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| Rock the Lakes! |
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| Charlie Daniels Band |
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| Mom and the kids |
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| Franklin Graham (Billy Graham's son) |
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| Dad and the kids |
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| Listening to music |
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| Caleb doing a silly dance |
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| Michael W. Smith |
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| Listening to music |
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| MWS! |
Sunday, August 21, 2011
Rock the Lakes Milwaukee
Rock the Lakes Milwaukee was a fun and free event that we went to. We parked at Tim's work in downtown Milwaukee and walked over to Veteran's Park from there, right along Lake Michigan. The weather was absolutely perfect for an afternoon/night filled will laughter and good, Christian music. We even treated ourselves to some funnel cake for dessert! There was a man and his family sitting near us that kept our kids pretty entertained. He had a little ball and was playing catch with them and hiding the ball in his pocket. I'm so glad he was there otherwise Sonya would've been running off! As the event was wrapping up, we left a few minutes early to try and beat the rush out of there. With stars just started to light up the sky and Michael W. Smith playing in the distance, the walk back to the car was just as pleasant as our evening.
Saturday, August 20, 2011
Maritime Heritage Festival
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| Pride of Baltimore II |
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| Niagara |
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| Friends Good Will in the distance |
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| Caleb by the lake |
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| Daddy and Caleb |
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| Posing in front of the ship |
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| Sonya looking out over the lake |
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| Walking with mommy - purse in hand! |
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| Doesn't she look all grown up? |
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| She just cracks me up! |
Monday, August 8, 2011
Around town and Lake Geneva
Saturday - around Port Washington
Tim's aunt and uncle from Green Bay came down with their two kids to spend the day with us. We had initially planned to go to the Ozaukee County Fair, but it was pretty warm out and some of us weren't quite up to walking that much either. So we ended up sticking around Port Washington and giving a little tour of our quaint town. After showing off our new house, our first stop was Tello's for lunch. (p.s. The spanakopita was really good! -- spinach and feta in a filo crust -- yum!) I think everyone enjoyed their meals. We decided to take a short walk down to the marina and on our way back to our cars, we stopped at the Chocolate Chisel for ice cream.
The Possibility Playground was our next stop. Tim's cousins had never been there. They actually had the water mist going -- the kids all had fun getting wet. Sonya was wearing her hat backwards and kept sticking her fingers over the spout where the water came out. From the bluff, Lake Michigan looked so clear so headed down to the beach until it was time to go home. I think we were all pretty exhausted by the end of the day - especially Sonya who didn't get a nap in at all. All in all, it was a fun and relaxing time with relatives.
Sunday - in Lake Geneva
After church, we took a road trip to Lake Geneva. I had to meet my friend, Liz, who is getting married in September. She had picked up my bridesmaid dress from the bridal shop near her and we met half way so I could get it from her. We met up at Walmart in Lake Geneva and did some perusing since the rain was still making up its mind on whether or not it wanted to come down or just stop altogether. Since it was only sprinkling here and there, we drove to Big Foot Beach State Park where the boys did some swimming and the girls chatted while eating grapes. We walked around a little bit - watched the fish in the lagoon, walked over the bridge, got bit by the mosquitoes, and then took a drive along the lake. We ended up eating at Culvers -- one of the more reasonably priced and kid friendly places there. It's always nice to see Liz and act goofy together. :-) Lake Geneva was such a cute little town that we'll definitely have to visit again.
Tim's aunt and uncle from Green Bay came down with their two kids to spend the day with us. We had initially planned to go to the Ozaukee County Fair, but it was pretty warm out and some of us weren't quite up to walking that much either. So we ended up sticking around Port Washington and giving a little tour of our quaint town. After showing off our new house, our first stop was Tello's for lunch. (p.s. The spanakopita was really good! -- spinach and feta in a filo crust -- yum!) I think everyone enjoyed their meals. We decided to take a short walk down to the marina and on our way back to our cars, we stopped at the Chocolate Chisel for ice cream.
The Possibility Playground was our next stop. Tim's cousins had never been there. They actually had the water mist going -- the kids all had fun getting wet. Sonya was wearing her hat backwards and kept sticking her fingers over the spout where the water came out. From the bluff, Lake Michigan looked so clear so headed down to the beach until it was time to go home. I think we were all pretty exhausted by the end of the day - especially Sonya who didn't get a nap in at all. All in all, it was a fun and relaxing time with relatives.
