Chillin' with the Cousins...

Visiting Great Grandpa

We went up to the nursing home to visit Grandpa Tuinstra.  It was such a nice visit!  He pulled Ben right into his lap and said, "Hi Benji!".  We were really thankful for a good visit with him, and that he knew who everyone was, even the little kids!  Carly wanted to get her new Webkinz in the picture, of course...


Chillin' with the Cousins!

oh my word, did Ben and Carly have a blast with their posse of cousins! 

Carly introduced her little cousins to Webkinz...

Good times playing in their Daddy's old room....

ALL the kids got a long so great all week!

HA!  Even BEN!  He was tired of me taking his picture, not so much his cousins!  These boys LOVE watching each other play the DS...

The Boys Pajama party... the girls had one in the camper!  LOTS of giggling going on here!

Can't forget the SWIMMING!  Grandma and Grandpa have an indoor (HEATED!) swimming pool that all the Grandkids LOVE!

Seriously Chillin' with the Cousins...

Playing outside... THANKFULLY for the FLORIDA people, there wasn't MUCH snow, and we DID get to see a LITTLE falling, so the best of both worlds! 

McGregor Sled Rides... pulled by the 4 wheeler!  Apparently it was fun... no way was I trying it out for myself!

Wipe Outs are part of the fun!  Don't worry, Uncle Josh was driving VERY slowly... unless it was just Ben, then he went a little faster:)

Renae made a snowman.  Those are chocolate chips for the eyes, etc.  Nope, they didn't melt!  HA!

My favorite picture from the whole trip!  Might because it's Classic Isaiah... AIRBORNE, chasing the other kids... might be the WalMart bags on his feet (his boots were at home!)... LOVE IT! 

So sweet... Ben on the sled with Adriana.  Trying not to touch her.  Nice.

Even Eli came out for a turn... with his Dad... going REALLY slowly!  He didn't cry, so we think he liked it. 

Last Bits of Random Fun

It's so hard to remember EVERYTHING.... we really did have a fun time and LOVED loving on these cute kids!  Here are a few last minute memories:

Somewhere along the week I had a birthday!  Isaiah and Carly were going to help me blow out the candles, but Uncle Ryan stopped them... Sweet moments with Isaiah sitting with me, telling me all about his life and how he can read.  I really loved that and will cherish those quiet moments... it's so hard to get that with all the commotion of over 20 people under one roof!

Ryan's Annual Snowman.  We thought he was going to have to be happy with Renae's mini, but eventually it warmed up and he was able to come up with his Vision of the Year.  Renae graciously shovelled snow off the back deck to make it happen for him!  He had a few little helpers making hamburgers and running into the house for spatulas and scarves, so it was a family effort.


Get out of the city, these kids are cute!

You can't deny these kids are ALL cute... Matthias with his Aunt Randee (and Mama of Coming-Soon-Grandbaby #11!!!)

Mr. Eyelashes, Eli! 

She looks so much like her Mama, Ryan couldn't resist calling her Nae-Nae all week!  Little Keira is a doll!

Julean... he holds his own with the big kids, it's easy to forget he's only 2!

Chloe... her sweet looks perfectly match her sweet, quiet disposition!  She's really come out of her shell alot this time, and seemed to love playing with her Girly Cousins!

Adriana... the only girl among 3 brothers, I think she was happy for her cousins to be visiting! 

Caleb... he looks so much like his Uncle Ryan and acts so much like Ben!  So, you guessed it... he's a GameBoy!  Love seeing the family resemblances in all these kids!

Isaiah... again with the sprinkles!  HA!  He has more energy than any kid I have ever seen, but he also has a very sweet, sensitive side, too... it was fun to see that this time around!

And Carly... she entertained us with her great dancing skills!  Oh, and her Gestures skills... She can do a mean "Hungry" pantomine!  HA!

Ben... he DID get a haircut since this picture was taken!  Aunt Randee hooked us ALL up with new do's!

Can't forget Mom and Dad's faithful Pooch, Sam.  Nothing like going for a run and Sam going along!  He's ALWAYS up for it!

Look at all those people!  THANKS Mom and Dad for a GREAT week, and a GREAT family! 

Good Times in Michigan

We had such a FANTASTIC time in Michigan... here are a few of the highlights:

The Movies

Ryan REALLY wanted to take some of his nieces and nephews to see the new Chipmunk movie... fortunately, we talked his parents into going with us, as we bundled up SIX kids:)  They were all so cute and so GOOD while we were there...

in our Entourage we had the "Oldest Grandkids"... Ben, Carly, Isaiah, Caleb, Adriana, and Chloe.  4 Big bags of popcorn and 2 big drinks.  We loved listening to the giggles!



