Random pictures from winter

 

 

Leanne and Clay having fun

the babies.

Reed in white and

Luke in blue.

 

 

Smooches for Allison

Snow day fun

 

 

 

 

Cutie pie Leanne

Playful Clay

Sweet Allison



Allison preparing for

her future job (she's

going to be a princess

when she grows up) 



All the kids wanted to

help daddy put the sink in. 



Juggling

Some decisions in life can be hard.  I've been extremely busy since the twins were born and spread very thin.  I was trying to get back into my career also.  I was picking up more day shifts and I even found a sitter that would be able to take care of everyone while I was away.  Even as I write this I can clearly see I was wrong.  But in the midst of it, I didn't feel like I was doing wrong.  I'm a nurse.  Being a nurse is a calling in life.  I loved my job, loved taking care of newborns and preemies, and enjoyed my fellow co workers.  Something was pricking my conscience but I continued to ignore it until I couldn't anymore.  I wasn't happy at home anymore.  What I thought would make me happy made me sad and irritable at home.  I found out firsthand that I couldn't be 100% mom and wife and 100% nurse.  Something had to give and it wasn't going to be my family.  I gave my two week notice at work.  There has been many tears in this process but I believe in letting go of my job, I have already grown as a mother, wife, and nurse.  Sometimes stepping away is the best thing to do.  I pray that God humbles my walk toward Him and continues to bless me and my family. 

Proverbs 31:27 and 28  "She looketh well to the ways of her household, and eateth not the bread of idleness.  Her children arise up, and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praiseth her"

some like it cold, some like it hot

Okay, so I know that there are a lot of coffee drinkers out there and now I have finally joined the bandwagon.  Coffee used to mean a bitter taste in my mouth and how could anyone ever like that disgusting stuff, until I ventured out and bought flavored coffee creamer and now I'm in love with  my glorified coffee. 
Now because I love coffee, I had to figure out how to make it.  Ross was just making extra for me before he left for work, but I upped my coffee intake to two times a day.  The first time I tried to make it was a bit of a challenge.  I put the grounds in the filter and put the water in, turned on the machine and I was expecting it to brew, but it came out pouring through just as fast as I put in the coffee maker.  And it was COLD!  So I thought that I just had to leave it in the pot and let it warm up on the tiny coffee burner.  Ten minutes later, it was still cold.  I resigned myself and put in the microwave to warm up my "coffee".  I may have done this a few days before I finally swallowed my pride and called Ross to learn how to make coffee.  Apparently, I was not supposed to put the water right on top of the grounds in the coffee filter.  Whoops!  Apparently, I was supposed to put the water down the side of the machine.  It felt so wrong the first time I dumped that water in where it was supposed to go.  I said to Ross "are you sure I'm supposed to dump it in there?  I'm not going to ruin the coffee machine, am I?"  He just chuckled and said it wouldn't ruin it.   He was right!  It didn't ruin it, it actually brewed my coffee and it was HOT! 
I can make supper, I can make desert, I can make bake goods, and now, ta da, I can make COFFEE (or should I just say I can make caffeine).

Haircuts

Today was the day the twins needed haircuts.  This is not their first one, they've been getting them since 9 months old.  Since I'm dutch, we save money by having Grandma W. (Wassink)come over and do it.  I did it one time, but the outcome was not good.  Once in awhile the twins do good with it, but usually they HATE it.  Today was one where they hated it.  We put one in the high chair and let the other one roam.  Reed was first today.  He was doing okay in the very beginning but got progressively worse as the hair cut went on.  Part of the battle is getting them to sit still.  Every time Grandma would get ready to cut, he would turn his head.  Luke, who was supposed to be playing, started to have sympathy tears or really sympathy wailing.  Luke was hanging onto our legs as we tried to get Reed done.  Then it was Luke's turn.  Luke has always been worse with haircuts.  Right from the start he was throwing a major fit.  He would not sit still.  Twisting and turning his body this way and that. Trying to stand up and basically fighting Grandma with everything he had in him.  Reed was sympathy wailing for Luke now.  We decided that I should hold Luke in my lap and try to keep his head still.  He is strong!!  He twisted his body so that he was laying stiffly on his belly on my lap and he accidentally kicked Reed to the ground(Reed was standing clinging on my leg).  But somehow through all that, we got the job done.  Luke's hair is far from perfect, but it looks a lot better than it did before.

REALLY!?!?!

