Live! from Wyoming, MN

January 2012

2012-01-27T20:10:00.012-06:00

Two weeks ago was Family Night at Elsa's school. The kids danced to a DJ with their friends and had a blast. (Elsa, Lila, Gracie, Emmie.)

Last Friday Elsa went to a birthday party at Pump It Up in Ham Lake. Lila was sad that she didn't get to go to the party, but luckily, just a block down the road was Adventure Park. She had so much fun on her "special night" with us and loved running around the indoor play land. Elsa had a great time at the party - too bad I didn't get any pics of her with her friends. She's getting so big! She just turned 5, but all the kids in Kindergarten are of course turning six!

A few days ago we got a couple inches of snow, and that's been the most we've had all year! Still haven't had to plow or use the snowblower - I can't believe it. Lila was sick (poor baby... I blame Adventure Park),

but while she napped, Elsa and I went sledding. It was 45 degrees and HOT! We didn't need anything but gloves and snow pants, but we both wore all of our winter gear anyway. The sledding hill quickly turned to dirt, and while we were sledding we were running over nails, old cans, and barbed wire! We cleaned the yard up really good last fall, but with all of the warm weather that junk got pushed to the surface quick. Yiiikes! Luckily neither of us got hurt, but it was kind of rough out there in post-construction land.

Our snowman. How awesome that at the end of January, this partially dirt snowman is the best we can do. I love it.

Elsa wrote our names in the snow.

Lila, Tim and Elsa in the silo.

I get a lot of 1-on-1 Lila time while Elsa is in school, so after Christmas we busted out some of her new toys and tried them out. I built my first Lego set in...25 years?! Gotta love Sponge Bob.

Rockin' out down the basement.

Can you believe how big she looks?! I could cry.

A couple days ago we brought the kids to Celebration of the Lakes in Lindstrom. They do it every winter, but this is the first time we've attempted to brave the weather and go. They're supposed to have a big hot-air balloon launch, but of course this year it was too windy so they cancelled it both days! When we showed up to the park where it was supposed to be held, everyone was leaving. Luckily they had a few other activities at the time, including Dog Sled rides.

Here they are getting buckled in.

There they go!

After that, we stopped by Grandma and Grandpa E's house to visit and see cousin Avery, who will probably forevermore be known as "Baby Avawee". Lila doesn't even call her that anymore, but we still do! Here's the best photo of them together so far.

Over The River and Through The Woods

2011-12-27T13:42:00.005-06:00

According to the Mpls Star Tribune, this was the 8th Brown Christmas since 1967. Yesterday was a record-breaking 52 degrees! Previous record: 51 degrees in 1936. Needless to say, we had quite a different Christmas weekend than the usual sledding, snow-fort making, and sitting in front of the fire. Instead we took a walk across the field and into the woods, over to grandma and grandpa's cabin.

We walked across the big field (our house is in the distance on the left)...

...went down into the woods and across the frozen swamp...

...and to the river, where we could finally see the cabin through the trees.

Grandpa was on the porch waiting for us!

View from near the cabin.

Everyone standing on the bridge before our walk back home.

Over the river, through the woods,

and back into the field, with home on the horizon.

The kids explored the silo and found a patch of green.

Even crazier was the caterpillar they saw climbing up our front steps! With a Christmas this nice, we definitely didn't miss the snow. There's sure to be plenty to come during the next 3 months.

Here are some photos of the girls' Christmas dance recital last week:

Elsa and Lila warming up before the show.

Violet, Elsa, and Lila, with Lila's little twin Bridgette on the far left.

One of the dance routines.

The dancers and Teacher Sue.

Celebratory dinner and root beer at Al's Bar across the street.

Christmas photos:

New cowgirl horsies! Yeehaw!

Playing in the tent from auntie Emma.

Opening presents on Christmas Eve day.

Elsa's Christmas hair-do.

Christmas morning. Tired Tim in the background, and excited kids! They slept in their clothes from the night before.

Christmas with the Williams side was a lot bigger this year with all the new babies! All 4 of us cousins now have children, all of them girls. L to R: Avery, Elsa, Mayson, Minneha, and Lila. If anyone has a baby boy he'll be spoiled rotten! :)

Christmas time is Shot-ski time! The lucky guys who married into this family. :)
Yucca, Mark, Shane, and Tim.

Bottoms up!

The cousins: Becky, Kelly, Jenny, me.

That amaretto is tough stuff. :)

My dear cousins Kelly and Becky, with Minneha and Elsa. Beck lives in France so we don't get to see her often. It's always great to have her family home for Christmas.

Almost Christmas!

