Holiday cheers!

Had the neighbors over for a holiday party. We have such great friends....lucky to live in a great neighborhood! Cheers to a great 2009, and an even better 2010!

Alex's Birthday

It was my son's birthday today....a whopping 8 years old!  We finally used our Flip Video, so enjoy 

the birthday celebration!   

Bahama mama and her family

Well, I took a little break summer blogging....actually my main computer stopped working and I have  yet to get  it fixed.  So I am counting on my macbook to get me through the next couple weeks.  We had a great summer.  Went to Duluth for a long weekend with the kids and enjoyed all the North Shore has to offer.  The kids started school and love it.  We took a little vacation over MEA to the Bahamas and the kids could not get enough of the ocean.  It was great.  It was during the off-season so the Atlantis was not very busy.  However, the weather was perfect!  I have to say my little ones are pretty good travelers....not too much fighting occurred.  

Birthdays and Baseball games

Today we celebrated Maggie's 5th birthday.  We had grandpa and Sharon over and we grilled out.  For dessert, we brought out Maggie's birthday cake.  As you can see, it's quite the cake.  A Fairy Barbie cake.  This cake is really all Maggie wanted for her birthday.  As soon as she saw it at the grocery store last week.....she was hooked.    After birthday dinner, Alex had his baseball game in Avon.  We played the Avon team that looks and plays like they are in 4th or 5th grade.  They had on real uniforms and actually have practice once or twice a week.  We're lucky if the boys on our team can chew gum and run.   However.....Alex has fun and that's what its all about!   

Sunsets with the roomies

Last Friday I met with my college roommates.  From the left, Terry, me, Bridget, and Colleen.  We were missing Julie, whose husband came down with the H1N1 virus that night.  Yikes!  However we met at Sunsets on Lake Minnetonka and ate a good meal and then ventured off to another bar down the road.   It is always so fulfilling to see my roomies who are my dear friends.  They've known me for twenty years and we've shared a lot of memories.  I always come away from these visits with a smile and a peace in my heart.  I am grateful that we still try to hook up three or more times a year.   Today, my kids are going fishing AGAIN with grandpa.  They can not seem to get enough fishing in.   Hopefully no one will get a hook in the ear!

Where's my driveway?

So today, the road crew demolished my driveway.   At first I was horrified at all the dust and continual noise, but the silver lining has been the entertainment factor.  All three kids sat in the shade with their lawnchairs and water bottles and watched for two hours.  That was priceless.  They had front row seats to a wreaking scrapper, backhoe, digger, and a dumptrack.  Alex was speechless.  A dream come true for the little guy.  

Thank god for the neighbor's pool!!

Our former neighbors, the Brethertons, came back from Montana on Monday to visit the old neighborhood.   We had a great picnic at our neighbors, the Odenthals, and then proceeded to go swimming next door at the Christiansons.   It was perfect swimming weather, 92 degrees at 7 pm.  The kids had a blast, and the parents got to visit and down a few cold drinks.  Today is worst... the weather is too hot to go outside but thank god for swimming lessons and movies, otherwise I am not sure what we would have done today.   In fact the construction workers working on our road even quit today....after they struck a gas line.  Hmmm......not too smart.  I will have to take some pictures of our front road.  It is a pain in the butt.   The kids love to watch the trucks and scrappers, but I have already killed one scrub rose bush transplanting it.  Oh well.   It will be done in three more months.....yikes.  

Summer camps,camps,camps.......

                                           Alex shooting a freethrow at Avon's bball camp.
                                         Darby Noreen, Alex, Emma and Jennie Noreen 

Darby and Jennie are the camp counselors.

                                               Emma and Kaia.  Kaia is our neighbor.

So here it is, summer.  And this means that all my children are in camps all summer long.  I did this on purpose so that A) they were not bored, B) I wouldn't have to entertain them all day long C) I could get some cleaning done....some.    However I didn't realize how much running around I have done the past two weeks.  It has been fun, to see Emma and Alex  get so much better at their athletic skills. Not that we are requiring them to be superstars, but to see so much improvement has been amazing.  Alex went to football camp at SJU last week and while the rules said third grade or higher, Jimmy Gaglairdi let him in.  Alex lives, breathes, eats, football so he was in heaven.   Watching Alex compete with such older kids made me really nervous, but he proved to be a quick little dude that few if any kids could tackle him.   Emma is in basketball camp at St. Ben's this week and was a little nervous to go without knowing a soul.  But Emma is such a sweetheart that when I pick her up, she is surrounded by cute little girls all trying to talk to her.    So I am off to golf lessons for the kids.  Maggie informed me that we are going to bake some cookies. Yum.

