OK, this is our first blog post in almost a year.  Sorry for the long drought, but we've got a story to tell now!  What follows is a first draft of what I wrote to our new daughter, Tinley Katrien Grootveld, to tell her the story of her birth.  We had a long decision process to come to a name.  We went back and forth on Katrien (CAT-tree-en) as a first name (it's a Dutch form of Katherine and means "Pure") or Tinley, which we just like as a name, and ultimately decided that Katrien was a cool name but just a little much to help people learn to pronounce and spell.  We had talked about Kate as a nickname, but realized neither of us would likely use it much.  We had actually settled on Katrien, and even put it on a form in the doctor's office, but went back to Tinley after actually calling her Katrien for a while and just not quite feeling right!

Anyway, on to the story!

The story of your birth

Dear Tinley, 

Your mother and I wanted to write down the story of your birth, as it is an exciting one and we didn’t want to forget any details.

You were born on the 4th of July, one week and three days after your official due date, but you had been bugging your mom to come out for a few weeks before you actually came.  Her contractions had varied between regular and frequent, but not very strong; and stronger contractions with no real pattern.  This pre-labor is known to last many days and sometimes weeks, so your mom wanted to go do something to take her mind off the labor until it started in earnest.  Your grandparents were here visiting from Iowa, and we wanted to show them some of the amazing backcountry places that we like to go.  We had our old Landcruiser back then, and it has five seats… Mom, Dad, Grandma, Papa, and big brother Bridger… if we waited until you were here we wouldn’t have been able to all go together, and your mom wanted to head up to our favorite place – Wildhorse Canyon.  We were on our way back, and were at the campground when your mom’s contractions started getting much stronger and more regular.  Active labor was beginning, and it was 5:45pm.  We were coming back into Ketchum (and cell phone signal) at 6:30, and contraction timing which had been 7-8 minutes suddenly went to 4. 

We got home and back on the road by 7:00, with your Papa driving their van so that I could sit next to your mom and help her breathe through the contractions.  Boise was a 2.5 hour drive from home, and you were ready to come into the world.  We knew that labor often starts strong and then slows down, or that the 3-4 minute contractions often go for several hours before delivery, so we were still optimistic (confident even) that we could make it to the Baby Place birthing center in Meridian.

A ways past Fairfield (8:00 pm), your mom was feeling more pressure and feeling like she was going to be ready to push soon.  Your Papa increased speed, but we were realizing at that point that we were probably going to have a very exciting story about your birth.  We had been praying pretty much nonstop, and asked God to protect you and your mother through whatever He had planned for us.

At about 8:30, coming down the other side of the mountains between Fairfield and Mountain Home just past Cat Creek, you were born.  Your mom was a champ, and I caught you as she delivered you perfectly healthy at 80 miles per hour going down Highway 20 towards Mountain Home.  I held you as we sped towards Mountain Home and you cried to fill your lungs with air.  Your Papa described it as one of the sweetest sounds he had ever heard.  I opened my shirt and held you close with a towel to keep you warm. 

We arrived at the hospital in Mountain Home about 15 minutes later, and the EMTs, nurses and doctor helped get us all untangled and out of the car.  I had to fight to get you to your Mama; we had not been able to get resituated in the van so she could hold you and she was very excited to get to hold her new baby.  We finally got most of the nurses and doctors out of the room, got the lights turned down, and you started to open your eyes, look around, and met your Mama.  You started nursing right away, and you were tough and strong when you got poked so they could draw your blood to check your levels.  The doctors kept checking in on you and Mom, and by 1:00am or so they let us go home.  You slept all the way home, and your Grandma was very excited to meet you when you got here.  We all still had quite a bit of adrenaline going, so we had some trouble sleeping that night.  We just sat there and watched you sleep, marveling at the work God had done in making you, protecting you and your mom, and in his amazing timing in calling you into the world.  It was not until after the dust had settled that we really saw the fullness of His provision and timing: if you had come sooner, there was some risk in remaining attached for too long to the cord.  If you had come 10-15 minutes later, we would have been beginning to push just as we pulled in to the ER and things would have gone much differently.  I would not have gotten to hold you right away, they would have insisted on cutting  the cord right away, and would have treated it as an emergency medical procedure rather than the beautiful natural process that God designed it to be.  If we had not been out in the mountains and had left home when we realized you were coming , we would probably have been driving through downtown Boise when you came (or JUST pulling into the parking lot at the birthing center with no way to get your mom inside to deliver you… she was not in any way ready to walk when it was happening)!

 In all, it was an amazing experience that I thank God for.  If it had been on a list of options beforehand, we never would have picked it, but looking back I would not trade it for anything.  It was an incredible way to begin my relationship with you, and an awesome display of God's provision and protection.  