2011-12-18T21:05:00.005-06:00

What a crazy holiday season it's been already. Last week we closed on the house, so it's officially ours! We're still getting settled and have a lot of unpacking/decorating to do, mostly because we still have a lot of painting to do. Tim is doing the painting and it's not the kind of thing he can bang out in a weekend. Perfection takes time! So in the meantime I'm gladly waiting and enjoying the rooms we do have finished.

This is a photo from Elsa's first school program! The kindergartners put on a Christmas show for us last Wednesday and it was so cute. Elsa is the one in the back row next to the super tall boy in white.

Elsa and Lila at the after party, eating holiday treats.

Last weekend we had a visit from Jenny, Shane and Avery. The girls were already in bed, but we had Avery crawl up the stairs and into their room, where the girls were eagerly waiting. She said,"Hi!" over and over and kept kissing them and hugging. The kids just adore her, so of course I said it was okay to wake up and play awhile.

Around 9:30 Elsa got really tired and said, "I think I'm going to go to bed now". Lila said, "Me too", and off they went!

This year I decided to do something new and made chocolate/almond bark dipped pretzel rods. It was so easy and the kids loved it - we didn't have to do any baking, measuring, or waiting, so it was straight to the decorating and eating, which are obviously the best parts!

The kids have been playing together SO well since we moved here. They're still in "explore" mode and love to play downstairs, with the clothes chute, in the pantry, in the play room, and they even ask to take naps in the closet. If they'll sleep, why not? Here's Elsa asleep in the closet...

...and then my camera clicks wake her up.

Happy Holidays! (Art by Elsa.)

Greetings from the Middle of Nowhere!

2011-12-06T14:33:00.004-06:00

It's actually only a couple miles from town, but it feels like we're WAY out. We moved the weekend before Thanksgiving and it's been crazy ever since. Lila tripped while she was playing down the basement on Tim's birthday (11/27) and had to get stitches in her chin. It was bad - blood everywhere and the biggest gaping wound I'd ever seen. On my baby! Poor kid had a tough time in the ER (I managed to save my meltdown for later) but she's healing up pretty well now. We finally got our phone/internet hookup today, which is awesome, but also very dangerous... there's too much to do for me to get sucked into Facebook and whatnot. Had to share some pictures, though! Despite the craziness and stress of getting settled, it's been so exciting to finally live here. Feels like home!

Very cute. But mostly...

...very goofy!

I took this photo for the insurance company this morning. Porch faces east, my car is north. It was so cold out! Only 17 degrees, but the kids were happy to join me outside. We don't have a TV in our main living area anymore and I thought I'd hate it, but it's been great. We listen to more music, have dance parties, and the kids find other things to do, like throw/catch things down the laundry chute for hours.

After we decorated the house for Christmas, the kids got cozy in front of the fireplace.

Time for more endless unpacking. More later!

What's scarier than Halloween?

2011-10-25T13:50:00.013-05:00

The hospital.
What started as a basic office visit ended in a trip to the ER. Elsa had been having an assortment mild ailments that lasted for too long, including a fever. None of them were alarming on their own, but all of them together was puzzling. We brought her to the doctor after the first five days - while she had a rash - but none of the doctors could figure out what kind of rash it looked like. It was most similar to a strep rash, but the test came back negative. We also had a Lymes test taken, which was also negative. Their diagnosis was, "virus of the week". Two weeks later, she still had an on/off fever and some other symptoms. The nurses at the Fairview nurse line told me it sounded like a virus and not to worry. In the meantime, she felt good enough to go to school, dance class, and every other normal activity. These photos were taken just 3 days before we went to the hospital. She doesn't look too sick, does she?

But we went back a second time, anyway. I figured we'd get some medicine to finally kick whatever it was and get outta there. But instead the doctor very seriously told us that we needed to go to the ER at U of M Children's in Minneapolis right away. They thought she had Kawasaki's disease, which can lead to permanent heart damage and is deadly if not treated. When we got to Mpls, the doctors all agreed that must be it... but then suddenly changed their minds. They still couldn't figure out what was going on, so we had to stay there for two nights and poor Elsa had to go through a ton of tests. Chest x-ray, CT scan, echocardiogram, eye exam, an IV, and the dreaded lab work... they took 10 tubes of blood. All the tests were negative. I didn't take any photos, I purposely left my camera at home when we left. Now I wish I would have brought it - the hospital was really impressive! I took some photos from off their website and the rest are from Tim's phone.

Elsa was relaxing while watching the HUGE flat screen TV.

After a full day of tests, finally some fun - playing cards with dad!

