A suprise trip to the Toledo Zoo

The other day Randy and I decided we needed some family time.  We opted to take Joshua on a mini road trip to the Toledo Zoo - we kept it a suprise until we pulled in - he was VERY excited!  Here are some highlights from our trip.

Polar Bear enrichment - getting frozen fish out of a ball

First ride on a merry go round - what a fun memory with his daddy!

Jelly fish!

We were thrilled to see Joshua's favorite animal - CHEETAH'S!!

Watch Out a T-Rex is gonna get you!

Love this shot of the snow leopard - very cool!

Cyclical Vomitting Syndrome = CVS

It's been quite some time since I've last done a blog update.  Several folks have been asking me to get back to it - so here is my feable attempt.  We've been SUPER busy lately - I'll get to those reasons on another blog entry.

Anyway, some of you may know that Joshua has had many vomiting episodes (starting back in November - every 3 weeks or so without any other symptoms).  Well, it's gotten a bit worse so the doc wanted to see him.  He's been diagnosed with Cyclical Vomiting Disease/disorder/syndrome.  Basically, it is best described as a migraine in his stomach.  This happens in the middle of the night and is very scary for Joshua.  We are working through elimnating certain foods from his diet, adjusting sleep times, and some other natural remedies - the meds that he was given cause other crazy side effects that we would rather not have to deal with.  Please pray for our sweet boy - he asks Jesus for complete healing and we believe that Jesus will certainly heal his body of this horrible problem. 

Typically, after an episode he chooses to snuggle on the bathroom floor just in case more vomiting occurs.  It breaks my heart for sure!

Stuff

Joshua and I watching the superbowl!

My Superbowl Buddy!

Making homemade crayons

Winter Blast 2011

After much hype and anticipation, the Blizzard of 2011 was just a mere snowfall...nothing spectacular, but certainly enough to make a 3 year old beg to head outdoors.  Joshua has been struggling with the on again off again winter cold so I was hesitant to take him outside yesterday, however his sweet request (over and over again) simply melted my heart.  So we bundled up big time and headed out for some winter fun.  We made forts, moutains, trails etc. and loved every minute of it.  I wish someone would bundle me up the way I bundle Joshua up - he was still toasty warm when we came in for hot cocoa - I on the other hand was frozen =)



look carefully - you can see his face in there somewhere =)



a cupcake surprise from Aunna this morning - although he ended up going for her orange =)

Joshua had a nasty cough last night and this morning so we opted to stay indoors, but still wanted to enjoy the snow.  Aunna helped me load up 6 buckets of snow to dump in our bathtub. I filled up some spray bottles with water and food coloring and let him paint away - it was a great cure for the..."I don't feel good, but still want to play" blues.

FINALLY time to play with Hannah!!

It's been a very long time since Joshua and Hannah have had some time to get together and play.  Well, today was the day and oh my did they have fun together!  It is such a blessing to see their personalities come together as they enjoy each others company!!!

the three muskateers

silly boy

an equally silly girl =)

two worn out kiddos from all of the fun!

making up a batch of honey snowballs!



A $25 getaway

We snuck away on MLK Day to the Bavariann Inn Lodge in Frankenmuth for a $25 overnight getaway (okay it was a bit more because we decided to stay an extra night, but STILL - so cheap if you are a Perks club member).  This is Joshua's favorite place to kick back and play - Thank you Lord for providing inexpensive family fun!!!

January Birthdays

Always a great time celebrating our family birthdays - this month we honored Melissa and my mom!!

cousins

very funny gift from the Cripe Family

Here it is - the UMP it - gotta love it!

looking rather Ump'd up!!!

Let it Snow Let is Snow Let is Snow

It certainly has been a crazy winter with colder days than normal and snow that seems to fall daily - an inch at a time.  We've had our fair share of winter time fun, but I think that Joshua is even starting to grow weary of bundling up.  Anyway, here are a few pics of backyard fun - enjoy!