Streidl Family Reunion

Yesterday we went to Matt's grandparents cottage in Allegan for the Streidl family reunion. The cottage is always great and having all the family in town was wonderful.

The kids swam most the day and jumped on the water trampoline.
We had a huge spread of food - from pulled pork, fresh Seattle salmon, cheesy potatoes with bacon to Plainwell ice cream, cookies, and homemade pies.

It was a great day!

Spidie Luke!

All the kids on the water trampoline

Dominic, Ryan & Zach

Eleanor & Francie taking a noodle ride

Cowboy Elliot

Elliot came sporting his western wear. When Aunt Susan asked him what he wanted for lunch, sloppy joe or pulled pork. He asked, "What would a cowboy eat?"

Eleanor, Daddy & Francie

Happy Birthday Daddy! July 26th

Matt's birthday was July 26th. The night before Sven, Charity and the boys came over to visit and have dinner. We threw together a simple little ad-hoc birthday celebration. Luckily Matt's a simple guy and didn't mind the pretend cake Eleanor made him, or the Irish Carbomb gift from all of us.

Eleanor & Maddux enjoying dinner together

Eleanor making sure Daddy blows out all his 'candles' on his 'birthday cake'

Daddy enjoying his birthday gift

Maddux: Happy birthday Uncle Bones! Great party!!!

Go Cubbies!!!

The Great LaPorte County Fair

Tuesday I picked up the girls a little early and we went to the LaPorte County Fair. I knew Eleanor would enjoy the animals and rides, and we wanted to see my little sister Emma show her horse, but mainly we wanted to see my brother and his family who were in town from Kansas City!

When we found them, Maddux grabbed Eleanor's forearm (not hand) and they took off.

Maddux & Eleanor

We got to the horse barns just in time to see Emma come out from winning her class. Way to go Em!!!

Emma & Valerie

The we met up with cousin Brody (Eleanor's friend).

Brody, Eleanor, & Maddux cruising around in the golf cart.

And we let the kids play the Mouse Game. I've been told that people outside of the LaPorte County area have never heard of the Mouse Game. You can compare it to Roulette. You pick a set of 3 consecutive numbers for a quarter. Say, 1-2-3. Then the have a spinning wheel with numbers 1 through 99, each with a hole. They let a mouse out on to the wheel. Yes a real, live mouse. Whichever hole he runs into wins. It's a great game and Sven and I always loaded our pockets with quarters to play the Mouse Game when we were little. So we had to introduce our kids to this great game.

Maddux & Eleanor at the Mouse Game

Brody won as soon as we started playing, but Eleanor and Maddux kept losing. Each time the mouse ran in the wrong hole, Eleanor would say, "Missed it." and hold her hand out for the next quarter.

Next stop, Pioneer land, where they have a petting zoo and some old time games the the kids played.

Then we bought some tickets for the rides but soon found out that our tiny little Eleanor was too short to ride anything without an adult.

Eleanor: You've got to be kidding me! I can handle that motorcycle!

Uncle Sven, Nash & Maddux

Aunt Charity volunteered to take them out the airplane ride. Each time they circled around, Eleanor would say, "Hey mommy, look at me mommy!"

Aunt Charity, Eleanor and Maddux

On the carousel

Carolyn and Nash can't wait until they can join in on the fun next year!

Attention Walmart Shoppers

I recently took a trip to Walmart to get a new battery installed in my Jeep. While we waited, we walked around the store. In the toy section, Eleanor found a little plastic wheelbarrow. We had 30 minutes to kill, so we figured it would hurt to let her play with it. We'd put it back later.

So we continued to walk up and down isles. I kept an eye on Eleanor to make sure she was keeping up, but didn't really look closely. When I did, I realized her wheelbarrow was packed full. Balls, sunglasses, car air fresheners, fishing lurers. Just about 0ne item from each isle beginning in toys and ending in automotive.

Holding Her Head High

Just before turning 3 months, Carolyn started rolling over. I didn't see her roll myself the first few times, but would rather find her on her belly when getting her from her crib.

Then just a week later she started really holding her head up. I love all the new milestones we're reaching. Our little baby is growing up!

Computer Down

We have been without a computer since last weekend. It just all of a sudden turned off and would not turn back on. My sister got it cleaned up and reattached the heatsink (new to me) and it seems better.

I have so much to post about but I want to wait until I can attach my pictures. So be on the lookout for some funnies in the days to come.

Zucchini Pancakes

Last night I tried a new recipe. Mainly due to the fact that zucchini are in season and people are begging you to take them from their zucchini laden gardens.

So from my Better Homes & Gardens (July 2007 issue) I found a recipe for zucchini pancakes that are worthy enough to share since Matt and I both agreed we would make them again.

Ingredients
1 1/2 lbs zucchini
3/4 teaspoon salt
4 eggs
1 garlic clove, minced
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
1 tablespoon onion, finely chopped
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
sour cream (optional)

Directions
1. Trim and coarsely shred zucchini (about 5 cups). In a bowl toss zucchini with salt. Place in colander. Place plate on top; weight with cans. Drain 15 minutes, discard liquid.
2. In a bowl, beat eggs and garlic. Stir in flour, cheese, onion, and pepper just until moistened (batter will be lumpy). Stir in zucchini just until combined.
3. For each pancake, spoon heaping 1 tablespoon of batter on to hot lightly oiled griddle or skillet; spread to a 3-inch circle. Cook over medium heat 2-3 minutes on each side or until pancake is golden brown. Keep pancakes warm while cooking remaining pancakes.
4. Serve topped with sour cream. Or cool, layer in freezer container with waxed paper, and freeze up to 3 months.
5. To reheat, preheat oven to 425 degrees. Place frozen pancakes in single layer on greased baking sheet. Bake, uncovered for 8-10 minutes or until hot and slightly crisp.

Carolyn - 3 Months

Carolyn has been a part of our lives for three months now. She's such a sweet easy-going baby. Recently she has found her voice and spends most of her awake time with her mouth wide open projecting little funny noises.

So when I took her in for pictures today, I thought these pictures captured her best.