Ice Tubing!

We had great intentions of going sledding on Christmas Day, but ended up taking naps, reading, playing, watching movies, and having an ultra lazy day instead. We also got two awesome snow tubes as a Christmas gift from aunt Kathryn, so couldn't wait to try them out this weekend.

Saturday after nap, we bundled up and headed over to Creek Valley in Edina, which is the hill that Jon grew up sledding on. Despite the icy conditions....we had a BALL!! Again, I am not sure if the kids or Jon & I had more fun...until one of our tubes popped that is!! :)

Here is some fancy video footage that I just love.....
thanks to Jonathan, the camera stunt man~

Pre-Christmas Festivities........

The holidays are near judging by the view out my picture window, and by the crazy schedule we are trying to keep these days!! Our calender is full of festivities and here are just a few to share:

Hayden and Erica all dressed in red for their preschool Christmas party:

A little Santa action......

Erica sat on Santa's lap first, and was a little (ok, a lot) skiddish. He tried to get her to
talk about what she wanted, and to touch his beard, but she looked about like this (one step from tears) the whole time she was on his lap.

Hayden on the other hand.....had a list about a mile long for Santa!!
I think Santa had to cut him off half way through his requests!

A cute self portrait of Jon and Erica from the party...

Here is some footage of the kids singing Christmas carols in their elf hats:

And finally the kids and I this morning before leaving to go see Peef The Christmas
Bear at Stages Theater in Hopkins:

Well, that's all I've got for now--but definitely more to come on this subject!!!

A Very Belated Trick Or Treat!

Argh, I am finally getting around to posting these Halloween photos of the kids. They were saved as a draft from the day after Halloween, and then I forgot all about them. Oh well, better late than never, right?!

Here is Hayden the "Fruit Bat"
I brought the costume home for him, and after trying it on and flying around the house for a while...he let me know that he wasn't just any old bat, but a fruit bat. Apparently there is a huge difference, and he wanted to be clear about it! He is a very literal boy~

And Erica as a Monkey or "Curious George." You may recognize this costume, as Hayden wore it last year. Their mom is a cheapskate, so it only made sense to use get another wear out of this cute, little costume! She made the cutest little monkey noises to sound convincing, too!!

Here they are with their friends & neighbors, Kendall & Taylor. We trick or treated
around the neighborhood with them, and had a ball.......

......while Jon stayed home to hand out candy & scare our trick or treaters!
Our home all decked out for Halloween:

This was his remote controlled, pneumatic ghost in the bushes:

Look out trick-or-treaters next year, as he plans to "kick it up a notch" for the next spooky season! That's my inventor husband, gotta love him! :)

Leaf Pile = Kid Magnet

A few requisite photos of jumping and playing in the leaves before they get bagged up and hauled off by the garbage truck!! What is it about leaf piles that just BEG to be jumped in? I remember it as a kid, and our children are no different...as you can see, they are enjoying themselves thoroughly!

More Fall Fun

Hayden and Erica have been asking us for weeks now if we can have a camp fire, but it has been frigid, so we kept saying no. That is until Wednesday. It was a gorgeous fall day, and a very temperate evening, so we had a nice fire in the backyard. Just like all those good ol' summer nights....that I am missing already!

We were out of S'mores ingredients, but we improvised with homemade Chocolate cake that I had made earlier that day. Yummy!! We decided we never needed S'mores again if we had that as a substitution!

Here is Hayden acting like a "scary monster." Pretty scary, eh??

.....and Erica, looking like the Lady in Red (& Pink, but I didn't have the heart to tell her she was mis-accessorizing :))

Biking Excursions

One of the things we have most been looking forward to in our new neighborhood is getting out on our bikes and enjoying Hyland Park (which is just minutes from our home). Thanks to some beautiful fall evenings, and Hayden's new Trail-a-bike, we have been able to do just that.

Here we all are getting ready to head out on an adventure--looking like the nerdy, helmet-clad safety family. What can I say, we figured if we were going to make them wear helmets, we ought to set a good example, too.

Hayden LOVES his new trail-a-bike, and is actually a pretty strong little pedaler behind me. He thinks he's quite the big boy because this bike doesn't have training wheels.
Erica is happy in the Burley. She brings along a juice cup, a baby doll, and a few books--and just enjoys the scenery. Who wouldn't love that ride?

