Two Times The Chaos

From Our Home to Yours...

2012-02-14T19:11:00.001-06:00

Happy Valentines Day!

We had a wonderful, but rather uneventful, Valentines Day at our house. It was work for the adults, school for the young ones, and that was all followed-up by an evening of running errands, filing taxes, grabbing a bite to eat, and carting "Little Man" back-and-forth to basketball practice.

Now, we are all settled in for the night. My husband is working, our son is playing (more) basketball, our daughter is getting ready for bed, and I'm blogging about Valentines Day...which will need to end quickly, as I have one request to make a malt (for my husband), one request to watch a TV show with someone (my son), and one request to read a book (for my daughter). Once all that is done, then I need to iron...yuck!

Ahem...yes, this is what Valentines Day is really about -- at least for this particular family on this particular Valentines Day.

I did manage to take some cute Valentines Day photos though, which I'm sharing below:

Let Your Voice Be Heard!

2012-02-11T17:09:00.000-06:00

The Joint Council announced, on February 10th, 2012, that the Senate Foreign Relations Committee has released a survey that seeks to collect responses from adoptive families, potential adoptive families, and adoption service providers. The results of the survey will be used to inform United States government policy makers about families' experiences when interacting with government officials during the intercountry adoption process.

As stated by the Joint Council, "this survey represents a unique opportunity for the adoption community to share their experience and express their opinions regarding the services provided by the government."

I completed the survey yesterday, and ask that if you have any vested interest in intercountry adoption that you do the same...LET YOUR VOICE BE HEARD:

Adoptive, and prospective adoptive parents, use this link:

https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/Surveyonintercountryadoptionparents

Valentine's Day Comes Early

2012-02-10T21:41:00.003-06:00

My husband and I don't typically buy each other gifts on Valentine's Day. Instead, we tend to buy cards for one another and then have a nice dinner together. However, this year someone went all out...

Yes...I decided to splurge and buy myself a Valentine's Day gift! :)

Ok, I just couldn't resist -- I bought a this new Coach purse and wallet during one of the Coach Factory Spring Preview Events. I justified my purchase based on the following:

I got the purse and wallet at a great price
I have always wanted something from Coach's Signature Line
I knew that both Valentines Day and my birthday were just-around-the-corner...and what better gift

I don't think my purchase was well received...even given the above...as my husband told the kids "mom bought herself her own Valentine's Day gift." (Laughing as he "ratted" me out!) Which was promptly followed up by a "totally selfish!" from my son.

Although my husband and son don't appear to be impressed by the fabulous gift that I gave to myself...my four year old daughter has taken a liking to it -- so much so that she now continuously asks me whether she can "help" me with my purse! She's a "purse and shoe" girl to begin with -- oh dear, what have I started! ;)

Chinese New Year - Day 15

2012-02-06T19:32:00.003-06:00

We have reached the end...the end of the Chinese New Year, Day 15, also known as "the fifteenth night." On this night, the last of fifteen continuous days and evenings of celebrations, families walk the streets carrying lighted lanterns. Candles are lit outside homes as a way to guide wayward spirits back home.

The exact origin of the Lantern Festival is unknown but many believe that the festival developed out of the desire to celebrate relationships -- relationships between individuals, families, nature and even "higher beings" that were thought to be responsible for the bringing, or returning, of light each year. In fact, the festival is regarded by some as the Chinese version of Valentine's Day.

The Lantern Festivals are generally large and elaborate. Most include huge displays of lanterns, dragons, flowers, and more. Many of the festival displays can actually be found on/near the water...producing an even more amazing spectacle! Here are just a few examples of the beautiful types of displays that can be found throughout the world (these happen to be from a festival in Beijing):

And with that, comes the end of the 2012 Chinese New Year...may you have a blessed year ahead!

Chinese New Year - Day 13 and 14

2012-02-05T10:08:00.000-06:00

Yesterday brought Day 13 of the Chinese New Year, and today brings Day 14 -- and, of course, the Super Bowl!

On the thirteenth day of the Chinese New Year, many Chinese will turn to eating only vegetarian food for the day. This is said to be sort of a "cleansing" ritual, in light of consuming so much food over the earlier part of the Chinese New Year.

This day is also dedicated to the Chinese God of War, Guan Yu. Guan Yu, who was born during the Han Dynasty, is said to be the greatest general in Chinese history. He was said to represent loyalty, strength, truth, and justice but died when he was tricked, and then beheaded, by an enemy. Before his untimely death, he was said to have won over one hundred battles. People also refer to Guan Yu as the God of Wealth and Success.

There is nothing noteworthy that takes lace on the fourteenth day of the Chinese New Year. Likely because this two week celebration comes to a big end on Day 15, with the Lantern Festival. We'll talk more about that tomorrow...

For now, I must get back to the Super Bowl Party preparations! :)

Chinese New Year - Days 11 and 12

2012-02-02T21:26:00.002-06:00

Nothing of great significance takes place on Days 11 and 12 (today and tomorrow) of the Chinese New Year. But check back on Saturday, Day 13, for the start-of-the-end...we are getting ever-closer to the closing of the 2012 Chinese New Year, the Lantern Festival!

On a side note, our family is back to normal and whatever viral "thing" we acquired is now completely gone. We have a busy weekend ahead of us with Grandma "G" possible coming to visit Friday night, basketball games and a poker tournament on Saturday, and then preparing for our Monday afternoon tax appointment, cleaning house, and running errands (all on Sunday)...why do I get the feeling that this is going to be one of those weekends that is over before it even got started?!?

Chinese New Year - Days 8, 9, and 10

2012-01-31T20:05:00.000-06:00

Days 8 and 9 of the Chinese New Year have both nearly come and gone, and Day 10 will arrive soon.

Day 8 is the eve of the birth of the Jade Emperor. A family dinner celebration is generally held to celebrate the impending birth of the Emperor. Anyone who has not already returned to work will return on this day. Business celebrate by hosting lunches or dinners with their employees, who are thanked for the work that they did in the passing year. Additionally, all government agencies will also stop celebrating on the eighth day and those workers will also return to work.

Day 9 (today) is the birthday of the Jade Emperor. The Jade Emperor is said to be the ruler of Heaven and all "realms of existence below," including Man and Hell. This is according to a version of Taoist mythology. He is said to be one of the most important gods. Many Chinese offer prayers to the Jade Emperor on this day.

Day 10 brings continued celebration of the birth of the Jade Emperor.

Chinese New Year - Day 7

2012-01-29T13:06:00.000-06:00

Day 7 of the Chinese New Year is upon is...the seventh day is said to be the day on which each of us grows to be a year older. I don't know about you but I'm feeling old enough the way it is these days, so I'm really hoping that as far as this Chinese New Year custom goes -- that this day isn't in addition to the normal day on which we grow to be a year older!!

And speaking of birthdays, we've had a bunch of them already but haven't yet been able to celebrate any of them due to conflicting schedules, illnesses, etc. So far (in January) we've now surpassed my father's birthday, my brother's birthday and my niece's birthday. Additionally, my mom's birthday is coming up at the beginning of February. I guess we'll maybe just have one BIG birthday bash this year to celebrate everyones birthdays all at once!

Chinese New Year - Day 5 & 6

2012-01-28T09:49:00.002-06:00

I decided to not post yesterday but instead do a "double post" today...mostly due to the fact that everyone in our household seems to have simultaneously caught a cold and we all just want to relax last night. So we did! Now we are all hoping to make quick recoveries. But you didn't come her to learn about us being sick, so on to more the important things:

Day 5 of the Chinese New Year brings more fireworks. People will light fireworks on Day 5 in an attempt to get Guan Yu's attention and help to "ensure his favor and good fortune" in the New Year. Day 6 of the Chinese New Year brings nothing that is of much significance so my next post will be regarding Day 7 of the New Year.

Chinese New Year - Day 4

2012-01-26T23:11:00.000-06:00

My posts seem to be getting later and later these days! Tonight I had a good excuse though...I was purse shopping!! (I haven't really had any "me time" over the past 3 nights, so I decided to have some tonight).

And now, on to Day 4 of the Chinese New Year. It is, generally speaking, a rather uneventful day - other than to say that this is the day when business returns to "normal." It is also the day when corporate "spring dinners" (the first dinner of the Spring season) are kicked-off in China.

Chinese New Year - Day 3

2012-01-25T22:15:00.001-06:00

Day 3 of the Chinese New Year is has nearly come-and-gone. My husband and I actually had a "date night" planned tonight (I know, middle-of-the-week-date-night...what is up with that!) but my husband ended up not feeling well. So I picked up something for my husband and the kids to eat (at his request) and I still went out with my friend Jessica and her daughter Ashley. My friend's husband bailed on us once he heard my husband wasn't coming -- nonetheless, we had a blast.

Now, normally this is something that you would not want to do on Day 3 of the Chinese New Year. Here is why:

Day 3 is is generally not accepted as a good day to socialize or visit with friends or relatives. It is believed that everyone should stay at home on Day 3 of the Chinese New Year.

However, I love to socialize and I'm not generally a superstitious (or 100% traditional) person...so I went out, had fun, let my husband rest, and soon I'll hit the bed since I too seem to have now come down with some sort of cold.

Chinese New Year - Day 2

2012-01-24T17:49:00.002-06:00

We are well into Day 2 of the Chinese New Year and, as promised, here is some of what is said to traditionally take place/occur on Day 2 of the Chinese New Year:

Married daughters visit their birth parents, relatives, and close friends. This is due to the fact that in China married daughters don't generally have the opportunity to visit with the birth families on a frequent basis).
Day 2 of the Chinese New Year is believe to be the birthday of all dogs...and thus, dogs are remember and celebrated with the gift of a special "treat" on this day.
It is also said to be the "God of Wealth's" birthday. Certain businessmen (who happen to be working during Day 2 of the Chinese New Year) start their business on this day with a prayer, as this is suppose to bring good luck and prosperity in their business dealings for the new year.

What did we do on Day 2 of the Chinese New Year? We worked, the kids went to school and daycare, and after having just ate supper...the older one was just carted off to basketball practice. When he comes home we'll spend some family time together, hit the sack, and then get up tomorrow and do it all over again -- there will be no day of rest for us! :)

Happy Chinese New Year!

2012-01-23T22:04:00.001-06:00

Today marks the beginning of the 2012 Chinese New Year...The Year of the Dragon. The dragon symbolizes power, strength, and good fortune.

The Chinese New Year is said to have started out of fear -- according to legend, it started with a fight against a mythical beast named Nian. Nian would come on the first day of each new year to feast on livestock, crops, and villagers. It was said to especially like to feast on children.

To protect themselves, villagers were said to have placed food in front of the doors of their homes at the beginning of every new year. It was believed that after Nian ate the food that had been prepared, he would no longer attack.

The villagers were also said to wear and/or display the color red. Legends say the color scared off Nian. Legends also states that firecrackers (originally bamboo stalks filled with gun powder) were used to make loud noises that were said to frighten away Nian from homes and villages.

The Chinese New Year will end with the Lantern Festival this year, on February 6th, 2012.

Over the next fifteen days, I'll try to post information daily regarding the significance of the fifteen days of the festival. Having a Chinese-American daughter, we feel it is important to incorporate some Chinese traditions and celebrations into our lives and the life of our daughter. For instance, prior to the new year we cleaned the house, got haircuts, and bought new outfits to wear...symbolizing a "fresh start." On the Chinese New Years Eve we had our own "feast" and today, on the start of the new year, we handed out traditional "red envelopes" (containing money) to both of our children. Some of the traditions and celebrations we choose to incorporate into our lives...others seem a bit out-dated or "far-fetched" so we choose not to include those. We do what we think means the most to us as a family, and that we believe will mean something to our children not only today but also as they grow older.

Here is some of what is said to traditionally take place/occur on Day 1 of the Chinese New Year:

The welcoming of the deities of heavens and earth, officially beginning at midnight
Honoring of one's elders
Visiting with family and friends
Avoiding the use of knives, the lighting of fires, and the cleaning of the home (said to bring back luck)
Lighting of fireworks (to ward off evil spirits) and the opening of all windows/doors at midnight (to let the old year out and the new year in)
Married members of the family who are married give traditional red envelopes, containing money, to younger members of the family. Business managers also give bonuses through the use of red envelopes to employees -- signifying good luck and wealth.

