Ritsema Family

Can you believe

2010-12-03T22:52:00.003-05:00

I FINALLY updated this blog? and I use that term very loosely since I'm only including 5 pics.
This Fall has been busy with me returning to teaching. Maybe I should have Keith take over the blog. Caleb is in Young 5s at my school and loves it. His teacher is my good friend, so it's been fun chatting with her about him. Alanna and Ryland are enjoying some serious daddy time on MW and F mornings while Caleb is at school. I always wondered how those two would do with Caleb gone and they seem to be having fun with each other. Alanna will often "read" to Ryland.
Ryland is starting to say more and more words. His newer (and again...newer in the last month or two) words include, "mama, dada, nahnah (alanna)" and his newest, which is really cute, is "me!" I heard him say it for the first time yesterday morning when I asked the kids, "Who wants breakfast?" I expected to hear from Caleb and Alanna, so it was quite a surprise to hear Ryland shout out, "Me!" You can pretty much ask him anything that starts with, "Who wants_____?" and he'll answer with "Me!"
The other day Caleb decided to teach Ryland the letter sounds, so Caleb starts at the beginning of the alphabet and says to Ryland, "Ryland, say ah." Ryland responds. "Ryland, say buh." He responded. Caleb followed him around the house until he had made it through to Z. What a good teacher he is!

Here are some Fall pics. Keith's annual Michigan attire picture, our family at the apple orchard and the kids at Halloween (and in case you're wondering...the kids are wolves and a pig. I couldn't bring myself to do the 3 pigs and dress Caleb up in pink).
I really should figure out how to upload more pics....

No Training Wheels!

2010-06-16T13:26:00.002-04:00

Caleb has mastered the 2 wheeler....well, riding it, that is! Now we need to work on "starting from stop" and how to stop 'gracefully' rather than just falling over to the side.

Zoo Trip

2010-06-16T13:19:00.003-04:00

Here are some pics from our trip to the zoo!

Tee Ball

2010-05-30T21:32:00.002-04:00

Caleb spent the month of May playing Tball. Here are a few pics of him hitting the ball. Our favorite quote from him came on the first day: "Nobody even got me. I was sooooo like a rocket ship!"

Caleb's Last Day of Preschool

2010-05-30T21:27:00.003-04:00

Caleb finished up Preschool this past week. A friend of mine suggested that I get a picture of him on his last day to see how much he's grown. The top picture is him on his first day and the bottom picture is him on his last day. Hah! Notice anything?

Oh....and it gets better, though I didn't take a picture.....I was wearing the EXACT same shirt on Caleb's first and last day.

Hmmm....do I really like the shirts or what?

Children's Gardens

2010-05-30T21:20:00.003-04:00

Here are a few pics of the kids at the Children's Gardens. Ryland is REALLY into balls right now. Whenever he sees anything remotely round in shape he immediately gets excited and says, "Bah! Bah! Bah!" I'm sure you can imagine how exciting it was for him to see the "bird's eggs!"

Dress Up

2010-05-30T21:17:00.002-04:00

One of Alanna's favorite things to do is dress up. The funny thing is that she puts EVERY dress up item on.

Water Play

2010-05-30T21:12:00.003-04:00

Caleb LOOOOVES playing in the water with the hose. I really have no problem with him doing it. It's fun for him, keeps him entertained and I'm sure he's learning something during it like water pressure or erosion. The problem I have is when the weather doesn't necessarily allow playing with the hose.
Please note Alanna's fleece for that chilly day....and yes, she is SOAKED!

Into Everything Rydie...part 2

2010-05-30T21:09:00.002-04:00

This kid doesn't stop! His newest thing is using items to climb up onto HIGHER objects!

Awwww

2010-05-30T21:07:00.003-04:00

Found these two yahoos sleeping in the same bed. Too cute!

Alanna's New Do

2010-04-07T15:37:00.002-04:00

Here are a few pics of Alanna and her new haircut. She looks so much older!!! I don't know how I feel about that!

"Into Everything" Ryland

2010-04-07T15:32:00.003-04:00

Seriously....this kid is into EVERYTHING!! My other two kids were never "climbers," but Ryland? Nothing stops him! I'm a little concerned that he's going to be my kid that tries to climb out of his crib. Am I going to have to get one of those crib tent thingies that I've always thought to myself when seeing them, "Seriously? Parents actually use these?!?" Am I going to be one of THOSE parents??

