Mini Vaca

We enjoyed a little time away this week too. We ventured out to the East side of the state! My cousin Kathy and her husband Jim graciously offered to have us come stay with them. We had planned to do some shopping and sight seeing over there so it worked out perfectly. Although they did have some snow left on the ground when we got there, the weather turned really nice and the kids enjoyed playing outside too. We had a great time catching up with cousins!

Doing a little bouncing on the neighbor's trampoline.

There was a neat mall that we checked out with a nice play area for the kids.

One night we decided to go bowling. It was a nice outing although the alley had some questionable clientelle! We kept a close eye on the kids!

You can't see it well, but I actually beat Scott for the first time!

A group shot of the kids. Nathan really enjoyed playing with the kids and especially liked hanging out with Kamryn.

One of our Spring Break activities was to check on the butterflies at Meijer Gardens. There were a few more out than the last time we went. It was quite busy with many people seeking out a warm beautiful place which is hard to find in West Michigan in April. We enjoyed meeting Boppa and Grandma there.

Troy checking out butterflies in the guide book.

Some of the group. Enjoying lunch in the new cafe at the Garden.

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That afternoon Kamryn had her first skateboarding experience at the local skate park. She met her friend, Quinn, there who is quite an expert and could give her some tips. This park is inside of a mall so we could keep an eye on her while doing some shopping.

Kamryn contemplating a drop in.Troy and a friend watching Kam through the mall window.
Kamryn and Quinn.

Kamryn after three hours of skateboarding. She survived with only a few bruises and thanfully no broken bones!!

Morning at the Museum

This morning we headed downtown to the Public Museum. They were advertising a Dinosaur Exhibit that Troy has been wanting to see. We had a great time and learned a lot!

Kamryn and Troy standing in front of the car exhibit.

Kamryn trying out the big bike...

Troy on the big bike...

Scott on the big bike-careful!

This man was showing us how they used a printing press to create printed material. The kids were quite impressed!

Then we entered the dinosaur exhibit. Troy enjoyed pretending with the toy dinosaurs.

This was a robotic dino that you could control.

Scott joins in on the fun.

Kam works on another masterpiece.

We enjoyed running into our friends the Borsts. Here Scott is explaining the finer points of...guns.

Kam and Troy checking out the juke boxes.

We ended the morning with a ride on the carousel and lunch at Big Boy with the Borsts.

Fun times!

Why no pics of Katie? She was off working on some service projects with kids from the youth group at church. Nice job, Kate!

Spring Break on a Budget

So, another Spring Break spent in the chilly north. Here are some ways we have been keeping busy... We enjoyed having some Visalia friends, The Westeyns, visit for the day today. (Sorry no photos, couldn't find my camera in time.) Tonight we decided to tackle the Easter eggs.

A pose for the blog as Kamryn said.

Crazy kids!

Last night we made our own pizzas before heading over to some friend's to watch the big MSU game.

Some healthy sisterly competition on the wii.

Shootin' some hoops on the driveway.

Tomorrow we are heading over to the Museum downtown to check out the dinosaur exhibit. Stay tuned...

Thankful!

We are pleased to announce the birth of our nephew, Andrew Jon Rozeboom, to my brother Dan and sister-in-law, Nesha yesterday. Andrew was born at just after 32 weeks in Palo Alto, CA and weighs just under 4 pounds. It has been a rough pregnancy which involved a month-long hospital stay for Nesha. We are so thankful to God for a healthy little boy. Please pray for continued growth and health.

Katie played in her first official highschool soccer game today. She is playing on the Freshman team at Christian High. Today's game was a little rough as they are still learning to play with each other yet. Katie also had a sore back and was limping a bit. Anyway, it was a bright sunny day-a great day for soccer!!

Katie after the game in her favorite #9 jersey.

A shot of the field.

The beautiful new stadium at Christian High.

I had to get a shot of this scene after dinner. We began a new devotional with the Resurrection Eggs. Troy was talking really loudly about all the eggs they had already opened in his preschool class and then Scott starts reading the Spanish version of the booklet even louder...Something about el burro?! As you can see he is enjoying himself. :)

Farewell

Yesterday was the farewell for the Japanese students. After school the kids and host families all went bowling and then there was a pizza party and presentation at the highschool. It was a nice time of being all together and learning a bit more about the Japanese culture...

This is Katie and her friend Shannon with their exchange student friends. We always laugh when they pose for pictures with the peace symbol.

We all headed over to the bowling alley for a few games.

Our friend Anna came along with us and enjoyed her first bowling experience with Katie's help.

Troy and Anna in the van.

Mr. Pegman addressing the group gathered at Christian High before dinner.

After dinner, the kids had a time of demonstrating calligraphy and oragami for their host families.

Miku and Katie at the oragami table.

Katie's proud of her work.

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A little family update:

Kristin is enjoying subbing in 5th grade for a few weeks. It's a new grade level, but has been fun. Also, we found out this week that we are headed to Pella, Iowa for the summer. We were hoping to stay in Grand Rapids, but were not able to secure a summer internship in this area. We are eager to experience a new part of the U.S. and are excited about the work God has for us there. We have already been making connections with many who have friends and relatives in that area. That same day we found out about the internship, we connected with two Christian college students who are going to stay in our house while we are gone. God is good (and has a sense of humor!).