After our Puppet practice at church yesterday, we played on a computer with a fun camera. I thought this shot was pretty cool! Kendra had such a blast seeing the funny faces! She also had a blast again at our puppet practice. She was dancing while sitting in her seat watching. It was so cute! I love hearing her sing too. She sings Jesus Loves Me now too, and it is so cute. We start our puppet ministry at church this Sunday...yea! We are so excited. We have a great group of teens to work with too.

NEW BLOG ADDRESS!

Our blog is too full so our new address is www.wentzelweekly2.blogspot.com

She Did It!!!!!!!

Well, our first day of Potty Training didn't go so badly...Praise God! Thank you to all of you who cheered me on today, and prayed for us too. No, the day is not done yet, but she has already done so well. She officially went both pee pees and poo poos today on the potty! Yea! She even understands enough now to tell me when she has to go. I was so excited after she went poo poo that I think I scared her:)! She wanted the door shut until she was done which I thought was so cute too.
She got 4 M&Ms after her poo poos, and two stickers on her chart. WOW!

What a day! Oh, she even woke up from her nap dry. I was so surprised at that. The book I read to help me in training her is called Potty Wise for all you moms who want to know what method we are using.:) It has worked well so far. She has a cup full of M&Ms in clear sight. Notice the picture I included of them as well as her enjoying eating them after her big poo poo! What a big girl!!! Mommy is so proud of you, Kendra Grace.

ICE CREAM TREAT!

Last night we all went out to Brusters for ice cream because Kendra always gets a free one, and we had a free coupon for one as well, so we decided to go have a special treat! She wanted to wear her pink cowgirl boots, so we brought the camera for fun. We got some of the cutest pictures of her in some construction near by. We will be photoshopping those a bit, and I will post them later:)!
Anyways, here are some pics from last night. Today is the official start of potty training Kendra. She is still sleeping which allows for me to pray a bit more!:) lol


POTTY UPDATE: It is 9:30 and we are still dry in our Big Girl Panties:)!!!! Nothing on the potty yet, but hopefully soon!:)

Potty Training Day #1

Well, I have decided to try and start potty training Kendra. She has many of the ready signs, so here we go. Today we started with her puppy. She has her own puppy big girl panties and everything. Kendra has been having fun "teaching" puppy how to go on the big girl potty today. Tomorrow is Kendra's big day!

We went out yesterday and got all the essentials:)! The library for some potty books, and a potty video. Target for her Big Girl panties. She chose Happy Feet, Dora, and Curious George. She is very excited about them...so far:)! We shall see how it goes tomorrow. We got some M&Ms too. She asked for those all day yesterday, but they are waiting for her to go on the big girl potty tomorrow:). She also has her own Potty Sticker Chart we made today. She painted it while I drew the lines for the stickers. Puppy already got some M&M stickers on the chart today.

Then while we were at Target yesterday, we always look at the shoes just for fun, and to see what is cheap (if any). I have had my eye on some pink cowboy boots for Kendra for a while, but didn't want to spend $15. Yesterday we found them for $3 on clearance!!!!! So, she had fun wearing them around the house today too. I just love them...so cute! Now I just need to find a cute cowboy hat that matches or an outfit! lol But only if I find it for a bargain like the boots!


oh, and for those of you who do not know what happened to Kendra's forehead. She fell at "Aunt Lindsay's house and bonked her head" as she would say:)! It is healing up just great though.

Water Baby!

Here they are:)! My fear is now that everytime we go downtown Kendra will want to dive in! LOL She had so much fun! I think everyone downtown thought we were crazy, but oh, well!:)

What a memory, and what a special time that was for Kendra with Ma-mu and Gampu!:) She was soaked, but had such a blast!

WOW!

Kendra has had so much fun with her "Gampa"! I love this shot of them with the surprised look on their faces. We were downtown, and they were talking about seeing the water, and splashing Grandpa! She just couldn't wait to splash and play in the water...those pics are coming soon!:)

Falls Park

Chris is such a great photographer!! Look at this shot he took the other night downtown. WOW!!

