What's Up With the Pomeroy's

And We Have A WINNER!!

2011-03-10T16:09:00.005-06:00

The boys enter the various Lego contests that come out in hopes of winning one of the Grand Prizes with their creations. Of course, we always tell them that the odds of winning are low, but that is still good to do their best work and enter.

And then a couple weeks before Christmas the UPS man rings the doorbell and there is this huge box on the doorstep... from Lego... addressed to Brendan... He had entered a Lego Space Police contest at the end of October and was selected as the grand prize winner from his age group.

Getting ready to break into the box...
Aiden hugging one of the sets sent as a prize...
The whole haul: 6 new Space Police sets and one huge Lego Space Police villain trophy.
Some very happy boys! :)
A truly unique trophy.

'Tis the Season

2011-03-10T15:10:00.005-06:00

What better way to get in the mood for Christmas than putting up some decorations - and having a major blizzard to keep you indoors... putting up decorations ;)

Yep, looks like Christmas in Minnesota!

Family Photos

2011-03-10T14:59:00.006-06:00

Some fun photos downtown St. Paul on a very chilly afternoon in December. We rotated in and out of the St. Paul Public Library to get some shots and warm up. The kids weren't the most cooperative, but we still had some fun and got some cute photos.

Thanksgiving

2011-03-10T14:40:00.006-06:00

Not sure where all the time goes, but it sure does go! I've fallen off the blog wagon lately and am going to attempt to get back on track. Until then I'm going to do some fast-forward pictures to get up to speed.

A Thanksgiving visit from Grandma and Grandpa Pomeroy! Making some clove apples.

Brendan teaching them to play his new Star Wars game.
Aiden VERY busy cutting out pictures for his 'wish list' for Santa.
Getting some hugs!
Off to the Mall of America - crazy place on Black Friday.

Amazingly enough, no line to see Santa.
Santa going over the HUGE list of items Aiden was wishing for.

Being silly.

Neighborhood Halloween Party

2010-11-30T17:45:00.009-06:00

Last Halloween we hosted a neighborhood party at our house. We invited the families around us and some we've met through daycare, preschool, and elementary school as well. Lots of people helped out with games, goodie bags, etc and it was a huge success. For weeks afterwards, Aiden wanted a Halloween themed birthday party!

This year we decided to do it outside in the cul-de-sac and fortunately the weather mostly cooperated. No rain, sunny skies, but some pretty cool temperatures and a steady wind - it could have been worse. Not only did we have a bunch of games for the kids to play, there was a popcorn machine, a hot dog machine, a cookie decorating table and a small bounce house - a kids paradise!

Brendan in the center as General Grievous and friends. I love coming up with the games for the party - so fun! This was our spiderweb challenge, like my homemade spider web? It was definitely a challenge to make! The kids tried to throw stuffed bugs through the web.
Our neighbor girl and her friend did face painting for the kids, another very popular activity.
Brendan standing in the background watching his friend do the witches hat toss.
Like our Indian corn ring toss? Harder than it appears to be...
My graveyard cookie - very easy and very yummy.
The candy corn pizza... not so yummy. It was too crunchy and just not that good. I will definitely modify the recipe to make it again; I already have a better tasting plan in place.
Okay, Wellyn did an outstanding job on our pumpkin bowling lanes. We had some extra carpet left over from when we had the basement play area done and were planning to just cut it up and toss it. When we decided to do the party outdoors, pumpkin bowling sounded like a fun game, but I was afraid the pumpkins would just get pulverized on the road after a few tosses down the lane. So, why not repurpose the carpet we were getting rid of?!? Wellyn took it a few steps farther and spray painted the 'gutters' and 'Pumpkin Bowl' on them - they looked awesome! We decided to save them for next year... one less thing heading toward the landfill. :)

Next day, the real Halloween. Unfortunately Aiden ended up with the stomach flu early in the day, but was doing good enough at night to go get some candy.

Halloween Happiness

2010-11-29T21:48:00.011-06:00

I don't know why, but I love Halloween and fall-themed decorations. Love breaking out the totes of decorations with all the golds, oranges and reds, although I can do without the rain, wind and sudden drops in temperature. I'm not opposed to having extra chocolate in the house (for the trick-or-treaters!) either.

The boys carving the pumpkins from all our previous trips. They both drew their own faces (Aiden with a little help from Daddy) on the pumpkins and then carved them - true originals.

Done!
Making a face to match his pumpkin.
Brendan working hard at marking the lines he drew.
And let the carving begin.
Such cute pumpkins, all four of them.
Spooky!
Making their scary faces - a must when doing pumpkins, or anything related to Halloween.

Our friend Chrissy invited our family to their house for a Halloween party with her daycare families. We met them through preschool when Brendan and her son Mason attended together and became best buds. Now we play soccer together and I give rides to a couple of her daycare kids to preschool as well. Fun kids, fun families.

Wellyn, I mean, Mr. Incredible and Aiden working on a pumpkin decoration craft.
Brendan and best bud Mason - too bad they don't attend the same school.

The finished work of art.
Brendan discovering why caped crusaders don't use bicycles to get around - because their capes get stuck in the wheel! His General Grievous (Star Wars) costume came with an attached cape, so it caused a few issues when he got it caught in the bike at the party. Out came the tools, and mom to photo document the event :)
The piñata... thankfully no one was injured and 10lbs of candy was later scattered all over.
Check out those muscles - the gym has really been paying off ;)
Our adorable hostess, Chrissy, bring out some more sugar for the kiddos.

Medals All Around

2010-11-29T21:31:00.003-06:00

End of October brings the end of fall soccer. With each kid having practice once a week (on different days) and games every weekend (different days/times) it is a bittersweet ending. Aiden really loved playing on his first 'real' team and they did awesome all season. Their coaches worked hard with them and it showed on the field. The last game Aiden scored two goals!

A very proud Aiden with the rest of his team. He made some great friends on this team!

The very enthusiastic coaches who volunteered their time to work with the kids.
A little pizza celebration afterwards... everyone loves pizza!
Brendan with some of his teammates after their last game.
The two number 2s... man they are cute.

Daddy's Day Out

2010-11-19T20:56:00.009-06:00

Fall at preschool can mean only one thing - the big bus trip to the pumpkin patch! It is a much anticipated field trip due to riding on a 'real school bus' and getting to take a parent with you. It looked like Wellyn wasn't going to be able to make the trip due to an overload at work, but an ambush call from Aiden to basically beg him and it was a done deal. He really wanted his Daddy to go with him since they went together last year and had so much fun! :)

Loading up on the wagons to head out to the pumpkin patch.
Finding the 'perfect' pumpkin to take home.
Loading up to ride back.
Walking through the corn field and selecting some Indian corn to take home.
Using the corn as a light saber - of course!

Taking a break to eat lunch and relax.

A few games...Posing for some cute photos...

and the day is over... lots of fun memories were made.

Kids vs. Parents

2010-11-19T20:16:00.007-06:00

For Brendan's last soccer practice of the season it was parents against kids. It isn't hard to see where some of these children get their competitive spirit from! It was an all out battle the entire time. There weren't any periods or substitutions - just a ton of kids and parents going all out. Some of the kids kind of got taken out by accident... all in fun though and no one was hurt. All the parents said it was harder to play against kids since they were smaller and kind of like a swarm around their legs ;)

Here's Brendan toward the beginning with one huge grin on his face!
Hustling to get the ball before our friend Janet gets to it.

I can't look at this photo without laughing - Brendan totally ducking for cover as another parent kicks the ball.
Brendan threw the ball in and a teammate had a fancy heat butt; Aiden cheering everyone on...
And then Aiden joined the action... a lot smaller than the other kids, wearing flip flops, but he went all out too!

