The Bean and the Most Epic Jumping Pic EVER

We walked over to Millenium Park and enjoyed the architecture on the way.



The girls were so EXCITED to be by Cloud Gate, aka the Bean...



...that I could not hold them down for 1 second!

God is Faithful

Yesterday at our church we celebrated our 10 year anniversary and became an established church (instead of a church plant).   I took about 100 photos; this one made me laugh...

Love Thursday

John & I went to visit baby Miriam in the hospital last night. So precious. She still had her little hospital hat on! Congrats to our friends Mark & Abby!

More Fun than Taylor

So here is a little taste of the things moms do to pass the time downtown when their daughters are at the concert. This was after supper and before the checker game that we played with stuff in our purses. Seriously though, we had fun hanging out!

Swift but Unforgettable

Last week Thursday, my friend Cathy and I tried to pull a fast one on our daughters, Emily & Bridget. We took them out to a restaurant NEXT to the VanAndel Arena where Taylor Swift just happened to be having a concert. We told them we were going to go look at the tour bus. Cathy gave an envelope with tickets to the hostess at the restaurant who surprised them with it. I don't know if they look stunned or not.

Anyway, they were beyond excited to go! Cathy & I walked around downtown and ate a leisurely supper during the concert - something we hardly ever get a chance to do! We ended up hearing all about the concert at a midnight-ish trip to IHOP! We even talked about our very first outing, cooking chili.

Flash Back Friday 211

Baby Bridget with Teddy, Eddie, Maria and all the stuffed friends, 1995

Clay Art Studio

This past weekend, Bridget and Emily & Cathy & I went on a MDDD; mother-daughter-double date! We started out at Bigby's with some amazing coffee drinks and ended at Clay Art Studio where Bridget & Emily painted some pottery pieces! It was the gift they had given her for her birthday and it was a great time!

Calvin Roomies

Aaah!!!! Maria asked me to do a photoshoot Monday evening of her and her friend/Calvin roomie Abby. John had the brilliant idea to do it at the old Calvin campus on Franklin street.

I took a couple hundred. Wow, amazing fun! The above mosaic shows a few of them!

Here they are looking like good Calvin girls in front of the OLD Hekman library.

Van-Go

My friend Lydia stopped by on her way out of town the other day. She is driving to the east coast and from there will fly to Amsterdam to paint for 2 months. It was kind of like one of my kids leaving for the summer! Our family had helped her move her paintings back to her studio the day before and then ate at Yesterdog with her. ... great memory which I did not capture, so we got one in front of the dogwood tree.

Love Thursday: Forever Families

This past Monday, my friend Cathy was on TV to talk about events coming up in GR and things you can do to help connect children in need to parents ready to adopt. So cool! What an awesome job she did getting the message across. She works so hard to help these families and kids...

Educate Yourself About Adoption: woodtv.com

A Pretty Special Graduation

This past Saturday, John & I attended our friend Lydia's graduation. She was getting her Master of Fine Arts Degree in painting from Kendall College of Art & Design and when I realized her parents from the east coast were not going to be able to make it for the graduation, I told her we would come. And take pictures. And be her adopted parents. It was a wonderful occasion!

It was very meaningful to hear Pomp & Circumstance even though she had only been my kid for a few days so far.

John's strategic seating plans allowed me to get a picture of her "hooding" and to get her as she came out of the historic Fountain Street Church where the ceremony was held.

We went over to the school for the reception and looked at her latest painting, Catalyst. This 67inx87in oil on canvas is in the front lobby of the school and it is beautiful.

Leo Chatting with his Girlfriends

Bridget had some friends over last Friday night and I got a kick out of Leo joining in like he was part of the conversation. Do you see him by the bookcase? Silly cat!

Love Thursday: I Believe

When I found out I needed to redo this photo in a landscape orientation, Bridget & her friends were more than happy to help out!

And...this bud reminded me, Spring is coming!

I Believe

A few weeks ago, we could pick up these signs at church to help illustrate the Apostles' Creed for the upcoming sermon series. Bridget, her friend Jessica & I tried to picture the last line.

Happy Birthday Pong!

Last Thursday, I went over to my friend Cathy's house to celebrate her birthday with our traditional Olga lunch. We were going to be joined by another friend but she couldn't come due to illness which was a bummer, but we still managed to have a great time!

I gave her this little book, it was so sweet and so appropriate. Part of it went like this:

You know how to be silly
That's why I like you
Boy are you ever silly
I never met anybody sillier than me till I met you
I like you because you know when it's time to stop being silly
Maybe day after tomorrow
Maybe never
Too late, it's a quarter past silly!

Remember the funnest game in the whole world?

It's still #1 on Google Images...

Love Thursday

Celebrating the birth of a very sweet pal today!!!

Winter Break

Bridget had 9 or 10 of her friends over Saturday night to watch a movie and I took these before everyone got there. Such sweeties! They continued their winter break with a slumber party last night at another one of their homes.

Flash Back Friday 193

Marie, Abby & Maria, February 2008, Homecoming

Since Bridget has been getting ready for Homecoming this weekend, I'm flashing back to Homecoming 3 years ago when Maria was her age. This Saturday night, I get to take photos of Bridget as she goes with about 20 of her friends to the Homecoming dance!

Cameras with Jelly Props

Photo by Deirdre

Last week, my friend Deirdre and I had some time off, so we met for breakfast. It had been too long for one of our escapades! We met at Russ' where we were by far the youngest in the building and where people accepted our behavior as normal maybe because they couldn't hear us, but oh well. Coffee, cameras and brekkie with a friend.. doesn't get much better!

Cheers!

We rang in the new year last evening with our old friends Keith & Lori... a fun night that included hot tubbing and ping pong! Maria painted these wine glasses for the occasion.