And here are some photos from our days of celebration thus far:

Flowers...said to add beauty and good fortune to a home.
(I added water for a dramatic photo effect!)

"Feisty Girl" in her New Years Day dress

"Little Man" in his Dragon shirt

Traditional red envelopes -
Containing money for the kids

So Far Behind...

2012-01-20T19:39:00.001-06:00

I realized just today that I haven't posted anything on the blog since nearly one month ago. And to boot, I only made it 1/2 way through our Christmas adventures! I was going to attempt to "go back" and add additional Christmas photos as well as add photos from New Years Eve and the various activities that our family did during our time off of work and school -- but alas, I decided instead to "move forward."

My reasoning...we are already three weeks into the new year, our family is super busy (as usual) so I don't have a lot of extra time on my hands, and the blog could use a "makeover" of sorts anyway. I mean, how many of you really want to read about our Christmas and New Year adventures when we are already three weeks into the new year? So, I'll start tonight with the "makeover" portion and maybe round it out at some point over the weekend with a new post of some sort. (I'll mull that over later tonight!)

Let the Festivities Begin...

2011-12-24T14:24:00.000-06:00

We've ate, drank (well, last night anyway) and are merry! We've opened presents, laughed, and loved ("Big K" got a group hug) and now we are watching the game...ahhh...Christmas with family is the best!

One of the first presents of the season!

A LeapFrog "Scribble & Write"

Star Wars...Legos...Need I Say More?

More Star Wars Legos

V.S. "Pink" Yoga Pants

An "Aero" Sweatshirt

Even Diesel got in on the present-opening action

Grandma and "Little Man" with a "Shop with Santa" present!

Grandpa and "Feisty Girl" with another "Shop with Santa" present!

A "semi-family" photo...dad was watching the game.
He agreed to take a photo, but not pose for one during the game.
(We'll get him later though!)

A Holiday Without Sickness?

2011-12-24T11:07:00.001-06:00

We have had this thing lately where someone in our family always seems to get sick (colds, flu, etc) over the holidays -- either Thanksgiving, Christmas, or New Years. So when we started celebrating the holiday with my family late in the day on Thursday, I just had to go and mention how it appeared we were going to make it through the two major holidays this year without anyone being sick. Que up Murphy's Law...

Imagine my surprise then when at 2:00 a.m. Thursday night (Friday morning) I awake to the sounds of gagging, following by the sound of someone throwing up, followed by the sound of my husband leaping out of bed...sure enough...our son was throwing up. Mind you, he had no signs/symptoms of being ill at any time prior to this incident. I'm starting to think someone has it out for us.

So, I've learned to keep my mouth shut (that'll teach me to say no one is going to be sick!) and, thankfully, after my husband and I staying awake to support our son as he continued to throw up from 2:00 - 6:00 a.m., I'm happy to announce that whatever he had has already come and gone (I'm knocking on wood right now) and no one else has caught whever it was that he had. At this point, we are wondering whether it was something he ate.

So, now we are waiting for the real festivities to being! I'll be posting photos later...

We are the Proud Parents of...

2011-12-05T23:19:00.001-06:00

We are the Proud Parents of...a Presidential Physical Fitness Award winner!

Yes, "Little Man" seems to be growing into a "Young Man" with each passing day. For those who are not familiar with the Presidential Physical Fitness Award, in order to be eligible students must score at or above the 85th percentile in the following five categories:

Muscular Strength/Endurance
Cardio-Respiratory Endurance
Speed
Agility
Flexibility

Students were tested via the completion of a one-mile run, shuttle run, curl-ups, pull-ups, and "sit and reach." To give you some idea of what this means in terms of numbers, this means "Little Man" had to complete the following (all based on student age):

Curl-ups...40 in one minute or less
A shuttle run...in 11.1 second or less
A sit and reach...measuring 31 centimeters or better
A one mile run...in 8 minutes 48 seconds or less
Pull-ups...5 or more

There were only 15 2nd graders (8 boys and 7 girls) who earned this award in the entire school -- so to say that we are proud of our "Little Man" would be an understatement!

Keep up the GREAT work TT!

12 Days of Giveaways

2011-11-23T09:14:00.001-06:00

The ladies over at Ni Hao Y'all, The Long Road to China, and 1Ruby1Diamond1Pearl are about to kick off their "Fill Their Stockings" benefit for orphans in China. If you feel so inclined, please head over to one of their sites to read more about how you can help raise money for orphans in China and, if you are lucky, maybe even win one of the great items that they will be giving away this year!

Everything But The Kitchen Sink

2011-11-19T16:54:00.001-06:00

Our family always seems to be on-the-run. So after a long and busy week, we hunkered down on Friday night and "stayed-in." We cleaned house, did laundry, watched some TV, played some games, and even made an "Everything But The Kitchen Sink" sundae...complete with the following ingredients:

1. Cookies-n-Cream ice cream
2. Kit Kats
3. Reese's Peanut Butter Cups
4. Fruit Snacks
5. Frosted Animal Cookies
6. Chocolate Sauce

Shared by "Little Man" and Dad!

And today...our first snowfall of the season. There isn't much of it (thus far!) but it has managed to bring out the crazy drivers already -- another seasonal "gift" we encounter this time of year.

Fresh fallen snow on one of our exterior lights

Family Photo Time

2011-11-10T21:14:00.001-06:00

At the beginning of October we had some family photos taken by a local photographer -- who did a fantastic job!

We now have the task of choosing our favorite photos and narrowing it down to the few "choice" photos that we want to purchase...from approximately 130 photos. This is going to be torture!!

Here are a few of our favorites thus far:

One of my favorites - My Family!

My two beautiful children

Being Silly - All Smiles

Little Ms. Sunshine

My wonderful husband...and me!

They really are great photos. These were downloaded, with permission, to our Facebook page but I had to share them here since this is the site that all of our family and friends visit. For the safety of my family (since the blog is open to anyone) I have removed the watermark from the photos indicating the name of the photographer/studio. If I personally know you and you are interested in knowing who took our photos, feel free to shoot me an email -- I would be more than happy to pass the information along.

Happy Halloween Y'All

2011-10-31T20:13:00.002-05:00

We just got back from taking the kiddos out on their yearly trick-or-treating-trek. "Little Man" was Darth Vader and Feisty Girl was a Bride.

The weather was fine (in the upper 40's/low 50's) and even though the kids jumped in the van to warm up every now and then, overall they just ran from house to house at the speed of light in an attempt to score the next treat that would later help them to sustain their Halloween "sugar high."

Alas, the night is over and we are now at our house handing out candy to the "big kids" who are still out and about. All in all, a great Halloween for everyone. Here are a few pictures from last night (pumpkin carving) and our adventures from this evening:

"Little Man" showing off what his scary pumpkin will look like
after he's done carving it!

"Feisty Girl" showing off her scary pumpkin face

"Gutting" the pumpkin...mommy style (i.e. without getting our hands dirty!)

The finished products!

The Gang

Trick-or-Treating in the neighborhood

"Little Man" warming up in the front seat while
"Feisty Girl" and Dad finish up.

Having Fun & Conquering Fears

2011-10-27T21:32:00.000-05:00

This past weekend was "MEA" (Minnesota Education Association) weekend in Minnesota -- the largest professional development opportunity for educators in Minnesota...and a traditional "holiday" for students. Historically our family has chosen to not do anything over MEA weekend, but this year we strayed from the "norm" and decided to head to Wisconsin Dells, WI.

We started things out by traveling to my brother's home in Rochester, MN, and spending the night there before making our way to Wisconsin. My parents even came to visit for a while and we had a fun time visiting -- the kids love seeing their grandparents (all of them!). Wednesday morning the kids and I slept in until 8:30 or 9:00 and then we decided to get up and hit the road. Our niece came with us, so we had two adults, 3 kids, and something like an entire month's worth of ~~crap~~ stuff with us so the van was packed to the brim!

Our trip was short-lived (3 nights and 4 days) but we had a blast nonetheless! We played, ate, slept, swam, and conquered fears in those few short days. Wednesday we pretty much relaxed at the hotel most of the day, unpacked, grabbed dinner at MooseJaw Pizza (best pizza EVER!), and then headed back to the hotel for some pool/hot-tub time. Thursday brought an all-day trip to the Kalahari Indoor Amusement Park at the Kalahari Hotel...this is where fears were conquered! The park was huge and had everything from video arcade games to laser tag, go-karts, a Ferris wheel, a rock climbing wall, and a "ropes course." The ropes course is where some fears were conquered -- you see "Little Man" has somehow acquired a few of heights and while I'd say that I'm not afraid of heights, dangling 40+ feet in the air by only a rope did manage to make my stomach turn. ("Little Man" had a tough time of it and it took him quite a while to complete the course, but we were so proud of him for toughing it out and completing the course with the help of his dad!) Oh yes, and we also spent some time at "MagiQuest" on Thursday evening.

Friday brought another all-day adventure...but this time at the Wilderness Hotel & Golf Resort. We headed over to the resort first thing in the morning and spent the entire day playing at the massive indoor waterpark. We usually stay at the resort 1-2 x's/yr and move between each of the different waterparks (there are four total) but since we only had one day on this trip, we decided that we all liked to waterpark with the wave pool the best -- so we "rode the waves" the entire day. It.was.a.blast!

Saturday started with packing everything up in the van, hitting the road, stopping back at my brother's house to drop off our niece and to have a break job completed on the van (a planned break job...not the emergency kind!) and, last but not least, a return to our home to unpack, do laundry, etc.

Now, we're back to everyday life and wondering what adventure might await us next. I'm not 100% certain what it will be...and I had a blast spending time with my family...but I do know that the next trip will be an "adults only" trip! (Time for some mom-and-dad-time!)

Here are a few photos from our adventures in the Dells:

Flying paper airplanes off the balcony at our hotel!

Dad & "Little Man" at the start of the ropes course

Our niece on the second level of the ropes course

Dad and "Little Man" on the top level of the ropes course!

Our niece and my husband rock climbing

Working off the excess energy...and gettin' crazy!

Mom and "Feisty Girl" on the Ferris Wheel

"Little Man" showing off his magic wand and
reading his next clue at MagiQuest

Our niece at MagiQuest

Dad and "Feisty Girl" goofing off at the hotel

10,000 Free Flights to Japan Next Year

2011-10-11T23:02:00.000-05:00

It appears, in an effort to convince tourists that Japan is still a safe place to visit after the devasting earthquake and tsunami earlier this year, that the Japan Tourism Agency is going to be giving away approximately 10,000 round trip tickets to Japan next year.

And what do you have to do to snag one of these free tickets? According to the agency the only real catch will be that you must "publicize [their] trip on blogs and social media sites." Travelers would, however, be required to pay for their own lodging and meals...and before any of this can actually move forward the proposal must still be approved by Japanese lawmakers. The agency is hopeful that it will be able to start signing people up as early as next April to receive the free tickets.

So...who's in?

We visited Japan, very briefly, in July of 2008 on our way to be united with our adoptive daughter in Beijing, China. So briefly, in fact, that the extent of our experience did not make it beyond the walls of the Narita Internationl Airport in Tokyo! We have fond memories of our brief experience/stint in Japan -- the people were friendly, the food was good, the airport was clean and felt safe, their had a very nice children's play area, and the staff at that airport can herd folks through the deboarding and boarding process like nobody's business...they were amazingly efficient.

I would go back in a heartbeat -- I wonder if those are 10,000 individual tickets? I couldn't go without my family! ;)

If you're interested in "reading up" on the subject, here are a few links to some of the various news sites covering this breaking story:

Happy Travels!

All-City Elementary Cross Country Meet - Update

2011-10-11T22:15:00.003-05:00

We received some additional information regarding the All-City Elementary Cross Cross Meet that I blogged about last week. While I can't consider the participant numbers "official" (I heard them through the grape vine!) they are "believable" numbers in my mind!

We were told that there were 163 total elementary-aged runners (Grades 3-6 only) that ran the race. Of those, there were a total of 39 3rd grade boys. Of those 39 3rd grade boys, the fastest runner ran the mile in 7 minutes and 7 seconds. The slowest runner ran the mile in 14 minutes and 3 seconds.

