tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-57540005424639446652024-03-12T20:36:04.742-07:00The Linn FamilyJulie Linnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07185482673627320340noreply@blogger.comBlogger117125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5754000542463944665.post-73117446174908953942013-02-25T14:33:00.001-08:002013-02-25T14:33:37.974-08:00Anna SageShe's here! Actually, she's been here for TWO weeks already, but it' taken me that long to get onto my blog. Shhhh, don't tell Anna.<br />
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Anna Sage Linn was born on February 11 at 12:37pm. She weighed 9 pounds, 8 ounces, and 21 3/4 inches long. She is perfect.<br />
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It's a little overwhelming to think of us a family of FIVE, but everyone is adjusting just fine, and we're really enjoying this baby. I remember being very "scheduled" with Elise, making her wait to eat until exactly 3 hours and then trying so hard to keep her awake afterwards. Because that's what babywise said. :) This time around, things are just a little more laid back. That's just how it is with the third, I guess. I'm enjoying my cuddle time with Anna when the other girls are in bed, nursing as much as possible so that she passes her weight check in a couple days, and trying to soak in all the newborn joys while I can. If I've learned anything from the other two, it's that each stage goes by so quickly. I'm bound and determined not to "miss" any of it.<br />
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Here's a few pictures of our sweet baby girl:</div>
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so sleepy!!</div>
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the girls meeting Anna for the firs time</div>
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not a big fan of her first bath!</div>
Julie Linnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07185482673627320340noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5754000542463944665.post-37609289338215454012013-02-08T18:17:00.000-08:002013-02-08T18:17:02.992-08:00daddy daughter dance<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">
Elise and Bryan had a very special night tonight. It was the father daughter dance at Ridge Point. As if the dress, jewelry, and fancy hair wasn't enough, a night with just her daddy was what had Elise really really excited. Before they left, Elise asked "mommy, do you think daddy and I will hold hands when we dance??" This girl loves her daddy. :) They were gracious to pose for a few pictures before heading out. Bryan even picked up a tiny corsage!</div>
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<span id="goog_270350818">They got home around 8:30, and Elise was eXhaUsTed. The first thing she told me was that they played the song "call me, maybe." She also told me that there were tons of people there and that she danced a lot. Then, she was too tired to talk and I took her upstairs and tucked the dancing queen into bed. I'm thinking that she'll be excited to tell about her and daddy's fun night some more in the morning.</span>Julie Linnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07185482673627320340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5754000542463944665.post-23644993638982307042012-12-21T13:40:00.000-08:002012-12-21T13:40:53.706-08:00Dance ClassI signed Elise up for a dance class at Zeeland Rec. I never did any dance when I was little, so it's been fun to learn a little bit as Elise and I figure it out together. On monday, the moms and dads were invited to watch what the girls had learned the last 3 months. What fun! Just the 10 little girls in their pink dance clothes was cute enough, and then to see them twirl and hop and count....oh my! Check out the cutie pics and video of Elise doing her thing...<br />
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singing/bouncing the plie song</div>
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Circle time with Miss Cindy</div>
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dancing in front of the mirror</div>
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all lined up to practice hops, skips and jumps</div>
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Here's a favorite video of Elise practicing her jumps:<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dxuX0EUS1feg1MidwMSZya96Ai5fFsGhwyHK2hFcH5X0ogtNtsy7S0Bt-H9HSyowhf08LFuehCz_x9pyTo7GQ' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
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Julie Linnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07185482673627320340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5754000542463944665.post-87379727755260049412012-12-16T17:25:00.003-08:002012-12-16T17:25:49.793-08:00overdue postSo, it's been about 3 months since a blog post. It's not because we've been so busy or because I'd rather do other things. It's because since blogger changed its format, it's more difficult to upload pictures. And while I have near hero patience for my kids and my patients at the hospital, I have nearly none for this computer or anything online. That being said, tonight is the time I just press on and post. Overdue. <br />
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Christmas is well underway in our house. We've done everything from bring home the tree and decorate it to make christmas cookies, create homemade ornaments, and we read the "baby Jesus story" almost every night. Our December is always jam packed busy early on, and then things calm down for the rest of the month until the actual Christmas holiday. We're living that "calmed down" week now, and it's FaNtAsTiC!<br />
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Elise has done great at 3school and LOVES her mornings there. The only thing she likes better than school is dance class on monday afternoons. If you need a smile or a laugh, just ask her to do her plie song-it rocks.<br />
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Macy is almost 17 months and becoming more independent each day. Her favorite response is "no," but she's easy to convince in light of severe prostests. She has figured out how to climb up the ladder into the new bunk beds all by herself, although she doesn't care to sleep in the bottom bunk quite yet. We're trying to decide how to handle it, and hopefully we figure it out before february or the new baby and Macy will be sharing a crib.<br />
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Baby 3 is doing well and full of energy nearly all the time. Feeling her move and kick is the very best thing about pregnancy. And while I certainly don't daydream or talk to this baby as much as I did with Elise or Macy while pregnant, I often find myself wondering who she'll be like, how she will fit in, and in what ways she'll change our little family. February 19 is the official due date, and she's already measuring a couple weeks ahead. I suppose big babies will continue to run in this family.<br />
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Here are a few pictures from the past couple months:<br />
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Elise turned 4 in October</div>
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Catching fish with the Bush family at the cottage</div>
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Happy Halloween!</div>
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Happy Thanksgiving, our thanksgiving tree was FULL!</div>
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First we went to get the tree and forgot it was on top of the van.....</div>
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Then we decorated it with all of our collected ornaments</div>
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after a few minutes, Macy decided she'd rather take advantage of an open lap and </div>
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read books with daddy</div>
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"Feeling the Zeel" on the horse-drawn carriage ride downtown Zeeland wednesday night. We also pet reindeer, visited santa, and enjoyed a free dinner at pizza hut thanks to our power dollars.</div>
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Baking Christmas cookies with my favorite girls</div>
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All those sprinkles!!!</div>
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this is what Macy does whenever she has a free moment. Apparently, the coffee table is where she thinks I should store all of my spices.</div>
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Merry Christmas!!</div>
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Julie Linnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07185482673627320340noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5754000542463944665.post-81864627927642137372012-10-09T18:33:00.000-07:002012-10-09T18:33:26.902-07:00Sister Fun<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
As Macy gets bigger, Elise finds more and more ways to share her favorite things with her little sister. Macy really adores Elise and wants to copy just about anything she does, good or bad.</div>
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Sharing the race car cart at Lowe's</div>
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playing at Timber town, "our park"</div>
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somehow, they ended up in their jammies playing in the van one evening. </div>
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Anything can be fun when you're with your sister. :)</div>
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reading books in Elise's bed</div>
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Sharing the double stroller on our walk at the cottage</div>
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Loving these girlies and all the fun we have together.</div>
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Julie Linnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07185482673627320340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5754000542463944665.post-45231205108583316402012-07-30T18:51:00.000-07:002012-07-30T18:51:00.035-07:00Macy turns ONE!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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We celebrated Macy's first birthday a couple weeks ago. How can she be ONE already!? It was a great party with all our family, and she seemed to enjoy all the excitement and attention.</div>
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It was a bumblebee theme, so we had all yellow and black and white balloons. So fun!<br />
