Thanks to tammi...

...we are dying of cuteness over here. Tammi is such an amazing photographer, it's no wonder her business is called "more.than.words.photography". These photos are simply stunning, and she is making it IMPOSSIBLE for me to decide which one I want as an 8 x 10 for Kensie's room.

So, I'm asking you, my viewing audience to vote for your favorite photo. Not only to assist me in my tough decision making, but for Tammi. Let her know which vintage look you like best and why, and consider your input a gift towards the greater good of vintage-style photography. :-)

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So, go! Leave a comment and vote 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, or 7 and why you like it! And don't forget to visit her website to check out how YOU can capture some sweet moments for your family.

Dada

I have a habit of taking pics and videos daily and placing the camera next to Greg's plate at the dinner table. It's a good chance for him to see what's happened that day while he's hard at work. It's something he looks forward to every time he comes home. This, so far...was his favorite video :-)

Health and Fitness

I love feeling in shape. I love the "high" after a hard work out. The feeling of satisfaction that you pushed yourself beyond what you thought you could do. I love a good challenge and checking another sweaty run off the calender.


But, I used to love it for the wrong reasons. I used to feel trapped. I used to feel like I HAD to workout. Like I HAD to be skinny to be acceptable. I thought that missing a workout meant I was a failure. Or that eating anything with sugar in it meant I was unhealthy. That instead of making a mistake, I was the mistake. I had no margin of error. I used to think all that mattered was how I looked, not what I felt like or whether I was healthy from the inside out.


But, my perspective has changed on all that. Now, after many mentors, counselors and life experiences I see the importance of being healthy, not just looking it. Sure, there's always a physical benefit to exercising regularly, but there is so much more to life than worrying about how much you weigh. There is so much freedom now. I can still feel satisfied in pushing myself to the next level when exercising. And I can still make healthy eating choices that will decrease risks of high cholesterol, blood pressure and heart disease. But IT.DOES.NOT.OWN.ME. I used to weigh myself multiple times a day, but now....I can't even tell you how much I DO weigh. Since giving birth, I have maybe stepped on the scale once or twice. And I give myself grace when wanting to indulge in some ice cream and a brownie. I mean really, what's life without dessert now and then?? A sad one...I would know :).

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If you ever have similar thoughts, or want to ask me more questions about this journey of mine, I am MORE than willing to talk about it. You can leave an anonymous question to protect your privacy if need be.

Tulip Time reflections...

The big week is over, and here are my thoughts from this years Tulip Festival:

1) I have a new sense of pride being a part of the Dutch community here in Holland, and celebrate my lineage (my mom's side is part Dutch) by dressing my first born in (yes) a Dutch costume, which apparently is a prerequisite for living here. I've given in. BUT, to defend myself.....I didn't pay a penny, or sew a stitch of it. And I'd say, our little Dutch lady was quite the show stopper. See below... :)

2) I have never succumbed to standing in the freezing cold wind to watch not one but TWO parades (until this year). I really felt like a die-hard...but was even more surprised to see half of Holland downtown watching along side me as well.


3) With all the talk of having a "Stem Festival" this year (due to the early warm weather we had a few weeks ago), I was convinced there would be no tulips left. But, there were strips of perfectly opened tulips throughout Centennial Park, which made for some fantastic photo opportunities.

Kensie and her buddy Kenyon among the glowing tulips

4) I LOVE craft shows. The Centennial Park was filled with tents and booths for the first two days of the festival. I went with no intent of buying, but every intent of researching. This year however, I bought one item. A close-up 8 x 10 photo of a beautiful asian lily in soft hues of green, pink and blue to put in Kensie's room. The selling point was that it was a taken by a 12 year old. She was adorable. Running her own tent by herself with hundreds (literally) of photos in all different sizes. I asked how long she'd been photographing, and she nonchalantly says, "4 years.". WHAT?? Yeah pretty amazing. I couldn't help but support her.


5) And lastly.....for once I was NOT annoyed by all the tourists in town. Usually I get so annoyed by the slow drivers with out of state license plates, staring down at their road maps driving with the left blinker on for miles...looking like lost puppies. But, I was so thankful that it brought an economic boost to our happy little town. We definitely could use the help.


