Nature is the Art of God

Hey there! We had a great weekend on our camping trip. The kids had a blast. We had quite a bit of heavy rain both nights, but we were extremely pleased that our tent stayed dry!

There were a few sprinkles during the day on Saturday, but luckily they did not last long.

We have a few favorite things to eat when we go camping. Here Nate is enjoying a pizza hobo pie. Yummy!

Steve thought it would be fun to make some Jiffy Pop popcorn over the campfire. The kids thought it was so cool how it grew bigger and bigger as it popped.








Jacob wanted to give the ranger a hug...



















At Yogi Bear Jellystone Park, there are a lot of fun activities for the kids. They have crafts, contests, movies, dances.... and every weekend is a different theme. This weekend it was Going To The Movies.

If you wanted, you could dress up as a movie character for a costume contest. Another one of the activities is the Hey Hey Hey Ride. Here is a photo from our ride. Abby is on the left of Yogi Bear, and Jacob is sitting on the floor just below Abby.















I think every family with kids tries to get a photo by the Yogi Bear statue. We watched parents getting shots of their kids all weekend. On Sunday before we left, I decided I should do the same. The kids did not want to cooperate, they were all yelling and fighting and complaining. Can you say T-I-R-E-D?!

I got this one photo and then my memory card was full. Oh well, it is a very "real" portrait of the Pierce kids!!

When we got home on Sunday afternoon, we all crashed. Funny how even a weekend trip really takes it out of you! But we are all looking forward to the next one!

Have a great week!

Deb

Running around like a chicken with my head cut off!

Phewww, we've had a busy week!! Nate took a Printworks class at Careerline Tech Center each day from 9-12. It was right up his alley! He got to design and print logos on notepads, t-shirts, posters, etc. I'll have to post a photo of him sporting one of his cool new shirts soon.

Abby, Noah and Jacob had Vacation Bible School on Sunday, Monday and Tuesday evening. Nate was a staff helper and Steve ran sound for VBS also.

Jacob had Tumbling Tots Mon - Thurs afternoon, and Abby and Noah went to gymnastics at the same time. Funny thing about that: I was looking at the calendar on Monday to double check when swimming lessons start, and I saw Tumbling Tots/Gymnastics marked on that day. I looked at the clock and it was 1:39... Oh My Gosh!!! We have 20 minutes to be to gymnastics! I guess the adrenaline kicked in because I had 5 kids to round up and get ready, but we made it on time!!

We also had a couple playdates and a sleepover thrown in there for good measure. And summer has just started! Next week, Nate has another class, we have another week of gymnastics/tumbling tots, and the kids also start swimming lessons! In addition to 3 of mine, I will also be taking Ian and Delaney to swimming lessons too. I must be crazy!!

We're packing up the van and heading to Yogi Bear Jellystone campground this weekend. We haven't camped as a family in a couple years, so the kids are really excited! Maybe once we get everything together and get to the campground, we will get some much needed R&R. It will be nice to get outdoors and enjoy nature, away from television, computers, phones... you get the idea. LOL Although, Steve saw that the campground has free wireless internet, so one of our laptops may just come along, unless I can talk him out of it!

I will post pictures when we get back. Have a great weekend!

TAG -- You're It!

My sister sent this to me a while back. It has been sitting in my inbox, and I finally decided to play along. I'm the Queen of Procrastination, and there are a million other things I could be doing! But maybe, just maybe, you will benefit from knowing some of the following random information... LOL!

Two names you go by:
Deb
Debra

Two things you are wearing right now:
Jeans
my very worn Old Navy t-shirt

Two of your favorite things to do:
stamp
digital scrapbook

Two things you want very badly at the moment:
a real vacation
a maid

Two pets:
Guinea Pig - Misty
Cat - Pumpkin

Two things you ate last night:
Cheeseburger (grilled by Steve)
Cheese puffs

Two things you ate today:
Lasagna
Brownies

Two people you last talked to:
Steve
Abby

Two things you're doing tomorrow:
Taking Nate to his Printworks class
Going camping for the weekend

The longest car rides:
Michigan to Florida
Michigan to North Carolina

Favorite Holidays:
Christmas
Thanksgiving

Two favorite vacations
Emerald Isle, NC
Florida Keys

Two favorite beverages:
Diet Coke
Lemonade

Birthday: March 8

So there you go!! Feel free to play along if you want...

