The Cottage

This is the cottage from the lake.

This is the cottage from the road. Yes you see the hot pink from about a block away...so hard to miss!

It's been awhile since I've blogged, but we've been busy working on our new cottage. Here are the original pictures so you can see how much it will soon change. Matt has been going up almost every night after work painting inside and updating fixtures, electrical, cleaning, and hanging pictures. It's really starting to come together and will be ready for use very soon. We just turned on the water so Matt could power wash the cottage and so we will be ready to paint the exterior when we have our first stretch of dry 60 degree weather. Jack loves the colors, but we think we are going with something a little less Barbie/Punky Brewster. I'm hoping that nice weather will be coming soon!

Crystal Mountain

We had a blast at Crystal Mountain over the last few days. Jack went down some of the big hills with Matt and I and Ava made it on the magic carpet and went down with Matt.

Santa

Our annual visit with Santa went well. Jack told Santa he wanted Bakugans, Bionicles, and Legos. Ava said she wanted balls...don't ask:) They were too cute and I was just glad they weren't scared of him this year!

Winter Pictures

Just a few shots of the kids playing on one of the snow days. They had fun until Jack started throwing snowballs at Ava which resulted in her crying. I would say they made it maybe a total of 20 minutes. We'll have to try to go out more often. I know Matt is so ready to take Jack out on the slopes.

Jack's First Day of Preschool

So Jack started preschool today. It wasn't quite the perfect day that I dreamed of, but ended up fine. He cried the entire morning until we dragged him into the room. Once he made it in, he was very excited and had a great day. We're so proud of our sweet boy. I can't believe how big he is getting, we love you Jack Jeffrey!

The Chalmer's Cottage

We made a stop at Trevor and Sheila's cottage before heading home after the 4th. We had a great time and it's so great to watch our kids play and have fun together. Thanks again for the great time!

Fourth of July 2009

Wow, what an awesome time we had up north for the fourth! We enjoyed fun times at the Matlosz family cottage, with Matt's family and my parents, Wayne, Tonya, and Ziah all came as well. It was nice to have both our families together to relax and enjoy the beautiful weather.

Lake Michigan

We had a blast hanging with our cousins Jeff, Katy, Hannah, Jarred, and Jacob. What a beautiful view! The water was a little cold, but we still loved it.

Jack's 4th Birthday!

We had so much fun celebrating Jack's birthday watching the White Caps. He had many guests that helped him celebrate his special day, Grandma Nancy, Grandpa O, Ama, Uncle Mike, Courtney, Uncle Tom, Adam, Melissa, Jackson, and Allory. Thanks again to Adam for the awesome seats!

Grand Haven

Even though the weather was a little chilly...we still had a fun day in Grand Haven. We introduced Ava to Pronto Pups, walked out to the light house and did a little shopping. We'll have to go hang out at the beach on a nicer day this summer. I can't wait!

Memorial weekend

We could not ask for better weather. It was absolutely beautiful at the cottage this Memorial Day! We had a blast hanging out, going on the boat, riding the jet skis, playing in the sand, and of course sitting around the campfire. Uncle Tom is a fire building pro and Uncle Mike is an expert making hobo pies and smores. We look forward to many more fun summer days up at the cottage.

The Kammer Mansion

Our friends Adam and Stephanie just bought a new house and it is beautiful! I realize now that I didn't get any pics of the house, but it is awesome. The kids had a blast and so did we:) Thanks again for your wonderful hospitality! We can't wait to hang out this summer.