The Life and Times...

Winter has Finally Come!!

2012-01-12T13:49:00.000-06:00

The balmy days could not last forever. The good Lord has promised that even winter will never cease! Yay!! Because I do love to see the snow fall and cover all the dead brown grass and brush... and I love to see the wonder on the boys' faces as they watch it fall.

James with his snow angel.

Lucas :)

I was mean and didn't let Peter out, though he really wanted to be out. But I tried before and with all the pants and mitts and hat... the poor child can't stay upright for more than 10 seconds. And he was loosing his boots last time. Maybe next time. I know, I'm a wimp.

Balmy Days in January

2012-01-12T13:39:00.000-06:00

We've been having such beautiful weather the past few weeks that you can't help but make yourself get out and enjoy it. I say "make yourself", because I think my body hibernates in the winter without anyone realizing it. I make excuses that it's far too cold to be outside unless there's something active to do... even then I give great pause. But when it's 50 degrees in January, there's no excuse not to venture out. Many of you might know that in front of our house there is a path that leads to some ponds. They're working to make the area accessible to the public. This is where we walked to. Pretty nice, eh? And right in our backyard. Love it.

Christmas in America

2012-01-02T12:08:00.001-06:00

On Christmas Eve eve, Santa visited our house! (Because you know he can't possibly make it to everyone's house for Christmas morning, so we make him a deal that's a win-win situation) In the morning the boys stood in awe before the tree... "Mom! Santa came and left presents!!" So hard was the wait to open; but they waited ever so patient.

Unfortunately, colds dominated our week... and beyond. We had been invited out for Christmas, but had to stay home. :( It was a lovely Christmas meal of reheated beans and pork on Christmas day for us. But the company of eachother is the real blessing, isn't it? And understanding, then, the love of God for us. Welcome, then, His Child!

Christmas in Canada

2011-12-28T16:41:00.000-06:00

Following the Dutch tradition, my family waits for Sinterklaas and Zwarte Piet to come to my parents house on December 5th... or whatever evening works best for all involved ;). This year it was December 10. The day was filled with great company, good food, and a nice visit from St. Nick himself.

The first thing James said when he saw Sinterklaas and Zwarte Piet come down was, "I don't know about this, mom!" He was leery to sit on St. Nick's lap, but became more comfortable when he saw the bag full of gifts for him.

Lucas, even with presents in hand, would not be content. Opa even blew his cover to help Lucas not be scared... but to no avail.

Peter did not sit for long. He wouldn't even look at the gift he was given. Poor kid. What we do to them in the name of tradition, eh?

In the role of Sinterklaas... my dad; and in the role of Zwarte Piet... my mom. No bag or switches for the naughty boys and girls... I guess they weren't so bad this year :)

Peter Jeremiah Haveman - November 28, 2010

2011-12-07T22:32:00.000-06:00

So, our little Peter man turned 1.

Crazy.

And what a sweetheart he is :) Very good natured and always giving out free smiles.

My joy is how cuddly he is, laying his head on my shoulder to give a hug. And kisses! That wet open mouth comes at me more than I care to admit ;)

My other joy is to watch him play so well on his own. He practically crawls into the toybox (he made it a couple of times) to find that perfect toy to chew on for the moment.

And he's growing so fast... He's walking better and better everyday over the past couple weeks. He's got to go fast to keep up with James and Lucas.

Like father like son :)

The cake was not a cake, but cupcakes. I bought cupcake holders with silly feet to make a caterpillar. James and Lucas helped and it was fun.

Opening gifts... I just had to choose this one because he's making such a face.

See our happy boy?

Fall Days

2011-11-13T16:20:00.000-06:00

A day of raking is great fun for the boys :)

After all the piles of fun we had with the leaves, we went for a short bike ride around the neighbourhood. Well, James pedaled, Lucas was not so consistent :) In this photo (left) Lucas would not pedal on until the train was done going by. I had hoped to catch the train, but by the time I thought this could be a cute photo, the train was gone. Ahh well.
And below, you see James wait ever so patiently for Lucas to be done watching the train. Sweet boys.

2011-10-22T07:40:00.000-05:00

Peter got into the flour jar... what a little stinker!! But who can resist that smile :)

I took the boys with a good friend of mine to Dollinger's Pumpkin Patch and they each got to pick out a pumpkin. James wanted to carve a smiley face in his and so we did; but I put stars on the other side ;) Stars for our Christian friends and a pumpkin face for our secular friends. Ha! But, James really liked the smile and so there it sits, smiling at all our friends :)

This photo I tried to adjust the brightness... didn't work so hot. Ah well... there they are.

Happy Birthday to James!!

2011-10-13T08:09:00.000-05:00

"How old are you James?"

On September 24, James turned 4 years old. What a big boy :) He is a sweet boy whose imagination has grown by leaps and bounds... literally. He is always racing his cars and crashing them up, hollering and running at the same time. He loves to go outside and help his Daddy and jumps at the chance to ride in Daddy's big truck. It's fun to watch him become more academic too. He's always loved to look at books, but now he will sit and do independent work with colouring or the like. He started Sunday school this year and loves it! Sure it's only been 2 classes, but his face brightens up and now he loves to go to church. :) And when we pass by a playground on the way to the grocery store, he always points and says "when I'm 5 I can go to school, right?" One day he will be off to school... where does the time go... And for now we just have to make a point to savour the days of year number 4. We love you, little James!

"Happy birthday dear James, Happy Birthday to you!"

How much do you want to bet he wishes for a truck?

So, if you're wondering who decorated the cake, it was Jerry, all the way! It was fun to watch him build it and try to get it all right. I think he did a fabulous job! And so did James :) So did Lucas... On Sunday after church, Lucas decided he wanted a piece. He managed to take the whole thing out of the fridge, but the cake slipped off just before he could get it on the table :(. Sad day with no air bags to cushion the fall.

2011-10-13T07:20:00.000-05:00

It must have been a busy day, because I'm sure the truck videos Jerry's watching are far from this boring :)

Camping... Shawnee National Forest, Trail of Tears

2011-10-04T22:17:00.001-05:00

So we finally went camping. We've had all the gear, except the tent, ever since we were married, and we hoped to go every year. Well, this year we bought the tent and went! It was great :) We spent 2 nights, 1 day, and probably spent more time packing, setting up, taking down and packing again, than we spent time enjoying ourselves; but, it was still fabulous!! The boys enjoyed it too, even though there wasn't much for them to do. I think they enjoyed it because of the excitement of something different.

We traveled about 5 1/2 hours south, close to the border of Illinois. After about 4 hours of cornfields and soybeans, the terrain finally became interesting. The above photo is a shot a t a rest area beside a lake I can't remember the name of. Very beautiful!

Our little man... Peter! He had a great time too, though I had to keep a constant eye on him to keep him from eating EVERYthing.

Our Tahoe was loaded to the gills with all our gear so there wasn't much room for toys. The boys made their own fun trying to take rides in the bike trailer and pedaling back and forth in front of our campsite.

Here's our camp site. The most fabulous you will find in Illinois, I'm sure. Major selling point is the 3 walled cabin complete with fireplace. Also, it was very private and quiet. Downside, very hilly (hard for us people who are out of shape, to pedal) and no water holes for swimming or for fishing. Great hiking trails, but not so great for little ones.

Old fire tower

Check out this look :)

Putting the Dirksen cup to good use :)

A few more snapshots of the peeps.

Sunday Afternoon

2011-09-19T10:30:00.000-05:00

Last weekend we headed up north to celebrate my brother Arend"s 40th birthday. Hip hip hoorah! And because (as I stated last post) I'm not so quick with the camera, I didn't get his photo :( So here's a not so recent one... he hasn't changed too much!

And I had to share our snapshots from Sunday afternoon:

A Summer in Rewind

2011-09-12T21:22:00.000-05:00

So I can't believe the summer is past and September is nearly halfway gone. If time keeps flying like it is, I'll be an old lady before I know it!! But now, here I am, trying to recall some of the highlights to share with all of you. Please do enjoy :) And to so many of you with whom we spent time, I'm sorry I don't have a photo. I do wish I was a bit more of a shutterbug... but we all have our talents, oui?

