Hello All! We had an amazing fun family time at the river. We stayed right on the White River near Hesperia, Michigan at a Cottage that a family from our church owns. We are so thankful to them for the special time away. Bob and Lynn, thanks for the great family getaway : ) We went canoeing, kayaking, trapped Crayfish, ate Crayfish, fished for Bluegill, swam, caught frogs, sat and enjoyed the view and most importantly enjoyed our time together. We also really loved having our nieces Val and Maddi with us for the weekend. We love you girls!!! Enjoy the photos, but as always the photos don't do it justice. We feel in love with the river, God is so good!!!

As far as the news, we are adopting again, but that is all I can say for now : ) I'll keep you posted!!

Hello All! The area of West Michigan we live in is very historically rich. In the late 19th century to the beginning of the 20th century the area grew by leaps and bounds because of the lumber boom. This weekend we are staying at a cottage on the White River about 45 minutes north of where we live. The White river was a river that saw much lumbering traffic back in those days. We are excited to have some family time to relax, reflect and enjoy nature. I am excited to maybe get to do some well deserved birding, kayaking and fishing. I love to fish, even when nothing is biting. There is just something about casting out the line, watching and waiting. I'll try not to get to "A River Runs Through It" on you : ) We have also been told the cottage has 11 kayaks, I can't wait!! Supposedly along the White River is where lumber companies would dump some of their discarded logs. Some are still lining the bottom of the river. If the kayak flips I might get to see some of the logs, I hope not to closely. So it is off to the cottage we go. Pictures will follow soon!!! Oh and by the way, the exciting news I spoke of in the last post will come soon. Be patient my friends, it will be worth your wait : )

Hello All! I am sorry I have been absent for quite awhile now. I have been busy, busy, busy with preparing for our Church's VBS and teaching one of the kindergarten classes this past week. I am so tired I feel like I could sleep for days : ) It is amazing how 15 kids going into kindergarten can totally exhaust one adult. It is also interesting how my own kids seem so easy to care for tonight after this past week. Overall we had a great time and I am a good tired. This was Luke's first year at VBS, he did great. The first day he even came home and told us the scripture he learned that day correctly!!! He is such a smart mini man. Faith was in my class and was excited to make a new friend. Grace was in the first grade class and she has all the scripture memorized and all the praise song dance moves down. She can't stop singing, none of them can : ) We have the music CD of praise songs from "SonWorld Adventure Park" in the "Bus". Now there is no end to the rocking times. YAHOO!!!! CHOOSE JESUS : ) Keep watching the blog, some exciting news to come-Crystal

Hello All! Well we just enjoyed a recent visit from many in our family. Kelly's brother, Kirk and sister-in-law, Suzi came to visit with all the Briden boys. Parker, Trent, Chad and Kirk appear to be growing and changing by leaps and bounds. We were so blessed to get to see them, they are turning in to wonderful young men!!!

We LOVE you Missouri Bridens!!!!! Thanks for coming to Michigan and for all the fun and laughs : )

We also are blessed to have our two nieces in town. Kelly's parents rent a home close to us during the summer months. Ken and Vera may think Michigan has summer weather all the time. Boy, they would be disappointed in February. Valerie and Maddi have come to stay with Grandma and Granddad for a little while this summer. I am excited to have the girls so close and we get go to VBS together next week, FUN! Val and Maddi are also becoming lovely and sweet young ladies! Val is also a great help to Aunt Crystal : ) We are so glad to have you back G-Ma and G-Dad!






We had so much fun, we swam in Lake Michigan, we hiked a sand dune and we laughed until our sides ached. Chad, remember "The Towel of The Dominican Republic"? We love you all!!!!! Here are some photos of our fun. Love, Crystal

Hello All! Happy Birthday America!!! We sure hope you enjoyed your celebrations. God Bless the Good Old U.S.A. Love, The Bunch

Hello All! I had to post a photo of my special Lupine that WAS growing so well in our front garden. I would peek at it each morning and could see the growth. It became a joy for me to look forward to. I have always wanted Lupine. Imagine my surprise when I awoke one morning and found it nearly destroyed. I ran outside pajamas and all, to examine "my baby". It appeared that the side was eaten away on one of the largest blooms. I think the culprit is a rabbit, possibly a dear. We commonly have both in our front yard during the early morning hours. This made me appreciate the pictures I had taken the day before that much more.

