest time saying the word tomato...it is so funny. the more we tried to help her the more jumbled the letters got...so sounds good to me for now!Rob found a great yellow squash! They were all getting so big and tasted great grilled!Karys loved it! She wanted to pick all sorts of things...even tried a raspberry right off the vine!The girls just venturing through the garden. Watch out for the watermelon, ladies!

Posing by all of the yummy veggies! They have such a hard time looking into the sun, Karys is always saying, "Too bright"

Finding our Groove

I love that they are starting to pose for pictures together! Still takes about 10 shots to get the 1 where they are both looking at the camera...but hey, what do you do! Thankds to Auntie Heather for these great new outfits! The girls were so excited to wear them to the park! We have loved heading to the park on days like this. We are just trying to fill our mornings with activities b/c the girls have been tired, still recovering I am guessing, and they nap all afternoon. We are still struggling though to find our groove, the balance that allows us to get through a day without a fight, a tantrum, or a tear. Maybe I live in a fantasy world in thinking that there are days out there like that that actually exist, but for now I will cling to that hope! Gracie is just growing up so fast! She is such a poser when it comes to pictures, which I just love ;) She is such a beautiful little girl...Who loves to read and sing about Jesus, and play with her babies of course;)Karys is a crack up! This is just a glimpse of her silly eyes...ask her to see them next time you see her! They are hilarious....the best part is that she is so serious! She knows it is funny but she really just likes to entertain others.Ever since spending so much time at the lake this summer, the girls hate wearing shoes. As soon as we get where we are going or there is a lull in the travel the shoes are off!
They are just starting to play so well together, of course as I write this there are still the moments of struggle where they both have to be separated to thier own corners...
Love this picture!
Monkey see, monkey do!
They both love climbing and hanging on things..."Mommy, look at me! I am a monkey!"Pure Joy! She is so much fun! Started saying "Yes, Maam" back to me when I ask her to do things! It is hilarious!