Yep, Aiden getting right in the middle of it all - giving me anxiety he was going to get broken!!

Taking a water break and showing off his 'sweat Mohawk'... his terminology.

A group photo post-game.

Upper Michigan in October

2010-11-02T21:36:00.022-05:00

It has been several years since we've taken a trip home between Labor Day and Thanksgiving. This year we hit the road for a visit with both our families. We dropped Wellyn off late at his parents so he could go on the Pomeroy annual 4-wheeling trip and me and the boys spent a few days in Gulliver with my parents.

We took a walk over by the lake and the kids played on some of the trees my mom and dad planted when they first moved up there. This crazy tree grows along the top of the ground for several feet before angling up to the sky. Kids loved it.

My little ninja!
We got a suprise call from my sister, Katherine, saying she and friend were going to make a quick trip up from WI to visit the Big Springs. We met them out there for a ride on the raft and to look for fish. Unfortunately, this time we only saw a school of small fist, but it the past have been treated to seeing huge trout and some otters. Brendan manned the wheel on our way out.

Mom and Dad along for the ride.

Such sweet brothers.

Having a great time.
My sister and her friend - so nice to see them!
The mandatory trip to Big Boy after the Big Springs. Kids never get tired of getting a picture with this crazy Moose. I could probaby track their growth in pictures next to this!
We ran into town one afternoon and the boys played at the marina. Thankfully I'd packed hats, mittens and coats because it was windy and cold! They didn't care though.
Playing pirates.
An after dinner trip to the park on Gulliver Lake.
Beautiful view of the lake.

The cabins from Old Deerfield Resort.

On Sunday we packed up and headed for Wellyn's parents house to meet the guys coming back from their 4-wheeling trip. Brendan holding Matthew, who is not a baby any more!

Max being all shy by his mommy :)

Finally, the guys arrived!
Ashley and Matthew.
Matthew snuggling up to Grandma and ready for a nap.
Of course, the guys had been riding all weekend, but the first thing the boys wanted to do was take a ride!
Two coold dudes!
Max happy to have his daddy back!
Some love for mommy too :)
Nothing like a vacation to tucker everyone out.
A trip out to Uncle Levi's old 'fort' in the woods. Brendan really wants to fix it up so they went out and did some 'work' on it.

Such happy little workers.

Aiden holding still for a minute so I could get a hug.
The boys getting to play up and down the river with the grown-ups.
Uncle Muscles.
Can that little guy be any cuter??? I think not!
Aiden playing steal the pack with Uncle Ashley.
Grandma and Daddy teaching Brendan how to play solitaire.
Aiden getting to hold Matthew - the boys love holding their little cousins.
Grandpa 'watching tv'... notice the remote on his hand and no channel selected. He was a little tuckered out too! :)

Pinehaven Pumpkin Patch

2010-11-01T13:51:00.015-05:00

My favorite time of year... fall! After a soccer game on a gorgeous day we packed some lunches and headed to my favorite pumpkin patch for the afternoon. It was sunny and hot! The kids had a wonderful time exploring the farm again.
Aiden not so sure about getting any closer to the goats after first arriving... they can be a little intimidating.
This little pony was highly motivated to get every last kernel of corn.
I made it!
"I'm the ruler of the world!" LOL
Kings of Hay.
The bunnies are cute, but not willing to come quite close enough to get petted.
The goats were very anxious for the food to come. If you enlarge the photo one has his tongue sticking way out and almost touching Aiden's hand - yuk!
And where was Brendan??? Very distracted looking at another fuzzy animal... what could it be...
Why an adorable fuzzy kitten, of course! He is definitely his mother's child :) He was feeding it pieces of cat food through the wire. Took a long time to pry him away from this little cutie.
One bad thing was everthing the kids looked through was really high for Aiden. Here I'm holding him up on my leg while trying to be the other ghost.
These pedal tractors are a huge hit with the kids. I remember the first time we took Brendan here, all he wanted to do was sit on the tractors - he couldn't even pedal, but he was thrilled with them.

Two of the cutest pumpkins on the farm ;)

A 'trike track'... this time one trike had a wagon hooked up to it and I don't even know how many times Brendan pedaled his brother around! Needless to say he got a lot of exercise!

This huge slide is a new addition since we last visited. The boys loved it - fast and bumpy all the way down. I can't even remember how many times they went down it!

Getting a little ride.

This was cool - they got to shoot corn cobs at a 'pirate ship' in the field. The cobs go so fast you can hardly even see them. We were there opening weekend so they were able to try it out for free.
Aiden needed a little help holding it steady so he could push the 'fire' button.
The traditional ride on the wagon behind the tractor out to the fields to pick out a couple of pumpkins.

End of a great day...

September = Soccer

2010-11-01T13:24:00.008-05:00

Our September was pretty structured, soccer practice, soccer practice, faith formation, Wellyn's class, soccer game, soccer game... and repeat! But don't forget to add school, preschool and all required homework for said schools - a lot to cram into a week for the kiddos and us. Especially when you factor in Brendan getting home from school at 4pm, eating dinner to leave for either a 5:30pm practice or 5:15pm faith formation, back home around 6:30-7pm and in bed by 7:45pm. Not a whole lot of free time to play with friends or relax.

Here is Aiden's team and coaches:
Aiden getting in there and working on turning the ball around.
He is such a cutie, a little hesitant on the field, but a good sport.

Brendan's game later that day. Cute they both were on 'Chelsea' teams and picked the same number.
This photo is a little blurry, but it cracks me up! He was playing goalie at the time and as you can see the ball was headed toward him, the intensity shows. He did make the save :)
Picture day for Brendan...

Some of his best buddies from the team.

And this little cutie used to be a neighbor, I would take her home in a heartbeat! They are in the same grade at school, but haven't been in the same class yet.

Brendan's entry into the Lego building contest. A lot of work and imagination goes into these creations!

Railroad'n

2010-10-21T20:55:00.007-05:00

A couple weeks ago, I (Wellyn) took Brendan to the Railroad Museum. Here he is standing in front of one of the trains.

This is inside one of the old passenger cars.

Brendan chilling with the engineer.

This was kind of cool. This engine is being rebuilt so all the exterior is pulled off with just the boiler visible.

Where Oh Where Did Summer Go???

2010-10-17T20:42:00.011-05:00

The Tuesday after Labor Day is officially the 'end' of summer around here. First day back at school and getting back into the routine of getting ready, packing lunches, out the door, back again, dinner, homework and whatever other activity we have going on! It is an adjustment - for all of us :) Every now and then they go on the Leapster craze, and this was one of those weeks. They could hardly stop playing long enough for a photo - silly kids. I've been told several times by Brendan that we are the ONLY family without a video game system... but I did buy him a Wii shirt. Counts, right??

Our big 2nd grader... my how time flies.

Soccer games started the following weekend, but with Brendan still sick he didn't play. Aiden had his first 'real' game ever though. Unfortunately I was out of town with the girls so I missed it, but Wellyn took some photos!

While they were at soccer, I was hanging with the girls up north for some grown-up time! Our once a year trip to shop, watch HGTV, to go a chick-flick, eat places with no drive thru... very fun! Me and the gals out to dinner:
Back to school for Brendan also means Aiden doesn't have his favorite playmate here during the day, which leaves me! One day we spent more hours than I'd like to admit building a Lego space vehicle to capture bad guys and hopefully win a contest. He built and I find pieces for him. The result of our efforts:

Mid-September Aiden started preschool. He knew both of his teachers and several of the kids from last year so it was a much easier transition for him. The big difference this year is he stays until 1pm and eats a packed lunch there. Kind of a nice way to get ready for kindergarten!

