Cabin Fun

We just returned from a terrific Memorial Day weekend at my parents' cabin in the U.P. with our family of 4, my parents, and Steve and Meghan. We usually make it there twice a year, in the fall and winter. It has been a while since we had been there in the spring, so we weren't prepared for the TICKS and BUGS the spring apparently brings! We got used to regular tick-checks (sang that Brad Paisley song often), and whole-heartedly enjoyed an extremely ambitious hike, a.k.a. geo cache, many fantastic dirt bike and ATV rides through the woods, delicious food, and great company. The kids were terrific - LOVEd the rides we took - don't tell the authorities, but Jake and I would sit in the front seat and Claudia and my Mom in the back. It was a blast!

And...Ed set up the camera for this next picture...

Claudia's Princess Party

Claudia turned 4 on May 21! We celebrated with a Princess Party for her and even Cinderella showed up! It was so much fun to see her interact with Cinderella and the other princesses we had invited. She loved it! And we love our little princess so very much! Claudia is fun, outgoing, smart, inquisitive, easily frustrated, emotional, and so very, very cute! She says some great stuff - at the party, it was all about Meijer and telling Cinderella what a great store it was. We'll definitely be watching for Cinderella in future grocery shopping trips!

My Sister the Doctor!

My sister, Katie, graduated from Michigan State College of Human Medicine! That means she is a doctor! After 4 years of dedicated study, we had a wonderful celebration for Dr. Katie! My Dad had the honor of robing her while my Mom, Grandpa and Grandma Kastelin, Aunt Mary and Uncle Jim, Steve and Meghan, and Ed and I watched. Then, we all went out for a fabulous dinner at our family favorite, Bistro Bella Vita, in downtown GR. Good work, sis! Also graduating that day was her boyfriend, Steve Swistak! Just think of all the free medical advice we'll now be entitled to!

Tulip Time

The kids and I enjoyed Tulip Time this year with Uncle Steve and Aunt Meghan. We enjoyed the parade and REALLY enjoyed the rides at the carnival! Getting close to naptime, the kids "posed" with the tulips in Centennial Park. There isn't much Dutch in their outward appearance, but their new Dutch hats helped!

Florida

So many of my ambitious, creative, and over-achieving friends have blogs for their family and friends to visit, so they finally peer-pressured me into starting one...

And for my first entry, our Florida Spring Break for 2008! Unfortunately, Ed was not able to go with us because he was in New Jersey for his job training for Johnson & Johnson. :( We missed him terribly, but the time went by much quicker in Florida than it would have without him at home!! So, the kids and I made the drive to Florida with the help of my wonderful sister, Katie.

(She is going to LOVE that picture!) She did GREAT in the car with the kids, entertaining, feeding, peace-keeping, while I did the driving. The kids actually did quite well in the car. We did a 16-hour driving day, slept at a hotel, drove for another 8 hrs, and made it to Bradenton, FL, where my grandparents live. We then rented a house on Anna Maria Island with my parents and Katie's boyfriend, Steve, for 10 glorious days of sun, fun, and relaxation!!!

Well...mostly relaxation...the first day there, we had to take Claudia to an Emergency Room because she was having trouble breathing - turned out she had the beginnings of the pneumonia and possibly asthma/allergies...we'll see... And Jacob kept us all from relaxing TOO much by waking us all up by 7:15 am each morning, demanding choos and dirchees (treats and cookies, if you haven't spent much time w/ him lately). The kids kept us busy in the mornings and evenings, but they were FANTASTIC at the beach. They were so much fun! Claudia is a little water-girl, and Jacob just enjoys wandering around, picking up rocks (not shells), pointing out birds, and digging in the sand. After 10 days of fun in the sun, we actually were beginning to be ready to go home. The drive home was not quite as fun as the drive there, but it never is. It was good to get home, but, wow, what a great spring break we had this year! Thanks to my family for taking care of the 3 of us without Ed!! Can't wait for next year!

5/2/08
by Ed and Carley
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