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Macy is daddy's girl through and through. When Bryan comes home from work, wherever Macy is, she makes a beeline for the kitchen to greet her daddy with HUGE smiles and sometimes even laughs out of pure delight in seeing him.<br />
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We had fun opening present with Macy. She had no idea what it was all about, but it's great to have some "Macy" toys around the house, even though Elise has taken them all to her room, for safe-keeping, of course. :)<br />
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the cake, which I worried about a ton, but turned out pretty cute!</div>
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Elise had fun picking out a present for Macy. She selected this baby doll, Stella, who has a pipe.</div>
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The last present was a onesie from us, which read "big sister," announcing to our family that we will be welcoming another baby in February! It was the perfect time to share our big news.</div>
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Happy Birthday, Macy!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEire2EtVdCB55p2N4wpT4RbHGZhNcUuXNMMKN2syzqPcPlmpd4XXL3JTgrrtHyBPZnMqgkuOEwR_blMcAdTdhcIaQW4503nDi3wplH9BQwkQ_xmi1vNMn9TWUG6B2lmZmmaoSSG0t7FEiXT/s1600/IMG_9726.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEire2EtVdCB55p2N4wpT4RbHGZhNcUuXNMMKN2syzqPcPlmpd4XXL3JTgrrtHyBPZnMqgkuOEwR_blMcAdTdhcIaQW4503nDi3wplH9BQwkQ_xmi1vNMn9TWUG6B2lmZmmaoSSG0t7FEiXT/s320/IMG_9726.JPG" width="213" /></a></div>
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LOVING her cake. This girl has a sweet tooth that rivals her mommy's. :)</div>
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At 12 months, Macy is:</div>
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Pushing her walker around very confidently, but not walking yet</div>
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Eating almost anything, bread being her most favorite</div>
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Sleeping well, taking two naps a day and sleeping from 8-7 every night</div>
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Signs all done, more, and please</div>
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Has 8 teeth! And I think a few more are working their way in</div>
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Is in the 60th and 70th percentile for height and weight</div>
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LOVES attention from Elise and Indy</div>
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Sweet, sweet, sweet. With all that has changed in one year, the one thing that is very much the same is Macy's laid-back sweet temperament. </div>
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Love you, Macy girl. Happy ONE!!</div>Julie Linnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07185482673627320340noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5754000542463944665.post-57643297574184496702012-06-19T18:43:00.001-07:002012-06-19T18:43:18.977-07:0011 months<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJcBFTZlUgQgoDBSpcRRz059lhKvk15gntdVZzbjkLrs_119G74Qmbepc5hW1gvkAqwBPjISXitAHtqsfpmDngDwysC1_HDkweb15yKCx8gdmAuYLQYUXvjI88FUNPel_5lBmNEkXC2ybr/s1600/005.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><div style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJcBFTZlUgQgoDBSpcRRz059lhKvk15gntdVZzbjkLrs_119G74Qmbepc5hW1gvkAqwBPjISXitAHtqsfpmDngDwysC1_HDkweb15yKCx8gdmAuYLQYUXvjI88FUNPel_5lBmNEkXC2ybr/s1600/005.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJcBFTZlUgQgoDBSpcRRz059lhKvk15gntdVZzbjkLrs_119G74Qmbepc5hW1gvkAqwBPjISXitAHtqsfpmDngDwysC1_HDkweb15yKCx8gdmAuYLQYUXvjI88FUNPel_5lBmNEkXC2ybr/s320/005.JPG" width="213" /></a><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Macy turned 11 months old in June. She's certainly on the move, crawling all over and getting into everything, especially electrical cords and Indy's water bowl. While she's still a great eater, she has become a little particular over the past couple weeks, refusing all sweet potatoes, waffles, and avocados. She definitely has a lot of personality, and it's coming through more and more. She is delighted to see any dog, and will even crawl over to strange dogs to get a closer look/feel/kiss. Indy tolerates all her attention very well. She loves to swing, play in the kiddie pool in the backyard, and watch the ducks at the park, and take baths with Elise. It's fun to talk to her and find out that she can follow what you're saying even though she can't say any words back. Macy can sign "please" and "all done," and she can give kisses: big, open mouth, sloppy, baby kisses. Love her kisses, and I love this age. Looking forward to celebrating 1 year next month!</span></div>
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<u></u>Julie Linnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07185482673627320340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5754000542463944665.post-23381236309597529202012-06-06T18:00:00.002-07:002012-06-06T18:00:33.834-07:00Visser FarmsOn Monday, I woke Elise up with the very exciting news that today was the day we were going strawberry picking. She was beyond excited. All morning, she wondered when it would be time to leave. She wanted to know if the strawberries would be red, if they would be big or small, if the strawberry farmer's name was Jed like in her farm movie, and if we could pick blueberries, too. :) I explained the best that I could, and we headed off. <br />
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It was a PERFECT day for picking. We turned into Visser Farms and saw the sign with a strawberry on it. Then we met farmer Jill, and she showed us to a row where we could pick. Picking strawberries is a little trickier than picking blueberries because you have to look a little harder. Elise did great, and she was thrilled to find the strawberries were DELICIOUS. Macy was content to ride along in the stroller, and we were sure to give her a strawberry or two, just to be fair. Elise insisted that we take her doll, Alex, along. And so Alex picked strawberries, too.<br />
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We picked just over 4 pounds, which isn't very many, but it was plenty for our family to enjoy for the rest of the week. We ate some strawberries for lunch when we got home, and that was Macy's favorite part.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhD9OQBYZgQX_52LgIV8XhRmujugrPeYs3i_7f0NHUEOcjGff1JUmaOEpozJW493ys9DHTpq1szlLrUY9Cl9KyyW5XT9-gAt52hQFsp06mksnM2fBgVE2DM6W0SXXrKepTYAs9qdNHXKJyL/s1600/2012-06-03+002+009.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhD9OQBYZgQX_52LgIV8XhRmujugrPeYs3i_7f0NHUEOcjGff1JUmaOEpozJW493ys9DHTpq1szlLrUY9Cl9KyyW5XT9-gAt52hQFsp06mksnM2fBgVE2DM6W0SXXrKepTYAs9qdNHXKJyL/s320/2012-06-03+002+009.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Elise held on to her doll, Alex, the entire time. So sweet!</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yummm!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzAllKekHk-d0C5Fc90PONNyEfL6A767V-D6zXmmjzavwffsP-FX5CO1MYEtwawGhimnlO7JoLnTCBxu3TtvAuO00yNtLeQsTuTva5fJHer4LXhwcJZBeEEzN6jblYXUI9JVJkxMG7jOtc/s1600/2012-06-03+002+018.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzAllKekHk-d0C5Fc90PONNyEfL6A767V-D6zXmmjzavwffsP-FX5CO1MYEtwawGhimnlO7JoLnTCBxu3TtvAuO00yNtLeQsTuTva5fJHer4LXhwcJZBeEEzN6jblYXUI9JVJkxMG7jOtc/s400/2012-06-03+002+018.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Beautiful Strawberries</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Macy girl loving her strawberries for lunch</td></tr>
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<br />Julie Linnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07185482673627320340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5754000542463944665.post-20494014418202398462012-05-30T18:45:00.000-07:002012-05-30T18:45:24.103-07:0010 months, almost 1110 months! Crawling, eating mostly table food, saying mama, dada, and amen; giving kisses, clapping her hands, signing all done, petting Indy, sleeping great, pulling up on anything vertical, and laughing at almost anything that Elise does. Macy is a JOY! Although my bundle of joy didn't really cooperate for the 10 month picture....<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiv4T4V8eF8qPBtYe81mSdbzLALIIWetu6pR0Yw6LwZb1NWGKMg6RS3qjOdMPuUMpWowo_uJqCsMcK68avyWKSh-3ydKPH0oYIZw2DnCwKQYAL7ziw4ny5ZbeVv9iqcezEFbCEZfsc0mMn7/s1600/2012-05-30+001+008.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiv4T4V8eF8qPBtYe81mSdbzLALIIWetu6pR0Yw6LwZb1NWGKMg6RS3qjOdMPuUMpWowo_uJqCsMcK68avyWKSh-3ydKPH0oYIZw2DnCwKQYAL7ziw4ny5ZbeVv9iqcezEFbCEZfsc0mMn7/s320/2012-05-30+001+008.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Here's Macy's first real crawling success:<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dyXyyKGWpjQwgV-SkJLLDSwYdI38ErZSYe5Kcmz7NG6f3ZeROj3tcr1kN0i-6C9vTudTYlsWDtQfDy6ahDV2g' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>Julie Linnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07185482673627320340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5754000542463944665.post-71092009086477091652012-05-29T19:20:00.000-07:002012-05-29T19:20:13.309-07:00Fun in May<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
It's been a fun month!!</div>
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The warm weather gave us many afternoons to play outside in the sunshine. </div>
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Elise came to watch us dutch dance every night of tulip time, and we had so much fun together!</div>
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Fun downtown together in our dutch costumes</div>
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Scrubbing streets before the wednesday parade with my family</div>
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Picnic dinner and playing on the beach as summer begins</div>
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Macy likes the beach as much as the rest of us do!</div>
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Daddy and Elise's newest favorite game: blocks!</div>
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The girls need tubbies almost every night from all of our outside fun. They both love taking baths together!</div>
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Macy's first trip to Buchner park in Fort Wayne</div>
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All the kids had such a blast at Buchner Park. Here they're all swinging together.</div>