Butterflies

2010-04-07T15:26:00.003-04:00

Every year Meijer Gardens has their butterfly exhibit for the months of March and April. This year Caleb's preschool class went there for a field trip. It is amazing how many butterflies are flying around and if you stand still long enough, one might actually land on you.

Happy Birthday, Ryland!

2010-03-07T18:15:00.002-05:00

We made it!! Ryland is one year old!! It was a tough first 6-8 months, but we got through it! Now it is fun to see Ryland move into the toddler stage and "run" around after his siblings. We are so thankful for the health of 3 beautiful children!

Fun at the Children's Museum

2010-02-24T14:15:00.004-05:00

Here are a few pics of the boys at the children's museum. Alanna was there, too, but for some reason I didn't take any pictures of her. She was off somewhere having fun with her Aunt Cami.

One thing that I did notice about my kids was that Alanna would stay at one area and play there FOREVER!! I had to tell her that we needed to go to other areas. At that age (and currently) Caleb was always going from one area to the next. Is it a girl-boy thing?

Walking Ryland

2010-02-24T14:08:00.003-05:00

Here are a few pics of walking Ryland. I love when my kids start walking (and I'm lucky that my kids are 'early' walkers). If they're going to be mobile, I prefer that they walk rather than crawl around on the gross ground.

"That was Awesomer!!"

2010-01-03T08:56:00.003-05:00

Here is a clip of Caleb and his cousin, Jake, sledding. Caleb absolutely LOVED it!! I don't know if it was the actual sledding or the fact that he had his daredevil cousin with him!
I loved Caleb's response at the end: "That was Awesomer!"

This clip is titled: "Ow"

Merry Christmas

2010-01-03T08:50:00.002-05:00

Sadly, this is one of the only Christmas pictures that was taken this year. I guess we were too busy with the video camera. I know there's a feature that will capture video and "change" it to photo....I guess I'll have to figure that one out.

PreSchool Christmas Singing

2009-12-21T17:33:00.003-05:00

Here is a video of Caleb singing at his Christmas Party. This is really not that great of singing. I was just excited to learn HOW to put video on here!

Ryland's First Haircut

2009-12-19T18:59:00.002-05:00

I finally broke down and decided to get Ryland's hair cut. I had been putting it off long enough because I thought he was so young AND because I didn't want to get rid of his curls and highlights.
He did very well---didn't cry at all.
I can't believe how old he now looks.

Snow Fun

2009-12-19T18:48:00.003-05:00

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Here are some pictures of the kids in the snow.

The first picture is Caleb going down the slide and Alanna watching. After he went down, that was pretty much the end of playing outside as he learned that going down a snowy slide is REALLY fast!
The second picture is Caleb with one of his friends, Anna, after building a snowman.

The last 2 are from today. Pretty awesome tunnel, huh? Those things are harder to make than one would think!!

Keeps 'em entertained!

2009-12-19T18:47:00.001-05:00

This is what I woke up to one morning! Caleb put as many hair bows as he could into Alanna's hair.

Gingerbread House 2009

2009-12-19T18:44:00.003-05:00

Here's this year's house! I decided to go with a pre made house this year. It looks so much better than what I've done in the past and it's not that much more expensive than doing it from scratch since it comes with everything you need....including the candies!

Happy Halloween

2009-10-31T21:15:00.004-04:00

Tonight the kids went out and had a very fun evening of trick or treating. We have such wonderful neighbors who spoil my kids with everything from fruit snacks to little toys to large size candy bars (I guess they're spoiling Keith and I.) Caleb was quite the trooper and went door to door. Alanna....she was a bit more hesitant. She was easily scared by all of the masks and costumes around her. They lasted over an hour with a few "warm up" breaks. Once they were finished, they LOVED handing out the candy to trick or treaters.

Mobile Ryland

2009-10-26T19:07:00.003-04:00

I can't tell if he's thinking "Did I do that?" or "That's what you get when you leave the trash can out!!"

