My Dear Uncle Carl

Many of you know that my Great Uncle Carl passed away on May 13th... he hadn't been well for awhile, but will be dearly missed. He was such a wonderful artist and loved to joke around. I didn't mind that he called me Dumbie Jr because I always called him Uncle Booger. Zoe has taken this loss very hard, but remembers him daily for who he really was... a loving and caring part of our family.

School

The last full day of school was May 20th... Cole and Zoe worked so hard this year. Cole will be going to 3rd and Zoe 1st in the fall. Where does the time go? It feels like I was just watching Cole get on the bus for preschool and now almost 5 yrs later.... time sure does fly! The kids both had a great year and loved their teachers.

Now onto the 3-month summer... and all the activities!

Bunny Hop

Todd and Zoe attended the Bunny Hop this year. Zoe was very excited... she loved her wrist corsage, dinner at Beach's with our friends, Matt and Sarah, and then the Bunny Hop to dance the night away. She is already talking about next year and the plans!

Sorry it has been awhile...

I apologize that it has been so long since I last posted an update. I didn't realize that time flies by so quickly until the kids only has a week left of school and then realized that nothing would get done until they went back to school in August. I will try to update you on everything that has kept us so busy.

1. Cole went to basketball camp in February. He really enjoys this sport and had a great time!

2. Zoe celebrated her 6th birthday and Cole his 8th. They sure do grow up fast! I just can't believe where the time went. New bikes were the presents this year... they love them and spend so much time on them.

3. Both of the kids had their Spring concerts at school and they both did great! It is wonderful that we are able to have such a great music program at our school that is fun & creative!

4. We went to several Ice Hogs games this season. The kids were able to take friends and had a great time. We went to one game that had the mascot for the Blackhawks and it was trying to eat Cole.

4. Zoe has attended a couple Girl Scout events this spring. She enjoyed the Thinking Day event and really had fun at the Mother & Daughter Spa Event in Galena. She is looking forward to Camporee in August.

5. Easter was fun this year... the kids remember our tradition every year, so we have a great time hiding and finding the eggs. They also love their "springy" gifts instead of a basket just filled with candy.

6. I went to the Carrie Underwood concert in April... and it was awesome! I ended up taking with me 3-15yr old girls, but it was still a good time. We had awesome seats in the 2nd floor and Carrie Underwood's truck stopped right over top of us and was about 15 feet away. The girls with me also got to touch Craig Morgan... and they think he is little hottie for an older man. :)

7. We all stayed pretty healthy this winter with the exception of Zoe and myself getting strep at the end of April.

8. Cole finished Sylvan at the end of April. He has raised his reading level at school by 8 levels! We are so happy that he is finally a relaxed reader and that he enjoys reading so much more. Way to go Cole!

9. In May, Zoe brigded from a Daisy to a Brownie Girl Scout... we are so proud of Zoe for finishing her Daisy program and for continuing on to become a Brownie. Way to go Zoe!

All-in-all it was a very good and busy winter!

Sylvan Update

Cole is about halfway through his Sylvan program and he is reaping great rewards. His reading level has increased 4 levels in just 3 months and he really enjoys reading now! We are so proud of all of his hard work and dedication, so we took him to the Ice Hogs game last night to reward him. He loved it and we had to stay to the very end! Great job Cole! We are very proud of you!

Home Improvement Projects Update

Old Cabinets

Cabinets refinished and new handles (and yes this is a different set of cabinets than the other pics, but I forgot to take a pic before we started).

We have started putting tiles on our kitchen countertops... Todd was a little upset when I asked him to put the tiles in a diamond shape since this would take quite a bit longer to complete. Yes another project started and not finished, but they will be all finished before the camping season begins!

Zoe's room is almost finished... all we have to do yet is the chair rail. We are hoping that the carpet will be installed in the next few weeks in both of the kids' bedrooms. It is so great to have such a handy husband!

Winter Tradition

When there is nothing else to do in the middle of winter... Todd and the kids get out the 4-wheeler and sled. This seems to be a yearly tradition for the kids and Todd joined in on the fun this year... Zoe had a blast playing in the snow while she was waiting for her turn to ride.