The cousins

Grandma Micky came up last weekend with Katie and Addie Lex, our nieces from Iowa.  It's rare that all the cousins are together, so I snapped this picture.  Addie was such a great baby, never cried!  It was nice holding a three month old baby and Emma especially loved it!  

All the Kids..

This weekend was full of fun.  The Sonju's came up for the weekend.  The adults actually got to golf Friday night in the Albany Couple's League...and we came in third place.  We got a babysitter to look after all six kids and they were great!!  Willie and Jeff left Sunday morning for a golf getaway in Brainard with their college buddies.   Too bad the weather isn't a bit warmer....it's freezing.  So I told my children we'll spend the afternoon at Bounce Depot.   The picture is my kids with Maddie, Kate and Lillie Sonju.  

trying something new here.......

I am not sure if this is going to work....but I had to show my class how to make an imovie today and I showed them mine from England, so I thought I would post it here as well.   Hopefully this works....after all I am a tech teacher.....hmmmmmm.....If this works, kudos to me!!!  Just to preface, it is really a slide show of my favorite pictures from England and I had to incorporate my favorite English writer into my slideshow.....kinda dorky, but I did like the end results.  Ciao

Look Mom, no training wheels!!!

We had a great weekend.  We spent two days in Red Wing visiting the Sonjus, then headed to Rochester to see Anna and Eric.  We also stopped in Mpls and visited Marie and Ben for lunch.  We hit most of the aunts and uncles.  On Monday, Maggie decided to get rid of her training wheels, much to her mother's anguish.  There is something about the last child to go through their rites of passage.   When Emma completed her milestones, I was sad, but knew I still had two more children to experience this joy.  With, Maggie, everyone of her milestones reminds me of how I will never experience that again.  EVER.   It puts a weight on my heart and I almost tear up.  Seeing Maggie zip through the neighborhood made me realize how fast my life is spinning.  I guess I wasn't ready to take her training wheels off as I knew my baby is becoming a young lady.   And that makes my heart ache.  

Run for the Ribbon

This past weekend we spent it with Anna and Eric again...staying at Peg's house while she was gone.  Thanks Peg!!!  On Sunday I ran the Minnesota Aids 10K.  It started at Minnehaha Park, down by the Mississippi River.   I was a bit nervous running, as it's been a while since I've run a 10K, but the race was flat and fast.   The kids loved the falls, and Emma commented that the park reminded her of Central Park in NYC.    The kids even got to go fishing later in the afternoon at Grandpa Gary's.  Emma caught a pretty big bass... and even took it out of the bucket finger in mouth and all.   I was very impressed with her hunting and gathering skills as we know she did not get them from her father.  Alex and Maggie didn't catch a thing.  Oh well.  

A day at St. John's

Today was simply the best.  Anna and Eric came up on Friday night and stayed until Sunday afternoon.  We did a little garage sale shopping, ate at Fisher's on Saturday and brunch at St. John's on Sunday.  Later, Alex had soccer camp back at SJU and so I took the girls to the beach for awhile.  Emma and Maggie love the Sag, and found lots of shells.   The weather today was the best kind; not too hot and a slight breeze.  The kids even played two holes of golf after supper.  It was fun to watch Alex play soccer.  He loves being in group activities and he plays pretty well. His uncle Ben would be proud of his newfound soceer skills.    Oh, and by the way, Alex is the kid in the orange shirt!

Easter Fun

Emma and Alex tried to teach the younger cousins how to decorate Easter eggs.  I think it was a hit.  For me, it was a success because very little dye got on my counter and floor, so I was happy about that.  But for the kids, decorating eggs is all about getting messy and showing off their end products.  We even hid them later in the day....hopefully every egg was found!

Kids and Liberty

We made a quick trip this fall to NYC....with all three kids.  We had a blast.  The kids couldn't get enough of NYC and all the stuff we saw.  They especially loved Central Park and we could have stayed there for hours.  We also stopped in lower Manhattan to visit some friends who happen to be NYC firefighters.  Brian (the firefighter) took us on a little tour and let the kids climb in and out of the trucks.  We can't wait to go back and visit!

A year later....

Hello!!!

Yes, I am back.  I took a little break.  I know a big break....however I am going to try to keep up with this blog.   I am sitting at my desk and looking at the new foot of snow in April and wondering if spring will ever come.  I have had a great fall and winter.  I am almost finished with my MAster's and hopefully will get some kind of job this coming school year.  Willie is golfing in Arizona as I speak, so I am home with the kiddies.  Well.....this is all I have for now, stay tuned and maybe I will download some pictures!!