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| Caleb, Hana, Erin, and Sonya |
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| Sonya liked the cool mist |
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| Digging in the sand |
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| Posing by the water |
Sunday - in Lake Geneva
After church, we took a road trip to Lake Geneva. I had to meet my friend, Liz, who is getting married in September. She had picked up my bridesmaid dress from the bridal shop near her and we met half way so I could get it from her. We met up at Walmart in Lake Geneva and did some perusing since the rain was still making up its mind on whether or not it wanted to come down or just stop altogether. Since it was only sprinkling here and there, we drove to Big Foot Beach State Park where the boys did some swimming and the girls chatted while eating grapes. We walked around a little bit - watched the fish in the lagoon, walked over the bridge, got bit by the mosquitoes, and then took a drive along the lake. We ended up eating at Culvers -- one of the more reasonably priced and kid friendly places there. It's always nice to see Liz and act goofy together. :-) Lake Geneva was such a cute little town that we'll definitely have to visit again.
Monday, August 1, 2011
Making Blog Changes
Hello everyone --
I've been working on a few changes to my blogs to try and make it a little easier on keeping track of things and to separate posts about my family vs. my personal thoughts. There are tabs on each blog homepage so you can go from one to the other without having to remember each URL.
Note that the URL for Grace Like Rain has changed! Sorry if I've caused any confusion. Enjoy reading!
-Michelle
I've been working on a few changes to my blogs to try and make it a little easier on keeping track of things and to separate posts about my family vs. my personal thoughts. There are tabs on each blog homepage so you can go from one to the other without having to remember each URL.
Family Blog (Like a Sunflower)
-- http://thenikolaifamily.blogspot.com --
This blog will solely be for documenting anything family related such as trips, milestones, funny stories about our day, etc. Recently, I've been adding posts from earlier months and post dating them so they're in order. So be sure to check the archives for new ones!
My Story (Grace Like Rain)
-- http://nikolaigracelikerain.blogspot.com --
This blog is where I've been sharing my testimony of faith. Some of the information is extremely personal so the blog is private. If you're interested in reading and would like an invite, please send me a message with your name and email address or leave a comment with that information. I'd appreciate that any information shared in this blog remain private. Thanks!
Personal Thoughts (Personal Thoughts)
-- http://nikolaipersonalthoughts.blogspot.com --
This is a new blog where I'll be posting my personal thoughts. I just changed the privacy settings so that it is open to the public. It's a place where I plan to share what's going on in my mind - faith, dreams, goals, questions, answers, passions, feelings, recipes, and whatever else that I think up. This will be a safe place to share my ideas. Feel free to leave a comment -- they encourage me to continue writing. :-)Note that the URL for Grace Like Rain has changed! Sorry if I've caused any confusion. Enjoy reading!
-Michelle
Saturday, July 30, 2011
Visiting the Villa Loretto
Great Grandma Pauly lives in the assisted living at Villa Rosa (an extension off of the nursing home, Villa Loretto, where Grandma Pauly works as an RN). The facility is run by nuns and one of them, Sister Steven, has a passion for animals. So she created a working ranch that has expanded greatly over the years. So whenever we go to visit Great Grandma, we usually have to see the animals too!
Once we got back to the Pauly house, we played Uncle Wiggly and Chutes and Ladders while Grandpa grilled some hamburgers, peppers, and zucchini. It was delicious! So was the cherry/raspberry cheese torte that we had for dessert. After lunch, we played Wii bowling and took a few photos with Great Grandma. These were the ones that turned out the best:
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| Search for fish |
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| On the bridge |
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| Great Grandma Pauly with Grandpa Pauly |
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| Caleb with the pig |
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| Goats |
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| A very pregnant donkey |
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| Grandma Pauly and Sonya |
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| Llamas |
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| Family |
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| Grandpa Pauly and Caleb |
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| Sheep |
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| Walking with Sonya |
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| Switching hands |
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| Ever seen a "naked" llama? They sheared this one |
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| Donkey |
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| Llama coming to say "hello" |
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| He's very photogenic |
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| Emu |
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| Llamas again |
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| Getting a ride from Grandpa |
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| Shadows |
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| Walking along the fence |
Did I mention that Caleb has an obsession with cars yet? Well, that along with garages. He loves being able to ride in other people's vehicles. This time, he got to go in Grandma and Grandpa's van. He was THRILLED!
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| Caleb was excited to ride in Grandpa's van |
Once we got back to the Pauly house, we played Uncle Wiggly and Chutes and Ladders while Grandpa grilled some hamburgers, peppers, and zucchini. It was delicious! So was the cherry/raspberry cheese torte that we had for dessert. After lunch, we played Wii bowling and took a few photos with Great Grandma. These were the ones that turned out the best:
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| Three generations photo |
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| The kids sitting with Great Grandma Pauly |
Wednesday, July 13, 2011
Sonya: A doctor in the making?
Sonya loves to carry the medical kit bag around the house. She even knows how to put the stethoscope on... well, kind of. It's pretty funny how she carries the bag like it's a purse sometimes and says, "Buh-bye" to all of us like she's leaving to go somewhere. I love my little doctor.
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