"Ga-mu's" Glasses!

We all went downtown the other night to eat at Sticky Fingers, and while we were waiting for our food Kendra was very curious about Grandma's glasses. So Grandma let her try them on. What a riot:)!! She sure does love her Grandma!

We Are Blessed!

We have so enjoyed having "Ma mu", and "Gampa" here with us. Chris took some new shots of them yesterday that turned out just great! I will post a couple right now, and put more on later once they are edited. These are prior to editing etc. But I knew you all would like a sneak peek!!!:) I am definitely wanting to turn some of them Sepia tone. I just love that!

We love you so much, and are so glad you stayed here with us for a few days. Kendra really loves you both so much too! We are truly blessed to have you in our lives.

This is Hilarious!

Elle is 3 Days Old Already!

Elle has her first doctor appointment today at 4:00! We all got to go see her again this morning, and enjoyed holding and cuddling her so much! She was sun bathing on the couch when we got there, and I thought she was a doll, really!! She is so tiny! And so "precious" as Kendra would say.

Kendra and Evan were "petting her" too. It was so cute:). I absolutely love the picture we got with the three girls! I caught Cindy laughing while holding Elle too (I love that shot as well).

Thought you all would like to see some new pictures. Everything is going great! Lindsay even wants to go downtown tonight to walk around and go to dinner...WOW! She is doing so well!

Love this Shot!

Wow, does she look like her parents:)! I really see Matt alot, but she is definitely a combination of both Matt and Lindsay! What a cutie!

The glow of a new mom's face is so special to me! I always say, "You have no idea how in love you are going to be until you hold your own child for the first time!!!" What a miracle new life is. One of my favorite verses is, Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you! I can't remember the reference off the top of my head, but I love that verse.

Lindsay, you were glowing today! You did a great job, and will continue to be a great mom to Elle! We love you so much!

Love this Picture!

There is nothing like a good daddy/daughter shot!:) LOVE IT!!! She will cherish that picture someday!

Matt, you are already doing a great job being a new daddy! I was very impressed with you and the way you helped Lindsay out so much, and even changed some diapers already today! Good job!!!
We love you so much!

Kendra's New Cousin!

I was able to hold Elle for a bit today which was so wonderful! After a few minutes though, Kendra, was wanting me to hold her:) (as you can see on her face in the picture). Then on the way home from the hospital, Kendra crashed! She was out an hour before her usual nap. Like Grandma Wentzel said, "It is hard work being a new cousin:)"!!

She's Here!!

ELLE RAIN WENTZEL

Friday, July 13th, 7:50 am
6 pounds 9 ounces, 20 inches long

What a cutie! Full head of blonde hair (of course:)), and just a cute little peanut! Both mama and baby (and daddy) are doing great! Praise God!!!!

I will post more pictures later!

Elle's coming SOON!!!

I loaded the pictures smaller so I could load them all quicker for you guys, but if you click on them you will see them large!!:)














Well, here are the pictures we promised:). Kendra is finally in bed, and I have a second to blog them. What an eventful night! Lindsay is doing so well! When we left she was flying high on her sleeping pill, so she was smiling again which was nice! Matt was his usual self...cracking us up:). When he came back to the waiting room to tell us about what the doctor did, we were all cracking up. Oh, the guys point of view...what a riot! For those of you who don't know what he said, you will have to ask me later:).

Kendra had fun playing with Paeton, and even wanted to "go night night" for pretend in Aunt Lindsay's bed while they were getting her ready. Lindsay was so cute as they were wheeling her to her delivery room smiling as we were telling her, "She's gonna have a baby!!" When we left, I think Matt was wishing for one of those sleeping pills too:)! LOL

We are all praying for a safe and healthy delivery! We love you guys!

Oh, yeah, by the way, when you post your comment post your best guess for time of birth and weight of little Elle! Chris says, "7:20am, and weigh 7 pounds 10-13 oz. I say, "6:47 and weigh 7 pounds 2 oz.