So, to start off, we had our good friends, Chad and Janine, come to visit along with their son Cole. Janine and I went to school and church together when I lived in Ontario, and have continued to keep in touch. It was great to have them out!! We enjoyed great food and interesting estate sales :)

Then my brother and his family came to visit for a week of fun in the sun and in the stores :) Jerry and John took the boys and Janelle to best buy and they were great; they just watched TV! (picture left)

The boys were silly.

Then my parents came to visit.

My gourds grew. They actually grew from the old gourds I had thrown out last year. Unfortunately, they kinda took over so I had to rip them out. But now I've got a tonne of decorative gourds!

Then we received news that Jerry's Grandmother had passed on into glory. So we packed up our bags and headed for California. It was wonderful to see all the family again, even amid the circumstances. Praise the Lord that our hope is in Him, or the visit could have been far different. On the last day before we were to leave, we took a trip up with Oma to Mills Creek, up in the mountains. Jerry used to camp here with his family when he was young, so it brought back many good memories. It was beautiful!! Perhaps we ought to camp there ourselves someday ;)

Peter stood!

We tried to go to tractor pulls at the Will County Fair, but the noise
was too much for Peter, and the boys were a bit of a handful for Jerry.
So, we only got to see a few, but we will make better plans for next year;
babysitter!!

Oh, and Jerry got a hat :) He took a trip, compliments of ComEd, to help put the power back on in Baltimore, Maryland after Hurricane Irene moved through.

Our Boys

2011-06-11T09:12:00.000-05:00

I just love it when the boys all play together. And I love that they love to read :)

And these photos I just couldn't resist sharing.

Grandpa and Oma Come to Town

2011-06-10T13:35:00.000-05:00

Grandpa and Oma Haveman came to visit over Memorial weekend and stayed for a week before going up to Wisconsin to visit some friends. It was great to see them and spend time with them. The boys were spoiled with hugs and stories :) We took a day to visit the zoo... James' favourite exhibit was the swamp with the crocodiles. We watched a Memorial Day parade here in Crete as well as a car show the following week. Much of the time was spent relaxing and visiting... it was great!

Grandpa sharing his popcorn with Lucas. Mom and I went to the farmers market and I got some plants while she got kettlecorn. We also tried some raisin rye bread, yummy!! While we were out and about, Jerry and his dad got greasy.

Oma kept her hands busy knitting a scarf... Peter kept her company and laughed at her jokes.

And Jerry caught some air in his truck. Haha... But you should now see the grass at the bottom of the hill. Oops.

Snapshots in Canada

2011-06-03T08:02:00.000-05:00

These are the Cub cars from my brother John and his boys. They all won trophies!! I want to say that Daniel's won at the big cadeterie and the other two won at the Wellandport church event. What great talent, eh? The batmobile is Daniel's, the truck is John's, and the charger/challenger (can't remember what he said it was) is Michael's.

Olivia (Angeline's youngest) and Lucas.

Samuel and James. Samuel brought along cars to share with James and the boys zoomed them all over.

Oma reading stories. Peter is getting right in there and digesting stories already :)

We went to visit my brother Arend at his home. He's doing pretty good... he can move his left leg and so is able to walk small distances with support (like up the five steps to his house). We went for a small walk in the neighbourhood and one of the neighbours had a digger the boys could sit in. James loved it ALOT. Arend and Rosee had a toy digger from Colin that James would not put down, so that combined with the real life toy equaled digger in my tahoe coming back to Illinois. It has a new home in our sandbox.

Daniel gave the boys and Janelle a ride aroud the property on Sunday afternoon. They loved it! Thanks Daniel :)

Opa and Peter... oh and John in the background :)

Lucas Turns 2

2011-06-03T07:43:00.000-05:00

On Lucas' birthday, we decided to take the boys to the zoo. It was a great time, but unfortunately we were under-dressed for the weather. The whole time I complained (in my defense, I had goose-flesh every time we stepped outside) and my heart went out to my boys who did not complain. (I figure if I'm cold, everyone must be cold!) We did see some interesting animals, but our favourite stop was the monkey house.

Happy Birthday to you!!

Our little Lucas always has a smile at the ready... and a lady killer of a smile too, I might add, with those dimples. He's a sweetheart, quick with a hug.... like the other day I got James in trouble for whatever and Lucas pats his head and says "it's OK" in his Lucas language. Sweetie. But beware of his easy nature... if you push too many buttons he is not afraid to strike out. He is mostly cured of his biting tendencies, but I have still caught him leaning in for the kill; he's moved on to bopping James repeatedly.

For his birthday, Lucas got some wooden trucks. Surprised? One day I was trying to wake him up from his nap, but he was not very interested in getting up until I asked him, "do you want to see Daddy's truck?", he was up like a flash and out the door looking for his boots.

A visit from Grandpa and Grandma great

2011-05-04T14:22:00.000-05:00

Both James and Lucas love story time. When somebody arrives who will read to them, this someone is their new best friend. Here James is telling Grandma how the story should go :)

Jerry helped Grandpa fix the hitch while the boys look on.

Grandpa and Jerry had several little projects to tinker with while Grandpa was here. Grandpa got his hitch fixed and Jerry got some plumbing fixed.

Grandpa and Peter

Grandma and Peter. Grandma was great at keeping all the boys entertained while I made meals, this is the best help of all!!

And to make this the best weekend EVER... Jerry got his parts to complete his truck so he could move it out of the garage and start driving it again. (This is not to say he hasn't got more to do... a man can dream, can't he?) Before he moved the truck out of the garage, however, he had to let air out of the tires. Now that's a man-size truck!!

Having fun with the air

Moving on out!!

Grandpa and Jerry and the BIG machine ;)

Grandpa and Grandma and their traveling outfit :)

And we can't forget the fact that Jerry's good friend from Idaho was able to stop by and visit too... Dirk DeWinkle. He's busy moving to Michigan where he accepted a position pastoring a church. Since we were en route, he decided to spend Sunday with us. A good time was certainly had by all!

Recent Renovations

2011-05-03T14:43:00.001-05:00

This spring, we were able to finally put a closet in our room (yay!!) For those of you who've been asking, these photos show what a difference the closet made to our entryway.
Left: mudroom looking into new hallway
Below: looking from hallway into mudroom
Way Below: from kitchen into hallway.
btw... I'm loving the new floor

Latest Creation

2011-05-03T13:59:00.000-05:00

Earlier this spring, I made a skirt for my niece, Rachel. I liked how it turned out so much, that I decided to make another for my niece Elena. Hopefully it fits her better than the one I made for Rachel :). Rachel will just have to grow into her's ;)

A Day in the Life and Times...

2011-04-22T15:59:00.000-05:00

A fun snapshot of the boys :)

Jerry called me and told me he was bringing home a pet for the boys. Uh... no. They found a nice home for it in a puddle at the end of the driveway. If I'm going to be surprised by a new pet, he better be cute and fluffy!! ... and say woof :)

James thought it was pretty neat... Lucas was a bit scared of it... Nobody touched it.

And this is Jerry hard at work. How many linemen does it take to change a light bulb? Haha...

Spring has Sprung!

2011-04-21T09:13:00.000-05:00

Spring has sprung in Illinois... at least in my onion drawer :)

Peter thinks it's great...

It's been awhile...

2011-04-21T08:51:00.000-05:00

Back in the middle of March, we took a trip up to Canada... the weather was OK. When we got there it was cool and all the snow had melted leaving big puddles... which the boys quickly found :) By the middle of the week it was snowing... and continued to snow! Winter was back. And the last I heard, they just had more snow this past week... spring is just around the corner, I'm sure :)

While at my parents, my sister and I got together and sorted through some stuff my mother no longer wanted. What fun!! I came home with all kinds of treasures :) In the meantime, my mom found some more story books to read while there... what can I say, my boys love books :)

2011-03-25T23:17:00.001-05:00

This is static electricity, the same thing happens when you shuffle your feet on the

carpet and touch a door knob, only this is just times a 1,000!! When it is like this

we work with no gloves.

Below are more pics of what I did this week. I LOVE MY JOB!!

New Ride

2011-03-11T21:22:00.001-06:00

Here is our new ride. For those of you who are interested, it is a 1991 Chevy K-5 Blazer. It has a 4 inch lift, for now :) It has 35 inch tires and seating for 5. We are looking forward to many good times!