Fall Fun

2009-10-26T18:57:00.003-04:00

Last weekend we ventured out to a family orchard/pumpkin patch. This place had a large climby thing made out of hay, animals to pet, a chute to slide down, "cow" barrels to ride and lots of apples to eat. It was a beautiful fall day in Michigan.

Trip to "Africa"

2009-10-07T15:08:00.003-04:00

In Preschool Caleb learned about different animals of Africa. As a field trip, they visited a "farm" that had these various animals. The family owns 40 acres of land and on this land they have zebras, wildebeests, onyx and other large animals that I can't remember the names of. It was really cool to see such exotic animals. Caleb loved feeding the ring tailed lemurs and petting the baby ostrich.

Caleb's First Field Trip

2009-10-04T18:15:00.003-04:00

Caleb's class went to Robinette's Apple Orchard. We got to ride in a wagon, learn about apples, pick an apple and eat a yummy donut with cider. Caleb's favorite part? The donut!

Go Blue 2009

2009-10-04T18:14:00.001-04:00

The annual Daddy-Kids Michigan picture!

First Day of Preschool

2009-10-04T18:04:00.003-04:00

Here is Caleb on his first day of Preschool at Dutton Christian. He is loving it. On the first day, all of the kids brought a different food to make a "Friendship Mix." The picture shows Caleb dumping his fish crackers in as his friend, Anna, watches.

"Crawling" Rydie

2009-10-04T13:41:00.003-04:00

He's getting mobile....very quickly. This picture was taken early September. As of early October, he is now doing the "army man" crawl. So, he can definitely get from one spot to another.

"Walking" Rydie

2009-10-04T13:33:00.002-04:00

Ryland loves the walker and we LOVE that he can get around and entertain himself.

At the zoo

2009-10-04T13:26:00.002-04:00

Feeding the birds at the zoo.

Mini Golf

2009-10-04T13:21:00.001-04:00

Some pics of the kiddos playing mini golf with daddy.

Rolling Rydie

2009-10-04T13:11:00.003-04:00

Here are a few pics of Ryland rolling over!

mmmm....carrots

2009-08-17T22:10:00.001-04:00

And these are pictures of Ryland eating "real food" for the first time. On the menu? Carrots!

Week with Family

2009-08-17T22:01:00.002-04:00

Last week, Keith's family rented a cottage by the beach. We were there with all of Keith's siblings and our nephews. It was a really fun time spent at the beach, in the pool and in the hot tub.

Alanna the Water Bug

2009-08-05T10:15:00.004-04:00

Alanna is definitely Keith's child. At 2, she is doing WAY more than what Caleb was doing at that age...of course, this could be due to me being REALLY protective of Caleb and not really letting him do much.
Alanna can already swim with arm floaties (Caleb couldn't do this until 3) and can swim across the pool.
It looks like she'll be the one swimming on swim teams and competing in the water.

Weekend with the Portes

2009-08-05T09:59:00.003-04:00

Last weekend we were invited up to our friend's cottage. Our children are similar ages so they enjoyed playing with one another. We were able to spend some time swimming in the lake, riding on a sea doo and tubing. It was a very fun and relaxing weekend spent in the sun.

Happy Birthday, Alanna!

2009-07-12T21:32:00.003-04:00

It's hard to believe that another year has gone by and Alanna is now 2. She has grown so much in the last year and is so talkative. Much more than what Caleb was at 2. It's fun to have conversations with her and even more fun to watch her and Caleb talk to one another.

Her choice of cake this year....a ducky cake. All day, she kept saying "Ducky Cake. Ducky Cake." It didn't turn out quite as well as I had hoped, but hey...I'm no professional.

Zoo Trip

2009-07-10T16:30:00.002-04:00

For Alanna's birthday, Keith took her to the zoo. This was her first trip this year and she loved it! She loved petting the goats and seeing the penguins. Poor Caleb was stuck with me and Ryland. We'll have to be sure to get out there again before the summer ends.

4th of July

2009-07-10T16:22:00.002-04:00

We spent our 4th of July with a parade in the morning. For the past 3 years, we've gotten together with friends and watched the parade that their neighborhood has. It doesn't last very long which is kind of nice for little ones.

Afterward we joined the Ritsema family at grandpa's boat. We didn't get pics of that because we forgot the camera. These days, we're lucky if we remember all 3 kids.