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Running Elise through the splash pad. What a beautiful day for fun at the park!</div>
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The Linn family plus the Riekens ready for the Indy 500, the greatest spectacle in racing! What a great race day: lots of sunshine (hot!), lead changes, fast racing, and an exciting finish. Congrats Dario!</div>
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Indy's summer cut. He's loving less hair with the warm days. </div>Julie Linnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07185482673627320340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5754000542463944665.post-6964154137395046852012-04-23T13:18:00.000-07:002012-04-23T13:18:34.233-07:00Saturday Adventure<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
For the past few months, Elise has been very interested in the Max buses that we'd see around town. One day, she decided that she would like to ride on one sometime. I told her that we would, and for the next few months, she reminded me of my promise every time we saw a Max bus on the road, which was almost daily since those buses are EVERYWHERE! Saturday was the day. We arrived at the bus station downtown Holland early. We looked at the route map, watched for the buses to arrive, and waited at the #8 sign for our bus. We planned to ride from Holland to the Family Fare in Zeeland, where we'd meet daddy and pick up a few groceries before all going home together in the van.</div>
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Waiting at the bus station for our bus to arrive. She loved seeing the depot, using the potty, and watching for more people to come and board the buses.</div>
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Our Max bus arrived right on time, and we wasted no time climbing aboard and choosing a seat. Elise wanted to sit in the far back, so that's where we picked. She also preferred a window seat. One crazy surprise of the morning was that the bus driver was Mr Avink, my fourth grade teacher from about a million years ago. He remembered my name, and was so sweet to help Elise put our bus $$ into the little meter. At 10am sharp, we headed out of the station and were on our way to Zeeland. There was just one other rider on our bus, and he happened to sit right next to us in the back. We picked up one other lady at the 96th street stop, and it was just the 5 of us.<br />
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Elise had a great time riding, and wasn't nearly ready to get off at our stop. Apparently, neither was I as I actually missed our intended stop. So, we had to ride one stop past Riley at Family Fare and walk a little bit to meet Bryan at Great Clips. Elise was not impressed with the chilly walk, or that I had missed our stop, but that's kind of what makes the adventure, right? </div>
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Next time she says she'd like to ride with daddy. </div>Julie Linnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07185482673627320340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5754000542463944665.post-56755318003188999812012-04-20T14:13:00.000-07:002012-04-20T14:13:01.250-07:00The Tulips Are Blooming in Holland, Michigan...a little early<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifMyUP2HnMNXbjljdryPxfBTHeOsd6PHOLj-YHTbj2_kJbW8gJWZ6Sn-Ll0f8L7Z0u1SX0-WlEQNBGWnyJmkaV1SRoFML6XZ9pTyCNMwIAwva5w4Z9dSXexCmeCGD2uwEKxOD6IxbW98h8/s1600/Dc416.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" qda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifMyUP2HnMNXbjljdryPxfBTHeOsd6PHOLj-YHTbj2_kJbW8gJWZ6Sn-Ll0f8L7Z0u1SX0-WlEQNBGWnyJmkaV1SRoFML6XZ9pTyCNMwIAwva5w4Z9dSXexCmeCGD2uwEKxOD6IxbW98h8/s320/Dc416.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Julie Linnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07185482673627320340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5754000542463944665.post-48783730315654416092012-04-17T18:43:00.010-07:002012-04-17T19:13:54.779-07:00Celebrating Spring<div align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj77HO8xLYq07FRZM1V90Q5XMRp2Iaf__bhJSTs81G-jsYPC6mZGvGU502W9qYatHjRY0Xdq7PJ535e6b05FycFKb6QoYPHD5fZbSiqCUqron5tuDWsEmIkzNn_qWQUqjd1M76F0mAtD9Be/s1600/April+2012+141.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 300px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5732557126322206690" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj77HO8xLYq07FRZM1V90Q5XMRp2Iaf__bhJSTs81G-jsYPC6mZGvGU502W9qYatHjRY0Xdq7PJ535e6b05FycFKb6QoYPHD5fZbSiqCUqron5tuDWsEmIkzNn_qWQUqjd1M76F0mAtD9Be/s400/April+2012+141.jpg" /></a> Happy girl, ready to head out for the day</div><br /><div align="center"></div><br /><div align="center"><br /><br /><div align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2cOg02FNDO76pB5cOpRa8hnlnUiK-BDayI4QDWudqK5phLRNLZ5pnnaKTj1E6j7KBmeM6gSObmr3EQYXPeJ8-kKbRb0woDgmqXBh9tXU-fYigXmD86CVR7swI6I8_QAbVXLLzUyylORH9/s1600/April+2012+136.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 300px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5732556376778122066" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2cOg02FNDO76pB5cOpRa8hnlnUiK-BDayI4QDWudqK5phLRNLZ5pnnaKTj1E6j7KBmeM6gSObmr3EQYXPeJ8-kKbRb0woDgmqXBh9tXU-fYigXmD86CVR7swI6I8_QAbVXLLzUyylORH9/s400/April+2012+136.jpg" /></a> Elise's newest favorite treat: sprinkle donut from the gas station<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 267px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5732555169892300930" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijxBYaUb3IbSjeYwXTlkJhv4YYqINL4xwXbCFz4LSKMgbAr_3e0fCZSdRFGNeyPtbR9MRJlnJfThYqqkS1yq95N6YrR9J0IasC3q9It3D_mmi2erupmwHi0jZA6ueAS_fOgo9ygWb24kWw/s400/April+2012+013.jpg" /></div><br /><div align="center">Easter Sunday-it was kind of cold, but we had a great day! Macy did, too, she just didn't like taking pictures. :)</div><br /><br /><br /><br /><div align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoNROY40b5bdWy9lWSb8mYR5YggPB90jcZkyuA1l7ouz5Gh3nB0QCwHqR0pXjqFugjclMJIqAJJy18H7aWh285WtaZgmQbqPCejDmXZJpefcFViq2CZ5olAUjafKkQmgeLXAoxVjEN_MaV/s1600/April+2012+158.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 300px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5732554224064370114" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoNROY40b5bdWy9lWSb8mYR5YggPB90jcZkyuA1l7ouz5Gh3nB0QCwHqR0pXjqFugjclMJIqAJJy18H7aWh285WtaZgmQbqPCejDmXZJpefcFViq2CZ5olAUjafKkQmgeLXAoxVjEN_MaV/s400/April+2012+158.jpg" /></a> coloring Easter eggs-we only broke ONE!<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguqIFeas21PcLwOsje0Dxu9ioxywrJWN-FLPKHtV3ozzbvpmBEiie6YRikKu61MNZXuCfKnTPBsW9qXs0p4TY9n91WxVj9u-a97gXoeHWfGGOnXurEri6pEPwEalYo1KgDL-E2H89Ihv3r/s1600/April+2012+148.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 300px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5732553944118093410" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguqIFeas21PcLwOsje0Dxu9ioxywrJWN-FLPKHtV3ozzbvpmBEiie6YRikKu61MNZXuCfKnTPBsW9qXs0p4TY9n91WxVj9u-a97gXoeHWfGGOnXurEri6pEPwEalYo1KgDL-E2H89Ihv3r/s400/April+2012+148.jpg" /></a> Macy may be teething.....<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkaz_1WJI7dqnGT-ySg3QVdypv1HweyG03REdJLRs2eJ8x56gfS2miPW5R4l8olo7GW1k86UxtD9ITnV62QgEr8lF4UmvrlHXkbMtleo55W-li6Q102UcCBGGthyphenhyphenZA18cwKv23GafNuH7N/s1600/April+2012+052.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 267px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5732553630081879586" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkaz_1WJI7dqnGT-ySg3QVdypv1HweyG03REdJLRs2eJ8x56gfS2miPW5R4l8olo7GW1k86UxtD9ITnV62QgEr8lF4UmvrlHXkbMtleo55W-li6Q102UcCBGGthyphenhyphenZA18cwKv23GafNuH7N/s400/April+2012+052.jpg" /></a> Easter egg hunt with Bryan's family<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCGPlhgiE2-2IHzahkEet8-cU3rxk33g591T1U_nHwhIgRqV17mrp7E3bHAm1Xdp1RhfqjGZ9eFmvZgbYTw9N852aCKvTexcWmhGf1K5X6Tq_VlfrNmILusHzHEvdhKvPUEnju9AxqwvdH/s1600/April+2012+087.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 267px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5732551505119464754" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCGPlhgiE2-2IHzahkEet8-cU3rxk33g591T1U_nHwhIgRqV17mrp7E3bHAm1Xdp1RhfqjGZ9eFmvZgbYTw9N852aCKvTexcWmhGf1K5X6Tq_VlfrNmILusHzHEvdhKvPUEnju9AxqwvdH/s400/April+2012+087.jpg" /></a> Look who's standing up so big to play?!<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqGGrYF_EV1cXpwx_FnGYiry86MjcZUFtbbFKxeqZHx-m81wJW5JN10r09WB3bPpbj0_sCZAM08qSO_KHIhaYROjmKnZoLJihmxapzm7kYy3BlYBzR7Bk2pA-1I-VK2bQ7XB665h2sM0m0/s1600/April+2012+130.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 267px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5732551108986823346" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqGGrYF_EV1cXpwx_FnGYiry86MjcZUFtbbFKxeqZHx-m81wJW5JN10r09WB3bPpbj0_sCZAM08qSO_KHIhaYROjmKnZoLJihmxapzm7kYy3BlYBzR7Bk2pA-1I-VK2bQ7XB665h2sM0m0/s400/April+2012+130.jpg" /></a> weekend away up north with friends<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div></div></div></div></div><br /></div></div>Julie Linnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07185482673627320340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5754000542463944665.post-5723234859255936712012-04-12T18:25:00.003-07:002012-04-12T18:54:38.551-07:00nine months<span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;">Macy turned 9 months old today. *sigh* It's so great to see Macy's personality coming through, and I love all the milestones, I just would LOVE to keep her little just a tick longer. Don't I just sound like every other mom on the planet?!</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;">She's grown a TON in just a few weeks. Saying "dadadada" and "mamamama," waving good-bye, pulling herself up to standing, trying hard to move but still not crawling, and feeding herself bits of food not just baby food mush. But with all that growing and changing, she's still just as sweet as that little newborn that we met in July. She loves to cuddle, to be held, tickled, watch movies with Elise, sung to, play in the tubby, pet Indy, and be outside. Her favorite food right now is pancakes, and her favorite toy is anything of Elise's. :) What she hates: being left alone in a room, getting her diaper changed, getting dressed, and wearing socks.