Peter is 3 Months!

2011-02-28T16:31:00.000-06:00

Little Peter is already 3 months old. (Where does the time go to?) And I suppose, like everyone tells me, he's not so little anymore. He has nice chubby legs and squeezable cheeks that are perfectly rosy. He's becoming more and more interactive, smiling more quickly, and talking and laughing; he's a little darling :) As for sleeping through the night... he doesn't. At least not my definition of through the night. He does go for 6 hours, however, and the other night it was even 8!! Life is good in the Haveman home.
One thing I wish we could cure is his "urps"... We must have a spit cloth on hand at all times.
And, I must say, James and Lucas love their little brother to a fault. I'm afraid to leave him on the floor because they just might squash him in their excitement to entertain him. The swing gets pushed around and before I know it it's swinging on the fastest speed (no wonder we have "urping" problems), the bouncy is over bounced and toys are shoved in his face; fingers poke his poor little nose and eyes and... need I go on? It's brotherly love!

Mom Haveman labeled these shirts for the boys.

Our "business" trip up to Michigan

2011-02-20T13:58:00.000-06:00

This past weekend we went on a short vacation into Michigan. Jerry wanted to check out a 1984 Blazer that looked great on paper, but turned out to be not so good :( To make this long drive to Grand Rapids more worthwhile, we went antiquing along the way. We've been on the hunt for a secretary and finally found one in St. Joseph, Michigan. Originally I wanted a secretary with a hutch on top so I could display my few treasures, but everyone we looked at that was nice seemed to be over priced with thin drawers that required a delicate touch. Then we found this one... a good sturdy desk, minus the hutch. Now we can start looking for a china cabinet ;)

Views of the secretary open (above) and closed.

To prove that we actually did go on our mini vacation with the kids... restaurant photos ;) Here's Jerry and James.

Lucas

Me and little Peter. He was such a good boy the whole time!

Blizzard, 2011

2011-02-02T20:26:00.000-06:00

Here is the result of the great blizzard of 2011! The snow started to fall yesterday at about noon and continued for 24 hours. It wasn't consistently heavy, but it continued all the same. There were wind gusts reported at 50 mph! Thankfully we are all safe and warm... and Jerry had no problem with travel. In fact, he made it to work in just 1.5hours instead of his regular 1 hour... not bad, eh?

Check out the snow drifts... think we can get the tahoe out without a shovel?

Can you see how high it drifted up the door?

This is the view from inside the door. I know, I know... u-tube has some more impressive photos... but this is our house!

A view of our street. Does the mailman really come in rain, hail, sleet, or snow?

Our little men enjoying the snow. We finally got some blue skies!

The snow on the driveway was over a foot deep, a little less in some areas. I was hoping to show that in this photo.

Some Winter Fun

2011-01-30T16:12:00.000-06:00

On Friday, the weather was B-E-A-Utiful! So we decided to postpone our errands and take the boys to play in the snow. They had a blast... for about 30 minutes; after which they were zonked (fell asleep promptly in the car), my toes were froze (I need some decent winter fun boots), and Jerry decided he didn't have to go to the gym after all that day :).

Baby Peter stayed nice and warm in the cozy tent we had :) He slept the whole time, with just a little fuss easily cured with motion. No... he did not ride down the hill.

Me and James, preparing to brave the hill.

James is kicking up some snow.

Jerry riding down with Lucas. Jerry was moving so much and the weather was so nice, that he shed his coat. My californian boy must be getting truly acclimated :)

California Christmas

2011-01-02T16:57:00.000-06:00

With Jerry's work, he gets 2 weeks of paternity leave. By the grace of God he was able to take one over Christmas and we were therefore able to spend a beautiful week with his parents in California. Marie was able to come out for Christmas weekend, and Casey and his family made a quick trip out to spend Sunday with everyone too. We hadn't seen everyone, nor had the family been all together, since September of '09. It was wonderful to be reminded of what a great family we have :)

On Sunday, after church, we had a friend take a family snapshot for us... pretty good, eh?

Grampa and Oma with their grandchildren... (left to right) James, Trenton, Lucas, Tys, Katie, and Peter. Casey and Lisa are expecting the 7th grandchild in July. Here's hoping there's another girl :)

Our little family... me and my boys!

Grandpa and his grandbaby #6

We spent some time on Christmas eve exchanging gifts... spoiled, everyone!!

Jerry and little Lucas. Just had to add this photo... too cute :)

Oma took the kids outside and let them throw corn to the chickens and the goats... the kids LOVED this!

Here is the man in the tree. Mom stood behind and spoke as if she was the tree. Katie and Tys had seen the show before and had it almost figured out (Tys told her it couldn't be the tree because the mouth wasn't moving), but James was totally taken with it... no clue about Oma :)

Oma with Lucas, James and Katie.

Lucas is here to help!

New and renewed friendships... with sleepy, TV zoned faces.

And here's a little phot I had to share from our house... little Peter is growing too fast.

Peter's Baptism

2010-12-30T15:04:00.000-06:00

Opa and Oma Hanemaayer came to visit for Peter's baptism and since it was the week before Christmas, we decided to celebrate it a bit. I made a crown roast which should've cooked a bit longer... but we remedied the situation quickly with the aide of the microwave ;) and the result was delicious!

Saturday morning we exchanged gifts. James woke up and when he saw the tree and all it's spread, he stood, stared, and said "presents!!". Such innocence is darling.

Peter Jeremiah was baptized on Sunday, December 19, 2010. The gown is the same worn by James and Lucas, but my mom and I sewed the cap to go with it for Peter.

Peter and his proud parents.

Peter with his proud grandparents.

Peter Jeremiah Haveman has Arrived!!

2010-12-01T22:05:00.001-06:00

Our little Peter arrived on Sunday, November 28th at 2:07pm. He weighed in at 7lbs 7ozs and was 20 inches long. Technically he was due on November 17 and so the doctor convinced me to be induced as I was 11 days over and he doesn't like to go over 7 days. Peter doesn't look overdue at all... I think the dates were off!

Daddy and his little man... Peter sure has the Haveman look ;) Now that Jerry has his 3rd son, he's talking about the BIG shop he needs to build...

I think he's smiling, isn't he?...

A proud big brother; James has been asking me for the last few weeks "are we going to get a baby mom?". He'd ask me this when we'd be in the car headed for the store :) So sweet.

Lucas and Peter... Lucas has always loved to have his head rubbed for comfort, and I watch him do the same for Peter.

A break for donuts... It's amazing the leverage one has when we're talking about donuts and cartoons ;) The boys were well behaved in the hospital room when these were offered!

Marie was a wonderful addition to our family this past weekend!! She came out for Thanksgiving and cooked us an amazing meal on Black Friday of Turkey, cranberry sauce and vegetables with, of course, a delicious dessert of pie... Mmmm!!! What a treat :) Then, she cared for James and Lucas while Peter was born. A fabulous aunt indeed and what a blessing!

And here's our ever growing family :) We'll get a better photo later... but this'll be good for now ;)

New Highline videos!!

2010-11-21T16:12:00.001-06:00

Here is a video of the Sandwich storm. There were several poles that were left standing but were to damaged, so they had to be taken down before work could continue on this section.

Here is a video of a Air crane, picking up a pole and setting it. It has close to 10,000 hp, has a capacity of 25,000lbs. It was built in 1969, and originally used in Vietnam. More pictures coming soon.

Life on the High Lines

2010-11-21T15:42:00.001-06:00

This what I have been doing on the Transmission lines lately. On Oct 26th a large wind storm blew through the Chicago area knocking down 60 95-100ft wood poles and bringing down close to 3.5 miles of wire in Sandwich IL, a small farming community west of Chicago.  40 plus lineman spent the next 25 days making it safe for the public and restoring the line. When all was done, 120 poles were handled, and over 50 miles of wire was cleaned up or replaced. It was the largest project ever done by the transmission department. Here is how I spent the last 25 days.
                                           First there was material to be ordered and delivered.
                                          In this picture is the first of over 80,000 ft of wire.

We had all kinds of equipment, 6 dozers including 2 D8 dozers, and 2 track dumps as in this picture. We also had multiple bobcats, 4 cranes, 4 105ft trucks, 2 125ft trucks, 6 digger derrick trucks, 8 crew trucks and much more.