Happy Birthday, America!

Caleb's Birthday

2009-06-29T16:35:00.002-04:00

My baby turned 4!!

Caleb enjoyed his racetrack cake, though he didn't like the "grass." He must take after his dad, who doesn't like coconut either.

He enjoyed opening his presents with Alanna...who was really interested in seeing what "she got him" :)

He was really excited to finally have a bike to ride (his previous bike had gotten run over by dad). Bikes are a wonderful "toy." Caleb spents a lot of time riding up and down the sidewalks of our street.

Ryland

2009-06-29T16:28:00.004-04:00

Here are some random pics of Ryland. He gets cuter and cuter every day!

Happy Father's Day

2009-06-29T16:26:00.001-04:00

Here's the World's Best Dad with his 3 awesome kiddos!

I Love My Siblings

2009-06-29T15:49:00.005-04:00

Here's a few pics of the kids "playing" with each other.

Look Who's a Big Girl!

2009-06-29T15:45:00.002-04:00

After a couple of stressful weeks of potty training Alanna, she FINALLY got it! I will admit that I was the driving force behind it. She wasn't really showing signs of wanting to do it, but then again...neither did Caleb when I potty trained him and he did it in a few weeks.

Now, we only have 1 left in diapers!

Camping

2009-06-06T21:21:00.003-04:00

For the past 3 years Keith and 6 other dads have gone camping with the kids. They're gone for 2 nights. It's a really fun time for the kids and a relaxing break for the moms. This year, the total number of kids was up to 14! Ryland can't wait to join them next year :)

Bubbles, Bubbles, Bubbles

2009-06-06T21:13:00.004-04:00

Playing with Bubbles is a DAILY activity when we're outside.
I should find a good recipe for bubble solution!

Fun in the Sun

2009-06-06T21:07:00.003-04:00

It's a rare occasion that we get hot days here in the Spring time, but when we do, it's fun to get out the hose and play in the water. Here, Caleb is playing with his friend Tyler. It's amazing how much fun a hose can be!!!

(I think Caleb is having so much fun he doesn't realize that his swim suit is about to fall off. Man, those are low!)

To Pierce or Not to Pierce

2009-05-20T08:12:00.002-04:00

This past weekend Alanna got her ears pierced. I had been wanting to do it for a while now and Keith wanted to keep putting it off. The trade off for him going to Vegas was for Alanna to get her ears pierced.
The actual piercing went great! I don't think she realized what had happened and by the time any sort of pain registered in her mind, I had distracted her with a sucker. Maybe I should bring suckers to the doctor's office when they get their shots!

Happy Mother's Day

2009-05-14T12:36:00.003-04:00

For Mother's Day this year the kids surprised me with Gerber Daisies and a beautiful hanging flower basket for the front porch. Nice job, Keith...oh, I mean kids!

Smiling Rydie

2009-05-14T12:27:00.004-04:00

I always forget how adorable babies are when they first begin to smile. The cute toothless grin like an old man.

Is it me or does the last picture look like Ryland is doing the dance move, The Sprinkler?

A Day at the Park

2009-05-14T12:22:00.003-04:00

Here are a few shots of the kids at the park with Grandpa Tucher.

Baptism

2009-05-14T12:15:00.005-04:00

On April 19th we had Ryland baptized. This is a very special moment as we promise to raise our children in a Christian home. We are so grateful to have the support of friends and family as we begin the fun, but difficult, journey of child rearing.

Happy Easter

2009-04-13T14:24:00.002-04:00

Here are a few pictures of Caleb, Alanna and their cousins getting ready for an Easter Egg Hunt at Grandma and Grandpa's house. Alanna loved searching for her "purpo eggs."

Wondering Where to Sleep?...part 2

2009-04-07T14:29:00.003-04:00

Look who we found under the bed?

I went in to check on the kids before I went to bed and I couldn't find Alanna anywhere! Of course, my first thought is: She's been kidnapped!!! Then I realized that the kids were playing under the bed before Keith went in and said (in a rather loud voice), "Stay in bed!" Apparently, the loud voice didn't phase Alanna because she got right back out and crawled under Caleb's bed.
I'm guessing that she crawled under there when it was somewhat still light out and by the time she wanted to get out, it was too dark to see where she was going. She was pretty much trapped on all sides. There's the pack n play by her feet, a laundry basket right in front of her and the bean bag chair was up against opening of the bed. Now can you see why I couldn't find her???

