The New Van Heukelom Residence

It's final; we have a new place to live in Grand Rapids! We are so excited about our new house and upcoming move. We thought we had found the perfect place, but we were disappointed to find out it probably wouldn't be available the entire 3 years we live there. However, God opened a window and I believe we found an even better place. It is listed as a 3 bedroom house, but has an additional bedroom in the basement. It has 2.5 bathrooms, and big kitchen, tons of space for the kids, a fenced in yard, AND this amazing tree house! I was sold when I say this. Our landlord has been great to work with so far. Can't wait to have you all over. We'll finally have room to host a party!! No, we will not be sleeping outdoors at night, but it is probably one of the best highlights of the house.
If you know me, you know I love the kitchen. It's my favorite place in the house. This one is nice and big.

The outside. You can see more pictures at http://www.flickr.com/photos/20789478@N04/page2/

Ready to Make the Move

This past week we took a road trip to explore our new home in Grand Rapids, MI. The kids did great in the car, and we were able to make it with only 3 stops. We thought we had found a house, but we were disappointed to find out the house probably wouldn't be available the entire 3 years. However, we found another great house, and it looks like we will be signing a lease this week! We are very excited. Once it's finalized, I'll post the pictures. Here's Everett getting a bath at Grandpa Greg's house. He likes his baths.
Everett and Aunt Ahna. While we were visiting, Ahna found out she got accepted to nursing school in Alabama!! We are so excited for her, but we sure will miss her. Luckily, she'll be sticking around til mid-June, so we have a few weeks to enjoy together.

Great-grandma Ruth and Everett.

At Greg's, we enjoyed the beautiful weather by playing some outdoor games. We were so sore the next day. I hadn't run in ages.

While we played, Maverick zoomed around in his Barbie car. He even off-roaded a few times, and we had to pull him out of the dirt.

At Carola's we had a Easter Egg hunt, and Maverick thoroughly enjoyed looking at and eating his candy.

The family after the hunt.

Oma Carola and Everett.

Everett and I enjoying bath time.

Best of buds! I love these kids!

Spring Has Sprung

That means Easter, baby calves and birds, and sheds. What a shed is I did not know until just this past weekend. My dad was telling Jesse about how buck deer shed their antlers (or do reindeer just have those, and I need to use another term?) each spring and you can walk through the tree strips to find them. This caught Jesse's attention because he's always looking for things to do outside at the farm. So, Jesse headed out to look and at first came up empty handed. Then, my dad went out too, and they not only found one but FOUR sheds! They were both very excited. There are pictures, but first, Maverick and his Easter basket. The Easter Bunny brought him lots of goodies and lots of tic tacs!
Not kidding when we say Maverick gets very close to the cows. Some are so tame, they eat right out of your hand. Maverick even got to see some new baby calves and pet them. He was pretty excited.
My buck.

Jesse, dad, and their collection of sheds. Jesse wants to use his sheds to make a cane or a walker. We had disagreeing ideas about where the horns would go. I thought they should be used at the top as handlebars; Jesse was thinking they'd go on the bottom more like claws. One of his patients apparently had a stellar cane with a bone handle, and Jesse just thought it was the coolest. For now, the sheds are being safely stored at the farm.

And, our baby hawk. If only it were a few years later, Jesse and I would have saved this baby bird. However, we don't think he would have thrived very well in the city. Many of you know, Jesse and I would like to take up falconry which is the raising of a big bird like a hawk. To raise the bird, you must be an apprentice to someone who already has a bird. Unfortunately, we couldn't save this little guy, and we were very sad. Our children are safe another day.

How big is Everett?

