A Trip Up North

When Jim was 5 years old he met a very special friend named Corey. They were neighbors until they were in high school and Jim moved away. They have remained the closest of friends ever since. This weekend Jim drove the kids up north to where Corey and his wife, Katie live with their twin 3 year old girls and 5 year old son. Jim just sent me this picture of the girls. I called and asked for a photo of the boys and he said he couldn't get them to slow down enough for a photo. Like father(s) like son(s).

Fun at Grandma and Grandpa Ned's

Grant and Kate had an amazing weekend at Grandma and Grandpa Niedzinski's house! Jim took the kids there on Friday and they stayed until Monday (with a Saturday stay over at cousin Ethan and Sami's house). They played with the goats and chickens and kittens. They swam in the pond, climbed trees and did somersaults down the big hill. Best of all they got to play with 13 of their 20 Niedzinski-side cousins! It is so good for them to enjoy country living (30 acres!) and escape from their condo in the city. They loved snuggling with their Grandparents as all the adults sat around at night and talked. Hard to believe they actually sat still. Jim said he's not sure if it was because they were so tired or because they were allowed to snack on the bottomless bowl of chips while the adults caught up. Thankfully, I was able to join them for the day on Sunday and have been able to get lots of rest in a quiet house. I sure do miss them though!

The Patient

This morning we were playing beauty parlor and Grant announced that he wanted to be a barber when he grew up. I asked the kids if they knew what I was before I was a mom. Grant replied, "I know! A patient!" Epstein Barr continues to plague our summer but it has not taken our joy. I am in bed as much as possible...18 hours a day or so.. and when I'm awake I have horrible muscle/joint aches, headaches, nausea, and rapid heart beat. It is pretty miserable. The doctor continues to remind me that this is a "normal" response to the antiviral medication and a good sign! It is supposed to last 2-6 weeks. I am on week 5 of the meds. Please pray that it ends soon. Can't wait to get back to normal life!

Fun with Peggy

Do you all remember Peggy? God brought her to us when I was on bed rest with Kate. She hung out with Grant and became a very special part of our family. She recently had the kids over night and took them to the park, Chuckie Cheese, Detroit Kid City and did plenty more things I don't even know about. Grant told her that he was allowed to sleep in her bed, which I anticipated so I left a typed up note saying he could not. The kids had so much fun and the next day Kate cried for several hours that she wanted Peggy back. They certainly felt loved!

Having Fun

A huge thank you to friends and family who are making sure Grant and Kate have fun while I sleep. And sleep. And sleep.... (I started the antivirals on last Friday my body is responding just the way it is supposed to. By feeling exhausted as it fights this virus.) Healing is on the way!

Sack race

Grant and Kate signed up for summer reading because they love to read (and win prizes). There was a cool festival at the library with games going on when we signed up. Kate insisted on wearing her princess dress. This is the first time I've ever let her wear her dress up clothes in public, but I have a feeling it won't be the last. They wanted to do the sack race over and over again.

Adventures

The kids have been enjoying lots of new adventures lately. They had a blast at the fair a few weeks ago. I'm not sure what Grant liked better- the mini coaster or eating an entire bag of cotton candy himself! Kate was content with riding the slower rides with her friend, Eliza. The school year came to an end and Grant enjoyed his "graduation" ceremony from preschool. They will continue to go to camp a couple mornings a week at the same school so that will help them make an easier transition to their new school in the fall. Meanwhile as the kids and I maintained our busy schedule I have been growing more and more tired. I wrote it off as typical "moms of young children" stuff and napped as much as possible and pressed on. But, a few months ago I started getting terrible muscle pain in my back and neck. I finally made an appointment with a specialist and after numerous heart and blood tests I was diagnosed with prolonged Epstein Barr. The good news is that I'll start antiviral medication and I should be back to my normal active self in 6 mo-1 year. The bad news is that I'll most likely be pretty tired and achy for a while. But, as we have seen, God is in the business of doing miracles, so pray with us that I defy the odds and am healed much more quickly than is predicted. Thank you!!

Grant, the prophet

As I've written before when Grant wakes up in the morning he declares what/whom he is going to be for the day. Yesterday he said he was a prophet and this is what he started the day doing.

Grant's first tooth out

Where are they now?

A few things about Grant: -He is starting to enjoy floor puzzles. -He goes to preschool M,W,F morning. He says he doesn't like it but seems happy when I pick him up. -He calls Kate his best friend and always wants her around...but she is still not allowed in his top bunk. -His favorite toy is his Playmobile castle. -He loves riding his two wheeler through the woods with dad. -He can read simple words like "hat," "pop" etc. -He loves when dad reads him the Boxcar children at night. -He is very active but incredibly obedient. A dirty look is all it takes for him to change his behavior. (Most of the time.) About Kate: -She is into babies, shoes and all things girl. -She goes to school M,W and stays home with me on Fridays. After we get housework done I let her choose what we will do. Last week it was to play shoe store. Today it was playing Star Wars. -She has learned to write "Kate" but is struggling with "Niedzinski." :) -She loves to sing. She combines different songs to make her own. -She enjoys knocking over Grant's towers and kicking him when she doesn't get her way. -She loves to snuggle with me and tell me about her friends from school. -She copies everything I do. Today she told me she can't wait to drive a minivan.

