Sister Love!

The Fashionista Part Deux

Yes, this is a skirt of mine that this little girl turned into a strapless dress. Around her waist is a head band. I had to laugh at her creativity.



She had no problem striking a pose to show off her newest creation.



I can't wait to see what she comes up with next....

Recently we have been checking out some of the new local parks. Each day that we drive through Chaska we pass the Fireman's Park. It is right by the clayhole(local beach and swimming area)and it is bright red...hence, the name Fireman's Park. I am guessing the red structure came after the naming of the park and it is quite fitting.

It is one of those play structures where in general there is not very many "danger" area's. There is really only one spot where a child could fall and the overall structure is not very high so if a fall occurred, it would be okay. Unlike our neighborhood park where the highest platform is an arms length above my head which is also where they convienently placed a sliding pole that for whatever reason, my kids are drawn too. I have had near heart attacks watching Bennett hang from the top before grasping the pole. So, in the scheme of scary parks, Fireman's park is not one of them.

They also have a large grassy area where the kids can run and play, bathrooms(thank heavens), huge tree's that are perfect for climbing, a sand volleyball court, and the beach with a dock that you can walk out on and watch the hundreds of fish follow you along waiting for the tiniest bit of whatever you may have(pebbles included)to feed them today. The kids absolutely love watching the fish and looking for "big ones."

I am sure this park will top our list of parks for a while as the kids have requested to go there everyday since we first went. Avery wants a fishing pole so that we can catch little fish like she did with Grandpa Jim in Kansas City. I thought it was so cute when she said that. She really loves to fish.

I am looking forward to having a beach right down the road where I can take the kids to have fun in the sun and perhaps practice some open water swims before my Triathlon in August. I am not sure how I feel about the 100's of "hungry" fish that will accompany me(or the kids for that matter)as I heard they are prone to "nibble" if you stand still for too long. I think I will keep this tidbit of information to myself, but I suspect it will dawn on them eventually that they are getting nibbled at!

I have realized that moving is fascinating in so many ways. I love to explore, and with the warm weather making its appearance I know that we have so many more wonderful things to find in our new area.

Farm Babies

We had a ton of fun Monday visiting the new farm babies at the MN Zoo. We met our friends Nicole and Gianna there to visit the baby bunny's, chicks, piglets, kids, lambs,calves and all of their mommy's. Bennett loved this pig statue and had no problem hamming it up for this shot...no pun intended. Nicole and I did have some fun telling the kids that later that evening we would be eating a bit of a pig as we were heading to her house for some pork loin!











This shot was totally unintentional, but I laughed when I saw it...great timing! Looking at her baby bunny's!










Gianna is our little hatchling! Isn't she adorable?












Breezy is our mother hen. She fit perfectly into the little head. It cracked me up!











Avery is a big fan of John Deere. She would have stayed on that tractor all day if there was not a line of kids waiting to have their turn at the wheel.









Nicole bought some goat kid food and all of the human children had fun feeding the goats.











Bria tried her hardest to reach a baby bunny, but she just isn't quite tall enough. She even got scolded for hoisting herself up on the side to reach a few inches further. Boo to the rule follower volunteers at the Zoo...live a little people!!!


The kids sure had a great time at the Zoo. Nicole and I enjoyed our girl time as always and boy did we enjoy our pork later that evening :)

The Fashionista

I always loved dressing up in my mom's clothes as a kid. There was something awesome about putting on a sparkly shirt(if it had shoulder pads it was even better), giant clip on earrings with some bling on them, and of course any of the zillion pairs of high heels that she had in her closet. Throw on a little lipstick and you were set. Apparently, all little girls like to do this sort of thing. My child somehow figures out a way to take it to another level. She is wearing a SHIRT of mine. Originally, she had it over her head like normal and I chuckled a bit and she was oh so proud that she had taken a shirt out of my clean laundry pile and could wear it. A few minutes later, she came downstairs and showed me her new "dress." I was blown away. A future designer? Maybe. Stealer of my heart? You bet!