Everett is SO big! Today Everett had his 2-month check up, and he is growing like a weed. You would never know he was the boy who was in the hospital when he was just 3 weeks old. He is currently 12# 11 oz and 25 inches long. If 25 inches seems long, it is! He is in the 95 percentile for height. The doctor just said, "Man, he's long." He's meeting all 2-month milestones. He had 3 shots and one oral vaccine today, so he's not the happiest this afternoon. SO big!
Everett's smiles come and go so quickly that we were happy to get one on camera, even though that's the only thing we got! Our friend Jennifer came and spent this past weekend with us. We got to go to "The Beauty & the Beast" musical in Sioux City on Saturday which was a lot of fun. On Sunday morning we had pancakes, and Maverick decided he needed just a little bit more to eat before he took his shower! Jennifer was speechless.

Everett & Maverick hanging out.

Everett and his big baby googly eyes.

Kathy & Everett at the farm.

You can never have too many pictures of a 2-year-old driving a tractor. The farm is a haven for kids and we were sure miss it.

Maverick, Grandpa Jerry and those cows! We forgot Maverick's snow boots so we had to improvise. We put Walmart bags around his feet and legs and secured it with packing tape. Luckily, we had his farm shoes, so they went over top. His feet stayed surprisingly dry.

CoCo Keys

This past weekend we headed to Omaha to a hotel/waterpark called CoCo Key with my parents and sister and her family. I think Maverick is still a little too little for the water. At one point he was so cold, he was practically vibrating across the floor. The waterpark was really neat though and it was 85 degrees inside! A glimpse of days to come. I can't wait to take Everett and Maverick to hotels when they get older. Growing up, it was one of my favorite things. It's the one place jumping on the bed is legal!
Maverick and his Carlee. He's stuck to her whenever she is around. And, the way he says her name is just too cute and pathetic sounding.

Maverick and dad swimming. Kick, kick, kick!

Everett and aunt Jennifer. Lots of love that boy gets.

More love from grandma Arlene.

Maverick's new favorite toy is the Nerf gun.

Carlee and Maverick picking grapes off the stem.

Look at this big boy! Cannot believe he is 8 weeks old already. He's sure had a crazy 2 months. First he had his hospital stay, then he had his appointment with the cardiologist. We found out he does have a heart murmur, but it is harmless. Thank goodness! He should outgrow it by one year of age.

Maverick continues to be so sweet with his brother. When they are tearing each other apart in a few years, I will be able to show them this picture and show them they really do love each other!

Fun with the Boys

This past weekend we had our last set of visitors, Seth and Kari. This means March and Match Day are almost here. Maverick had a great time with his uncle Seth being goofy and having fun. Clean the window and don't lick the metal!
Loving the airplane!

Such a helpful big brother. Maverick is so great with Everett. It makes me so happy.

Fun with the boys. They all got to use Jesse's homemade sled.

Maverick loves being outside and playing in the snow. We are looking forward to spring. I keep telling Maverick that in 3 months we will be in our own house with lots of windows and places to play! I can't wait. Vermillion has been a wonderful place to start our family, but we are definitely ready to start the next chapter of our lives. Not only that, but our apartment is bursting at the seams. The big day is March 18!!

Thanks to Kari for taking this really cool picture.

What a Month

Almost a month has passed since I last blogged and SO much has happened. We've had a lot of great visits, but the event that stands out the most is Everett's trip to the hospital this past week. He was admitted on Monday with a 100.5 fever. Because it was of "unknown origin", he had to be hospitalized. We ran lots of tests and even a spinal tap and nothing was found which was a relief. We are home now, and he is returning to his laid-back self. Thanks goodness!! How sad is this? Poor little guy with his IV. It was eventually put in his leg which was easier to handle.
Oma Carola and the boys. Maverick thinks he's a Flamanco dancer.

Everett in his cute bibs and mom.

Close up of Everett.

Grandma Arlene and the boys.

Maverick licking the beaters after making brownies. Yum!!

Ahna visited this past week as well. We had a heck of a week because Maverick, Ahna, Jesse, and I all had the stomach flu. It was awful. Luckily, we are all on the mend.

Cristian (or as Maverick calls him Chin-chin) and Everett.

Cousin Carl and Everett!

Great grandma Ruth, Papa Greg, Maverick, and Everett.