"Little Man" came in 18th out of 39 and completed his mile in 8 minutes and 41 seconds. For this having been his first cross country event ever, I personally think he did a ~~good~~ outstanding job!!

Way to go "TT!" Mom and Dad are EXTREMELY proud of you!

All-City Elementary Cross Country Meet

2011-10-06T18:29:00.002-05:00

"Little Man" decided this week that he was going to run in the All-City Elementary Cross Country Meet. I. was. skeptical. at first.

"Litte Man" has never run in any sort of race (ever!) and at first I wondered why he would want to start now...but you know what they say "there is no time like the present!"

So I left work early today, went to pick up "Little Man," and then we met dad at home before heading to the race. When we arrived there were cars, buses, and people everywhere. We walked to the starting line and waited for the race to begin. "Little Man" saw his 5th grade "buddy" (older students that the younger students are paired up with at school as a mentoring opportunity) and was very excited that his "buddy" invited him to hang out with him at the starting line...because his "buddy" is a great runner.

So the kids were all lined up, the whistle was blown, and then the gun was shot...and they were off!

A short while later the first of the kids could be seen coming around the last corner of the course and all of us parents, grandparents, etc. were cheering them on all the way to the finish line. We aren't sure yet how many runners there even were, but "Little Man" came in at 8 minutes and 23 seconds and was in 83rd place. There seemed to be lots and lots of runners behind him, so we are thinking that he did pretty darn good for his first-ever race. The race results will be published in our local newspaper, so once we have those I'll make an update to this post or create a new post to share the "official" results.

Here are some photos from the event:

Waiting for the race to start

And...they're off!!

Nearing the finish line!

Even closer to finishing...

The end of the race!

"Little Man" in line to get his "finishing number"
(There are still lots of kids behind him -- we were so proud!)

His "official" place in the race!

Camping - Late in the Season

2011-10-04T22:37:00.001-05:00

My brother recently purchased a used pop-up camper and invited us to go camping with him, his girlfriend, and our niece. So we packed up our things and headed to Lazy D's Campground in Altura, MN over the weekend of September 23rd and 24th for a 2-night adventure.

The last time we went camping, "Little Man" was really little, "Feisty Girl" wasn't even part of our family yet, and we roughed-it in a tent. So this, I had a feeling, was going to be a completely different experience.

I have very fond memories of camping as a child. My family went camping somewhere in southeastern Minnesota nearly every weekend for many, many years of my childhood. My brother and I had "campground friends" and a good majority of our extended family could typically be found camping with us as well...including aunts, uncles, cousins, grandpa's and grandma's! I remember swimming, fishing, horseback riding, rollerskating, playing video games, hiking, riding bike, playing tennis, playing shuffleboard, telling ghost stories around the campfire and many, many other things. Camping when I was a child was great experience and I was hoping that this weekend with my brother would lead to the start of some of the same great memories and experiences for our children -- and the weekend did not disappoint!

My brother (bless his heart) did almost all of the work for us...he took a 1/2 day of vacation on Friday so by the time we arrived the camper was already set up, he had dinner on the grill, lawn chairs were readily available, and there was an assortment of cold beverages calling our names! So we quickly transferred some of our things from the van to the camper and then dug into dinner. After dinner the adults sat around the campfire (late into the evening) chatting and just "catching up" while the kids ran off to do their own thing at the playground, which was located just a hop, skip, and jump away from our campsite. Later that night we went to bed and all seven of us comfortably settled into our beds in the camper -- it was perfect, My only complaint that night was that the heater didn't kick in often enough and the electric heater didn't keep up enough to keep those of us on the very ends of the camper quite warm enough.

Saturday morning I woke up and made breakfast for everyone. We eased into the day, not even showering until around 10 or 11 a.m. and after that we all had separate activities planned for the day. My brothers girlfriend, my niece, "Little Man", and I all wanted to go horseback riding...well, I guess you could say that I convinced "Little Man" to come horseback riding. Since neither myself nor my husband wanted to risk a trail-ride accident with our daughter (her leg is still on the mend after surgery), my brother, my husband, and "Feisty Girl" decided to take the short drive to Whitewater State Park and check out some things there while we were horseback riding.

After our separate activities, we all met back at the campground and then rented three "FunCycles/PedalCars" to try out around the campground for a bit. My niece, "Little Man," and my husband raced around the campground for nearly a 1/2 hr. straight before tiring out. It was really fun to watch them race each other and see the smiles on their faces each time someone else took 1st place!

Saturday night my brother cooked supper (again), we sat around the campfire (again), and sat around the campfire (again) while the kids played with the "campground friends" that they had met the night before. Sunday morning we packed everything up and headed back home...the little adventure was everything that I hoped it would be -- we had a blast and have already talked about doing it again next year!

We were all so busy relaxing, I didn't even take time to snap many photos of our little adventure...but here are photos of some of the moments that I did manage to capture:

The Campsite

My husband and our niece on the FunCycles/PedalCars

"Little Man" on his bike (which he used to explore the
entire campground over the course of the weekend!)

The stream that ran through the campground

My niece dipping her toes in the freezing stream water!

The start of Fall Colors

My husband (returning from the showers) and
our son (explaining what a great deal the "BOGO" candy
he bought at the lodge was!)

"Feisty Girl" walking around the campsite nearest to ours
and exploring things

Vacation in Paradise - Part II

2011-09-20T20:33:00.002-05:00

I'm behind on the blogging...again. I have no excuse, other than to say that things are still so busy around here. I promised a few more pictures from our Vacation in Paradise, so here they are:

Dad and "Feisty Girl" Blazin' a Trail

Our Best Friends & Their Girls

Photo Op by the Lakeshore!

What happens when you run your kids ragged all day
on the northern shores of Minnesota!

Relaxing at Red Lobster

Family Photo Op (Part 2!)

Channeling his inner spirits?
Meditating before the big game?
Nah...just totally goofin' off by the lakeshore!

One of our favorite "To Do's" on the North Shore...
Homemade malts from the Portland Malt Shoppe!

Mission Accomplished...Kind Of

2011-09-06T19:15:00.000-05:00

We made it, the first day of school for 2011/2012 has arrived. However, it arrived to the tune of "Mom, I'm not feeling well." (Murphy's Law if full effect here folks!)

Turns out "Little Man" had a bit of a temperature this morning and said he felt like he had the "shakes." The shakes could have been due to the fact that it was pretty cool in the house this morning, and besides the slight temperature, he said he felt fine and that he really didn't want to miss the first day of school. So, against my better judgement, I sent "Little Man" off to his first day of 3rd Grade!

I decided to drop him off at school so that I could ~~take lots of photos of his first day of 3rd grade~~ alert his teacher to the fact that he wasn't feeling 100% and to call me with any problems/issues.

So, here's to another school year -- I'm sure it will be over before it barely gets started. Oh, and here are some photos that I just happen to take this morning:

Evening update...Dad went to pick "Little Man" up after school only to find that he had arrived at daycare and then had pretty much fallen asleep. When they got home "Little Man" said that he wasn't feeling well again. We took his temperature -- 102.5. It's getting worse. This is not the way to start out the new school year! (I'm not sure if it should make me feel any better or not, but we did hear from several people today that their kids were out sick today...so I guess "Little Man" isn't the only one feeling under the weather today).

Back At It

2011-09-05T21:15:00.002-05:00

Tomorrow "Little Man" will be back-at-it...school that is! Today marked the official end of summer in this sleepy, little Minnesota household.

"Little Man" is in bed, his backpack is hanging on the doorknob, he has his clothes picked out, and he is ready for tomorrow to come. He says that he isn't and that he doesn't want to go, but I know that is all for show -- in reality, he can't wait to get settled in with his new teacher, new principal, and even the new friends that he will meet in his class.

I'm sad to see yet another summer slip away and to have my little guy become one "school-grade" older but I am thankful for the wonderful memories that we were once again able to make, together as a family, over the past three months. Tomorrow we'll be makin' some new ones!

Vacation in Paradise

2011-08-25T19:42:00.001-05:00

The North Shore...you have to love it.

We are here again, for our annual trip to Duluth, MN, better known by us as "The North Shore" or "Up North." We are absolutely in love with this place. We've been coming here for over 15 years. And each year is just as good or better than the last. Some wonderful memories have been made here!

This year the memories started before the trip started. It began when I picked "Feisty Girl" up from daycare and within 15 minutes she was crying and complaining that her leg hurt. We got home and I took off her AFO and brace only to find that the lower part of her leg was swollen and it was H-U-G-E. I called her surgeon's office and after an entire line of questioning and a return phone call, the tele-nurse called back to inform me that "Feisty Girl's" surgeon wanted to see her right away in the morning...at 8:30 a.m. Problem was, my husband had to work until 1:30 p.m. so either I had to drive 1.5 hours to her surgeon's office and then turn around and drive another 1.5 hrs home -- and then ultimately the 3.5 hours to Duluth or head to "Feisty Girl's" appointment alone with the two kiddos and then meet my husband in Duluth later in the day. Lucky for us, our best were also joining us on this years trip. So we devised a plan for my husband to work his 1/2 day and then join our best friends on their drive up...allowing me to head to "Feisty Girl's" appointment and then head straight to Duluth without having to do all of the extra driving. Thank you, my dear friends!

So, the kiddos and I arrived in Duluth yesterday afternoon about 1:00 p.m. Our hotel room wasn't available until around 2:00 p.m. so we made our way down to the local park (it is gorgeous!!!) where we took in some fresh air and sun for about 1.5 hrs before trying to check into the hotel again. After that we unpacked, took a walk on the Lakewalk, and then grabbed some Italian Shaved Ice and popcorn to hold us over until everyone else arrived and we were able to go to dinner.

After grabbing dinner at Little Angie's Cantina we took a short walk and then headed back to the hotel for some swimming. The kids had a blast and we hit the bed around 10:00 p.m. This morning was when the fun really began.

You see..."Little Man" woke us up just after 6:00 a.m. complaining that he didn't feel well and that he thought that he was going to throw up. Shortly thereafter -- he started throwing up. Oh the joys. Next, "Feisty Girl" awoke and started complaining almost immediately that her leg was still bothering her. And although not a huge deal, my husband's hand had "re-swollen" in the spot where he was stung by a wasp about a week ago. We woke up, on our first full day of vacation, a sweet, hot mess of a family!

We managed to get up and get everyone ready for the day..."Little Man" hung out on the bed quite a bit though. After that we grabbed a bite to eat before reluctantly deciding to road trip to Split Rock Lighthouse. We managed to make it through the day and even stopped at Betty's Pies on the way back to the hotel for a bite to eat and, of course, pie!

Now we are back at the hotel, resting, and hoping that tonight brings lots of extra sleep for everyone and that we all wake up refreshed and feeling better! Here are some photos from yesterday afternoon/evening and from our adventures today.

Summer Smiles!

More Summer Smiles!

Peek-a-Boo

Hangin' at the Lakewalk

Ms. "A"

Ms. "J"

The "sickness" bounces back...
Daddy gives "Little Man" a rest from walking

Fresnel Lens @ Split Rock Lighthouse

My Hair Stylist Left Town...Permanently!

2011-08-19T22:37:00.001-05:00

I absolutely hate it when I have to find a new hair stylist. I had to do it several years ago, after my stylist of 15+ years cut her hours way back (she now owns her own salon) and her reduced hours no longer jived with my schedule -- therefore making it almost impossible for me to make an appointment without taking time off of work or scheduling an appointment on the weekend. But, alas, I got over it and upon the recommendation of a couple of gals at work, found a new stylist that I loved.

My new stylist was an artist really. He could do amazing things with hair and it was easy to tell that he was really passionate about what he was doing. But what wasn't to love...he owned the salon along with his wife, they got to set their own hours, and they were both genuinely great people.

So image my shock when, today, I went to make an appointment -- only to find out that they had closed up shop and moved to International Falls, MN, to be closer to family. Uggghhhh!!! What?? This cannot be happening to me!!

*Ahem* but it did...again. So for the second time in less than five years I was on the hunt again for a new stylist.

