Sooo.....

Most of you who follow this blog, probably already know that we have decided to move to Colorado. Not only have we decided....we've actually started the act of moving. Our house is full of boxes; our life is half Michigan, half Colorado. But that's how our lives will always be. For as happy as I am to be moving back to Colorado, I am already feeling the loss of the life we've created here.

When I left Colorado I cried-no SOBBED and WEPT for days . It felt like I was leaving but my heart was staying. I didn't know who I am apart from those I've always loved and I was scared to find out. So scared,That I fought it. It took me two years to finally get to a place where I could accept that I needed to make a life for myself here, to have friends and to accept the family who so easily and lovingly accepted me. So as I look around my half Colorado, Michigan house, I am crying again. I am realizing just how unbelievable blessed I have been to find the people I have found. And I cannot in any way try to express how you all have pulled me out of the pit I let myself fall into into something so beautiful. It's only now, as I dismantle my Michigan life, that I realize just how much I already miss Michigan.

The details:
Mike, Mack and I will be staying with my parents while our house is on the market. They have a fully finished basement ( partly thanks to Mike) with more than enough room for us. One of his best friends , Andy , offered their house in Colorado Springs, but we aren't sure how long our house will be on the market and didn't want them to be kept from selling their house. As soon as our place sells, we'll be settling down somewhere between Brighton and Denver. And we'll be ready for visitors!

Prayers appreciated and I will update soon....
Love,
Mx3

P.S. Mack is excited to move ( though she doesn't fully understand what that means despite our explanations ) and just wants to make sure that Allllll of her toys follow her.

Spring? Is that you?

It appears so! Though it's pretty chilly ( and REALLY rainy) we've had temps in the 50's all week AND the Tulips are in bloom. That's spring in my book!

Happy Easter!

Easter Bunny!

The Easter Bunny stopped by Grammy's again this year! I don't know how he even managed to carry the basket but Mackenzie was sure excited that he did!

Coloring eggs!

Mack had a lot of fun coloring and "stickering" her eggs this year. So much so that she was kinda confused when I took her colorful creating , cracked it and offered it to her.

Egg hunting

Mary hosted her ( now) annual Easter Egg hunt for all our favorite "littles". Everyone has a great time even though the eggs had to be hid downstairs due to rain. The kids had so much fun hunting for their color egg and , of course, opening to see what was inside. Mary went over and beyond any hunt I've ever attended and there was much excitement. There were so many pictures so I made a collage to be able to share lots of them with out crowding up the page too much ( click collage to enlarge) :


Thanks again, Grammy!

Bug hunting

We all know how Mack feels about her bug friends. Her new favorite thing to do is to go to Grammy's and look under all the rocks ( and I mean all the rocks- gives new meaning to " no stone unturned) for new and exciting bugs.

Mack has been missing Grammy since she and Janet went to Australia. She was delighted when Grammy went bug hunting with her. It was still pretty cold for most bugs but Mack did catch a few hearty worms and roly poly's :

Something on the horizon?

Recently Mike began noticing a trend in the nursing field. While there are plenty of floor nursing jobs available, he isn't seeing positions for upper management. It seems that the more seasoned nurses just aren't giving up their positions as easily as they once did. Add to that the fact that have a " clinical nurse specialist" on the floor may seem to be somewhat over a luxury in these times. This is bad news for Mike since his dreams include becoming a CNS and , eventually, a PhD in nursing. All those things, plus the need for Mike to find a CNS to work with in clinicals next year , have caused us to take a good hard look at our future and whether Michigan is really the best place for us to pursue our hopes and dreams. While you'd think I ( a Colorado girl to the core) would be over the moon at the prospect, there are lots of details that would need to be worked out in order for me to feel comfortable plucking our family from it's comfy spot here in Michigan for the open possibilities of Colorado. The thought of being closer to our family and friends is exciting on one hand but incredibly sad on other . It seems that going " home" would mean leaving the life and family we've created here. The first few years in Michigan were tough for me. I'd just left my family and all I'd known for a place where I wasn't really sure of myself . Once I saw that I needed to MAKE a life for me here, the world opened up and with it, a wonderful support system- people I'd miss more than I can even say.

In all of this, I guess I am asking for prayers of discernment. We want to follow God's plan for us but it's hard when we're not exactly sure what those plans are. We appreciate your prayers and you'd better believe we'll be back with more info as soon as we know it!
Mx3

April showers...

They say April showers bring May flowers but no one ever specified which type of showers those might be.

A girl and her Grams

My mom left yesterday. I thought that saying " good-bye" would get easier over time but it's been 6 years and a still miss her like crazy, especially after a visit. I have learned to be happy and thankful when she can come visit and to cherish the memories we have when we get to spend time together.

Mack has consistently said for the last year or so that her best friend is Grams While my mom was here, Mack was glued to her side. The two of them chattered away constantly and Mack hasn't stopped talking about going to see Grams ( we have a trip planned in June) since before she left.

