About ten o'clock on Thursday morning we headed to the Seminary to drop off some baked spaghetti for a family who just had a baby girl (there has been a new baby every week this month!). Initially, I was planning to run some errands around town after the drop off, but as soon as we pulled into the school parking lot we spotted the Heinecke clan (remember our little wrestler friend, Malachi?). Not to mention the sun was shining and everyone was outside enjoying the weather.
Once our meal had been delivered, I decided it was much too nice to be in the car all day, so I took the boys out to the courtyard on campus to see the water fountains instead. The boys jolted out the doors and ran from one fountain to the next, bouncing with excitement. "Bubbles!" Ethan kept shouting. "Oh cool—there's three of them!" Caleb exclaimed. We even got to see how the workers cleaned out the leaves with big nets to keep the pumps working.
After a few sprints up and down the sidewalk, we followed the Heinecke boys around the corner of the chapel to observe the construction site where they are expanding the campus library. I fully expected them to be intrigued by the big excavators and spinning cement trucks—I was even a little curious myself. Instead, they spent the next 20 minutes hypnotized by the guy on the lawn mower (really?!).
Despite the excitement of the maintenance crew, it wasn't long before Caleb spotted a big red fire truck driving into the Concordia campus. They didn't appear to be in any kind of a hurry, so I quickly suggested to the boys that we try to get a closer look. It took all of about two seconds for Caleb to jump down from his perch in the courtyard and start running towards the parking lot. He bolted in full force, with the rest of us in tow, until we were all standing directly across the street from the big red fire engine.
Noticing the blatant stares of the four small boys (and two adults), the driver hopped out of the truck and waved us over. It turns out they were waiting for one of their guys to finish inspecting the fire hydrants on campus, so they had time to teach the boys about the different equipment on the truck while they waited. We learned about the jaws of life, the 1000 gallons of water they carry on the truck, and how to crawl on the ground to avoid the smoke inhalation. The bigger boys even got to climb up in the truck and sit in the captain's chair behind the wheel (just don't touch the buttons! ;)
It turned out to be a pretty exciting morning, and I think the boys are glad that we decided to run our errands another day.
Friday, April 16, 2010
Monday, April 5, 2010
April Showers
Despite the implications of the phrase "April Showers," we really haven't seen too much rainy weather this month. Instead, we are thrilled to report that it has been pouring blessings around here! The most exciting news is the birth of our first niece—Kaylee Grace Marynne Nistler born to Kevin's sister on Monday, March 29 in Bismarck, ND. It's hard to believe that after three boys they actually do have a girl now. The pictures are somewhat convincing, but I think we'll have to visit soon to see for ourselves. Congratulations guys!
Although, we would much rather be on the road to Bismarck, we've been enjoying a week filled with beautiful weather while we're stuck here in Fort Wayne. We visited the biblical-themed playground at the Seminary twice this last week—where you can almost always expect to see someone you know. It's great for both our boys because the equipment accommodates the big kids and the little ones. Just a few days later we discovered an even larger park a few blocks North of our house. This place was PACKED with kids and Caleb spent most of the time weaving under walkways and zipping down slides to dodge his new best buddy Malachi. They were having so much fun, I don't think they noticed the other hundreds of kids that were there. And on several occasions, we had to kindly remind them that it was not okay to wrestle at the park (although it was quite amusing for us).
Ethan seems to love playing outside just as much as Caleb. Every time we let Shelby out the back door to do her business, Ethan is right behind her trying to sneak out to play. Sometimes I just let him go (shoes or not), just to see how far he'll wander and what he'll do. One of this week's ventures was definitely worth my while! Ethan hurriedly climbed into his favorite little car, waved good-bye and I was able to coax him to blow me a kiss—sound effects and all! Whats more, he did it again, and again, and again—at least five times...hop in the car, wave to mommy, say "bye," blow a kiss, giggle and do it all over again! That defining moment was worth a year of stinky diapers alone!
Although Caleb is nearly five years old, I am surprised to find that I am still often captivated by the things he says and does. After one of our trips to the playground, he excitedly asked if we could eat at a restaurant, and I woefully replied "No, not today." Although he was disappointed, he quickly countered with a suggestion to play restaurant at home. We can go to "Mom's Kitchen," he said. And HE was going to be in charge of making the peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. So we pulled into the garage and he immediately ran inside to start the preparations...creamy peanut butter, grape jelly, six slices of bread, paper lunch bags and of course a toy for each of our meals. I must say, I highly recommend the PB&J at Mom's Kitchen!
Although, we would much rather be on the road to Bismarck, we've been enjoying a week filled with beautiful weather while we're stuck here in Fort Wayne. We visited the biblical-themed playground at the Seminary twice this last week—where you can almost always expect to see someone you know. It's great for both our boys because the equipment accommodates the big kids and the little ones. Just a few days later we discovered an even larger park a few blocks North of our house. This place was PACKED with kids and Caleb spent most of the time weaving under walkways and zipping down slides to dodge his new best buddy Malachi. They were having so much fun, I don't think they noticed the other hundreds of kids that were there. And on several occasions, we had to kindly remind them that it was not okay to wrestle at the park (although it was quite amusing for us).
Ethan seems to love playing outside just as much as Caleb. Every time we let Shelby out the back door to do her business, Ethan is right behind her trying to sneak out to play. Sometimes I just let him go (shoes or not), just to see how far he'll wander and what he'll do. One of this week's ventures was definitely worth my while! Ethan hurriedly climbed into his favorite little car, waved good-bye and I was able to coax him to blow me a kiss—sound effects and all! Whats more, he did it again, and again, and again—at least five times...hop in the car, wave to mommy, say "bye," blow a kiss, giggle and do it all over again! That defining moment was worth a year of stinky diapers alone!
Although Caleb is nearly five years old, I am surprised to find that I am still often captivated by the things he says and does. After one of our trips to the playground, he excitedly asked if we could eat at a restaurant, and I woefully replied "No, not today." Although he was disappointed, he quickly countered with a suggestion to play restaurant at home. We can go to "Mom's Kitchen," he said. And HE was going to be in charge of making the peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. So we pulled into the garage and he immediately ran inside to start the preparations...creamy peanut butter, grape jelly, six slices of bread, paper lunch bags and of course a toy for each of our meals. I must say, I highly recommend the PB&J at Mom's Kitchen!
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