D&S Gaalswyk Family

Leah & Isaac's Wedding

2010-07-18T16:55:00.000-07:00

Here are a few pictures from my sister's wedding in June. All my siblings are married off now. Hard to believe we are all grow up and making lives for ourselves. Now for Noah and Leah to have kids and join Adam and I in the parent scene. :)

Fireworks!

2010-07-18T16:11:00.001-07:00

We went to Donny's sister and brother-in-law's house for fireworks on the 4th of July and the kids all had a turn at roman candles.

Daniel wanted to help dad light fireworks. Well I guess we start them young :)

Fishing with Daddy

2010-07-18T16:04:00.000-07:00

Donny was home for the 4th of July and took us all fishing. We had a pretty good time and at least caught a couple so the kids new what it was about.

Enjoying time with Dad & New family pet

2010-05-29T12:22:00.000-07:00

We have been adjusting to daddy being away from us but we enjoyed a nice long weekend with him last week. He has been driving truck now for about 6 weeks. We miss him when he is gone. The kids and I enjoyed very much having him home for 5 days.

Donny inherited a new family pet while on his last trip. He came home with an iguana. The kids decided to name him "Larry" so they call him Larry the lizard. Donny had 1 when we first got married that was 3 times this size but it died. So we will see how mom does at taking care of this 1 and if he can outlive the kids' attention:)

New adventure

2010-04-17T14:55:00.001-07:00

My husband recently quit his job of 13 plus years at his family dairy and bought a truck with his friend. They are going to do long haul trucking. The dairies have been slow with the economy and they thought they would do this for a few years. So of course Daniel and Nicolas are thrilled about dad's new truck. Here are a few pictures.

Easter

2010-04-12T20:40:00.000-07:00

The kids enjoyed coloring real eggs, easter egg hunting, and learning the true meaning of Easter at church on Easter morning. We missed the local easter egg hunt because it snowed. But they got one in at our friends' house where we enjoyed our easter meal.
Easter outfits from Grandma F. (as you can see Hannah was thrileld to take this picture).

Easter egg hunting.

More easter eggs. Looks like Daniel is way ahead.

Easter outfits from Grandma G.

Coloring easter eggs. Nicolas is a little to young to get into this and mostly just enjoyed smashing the hard boiled egg and making a mess.

Riding bike

2010-02-18T15:48:00.000-08:00

My friend and I have been riding bike together with the kids lately to give them something to do and us some exercise. Her bike looks the same as mine. We both pull doubles with 3 kids behind each of us, so 6 kids altogether. We go to the park and back or just ride for fun. We get lots of looks but we have tons of fun together. It has been 45-50 degrees here lately and with no wind and sun it is pretty nice.

Sledding

2010-01-31T16:52:00.000-08:00

We took the kids sledding about an hour north of where we live. We went with our friends and their 4 kids. Donny pulled us up the hill with his snowmobile and then we rode the big hill down. It was a blast but I think the adults had more fun than the kids. We grilled hamburgers and enjoyed the day. By the end of the day it was just us adults going up and flying down. Donny and I even caught air jumping some rocks. Yikes!

Hannah and Nicole.

View from where we rode the sled down. Donny wanted to go even higher so when we took off we could not see over the edge of the hill.

All us ready to be pulled to the top. Yes my friend has her youngest in a back pack but no she did not go down the hill like that. She ended up staying by the pickup most of the day.
Our 3 peanuts rolled up to calm down. I did this to Nicolas first since he would not relax and sit still. He was so mad at me and started crying. But when I rolled Daniel up then they thought it was funny and giggled the whole time.

Wow - time flies!

2009-12-26T18:42:00.000-08:00

I cannot believe it has been 2 months since I posted anything. I guess we have been busy. We moved in November to a newer home closer to town. We have lots more room now with 4 bedrooms, 2-1/2 baths and a nice office for me to work in. We are really enjoying it.

Then came the holidays that I cannot believe just flew by. We celebrated Christmas in Iowa last weekend with quick trip there and back (18 hours of driving both ways) but we had lots of fun. It was great to see my family. The kids got lots of presents, Donny enjoyed a break from work, and I had lots of fun playing games like the good days with my siblings. Here are a few pictures. We also celebrated Daniel's birthday here before we left and in Iowa.

Uncle Adam pulled the kids in the snow. We were glad we went to Iowa when we did cause they just had a blizzard with 17 inches of snow and 5 foot drifts. But the kids had fun in the 8 inches they already had.

The family is growing. (from left to right) Back: My older brother Adam, Leah's boyfriend Isaac, My sister Leah, My sister-in-law Anna married to my little brother Noah, Donny, and Nicolas. Front: My sister-in-law Robin married to Adam, their sons stetsen and Everett, My mom, Jasper (of Adam and Robin), my dad, Daniel, Me, and Hannah.

Fall time

2009-10-22T14:55:00.001-07:00

The Hannah and Daniel painted pumpkins while Nicolas had fun trying to carry one around. They love it when mom builds a pile of leaves and they can jump in them and through them around.

Hair Cut

2009-10-16T11:30:00.000-07:00

Hannah and I went to get our hair trimmed today and she wanted me to go first. Meanwhile she was busy using the ladies other scissors to cut her own hair. So the beautician fixed it as good as she could. She is still really cute but with just shorter hair and it could have been a lot worse.
The kids are excited for halloween but a little early.

Daniel dressed in new pajamas and tool set from Grandma F.