Settling in with some play-do; best buddie Ryan working on a puzzle in the background :)
My 'kids'... I pick up the other two from their daycare and bring them to and from preschool with Aiden. Nice kids :)

Under Attack

2010-09-21T10:06:00.006-05:00

Summer was cruising right along and then our household unexpectedly came under seige - by hives! Poor Aiden who has never had hives before woke up one night covered in them. The next day they were continuing to spread even after benedryl so it was off to urgent care. Another medicine later and we were home. Two days later, back to the pediatrician who changed his medicine again and sent us to a specialist. The pediatrician was sure it was an allergic reaction to something although we couldn't come up with anything in his diet or environment to account for it. A trip to the specialist and we were armed with the information it was viral. He'd had a runny nose for a few days before the hives showed up and she felt it was connected. More medicine to combat them and we were on our way home!

Thankfully, the new medicine regiment got the hives under control and life was able to return to somewhat normal... for a bit. And then Brendan got them.

With any kind of repiratory illness, Brendan's asthma gets aggravated and this little bug was certainly no exception to the rule. Luckily, we were established with the specialist already so we skipped all the intermittent doctor appointments and went right to them. They had done blood work less than a week before to determine some info regarding his asthma and it showed his body was fighting a virus so we were able to do a lot over the phone and to directly to the pharmacy for his medicine.

The timing couldn't really have been worse since he was loaded on medicine for the start of school and coughing terribly, but he made it the first two days. Unfortunately, by the third day of school he was covered in hives again so we went to the specialist instead of school where they put him back on steroids and also an antibiotic for bronchitis and an ear infection - as if the hives weren't enough! She also gave strict instructions for him to stay home from school that day (Thursday) and the next as well as skip his weekend soccer game so his body could rest. None of those instructions went over very well; so disappointed to miss school.
This was definitely one of the worst times they've been sick - not the 'cold' part of it, but the itching. I'll be more than happy for this particular illness to never darken our door again!

More Baseball, More Camping!

2010-09-17T16:10:00.012-05:00

Twins game #2 and it was Brendan's turn to go. What is better than summer baseball games with your dad???

Kind of an unintentionally cool photo from the vacation bible school program.

A weekend of camping with more friends. This time we went to a local campground about 15 minutes from our house. This little pony was our best friend while we had a bag of corn to share. After the corn was gone we weren't nearly as interesting.
The kids couldn't wait to take the banana bikes for a spin! The big kids, Wellyn and Steve, went along to 'supervise'. Unfortunately, the bikes were too big for Aiden and Grace, but they understood and handled it well. They fed the animals instead.

Practically impossible to get everyone lined up and looking!
Aiden hitching a ride - he had a lightening bolt on his forehead, but it ended up being a smear!
Playing in the water... we've noticed in other pictures he has his tongue out when running. Too funny!
Mason and Brendan... best buds.
Grace and Aiden, getting super dirty!

Aiden working his charm on little Sophia while the grown ups work on rounding up some food.

Camping at Lake Bemidji State Park

2010-09-17T14:52:00.009-05:00

Our annual camping trip with friends brought us to Lake Bemidji State Park in northern MN. We reserved a group site this time and it was the best decision ever! So much easier and more fun to have all the tents on one site. No worrying about which site the kids were at, were they watching for traffic, everyone could hang out around the campfire after kids were in bed, food was easily shared - good times!

Every great camping adventure begins with a hearty breakfast :)
Corrine kicking back to eat!
Our group of tents.
A little baseball game to get the day started.
Ethan was taking it very seriously.

Loving every moment of camping.
A little break to do some coloring. The kids all got along so well and there was always something for them to do.
A walk along the lake to see what they could find.
Finding some shells - Grace not looking to pleased to be interrupted. ;)
Love hug time!
Keaton, Kaylene and Brendan play a lot of games when camping. So fun!
Our whole group and everyone looking at the camera - amazing!
A little snack before going on the Bog Walk.
A little silly to go with the snack.
Fascinating!
The grown ups bringing up the rear - the kids are so fast and full of energy!

Family time!
Taking a break before walking back to camp.
Our two smiley boys.
Our two silly-face boys ;)

Some tired little legs getting a ride back.
Canoe trip on a nice afternoon.
The scariest Paul Bunyan and Baby the Blue Ox I have ever seen!
Getting ready for the mini-train ride.

Target Field

2010-09-17T12:14:00.007-05:00

After the kids were back we were on the go a lot! They both had swimming camps every day, tons of friends to play with in and out of the house, camping, Twins games... we fit in quite a bit of fun.

Taking a break before bed to read a book.

Aiden's first trip to see the Twins this season. Very cool since the new Target Field is open and the Twins are doing awesome this season. Getting a very spendy tattoo.

Very sparkly!

Looking like a cool dude in his new shirt.

Gorgeous weather for their game.

Such a cool view - I can't wait for my turn to go to the stadium!
Down on the field after the game.

Two very happy fans.

Running the bases - how cool is that?!?

Nice view of the city.

Aiden at his first swimming lesson sessions. He was so excited to learn to swim; years watching his brother do things like this have prepared him for his turn.

His first time diving for rings in this video. They make so much progress in such a short period of time; it is so amazing. I must say we've just had the best instructors! Now diving for toys is his favorite thing to do. I have a video of both kids during lessons swimming next to each other, but for some reason I can't upload it yet. Someday I'll get it on here!

Boys Only Vacation

2010-09-17T10:03:00.011-05:00

At the end of our visit in the UP over the 4th of July, the boys stayed with Grandma Donna and Grandpa Herb for a week of fun. Adding to the fun, cousins Ellie and Emmit came for a visit and with Max and Matt across the street there was plenty of cousins to play with! The weather warmed up for the week and out came the slip-n-slide.

A car trip to Nahma Beach. Ellie and Aiden with their feet buried in the sand.
My boys are so trained to not go in the water without their life jackets!
This was by far Brendan's favorite thing to do at the beach - using Uncle Colin's kayak.
He LOVED it!

Aiden getting a turn and a little help.
Stacey's cousin came out to do a photo shoot with all the Pomeroy cousins - lots of kids to take pics of! Many thanks to her cousin, Brooke, Stacey, Lindsey and Donna for all the silly things I'm sure they did to keep the kids entertained and smiling!
Getting ready for a ride in the trailer. Such a big boy...
Aiden trying to work his peek-a-boo magic on Emmit and Matthew.
My two cuties - it is nearly impossible these days to get a photo with Aiden actually looking at the camera.
How cool are they??

He loves holding babies!
Making big plans I'm sure.

Just being cute.
Growing up so fast.
The 'big' kids!
One with all the grandkids and Grandma Donna and Grandpa Herb.

The boys had a wonderful visit, but were ready to come home toward the end of the week. We enjoyed the week as well, although Wellyn had to work. It was fun to go out to dinner at places the kids don't really enjoy, watched Avatar, and some projects around the house. We missed them though; the house was crazy-quiet during the day! And the cats were extra annoying without the kids to give them attention.

July 4th Festivities - Part 2

2010-09-15T17:45:00.011-05:00

The second part of our trip to the UP brought us to St. Jacques for a visit with Wellyns' parents, brothers, sister-in-laws and cousins. Grandpa Herb scored big with this awesome play set! Wasn't long after we arrived and the swings were on and it was in full use.
Not sure this little boy can get much cuter!
Brendan getting to meet newest cousin Matthew for the first time - what smiley little guy!
Another smiley guy happy to be hanging out with Grandma Donna.
Grandpa testing out the swing, Wellyn relaxing and kids all playing.