Our first task was to clean up the broken poles and pull the old pole butts out of the ground

This is the crew truck that I got to drive most of the time. They hold most of our tools, clothes etc. We practically live out of these trucks. They are 4 door, seat 5 and are 4x4 with a huge winch! Trying to talk Bernice into getting one for traveling but she hasn't bought into that idea yet.

Here we are securing the rest of the line so that the sheer wight of the wire does not bring the rest of it down, kind of like a domino effect. This was a tricky operation.

Here we a framing new poles so that they could be set. We are drilling the holes for the arms, they have to be very straight and true because both arms share the same bolts.

After they are framed we set them in the ground. We have use a crane because of the height and because they weigh 11,000-13,000lbs.

Here we are setting a steel pole. They come in two pieces. They were set every 11 poles so that if this line goes down again hopefully the domino effect will stop at a steel pole. We will see if they work.

Here is the last way we set some poles. With an air crane. The helicopter set 20 poles as a test run for future jobs to see how efficient it would be. It did set 20 poles in 2 hours which is pretty good. I have more pictures saved for a later post.

After the poles are all set it was time to pull in the new wire. The wire is quiet heavy and is pulled in under 2,000lbs of tension. This required a very complicated pulling set up. We use a steel cable to pull the wire in, but to get the steel cable through a mile of rollers on the pole requires a rope to pull the cable in. So we basically had to pull a heavy rope by hand and pickup to the steel cable truck. Then pull the cable in with the rope, then use the cable to pull the wire in. Really have to think ahead on this part to avoid working yourself into a corner.

Finally sagged the whole 3.5 miles to tension (around 2,500lbs) and now removing the rollers and permanently attaching the wire to the insulators. This shot is from the crane operators seat. The wire weighed almost 400lbs at each pole, thus the need for the crane.

Here are some odds and ends. In this photo, retrieving something from 14ft deep, hole. :)

Nice Rainbow at the end of the day. The weather was perfect! In 3 1/2 weeks we only had a few hours of rain, otherwise is was 50's-60's and sunny every day.

Have a nice day

Jerry's Work

2010-11-09T14:34:00.004-06:00

On Monday I packed up the boys and headed out to Sandwich, IL to watch as a helicopter set poles for Jerry and his fellow workers. The whole operation was pretty impressive (which I guess was the point because the cost of it, from what Jerry has told me, is amazing... and they say they overbudgeted by having one extra employee... sheesh!)
Jerry will better be able to tell the details, but I thought that until he comes home and can put up his own photos, I'd give you all an idea of what happened.

All the holes had previously been set by comed employees, so the job of the helicopter was to carry poles to the holes and drop them in while comed workers stood below, faced over 100 mph wind forces, and guided the pole down to secure it in. Each pole took about 10 minutes to set by the helicopter and Jerry had to hustle to move on to the next pole. By the time I met Jerry for dinner, he looked about ready to fall over and sleep. Poor guy.
In this photo you can see the helicopter lowering the pole to the ground. The arm from that truck you see meets up with it and Jerry will be able to tell you what happens next.

This is a view of the line that they have set.

Here you can see the line as well as the helicopter with its ropes hanging down.
So hopefully that helps the menfolk understand a wee bit better when you talk to Jerry about all the details. :)

My Latest Creation

2010-10-21T08:20:00.004-05:00

So I am always amazed at how quickly one can go through diaper bags. Well... maybe it's because I use the freebees from the hospital, but still! Actually, I've bought 2 in the past and the freebees are doing better... For this new little bundle who's due to arrive, I decided to make my own bag. Unfortunately, I don't think it will stand up to any more than the last 2 bags I purchased, because it's cloth; and the cloth is far from heavy duty. But isn't it beautiful material? I would look at this material each time I walked into a Joann's and now I finally had a use for it!!
The bag certainly has it's flaws, but you can't tell in this photo, so we'll pretend they aren't there :)

The interior of the bag is made with PUL fabric, like what they use for cloth diaper covers. It was finicky to work with, but all that is on the inside :)

This is the change pad I made to match. Again, several inperfections, but good enough to change a dirty diaper on :) The center strip is made with fleece... also finicky to work with; stretchy and caused for much frustration!! This is why I came to the conclusion... "it's for changing dirty diapers!"

This is the changepad all rolled up.

A Day at the Pumpkin Patch

2010-10-19T21:00:00.000-05:00

Today we met up with a good friend of mine, Mis Lori, for a morning visit and an afternoon at the pumpkin patch. I have to say, Lori's husband loves his big screen TV and he has a BIG screen. Lori had it playing kids TV and James was taken by it. I think the bugs flying around on the screen were bigger than he is!!

Anyhow, after a warm cup of hot cocoa and coffee cake, we headed out to Dollinger's pumpkin patch. This farm has pumpkins and gourds for sale, a fun play area for the kids, animals to look at and an area to pet the goats. Lucas, who is usually terrified of dogs and cats, actually walked into the pen with the goats... I was shocked!! James gave a few of them a quick pet and then was ready to move on.

A favourite stop is this play truck. Someone put alot of work into it!

Fall Colours

2010-10-16T14:36:00.000-05:00

Please don't be jealous of the beauty of the Canadian Highways :)

And who can resist some backseat smiles?

Happy Canadian Thanksgiving!!

2010-10-16T14:31:00.000-05:00

We decided to go north for a fabulous Turkey and Ham meal with my parents and celebrate Canadian Thanksgiving. What a good time :) I'm sorry I didn't take a photo of the table and all the delicious food to make you all drool. My brother John barbequed the turkey after marinating it in reisling wine and then using the wine to baste it. The turkey turned out nice and moist and the gravy was mm-mm good!! For the table, my mom and niece Yvonne had gone out and picked up a bunch of fallen leaves which my mom then ironed between wax paper and used as a decoration that looked lovely and festive!

We also went up with the intention of seeing Dave and Angeline's newest addition, miss Olivia Diane VanLaren. Isn't she precious? That makes 4 girls and 1 boy for them :)

The little ones surveying the scene.

The Hanemaayer family tries to get together once a month to celebrate all the birthdays in that month... so now is the time for celebration. Angeline made the cakes and we all enjoyed the sweet results!

Sorry if you were sitting directly next to me... you didn't make it into a photo :)

A Day in the City

2010-10-03T16:00:00.000-05:00

After all thier visits out to the midwest, we finally took Mom and Dad for a day trip to the city. We saw the bean and various other forms of "art", shopped a wee bit and walked a whole lot. We even had a nice lunch down by the river :)

Our reflection in the Bean.

Who's that good looking couple?

Jerry and Lucas.

James... he conquered the stone wall :)

Hey! There's that good looking couple again!

Oh... and their visit wasn't all fun and games, we did put Dad to work for a bit ;) Now our garbage can slides in and out like a charm!!

The Train Restaurant

2010-10-03T15:48:00.000-05:00

To complete James' birthday celebration, we went out to eat at The All Aboard Diner. They had big screen TVs playing Thomas the Train, a train set chugging through a village behind glass, a train chugging around the perimeter of the room up by the ceiling, and a train around the center bar that would bring you your food. If you know someone who loves trains... here is the place to go!

The train is coming with our dessert as Happy Birthday to You rings out.

James blows out his candle. We all got train whistles :)

Grandpa gave the boys a ride on the train. WhooHoo!!

The Children's Museum

2010-10-03T15:37:00.001-05:00

To celebrate James' birthday we went to the DuPage Children's Museum. I usually take the boys to a much smaller one closer to home, so this one was great!

Who's surprised that Jerry goes up to show his boy how to work the air guns :) This was one of James' favourite exhibits.

Then there was the bubble area. Lucas had fun taking the bubble making wand out and putting it over his head... we had to take him to the wind section after this to dry off :)

James was starting to get the whole bubble making process, but the soap did not always cooperate :) He still had fun!

Lucas found this air hose and was having a ball when no one was looking.

Mom helping James to spin he wheel and make the train above (which you can't see) go.

They also had big water troughs that the boys could play in and make a big wet mess.

And then there was the car... are we surprised that this was another of their favourite exhibits? They even had wheels to change and James managed that job well:)

James Turns 3!!