New house

2009-10-12T19:31:00.000-07:00

I added pictures but did not comment on them so I guess I better so you all know what the pictures are of. We bought our first home on the edge of Buhl. We are excited to have a little more with with an extra bedroom and office. We hope to move in a few weeks.

july-dec 2009

2009-10-08T19:43:00.001-07:00

Click here to view these pictures larger

Fair time

2009-09-04T19:29:00.001-07:00

We took the kids to the county fair today. They had fun riding on some rides, petting animals in the petting zoo, eating cotton candy, eating corn dogs, and we even saw an alligator wrestler.

Family fun

2009-09-04T19:19:00.000-07:00

My mom, sister Leah, brother Noah, and his wife Anna came to visit us for a week. We had lots of fun swimming in the pool, boating one day, we went to Sun Valley hiking one day, and just hanging out and spending some time together.

Day at the Zoo

2009-07-30T20:08:00.001-07:00

Donny and I took the kids to the zoo today in Boise. It was a hot but fun day. The kids really enjoyed seeing the different animals in person but it was kind of hard to explain what to look for to them if the animal was hard to find. I think their favorites were the tigers and monkeys. It definitely wore us all out and all but daddy took a nap on the way home.

Day at the Beach

2009-07-30T19:55:00.000-07:00

I took the kids to a little lake by Twin Falls the other day. It is pretty nice and gives them all something to do. There is a fence as you can see in the shallow area, which is nice to keep the kids from going to deep and drowning. Plus Nicolas loves to eat the sand:)

Time Flies!

2009-07-26T10:13:00.000-07:00

I cannot believe the last update I did was for the 4th and this week is the end of the month already. Where does the time go? But with 3 little ones you definitely stay busy. We have had a long week of sick kids and when mom gets sick - it is always not good. I tell my husband that I do not have time to get sick. Anyways, the kids are swimming their summer away. We have a pool in the backyard that I have a hard time keeping Hannah and Daniel out of. I call Hannah my brown bear cause she is so tan. So here are a couple of pictures of them swimming and one of them making playdough with cousin Rachel from California cause they went to swim but it started storming.

Happy 4th of July!

2009-07-05T17:08:00.000-07:00

We hope all of you had a great 4th of July. We had a good day as a family. We went to the local parade in the a.m. Then we helped daddy do some of his work. Then we had a camp fire for the first time with the kids and roasted hotdogs and had smores. We had a few fireworks but Nicolas didn't like any of them. There are also a couple of pictures of the kids at the pool. They love to swim and are little brown bears.

Southern Discomfort

2009-06-22T12:48:00.000-07:00

Donny and I went to a motorcycle rally in Elko, NV this weekend with our friends. We had 14 motorcycles in our group. We had a pretty good time except for the rain. Not much fun riding motorcycles in the rain. The patch is what we all have on our vests and what our group calls ourselves.

Prayer Request

2009-06-18T10:11:00.000-07:00

I am sending out a prayer request for my uncle Ken and his family as they surround him during his last few days after an 8-year battle with Multiple Myeloma (bone cancer). He has stopped eating and has extremely low blood and platelet counts. His family has all gathered and are praying and sharing memories. Thank you.

Trip to Iowa - June 2009

2009-06-13T08:37:00.000-07:00

The kids and I flew to see my parents last week. We had a good time. The hardest part was the airplane rides there and back. Imagine traveling alone with 3 kids 4 and under and 2 of them being boys : ). Yikes! Anyways, we made it and while we were there we celebrated Nicolas' 1st birthday. So here are a couple of pictures of him enjoying cake and the cake I decorated for him.

The girls went out for lunch one day and here we are. Robin, Anna, Leah, mom, and me.

The kids with great-grandma F.

The Fedders cousins.

Daniel and Stesten. (Both 2 1/2 years old)

Hannah and Everett (Both 4 years old).

Kids' Picture

2009-06-06T07:52:00.000-07:00

I am in Iowa visit my parents and we had the kids' pictures taken. I thought I would share. They are growing so fast.

Happy 1st Birthday Nicolas!

2009-05-19T19:15:00.000-07:00

New Sandbox

2009-05-19T19:00:00.000-07:00

Donny and I built the kids a new sandbox in the backyard. So here is a picture of them enjoying it along wiht some of them goofing around in the house.

Happy Easter!

2009-04-16T20:11:00.000-07:00

We hope all of you had a great Easter. We ended up making a quick trip to California to see Donny's grandpa who had surgery for lung cancer several weeks ago. The surgery went very well but the recovery process has been slow and with a few bumps. His grandparents really enjoyed the kids for a few days and we had a good time as a family as well. The kids loved spending a few days with dad and going to the park as it was beautiful weather. So here are a couple of pictures of the kids with Easter stuff in Idaho and California. Their grandma in Idaho bought these fancy baskets for them.

Walking to the park with Daddy.

Easter egg hunting with granny in the backyard.

Sitting by great-grandpa.

The eggs Hannah and Daniel colored and decorated. If you look closely you can see Daniel's eggs are all camoflauge colors.

Family Pictures

2009-04-04T08:18:00.000-07:00

We had our family picture taken yesterday. Everyone did very good.

2009-04-01T16:15:00.000-07:00

We have had a few and far between nice days. Here are a couple of pictures of Hannah blowing bubbles while we babysat their cousin Kole.

Busy March

2009-03-09T15:34:00.000-07:00

February flew by and now March is almost half over as well. My parents were here last week for Grandparents day at Hannah's school and to celebrate Hannah's birthday.

Happy 4th Birthday to Hannah!!