I suppose though, this one was sort of my own fault...from what I hear they gave folks plenty of notice...except, you see, I hadn't been there in quite some time due to my work-related travels earlier in the year (Feb-April) and then my daughter's surgery and subsequent surgery later in the year (May - July). So, even though others may have been aware of the pending injustice -- I was not.

At any rate, it has been a really long time since my last hair. I mean way to long. So there was really no more time for me to procrastinate, search for someone new, someone trusted, someone wonderful. So instead, I ventured off to this little, local salon today upon the recommendation of one of my husband's co-workers.

And guess what?? I loved it!!! She listened to what I said, clarified through questioning, and the results were better than I could have hoped for...I like length (she left most of mine and didn't over-trim) and I like volume (she gave me lots). This just might have been the best "first" haircut I've ever received from a stylist.

I'm now toying with the idea of a color or extensions -- we'll see what the coming weeks bring. I'm almost always the "photographer" in the family and am rarely ever in pictures unless we are with friends who are also taking photos, or unless I truly make a point of stopping to use the timer on my camera to take family photos, etc. However, I paused to have a few photos taken of myself this afternoon...just to share my new style with ya all:

Oh, and I had my "first ever" pedicure tonight too...and I can tell you that it won't be my last!! (Talk about relaxing!)

A Fresh Start

2011-08-15T23:08:00.003-05:00

Now that things have finally settled down on the "medical-front" with "Feisty Girl" I hope to get back to blogging on a regular basis again on this site. A huge "THANKS" to all of those who followed our private blog and sent well-wishes and prayers our way during "Feisty Girl's" surgery and subsequent recovery. We are still trying to capture a return to normal (whatever that is!) and that is much easier now that "Feisty Girl's" appointments are getting further and further apart.

At any rate...on to the good stuff!

This blog has been seriously neglected this year (between my 3 months of traveling for work and then "Feisty Girl's surgery) but I hope to change that soon. I know, I've missed blogging about the kids birthdays this year, their summer fun/activities, etc. and I'm not sure that I'll have enough time to circle back around and fully cover it all, but...

In the meantime, I thought I would jump start things with some random pictures from earlier this year:

"Feisty Girl" Turns 4!
(She's very excited about receiving a Disney Princess Blanket)

A Moment of Reflection?

My wonderful birthday present!!

"Little Man" & His "Little Buddies"

"Little Man Turns 8!"

This photo was taken at an abandon building about 30 minutes
north of where we live..."Little Man" had his first encounter with a
real snake (yikes!) on this day

"Feisty Girl" at the Disney Princess on Ice pre-show

Dad's birthday gift...an iPhone (he had been wanting one forever!)

Our first fire in our new fire pit

The 4th of July with Friends!

British Soccer Camp
"Little Man" with Coach Garry (from Scotland) and
Coach Dan (from England)

One of the macro photos I've taken this year

What happens after a day at the MN Zoo!

Dad and "Little Man" on the bumper cars at Valleyfair Amusement Park

What mom needs after the year we've had thus far!!! ;)

An Extra Tooth

2011-08-04T19:01:00.002-05:00

We discovered recently that "Little Man" had an extra permanent tooth present in his mouth. It was located in the front of his mouth, directly behind his two front teeth. We met with a local oral surgeon a little over a month ago and determined that it would be in "Little Man's" best interest to have it surgically extracted before it erupted through the gum line and started moving existing teeth around and causing problems.

So this morning, "Little Man," his dad, and I headed in to the oral surgeons office around 7:30 a.m. "Little Man" was very nervous and I can't say that I blame him after seeing his sister recently go through surgery. We assured "Little Man" that his surgery would be nothing like his younger sister's surgery and that he wouldn't be spending the night anywhere but home, etc.

Even with all of the prepping that we did ahead of time to prepare him and try to calm him, he was still pretty nervous going into things this morning so the surgeon decided to give him an anti-anxiety medication to calm him before they started any part of the procedure. We were thankful for that because without it placing the IV would like have not been a good thing for "Little Man." Even after the anti-anxiety medication, nitrous oxide ("laughing gas"), and a numbing agent to skin at the IV site, "Little Man" still squirmed a bit as the IV was placed into his arm.

The procedure itself took about 15 minutes but we were at the oral surgeon's office for a total of 2 hours from start to finish. All in all, things went excellent. "Little Man" awoke with many tears, not understanding why he was in pain or why his mouth was dry and stuffed with gauze, etc. but within about 6 hours of the surgery he was feeling well enough to go on a car ride with me to go pick up his sister from daycare. I'm sure he is tired out and will be sleeping well into the morning tomorrow, so we plan on keeping it low-key around this place for the time being!!

Three Years Ago Today

2011-07-17T22:10:00.003-05:00

Three years ago today...I woke up in Beijing, China. Three years ago today...I spent the day exploring the Summer Palace and then visiting the Yonghe Temple. Three years ago today...I was in the midst of experiencing one of the greatest times in my life!

Three years ago today, my family husband, my son, and I were seven days into a sixteen day trip to China to complete the adoption of our baby girl. Someone who, three years ago, we had only known for four short days but whom we felt like we had known for a lifetime.

"Feisty Girl," three years ago today you changed our lives forever -- and every year sometime during the anniversary of our travels to be united with you, I think about just how many lives were changed by one very special little girl. I think about your birth parents. And pray for them. I think about how hard their decision to place you for adoption must have been. And how they probably grieve for their loss every day. But mostly, I think about how their sacrifices enriched our lives. And how without them...none of this would have been possible.

Three years ago today life was as beautiful as ever...and so were you:

Hellllloooo Summer!

2011-05-30T23:25:00.000-05:00

I'll admit...I'm all about Summer. While I like the snow in Winter, I hate the ice and the cold. While I like the falling leaves in Fall, I don't care for the windy days that alert me to the fact that bone-chilling weather is just around the corner. While I like the birth of all things new in spring, I hate the "muck" that gets tracked into the car, the house, and every other little nook and cranny as the snow melts and the rains begin. Yes, I am a Summer Girl.

And this my friends is my newest, most-loved, summer time possession:

It is call the Bahamas Frozen Concoction Maker and I received it as a Mother's Day gift from my husband. Ladies, don't get all worked up...my husband wouldn't normally ever consider buying me an appliance of any sort for a gift. However, he knows that I love my margaritas and daiquiris and that I had mentioned buying one of these in the past but considered it to be luxury item (considering the fact that this line of products retails for around $300.00 and goes up into the $700.00 range for the fully-functioning, high-end model) and therefore I had always passed up buying one in the past.

My husband is the best though...he remembered that I had wanted one of these, waited until they went on sale, and then bounced all over the opportunity to buy one for me. This particular model retailed for $300.00 (I really don't need the bigger, fancier version for anything) and it was 50% off. On top of that the store had an additional 10% off appliances and my husband knew that I had a 30% off "anything in the store" coupon. I probably shouldn't know this much about a gift that was bought for me...but my dear husband also knows me well enough to know that after the initial excitement had worn off that I would be freaking out over the fact that he spent over $300.00 for a fancy blender. So after I opened it he kindly let me know that he had got a super deal on it. I was so psyched!!

I've used it a few times now and am starting to get the hang of things like how much ice to add per drink, how much mix to use, etc. I've now made icees for the kids and for the adults -- margaritas, daiquiris, and even some "electric lemonade." I. am. hooked!!! I love this thing!

A Quick Update

2011-05-21T10:23:00.000-05:00

Just a quick update to let you all know that "Feisty Girl's" surgery went well and we are now two weeks into the recovery phrase. We hope to have the external fixator removed in approxmiately two weeks, and then she will go into a cast for approximately another six weeks.

I have this sneaking suspicion that it is going to feel like our summer is over before it even gets started. Back to caretaking...

Time Out...

2011-05-04T10:17:00.001-05:00

Our family has been on a hiatus (as if you haven't noticed) as of late. My 2.5 months of traveling has finally come to an end and we've returned to a new sense of normalcy at home..but...that too has now come and went. As I type, we are at Gillette Children's Speciality Hospital in St. Paul, MN. "Feisty Girl" is currently in surgery having the following done: Femoral Lengthening, Tibial Derotation Osteotomy, Tendoachilles Lengthening, and she will be fitted with a Taylor Spatial Frame (TSF) on her Femur, Tibia, and Foot. Please send your thoughts and prayers to our family and, more importantly, to "Feisty Girl."

I will try to make occasional updates to this blog throughout her surgery and subsequent recovery, but have chosen to make most updates through a private blog that I've created specifically for family and friends.

Life's a...Beach

2011-03-27T21:53:00.096-05:00

After getting off to a rough start yesterday I decided to give Fort DeSoto another try today. Before I left I made sure I had my camera (with memory card!), my GPS, my phone, and my sunscreen. With everything in hand I made the 45 minute trek back to Fort DeSoto.

I gave myself an extra 15 minutes of travel time just to be safe and it was a good thing that I did because the traffic was a lot heavier today. Since I had left the hotel a bit early, I thought that upon my arrival that I would have about 15 minutes until the departure of the ferry...in reality, I had less than 5 minutes to park the car, run to the fishing pier, and make the ferry. When I got there they had just closed the gate but the Captain (Jeff) and his wife (Angie) were nice enough to re-open the gae and let me board. And with that I was finally off on the adventure that was suppose to have taken place yesterday.

The photos were all taken at Fort DeSoto Park and Egmont Key. Fort DeSoto is comprised of a total of five islands and is named after a fort that was built on the islands in the late 1900's to guard the entrance to Tampa Bay. Egmont Key is an island, reachable only by boat, at the mouth of Tampa Bay. The Egmont Key Lighthouse and the ruins of Fort Dade, a Spanish-America War era fort, are located in the park. The island was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places on December 11, 1978. There really aren't words to describe some of the beautiful things that I saw today, so I'll just let the pictures do the talking:

Ferry to Egmont Key

Egmont Key Lighthouse (as seen upon approach)

A Great Reminder

Inner-Island Brick Path

Gopher Tortoise

Pure Beauty at the Beach

Blissfully Blue

Beachside Scenary

Stranded Jellyfish

Just in case there was any question...

A view from the top one of the ruins

Another one of the ruins

Mine Storehouse & Cable Tank Building

Dolphin off of the Fort Desoto Gulf Pier

Another Dolphin!

Beachside Artwork -- For my husband and kiddos!

An "Off" Day

2011-03-26T16:29:00.001-05:00

I started off the day thinking that I was going to drive to Fort Desoto in Tierra Verde (about 45 minutes from Tampa) and spend the morning taking some pictures of the Gulf Coast, the beach, wildlife, etc. Then my plan was to depart Fort Desoto at 11:00 a.m. for Egmont Key, an offshore National Island Wildlife Refuge that is accessible only by boat, and spend some more time taking photographs and maybe even relaxing at the beach. But...I guess I should have known that when I had to return to the hotel (twice) before I had even left Tampa this morning that my day was going to be doomed!

I left the hotel this morning around 9:00 a.m. and returned about 9:02 (after getting out to my car) because I realized that I forgot my sunscreen. Okay, no big deal. Then, I left the hotel again and around 9:08 a.m. had to pull my car over to the side of the road because my GPS appeared to have quit working and I didn't have any maps with me...hmmm. I had found some weird pieces of electronic-related stuff in my laptop bag earlier in the morning but had no idea what they were from. Well, after looking over my GPS in an attempt to figure out why there was no longer a charge left in it, I figured it out. Those odd parts were to my GSP, which had somehow come unscrewed (the piece you stick in the outlet in the car) and was now pretty much useless. With no GPS and no paper map, I turned the car around once again and returned to the hotel about 9:21. I ~~stomped~~ ran back up to my room, grabbed the three tiny pieces that were in the laptop bag and once again, around 9:27 a.m. hit the road again. This time convinced that I had everything I needed. Money (check), sunscreen (check), sunglasses (check), swimsuit (check), cell phone (check), something to drink (check)...you get the picture.

So I hit the road for the third time and FINALLY feel like I'm good-to-go. I make the 45 minute drive to Fort DeSoto, get out of the car, take a peek around (very cool area!), check my watch for the time to make sure I don't miss the ferry to Egmont Key, and realize that I have about a 1/2 hr. until departure. So I decide to head out to the pier, try to determine exactly where the ferry leaves from, and then take some pictures from the pier. It was all going well up until this point...and then...and then THIS happens.

