Watson and Friends

Watson is getting so big. It is amazing how quickly this is all flying by. Three kids....wow. The picture below illustrates the fact that he is so big that only his foot will fit in one frame. Well, that is not true. Anna took this picture and liked it. We share it here.
Here is Anna teaching some stretches to her brother. It is great having siblings that love each other as much as our three kids love each other. They have their moments, but they are kids.
Of course, Owen needs to get in on the action as well. There is never an event in our home where Owen is out of the center of the controversy. Here it was just some harmless stretches though.
See you soon.
If you wonder why the blog has been slow- I think that the 85 inches of snow are too depressing. You cannot post on snow everyday and basically that is what the outside world of Michigan is at the moment. She will thaw in a month or so.

In the Meadow We Can Build a PC Snowperson

Here is a picture that I snagged from Mrs. P's vacation from her vacation pics. It was taken at Paige's house a bit before Christmas. Paige made us all a wonderful soup and salad lunch. The wine was flowing and the laughter was abundant.

Behind Bill and Paige's house is the perfect hill for toddlers and pre-schoolers. We had a great time sledding and it helped Tammy to feel at home (she is from British Columbia... notice this snowman drinks Tim Horton's).

In the picture from the left: Owen, Lydia, Marion, George, Snowthing, Tammy, Paige, Anna's head, Nathan, Anna's body. Shawn was taking the picture and Watson was asleep in the house.

I am glad that Mrs. P brought her camera, because it may be the only outdoor activity for me until the golf courses open! (Notice I am in my winter clogs).

A Nicey Icey Saturday

Today was quite chilly in the morning. We woke up to a home at 48 degrees. The heat sometimes likes to sleep at night and needs to be aroused manually. It was cold, even by our standards. We got it going after a couple of minutes. The morning moved on. The kids played while Lydia prepared some things for the Lord's Day. Anna suggested that they go outside and play for a while, which was fine by us.
So Anna, Owen, and Samson all headed outside for some fun in the blowing snow. They went on the slide and climbed a tree. They made snow angels and all the other things that kids love to do in the snow.
Lately they have liked taking sticks and writing in the snow. They make pictures then the sticks quickly turn into guns. They shoot the house, trees, the dog and sometimes each other, even though this is off limits (we shoot things and animals, not people). They played some more.
I continued writing a sermon while Lydia was baking something chocolaty in kitchen. After a while I heard a slight gasp from the kitchen. Lydia commented that Owen did not have his gloves on and, of course, we don't want our children to lose their fingers. She also informed me that he was running around out there BAREFOOT.

Wow.

Cold.

Bizarre.

Two Dog Night?

Any visitor to our home knows that we are not wasting our hard-earned money on heating this house. We recommend that people wear socks and a few layers of clothes when they are here.

Side note, I remember my dad telling me about one of tenants who ran up a heating bill that was more than his rent for the month. When he went to the apartment to confront this person on his need to keep the apartment over 75 degrees, the tenant answered the door in an undershirt and shorts. Needless to say, my dad put a lock box on his thermostat without haste!

So how do we recommend that our company stay warm? Lydia and both lend out sweatshirts, socks, and wraps to our frigid guests. But what do we do? We have dogs to help heat our sleep. The old story goes like this- when it is cold it is a one-dog night. If it is unbearably cold, it is a two-dog night. We rarely are too cold in bed.. it is getting out that is chilly! But, it seems that Watson has no need for both Sam and Sedgwick. Old fat Sam is warm enough for him!

So, is this the real thing?

There are many signs that Spring is in the air. Today we have our windows open and the smell is so nice. The kids are excited and we are hoping that the season is ready to burst forth. There is always so much gardening to do around here and we are all looking forward to getting things back how they belong. Owen and Anna want to be outside all of the time now. Today I think we may go play at the Gardens and see the butterflies for the first time this season. I hope that they have that blue butterfly that is the size of a hand again this year.
Sunday was the beginning of all of this goodness. Here is Mrs. Lanning stealing some sun before we entered the chapel. When we were there Anna wanted to walk over to Dr. Beeke's house so that she could see him. We walked over (but he was at the MacArthur conference in California). She then wanted to run through the woods behind the seminary. Of course, I would not allow her to do that since that is where all the wild and crazy seminary drop-outs are forced to spend the rest of their existence.
However, the greatest sign that Spring is just around the corner is the fact that the Crocus are coming up all over the place! They are in full bloom. The tulips and other bulbs are coming up, but the Crocus are already singing the praises of Springtime.

Spring Is Here! I love it!

It was so nice today! We loved smelling the freshness that Spring brings as well as seeing all of the flowering trees begin to bud. We were able to dust off the Birks and go sockless again. This is one of my favorite time of the year as I anxiously await all of the flowers to come back.