Here's a peek at our visit:

In honor of my 30th and mom's 50th birthday, Mike treated us with a box of Godiva chocolate:
Each morning Mack would rush out to be sure Grams was still there.

Then they'd have breakfast together. The discussions got quiet animated:
Mack and Grams' watching Sesame Street:
Check out these cute pants mom made for Mack. She made a dress, too!
As always, we had so much fun laughing together:
And we got a little something to commemorate our big birthdays:
Mom brought this push light to Mack but the batteries had died. Just as soon as I replaced them, Mack ran off. This is how I found her- naked and using the bathroom by " candle light".

Marie and Chloe

Marie and Chloe were here for Marie's spring break from school. It's always so fun to see them and I always leave wishing that I could spend more time getting to know them. Their visit overlapped the visit with my mom so we only managed to squeeze in one day together but our trip to the Ann Arbor Hands on Museum was a fun one. We spent almost two hours there before heading over to Mongolian BBQ for lunch. I am already looking forward to next spring!

Aunt Meg ( Grandma) hangin' out with Chloe in the wild life room. Chloe is such a funny girl. Each statement, good or bad, starts with " Oh no!" It's so fun to watch her grow, even if it's just through the blog most of the time.
A pow wow in the back of the ambulance to decide about lunch:

Buggin' out!

Well, I know one person who's glad to see the return of bugs!
You can click on the collage to see it bigger :)

A few quiet moments

Sometimes I can catch Mack in a quiet moment where her concentration is so deep she doesn't even notice me. I especially love it when I happen to have my camera to capture it. OR.., in a slightly less tranquil manner, it could just be that she's wearing a cute outfit and I coax her to sit still for a few snaps. Today I coaxed.

Puppy love

Mack has fallen in love. The owner of her affection is ruggedly handsome, very smart ( especially for his species) and, other than the drool, exhibits perfect manners.


It's very hard to take pictures of a three year old girl and a one year old dog together!

It was a comedy of errors of sorts- Jake prefers to be the walk-er not the walk-ee. To prove the point, he has to carry part of the leash in his mouth. Mack really wanted to walk Jake, so she , too, had to carry part of the rope leaving Aunt Meg to try and keep the two straight. I'll say this, walking Jake really is a good work out:
The squirrel had everyone's attention:

Part of the reason we don't have a dog is because we have two cats ( and a small-ish house). But I'm wondering if Duncan might like not having so much attention?

Music class egg hunt.

Marie held her annual Easter egg hunt for her music classes. Mike took Mack and they had a great time making an Easter egg collecting bag, hunting eggs, playing on the parachute and running around like crazy.
Mike was excited to see that three year old Mackenzie likes to play with other kids vs. the parallele play of two year old Mack.

She wasn't nearly as crazy about the bunny as she was her friends:

Not your girly girl

My Mackenzie is not a girly girl. Don't get me wrong, she loves having her nails painted and her hair brushed. She has a few dolls she plays with and she'll occasionally check out what's in the dress up box. On the whole, she's happy to play with trains, follow a trail of ants to find out where they are going or rescue worms who've surfaced during a rain storm. Then again, having been raised on the farm, I'm not your girly girl either and I'm pretty happy to be right beside my girl checkin' out roley poley's .

Here's Mack's idea of playing with her kitchen ( yes, that's her plastic snake jammed inside her coffee pot):

I miss this...

Mack taking a nap! Truth be told, though, I really don't miss her nap time. I actually enjoy the freedom of being able to pack a lunch and run out on errands or a day trip in the middle of the day. It does help that Mack " rests" during her old nap time for about an hour and she's still sleeping up words of 13 hours each night.

Jazz it up!

Apparently, my messy pony tails weren't glamorous enough for Mack so she jazzed them up a bit

Here's how they started- just one tasteful, yet lonely looking clip. ( by the way, can you tell that I am LOVING my new camera )

Here's the style with added " Mack Flare"

My sillies

Just a few snaps of silliness from around our house:

This sweatshirt is even huge on ME but Mack wore it for several hours:
" Giant Daddy"

Did I REALLY just say that?

Any parent can tell you that , the instant you find an impulsive and curious toddler where your quiet baby once lay , unmoving and unintrigued by dirty, foul smelling or otherwise dangerous objects, you suddenly find yourself thinking" Did I really just say that?" Mike and I don't even have to ask it anymore. We just exchange a knowing look that confirms our dual- surprise/confusion/awe/disgust ( almost always disgust).

" Here. I'll hold your snake while you put your socks on."
" Licking the toilet is not ok. Ever. " ( Thankfully said toilet was ours!)
" Cat's don't like to wear sunglasses"
" No. I don't want to taste your booger"
" The bug doesn't want to wear your jacket"
" Duncan doesn't like to be licked."
"You're right. Poop is not for eating." ( <--- disgust)