Bean Babies

Uncle John and Aunt Candy

2012-01-07T20:16:00.000-08:00

After going to the Leiby Christmas (which was a great time) we headed into Charlotte and had dinner with John and Candy. They treated us to pizza. After dinner the kids wrestled with John pretty much the rest of the night. Uncle John was able to see how quickly Andrew warmed up to him once we were at his house with no one else around. I enjoyed watching them all have fun. The kids didn't want to leave.

First big snow....

2012-01-05T20:15:00.000-08:00

When we came home from picking Adeline up from school the kids wanted to play outside. I got them all dressed and ready and the two (just the two) played outside for over an hour...it was like pulling teeth to get them to come inside.

I found myself enjoying the freedom of not having a crying baby to carry around who didn't want to be outside. And I was able to have dinner ready when they came inside.

I love moments like these when I can watch my children play together and have fun. These times are becoming way more frequent.

Check E. Cheese

2012-01-03T20:14:00.001-08:00

Here are some of our activities while at Chuck E. Cheese.

Smile Mr. Andrew....

Adeline riding her roller coaster. Hold on tight girlfriend!

Andrew looks pretty intense during this video game.

Ummmm...should we be teaching them to shoot with guns????

Brooklynn loves Chuck E. Cheese

I need to get the picture's of Adeline in this through the years.

Andrew and Daddy playing some football

Chuck E. Cheese

2012-01-03T20:14:00.000-08:00

The Goshen Beans stayed with us until Wednesday early afternoon. Why you might ask?.....because they can now!!!!! They treated us to a fun night out to Chuck E. Cheese. This was also a celebration for Brooklynn completing her food chart.

Uncle Josh....

2012-01-03T10:19:00.000-08:00

...got to come and surprise Adeline by picking her up from school today. Nothing beats having a kid run up to you smiling, calling your name, and giving you a big hug.

New Year's Eve Party

2011-12-31T10:29:00.000-08:00

I don't know how many years this makes but we sure do enjoy New Years Eve with our friends. This year we played games and enjoyed good company...and I "almost" won at Mafia.

Our special guests.....Bethany and Josh

New additions this year Jeff and Heidi

The Bean's

The Bean's and Morse's

And a picture of me with all of my girls.....each play a very special role in my life and I am grateful for them all.

New Years Eve Dinner

2011-12-31T10:20:00.000-08:00

Hard to believe that this year we are celebrating with Josh and Bethany. This is the first New Years Eve we have celebrated with Josh and Bethany in six years. Because six year ago on New Years Eve we were at their wedding. Over Thanksgiving I quickly snatched Grandma and Grandpa's commitments to watch the kids with a possibility that it might be four instead of two. They didn't seem to hesitate.

Before we went to our "kidless" party with our friends the four of us went out to dinner.

James and I are looking forward to more opportunities like this. They now live only 2.5 hours away as opposed to 9 hours.

Too early to say good-bye

2011-12-30T20:09:00.000-08:00

Sadly our time was coming to an end. All of the kids were bathed and dressed and I thought that I would try one more shot at getting a picture of the four of them together. I like the bottom one the best.

We checked out Kung Fu Panda 2 for the ride back. Before I pulled out of the drive I took this shot.

Such happy kids who really enjoyed spending time together. It was wonderful and I am already looking forward to when we can do it again for a little longer next time.

Nighttime and Morning

2011-12-30T19:57:00.000-08:00

Another successful nighttime.

Two of the four woke up a little wet. Can you guess which two?

Aliyah "farted"

2011-12-29T20:05:00.000-08:00

I just thought this was so funny and needed to grab the camera. We say "toot" here if someone passes gas. I think what made it so hilarious to me was hearing such a tiny little girl say "I farted". She totally owns it too.

Andrew had to add his two cents in too letting us know that he stinks.

Making Pizza for dinner

2011-12-29T19:54:00.000-08:00

Andrew had taken a super long nap and Adeline just didn't want to stop making crafts. But Michael and Aliyah were all about making their own pizza's. They were both really excited and did such a good job listening.

Michael wanted to make sure that his pepperoni was under the cheese.

Another thumbs up from Michael and he looks ready to eat.

Really? Can you get any cuter? I just love this girl.

Our final project...it fed our whole family. Good job guys.

I just love their imagination's

2011-12-29T19:24:00.000-08:00

Adeline and Michael went crazy with all the craft stuff downstairs while Andrew and Aliyah were sleeping. What I love is that out of all that they made their favorite things were a beard Michael had made and a crown Adeline had made from computer paper.

After Michael had made his beard he came upstairs and said "pull my beard", so I did. And then he screamed so loud and high pitched that I am surprised no glasses cracked. He thought he was so funny. I thought it was funny too but then asked him not scream every time he asked someone to pull. it.

Love her

2011-12-29T19:23:00.000-08:00

James and I just couldn't get enough of Aliyah. She is so little and cute.

And she appears to be pretty tough too.

Donuts for breakfast

2011-12-29T19:21:00.000-08:00

Thumbs up from Michael. He was set on eating six donuts because he is six years old.

Smiles from Andrew. He always loves when there are donuts in the morning.

Adeline won the clean award.

Aliyah won the messy award along with Andrew.

Michael and Aliyah visit

2011-12-28T19:17:00.000-08:00

I was so looking forward to this time with Michael and Aliyah. This is my first time taking the two for a couple of days. And it was way too short. I picked the kids up Wednesday afternoon and they stayed until Friday afternoon.