We still have to go back to Children's and she needs another echocardiogram just to be sure, and then we'll be 100% in the clear and hopefully we'll be done with doctors for awhile. She seems fine now. Just a virus after all!!

The house is done and basically move-in ready. Just some picky little things to get done for our inspections, and we'll have the occupancy permit this week or next. It's very exciting, but these last little things seem to be taking so long. I'm ready to move in!

Home Sweet Home.

Lila is the first to use the toilet in the girls' new bathroom!

Now that we have carpet upstairs, the kids finally seem to see the new house as a house. They run all around the rooms in their socks and have a blast.

Last night at dance, the kids got to dress up in their costume and we got to watch them do their thing. Lila and Violet had the same exact costume!

Today I went to Ikea with Lila while Elsa was in school. On our way home we stopped by Cousin Avery's house for a play date. Her first birthday is next Monday already!

Creepy Crawlies

2011-10-06T21:02:00.006-05:00

This year we bought our usual season passes to Pinehaven Farm.

What's the verdict? Pinehaven. Pretty cool.

Fall not only brings a ridiculous number of ladybugs, bees, caterpillars and box elders, but last week we also saw a ton of these guys:
Salamanders...

Snakes (unfortunately there seems to be a ton of corn snakes out at the new house)...

and deer. Which are typical, even in town, but the fawns are still too young to be afraid and they get really close. This is nothing, he moved before I could take the photo. You can see him in the shadows just to the left of the tree trunk.

Lila and I took some photos in the pretty fall leaves while we waited for Elsa's bus.

Today we went to the pumpkin patch with our neighbor and her daycare kids. They really know how to pose!

Here are a couple of dance photos from tonight - I couldn't get a good one of both of them. They really enjoy the class, and Elsa is tells me that "Lila is actually a good listener!" lol.

Here's how awesome of a gardener I am, not to mention groundskeeper: it took nearly all summer for me to notice that we had a huge pile of pumpkin vines growing in our backyard. Once I finally did notice, it was only thanks to the yellow orbs that started to materialize. A couple weeks ago I finally went to check it out up close, and sure enough, we had over 25 pumpkins growing! Our old pumpkins had been tossed out last year, and then probably covered with some leaf clippings from the mower. It was quite the surprise crop.

North Shore 2011

2011-09-18T22:30:00.010-05:00

For the 4th year in a row, we made our way to the North Shore for our annual family trip. The first year was my sister's wedding. Lila was just 2 months old, and Elsa had just turned 2. The next year Lila was 1 and Elsa was 3... you get the picture. We've always stayed at Gooseberry Park Cabins in Castle Danger, just north of Two Harbors. It's a great area, right next to Split Rock Lighthouse, Gooseberry Falls, and Tettegouche State Park.

Friday, Day 1: Arrived and went down by the beach. First order of business: find the perfect stick!

The kids had fun doing what they did last year on the rocky shore: "stirring the soup" in potholes filled with water. Elsa got some lake scum on her stir stick and thought it was pretty neat/gross.

We ate at the cabin and then headed to Betty's Pies for dessert.

Saturday, Day 2:
The sunrise from our cabin window.

We ate breakfast across the street at the Rustic Inn, then headed back to cabin #4 (straight ahead). You can just barely see where water meets the sky.

The kids posed for pictures down by the beach.

Elsa loved watching the waves crash against the rocks.

We usually go to Gooseberry and Split Rock, but this year we ventured a bit further and went to Tettegouche State Park. The kids are hit or miss when it comes to having energy for long walks, but surprisingly they took a 3+ mile hike with us this day! Lila only had to be carried some of the time. They loved walking through the woods and exploring. Every time Lila heard a tree rustle, she thought for sure it was the waterfall we'd been waiting to see.

Finally, the waterfall!

The bouncy cable bridge.

Lila takes a rest while Tim and Elsa play around on the rocks in the river.

Not long after this photo, Tim fell into the water. About ten minutes later I asked how wet his shoes were, and he said he was fine... except for this. He held up his hand, and even with the sun in my eyes I could see it was covered in red. The rocks had sliced his hand pretty badly as he was trying to catch his balance! Elsa said,"I don't like blood, especially on my D!" Not a good injury for someone who works with his hands all the time. :(

I captured this photo just as Elsa tripped over a piece of driftwood! Not doing too well with the injuries on this vacation...

We got home and Tim took a nap while the we put together a 55 piece puzzle.

Next we went to the Two Harbors farmers market and got some sides for dinner: corn, tomatoes, and green beans. Of course that was followed by S'mores and a campfire down by the lake.

But, back to Two Harbors... where is the Voyageur outside the Voyageur Motel?! Don't mess with my landmarks, people!