Kid's Commandment #4-5

A Child's Ten Commandments to Parents...#4-5

#4.: My feelings are tender; please be sensitive to my needs; don't nag me all day long. (You wouldn't want to be nagged for your inquisitiveness.) Treat me as you would like to be treated.

#5: I am a special gift from God; please treasure me as God intended you to do, holding me accountable for my actions, giving me guidelines to live by, and disciplining me in a loving manner.

*From the book called, First-Time Mom by Dr. Kevin Leman

"Make it all Better!"

While Kendra was playing this morning, she she fell and hit her nose on the edge of our coffee table. She fell and hit her ear last night on our window molding, so she has been bruising herself up pretty good the last couple of days. She gets so excited playing with daddy (hide & seek) that sometimes while running she wipes out of course.

I thought I would take a picture of her wound today for me to journal. Let me just say that a Dora popsicle makes it all better:)!!!

Kid's Commandment #2-3

The personality that I have often times can look like this comic. Oh, Lord, help me:)! Chris is so good for me in this area because he always finds the good in things, and is teaching me to do the same! Thank goodness, God is not finished with me yet:)!!

Here are two new kid's commandments for today!

#2.: My eyes have not seen the world as yours have; please let me explore safely; don't restrict me unnecessarily.

#3.: Housework will always be there. I'm only little for such a short time-please take time to explain things to me about this wonderful world, and do so willingly.


One of my favorite simple quotes I learned in college was, "People are more important than Things!" That is one thing I try to practice in my life. I am learning to drop whatever I am doing if Kendra needs me because I know she is only going to be this little for a short while!

Pictures for Chris:)!

Chris was wondering why I didn't post any pics of the boys doing the fireworks, and I didn't remember even taking them:). Well, I found them on the other camera, and so I am posting them now. Better late than never, I guess.:) I only took a couple, but there is video of the show they put on that maybe we can post later.

Chris and Matt had so much fun giving us our own fireworks show at home. It was so nice just hanging out, and they had fun shooting them off too.

Our House!

Here are some shots of our great room (almost done)! I actually just found the berry garland at Hobby Lobby yesterday half off, so that is a cute little addition. This at least gives you all an idea of what we have done so far. The chandelier in the dining area is next to go. I really don't like that at all. I found one that goes perfectly at Home Depot once funds are available:)! I also snapped a quick picture of Kendra's bathroom. Needs to be painted still, but at least you can see her theme in there. And the screened in porch is such a nice thing to have too. We love having that!

Kendra's room is next to be finished (today hopefully) so I will have shots up of that next. Then, we have to finish painting our bedroom next.

So, Leah, I posted some even if it is all not done yet (just for you:))! More to come soon!!:)

"A Child's Ten Commandments to Parents" #1

The book I am reading right now is great! At the end of the book, Leman had "A Child's Ten Commandments To Parents", and I thought they were great, so I am going to share them one day at a time. That way it gives you all something to look forward to everyday.

#1: My hands are small; please don't expect perfection whenever I make a bed, draw a picture, or throw a ball. My legs are short; please slow down so I can keep up with you.

Lord, help us be the parents YOU have called us to be...guide me in Your Truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior, and my hope is in you all day long! Psalm 25:5

Where Does the Time Go???

I was going through Kendra's baby pictures (trying to organize for scrapbooking), and came across her 7 week old baby pictures. Wow! Where does the time go? I cannot believe how fast it goes by, but I remember this day so well. She did so well for her first professional picture shoot. I think I bought every pose (and so did my mom). We crack up now at ourselves with all those pictures. But, I must say, I am glad we have them, and don't wish we would've taken more:)!! They grow up way too fast!

The other picture is another one from Kendra's two year photo shoot we did. One of her favorite things to do is say, "hold, hold, hold" when she sees something she likes or wants to hold. I was getting her to smile by using one of her favorite play bugs and sticking it in the flowers we used for the pictures. She was laughing, and asking to hold it too:)!

Monkey Joes!