So all in all it was a fun week. Can't wait til next year's festival...and maybe some warmer weather with it. :)

The kids loved hanging with Megan too!

I love this pic. Allison with her son Kenyon, and

Kensie looking a little apprehensive.

Birthday fun

On May 6 we celebrated two special occasions.

My dear Gregory Peter turned 27,

and our little Kensie Michelle turned 8 months...

In honor of the day, we took a "special" chair picture....

Adrenaline

Well, I did it. I completed my first 5k this morning. Thanks to a last minute sign up by Greg's cousin, Beth, I was blessed with a running partner. I know we look like sisters, but we are not even blood related. Funny huh? Anyway, we were matched pretty well the whole race. And since I've mostly trained alone, it sure was nice to have a buddy. Definitely more motivating for sure.

We both finished under 27 minutes, which was better than my goal! I'm sure there was a little help from some morning coffee as well as the adrenaline that kicks in from running with a large group. And we DID get some cheers from our hubby's on the sidelines, which always helps too.

And I have to give a shout out to my dear friend Jamie, who -- if it wasn't for her encouragement, I would have never signed up in the first place. Thanks Jamie!

So, here's to the 5k. The official kick off of Tulip Time has begun!!

Bring it on.

Block party update...

Our block party did not go so well. We did not have a SINGLE person show up. I busted my tail to clean the house ALL day, forgoing the chance to enjoy the nice weather yesterday, prepared food, and no one came. Just Greg, Kensie and I. THEN, I got a letter from the post office threatening to take me to the PIS (Postal Inspection Services) because I slipped the invites into people's mailboxes. Whoops. Who knows if anyone even got them! Anyway, I was pretty much in tears last night. Greg was sick so he went to bed early, and I just laid in bed awake for an hour...so annoyed.

I woke up this morning with this on the table. A note written by my loving, understanding hubby...

I sighed a deep breath, knowing he's right, but still feeling the heat of tears in my eyes. I also realize prayer is important BEFORE an event like this, to keep the focus off myself. I was more worried about what people thought of my clean house and what food they were going to eat. I have seen the power of prayer in the past. I hope we remember this for next time. God will bring people if you ask him.

Highs and Lows

My birthday brought some wonderful highs for the week. Beautiful flowers were brought home by my husband. I was given some very thoughtful cards and gifts, as well as a lovely brunch with some great friends.

The lows were mixed between a sick baby on my birthday, barely seeing my working husband ALL week, and recently hearing news of a friend who has breast cancer. Just when you think you hit your high in life, I am reminded there are times like this that keep me grounded. It keeps my need for God alive, knowing I can't have perfection in any circumstance.

**Kensie is MUCH better today. Her fever is gone and she is eating everything in sight. Maybe a one-day bug? Or maybe some teeth here soon...who knows. But glad she's back. **

And I know we're jumping the gun a bit, but we took some pics in front of the tulips. The Tulip Festival is not for another week, but there may not be any tulips by then. And whoever lived in this house before us LOVED tulips. So we are gladly reaping the benefits. I'm more of an interior decorator...not so much of an exterior one.

Doggie tricks

Kensie has learned a few tricks (some old and some new) including sitting, standing, and rolling over. Please observe the cuteness that follows...

...and with a little support from the couch (cheater), we have a 2 foot munchkin who looks about ready to walk...yikes! SIDE NOTE: she literally stood there for 5 minutes while I snapped pic after pic. She has NO balance whatsoever, but her legs are stiff as a board...cracks us up!

The rolling over trick has become my favorite. After only a half hour of training, she literally does it on command...see for yourself!

New news

I was never able to take a real "spring break" vacation while in high school and college. Sports always kept me tied down during that coveted week of no school and all sun.

Growing up in CA, the "cool" thing to do was go snowboarding over spring break. Everyone would come back to school with lift tickets still attached to their coats, bragging about where they went skiing that week and how many snowball fights they had. Meanwhile, here in MI everyone and their dog goes to Florida (where I STILL have never been..hint hint Greg...). After seven days in the hot sun, they return with the most glorious tans I have ever seen.