When we got home from picking up Michael and Aliyah both Adeline and Andrew were excited about giving them their gifts. Aliyah LOVES Dora and Michael LOVES beyblades so when it came to picking out their gifts it was pretty easy.

The kids played great the entire time. We didn't do anything that cost money and the weather wasn't nice but the kids didn't mind. They played upstairs, downstairs, and on the main floor and didn't seem to get bored.

Bedtime was a lot of fun each night. We read stories, said prayer's, gave kisses and hugs and then went to sleep. All of the kids slept great and that allowed me to have energy each day.

Saying our goodbyes

2011-12-26T18:55:00.000-08:00

The kids got one last horse ride from Aunt Betsey.

Fun to recapture this moment from a couple of years ago.

We had a great Christmas visit with many new memories.

But by far the icing on the cake was having quality time spent with Aunt Betsey. Not totally sure when we will see her again but hopefully it won't be too long.

Perfect weather for the park...

2011-12-26T18:51:00.000-08:00

So hard to believe that it is the day after Christmas. After enjoying a nice run outside we took the kids to the park to play. Actually while I was showering James and some others took the kids and I eventually walked down to join them.

I remember these little diggers when I was little. I love how Andrew was so into it.

Must be a man thing.

The most fun the kids had though was walking across this rope.

Brooklynn could even do it with her eyes closed.

Grandma took her turn and I heard that Aunt Bethany did it with a sleeping Gabby.

Adeline also did it backwards.

I got there just in time to teeter-totter.

Stockings

2011-12-25T18:48:00.000-08:00

I think Adeline's Princess Polly pocket collection is complete

Sheriff Andrew.

Said with a lot of aggression "I not Sheriff, I Woo-dee"

Andrew instantly claimed one of Daddy's stocking stuffers as his own.

Putting together puzzles

2011-12-25T18:46:00.000-08:00

Adeline got four new puzzles from Grandma and Grandpa Bean for Christmas. Both kids worked with Grandma and put together a few of them.

Christmas Afternoon

2011-12-25T18:44:00.000-08:00

Even though I must admit that I do enjoy being able to wake up Christmas morning, stay in my pj's, eat coffee cake, and spend time with the family around the Christmas tree. It was very fitting to go to church and celebrate Jesus' birth, the true meaning of Christmas. And also it was such a great example for our kids.

After church we headed back to the Olivet Bean house, had lunch and then gathered around the Christmas tree opening presents.

Adeline's Tangled collection is complete now. Rapunzel and Eugene can ride away on their horse Maximus and start their new life together.

Andrew now has his very own apron so he doesn't have to wear Adeline's gardening apron anymore.

Adeline and Andrew got super fun hats from Aunt Erin.

Andrew is all about his hats. He hangs them on his bed post and as soon as he wakes up he puts one on. It is a part of his everyday outfit.

Adeline had been wanting her own hat....and now she has it. I think she could be a hat girl. She looks pretty good.

Glued together.

Aunt Betsey handled it really well. She knows how much Adeline loves her.

Andrew's favorite shirt. I don't think and explanation is needed.

Whenever Andrew goes to the Morse family house he immediately goes to Matthias' room and gets his Car's legos. Now Andrew has his very own Mater lego to play with. It was totally fitting with his new Mater hat.

Erin had been talking about getting and iPhone for a long time. She has had her old phone for maybe five years. Well Grandpa (Erin's Dad) decided to surprise her with an early purchase. She was not expecting this...and was very grateful.

More Pictures to remember the night

2011-12-24T20:30:00.000-08:00

Each kid wanted their picture taken with Uncle John.

I requested some pictures with this Italian Stallion.

Grandma gave some love to Adeline.

Grandma isn't a fan of having her picture taken so when you get one with her looking at the camera you treasure it.

As Andrew was passing by, Grandma picked him right up. She sure loves this little man. And we sure love her.

Christmas Eve with the Forte's

2011-12-24T19:35:00.000-08:00

The kids had a blast at Great Grandma and Great Grandpa Forte's house. A big part of that is their second cousins Cadence and Kinsley, daughters of my cousin Adam. Right away all of the kids disappeared into one of the bedrooms and were playing Hungry, Hungry Hippo. Since then we have purchased Hungry, Hungry Hippo with some Christmas gift cards.

Great Grandma Forte was on top of it with Macaroni and cheese as one of the dinner options.

Kinsley LOVES black olives

Back to the game. Every time Kinsley lost she would just storm right out of the room. Apparently she is a bit of a sore loser. Both of my kids got really hot at the house so Andrew went without a shirt and Adeline wore my tank top all pinned up.

Andrew got some Grandpa Forte time.

If I am right I think that Cadence is 10 days older than Adeline. Cadence is in Kindergarten at Parkview Elementary (my old school) and also has my old Kindergarten teacher. If we lived in Charlotte that would be fun for her to have some of my old teachers.

Be nice Andrew

All of the kids got stuffed teddy bears from Great Grandma and Great Grandpa Forte for Christmas. Addy and Andrew sleep with theirs every night.

Grandma wanted me to take a picture of Ralph and James. I think they really bonded this visit.

We decided to box Kinsley up before they had to go.

Aunt Erin painted both kids nails...

2011-12-24T19:34:00.000-08:00

that's right. Andrew would not let Aunt Erin only paint Adeline's nails, he needed his painted too.

In a fort with Grandpa Bean

2011-12-24T19:26:00.000-08:00

James walked in the living room and couldn't find the kids. This is what he found when is looked under the blanket

Jokes on you Josh!!!!