It was really nice a couple days last week 60 degrees. Heat wave. It has been snowing off and on and 40 degrees since then. So a glimpse of spring and back to winter. Daniel enjoying the nice weather.

The kids keep right on growing. We celebrated Hannah's birthday with her new counsin Averee at a place in Twin called "Hop 2 It". It has all kinds of inflated jump houses indoors. The kids love it. They invited all their classmates and friends. So when I get some pictures from Aunt Deb we will post those.

Donny and I took advantage of my parents being here and spent a night in Boise for our 5th anniversary coming on the 20th of this month. We did some shopping, went out for dinner, and stayed the night in the Anniversary Inn in a room called the Biker Road House. It was nice, relaxing, and QUIET :).

I am taking a trip with my mom and sister Leah to North Carolina next week. Leah is in a wedding and we hope to make it to the coast as well. I am looking forward to a nice break. I have never been away from the kids for that long so we will see who does better. Me or them.

Donny is turning 30 this month as well so I thought I better do something to celebrate the occasion. So we are having a little party at his friend's house with all of his friends at the end of the month. As I said, March has been and will be a busy month. We hope all of you are well. I will try to keep posting pictures with all these activities.

Happy Valentine's Day

2009-02-12T08:46:00.000-08:00

Here is a picture of Hannah with her preschool class celebrating Valentine's day. They had cupcakes, cookies, and lots of candy. As you can see daniel sat right down and joined in.

Here is Nicolas enjoying his bath time. He loves the entertainment from his older siblings but also enjoys it when he has things to himself, especially mommy. He is growing so fast. He will be 9 months this next week and he cruises along the furniture.

Daniel's 2nd Birthday

2009-01-18T10:08:00.000-08:00

Here is Daniel enjoying his cupcake at his birthday party at Pizza Hut in Idaho.

Blowing out the candles. I found these candles shaped like trucks. Perfect for our truck and tractor boy.

Mad at mom and dad for taking away his presents and giving him more to open.

Excited about all the "Green" tractors he got. He gets green from here and red and blue from Iowa.

Here is all the Gaalswyk kids and grandkids. As you can see, we have half of the grandkids. Donny and I keep telling his siblings to get going so they can catch up. But since last Christmas, the grandkids doubled. They had 3 last Christmas and 6 this year.

Christmas Trees

2009-01-18T10:04:00.000-08:00

It is tradition every year in Donny's family to go to the mountains and cut down Christmas trees. We got one the first year of marriage but in my family we always had a fake one. So I got one the year Daniel was born and maybe when the kids get big enough to leave the tree alone, we will get a real one again. But until then it is just fun to go along and have fun as long as there is not tons of snow up there. We make a little camp and roast hot dogs and marshmellows. They cook hot chocolate and beans over a camp stove and then we climb through the trees looking for the best ones. Hall them back to the pickups and head home for Dutch meat ball soup and sandwhiches.

In the Bathtub

2009-01-17T06:45:00.000-08:00

Here are the boys enjoying the water in the bathtub. I thought it was so cute them and their bare buns.

A little about me

2009-01-15T19:35:00.000-08:00

I was asked to make a cake for a baby shower and so I found this cute idea online since we do not know what she is having. I also tried a new recipe. It was a butter cake with strawberry filling. So I just wanted to brag a little about how cute and well this cake turned out.

For any of you who didn't know, I took a class online last spring and summer and got a certification in medical transcripting. I started working for the local hospital doing this in November. My goal in taking the class was to be able to work from home with no daycare to make some extra money and help with all the little things that come along with raising kids. In starting my job I had to do in-house training so I am in the process of doing that and the kids are going to daycare 5 days a week. A new venture for us. But in a week or two, I will be moving home with my work and again be able to be a stay at mom and have reached my goal. I am so excited about the work and being able to take in some extra income and yet being able to raise our children.

It's been awhile

2009-01-15T18:56:00.000-08:00

Sorry it has been awhile since I have updated but between work, Daniel's 2nd birthday, the holidays and all the parties with 3 little ones, time flies right by. So I hope you all had a great Christmas and New Year and got to see all of your loved ones. Donny and I had the chance to go home to Iowa for Christmas with the kids. We drove through the night both ways so the kids slept most of the trip which made it a little more peaceful as long as we could stay awake:)

So far Daniel has had 2 birthday parties every year. One is Idaho and One in Iowa. This year we did his birthday at noon and Christmas at night with Donny's family. At his party, after the first present he opened he was done opening them cause it was what he likes - trucks and tractors. But we kept taking them away and making him open more and he kept getting mad. But by that night he was ready. He would open one, set it aside and wait for the next. He came out really good. He has a whole toy box full of trucks and tractors now.

In Iowa we decorated Christmas cookies, went swimming, and just enjoyed time with my family.

Here are some pictures of our time there. As you can imagine, I have a hard time getting pictures between the kids opening presents, feeding them, and keeping them from fighting so I am awaiting some pictures from my sister-in-law from our Idaho celebrations. So I will share those with you when I get them.

Hannah and Everett enjoying the more than 1 foot of snow that was in Iowa at the time we were there.

Nicolas just had his first oficial haircut. We haven't taken a picture like this in awhile, but it is also rare we are together to much. My mom, sister Leah, and I. My sister is at vet school about 4 hours from my parents and has a boyfriend in North Carolina and me in Idaho, you can see why it is nice when we are all together.

Nicolas is growing!