Going down in a choo-choo train! Aiden is actually the caboose ;) Maxwell and Brendan having some fun.
Yep, Aiden just livin' the life of vacation at Grandma's!
Another train down the slide with Maxwell as the engine.
Brendan loves being a big cousin!
A very cool and windy day at Nahma beach; actually every day we were there was pretty cool and windy.
Having some fun in the sand.

Mom and Dad having some fun in the sand :)

Just little heads left out!

One of my favorite family photos.

Grandma Donna and the little heads ;)
Aiden was done, but Brendan was up for some more sand. With the help of Greg and his Dad he got a lot more sand added to the pile.
Very skillfully sculpted too!
Max getting in on the action with Grandpa Herb.
Warming up and resting after such a busy afternoon.
Probably one of the coolest things they've done: getting to stay up late and go to the Nahma Hotel to listen to Uncle Levi play. They loved it - he was like a rock star in their eyes. Good memories.
4th of July parade in Garden... waiting in the shade for the candy to get there.
Little Matthew all ready for the day in his red, white and blue.

Talk about a hot day! They didn't mind though - just waiting in between trucks to get more candy.
Afterwards going on the inflatable water slide. HUGE hit!
He could have done this all day.
I love how cute they can be with each other!

4th of July Festivities - Part 1

2010-08-02T12:49:00.010-05:00

Packing up for a trip is always an experience. Trying to get the kids to pick out only a 'few' toys, books and games to bring; making sure all the necessary clothing items are packed; and trying to keep the cats from packing themselves! Bet some houses we visited are glad Diego was too chubby to fit in the zippered front! ;)

The weekend we left for the UP Brendan had a soccer tournament so we postponed our departure until after the two Saturday games. He and I went to the morning game while Wellyn and Aiden cut up our blown down tree and took it to the compost site. Because there is never enough to do right before going on a trip. Sheesh!

The afternoon game we all attended and it was so hot out - the coaches were rotating kids in and out every few minutes so they could all get water and a quick break. Here is Brendan on one of his breaks. It's amazing what a different soccer player he was this summer - much more aggressive and trying so hard! He was so close to scoring a couple of goals...
Afterwards one of the other dads had some water left over and helped to cool him off ;)

After the soccer games we headed to Appleton for a night with Colin, Stacey, Ellie and Emmit. In the morning the kids had fun playing outside on the swings and running around the yard.
Miss Ellie being so darn cute! Getting 'the look' from Emmit :)

From there it was a quick stop in Peshtigo to visit with my sister and her family. The boys love going there to play with the dogs, pet their kitty and ask Preston a zillion questions. A few hours later we made it to Gulliver for a visit with my mom and dad.

Brendan has always loved going to Grandma's garden to pick whatever is ready. This time it was strawberries. Since Aiden is a huge strawberry lover he was right on board with this.
He has a strawberry, it's just hard to see.
Finding a few more... Our little cutie sitting in some of Grandma's flowers!
The latest building project my parents have been working on. Why would you want to relax during retirement???

The traditional walk to the old lime kilns by their place. So sad to seem them continue to fall apart... would have been so nice if they were preserved.
It was so cold during our visit! Evenings the wind calmed down some though and we were able to have a bonfire at the lake. Brendan helping cut some wood for the fire.
Getting ready for some smores.
What a happy kid!
The weather just didn't cooperate with us and it was too cold and windy for the boys to play in the lake so we found a few other things to do. Here we made it to the top of the lighthouse in Gulliver. It's my first time up - that whole open, spiral staircase has made me freeze in the past. This time I had to get over it and help Brendan up since he struggles with the same fear. Fun after we got up there!
What would be a trip home without lunch (and wi-fi) at Big Boy!
Kids still love to stop to eat there and then play on the trucks and trains.
After a big trip around town we finally found some nets they could use to try to catch minnows. Note the jacket and mittens... so cold! Somehow Brendan ended up with a huge bruise on his forehead related to the nets but we never really heard how it happened...
The much awaited launch of the paddle boat. Only available for use after 7pm when the waves calmed down.
Another day trip, this time to Newberry to see the bears.
Apparently baby bears like fruit loops!

Getting ready to say goodbye to Grandma and Grandpa Flusek and head to St. Jacques for the next part of the visit.

June 2010

2010-07-29T11:54:00.007-05:00

A family day trip to the Twin City Model Railroad Museum. Kids had a great time watching all the trains go around.

Designed as things were in Minneapolis years ago...
Aiden running Thomas at the hands-on section.

I babysat a friends little girls for a couple of days and the kiddos all had a blast together. Melia and Aiden were in the same preschool class and are great little friends.
Her baby sister Hayden is very popular with the boys!
Everyone safe and ready to ride!

Aiden at one of his last Jr. Kickers. It was super hot out - as you can tell from his cheeks!
Brendan amusing himself while waiting for his brother to be done ;)

A trip to the local Toys R Us for a lego event. Kids got to build whatever they wanted and then take it home.

After the legos we went to the grocery store to buy individual cakes for Father's Day. The store had all sorts of colored frosting so the kids could decorate the cakes however they wanted.

Aiden had about an inch of colored frosting on his which got mixed/squished when we put the lid on.

Brendan's masterpiece.
Some Father's Day hugs and presents.

Such cute guys!
Trip to Mc D's after a soccer game.
Our poor tree in the backyard after a storm. The following night the next storm knocked the rest of it down...

Zoo Field Trip/Lots O Soccer/Last Day

2010-06-21T15:54:00.007-05:00

Brendan's last school field trip for 1st grade was to Como Zoo in St. Paul. I haven't been able to go on the trips due to babysitting Logan or not having someone else to watch Aiden so it was really nice to be able to go on the trip with him.

Here he is with a mommy and baby orangutans in the background.

I was 'in charge' of Brendan and the little boy to the left, but we were paired up with another parent and child for the day. Here the boys are at the indoor lion enclosure. Unfortunately you can't see the huge female lion sprawled out behind them sleeping.

Taking a short break at the Sunken Garden in the Conservatory - the Conservatory was probably their least favorite place. Too many plants and flowers!

The boys watching the koi.

A random photo of the kitties being teased and taunted by all the birds outside. They play together all the time, but aren't cuddly with each other so it is rare to see them even sitting next to each other like this. This is first thing in the morning after opening the inside door and giving them a good view of the feeds out front and the many birds getting their breakfast.

The last full week of school the first graders had an Author Presentation for the parents. They each had a sheet of paper to read from; some with parts to the poem Over in the Meadow and others with corresponding science facts about things that live or grow in a meadow. They did an awesome job!
Our smiley guy :)

Afterwards, they read two books they wrote and illustrated themselves to us. Brendan's books were about tigers. One was a non-fiction using facts he'd looked up on the computer and the other was a fictitious story about a tiger stuck in a tar pit.

Aiden, our newest little soccer star! He was so excited to go to his first practice and be on a real team and have a real team shirt ;) He takes it very seriously too and is a super attentive listener.

Getting some instructions...

Playing a game...
Brendan in a new role of watching/supporting his brother at an activity. Usually it is the other way around!

Brendan has had several soccer practices this season in addition to his games. Here is one of them where Aiden was particularly impatient to get going. Always a smile for the camera though!
Aiden in charge of taking photos - a result of me caving and letting him loose with electronics in order to get through the hour of practice! A nice action shot of Brendan.
Waiting to throw the ball back in while the coaches are giving tips and pointers to the boys.
Aiden still taking pictures - he loves the little babies! Little sisters of two of the boys on our team.

A day that seemed so far away - the last day of 1st grade! My how time flies. And now on to summer - and all the craziness it brings.