2010-10-03T15:21:00.000-05:00

James' birthday was September 24th, but we didn't tell him...so we could celebrate it proper with Mom and Dad Haveman (who flew into Chicago that evening) the next day on the 25th. He had been asking for trucks and race cars for his birthday ever since he realized that his birthday was coming, and he was certainly spoiled in this area as you can tell by the look on his face.

I asked James what kind of cake he wanted for his birthday and let him look through my cake decorating magazines. He saw Thomas and his choice was made. He continued to look at cars and bears etc. and would say "Look! That's cool. But I don't want that cake, I want Thomas cake" So Thomas it was :)

And I think he liked it ;)

Our Little Family

2010-08-05T14:28:00.003-05:00

Me and my Love. Doesn't he look extra handsome in his suit?

Is this the best we can get it? Ah well, better luck next time :)

Antoni and Hannah are Wed

2010-08-05T13:46:00.005-05:00

On Friday, July 30th, Antoni and Hannah were married at Ball's Falls conservation area in Ontario. The ceremony took place in a small old church and the reception in an old barn that has been cleaned up for various public uses such as weddings and festivals, etc. It was a beautiful wedding and a lovely day. As I watched Angeline and AnneMarie get their little girls all dolled up for the occasion, I reconsidered whether I would really like this next baby to be a girl... boys really are easier! But I think I would ;) The good Lord knows best!

The handsome groom awaits his bride's arrival.

Here comes the happy bride!

My own sweet Mom and Dad. This is where I get my good looks from ;)

Antoni, Hannah and all their nieces and nephews! Sorry to Antoni and Hannah as I'm sure there's better expressions on them in someone elses's photo, but this is the best I got, and I think it's pretty good:)

Antoni, striking his "I'm so important I KNOW you wish you were me" pose.
And for anyone wondering, did you know this suit is the same suit my father wore when he married my mother more than 40 years ago? Crazy, I know.

The bride and groom as they survey the scene... "Wait... where did all these people come from?"

Making their grand entrance to the reception and dancing to the tune of "I like to Move it" from the show Madagascar... silly kids:)

James had a miserable, overly tired start to the wedding. I think my hair would be visibly grayer if I didn't colour it... But by the end of the night, he got his dance groove on and was finally having fun. Perhaps there are just too many "sit still!" comments to be had at a wedding, when all he wants to do is dance :) haha.

A Day at the Carosel

2010-08-05T13:28:00.003-05:00

On Wednesday we met up with Annie and children once again for a ride on the carosel. The carosel is old... can't remember how old, and was donated to the city with the condition that the rides must always remain at a nickle a ticket. And so they are! We had a morning of fun for less than a dollar :) We only went around twice, but imagine the possibilities!! They also had a nice park there for the kids to play on, and Lake Ontario was right there too! So Dad and Jerry took the kids for a walk on the sand while us women folk protected the food ;).

James is so stoic at times. This is a rare smile for him on the carosel. Even when you would ask him if he was having fun, he would fight a smile as he nodded yes.

Little Lucas was nervous the first round, but on the second round he was smiling from ear to ear... maybe that's because Jerry was with him on the second round :)

After the carosel, we went to a little museum by one of the Welland Canal locks. Eversince riding in Grampa Haveman's boat last year, James points out every boat with great excitement. In this museum there were LOTS of boats to see and it was great to see James run from exhibit to exhibit exclaiming, "another boat, mom!!" And here he could spin the wheel and adjust the speed... so much fun :)

A Day at the Splashpad

2010-08-05T13:10:00.002-05:00

We left for Canada on Saturday the 24th of July and were making great time until, after driving for 1 1/2 hours, Jerry says "Did you remember the passports?". A sick, sinking feeling washed over me as I realized I had not. We therefore had to turn around and get them, causing us to lose 3 hours of time, $30 of gas and 3 hours of little boy sanity. We rolled into my parents drive at 11pm. We actually made it in 9 hours (not counting the 3 we had lost)... our best time yet!

On Sunday it was my Dad's birthday - 68 years ago :). So we celebrated with cake and icecream.

On Monday we went to a splash pad near the lake with AnneMarie, Rosee and their kids. Dad and Jerry came for manly support :) Though timid at first, the boys had lots of fun!

I was definitely chilled by the wind off the lake and it looks like Annie was too! This is us women folk sticking close to the food and observing the kids:)

After drying off, James played with his cousins Samuel and Janelle as they chased the balls around.

Lucas enjoying the water.

James enjoying the water.

Lucas Walks!

2010-08-05T12:58:00.002-05:00

I know, I know... this was almost a month ago, but I've been busy! He hasn't walked a whole lot since and every time we encourage him to, he takes maybe 2 steps and then he laughs so much he loses focus and falls. Crazy little man... but he'll be brave soon enough :)

Life on the High Line

2010-07-05T16:58:00.003-05:00

Hello this is from Jerry!! I just thought that I would let you all know what I have been up to at work. I have been a journeyman lineman since April and have worked in Chicago, just down the street from Wrigley Field, for the last 2 months. Then last week I was very excited to start in a new department as a transmission lineman!! Here are few pictures of what I will be doing for the next 3 years. We a setting 85ft poles for a 138,000 volt line.

Here are some of the new toys I will get to operate, 110ft trucks and a 187ft truck(not pictured), D8 and smaller caterpillar's, and everything is either 4x4 or has winch, or both. Fun fun fun!!!

Sweet Misery

2010-05-29T18:11:00.002-05:00

I don't know if there's a storm brewing, or if it's the ill effects of the immunizations Lucas got yesterday...and was somehow able to pass on to James. Maybe we're just horribly lacking in sleep.. hmm... But today was a miserable day. See here the face of misery!

Poor Lucas was not content for anything. AND he only had a one hour nap and refused to sleep longer! (believe me, I tried, but his cries out lasted my resistance). The only good thing here is the little man is presently sleeping soundly at 6pm :)

James, I think, feels a wee bit jealous when Lucas is hanging on my leg. James is also learning to obey, and this is not always a fun thing. Outside, he's a happy man, however. I set out the sprinkler and James loved it! Until, of course, he got too chilled.

Then I switched to the spray nozzle and he helped me wash the car. It's not a perfect job, but at least all the bird poop is gone :)
Now, in the quiet of the evening with James waiting for a story and Jerry offering his hand and much sympathy... I think, the day wasn't so horrible. The boys are sweet darlings, after all!

Watch out! Here I come!

2010-05-19T10:08:00.002-05:00

Little Lucas is getting more and more brave. He walks along furniture and can walk a short while when holding just one hand... but last night Jerry caught him pushing James around the house! Has James got it made or what? And Lucas seems to be proud as a peacock!

A visit from Aunt Vonnie

2010-05-19T10:01:00.002-05:00

Aunt Vonnie came to visit for a couple days and arrived on Friday. So we took the opportunity to have cake... so there'd be another helping us to eat it up :) It didn't take the boys long to warm up to Aunt Vonnie with her hearty laugh and fun conversation. She was also more than willing to read stories to James who just LOVES stories! Lucas was happy to join in the fun, though he doesn't sit as well for stories. Thanks to Aunt Vonnie for a wonderful visit! Hope to see you again soon :)

Lucas and his cake

The boys and Aunt Vonnie.

Birthdays are Great... even when they're not yours!

2010-05-19T09:41:00.003-05:00

On Wednesday we celebrated Jerry's 32nd birthday by going out for dinner and buying a new mattress. Woohoo! It's a queensize so Jerry can now fully stretch out without his feet hanging off the end :) So he's a happy man and I am too! Now if you decide to come and visit you will have a real mattress to sleep on... so come on down!!

Lucas celebrated his 1st birthday on Thursday with pasta and presents. James helped him to open them all. It is a trying time explaining to James that these are gifts for Lucas, not for James. But new toys are SO fun ;)

Lucas seems to love his new plane...

that James helped him to open and play with ;)

Pasta for dinner! What better meal for a little guy?

Fun with Marc the Shark

More gifts to open. Thanks to all who helped us celebrate and gave gifts... Lucas is enjoying them all... and so is James.

If you ain't Dutch, you ain't much!

