And the Beach

he is getting braver in the water

a quick trip to the beach with Micah... what a beautiful day
now that's a big boat.
spinning in the sand

running around after the sea gulls
and watching the freighter come in

Bouncin'

a rainy day last week was perfect for a trip to Crazy Bounce...

fun for the kids, good workout for Mom and Dad!

Jacob on the "Titanic" slide
Micah in the balls... his fave

busy summer days

this has been Micah on our return home, many times this summer.

all funned out

A Special Stop

on the way home from Mom's house last week, we followed a detour and came across the cemetery where my grandfather, Bops, and Aunt Christy are buried... it was a very special moment


...getting back in the car, Jacob said, "It's a good thing we visited Bops. I was starting to forget him, but now I remember."

Racing Fun at Beppe's

jump for joy!
the boys (and the rest of us, really) had a great time "racing" various cars and vehicles down the driveway at Beppe's house last week...



applause for a vehicle that made it all the way down, and Micah's "I am the Master!" exclamation...
Jacob with his firetruck competitor
Aunt Krista and Jacob

Jacob at the Pool

... meanwhile, Jacob had a blast in the big pool

he's much more of a "water rat" like I was as a kid

likes to be under the water!

he almost made it to the bottom of the deep end (12 feet down!)... maybe next year

Micah at the Pool

we had a blast at Cascade pool last week... the kiddie pool was just perfect for Micah, as he really doesn't like being in deeper water where he can't touch.

he spent hours splashing and wandering around

and he LOVED the slide!

on... to the beach

But the pool was closed, so we headed to the beach instead
big smiles from Jude in the water

the water was great!
Anabel enjoyed the sand
Megan had to rescue the umbrella after the wind blew it away
Ezra doin' a little jig

kids at kim's

the kids were a bit antsy when we met at Kim's condo last week

Anabel, being such a good girl

Jude's little grin
Braydon says, "Let me in!"
Micah, "I wanna go in the pool..."

long time, no see!

the boys and I hung out with my long-lost friend, Kim, and got to meet her little girl, Olivia, for the first time!

yes, Vermont is very far away...

Olivia fell in love with the waves!
she had a ball letting them wash right over her





we'll miss you, Kim!

evening out and about

Jacob was away at golf camp again last week...

Michael and I took Micah out to dinner at Boatwerks, a new restaurant on Lake Macatawa where Michael's friend, Tom Webb, is the head chef

the restaurant was right next to Kollen Park, so we made a little side-trip to the playground after dinner

having fun!
Micah's all-time favorite activity: swinging!
Micah and the Canada geese
here's a shot of the restaurant and deck

more swimming

all the kiddos around the pool

M and Michael eating pizza

everyone's hungry after swimming!
lining up to eat
Micah with a death grip on Joanne

swim lessons

while Jacob is at golf camp again this week (we miss you, Jacob! and we love you!), Micah is taking swim lessons

he has made great progress, considering he is very much afraid of the water...

smiling with his teacher, Joanne
what a brave boy!

playin'

we met friends at the mall yesterday... oh, what fun!

a fruit smoothie for Micah
(job well done on the potty)

Micah & Olyvia
always in action!
Naomi & Garrett














O & T