Library/story time

Mornings at the library are great!  4/5 days of the week they have story time designed specifically for an age group.  They have Mother Goose (which are babies) 2's and then 3-5's.  Normally during the school year Gaetan is working so we don't get a chance to get there for it, but for the past few weeks we have and it's great.  Especially since Lucy is three now she and Dude get to attend the same one.  Younger siblings can come to the older kids story times so that is nice that we can all go together!  Ms. Nancy is our absolute favorite story time teacher.  She's hilarious but definitely keeps those kids in line. :)  We love all the librarians there, but Ms. Nancy is definitely the one we've grown most fond of... that, and I see her at the gym haha.  Unfortunately, this month they are not having story time, but we will be totally utilizing it when it returns for the summer!

Who remembers parachutes from elementary school?  Yup... still cool

They loved being under there

Waving it around

This particular day's letter was F... so there are flowers bouncing around

They were dancing together

This was Lucy's first time with the parachute

They counted and did all sorts of things with it

Getting started...

Norah wanted a closer look

Singing a song and being silly

One of Lucy's first times at the 3-5.  This age group they get to sit close to Ms Nancy if they can listen and follow directions

This is the haiku that Dude wrote

The lady of the hour!

Norah people watching 

They read stories, dance, sing, follow directions, learn... they do it all!

Dude wrote Ms Nancy to tell her how much he loves her

JVG

Min Chaos

How does this make any sense at all?  Adding one families chaos to another families chaos somehow makes it less chaotic?  Well, as backwards as it sound, it really does work!  John (Papa Min) has a huge project at work and has had to work really late so we've been hanging out with Jane quite a bit to help out.  I can't imagine having the kids from the time they get up (and their kids get up WAY early) to the time they fight going to sleep without any reprieve.  Somehow our kids and their kids entertain each other enough that it a relief for the parents!  Gaetan has been working a lot more too tutoring Nervous Guy, so it has been helpful for us as well!

Making fruit loop necklaces

I was helping Christian get started

Showing off their works of art.  Ava specifically only picked out the red

Norah say very patiently and gladly ate any fruit loops the kids tossed her way

Silly girl hat

We play hard at the Mins

She is extra sweet

I call this her eating throne

One of the times we went there we did a little craft and this last time we went over and watched her kids so she could bake in peace.  That might not sound that relaxing but there is something to being able to cook/bake by yourself, in peace, knowing that kids aren't fighting or that you have to worry about them getting into things... which was just what she wanted to do!  We played hard in the basement and then did all sorts of playing outside.  The weather was awesome so being outside definitely wasn't a hardship :)






















It is really nice knowing there is another Mom friend that is going through the same struggles daily and that we can rely on each other for relief when needed.  May the chaos continue!  (For we know it will so we might as well embrace it haha)

Having a nice brunch with them

Christian helping with 'clean-up' from treat making

JVG

Bike Ride

Later in the day after our visit to the Korean church we decided that we were going to go on a bike ride!  The weather was absolutely beautiful and Dude had been asking to ride his bike.  From the Ben Folds concert when the kids got to ride in the chariot, we knew that Norah would tolerate it (unlike last summer) and we knew that Goose likes the trails so it was a-go!  Gaetan packed up the van (which made us realize that we are probably going to have to invest in a bike rack for the outside of the van) and got ready to hit the trails.  I was lucky enough to go running while they rode :)  And... after that... froyo!  We surprised Dude with it and he was STOKED... yum yum!

The happy girlies ready to go!

Dude on his bike

And they're off!

Momma hitting the road too

JVG

Korean church

We haven't been to Grand Rapids during the weekend for the past two weekends because we have been so busy!  The one Saturday Gaetan was picking up the treadmill and then Jane and I went on our Mom Date... so the next morning instead of driving to Mars we tried out Jane and John's church.  They go to a Korean CRC which has a lot of first generation Korean people who have moved from Korea to this area.  Its a much much smaller and intimate setting... it was a little different than we are used too!  We went to drop the kids off at Sunday School and we are used to getting arm bands with numbers and signing them in, and we totally didn't even have to do any of that.  John just introduced us and the kids to the Sunday School teacher and all was well.  Dude and Lucy were just fine being in the room together and eventually Gaetan and Norah ended up there, but it was just a different pace than we are used too.

It was a bit more traditional so we got the kids all dressed up.

I just thought this picture of Goose was very endearing.  All dressed up with her backpack on... ready to go!

The actual service was in Korean.  Most everybody there speaks Korean, and everything was written in Korean as well.  During the actual service I put in headphones and there was a translator in the back going over the message in English.  It was quite the set up!  Norah wasn't having much of it so that's when Gaetan took her back to Sunday school.  After church they had a lunch together where they had Korean food... yum yum!  I do miss that aspect of knowing everybody and having a meal with them after church, but I am really happy with Mars.  It was a nice change of pace to try something new, and to be immersed in Korean culture, but I wasn't really down with what the pastor had to say.  I'm thinking we are a bit too liberal for them... but the congregation was super friendly and very welcoming!  Dude said that he liked Mars better but wishes Ms Cheryl (who is his room leader) had food like they had at the Min's church.  He went to town on the seaweed soup they served!

All the kiddos in Sunday school

It was very sweet of the Mins to invite us to their church and I'm glad that we got to see what part of their weekly routine is.

JVG