</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 267px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5730697146618748418" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR9rQwkKXqOd7EmfTSEGaUFswrCG1cmTXzhyphenhyphenGtqVvCadxSwYJZPmJVICa4G55OoPEsRe9hUghtsY_L50RCNj4DDIdeJ-_mB2jWhv1m5c70L100knhg7EQWN_j_feZHXR0CjoQJdkIH8hoE/s400/April+2012+071.jpg" /></span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;">As Elise gets more independent, and now as Macy seems to get bigger by the day (I know, she really does!) I feel more and more blessed and also anxious about raising these girls. Somehow the job just feels overwhelming at times. I pray that they'll be strong women, but also compassionate and serving. I want them to love others selflessly, but not be taken advantage of. I hope they are successful in whatever they choose to do, but also that they'll leave lots of room to change and grow as God leads. Is how I'm training them now going to get them there? Am I too hard, soft, generous, emotional, distracted.......and on and on.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;">That's where the power of prayer brings me to a place of rest and peace and hope. So, while we run around to Kohl's and the grocery store tomorrow, I know that what we talk about and how we treat people shape their world. I know that how we spend our money and our time is forming habits for their adulthood. But, I also know that running errands on Friday is just running errands. We'll buy sunglasses and rice cereal. We'll probably stop at every potty we come to. And my prayer is that in all of that, in the normal and the silly happenings of our week, God will do the shaping. God will use my attempts and also my failures, to teach my girls about HIS world and about how they are to be a part of it. In the end, it's only my job to point these girls to Him. To His will, love, grace.... HE does the rest. </span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;"><br /><br /><span style="font-size:130%;"></span></span>Julie Linnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07185482673627320340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5754000542463944665.post-29807408570594089192012-03-22T18:50:00.003-07:002012-03-22T18:59:55.186-07:00shorter days<span style="font-size:130%;">I know, I know, as we approach springtime, the days are really getting longer. But, on my stay-at-home mom days, the days are so much SHORTER.</span><br /><span style="font-size:130%;"></span><br /><span style="font-size:130%;">All of a sudden, it's difficult to get my girls lunch before naps at two. All of a sudden it's late afternoon and Bryan is calling to tell me that he's heading home in the next few minutes, and I haven't even started dinner. The laundry is piling up. The kitchen floor is a dirty mess. Our bathrooms are entirely <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_0" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">embarrassing</span>. There are just better things to do!</span><br /><span style="font-size:130%;"></span><br /><span style="font-size:130%;">There are swings to ride. Walks to take to the park. Cozy Coups to push. Driveways to color with chalk. <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_1" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">Window boxes</span> to clean out. Bubbles to blow into the warm breeze......such fun WARM weather things to fill our days.</span><br /><span style="font-size:130%;"></span><br /><span style="font-size:130%;">Welcome, warm days. Thank you for making a day at home fly by, leaving us dirty, content, and exhausted from a day FULL of outside fun.</span><br /><span style="font-size:130%;"></span><br /><span style="font-size:130%;">I'm so excited for the real summer months to arrive. This unexpected weather has brought thoughts of beach days, splash pads, sundresses, swimming pools, camping, sprinklers, garden tomatoes, dinner from the grill, captain sundae.......<span id="SPELLING_ERROR_2" class="blsp-spelling-error">YAY</span>! Welcome spring. Hurry up, summer.</span>Julie Linnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07185482673627320340noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5754000542463944665.post-74728797665021332952012-03-16T18:06:00.013-07:002012-03-16T19:23:14.453-07:00what kind of march is this?!<div align="center"><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;">Even though our days were filled with an annoying fever bug, cancelled plans, a crabby teething baby, and a couple sleepless nights; we still had a GREAT week. The weather was so awesome! We tried to be out as much as possible, enjoying the <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_0" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">swing set</span>, walking to the park, and driving with ALL the windows down. Each day has ended with mandatory baths to wash all that sunshine and dirt from </span></div><br /><div align="center"><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;">those little girls. So fun!! </span></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEig3Y5QJ2aFkVk1X4lnkC23bR4rRXGAD6Ob0BHCqK-UmtBytCDg5AAzMV8GjSPwJvnibVs7o-4m32s9C4Qh9gyuywUXeewGuf3mQdW9qkO_qGjo1jsYBdDRtW5sqIrEYCTiylFmKGKl2Q7m/s1600/march+2012+202.jpg"><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 267px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5720676008874696018" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEig3Y5QJ2aFkVk1X4lnkC23bR4rRXGAD6Ob0BHCqK-UmtBytCDg5AAzMV8GjSPwJvnibVs7o-4m32s9C4Qh9gyuywUXeewGuf3mQdW9qkO_qGjo1jsYBdDRtW5sqIrEYCTiylFmKGKl2Q7m/s400/march+2012+202.jpg" /></span></a><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;"> Macy loves the baby swing, and Elise is more than happy to push her in it<br /></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihU18ZOFaXNYRgo5zHLonfeoKKlJdmKVUvY3Fo8qcETazmHSj6ElvLML-0MrWN3emsZ3ocJhUxgs6m0pNCN8NypnmgNGAzVRxPM1ag0JFiHaDFomcr5v2lxRyQQ0V0sOb8h_RwaabBDvjl/s1600/march+2012+206.jpg"></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEis4TxyZiJYXipShSKtYYfsvVkQ81o5EETeRrZlBQqGqk6EO0IZ4UQrX7Q-uxw4HpwUAu9sP0g04uamLLlt4Q9AAf280KHCzg8sfDZa14p4KRo2gNzRWKmW3nK4CT62iOF0nscXekuJ8eGs/s1600/march+2012+193.jpg"><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 267px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5720674447748665426" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEis4TxyZiJYXipShSKtYYfsvVkQ81o5EETeRrZlBQqGqk6EO0IZ4UQrX7Q-uxw4HpwUAu9sP0g04uamLLlt4Q9AAf280KHCzg8sfDZa14p4KRo2gNzRWKmW3nK4CT62iOF0nscXekuJ8eGs/s400/march+2012+193.jpg" /></span></a><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-family:arial;">this girl LOVES to swing. if it were up to her, we'd swing all day. every day.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></span><br /></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivNmNVY_tnsjHJKvk4TsJxpqHnnrwnK0J7wJntJJpTAu9dXyXFPVYLZiJLK4jRcZLWOCVi_SgL2D3pHwkyNTKmOw_szz7yIa6f-BbFFVhBxrmy2JtspsavQt9UW5sLJOQGapvQLf40ax1v/s1600/march+2012+204.jpg"><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 267px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5720673305534940066" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivNmNVY_tnsjHJKvk4TsJxpqHnnrwnK0J7wJntJJpTAu9dXyXFPVYLZiJLK4jRcZLWOCVi_SgL2D3pHwkyNTKmOw_szz7yIa6f-BbFFVhBxrmy2JtspsavQt9UW5sLJOQGapvQLf40ax1v/s400/march+2012+204.jpg" /></span></a><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-family:arial;"> so fun when our neighbor friends come out to play<br />Charin and Elise are only 10 days apart, and Elise loves to play with him<br /><br /><br /><br /></span><br /><br /></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifPsOyinCx3kZ5Fep2b95wMKQeWvEk_6F3oajGlDZaHiR8lHkDwXiy0q-d2rxtc6ti77TmxXJe0zznoe_mj6gjPoukIkONM01rrWBQw96rhYTiQq8Mop0Bw20CwSMwPp5nlLyQAmXtJhTO/s1600/march+2012+189.jpg"><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 267px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5720672164309559746" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifPsOyinCx3kZ5Fep2b95wMKQeWvEk_6F3oajGlDZaHiR8lHkDwXiy0q-d2rxtc6ti77TmxXJe0zznoe_mj6gjPoukIkONM01rrWBQw96rhYTiQq8Mop0Bw20CwSMwPp5nlLyQAmXtJhTO/s400/march+2012+189.jpg" /></span></a><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-family:arial;"> Macy was super happy in the swing, and like most babies, very content to be outside<br /></span><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6XzsUb9do1qavy1OAltlKpLxkSF8PRmDtFsEQ29yZBOM0wc_ck1eX3PDMuI8_z99JXLPWq3k7ce3qC9GHH1vWvrPQiSZxOMyB1-seLLERTVB_qwEFrlCEwpbhVnMRXsyCK-SBBvEzTiiX/s1600/march+2012+231.jpg"><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 300px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5720670454632402514" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6XzsUb9do1qavy1OAltlKpLxkSF8PRmDtFsEQ29yZBOM0wc_ck1eX3PDMuI8_z99JXLPWq3k7ce3qC9GHH1vWvrPQiSZxOMyB1-seLLERTVB_qwEFrlCEwpbhVnMRXsyCK-SBBvEzTiiX/s400/march+2012+231.jpg" /></span></a><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;"> another highlight of our week was not one but TWO trips to Lowe's, </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;">and we got a </span><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-family:arial;"><span id="SPELLING_ERROR_1" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">race car</span> cart both times!!<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></span><br /><br /></span><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilL8JhEXLPX7PezgDPzj-hOu1ji9smtg9GBb_E04v-5KOa7gwYNHpJhXpZp7Wr4zu8tXkMxg-J5HH3vc96v_ac1cu_mcCrb2Kp2G-GDUx8Jg_riSm0gu_8OMjIsZu3I1P_riVpEaNgS40K/s1600/march+2012+227.jpg"><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 267px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5720669937914940018" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilL8JhEXLPX7PezgDPzj-hOu1ji9smtg9GBb_E04v-5KOa7gwYNHpJhXpZp7Wr4zu8tXkMxg-J5HH3vc96v_ac1cu_mcCrb2Kp2G-GDUx8Jg_riSm0gu_8OMjIsZu3I1P_riVpEaNgS40K/s400/march+2012+227.jpg" /></span></a><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;"> And Macy girl turned 8 months old on <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_2" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">Monday</span>.....</span></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;"></span></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;">At 8 months Macy is wearing 9-12 month clothes, size 3 diapers, sleeping less-than-great, LOVES to eat: pancakes, pumpkin, cottage cheese....anything, really; nursing well, sitting up and reaching forward to grab the toys she wants, sleeping on her tummy, sitting up in shopping carts instead of riding in her <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_3" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">car seat</span>, "talking" nearly all the time-loudly :), loving <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_4" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">TV</span> & movies, is a total daddy's girl, has 2 bottom teeth, loves petting Indy dog, and is still sweet as sweet can be.