Rambin' Fall

Here we are, Autumn in West Michigan. Pretty much what I'm saying is that it's been raining for a long time. To follow that up, I'm ready for sunshine. You'd think after living here for 9 years (wow, that's crazy) I'd be used to the "lake effect clouds." But. I'm. Not. In fact, I think I'm less used to them this year than last. Hmmm...sounds like backwards progress. The bad thing about cloudy days is that they make me miss home. The Big Sky Country....God's Country....my family. The sun shines there...unless its actually raining or snowing, which never lasts all day. Ok, I'm done whining, now on to life:
Here we are in the midst of what we call "birthday season." In 36 days we celebrate 6 birthdays here in the Bush family. That's a lot of cake. It just so happens that one of those birthdays belongs to my little girly girl and one belongs to my hubby. I love birthdays. Yep, love 'em! I'm getting all excited to celebrate Marianne's birthday in just two short weeks. WOW. Ok, that's not what this post is about, so lets move on.
We've been busy, crazy style busy. Between youth group on Wednesdays, birthdays, and sporting events for our teens at church, we're not so sure if we're coming or going. In fact, its become routine for Andrew to ask "Where we going, today." Or "Whose comin' over." Hopefully soon we'll be slowing down a little and settling into our non-summer routine. Not that we really have a summer routine, but you know what I mean.
So, all of this to say, Happy Autumn. Hope you find something to keep you busy.

Airplanes, Haircuts, Messes, and Sweetness

Andrew's new favorite game is "airplane" he loves it. The only danger is he likes to force himself to dive over our heads....so we always play by the couch for a soft landing.
I did it. I broke down....almost literally, and cut my baby's hair. I swore I wouldn't, but it needed to be done. She had a ring all the way round her head that was a good 2-3 inches longer than the hair around it. I didn't cut the top because its too fun to put piggy's and bows in, but I evened the rest of it out.
What you see all over Marianne is grape salad. She really enjoys her food, and I really don't like stain treating....so she wears no clothes often when we eat. A bib just isn't enough for this little one. Dinner (and sometimes lunch) is often followed by a fun time in the tub.
Marianne got this new blanket last night. I've never seen an 11 month old get so excited about a blanket. It is now a favorite, I think. Thanks Mrs. Van Der Hulst!
Paul and I went the the JV foot ball game last night. Andrew was so good for our babysitter (thanks Anna). We snuck into his room when we got home and couldn't resist trying to wake him up by taking this priceless picture. He looks so innocent. I needed that after a bit of a tough day. He has definitely been showing us his tough and tumble side lately. Gotta love little boys.

Cute kids and Mountains. Does it get better?

So we took another trip to Montana this summer. The purpose of our trip was to spend time with "Bum Papa" who is Marcie's Grandfather. He has been diagnosed with colon cancer, so we wanted to take a trip while he was still feeling good and spend some quality time with him. When not visiting him, we had a great time doing "Montana" stuff. The above picture is Andrew at Branham Lake. He LOVES to throw rocks in water...any water works. Andrew got to go camping with his Daddy and leave Mommy and Marianne in town. He had a great time, but was very tired by lunch on the second day.
Marianne had her first blueberry pancakes....Enough said.
After the camping adventure, we set up the tent in the basement of Nana and Papa's house. The kids had so much fun!!! Here's a classic happy face from the little girl. Its not to hard to know when she's having a good time!
All that playing wiped Marianne out. She fell asleep between her feet and because we are mean, we took a picture instead of making her more comfortable. It just doesn't get better than sleeping babies...

Speaking of that sweet baby of ours, she's growing W.A.Y. too fast! She will be a year old next month. I (Marcie) have started to plan her big celebration, and we can't wait to remember the day our little Princess came into our lives. She has been a huge blessing to many people. I still remember hearing the words from the specialist that we probably wouldn't have our own kids. I'm so thankful that God is bigger than any specialist. Every time I look at my wonderful children, I remember God and his love for us. Knowing how many times we brought this issue to prayer just reaffirms how God promised that in HIS will our desires become real.

10 Months!

Our little princess is 10 months old already. It is so hard to believe! She is such a little go getter and a lot of fun! Nothing gets past this girl! As her proud parents we think (of course) that all her "tricks" are wonderful, like pulling up to stand against the wall....or often the stove (yep send my Mother of the Year award now), barking at the dogs, telling Andrew "no" and just being cute! Its hard to believe she's changing so fast!

More Pics

On top of Thief Creek.
Marianne totally crashed on the way down the Mountain from Deerhead Lake.
CHEEEEEEEEEEZZZZZZZZZZZZEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!
We saw this moose from across Deerhead lake. It was fun to watch him feed from the bottom of the lake. This was a very nice day spent in God's creation! One of our favorite places to go. About a 2 mile hike to get to it is all and worth it all.

Montana

Here are my lovely children, ready for bed. Andrew loves that Annie has jams just like his.
Locked in the jail at Bannack. The first territorial capital of Montana. Usually a ghost town, the weekend we were there was Bannack Days. We watched a poorly acted out shoot out in front of the saloon, saw people dressed as if the town were still hoppin', mined for gold (and garnets) and dipped candles.
Andrew LOVED the waterslide at camp. Camp was an amazing week with 40 campers from 7-12th grades. At least 5 kids came to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ and many made other decisions regarding their walk with Him!
This will always be one of my favorite pictures. Andrew fishing with Papa makes my heart smile. Thanks Daddy for taking the time!

So, I'm very sorry these pictures are so late in coming. Hopefully I'll be posting more over the next few weeks. Life around here has been hectic at best as Marianne has discovered how to crawl and Andrew now opens doors....bad combination. Our first week back to reality was a hard one (read previous post) but we made it through...now maybe we'll have a week to get back to "normal" whatever that is!!

Sweet Memories

Oh, Sweet Sweet Hannah girl. What a special blessing. Now held tight in the arms of your precious and wonderful Mommy and her sweet savior, Jesus. Your short four weeks in my life will forever change me. Your Mommy was my dear sweet friend who loved you and your sister so very much. She would snuggle you both close and sing you pretty songs. She loved you both more than life its self. Jordyn loved you too. Just the day before your tiny life was taken to be with Jesus, she was running through our house calling you her Nanny. Your Mommy is gonna be missed just as much as you are, so on days when she looks down and sees your Daddy and Sister being sad, give her an extra hug that day. She'll need it and so will you.