But, now that I'm out of school, who says I still can't enjoy a spring break trip?

Here are some pics of our missions trip to TN. Our church has been going to this summer Christian Camp for years, and we finally had our chance to go. We helped them do various jobs around the camp like clearing shrubs, trimming trees, cooking, stuffing envelopes, painting, shoeing horses, house-cleaning and the like. We were privileged to bring Katelyn along for the ride too (and the help :). She was a trooper, even if she did get bit by a horse! (ask her about it...)

And Kensie did amazing as well! Mommy didn't get much sleep as we had to sleep in the same room, but she faithfully took her two naps a day and slept 12 hrs at night. She even celebrated 7 months while we were there. And since I was kinda freaking out that we weren't going to have her infamous "chair picture" until 6 days AFTER we got home, we found a chair in our cabin to substitute...

the morning view from the front porch of our cabin...breathtaking!

Old news

A few weeks ago we attended a fun "winter Olympics party" at church. We were assigned teams, created our own country name and flag to match, and competed in various "athletic" events. These included flicking ice cubes with plastic knives on a table (to imitate curling of course), and putting shoebox lids on our feet and sliding around on carpet shooting Nerf guns at cardboard targets (the biathlon of course).

The last event was hockey. Played on a carpeted gym floor. It was broom to broom combat with a bouncy rubber ball. The goal, obvious. Get the ball through the goal as many times as you can.

So what's with the picture??

My competitive husband gave the tip of his index finger for his team during that hockey game. No, I'm not kidding. The brooms we played with were under-average household brooms (say from the 1930's?). Brooms were braking left and right, but people carried on as if it were the real Olympics. We had quite a competitive group. Anyway, Greg happened to have a broom with a metal handle. Basically (without being too graphic), the handle broke and pinched the tip of his finger off ... O-F-F ... off. Gross. You are now allowed to make that disgusting face that I know you can't help from making. To make you feel a little better, it was not the nail part of the finger, just the pad (like where you would get a finger print). But still...there was QUITE a bit of blood.

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After a trip to the ER, Greg had his finger wrapped up with no hope of seeing his gold medal, or the tip of his finger ever again. A few members of the group came to visit him at the hospital bearing gifts and news. Greg's team had WON and so they draped his (plastic) gold medal around his sweaty neck. And as for the news, well.....let's just say someone "found" what looked like a peanut on the floor close to where the incident happened....gross.

Ready already??

Question.

When considering how far apart child #1 and child #2 should be,

which parent is usually ready first?

Before I go any further....

No. I'm not pregnant.

I would guess that most women are ready for baby #2 before their mates are,

and that usually the wife has to "talk" her husband into round 2...

can I get a second on that?

But, in our case. Nope.

The other night Greg says to me,
"Just look at her, don't you just want another little Kensie??"

And dare I say,
"Just let me enjoy 3 months this summer of feeling 'normal' and then we'll talk".

I mean, who enjoys swelling 'til you feel like your skin is so tight it will literally pop?

And who enjoys the perpetual sweat even in the midst of drying off AFTER your shower?

And let's be honest...who loves going to the beach looking like a beached whale??

Of course he's ready for #2.

HE doesn't have to endure any of that!

Then he pulls the "talk-through-the-baby-to-your-spouse" trick,

"But, Kensie don't YOU want a little sister?"

But don't you think I gave in that easily...I stood my ground.

Maybe next fall I'll be ready.

Until then...let's play!

4 Generations

While celebrating Grandma Mulder's 80th birthday over the weekend, we thought it was a good chance to snap a shot of all 4 generations on the Mulder side. This will be such a keepsake someday.

