holland, mi.

A while ago Chris's parents invited us to meet them in Holland, MI to see the tulip festival held there every May. I've always wanted to go, so we jumped at the chance. I pitched the idea to Chris of us going up a day early and going to the beach and staying in a hotel, but we decided in the end it would just be too crazy. Well, the Wednesday before we were supposed to meet Chris's parents on Friday, I brought the idea up again. We had not been on any sort of vacation with our little family since we went to South Carolina when Carly was 9 months old. I needed a mini-vacation. I needed the beach. So at 10 pm that night we won a bid on Priceline for a hotel 50% off, and I went off to pack.

We got to Tunnel Park on Lake Michigan in the early afternoon. You park your car and it doesn't look like there is any water in sight, but you climb a hill and go through a tunnel, and bam, there is Lake Michigan. As I mentioned, it was a hazy day, but it was warm and beautiful and we were some of the only people on the beach. The water was still cold, but just pleasant enough to splash around in on a warm day.

Our 3 kids reactions to the beach were very telling of their personalities. Carly was initially hesitant. The sand was, after all, hot and dirty. And it was a long walk all the way down the hill to the water. Chris and I went ahead with the babies, and she slowly tiptoed her way down, in her sundress and fancy new hat. "You better go up and get Audrey Hepburn," I told Chris. She sure was beautiful.

But after being carried down by daddy and changing into her swimsuit, she ate it up, splashing in the water and warming herself in the sand. She played the whole time. I'm not sure what she was playing; she has the ability to go off in her own imagination and keep herself busy (when she's outside), and that's exactly what she did, with a few breaks to play with her babies and commission daddy to make a sand castle.

Quinn is the most serious, intricate little thing, and the beach didn't change that. If you walked by our little party, chances are you'd find Quinn with a bucket or three, stacking them, putting sand toys in them, and strategically carrying them around and setting them out. She had a plan, and that plan required all THREE buckets, which luckily were not in high demand by her siblings. 

And John is a mess of a human being, proved perfectly by his reaction to the beach. I set him down and he did his high-speed crawl right into the water. He turned around and crawled back out laughing and squealing, then headed right back in. I didn't even get the chance to put his swimsuit on. He also had quite a bit of fun with the sand, as any dirt-loving boy would, and was literally covered head to toe. Poor boy . . . when we left we had to strip him down and dunk him in the lake to get it all off. Cute sandy John turned to shivering purple John, but he still had a smile on his face.

After our beach adventure we headed to our hotel, were they happened to have a free dinner waiting for us. Our room had a kitchen and living area which we thought would work out perfectly. After dinner we headed to the pool. I quickly learned the pool is not going to be our thing this summer. Even with two adults it was crazy to keep two toddlers and a 3-year-old who thinks she can swim from going under. John was having beach flashbacks because he kept speed-crawling right toward the edge.

Our night at the hotel, however, did not go nearly as smoothly as planned. The two pack-n-plays remained mostly empty. The babies have rarely traveled in their young, routine-filled lives, and the strange surroundings got to them. Quinn and I had a snugly night where every move one of us made woke the other one up. Around 3 she decided she was up for good. I would drift off and hear breathing, then open my eyes to see her little face staring at me from inches away. I couldn't help but laugh. Finally around 5 I made her a bottle and abandoned the sofa bed we were sharing, falling asleep on the floor while she did the same sprawled out on the bed. Chris had a similar night with John, and finally abandoned the big bed to John and Carly. At one point I woke up and found him sitting in a hard chair, and at 6 am he headed down to the continental breakfast for a hot chocolate. While our trip was fun, that night in the hotel has made us chicken to ever go anywhere ever again.

The next day we were scheduled to see the tulips and other Dutch attractions Holland, MI has to offer. They really play up the Holland thing, with tulips, windmills, and wooden shoes to be found in abundance. As Chris and I drove down State St, it was literally lined with tulips. It was beautiful. 