The reason this is titled Part 2? See April 2008...

Happy 1 Month Birthday, Ryland!

2009-04-06T16:39:00.004-04:00

Caleb at 1.5 months---Mr. Baldy

Alanna at 1 month

I can't believe it's been a whole month already! I will have to admit that I was a bit worried about Ryland's sleeping "problems" in the beginning. He was nothing like Caleb and Alanna, who immediately took to sleeping in the crib without a problem. Ryland seemed to need more cuddling and rocking after each feeding. Many a nights I ended up just bringing him back to bed with me....all the while worrying that I was creating horrible habits that would be impossible to break. Well, here we are 1 month later. He wakes up 2 times a night (2 am and 5 am) and goes right back to bed in his crib after each feeding.

And for all those people who say that Ryland looks like Caleb....I'm going to have to disagree.
What do you think?

Butterflies

2009-03-27T15:47:00.003-04:00

This morning we made our annual trip to see the butterflies at Meijer Gardens. Alanna loved them and it was fun to see her expressions as the butterflies would fly in front of her. Caleb enjoyed them as well, but a 3 1/2 year old can't really compete with a 1 1/2 year old in terms of the newness and excitement of it all....and doesn't she just look so cute with the butterfly wings???

Cookies

2009-03-20T14:07:00.003-04:00

This picture isn't that great, but I wanted to show off those adorable cookies that our neighbor brought over for Caleb and Alanna! In case you can't read it....the cookies say "Big Brother Caleb" and "Big Sister Alanna" on the shirts.

More Ryland Pics

2009-03-20T14:01:00.002-04:00

Here are a few more pictures of Ryland.
Gotta love those facial expressions in the last 2 pictures.

Gift Bags

2009-03-20T13:57:00.003-04:00

Have a bunch of gift bags that you're not sure what to do with?
Give them to your children and I'm sure they will come up with some use for them. My kids decided to wear them as hats and run around the living room with them. The best part was when the bag slid down Alanna's tiny head and she was still running around....not watching where she was going. And of course, this is all on video!

Ryland John

2009-03-13T21:45:00.003-04:00

We are pleased to bring Ryland John into our family. He arrived on March 6, 2009 at 3.30 am. He weighed in at 7lbs 8 oz and was 21 inches long.
(Just to show you what a geek Keith is...Ryland's stats are all divisible by 3---3/6/09, combine the lbs and oz to 15, oh....and my placenta was delivered at 3.33.)

Caleb and Alanna are getting used to having a little brother. Caleb pretty much understands. Alanna... not so much. She knows he's a baby and will point to him and say, "Baby. Baby." But she doesn't really know how to act around him. She doesn't know that pulling out his pacifier, throwing books on him, and rocking him REALLY hard just isn't what a newborn wants. At this point, I really don't trust her around him.

So far, things are going well. He is a week old today and this past week, I've been really spoiled with Keith being home. I'm about to face reality come Monday. "What?!? I really have to get up at 8.00 and feed my other children???"

oh....and if you're wondering about his hair in the second picture...yes, the tips are brown. I have to pay money for highlights---he gets them for free!

Alanna's New Bed

2009-02-16T13:04:00.003-05:00

This past weekend, Keith and I moved Alanna into Caleb's room and into a toddler bed. We were both worried about how she'd do (Would she stay in the bed? Would she sleep while Caleb was in the same room?) She proved to us that we had nothing to worry about at all. The transition was great! At first, she would stand up in bed and I would just go in and lay her back down. That lasted for all of 2 minutes. Hopefully, this sharing of the room continues to go smoothly.

Alanna's First Lollipop

2009-02-16T12:52:00.004-05:00

I never would've given Caleb a lollipop at this age, but as people always say, it's different with the 2nd child. She really enjoyed sucking it, but after a while she kept dropping it and letting it touch the carpet. Then it was just gross, so the second picture shows what happens when you take a lollipop away from Alanna. Not a pretty picture.