Mom's Famous Cornbread

Yes, here is the BEST recipe if you love soft and sweet, superbly moist, and simply scrumptious cornbread! Caution: extremely tasty and may cause overeating...bake at own risk :)



Sweet and Moist Cornbread

4 cups Bisquick
2 cups Cornmeal
1 1/2 - 2 cups Cottage Cheese
2 Eggs
1 cup Sugar



**Mix above ingredients. Add milk to make consistency of a batter similar to thick cake mix**



Put batter in a greased 9 x 13 glass baking dish. Or you can half the recipe and bake in an 8 x 8 glass dish.


Bake @ 350* 30-40 min.

6 month updates

Wowzers. Our little peanut is not so little anymore!

Over the weekend, Kensie flipped to the 6 month chapter in her little life. In celebration of this momentous occasion, I found this adorable swimsuit from Target which I of course couldn't resist from buying (only $7 ok?). Annnnnd it was time for my own swimsuit upgrade--> Mom Hides Stretch Marks 6.0. Ok, not your grandmothers suit that I know you are ALL picturing. Just a tankini that's more my age. I had way too many bikinis that I wouldn't wear now even if they DID fit. I'm closer to 30 than I am to 20. Let's dress like it please.

Ok, moving on -->

My sweet sister and her husband came to stay for the weekend! It's been getting harder lately to get together, and we SO appreciated having them for a few days. Dave and Greg worked on finishing our mudroom and other various house projects while Lauren and I took walks with Kensie, sat by the fireplace, laughed at funny stories, and had time just to catch-up on life.

Saturday afternoon we made the boys take a work break, and ventured to the nearest Aquatic Center. For only living 6 blocks from an indoor pool, it's taken us over a year to finally try it out. In short, it was a huge hit. I'm not sure if Kensie or the boys liked it more. But, I have never seen such grown men act like little 12 year olds splashing around, racing each other on obstacle courses, and eagerly waiting in line to go down the slide...or wait, have I?

It was a nice taste of summer for sure. And I have a feeling you will find us at the pool on a regular basis between now and REAL summer.


**Oh, and Kensie has also graduated to baby food! I have the cutest video, but couldn't upload it. Stupid slow internet....we brought it upon ourselves I know. Anyway, she loves her green bean and carrots for now and babbles the whole time (especially when she REALLY likes what she's eating).

Well, Ta-Ta for now!

Volleyball Part II

To read Part I go here

Commitments can be intimidating. It requires showing up consistently, giving 100% effort, and investing emotionally. Or in better terms, I found the following definition from Urban Dictionary. I think you will agree it sums up commitment well:

Commitment is what
Transforms the promise into reality.
It is the words that speak
Boldly of your intentions.
And the actions which speak
Louder than the words.
It is making the time
When there is none.
Coming through time
After time after time,
Year after year after year.
Commitment is the stuff
Character is made of;
The power to change
The face of things.
It is the daily triumph
Of integrity over skepticism.

If I commit to something, I give everything I have. As a result, I am hesitant to commit to a lot of things at once. I have a tendency to see things as black and white, all or nothing, hot or cold.

I'm fairly certain you see where this is headed. This relationship with volleyball I had was a commitment. The kind perfectly described above. One that I devoted my life to. One that I never stopped pursuing. And, one that treated me very well up until 3 years ago.

It all started with the idea of playing overseas upon graduation ('05). To get things going, I contacted an organization that focuses on placing VB players into a professional career after completing their collegiate careers. I then went on a 10 day trip (through the same organization) to Spain in the Spring ('06). It was a "taste" of what playing professional VB would be like. We traveled, tried different foods, engaged in the culture, practiced in a variety of gyms, and played matches against teams all over the country. Some players were even recruited right then and there to play on a team the next season. By the end of the trip I was set on the idea of making this adventure happen....and hopefully in Spain, I thought....I can picture myself here. After all, I DID take two years of Spanish in high school.

So, I worked extremely hard all summer to get into top physical shape. I ran hills (lots of them). I did some serious sweating in the weight room (and if you know me, you know I sweat a lot). I found empty gyms wherever I could to do some ball handling. I even practiced a few times with my Alma mater. And then I waited. Waited for a phone call.

