Hope's 6th Month Doctor's Appointment

Hope had her 6th month doctor's appointment today (she turned 6 months last Thursday), and boy has she grown! She currently weighs 16 pounds 3 and a half ounces and is 25 inches long. That puts her in about the 50th percentile for weight and the 25th percentile for height as compared to other 6 month olds. Looking at Hope today, you would never know that she was 2 months early or less than 5 pounds at birth.

She is now eating oatmeal each day and has also tried peas once. She is working really hard at sitting up and loves to stand on her legs and show off her muscles. Hope is able to roll from her back to her front, but hasn't yet tried to roll from her front to her back. Her arm muscles aren't quite as strong as her leg muscles, so she needs to use them more in order to build up her arm strength. Hope has taken her first boat ride this summer and has also had her first taste of ice cream. Thanks for checking in on us! We hope you are all enjoying your summer as much as we are!!!

Fun in the Water

After learning to kneeboard on Sunday, Ryann and Camden decided that Monday would be a great day to try waterskiing. This time Grandpa Deuel had a camera ready for us to use. We hope you enjoy these pictures of our two oldest water lovers.

Another Great Day at the Lake

We spent some time at Clifford Lake again this weekend. With temperatures in the 90 degree range, the water felt great! We played a lot of water volleyball, did a lot of swimming, and the Deuel kids experienced some "firsts". Camden and Ryann both learned to kneeboard this weekend and did a great job. They were both exhausted after their trips around the lake, but are both looking forward to the next time they go. Hope took her first ride on the pontoon and really enjoyed hanging out with her Aunt Jody during the ride. I wish we had pictures of these big events to show you, but Brent' s camera is in Africa on a hunting safari with his brother Brian and our nephew Kyle. Brent is definitely suffering camera withdrawal and is already planning on making up for lost time when he gets his camera back later this week. We hope that all of you had a great weekend!

4th of July Weekend

We had a wonderful 4th of July weekend at Clifford Lake with Brent's family. We always have a lot of fun at the lake, especially during 4th of July weekend. Our 5 days there were filled with hanging out in the sun, swimming in the lake, tubing, playing cards and other games, eating (way too much!), fishing (Ryann's most favorite thing to do at the lake!) hot tubbing (Camden's favorite lake activity), bonfires (with s'mores) and lots of fireworks (great firework display dad and Uncle Randy!)! We also participated in the annual pontoon parade. This year's theme was "Children's Books". Ryann came up with the idea to use Clifford the big red dog and create "Clifford and Friends Visit Clifford Lake". We ended up taking 3rd place in the competition, and we had a lot of fun working together to transform the pontoon into a children's book.

Ryann Goes to College

Ryann had the chance to become a Michigan State Spartan for three days at the end of June. She attended "Grandparents University" with her Grandma Bogart. While at MSU, she experienced dorm life and attended several classes. Ryann lived in McDonnel Hall while on campus and loved it! She especially loved the cafeteria and having so many things to choose from at meal time. The desserts, chocolate milk and fountain pop were her favorites. The classes she attended were all science related. She learned how ice cream is made (she also got to make some on her own) and had a chance to milk a cow and put her hand in a cow's stomach (she passed on both of these opportunities and instead watched Grandma do them). One night they went to the MSU planetarium and learned a lot about the solar system. This was her favorite class. Ryann absolutely loved the entire experience of being a Spartan. It was fun to hear her talk about all that she did and all that she saw. Thanks Grandma Bogart for giving her such a great experience!!!