The smell of green grass and freshly laid mulch. Reading on the patio with the sun on my back! What a great day it has been thus far!

Anna noticed the Crocus and the Daffodils are looking beautiful already.
We walked through the neighborhood as well. It is great to see all of the people starting their flower gardens for the season and cleaning up the mess that winter leaves.
Isn't it great to be able to get out of the house and to go for walks and hear birds and feel the light spring breeze?
Oh wait, I shoveled piles of icy snow today. I also had to dig our vehicle out of the driveway. Oh yeah, I woke up to the scrape of shovels, the gassy hum of snow blowers and the endless push of city plow trucks. Oh, yeah, I must have forgotten.. Spring is still two weeks away, and that is only the official date.

We will persevere.

Snow Flakes on Noses and Whiskers on Kittens

This is a good reason that we left PA when we did on Tuesday. I am not a fan of making that trek across the entire snow-belt of the Great Lakes to get to the Erie area. Winters, to me, are more of a time of reflection and rest than a time of travel and busyness.

Maybe I would travel straight south during the winter, for some golf. But this winter has been colder and snowier in the south than here in Eskimo-tundra land.

It Is Back

That pesky buisness that we call winter has pushed its whitening head back into our lives. On Wednesday it was 63 degrees here in Grand Rapids, and today we are covered in ice and snow up to 12 inches in some places. Here on Union Avenue we have 2-3 inches.



Welcome back winter, please do not make yourself at home...and you can show yourself out as soon as you are finished.

Autumn Time Goodness

I was just hoping that a friend of mine had made an apple crisp. Yummy warm apple crisp with vanilla ice-cream and drizzly caramel. Any suggestions?

Thanks For Coming!

Welcome Back Spring! Oh how we have missed you on Union Avenue!

Narnia tour in a Swedish station wagon.

Friday we were expecting the first snow storm of the new year. We were prepared. We had not seen snow in Grand Rapids for about 2 or 3 weeks. It was time for a new blanket of this lovely creation to cover our yard and our garden.
The snow came, as expected, on Friday. But, Thursday came first- and what did the providences of Thursday bring? Thursday the fan belt of the heating unit in the Volvo broke. What does this mean? Cold for one.


It also meant that riding home from work Friday night at midnight was very cold and I was looking out of my windshield through a defrosted area about the size of a billiard ball.
These pictures are from Saturday morning when I took Samson and Sedgwick out for their morning rituals. The back yard was so beautiful. I felt as though I was walking through the wardrobe into another land. (Sedgwick was Sir Tumnus and Samson was sniffing for Turkish Delight.)

First Snow On Union Avenue

Owen got to experience his first snow fall of his entire life on Wednesday evening. We had about four inches and I was at work for the most of it. I was hoping to be the first in my ring of blog friends to post about the snow, but I noticed that it was on these blogs: Set It Off, Gimmie Back My Bullets, Our Family Garden, and Yes, I Have No Bananas. I am not sure if I missed any of the others; you can check my other blog if you are interested in what they are saying.

We also turned the fireplace on for the first time. Anna thought that the fire was great. She tried to blow it out as well as fanned it saying, "it's ot". Owen did not seem to care about it at all for some reason, but Sedge on the other hand will sit within inches of it!
I love our landscape as you all know. Not only do I love it in the spring and summer when it is in full bloom; I also love it in the autumn and the winter. In autumn there are a lot of great deep colors that come out in the form of berries, seeds, and hips. The roses get those dark hips and the Chinese apple trees get a fantastic bulk of seeds that look like cherries. This year we made a dining table display out of them (in a Fiesta vase of course).

In the winter the landscape is very nice. Due to the flowers that have not been cut and the trees that are nicely shaped, the snow falls and nests in great textural forms. I love to see the way that it rests on the letterbox as well as the birdfeeders.
This is part of our back yard. Notice the great little carriage shed that is now a garage. You could fit a MINI Cooper in it, but not much more!
This is the view on Union Avenue. It was a great first snow.

We are ready for Spring.

Liiiffffeeee onnnnn Unnnnionnnn Avenuuuuuuue

We broke a record this year. Many will be disgusted by this:
Anyone who has visited us on Union Avenue knows that the temperature is 60 degrees Fahrenheit. Always. In August it is 60. In March it is 60. When it is 60 in August people think that it feels refreshing and they love to come over. When it is 60 in March they remove our neatly placed throws off of the couches and seats bundled in, and they go into my sock drawer for something to "keep their feet warm".

What is the record you ask?

We have attempted every year to turn our heat on November 1st. Last year we were not able to do it and had to fold in mid to late October. This year however, we made up for it. We went all the way until yesterday. November 11th. Don't worry though, we understand that 60 degrees is VERY cold....we set it at 55.

Maybe next year we can wait until December!