Whew, we found him, completely refurbished and sitting in front of another tiny motel on the Expressway just before Two Harbors. Not quite the same thing, but I'll take it.

Sunday, Day 3:
It rained all day, but luckily it stopped for a bit while we took our usual walk at Silver Creek Cliff.

First day of Kindergarten, Preschool, and Dance!

2011-09-11T10:35:00.007-05:00

Kindergarten started last Wednesday. Elsa goes M, W, and every-other Friday, from 9:15-3:30. It started out a little rocky... she got a fever on Sunday of almost 102, and had it until the early morning hours of Wednesday. I was so nervous she'd miss the first day - how terrible would that be? When she woke up it was gone so I sent her anyway. I told her teacher about it and she kept on eye on her, but I never got a call. When she came home she had her fever again, plus a headache, and was miserable and exhausted. Luckily we have a day of rest in between, and she was fine on Friday. It was tough on her, but I'm glad we sent her that first day. She already seemed to have learned a lot as far as the way they do things in school. They got a tour of the library, gym, playground, lunch room, computer lab, etc. They did a few worksheets, watched two videos on the Smart Boards, and met some of the other teachers. She would have missed a lot, and I'm glad she didn't!

Our new house is in the Chisago Lakes district, but we Open Enrolled to stay in Forest Lake. That means the bus won't pick her up at our driveway. The closest bus stop just happens to be on Grandma and Grandpa's road, so we'll have to drive her there every day. Here's the bus stop crew. The younger girl is in her class, and her older sister helps make sure they get off the bus at the right stop, find their classroom, etc. Works out great!

A HUGE goodbye hug for Lila!

Finally home at 4:00 pm - a very long day for a kid who isn't used to being away from home, not to mention a full day of learning and activities! She was so exhausted, you can just see it in her eyes. She really loves it, though! This week was much easier.

Oops, the flash was a little bright for this one. Last week Grandma Karen brought over a special picnic lunch, with all the things that Mickey and Minnie ate at their picnic (in the book, pictured), including a big chocolate cake! We all thought it was a really cool idea. The kids loved having lemonade out of jars, and the cake knife that was taped to the bottom of the cake pan - all just like in the book.

This is Lila's first drawing of a person that I've ever seen. At first she had the two blue legs, but later added the white line in the middle, saying it was the butt. I think Elsa did the same thing when she was little! Funny kids.

Lila started Preschool this week. I stay with her for half the time on Mondays, then we separate. Wednesdays I drop her off and she's on her own the whole time. She did great! Here she is, standing very proud by her locker.

The weather is suddenly in the 50's and cold! It's hard to believe how hot it was only 5 days ago. I'm sure it'll be the last swimsuit picture of the year.

Today was the first day of dance. Elsa lectured her the whole way there, telling her she had to listen, she couldn't just run around all wild. When the class was over, the first thing Elsa said was, "Mom, Lila actually did really good!" She did throw a fit when it was time to leave, but hey, at least that means she likes the class!

Tomorrow we leave for our annual family trip to the North Shore. Can't wait!

5th Birthday, Summer Stuff, and the State Fair

2011-08-29T20:58:00.016-05:00

On August 22, Elsa turned 5! Unbelievable.
The birthday girl and her ice cream cone cupcakes. Ice Cream Cones were the theme of the party.

All the kids at Elsa's party (minus Lila): Ashley, Gracie, Elsa, Violet, Henry, Maddy.

Birthday pancake!

Elsa wanted a pinata, so I decided to make one. Who would pay $25 for a pinata? The people who have had to make one before! :) No, it was a fun project and turned out cute, but it's very time consuming.

The b-day girl takes a swing at the pinata.

Elsa's friend Ashley got her 2 goldfish for her birthday - her first pets! The girls named them Ice Cream and Sundae. Unfortunately they didn't make it past a couple days, and neither did the replacement fish after that. We went back and picked out a Betta, which are supposed to be a heartier variety. So far it's been 1 week and he's doing well. Of course they chose a pink one, but it has cool blue and purple accents on it. They call him Strawberry Rainbow Ice Cream Sundae. Yeah... I just call him Rainbow. :)

Lila is growing up fast, too. I showed her how to write her name and she did this all on her own: LLAI

The girls on our annual summer outing to Fawn Doe Rosa in St. Croix Falls.

The kids in front of the new house...

A view from the back of the house.

We couldn't wait for camping this September, so we had a backyard bonfire with S'mores to tide the kids over.

Tim spends a lot of time working at the new house, so sometimes we bring picnics over and join him for awhile.

I love this: an action shot of the girls being goofy and cracking each other up, as they so often do.

