Bye Bye, Grandma!!

My Mom left this morning for home (Florida, these days), but not before we found time for more photos!

Come back soon, Grandma Joyce--I miss you already!! Love, Connor

Memorial Day Weekend.

Sunday Mark & Kristi and Jodi, Connor, and I took a drive down just south of Middleville, to find a miniature golf place (it was near Gun Lake). I think MB won, but who's really keeping score... what's important is family and together time!

On the way home we stopped at a yard sale at an old farmhouse, which was really quaint. MB & I each bought some cowboy boots, as that's the theme for their annual party at the lake this summer. Don't tell anyone else though!!

Grandma Joyce!

All Grandma, all the time! More photos of my Mom with Connor... Mom was here for just over a week, starting the Saturday before the baptism, and she went back to Florida this morning. This is the first time she has spent at her house in Holland in quite a while, and I think she got a lot done. Plus, everyone got along great--and why wouldn't we!?!?

Random Photos.

Two of Connor's favorite people... Uncle Mark loves being in photos with Connor!

Brunch!

Some photos from the party at our house, after Connor's baptism. Thanks for coming, everyone... I didn't know there would be gifts, but Connor made out like a bandit! The huge teddy bear was for sure his favorite. His name is Timothy!

Connor's Baptism

This past Sunday (May 20) Connor was baptized (we are members at Third Reformed Church in Grand Rapids). My Uncle Dave did the baptism, and our Pastor Kent did the liturgy. Afterwards we had a catered brunch at our house, and it went really well. We had just over 20 people, so it's nice to know the house can accomodate that many and still be comfortable. Photos, of course!

Connor, Part IV.

Just a couple quick shots of Connor. That fur coat on him is just awesome--thanks, Shannon!

Grandma Nilsen!

My Mom is in town for about 10 days, first for Connor's baptism and then through Memorial Day weekend. Since she's not had many chances to be on the blog, here are some photos! Grandma Jester, you're next!

Mother's Day.

Yesterday was our first Mother's Day, and we made the most of it. I cleaned the kitchen, cooked dinner, cleaned up after that, and of course had cards and gifts for Jodi. Dinner was New York strip steak on the grill, twice baked potatoes, corn, and garlic bread. Then Connor had a card for Mommy, and I had one too. I also got Jodi some roses, and I got two monogrammed beach towels--one for Connor, and one for Jodi. All in all, I'd say she had a pretty good day (if I do say so myself)!

The Beach!

We spent a nice Sunday afternoon down on the beach, as it was just gorgeous. Connor didn't like the water yet, but I don't blame him as it was still in the 50s. Can't wait for summer!!

The Cottage.

This is the house my Mom owns on Lake Michigan. Well, you don't see the house so much as you see the view from the house, and the beach. The house is being torn down anyway, and a new one will be built this fall. Hopefully. Of course, the whole place could easily end up as a donation to Hope College, so we try to use it as much as we can in the "right now".

Bath Time.

Connor had his first bath at the cottage, but I sure hope that sink was clean! After that bath, Mommy and baby took a little nap. Daddy was probably up to no good somewhere.

The Carnival.

Well it turns out it was Tulip Time in Holland, which you'd think I would know, but I totally forgot. I mean, it's not like I lived in Holland for eight years or anything. Anyway, the carnival is really near one of the last houses I lived in back then. (Some day I'll get photos of the places I lived in Holland... the "CB Tour of Homes" would be fascinating for everyone, I think--I lived in like 11 places over eight years.) Anyway, I went on one of the rides, and you can clearly see that I am tall enough to make the cut. This one went upside down even!

Holland!

This was Connor's first trip to Holland! We met up with some friends at New Holland Brewery, but Connor did not have his first beer there. As any good parent knows, infants need to wait until they are at least eight or nine months old for their first cold one!!

Heading to Holland!

Time was when I could throw a couple things in a bag and head out the door for Holland. Well, those days are long gone. Last Saturday we went to Holland for Connor's first trip to the lake, and this was what we packed--all for just a *one* night trip. Who knows how we're going to pack for Long Island in July!

P.S. No, we didn't make Ollie ride in the back like that... just trying to give my brother a scare.

The Retractable Screen.

Basically a 'standard' size door (say 36") does not fit our front door entrance, and I blame the builder for this really. That said, we found this retractable screen door, and after lots of measurements, cuts, and general hassle I finally got it installed. It's still not perfect, as the opening is not flush, but it's not bad. Part of the saga involved me taking a nice door from my brother's house and my attempts to install it, which is how I discovered that our front entry is not quite the right size. Getting that door to our place was a real headache, and now I have a door in my garage that I have zero use for. Anyone in the market for a left opening 36" storm door that's in great shape, just let me know! I've got a snow blower for sale too, but that's another story...

Photos

Another not-so-great update, but it's at least a chance to post some photos. MB & Kristi are in Florida again, so we've got Ollie until Sunday. The weather has been great, and I've been driving the convertible all week, but that's actually more because the Audi has been in the shop for some cosmetic work. So here are some pics of Connor (sometimes known as "the boy") and Ollie (usually known as "the boy"). You could say these photos are of "the boy" with "the boy", but I've had some complaints about that whole nickname thing.