2008-12-07T08:52:00.000-08:00

I said to Nicolas today that he is growing too fast. He will be 7 months next week already and we had his 6 month well check up friday with the doctor. He weighed 17 lbs 13 oz. He is not officially crawling but gets all over the house by army crawling. He is fast and follows me where ever I go. He is sitting pretty good too. Here are a couple of pictures of him and his siblings playing.

Wedding

2008-11-25T19:13:00.000-08:00

Here are a few new pictures. Donny and Hannah at his sister Denise's wedding. He was actually sick that day and went home after the wedding. But hannah had a ball. She danced the night away at the reception. And the kids' christmas picture. They were so good for pictures this time and they turned out perfect. Pray everyone has a great Thanksgiving.

New Things

2008-11-01T07:11:00.000-07:00

Well it has been awhile since I updated. Yesterday was Trick or Treating and we have lots of events to come that I will post about. Kole's Baptism (Darlene and Mike's baby), Aunt Denise is getting married, Thanksgiving, and of course Christmas. Which Hannah is looking forward to because we get to go to Iowa and see Grandma and Papa. So I will try to keep posts and pictures as I know many of you enjoy them. But as for me, life is about to get alittle more exciting as I start a new venture. I recently completed an online course which certified me as a Medical Transcriptionists. And I will start working next week for the local St. Luke's hospital transcribing for over 200 doctors. Alittle scary but yet so exciting to me. I will do in-house training for a few months then move home working 3 evenings a week. I am excited for the fact that I get put in my part of bringing in some extra money with the benefit of working from home and still being able to be a stay-at-home mom. As most of you know, money is alittle tight with 3 little ones, especially with 2 in diapers. Anyways, that my exciting news. We pray all of you are well and all is going well with your lives and families.

Trick or Treat

2008-11-01T06:53:00.000-07:00

Here are some pictures of the kids yesterday. They are with their Gaalswyk cousins.

Daniel as a Hunter.

Nicolas as a Cow.

Hannah as Tinkerbell.

Nicolas is 4 months old

2008-09-19T14:27:00.000-07:00

Nicolas weighed 15 lbs 15 oz and was 25 inches long today at his 4 month checkup. We didn't do his shots because he is sick so the doctor gave him antibiotics instead. We'll have to go back next week to do the shots. I looked back at Daniel's stats at this age and when he was 2 months old and Daniel was a pound heavier at both ages and 1 inch longer than Nicolas at this age. It is fun to see how they each grow and develop differently. Hannah was our baby girl for a long time (partly cause she started so small) and the boys are growing up over night.

Busy

2008-09-17T20:01:00.001-07:00

Here is the newest addition to the Gaalswyk family. We have been so busy since our trip to Iowa I haven't even mentioned him. The kids and I were in Iowa when he was born and I was bummed because it was the first baby born into our immediate family on donny's side since we've been married (except for ours:)) and I wasn't even here to see Darlene in the hospital. But Kole Henry was born on August 16. Our new nephew. So here are a couple of pictures of him with us. Hannah loves babies. She is always laying by him and putting his pacifier in when he cries and wants to hold him, just like she did when Nicolas was littler.

But Nicolas will be 4 months old tomorrow (18th) and so he is not so little anymore and she cannot hold him that well anymore especially since he wiggles alot. We have his 4 month check up on friday and will let you know the stats then but here are a couple of the lastest pictures of him. He sleeps 10 -12 hours at night, loves to laugh and be talked to - especially by hannah and daniel, and is growing like a weed. He is not quite sitting yet, although he is getting much stronger. He gets rolled to his side, half way from his back to his stomach.

Our days just got lots busier. Hannah started preschool this week. A little late starting but she finally showed potty wise that she was ready. I wanted her to go this year cause with the two other ones at home it is hard to sit and work with her on anything - even coloring since daniel is into everything. Hannah is excited about school, she goes 3 mornings a week which is about perfect for her.

Daniel does not want to take naps lately and so even if he doesn't sleep he is in his room for at least a half an hour or he goes with his dad so mom can have a little break. He is all boy and into trucks big time. My mom bought him a little backhoe when we were in Iowa in August and he carries that thing everywhere, he even takes it in the bathtub and tries to take it to bed with him:) He always points out every truck that goes by, especially now that it is chopping season.

Days fly by with these 3 little ones to keep a mom busy, so I will keep you updated as much as possible. We pray you (our family and friends) are all doing well.

Fun at the Fair

2008-09-01T13:01:00.000-07:00

The Twin Falls County Fair went on this weekend and we went a few days. We watched cousin Alicia show her sheep one day and Hannah went on rides with her cousin. Then I took the kids to the petting zoo one day. Daniel loved all the animals. Then Sunday night we went to the Demolition Derby with Donny's family. He stayed home with Nicolas but Hannah and Daniel liked the cars running into each other.

Daniel and I at the derby.

Visit to Iowa

2008-08-21T09:58:00.000-07:00

Hannah, Daniel, and Nicolas having a good time in Iowa with their cousins, grandparents, and aunts and unlces. We have been here for about 2 weeks. We are taking a family picture and celebrate my mom's 50th birthday while we are here. And we seen the kid's great-grandparents as well.
Everett - 3, Hannah - 3, Daniel - 20 months, Jasper - 6, Stetsen - 18 months.
Daniel, Everett, and Stetsen
Nicolas
Fun at the pool.

Daniel hauling poop with Papa

2008-08-21T09:51:00.000-07:00

Here are a few pictures of Daniel riding in Papa F.'s semi with daddy in Iowa. Donny said he loved it cause there was so many buttons and stuff to touch. He was mad at me when I made him come in to take a nap.

