The Most Wonderful Time of the Year

Once again it's been way too long since I've updated our blog. I guess it's safe to say I'm busy year round :) As I'm writing this blog I'm looking outside watching the snow fall down. Hard to believe the last time I posted it was a beautiful fall picture and now we're well into winter. I love the change of seasons. Christmas is such a happy time of year to me. I have the Christmas tree all put up and gifts wrapped and placed underneath it.

Christmas is a wonderful time of year to reflect, and remember the real reason for the season, the birth of Jesus our Saviour. I'm looking forward to getting together with family and Brady and I will be having the Kroeze Christmas party at our house this year, should be fun!

Wishing everyone a "Very Merry Christmas!"

Meet Charlie Brown

My sister Alissa and her husband Lee got a puppy :) As you can see above, he is adorable! He is a cocakpoo like Maya and they named him Charlie. He is way more calm natured than Maya ever was, maybe that's the difference between female and male dogs - I'm not sure, regardless, Maya loves her new cousin.

Autumn is a Second Spring Where Every Leaf is a Flower

I am finally updating our blog again, sorry it's been so long :) I thought things would slow down after summer was over, but things have remained just as busy into this fall season. I woke up this morning and looked outside at our trees and couldn't believe how much the color has already changed. What a beautiful day from God. I am certainly enjoying the sun today as well since the last few days have been full of rain. I have been enjoying a "normal" schedule the past 2 weeks since I had ACLS classes to take along with a telemetry class. I will never take forgranted being able to sleep at night (rather than try to sleep during the day) when I get off working night shift. I am so much more energetic and just feel so much better. The new thing for me at work is that I am starting to orient (learn) in the Emergency Room as well as in Labor & Delivery. I am trying to embrace these opportunities and remain positive. It's hard because I just feel like I developed a comfort zone working on the medical/surg floor as well as post-partum, and here they think I need to keep on learning all the areas. I guess it's a positive aspect about working in a smaller hospital, I will never be bored as I need to stay current in all areas. Brady & I recently joined a couple's group at our church called Firm Foundation. This is a Bible study group that meets every month on Sunday night and we also have a fun activity every month. I am so excited for this opportunity to learn and grow with other married couples. This year we are studying the book "Guard Your Heart" by Dr. Gary & Barbara Roseberg. Another update with Faith CRC was that the Christian Ed Auction was a huge success! There was over $40,000 raised for the Christian Education Fund. Praise God! It's so neat to see how many families of all ages are dedicated to the support of Christian Education. There were tons of creative ideas on the auction this year. Brady donated a vehicle detail that was auctioned for $450 :) I enjoyed helping set up for the auction and Brady helped in holding up the items as they were bid on and passing them out once they were sold. We feel blessed to be part of Faith CRC. God is doing wonderful things there.

Brady has been staying busy with his class every Monday night at USF. Exciting news - he applied to take the first part of his CPA (Certified Public Accountant) exam. This is a 4 part exam that is intense. We ask for all your prayers and he continues to study for this exam, I know he can do it and I'm so proud of him for continuing his schooling towards a Master's Degree :)

Maya has been Maya, still so energetic. She turns 1 tomorrow :) Lucky for her she will be getting groomed on her birthday, what girl doesn't like a day at the spa on their birthday...lol. We have come a long way with her in the past year, she is now fully potty trained and she recently learned to sit on command. We are still working on lay, roll over, etc. Everyone tells me that the chewing "stage" will end, but I'm not so sure with her, I think the chewing might be more of a personality trait than a "stage". Regardless, we love her.

I hope everyone has been having an enjoyable and beautiful fall so far.

Kalahari Resort '09

On Thursday August 13 we packed and loaded up the Tahoe for a Warner family vacation to Wisconsin Dells to stay at the Kalahari Resort. It was about a 6hr drive and although my sister and I got a little stir crazy, we had a good and safe trip there.

The Kalahari Resort is an indoor/outdoor waterpark with TONS of slides and lazy rivers. The Kalahari also has a huge indoor theme park with Go Karts, bowling, arcades, a movie theatre, basically the whole nine yards. It is an african theme resort that is absolutely beautiful. Brady & I couldn't believe how large the place was, it reminded us of the resort we stayed at in Mexico, minus the ocean :) There were 8 restaurants located in the resort as well as little snack bars outside to enjoy. The Dipping Dot shack was a big hit! We stayed in the 2 room family suite on the second floor at the resort, so we were within steps of both of the waterparks. We had a balcony with a view of the outdoor waterpark which was sweet. We had awesome weather the whole trip and we enjoyed the outdoor and indoor waterparks the most. I had one goal in mind this vacation and that was to be adventurous, and I was. I went on every single waterslide, even the fast, dark, & scary ones (if you know my fear of heights, this is a big step for me!) My favorite thing to do during the day was to float down the outdoor lazy river on a double tube with Brady and just relax!