</span></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;"></span></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><span style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;">Hard to believe my baby is 8 months old. I'm so looking forward to the summer months full of warm-weather fun with my girls!<br /><br /></span><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></span></div><br /></div>Julie Linnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07185482673627320340noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5754000542463944665.post-9811396941025548362012-02-20T18:27:00.001-08:002012-02-20T19:25:03.401-08:00flying through februaryThis month is FLYING by. If I were a better blogger (and a better time manager!!), I'd have insightful and interesting blog posts about all that we've been up to over the last few weeks. Unfortunately, I'm just hanging on over here, so this blog post is mostly just to "catch up" on our happenings, picture style. And kinda speedy. Enjoy.<br /><br />February began with a mission trip to Gracias Honduras. I was there for a week with a brigade of about 50 medical people from west michigan. We partner with the Luke's society, which has been a presence in Gracias for over 17 years. My week consisted assisting in urology surgery at the surgery center in Gracias, traveling to a rural village an hour into the mountains to help the dental team for a day, working in the outpatient area for a day, and some rest and relaxation in Copan before traveling home. It was a GREAT trip, full of awesome personal growth in my faith and spiritual journey. I am so grateful for a mission trip that uses my gifts, talents, and education to serve people in a way so desperately needed. This was my second time to Gracias, and I hope it is not my last.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7qMro01AEIUb1s0t_1uUKNN2q-XbWVVERGBUVZa8U2iqVderOw5StgeNKlbiPifDf4DcYp1dEgCiy5e5mrF_6TNI4U-f5tSsaEsWoVs84DBOc9Y_-B46c9ZHvkansSjCUAKOjE5BauQtk/s1600/February+2012+020.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 267px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5711419489138841186" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7qMro01AEIUb1s0t_1uUKNN2q-XbWVVERGBUVZa8U2iqVderOw5StgeNKlbiPifDf4DcYp1dEgCiy5e5mrF_6TNI4U-f5tSsaEsWoVs84DBOc9Y_-B46c9ZHvkansSjCUAKOjE5BauQtk/s400/February+2012+020.jpg" /></a> beautiful Honduras<br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_3fjhqHRSI3bKSD_ZVC8t7XurGBIlNG4nckRfVGRzU2mzq6rzaOQGXWAkn-PSK4VFSLSjReBSWGwiHuJdMQjdMsEGripgFLEf4_IbOTiVz0YW4jRcpNPxWOpDPAhW6_kRAFgK1VSozK-r/s1600/425386_10150585165944448_843659447_8768125_1055962672_n.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5711418580251269682" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_3fjhqHRSI3bKSD_ZVC8t7XurGBIlNG4nckRfVGRzU2mzq6rzaOQGXWAkn-PSK4VFSLSjReBSWGwiHuJdMQjdMsEGripgFLEf4_IbOTiVz0YW4jRcpNPxWOpDPAhW6_kRAFgK1VSozK-r/s400/425386_10150585165944448_843659447_8768125_1055962672_n.jpg" /></a> outpatient day with Karla, Jane, and Katherine<br /><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqkPwMhklFpTY-EViAoiNUG9VW1cQbTOajaUK3DtVUFUYhqawfKwDa13ekm6R88hsLnq5qtGe5TulGnuFmVcy8DSd1-NbuLvWPcQQcb5F2OdpG3lY3OutfIxSnoBzXRsfxEGgTnOaxgS1U/s1600/February+2012+079.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 267px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5711418158874928002" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqkPwMhklFpTY-EViAoiNUG9VW1cQbTOajaUK3DtVUFUYhqawfKwDa13ekm6R88hsLnq5qtGe5TulGnuFmVcy8DSd1-NbuLvWPcQQcb5F2OdpG3lY3OutfIxSnoBzXRsfxEGgTnOaxgS1U/s400/February+2012+079.jpg" /></a> assisting Dr Lindhout and the dental team in the village</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>And shortly after I returned home to my sweet little family, it was Valentine's day! Elise and I made cookies for Bryan, and the four of us enjoyed a candle light dinner of tortellini. I was on-call for the night, so no big plans were in order. It was fun to explain to Elise what we were celebrating. <br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilmCg1bijQbgv0DDPq8WNVzIbWhG4riqbQV15lrH5m9loCIRn0Xt9Z6fes7cJ58TpoO8HcXsnPeVXXrUrlizpl90XRKAo5jRJ1yFhhbxZCyQu90TO70aNAIf3VOCbMvq2H4Ie-IdX4HXr7/s1600/February+2012+169.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 267px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5711415754944354210" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilmCg1bijQbgv0DDPq8WNVzIbWhG4riqbQV15lrH5m9loCIRn0Xt9Z6fes7cJ58TpoO8HcXsnPeVXXrUrlizpl90XRKAo5jRJ1yFhhbxZCyQu90TO70aNAIf3VOCbMvq2H4Ie-IdX4HXr7/s400/February+2012+169.jpg" /></a> the girls had matching valentine's day outfits, which they wore </div><br /><div>to daycare that day. Macy was just a tick exhausted here. :)<br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhj8QnFIDWaHzi4BOgOlDMg1j-v-AHWgYx6Zsv7jm1H-7tIj-K0Xaupt-pvgw_hmvHhjBy0z0F7WMN_nDVB55iy4lePNt5z4wtZP8IOWSoJHY4kkeZnNNtth7bXMLCX12TYYJTjDCXxsO4h/s1600/February+2012+171.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 267px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5711415231055319490" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhj8QnFIDWaHzi4BOgOlDMg1j-v-AHWgYx6Zsv7jm1H-7tIj-K0Xaupt-pvgw_hmvHhjBy0z0F7WMN_nDVB55iy4lePNt5z4wtZP8IOWSoJHY4kkeZnNNtth7bXMLCX12TYYJTjDCXxsO4h/s400/February+2012+171.jpg" /></a> I'm a terrible baker, so these cookies looked cute, but tasted quite</div><br /><div>awful. Thankfully, I have a very gracious husband who ate them anyway. </div><br /><div>Now that's love! :)</div><br /><div><br /><br />Finally, sweet Macy turned 7 months old. She's sweet as can be, happy most of the time, and growing bigger by the day. She sits well on her own, hates tummy time, loves to eat EVERYTHING, drools a lot, has TWO teeth, sleeps wonderfully, wears 6-9 month clothes, babbles all the time, and I swear she shook her head "no" at me tonight when I tried to get her to finish her avacado. I'm loving each day with this precious girl, and if I could stop the clock and keep her a little longer in this super-fun phase, I would.<br /><br /></div><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaq0b76WhWAKFBzjbwbcBO0-KXTtilSljvBLPT9fthvqFutSTOSjyTMik1kxljHguwkWmceCb2ZxhsBv_zc_FcFKUo-VMrmoJD7XxYoLD6FwC6Mw25i4QlGOn_ymMfDrLsytzISf_XBM6L/s1600/February+2012+210.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 267px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5711414732164382994" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaq0b76WhWAKFBzjbwbcBO0-KXTtilSljvBLPT9fthvqFutSTOSjyTMik1kxljHguwkWmceCb2ZxhsBv_zc_FcFKUo-VMrmoJD7XxYoLD6FwC6Mw25i4QlGOn_ymMfDrLsytzISf_XBM6L/s400/February+2012+210.jpg" /></a> <br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGsT58ViEz3_3BUjls-abhuXfGnJCpEOvzOI4LBaQ-GgKyzQccc0JB2ZpOpAgQAq3hnrUenXO8jXuP1nD5MFP6_y-ZCRjs6n2fS1NL109H_jb_Fqh_IMsBekDkblIR4lTIudyW_PSCA33F/s1600/February+2012+241.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 267px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5711414177649278050" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGsT58ViEz3_3BUjls-abhuXfGnJCpEOvzOI4LBaQ-GgKyzQccc0JB2ZpOpAgQAq3hnrUenXO8jXuP1nD5MFP6_y-ZCRjs6n2fS1NL109H_jb_Fqh_IMsBekDkblIR4lTIudyW_PSCA33F/s400/February+2012+241.jpg" /></a> Cheesy smile to show off those two new teeth!<br /><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNh8Ah2TfE9b6DAUO9wmEjeoXcGwmetcw-E2DHLDSeSl7-xwWrEQONHxMhs_iKFI6Dwt66APQA5Xdyp10-NCaUJsOIf2fCh97zYt8m8s0KWK-NDIOTjkilVm3NsR_Th9rW-jz_LTPlHr6G/s1600/February+2012+240.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 267px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5711411643930346306" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNh8Ah2TfE9b6DAUO9wmEjeoXcGwmetcw-E2DHLDSeSl7-xwWrEQONHxMhs_iKFI6Dwt66APQA5Xdyp10-NCaUJsOIf2fCh97zYt8m8s0KWK-NDIOTjkilVm3NsR_Th9rW-jz_LTPlHr6G/s400/February+2012+240.jpg" /></a><br />Sweetie Girl!<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>Julie Linnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07185482673627320340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5754000542463944665.post-4550392880626266602012-01-16T12:43:00.000-08:002012-01-16T13:32:09.911-08:00Six Months<div align="center"><span style="font-size:130%;">Macy turned 6 months old last week. I say it every month, but time does FLY! </span></div><span style="font-size:130%;"></span><br /><br /><div align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGgm5qGa4meIoAI9JrteO4eAfKtzhdQEkFvuL5d7GZmQhx_19SbTVJ0sdnCmvaQj-joMm1LFQQioeq-yvwWh7T2Rb-kWYBq1dwnJNp6eB-OvlIc06vEveKZUZCB2cJrO2tVd4awbNNalbH/s1600/january+2012+105.jpg"><span style="font-size:130%;"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 267px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5698341100036620482" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGgm5qGa4meIoAI9JrteO4eAfKtzhdQEkFvuL5d7GZmQhx_19SbTVJ0sdnCmvaQj-joMm1LFQQioeq-yvwWh7T2Rb-kWYBq1dwnJNp6eB-OvlIc06vEveKZUZCB2cJrO2tVd4awbNNalbH/s400/january+2012+105.jpg" /></span></a><span style="font-size:130%;"> At 6 months, Macy is:</span></div><br /><div align="center"><span style="font-size:130%;">*Sitting up very well on her own</span></div><br /><div align="center"><span style="font-size:130%;">*Sleeping through the night from 8pm-7am</span></div><br /><div align="center"><span style="font-size:130%;">*Nursing 5 times a day and eating rice cereal and baby food, squash is her favorite</span></div><br /><div align="center"><span style="font-size:130%;">*Playing with her feet and often putting them in her mouth</span></div><br /><div align="center"><span style="font-size:130%;">*Wearing 6-9 months clothes and size 2 diapers</span></div><br /><div align="center"><span style="font-size:130%;">*Babbling, smiling, and laughing</span></div><br /><div align="center"><span style="font-size:130%;">*recognizing mommy and daddy and noticing when we're not around</span></div><br /><div align="center"><span style="font-size:130%;">*taking tubbies with Elise and splashing water all over both of them</span></div><br /><div align="center"><span style="font-size:130%;">*laid back and flexible, making it easy to take her along nearly anywhere</span></div><br /><div align="center"><span style="font-size:130%;">*napping twice a day, morning and afternoon, 2 hours each</span></div><br /><div align="center"><span style="font-size:130%;">*cuddly almost all the time. This girl loves to be held!