(Plus, I needed proof to show Keith that his wonderful, adorable daughter really does have full blown, lay on the floor temper tantrums).

Winter Golf

2009-01-19T12:58:00.001-05:00

Hmmm....does Caleb take after his dad? He was pretty insistent that he wanted to go outside and play golf. Maybe we have a Tiger Woods on our hands!

Merry Christmas

2008-12-27T11:08:00.002-05:00

We hope everyone had a very merry Christmas. We had a lot of fun over here with a 1 1/2 and 3 1/2 year old. It was neat to see Caleb start to understand the meaning behind Christmas. The second picture shows Keith reading the Christmas story before we open our gifts. Each of our children received 3 gifts (like Baby Jesus) from us and 1 from each other. Caleb picked out a mommy bear and a baby bear for Alanna since she likes bears. He was sooo excited for her to open them. Her response to the gift? "Grrrrrr" (like a bear).

Meijer Garden Christmas Trees and Train

2008-12-27T10:57:00.002-05:00

To get in the spirit of Christmas we took a trip up to Meijer Gardens to see their Christmas Trees from Around the World display. There are probably about 20 trees decorated according to various countries. The Auntie Cami, Alanna and I enjoyed seeing all the colorful decorations. Caleb just wanted to see the train. There was 1 train and 2 trolleys that would travel back and forth between the various rooms. Caleb would run between the rooms to follow the train.

Flooded Basement

2008-11-20T13:07:00.004-05:00

We knew it was bound to happen sometime...

After having many friends have their basements flood, we figured our's was going to happen next and it did! Last Friday morning, I walked down the basement steps and my feet were greeted with soaking wet carpet. I go into the storage room and see about an inch of water.
What a mess! AND what makes it worse? See those floating "pellets?" That's dog food! An entire bag of dog food split open and spilled into the water. See that plant pot next to the freezer? That's the dog food that we "raked" up. It was a soggy, disgusting mess!

Fortunately, nothing was really ruined since everything was in rubbermaid containers. The only item "damaged" was the dog food...which we'll claim, and a box of REALLY old books that I didn't care enough about to put into rubbermaid containers. But, the adjuster said to claim it--how much is an old Hardy Boys book anyway? or an old childhood book entitled Nitter Pitter....?

Keith's favorite part of the experience? Noticing that the drain is located at the highest point in the storage room---nice!

Happy Halloween

2008-11-01T09:34:00.006-04:00

"Mooooo! Trick or Treat!" "Da da da da da!" That's what we heard a lot of this Halloween night! I wanted to coordinate Caleb and Alanna's costumes and decided that they would be a cow and a sheep. Caleb's costume turned out cuter than I thought (I liked his horns), but Alanna's...not so much. Her hat was a bit bigger than I wanted and by the end of the night, the cotton balls were coming off and she was a balding sheep. Still though, it was a lot of fun trick or treating with a 3 year old and a 1 year old.

First Haircut

2008-10-24T13:26:00.003-04:00

I took Alanna to get her hair evened out so that I could continue to grow it out. Little did I know she would end up looking like Lloyd Christmas (think Jim Carey from Dumb and Dumber).
I'm not really sure what the hair cut lady was thinking when she cut the bangs. They're definitely short and kind of choppy. Oh Well!

Weekend Away

2008-10-24T13:18:00.003-04:00

Keith and I got a chance to get away for the weekend. We decided to drive up north and see all the fall colors. We ended up stopping off at the place where Keith proposed---10 years ago! It was neat to see the place again AND to see our initials carved in the wood from 10 years ago. You'll notice that we had to "freshen up" the S.T., but you can totally see the K.R.
After our drive up north, we stopped off in Grand Haven and spent the night in a really cute Bed and Breakfast.
Thanks, Grandma and Grandpa Ritsema, for watching Caleb and Alanna!

Picking Pumpkins

2008-10-24T13:00:00.003-04:00

We visited a local farm/pumpkin patch. The farm had animals for the kids to see and "pet." They also had pumpkins of various shapes and colors for the kids to choose from. Yes, that's a green pumpkin in the wagon. Caleb insisted that that was the one he wanted. No matter how much we told him that he should find a big, ORANGE pumpkin, he refused.

Go Blue!