Kate on two wheeler

How does your garden grow?

Our kids have never been into fruits and vegetables. At the pharmacists suggestion we blamed Grant's aversion to fruit on the fact that all of his medication was fruit flavored. But, this couldn't be carried over for Kate. Until recently Kate only liked peppers and peeled apples and Grant liked the same plus carrots. But, out of the blue a month ago Grant started saying he wanted to try new foods and has since added pears, cauliflower and oranges to his palate. Oh, and salad. But, only if we are at a Japanese restaurant and it is iceberg with ginger dressing. :) Over the weekend they both tried grapes and liked them. I thought I'd capitalize on their new interest in food by telling them that their cousin Oliver and Grandma Ned were growing gardens. They said they'd like to grow some vegetables too. I got very excited and asked what kinds of vegetables. Kate said, "peppers, grapes and sandwiches." Grant said, "ice cream." I guess we have a long way to go.

Movie with Grandma

I hope nobody tells my mom about all this junk food grandma bought me!

Sleeping Like a Baby

Our kids have funny sleep habits. The best is Kate, who sleeps with two purses, a jewelry box, a baby, a water bottle, a book and a blankie. Grant cracks me up because he takes his shirt off right when we leave the room, no matter how cold it is. He told me the other day that he's big enough to sleep without a shirt on now, so I should stop giving one to him before bed.

zoo trip

Grant has started school on Fridays at the recommendation of his teacher. Up until now he has been going on Monday and Wednesday mornings with Kate. His Monday/Wednesday class is mostly girls (who like to sit in their seat quietly) but Friday has more boys so she thought Grant would enjoy it. He does like it most days... except for those days when I do things like take Kate to the zoo! How could I have done that last Friday?! I should have remembered that I can only do really girly, boring things so he'd have nothing to be jealous of.

I talked to Kate in the car on the way to pick up Grant about how we probably shouldn't talk about the zoo or Grant would get jealous and his feelings would get hurt. She agreed and was totally tight lipped about it even when Grant asked what we did. (I was not encouraging lying, just diverting the conversation.) I was super impressed with her maturity in the situation. Until, I forgot something in the house, and had to run in for one quick minute. When I came back out Grant was wide eyed and voice shaking asked, "did you really go to the zoo today without me?" Kate, you little stinker!

But, I'd have to say it was worth the wrath of Grant. We went with Lindsay and Oliver and the kids spent much of the morning holding hands- sooo cute! They liked to move at the same pace and obeyed really well so Lindsay and I got to relax and enjoy walking and talking. My favorite part was watching Oliver jump like a kangaroo.

Grant and God

Kate: I'm sooo happy.
Grant: Why?
Kate: Because I got new clothes!
Grant: Kate, you are not supposed to love clothes. You are supposed to love God.
Kate: Oh. (sigh)
Grant: I mean, you can love your parents, but you have to love God more.
Kate: I love school...
Grant: Do you love God more?
Kate: yes.
Grant: good.

They're Back!

Last month Grandma and Grandpa Niedzinski moved back to Michigan! We are so thrilled to have them just an hour and 13 minutes away. But who's counting?! They live on about 30 acres in the middle of no where. The kids have never seen woods or streams or anything like it. Every time they visit they learn something new that they could never have learned as city kids. It is so special to have our kids growing up near such loving and godly people. We hope to see tons and tons of them in the days to come. On Saturday while I was sick Jim took the kids there and Grant cam home with all sorts of stories. "I saw an ax and a gun and I tried a new food called lasagna and I heard a coyote (which he didn't). They are having a ball.

Florida

We recently went to Florida to visit grandma and grandpa Koss. We had so much fun making sandcastles, swimming at night and just getting to be with grandma and grandpa. Grant and Kate were so excited in fact, that they often got up very early in the morning to snuggle on the couch with grandma and grandpa while mom and dad were still asleep. Many special memories were made.

Swimming

Over the weekend we went to our good friend, Jack's birthday party at Goldfish Swim School. His parents own the place and Grant and Kate take weekly lessons there. If you live in the area we highly recommend it! :) Grant hasn't been able to swim since he got tubes in his ears several months ago because he was afraid they would hurt. But, he changed his tune when dad got in the water with him and offered to goof around. I think our problem is solved!

Christmas 2011

Here are my very late Christmas photos. I got a new computer for Christmas and I didn't know how to put photos on it so the blog has been a little sparse. There are some funny stories behind these pictures. The guy that so graciously dressed up as santa is my cousin's new Jewish fiancé. What a guy. Thank you, Joe! Another one of the pictures is the kids standing next this year's Christmas tree. I did no decorating this year. We had barely finished unpacking boxes when Christmas came around so I decided I was not going to "mess the place up" by unpacking my Christmas stuff. So, I found this old tree in the basement and set it up on the 23rd so we'd have somewhere to put our presents on Christmas morning. The kids seemed satisfied and that's all that really matters. Kate's big present for the year was a doll house and Grant's was a castle and I'm happy to report they are still playing with them every single day. This is the first year that has happened. The absolute best part of the season (besides celebrating Jesus) was having my brothers and sisters home and spending quality time together at mom and dad's. It was a Christmas I will never forget.