So much to celebrate!

We've been a traveling road show.  We are blessed with a large, loving family and a beautiful circle of close knit friends.  This year, several of those people are celebrating weddings and new babies so between now and June 27, if you're looking for us, we probably won't be in Michigan.  Last weekend, Helaina and I spent the weekend in Indianapolis celebrating the upcoming birth of Baby Theo.  We hosted the shower at the home of Megan and Jon and had a wonderful celebration for Megan and the new little guy.  After the shower, the adults were able to go to dinner for some quality catch-up time, while my parents watched the kids back at the hotel.  

The kids enjoying their pizza pool party!

This past weekend, the kids and I traveled to Valpo to begin planning Nate's fiances' shower and to attend a bridal shower for my cousin Braden and his fiance Shannon.  Both Helaina and Zach will be standing in their wedding this Memorial Day weekend.

After all the planning and celebrating, we had yet another event to attend, St. Patty's Day celebration at the Snook house.  The best part of the night was visiting with my cousin Jess and her husband Aaron, who were home for a short leave from his deployment overseas.  Always a good night when you can celebrate your Irish roots with your Irish grandfather :).

Happy 6 Birthday to our "baby" girl!

Six or 6, no matter how I write it, my brain is still trying to process that Helaina has been on this earth for six years and Randy and I have been parents for just as long.  The truth is, I really don't remember what it felt like before I was a mom.  I am certain that my heart was not as happy and my life was not as full as it is now.  It's bittersweet to say goodbye to the age of five.  Five treated Helaina and our family really well.  Five is by far, my most favorite age and I can only hope and pray that six and seven and eight will be just as great!  In this past year, Helaina has grown more than we could have ever hoped.  We spent our first summer in our new home and became friends with some really special families.  At the age of 5 1/2, we watched Helaina get on the school bus and never look back, not even for one minute!  She waved to us from the bus window and our lives have never been the same.  Since she started Kindergarten, Helaina has learned to tie her shoes, learned to read, learned to speak French, and made some really special friends.  Randy and I are so proud that her heart continues to soften and she is always looking for ways to make other people happy.  She loves animals, babies, and is always trying really hard to set a good example for her brother.  Last night, while she was sleeping, we blew up lots of balloons and hung streamers from her door.  When she woke up this morning, she was so excited to see the decorations, but she first ran to our bedroom to hug us and tell us "thank you" for making her birthday special.  What a special little lady we have!     

Birthday cupcake at bowling

 Bowling for her birthday

A day spent babysitting baby Jensen.  Zach and Jenson wanted in on the selfie fun.

Zach continues to love on his best girlfriend, Ellery.  The other day, they were playing "Grandma" and "Grandpa"

Monster Jam at Ford Field.  Let's just say that Randy braved this event by himself with the two kids and a little boy that had not taken a nap that day.  The kids enjoyed the show, however, Randy is now pleading the 5th.  

Roller skaing for a school event.  Helaina showing off her winnings for coming in first during her class race.

Hopefully Zach will be able to skate on his own someday soon.  It's hard, hard work getting this kid around on his roller blades!

And lastly, Katie (Indiana Katie) has recently become a Wildtree representative.  What better way to support her new business and get her to come to town, than to host a freezer meal workshop.  It was a busy day, but we had 13 women prepping and cooking 10 freezer meals each.  It was so nice to have her in town for the day and to spend some quality girl time with our friends.