Yesterday we went to the fair. It gets more fun every year as the kids get older.

The fam.

We stopped by the Butterfly House this year and it was a big hit. Tim tried to give Lila a butterfly, but its big spider-like legs freaked her out too much. Me too!

Elsa's butterfly.

Me and the kids with butterflies on our shirts!

Auntie Jenny and Uncle Shane live right next to the fair, so every year we meet them there. This year was Avery's first year! Elsa, Shane, Avery, Jenny, and Lila.

Auntie Jenny and Lila.

Here are a couple end-of-summer portraits. It went by too fast!
Lila, 3 yrs.

Elsa, 5 yrs.

More Summer Fun

2011-07-25T13:22:00.008-05:00

The weekend after the 4th, we went to our friends' Karl Oscar Days BBQ. Elsa went tubing behind the boat for the first time and loved it! L to R: Elsa, Sheri, Ashley.

We met Grandma and Grandpa E at South Center Lake and took a boat ride with them. The kids love to go FAST!

Tim has been busy at the land nearly every night for the past month. We're making a retaining wall out of the foundation from the old barn that fell down. He has to pry the stones out of the rubble with a crowbar, one by one, like this:

Here's Tim and his collection of stones so far! It's hard to believe we still need more.

Cousins! Lila, Avery, and Elsa at my birthday pool party.

Our niece Avery, 8 months old. Cutie!

A couple weekends ago we took the kids to the Chisago County Fair. The kids saw their first Demolition Derby and had a great time, despite the insane heat. Elsa's favorite thing was the rides, and Lila loved the cows and horses in the animal barn.

Lila, Tim, and Elsa ride the carousel.

Lila's Birthday, Summer Adventures, and a New Princess Is Crowned...

2011-07-06T20:00:00.010-05:00

I've been so awful about updating, but who wants to be on the computer during these beautiful summer days?

On July 2, Lila turned 3! We started the day with a traditional birthday pancake, gift opening, and photos.

The rest of the day we had a pool party at my parents house. The weather was perfect.

Lila was very happy to get the Sleeping Beauty/Castle cake she wanted! Instead of getting complicated, I bought the toys at the thrift store, washed them in the dishwasher, and put them on top. Voila!

She also got something she wasn't expecting - a super cool new Barbie bike!

Today we went to the Rush City water park. We'd never been there before and I'm kicking myself for it! It was very fun and relaxing, the kind of place I could go nearly every nice summer day. They had a great shallow place for little kids to play, life guards, nice warm water, snacks, everything. Elsa even went to the deep end and slid down the big water slide about 8 times. Lila went once but didn't like getting splashed in the face with water at the bottom.

Elsa and Allie going down the big waterslide.

A sneak peek at the progress on the house.

Reading books in the summer sun always requires a parasol.

Elsa is awesome at riding her bike. Last summer it was slow going, but this summer she flies way ahead of us on the roads and trails. She always stops at intersections and stop signs. And yes, we accidentally forgot her helmet.

Quiz time. The Princess on the left is Snow White, of course. And the Princess on the right? That's the newest, most popular, and definitely most handicapped Princess of all around here: Mascillabob! I have no idea where they come up with these names.

Lila sometimes likes to style her own hair.

Summer Sisters.

SUMMER, and other exciting developments

2011-06-06T20:55:00.004-05:00

Summer has arrived! We've been doing all kinds of fun stuff, like kicking back while the kids wash our cars.

A couple weeks ago was the last day of school for both kids. Here is Elsa with her preschool diploma! This fall she'll go off to Wyoming Elementary for Kindergarten. Lila will stay at the Family Center and attend 3-year-old preschool.

Yesterday was SO hot, and today will be even hotter. We ate popsicles, played in the pool, and went to our favorite beach with some friends. You can't really tell, but here they're doing a "welcome back summer" dance.

Yesterday was also the official first digging day of our new house! We went out there around 6 pm and told the girls we were going to go look at a big hole. Needless to say, they weren't too excited. But when we got there, they (and we) were totally amazed. It brought me back to when my parents built our house when I was 5 and my sister was 3 - the same ages as our kids. What kid doesn't love dirt piles?! They ran around and played house in the basement. Lila sat in the corner of the big hole and I said, "What are you doing?" She looked at me like the answer was obvious and said,"Watching TV!"

dancing, and some questionable new friends...

2011-05-24T07:55:00.006-05:00

Last Saturday was Elsa's first dance recital. It was so cute! They danced to Daddy's Little Girl, Single Ladies, and California Girls. Also there was a surprise... Julie and I decided to do the Mother/Daughter dance, which was Mama Mia. There were a lot of moves and we only practiced twice, but I heard we did pretty well. I guess all those years dancing to Paula Abdul in middle school really paid off!