Chris and I took Kendra to Monkey Joes on Saturday before we had to go to film our wedding. What a blast!! Chris got Kendra a free jump pass, so it didn't cost us anything to take her either which is always a plus:). I think it is a chain, so if you go online you could see if there is one near you. It is such a fun place for kids and adults! Chris and I had fun climbing and sliding too.

Kendra was sliding down slides by herself that took my stomach away. She amazes all at how brave she is for her age. She did love to hang out in the 3 and under inflatable too though, so she is still my "baby" :) lol!

"Let's Go Fly a Kite!"

We tried to fly Kendra's new kite from Uncle Matt and Aunt Lindsay yesterday afternoon when Kendra got up from her nap. I say try because it got caught in a tree:)! Chris had it up really high, but wouldn't you know it, the wind died down, and crash into the tree! "Oh, no!!" was all Kendra was saying. Daddy got it out (of our neighbors tree):), and we decided to wait another day to try that again. Next time we need to go to an open field:)!! LOL

It was fun anyways!

First Fishing Trip!

We took Kendra out for her first real fishing experience last night. And wouldn't you know it, my camera battery died as she was reeling in her very first fish!!! All we could do is laugh, and say, "Oh, well, we'll get it next time!" The last picture I took is of Chris and her reeling it in. It was a little baby bass. So we told her she caught her first bass, and that was all she kept on talking about...her bass! So cute! She even "pet" the fish!:) (With a huge smile on her face too!) What a kid!

I have been learning our camera more and more, and I will put two different pictures on here that are the same shot, but look at the difference. Pretty cool what you can do once you learn the camera:)! Chris is still teaching me a lot, but I was pretty proud of myself, and the cool shot I got of Chris and Kendra with the sunset.

Hopefully next fishing trip I will remember the extra battery so we can get shots of her fish!:) lol

Our New Dog!

My sister, Caryl's dog, Eden, is living with us for a "trial run" as she calls it:). She was thinking about getting rid of her because she is just so busy etc., and we just didn't want that!! So, she is our new dog if Aunt Caryl can stand that:). Even if it is just for now, we are enjoying her so much!

Today she went for a walk with Kendra and I. She played outside, and loves getting brushed, and of course her special new doggie treats Kendra picked out just for her.

Thanks, Aunt Caryl, for our new friend! We love her:)!

Aunt Lindsay's Surprise!:)

I gave Matt & Lindsay their present last night from all of us, and they LOVED it!! What a great surprise:)! They said, Thank you so much!

4th of July Party!

We had such a fun 4th Party! Kendra had her little friend, Haley, come so that was great! They play so nice together! Haley got Kendra a new Dora sprinkler for her birthday, so they had fun running through that together! Then, they played in the pool, and filled it up together. Uncle Matt kept bending the hose to stop the water, and they had so much fun with that!

We were all cracking up as the girls would stick their face in front of the hose looking down wondering where the water went to, and then Matt would release the water, and "Swoosh!!" They were spraying each other, and basically entertaining all us adults:)!! It was great! I should've snapped a picture of each adult cracking up at the girls! That would've been great!

The guys had a blast with the fireworks (Chris is hoping to post some video)! It is amazing how nice they were! They did a great job!! Chris did some "snakes" with the girls which they loved too! We will just have to post some video (in our spare time, ha ha!!:))

We had some great food! Thanks, mom, for making the best potato salad there is :), pasta salad, baked beans, thanks, Ashley for the great fruit salad, and thanks Aunt Lindsay for the yummy dessert!! We also had to have some SMORES!! CAUSE A PARTY JUST ISN'T COMPLETE WITHOUT CHOCOLATE:)!!!

Kendra's 2 Year Photo Shoot

Chris and I did Kendra's two year pictures today ourselves. It is so nice to do our own photo shoots now! I will be printing some, and make sure you all get a new picture really soon! Here are just a couple of our favorites from today.

