Norah recently.

It's past time for another update, but Norah is growing up and doing great! We are so thankful for the gift of being her parents. Norah finished up third grade well! She did winter rec basketball and spring rec soccer and did well with both of those. It will be interesting to see what activities are her favorite as she gets older. We had a great time as a family at Great Wolf Lodge in January for their big Christmas gift. Norah got influenza in February and was super sick for a few days unfortunately. Norah got great remarks at conferences and we are thankful for her growth at school. She also continued on with Sunday School, tap/jazz dance class, and piano lessons. She had an end of the year piano recital and dance recital and it was fun to watch her in both of those and see her progress. Norah had a third grade music program at school and a class play at the end of the year too. On April 24, Norah had another set of tubes and her tonsils out, so that was a big deal for her! She was nervous about it but overall handled it pretty well, and the recovery wasn't actually as bad as I thought it would be. Of course it wasn't fun for her, but she did better at managing the pain than I was expecting and we are glad it's over for her! I can tell it's helping already with ear/throat issues. So glad for access to good medical care! In the spring, we got to spend Easter in Des Moines and Omaha with family and had a wonderful time at Tulip Festival too! Norah got to participate in Dutch dancing.

We have been busy over the summer- grateful for the opportunity to participate in lots of things and take some trips! We got to take a couple quick trips to Des Moines for family time and went to Omaha for the 4^th of July too. We went to Clear Lake for a few days in July with the Schuts and enjoyed lots of lake time. We went to Chicago with De Jongs for a long weekend in August and enjoyed Lake Michigan, Willis Tower, aquarium, and a super fun highlight was the American Girl doll store! Norah got to do many fun things this summer. She did summer softball, swimming lessons, piano lessons, flag, a short dance camp and adventure camp at Oak Grove, and loved the craft class at the library.

Norah is about to start 4^th grade! She is having some anxieties about starting again, like she has every year so far, but we are praying about it over her and together and trying to speak truth and Scripture together. She found out that she will have a couple friends in her class and that is helping her feel more excited. She is smart and lovely and she will take some time to adjust, but will do great! She is wearing XL/12-14 clothes and has even gotten a few XS things from the women's section! She is jumping up to a 4 shoe for the school year. We did one on one dates for back to school shopping and it was fun to see her pick out clothes she liked. She will start a jazz and lyrical dance class this year soon.

Norah loves little kids and says she wants to babysit when she gets a little older. She is a great older cousin and loves well many young kids in our church and neighborhood. Norah loves to listen to music, make up dances, write stories, ride bike, make bracelets/crafts, and play with figurines like Lil Woodzeez or playmobil sets. The pool has been a favorite summer activity by all. Norah, loving you is a joy and we pray that His love would become more and more real in your heart as you get older and that you would shine for Him! We love you!

Chicago vacation 2024- De Jong side.

We went to Chicago for a long weekend with the De Jongs and had a really good time! Our hotel was so neat and we were on the top floor, floor 46, and the views out the window were spectacular! It was so high up that my ears popped every time we went up and down the elevator. Our girls think eating any food in a hotel is so fancy and they loved it. 

I had gone to the Chicago area a few times growing up because we had family in the area, but they lived in the suburbs and we just stayed by their homes, so it felt like my first Chicago visit because I hadn't done anything touristy or been downtown before. 

We went to Lake Michigan one night and the kids loved the beach. The sand was so soft and it was fun to have waves that weren't salty!

So fun to see both the skyline and the water!

The girls and cousin Will going in!

Going to the American Girl store was a highlight, like a true core memory for the girls and it was so special. We all walked in and just gawked. It was amazing and so fun to walk around and see it all. It was like Ikea but with all the dolls and displays. All three really had a wonderful time and it was such a joy that they got to experience it. We will remember it forever! (Kley and the boys went to a Cubs game and enjoyed that too!)

Ellory was so excited to wear Aunt Elizabeth's old dress and match with her doll too. So cute.

We actually went there two days- one day we had the cutest tea! They had so many different finger foods and the girls loved trying them all.

They brought their drinks in little tea pots!

Playing with their dolls and new outfits/accessories in the hotel room.

Check out the views!

Lucy and Papa.

Love whole group photos! Thankful for sweet time together!

We went to the aquarium one morning and it was fun to see all the ocean animals! This seal show was cute to see all the tricks.

We didn't get to see an actual dolphin show, but we did get to see some swimming and doing some jumps on their own!

My favorite four!

Swimming in the hotel pool- something about a hotel pool just feels incredible to kids!

Navy Pier, so cool to see! This is a funny story because we were actually at Navy Pier for such a short time. Kley and I would have loved to stay longer because it's such a classic Chicago spot and there were lots of fun things to do, but the girls had their heart set on getting back to the hotel pool. We basically just walked around a bit and snapped a few photos and left. It was a bummer at the time, but it was fine to self sacrifice to make the girls happy, and it wouldn't have been fun to spend the money to do any rides if their hearts weren't in it anyways. We didn't realize how long it would take to get there (because distances aren't far but Chicago traffic is nuts!), so they wanted to swim before the pool closed. And love the pool they did!

Another day at the American Girl store- love their matching shirts with their dolls!

They each picked something they wanted to take a picture by. 

Jana had given the girls a scripture writing workbook for the summer and said they could earn spending money for the store by writing scripture verses, and they were thrilled to pick out some things! Norah and Lucy each picked out a few smaller things, but Ellory had her heart set on this horse. It was really the cutest ever, she saw it through the window before we ever went there and her heart fell in love with it instantly. She was just giddy to get it and willing to forsake getting multiple items because this horse was all of her money. She was SO proud of it and so incredibly happy to get it!

A super cute lunch we got to have there. Look at the little clip on chairs for the dolls! They also gave the dolls little cups and saucers too. 

Their dolls got to get their hair done, ears pierced, and nails painted. So fancy and fun!

Before walking in- anticipation and excitement so high!

They thought it was amazing to have kid size slippers and robes in the room!

Outside the hotel.

Our first night getting ice cream! Ellory was thrilled about this too because last Christmas she got the American Girl Jeni's Ice Cream Truck for Christmas and we didn't know it was based off of a real place, so it was special to see the real place that had many items that looked just like in the truck.

Yummy ice cream and first sites walking through downtown Chicago!

We didn't take any strollers on this trip (wow, growing up!), but occasionally the girls would plop down in Will or Gerrit's strollers if they weren't using them for a minute. Overall it was a wonderful trip and I'm grateful for family time and the fun things we got to do!

The last adventure before heading home was the Skydeck at Willis Tower. It was incredible, so cool and I'm so glad we did it! Brad (my father-in-law) and cousin Will joined us. What a special experience! 

Such amazing views!

Kley was the most nervous to go out onto the ledge, but he did it and we all did it! The girls did great!

Something else special we got to witness was a couple a few spots in front of us get engaged while standing on the ledge! We were right there and saw it and everyone was clapping and cheering. 

It was a great trip and thankful for the fun we got to have!