One of the nights we were there we went to the Tommy Bartlett show which is a waterskii show. We saw barefoot skiing, 3 tier pyramid skiing, skiing/wakeboarding off of ramps, flips, etc. Another feature at the show was a person who flew 600ft in the air behind a boat wearing a kite type attachment, it was amazing. There were some other random acts there, Brady's personal favorite was probably "Dave the Horn Guy" he was a guy who wore an orange jumpsuit with bulb horns attached to basically every part of his body and he played different songs, it was hilarious.

A trip to Wisconsin would never be complete without a round of mini golf at Pirate's Cove, and that's what we did our last nite there. I WON, I know it's unbelievable but it happened :)

We had a very fun and memorable vacation and I hope we go back there again next year!

Summer Nights

Brady, Maya, & I enjoyed camping trip to Yankton this past weekend, it was the first time we've used our camper since we bought it. We had an amazing spot with a view of the lake (and we were close to the bathrooms!) This camping trip was to celebrate my Dad's 50th birthday. My parents stayed at a motel and my sister and her husband Lee stayed at a cabin. We grilled Friday night and the weather decided not to cooperate, it downpoured. Brady & I were able to move a lot of stuff inside before it started but we had our awning up and the wind caught it just right and knocked the support poles out from under it. The guys had to hold it down while it downpoured and us ladies hid out in the camper! Thank goodness the rain didn't last too long and we were able to enjoy our grilled supper. On Saturday we met some other family for a picnic, a day on the beach, and then out to eat at Jo Deans. Sunday we all enjoyed breakfast at the campground made by Brady, it was delicious! We had a fun time of jet skiing, tubing, taking walks by the lake, campfires, laying out, and just relaxing. Now that everything is unpacked, it does feel good to be home!

Dad's 50th Birthday

On July 30 my Dad turned the big "5-0" My sister & I along with our husbands had some fun sneaking into his shop and decorating the showroom. We also had a camaro cake made by "Piece of Cake" that looked pretty much identical to my Dad's '68 Camaro. He loved it! We enjoyed cake and punch at his shop over noon hour along with some other family members and some family friends. My Dad is an amazing man and he has taught me SOOO much about life. It's absolutely crazy how alike we are; we basically just understand each other no questions asked. He is the person I can go to with absolutely anything and he gives great advice. He's probably the most honest, caring, down-to-earth, hardworking person I know and I get to call him "Dad" :) I love him very much and hope God blesses him with many many more birthday's. He was a good sport about all the decorations and the sign on the hi-way that read "50 Good-Years and still rolling. Honk Darrell is 50! ":) Pphheww!

Kroeze Vacation '09

Still head over heels in love with him!

Brady & I double skiing

Getting ready to slalom

Cute!

The boys at the GoKart place

Aunt Tina feeding Karson

Uncle Brady feeding Karson

The whole Kroeze clan :)

"Sisters" :)

The 4 of us looking good.

Tina & Taylor just hanging out.

Brady slaloming, got up on the first try!

There is a hill from our cabin to down by the lake, there is this chair lift thing with a sign that says "able bodied people use stairs" I guess they weren't "able bodied" carrying that HUGE tube :)

The cabins we stayed in.

Gorgeous sunset. Simply beautiful.

Brady & Wade riding the "poparazzi"

Uncle Brady & "Tay Tay" :)

It's hard to believe that another annual vacation to Osakis, MN (near Alexandria) has come & gone. We stayed at Linwood Resort. This year was my 7th year of going on this vacation which is also hard to believe that it's been that many years already. That means I was 15 the first year I went along, crazy! I have been to 4 different resorts in the 7 years of going and every year is so much fun. This year we split up making meals for the week which turned out to work very well. Brady & I drove up on Tuesday as he had his class at USF Monday night and it was my weekend to work. We picked up Wade & Alissa in Okoboji as they were on a different vacation earlier that week. It was a lot of fun to ride up together with them. We took their Trailblazer and I don't think we had room for literally ONE more thing - it was packed to the top! The boys thought their golf clubs were a necessity...I guess I don't blame them.

