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Honey Bear

9/28/2011

 
Christian's Pre-K class has a "class pet" affectionately known as Honey Bear.  The kiddos take turns bringing Honey Bear home, and then the parents journal about the weekend.  Christian was THRILLED to take Honey Bear home last weekend, and I'll let Honey Bear's journal entry explain what we did together. :)


I had a beary good time visiting Christian and his family this weekend!  On Friday Christian took me home and I met his dad, mom, and little sister, Abbie.  We used blankets to make a bear cave underneath the dining room table, and Christian introduced me to all of his stuffed animal friends (wow – his sister has a lot of penguins :)!  For supper we had chicken strips with honey dipping sauce and ate in the bear cave!  It was lots of fun and the honey was delicious!
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After supper Christian showed me all of his bear books.  His Grandma is letting him borrow her Berenstain Bears book collection, so before bed Christian’s mom read us several stories.  The Berenstain Bears are a bear family just like Christian’s family with a Papa Bear, Mama Bear, Brother Bear, and Sister Bear.  Christian told me the Berenstain Bears are his favorite books.  Christian especially likes The Berenstain Bears Go Out for the Team book because it’s about baseball!
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Saturday morning Christian took me to Chinese school.  Christian told me that he lived in Beijing, China with his dad and mom until he was almost one-year-old and his family is planning on going back to China someday, so they are all learning to speak Chinese.  Christian’s Chinese teacher taught us to count to four in Chinese, and she told me that my Chinese name is 小 熊 甜心 (pronounced “xiǎo xióng tián xie”)  - Chinese for “little bear of sweetness.”  It was fun learning Chinese!
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Saturday afternoon Christian’s dad played “Bear Hunt” with Christian and me.  We took turns pretending to be the hunter and bears while playing hide-and-go-seek.  When the hunter found the bears, we would all let out big bear “ROARS!”
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On Sunday morning Christian took me with him to church.  His dad is the youth pastor at Long Island Abundant Life Church – a Chinese church in Hicksville.  We sang songs, did crafts, and listened to a Bible story about how God cares for us!
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Sunday  afternoon Christian’s mom helped us make bear sugar cookies.  I watched because I didn’t want to get my paws dirty. :)  Christian and his mom rolled out the dough with rolling pins, punched out bear shapes with a cookie cutter, placed them on the cookie tray, and then waited patiently while the cookies baked in the oven.
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Christian made red, blue, yellow, and white bears and covered them with sprinkles, sugars, chocolate chips, marshmallows, and candies.  Christian also asked his mom to help him make two special cookies that look just like me (with extra blue buttons)!  It made me feel beary special! :)
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My last evening with Christian and his family, we played in the backyard and grilled hamburgers and hotdogs for supper!  Christian has his own grill that he uses when his dad grills, so he taught me how to make delicious food too!
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I had a beary good time with Christian and his family this weekend, and am so glad I got to know them all!  We became good friends and I hope to see them again soon! :)

Love,
Honey Bear

First Baseball Game

9/23/2011

 
Thursday night we took Christian and Abbie to their first baseball game!  We watched the minor league Long Island Ducks play the Maryland Blue Crabs.  The kiddos loved it!  I thought we would need to leave before the game ended because the little ones were bored, but we only had to leave early to get them to bed at a reasonable time even though they wanted to stay to the end!

Hot Dog Supper
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Christian - ready for the game to start!  There were loads of foul balls caught during the game - so fun!  The guy in front of us actually caught one (while I was pulling my arms over the kiddos heads ducking for cover ;). 
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Christian giving a high five to Quackerjack the Long Island Ducks mascot.
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Watching the Game
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My Three Adorable Blessings
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Gifts 'n Things

9/15/2011

 
Help support Christian and his preschool when you make a "Gifts 'n Things" purchase online and it will be shipped directly to you!  You can purchase yummy treats, candles, little gifts - just go explore! :)  Christian's preschool will receive profits from the sale and Christian will receive prize credits.