But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?

~ Matthew 6:30

My lupine wasn't thrown into the fire, but some animals stomach. Do you think this verse still counts? I believe so : ) Blessings- Crystal

Hello All! I wanted to update the bathroom progress. Our friends Clayton and Kristie are updating our three bathrooms for us. They have done an AMAZING job!! Can you believe the first three photos on this post used to be the pink tile nightmare here.

Kristie did all the decorating and our master bath is now a beach cottage retreat. I even have candles, sand and shells. Oh, such luxury :) I LOVE IT!! The last couple pictures are of the half bath on the main level of our home. They updated that as well. It is so warm and fresh. That bath had carpet in it. Let's just say carpet in a bathroom is just plain wrong. Now it has nice, easy clean tile. Thanks Clayton and Kristie!!! More to come- Crystal

Hello All! We are recovering from a major case of Roto virus that ripped through our home. YUCK!
I didn't want to let Father's day pass without acknowledging three of the best Father's God ever made.

First, to Kelly, you are the Best Dad!!! You are always patient, kind, full of fun and adventure. You love God and teach your children this daily, you are my hero!!! I am so blessed to have you as the father of our children. You inspire me daily to be a better parent!!! I love you, Kel!!

Nextly, to my Dad, you are so special to me. I am so thankful to you for who you shaped me to become. Thanks for ALWAYS working hard for me and our family to provide for us. Thanks for all your love and humor throughout the years. You are loyal and reliable, I can always count on you for help or encouragement. You have become one of my best friends!!! We probably never thought that would be the case during my high school years : )

Lastly but not least, Dad Briden. I love this guy!!! As I do all the Daddy's I named. But, I became "his" later in life, so we have a special bond. He has always been a generous, loving and patient Father-in-law. He has even grocery shopped for me before, what a Dad! He can always make me laugh and I love that. You are the best, Ken, I love you!

Happy Father's Day to you all!!! I love you and thank God for each one of you. ~ Crystal

Hello All! I hope you are all doing great and enjoying summer as much as we are. Luke and Faith were having fun last week while eating an Icee popsicle. We are huge fans of the "BEE Movie". We have all enjoyed the humor in it. It is funny for kids and adults. In the video clip Luke and Faith share their favorite line in the movie. The character's voice is Chris Rock and he plays a Mosquito. He meets up with Barry the Bee (Jerry Seinfeld) on a truck windshield as the humans are spraying on wiper fluid and the wipers are flinging off the bugs and says " Stick yer head out the winda, How much do you people have to see anyway?" If you haven't seen this one you should!!! If you have you may appreciate the humor. If nothing else I thought I would share some video of our two sweet middle kids.

Grandma and Granddad Briden send us cute gifts periodically. They are two of the BEST grandparents God ever made. This week we received a gift of marshmallow candy ants in an ant farm looking package. The coolest part of the gift is we just started our own real ant farm and Grandma and Granddad did not know how appropriate this gift would be. So the kids were able to munch on the marshmallow ants while watching our new pets tunneling away. Summer is definitely here. We LOVE bugs!!! Have a great night and don't let the bed bugs bite : )

Hello All! Here is our sweet Hope enjoying life. She loves her "Bumper jumper". She bounces in that while Mommy prepares any meal. You can say to her to "jump, Hopey" and she will comply. It is so amazing to me how babies understand language before they can speak. The next video was taken this evening. She had grabbed my cheek quite hard while I was holding her on my lap and I said"Ouch". She thought that was just THE funniest word. I love how babies, at times, can seem frightened of their own laughter : ) Enjoy and God Bless- Crystal