</span></div><br /><div align="center"><span style="font-size:130%;">*putting everything in her mouth, especially her hands</span></div><br /><div align="center"><span style="font-size:130%;">*playing well in her exersaucer or play gym on her own</span></div><br /><div align="center"><span style="font-size:130%;">*27 inches tall (88th%) and 17 pounds (67th%)</span></div><br /><div align="center"></div><br /><div align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAgeb-vy-eifb_lVI7viN4HrJEOmQ4E4mbS8bu-37VaUrd1IG8QkRE5ssCVxc1q37pqoqMIfbBWkCnaMdTETuQkQVqyYBRB4susZ2rgGdN0Ut3JScGjiFJtELY-XbOl3LNDEGijTNy-vOD/s1600/january+2012+157.jpg"><span style="font-size:130%;"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 300px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5698340570776018626" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAgeb-vy-eifb_lVI7viN4HrJEOmQ4E4mbS8bu-37VaUrd1IG8QkRE5ssCVxc1q37pqoqMIfbBWkCnaMdTETuQkQVqyYBRB4susZ2rgGdN0Ut3JScGjiFJtELY-XbOl3LNDEGijTNy-vOD/s400/january+2012+157.jpg" /></span></a><span style="font-size:130%;"> first time in the baby swing at Huizenga park. It was a crazy-warm day in January!<br /><br /><br /></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjA-rclS3f6qdBJ2MRiI8Wg6tW9WifPzSIwpop4Yyj1pi3Ec2-FVKtvHCFNHpxZaUc80hrAfNJ4_ee5KBnBx3qpowCw7rLLUAgLLqrIndM2639olUGJ9fluE-nWbCSx8LMEffqfgOkubdMy/s1600/january+2012+095.jpg"><span style="font-size:130%;"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 267px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5698340069087760466" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjA-rclS3f6qdBJ2MRiI8Wg6tW9WifPzSIwpop4Yyj1pi3Ec2-FVKtvHCFNHpxZaUc80hrAfNJ4_ee5KBnBx3qpowCw7rLLUAgLLqrIndM2639olUGJ9fluE-nWbCSx8LMEffqfgOkubdMy/s400/january+2012+095.jpg" /></span></a><span style="font-size:130%;"> Loving attention from her big sister, Elise (most of the time!)<br /><br /></span><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKEAorzfsqynLDvtaOn9BwJfl1cCbkCNmmaZD7nzTkeWjR6-6HY5FPmWcv01UIIhok4FuLOduH3QWexPGx46zztEed3h5JP3TwU1YgJ1xCRR8rNUgslOlpghg5lYWSmkgEHccOQPOOHUy-/s1600/january+2012+089.jpg"><span style="font-size:130%;"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 267px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5698336311922290898" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKEAorzfsqynLDvtaOn9BwJfl1cCbkCNmmaZD7nzTkeWjR6-6HY5FPmWcv01UIIhok4FuLOduH3QWexPGx46zztEed3h5JP3TwU1YgJ1xCRR8rNUgslOlpghg5lYWSmkgEHccOQPOOHUy-/s400/january+2012+089.jpg" /></span></a><span style="font-size:130%;"> Messy, messy eater. But, so good!<br /><br /></span><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOL602RNirg51IBgWcydyzUODnCOra4rNnL03M95Qtp8OLZXMcwx4bZJTG4NyLRQahijAjOtq8SuqkH49Ad3EZi_X444S9D6O53JO-BdOEC6Vk_2fPbEduAMEX_ksSQ1jC6UG-qMM8UrXV/s1600/january+2012+077.jpg"><span style="font-size:130%;"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 267px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5698335795161033762" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOL602RNirg51IBgWcydyzUODnCOra4rNnL03M95Qtp8OLZXMcwx4bZJTG4NyLRQahijAjOtq8SuqkH49Ad3EZi_X444S9D6O53JO-BdOEC6Vk_2fPbEduAMEX_ksSQ1jC6UG-qMM8UrXV/s400/january+2012+077.jpg" /></span></a><span style="font-size:130%;">Happy to play on her own and sit up to watch whatever we're doing</span></div><br /><div><span style="font-size:130%;"></span></div><br /><div><span style="font-size:130%;">This is probably one of my most favorite baby phases. I love that Macy can sit up and play on her own and be included in things that we're doing, like playing games or reading books. She really just wants to be wherever we are, crying and fussing if she feels too far away from the rest of us. And, at 6 months, it feels like you're kind of "through" those grueling first stages. It's fun to see more and more of Macy's personality as she grows and is able to show us her true colors. So far she's still super-sweet and very laid-back. </span></div><br /><div><span style="font-size:130%;"></span></div><br /><div><span style="font-size:130%;">Happy 6 months, Macy girl!<br /><br /></span><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><br /><div></div></div><br /></div>Julie Linnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07185482673627320340noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5754000542463944665.post-78163694036324914052012-01-02T17:16:00.000-08:002012-01-02T18:54:09.353-08:00Swim Suits and Ice Skates<div align="center"><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;">What a great New Year's weekend!! Bryan and I sat down Friday night and made a game plan for the weekend. How dorky is that?! But, knowing how days can fly by without anything really <em>happening</em>, we thought that if we set out with some plans, we might have more fun. And it turned out to be a great family weekend!</span></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><div align="center"><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;">We started at the Aquatic Center on Saturday morning. Elise was so excited to go to the pool, that she had to set out her swim suit and her towel the night before. Then we needed to try it on before breakfast that morning, and pack it into the bag a few times before we actually left. The pool did not <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_0" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">disappoint</span>. Elise loved splashing around and playing in the fantastic splash zone designed perfectly for her age. Macy also liked the pool, and enjoyed her first "swimming" experience.</span></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div align="center"><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;"></span></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div align="center"><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;"></span></div><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5693228069919761330" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBjv-0oBB_W8J_Nucz7oFGhK7TcUY08DbDH_LurdwXF4ZtRvGgECPZ2MipB1izpHrcQZWs9G29Vw1RMGZdM2SDqRfuLSlNcxK1Va0uR4arh5FiuhNi6HfJ1QY5EpHObdujK4wcCuiRTx6j/s320/january+2012+043.jpg" /><br /><br /><br /></span><br /><br /><div align="center"><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5693221354202868290" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqHEZIDVotLRefVbXAgqBZ3BzymHpLGRCjgMeJeYh-aFlD6E9qXKLYyTV5alu2yQz3Y6YPc0WpJJ5fbTKiC2BiVgB5we2AkmHWaSVcHuA_kBR7kePqe1biCI66bX4ZKPqdG2Xo2LRSPbAG/s320/january+2012+050.jpg" /></span></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div align="center"><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5693220714291495314" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrhVsqb1JDTOs_-yuGtKCAfxDRSXmBSBci-_qQUWZnySwKxOy5dsp1nUMY1Bcu3vbZsulyH1LL4SVGpRr2tOPy0WoL-7eqaVBfeXYkGU-uWI8JS8QD499P_82e5Or-qUZSfQtuso0QhW9o/s320/january+2012+048.jpg" /><br />Gotta love all the fun at the aquatic center!<br /><br />Bryan and I rang in the new year with some fantastic friends at a pretty low-key party, wrapping up the night early at 10pm. Again, how dorky are we?! But, we got to bed on time, let our sitter get to a party <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_1" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">after all</span>, and were well-rested for our greeting <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_2" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">responsibilities</span> at church the next morning starting at 7:45 AM!! We both agreed that our days of big party new year's eve plans will come again in a few years, but for now, this fit the bill perfectly.<br /><br /><br />Today we took Elise ice skating. By we, I mean Bryan took her. I held Macy and the camera. :) Elise <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_3" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">received</span> skates for Christmas, so we were excited to get her out on the ice to try them out. She did fantastically, and even after a few falls, she says she wants to go back again sometime. While Bryan jokes that we should consider the winter <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_4" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">Olympics</span> 2032, I'm just hoping for some family fun over the winter.</span></div><br /><br /><br /><div align="center"><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;"></span></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div align="center"><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 325px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 221px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5693222352282911586" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzdDlUIzsYKZZJprUdhZZ2O0C89RGDSA3QXFiyMeOa1-OheyK5rDdLxyzx6CZPdLWOUJk1O2_gfruyhG7QnPB5e42L3874efisj32qXrsCDQw94LiC0kDmakx9MdBbzLsZ0OX_yye5uydx/s320/january+2012+004.jpg" /></span></div><br /><br /><br /><div align="center"><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;">Ready to skate!!</span></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div align="center"><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;"></span></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div align="center"><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 214px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5693225715214255378" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5JjCBpd2s3-MWzc_kEqRuUDPeAgKXqIKsT8Z5bfWY-uS3NhBVhYwcOUzJuO1BZpyLO47Zpc-KSNx8UTBBi_uRyexQi-mOBRTQpJrfOtNiQ3oZQ_5aggNz_Yslp1GsYhv3KH5YHSW-DzEg/s320/january+2012+028.jpg" /></span></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div align="center"><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;"></span></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div align="center"><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 214px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5693224654598449266" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyEAK6TkSnybBNNKb7XgA8Pl0Jxbh86q7VJQEpgj4_S9SsLdhjmBEhuTtbvIyXNR4worPwX9I000iOJQ23yzEsxclImizpSfv53g9Z-814jNSQWz_bX0VtIdg08uILWMs5RxIjkEobA-bc/s320/january+2012+032.jpg" /></span></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><p align="center"><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;">This "trainer" thing was very helpful, for Elise and for Bryan's back. :)</span></p><br /><br /><br /><p align="center"><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;"></span></p><br /><br /><br /><p align="center"><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 214px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5693223629261190098" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrChW8S_2tnAkAYf3v5pi6BenVin9A1_24izUOGGuOZ2Ffd4bd695CNnlukrKtZ0WrEtJknKAbHxMLQViBgKjD9V5bVSDYXHnsEcNA2ku0dK6gWK62U5zAl6ysKaZUnlbmrxdfnubeIygb/s320/january+2012+033.jpg" /> Still smiling after her time on the ice. She really liked watching the other skaters, too.