I pull out my camera and attempt to take a few pictures, nothing. I attempted to take a few more, nothing -- at which time I decided that I better take a closer look at the camera. It was then that I noticed the little "no memory card" icon. Damn...it is at the hotel. So with no time to run anywhere to buy one prior to the arrival of the ferry to Egmont Key and no way to take pictures I decide to head back to the hotel for a third time.

I'm a little ~~pissed off~~ miffed, to say the least. My whole day was seemingly in ruins. On the 45 minute ride back to Tampa, I decided that instead of heading back to the hotel and sulking all day that I would make the most of it and just switch things up. So upon my arrival in Tampa I headed back to the hotel to retrieve my memory card for the camera and then I went straight to another tourist attraction that had I wanted to see while I was here. The Lowry Zoo. Voted the #1 Zoo in America.

With the morning behind me, the warmth of the sun at my back, and my demeanor a little more low-key...I proceeded into the gates of the Lowry Zoo. I spent the afternoon there. It was fun but in my opinion wasn't all it was hyped up to be; in fact, I think the MN Zoo is 110% nicer than this zoo. However, I did get to see some really cool animals, many of which aren't found at any of the local zoos back in MN...so all in all, the day turned out okay. Here are some photos from the Lowry Zoo:

Zoo Entrance

White Bengal Tiger

Komodo Dragon

Blue-Throated Macaw

Giraffe

Penguins

American Alligator

Manatee

You Guessed It...

2011-03-25T23:09:00.001-05:00

I'm in Tampa, FL! It is absolutely gorgeous here right now. The first couple of days after we (my co-worker and I) arrived it was very humid. However, as of today the humidity has died down and the temperature is hovering around the low 80's.

I've been here since Tuesday and it has basically been all work and no play -- which has really been par for the course with this project. However, tonight my co-worker and I were just ready to get out of the office and didn't want to have to worry about anything even remotely work-related. So, we headed over to International Plaza for a drink at the Blue Martini and then took a very short walk down to The Pub. International Plaza is HUGE and the area in which the restaurants are located has a very unique design concept. We grabbed an outside table, a drink, dinner, and basically chatted the night away all while people watching. Then we headed back to the hotel. And now, I'm calling it a night. We'll see what tomorrow brings!

Here are a couple of fun photos from tonight's little adventure:

Wishin' ya'all were here...you know who you are!

On the Road Again...

2011-03-22T20:30:00.000-05:00

I left behind (again) the cold, wind, rain, and snow in Minnesota and just arrived in a local that, upon my arrival this evening, boasted a temperature of a balmy 76 degrees farenheit. The rest of the week is looking to shape up to be in the 80's -- topping out around 86 this weekend.

Go away Old Man Winter...I want it to be sunny and warm when I return to Minnesota in 12 days. In the meantime, I'll enjoy the weather here:

Anyone recognize this place?

Turning 4!

2011-03-20T19:41:00.001-05:00

"Feisty Girl" turned four years old on St. Patty's Day. I was...still traveling. And not suppose to be home until early Friday afternoon.

However, our second training session wrapped up almost two days early -- which opened the door for me to travel home one day early. With one quick phone call, I changed my flight and "reworked" my car rentals in both Indianapolis and Minneapolis. I then called down to the front desk at the hotel that I was staying at to let them know that I would be checking out one day early...and with that the packing began!

I flew out of Indianapolis one day early, jumped into my rental car as soon as I landed in Minneapolis, and then drove home as quickly as possible so that I could surprise my little girl, her big brother, and my husband. I had bought each of them small presents from my trip and then picked up a birthday balloon bouquet at a local store on my way home.

I then arrived, presents and balloons in hand. I placed them on the front step, run the doorbell, and ran for the corner of the house nearest our garage...and watched...and waited. My husband opened the door and saw someone (he didn't realize it was me) lurking in the shadows. I jumped out and the look on his face was priceless. I then hid again and he then called the kids down; he told them that there was a surprise for them at the door. They ran down the stairs, out onto the steps, and were looking around as if to say "well who is all this stuff from?" I quickly dashed out from my hiding spot, scooped "Little Man" into my arms (he was closest to me!) and then ran to also scoop up "Feisty Girl."

There were flabbergasted. In fact, "Feisty Girl" said "Are you staying home now or do you need to leave until tomorrow?" I informed them that I was home early and wouldn't be going anywhere for four days. I then unpacked some of my stuff and we celebrated "Feisty Girl's" birthday together as a family that night!

Nearly Home

The presents and balloon bouquet

Looking for the person who made this delivery

Didn't Initially Find Anyone...So Then They Ventured Out to Retrieve the Goodies!

Of course, I was taking pictures and video of all of this...and since no one was expecting me, I don't have any "reunion" photos to share. But any of you who are parents and have been away from your children and spouse for any length of time can probably imagine what happened after this -- lots of smiles, lots of hugs, and lots of kisses!!

A Birthday Post From the Road

2011-03-15T18:09:00.001-05:00

I'm celebrating my birthday "on the road" this year...I've never had a birthday on the road before but it actually wasn't the dreaded away-from-my-friends-and-family-birthday that I was anticipating. In fact, it was quite fun.

It started out with a wonderful rendition of "Happy Birthday" being sung to me by the entire training class and some of the folks that were in the last training session that we conducted and was followed up by cake and other assorted goodies...all before 9:00 a.m.

It ended with the other trainers and my coworker from back home taking me out for dinner and drinks after our work day ended. Like I said...the days was about as good as it gets in terms on on-the-road-and-working-all-day birthdays! Thanks to everyone who made it special!! (And thanks to all of my family and friends from back home who sent me emails, texts, Facebook posts, cards, and/or picked up the phone to wish me a Happy Birthday today -- I love you all!)

The wonderful cake that I got to enjoy for breakfast this morning!
Thanks all you Indianapolis gals -- your the best!!

(Oh, and sorry about it being 1/2 eaten...we were all enjoying
the moment so much that I forgot to take a picture before
we all started digging in).

It's Birthday Week!

2011-03-14T21:35:00.001-05:00

It is official. Tomorrow I am officially one year older. And two days from tomorrow my daughter will officially be one year older. Unfortunately, I've been in Indianapolis (again) for the past week and won't be headed home until Friday...which means that I will not be able to celebrate my birthday or my daughter's with my family.

However, my work here should be wrapped up as of Thursday and I plan to take to the skys again on Friday and head home to see my wonderful husband (whose has officially held down the fort for what has been almost a total of 20 days thus far!) and to see my beautiful children. And then we will celebrate on Saturday, both birthdays, with family and friends!

While Mom's Away...

2011-03-07T21:19:00.000-06:00

The kids will play!

Baking Cookies with Dad

"Camp Out" Night

Mid-Winter Picnic
(Please tell me that isn't a Mountain Dew on the table!)

1,183 = Total number of puzzle pieces

Smooth Style - Hawaiian Day

Indianapolis, IN

2011-02-17T19:06:00.000-06:00

You guessed it...I'm in Indianapolis, Indiana. For 10 days, straight. Away from my husband and kiddos. But I've talked to them every night since I've left and it sounds like they are doing great! Everyone is getting to work/school/daycare on time, meals are being made, baths are being given, and fun is being-had.

I have eight more days to go before training is complete and I'm on my way back home for a bit before I have to venture back here for a second trip in late February/early March. The weather was gorgeous today and I'm looking forward to the weekend.

It isn't all that bad here, I guess...better then being stuck somewhere in no-mans-land like North or South Dakota (no offense to my readers in those states!). If it is decent outside over the weekend I'm going to go souvenir hunting for the kiddos. Well, my dinner is here -- time to eat -- and then work some more.

More from the road later!

I'm Off...

2011-02-15T01:22:00.001-06:00

Well, this is it, I'm heading down the home stretch. I'm just hours from the start of the next business day...a day in which I will spend all morning wrapping up a seven day training session for the folks in our local office before catching a flight to another one of our offices to start our training there on Thursday of this week.

Usually when someone travels in our family, it is my husband. In the thirteen years that I have been with my employer, I've only had to travel once. That was back in 2008 (to Phoenix, AZ) and I was gone for a total of five business days. This trip, however, takes business travel to a whole new level for me. I'll be gone for ten day stints starting tomorrow and not ending until mid-April of this year. Making a total of four trips to our various offices between now and then.

There is nothing left to plan, the packing is finally done, and my boarding pass has been printed. Any guesses on where I might be headed? Here is a picture of the skyline:

"Little Man" and "Feisty Girl" keep telling me that they are going to be big kids while I'm gone...being good for their dad, helping around the house, going to bed on time, etc. They've also informed me that they won't miss me while I'm gone because they have lots of "nights" planned with dad...for instance, "game night," "camping out night," "lego night," "music night," "book night," and even "invention night." Unlike them, however, I don't have any "nights" planned! My nights will likely consist of leaving work late, grabbing a bite to eat, heading back to the hotel, and then working some more only to wake up in the morning and do it all again.

Sounds like they are going to be very busy while I'm gone and I guess that is a good thing. I'm hoping that I'll be just as busy (okay, one night to read a book in absolute peace and quite would be nice!) and that it will seem like almost no time has passed before my ten days of traveling have passed and I'm on that flight back home!!

A Night at the Game

2011-02-12T21:34:00.000-06:00

Last weekend we spent the night in the Twin Cities. We attended a Timberwolves Game and then stayed at the Embassy Suites in Brooklyn Center using our Hilton Honors points! Sunday morning we got up, did some shopping, and then headed home to watch the Super Bowl. It was a fun weekend.

The story behind our attendance at this particular game is kind of neat -- "Little Man" actually won the tickets at a silent auction fundraiser for the father-in-law of one of my coworkers who has cancer. We have been to silent auction fundraisers before but never with the kids, so this was a whole new experience and "Little Man" was definitely intriguied by the whole thing. We talked about why we were going, what the auction was all about, and how the money raised would go to help pay medical bills, etc.

After knowing the "why" behind why we were going, "Little Man" promptly asked whether he could take some money out of his savings to bid on some things of his own. We have also taught the kids to save a lot, donate some, and spend little -- a concept "Little Man" understands very well. At any rate, there were some Timberwolves tickets up for auction (both a four-pack and an entire suite) and "Little Man" was just dying to use his money to bid on them. He had bid on a Lego gift set and a SnowCone gift set earlier in the evening but those two items received lots of attention from many families and were quickly out of "Little Man's" price range...which is when he happened upon these tickets to the Timberwolves game.

Now, granted, the Timberwolves aren't all that popular at the moment but we couldn't believe that at the time we stumbled upon these, the top bid on the four-pack was only at $15.00. "Little Man" had withdrawn $50.00 from his savings account and, at all costs, he was going to win these tickets. Amazingly, in the end, he did win them -- if fact, he ended up getting all four tickets for a total of $45.00. Imagine our surprise when we received the tickets in the mail and discovered they were $115.00 each. They were center court tickets about 15 rows from the court. We've been to a lot of games, but these were by far the best tickets we had ever had -- thanks "Little Man" for your winning bid! We really enjoyed the evening!

Here are some photos from our weekend getaway...

Pre-Game Festivties

"Measuring-Up!"

"Look Mom!"

Crunch and the Gang

"What's uP? We at the game yo!"

Saturday, February 5th, 2011 (Wolves vs. Nuggets)

"Check Me Out!"

Cotten Candy...nothing like sugar on a stick to keep the kids going!

Enjoying a Snow Cone

"Lets do this thing!!"

Game On!

2011 - The Year of the Rabbit

2011-02-03T20:24:00.001-06:00

There's a Celebration in Progress...

2011-02-02T20:38:00.000-06:00

Just a quick note to check in on this, the eve of the most important of all days in China - New Year’s Eve. We are just a few short hours away from the first day of the lunar month ("Day 1" of the Chinese New Year) and the start of a fifteen day long celebration!

Our family has enjoyed our Chinese New Year's Eve feast, celebrating together at a local restaurant, and now we are at home relaxing and staying warm! We won't be up eating dumplings or setting off firecrackers at midnight...but we had fun ringing in the new year in our own special way.

Can't wait to give the kids their red envelopes tomorrow. Oh yeah...and the day of no cleaning will be great too -- don't want to tempt fate and sweep all of our good fortune out the door. That could bring some serious bad luck in the coming new year; something I want nothing to do with! :)

Basketball!