Cookie Decorating With Aunt Rochel

Always a hit... and the cookies were YUMMY...

Adriana...

... and her big brother, Isaiah... note the amount of green sprinkles on that cookie!  Yes, about 6 of us yelled out, "Isaiah, Isaiah, Isaiah... that's enough!!!"  HA!

Even Grandma got in on the action. 


"Christmas Eve"

Ryan's Mom had new pj's for each of the kids, and they each took a turn with her hanging an ornament on the tree and reading part of the Bible, learning about the different names of God.  It was pretty neat.

Even the littlest one had a turn!

Look at all those CUTE kids!  Here are the 10 McGregor Grandchildren... (Left to Right, Top to Bottom)
Caleb age 5**
Isaiah age 6****
Carly age 8*
Ben age 10*
Keira age 21 mos**
Chloe age 3**
Matthias age 9 mos****
Adriana age 4****
Eli age 13 mos***
Julean age 2****

if you are REALLY clever, you can figure out that I put the same # of stars by the names of the kids that go together... and the number of stars by their names coorelates with the birthorder of their McGregor Parent.  Get all that?  And if you've never even SEEN these kids before, you probably scrolled right past it... ha!

Randee's the Winner

As soon as we all got situated for this shot, Johnny yells out, "Randee's Pregnant!" hoping to get a GREAT shot of reactions, but no one believed him... funny thing is, He wasn't kidding!  She wanted to tell her family at Christmas, so they are already 11 weeks along... Ryan couldn't be prouder of her for keeping such a great secret!  We are all pretty happy for Randee and Johnny... and well, happy for all of us!  Um, of COURSE Ryan is holding a coke bottle.

We all got tons of nice presents, which the "Adults" opened on "Christmas Eve" while the kids were in bed:)  Also, while the kids were in bed, we spent quite a while talking about our favorite Christmas memories, and it was really moving and funny!  It was a great tradition to start, to just kind of slow down and reflect on what is important.



"Christmas Morning"

All about the kids!  They loved opening all their presents from their family... They were all so cute!  We loved having Great Grandma and Great Grandpa McGregor over for the fun!  Love this sweet picture of Grandma giggling about something!

And because I KNOW my sister, Tracy, wants to know... KEIRA got the sandwich this year!  Great McGregor Tradition... and this cutie was THRILLED for a snack!

After the hooplah.... Ben hiding under the now empty Christmas tree playing his new DS game, and  little cousin Isaiah cuddled in with him to watch. 

So sweet.

OK!  More fun coming in another post, that I am post-dating so that it all falls in 2009! 

(photo's are either by ME, Renae, Rochel, or Randee... we got copies of EVERYONE's pictures... yup, there were about 3 cameras snapping at all times!)

Oh the weather outside....

Ok, we're from Florida.  I know what you are thinking... BEFORE Florida, you were from VERY cold places (like Michigan and New England...) But seriously?  I've lived in Florida longer than anywhere else, so I can say this:  Snow - Bad.  Warm weather - Good.   Feel free to enjoy a few frosty photos:

That's Grandma McGregor's house... next door to Ryan's parents.  Ryan spent his childhood "sneaking" over for treats, and I find myself doing the same for a cup of tea and some good stories.  And to my non-Michigan Immediate Family: YES.  Grandma asked about EACH of you by name. 

The mail box that received so many letters from me while Ryan and I were dating...  the days before email and cell phones with "free" long distance.

Road Trip Picture:  Because she's so cute.  Carly fell asleep with her birthday present and listening to, who else, The Chipmunks.  Yes, her bangs have been repaired by Aunt Randee.  As soon as I snapped this picture, I noticed her seatbelt BEHIND her.  You will be happy to know that, nap or not, this Seat Belt Nazi IMMEDIATELY woke her up and made her wear it correctly.  Free lecture included.  You are welcome, Carly!

If I don't look too closely, I can imagine this is the Bahamas.  And that it's warm.  Mmmmmm.... But really, it's the off the back porch, looking over the Family Fields... this afternoon.  Yup, as cold as it is, Michigan has fantastic sunsets! 

Special SHOUT OUT to my MOM today!  Thanks for your Labor of Love, 38 years ago!  In the words of your Chipmunk grand-daughter, YOU ROCK!  I love you!