The Van Den Brouwerstras

Note Tessa's expression upon seeing that Nathan pulled off a Tulip Petal!

About to take off!
On the run, without that annoying hat!

These are pictures of the kids in all of their dutchness. Nathan was more interested in running around than posing, but we got a few good ones of him. Tessa loved being dressed up and posed beautifully!

Go Figure

Last weekend we had wonderful friends over for Tulip Time. I thought that I had the house reasonably clean. I don't claim perfection, but it looked pretty good. I must have dusted in poor lighting because today I went in the guest bedroom armed with a feather duster to check for cob webs and wouldn't you know that I found some of the biggest ones in the history of man kind! I am surprised our guests didn't ask for dusting supplies and/or offer to hire us a maid. Sorry Van Burens!

Pictures, hooray!

Early 2008, Nathan is learning to stand

One of the many forts Tessa built this winter. At first she tried to keep Nathan out of them but he is a determined little guy! This is one of the first times she willingly let him come in to play.

The grill. Notice the fancy grill tools on a hanging, circular stand.

January, 2008. Visiting the chicken ranch in California.

Opa & Oma (Gerrit's parents) have a neighbor who has 2 horses. Tessa was in her glory!

Now that I figured out the pictures, I will try to post some more recent ones. They are still on the camera.

Yeah!......Oh

Nathan was born with a clogged tear duct. We had an appointment with a specialist to look into the possibility of surgically opening it when it opened on its own. Cancelled appointment. Yeah!


Nathan's cardiologist appointment went very well! Dr M. is pretty certain the hole, which in medical terms is called a VSD, is closed. We do not have to go back until Nathan is 3. Yeah!


Nathan has a double ear infection. When we went in for his one year well-child visit the doctor discovered the owie ears. After 10 days of antibiotics it did not clear so we are on a higher potency medicine. Oh.


Having his diaper changed, clothes put on or removed, or any kid of outer wear added to his pudgy little body is not Nathan's favorite. The last couple weeks while wrestling, I mean changing him, I noticed a little bulge above his belly button. It appears when he is straining to get away from me. The doctor looked at it yesterday and thought it was a small hernia. If it gets bigger, we need to go see a pediatric surgeon. Oh.

One more thing and Cardiologist

Another item that is kind of strange and cool at the same time, is how birthdays fall in our family.

First, the extended family. Gerrit's oldest two brothers share the same birthday, a year apart. Their wives also share the same birthday. On my side, we all have birthdays in consecutive months. Brother-in-law and sister, June and July. Brother and sister-in-law, November and December. Gerrit and I, September and October.

In our immediate family of four, our birthdays are the following dates: Gerrit 2nd, Michelle 2nd, Tessa 25th, Nathan 5th. So IF there is another one, it would be cool to have it fall on the 2nd, 5th, 22nd, or 25th.

Now that you know this information you can go on with a more fulfilled life :)

We are off to the cardiologist today. Nathan was born with a small hole in his heart that the specialist likes to check on every six months. He has assured me over and over that is not something to worry about and that it will not affect is quality of life, but I still get nervous. I think that in the back of my head I wonder if they will say "The hole has enlarged, time for open heart surgery now!"

Actually typing that out makes me wonder if I watch too much TV.

I explained the hole in the heart situation to Tessa last night. I think that she is a little worried too (insert comment regarding the apple not falling far from the tree). She asked to come along to make sure Nathan is okay, sweet girl. I told her she was going to play at her cousins house instead. All of a sudden, she was not at all worried about Nathan's heart. She did, however say "Oh, is the owie in his heart why Nathan is grumpy and cries a lot?" My response, "No, that's just Nathan."

Challenge

I have been challenged to share things about me that others may think are strange. I think that they are totally normal but you are free to come to your own conclusions.

1. I once saw a show about this family living in one of the southern states who, when going to use the facilities, saw the head of a snake peeking back at them from the toilet. It turns out that a large, scary, and dangerous snake had found its way into their plumbing system and the only exit? The toilet. That totally freaked me out and to this day I will not go to the bathroom at night without turning the light on and checking for snakes first. I have carried two babies to full term which means many blind-myself-with-the-light night trips to the bathroom.

2. I love animals but am very afraid of any kind of reptiles. Mice, bugs, anything is fine except lizards, snakes etc. The first time I flew to CA to visit my then boyfriend Gerrit, I went outside with him and a few lizards ran across the outside of the house. I ran inside. I still married him.

3. I am not a picky eater or indulge on expensive groceries except meat. I get totally grossed out by fatty meat and/or by parts of an animal that are not intended for human consumption. (Dale and Kathy, I think that you can come with an example of this!) If I am eating a dish with meat that can not be easily studied (such as chunks of chicken in a casserole) and bite into a gristly part, I will not eat another morsel.

4. Food stresses me out. I really enjoy cooking and baking, especially if it something that I have not made before. If I had a day free of little ones, I would thoroughly enjoy spending it in food preparation. You could probably sell me a cookbook I already have for more than I bought it for. At the same time, I get very stressed if I do not have a menu plan for the week. I am not a "let's see what we have and what I can make with it" person. I feel very out of sorts if we are low on groceries. Once my fridge is full, I feel much better. In regards to the fridge, mine needs to be organized. It may be that you could not see flooring anywhere in my house but if people (husband) put things in my fridge haphazardly, I may have a break down.

5. I am not the greatest singer. I can follow a tune when music is provided but on my own I am hopeless. I can not harmonize or keep pitch. You will not see me in a choir or church praise team. One exception is singing soul. That throaty forced singing...I am really good at it. I have actually shocked people with this talent. If, however you ask for a performance, you will not get one. It has to be totally spur of the moment. The right place at the right time.

6. I have a thing with rings. After I had Tessa, my knuckles expanded. I could force my wedding ring on but could not get it off again. Stress, break down, melt down are much to mild to describe the feelings I have if I can not get a ring off of my finger. I think that I would literally pull my finger out of its socket to get it off. When I see someone else wearing a ring that appears to be permanently attached to their finger, my blood pressure soars. I can not fathom how they are walking around knowing that if they wanted to get their ring off, they couldn't.

Plea for Help and Understanding

Okay...

Just been reading in a parenting book that children's' allowance should not be tied to chores. Their chores should be solely due to the fact that they are part of a family unit that works together. Their allowance solely to learn money related skills. The only time they should be paid for jobs is if they go above and beyond their expected work load. One illustration was that if the child needs/wants extra money, you can offer additional jobs to them. From this thought comes my plea: My house needs a really good cleaning and I have a ton of ironing to do...Anyone want to earn some extra money?

I also have been racking my brain for the last day and have not yet been able to understand Dale's comment. I am pretty sure it was a joke and intended to be a slam on me, but I don't get it. Obviously Jean did, so here comes my plea for understanding...Could one of you explain?!