Hopefully we will get one more ride in before the snow flies?????

Oodles of Pumpkins, Apples & Fall Fun

This Saturday was our annual Apple Orchard get together with the Weiss and Ingvaldson crew. I can't even remember how many years this year made, but I do know that we started out with just one child per couple, and we are now officially out numbered by children, as the Ingvaldson's just welcomed their third baby girl in August. Our crew now consists of 6 adults, and 7 children. It can get a little chaotic at times, but is oh so much fun!!

A quick family photo in front of the pumpkins while everyone was still happy!!
(Don't be surprised if that ends up being our Christmas card pic this year :))

H checking out a prime pumpkin, and E posing in front of a random fall display. Gotta love that scrunched up nose smile!!

The highlight of the experience for the kids was probably the cow train ride. Hayden and Erica rode together, with Natalie ahead of them, and Paige and Breanna ahead of her. So cute!! I just LOVE this video & the photo that follows.

Here they are looking back at dad taking their photo as they zoom off into the field......smiling and having SO much fun!!



And finally a photo of our whole group. WOW, have we grown over the years! It is crazy to me to think that this friendship actually started as three young married couples getting together every summer to go on canoe trips in Wisconsin..... before even the thought of children!! Now here we are...years later, and more importantly 7 children later!!!! Oh, and I suppose we look a few years older, as well. :) The joy has been not only watching our friendships grow, but watching our children's friendships grow and blossom over the years-- they are fast friends every time see one another.

Top Row (L-R): Tammie, Jon, Breanna, Tammy, Jeff, Scott & Tanya (holding baby Addison)
Bottom Row (L-R): Hayden, half of Erica, Paige, Jocelyn & Natalie

After picking many pounds of apples & some raspberries, we all packed up and headed home--with very tired children, I might add! Such a fun fall outing with cherished friends.

A Little Slice of Heaven

Jon and I were lucky enough to spend another wonderfully relaxing weekend at Natures Nest Bed and Breakfast in Montrose, MN this past weekend. We were, once again, celebrating our Anniversary here--and we were, once again, overtly satisfied with our experience!! This place has become an absolute favorite of ours, and I think we may go back every year that we are able (Thank you Katy, Ali, and Papa Sharpe for watching H&E while we were away).

Natures Nest is an organic farm on 40+ acres with beautiful gardens every where you turn. They have a produce garden with tomatoes, peppers, and various vegetables--and many fruit trees providing them with Honey Crisp apples, and pears. There are also many, many perennial and annual flower gardens featuring flowers you have never seen before.

They also have many animals on the farm including:

Sheep,

horses, chickens (not pictured) which provide them with fresh eggs every day,
a dog, and two cats. Below I am snuggling with "Cuddly Dudley" on the porch. He is a beautiful Siamese who proves to be our mascot every year, as he greets us with his meow, and then follows us around the rest of our stay there.

Here is Jonathan sitting next to me on the porch, enjoying a glass of wine. Ah vacation.........when one can enjoy a glass of wine at 3:00 in the afternoon if he/she so desires!! :)

After doing a little exploring and walking around their land and gardens, we decided to head over to Watertown for some dinner. Before we went to dinner, however, we stopped by a local winery and did a wine tasting, which was really fun. We then traveled a little further down a country road to an Italian restaurant in quaint little Watertown called D'Vinci's. After a yummy dinner, we headed back to the B&B for a hot tub, followed by a camp fire. We even partook in a late night (few too many glasses of wine) trampoline jumping experience, and thankfully no one got hurt!! So, so fun! Finally we hit the sack, and this is what we woke up to at 9:30 Sunday morning:

Our menu included: Fruitatta (which is an egg bake with fresh eggs and fresh peppers), fried new potatoes, free range sausage (from a neighbors farm), fresh melons and blueberries (from a neighbors garden), coffee, orange juice, and warm currant & chocolate scones (not pictured). All amazingly delectable!!

A close up of one of the gorgeous flower arrangements in our room.

Such a great time--it makes me happy all over again just posting these pictures and journaling our experience on the blog. Every married couple, especially those who are raising young children, should take time to do wonderful things like this for themselves. What a joyful get away to rest, relax, and recharge our batteries!!! We are looking forward to next September already! :)

Shiver Me Timbers, It's A Pirate Parrrrrrrrrty!!