2011-12-23T19:33:00.000-08:00

Years ago Josh wrapped all of his gifts in cereal boxes. Each person had to open up the cereal box and dig for their gift that was inside. As the story goes I was the last to open my gift from Josh and as I began to dig I just couldn't find the gift. So I continued to dig. Not knowing that around me Josh had informed everyone that there was no gift in mine. I eventually found out after everyone was laughing. Then Josh pulled my gift out from behind the couch.

Now it was my turn. I was so excited to see Josh open this. James and I again went in with Betsey and got Josh a new cell phone. But when Josh opened the gift, there was now phone, just cereal. Oh it was so funny!!!!! I loved it!

Early Christmas with the Goshen Beans

2011-12-23T19:23:00.000-08:00

This year the Goshen Beans are celebrating Christmas with Bethany's side of the family so we decided to celebrate Christmas with them before they left instead of after. Today we opened our gifts from the Goshen Beans and gave the Goshen Beans their gifts from us. We also opened our gifts from Great Grandpa Bean and Great Grandma Carol.

Andrew had been eyeing this present the past few days. Can you guess what is inside.

Gabby, Gabby, Gabby....this is Gabby's first Christmas

Andrew sat with Grandpa during our reading of the Christmas story

After patiently waiting he got to open up his Michigan Mr. Potato Head

Gabby got a cute little Pillow Pet and this great pink snow suit.

Andrew got his first remote control car. He was instantly in love.

I got this half off on black friday and we split the cost with Betsey. We were really excited to see Brooke open it.

Photo Opportunities

2011-12-23T19:20:00.000-08:00

Brother and Sister

This is my best shot of the cousins. Unfortunately it's blurry but everyone has some sort of smile on their face.

Philly Beans....now the Goshen Beans!!!!

2011-12-23T19:19:00.000-08:00

Uncle Josh = Wrestle

2011-12-23T18:05:00.000-08:00

Both of my kids, especially Andrew seem to think that Uncle Josh is here only to wrestle with them. Unfortunately there isn't much I can say about that when this is what happens.....

And with Aunt Betsey back that means.....

2011-12-22T18:04:00.000-08:00

....that we also get to see Joanne!!!!

Joanne came up for a couple days before Christmas, the kids were very excited about that and about playing fun games on her iPad. We love you Joanne and are so happy that we got to see you. We were sad to hear that you came back up after we had left....boo!

Aunt Betsey!!!!!

2011-12-22T18:03:00.000-08:00

This is the moment all of us, especially one little lady was waiting for. We haven't seen Betsey since early June and now we were just moments away from picking her up.

We all made signs for what Betsey was to us. Adeline's Aunt, My Sister-in-Law, Grandma's Daughter, ect..... A very nice gentleman took a picture of our large group but unfortunately it wasn't with my camera so I don't have the picture with everyone in it. All who came were James, Josh, Erin, Myself, Grandma and Adeline. Bethany stayed back with Andrew, Brooke, and Gabby in Olivet.

It might have been this little girl but I must say for documentation purposes that Betsey's eyes were very watery when she saw all of us.(all of our eyes were too) And this picture above is how Adeline was with Aunt Betsey for the rest of the week. Glued, attached, soaking up every moment, so happy to be with her Aunt.

Keeping Christ in Christmas Day 14

2011-12-21T18:00:00.000-08:00

This day we actually did over and over again. I LOVE the book "The legend of the Candy Cane". I had only learned about it last year when I first started the whole Keeping Christ in Christmas thing. The kids really like the book and I think we have read it maybe every night. I always ask Adeline the same questions that are in the story. "What letter does a candy cane look like?"--"J for Jesus", "what else does a candy cane look like?"--"a shepherds staff" and "what do the red and white colors represent?"--"red is for Jesus blood, and the white is for when he washed away all of our sin".

It's a great book that allows us to always reflect on what he true meaning of Christmas is all about.

Andrew's Presents....

2011-12-21T17:43:00.000-08:00

This year Andrew was all about opening....there were no distractions when it came to taring off the paper.

I got a great deal on a "wee-oo, wee-oo" (firetruck) for Andrew....and I got all of this play-doh for $5.00. Right now the only color play-doh we have is brown and that is because every color has been mixed together. I'm curious how long these individual colors will last.

Adeline's Presents....

2011-12-21T17:42:00.000-08:00

Adeline was the one that always noticed when a present was added to the stockings. She was very excited about opening what was inside.

What our kids get from us for Christmas is very little compared to many other families. But what I love is that they don't even notice...they are so happy and thankful for what they got. This is the first year that after we were all done opening up our gifts Adeline came up to both James and I and gave us a hug and said thank you.

Adeline's Barbie Castle Bedroom.

This was also the first year that both James and I got our special presents from Adeline. She was so proud. I really love my candle and James is very excited about using his new car wipes!

Our Family Christmas

2011-12-21T16:48:00.000-08:00

We are all headed down to Olivet tomorrow for the Christmas weekend. This is the first time in maybe six years that James has had days around Christmas off. He has Wednesday through Monday off. That's right, three days before Christmas, and the day after off. We are so looking forward to it.

So tonight we are having our own Christmas here at the Muskegon Bean's house. We opened gifts, ate cookies, read about the birth of Jesus and watched a Christmas movie. It was a very fun night.

Keeping Christ in Christmas Day 11

2011-12-20T17:57:00.000-08:00

The kids and their shepherd staffs.

I found it difficult this year to do a craft every night. We had many things going on each night and time just seemed to get away from us. Next year I will try to be more on top of things.