Nicolas' Baptism

2008-08-13T05:49:00.000-07:00

Nicolas was baptized on Sunday August 10. He wore Donny's baptism outfit.

Boys

2008-07-31T19:39:00.000-07:00

Here are a couple pictures of our boys. Nicolas looks at times so much like each of his siblings. No one can believe how much all our kids look alike. Nicolas is almost 11 weeks. He likes to talk and coo and smile. He weighed 13 lbs. 4 oz. at his 2 month check up and was 24 in. long.

Happy 4th of July

2008-07-07T12:57:00.000-07:00

We experienced camping with our 3 little ones this weekend. We took Hannah camping when she was 16 months old so this was a new experience for all. Remember we are in the mountains of Idaho (Sawtooth National Forest) with no running water and minimal electricity off of the camper. Daniel had a ball because he was outside in the dirt and dirty all the time. Here are some pictures of our fun. We went with our friend Uncle Dirt and his family. Here are Hannah and Daniel sitting on a little dirt bike.
All of us on the tube behind Uncle Dirt's boat.
Hanging out of the dock on Lake AndersonSwinging in the Hammock.This is how Nicolas spent most of his weekend.
Exhausted and dirty.

Even Nicolas had dirt under his finger nails and in the creases of his hands.

Chunky Nicolas

2008-07-07T12:44:00.000-07:00

Here are a couple of the latest pictures of Nicolas. I weighed him last week just to see how big he is getting and he weighed 12 lbs 4.5 oz. So he is definately filling out. I went to get him out of his crib this morning and found him sucking his thumb. It was so cute. He also starting smiling.

Finally . . .

2008-06-24T13:30:00.001-07:00

Sorry I haven't put any pictures on for awhile but I got a new internet provider and so my computer is finally working better. So here are some new pictures of Nicolas and the kids. Nicolas is doing really good. He is growing so much and is starting to get little rolls everywhere. He slept 6 hours last night - yeah! So hopefully we are on our way to all night.

Here is Nicolas sleeping on Hannah. Hannah is finally potty trained. We still have a few accidents and wear pull-ups at night but definately see the light at the end of the long tunnel. She loves to help and hold and kiss him.
My mom was such a help while she was here it was awesome. I told her that I was use to the 3 before she came and then her help was amazing that when she went home I about pulled my hair out the day she left cause I had to get use to the 3 of them by myself again. We are settling in though to life with 3 little ones. It is nice to have Donny around to help to get through dinner and bathes cause that is usually a fussy time for Nicolas.
Daniel has gotten use to Nicolas and now even tries to take him from me to hold him.

All ready for church.

2008-06-24T13:11:00.000-07:00

Hannah was in a wedding on June 7 for Donny's cousin. She was a flower girl and was really cute and did a great job. I was so proud of her.

Nicolas is growing!

2008-06-17T15:14:00.000-07:00

I weighed Nicolas last week just to see how much he is growing and he weighed 10 1/2 lbs already. I couldn't believe he is gaining at a rate of 1 lb a week. I tried to upload pictures but my internet is not working great. So I will keep trying and hopefully have some new pictures for you soon.

2008-06-05T19:06:00.000-07:00

My mom is here to visit for 10 days so the kids have been showing off. The one picture they are wearing her shoes. Nicolas is growing too. He is more alert and awake quite a bit during the day.

Nicolas is 10 days old

2008-05-28T13:22:00.000-07:00

I had a doctor's appointment today with Nicolas for his 10 day check up. His birth weight was 8 lbs and at his 2 day check up he was 7 lbs 7.5 oz and today at 10 days old he weighed 8 lbs 9.5 oz! And he grew a 1/2 inch. Here are a few new pictures of him.

Adjusting to life

2008-05-22T09:50:00.000-07:00

Daniel checking out Nicolas. He still doesn't know what to think of him.

Our 3 busy bundles of joy.

More baby Nicolas

2008-05-18T20:32:00.001-07:00

Welcome baby Nicolas Henry!

2008-05-18T19:33:00.000-07:00

Nicolas Henry Gaalswyk was born Sunday, May 18 at 7:32 a.m. weighing 8 lbs. and 21 inches long. Everything went great and he is healthy and content baby. Hannah loves her new baby Nicolas and told us she wants to be a doctor - thus the mask in the one picture and loves to hold him. Daniel doesn't know what to think and has a hard time being gentle and sharing mommy.

Happy Mother's Day!

2008-05-11T17:18:00.000-07:00

Hope all of you moms out there had a great Mother's Day! Here is a picture of me and my sister-in-law Darlene. My mother-in-law wanted a picture of us on mother's day cause we are both expecting. Me in about 2 weeks (or anytime would be nice) and Darlene in August.
Then I tried to take a picture with my kids but Daniel was the only one cooperating.

Fun in the sun

2008-05-04T16:59:00.000-07:00

Today was a pretty nice day once again. It was about 70 degrees and not alot of wind. The wind blew all week long. So Hannah loves to swim and wear her swim suit so I turned the sprinkler on for awhile but she decided it was too cold. They did slide down the slide while I held the water on it. To cold for me but they had fun for awhile. Here are some pictures of them playing on the swing set in their bathing suits.

Spring is Here!

2008-04-14T12:36:00.001-07:00

Here are a few pictures of the kids enjoying the nice weather over the last couple weekends. Yesterday was sunny and 75 degrees. Big change! but not suppose to last for very long. Here is a picture of them riding on an electric John Deere four wheeler at their grandparents house.
Daniel playing in the dirt yesterday.
Hannah with no shoes because she doesn't like shoes anyways. Good thing its starting to get nice enough for that.
Having a tea party and snack on the table while mom vacuums.