During all of this I was also coaching the most amazing club team I have ever been a part of. There were 9 girls on this 17's team, and wow, were they somethin'. I think we won almost every match we played that season, made it to Nationals in Atlanta and placed 5th overall. It definitely was a boost of confidence as a coach. I'll be honest though I didn't have to do much. These girls were good enough on their own. I think a 5th grader could have coached them and they STILL would have killed everyone who crossed their path. Anyway, it was literally the day after I returned from Nationals (July 5th, '06), with plaque in hand, I temporarily forgot about my dream to play in Spain. Then, my phone rang...

"Hello?"

"Really?!"

"Wait...where?"

"Maribor, SLOVENIA?? Where is that?!?"

"No, sounds great...uh huh...ok...sure...we'll see you then!"

A few weeks later I was set to fly out in August to meet up with several other players from the states hoping to fulfill the same dream I had....to hang on to every last bit of their VB career that they could.

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I should also mention how extremely supportive Greg was in ALL of this. He was hesitant in the beginning, but wanted me to fully embrace this opportunity. As young newlyweds (only married for 1 year at this point in the story), I was (and still am) so grateful for a husband who insists that I pursue my dreams. And on top of it, he was able to be with me for {most of} the 9 months that we lived overseas. We also owe a lot to Greg's family business for "letting" him go, and offering him a job upon returning. What a supportive family we have; we are eternally grateful.

Remember this?

I hemmed this roman shade over 6 months ago..

I wanted to use the leftover two panels for another project, but it took a while to think of something. Thanks to my lovely mother-in-law we collaborated and came up with the idea of making an organizer to go above the changing table. I had wanted to do something with Kensie's name as well, so I spelled her name out on the top panel, and sewed a strip of fabric to make pockets for the bottom panel. All I needed to make this project were the two leftover panels, one extra curtain that already matched her room, and a few decorative buttons to accent the pockets. I think these would make adorable gifts! What do you think?

I will say I did not particularly enjoy cutting all the letters out...a bit tedious. And next time, I would pick a background color to trim around the letters so you could read it a little easier. But, if you want to try it yourself here's what I did:

Found a font on the computer I liked. Printed it off in the largest size I could (like 800 or something). Cut each letter out. Pinned each letter to the fabric. Proceeded to cut them out with fabric scissors. Like I said. Tedious. Then I simply ironed each letter on with stitch witchery (found at any fabric store). I left the edges of the fabric raw, but it still looks pretty clean I think.

If you have a better way, go for it!

Here's a view so you can see the pockets. I can't say I use them as much as I thought, but I DO like having a place to put her bows. Color coordinated of course. :)

Volleyball Part I

So, I have this relationship with volleyball. It started when I was...uh...can't remember. My Dad has always been a volleyball coach, and it's difficult to recall the first time I ever touched a ball.
I DO (however) have memories of setting the ball back and forth while sitting cross-legged on the living room floor...playing pepper in the backyard...and tagging along to every practice and game my Dad ever took me to.

Dad pretty much taught me everything he knows, and I owe most of my accomplishments to him. Even though he coached me all the way through high school and 3 years in college...we were able to make the father/daughter and coach/player relationship work. We left volleyball on the court and home life at home. He was extra hard on me in practices, but for valid reasons. He knew the other players would think I was being favored if he wasn't careful. I understood, and so I worked my tail off running extra sprints, taking the heat in time-outs, and being made an "example of" in drills.

Once I hit the 6th grade I was playing on my first organized club volleyball team. After that the years went by pretty fast and all the tournaments, sweaty practices, tough sprints, wins, losses, and gyms blur together into what people refer to as a "volleyball career". .

Every Fall season for about 13 years I was a part of a team set out to accomplish whatever goal it was for that particular year. Beat our school rival. Win Districts. Win Conference. Get to the State tournament. Make it to Nationals. And I set out to make personal accomplishments as well. Be the best hitter. Get better stats. Make fewer mistakes. Be first in every sprint. Hustle more. Be a team captain. Some years the goals were met. Other years they weren't. Teams changed, coaches changed (in club), schools changed, and I battled to improve every area of my game. And for many years volleyball remained my close companion. We were like peas in a pod.

