Good news!! I got a new phone so I am back up and ready for business 😂

50-60 degree temps in Feb= crazy and time to go outside!  
 

 
I helped sort 27,000 boxes of Girl Scout cookies! 

  
  
This little lady delivered cookies this week. I was so extremely proud of her. The first house she visited when we were selling, she could barely say a word but with practice she was raddling off her speech. With delivery, she was skipping, singing and smiling. Who wouldn’t love cookies from this young lady?

We will be delivering in Iowa at the end of March.

  
So this weather has messed with my children. Bella was sick last week, Cooper this week. He didn’t move from the couch yesterday, today he is up and playing. 

 
Bella left us a nice note (just like she gets in her lunch everyday) ❤️

  

FYI- my phone has been acting crazy lately.  I am pretty sure I have a virus (which I thought didn’t happen to Apple).  My screen will freeze and it seems like a ghost is pushing buttons, so I have had limited use of my phone.  I have transferred all of my pictures to my computer and will be making a trip to an Apple store this week.  But, what a great opportunity to update our website!

John was Watch DOG at Cooper and Bella’s school.  He got lucky and was at school the day Cooper went to the High School for a swim party because he reached a reading goal.  So he went on a little field trip with Cooper, led a game in Bella’s classroom and had lunch with both kids.

We lost power for an extended period of time, which was a first for us so ice cream and stories by candlelight.

My book club met at my house in Jan. and one of our members reached out to the author and we Skyped with her.  Such a neat experience to be able to ask her questions.  The book was We are Called to Rise by Laura McBride

Bella is on her scooter because we have had an unusual winter.  It is cold and snows but then it gets warmer and melts away.

Cooper with his friends at a sleepover.

I was on the committee for this years Father/Daughter event.  We decided on a Beauty and the Beast theme because of the upcoming movie.  The girls had an evening with desserts, dancing, inflatable obstacle course, games and a craft (THANKS Mom- I totally used your Hershey rose idea and everyone loved it).

John ended up traveling to Iowa for a funeral of a friends mother and was unable to make it to the event so I was Bella’s beast.  This is one of those moments I wish we lived closer to family, I know many Grandpa’s, Uncles, and Great Uncles that would have been happy to take her.  She had a great night with friends!

 

3rd Graders learn about State government at school and took a field trip to Lansing to visit the Capital.  I was able to chaperone so I got to spend the day with Cooper and his classmates.  We met Peter MacGregor, our State Senator of our district.  He answered the questions of the students and parents, and could have talked to us all day.  See the group photo with him below.

My Cooper was such a sweetheart and wanted to sit by me on the bus.

My baby is growing up!  Bella wanted to invite the girls from her class, neighborhood friends, and friends from dance.  We decided that was too many girls to host at our house so we had a party at Jester’s Court (girls from her kindergarten class) which is a facility full of inflatables and hosted one at our house.

Jester’s Court Friends- Remi, Brylee, Sophia, Molly, Fynleigh, Amiyah, Emery and Elena

Under the Sea Birthday at Bella’s Castle

Bella has asked for an Under the Sea Birthday and wanted a pinata- Mommy took it from there!  The girls made princesses tiaras, played pass the treasure (boxes wrapped inside boxes with actions to do along the way), ate snacks (seaweed- grapes, fish and chips- potato chips and Goldfish crackers, ocean water- berry punch) and cupcakes, sang Happy Birthday, opened presents, hit the Ursula pinata and played.

Under the Sea Birthday Friends- Maggie, Rylan, Ally, Claire, Lauren, Alexandra, Sydney, Bella, Emily, Layla, Colette