In celebration of his 5th birthday, Hayden decided on a pirate themed party with all of his friends. We entertained and fed 32 people, 15 of which were friends his age. We had such a wonderful time with our old friends and new friends alike. Above are some of the kids in their pirate party masks...I just couldn't seem to get them all rounded up at once for a photo op!

The main event of the party was a Treasure Hunt, which the kids loved. It was overcast and raining out, but we still sent them outside to retrieve 4 of the 10 clues we had hid. The final clue took them to the "treasure chest" (which was my hope chest) and inside were loot bags for everyone. Above are the pirate cupcakes that my friend from work made especially for Hayden's big day. Didn't they turn out adorable?? Thanks Katie!




Finally, Hayden blowing out his candle, and enjoying his birthday cupcake!

Eight Amazing Years

Jonathan and I celebrated our 8 year Anniversary on the 16th. Neither of us can believe how quickly 8 years has gone, and how much life we have experienced together in that time. It's truly hard to remember life before we met. I always tell people that marriage is an amazing journey, and that's really what it has been for us--peaks & valleys, but way more peaks than valleys....and so worth the work you put in to it.

TRS + JRS
September 16, 2000

(We are off to celebrate our Anniversary at a B&B this weekend, so more pics to follow...)

The H Man is Five!!!

Our sweet baby boy turned five years old on Wednesday, September 10th. I can hardly believe it, as it seems like just yesterday that I was in labor with him, and meeting him for the very first time....after a long 39 weeks and 4 days of being pregnant, but who was counting?!:)

I had the day off on his birthday--so I made caramel rolls for breakfast, and he requested to eat off of the "You are Special Today" plate. No problem. Wish granted. We then packed up and headed to the MN Zoo for an indoor adventure, as it was overcast and looked like it could rain at any moment. After nap, we headed over the Nana and Papa Sharpe's house for a birthday celebration there. He, once again, got to eat off of the "You are Special Today" plate, and enjoyed cake and ice cream after dinner, as well. It was a wonderful, fun filled day for the H-Man--(and he would tell you about all of the great toys, books, and games he got, as well).

Happy 5th Birthday, Hayden Jonathan. We love you so much, and are so thankful that you are our son. You are constantly keeping us on our toes with questions about life, how things work, and always wanting more information about your world. You have brought us such joy over the past 5 years, and we are so proud of the little boy (and big brother) you have become. Daddy, Erica and I are very lucky to have you in our lives!!

The Great MN Get Together

Our first stop at the fair was the "Miracles of Life" barn--which is one of my and the kids favorites, and one of Jon's least favorites. This little calf was born the morning before, and was so cute.

After this we made our way to the food building where we had our favorite State Fair food: Cheese Curds. These are a necessity when you go to the fair with Jon--he is a cheese curd connoisseur, and will only get the ones from the food building. All others, are strictly imitation.
We then tried some fried pickles, which were ok--but didn't compare to the curds.

Here we are in the Creative Activities building, which is another of my fav's. Hayden picked up the Obama sign at the DFL booth where I was looking to pick up a few buttons, but AS ALWAYS, they were already out. Argh...that really bummed us out. The same thing happened to us in the last election. Anyways, he loved that sign and walked around the fair holding it up over his head (as shown above) saying "Vote for Change"--it was pretty funny. No one wanted to tell off a kid. We were secretly and quietly very proud!! :)

Here are Erica and I on the carousel ride by Machinery Hill--which, if you can believe it, is Jon's favorite place at the fair. Erica kept saying, "Mommy, I ride on the bunny round and round" and when it stopped, she looked at me and said, "I do again?"

After a few rides, we stopped for a Pronto Pup--and a bit further down the road we found the Tiny Tim mini doughnuts, so sat in the shade and enjoyed our insanely sugary doughnuts and a large cup of cold Root Beer. Below the kids are holding up their sticky little hands for the camera.

Our last stop before heading out was for my State Fair weakness: A Bavarian Pretzel with cheese. Delectable........ even on an already full stomach! As we got to our exit we caught a glimpse of the crowd. Wow, what craziness!!

Erica enjoying the view from my shoulders--looking exhausted.

We are home now, the kids are napping soundly, and I don't think we will need to eat again until 8pm or so!!!!!!!!!