Decorating our Christmas Cookies

2011-12-20T11:35:00.000-08:00

I could not find the food coloring in the stores anywhere. I looked by the frosting's, candles, decorations, end cabs filled with holiday needs and came up empty. Finally I thought a little bit harder about it being a McCormick product and decided to look with the spices. Sure enough the little boxes of food coloring were right there on the shelf. Now we could frost our cookies.

The kids helped me bake peanut butter blossoms, chocolate chip, butterscotch, and sugar cookies. I only baked a few sugar cookies because for some reason I find that they are the last ones to go.

The kids were waiting anxiously.

I pulled out A LOT of Popsicle sticks because I knew that someone might try to eat the frosting. That way there were many "new" sticks available.

Adeline enjoying her cookies.

Our finished cookies!

Making our Gingerbread House

2011-12-18T11:11:00.000-08:00

Thanks to Aunt Bethany I was able to make a homemade Gingerbread house. She lent me one of her stones and gave me the recipe she uses. It turned out great. The kids were so excited to help me decorate but mostly they just wanted to eat the candy.

They were both very good little helpers....

Close to being done. It doesn't look like they aren't putting any more candy on the house but now it's going into their mouths.

And there you have it....our first completely made from scratch Gingerbread House.

Arthur's Christmas with the Grandpa's

2011-12-17T11:09:00.001-08:00

Grandpa Bean invited Grandpa Forte to come up to Muskegon and take the kids to a movie. Adeline had just gotten back from a birthday party and decided to go dressed as Snow White.

James and the Grandpa's went and I stayed home getting some things done. The stories I heard were that both kids loved the movie and watched the entire thing. Also many people commented on Adeline's outfit and Andrew polished off two buckets of popcorn.

Adeline as Snow White

2011-12-17T11:09:00.000-08:00

Adeline was invited to her friend Dasoyin's birthday party. It said on the invitation to come dressed as a princess. Adeline was looking forward to this party all week. Last night we pulled out her entire outfit and had it hanging up waiting for today.

Dasoyin is from church and was in Adeline's preschool class last year. Adeline is not attending Calvary this year and she hasn't seen many of her friends unless they also go to Calvary for church. So when Adeline walked inside one of her best preschool friends Katy ran right up to her and started to hug her saying "Adeline, I miss you so much, I love you, do you miss me?" Taylor came up saying "Adeline, you look so beautiful". She got so much attention it just warmed my heart.

This is how Adeline came back. She looks so cute. They painted darker eyebrows, eyelashes, blush and lip stick. Adeline said..."they made me look just like Snow White".

She also had sparkles in her hair. And a nice hot pink hair extension.

On this video see if you can catch Andrew telling Adeline "you look funny". She didn't look funny buddy, she looked beautiful.

Adeline's Christmas Party

2011-12-15T11:07:00.000-08:00

Andrew and I got to go to Adeline's school Christmas party. All Andrew cared about were the Mr. Potato Heads. He dumped the bucket right out as soon as we got there and played with them the whole time. It was great because it allowed me the time to be with Adeline.

Addy really wanted to wear her Santa hat.

My girl.

And there is Andrew still with the Mr. Potato Heads.

Adeline made a very pretty necklace.

She also made a very yummy Christmas Tree.

Andrew got to sit with Addy during story time. Adeline was a great big sister, calling him over and asking him to sit by her.

Both kids at the end enjoying their good snacks.

Pictures after the concert

2011-12-13T11:06:00.000-08:00

Adeline and her teacher Mrs. Coffin

Me and my girl!

Our Pretty Lady!

CiCi, Mallory and Adeline

Adeline and Olivia

Adeline's Christmas Concert

2011-12-13T11:04:00.000-08:00

Four Kindergarten classes came together tonight to perform their Christmas Concert. Adeline was so excited about tonight. The day that I volunteered this week the kids made their Santa beards, I took them home with me to punch holes and cut strings so that the kids could wear them for the concert. Adeline thought that it was pretty cool that we had all of the beards at our house.

I was expecting the concert to be the whole school. The concert was packed, I felt bad for James who could hardly sit. And this was just the kindergartners. The concert lasted about 20 minutes. Pretty quick but very enjoyable. I love how Adeline was right in the center. She did a great job and was very happy to perform.

After the concert I got to go a little closer to get a close up of Addy. She looks so pretty. She seems so much taller than the other kids....maybe it is just her heels?

Star Wars with the Rudd Boys

2011-12-11T10:37:00.000-08:00

I think Adeline felt left out and was trying to be like one of the boys.

Afterwards she asked....."Mommy, why do boys like Star Wars so much?" I said "It's kind of like when girls like Princesses so much, sometimes boys and girls like different things".

And of course I needed them to pose

2011-12-11T10:36:00.000-08:00

Between services we pulled the kids out to try and get some good pictures.

This one is my favorite.

Calvary Christmas Concert

2011-12-11T10:20:00.000-08:00

As a family we all woke up, got dressed, ate breakfast and were on the road by 8:15 am. This NEVER happens in the Muskegon Bean family. But today was going to be a fun day. The kids were so excited about putting on their Christmas clothes and singing up in front of the church. The best part for me is that they were able to sit right next to each other for the whole performance.

When the kids came in they were happy to see that both James and I were in the front row.

This is the first service performance.

Jersie is one of my most favorite little ones in the church. She is the one in the center. She looks so cute, I just want to pinch her cheeks.

The above shot is from the second service.

Poor Nick came early too. But he had had enough of performing. He didn't want to sing anymore.