I picked some flowers from our yard to use in the shoot, and she had so much fun smelling, looking, and then tearing them apart:)! She must've worked up quite the appetite having her pictures done because after we were finished she wanted one of her favorite snacks...BANANA! I had to get a shot of her enjoying that too:)!

Let me know your favorite shot, and I will have them to you all soon!

We love you all!

Wanna Be Like Daddy!!

Kendra was cracking us up yesterday wanting to prance around the house in Daddy's jeans. She was in the bedroom trying to put them on herself, but then decided to call to us for help:). So, Daddy showed her how to hold them up by the pockets, and she ran around falling into everything giggling the whole time. I should've had the video camera, but sometimes the digital is easier to grab quick:).

Looking at these pictures reminded me of the song by Philips Craig and Dean...
I want to be like HIM, cause she wants to be like me! I love that song! ( I know it is he wants to be like me, but I had to change it up:))!

Family Weekend!!

It has been so nice to not have to film a wedding this weekend! We blocked this weekend off for the family reunion in MI, but we had the wrong date:). So, we still kept it open to just be able to spend time with family. It has been great!

We went out last night with Matt and Lindsay to Olive Garden, and then to Brusters for some yummy ice cream. Matt was riding Kendra's new fish while we were at the house too. He was almost as fast as Kendra:)!!

Today we went to pick up a Little Tikes Kitchen set for Kendra with her money from Grandma and Grandpa Wentzel for her birthday! I found it on my favorite site (yes, Craigslist:))!!! She just loves it! I am so glad we could find one for a good deal for her. Thank you so much, Grandpa & Grandma!

Tonight we are going to go see Ratatouille with her. We are looking forward to that too. It has just been a blessing to spend time with family!

Oh, and the other picture is from last night before Kendra went to bed. She wanted to sit with me while the Hello Kitty innertube was wrapped around us. She is so funny:).

"Fishing" with Daddy!

Last night we took a break from work, and took Kendra out for a "special treat" to Brusters for ice cream. They have a neat thing they do there for kids under a certain height. FREE ICE CREAM with sprinkles and eyes. So the whole way there Kendra was saying, "Special treat with sprinkles and eyes!!" She is talking so much now it amazes us! She reached two, and says words we didn't even know she knew. She surprises us every day with more words!

Last night it was, "Air, please, daddy", and "Fireworks", and "Napkin, please"! She was asking for the air conditioner to be turned on in the car b/c she was hot. Then before we left we were talking about going to get fireworks for our 4th BBQ, and she must've overheard us, so on the way to get ice cream all of a sudden she said, "fireworks, too!" :) And then as we were eating dinner she said, "Napkin, please!" So her vocabulary is growing faster than we can even keep track of! She is doing well!!

But before we even left, she wanted to open her special birthday present that Daddy got her (her very own princess fishing pole). She had been waiting for daddy to open it with her. So they went out in the front yard and went fishing. Kendra did very well for her first time! She would reel in all by herself, and even tried to cast alone. "WATCH OUT, DADDY!!!!":) lol
We are planning on taking her out to the lake this weekend for some real fishing!!!

Oh, mommy tried once with her too, and I got it caught in the tree...that is what she is pointing at:)! Daddy got it out though! "Good job, Daddy!"

Playing at the Park!

We went to the park with Hannah and Devon today, and had so much fun. Hannah is such a cutie! She was in such a happy mood. I loved snapping some new pictures of her today too. That is in between making sure Kendra didn't slip and fall as she was climbing everything!!! She loved this playground! She kept hanging from the bar (too high off the ground for my comfort) while saying "I'm a monkey!" It was so funny. Aunt Devon kept giving her big high fives for being such a brave girl:). Yes, Kendra has very few fears:).

Then she found a huge stick that she was so proud of finding saying, "LOOK, LOOK!!!". It was bigger than her:). She also was very excited about wearing her tennis shoes so sand didn't get in them today. She kept pointing to them, and telling Aunt Devon that she was wearing "Nike shoes!"

Thanks for playing today, Devon and Hannah! We love you both so much!! We hope you have a nice vacation.