We stayed in a cabin with Wes & Denise, Brent & Tracy and their two girls Taylor and Bailey, Nathan & Heather and their son Karson, and Wade & Alissa. The cabin has 4 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms so we all fit! It was so much fun to spend time with family, especially our nieces and nephew. We spent time boating, laying out by the pool, eating, more eating :), sitting by campfires, etc. It's such a relaxing week and I feel blessed to be a part of the tradition. One of the highlights of the trip was sitting around a campfire until 2:30am and making a "prediction/goal list" for next year. I think it will be fun to look back next year at our "predictions/goals" and see if any come true. There is also talk of a talent show that could be happening next year, I'm sure it would be nothing short of hilarious! Another highlight was going to Alexandria and mini golfing, riding GoKarts, and my favorite part - getting Dairy Queen afterwards! One last highlight was spending time with our nieces Taylor (3) and Bailey (17months), and our new little nephew Karson (2 months) We thank God for a fun and safe vacation and hope to enjoy many many more!

Mr. & Mrs. D'Elia

Erin with her beautiful boy Cohen

Gorgeous

Such a happy couple

It's official - Matt & Erin tied the knot at a beautiful outdoor wedding in Omaha on July 11, 2009. Erin was a stunning bride, she is beautiful inside and out! Erin is my "double cousin" (her dad is my dad's brother and her mom is my mom's sister). So needless to say we get along great. Her husband Matt is such a great guy, he is hilarious and is the perfect match for a fireball like Erin :) There miracle son Cohen was there in his little tux and was looking adorable like always. Best wishes to Matt, Erin, and Cohen!

Meet our new nephew; Karson Allan

We love you so much already little buddy!

Such a natural :)

Uncle Brady meeting Karson

Aunt Tina meeting Karson, he's a peanut!

Nathan & Heather (Kroeze) Miller were blessed with the birth of a little boy on May 23, 2009. They named him Karson Allan, he was 5lb 10oz and 19 inches long. We went up to Marshall, MN to meet him for the first time while he was still in the hospital. He is absolutely adorable and we are so proud to be his aunt & uncle. We look forward to spoiling him :) We praise God for a healthy nephew.

Psalm 139:13-14 "For You created my inmost being. You knit me together in my mother's womb. I will praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well."

Mr. & Mrs. Bosma

Troy & Laura (Kurtzleben) Bosma got married on June 6, 2009. Laura and I have been friends growing up and I was the matron of honor in her wedding. Laura was a gorgeous bride and she was so calm! It was a beautiful and elegent day. Her colors were plum and sage green. I loved the hydrangea flowers that she picked for decorations. I'm so happy for Troy & Laura as they begin their lives as a married couple.

Happy 4th of July!

This has got to be the coolest/most rainy 4th of July I ever experienced. We had fun despite the weather! Brady and I visited and stayed with Troy & Laura Bosma in Spirit Lake for a night and enjoyed seeing there new house. We also celebrated Brady & Wade's 23rd birthday by eating at Braco on the lake with Kevin & Kim Bosma, Wade & Alissa Kroeze, and Ryan & Brittany Kiel. This is the 3rd year we have gone up to the lakes over the 4th and celebrated with these friends. My favorite part of the whole trip was watching the fireworks over the lake by Arnold's park, they were beautiful. We had a great time and look forward to continuing our annual 4th of July camping trip.

"Maya Mae"

So small when we first got her, 5lbs

She fit in a Christmas stocking

My blog wouldn't be complete if I didn't include some pictures of my favorite puppy! Maya was a suprise Christmas present to me from Brady and she is a cockapoo (cocker spaniel/miniature poodle mixture). If I had to describe Maya in one word I would use the word "bold". She is adorable which is lucky for her with how naughty she is. We recently re-carpeted our master bedroom, got our living room carpets cleaned, repaired the hallway carpet, replaced the stems on my glasses, and replaced multiple rugs all thanks to Maya :) I have never met a dog that likes to chew things more than Maya does - we have not found a toy that she doesn't chew through (and eat) and she goes through raw hide bones like it's her job! We are so happy she is now fully trained and doesn't have "accidents" anymore! I really do love her and now that we bought a kennel that she sleeps in at night and stays in if no one is home with her, she is doing much better. I guess she's been a good preparation for the day we will have kids as kids are also cute but naughty and are hard on your house! Maya has a sweet personality and I love the companionship she provides.