The kids did such a great job! It was a wonderful way to start the day!

Time with just Adeline

2011-12-10T10:21:00.000-08:00

Adeline woke up from her Saturday nap to find Mommy and Daddy sleeping on the couch together. We immediately invited her into our blanket. We rarely have time like this with Adeline. We all laid on the couch together for almost an hour snuggling and talking. It was a very special time for James and I to just pour attention and love into our oldest child. We love her so much.

Calvary Kids Christmas Party pt. 2

2011-12-09T19:35:00.000-08:00

The last station the kids got to go to was the cookie making station. This was by far their favorite. They each got to decorate two cookies. They ate one, and then took one home.

At the end all the kids got together to practice their songs for Sunday. I decided not to post the practice since you will see the actual performance in a following post. It was a great night with a great turn out.

Calvary Kids Christmas Party

2011-12-09T09:55:00.000-08:00

The church had a Christmas party where the kids could play games, do crafts, and then later practice for their performance on Sunday morning.

Andrew was very excited about filling his bag with candy.

Andrew was able to be with his big sissy the whole time. Adeline was very good to her brother, a good big sister.

Pin the tail on the donkey...unfortunately neither of my kids won. They might have won if it was whose tail is the furthest from the donkey :-)

We were able to work it out so that Adeline and Andrew were with their friends.

Andrew with his buddy Nick (both wearing ball caps)

Just some random pictures....

2011-12-08T09:53:00.000-08:00

The kids really wanted me to take this picture of them with their stuffed animals. Adeline's bunny is named "Fluffy Bean" and Andrew's Tigger is named "Tigger Thomas Frederick Bean"

Andrew using his night vision

Adeline dressed up like Rapunzel....again :-)

Keeping Christ in Christmas Day 8

2011-12-08T09:51:00.000-08:00

This year instead of making a prayer wheel we made a prayer chart (R Prayr Chrt). So each day we as a family will pray for the specific things listed for that day. This has been pretty fun already.

Adeline complete's her Awana Sparks book....

2011-12-07T19:13:00.000-08:00

I am so impressed at how all of these verses have stuck with Adeline. She has done such a good job of memorizing each verse. I love how she is excited about it. We are very proud of Adeline and her accomplishment. We love you Addy Kay!

Keeping Christ in Christmas Day 7

2011-12-07T09:51:00.000-08:00

I was so proud of Adeline. When I told her what today's craft was she jumped right into it. She wrote down all of our names and then a picture that described each of us. And each night at dinner we sit wherever our name tag is.

Keeping Christ in Christmas Day 5

2011-12-06T09:50:00.000-08:00

This year we are changing up some of the crafts that go with the lesson. We also aren't exactly doing every day. For today, instead of making a star ornament we made a star for our hand Christmas tree. I had the kids make a star with yellow hand prints. It didn't look quite like a star so we cut out a yellow star to put on top of the prints. The star is now on the top of our hand tree.

Andrew rides a horse

2011-12-05T22:27:00.000-08:00

"Ride 'em Cowboy!" "Jus like Woody"..."and Buzz"

Keeping Christ in Christmas Day 4

2011-12-05T09:49:00.000-08:00

Adeline's school is collecting Toy's for Tot's this year. While we were grocery shopping Adeline went with Daddy to the toy section and picked out a toy. I am proud of Adeline because she used her very own money to buy this. I hope this makes some little kid very happy.

Adeline's Secret Santa Shop

2011-12-05T09:48:00.000-08:00

Adeline got to go shopping at school for gifts for Mommy, Daddy and Andrew. She was so excited about this. After I picked her up from school she immediatly told me what she got for Andrew and Daddy. And then she said to Andrew "Andrew, can you keep a secret?"..."yes"..."Ok, but you can't tell Mommy what I got her"...and then in Adeline's whisper (which is taking at normal volume for most people) "I got her a candle". I was just smiling.

We wrapped them all and she made her very own cards to go with them. They are all in our stockings right now.

Indoor/outdoor hot tub

2011-12-04T19:42:00.000-08:00

We had a wonderful time with the Morse family. Thanks for the memories....we love you guys!

Day 2 at the water park

2011-12-04T19:41:00.000-08:00

We got to the park as soon as it opened and pretty much had it to ourselves for awhile.

Adeline and I went down the tube slides a lot. We also had tons of fun swimming in the pool.

Adeline and Anna played so well together all weekend.

So yesterday Andrew could go down the tube slides with us (in our laps). But today they wouldn't allow it. Andrew was pretty upset when we got to the top and they wouldn't let him go. So Daddy took him on the lazy river to sidetrack him. It seemed to work.

In settings like this Andrew is very clingy to his Daddy. Daddy didn't seem to mind.

Good Morning

2011-12-04T19:40:00.000-08:00

We had the kids all line up for pictures together, it will be fun to look back at all of our trips through the years.

Andrew was chasing the kids around with his tongue out. He thought he was pretty funny.

Andrew and his plate of donuts. Don't take a donut without asking first....just ask Phil how that turned out for him.

Adeline and Andrew's first time sleeping together....

2011-12-03T19:39:00.000-08:00

...for part of the night that is. While James, Phil, Missy and I were up later playing cards Adeline and Andrew slept in bed together. After the game we moved Andrew out to the pull out couch to sleep with James. I thought that maybe all four of us could sleep in the King size bed together but even with just Addy and I she was kicking me all night. It was a good idea to separate.

Few night time photos....