Me and Julie with Elsa and Violet.

Our little dancer, star of the stage!

Elsa and Mama.

Baby cousin Avery came to the recital, too. Here she is, cute as ever!

This is Lila and her friend, the water meter on the side of the house. Is it a water meter? Well, whatever it is, she named it Fee-Fo. She talks to it. One time I saw her grab it by the bolts on top and say,"Do you have ears, Fee-Fo? Yes, you do!"

They also have another friend. Meet "Mud Freak", the mud puddle. I kid you not. When the sun finally dries it up, they say,"Mud Freak has gone away!", then they pretend-cry.

I bought some plants and flowers the other day, and the girls each got to pick a plant of their own, then help plant them in pots. Here's what they chose:

Mmm, summertime snacks!

On Mother's Day, the kids got to see Avery. They just love her. They counted her toes, gave her kisses, and got drooled on in return. :)

How about this for a Mother's Day/Kentucky Derby drink? A perfect Mint Julep, made by Grandpa Barney. Yum!

slacker!

2011-04-28T09:24:00.007-05:00

I can't believe it's been a month since I've updated this. Spring has been super busy so far. Here's the recap:

There's no need for a van down by the river... when you can have a cabin! The kids were so excited to check out Grandma and Grandpa's new "playhouse".

Nice!!

While Elsa is in preschool, Lila and I get some one-on-one time at the park.

This was the end of March. Warm enough for a t-shirt, but still a giant snow pile in the yard! It seemed to last forever.

The kids recently went to a birthday party together and dressed up in their new dresses from Grandma K. They love wearing dresses.

A few weeks ago we went to DQ with Grandma E. We have to take advantage of the warm days while they're here - the weather is still pretty wintry for the most part.

Ashley's 4th Birthday party. They had a blast running around with all their friends, especially because it was a princess party.

This isn't the greatest photo of Elsa, but look how cute (and big!) baby cousin Avery is!

Easter.

A trip to the zoo

2011-04-03T20:36:00.006-05:00

Last week we met some friends and went to the MN Zoo. I forgot how huge it is compared to Como! It was great to see all the green plants and trees on the tropical trail.
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Elsa loved the pink flamingos,"Just like in Florida!" she said. She's never been there, but she's heard enough that she loves it there already.

You have no idea how long it took us to get this picture, but here they are: Elsa, Lila, and Cole.

The coolest exhibit had to be the grizzly bears. You can see two in the water and one off to the left. They wrestled and swam and showed off in front of the glass the entire time.

After we saw the bears, Elsa and Cole climbed this rock and roared! We left after about 4 hours, and the kids were asleep in the car in about 5 minutes. :)

Elsa is big into making trails, usually out of books to make a "book sidewalk", but in this case it's a bunch of toys and shoes.

I left the kids a little too long while I was upstairs cleaning, and came downstairs to the strong scent of dry-erase markers! You'd figure they'd wash off easily in the bath, but no.

St. Patrick's Day and other stuff

2011-03-19T22:43:00.005-05:00

Happy St. Patrick's Day! We did an art project and made these beaded necklaces. Elsa isn't into taking photos lately, but too bad, I still like this one!

Last Monday we went to babysit our niece Avery for a little bit in the afternoon. She's such a good baby!

I took some photos of Lila while she danced with her puppy.

Check out Elsa in the background...not having it! :)

Really, another photo?
I know I can get some better ones once I get her outside! We went for a nature walk through the woods this week and the kids loved it. Elsa is sooo excited for spring, and loves the warmer weather. All she talks about is Florida. That's my girl!

We've been having sleep issues with Lila that have only become worse. She stalls at bedtime, and on top it she wakes up sometimes 6 times a night. Realizing it couldn't get any worse, we decided to move her into a big girl bed. She's so proud. We're hoping that feeling like a big girl will make her act like a big girl. It actually seems to be working!

Lila's hair when she wakes up. :)

Fun weekend!

2011-03-09T09:43:00.005-06:00

Last Friday I took the kids to a place in Ham Lake called Pump It Up. It's basically a giant warehouse/party room all filled with inflatables. It was a great time - the kids can't wait to go back.

Now that Tim is off his crutches, we finally went and had some family fun at the MOA on Sunday. We've hardly done anything since Christmas, so the kids were crazy excited. They loved the sea creatures at Underwater Adventures (now completely renovated and called Sea Life), and of course we couldn't get out of there without going on a few rides at Nick Universe.