</span></p><br /><br /><br /><br /><p align="center"><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;">While 2011 brought some major changes for our family, I'm looking forward to a good 2012. I'm praying that our family will grow in our love for each other and our Savior, learn and follow where God is leading us, and that we will continue to know how very blessed we are while trying to be a blessing to those around us.</span></p>Julie Linnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07185482673627320340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5754000542463944665.post-7953723373131004352011-12-17T05:04:00.000-08:002011-12-21T08:45:09.909-08:005 months old<div align="center"><span style="font-size:130%;">Macy turned 5 months old this week. How can that be?! </span></div><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCIFrzr0lVOaZeuonlFKgTogoEGV1SReRdwf9r1wkbPvs9L1MST1SlGxXw9s-fqOAMkmPTJYXxPQT5Ar4ugKY8Xm9tyf0P0khxGWljQ8f3ckT38fnsohFdoOnTBxMnVkwPgfROTzHucv7U/s1600/December+2011+025.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 267px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5687083272424504690" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCIFrzr0lVOaZeuonlFKgTogoEGV1SReRdwf9r1wkbPvs9L1MST1SlGxXw9s-fqOAMkmPTJYXxPQT5Ar4ugKY8Xm9tyf0P0khxGWljQ8f3ckT38fnsohFdoOnTBxMnVkwPgfROTzHucv7U/s400/December+2011+025.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><div align="center"><span style="font-family:verdana;font-size:130%;">At 5 months old, Macy is:</span></div><br /><br /><br /><div align="center"><span style="font-family:verdana;font-size:130%;"></span></div><br /><br /><br /><div align="center"><span style="font-family:verdana;font-size:130%;">Nursing every three hours and eating rice or oatmeal cereal twice a day</span></div><br /><br /><div align="center"><span style="font-family:verdana;font-size:130%;">Sleeping all night almost every night</span></div><br /><br /><div align="center"><span style="font-family:verdana;font-size:130%;">sitting up pretty well on her own</span></div><br /><br /><div align="center"><span style="font-family:verdana;font-size:130%;">spitting up like crazy. still. :)</span></div><br /><br /><div align="center"><span style="font-family:verdana;font-size:130%;">napping twice a day, morning and afternoon</span></div><br /><br /><div align="center"><span style="font-family:verdana;font-size:130%;">cooing and smiling at us and her sister with any and all attention</span></div><br /><br /><div align="center"><span style="font-family:verdana;font-size:130%;">working hard at growing some hair, she still has very little</span></div><br /><br /><div align="center"><span style="font-family:verdana;font-size:130%;">wearing 3-6 month clothes</span></div><br /><br /><div align="center"><span style="font-family:verdana;font-size:130%;">very good at taking off her socks, she can take any pair of socks off in a matter of minutes</span></div><br /><br /><div align="center"><span style="font-family:verdana;font-size:130%;">having some stranger anxiety</span></div><br /><br /><div align="center"><span style="font-family:verdana;font-size:130%;">holding toys and putting everything in her mouth</span></div><br /><br /><div align="center"><span style="font-family:verdana;font-size:130%;">not rolling over yet, but pushing herself up on her hands very well</span></div><br /><br /><div align="center"><span style="font-family:verdana;font-size:130%;">loving her tubbies with Elise in the big tub together</span></div><br /><br /><br /><div align="center"><span style="font-family:verdana;font-size:130%;"></span></div><br /><br /><br /><div align="center"><span style="font-family:verdana;font-size:130%;">Love you, Macy Girl. We're so excited to celebrate Christmas with you sweetie!</span></div>Julie Linnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07185482673627320340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5754000542463944665.post-16636345412348885992011-12-09T12:37:00.001-08:002011-12-09T13:41:14.561-08:00It's Beginning to look a lot like Christmas......<div align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKCpl92z8xqZkQjACLhnpdzsDH4I9wQYW5HvdUYgUHo6mSvpEY2h7u__8jOXyOvod_R9bjt9taaZo3entflbtpTLUbxlVHQZsyn4Ct2rcgWXmVb67YDd7FRGkt5dMpynfDWuvzhCjokDUT/s1600/November+2011+084.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 214px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5684241715527033314" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKCpl92z8xqZkQjACLhnpdzsDH4I9wQYW5HvdUYgUHo6mSvpEY2h7u__8jOXyOvod_R9bjt9taaZo3entflbtpTLUbxlVHQZsyn4Ct2rcgWXmVb67YDd7FRGkt5dMpynfDWuvzhCjokDUT/s320/November+2011+084.jpg" /></a> First we celebrated Thanksgiving in Fort Wayne and had a fantastic time, even though I never got a blog post uploaded :)</div><br /><div align="center"><br /><div align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6jYz473osDFEeVVXYfVPJxF4BcI6NJ0QzXmMsvAMGYwzvTnGQCwpFdvGAa5H211GGgJsi1R0FDtTdRcfR541gHJJ4PwjZ9W68wNA1SaNiu-6l6IRJ7J97PhK5EjNEWuQMogy9L2Pg71bw/s1600/December+2011+006.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5684240540724335538" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6jYz473osDFEeVVXYfVPJxF4BcI6NJ0QzXmMsvAMGYwzvTnGQCwpFdvGAa5H211GGgJsi1R0FDtTdRcfR541gHJJ4PwjZ9W68wNA1SaNiu-6l6IRJ7J97PhK5EjNEWuQMogy9L2Pg71bw/s320/December+2011+006.jpg" /></a> playing BINGO at our first Christmas party<br />She really had a good time, even though she looks really ticked off in this picture<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvsgg2FQJMQ6bYwRmDfPsroWA2o4nWRaAXM8un2FZ8e5m4flpt7t36hjQfSOq4_l_3Db4gLQ_bzSBSblOvxFeeah8mUSzOW1EqU8ibjNma7VVmhHB4exWJCnd46j8GpXisIwUOrPpECs9m/s1600/December+2011+004.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 214px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5684240157658966546" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvsgg2FQJMQ6bYwRmDfPsroWA2o4nWRaAXM8un2FZ8e5m4flpt7t36hjQfSOq4_l_3Db4gLQ_bzSBSblOvxFeeah8mUSzOW1EqU8ibjNma7VVmhHB4exWJCnd46j8GpXisIwUOrPpECs9m/s320/December+2011+004.jpg" /></a> Our Christmas tree<br /><br /><br /><div align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFNBZl7TbJQ6bZrgVtYlIzzshyphenhyphenWRgubmDevpFIS6gKtXoDCsn-D3Zhe9LmfEtZRvnxDkrFY845vDfwVGFo6Lp9F3IQDwg2pMxRzgMt-L2e3RQr3XZlKJ5kR-dVBicjJihjgADLe0x3gRPT/s1600/November+2011+135.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 214px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5684237032473896802" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFNBZl7TbJQ6bZrgVtYlIzzshyphenhyphenWRgubmDevpFIS6gKtXoDCsn-D3Zhe9LmfEtZRvnxDkrFY845vDfwVGFo6Lp9F3IQDwg2pMxRzgMt-L2e3RQr3XZlKJ5kR-dVBicjJihjgADLe0x3gRPT/s320/November+2011+135.jpg" /></a> which we went to pick out on a very rainy & cold Saturday morning<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNw-I4wskJevM249t3a3-UYymzCsxZotT5LlXDWBKdisjXuyA-d1YdyQHtuhRCwle6AINcGcvOVFBmzhp_2j_fGiofp2YKYswbWfYwdWQQZqQCw0hqpyaqyBcb-a5_R1Io9UwmDZGkM2Qq/s1600/November+2011+129.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 214px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5684235869961184082" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNw-I4wskJevM249t3a3-UYymzCsxZotT5LlXDWBKdisjXuyA-d1YdyQHtuhRCwle6AINcGcvOVFBmzhp_2j_fGiofp2YKYswbWfYwdWQQZqQCw0hqpyaqyBcb-a5_R1Io9UwmDZGkM2Qq/s320/November+2011+129.jpg" /></a> Making almond tarts, a very special (and delicious!) Christmas tradition in our family.<br /><br /><br /><br /><div align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEXb4BhJM_sMAPQgcQsVjfQ2EwLt6hQjgJe1YVnOU15HTInwd0zp7-S9BaqgC9ZVL-LpaGyCRZAZYFUizAcntvMqVOYiCbVvNHeUE6Fe8xEjkB_maY3B5xyNeuPuqLwsQV5_EJWjmz3Hew/s1600/November+2011+150.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 214px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5684234754655626610" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEXb4BhJM_sMAPQgcQsVjfQ2EwLt6hQjgJe1YVnOU15HTInwd0zp7-S9BaqgC9ZVL-LpaGyCRZAZYFUizAcntvMqVOYiCbVvNHeUE6Fe8xEjkB_maY3B5xyNeuPuqLwsQV5_EJWjmz3Hew/s320/November+2011+150.jpg" /></a> We're wearing our Christmas jammies<br /><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTwjGIxNLle-vkc4_M4vX93dCr4lzza5eH2s6Mu7gfjlJNKa6QqEyK_EpbDV2gArv545v9qPLuVeJCKESn-pIDJooQ0EVAXLOXPZXLY7Ana0xP2t6XnYovM73tWkENEmmXZkJOFeqrqfO4/s1600/November+2011+190.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 214px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5684233525108305234" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTwjGIxNLle-vkc4_M4vX93dCr4lzza5eH2s6Mu7gfjlJNKa6QqEyK_EpbDV2gArv545v9qPLuVeJCKESn-pIDJooQ0EVAXLOXPZXLY7Ana0xP2t6XnYovM73tWkENEmmXZkJOFeqrqfO4/s320/November+2011+190.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><div align="center">1st real snow of the season, so it was time to get the sled out and play!!<br /><br /></div><br /><div align="center"></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGny50n1GZwPHIaHNK1U6bhTtPHsXLDInJLbFuUwl-BEY3e1QGeJST_TgNxYILj2aZWoKVEoFQziEIQnaIJe_4_pRyF2TRIvT7BoQTtiDH20zIRDO1dJs_X7WPZUBKrwfXiIeQyH5tdAOT/s1600/November+2011+186.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 214px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5684233042414392706" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGny50n1GZwPHIaHNK1U6bhTtPHsXLDInJLbFuUwl-BEY3e1QGeJST_TgNxYILj2aZWoKVEoFQziEIQnaIJe_4_pRyF2TRIvT7BoQTtiDH20zIRDO1dJs_X7WPZUBKrwfXiIeQyH5tdAOT/s320/November+2011+186.jpg" /></a><br />Only 16 more days until christmas, and we're enjoying every one!<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div></div></div></div></div><br /></div></div>Julie Linnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07185482673627320340noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5754000542463944665.post-78637566603180781652011-12-09T12:37:00.000-08:002011-12-09T12:38:01.951-08:00ItJulie Linnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07185482673627320340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5754000542463944665.post-49407984295758770672011-11-21T17:48:00.000-08:002011-11-21T18:31:55.999-08:00lessons in applesauce<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxQXgQ0oCvULXrIkUTupAy2aDztXoj2hS8x2iISAOTY86KbMPOmMBHCJp1p7Amf0d2d3o9W69xxHIYYLkDRmYTcpdZr5A9YG7giJGKm8iV1jL5QXga_nrMiv7AWr_OUcM6rk1EMN1mi1r_/s1600/october+2011+386.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 214px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5677642053996511858" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxQXgQ0oCvULXrIkUTupAy2aDztXoj2hS8x2iISAOTY86KbMPOmMBHCJp1p7Amf0d2d3o9W69xxHIYYLkDRmYTcpdZr5A9YG7giJGKm8iV1jL5QXga_nrMiv7AWr_OUcM6rk1EMN1mi1r_/s320/october+2011+386.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1loyFcxanMYVQz0m5OmY3EZtY1PMnFRFAcGOo2iUyNu1dGHIsJMCd0RY2tJQf0lRZ580pqhlGFirhSWw4L-gO1wu3Ws9_PwZtmHwqBavznweNocSkNQ4l-rCp3cWesgIIxoaIp4g_U2TS/s1600/october+2011+386.jpg"></a><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;">I made applesauce a few weeks ago. It went pretty well. We eat a lot of applesauce through the year, and the way we make it, it's more like apple pie in a jar rather than anything healthy. It's delicious!!