Love,

Your proud Daddy.

That said, here are some of the photos we've taken (many were taken by Papa Grootveld - Thanks Dad!) over the past few days.  We didn't get much the night that she was born, as it was a real whirlwind of an evening with little time for documentation!

Both Holly and Tinley are doing great! Tinley is eating and sleeping really well. She had a check up yesterday and the doctor was very impressed with how alert, well fed, and pink Tinley was and how relaxed and good Holly was feeling. 


Here's the last photo we have of her before her dramatic entrance. 


This is the first photo we have of the little one in the ER.


Baby's SECOND car ride :) (home from the hospital)

Big brother had a surprise waiting for him in the morning! 


She is already a bit of a Daddy's girl.



Funny little personality, very sweet tempered and content but with some fun faces too!








In related news, Bridger is quickly making the transition from toddler to little boy.  He's speaking in simple but complete sentences, making great progress on potty training, and can identify at least half a dozen classic cars.  Landcruisers, Jeeps, Chevelles, GTO's, Mustangs, trophy trucks, hot rods, and race cars.  He hears a big two-stroke and says, "Sounds like a motorcycle.  Braap braaap!"  Getting solid on his two-wheeled Strider bike and loves to help around the house. 






I think that's all for now; it's time for lunch, feeding, then a nap hopefully!  Love you all and would love to hear from you!

Eric, Holly, Bridger, and Tinley

July to August... it went too fast!

We are pretty much all moved in, and love the new house. The big backyard is great. Peyton and Bridger now have a safe place to romp. We also enjoy having a tub for Bridger and room for him to run around. There's an actual hallway, and our couch is in the middle of a room so there are loops, straightaways, and generally lots of opportunities for great games of chase. Perhaps our favorite part is having both a garbage disposal in the sink, and a dish washer! It's actually a really fun thing to be so excited about things we took for granted before. We are really looking forward to having a washer and dryer again (INDOORS!!). Holly's parents have graciously offered to bring ours out over labor day weekend, so a little patience will pay off.

Tip: If you ever want to feel like you're living in the lap of luxury, just spend the preceding year living in a tiny cabin with around 500 square feet of living space on the main floor and a toddler. And you have to climb a ladder through a hole in the ceiling to go to bed. And another adult spent the summer there, sharing a bedroom with the toddler. And the toddler bathes in a Rubbermaid tub. And there's no dishwasher or garbage disposal. So sometimes the drain clogs. And you have to shovel a path through the snow in order to get to the laundry shed. Which you have to thaw with a hair dryer from time to time when the lines freeze in the winter. And our neighbors got arrested for re-selling prescription drugs. Yep, we're happy to have moved.

This past week we cleaned the cabin to return to the landlord. We took our first trip to Twin Falls. We hadn't been to a Target since we were in Ames last December. We spent over 6 hours in Costco and Target alone strategizing on what was essential to purchase in bulk. Really.

With our big trip to Costco, Holly was busy after work this week canning. She also dehydrated cherries for her homemade granola, and dehydrated banana chips and mushrooms. On Sunday I awoke to her baking cinnamon rolls and bread.

Bridger has had some mile stones. He pooped in the toilet for the first time a few weeks ago. He is in the habit to let us know when he needs to go 'poo-poo'. Even if it means climbing down his ladder, into our room, in the middle of the night to wake us up and tell us. He is very interested in the potty training, underwear, and the 'big boy' seat. So, we are just going with it. He's also saying a lot more. "I brush teeth," Moo (both for movies and cows), "a bickigogigo" is Bridger-yodel word for bicycle. Kiki is a lamp. He knows the word for (and how to use, scarily enough) keys. He's figured out how to insert them into the ignition of the cars, so we've quit giving them to him when he's play-driving. "I go," "a shoe," are pretty solid. Working on "shirt." "Mine" and "I want that" are also solid, and ones that we are encouraging him to minimize the use of...

"MINE!!" -- "No, that is not yours. It belongs to God, and he lets us use it, but we must be generous with what He's given us." -- "I want THAT!" -- "Bridger, we need to be patient when we don't get what we want." He often gets his will under control, but sometimes this continues and a spanking follows. There is not a lot that breaks my heart more than having to take my son over my knee.

Holly is super busy with day camp. They have had record numbers of kids this year and she has made an impact on the program in a really good way. She is happy with how camp has been, but feels that 93+ kids every day leaves her feeling exhausted when she is done at work and some days out of patience. I have seen her in action with a large group of kids, and she has definitely found her niche in the world. Loving on kids is her 'thing'. She brings home a lot of wild stories and has fun bringing new experiences to the campers lives.