They had a big dark room with lit-up Jellyfish and mirrors everywhere. It felt like you were in outer space with aliens all around!

Tim and Lila check out the local lake fish and turtles.

Elsa on the balloon ride.

Lila rides the carousel.

'Til next time!

March is here!

2011-03-02T19:07:00.006-06:00

Yesterday we went to McDonald's Playland. On purpose. It's the first time we've ever been there, mainly because Lila is now the perfect age, but also, and most importantly, because I just don't care about germs anymore. The kids both had pneumonia last week and it was awful. In fact, the entire month of February was a complete wash. So, we hit the closest and cheapest entertainment we could find. They thought it was totally awesome.

After lunch we decided to hit the car wash. Lila screamed whenever the water came by her window.

Both kids love to help cook.

We got this toy at the thrift store and the kids have hours of fun with it.

In this house, everything that comes in the door gets set on the counter by the phone, directly above the pen drawer. Elsa is always grabbing pens out of the drawer and coloring on whatever scraps of paper, lists, mail, important papers, that are within reach. Last week, it was our movie from Blockbuster. lol!

If you couldn't tell from the above photos, Lila needed a haircut. We both want to grow it out, but that just won't be happening until it all comes in. So here she is with the new haircut.

2011-02-16T18:29:00.007-06:00

Winter is still chugging on. Here are some things we did last week:

Towers of Dominoes with dad.

Lila played in a diaper box.

Elsa and Lila on Valentine's day. Elsa was all dressed up for dance class, Lila was reading a book.

Recently the kids got to see auntie Jenny and "baby Avery", as they call her. They just love their cousin!

This week was Outdoor Play Week at school. They had a bunch of fun activities set up on the playground, such as ice fishing, sleds, water bottles filled with colored water, and colored leaves. They picked a great week for it - the weather has been sunny and in the 40's. Unfortunately my camera battery died after Lila's class, so i only got one picture of Elsa. They got to have snack outside (hot cocoa!), and the girls also got to play together. I pulled them in a sled for what seemed an eternity. The snow is still too deep to do that in our yard.

Lila was really tired during her class, so I had to kind of force her to try things out. I put her on top of some of the old Christmas trees that people had donated, and she said,”They don’t even poke me!” Nope, not with all that winter gear on.

What the heck are these?! Lila tries on snowshoes for the first time.

Yesterday we went outside to jump in the big puddles. It was fun while it lasted, but the kids only wanted to stay out for 10 mins. 40 degrees is still pretty cold, especially with thin rain boots on.

Sisterly Love

2011-02-04T20:35:00.008-06:00

Awhile ago at Elsa's preschool, the kids created a class booklet about feelings. The book was then put into the hallway for everyone to see. They were all sweet little statements with artwork, such as,

I feel: Happy
When: My grandparents visit

or

I feel: Excited
When: it's Christmas!

Very cute stuff. I flipped through the pages until I got to Elsa's, and saw this:

Oops, we must have been having a rough morning that day! The drawing on the front is a pretty good likeness of Lila, messy blonde hair and all. But that was added later. The artwork underneath the face - what I saw in the booklet - was this:

Elsa says the one with the angry face is Lila, because it's the "mean" one.

Luckily we didn't have to end the week on that note. Last week the kids were to write and mail a letter home to anyone in their family. Elsa chose Lila, and this is what it's supposed to say:
Dear Lila, I love you. Love, Elsa

Lila was so happy and surprised, she was beside herself with excitement. Right away she asked for some tape, then immediately ran to stick the letter to the door of the hall closet, where it's been ever since. And so it goes, all day everyday, back and forth, between loving and fighting! Ah, sisters.

Next Friday is Kindergarten roundup! It's a good thing they put the idea in my head so early, because it's going to take at least until September until I can believe that I'm sending my kid, on a bus, to KINDERGARTEN already. That same morning we have a preschool pajama party, so we'll have to cruise home, change into clothes, wolf down a PBJ, and head to Wyoming Elementary for the roundup. Stay tuned.

2011-01-26T20:20:00.008-06:00

Tim wanted a new Polaroid camera for x-mas, so Santa delivered. The film is about half the size as the original but it still comes out with that classic look. It's hard to believe, but these photos were all taken in 2011, not 1977.

The other day at breakfast, Elsa turned to Lila and said,"Haha Lila, you got the ripped fork!" (It's a blue fork with a handle that someone chewed to oblivion.) Lila looks at the fork, keeps eating, and says,"Nobody cares." !

This week was Elsa's turn to be Star of the Week at Preschool. We had to fill a bag with 3 or 4 things she wanted to show to the class, and also fill this out:

Elsa posing in her leotard. She's really into wearing high buns for dance class, but I can't get her to do anything with her hair otherwise.

