Intern Welcome Party

Last Saturday was the welcome party for all the new peds interns that Matt will be working with.  They had it at a house with a pool - thank goodness! It was super hot outside, so lots of people went swimming.  As soon as she saw the pool, Kate wanted to get in:)

sprinklers and strawberries

We had a few hot days last week, so on Wednesday afternoon, we got out a sprinkler for Kate.  Aunt Tessa was here to play too, and it was a lot of fun.  Kate didn't get overly wet, but really enjoyed filling up her bucket and dumping it out:)

The neighbors had a sprinkler out the following day, and as soon as Kate saw it, she ran over to join in the fun.  I think the sprinkler will be a favorite summer activity.

Friday, we went strawberry picking with my mom.  Michigan strawberries are seriously the best.  The strawberry patch was pretty busy and it was a hot morning, but with a little help from Kate, we each filled up a box and were on our way.

tasting a berry:) 

not so sure about it

Kate's basket:)

Kate explored quite a bit; thankfully, she couldn't
get over the rows, so she was pretty contained 

snack break! 

My mom makes the best pie crust EVER, so she and I made two strawberry pies once we got home.  Since Friday, I made a little batch of freezer jam, froze a bunch of whole berries, and froze a few containers of shortcake berries.  I can't wait to eat them!

my best little helper

Kate is such a good helper.  If I'm watering the flowers, she wants to hold onto the hose; if I'm sweeping the garage, she wants to sweep too; If I'm watering the herbs in the deck pots, she wants to dump water too.  I'm sure the day will come when her helpfulness is a little less than helpful, but for now, I'll take it!

she calls this one Kate's broom

Happy Father's Day!

Matt had to work all day on Father's Day this year, which was quite a bummer.  We celebrated Father's Day with him on Saturday night instead:) During the day on Sunday, Kate and I went to my parent's house for a cookout and swimming with my extended family.  The pool was only 70, but Kate, Lukas and Liana didn't seem to mind.  They all wanted to go swimming.  Unfortunately, I don't have any pictures from the day, but Kate did get to see Matt for a few minutes before bed.  Here they are just loving each other:)

Kate wanted daddy to lay down on her pillow

lots of Father's Day kisses

Frederick Meijer Gardens with Grandma!

We went to the children's gardens at FMG with my mom a few Fridays ago.  Kate had so much fun, and we ran into our friends, Leigh and Caleb, too! What a fun day.  I'm so glad my mom is close by to hang out with us.  You can probably tell from the pictures, but Kate's favorite thing was choosing a boat from the cart and putting it into the 'Great Lakes' water and watching it float.  She's so cute!

Residency Graduation

Last weekend, Matt graduated from residency! It kind of doesn't feel real yet, because he still works until the end of June, but it was a fun celebration anyway.  For those of his classmates that are going on to do general pediatrics (like in an office setting), they will be finished with their training at the end of the month.  We have a little bit to go:)

For those of you unfamiliar with the medical world, they keep track of training by Post Graduate Years (PGY), so Matt's first year of residency, he was a PGY1.  He's finishing his PGY3 year, and when he's the chief resident, he will be a PGY4.  He'll then spend PGY5-7 as a hematology/oncololgy fellow.  So, by the time he finishes, he will have completed 4 years of undergrad, 4 years of med school, 3 years of general pediatric residency, 1 year of chief residency, and 3 years of pediatric hematology/oncology fellowship.  Seriously, that's a lot of training.  And he's seriously smart to prove it!

Matt's parents came up for the graduation, and my parents attended as well.  I know all of us are proud of Matt, but I'm really, really proud of him.  And since I'm his wife, I get to be the most proud:)

The 3 Musketeers

friends! 

future Chiefs giving out awards

all the graduates

just a little light reading for Monday morning

Kate loves to jump on beds, and she made it very clear that I was no longer going to be able to make the bed because she was going to play on it.  My Type A personality is usually always going, going, going and wanting to get things done, but instead, I stopped and enjoyed some playtime and reading with my little lady.  I'm thankful for the little reminders of what life is all about:)

silly goose! 

my little laundry helper

Sorry for all the background noise; the washing machine was running:) Isn't she a great helper?

mama's shoes

After we went for a run, Kate said 'mama' and then put my shoes on...and she walked in them a few steps before falling down:)

18 month fun

I know I've said this before, and I'm sure I'll say it again, but 18 months is such a fun age! Kate seems to be changing every single day.  By next week, some of these things will have passed, I'm sure, but for right now, here is a glimpse into our amazing little girl...