Need I say more? This little sweetheart comes down the stairs and I catch a glimpse of the look on her face. Total pout with the lip stuck out and all. Sad, teary eyes. She makes this tiny sound of defeat. "Mommy, I cut my hair." When I looked at her, I honestly didn't know whether to laugh or cry. I ended up laughing, which of course caused her pout to intensify(if that is even possible)and then she stomped her foot, crossed her arms and said, "Hmmm." I felt terrible that somehow, my choice to try and lighten the mood did the exact opposite in the eyes of a three year old. I quickly hugged her and said that it was okay and we would figure out how to fix it. We went to our favorite salon today and had a stylist cut her hair and even out the hair that she did cut. It looks like we will be investing in some cute barretts, bows and ponytail holders for the time being. Thank goodness that hair grows!

We recently made a trip to Como Park, Zoo and Conservatory. We packed a picnic lunch and made the 40 minute trek to St. Paul to enjoy the lovely weather that we have been experiencing lately. By the time we got there, the kids were famished and really wanted to eat lunch in a big grassy area full of sun. As we were sitting there munching on Roast Beef sandwiches, I was looking around at the scenery and knew that perhaps we had stumbled upon a perfect spot for a photo shoot. There were these great big oak trees bordering this large grassy knoll and who doesn't love to climb an oak tree right? Avery was the first to prop herself up between two tree's that formed a "V" and strike a pose. Bennett followed suit and was all about hamming it up for the camera. Breezy, the ever cautious one chose to pose at the bottom of a different set of criss crossed tree's. The kids had fun climbing and exploring that day and I had even more fun taking a zillion photos(gotta love digital). Avery stumbled upon what I could only gues was a squirrel's skull. She thought it was very neat since they had been talking about fossils and animal preservation in school recently. She of course wanted to take the skull home with us and I very quickly dashed her hopes because the thought of that skull on display in my home was just too much for me that day. The twins enjoyed collecting pine cones and "walking sticks." After our exploring was over, we made our way into the zoo. There is something about Como Zoo that is simply better than the MN Zoo. Don't get me wrong, I am a big fan of the MN Zoo, but Como is unique and enticing. The monkeys and gorillas are always a big hit. The biggest, however, is always Sparky the sea lion, who has won Avery's heart year after year. She just adores the little guy...fish stink and all. The kids and I cannot wait for more warm weather, exploration and special days spent at Como Zoo.

Hoppy Easter!

Puppy Love

Bennett and Uno = Best of Friends

We have had the privelege of dog sitting my friend Maria's puppy Uno for the last week. Our old dog was a Yorkie and Uno looks almost identical to Hollywood. The kids simply adore him. They had a count down of days until Uno was coming to visit. While we all love Uno, Bennett has connected with him the most.

Bennett and Uno love to give each other sloppy kisses. I bet that Bennett would do this all day long if I didn't put an end to it!!! Poor Uno's tongue is really taking a licking(pun intended of course).

Uno was a bit wary of the kids. He has not been around kids on a daily basis....24/7 pretty much ever so I knew that we had to keep careful watch so that he would not be overwhelmed. Each day, his tolerance has markedly improved. The first day he pretty much followed Chadd and I around and would cower when Bennett or Bria would rush his way. We had to remind them that they are the "big people" and Uno is little and he may be frightened of them. Uno definitely showed us that he needed a break.

Soon enough, the kids were playing tag with him and he would happily play back. When he would start barking, we knew that he had reached his limits and we all took a break.

Each morning, Bennett stumbles down the stairs, sleep in his eyes and shouts "Uns!!!!" and the dog comes rushing over and greets him with some more good morning sloppy kisses. It was puppy love at first sight!

Maria will be here on Sunday to pick up our pseudo pet who we have given multiple nicknames to: Unie, Uns, Undoh, and Uners. We will all miss him and be sad to see him go, especially Bennett who has an extreme love for this dog. His new best friend. I give Bennett a few days before he starts asking for his own puppy :)