Saying goodbye to cherished neighbors

Even though we've only lived in this home for less than 2 years, that was plenty of time to become close friends with some of the greatest neighbors around.  The Schouten family lives right next door, and we happen to each have 3 children that line up perfectly by age, not to mention hobbies and interests!  Moritz and Gavin are energetic kids who enjoy any and all sports; Charlotte and Cassidy enjoy arts, crafts and drawing; Tyler and Jort enjoy cars, trains, and riding their skoot bikes up and down the street.  When we moved in and found them nextdoor, especially after moving from a neighborhood where most people kept to themselves or didn't have kids our age - it made the move feel so "right."  I'm not sure they know how thankful I was to have them there, on those days the kids might have been missing their old familiar bedroom or backyard - the Schouten kids would pop over, and any sadness would be forgotten!  I'd go so far as to say that it felt that we were placed in each other's paths for a reason - to make this move transition easier for our family, and to make their remaining time in Wilmette fun as well.  The Schoutens are Dutch, and they moved to Wilmette from the Netherlands for a temporary 3-year stint for Rob's job.  We met them about a year and a half into that, and we had the most fun together for those next 18 months!  We knew from the start it was not permanent; we talked often about how we'd have to plan a trip to Amsterdam someday to catch up again, and we always told them our door was open if they ever wanted to return to Chicago and revisit favorite places.  Well, the time came this month for them to return home to The Netherlands, so we had to say goodbye to our cherished friends.  I will miss the daily doorbell rings (Jort got so comfy he'd just ring and come on in, sometimes getting down the basement to look for Tyler before I'd found him to say hello) and I'll miss seeing Gavin and Moritz play baseball and basketball for hours on end across the backyards.  I'll also miss the daily chats with Karin and Rob in the yard as the kids played, or as they walked Stella, their golden lab.  Their house is dark now and up for sale, but we know someday soon it will be filled again with (hopefully!) new friendly faces.  Wishing you all the best, Schouten Family!  You will be missed!

Basement Fix-Up!

This past January, after weeks of very cold temps, we had a sudden warm up that brought some heavy rains.  With the frozen ground, the rain didn't have anywhere to go, and our tiny foundation crack in the basement became a little problem.  We awoke to find a bit of wet carpet, and having lived through a wet basement in the past, we decided right away to fix this tiny crack permanently.  So, without much advanced thought, we had to launch into a little basement renovation.  We kept it simple, nothing fancy for this re-do, but we are happy with the results!  The crack is fixed and the basement should certainly stay dry from here on out.  We also got to choose some new carpet, tear down the old wallpaper, install new windows, and put up fresh drywall and paint.  It feels brand new.  Hooray for a dry basement!  Oh - and I have to mention the most amazing part - as we tore down the wallpaper, we discovered the cursive writing of the former owners that we purchased this house from.  They had signed their name the day they put up that wallpaper - would you believe it was the exact same day, 25 years prior?  March 7, 1992!  We took it down on March 7, 2017.  I sent them an email to let them know.  We were all amazed!

St. Patrick's Day 2017

As Cassidy continues to enjoy her Irish dancing classes year after year, the month of March continues to be extra busy and festive for our family!  This year, we enjoyed her various performances with her group.  They performed at a nursing home, which the residents thoroughly enjoyed; at the school-wide party in the gymnasium; they also had a performance this year at Michigan Shores Club. We love watching her do something she enjoys so much and we love her confidence to get up there on stage and perform!  We also marched in the annual St. Patty's Day Parade through downtown Chicago.  It was very sunny but also extremely cold - the dancers kept coats and hats on until the very last second.  Once the parade starts to go, they need to be in uniform and dancing as they march in front of their dance school's float.  The families all follow behind the float.  No matter the weather, there is always a giant rowdy crowd of Chicagoans lining the streets.  We really enjoy going with her!

Gavin Turns 8!

We had fun celebrating with our birthday boy!  He has a handful of school buddies that also have March birthdays, so this year we decided to get them all together with the rest of the boys in the class and have 1 big party!  We went to Funtopia, which is a big indoor climbing wall center.  They had a blast!  We also celebrated with family when Grammy and Grandpa Brown and the Tieman family came over for dinner and cake.  We love Gavin so much and are so thankful for the day he was born!

Opening a gift that came in the mail...

Celebrating with his March birthday buddies at Funtopia

Ready to party!

Celebrating with Mom, Dad, Cassidy and Gavin

A baseball helmet was high on the wishlist! 

Celebrating with cousins!

We were so happy to celebrate with Grammy & Grandpa!

Gavin's Dino Project

In grade 2, students are asked to study a specific type of dinosaur.  The must research facts, put together a little presentation and create a diorama.  Gavin got pretty lucky with his selection of T-Rex.  Both of my older kids really loved dinosaurs when they were little (especially Cassidy!) so we have a pretty solid collection of dino toys and figurines in the basement.  We had a ferocious-looking T-Rex on hand for Gavin's project, and he already knew a few things about this dino, so it was not too tough for him to pull it all together.  Tyler and I had fun attending the grade 2 dinosaur open house, where we visit the classroom and listen to the students present as we tour the dioramas.  Nice work, Gavin!

Keeping busy with winter sports

We've been spending time at the ice skating rink and also at the basketball court! The kids are all taking ice skating lessons to get more comfortable on the ice. On the weekends, we often go to the rink during open skate to practice and have some fun. Also, Gavin is playing winter basketball, so we've been enjoying watching his games each weekend. Tyler is taking an indoor soccer class and loving it! Lastly, at the end of February, Erik and I enjoyed attending SFX's annual fundraising event, Showcase.  This year it was a more casual theme - country western!  We put on our flannel shirts, got our hands on some cowboy boots and had a blast!

Grammy came to watch a game!

Giving it a go as cowboy, cowgirl!

A gorgeous winter sunset out the back window, just had to share!