Having grown up in Arizona I don’t seem to recall people talking about Spring Break with the fervor that people in Michigan do.  After I experienced my first winter in Michigan I realized why so many families scratch off the days of winter one-by-one as they anxiousely await “Spring Break”

Well we didn’t fly off to any exotic location, or even Florida for that matter but I was able to leave a few hours early from work today and we had a great picnic at Hoffmaster State Park on the beach. We were one of only two families on the beach which was excellent, apparently the dark clouds scared everyone else away or they were in route to beaches in warmer climates. Anyway, I posted some photos which are located in the Holidays and Events album under SpringBreak-07. Enjoy! Oh, and btw the photos are little grainy as I took them with my new point and shoot 6mp Panasonic(which I bought with a gift certificate from Nielsen, so who can complain) anyway, I’m still learning which settings generate the best results.

Later,

Mark

Recently Savannah has gotten into the Disney princesses. I’m not sure how this happened, but somehow Disney is able to corner this market with all little girls. What is it about fancy dresses, tiaras and high heels that enthrall little girls for years to come? Of course, Savannah is not satisfied to just be the princess, she always wants you to “be the prince” (I confess I end up singing the Gaston song and talking like him too–how did that happen?).

So, as you have probably seen, we got Savannah some dress-up clothes for her birthday. We haven’t been able to get her out of them since.

Oh, for those who would like to make an Elmo Cake, here’s a template you can use on a 9×13 cake. Just cut around the outer edges for the head shape. You’ll need the free Adobe Reader to view this document. Click the downloads button.

You all know that I’m a huge fan of technology and that Melissa and I are big fans of the Leap Pad learning system. Well, awhile back a friend recommended the L-Max (gameboy type system) so we bought it. Later we found some LeapFrog DVD’s at Meijer that also teach phonics and building words. In addition to the LeapPad tools, Melissa created some games using foam alphabet letters that involve jumping and other active things which Savannah loves.

Well, long story short….the foam letters S A T were put together on the floor in the kitchen and when Savannah saw them she said, “hey that spells sat”

Hmmm, her first word is sat and those same letters are the acronym for a college exam test, coincidence…I think not.

Today, we were supposed to get a big snow storm here in West Michigan (Oklahoma, where my aunt and uncle live got a foot of snow). But it’s now 3:30 pm and it seems to have petered out at only about four inches here. I have to say I’m a little disapointed. Savannah and I were planning to go out and make a snow baby Jesus, Mary and Joseph, but we were foiled by the no-show-no-snow! Ah, well. Maybe we’ll get some more snow before Christmas.

The day after Thanksgiving this year we made a trip down to my sister and brother-in-law’s house in Ohio (five-and-a-half hours). Savannah had so much fun playing with her cousins and it was so wonderful to see them all and see how much they’ve all grown. It will be nice to see them again at Christmas. I’ve put some photos in the photo section of our site (under Holiday’s and Special Events). Enjoy!

This year we had a surprise—snow on the twelfth of October. So much snow in our area that, Savannah and I made a snow woman. I’ve posted pictures of it in the photos section under Savannah, October. I was just getting in the mood to take fall pictures, but that snow really messed up my sense of seasons (and my seasonal spirit!). Ah well.

I figured I ought to change the info on this page since August was so long ago. But, uh, there isn’t much I can say about our lives right now except that they are very, very busy. Okay, everything else I want to write sounds stupid when I write it, so I guess that’s all for now.