2011-01-25T21:25:00.000-06:00

"Little Man" started his third season of basketball this month. These past three seasons have been all about developing skills. They don't play competitvely at his age; in fact, they don't even play games against other teams...that is coming next year though!

Here are some shots from his practice last week:

Happy Birthday "Big K!"

2011-01-24T21:14:00.001-06:00

An open letter to my niece...

"Big K," today you turn fourteen years old. I find it hard to believe -- it seems like just yesterday I cradled you in my arms for the first time and watched you smile your first smile at me. Today, you are a beautiful, vibrant, and intelligent fourteen year old with your whole life ahead of you.

You are now just one short year away from learning to drive, four years away from graduating from high school, and who knows what the future holds for you after that. I know that you can do anything you set your mind to. You can be anything you want to be. And you can live whatever life you choose to live. I know that you will make good decisions, using your best judgement...and learn from your mistakes.

Today, as you inch ever-nearer to adulthood, my hope for you is that you...always do your best, persevere through the tough times with your head held high, know that your family and true friends are the only ones that really matter and that we will support you in all that you do, and that you continue to reach for the highest, brightest stars in the moonlit sky.

May all your birthday wishes come true.

Love,

Aunt "H"

Hiatus

2011-01-23T17:30:00.000-06:00

Hiatus - "An interruption in time or continuity. A break, especially; a period when something (as a program or activity) is suspended or interrupted."

So 2010 has come to an end and we are already a good month into 2011. I took an unintentional hiatus from blogging duties at the end of the year. I have no excuses to offer up...other than the one that goes "the end of 2010 was just extremely busy for our family" And, by the looks of it, 2011 isn't going to let up!

2010 was the year in which...

The MN Vikings Super Bowl dreams were dashed thanks to Farve throwing a late-game interception
Our daughter's treatments for club foot ended...and treatment for her newly diagnosed fibular hemimelia began
Our son lost a whole bunch of his baby teeth
We experienced colder weather in Las Vegas, NV, than we would have had we just stayed put in Minnesota! (I think we'll be moving the annual trip back to the months of April or later).
Soccer fever caught hold in our house; including a stint in a Challenger Sports British Soccer Camp and the watching of many World Cup games!
"Little Man" turned a big 7 years old and "Feisty Girl" turned into a super-sassy 3 year old
My husband finally purchased his "real" grill -- a beautiful, black, and behemoth Weber
My new ~~baby~~ Canon D5000 arrived
The year that we were blessed to have our niece stay with us for a week and later take her with our family on a five day trek to Wisconsin
Flooding of historical proportions hit the place that we have called home for the past 13+ years
"Little Man" became a 2nd grader
Both Grandma "C" and Grandma "B" turned 60
Snow began to fall...and continued to fall...in amounts I haven't seen since I was a young child
Cancer reared its ugly head in our family ("Grandma B" was diagnosed with breast cancer)

And last but surely not least...2010 was the year in which our lives continued to be blessed by the presence of our dearest family and friends. You all mean the world to us and we are so happy to have you in our lives!

2011-01-18T20:42:00.000-06:00

Do You Believe? We Do!

2010-12-13T20:40:00.004-06:00

In my last post (about Santa's visit) you might recall that I talked about "Little Man" wanting "more snow" to be delivered to us due to the fact that Santa told him that he did not have Laptops or Red Wii's at the North Pole. Well, we are a house full of believers -- and make us believe Santa did! :)

In fact, after "Little Man's little wish" we were delivered the biggest two day snowfall in 19 years. Wow! Now that is a big ol' present with a huge red bow on top. In fact, some areas of the state received over 20 inches. Locally, I think we received something more like 17 inches. Either way, a whole buncha snow. The kids haven't been able to play in it yet though because after the snow fell the bitter colds moved in. However, "Little Man" is really looking forward to putting on his snow-gear and heading outside to make one massive snow fort sometime soon. In the meantime, we are enjoying the outdoor view from indoors!

During the storm "Feisty Girl" and I made some Christmas treats and the boys even pitched in -- yummy. And I must admit that we all thoroughly enjoyed hanging out together for well over one day and not really having any cares in the world...even if just for a day!

The storm begins

The next morning - a lovely coat of ice on our windows!

View of the Alaskan Wilderness from our plane?
No, just our front yard...post-snowfall!

My little helper in the kitchen

All smiles!

Post treat-making activities...it wasn't chocolate,
but gooey marshmallow and Rice Crispies will also do the trick!

A Visit From Santa

2010-12-07T22:36:00.000-06:00

The kiddos have crossed paths with Santa several times already this year. However, last Friday night (after their Christmas Concert) they were prepared for their visit -- little man even had a written list in ~~hand~~ his pocket, just in case he were to forget those ever-important things that he wanted to be sure to ask Santa for this year.

"Feisty Girl," she is so easy going that she would be happy with just about anything that happened to come her way this Christmas. However, I did overhear he tell Santa that top on her list is a Barbie Guitar (what is that?), dominos, and a new tent. D-o-a-b-l-e!

"Little Man" on the other hand, he evidentially isn't quite so content with the simple things in life anymore. No, this year he was going for the big guns. He started out well, telling Santa that he wanted Legos, K'nex, and Sports Cards (check, check, check) but ended with the big bang that I think even surprised Santa! Yes, "Little Man" wanted nothing less than a Laptop and a "new, red Wii." Nevermind the fact that this household already has two computers in it, or that when my husband and I bring home our laptops from work then there are actually four computers in the house. Also, nevermind that we already have one white Wii. Ugghhhh...

Thankfully, after Santa had given mom and dad the ~~"wow, you really have your hands full"~~ "I'll handle this one" look he ever-so-gently broke the news to "Little Man" that Santa does not make laptop computers or Wii's at the North Pole. I intially thought "crisis averted," only to later realize that that only made things fall back into mom and dad's lap! Luckily for us, the next morning "Little Man" was seen crossing "Laptop" and "Red Wii" off of his Christmas list. When I asked him why those items were being crossed off his list, he simply replied "Santa doesn't have those at the North Pole." After crossing off probably the two most coveted gifts off his list he, without hesitation, simply replaced those two things with something equally as good in his eyes -- "More Snow!"

My kids...I love 'em!

Warrior Princess

2010-11-30T18:43:00.001-06:00

Like lots of young girls, "Feisty Girl" loves to play dress up...this was what dress up time resulted in the other day:

I call her Warrior Princess -- cute as a button, but don't get on her bad side or you may just find yourself...well, we won't talk about that here! :)

Seriously, she approached me from behind and promptly told me to turn around because she was going to "splat" me. If she had approached me without the cutesy dress and big ol' smile...ahem...I actually may have had to run for cover!

Halloween Happiness!

2010-10-31T20:42:00.000-05:00

What isn't there to love about Halloween? Cute kids and candy galore -- ahhh, another Halloween has come and gone...

Anticipation

A Pretty Princess (in a Barbie costume!)

Minnesota Viking - Adrian Peterson

The kids with their friend "A"

Reapin' in the Rewards!

Lil' Cutie

2010-10-17T22:15:00.000-05:00

"Feisty Girl" had a 102.2 temp on Friday (was exposed to strep last week) and hasn't been feeling all that well over the past couple of days. As of today it seems like her fever may have broke so we took that as an opportunity to step outside for a bit...camera in tow. It was gorgeous out!! (You would never know from these pictures that she wasnt' feeling the best).

Indian Summer?

2010-10-11T22:15:00.000-05:00

It has now been several weeks since the devastating flooding, and we have now been blessed with a spurt of "Indian Summer" weather. What is Indian Summer you ask? Well, according to Wikipedia.com, it is "a period of sunny, warm weather, after the leaves have turned following an onset of frost, but before the first snowfall."

And boy-oh-boy have we met that criteria! Since last Friday we have had temperatures well over the 70 degree mark. Friday and Saturday we managed to reach into the mid-80's! We managed to get a ton of work done around the house and, more importantly, get out and have some fun enjoying these last days of summer.

On Saturday we visited a fun little pumpkin patch located in Byron, MN. We had been there before but back then "Little Man" was only 1-1/2 years old and "Feisty Girl" wasn't even part of our family yet. This year, we visited as a complete family. My husband's brother, his wife, and cousin "H" visited with us.

Despite the HOT weather, the nasty little biting bugs (nats?) that were all over the pumpkin patch grounds, and that fact that Grandma "G" couldn't join us because she wasn't feeling well, we still made the best of it! Here are a few pictures from the day:

The girls enjoying one of the many wooden toy tractors

"Little Man" making his way down one of the "Rabbit Hold" slides

Aunt "K" and Cousin "H" on the slide

Daddy and "Feisty Girl" -- Lots of Laughs!

Show me your serious face!

Show me your sassy face!

Trike Races!!

Cousins at play!

Uncle "A" and Cousin "H" at the top of one of the Wooden Forts

Entrance to one of the corn mazes

Group Photo Stop :)

The sun setting on a wonderful Indian Summer day

Historic Flooding

2010-09-27T21:27:00.000-05:00

I lived in one city for the first 24 years of my life. The next 13 years of my life I've lived in another city. If someone had told me that I would end up loving my "new city," I would have told them early on that they were nuts!

I moved from what I considered a major city (with a mall, a variety of 24-hr conveniences, access to wonderful medical care, plenty of activities, parks, etc) to a "blip" on the map (no mall, 24-hr nothing, mid-level medical care, and virtually no activities to speak of unless that activities included doing something at a local park) that made me question why in the world I had ever even considered this move, let alone actually went through with it!

Little did I know that that little "blip on the map" would soon become home to me...the place from which I planned my wedding, bought my first house, got my first "real" job, had my first child, bought my second home, and headed up the efforts to expand the size of our family through the adoption of a little girl who lived halfway around the world from us.

So, it was with a heavy heart that I watched my hometown be devastated by a flood of historic proportions last week. In fact, we received over 6 inches of rain in less than 24 hours. Something that had never, E-V-E-R occurred in the history of the city itself. It started on Wednesday, Sept. 22nd and ended just as quickly as it had started, on Thursday, Sept. 23rd. At one point in time there were over 70 road closures and only one east-west passage through the city.

I watched the water rise and with every waking hour, creep closer and closer to homes and businesses throughout the city. People's livelihood on the line. People's safety on the line. People's futures on the line. I watched...and waited...and prayed. For my own family...and for others. For the volunteers. For the police, firefighters, and the members of the National Guard who were here to help.

And then -- a break in the rain came. The sun has since peeked out. The clean-up has begun. People are giving their all. It is an amazing sight to witness. In recent days, my husband and I have made our own contributions to the clean-up and recovery efforts and if there is one thing we've learned from all of this, it is that we couldn't be more proud to call this city home!

Here are some photos from around town:

The retaining pond across from our home - full

Downtown area

Bridge under water in a local park

Local business

Garage behind a home near the river

Park near utility company

Another local park

Cars at an impasse

Flooded truck

Flooded road

"Little Man" - 2nd Grade

2010-09-20T21:03:00.002-05:00

"Little Man" started 2nd grade on the Tuesday after Labor Day. He proudly proclaimed late last week that he has the best teacher in the ENTIRE school!

With absolutely no sign of homework yet and sports cards in the classroom "prize" box, it is no wonder he thinks he has the best teacher ever!

Okay, in all reality, we all seem to like her quite a bit...she definitely takes an interest in the children in her class and seems genuinely concerned with seeing them success in her class. I've volunteered to be a room parent again this year and am looking forward to working with her throughout the year!

So, below you will find "Little Man" looking not so little anymore. The first photo is his professional portriate that was taken at school and the other photos were ones that I took on his first very windy day of school:

Officially a 2nd Grader!

Windy Morning

A very happy 2nd grader!

Waiting for the bus

Boarding the bus

"Unpacking" upon his arrival at school
(Photo courtesy of Little Man's "Mamarazzi") And yes,
I did follow him all around town this particular morning.

Ready for his first day!!

Grandma "B" Turns 60!

2010-09-19T21:26:00.000-05:00

The first weekend in September was Grandma "B's" 60th birthday. (This is my husband's mother). She thought she was coming to our house for what was supposed to be a pretty laid back day...boy did we all have her fooled!!