My work is in a slower season. I am working on a bunch of different projects that I didn't have enough time for during my busy season. Things will ramp back up soon with school starting. Much of my focus this summer has been on spiritual growth. I am glad that we have found a new church family that we've gotten involved with. We have gained a lot of new family out here. I am thankful for the men that I've been getting to know and spending time with. These relationships have been challenging me to grow as a father, husband, and leader of my family.

We are looking forward to a new season, once school begins in less than a month. I'll be back on the Safe Routes to School routine, and Holly will be back to her after-school program.

We are anticipating Bridger's second birthday and can not believe how quick that has gone. Seems like only yesterday he was cutting his teeth on Jim-Dear's slippers. And now he's on two wheels. He LOVES rides on Daddy's bike. He sits on the top tube, feet on the fork crown, and hands on the bars. We rode around the neighborhood for almost an hour tonight and he still wanted more when we got back.

Lots of words, no pictures. Sorry Tom! And Nora! And probably the rest of you, too that were hoping to see photos of Bridger and Idaho and instead had to listen to me ramble on about real life instead of adventures in the mountains. But, we've been living real life lately, so that's all I've got to report.

-Eric (and Holly, Bridger, and Peyton)

We've had a big couple of weeks!

On Independence Day, we got up early and went to BCRD so that we could finish the float that Holly's camp kids were building for the Hailey parade. Then, Holly herded her kids along as they biked along with the float. I did the same for Mountain Rides, with Bridger in the bike trailer behind me. After the parade, we went downtown for the bike race and festivities. Food, bikes, and fun. Then, went to a barbecue. Then, there was the July 4th rodeo with friends from church, then fireworks. Bridger was a champ; he snoozed for a bit during the parade but other than that he was up from before seven till after 11:00, and was delirious by the end but still happy. We also saw a moose, and almost got run over by Ashton Kutcher in his Land Rover D90. This made Kelsey's day, as she has been hoping to see him. She never even dared to hope that he might almost kill us :)


Holly and I took the last week off work; Kelsey leaves next weekend and we wanted to get out and do some things with her before she left to go back to Iowa.

Friday right after work we headed out to Railroad Ridge, an old mining road off the East Fork of the Salmon River that goes up through the tundra over 10,000 ft. AMAZING 300+ degree panoramas. Chilly night in the tent, but totally awesome.


Moonlight in the high, clear air.


Then, Saturday, we came home via Custer, the old preserved mining town up the Yankee Fork of the Salmon. Huge dredge that moved tons upon tons of rock and dirt in search of precious metals. It was Custer Days, and we realized as we arrived that it wasn't "wander around Custer on your own" time, but rather, "be led around in groups by a tour guide" day. We decided that while it's cool, we weren't interested in spending an hour or two on a tour of the town. When we got back home, we got cleaned up and headed right back out for a barbecue, volleyball, and horseshoes birthday party. Great fun!

We've been looking into moving out of our little duplex cabin, and found a sweet little house in Hailey with a nice fenced backyard for Bridger and Peyton. We will now have a third bedroom for any friends or family that would like to come visit us (hint, hint). There's scarcely a surface in that place that we are not putting new paint on; we have been very busy with it this past week.

Tuesday, we went to Galena Lodge, biked the Harriman Trail, I rode a trail called Curly's that was 1500+ feet of glorious, rocky, rooty descent, and then we came home and looked at paint samples.

Wednesday, we hiked the Pioneer Cabin Trail. We got a bit of a late start, and had to turn around before we got to the cabin. Hiked 6 of the 8 miles, and climbed 2500 of the 3500 vertical feet. SUPER steep; having Bridger on my back was very difficult.

Pixels from the hike:




Thursday was spent painting at the new place. Long day, 7a-1a.

Friday, we headed for the hills again. Left mid morning, went up over Trail Creek to a place called Wildhorse Canyon. Squeezed the Cruiser under a tree that an avalanche had put across the trail with literally 1/4" to spare. We would have been literally up a creek if it shifted or settled significantly while we were out there. Fun, rocky, chunky trail with water crossings, beautiful views, and an awesome stream running next to it as it climbed through forests, meadows, and rock.

Wildhorse Creek:


Pretty sweet campsite: Spot for a hammock, mountain meadow filled with wildflowers on one side and a beautiful stream flowing on the other.


Between wriggling our way under, around, and over all the avalanche debris, and the rough, rocky trail, it was funny to see the reactions of folks on motos and ATVs when they saw us come around a corner in a full sized rig. This was one of the milder sections of the trail:


Kelsey took a photo here too, and joked that it was a better view than the mountain photo for the "landscape" setting on her camera:


This little cascade was at the top of the trail. There was a bridge across at one point, but all that was left were two stringers that were rotting away. I wouldn't even walk across now, much less drive a vehicle across. Would love to drop a couple trees across at some point and see what's further up the trail!