• she LOVES bubbles and coloring with sidewalk chalk
• she likes to push her baby in the baby stroller and go for rides in the wagon
• her favorite thing seems to be the construction equipment around our neighborhood.  she's always saying "beep, beep, walk"meaning that she wants to walk to go see the trucks working (they go beep beep whenever they back up)
• she wants to be outside ALL THE TIME and often cries when she has to come in
• she enjoys sitting on the couch
• she likes to identify things by whose they are.  for example, my pillow is 'mama' and Matt's is 'dada'.  same goes for shoes, cups, coats, chairs, etc.  it's very cute.
• when she's leaving a room, she either says, "see ya" or "bye" to let you know she's leaving you behind
• she likes to hold hands on walks
• when Matt asks her to snuggle, she puts her head on his shoulder/chest and smiles.  it doesn't last very long, but it's super sweet
• she's great at going up the stairs, but not down
• she likes to share her snacks and drinks with her baby dolls
• she loves to find the ducks and the geese at our neighborhood pond
• anytime we talk a walk, she tries to lure us towards the playground so she can swing.  i'm pretty sure she would swing all day long
• anyone who is mowing their lawn or using lawn equipment is 'dada' (so cute!)
• she likes ice cream and cake and everything chocolate...that sounds like someone else I know:)
• she is super friendly...on her terms.  she loves to say hi to other people (especially kids), but if you approach her and start talking to her, she might be really shy
• she still has 12 teeth (4 top front, 4 bottom front and 4 molars), and her I-teeth have yet to make their debut.  she's been working on them for a long time, but they just keep coming and going.  they cause her to lose a lot of sleep:(
• she is now sitting at the table to eat.  still in her high chair, but her food is on the table instead of the tray
• she calls most bugs flies and she stomps on ants
• she likes to clean things with a washcloth.  after I wipe her hands and face after a meal, she'll walk all around the room 'cleaning' things for me:)
• if other people are laughing (especially loudly), she joins in with a few 'ha ha's' of her own
• she loves to play on our bed and to 'fall' down on our pillows.  she also likes to jump on the bed and on the couch
• she's just getting into the stage where she likes to copy people...watch what you do when you're at our house!
• she still loves dogs
• when you ask her a question and she's looking for something (e.g. where is your baby?), she looks around and goes 'hmmm' with her pointer finger on her lips

We certainly have our share of screaming, running away, not sleeping, being a picky eater, and temper tantrums, but I try to forget about those.

first words

Kate is talking like a maniac.  She has over 50 words now, and I've been scribbling them down as she says new ones in an effort to keep track.  For memory's sake, I'm going to write them down here so it will be easier to remember and find in the future.

hi
bye
ice
bubble
shoes
pop
up
down
duck
geese
birdie
elbow
knee
foot
toes
please
out
outside (side)
swing
slide
woof
meow
moo
neigh
beep
eyes
yes
no
ball
mama
dada
potty
night night
blue
walk
uh oh
bite
cheese
sit
fall
fly
airplane
bee
vitamin
go
see ya
belly
bike
five
Kate
pretty
cookie
dirt
milk
fork
baby
bowl
pillow
book
hockey

She can repeat lots more words, but these are the ones she says often and uses in context.

weekend visitors

The MHSAA state track meet was in Hudsonville this year.  Tessa and Grandpa Pridgeon wanted to see a few of the runners from Reading, so we got to spend a day with family! Kate was a little shy with everyone at first, but warmed up pretty quickly.  As usual, she loved her Uncle Bri:) She even called him Bri guy when we asked who he was later in the afternoon...so sweet!

listening to Uncle Bri's heart

sushi lunch!

Saturday night was my cousin, Lincoln's, open house so we spent a little time there and then came back for a quick strawberry shortcake dessert before everyone had to head home.  

Thanks for making the trip up, we'll see you again soon!