Interstate State Park Trip

2010-06-21T14:06:00.004-05:00

For Memorial Day weekend we took the boys on a day trip to Taylors Falls and visited Interstate State Park. It's a cool place with lots of hiking trails as well as some glacial potholes. The kids are very interested in volcanoes, etc, so showing them rock formed from lava and the circular holes formed by swirling glacial water was a neat lesson.

Here we are starting up one of the trails.
Poor Brendan has a very genuine fear of heights so the trail was a little scary for him. He did a great job though and was able to do the whole loop with us.
Our little family on the banks of the St. Croix River.

Beautiful view; we'll have to do the paddle boat another time.

My guys!

Much happier to be on level ground again :)
Checking out one of the glacial potholes.
Down the stairs in a very wide and deep one.
A little relaxing in the shade - super hot day!
Our handsome little kiddos!

Farm Day and Museum Day

2010-06-20T21:03:00.012-05:00

I'm going to try to get caught up here! I have lots of pictures so I'll try to go in order - our days/nights/weekends have been filled with fun and activity. Depending on how far I get I might just do some short posts until I get back on track!

Mid-May we took the kids to visit a local farm about an hour north of us. Our friends, Becky and Pierre, had found Snake River Farm while searching for a local farmer raising grass-fed animals. We both ordered from them last year and the meat is very good. A few times a year they have days for customers and friends to come out to the farm for some fun. The kids get to see all the animals, ride ponies, feed goats and chickens, pet baby bunnies and just have a great time. We even took a wagon ride around the farm with the owner, Tom, as our tour guide.

Right off the bat, Brendan loved this place! He is all about gadgets and these little grinders to take corn off the cobs and other ones to crush the corn kernels were like a magnet for him.

Pony rides are always a hit! This was the sweetest pony ever, Buckwheat. I could have taken him home with us.
We had packed a lunch and because everything was still wet from a storm that morning we had a picnic in the back of the Durango - kids loved it!
Wellyn getting in touch with nature - his favorite kind since he could leave it at the farm ;)
Do you think he was having fun?
The boys with friends Audrey and Sophia getting ready for the wagon ride tour of the farm.
The bison herd - they are really big animals.
A quick stop at a little cabin they have in a beautiful stand of trees. My friend Becky and Sophia.
Some 'real horsepower' for the trip!
My boys!
The cattle herd... I didn't bother to go into detail about one of those being dinner later this year...
An old one-room school house on the property. It's no wonder they moved the bell outside - it is so loud!

What kid doesn't love pumping water?
Aiden checking out the piggies... again, no details about the bacon they all love.
A little trip around the yard on the tractor.
Brendan in serious love with this little bunny. He held it for the longest time and did not want to go home. We thought we might need to surgically remove the bunny from his arms!
Aiden getting one last ride on Buckwheat before we headed back. Some very tired and happy kids at the end of the day. We hope to make it back up to the farm this fall and again this winter for bobsledding!

Random photo of Jag all curled up in a box.

Another random photo of Aiden playing outside with our neighbor on a hot day. Dollar Store water shooters - very fun.

Another trip to the roller skating rink for our neighbors birthday party. Aiden was having a great time. Brendan had really improved so he was off and rolling, we might have a video of him somewhere, but he had no time for photos!
With our friend Gracie - she is such a doll!

Aiden is playing on his first Jr. Kickers Soccer team. He has been anticipating it for so long - all these games and practices watching his brother has really made him anxious to play. One day before his soccer started he decided to put on all of his brothers soccer stuff (including the too big shoes and socks) so he could be a 'real soccer player' like his brother. So sweet!

A weekend trip to the St. Paul Children's Museum over Memorial Day weekend. They had a bunch of these pogo stick horses that were hugely popular.

Hanging out at the dinosaur exhibit.
'Digging' for dinosaur bones in rubber mulch.
Climbing the tower on the rooftop garden.
The ever popular crane - trying to stack the 'steel beams' is harder than it looks.
Aiden getting a little help from Dad.
A very tired Aiden making some huge bubbles.

This is by far Brendan's favorite part of the museum. They have these foam bricks that the kids can send up and down via a kid powered conveyor. He could just do this all day...
The boat races there are the best.
A family trip to Mickey's Diner. Such a small place with so much history to it. The kids had French toast and it was absolutely the best I've ever tasted. The waitress told us the pancakes are even better so we'll be going back there to try them out!

Two Little Monkeys Climbing All Around!

2010-05-23T19:14:00.005-05:00

The days and weeks are certainly filling up with activities - a sure sign the weather is turning nicer since most of them involve doing something outside. The boys are spending lots of time outside with their friends, riding bikes, running through sprinklers and all sorts of other imaginative projects they dream up. We are very fortunate to live in a neighborhood with an abundance of kids - nice kids, nice families! In our cul-de-sac there are ours plus three other houses where the 'gang' can be found at on any given afternoon. The group ranges in age from 4-7 years old and for the most part get along really well. All the parents got together to discuss the kids hanging out and we're all fine with the kids going between the houses to play. There is anywhere from three to seven kids in the little group. The other nice part is since we do live in the circle it is not very busy (and everyone in the circle has kids) so the traffic isn't a big concern.

A few weeks ago the kids decided to make a river in our play area. They worked on it off and on over a week and a half. Here they are busy scooping out the caved in areas and making sure the water was flowing fast enough. They decided it was the Mississippi River - very appropriate for our location :)

The basement play area is back together again - finally! A friend of mine knew of a guy to install the carpet for us off the books and he was able to do it quickly so we're back in business. I found an awesome deal on brand new bars to extend our existing monkey bars. We needed to move them anyway since they were close to the gas line so we raised them up a few inches and went from 5 bars to 10. The kids love it and it is very popular with their friends. Aiden has mastered going down them but is still working on turning around and going back.

Brendan, well, he just has them mastered - such a little monkey!

Last week Brendan had track and field day at school. It is always a busy day with the grades divided up by gender in color-coded t-shirts moving from event to event on the field. It was longer this year since they just do an abbreviated version for kindergarteners so they did part of the events in the morning and the others in the afternoon. Brendan is such a competitor and really tries his best - makes us so proud of him. He also is able to laugh at himself some and not be too upset when he doesn't win or if he makes a mistake, etc. He is really growing up... too fast for me! Going over the hurdles... he's toward the left of the video.

This is cute - if you listen you can hear the 1st grade girls start chanting 'Brendan!' over and over. It is picked up by the 1st grade boys that already ran. He is on the right side of the video.

We have some babies in the house! Actually, they are under the deck. A pair of purple finches have made a nest and are raising their little ones on top of the support beam of the deck. If you look between the cracks of the deck boards you can see them. Here is a photo of them shortly after they hatched. We don't go out and peek too often as it really upsets the mommy bird - she will sit in the birch tree next to the deck at eye level with us and raise quite a commotion.

Here is a random photo of Jag from this week. Always looking for a bag or box to climb into - and yes, he's still alive, just sleeping!

And a video of how he feels about living in the house. Little does he know just how lucky he is to have me and the kids in his corner ;) He should just sit down and enjoy the pampering!

The nice weather meant time for finishing up some outside projects as well. Wellyn finished cutting the wood for the trailer and it looks brand new! A huge difference from what it looked like this spring. Now it can move out of the garage - yeah!

And on to the next project on the list... there is certainly no shortage of things that need to be or we want to do!

Brendan started summer soccer last week and will begin games next week. We are so happy to be with our last coaches and many of Brendan's friends are on the team too. It will be such a fun season for all of the boys (and the families on the sidelines!). Aiden will be starting Jr. Kickers soccer the first Friday in June. All of his classes will be on Friday nights - how well they know the parents of preschoolers; nothing better to do on a Friday night! ;)

Pool Party!