2011-12-03T19:38:00.000-08:00

Andrew was very hungry when we came back from the pool. After showers for both kids Andrew finished off the pretzels. We ordered out for dinner....some pretty good food. Probably the biggest burger I have ever eaten (I actually couldn't finish it).

All kids went without a nap. Eli passes out pretty early.

Missy took this picture of James and I. Are we starting to look alike?

Day 1 at the Water Park

2011-12-03T19:36:00.000-08:00

We quickly got dressed and headed out to the water park. The above picture shows one slide that you can go on without a raft. The bottom picture shows one, maybe two of the three tube slides, the lazy river, little kiddie area and a shallow swimming area.

And this picture shows on the far left a deeper pool area for volleyball, basketball and fun swimming. And in the back is a indoor/outdoor hot tub.

My only complaint was that you had to carry your own tube all the way up the steps each time you wanted to slide down. The smaller tubes weren't bad to carry but this large yellow one was really heavy.

Every one got in but then they said that Andrew couldn't go...he would have to wait for Daddy to come back up and bring him down in a smaller one.

So Andrew and I waited.....and when they came back Andrew went on a smaller one with Daddy and Adeline and I went on a two person one.

Although I wish this shot wasn't a full body shot of myself (it could have been taken form Adeline's side, James) the slide was a lot of fun. I absolutely LOVED listening to Adeline laugh and giggle all the way down.

I ask for a smile and I get this beautiful shot

Andrew and Eli filling up on some water.

Our Hotel Room

2011-12-03T19:30:00.000-08:00

For the past ten years James and I have gone to the Bavarian Inn in Frankenmuth for a weekend over the holidays. The past two years the Morse family have joined us. Last year we kind of felt that as the kids are getting older they might want something more than swimming in a pool. We planned to look at the water park down the road for the next year. So as this time rolled around we decided to go someplace local (saving drive time, sick Morse kids, and gas). Phil booked a two family suite at the Double JJ Ranch just 10 minutes from their house (about 40 minutes from our house). Check this out....

The shared kitchen

The living room with fireplace

The Bean bedroom, with a full bath

jacuzzi tub and fireplace.

The Morse room with a small kitchen

Queen size bed

bunk beds, full bath and a fireplace.

The kids favorite part was the bunk bed.
I think Anna and Matthias slept together up top too.

Matthias Fifth Birthday Party

2011-12-03T18:50:00.000-08:00

We headed up to New Era early in the morning for Matthias' fifth birthday party. Early meaning 10:15...but we needed to have our bags packed because afterwards we were all headed to the Double JJ for the night! It was really cute watching Matthias with all or his friends from school.

Missy said that she bought Eli a Mr. Potato Head thinking that he might like it as much as Andrew does. I guess he isn't that into it...but of course as soon as we walked in it was the first thing Andrew saw and immediately started playing with.

After each game Matthias grabbed a bag to give to the winner.

I thought this was cute....Adeline, Anna and Andrew were all playing in Anna's room and they even got to eat pizza in there. Kind of like the cool kids room.

Matthias seemed to love all of his presents.

Eli really loved Matthias' new car toy.

But so did Andrew who patiently waited until he could have a turn.

Missy did a great job on the cake.

Happy Birthday Matthias! The Bean family loves you very much.

Keeping Christ in Christmas Day 3

2011-12-03T18:28:00.000-08:00

So I decided that instead of making a new blessings jar each year we will keep the same blessings jar and just add to the blessings. I made sure to date each blessing so we know what year we wrote it down. I also decided to just wrap Adeline's new cover over the old. As the years come it will be fun to see and read our past years blessings. Tonight we all sat around the table and talked about what we were thankful for.

Toy Story Puzzles from Nana and Papa

2011-12-02T20:10:00.000-08:00

This morning we put together the kids new Toy Story puzzles from Nana and Papa. I was surprised that Andrew didn't take it apart right away. I think he was proud of his work

Keeping Christ in Christmas Day 2

2011-12-02T20:08:00.000-08:00

Celebrating Jesus' Light.

The kids and I went out and found a cheap Christmas light that they helped me hang. It might technically be a snow flake but we are saying it's a star.

Keeping Christ in Christmas Day 1

2011-12-01T20:06:00.000-08:00

The top four rows are Andrew's hands and the bottom three rows are Adeline's. They sure look pretty close to the same size. This was a fun project.

I'm excited to begin this tradition again of Keeping Christ in Christmas. The kids are really enjoying it.

Andrew's Puggles class

2011-11-30T20:04:00.000-08:00

Every Wednesday night I spend my time with theses little two year olds. Tonight we talked about how God made the stars. I made sugar cookies int he shape of stars and frosting that the kids were able to frost and decorate their own cookies. They ate them faster than the time it took them to decorate.

Andrew and Maggie

Jersie and Jeweliana

Brent

Bradyn and Ariana

Missing are Jake, Michayla, Connor, and Carter.

Possibly last day to enjoy Fall

2011-11-29T19:58:00.000-08:00

This might just be our last day to walk to school for the year.....Okay Winter, I give you permission to come but just for Christmas and then you have to go away. We just have too much fun outside. Maybe this will be the year we'll be outside in the snow all day....maybe.

We did get to see him...

2011-11-27T10:24:00.000-08:00

...even though it was only for a couple minutes. The kids got hugs and kisses and I got our camera back. (I got a hug too) Thank's Uncle John....we love you.

A great picture....

2011-11-27T10:23:00.000-08:00

...of great memories.