Even as I sit here I get goosebumps reliving some of those memories. There were so many great highlights....I wish I could list them all!

So, me and VB went through high school, college and then took our relationship to the "next level"...overseas. And THAT, my friends, is when our relationship got a little out of whack. I had just graduated from college, got married that summer (simultaneously my parents were splitting up), and I had just finished coaching my first high school varsity girls VB team. I was looking for an escape. I couldn't deal with the fact that my VB career was officially over (coaching was torture...I just wanted to get back on the court), or the fact that my family was divided and going in separate directions. So this looked like the answer. I could keep playing the sport I so desperately loved, take my new found husband with me, travel all over Europe, and run from every problem I could think of...or so I thought.

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I'm hoping to make this a 3 part series...maybe more. There are lots of details in the next Part so bear with me. Hopefully this gives you a better understanding of how this area of my life was affected by so many things, and how so many things affected IT. My struggle with perfectionism. My perspective of self-worth. My need for approval. And even more how it eventually brought me closer to the Lord...

Disappointment

The last couple of days it has been bright and sunny, with fresh white snow, glistening icicles dripping from rooftops and well....just simply beautiful. I absolutely love winter on these splendid days! The sun has been pouring through the whole house. I hardly need to turn any lights on until nightfall!

However, life has not been so bright in my life this week. I've been dealing with lots of disappointments lately. It seems like every day, someone or something falls short of my expectation. I think I can count at least 5 major situations where I was left thinking, "Man (!) that person is so selfish...or Man (!) am I just completely outnumbered?....or Man (!) that did NOT go as I had planned!

In each situation I am left feeling so angry and annoyed. Yet, I know the "right" thing to do is remember that God feels the same way when I disappoint Him....blah blah blah. I just want to be MAD ok? I wish I could flip a switch and do the "right" thing. But it's so hard. I just want to get even sometimes....arrggg!

I know God is trying to teach me patience, and unselfishness. In fact, this week lines up perfectly with last weeks bible study. A significant portion of the study was about what we do when others disappoint us. I wrote down all the answers I just knew I would do when the time came. Well, now's your chance Shannon....walk the talk!

The red dress

I had this big, elaborate plan of surprising Greg when he came home last night

wearing the dress above /\

making a delicious homemade dinner (complimented with sparkling cider)

and setting the mood below \/ of rose petals and candlelight....

with Frank Sinatra faintly playing in the background.

Dreamy right?

Well, as life has been lately...Greg worked ALL day Saturday (beginning at 5am) and had no promise of coming home at a descent hour. And as I have learned in the past, there is little point in "guessing" when he will arrive home (due to the nature of the business). So, instead of trying to keep a meal warm, sucking my stomach in while wearing that dress, and watching the clock to no avail.....I decided to scrap it, and wait until I heard from him with a definite arrival time.

To my surprise, he called at 4:30 saying he was on the way home. Hooray! Except, I had no meal prepared, and as far as my appearance....well I showered at least (!) and was wearing my [nicer-looking] sweats. And on top of it, there was no babysitter lined up for the evening.

But, I have learned that Greg would rather have a happy, home(y) wife, instead of a stressed out, fancy wife.

So, Greg took a quick shower. We threw Kensie in the car seat. I brushed my hair and spruced up my makeup. And we headed out to eat at our favorite Mexican restaurant. Just the 3 of us.

Kensie fussed the last half of the meal, so we scarfed down the rest of our food, headed home and put her to bed by 7:30.

It was not what I had pictured for a special Valentines night, but at least we had some movie-watching, cuddle-couch time after Kensie went to bed :). Comfy sweats and all.

High chair cuteness and a puzzle...

Kensie has been enjoying her new high chair more than ever! It provides a much better view than the bouncy seat ever had [at only 2 inches off the ground]. I can tell she loves being a part of what's happening at the table (even though she hasn't started on cereal or baby food yet...we'll find out at her check-up today if it's time...).

Oh my!...Gesundheit!

And here's what I've accomplished the last 3 days...



Hope you have a wonderful Valentines Day!