2010-05-11T09:59:00.010-05:00

This will be a catch-up post since I've fallen behind once again. I anticipate this happening a little more with summer coming. Well, we hope summer is coming - it has been cool and rainy the past few weeks. Not quite the spring weather we're accustomed to!

Here is Jag outside on his harness and leash a couple weeks ago. He is always trying to sneak out the door since he had obviously been outside before we adopted him and the vet thought because of his laid back personality he would be a good candidate to try the leash out. He does really good on it and loves being outside. Unfortunately, the mommy and daddy ducks do not like him being out there! They swim back and forth along the backyard making a huge ruckus when he's out there and their babies are swimming around.

Two weekends ago our nephew Bryce came out for a visit and to pick up a ton of furniture for his new college apartment we'd collected for him. Since he was here, we put him to work too ;) Here he is helping to rinse off some rock that had been in our backyard. Nothing draws little hands to help like some dirt and a hose - stronger pull than a magnet!

Brendan is still very interested in science and has been looking through a kitchen experiment book for things to try out. The old vinegar and baking soda 'volcano' is a huge hit. Here they tried it out with some food coloring for an added effect.

Bryce terrorizing Diego!

Aiden having a turn at playing mad scientist ;)

That Saturday afternoon was Brendan's last indoor soccer game of the season. He always plays harder when there is a visitor there to watch him - he really liked having Bryce in the stands. Afterwards the kids all got medals. We're really excited to be on the same team for summer too - we have a great group of kids and awesome coaches!

The annual PTO Spring Carnival at Brendan's school was on Thursday so after a quick dinner we headed over to the school. The kids had fun in the inflatable jumper and obstacle course as well as playing some games for prizes. We waited in line forever for the lady who does face painting. She does a fantastic job, but the line is always long.

This past Saturday was Brendan's real birthday party with his friends. It was the first time we've had a party somewhere other than our house and I must say, it was kind of nice! There was a total of nine boys and they were busy swimming and playing water games where Brendan took swimming lessons. Unfortunately, the pictures never turn out that great at the pool, but you'll get the general idea!

Taking turns jumping in while making animal noises.

On to everyones favorite part - cupcakes!

7 Years Old!

2010-04-22T10:38:00.007-05:00

Honestly, I'm not sure where the time has gone, but Brendan turned 7 on April 10th. I can still remember the moment he was born just like it was yesterday. Even clearer is the memory of walking out the hospital with him in the carrier thinking how different life was going to be after going home. Obviously we really didn't understand the true impact of how a baby changes everything, but we figured it out! Even at the most challenging times I wouldn't trade a second of being a mom to such a great kid.

He opened presents in the morning - his favorite part of the day. Aiden has been waiting to buy these little Ben 10 action figures for Brendan for months... so glad he was finially able to! They both do an excellent job of picking out gifts for each other.

Hugs all around :)

After breakfast, Wellyn and I finished up fixing the rock landscaping around the house in the morning while he and Aiden played with the neighbor kids and then we were off to soccer. The difference in his soccer game is amazing - the asthma medication has truly worked wonders. He is so fun to watch, running and smiling the whole time! It was also soccer picture day so we'll be getting new team pictures soon.

For his birthday cake I just made him a chocolate cake with peanut butter frosting since he'll be having his real birthday party in May. I did some impromptu decorating with Easter candy and they thought it was awesome ;)

One very happy boy - notice the missing tooth on top!

We've pretty much finished up the inside work on our open rental unit and have a tenant lined up for May. We decided to hire out the work on the retaining wall and I'm very glad we did. It would have taken us all summer to do by ourselves. The three man crew, equipped with a bobcat and dumptruck, did it in just four days. Here are the before and after pictures - they did an awesome job!

We received a letter home from Brendan's art teacher last week saying that one of his art projects had been selected to be put on display at the local mall along with other elementary students work across the district. Of course, he had no idea what the part work was... but, we went to check it out. Turns out they had been learning about Van Gogh and it was his rendition of Starry Night. He did a really nice job!

This week has been a little crazier than most, I've babysat extra for some friends for various reasons so there have been lots of kids at the house. All good kids though! Aiden has loved having the extra friends to play with him. Here he is with friends Grace and Sophia - Sophia had just woke up from a huge nap and had some super wild hair ;) Aiden wanted to get a comb for it, then he asked me for some scissors since the comb didn't work! I had to explain to him that it was up to her parents to take her for her first haircut; very funny.

And helping feed Sophia - he loves babies!

Easter Week Fun

2010-04-05T15:30:00.020-05:00

Two weekends ago was the Preschool Social and Silent Auction. We were able to visit with other preschool parents, have a lunch served by the teachers followed by a kids' musical entertainer and then ice cream.

We bought some raffle tickets and walked away with this huge Playmobil set - the boys were thrilled!

The weather has been spectacular this week and we've been outside a lot to enjoy it. Brendan started spring break on Wednesday and Aiden started his on Thursday and they have been busy playing with friends and even went to an Easter party. Brendan lost his fourth tooth while at the party so the Tooth Fairy came for a visit ;)

Opening some early Easter gifts from Grandma and Grandpa Pomeroy.

We had some renters move out this week so Wellyn was busy painting to get it ready for the next people. The timing worked out nice since he was still laid off and could go over during the day to get things done. The boys and I made a couple quick trips over to eat meals with him and I spent one day over to help clean and assist. It looks great and for the most part we're done, just some minor things to do to make the place a little nicer. I'll post some photos of the progress next time around.

The best and most anticipated part of the week was an Easter visit from Colin, Stacey, Ellie and Emmit. They arrived Friday afternoon and we kicked the visit off by celebrating Ellie and Brendan's birthdays. We weren't able to make her party so she opened her gifts from us and since Brendan's birthday is next week he got to open gifts from them. Dinner was followed by cake and ice cream - of course! Between me and Stacey, I have tons of photos from the weekend so I'll just put some of the highlights on here!

Emmit sporting his first tat!

Because why wouldn't you put a basket on your head???

Ellie's new little step stool – now she'll be into everything! (Insert evil laugh!)

Ellie testing out the stool to brush her teeth.

Emmit taking advantage of the confusion to make his way over to an envelope.

Brendan opening his gifts.

A hug for Aunt Stacie!

After you open presents it is time to ROCK!

Everyone's favorite part – cake!!

Ellie trying to snitch some frosting – Brendan is all about protecting the cake ;)

Ellie picking up a chunk of ice cream with her hand and helping it along with her fork!

Some very tired kids (and grown ups!) after a long day of play.

Saturday was a day to play - and boy did the kids play! Inside, outside, everywhere - the boys loved having their cousins here. Ellie is so darn cute talking to the boys, she has grown so much since we last saw her and her independent streak is SO like her cousins'! I love how she keeps them in line telling them to 'sit down' at the table, making sure they know which toys are hers... very cute!

Playing 'choo-choo train' down the slide.

Uncle Colin taking the game of Twister very seriously (ummm, Colin, he's only 7!).

A quick break in the play for coloring eggs.

And Emmit is just one rollie chunk of smiles (with a little drool mixed in ;) and curiosity. He certainly can get where he wants to go when there is something he wants. Never underestimate the power of a baby on a mission! He is so good natured, even when overtired, he just goes with the flow.

After naps, it was time to go outside and play some more.

A 'friendly' family game of Yahtzee!

Aiden and Emmit checking out the little pig toy – very interesting!

