Rain = mud = filthy, dirty kids :)

We have been receiving some decent rain here lately. Yesterday the kids decided to head outside to play. Knowing there were mud puddles all over the driveway I made sure they had old play clothes on. I did not know the extent of which they were going to go to until I heard Jaren yell "Cannonball!" I knew I was going to have 2 very dirty kids. The pictures don't due the filth justice as they were taken towards the beginning of the fun. Needless to say they were not allowed in the house until they were completely stripped down and then had to use daddy's mud entrance and shower. Bethany went and enjoyed a naked mud bath after her clothes were off...too bad I didn't get a picture to use some day at her wedding! :)

MUD BUDDIES!

Lions & Tigers & Bears, oh my!

A little over a week ago, I decided to take the kids to the zoo (and thanks for the free tickets from McDonalds that had a quick expiration date). We went with our friends Shawna, Mitchell & Connor. It was a beautiful day to go and see God's wonderful creatures, which is what over 2000 school kids also thought!

Bethany & Jaren standing by the ABC Animal wall.

Bethany practicing her monkey face!

Tour guide Jaren did a great job. We didn't get lost once!

Erica sporting her new zoo hat and enjoying watching the giraffs.

And last but not least, the most loved train ride. Jaren & Bethany loved it,

but Erica was not overly thrilled to be on the train.

Misc. pictures

I have a few miscellaneous pictures that I thought I would share with you. Enjoy!

Enjoying popsicles one warm day...notice they are only allowed to eat them outdoors (mostly due to Erica being slightly messy with them). :)

Erica enjoying eating an apply like a big girl.

Bethany & daddy planting beans. They're getting closer to being done,

but are now put on hold due to the recent rain.

Bethany modeling my broken sunglasses. She accidentally sat on them while

waiting to pick Jaren up from school. Good thing they were only $1!

Erica & Jaren cuddling one morning. Erica was having a rough morning

due to getting 3 shots the day before. Jaren can usually cheer her up.

Be a hitter

Jaren has been very busy practicing t-ball the past month. We just got done with his 3rd game and he is having a great time. He has a wonderful coach and great teammates. He was very disappointed with himself after the first game because he had to use the tee to hit, but the next 2 games he has been a great hitter. As his coach always says to the players, "Be a hitter, you can do it." They have 4 chances to hit off the coach and then 3 chances to hit off the tee if needed.





He made his first out tonight playing 1st base! The sparkle in his eye after the play was priceless.





Here are a few pictures from the 1st game. I'll try to get a little video from his next game to post.

Jaren playing short-stop

Erica insisted on have the ball tucked under her shirt. :)

Jaren being a hitter!

Bethany & Grant

I had to post a couple of pictures of Bethany & Grant together. They were too cute. Grant is my cousins little boy. He is a couple months older than Bethany.

The adorable Dutch kids!

Grant showing off his true personality! :)

Bethany & Grant walking (riding) in the baby parade.

More Tulip Time pictures

Here are a few more pictures from Tulip Time.

The grandkids w/ Grandpa at the blacksmithing shed in the Historical Village.

Walking in the baby parade.

Thanks Grandpa & Grandma for buying us tickets to the bounce house!

Burning off the sugar from our cotton candy.

Hiding out in the tunnel.

Tulip Time

Tulip Time has come and gone and once again we had a great time seeing the parades, eating wonderful food and smelling the beautiful tulips. Jaren opted out of dressing in a Dutch costume this year, but the girls and I dressed up and walked in the baby parade.

Jaren, Luke, Reagan, Erica & Bethany - the 5 VanMersbergen grandkids

Erica, Bethany & Grant getting ready to walk in the baby parade.

Bethany smelling a tulip.

Me and my beautiful Dutch girls.

Erica exploring the tulips.

Preschool & Recess

Jaren only has 3 more days of preschool before he moves on to Kindergarten. He is so excited to be moving on and is more than ready! I thought I would post a few pictures of Jaren at preschool, but especially at recess - one of his favorite times of the day. Jaren loved preschool and had 2 wonderful teachers, Mrs. Broadway and Mrs. Cheney.

Jaren's class - there were 20 kids in his class.

Jaren climbing the slide - oops...I don't think he's suppose to do that!

There are preschool through 3rd graders out on the playground together.

It gets a little chaotic! These pictures were taken before the rest of the kids came out.

Sliding fun!

Jaren's Field Trip

I was privileged to go along with Jaren on his field trip a few weeks ago. We went to Russell Wildlife. The kids were able to see frogs, snakes, turtles along with the fur from fox and a variety of stuffed animals. We went on a small hike to the ponds where Pete, our tourguide, caught fish, snails & frogs for the kids to see.

Jaren & Preston on the bus ride to Russell Wildlife.

Jaren & Kate in front of a stuffed mountain lion.

The kids anxiously waiting to see what Pete caught.

Pete digging through the algae to find snails and frogs.

Jaren & friends watching a snake kill a mouse for lunch.