Harper Day Continued

After work, I went to Harper's new school & read a book to the class, The Red Thread.

This was new to me, I've never read a book to 20 kids before.

Harper loved the special attention she got from her new teachers & new friends. 

The entire class made her a "special day" card.

Such a sweet gesture

The evening continued with Harper's special requests of going to the pool & having ice cream.

Unfortunately, daddy couldn't join us due to a work banquet :(

Thank goodness for little girls....We love you!

Three Years!

Three years ago, this little girl changed our world!

Three years ago, I became a mother.

Three years ago, Harper became a little sister.

Three years ago, we became a family of Four.

First Family Photo

2010

Harper Day 2011

Harper Day 2012

Harper Day 2013

She's been a feisty fireball since the day we've met her & hasn't changed a bit.

Harper had a very smooth transition  into our family.

It was obvious, she so desperately wanted to be loved.

Little did we know, that we needed to teach her how to love.

She didn't know how to hug & kiss & be a part of a family.

It didn't take her long to figure it out.

Harper LOVES her family intensely, especially her little sister!

Nov 2010

We're beyond blessed & proud of her.

We can't wait to see what lies ahead.

Nothing will stop all 35 pounds of Harper.

Her strong personality & determination will carry her through life & she will be someone "big" someday!

Harper Day

2013

To be continued.......

Celebrating Sweet Sixteen

We convinced the teenager & her friends to eat cake & ice cream with her family.

I think M was the most excited about ice cream!

Happy Birthday!

Sweet Sixteen

Happy Sweet Sixteen Bria!

She took her drivers test this morning and passed!

Stay off the streets & sidewalks!

Just teasing, she's a pretty good driver so far!

School Day

H & M's first day at their new preschool yesterday!

H has been in a preschool for 2 1/2 years so the transition was no biggie for her.

M has been in a home day care for a year, so we were worried about her transition into the classroom.

Can you believe that I forgot my camera & my phone when we dropped them off?

These were taken at pick up.

They both had a fantastic first day.

M had zero problems in the classroom & waved goodbye to mom & dad.

She ate well, took a good nap & was very giddy all night!

H also had zero problems & got to pick the storybook before nap time, big job!

H will continue with speech therapy 3 times per week.

M will also have speech therapy 2 times per week, but not with big sis!

We're so grateful that M transitioned so well.

Her home daycare teacher had prepared her well for the classroom.

We're thankful for her time with Jenny, but she was ready to be a big girl!

We're so proud!!!

Dune Climb

Sleeping Bear Dune Climb

We took the challenge, even Melaina

Melaina made it about half way up the first dune, which was surprising.

Gorgeous view 

If you ever get the opportunity, take the time to visit the Dunes in Empire Michigan.

Glen Haven Beach

Our first sunny beach day was spent at Glen Haven Beach which was just a few miles away.

We enjoyed this beach because it was so close, but it was a little too rocky for us.

Definately not our water baby, more like our chips baby.

Give her chips or ice cream & she's happy as can be!

Later that night we walked to The Boonedocks for ice cream

Sshh...don't tell Melaina, she couldn't hang with the big girls, too tired :(

Summer Vacation

Three years have gone by since we've taken a vacation.

This was our first "real" family of five vacation & it just happened that we vacationed at the same place, Glen Arbor, Michigan with our great friends.

Funny how things change drastically in 3 years.

Three years ago we were weeks away from meeting Harper.

While in Michigan, we found out about her burns & also got our TA ( travel plans). 

Bitter Sweet to say the least.

This year, we made the long haul to MI, driving for 16 hours before reaching our destination.

The kids were awesome in the car watching their new DVD player & movies.

No complaints or tears

The first few days were raining & cold ( high 60's ) but we needed to decompress after the long ride.

The kids had a great time chilling out &  playing outside.

 Enjoying the porch swing

Morning coffee on the front porch

 Playing outside in the dark

 Riding bikes

And just being with friends.

Finally, on day 3, the sun peaked out in the late afternoon.

Bria, Em & I snuck out during the littles nap time & enjoyed the beautiful view of Lake Michigan.

Iphone photos, not great resolution

Later that evening, we went to the beach just to "look" at it since it was a bit chilly.

H & M's first beach experience

Elise & Olivia

We couldn't keep these Michigan babies out of the water, even without their swimsuits.

Because E & O got to swim in their clothes, H wanted to also.

 I can't believe these two, the water was freezing!

More to come, to be continued.....