HAPPY 31st BIRTHDAY, CHRIS!!

Andrew and Friends

Smash Saturday

Last Sat, April 8, we had a bunch of family members over to smash our bomb shelter, the hideous cement monstrosity in front of our house. Chris had used a sledgehammer to pound down most of the roof but the walls ended up being a huge job. We rented a jackhammer, but most of the work was done with sledgehammers and some kind of drill. We still have a lot of work to do on it, but we're glad we got started and we are very appreciative of all the hard work our family did for us.

This is basically what we started with, four very thick walls.

We used a truck to pull the top off, here the walls are beginning to crumble.

This is when the walls were down. John and Alice stayed to help some more.

Levi being a big helper after he ate all his meat!

Bathroom Remodel

About three weeks ago I started remodeling our bathroom. First, I scraped up all the ugly tile on the floor. That job wasn't so bad. My dad helped me take out the vanity and mirror which cracked into a million pieces when we took it down. Behind the mirror was a huge hole for a built in medicine cabinet and behind the vanity were two holes by the plumbing. Chris' dad did the electrical and also patched some holes for us. But this as far as we are. Hopefully it will be finished up soon.

Here's a picture of the floor after I removed most of the tile. Those of you who have used our bathroom this winter will know why the space heater is next to the toilet!

This is where Chris's dad patched the whole behind the mirror and where we exposed the holes behind the vanity. Fortunately, we're putting up wainscoting so the lower holes don't matter as much.

Applebee's and kids

Today my friend Kelly and I decided to go out for lunch at Applebee's to celebrate our birthdays which fall exactly one month apart. Not a good idea. Kelly has two kids who are reasonably well behaved. I have one child who is...kind of well behaved until he needs his nap. The fun started even before our lunch arrived. Andrew would have none of his snacks and threw his pipe on the ground about a million times (slight exaggeration). So we decided to ask for boxes and go back to my house to eat our lunch in relative peace. However, our waiter was doing who-knows-what in the kitchen and it was another fifteen minutes before we could get our boxes and pay for our meals. When he finally comes out of the kitchen, he waits on about three other tables first, continually glancing at us. We both had our coats on and were frantically trying to keep our kids from pulling dishes off the table. Unfortunately, the carpet under that table will never be the same. Too many smushed pretzels and cheerios. Anyway, lesson learned: Next time, its take-out.


(Pictures next time, I promise!)

Finally, an update!

I've finally gotten around to updating my blog (here you go, Kate)!
So, Andrew turned one about a month ago and he had two birthday parties and got to smash chocolate cake all over the place twice! Plus, he now has more toys than any child I know and his room looks like a toy factory exploded. But of course, he doesn't play with any of his toys, he just gets into all my cupboards and makes a mess! Oh well.
It was so nice seeing all my friends and family over Christmas, especially my good friend Kate. I hope she decides to stay in GR when she gets back home from the Netherlands, since now her plans are to go to California when she gets back. We also visited my grandparents in Canada which was really nice.
Chris enjoyed going back to school after Christmas break, and I actually got to sub twice this week which was great. Part of me really wants the experience of being a regular teacher with my own classroom, while the other part wonders why I would put myself through that. Maybe someday. Right now I'm trying to fix up our house. I painted the ceiling in the laundry room yesterday, and tomorrow I'm going to use the new drill my parents gave me for my birthday to put drawer pulls on the drawers in Andrew's room. Oh, and tomorrow is also my 23rd birthday. Not real momentous, but still fun.

Engelsma Christmas

Yesterday was the big Engelsma Christmas party which also coincides with Grandpa E's birthday. Roughly estimated, there were probably eighty people present. Everyone brings a hot and a cold dish and if there is anything Engelsmas know how to do, its cook. So there is always plenty to go around. After dinner, we sang Christmas carols and the kids got to open their gifts. This was the first year Andrew got to participate, not that he knew what was going on. His cousin Levi had his name and he received a Mother Goose book and also a pop-up book about big machines. We'll have to put those away for a few years!

Sad news

As many of you know, Chris and I were expecting our 2nd child at the end of May. We were looking forward to having two children and how our lives would change again with this child, but God decided to take our child home to be with Him on November 25, 2005. I miscarried while we were in Canada visiting my grandparents. We named the baby Providence and are comforted in our trust that this baby is now with Jesus. Although we still grieve, we know that Providence is in a far, far better place.

Thanksgiving Day 2005

Today we spent Thanksgiving with the Engelsma family. There were 27 people present, all of Chris's immediate family. Mom E. made a fantastic dinner and we had our choice of about 6 desserts. We were supposed to head to Canada with my family this afternoon, but the weather was too bad. Hopefully it clears up a little tomorrow so that we can still go. Chris hasn't seen Grandma and Grandpa Roffel in a year and they have only seen their great grandson twice so we hope we can go tomorrow. Right now our house is freezing. We have the woodstove going which heats our main sitting room, but Chris has the rest of the house set at about 55 degrees F. Brrrr!! Presently I'm wearing my winter coat and have a blanket covering my legs. Andrew is sleeping in his sweats and a sleeper with two blankets covering him. Hopefully we can get that woodstove cranking to heat more of the house.
On a more serious note, I realize how much I have to be thankful for. A house, food, health, family, a loving husband, a beautiful son, and another child on the way. It is easy to take these things for granted, but I know I need to continually thank God for all He has given me. I hope you all have had a blessed Thanksgiving.

Chris's New Blog

Hey everyone,
Chris now has his own blog for his political rantings and ravings. You can view it at: http://chrisengelsma.blogspot.com/
This blog will be reserved for family news, daily happenings, and such.
Heather

First Post

Hi Everyone!
This is our first blog. Just figuring out how it works.
More to come later.
Heather