Birthday Shirt!

Kendra got so many cute clothes for her birthday! The video last night showed one (from Aunt Lindsay & Uncle Matt), and this one today is from Nana & Papi! I think I love new clothes for Kendra more than myself now:)! It is so fun! Thanks again everyone for all the cute new clothes, and jammies.

We went to the zoo today, and the camera had a dead battery which I didn't realize until we got there, so I will have to take it on our next zoo trip. We are planning a family weekend this weekend since we don't have a wedding for once...Yea! So maybe we will all go together then.

Kendra's favorite thing to do today at the zoo was run through the mist. Her hair was dripping when I finally pulled her away from it:). She kept running through it giggling, and was also covering the hole with her finger where the water comes out cracking herself up:)! It was cute. Wish I had my camera. Next time:)!

Presents from the north! No not Santa!

Kendra absolutely loved all of her toys that she got from you guys! She was more worried about her new "geckos" than the money for her new swing set that I am going to build for her. We wish you guys could have been here for her party but we know the distance makes that a little bit difficult. Next years reunion is the same weekend as her birthday so we will get to spend the next birthday in Michigan. Thanks again for all of her toys and as you can see in her video she had a ton of fun opening them up. We love you guys!




P.S. As some of you don't know and can see in the video I work at pizza hut whenever I am able, delivering pizzas.

Kendra's 2 Year Party!!!

Wow! What a celebration we had!

HIGHLIGHTS!

14 adults, and 4 kids ranging from 7 months to 4 years old, oh, correction (as Matt reminded me:)), 5 kids ranging from 0- 4 years old. Sorry, baby Elle! I cannot wait to see what you look like!!:) She will be here so soon!!! yea!

Kendra jumping into her pool fully clothed ready for her party. Hair was curled, cute outfit on, and ready to go. She decided she needed to cool down, so she dove right in:).

Posing for Chris after she jumped into her pool for pictures:).

Her eyebrows after I pulled her wet shirt off:)lol (I had to get a picture of that:))

Her water logged diaper...wow! can those diapers hold a lot of water!

The craziness of having 14 adults over, and 4 kids ranging from 7 months old up to 4 years!

All her many special presents!! Dora Magical Castle, Thomas the Train set, Ride on Fishy, Dora beach towel(that she thought was a blanket so she laid down on the floor, covered herself up, and said, "night, night"), Dora bath toys, Princess Tea set, Shrek Kite, tons of cute clothes!, and much more! Thanks Uncle Matt, for putting her train and castle together!! Thanks to all of you for sharing so much!

Sharing so nicely with her friends, Claire and Molly! She even let them help her open her presents! Thank you, Lord, for such a sweet and kind little girl!

Blowing her first birthday candles out!

All 14 of us wearing our birthday hats while singing Happy Birthday to her while she was telling all of us that she is "2"!

And the highlight for Chris and I was when we were tucking Kendra into bed last night. We always pray with her, and lately she has been repeating after us each night (which we just love to hear)! Last night she surprised us by throwing in her own addition to the prayer. We were praying right along with Dear Jesus, thank you for my party, and for Your love, and she said, "and cake too!!!" lol Chris was laughing so hard his whole body was shaking:)! I was trying to hold it together and finish the prayer. So, I guess she LOVED her cake:)! We were just so blessed to hear her thank God for her cake all on her own:)! Those are just the things I wish we had on video.

Speaking of video...chris is hoping to throw one together so you can see footage from her day too.

Thank you so much to all of you for sharing in her special day with us. We love you all so much!

Her First Birthday Present

On Kendra's real birthday (Saturday) we gave her one of her special presents. It was a My Little Pony set where the "mama pony" (as Kendra calls her:) eyes blink, and her horn and gown light up. She loves playing with them. She combs their hair, puts on her fancy shoes, and loves to push the star to make her light up. How fun!

Kendra Grace,

It is so hard to believe you are already two. It seems like time just goes by so much faster now that you are here with us. You are such a precious part of our lives and we love you so much!