We woke up on Friday to freezing cold windy rain. Welcome to Michigan. I was frustrated because 1) I had been wanting to see the tulips since we moved here, and 2) I packed for summer. We ended up meeting Chris's parents at Walmart, where they purchased shoes and jackets for our crew at the cheapest cost possible, meaning I ended up in a XL hoody off the little girls clearance rack (which Chris so kindly said reminded him of bubble gum: "You look like the jr high queen bee.") and $10 old lady shoes. Carly excitedly picked out some gaudy Tinkerbell shoes, and Chris walked out with a Mr Rogers sweater. At least Quinn got some seriously cute shoes, and John got a glow in the dark Batman shirt. We were a sight to behold, that is for sure. But we were ready to check out some tulips in the freezing rain.

We perused the store with Dutch trinkets of all kinds, including all sorts of wooden shoes. Chris and I got a ornament and a magnet, because you can't go anywhere without getting an ornament and a magnet. And grandma and papa got Carly a mini pair of adorable yellow wooden shoes. The tulips were beautiful, but it was super cold. We were really just enjoying being with papa, grandma, and aunt Sarah. We walked around, shivering and blue-lipped, and snapped some cute pictures, then headed off to warm up at Red Robin.

As it turned out, we did not actually go to the tulip festival. We went to a wonderful tulip garden with a Dutch shop, but the full tulip festival was in downtown Holland. Next year, our final May in Michigan, we are going for reals, and its going to be a warm beautiful sunny day. I won't stand for anything less.

It was a pleasant, exhausting trip. All three of our littles snoozed the entire way home, while I worked to keep Chris awake using graham crackers and roadtrip questions I found on Pinterest. But it was just what the doctor ordered. Some sweet time with my sweet family. The sand and sun. Some beautiful flowers and a little culture. And a Red Robin Royal Burger.

It doesn't get much better than that.

my piece of foreign sky.

When I went off to college at 19, I had a plan.

One part of that plan was to study abroad in London.

I love history, and Europe is dripping with it.

I had always wanted to go, and to live there would be beyond my wildest dreams.

And then, a month later, I met Chris.

There were prayers and prayers and prayers.

And in the end, my choice was no choice at all.

We married and began our life together.

I became a mother 3 years later.

And 2 and a half years after that, two more babies showed up on my doorstep.

I see people going to Europe, jetting off to exotic islands, and experiencing the beauty of the world, and I am happy for them, but my heart aches to do the same. It longs to see it all.

I first saw this shortly after Carly was born, and whenever I read it, it hits perfectly home in my heart:

You are the trip I did not take;

You are the pearls I cannot buy;

You are my blue Italian lake;

You are my piece of foreign sky.

Some day I will go to Europe.

Chris and I will make it one day, even if its when all our kids are grown and gone.

I'll see the sites, I'll soak up every drop of history and beauty, and I will love every second.

But I already know the most beautiful piece of Europe will not hold a candle to John's sloppy kisses, Quinn's sweet giggles, or Carly's brilliant words.

Just today John started taking shaky, unsteady first steps. You should see his face when he comes falling into my arms. You should see how thrilled he is. And my soul soars with every step he takes, every success he and his sisters make.

Motherhood is so incredibly hard.

But these little wild ones are my greatest adventure.

And here in a small townhouse in Michigan, where I spend my days cleaning and feeding and singing and reading and wiping tears and giving kisses, they are my piece of foreign sky.

at the beach.

It is not often that I break out my big camera. 

The ease of the iPhone wins out on almost every occasion.

But yesterday we went to the beach, and I broke her out.

More on our trip to come, but I couldn't help but share an outrageous number of pictures.

It was a beautiful day at Lake Michigan.

It was hazy, and the sky and water blended so perfectly, you couldn't tell where one ended and the other began.

And I've never seen anyone love anything as much as John loved the beach.

Enjoy.

spring in our step.

Spring seems to have taken its pretty little time getting here.

Lots of rain.

