I AM A LEOPARD.

Lila! This kid cracks me up.

Happy Spring and Easter

Tim reads to the kids before they go to bed in their playroom fort.

Elsa, looking sassy in a hairdo inspired by auntie Melinda!

Last weekend we took a walk down the road and Elsa loved to play in the melting snow (bubbling brooks) that flowed down the ditches. You can't see it, but it's cruising by like a little stream, making irresistible splashing sounds along the way.

Dying Easter eggs.

Reading with Dad on Easter at Grandma and Grandpa's house.

Elsa and Lila listen to Melinda tell a story while sitting at their cute kid table.

Tonight the kids played outside for two hours. For the first time in months, they went on their swing set and played around the whole yard. We can't wait for summer. Melt snow, melt!

Merry Christmas, Happy 2013, Happy Valentine's, etc. etc., Spring Break!

This is probably a record number of weeks that I've left the blog. There won't be much writing, mostly pictures. Here we go:

Christmas! Woke up Christmas Eve day to Lila throwing up, and our Beta fish dead. Classic. Elsa made her a little paper bouquet and gave her a xmas card to hold onto. Must've done the trick - she was fine by evening and ready for a candy cane.

 Elsa in her new outfit with must-have toy of the year, a Kendama.

New Year's eve day:

 Took the kids on a snowmobile ride in the sleigh.

 You can see our house in the background.

 Had a "romantic" New Year's eve dinner date with the kids at the Cornerstone. :) They thought it was neat to get NA champagne in fancy glasses. Cheers!

Didn't take too many photos after the New Year -- Tim and I were too busy getting ready for our big trip to Cabo San Lucas for John and Melinda's wedding! Here are just a few of the many:

 View from the infinity pool. Ahhh........

 The whole gang.

 The happy couple!! My bro-in-law John with my friend/new sister-in-law Melinda!

After we got back they had their reception in WBL. A fun time had by all, especially by me. :)

Spring Break started out pretty cool. A nice stranger bought the kids toys at Wal-Mart! The next day we went to the Edgewater water park in Duluth. We all had a lot of fun.

I hope to get better about blogging, especially with spring/summertime activities coming up. We did an Easter photo shoot already, so here's a preview in case I miss it.

FALL 2012

I have a good reason for not writing in so long. First off, Facebook is way quicker. Second, I got my first job in six years (!) this past September. I'm working at a local elementary school as a Special Ed para and I love it! The school, the co-workers, the kids - they're all great. I never thought I'd be doing anything like this, but the work really suits me, not to mention the schedule. I've been much busier and less able to take pics and go anywhere with the kids. Those days are over. It's sad looking back at this blog and seeing how much we did every day, whenever we wanted, but at least we'll still have our summers together! Moving on to the photos...
This isn't in chronological order, but here we go.
Christmas card outtakes:

All she wants for Christmas...!

Thanksgiving! This year we had it at Kelly and Mark's house. Here are our lovely hosts and the turkey. And yum, look at the sweet potatoes! And the wiiine! I could do it all over again.

The dessert table. Look at that deep dish apple pie!

The babies: Lila, Mayson, Avery, and Elsa.

Fall and Halloween:

Tim gets the last of the house painting done. He painted the entire house by himself this summer, and it took all summer. I'm lucky to have such a hard-working, talented guy!

Elsa and Lila take a break from schoolwork to do some painting/Thanksgiving art.

XOXO

September recap

First day of school photos!

Elsa, first grade.

Lila, preschool.

What a beautiful fall day. Here are some pics from today at Pinehaven:

Shooting practice (corn cannon) with dad.

Hmm, what's new with Elsa? No more front teeth! She lost them both within the last couple weeks.

The house is shaping up. Here it is last year...

compared to what it looks like today. Now you just have to imagine shutters, window grilles, landscaping... there will be a lot more photos to come!

Here are a couple photos from Elsa's 6th birthday. She wanted a Scooby-Doo theme. I should have just had Cub do the lettering, but I insisted on doing it myself. Ha! :) It was a great day.

Hitting the pinata.