2008-10-24T12:55:00.002-04:00

In preparation for this weekend's Michigan Vs. Michigan State game, here are Keith and the kids for their annual Michigan picture.

A Day at the Zoo

2008-09-30T13:14:00.004-04:00

Caleb, Alanna and I spent the morning at Binder Park Zoo with Auntie Nicole and Cousin Jake. It was quite the drive down from Grand Rapids, but well worth it. The best part of the zoo are the giraffes. The kids, especially Alanna, LOVED feeding the giraffes some crackers. It was very easy to spend $10 on giraffe crackers. Another great feature of the zoo are the roaming peacocks. As you're going from exhibit to exhibit you will come across peacocks. Again, Alanna loved "chasing" them. What a great age to be at the zoo!

Klackles

2008-09-22T14:06:00.003-04:00

This past Saturday we spent the day at Klackles, an apple orchard about 40 miles north of Grand Rapids. Caleb and Alanna played in a giant sandbox, played on some inflatable bouncy things, took a ride on a "barrel train," and petted some goats. Later on we took a wagon ride out to the orchards and picked apples from a variety of trees: Galas, Jonathons, and Courtlands.
It seemed kind of strange to have us all in shorts and Tshirts while picking apples, but that's the Michigan weather for you! We all had a great time. Alanna especially loved being able to eat her own apple.

Yankee Springs

2008-09-22T14:00:00.002-04:00

Keith and Caleb spent Labor Day hiking through Yankee Springs with Abby. They all had a blast throwing the balls for Abby and watching her swim in the lake.

Peaches

2008-09-22T13:56:00.003-04:00

Awww Man! So this is what happens when you put a jar of peaches in the water and you hear a sort of popping sound. I didn't know what the sound was until much later when I went to lift the jar out of the water and all the peaches fell out the bottom of the jar... I'm not really sure what prompted me to take a picture, but I did think it was kind of funny to see all those peaches floating in the water.

Boyne Mountain

2008-09-06T08:53:00.003-04:00

In August, the whole Ritsema family traveled up north and stayed at the Boyne Mountain Resort. We spent our days going down water slides and swimming in the pools and spent our evenings talking and playing with family. Caleb and Alanna had a great time with their cousins, aunts and uncles! In the second picture, Caleb is with his Auntie Nicole, the next picture shows Alanna sliding down with Auntie Cami and the last picture shows Caleb floating down the lazy river with Auntie Cami.

Born to be Wiiiiiilllllddddd!

2008-08-26T22:01:00.005-04:00

If I haven't said it enough...my daughter has crazy hair!!! I am really not sure what to do with it. Today it was put into a little ponytail on top of her head, but once she discovered that she had a hair tie in her hair, she pulled it out...leaving her hair like this!! I'm tempted to spray it multiple colors and just go with the 80's mohawk look!

Sailing

2008-08-21T14:45:00.004-04:00

Caleb, Keith and Grandpa Ritsema spent the first weekend of August sailing on Lake Michigan. Perhaps Caleb will follow in Grandpa's footsteps and become a sailor!

And...She's Off!

2008-07-30T13:53:00.002-04:00

Alanna is starting to enjoy walking. A few weeks ago, she would walk between Keith and I, but didn't really have any desire to actually walk on her own. Now, she's realized just how much more enjoyable walking can be. She'll stand up on her own and start walking. When she falls, she picks herself back up and continues to walk. I love it!

Look Who's 1

2008-07-11T09:01:00.003-04:00

We celebrated Alanna's first birthday with a cake shaped like a purse. I had fun making it and she had fun eating it. I can't believe she is one already!!!!

Look Who's 3!

2008-06-27T20:32:00.003-04:00

Today we celebrated Caleb's birthday. He had a special birthday lunch at McDonalds. Then we took a trip to the toy store, where he got to pick out a toy (he chose a book---yay!) and look for a gift for Alanna's upcoming birthday. In the evening, we opened presents and had some yummy cake. Here, Caleb is having fun riding his new scooter. Another present that he got---his first bike!

Zoo Trip

2008-06-23T15:58:00.003-04:00

We took a family trip to the zoo to see the new lion exhibit. We had a great time! The Wallabies were adorable, especially with the new Joeys (Joeies?), peeking out from their mother's pouch. Caleb got a chance to feed the birds, which he really enjoyed and Alanna loved the fish! Another highlight came when we got to hear the lions roar!