Professional pictures

2008-03-21T10:25:00.000-07:00

Had Hannah and Daniel's picture taken this week. They are getting better at taken pictures together. Just wanted to share.

Grandma & Papa visit

2008-03-21T10:12:00.000-07:00

Latest family picture. Donny & I celebrated our 4th anniversary Thursday March 20. And Happy Birthday to my Husband today!! 29 years old. Hard to believe its been 4 years and we have two beautiful children to show for it and # 3 on the way.
Papa pushing Daniel around on Hannah's new bike.
Hannah and Daniel with Aunt Leah
Cool kids!! Grandma F. bought new sunglasses.
Hanging out with Papa F.

Hannah's Birthday

2008-03-21T09:54:00.001-07:00

Hannah turned 3 on March 15. We celebrated a couple of times. First on Sunday we had a swimming party with a ice cream cake from Dairy Queen (below) and then on wednesday night we just did presents with cake and ice cream. Cake made by Hannah's grandma F. and decorated byt Aunt Leah. (above) As you can see the theme was princess. Hannah was so excited it was her birthday. This was the first year she understood it was her birthday and what the party was about. Her Papa and grandma Fedders, aunt leah and friend Isaac came to visit for a week for her birthday. Hannah was so excited to have them and sad that they had to leave.

Hannah got her first official bike from her Grandma and Grandpa G.

Spring Fever!

2008-03-11T07:38:00.000-07:00

Our children are restless for spring and being able to play outside. Here is a picture of them wrestling on the floor. One afternoon and evening all they did was run around the house and make a mess. They kept asking to play outside but it was too windy.

Solution: play in the garage where they are out of the wind and I can keep an eye on them. Here is Hannah riding her bike in the garage.

Hannah and Daniel playing in a little Dora playhut/sandbox that I got for Hannah for her birthday. Something for them to do in the garage as well. So probably at least once a day they like to go play in the garage and burn some energy.

March 2

2008-03-02T12:29:00.000-08:00

Hannah is doing her nebulizer and Daniel decided to crawl in the chair and sit by her.

Daniel pushing his tractor around. He is starting to make vroom noises when he pushes cars around too - this is the first time I had seen him pushing the tractor around.

Trip to California & Bunk beds

2008-02-22T08:33:00.000-08:00

Hannah and Daniel got new bunk beds. We did this cause the room was too small to have two twin beds in it. Daniel is not sleeping in it yet but will be by the time the baby comes. But Hannah loves sleeping on top.

Hannah's first build-a-bear experience. She is getting it for her birthday from great grandma and grandpa Gaalswyk.

Decided last minute to take a quick trip to california. My sister-in-law wanted to go to look for baby furniture and asked me and the kids to go. We thought we were flying in Pakka's (donny's grandpa) airplane but we soon found out that since his plane is not pressurized that us pregnant girls could not fly due to the possibility it might break our waters. So we drove 10hrs one way, leaving Tuesday a.m. and return Friday p.m. but she got her furniture bought and the great grandparents loved seeing the kids. And they are pretty good travelers since we do it so much. Here is picture of them in the van.

Snowmobiling

2008-02-11T12:35:00.001-08:00

Sunday we went snowmobiling and took Hannah and Daniel. It was their first time for both of them to go. We tried to take hannah when she was about 9 months and she screamed the whole time so I ended up sitting in the pickup with her. But yesterday was a beautiful day. The sun was shining and no wind. So they were both perfect. Daniel slept most of the time. There is probably 10 feet of snow where we were. Hope you have a good Valentine's day this week!

Changes

2008-02-09T09:55:00.001-08:00

Today is a beautiful day. I walked outside with the kids in the stroller at 10 am. It was 40 degrees already. Finally the snow is melting and it isn't snowing more. We have had record snow fall for us in the valley here this winter. Here are the kids in the bathtub. They usually always take a bath together and sometimes my floor is wetter than they are.

Here is my climbing boy. Alot of people ask me how I am feeling with this pregnancy and I am feeling fine pregnant wise but I am getting nervous for the third to come and have 2 boys. Daniel is all boy and into everything as you can see. So it makes me nervous for the baby coming. I will definately be busy. He is also a big boy now because he uses sippy cups. No more bottles.

I started taking a medical terminology course online to get a certificate for medical transcriptionists. So I have been studying alot lately. Donny walked into the living room one night and found Hannah like this and busted up laughing cause she looked just like me studying. Pretty Funny! She is also well on her way to being potty trained. We have been working at it for 4 weeks. A slow process when she is stubborn:)

Time at Home

2008-01-28T17:17:00.000-08:00

We have spent a lot of time at home the last few days. Hannah came down with the flu virus on friday night and has had a 101 degree temp for the last 3 days. Today she finally perked up and her fever has been down all day. She is still not eating or drinking much. She has basically slept and laid around. Daniel is pretty funny cause he doesn't know that she doesn't feel well and meanwhile loves to play without her bugging him. He found his tongue on friday night after watching his 4 week old cousin Aiden. So now he walks around the house with his tongue hanging out like a dog. Hannah is also into reading alot lately. Last week after I put Daniel to bed one night we sat and read for at least a half an hour or more. And if you stop to watch t.v. or drink or look; she grabs your face and says," talk momma, read." It is pretty funny. I don't know where she got that from.