Emmit just smiling away at Brendan's first indoor soccer game. I'm not sure who was in charge of the schedule, but a soccer game at 6pm on Saturday of Easter weekend was something new. The asthma medicine Brendan is on now is obviously working. He was running full speed all over the field and having a blast. It was amazing to sit back and watch him – a totally different kid than before the diagnosis and treatment. Ellie went to run around at the top of the stadium to burn off some energy while waiting for the game to end. She tripped and fell into the corner by a door, cutting the side of her head on the hinge. Poor little Ellie (and Colin) was covered in blood – so much that it was hard to see how bad the cut was. They took her to urgent care to be safe and we took little Emmit home. Thankfully they was no serious injury and they used glue and steri-strips instead of stitches.

Chillin' with Emmit while poor Miss Ellie was at the doctor. Did I mention he smiles a lot???

After a day of playing followed by soccer, our boys were wiped out. They got to camp out on our floor so Ellie and Emmit could use their rooms.

Ellie testing out some the candy Easter morning. She also thought the Easter Bunny would bring cake and ice cream ;)

Emmit checking out some of the treats in his basket – next year he'll have more exciting treats!

That Tricky Easter Bunny – hiding eggs in the cat food!

Ellie with her two baskets of loot!

Ummm…. The Easter Bunny brought something else for Aiden, a wood tick!! We just told him there was some dirt in his ear and we needed to get it out. He was super mad at us since he had to stop looking for candy for a few minutes. The next day I was looking at pictures on the computer and he saw this one and was like,'was that a bug in MY ear?'. Sometimes ignorance is bliss ;)

The kids with all their baskets and candy, I think they made out pretty good!

Roller Skating Adventure

2010-03-26T13:59:00.005-05:00

Wednesday night the kids were invited to a combined birthday party for their friends Mason and Grace. The party was at a local roller skating rink and the whole rink was reserved for us party goers! Good thing since many of the kids had never done it before. Ours were equipped with helmets, knee pads and elbow pads - just in case!

Here Brendan is showing his moves before hitting the rink.

Aiden waiting while the wheels on his skates were readjusted.

We were so proud of both boys - they had never skated before, but they kept trying and had great attitudes; especially Brendan who fell more times than I can begin to count!

Aiden did pretty good - nice to have a low center of gravity.

Aiden sitting next to his friend Melia from preschool. He adores her - we do too, she is just darn sweet.

Brendan getting some more fuel for the tank ;)

Getting brave, letting go of daddy!
Here he is doing much better after having the wheels tightened and some practice!

Waterpark Weekend!

2010-03-22T21:04:00.008-05:00

Last weekend we joined five other families for a roadtrip to Duluth, MN, to relax and enjoy The Edgewater Resort & Waterpark. Four of the families had met there two years ago and even though our kids were young and naps were sacred, we had a great time. This time was even more fun. Our kids were older, more self-sufficient (no more pack 'n plays or swim diapers for us!), and were super excited to go swimming and play with friends we don't get to see all the time.

We picked up Brendan early from school on Friday (a big deal for him ;) and hit the road north. Both kids slept most of the way up so by the time we arrived they were rested and ready for some fun. Check-in was crazy with long lines of impatient parents and anxious kids, but after we were settled the fun started!

It was so nice to see our friends, spend time with them and their children - they are all getting so big! We used to all see each other more in our lives before kids when we were in the South Metro. Nowadays, we're all little spread out to the extreme north and south suburbs so getting together isn't as easy as it used to be. The kids all seemed to enjoy their time out of the water as much as their time in the water. With so many friends to play with there was never a dull moment. Brendan's favorite thing out of the water was to have a bunch of kids over in our room to watch a dvd together.

Getting ready to go swimming the first time. Brendan was so cute; he brought his 'beach shirt' to wear down to the pool! :)

Friends, Angela and Frank and kids, who used to live in the Twin Cities, but are now in northern MN were able to make it to play! So fun to see them.

Aiden playing in the zero depth pool (by far his favorite place) and about to have some water droplets get him.

Me and the boys!

Our friend Becky and her youngest.

The boys having a little 'race' in the zero depth pool.

Most of our group (at least the kids) hanging out in our room after swimming and dinner. America's Funniest Home Videos was a huge hit with them. The younger kids like cars, trucks and action figures - not to mention an abundance of attention from the other adults! It was a busy room; the very best kind!

Little Corinne getting 'tossed' on the bed.

Aiden and Paige slowing things down with a game of Sorry.

And yes, even on vacation we must still brush our teeth ;)

The next morning we were at the pool again. Here is Brendan swirling by in the Vortex pool.

Part of our group!

Aiden and I with Becky.

Here we are going around (and around and around) the Vortex pool.

Aiden going across the water walk - he was so confident this time since he's been doing the monkey bars in our basement the past few months. He did think it was kind of funny to 'fall' every now and then.

Daddy giving him a boost up after one 'fall'.

Brendan really is like a monkey going across these - the first couple times across he wasn't even putting his feet down, just using his hands.

He ran into a little boy in his first grade class - small world! They had a good time playing together.

Both of our little monkeys.

Wellyn and Brendan in the middle of the Vortex pool. We didn't get nearly as many pictures with Brendan in them at the waterpark since he was off with his friends a lot. Poor Aiden is still stuck hanging with mom and dad!

Wellyn holding a very mellow Corinne.

A big game of Yahtzee.

Little Ethan was content to play with trucks and curtains for the longest time - sometimes that is just all you need.

Aren't they cute?!?

We were all tired by the end of our weekend away and the guys all slept from Duluth to home... very painful to be the only one awake and driving in the afternoon! Now I know how poor Wellyn feels since I am usually the one sleeping with the kids while he drives ;)

Monday morning brought the much anticipated interview at Medtronic. It went well with only one round of interviews scheduled, but they said it would be two weeks before we would know anything. Thursday morning they called, however, and offerred Wellyn the job!!!! Very exciting and a huge relief. He will start on April 5th, leaving him some time to get some things done around the house and relax. It is really nice to have him home even though we're both busy getting things done. My favorite part of his new job will be the commute - 15 minutes each way! Way better than the 40+ minutes each way he had.

In addition to looking for jobs, doing stuff around the house, etc, we've fit in some more fun things like taking Aiden to lunch after preschool last week, Wellyn has done the carpool in the mornings which both kids really like, he went to Aiden's preschool conference and got all the good news and cute stories and he totally shocked Brendan by meeting him at school for lunch last week. Now that the job hunt is over, he painted our downstairs bathroom and will be painting our utility trailer, along with a ton of other little and not so little projects both here and at the rentals.

A quick cat update, Diego was at the vet this morning to have his staples removed and all looks great. Crazy cat was actually cooperative and didn't try to bite them so they were able to remove the staples without knocking him out. AKA a FREE vet visit!!!

Out and About

2010-03-16T06:08:00.005-05:00

A few weeks ago Brendan went to a friend's birthday party at Chuck E. Cheese's. We let Aiden pick a friend and took them along too for an evening of fun. That place is just crazy - no other way to describe it. Kids everywhere, going nuts, trying to play as many games as they can as fast as they can... pure chaos!

We ran into Brendan once; all the other times he was off doing his own thing with the other kids there for the party.

Wellyn and Aiden playing a serious game of foosball.

Aiden's 'mean face' - apparently it helps keep the puck from getting by him ;)

Brendan built an alien for the latest Lego challenge. Notice the letter 'E' spelled out in the body - that stands for 'evil'. He did that all on his own, cute!

Aiden has been going to floor hockey through community ed the past three weeks with Wellyn. It's a 45 minute class in the evenings for 3-4 years old. He is so cute; he always comes home super excited from class saying how much fun it was. Last week Brendan and I went along too and watched. Thankfully, he doesn't realize how lame their instructor is and has fun anyway! Our little poser ;)

Our Little March Lion

2010-03-11T22:08:00.006-06:00

Well, March has certainly made it's presence known in our household! First it was the unexpected layoff for Wellyn closely followed by a sick kitty.

