Calvin 10 Year Reunion

Well, somehow it's been 10 years since we graduated from Calvin. It's so strange to think about all the ways our lives have changed in the last 10 years. In some ways it seems so long ago, but after being on campus this weekend and spending time with good friends, it seems like we just left!

We, along with our good friends Jeff and Erin, were on the reunion committee for our class. Since we were on the committee, we attended almost all of the events that took place on Friday night and Saturday. Friday night we had an ice cream social and performance by River City Improv. Saturday morning there was a brunch for families, followed by a scavenger hunt around campus, and then a chance to hear a speaker or take a tour. Saturday evening we had a very nice dinner at the Prince Conference Center. Recently retired Chaplain Cooper led us in devotions, and we played a rousing game of Calvin Jeopardy as well. After some delicious desserts, we and some of our friends closed the place down.

Being together with friends that we see somewhat frequently, as well as some that we have rarely seen in the last 10 years, reminded me of what a blessing our time at Calvin was, and how many wonderful relationships God has blessed us with.

Thanks too to Grandpa and Grandma W for taking the kids on Saturday afternoon and keeping them overnight so we could enjoy the weekend!

Peter playing Twister after brunch

Setting off on the scavenger hunt

Esther's first "Calvin Walk" with her buddy Jordan

Future Calvinites?

3 of the girls from my 1995-96 RA staff

Former Veenstra Girls!

Grandpa's Tractor

My parents have quite a large yard, so my Dad mows it with his John Deere riding mower. Today the kids got a chance to try it out (without it running of course)! They thought it was pretty cool having Grandpa push the mower around the driveway while Esther steered. They even tried out his radio headphones!

Not Dancing, Just Playing!

Update since last week on dance class: Esther's teacher was in a car accident on the way to class last week, which is why she wasn't there. Thankfully she was not hurt, but her car was totalled, so she decided not to continue teaching the class. Fortunately, they found another teacher, so we went back for attempt number two today!

I didn't get to see a whole lot of the class, but what I did see looked pretty fun. They did some warm up exercises, some moving like butterflies, some Hokey Pokey, and other things. In Esther's words she "took a little while to warm up" (I think she's heard me say that a couple times) but once she got into it she joined in and had lots of fun. She also told me that she "listened really well" to her teacher. Maybe we'll work on listening really well at home too. My favorite quote about the class was when I asked her what kind of dances she did. She said, "It wasn't dancing!" I asked her what they were doing, and she replied "Just playing!"

Poor Peter was the tortured brother who just really wanted to be a part of dance class but had to hang out with Mommy in the hall instead. No amount of toys, snacks, or even the paci could soothe his poor troubled soul. I think we'll go back to dropping him off at Daddy's office from now on!

From Houses to Outhouses

So, what do you do for a friend who has been mowing your lot for you all summer long? Well, for starters, you build him an outhouse. Now, before you worry that this friend of mine is living without the modern wonder of indoor plumbing, he needed this outhouse for his hunting cabin up north. Now, I won't go into specifics on how they handled things up there before the outhouse, but let's just say this is a major improvement. If you ever want a conversation starter with your neighbors, just build something similar to this in your garage and wait for the questions.

Marge's Donut Den

As a "new year" of Daddy-Donut-Day begins, the kids and I had to find a new place to go to. Our favorite place, Cafe on the Corner, closed last May. Last week we went to Marge's Donut Den. Peter of course made himself right at home, and before long even ended up on Marge's lap. The deal was sealed when Marge gave each of the kids their own T-Shirt, and promised a onesie for the baby when it is born.

So today we went back there, with each of the kids wearing their new T-shirts. Peter made his rounds the moment we got there and I think "high-fived" all 10 customers that were there. (No one believes he isn't even two yet.) Esther made Marge a card with this picture on it, which is now hanging up in the store.

Bunny Ears

This is how my SON greeted me when I got home from work today. Anyone think maybe Daddy should be staying home full time?

Disappointed Dancers

Esther was supposed to have her first dance ("Creative Movement") class tonight at the parks and rec department. We dropped Peter off at Daddy's office, headed to the place, and met up with Esther's friend Anna (and her mom Erin) who is also taking the class. Soon we went to the assigned room and joined the other 2 and 3-year-olds and their parents as we waited for class to begin. About 10 minutes after it was supposed to start, someone came in and said that the teacher hadn't shown up and they couldn't get in touch with her. She asked us to wait 10 more minutes to see if she would come. She didn't. Fortunately, the kids started entertaining themselves by running around, dancing, etc... and probably didn't even realize that they weren't having dance class!

Here are a couple pictures. Hopefully we'll have a more fun report next Monday!

Big Girl Bike

Today after church, Esther and I went for bike ride. Me on my Schwinn that hasn't been ridden in two years, Esther on her "new" bike that was given to us by a friend. Since it was noted (many times by Esther) that this is a boy's bike, it was made clear that it is really Peter's, but she is just borrowing it for the rest of this year!

Serious Suckers

Today Esther wanted to have a sucker if she ate a good lunch. She did, and of course when she got her sucker, Peter had to have one too. I was thinking maybe I should send this to the Charms sucker company to see if they want to use it for an advertisement!

A Daddy Duck's Life

Apparently in Esther's mind, being a Daddy Duck is easy and fun. Yesterday morning we were out for a walk and saw a group of female ducks in the pond near our house. I asked her where she thought all the Daddies were and joked that maybe they'd gone out for breakfast. She responded, "No, the Daddies are all out flying their airplanes." This idea likely comes from the fact that Casey and several of his buddies have remote control airplanes or helicopters that they sometimes fly.

This morning on the way to church, we had to stop for a couple female ducks crossing the road. I asked her where the Daddies were today, and she said "They're still sleeping!"

Wow, it must be nice being a Daddy Duck...