Cold temperatures.

Even late snow.

But that's life in the mitten, and we went on celebrating the season, whether it showed up for the party or not.

We continued our tradition of "Baseball Day" on Opening Day. Unfortunately it was the same day Chris's first comp started, so it wasn't quite as festive as usual. But we got dressed up in our Cubbies best, enjoyed festive cupcakes, and even found daddy a figurine of one of the Cubs' best players on the clearance shelf at Target for $3 (talk about random; Chris said "You bought me a baseball figurine?" Ha!). My Cubbies kids just get cuter and cuter.

[what a difference a year makes.]

We also hit the great outdoors the instant it was acceptably warm enough. We dug in the dirt and discovered chalk and tried out swings. The babies LOVE being outside, rain or shine. One day we went out to play in the rain and they all just loved it, but watching Q gave me the strongest deja vu back to Carly at the exact same age, playing in the rain in the exact same place. Time really does fly, doesn't it?

We also decided to beautify the front of our home a bit. There was this big outdoor basket and cute pillow at Target I was drooling over, and my mom was kind enough to get them for me as a "hostess gift", you know, since I blew up her air mattress and let her use our shower. We went to Lowe's for flowers and, surprise, surprise, Carly picked a pink pot and purple flowers. We planted them and they are currently clinging to life since this mama has a black thumb and baby sis REALLY loves to attack them. And last but not least: the rainbow stepping stones. My mom and I got them when she was here, hauling them out of the car in the pouring rain, which was totally fun.  But it rained the remainder of her stay, so we had to wait for the sun to come out before we could paint them. I spray paint all 10 with multiple coats, and by the time I was done I was pretty much cursing the rainbow under my breath. But they turned out really cute, and are a fun little addition to our home.

We got Carly a new bike for her birthday in August, and she promptly grew out of it over the winter. Talk about frustrating. We pulled it out when the temps warmed up and knew we'd have to find a new one. Luckily we have another girl to ride the little one eventually. Chris took a morning off and he and Carly headed up to Walmart for a bike-finding daddy-daughter date. I told Chris one rule: if at all possible, no characters. They came back with the perfect pink and purple bike, and the cutest little basket to match. Chris informed me there was one with Princesses all over, even on the training wheels, a second with a giant Barbie face, and this one. He didn't even let her see the other two. The new bike fits her perfectly and she can actually pedal with ease! She also goes significantly faster with the bigger wheels, which has led to some big-girl crashes. She has been hesitant to try again here and there, but she is doing really well and loves it for the most part.

Last week we decided to hit the zoo. It was on our list of things to do while Mimi and Grandpa were here . . . but that dang rain. Some friends joined us and we had a pleasant morning scoping out animals, showing off our loudest growls, and watching a lot of peacocks walk around (seriously, there was a peacock whenever you turned around). 

Despite Chris's intense schedule, we've also managed to squeeze in some family time. One Saturday we enjoyed MSU's Small Animals day, where we met a cow named Chocolate, petted little animals, got a horse painted on Carly's cheek, and tested out her cowgirl roping skills. Quinn had a funny and adorable fascination with the lambs; she stared at them excitedly and then reached for them when I pulled her away. It was pretty much the cutest ever. I, for one, was tempted to slip a baby chick in my pocket. Too bad they don't stay that little. Another Saturday daddy came from campus and met us at a park for a Boston Market/McDonalds picnic. It was such a beautiful evening, and we were all so happy to have him there with us. And apparently Quinn got her mama's affinity for rotisserie chicken.

I felt like we were waiting forever for the sun to came out. We were on a walk with Carly once on a chilly rainy day and she randomly started screaming "I WANT SPRING!" I didn't stop her. I wanted spring, too, and maybe nature would hear her cries.

And it did. Because the sunshine is here and shorts and sundresses have been broken out. Lately we have been coming in each evening for bath time dirty, rosy-cheeked, and skin-kneed, with a little spring in our step.