You can shop online at:
http://www.supportmyschool.org/store/brochures.php?sID=kju3233

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My favorite item is the cookie/cracker holders.  No more stale or broken crackers or cookies!  These two holders are great for storage or travel.

Thank you for your support!

Christian's First Day of Pre-School

9/7/2011

 
Today was Christian's first day of pre-school!  (Did I really just type that?!?)  I can't believe my little man is 4-years-old and is now in pre-school!  He did amazing today, and me....well...I lasted until the car ride home (thankfully Greg was driving)! :)

In our town kindergarten is full day and a 1/2 day pre-school program is available for free to 130 children who win the lottery and thankfully we were #9 drawn, so Christian is in a $440 per month pre-school program for FREE!  His teacher and her assistant are super sweet, and it made me excited to hear all she has planned for her class this year!  He's going to have a wonderful time learn counting, writing, and how to function in a classroom before he starts full-day school.  Christian loved every minute of his first day of school and is sooo excited to go back tomorrow! 
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5th Year Anniversary

9/6/2011

 
This summer Greg and I celebrated our 5th wedding anniversary!  We decided to celebrate by having a special time in New York City together!  We started out by walking around Central Park and eating at the Loeb Boathouse - the setting was very romantic (you can see the view from our table below) and the food was amazing!
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After supper we stayed at the 70 Park Avenue Hotel!  The room had an incredible view of the city (see pictures below) and our room even had a jacuzzi!
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In the morning we slept in (with two toddlers we hadn't been able to do that in years!) and had Crisp falafels for lunch - so yummy!
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And then headed over to the 5th Avenue Chocolatier for delicious chocolate covered strawberries and pretzels for dessert!
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Back at Central Park we walked around a bit more, and then had a sketch of us drawn (and of course we bartered our artist down to 1/3 of the regular price :).
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We also spent some time at The Metropolitan Museum of Art (so amazing this is FREE)!  Our favorite places were the rooftop cafe - such a pretty view, and the Egypt section - sooo cool!
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Greg loved this bird with a hat - he insisted we go back and see it a second time! :)
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On our final night in NYC we ate at ViceVersa - a romantic little Italian restaraunt in the theater district and then saw the broadway musical The Phantom of the Opera.  As usual we bought the cheapest tickets (rear mezzanine) and then because the theater is old and doesn't have an elevator to bring me up to the balcony, the theater owner placed us in some of the best seats in the front section! :)
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Greg and I had a wonderful time strolling through Central Park and the city, eating wonderful food, exploring the MET, staying at a fancy hotel, and seeing a wonderful musical, but the very best part of the whole time in New York City was being with the most wonderful man in the world!  I am so incredibly blessed to be married to a man who serves God and his family sacrificially and loves me with all of his heart!  He is generous, sensitive, strong, and the most amazing husband and father imaginable.  I love you Greg Vruggink!  I've been so blessed to be Mrs. Vruggink for five fabulous years! :)
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Summer Fun!

9/6/2011

 
We've had a wonderful summer filled with lots of grilling, ice-cream, picnics, and swimming!  This week the pool closed, Christian starts pre-school, and we've definitely felt fall breezes coming through.  We had a wonderful first summer in Long Island!

Christian got a grill from Uncle Mike and Aunt Lisa for his birthday, so whenever Daddy goes outside to grill Christian grills his little steaks and shishcabobs too! :)
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In our neighborhood the ice-cream truck comes around several times each day in the summer, so a handful of times this summer we splurged and got tasty treats from the ice cream man!
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And of course lots of swimming...swimming...and more swimming in our local public pool!  We have been blessed in that our local pool is free (to those who live in our town) and within walking distance of our home.  Several days each week we walked over to the pool, ate a picnic lunch, and then played at the park.  Such sweet summer memories with my little ones! :)

Sunscreen Noses :)
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Pool Fun! :)
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Dash Run - Christian loved to run super fast "on top of the water" like Dash from the Incredibles!
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Splishing and Splashing
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Soaking up those warm summer rays! :)
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