Came back Saturday evening for what we're calling Salipalooza. Our worship leader, Levi Sali, has a very musically gifted family and they all came to town for the weekend. We got together at the church and had a few hours of the most awesome worship and praise that I've ever been a part of. Then went and painted for a few more hours. We now have the kitchen, living room, bathroom, and cabinets painted. All different colors. We have some trim, three bedrooms, a hallway, a couple closets, and one ceiling left.

Whew! What a full, fun, productive week!

Lots has happened since our last post. My busiest crunch of the year has come (and now gone) with Safe Routes to School and Bike to Work stuff, and Holly's busiest time of the year has just arrived with the beginning of summer day camp at BCRD. She has put in many hours, evenings, and LOTS of effort to make this summer a great experience for her kids. You can follow her camp blog at http://bcrdcamp.blogspot.com/.

Bridger is having fun, growing and exploring. He continues to be a very sweet boy who loves most things. His favorite is still outdoor play.



I made pizza. Bridger helped.


In early June, Holly's sister Kelsey came to spend a good part of the summer with us. It's fun to have her here, and it's a real blessing to have Bridger stay with Aunt Kelsey instead of day care. He gets to take naps at home now, whenever and wherever he wants.


He loves drives and bike rides in the trailer.


We've been doing some camping, hiking, biking, and 4wd.



Two weeks ago we went to Craters of the Moon National Monument and explored some caves.


This past weekend Will came out to visit Kelsey and they headed west to the Oregon coast for a long weekend. We spent our anniversary biking from Easley Creek north to Galena Lodge. Rode 24 miles of dirt and gained 2500' altitude. It was a fun ride and we were not ashamed at all to pack the carbs for lunch at Galena. Then I got food poisoning and spent Saturday evening miserable.




On Sunday morning I recovered, then in the afternoon we picnicked North of Ketchum and went on a nice drive.

Still a bunch of snow up high!


Picnic spot!




Will and Kelsey returned from Oregon Sunday night and we were able to spend Monday evening with them, before Will returned to Iowa on Tuesday morning.

Headwaters of the Salmon




That's what we've been up to! We'd love to hear from our friends and family, so if you're reading this feel free to give us a shout!

Bye!

Spring! Spring is late and slow in this part of the world; the weather has been gradually getting warmer and we've been getting out for walks and some hikes. Bridger's always excited for a couple hours in the backpack, and Peyton is loving life right now.


Sights from our evening walk from our house







Highs in the 50's-60's, plenty of sunshine. Some of the south valley dirt has opened up; we're getting some 4WD 'Cruiser time in, and starting to get the bikes out too. I'm riding to work most days now, and Bridger's really enjoying the trailer ride home in the evenings. The last little sliver of snow is gone from the shaded part of the yard, FINALLY! :) There's still a bunch in the high country and in the canyons out from the valley, though. It'll be another month before everything is open and accessible, probably. We went up to Galena Summit over the weekend and the snow is still 4-6 feet deep along the road.



Bridger has made the transition to his big boy bed, which is a loft/treehouse that we originally intended to just be a play structure. He has been really great with the transition; he has not climbed out of bed on his own at all. He LOVES the outdoors, and is currently very interested in trains, guitars, and bikes. Our landlord is a great guy, and loaned us one of his old Ukulele's for Bridger to play with when he heard how much interest Bridger was showing in our guitar.


We gave him a home haircut this week; we usually take him to have it done but thought we'd try it ourselves this time. All done!



He is counting now, and seems to count by halves... unn, twoeee, throoour, fwi! He counts animals in his books, trees along the trail while we hike, pieces of cereal on his tray, and got the biggest grin when he was watching Sesame Street and they started counting too.

He likes to carry his stuffed animals around, and enjoys bringing as many as he can with him at any given time. So, he loads them in a basket and carries them around the house.


Finally, here is a video. Warning: it's about 12 minutes of Bridger doing stuff we thought was cute and/or funny. If you're looking for fine cinematography, great soundtrack, or other elements of riveting filmmaking, sorry to disappoint. If you are a grandmother wanting to see her grandson identify parts of his face, then this is for you :)

February

It has been a while since our last post. January 27th marked the beginning of the flu bug at our house and it has been one of those bugs that never goes away and morphs into sinus and ear infections. It seems like we are finally on the mend.

Since we have been under the weather, we haven't gone on many exciting adventures. We do, however, have photos from last month.



Bridger had big adventures inside cupboards.





He became an expert on detaching keys from laptop computers.



He learned how to climb to the top of his play structure with out a ladder, and without help. We hear books being tossed from great heights, and this is what we find.



So, we get the drill out and add the railing. Bridger loves power tools!





Now Bridger loves to have great adventures in his indoor tree house.