Jane the Ballerina

(translation)
"when we are ballerinas, we go like this, like ballerinas, and we go like this...and we jump"

...or something like that :)

Birthdays & Soccer

Joey wanted a rocket party for his 6th birthday so...mama made rocket packs...




daddy made a pinate "pod"...

and finally a rocket cake to really celebrate!

and then there is soccer...whoever invented boys running outside chasing a ball and giving it a name was a genius.

we love soccer!

Happy Birthday Joey

Happy 6th Birthday Joey.

From the day you were born, you have been wide-eyed...





sweet...



and so much fun to be around.




Have a wonderful birthday and many more my sweet Joseph Zane.

First Day of School 2010

There has never been a happier bunch of boys...
off to school on their first day...

And there's never been a weepier mama watching the youngest boy go off to Kindergarten.

At least there is one mischievous girl at home to be with...ahhh Jane...nothing makes her more happy than stuffing every opening in every machine with DVDs, money or paper. Must...come...up...with...things...to...keep...her...out...of...trouble!

Poetzl Nation

The Poetzl Nation Summer 2010





























































We are blessed.

Under Construction

We were blessed to buy a new construction home 1 year ago, but it came with a huge hill in the backyard which, though it was a great hill to play "mountain warrior" on or great for sledding the 1 day we had snow, took up the whole yard.
So...some wonderful people from Stanwood Foursquare took time from work, sacrificed dinner at home a few nites to come and help us.Tim got to "dig in"...
A beautiful rock wall was built by the amazing claws on the bulldozer Jeff Lervick used...
Tim & Jane worked very hard...
Jeff donated his machines and his time to come build this "great" wall...
And our yard is now ready for grass! THANK YOU Jeff & all those who helped with the fence & yard!
YOU ROCK!

Good Behavior

We had the opportunity to go to the opening ceremony of the new Stanwood Camano Rotary Park last weekend and it was truly amazing to see how 1000 volunteers could turn a grassy knoll into an amazing park with a pirate ship & two sets of swings! The kiddos were in heaven. We as a family decided to try and help contribute to the cost of building such a park and so we purchased a fence picket and lo & behold, our names were inscribed for all to see!

Auntie Greta made it down on her way to Seattle too and somehow, the kiddos are always on their best behavior when their Auntie comes to town. Smiles, smiles & more smiles.
And Joey's year of preschool came to an end with a rousing finale concert where he sang his little heart out. Funny how he never sings like that when I ask him to!
What a fun weekend!

Happy Mother's Day

Ben and I had the privilege of singing a duet for Mother's Day at SFC on Sunday. This, along with the sweet present Joey made me at preschool and the yummy breakfast at the Duck Inn in Stanwood made for a very good Mother's Day indeed.

P.S. Thank you my mom for always singing and for always trying to get me to sing with her...this is for you.

A Picture is Worth A Thousand Words

There is something to be said for the phrase "A picture is worth a thousand words". My sister in law Jenny http://www.jenniferleeimages.com is starting a business taking pictures and I love how she captures personalities as well as amazing photos of my kids.

I love taking pictures because I think it makes me feel like I'm a part of something bigger than myself and I can look back at photos to reassure myself, I truly am.

We made it to the tulip festival for the first time in all the years I've lived in Washington (5 years now). And it was actually better than I expected! Really fun for the kids and I let Joey take some pictures and he took some of the best ones.


We've also started baseball around here and suddenly I'm one of "those" moms...the soccer mom who is driving from practice to practice trying to figure out the best way to have dinner "together" (in the car with take out or shoving in our faces 5 minutes before bedtime!).



All in all, I feel like my life is priceless and I have the pictures to prove it.

Oh Canada!

We are up in Nelson BC visiting my parents and my sister is educating all of us in Canadian culture. Hence, the pure maple syrup in snow to make maple snow popsicles.

And so I'm offering this simple phrase,
To kids from one to ninety-two,
Although its been said many times, many ways,
Happy New Year, to you.