It has been quite the few days over here at the Wassink house.  Leanne close to being admitted to the hospital on Friday, Saturday her beloved chicken died and then today.  I had a doctor appointment scheduled for Leanne for a recheck on her lungs and I took the babies along for flu shot.  First of all the babies were a mess.  I mean, they were the worst I have ever seen them act in public.  Whining and trying to get down.  I will not let them crawl on the nasty doctor office floor.  Never again will I have the babies come over supper hour.  That was mistake number one.  Thankfully my mom was there to help me.  My poor mother didn't know what she was getting herself into.  Leanne's lungs checked out okay.  Her oxygen level was 95% (normally between 98%-100%) and she checked Reed to and of course his asthma is beginning to flare up too.  Then after that we were waiting for the nurse to bring in the flu shots.  To keep my crabby babies occupied, I was letting them throw tissues in the air.  They thought it was so much fun until it happened.  Leanne bent down and hit the hinge of the door way with her head.  KABOOM!!!  I took one look at her and said "oh, no she needs stitches!"  The nurse practitioner heard me and came flying in the room.  Sure enough she had a gaping deep cut on the top of her forehead.  And my response, I was laughing!!  I couldn't help it.  I felt bad for my girl, but REALLY? REALLY?!.  The babies were still falling apart and my poor dear mother could barely handle all of this.  REALLY?!  REALLY?!!!  I mean we were almost out the door.  Thankfully we they looked closer they decided they could use bonding glue.  I was so thankful because Leanne was turning into a crying mess.  She screamed when they irrigated it and I don't blame her-it had to HURT!!  They got all glued together and it's looks okay.  And my poor mother was holding both babies, during all of this, on her lap and they were not sitting still for her at all.  After all that drama,we had to wait another 15 min before they could get their flu shots and they (Leanne and the babies) were NOT happy. The nurse practitioner just happened to pop her head in to tell us it wouldn't be much longer just as I was saying "I'm going to go insane!" To make the long story shorter we finally got that done and I left with three crying children.  By this time our appointment was already over a hour and I decided right then and there, it was time to pick up fast food from Wendy's and call it a night.  And my poor mother drove all the way back to Jenison after all that.  I don't think she will ever want to go help me again.

Natural instinct

This evening it happened.  When we got the dog,I thought this might happen,but he got along so well with the chickens.  This evening his natural instincts kicked in.  I really don't blame Yooper, the chicken was in his domain. One yellow/orange chicken was in his dog house eating his dog food.  The chickens usually will go in there and eat his food but today one chicken was caught in the action.  Ross came onto the scene when it was too late.  The poor birds feathers were taken out and it was basically dead. Ross took it out back and put the poor bird out of it's misery.  
We were all in the babies' room when I carelessly said "we only have 4 chickens now."  Leanne burst into hysterics and sobbed, "wha wha wha happened to my chicken?" We told her Yooper got him and Ross told her that he had to put it down.  Leanne sobbed "you killed it! you killed my chicken! Why don't you just kill all of them!"  We had to explain to her that we had too and we didn't want to.  She seemed to understand and started to forgive her daddy but then she asked "what did you do with it?"  Ross then wished he could bury his head into the sand, but he told her the truth "I took it far into the woods and left it there.  It will be a good meal for a coyote."  Leanne did not respond well to this and stated "why didn't you bury it!"  Ross told her he was cold and he didn't know where his shovel was.  Leanne insisted he should have found a shovel and buried him.  I agree with Leanne.  I don't think Ross did anything wrong by placing him in the woods but I would have done a little burial so the kids could have said goodbye to their chicken.  Then she sobbed "was it the one with the yellow feathers with a little bit of white on them?"  Three out of the five chickens are orange/yellow and we can't tell one from the other.  Ross didn't know exactly which one it was.  I told her tomorrow she can go check.  I never knew she had a favorite.  She had seemed to finally calmed down and it was time for her and Alli to take a shower.  Of course, the hard question came there.  We had just talked about how God knew the  perfect timing for this chicken's death and how God is in control of everything.  Her big question was "is my chicken in heaven?"  I made Ross answer this one. His answer "Leanne, chickens don't have souls like you and I do.  God will have animals in heaven, but I don't know if your chicken will be there.  But God loves you and cares about you." Death is so hard for little ones to understand.  The other kids were not sad about the death of the chicken, instead they are looking forward to spring when they can get some new chickens. I feel so bad for that little faithful egg laying chicken.  I feel even worse for my tenderhearted little girl. 

birthday girl

My Allison is now a big 4 year old.  Her birthday was Nov 19.  She is such a joy in our lives. Allison believes that she is Cinderella's twin.  One day, this past year, she said to me, "Reed is Luke's twins and Luke is Reed's twin, Cinderella is my twin."   Allison's favorite color is purple, favorite thing to do is watch mommy cook/bake, and she loves to play "mom and dad".  She also loves Minnie mouse and all things princess. Belle comes in a close second to being her favorite princess.  We call her princess and sweetie but she is also called chipmunk by a certain aunt because of her small stature.  Her Grandpa B (Bykerk) likes to call her Sunny.

 

I posted a few pictures of her from baby to now. 

 

Allison Paige

7 lbs 8 oz

my only bald baby

 

Allison at 1 year

 

 

Allison loves her daddy



 

 All the kids with their pet chickens

 

 

 

Alli and her sand cookie

 

 

She LOVED her purple princess castle cake!

 

 

We're so happy that Allison is part of this family.  I couldn't imagine a day without her!  May God grant us many years to come with this little sweet princess!!!