2010-05-10T13:13:00.003-05:00

In our travels we stopped at DeKlomp. Here is the only delft maker in America. They also make wooden shoes in every size you might need :) We treated ourselves to some Dutch sweets we can't get in Crete, and I got a nice coloured delft toothbrush holder :) It goes along with the windmill curtains in my bathroom ;)

We also visited an authentic Dutch windmill that was given to America after WWII for her help to the Allies. Part of the deal was that the mill must be in use... so they have a miller there who was trained in Holland, and they produce flour that you can buy. The other part of the deal was that the mill must be used for educational purposes... so we all got a tour. It was neat! Even got to see the miller give a running start to the blades :) Sorry there's no picture... we obviously aren't great photographers... I've posted all the pictures I've got :)

Check out these shoes to fill!! They are from one big dutchman :)

Lucas just needs a sail and he can fly to the moon :) Remember the nursery rhyme?
"Winkin', Blinkin', and Nod, sailed off in a wooden shoe..."

This is an old carosel, over 100 years old. Jerry and Opa took the boys for a ride, and though Lucas was pretty expressionless, James looked proud as a peacock with his big grin :)

Dutch Dancing at Tulip Time, Holland, Michigan

2010-05-10T11:29:00.003-05:00

On Thursday, Jerry, myself and the boys drove up to Holland, MI to meet my parents and see how dutch it really was up there. It was VERY dutch! We walked down 8th street, the main street of Holland, and that's where the Dutch Dancers were lined up for about 5 blocks, or so. There were ALOT of them!

I never knew what dutch dancing was, but now that I do, I think it's pretty neat! The wooden shoes are truly clogs :) Jerry asked a girl selling wooden shoes how long they last. The pair she had on have lasted 2 years and counting, but the girls who do the dancing might go through a pair every couple months, because of cracking. I say girls because I saw only 2 boys from where I was standing. What is it with boys and dancing? Don't they know it turns the ladies on? heehee...

After seeing the dancing, we walked on to the Dutch marketplace. Here we enjoyed some kale stampot with metworst... forgive me if i can't spell in dutch ;) And I was excited to buy some Gouda cheese... best cheese in the world!!!! They also had a guy carving wooden shoes there and all the dutchy souveniers you could want!

Carrots!

2010-04-29T08:10:00.003-05:00

Look what wintered over!! Looking at our garden, which needs desperately to be tilled, I saw several carrot leaves bushing up. The first two we pulled up were these that James is holding and they tasted pretty good ;) The next 4 or 5 I pulled up looked like the critters had gotten to them or they just were no good. I also saw some onions growing, but no visible bulbs, and when I tried to dig one up, still no bulb. I don't think they'd be ready 'til later... and unfortunately they will be buried in a couple weeks when we do rototill. I was hoping maybe some cucumbers or watermelons would've seeded themselves, but there was none to be found. :(

Sunday Morning

2010-04-26T07:48:00.005-05:00

This past week I crafted a tie for Lucas. I followed the same pattern as I did for James, only cut it a bit shorter. I should've made his with an easy release on the back, however, to avoid strangulation! Because, what's the first thing he does when I put it on him, but give it a good hard yank. Boys... don't they know how great they look in a tie?

Sunny Days are Here Again!

2010-04-15T17:19:00.002-05:00

We spent most of the day outside today and the boys are looking healthy with their rosy cheeks. here are a few shots...

James is really getting the hang of bicycling. I only had to help him start a few times as he rode back and forth on the cement slab.

I can't wait for Lucas to start walking! He's more interested in trying lately so we'll see how it goes. Poor kid was scooting along on the cement and that wasn't feeling so nice, so to come back to me he crawled (which he never does) ever so gingerly. Maybe he'll walk sooner than later the more time we spend outside :)

Our Backyard.

2010-04-15T17:16:00.002-05:00

This is a close up of our lawn. We are far from picky about our lawncare as you can see by the array of flowers present :) But I think it is beautiful! Why should I spend money trying to kill such a beautiful part of God's creation?

A Day at the Park

2010-04-13T14:59:00.003-05:00

It was a beautiful day today so we met up with some friends for a day at the park and a picnic lunch. It's so nice to get out again after a long winter :) James and Lucas used to be the only boys in the crowd, but just about 6 weeks ago, along came mr. Gideon to keep them company... what a little peanut, eh?

I have to say that at the park all went well until I pushed James a little too hard on the swing... off he flew, flipped a bit and landed on his belly. He literally ate dirt, poor guy. But I'm proud to say that after a few well deserved tears, and a lesson in spitting water out of his mouth, James was back at it, asking to "try again". That's our boy!!

James Pedals!

2010-03-25T15:50:00.003-05:00

I had meant to post this video a while ago, but couldn't... Now thanks to my computer savvy mother-in-law for her technical support, here it is for your viewing pleasure!

Last fall we got James this bicycle at a garage sale, but he wouldn't pedal for anything. This spring, he seemed to get it just like that! Isn't it amazing what a winter will do? Now I'm trying to get him to pedal around the neighbourhood so I can push Lucas instead of carry him. Unfortunately he gets easily distracted by squirrels and birds and music coming from neighbours' garages... and he has a hard time getting that first pedal down. So, essentially, I'm dragging him around the neighbourhood; but he's getting better!

Cheerios... Good Times!

2010-03-25T14:28:00.002-05:00

Is this not sweet? Unfortunately, James can sometimes be found feeding Lucas things he ought not to be eating.

Sweeping up the fallen Cheerios!

Hamming it up... because that's what Lucas does best!

Lucas' First Haircut

2010-03-05T11:23:00.007-06:00

Those beautiful wispy locks had to go... So sad.

Things went really well, aside from chasing him around the table. I remember James crying... but that could've been because he had 5 cousins singing "If you're happy and you know it clap your hands!" in his face. Hmm :)

There he is... our little boy, all grown up!

Some Sunday Shots

2010-03-01T06:42:00.002-06:00

This little boy is needing a bit of a haircut, but I can't yet bring myself to trim those wispy locks!
And our stylin', handsome boy James. I'm his mom so I have bragger's rights ;)

Masterpiece Theatre

2010-02-17T15:12:00.002-06:00

Of course, our greatest masterpiece... our children :)

This is my first knitted project that is complete. A wash cloth :) It's a wee bit stretched out right now because it's currently in use.

And this is the tie I just made for James last night. I can't wait for Sunday to try it out on him!!

Let it Snow!

2010-02-13T11:49:00.003-06:00

On Tuesday it came... The snow fell all day and night and a wee bit yet Wednesday morning. It was a fine light snow, so no good for snowmen, and accumulated at least 6 inches. WooHoo!! So I shoveled the drive while James tried to stay in an upright position :). Life is good!

Our Snowman died; sniff, sniff

2010-01-25T15:12:00.003-06:00

His remains: 5 lumps of charcoal, 2 stick arms, 1 carrot nose, a flattened hat, and a melting pile of snow. Evidence that we can't take it with us when we die!

Mini-Me

2010-01-16T13:59:00.000-06:00

Is this not the spittin' image of Jerry?!? Just had to share :)

Christmas Joys

2009-12-28T22:21:00.005-06:00

Our Christmas with the Haveman family was via Skype and webcam. It worked out really well! We even got to see Grandma F. :) We were really spoiled there with sweets, great gifts and many smiles. James uses his drill... just to hear it whir, I think. He even snuck it into bed tonight while I was in the shower. The whirring gave him away, however:)

I've read "Smash Crash" over and over again, but had to put it away for now 'til I get some tape to fix the tear that can only happen to a book well read!

I had to take a photo of the boys with their blankets that Aunt Marie made, because James, when he sees the blanket, will give Lucas his and run to find his own. I thought it was darling how he cozied up next to Lucas that morning. I hope they always get along this well :)

Chrismas

2009-12-28T21:39:00.002-06:00

We had a loverly family Christmas this year :)

Jerry almost had to work through the whole holiday, but the Lord was gracious and he was able to be home with us. So Christmas Eve we slept in, had a great breakfast and shared gifts with eachother. It was fun to see James understanding the idea of presents better and to watch his smiles and excitement.

VeggieTales!! James loves them. When the flyers were coming around pre Christmas he would study the toys and noticed the "Tales" from the Christian Bookstore flyer. So it begins.

Our best gifts ever are our little boys.

Little Lucas got a ball popper and James LOVES it! :) As of now, Lucas just loves to chew on the balls or anything else he can wrap his little fingers around.