We actually turned her 60th into a weekend long extravaganza that started with a surprise party (including BBQ cookout with extended family), followed by a night by the campfire making smores and telling stories. We rounded out the weekend with a trip to the MN Renaissance Festival (Sunday) and a trip to the Mall of America (Monday, Labor Day).

We were tired out by the time Monday rolled around, but we all had a blast and that is all that counts! Here are some of my favorite photos from the weekend festivities:

Surprised? Or terrified to see us all?

Okay, now there's a smile!

A picture of the cake before it was devoured!

Grandma getting some help with her candles from the kids

Opening gifts (with help!)

A picture of all of the kiddos...ya all are a good lookin' bunch!

Watching the video the boys made for Grandma

A girl and her daddy...MN Renaissance Festival

Yep...I'm a cutie...check me out!

A favorite activity -- found everywhere these days

Grandma blowing our her birthday candelabra at Buca's!

Summer's End

2010-09-15T21:34:00.000-05:00

Every year for many-a-year our family makes its way to Duluth, MN. In fact, my husband and I have been doing so even before we had a family. It is a trip we enjoy...no, we love! It is our last hurrah before the official end of summer, our last time to hike, to bike, to enjoy the shoreline, to play at the playground in the warm sun, to take in a meal together on the outdoor patio, to live, to love, and to learn -- from each other and with each other. This tradition, started when my husband and I were just a "couple," has blossomed into one of my most beloved family traditions.

Unfortunately, this years trip was not quite as exciting or adventerous as some of our other yearly trips to the North Shore because I was sick the entire trip. I had a horrible cough (which kept everyone up at night), a sore throat, an almost consistent headache, and a whole bunch of other "unpleasantries." Is that even a word? :)

I promised myself that I was going to make the most of the trip anyway...that I was not going to let this little cold get the best of me. I did what I could to keep it together on the trip. We kept things simple (no hiking or biking this time around) and by doing so we actually got to try some things that we've been meaning to do for years but have just never gotten around to doing due to the fact that our other "normal" activities are generally far more exciting. For instance, we've always wanted to tour the William A. Irvin but have never taken the time. We've wanted to return to the Great Lake Aquarium with our daughter, who was not yet part of our family at the time we last visited.

While it is never fun to be sick on vacation, I did hold my own while we were there. (I'll readily admit that it felt GREAT to be home though...and you'll almost never hear me say that about a return from vacation!) So, here they are...the last of our family vacation photos from the Summer of 2010. Aahhhh -- those were the days:

Stopping to strech our legs at the rest area coming into Duluth

A walk in the park

A stop at the park so that everyone could be a kid again!

The good 'ol tire swing - always a winner!

Touching the sting rays!!

Look Ma - No Life Jackets :)

Exploring the treehouse

Learning about the fish in the Great Lakes

Relaxing on the deck back at the hotel

A ship leaving port

"Feisty Girl" sitting on one of the ropes anchoring the William S. Irvin in the harbor

My lame attempt at "drinking off" my sickness! :)
Okay, so in all reality, this was my only drink of the entire trip (a rum runner) and it was FANTASTIC!

Ryan enjoying his signature Long Island

A menu from one of the dining rooms in the William S. Irvin

Dad & "Little Man" sharing their 5-Layer Chocolate Mint pie from Betty's Pies in Two Harbors, MN

Strawberry Rhubarb -- A favorite of mine...cleary not a favorite of "Feisty Girls!"

Beautiful Lake Superior

Proof Positive

2010-09-02T22:19:00.001-05:00

I've found it --proof positive that at least one of our kids listens to us!! (I think the other one is still working on it!)

While we were recently on vacation "Little Man" asked if I had anything that he could write something on. I grabbed several sticky notes from the van (we were driving) and passed them back to him. I assumed he was drawing/doodling (which he always does) and didn't give it a second thought.

A while later we pulled into the hotel and were unloading our van when I noticed some of the sticky notes that I gave him earlier laying on the floor on top of his pencil/crayon box.

This is what I found:

Interpretation: "Nothing can stop us if we keep on trying.
If we give up, we just won't get it."

Because You Can Never Get Enough...

2010-08-20T18:59:00.000-05:00

I'm sitting at home today -- my first day of vacation (I'm off for 10 days, yeah!) and "Little Man" is sick. He woke up in the middle of the night last night throwing up...yuck! That went on all--morning--long. He hasn't thrown up for several hours now but is still complaining of his stomach hurting. At the moment he is sleeping peacefully. I guess this isn't exactly the way I envisioned kicking off my vacation (we were suppose to go to the county fair actually) but, hey, better now then next week when we are actually on vacation.

"Feisty Girl" woke up for a nap several hours ago and has been playing ever-so-quietly ever since. She is normally so wild and crazy (and LOUD!) that I sort of dreaded having her here at home today while "Little Man" is sick, but she has done wonderful -- it is almost like she knows, senses, that he isn't feeling well and has decided to tone herself down a bit for the day!

At any rate, in our attempts to keep quite "Feisty Girl" and I started taking some random photos around the house today. My wonderful husband bought me flowers the other day and "Feisty Girl" has been eyeing them ever since. Today she asked if she could smell them, so I took them off the counter and brought them down to her level so that she could see them up close. I took a few pictures and this was one of my favorites:

She's just so gorgeous! :)

Summer Time Fun - Part 2

2010-08-14T09:09:00.001-05:00

Shortly after our trip to Valleyfair, we found ourselves on another one of our annual summer treks -- this one to Wisconsin Dells, WI. Every year we visits the Dells with friends, renting a 2 bedroom condo on Lake Delton at Wilderness on the Lake, which is part of the Wilderness Hotel & Golf Resort.

There is a ton to do and see in the area. We enjoy it mostly because the kids knock themselves out all day long at the waterparks and then by the time we are all ready to return to the condo the kiddos are generally dead tired! That means that us adults also get to have some fun -- generally playing card games, chatting the night away, and enjoying an ice cold beverage or two.

Here are some of my favorite pictures from our most recent adventure:

Stoney Creek Inn - LaCrosse, WI
(We stayed here one night on our way to Wisconsin Dells)

Enjoying a Cracker Barrel Rocking Chair (and computer game!) as we wait for our table

Kickin' back, playing giant-sized checkers

Miss "Ash" (my best friend's youngest daughter)

Ahhh....water at last!!

My best friend and her daughters

Our group (minus us moms!) at Wizards Quest

"Feisty Girl" & Mom

"Little Man" (I think this was approximately his 100th trek across the lily pads!)

Summer Time Fun

2010-08-10T21:07:00.001-05:00

Every summer for the past several summers a group of us have loaded up our families and headed to Valleyfair Amusement Park in Shakopee, MN, for a day filled with nothing but fun and laughter. This year was no exception!

There were 17 of us this year (about our normal number) and while trying to coordinate things with a group this large can get hectic at times, our group tends to do exceptionally well together! We managed to maneuver the entire park for over 10 hours straight with our entire group in tow most of that time...with an occasional splitting off/apart for bathroom breaks, a stop a the nearest "treat" stand, or a reapplication of sunscreen.

Everyone from the littlest tot ("Feisty Girl!) at age 3, to our oldest member (to remain nameless, but inching ever closer to the big 4-0!) had a blast. Here are just a few of our pictures from the day...

"Feisty Girl" Lookin' Sweet as Ever!

"Little Man" & His Daddy Riding the MONSTER!

Young Love?

"Feisty Girl" and "LaLa" Taking a Hot Air Balloon Ride

Buddies!

"I'm watchin' you! Don't even attempt to take a drink of my Icee!!"

The Important Things in Life!

2010-08-04T23:44:00.002-05:00

"Little Man" was asked to complete an art project during one of the summer camps that his child care facility puts on every summer. The kids were asked to make something that represented the things that were important to them. "Little Man" made this:

So have you figured out what is important to little man? Alright, I'll help out here (working left to right, top to bottom):

1. Monopoly...yes, he does like a good game of Monopoly
2. Dad and Mom...quite possibly in that order! :)
3. Soccer...Ah, yes, his newfound obsession with everything that is soccer!
4. The Nintendo Wii...a tried and true favorite
5. Money...well, of course!!
6. Castles...interestingly enough, his love for castles (and all things medieval, really) has been around the longest...well maybe after his love for Dad and Mom anyway!

"Little Man," you make my heart melt!

A Little Glimpse...

2010-08-03T00:25:00.003-05:00

We had an extremely busy July and are happy to be moving into the month of August, although I wouldn't be being honest if I didn't say that I'm a little bummed that school is going to be starting up just a little more than one month from now. I'm not one of those mom's (yet!) who can't wait to send their kids back to school -- in fact, I'm the exact opposite. I dread sending them back...it means the end of summer, less time to do fun things together, and back to the normal "routine."

I'll be posting more information about our summer thus far shortly. Until then, here is a glimpse of where we have been and where we are headed:

Way to Go!

2010-08-01T20:12:00.000-05:00

This post is a little late, but back at the end of June "Feisty Girl" was tested by her preschool teachers on both colors and shapes. They were happy to report (and we were happy to hear!) that Emma knew all of her colors with the exception of gray. She also knew all of her "standard" shapes so she was tested on some additional shapes and also knew all of those with the exception of the hexagon. Her teachers, and Mom & Dad are very proud!

Soccer Camp

2010-07-18T23:28:00.029-05:00

"Little Man" participated in a Challenger Sports British Soccer Camp this week. This camp was PHENOMENAL! Really. I can't believe how much Coach Adam and Coach Ozzy taught these kids over the span of five days...and not just soccer, but life lessons. Teamwork, integrity, good sportsmanship and many other things. Camp just ended and we are already missing it!

Hopefully this will help to maintain our needed "fix" for the days to come...until the pain of returning to the same old summer routine has subsided! Here are some of the highlights of the week:

Ready to Pounce!

Kickin' It

Play Hard, Drink Hard

World Cup Winning Team Being Presented the World Cup Trophy!

Post-Game Celebration (Coach Ozzy Gets Wet!)

Soccer Field Chaos!! (Yes, Coach Ozzy does have a small child in his arms and is running toward the sprinklers)

"Little Man" Receives his Camp "Report Card" from Coach Adam

"Little Man" with Coach Adam Densley (England) and Coach Chris "Ozzy" Osment (Wales)

Announcing...The New Baby!

2010-07-14T22:55:00.000-05:00

Ha...had ya! :)

Okay, so it isn't a real baby -- but I'm lovin' it all the same. Here she is...

I have been trying to decide for months which camera to buy, the Nikon D5000 or the Canon T1i. Being this is my first DSLR and I have no strong preference to either brand, I was open to either. After much research and even more waiting, I finally took the plunge and just decided to go for the Nikon D5000. I know a couple of people that own them and love them. I also know a few who have Canon's and love them. So in the end, it came down to a spur of the moment decision due to the fact that my research had proven that the cameras are so close in features, durability, reliability, etc. that I felt I could choose either one and I would be starting out with a great entry-level DSLR. In the end the Nikon won me over. I liked the way it felt in my hands, the ease of use I experienced in making my way through the menus, and some of the non-vital features it had compared to the Canon.

And here are some of the first photos I took with this new little one! These were all taken in Auto mode. The manual is over 200 pages long and I don't have that much free time right now. Nonetheless, they look fantastic to me...and if they don't to you it is due to this photographers inexperience with anything other than her handy-dandy point and shoot compact camera.

"Little Man" ...after a very long day at his Challenger Sports British Soccer Camp

My beautiful niece, who is spending the week with us

Water beading off the windshield of my vehicle

This evenings gorgeous sunset (my photo doesn't really do it justice though!)

Wild Olive

2010-07-06T22:36:00.000-05:00

From time to time, I tend to write about organizations and business that I feel compelled to support. Wild Olive Tees is one such business. The company, started by a fellow adoptive parent and two of her friends, designs and sells contemporary Christian-based t-shirts.

I ordered one of their fitted tees some time ago and LOVE it! I've been waiting for some new designs to arrive (and they have had several lately) for both myself and ""Feisty Girl." I can't wait to get my hands on some of the newer designs!