Off to Nana and Papa's

2011-11-27T10:22:00.000-08:00

We then headed out to Nana and Papa's (without my camera). All the following pictures are taken with my phone. It ended up being Christmas because Nana and Papa will be in Tennessee over the holiday.

As you can see both Papa and the kids got some exercise.

Both kids were asleep within five minutes of leaving their house later that evening.

Andrew giving Nana some love.

Papa ties up the kids feet. So funny!

Time to open the big bag's of presents.

The kids were spoiled (as usual) from Andrew's Toy Story comforter to Adeline's new Princess sheets to my favorite, a recording of Nana reading "Twas the Night Before Christmas" to the kids. We have already listened to the story MANY times and the kids just love it. Thank you Nana and Papa.....we love you!

....just because I want to remember it....when my Mom gave me James and my gifts she said that she wanted us to wait until Christmas. So on the way home I of course opened our gifts (Mom would never know right?). The next day Mom called and said during our conversation "Did you open your gifts". I replied with "you asked us not to". And my Mother, who knows me well says "that's not what I asked, did you open your gifts". I couldn't lie. Thankfully she wasn't mad....I actually think she did it on purpose because she knew I couldn't wait. Thanks Mom and Keith for very generous gifts.

The Morning with Grandpa Forte

2011-11-27T10:21:00.000-08:00

We went to church with Grandpa Forte (my home church growing up), and then went out to lunch afterwards. Then we headed out to see Great Grandpa and Great Grandma Forte. I brought my camera in their house, didn't take any pictures, and then left it there. Uncle John brought it to us later.

Andrew and Brooklynn's conversations

2011-11-26T20:54:00.000-08:00

This is just one conversation....my favorite is this one.
Brooklynn: "Ju-Ju (Andrew), come up here"
Andrew: "What Bwrooklynn"
Brooklynn: "Come up here"
Andrew: "Okay, Bwrooklynn"
Once Andrew gets upstairs
Andrew: "What you want Bwrooklynn?"
Brooklynn: "Ju-Ju, sit"
Andrew: "okay"

That little conversation just might have been my most favorite thing about the whole weekend. I loved hearing their little voices talking to each other and carrying a conversation.

Our Tattoo Artist

2011-11-26T10:20:00.001-08:00

She's getting pretty good :-)

We don't have pictures but everyone got their own tattoo's from Adeline.

She even drew Mr. Potato Head and a Garbage truck on Andrew's arm. I got a heart and Aunt Bethany got a turkey.

Decorating the tree

2011-11-26T10:20:00.000-08:00

The ladder was way too tempting for Mr. Andrew.

Brooklynn and her Daddy working together to put the lights up.

There was a huge clump of ornaments right in this area...

Check out that long pretty hair. Adeline says that she is going to grow it out until her wedding. The day she does come to me and says she wants to get it cut, I think I will cry.

There are already two presents under the tree from Adeline to Mommy and Daddy...I am curious about what is in it.

While the kids were waiting...

2011-11-26T10:19:00.000-08:00

...they were playing with the tree cart.

Tree shots....

2011-11-26T10:18:00.000-08:00

I'm very happy with how our picture turned out.

All four cousins

And the Philly Beans...soon to be Midwest Beans!!!!

Getting the Christmas Tree

2011-11-26T10:17:00.000-08:00

Andrew and Grandpa headed in ahead of the rest of us. I love Andrew's camouflage jacket Nana found at the garage sale.

The kids in front of Santa

Gabby in her snugly spot

Andrew walking hand in hand with Grandma and Grandpa

On the hunt for the right Frazier Fur

I got to hold Brooklynn for awhile. (which I LOVED)

And there were a lot of pictures taken when I had Andrew go potty outside. Like Grandpa said "he was just making sure the trees had enough water".

We found the right one....now time for the men to cut it down.

Time to throw these shoes away James....

It took a LONG time....

...but we finally got it down.

Gabby fell asleep because it was taking so long :-)

Black Friday

2011-11-25T10:16:00.000-08:00

I am missing a lot of pictures from this day and that is because Uncle Josh and Grandpa watched all four kids while all of us ladies went shopping. So as you see in the pictures below the kids are still in their pj's but that is because it is now night time and they just had their showers and are ready for bed.

Apparently I was the lucky one with Gabby. Gabby is a very smiley baby but when it comes to someone else holding her besides her Mommy or Daddy she isn't very happy. Tonight after Gabby's bath I was able to hold and snuggle her for quiet a while. I enjoyed every minute of it and even took a few squeezes of her legs and kisses on her cheeks.

Good morning hugs from Brooklynn

2011-11-25T10:15:00.000-08:00

Brooke doesn't hold back any love when it comes to her cousins. This morning she was all about Adeline and couldn't stop hugging her.

Gabby, Gabby, Gabby

2011-11-24T10:14:00.001-08:00

I couldn't pass this up....it was on sale and as soon as I saw it I pictured Gabby looking this cute.

She didn't disappoint.

Bean Turkey Bowl

2011-11-24T10:14:00.000-08:00

After Josh, Erin and I took a morning run we brought the kids out to play some football. Both of my kids had pretty bad coughs so we were only out for maybe five minutes. Maybe next year with no sick kids we can stay out longer. Check out big Sissy/Cousin Adeline above.

Donuts for breakfast

2011-11-24T10:13:00.000-08:00

Homemade donuts from Grandma for breakfast.

Within the past five years the Beans brothers have added four new additions to the family.

It's Thanksgiving time.......

2011-11-23T17:20:00.000-08:00

Two little ones are very excited as we pull off on the Olivet ramp to Grandma and Grandpa's house

If Adeline had it her way...