Jerry got a pair of gloves, just in time for working long hours in the cold, cold weather.

On Christmas Day we were able to have dinner with the Bakker family after church. We got home at about 4pm and the apple cider wasn't even hot before Jerry got the phone call to go into work. He worked 'til 7am, then worked another 16 hour night on Saturday. Thankfully he was able to be home Sunday night, but is again working 16 hours today (Monday). I'm thankful for the overtime and the simple fact that he has a job... but I miss his company for sure! It made me realize how much I depend on him when I was 15 minutes late for church on Sunday :)

This is me happy happy because Jerry got me Romance for Christmas.

The perfume you silly! :)

Snow Snow Snow!

2009-12-22T21:44:00.003-06:00

Jerry and James headed outside after Jerry got home today and built a snowman!

Lucas stayed in with me and enjoyed the warmth :)

Christmas Snapshots

2009-12-17T21:16:00.002-06:00

James is my official schlicker. When I start to cook and pull out a spoon... there he is "lick? lick?" So in this photo... he's licking some sour cream:) We decided I need to make him a more manly apron, though, if he's going to be helping in the kitchen ;)

We finally put up our Christmas decorations and I think they are B-E-A-U-tiful!

There's my men. Do you like our little stocking stuffer?

Christmas in Canada

2009-12-17T20:58:00.002-06:00

We headed up to Canada a couple weekends ago to celebrate Christmas with the Hanemaayer family. I love going up, but then... I'm a wee bit partial :) All my life my family has avoided exchanging gifts at actual Christmas time. The tradition in Holland has "Santa Claus" on December 5th. St. Nicholas visits the children with his helper, Black Peter. He rides on a horse and the children would leave carrots and such for the horse in their wooden shoes by the door. So, because everyone has other families to share Christmas with, my family has opted to stick to the 5th for our gift exchange and feast :)

My parents were able to clean up a good portion of the basement (obviously not finished) so all could eat around a table.

James sporting an eggnog mustache... Mmmm!

James receiving his gift on St Nick's lap.

Lucas receiving his gift.

A Beautiful Fall Day

2009-11-23T08:07:00.001-06:00

Lucas enjoying the swing.

James, our little monkey, climbing high!

I'm hoping next spring James will totally get the concept of pedaling. He pedals a wee bit, but still depends on my push.

Lucas and his new "ride" :) James was a bit too excited to push him onto the grass.

Lucas and his Jump&Go

2009-11-23T08:04:00.001-06:00

This is what comes of too much jumping, too early in the morning. The poor boy never complained a bit... just settled down for his morning nap.

Moving up in the world :)

2009-11-23T07:59:00.002-06:00

James was promoted to the "Big Boy" chair, complete with telephone books and Daddy's belt.

Lucas was promoted to the highchair. Spoons provided for entertainment. We want happy for the duration of our meal :) Good luck, eh?

The Little Boys

2009-10-11T15:10:00.003-05:00

From various boxes of hand-me-downs come two darling look-alikes

Check out that smile by James... but Lucas isn't too sure

Lucas is sitting... unassisted, by himself! Sure he starts to bend in half from the waist after a only a few seconds, but until then he's doing pretty darn good!

...and quite proud of himself too, I'd say ;)

Random Shots

2009-10-07T17:33:00.003-05:00

James loves to bounce Lucas in his chair, so much so that we're afraid he'll break Lucas' chair! Not so worried about Lucas, 'cause he seems to love the extra bounce :)
Everytime I ask James to smile he gives me this goofy grin. :) Mouth open, teeth showing and eyes squinty.

Me and my smiley Lucas

I'm trying to get a good wall photo shot... what do you think?

Our week here has been great, but we're homebound. I keep waiting and waiting for the red spots of chicken pox to appear... but they're not! I'm afraid to take him to church functions though, because tomorrow may be the day they decide to show their ugly faces.

In other news... the weather has been great... 50s and 60s with the rain falling mostly at night. We managed to go for a walk today with Lucas in the sling and James in the stroller. It worked well because Lucas is able to hold his head up so well! I guess I no longer have an excuse not to go out and get some exercise ;)

Family Portraits, 2009

2009-09-30T08:29:00.003-05:00

The one and only... Jerry and Bernice Haveman!! Thank-you, thank-you very much :)

The ladies of the Haveman clan. Their beauty knows no description :)

And our stalwart men!

Our family portrait.

James loving on Lucas under Grandpa's watchful eye.

And here's the whole family. It doesn't get much better than this! And I mean that in all senses of the phrase :)

Poor Tys was over it. Doesn't matter how much you pay him, modeling is not in his future :) At least it wasn't that day.

Tys is trying to get away. And Trenton is tired of listening to it all :)

Now, from all three family portraits, I'm hoping people out there will give me their top choice so I'll know better which one to hang on the wall. I'll be anticipating your replies ;)

Our Swell Time in California!

2009-09-29T08:32:00.007-05:00

A morning in the pumpkin patch, searching for just the right pumpkin.

Have you ever seen so many giant pumpkins in one place? We sure had our pick! Once all the pumpkins were loaded in the back of Dad's pick-up, we were off. The only problem was all the vines that got caught up under his truck. We were clearing a whole row out! So, just because we all like a little excitement in our day, Casey hooked his suberban up to Dad's pick-up and dragged him out. Where was Jerry's pick-up when we needed it, eh? :)

Here's the boat I've heard so many things about. Finally the boat of memories became reality. And what fun it was! We'll most certainly have to do that again. A day at the beach is fun anyway, but throw in a boat and it's fabulous!!

Casey catching some air.

Jerry, zooming side to side.

Marie in action :)

James wishing he could ride too.

Here's our little Trent... enjoying the sand and shade.

Tys wasn't always quite sure about it all, but ask him if he was having fun and he'd give a firm nod... "yes".

Miss Katie loved the water and watering the sand :)

James had a great time too, and now knows what a boat is!

( I love this photo sequence)... Tys, can you reach it?

Just a little further...

Grandma and her grandkids

I think I missed the punchline, but these boys thought something was awfully funny!

Playing at the splashpad in Ripon.

Katie kicking the water around.

Little Lucas hanging out

I think the Haveman men just have a thing for vehicles :)

We were able to celebrate James' second birthday while visiting Mom and Dad. I think by the time he got his cake he was pretty much done and in need of sleep :) But I know I enjoyed it :)

The visit to California was great. It was wonderful to see family and hang out everyone together. The memories are lasting and we hope to make many more next year... and the next year... and the next year... well, you get my point :)

Smiles at Play

2009-09-17T08:16:00.002-05:00

Lucas is getting so strong and interactive. He didn't last too long in this jumper, but he started out having a good time!

James built a tower! I did help by adding supports to prevent it from being a leaning tower, but otherwise he did it all by himself!

Lucas Rolled Over!

2009-09-15T08:41:00.002-05:00

Lucas rolled over for the first time last night. Jerry and I were very proud of him, esp since the doc told me I should be working on it with him.... James saw how excited we got and got down on the floor next to Lucas, just as excited.

There's our little boy, who just rolled over! woohoo!

And check out this watermelon. Who knows what the circles are from (aliens?) The sun probably caused blisters and splitting; at least that's my theory.

The Wedding in New Jersey

2009-09-15T08:19:00.003-05:00

Here they are, the happy couple... Marion and Russell :)

My handsome men all dressed up and ready to party!

Marion and me. Not my best photo... but what the heck, eh?
For those who don't know, Marion was my roommate in Palm Springs and turned into my friend for life. She has such a fun and friendly character with a no bull attitude that I love :) I wish her and Russell the very best!

Our little cherubs :)

2009-08-24T20:13:00.004-05:00

Isn't he a doll? He smiles so easily :)

And this is for Lisa... even though I wouldn't let him out of the house with ears on his head, and I would even be a little leery to go with Pooh on his shirt... I had to let him try it out :). He left the hat on for hours, not wanting to take it off. I guess that'll be the only time 'cause it's getting a little small.

A Visit from Opa and Oma

2009-08-20T22:41:00.002-05:00

My parents came out for a visit last weekend. It was great to see them again and always nice to visit. James needed a reminder as to who they are so he won't be scared to stay with them for a couple days while Jerry, Lucas and I head out East in a couple weeks :)

Lucas thought the joke was pretty funny :)

My Three Great Loves :)

2009-08-20T22:35:00.003-05:00

The boys... hanging out. I think there's still room for me on that love seat, eh? :)

Corny, eh?