If you've followed my blog for any amount of time, you've probably noticed that I've mentioned Wild Olive several times (the last just being in June) and they are also one of the very few who have earned a sidebar button on my site. I must admit...Wild Olive is currently running a promotion where they are giving away $75.00 of their product. And one of the ways to win is to blog about Wild Olive -- so once again, I'm happy to sing the praises of Wild Olive Tees!! (Heck, maybe I'll even win once!)

Let the Festivities Commence!

2010-07-03T23:51:00.000-05:00

We spent the day hanging out around the house working and playing with the kids. Then, around 5:00 p.m. we pack up the car, met 12 other people and headed to a local pre-4th parade. After the parade we all grabbed a bite to eat at Pizza Hut, made the 40 minute car ride home, and then put the snoozing kiddos to bed. Hopefully, tomorrow will be just as wonderful! Below are some pics from this evening.

The ever-popular "Yo Yo Balloon"

Miss Ash, striking a pose!

The Chinese Dragon (a parade favorite!)

My brother and his lovely girlfriend were even able to join us for the evening!

The "all girl" table...

"Little Man" and his Dad being silly, as usual. Always the life of the party!

What's In Your "4th of July Future?"

2010-07-01T19:24:00.001-05:00

We are gearing up for the 4th of July Holiday around here and started off week by talking about all things patriotic. Mid-week (as in, yesterday!) we shared some tasty pre-4th treats (oh were they good!) and tomorrow we will be lucky enough to be able to go and enjoy some good old fashioned entertainment thanks to "Little Man." (His Latchkey Class is going to be putting on some sort of production for all of the parents!) I can't stand the suspense!! I can't wait to see what is in store for the rest of the weekend...

On a side note, I thought I would share some of the photos from our tasty "pre-4th treats collection." I wish I could say that I made these fabulous little confections but, alas, I did not. My place of employment has a nice little cafe and I purchased these yesterday afternoon to bring home to the kiddos...and husband too...they were a HUGE hit!

A Chocolate-Filled-Chocolate-Delight!

Summer Time Raspberry Filled Lusciousness :)

My personal favorite...Good Ol' Vanilla Cupcake...with Raspberry Buttercream Frosting...and Sugar Sprinkles. SINFULLY DELICIOUS!!

Game Night

2010-06-30T21:47:00.000-05:00

"Little Man" has learned how to play the age-old game of Monopoly. He loves it and is always asking someone to play with him.

They play a LOT of board games at daycare during the day so so most nights (when time is sparse to begin with!) I don't feel too horrible about not sitting down to start up a 2 hour game of Monopoly. However, you know how things are, some times a mom just has to have her priorities...

A Great Giveaway for a Great Cause

2010-06-22T18:16:00.012-05:00

Stephanie over at Ni Hao Y'all has just posted her 1,000 and is GIVING AWAY money to An Orphan's Wish for every comment left on her 1,000 post. Please head on over to her site and leave a comment to help raise money for kids in need in China...a cause that is near and dear to my own heart!

And while you're at it...check out the latest and greatest t-shirts over at Wild Olive Tees, another of Stephanies great endeavors!

Summer Fun

2010-06-13T20:15:00.000-05:00

A couple of weeks ago we enjoyed some really nice, warm weather. It was our first opportunity of the season to get out some of our water-related toys/activities and let the kids run wild. Unfortunately, "Feisty Girl" was done before she got started; we got a late afternoon start and she was read for a nap -- that left "Little Man" in a solo state by the time I got around to taking pictures.

Big Boy Toys

2010-06-01T21:58:00.002-05:00

My wonderful husband has been wanting a new grill forever and a day. He isn't one to make hasty decisions and likes to take his time deciding how to best spend his hard-earned money. So the fact that we started looking at grills last season but didn't end up actually purchasing one until this season should really come as no surprise.

But now, he's found the grill! We had a 1/2 day conversation about which grill to purchase (it was down to two) including discussions and comparisons in regard to actual grilling space, features, durability, cost...you get the picture. In the end my husband got his dream grill -- here she is:

Now we just need to break it in...I feel a summer gathering of friends, family, fun times, and food on the horizon. (Grilled food, that is!)

Warm Spring Weather

2010-05-25T21:02:00.000-05:00

We have been graced (finally!) with some really warm weather. One evening we decided to visit the park with some friends and let the kiddos blow off some steam after being couped up all winter long. I can't wait for some more of these days!

The Next David Beckham? :)

2010-05-15T20:19:00.002-05:00

"Little Man" has found his new favorite sport...I'm pretty sure he is the next David Beckham in the making!!

Spring Has Sprung (Almost!)

2010-05-13T22:07:00.002-05:00

We had some unusually warm weather in late March and early April but the past several weeks have been cool ones. We know Spring is just around the corner and have al been waiting patiently for signs that the colder weather will be gone for good...well, until Fall anyway. The kids are anxious to get out and spend a day at the park or riding bike. While we haven't made it to the part quite yet, we were finally able to find a few sure signs of Spring over the past week.

A Family Picnic - Okay, it was windy and cool out and we had our picnic in the garage...but that still counts, right?

A Robin's Nest - The kids (and even us adults!) have had the pleasure of watching a mama robin build a nest and now lay her eggs right outside our window. It has been really neat to watch. She is use to us peaking at her now and whereas before she would fly away every time she saw us peeking, she now just sits and peeks back at us.

A Boy & His Buddies

2010-04-30T00:02:00.000-05:00

"Little Man" turns 7 years old tomorrow. He celebrated with some of his friends last Friday at our local bowling alley. There was pop, pizza, presents, and plenty of memories made!

The crazy crew...

Legos...always a birthday party hit!

Victory!!

Treats, yummy...

Adventures in...Soccer

2010-04-15T21:02:00.007-05:00

"Little Man" decided that he didn't want to play t-ball this year and instead, he wanted to experience adventures in soccer. Mom and dad agreed before we knew that soccer meant one night of practice per week and one game per week, on Saturdays...

every.weekend.from.April to June...

Oh the joy!!

Okay, so we'll tough it out. It really isn't THAT many weekends, right? Here is "Little Man" on his first night, playing for McDonald's Red:

Listening Intently (#12)

Running Drills

Kickin' It

Sin City Secrets Revealed!

2010-04-08T19:28:00.005-05:00

We recently took a vacation with some friends to the famous Sin City (for those of you who have been living under a rock for several decades, that's Las Vegas, NV). This was our 3rd annual trip!

So here are some secrets (revealed!) from our most recent getaway:

1. BLT Burger at the Mirage has some of the best malts on Earth (or so our friends told us!)...and some of the worst service

2. "JungleJuice" at the RumJungle = Good Times

3. And you thought you could do some amazing things with chocolate...

4. Alex is possible the fastest, craziest cab driver in all of Las Vegas (and a Guinness Book of World Records holder)

5. What happens in Vegas really is meant to stay in Vegas (they mean business!)

Another Birthday Present...

2010-03-25T22:32:00.004-05:00

Last week not only brought "Feisty Girl's" birthday, but also brought the remove of her cast. If you have been following this blog for any amount of time you are probably well aware of the fact that "Feisty Girl" was born with a club foot and that we recently found out that she is also missing her entire fibula.

Medically, this is becoming something far more complicated than either my husband or myself had originally anticipated but we continue to be inspired by what a trooper "Feisty Girl" has been thoughout the past 1.5 years! She is a very strong, courageous little girl. She had yet another tenotomy (her 3rd) about five weeks ago and just had her cast removed last week...on her birthday! What better birthday present than to have your cast removed, right?

My husband, "Feisty Girl," and I made the hour trek to her new physician's office...stopping at Old Country Buffet on the way. (Not a favorite of ours but the kids love it and it was her birthday after all!) When we arrived at the physician's office we completed some brief paper work and then met her new physician and the medical personnel who would be removing her cast. To cut to the chase, "Feisty Girl's" cast was removed (she only cried once!) and her leg was examined -- things looked good over all but her limb length difference is still fairly significant. We'll return in 3 months for another set of x-rays!

Here is "Feisty Girl" getting her cast removed; she was so excited to be free:

2 Birthdays Down -- 2 To Go (continued!)

2010-03-24T22:21:00.004-05:00

And here is the second round of photos! These are a few outtakes from "Feisty Girls" party with family and friends. Again, very low key but just as much fun because we were able to spend time visiting with those who are nearest and dearest to us. And what girl doesn't want LOADS of attention on her birthday? :)

The Princess Cake:

A Few Presents:

All Smiles:

2 Birthdays Down -- 2 To Go!

2010-03-24T22:10:00.004-05:00

Here are the first round of photos I promised...

My wonderful husband, "Little Man," and "Feisty Girl" took me out for brunch the morning before my birthday and then when we got home they gave me these pretty spring flowers and a cake that matched! We spent the day together -- a perfect family present. (And not very long from now my husband and I will be heading on our "adults only" trip to Vegas. Another nice present!)

Some cute flowers I received:

My cake that the kids picked out:

Birthday Week...

2010-03-15T22:13:00.010-05:00

We are celebrating Birthday Week at our house this week...of course, with some controlled chaos thrown in for good measure!

I am trying to keep things under control (as much as possible) but things are already gettin' outta hand and it's only Monday -- there are cakes to order, food to purchase, errands to run, invitations to get in the mail...you get the idea!

My special day was today (thanks to everyone who made it so unforgettable!) and "Feisty Girl's" special day is coming up on Wednesday. I'll have pictures to share as soon!

Spring is in the Air...

2010-03-06T13:05:00.002-06:00

Soon...(but not soon enough!)

2010-03-02T23:29:00.005-06:00

Fibular Hemimelia

2010-02-24T20:17:00.004-06:00

Ever heard this term? Yeah, neither had we until last week.

Our family made our last trip to Iowa City, IA, on Monday of last week. This was suppose to be "Fiesty Girls" last 6-month visit to see the wonderful folks at the University of Iowa for her club foot treatment. She had been out of her serial casts for 1.5 years, had had her last tendonotomy, and was only wearing her Mitchell brace during her sleeping hours.

As it turned out, "Fiesty Girl" needed one last tendonotomy and cast. She is a TROOPER! A real TROOPER I say! She had an exam, x-rays, the tendonotomy, and her cast applied without so much as a whimper. The real surprise, however, came when we looked at the FIRST complete set of x-rays that had ever been taken of her entire leg.

That was when we learned that our beautiful little feisty girl was missing her entire fibula!! WHAT????

So, the adventure continues...her club foot is looking great and "Feisty Girl" was actually discharged from Dr. Morcuende's care for treatment of the club foot. That was the great news.

Next...it is off to Gillette Children's Specialty Healthcare here in Minnesota to learn more about "Feisty Girl's" newly-discovered condition and what we need to do to tackle this next hurdle!

This little peanut is our sunshine. Her smile melts our hearts. And I'm sure if she were old enough to actually understand all of this she would definately be shouting...Bring - It - On! (And we are here to say...we are with you 110%)

Another One Bites the Dust!

2010-02-07T21:06:00.005-06:00

I'm a little late on this particular posting -- but, hey, life is busy! ;)

"Little Man" seems to be a little slow at losing teeth. He'll be seven in another couple of months and has managed to only lose two teeth thus far...and his good ol' mom "helped" him lose the second one! Yep, that's right! "Little Man" came to me last Sunday night and said "look mom, I can bend my tooth really far (he proceeded to show me that he could push his tooth out at almost a 90 degree angle from its upright position). Pull it out for me!"

Hello...whaattt? I didn't not just hear my little man say that, did I? Nah, he wouldn't ask me to do that in a million years -- he's all about doing things on his own.

"I'm sorry, what's that honey."

"I said, pull it out for me mom!"

Aahhh, yeah, he did just say that. Um, okay. Let me just take a peek -- oh, what's that on the TV? (As he trys to turn to look!) Y-A-N-K!

"Wha, what? Did you just pull out my tooth?"

"Yep...here it is."

Of course, this ended with a very estatic "sweet -- now I'll get some more money from the toothfairy!" And yes, the toothfairy did deliver. In fact, the toothfairy left a whopping $5.00...must be due to the fact that losing a teeth around this place are so few and far between!

(Side note: the other tooth had already started coming in...so "Little Man" won't be toothless for very long. I'm expecting the other tooth to move up into place in no time flat!)