<br /></span><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;">I took pictures during my little process, and I envisioned a blog post with pretty pictures and rows of beautiful applesauce all done and cleaned up. I have all those pictures, and they're very nice. But, that's not the story that this post is intended to tell.</span><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;">No, the real reason I'm blogging about my applesauce Saturday is to tell you about the lessons I learned. Yes, lessons from making applesauce. </span></div><br /><br /><br /><div><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;">It began all fine and well. I cut up all the apples, cored them, and meticulously rid them of all that tough core/seeds/stems. Then I put those apples through the new nifty mill my mom bought. It worked great, except that my bowl of applesauce was filled with peel. It mashed up the apples just fine, but it also let tiny little bits of peel through as well. Not good. Not good at all.</span></div><br /><br /><br /><div><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;">I went a little nuts. All the work, all the $$ in the apples-and this batch is no good. I lost it. And as I explained the situation to Bryan, I threw the pan of peely applesauce into the sink. I threw it hard. It made a point, and I felt pretty good letting off some steam.</span></div><br /><br /><br /><div><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;">Fast forward a couple hours. New screen on the mill, the rest of the apples cooked, milled and canned. 11 pretty jars of applesauce resting on the counter, labeled and delicious. </span></div><br /><br /><br /><div><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;">Cleaning up the rest of the kitchen, I noticed water under the sink. A puddle of water. I was totally perplexed and wondered aloud to Bryan why there would be water under there. It took about 2 seconds for Bryan to assess the situation and come to the conclusion that there was a crack in our sink. A 12 inch crack, leaking water into the cabinet below. A 12-inch crack that came from a thrown pan a few hours earlier.</span></div><br /><br /><br /><div><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;">I felt an inch tall, ridiculously stupid, and completely sorry. I broke our sink. I cracked it in my anger over a some peels in the applesauce. </span></div><br /><br /><br /><div><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;">My husband is a saint. We packed up the girls, went to Lowe's, made a friend in the sink department and we were out the door for just under $400. Bryan switched out the sink, re-routed the plumbing, installed a new faucet......until 2am Sunday morning. Again, he's a saint.</span></div><br /><br /><br /><div><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;">Not once at Lowe's spending lots of $$, in the kitchen fixing, installing, cleaning, did Bryan get mad at me. Not a critical comment, not a shaming observation, nothing. He was gracious, calm, and practical. He is a blessing to me, even when I don't deserve it.</span></div><br /><br /><br /><div><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;">And, God gave me a daily reminder to control my anger. Every time I use our new sink I'm reminded of my stupid mistake that led to it's necessity. Every time I clean it, I remember how fast I can lose my temper and what trouble that anger can bring. I'm working on it. And, I think that this experience was just God enlightening me to one of my many sinful habits. It's amazing how easily sin can feel normal, no big deal, or harmless. But, really, sin is anything but that. I'm praying God helps me to control my anger. I'm praying that He enlightens me to other "un-noticed" sins. I'm also hoping that the next "enlightenment" doesn't cost</span> <span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;">so much money!</span></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div></div>Julie Linnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07185482673627320340noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5754000542463944665.post-57361910932907720962011-11-20T11:24:00.000-08:002011-11-20T11:51:40.421-08:00Four Months<div><br /><div><br /><div><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;">Macy was four months last week. At her Dr visit, Dr Greg started talking about starting her on rice cereal and baby food, and I couldn't believe she was already old enough for that!</span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;"></span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;"></span></div><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 267px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5677167046207715730" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEid-JuD4nIfVxOIYM7mxJxZu-Kssf3sny3czjtOomt3G937_kTAcpJti70heesRZ84ph7CxeXJMOsBs10Zu5YLg7Y-KfA0Oo6t7dxslzpi2hWhe5LJOW8FJEO-LO2pdrM-AtNUjqLqWkby7/s400/November+2011+056.jpg" />At four months, Macy is:<br /></span><br /><div></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;">eating mostly mommy's milk, although we'll start rice cereal soon</span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;">sleeping 11 hours at night, and taking two good naps a day</span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;">trying to sit forward, nearly rolling off from the couch where we sometimes prop her</span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;">holding onto toys and blankets</span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;">smiling and sometimes laughing</span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;">wearing size 2 diapers and 3-6 month clothes</span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;">loves to be outside, held, sung to, or bounced</span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;">crabby when not with mommy (she even gives her daddy a hard time!)</span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;">loves taking a bath</span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;">likes to be entertained by Elise "reading" books to her or showing her amazing baby toys</span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;">wants to be with us all the time-even sitting in her high chair while we eat</span></div><br /><br /><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 267px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5677165576053641218" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEOGf6oqp5WIJLkgpi8hRIPnGZhz0VRtAr34nPuZpZfAI8WTVA8D6jtaO2wMzpFEip14vL8u7ucHG9SWJYM_FVyAvFhYJjUPDG1L0x8lkYfOCw55Zg4eZ0jKvIezJtgcoupocrxifu-P2L/s400/November+2011+030.jpg" /> I'm enjoying Macy so much, and while the newborn stage is going by so quickly, it's a blessing to see her grow and discover her little world a little more each day. In this week of thanksgiving, I'm especially thankful for this sweet baby girl.<br /></span><br /></span><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div></div></div>Julie Linnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07185482673627320340noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5754000542463944665.post-9941521936978698412011-10-16T18:29:00.001-07:002011-10-16T19:02:10.355-07:00Happy 3, Elise!!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5EN2cLYrH5pXzNhvEYMirGRO3sYIPHvO_10jU_77EbRnLQoLwGXvzciOS2t8lfC9X77vBdXY_gAIcMDG_npngxyx8QLK71wB-WvNWOlNEVvcMYoga0vsN14IfNsXAsCO3lzT9wXh8rsQ5/s1600/october+2011+207.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 267px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5664273652583957458" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5EN2cLYrH5pXzNhvEYMirGRO3sYIPHvO_10jU_77EbRnLQoLwGXvzciOS2t8lfC9X77vBdXY_gAIcMDG_npngxyx8QLK71wB-WvNWOlNEVvcMYoga0vsN14IfNsXAsCO3lzT9wXh8rsQ5/s400/october+2011+207.jpg" /></a><span style="font-size:130%;">Elise turns 3 tomorrow, and today we celebrated with our families. We had a strawberry shortcake party with lots of great food, cupcakes, presents, balloons......it was a GREAT party!</span><br /><br /><br /><div><span style="font-size:130%;">It's crazy how much bigger 3 is than 2, and how much more Elise can do than a year ago. At THREE, Elise is:</span></div><br /><br /><br /><div><span style="font-size:130%;">a great eater, eating almost everything. Her favorite is egg noodles with pesto, any kind of fruit, and frosted mini wheats. </span></div><br /><br /><br /><div><span style="font-size:130%;">She can put on her own pj's and sometimes her own shoes. </span></div><br /><br /><br /><div><span style="font-size:130%;">Elise loves to brush her teeth and can do so without any help.</span></div><br /><br /><br /><div><span style="font-size:130%;">She knows some letters and numbers, particularly the numbers 7 & 4, both numbers she watches for on her clock to know when she can wake up in the morning and after her nap. :)</span></div><br /><br /><br /><div><span style="font-size:130%;">likes to do puzzles, color, paint, make jell-o, do play dough, and set up a tea party or serve us food out of her grocery cart. She often takes care of her "babies" Alex, Marylin, Grace, & Nora, favoring Alex most of the time. (Alex is named after Alex Trebek on Jeopardy, her favorite show!)</span></div><br /><br /><br /><div><span style="font-size:130%;">Elise's favorite places to go include the park to feed the ducks, McDonald's, and the rivertown crossing mall for the carousel. Oh, and the gas station for popcorn and diet coke. :)</span></div><br /><br /><br /><div><span style="font-size:130%;">She still wears diapers and has NO interest in the potty at all....yet.</span></div><br /><br /><br /><div><span style="font-size:130%;">Elise chooses to read Jonah and the Whale every night before bed. She even "read" the story to me tonight and said her own prayer, thanking God for a fun day. </span></div><br /><br /><br /><div><span style="font-size:130%;">It's crazy how very <em>three</em> Elise is. She wants to do EVERYTHING on her own, and each day I'm amazed at what she really can do by herself. She has such a tender heart, is sweet down to the core, and she makes us laugh so hard we can't breathe. She is the best part of any day, and I thank God for her almost all the time. </span></div><br /><br /><br /><div><span style="font-size:130%;">Happy 3, sweet girl!</span> </div><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div>Julie Linnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07185482673627320340noreply@blogger.com0