She melts my heart when she smiles and laughs.


She is in the oral fascination stage. All she wants to do is taste every toy and thing in reach.


Playing on the floor is always fun. I want her to be comfortable playing by herself and not me entertaining her. Often I'm baking and she is playing just outside the kitchen. She can see me but she is content to play toys and entertain herself.


Valentine's Day is coming up! 6 years ago Andrew bought this orchid for me. Every year but one it has bloomed for me. I just bloomed a few weeks ago and lights up my kitchen window. It is the gift that keeps giving.


A couple weekends ago Andrew, I and Daraby went back to Pierre to visit. It was a very nice weekend to see everyone. My sister came with her two boys too. While we were there we watched this Teaposy bloom in hot water. The Teaposy was a gift to my mom from my sister. It was very relaxing and neat to watch. The little kids thought it was a bit boring because it didn't bloom fast enough. The Teaposy is a great gift idea if you got a tea drinking friend. Oh this isn't the final picture of the teaposy. It does get a flowery orange bridge above it.

Her first words:

Two nights ago Andrew and I were praying for supper and Dara was swinging away next to the table. As I was praying we heard "Da Da." In our shock we both looked at her but she was just chilling like nothing happened. We weren't sure if she actually said it or just stumbled upon it nor did we know if she would say it again soon. To our relief a couple minutes later she did say it again and that time I got it on video. YAY! Since then she is really working on words and talking. For the longest time she has been excited about screaming/singing. It is a pleasant change to hear her working with more dadadada sounds instead of the shrill AHHHHH! Yes I know the video is on its' side. In my excitement I recorded it sideways and now I can't rotate it. I'm sure most of you can enjoy it anyway!

Daraby's signiture look!


For Christmas she received this Johnny Jump up from Great Grandma Boersma. At first she didn't really understand it. Within minutes she started moving and since then she hasn't stopped moving in the jump up. She loves it. She laughs and wiggles all around.


She found out she can swing and soar. We only have one door in the entire house that has trim to use the Johnny Jump Up.


Mutual Love! It is a huge blessing that Abby loves Daraby. We thought that bringing a baby into the family might have thrown Abby for a loop. It is funny to watch Abby lick Dara like a lollipop. Daraby watchs Abby with such interest and likes to grab a handful of fur which doesn't make Abby mad. You can see how laid back Abby is while Dara gives her a big hug.

Here our my two babes.

I posted a new post below so make sure to check that out. There isn't a lot new in our lives. We've both been working hard at the ranch. Long Days!

Catch Up!

4 Generations! The Boersma side of the family.


The Boersma Christmas Party at Grandpa and Grandma Boersma's home. We shared lots of laughs despite Dara's crankiness.


Andrew's gingerbread country store. I have to hand it to him, he did an incredible job on a very short time limit. I loved his idea. He surprises me sometimes. He is getting more crafty all the time and he actually enjoys it. Who said I'm not a good influence.


Here is my gingerbread home complete with Mr. Snowman- Mom Boersma's idea. I absolutely love making gingerbread homes.


The Van Duinen Christmas Party at Andrew's parent's home.

I need to catch up. I've been working my tail end off with the boys and haven't had time nor energy to post. I love to post stories and such so I'm bummed I haven't been able to take the time to write.
We had an incredible time in MI with family. There were many people to see. Daraby hadn't seen most of her great aunts and uncles. Of course she showed her best side the whole time we were there. HA! Actually she was starting to reject her formula at that point. I couldn't believe she was getting sick again. Once we did get home and received the new hypo formula there was a huge difference in her countenance. A week later I gave her the old formula to see if it truly was the formula or just a huge change in schedule/travel. Not surprisingly, it was the formula- she broke out in a rash, started screaming and rejected the bottle. I can't believe what a different kid she is when the formula agrees with her. I hope, hope, hope that she will be able to stay on this new formula. So far so good!
Yesterday we had an appointment with her doctor. For the first time ever Andrew came to Dara's appointment. It was satisfying for me for him to understand her illnesses better and be able to speak to the Doctor. The Dr. changed Daraby's medicine to one that is more powerful and dissolves in her mouth. I hope these are the final changes and I pray they are the right changes. I can't tell you how down and out I get when she starts to get sick. Sometimes I try to ignore her crankiness as just crankiness but a mother's intuition often leads me to do the right thing.

Seeing friends in Michigan

We are sitting at Fredrick Meijer Gardens-

behind us is a beautiful church made of all natural nuts, bark, leaves and twigs etc... It was absolutely incredible. They had an entire area where a small hobby train traveled through above us and through wooded areas. The model homes, churches and building were so intricate. The buildings were replicas of Grand Rapid's businesses and homes. It was amazing! I wanted to sit down right there and start building one of my own.

Scott, Andrew and Daraby- We attended Fredrick Meijer Gardens with Scott, Alicia and Taylor. The gardens were all decked out with trees decorated with international themes. We had a wonderful time walking around seeing everything and catching up with Scott and Alicia. They've been a terrific mentoring couple for us. They got married 6 months before us and had Taylor more than a year before we had Dara. All the baby stuff is fresh in their minds so I ask them what is "normal." After the gardens we went out to Quiznos for lunch and then headed over to Scott's parents home to relax and chat. Alicia is a kid person and soon Daraby was sleeping on her shoulder. Thanks Scott and Alicia it was great to see you!

At the Gardens there are bundles of planted orchids everywhere. (Various colors and sizes.) They smell so good. They are such a delicate and beautiful flower. I absolutely love orchids. They are my favorite and in case you didn't know I have two of them that I have kept alive for years. One orchid I received from Andrew almost 6 years ago for Valentines Day. I've not only kept it alive but I've got it to bloom everyone year but one. It blooms from April-October. I don't know what the normal blooming period is but it brightens my day. This year it is going to bloom early because the blossoms are ready to open any day.

This is the train that traveled around the glass rooms. Our college is located right across the street from the Gardens. So when we were in college I would visit the Gardens several times a year. Back then we got a student discount and Andrew was a lab teacher so we would take the students in his labs there.

This is a statue of Mr Coyote at the Gardens. I have a huge irrational fear of coyotes. I hate when they howl and boy do they howl out here on a daily basis. In fact, they will walk up to the pasture in broad daylight. I'm always shooting at them but I'm such a terrible shot that I haven't killed one yet. One night while watching TV at 7 pm one coyote walked within petting distance of our big living room windows. I was feeding Dara and couldn't believe she was that gutsy to walk up to the house and pee in the yard. I think she was scouting to eat my cats.

Long time no see- just joking! Although we just had Aaron and Jessica out we always enjoy being with them. We have a ton of great laughs. We are going to miss them when they leave for Germany in just a few days. It is a total mental thing because we don't live near them now. It is just the reality that they will be across an ocean experiencing so many new things. That means we won't have any game competitors for an year. That is OK since I won't have to listen to all Aaron's smack talk about winning every card game against us girls. By the way, the boys always talk big but like I said it is mostly just talk. Besides playing games with Aaron and Jess while we were back in MI we did go out for a yummy lunch at The Real Food Cafe. I think it is the best place to eat in GR! It was great to see you-Aaron and Jess!