Ultrasound Results

2008-01-18T12:54:00.000-08:00

I tried scan a few ultrasound pictures into the computer to show you. But my printer isn't working so anyway. We had our routine ultrasound today and the doctor was pleased with everthing. The baby is growing well and looks healthy. We were able to tell what our baby is going to be. Drum roll please . . . Baby Gaalswyk # 3 is going to be . . . A BOY! so sorry to those of you who voted but we weren't picky on sex we just pray he is healthy. We are due May 30. so I guess that is all the baby news for now. We will definately post pictures and such when he arrives.

Another Baby!!

2008-01-16T11:01:00.000-08:00

I just wanted to say congratulations to Donny's sister and brother-in-law, Mike & Darlene!! We just found out there having a baby this summer too!! They are due August 10. Congrats - we are so happy for you!

Horsin' Around

2008-01-16T07:40:00.001-08:00

Daniel riding the school bus and Hannah riding the rocking horse in her princess clothes.

Vote for boy or girl

2008-01-08T14:58:00.001-08:00

I put a poll on our webpage where you can vote or guess what baby gaalswyk #3 is going to be. On Jan. 18 we have our ultrasound and will tell the doctor if the baby shows us what it is we will find out otherwise I guess it will a surprise. Hannah never showed us and we didn't really want to know and with Daniel it was plain as day. I will post some pictures if we get some good ones and the results that day. so have fun and vote. oh . . . donny told me only he gets to name it if its a boy. Which I think is not going to happen:)

Winter Wonderland

2008-01-08T14:33:00.000-08:00

When I woke up this morning and looked out the window it was snowing pretty heavy and it hasn't quit yet. It is really white and we have at least 2 inches so far. That is alot of snow for us in the valley. The mountains usually get all the snow. It looks like fun - makes me want to go snowmobile. Bad for driving cause they don't really plow the roads around here.

Merry Christmas!

2007-12-25T10:23:00.000-08:00

We hope all of you have a blessed day with your families and friends. We had a neat Christmas eve service last night. Our pastor talked about how when we have bread in church we think of communion and what Jesus did for us on the cross. But he pointed out last night that Jesus is the bread of life and our in the Lord's prayer it says "give us today our daily bread" and how that might mean give us life and hope and help us turn to him in our daily lives, that he gives all we need and more. There was a song sung about how Jesus was a baby who was just like all other babies but he was sent to save us. It is amazing that Christmas comes ever year the same time and yet we see something new, a new perspective. I appreciated the song because it makes you realize that Jesus was just like us while he was on earth. Born to a mother just like all of us with dirty diapers and spit up. But yet he came to save us from our sins. Anyways, here are a few pictures of our kids open some presents from us. Have a Merry Christmas!!

Christmas in Idaho

2007-12-22T13:22:00.000-08:00

Donny's family christmas here in Idaho ended up being quit eventful. Starting with the power going out in his parents house. So his dad tried to figure out what happened since we were the only house that was out and nothing on the dairy was. So us ladies found flashlights and lit candles. Later they got the house going on the generator so we could continue our festivities. Finally Donny's dad figured out it was a blown fuse on the power pole that the power company had to come out and fix it. So meanwhile we finished cooking our dinner and were eating - the candles were still lit. Donny's niece and Hannah were looking at and eating gingerbread house that his niece made and hannah was laying on the dinning table. Pretty soon his niece yells that Hannah's hair is on fire. So we all came running and thankfully just a little bit of hair on the back of her head was singed. And we blew all the candles out! The rest of the night was pretty uneventful aside from fighting over who gets to open a present when - normal kids stuff.

Daniel's 1st Birthday in Idaho

2007-12-21T14:24:00.000-08:00

Here are a few pictures from Daniel's party here. It was a pizza party. daniel is crying in one picture because he is afraid of the party hats because he snapped the band on his face in iowa. But other than that he had a good time. He even got his first gun. It was a pop gun. nothing serious.

Trip to Iowa

2007-12-21T14:10:00.001-08:00

We were in Iowa visiting my family for christmas and one of Daniel's birthday parties. Here are a few pictures. Hannah also had fun in the snow cause they have more than we ususally ever have in Idaho.

Tagged

2007-12-20T08:20:00.000-08:00

I have been "Tagged" by my cousin Pam. I have to state the rules and then list facts about myself. And at the end I am suppose to tag someone else but the only person I know that has a blog is Pam. So I might tag people to just write emails.

Rules:
1. Post rules before give the facts.
2. Each person starts with 8 random facts/habits about themselves.
3. People who are tagged need to write their own blog and write these rules and facts about
themselves.
4. at the end of the blog you need to tag more people.

Facts:
1. I love being a stay at home mom/wife but some days it can be overwhelming.
2. I hate it when my house work piles up.
3. I love to bake - but the bad thing is then you have to eat it. I learned most of my baking from
working at Casey's bakery in highschool and college.
4. I have an associate's in teacher aiding but I would really like to have my own bakery
someday.
5. The worst house chore is cleaning the bathrooms.
6. I can't wait to do more actvities with my kids but they are a little young yet.
7. I pray I can manage 3 kids and give them each special attention yet.
8. I love to scrapebook our family memories but don't have much time to stay caught up. I'd
rather take candid pictures then professional.

so I guess I tag Marsha, Leah, and Bonnie

Busy Holidays

2007-12-20T07:59:00.000-08:00

It has been awhile since I updated but since Thanksgiving we have been busy and gone alot. We drove to Ripon, California for Donny's Dad's side of the family Dec. 5-8, were home for three days and flew to Iowa from Dec. 12-18. We are done traveling but not done partying. Tonight is Daniel's 1st birthday party, the 3rd party actually cause we did one in california and one in Iowa. so that is tonight adn tomorrow night we are doing Donny's immediate family Christmas. We can't wait til next week because we have nothing and are going to start our own family tradition with our kids on Christmas morning. It is always good and fun to travel to see family but lots of work when you get home. I have a few pictures of california but not of Iowa yet. My mom always takes all those pictures so I will add them when I get some.

