Michelle’s Parents & Grandparents

Michelle is an only child. In 2003 Michelle's parents relocated to Kansas and live about 20 minutes away from us. They have been a great source of support ranging from giving advice to babysitting. We normally see each other several times a week and they like to keep Zack overnight every couple of weeks. They love introducing Zack to new things including music concerts and Starbuck's hot chocolate. This summer we all took a vacation together so that Michelle's parents could experience Zack's first plane ride (that he might remember), his first glimpse of the mountains, and his first real family vacation. We all had a blast hiking, touring the area, visiting a gold mine, and just being together.

Mike’s Extended Family

Michelle's family is scattered throughout the world from Seattle, Washington to Great Britain. They get together when they can and send cards, email or talk on the phone when they can't. We see each other frequently, including football games, holiday celebrations, and weekend visits. This summer we even rented out the community pool in her grandparents' hometown for the evening and had our own private pool party! It was great fun. Michelle is very close to her parents and all four of her grandparents, and her aunts are always ready to listen and give support and advice when we she's had a tough day.

Mike's parents and his brother's family live in Illinois in the town Mike grew up in. Mike followed in the family tradition of attending the University of Illinois. We get together with them a few times a year, but keep in contact by phone and email weekly. This summer Mike's parents came to see Zack perform his Vacation Bible School songs at church. We also took in a baseball game, visited the toy store, and played trucks.

Everyone is very excited about having a new baby in the family!

Our Home

We have a two-story home in Kansas that sits on a nice sized lot with many mature trees. We have a fenced in backyard and lots of room in back for play equipment. Our house is just over 25 years old. It has an open floor plan with a living room, dining room, family room, ½ bath, laundry room, and large kitchen on the first floor. Upstairs we have four bedrooms and two baths. The house has a very open floor plan and has been decorated in taupe and sea glass green with a touch of blue. Zack's room has a truck theme, and the main bath upstairs has a dog & cat theme.

Valentine’s Party

Our house is in a constant state of remodel. All of us enjoy home improvement and we recently redid our half bath, laundry room and back entry. Zack enjoyed helping Daddy and got to learn all about many different tools. Mike is ready for the next project and Zack can't wait to help. We just have to wait for the budget to be ready!

Recently our neighbor commented that our house is the most child friendly house she has ever been in. We want our house to be a place where our children and their friends want to come to play. At least once a week we invite friends over to play and our house becomes a flutter of activity. Toys are pulled out of cabinets, snacks and art projects are done at the kids' table in the kitchen, and when the weather is nice we head to the back yard to play in the sandbox, go down the slide, play basketball, and use the toy lawnmowers.

We live in a very friendly neighborhood where everyone watches out for each other. We have several neighbors who have young grandchildren along with neighbors who are just starting families.