Lila's hat framed her cheeks so adorably, I just had to take a picture. She had other ideas.

This evening we played a game of bowling in the kitchen.

In other news: Tim is still on crutches. Lila is still potty trained! And it's stillll January. It's definitely dragging over here.

Bury My Heart At Wounded Knee

2011-01-12T22:16:00.006-06:00

Just after Christmas, Tim was outside building snow forts with the kids. He went to stand up and somehow tore something in his knee! He had to wait a couple weeks for surgery, so in the meantime my parents brought over a cane, and walker, and some crutches. The kids thought it was fun to play on all the new equipment.

A very gimpy New Year's Eve.

Lila would bring him his cane and say,"Here's your candy cane stick, Daddy!"
Surgery happened on Tuesday and everything went well. Here's the patient in recovery.

The girls like to switch into about 6 different outfits a day. Here they are playing "baby ladybug". Lila is in her ladybug costume, sleeping in her "bed" - the cold bottom step in the basement! Other outfits include swimsuits, leotards, summer dresses, underwear and just shoes.

Lila with their huge new dollhouse in the background. The living room is the only place we have room for it!

Elsa is really into drawing lately. Mostly abstract stuff and letters.

Here's her name and the little guys she always does. I finally realized who they look like: Ike from South Park!

Ike.

Elsa before dance class.

Over Christmas break we had some luck with getting Lila potty trained! We let her run around in underwear and go all over the floor a couple days, and after that she got the hang of it and goes in the potty every time! It still seems too good to be true and I'm just waiting for her to revert back, but for now all is well. It's hard to believe that after 4.5 years of diapers that we could soon be a diaper-free household.

Christmas 2010

2010-12-28T16:03:00.009-06:00

The week before Christmas, Elsa had her holiday dance recital. Here are a couple pics of the cuteness.

Decorating cookies on Christmas Eve.

These are mine. I spend a lot of time decorating!

Earlier last week, Grandma Karen and Grandpa Barney took Elsa to pick out Christmas presents for us at the local dollar store. We couldn't wait to see what she chose. Tim got some edible vampire teeth, Lila got a glow worm, and I got these awesome earrings! Totally money.

The new kitchen from Santa. Lila said,"I got Moon Dough, a new kitchen...everything I wanted!"

Baby Avery with her doppelganger, a stuffed Monkey. :)

Me and Elsa.

Cousins!
Kelly, me, Jenny.

Jenny, Katy, me.

The third cousins:

Layla and Lila.

Getting goofy toward the end of the night.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, GRANDPA BARNEY!

2010-12-19T20:28:00.007-06:00

Last week we lost Tim's Grandma Vera(89) and my Great-Aunt Kay(98) all in the same week. They were both extraordinary women and will be deeply missed.

Grandma Vera and Lila.

Great-Aunt Kay with Tim and the girls.

During this holiday especially, we're grateful for the simple things in life and everyone who's here to share it with us.

In the beginning of December we put up the tree (along with little Cindy Lou Who).

Tim went to Elsa's preschool class for "I" week and played an instrument. The teacher kept reminding the kids how to ask a question, but most often you'd hear something like,"This one time! My cousin! She had a guitar!" or "At my house we play guitar on the TV!" "Rock Band?" "YEEAAHH!"
They also asked a lot of real questions, wanted to touch the guitar, and asked to hear songs. Ol' dad was a hit! Elsa was so proud. She held his arm the whole time and sometimes just stood there and hugged him. It was too cute.

The kids took their first shower and loved it. They were probably in there for 20 mins.

We also went with some of Tim's family from Kentucky and had breakfast with Santa at Famous Daves. Lila was so excited, she stomped right up to him and couldn't stop smiling. Elsa was a bit more stand-offish, but was very vocal when it came time to tell him what she wanted!

Some other holiday cheer from this month:

Merry Christmas to all!

Happy Thanksgiving!

2010-11-25T21:27:00.007-06:00

This year we went to St. Cloud for the annual feast. The kids had an especially great time playing with their cousin Ani. They took off into her room and we barely saw them the whole day.

Ani, Lila and Elsa. Notice how Elsa rolls up the sleeves of her jacket. She rebels against the wintertime lifestyle.

Lila and Elsa in their Thanksgiving Day finery.

At bedtime, I help one of the kids brush teeth while Tim takes the other one and has what they call, "D Time". One of the more recent D Time activities has been piggyback rides, while the girls shout out,"Rapido!" (Thanks, Dora). Sometimes they even do a double piggyback.