2011-11-22T20:06:00.001-08:00

...she say's that we would have chips, spaghetti, cookies, and juice for our Thanksgiving meal.

"Pharaoh, Pharaoh"

2011-11-21T08:49:00.001-08:00

Adeline taught Andrew this song that she learned from Daddy at Awana. He caught on very quickly.

Ahhhhh....I love it!

2011-11-19T17:48:00.000-08:00

The Nativity.

The true meaning of Christmas.

Adeline has this set up perfectly and tells Andrew about the story.

Decorating for Christmas

2011-11-19T14:46:00.000-08:00

I just couldn't wait....it was time. The kids were so excited to help me decorate. I had unpacked all of the tubs earlier in the week and they kept asking when we were going to set everything up. I told them Saturday would be the day. Well...today is Saturday, let's decorate.

Adeline and Andrew helped me unpack all of my Rudolph claymation characters. They were having to take turns playing with the musical "Sam the Snowman".

My pretty girl.

My handsome boy sporting his $1.74 clearance hat. Now he has two to choose from.

I wanted a picture with both of my little helpers....

....and then I thought it would be good to have a shot with all three of us. The Santa hats would be a great addition, right? Well Andrew didn't want to do that, he wanted to wear his new hat. Such a sad face.

We ended the night with popcorn and our first Christmas movie "Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer"

Adeline's glowing report card....

2011-11-17T17:15:00.000-08:00

I just love the cover of her folder. It's Adeline, Daddy, Mommy, and Andrew. We are all holding hands under the clouds. You probably can't quite tell but she even put in the detail that she and Andrew have brown hair and James and I have black hair.

Mrs. Coffin said things like "she is such a delight to have in class", "she is so polite", "I'm so glad that I have her in my class". Of course these things are wonderful to hear and make a Mamma proud. Aside from those very sweet comments Adeline is doing just as expected in all graded areas and is even excelling a bit. We just need to work on zipping that coat.

I am very proud of my little girl and happy with the decision James and I made in sending her to Lincoln Park Elementary.

Adeline's New Testament

2011-11-15T19:05:00.001-08:00

We are very proud of our little girl and the sponge she is. She has soaked up so much this year from her Sparks book. If you were to ask her, she could tell you over 20 verses and their references and she has now added all 27 books of the New Testament. The book is great and very informational. I have really enjoyed my time with Adeline reading the stories and reciting the verses. It has opened up a lot of good discussions. And AWANA night is always fun for Adeline because her Daddy is her leader.

Seems like it's been forever....

2011-11-12T19:54:00.000-08:00

... since we've seen our Morse family friends. Missy was working but Phil brought the kids over to have some fun on the trampoline before we take it down and with the firetruck. Another great night. The kids had so much fun jumping and we had to continue to remind them to take turns with the truck. The Morse's came over at four so they had all afternoon to play.

They all disappeared upstairs as soon as we came inside. The girls were playing in Adeline's room while the boys played in Andrew's room.

We ordered pizza for dinner because I was raking all afternoon and didn't have time to cook. Missy showed up after her shift and once again we adults hung out while the kids did their own thing.

Corbin's

2011-11-11T19:49:00.000-08:00

Tonight we had the Corbin's over for dinner and I tried to remind myself to take some pictures but I forgot. Thankfully the kids had a lot of fun with their own camera so I'll just post theirs.

Adeline took this shot of Maya

Maya took this shot of Adeline

I think Sophie took this shot

And I think Andrew took all of these shots of Sophie......you can tell he really likes her :)

I think Sophie was also the photographer of Maya

Sophie took this shot of Andrew and the one below of the girls

We had a great evening. Times are changing because the entire night the kids played so well together upstairs or downstairs and we adults just sat and talked. It was very nice and relaxing.

Trampoline fun with the Rudd's

2011-11-07T19:23:00.000-08:00

James put a light under the trampoline so that they could jump in the dark since it is pitch black by six now. The Rudd boys came over for dinner and jumping fun before we had to take it down for the winter.

"Jus like Sissy"

2011-11-06T19:23:00.000-08:00

Andrew has started to always drink from a big boy cup unless we are traveling. This is from one of the first days and you can see how excited he is to be like Sissy.

Fun in the leaves....

2011-11-05T20:26:00.000-07:00

We have two big oak trees in our front yard and four huge oak trees in our back yard. This keeps us very busy during leaf raking season. We always end up with 50 plus bags by the end of November.

In one corner of our yard I blew (with the leaf blower) a large pile of leaves for the kids to play in. He might be hard to see with his camouflage coat on but that's Andrew in the leaves :)

I think this picture is my favorite so far of the fall season.

But these two come in pretty close too.

Adeline's hair feather

2011-11-03T20:21:00.000-07:00

One of Adeline's prizes that she won at the walk-a-thon was a hair feather. One of the school's moms came in and put the feathers into all of the students hair who won that as a prize. Adeline chose orange for Halloween.

The mom who put it in told me the other day that while she was attaching the feather she asked Adeline if she thought her Mommy and Daddy would like it and Adeline replied saying "My Mommy and Daddy like everything that I do".

Super Hero Cat

2011-11-01T20:17:00.000-07:00

For Adeline's sharing project she needed to create an imaginary creature. This is what she came up with. Super Hero Cat. Super Hero Cat eats cookies, sleeps in his house, and rescues people for fun. Notice the red cape. If anyone is in trouble, it's Super Hero Cat to the rescue!