Meijer Gardens

2008-06-23T15:52:00.004-04:00

We had a playdate at Meijer Gardens. The weather was perfect and the kids had a great time. Caleb had his friends, Nora and Kyle, with him and from the picture....Kyle and Caleb look pretty worn out! The picture with the 3 kids sitting on a curb include Caleb, Nora and ????? Some little boy decided that he wanted to be in the picture. I thought it was pretty funny.

Yummy Corn

2008-06-23T15:47:00.003-04:00

'Tis the season for sweet corn!

Spray-ground

2008-06-12T21:39:00.003-04:00

What a fun find for a hot summer's day! Today we ventured to one of Grand Rapids' "spraygrounds"---a playground that sprays/shoots water from the ground. I was really impressed by what was there. These pictures don't really show the extent to how high and how far the water shoots. Caleb was too timid to really "get into" it. As he becomes more comfortable with it, I'm sure he'll venture out. I look forward to when Alanna is walking and can "enjoy" it as well.

Teeth

2008-06-03T10:49:00.005-04:00

Keith pointed out that there have been no pictures of Alanna lately. Here are a few that I took that show her bottom 2 teeth coming in and then a picture that shows her "dracula" fangs.

Signs of Summer

2008-06-02T13:36:00.004-04:00

The weather is getting warmer, so it's time to fill the pool. Everyone has fun playing in the water...both my 2 legged and 4 legged children.

Camping

2008-06-02T13:25:00.004-04:00

Keith and Caleb went on their annual camping trip to Hoffmaster Park. Keith, along with 6 other guys and their kids, made the trip. At one point, there were a total of 16 guys and children at the campground. What a sight that must've been!

Mini Golf

2008-05-20T10:31:00.002-04:00

Keith and Caleb enjoyed a Father-Son bonding day over Mini Golf. I told Keith not to expect too much from our "not quite 3 years old" child, but Keith said that Caleb did rather well. He enjoyed putting the ball in the "tunnels" and watching them come out.

Wondering where to sleep?

2008-04-27T19:25:00.003-04:00

Caleb has been found sleeping under his bed. In the morning and after his naps he is woken up snuggled against carpet. I wonder how long this will last.

Look who's mobile!

2008-04-27T19:09:00.003-04:00

At 9 1/2 months, Alanna has started crawling. She seems to enjoy herself more now that she can get to where she wants to go. The problem? She always seems to want to get into Caleb's stuff...

A Future Swimmer?

2008-03-31T20:32:00.003-04:00

Is this what happens when dad is a swimming fanatic? Will Caleb follow in his dad's footsteps?

Happy Easter

2008-03-31T20:29:00.002-04:00

We hope that you all had a very Happy Easter with family and friends.

Arizona

2008-03-01T14:42:00.004-05:00

In February, the family took a trip to Phoenix to visit Grandma and Grandpa Tucher. Our trip came at the perfect time. Michigan had been hit with an arctic blast...weather in the single digits...and Phoenix was in the 70s and sunny...most of the days. We did have a few days in the 60s, where all the Arizonians complained that it was cold. In Phoenix we went to an indoor play place, a railroad park and had a few play dates with a college friend and her children, Tommy and Ella. It was a TON of fun! We look forward to returning next winter.

Potty Training

2008-03-01T14:30:00.003-05:00

After the hectic holiday season I decided to give potty training a whirl. I figured I had nothing to lose, but A LOT to gain! I was a bit nervous about it because I wasn't sure if Caleb was ready for it. He really didn't show any signs of wanting to be potty trained. I was the one who was pushing it. After 3 days of pee filled legs and peed on tile, I would have to say that he definitely got the hang of it. Now, he's officially a BIG BOY!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year

2008-01-07T20:24:00.000-05:00

We hope everyone had a blessed holiday with family and friends.

We look forward to a new year of fun and excitement brought on by our two crazy kids!

Santa

2007-12-17T10:33:00.000-05:00

It was the kid's first visit to Santa. As soon as Caleb sat on his lap he said, "Trains!" Can you guess what he wants for Christmas?