Last day of school and off to camp!

It is officially summer vacation!

We finally made it to the last day of school yesterday! The kids had a half day with lots of fun activities planned. When we found out that Abby and Noah's first day of camp fell on the last day of school we had some decisions to make. Steve and I decided they could skip the last day of school if they wanted, since camp registration was at 10:00 am. Neither one of them wanted to do that, because they couldn't stand the thought of missing the year-end festivities. So then I told the camp director that we would arrive a couple hours late, and that was fine with them. In the end, we left school about an hour and a half early, and got to camp an hour and a half late. How's that for compromise?

Here are a couple pictures of Abby at her cabin. Thankfully, she was all smiles! She has been looking forward to camp for months, but the night before she started to get really nervous. She had the hardest time going to sleep. When we arrived at camp the excitement returned, and she didn't hesitate to join her group.

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Noah was so excited he couldn't sit still! Here he is sitting on the golf cart that we got chauffered around in. And then there are some photos of him at his cabin. Noah was lucky enough to be assigned to the same cabin as his friend Duncan, who goes to our church and was also in Noah's 2nd grade class this year.

It was hard for me to leave them at camp for three days. For some reason they seem so much younger to me than Nate did when he first went to camp. (Well, he was 8 -- and they are still 7.) So now it's my turn for sleepless nights and constant wondering. I'm sure they are having a blast, though. They are lucky to have the opportunity to go to such a great camp!

When Abby told her teacher she was leaving school early to head to camp, her teacher asked her what camp she was going to. When Abby said Grace Adventures, Mrs. Whalen was shocked. I guess she used to be a counselor there in her college days, and her cousin is actually a counselor there this year. Pretty neat!

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I will be picking Abby and Noah up on Friday afternoon, and I can't wait to hear all their stories! I'm sure they will be yelling over each other, trying to get the first word in... LOL We have a long ride home, though, so I'll have lots of time to listen.

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Well, that's all I have to share for now... have a great week!

Our pool is up!!

Well, we decided to put our pool up again this year. We haven't done it the last couple years because of all the little kids, but I thought it would be nice to have it this year now that Jake is getting older. We have had a lot of rain here this week, but that didn't stop the kids from jumping in! Neither did the ice cold water. Here is a little video I took a couple days ago. (Ignore the part where I turn the camera sideways... technical error, hehe)

Lots of screaming going on there, huh? That's pretty much what it sounds like at my house all the time. Either screams of joy or screams from fighting...

Jacob and I are headed over to Noah's class picnic soon. I'm so glad the sunshine is out, but it is really hot!!

Have a great weekend!

ACS Relay for Life

Hello all... I'm finally here to post some pics. A few weeks ago our family participated in the East Grand Rapids Relay for Life to raise funds for the American Cancer Society. My Aunt Kate, a recent cancer survivor, put together a team which we were a part of... it was called Team Cancer Can't. We headed out to EGR on Friday night, after Steve got home from work. Before we even arrived, Noah and Jake were sawing logs in the backseat! Luckily, they got a second wind after we got there.








I wish I had taken more pictures that evening, but I will share a few that I did get. The photo below is my cousin Alex and her friend. They won the distinctive honor of King and Queen. Don't they look cute?








This next one is hilarious! There were all sorts of fun and silly events going on throughout the relay. Each team could earn points for participation. Shortly after we arrived, we found out about a "cross-dressing" event. I don't remember the official title for this, but one guy from each team had to dress up like a woman and go around collecting donations on behalf of the team. Since Steve was the lone male (adult) on our team, he was the lucky participant! He wasn't too sure about the whole thing at first, but he was a good sport. Check him out... he's quite the catch. I love the feather boa, and his hairy legs really made the look complete.






Here is Jake having fun trying on all the props...



Abby got her face painted at one of the tents; here she is showing off the lovely artwork. You can also see the luminaries behind her in the picture. They lined the whole track, and once dusk fell, a candle was lit inside each one. Each of the luminaries was in remembrance of a loved one lost to cancer, or in honor of a cancer survivor. It was so beautiful and touching to see them all lit up.

It was a great experience for our family, and I look forward to being involved again in the future!