A year with Shumai...

Shumai had her 1st birthday on August 18th! What an up and down year it was. We loved her the best we knew how, but in the end we decided she just wasn't the dog for us! Between her tummy troubles and cat-like personality, we sent her to be with her new "forever family". I included a picture of her in her new home with her new best friend "Hank the Tank"! She will really be missed, but we plan on trying again with a different puppy in the spring!

We love the pool!

And the hot tub! Back and forth between the hot tub and the pool all day long!




Matthew became the big swimmer this summer, like a little fish! The pirate ship saw a lot of action too!

Summer Fun!

The kids were on a roll this summer with the "string game"! Introduced to it by the Cordova's, the object is to take rolls of yarn and tie up the entire yard! Hours of entertainment, thanks Cordova's!

What a great Dad!

I don't tell him often enough, but Tim is one great Dad! He's the best playmate ever, as well as being a rock for our family. We appreciate how hard you work for us!!

Curious Kids!

There is a total "hands-on" museum in St. Joe's that the kids loved! It gave us a much needed break from the chilly beach that day. I love watching their ""wheels" turn, and the excitement that comes from experimenting! Of course, I got to play too!




















































Weeeeee! It's the only ride that I HAVE to go on, this time I dragged Sarah and Matthew along!

Warren Dunes and St Joseph Michigan!

Another attempt at a Michigan weekend! Note the sweater in July, it was in the 50's that morning! We climbed to the top of the big hill (once!), and met "Randy" and his kids from Canada! The kids spent the next hour trying to bury him!


In downtown St Joseph, Michigan, they have all these animal statues everywhere. They're very appealing to the kids, and make for great photo op's! Wondering about Matthew and the pig? The Lein's now have another eating tradition (like we need one!). There is an ice cream shop in New Buffalo, Michigan named "Oink's". Not only incredible ice cream, but you could spend hours looking at all of the ice cream paraphernalia in the store!

They're all engineers!!

Ahhh, the hours of entertainment spent constructing new "Geotrax" configurations... it's quite the process! It's always a group effort, with Sarah and Matthew (and Daddy) cooperating very nicely with one another. Kudo's to the engineers!