2009-08-20T22:28:00.001-05:00

The other day I picked some corn. Canned 2 pts! woohoo! And James tried to help shuck one :)

Brothers!

2009-08-07T08:42:00.003-05:00

Don't they just look happy together? This is the beginning of a beautiful relationship! :)

More of the Garden

2009-08-07T08:37:00.002-05:00

Our first bit of corn and cherry tomatoes... and a carrot thrown in for some colour :)
Check out this mountain of beans! I now have 39 little baggies of beans in the freezer (enough for 1 meal each) so we are set for at least half the year :)

How My Garden Grows

2009-07-24T14:47:00.005-05:00

My garden is finally thriving. After 2 years of sorry looking produce, the Lord was merciful and blessed us with a fabulous garden! I'm so excited! This spring, Jerry rented a tiller and plowed up a little plot of land. I was worried because the soil looked terrible! Clay! So he rented a tiller again and tilled in some fertilizer. Feeling a little bit better about this, we set out to plant our seeds. And one last added measure to ensure produce, Jerry build a fence around it to ward off the deer and rabbits. Seems to be working, by the grace of God :).

Lisa gave me the idea to show off my produce, so here goes!

Here are my beans! Note, not a single bite mark. The past 2 years I've only been able to freeze about 1/3 of my produce because the bugs got the rest!

Cucumbers! And there's a tonne more coming... everyone's getting relish for Christmas :).

Beets! Jerry's personal favourite... or not :).

And here's the beginnings of my onions and carrots. I'm so proud of the carrots, because I've never been able to grow them before; I would always weed them before I realize they're carrots :0.

A Visit from Marie!

2009-07-24T14:32:00.003-05:00

Marie came out for the weekend just past. It was so good to see her again! We spent one day going to and from a blueberry patch that was incredibly busy (had to have been >400 cars parked there). We decided the berries weren't that good and made our way home empty handed. :)

Then on Saturday we took a drive to the beach. What started out as a cool day, wound up being beautiful! Unfortunately we didn't really dress for the beach because we thought it would be even chillier there and we wouldn't want to stay. Ah well... next time we'll come prepared for any type of weather!

James loved the water; loved to feel it lap his feet and wanted to sit and splash in it. I wish I had brought swim trunks for him as his poor diaper was swollen as big as it would go and his pants were so wet and heavy, they would not stay up. But he had a blast regardless!

James also loved digging in the sand. Marie showed him how to make little castles with an empty Mtn Dew bottle, compliments of Jerry :).

Doesn't he look happy?

A Visit from Grandpa and Grandma Great!

2009-07-24T14:13:00.002-05:00

Here's a fun shot of our little Lucas with his sweet little smile.

Grandma Haveman was wonderful with the kiddos, my right hand woman helping to take care of the kiddos. Grandpa wasn't far behind ;)... he was busy for the most part, however, building shelves for the cupboards Dad Haveman and Jerry had built. He also was there to help Jerry replace the transfer case. I'm glad he was, because I would've had NO idea what tools where which when handing them to Jerry :).

Grandpa had a soothing touch for little Lucas and could put him right to sleep.

A great picture! (get it... great... great grandparents... heehee)

Another sweet shot; Grandpa-great and little Lucas.

The Hoosier

2009-07-07T15:41:00.003-05:00

When we first moved here in September of '08, we went antiqueing with Mom and Dad Haveman. We came home with a hoosier for a deal :). Below is how it looked. Jerry sanded the whole thing down and repainted it all. He even cleaned all the hinges... and they look so much better. I painted a door or two, but Jerry is the one who redid it! As for the rolling door (a tambour, I'm told it's called)... Jerry's dad made a copy of the original door with new wood and it fit perfectly. Didn't they do an awesome job?? This piece will be in my kitchen for many many years! I'm so happy for it:)

A short trip to Canada

2009-07-07T15:05:00.004-05:00

Jerry, the boys and I were able to make a short trip up to my family over the long weekend. Finally we were able to get an updated photo of the whole family. It's hard to keep it updated when babies keep arriving ;). Unfortunately, Rosee didn't want to have her photo taken and rather than argue that she is beautiful and we want memories of her also... we got her to be the photographer. She did a great job!

James loved the tractor... future farmer here :).

And here we all are eating and eating (what we do best!) on the back deck.

Lucas' Baptism Day

2009-06-28T16:55:00.005-05:00

On June 21st, 2009, Lucas was officially welcomed into God's Covenant by the sign and seal of Baptism. What a wonderful promise of grace we have in Christ; and not just for ourselves, but a promise we can and must share with our children. Mom and Dad Haveman were able to come out to witness the baptism and share in the celebrations :)

The little star of the day.

A view to show off the hand made gown.

James being a little monkey...

James loves to squeeze little Lucas and Lucas tolerates it relatively well!

Brothers!

Parents, Grandparents and our little darling boys.

This is the best family photo out of 5. Sheesh. Better luck next time!

Oma, Grandpa, and little Lucas on his baptism day.

The Haveman men.

Snapshots

2009-06-28T16:49:00.001-05:00

Future ComEd worker... Jerry's pride and joy!
We're seeing if he measures up to the mountain dew bottle :)... he's got a bit to go!

A Visit from Family

2009-06-28T10:40:00.002-05:00

John and Anne with their 6 kids made the 8 hour trip down to visit us. I had a fabulous time and I'm sure they had a pretty good time too :). We spent relaxing days enjoying the sun, as well as a day to the Museum of Science and Industry, a day at the pool, and a day going shopping... where John and Anne bought a Wii for the kids, and for them ;). The Wii was really alot of fun!

Samuel and James became great friends and played really well together. James loved Samuels toy car from "Cars" and Samuel loved James' push toy, Thomas the Train. I think over all they shared quite well!

Rachel with Lucas who, to her delight, fell fast asleep on her lap.

The kids enjoying the trampoline. I'm glad we had it (a leftover from the previous owners).

While the man power was here, Jerry was able to chop down two trees. John offered manly support and a bit of advise and the kids were put to work by John later to clean up the smaller branches into nice piles. That was a great gift of time to Jerry and we are thankful!

Jerry's climbing high! Even on his days off he can't get enough of heights ;)

More pictures!

2009-05-26T10:55:00.002-05:00

Here's our little Lucas, holding his head up so well!!

The Haveman men, both big and small :)

James and his little bro. How sweet they are!

Friends!

2009-05-26T10:52:00.003-05:00

Joash and James. These little guys are just a month apart and play so well together. Unfortunately Joash moved back up to Canada last week with his parents. His dad had just graduated from the seminary and will be working in Hamilton for the summer. So sad they had to go!

Boys and Thier Toys

2009-05-26T10:46:00.003-05:00

Jerry finally brought his "baby" home! After 2 years of patiently waiting for the truck to sell or to be brought to Illinois, Jerry's dreams finally became reality... making way for more bigger and better dreams of what he can now do to the truck since he has it home. :)
Jerry saw this for sale outside of a consignment shop and we had to do a second drive by :). Because it was Sunday when we saw it, he told me "you have to go tomorrow to get that for James". So I did and James loves it! Jerry will start his boys of young in the off roading craze. :)

Lucas Abraham Haveman

2009-05-17T19:18:00.005-05:00

Our Family Photo

Me and my boys. This is the first time James held Lucas... and he got a real kick out of it. But it started a need to hold him more. James loves to hug Lucas and hug him TIGHT! I'll have to keep an eye on this ;).

A close-up of the brothers.

Opa and Oma Hanemaayer came up the day after Lucas was born to help out. And to meet the baby, I'm sure :). It was wonderful to see them again and wonderful to have their help around the house. Best of all, they provided James with much needed distraction.

Oma and Lucas.

Opa, James and Lucas.

This was day number one, well, the 14th. James met his brother for the first time and wasn't quite sure what to make of everything.

Lucas was born on May 13, 2009 at 7:20 PM. We had just made it to the hospital at 6:20... so things went rather fast :). He weighed in at 8lbs 6ozs and was 21" long. He was a darling from the start! We love him so much and we praise the Lord for his safe arrival!