Happy Thanksgiving

2007-11-28T12:52:00.000-08:00

We hope all of you had a great Thanksgiving. I have been super busy here with the kids and everything. We celebrated thanksgiving with donny's family and the Friday after went to the mountains with them to get christmas trees. Our house is officially ready for christmas with the tree up and decorated and lights on the house and everything. The hard part is keeping the kids from messing with the decorations. I only decorated the top of my tree with ornaments and Daniel still stands there holding onto the tree and reaching for ornaments.
I quit driving school bus cause it was too much with the kids and being pregnant with the third. So that helped slow things down alittle. But we are traveling to both California and Iowa this year for christmas all with in two weeks of each other. So we'll be glad when the holiday season is over and things slow down. Wait . . . what am I saying. Things won't slow down for quite awhile for us. Anyway. Wishinng all of you a belated Happy Thanksgiving and hope you are having fun getting ready for the Holidays!!

2007-11-28T12:46:00.000-08:00

Daniel was 11 months on Nov. 19 and is officially walking. He took his first steps around 10 months and has slowly improved since then. Everyday he walks more and more and gets better. Here is a picture of him with his new shoes and he is not sure about walking in them but gets better everytime he has them on too. He looks like a big boy with shoes on.

Princess Pumpkin

2007-11-02T10:07:00.000-07:00

Donny's sister's like to carve pumpkins for Halloween but since Hannah is too young his mom bought her this "Mr. Potato Head" kit for her pumpkin. It is a princess - Hannah's favorite. She was so proud of it.

Trick or Treat

2007-10-30T19:49:00.000-07:00

I have never been big on Halloween but we did a little trick or treating with some of hannah's friends. So here is Hannah and Daniel in there costumes. Hannah was a ladybug and Daniel a dinosaur.

2007-10-27T08:37:00.000-07:00

This is our Hannah. She likes to be a princess lately and so she has her princess shoes on and a purse and she's ready to go. Her dad loves what her shirt says "my dad is the man".

2007-10-27T08:31:00.000-07:00

Here is Daniel trying to climb up my kitchen drawers. He is turned into a climber and if you would have been there when he was climbing you would have heard him screaming because he couldn't get up to where he wanted to be. It was pretty cute.

2007-10-20T07:56:00.000-07:00

I have been so busy lately that I haven't had a chance to update our site. I started driving school bus for our little town here. Hannah likes it cause now she goes to a babysitter a few hours a day and has a friend to play with that is her age. She knows that mommy drives a school bus cause whenever she sees one on the road she says, "mommy school bus". Daniel is now 10 months old. He is starting to let go of things and stand on his own but has not been to willing to take those steps yet. But he loves to walk along things and is into everything. His latest thing is to take what his sister has and if he can't get it he yells. Donny is taking advantage of deer hunting season here and has been out almost everyday trying to find one. His cousin and friend both got pretty big ones and so now he is trying to get one just at big. Its a good thing his wife loves him and hunting season is only for a few weeks, or else I wouldn't let him spend so much time away.

Surprise!

2007-10-20T07:50:00.000-07:00

The picture says it all. Surprise! Donny and I found out we're expecting baby # 3 in June.

Family Vacation

2007-08-15T18:16:00.000-07:00

Hannah, Daniel, and I fly to Iowa to go on a family vacation with my family. We went to a cabin in Yankton, SD and enjoyed riding bike together, boating, swimming, playing cards, eating of course, and spending time together. There was a hot tub at the house you can see in one picture. Hannah and Daniel with there Fedders cousins and with Papa. August 2007.

Daniel's 1st Haircut

2007-07-22T09:02:00.000-07:00

Donny gave Daniel his first haircut yesterday. He just trimmed around his ears, neck, and sides of his head. He did better than Hannah did on her first haircut.
Daniel also has recently begun eating food. He likes to try feed himself and always has food everywhere. (pictures to the left)

Our kids grow so fast.

2007-07-17T19:24:00.000-07:00

Daniel will 7 months this week. He is growing so fast. He has 7 teeth already and is crawling really good. He also likes to pull up and stand by things. I'm sure he will be walking before we know it.

Hannah is 2 yrs. old and she is really starting to talk well. She is starting to talk in little sentences. Last night on the way home from town she says, "I see the moon, mama." And when you are doing something that she wants to do she says, "Hannah's turn." She is too smart for her own good some days.

TOO HOT!!

2007-07-15T20:44:00.000-07:00

Hello friends and Family, It has been super hot here for the past 3 - 4 weeks. anywhere from 95 - 105 degrees. And to top it all off our air conditioning quit on Thursday night and is out til Monday sometime. So needless to say I haven't been home to much. So my house is a disaster cause we come home change and leave again. When I come home to give the kids and myself cold baths, we are sweating again in no time. The kids and I have been swimming almost everyday lately.

Our summer has been busy with family visiting and weddings. D- has three cousins getting married this summer - one was end of may, one end of June and one end of July and only one is here in our area. We've also been to Ketichikan, Alaska already this summer. His grandparents flew us up there to fish for a week. Fishing wasn't to good but the weather was descent and the scenery was magnificent. We saw lots of wildlife as well.