For you, Mom!

Nikki and I picked these out at the farmer's market last week and they are still looking great. Sunflower's are my mom's favorites. When ever I see them, I think of her:

Fun with stickers

We have a big art kit that Mackenzie plays with. She likes to scribble on big pieces of paper ( thanks Will!) and will sit for MINUTES ( which , in toddlerville, is like HOURS!) . Recently, she started wanting to put stickers on her papers. Those stickers have become pretty well traveled as I have found them in various places all over the house ( she even snuck one in her DINNER last night!) . Mackenzie realized that, not only could she stick them on things, but also PEOPLE! This spells trouble...
Cheese!
I made it look like so much fun, Mackenzie joined the club:

Lady bug migration

Check out what I found in the baby proofed door knob on the front door:

Yep! Those are the lady bug hair clips I've been looking for. My guess is that Mackenzie was using them as " keys".

Nicole

Having lived in Michigan for 4.5 years now, I have, in a way, forgotten what it's like to have my mom and sisters close by. Even with all the wonderful, truly loving people I am blessed to have in my life in Michigan, there's nothing like a sister to turn to( I count my mom as a sister, too..she's so youthful!) . Who better to understand my weird quirks than someone who has them, too! Having Nikki here for a weekend reminded me how much I miss having them close by.

Nicole's trip to Michigan was short and sweet but it was so much fun! I was sad to see her go but not TOO sad, since I'll be seeing her , and all of my other Colorado family, in a few weeks! Here's a recap of our weekend in picture form!

By the way, Nikki, Mackenzie is still looking for " Auntie Ninni"

We tried really hard to take a good picture of us. This is the best we could do:
Here's a sample of how the rest looked because we couldn't stop laughing long enough to snap the picture:
Mack took to Nikki right away. Even if Nikki went to the bathroom, Mackenzie was looking for her, shouting " NIIIII! Where are ye?" . Here's Mackenzie showing her some of her favorite things:

Beloved GiGi:
Her kitchen:
Her Crib:
We took Nicole to the Ann Arbor Farmer's Market, our favorite Saturday morning hang out:
And to Zingerman's to pick up stuff for dinner:

Here's Mike at the MudPuddles, a toy store, just moments before our bag of overly ripe cherries spilled all over the floor ( and Mackenzie offered free, fuzzy samples to anyone standing near by)
Nikki getting pay backs on me: Load the kids up on sugar then hop on a plane!
Mackenzie feel asleep on the way to drop Nikki off. She was sad when she woke up to Nikki kissing her good-bye:
We miss you , Nikki! Can't wait to see you in.....45 days!

Leif, Marie and Chloe (Part 2)

We are sooooo glad that we were able to get together again with Leif, Marie and Chloe. This time, we met at Aunt Meg's for yummy salads. Leif has been working hard on projects around the house including new porch steps and fancy new siding for the back deck! Meg had a previous engagement so Marie stepped in as hostess and did a great job! Here are some pictures from our visit. When we see them again next summer, Chloe will be keeping up with Mackenzie!

A very awake and alert Chloe!
Hanging out on the porch! I am sure Mike and Leif never imagined this is where they'd be in 28 years when they were kids!

Just the girls! I really enjoyed Marie. I can't wait for next summer when we will have more time to get to know each other!

Chloe and Marie:

Gigi

My mom sent Mackenzie a Gloworm for Christmas and Mackenzie has rediscovered it in the last few days. We named her " GiGi" and if GiGi gets out of sight, Mackenzie roams around saying " GIGI! Where are you?!". Here's a short video of her with Gigi. In the video, Mackenzie was rocking and consoling Gigi after she'd tossed her across the room:

"Ha-loo"

Mackenzie is a " do it yourself" kinda girl these days so I put a little step stool in the bathroom so she can brush her teeth with out being held. I heard her in the bathroom and so I snuck in to take a picture:
She goes in several times a day to brush her teeth or her hair or just say "Ha-loo" to the smiley girl in the mirror:

Cuddle time with daddy!