Diego started vomiting on Saturday and by Sunday was much worse. That required a trip to the emergency vet for x-rays, fluids and some medicine to help settle his stomach. By Sunday evening he was no better and had continued to vomit so it was back to the vet for another round of x-rays and hospitalization with fluids overnight. Diego is a sweet cat at home, loves the kids and me especially and lets Wellyn live here. He's not as fond of company unless they are kids; for some strange reason he likes the neighbor kids when they come over but will randomly attack visiting adults. So let's just say he was less than fond of being at the pet hospital with a bunch of strange adults poking him... he was repeatedly sedated for anything they needed to do with him.

Our biggest concern was that he had ate a piece of foam from the interlocking foam floor pieces in the play area in the basement. He has always loved to chew and shred foam, but it has mainly been craft projects the kids have brought home from school or daycare. The past few months though he was started in on the basement floor. I bought some bitter spray and that really helped so I hoped that would be the end of our problem. Unfortunately, my bitter spray came too late...

Monday morning came the call from the vet he was no better, still vomiting causing concern for his liver and kidneys so they recommended surgery to look for an internal obstruction. That's the thing about foam, it doesn't show up on an x-ray. Grrrrr!!!

A few hours later we received the news he was out of surgery, awake and they had removed a piece of foam that was obstructing his small intestine. So, after two nights and four substantial vet bills we were able to bring him back home. He has 32 staples in his tummy which is more than I had with either c-section.

Trust me, I'm very aware there are many people out there who think it is crazy to go to such lengths and expense for a cat... but I have to say, the relief for Brendan at having him home and safe again was overwhelming and worth it. Brendan burst into tears after visiting him the first day Diego was back home with us. Diego and Brendan share their birthdays and Diego sleeps in Brendan's room on his bed with him every night... such buddies. I am so glad the surgery went without incident and we were able to provide the care for him.

Here he is a few hours after coming home, just chillin' with the e-collar on:

He is on the road to recovery - off the narcotic pain medicine, swelling is down and he is able to jump up on our bed! The other upside is he's been purring up a storm since coming home; even when our neighbor came to care for him while we were out of town for the weekend.

February Fun and March... not so fun???

2010-03-05T12:32:00.009-06:00

A few random photos of things we've been doing. President's Day Wellyn and the kids had off so we did some sledding. Aiden walking back up the long hill with his dad.

Brendan giving Wellyn and Aiden a push down the hill.

Crafty Brendan hitching a ride up the hill.

Honestly, Brendan can make friends anyplace he goes. If there are other kids and an even half-receptive grown-up he's ready to adopt them. Here he ran into another dad with a few kids and before we knew it he was racing with them and making sled trains down the hill with them. He does have some great social skills.

Aiden taking a break and hanging with me.

Another sled train getting ready to shoot down the hill.

Logan wanted to walk up and down the hill instead of take the sled - not really a safe option when tons of sleds are rocketing down at high speed and with no steering. So he went down a few times but was very content to watch the other kids.

The Saturday before my birthday Wellyn took me out for dinner downtown Minneapolis and then we went to the Minnesota Orchrestra. Amazingly, it was our first trip there even though we've lived here for over 11 years. We always talk about doing some of the things the metro has to offer but then get distracted by life... that was a very fun night! Us before heading out.

The next morning the kids gave me their gifts. Brendan led me up to the living room insisting I keep my eyes closed ;)

Aiden giving me some new pjs.

And some more new pjs!

Brendan picked out some new candles with a tray and colored rocks to around them and had it all set up for me when I opened my eyes. They are awesome gift givers!

In other news, Aiden is having a blast at floor hockey and we'll all get to go watch him this week. He comes home so excited after every class and can't stop talking about how much fun it is. Brendan will start soccer soon and we are so happy he is on the same team with two other friends and we know he will have a better experience this time around. This will be his first time playing indoors and it should be fun.

Our more shocking news of the past week was Wellyn getting laid off from work. Late Wednesday afternoon they let him know; no prior warning so it was very unexpected. He went in today to turn in his badge, laptop and hand-off his project info and is officially done. He has already been making contact with former co-workers and friends and has at least one lunch meeting set up so hopefully it will be a smooth process.

Birthday Party Time!

2010-02-14T19:25:00.014-06:00

Last week was a big week around here with the kids having Valentine's Day celebrations at their schools, celebrating Logan and Aiden's birthdays along with the big birthday party at our house. Luckily everyone stayed healthy enough to not miss out on anything - I was worried since Brendan had come down with Aiden's cold, but it wasn't as bad for him.

Logan turned 3 last Sunday so we had cupcakes and some presents after dinner on Tuesday. The kids thought it was awesome and Logan loved the cupcake and opening his gifts from us.

Everybody loves cupcakes.

Wednesday was Aiden's real birthday as well as his Valentine's Day at preschool so a busy and fun day for him. They decorated cookies at preschool and he picked apple slices and cheese cubes for his birthday snack to share so we didn't get the kids too sugared up! At home we had donuts with sprinkles for the treat before he opened his presents from us.
Loving his brother and the gift his brother gave him!
The big box goes last.
Playing with the new crane.
He loves his sweatshirt - great job grandma and grandpa!
Only a matter of time before the robotic arms gets into trouble ;)
Jag loves wrapping paper and plastic - just like Christmas for him.

Saturday afternoon we had his highly anticipated Ben 10 birthday party. Our first game of pin the Omnitrix on Ben 10 went over great with the kids. Aiden actually ran into the wall with his head... we were more careful after that!
Yeah, he missed by just a bit ;) Me looking fairly relaxed at the start of the party.
The bean bag toss to defeat Ben 10s enemies and help save the universe went over awesome. It truly seemed like a lame idea since it was just three villains printed out on card stock and then attached to picture frame backings with painters tape and set up one on the floor, one on the couch and one on the back of the couch. The kids loved it! Especially when Wellyn went behind the couch to help retrieve bean bags and then stayed there and pretended to get his sometimes. The laughter was incredible!

Filling the bowls with 'alien rocks'...

And then it was time for cake! Getting ready to blow out 4 candles...

Gift opening was basically pure chaos with everyone wanting to see, have Aiden open their gift next and help him open everything... but it was sure fun.

The day after the party Aiden decided to put on a few more of the leftover tattoos... and ran around with just his underwear on so everyone could see them ;)

Brendan and Wellyn built a rocket and a truck to bring the astronauts to the rocket before launch. Always fun to build!

Some of our party decorations!
We had the frame from an old picture that had gotten ripped so we just put it around the poster and it's a regular piece of art!
Aiden's favorite character from the show Humungusour!

February Fun

2010-02-09T21:00:00.011-06:00

A few weeks ago Aiden had a pizza party and magic show at preschool. It's an annual event and hugely popular with kids and parents alike. The day starts off with some music, songs and dancing followed by a craft project, a short movie, pizza and then the magic show. I have seen the magician several times over the past few years and he is just perfect for this age of kids. He is so dramatic, involves the kids, able to roll with the crazy things they say and has an abundance of that 'stupid humor' they just love at this age.

Making the photo frame craft... big decisions which decorations to pick! Hanging with some of the boys from his class:
Watching the magician:
His best buddy Ryan was picked to help for one of the tricks - EVERY kid wants to get picked.
Aiden didn't get picked, but he did get some paper confetti afterwards; and the magician said to put it under his pillow and it would 'magically' turn into a quarter ;)

We had Brendan's first grade conferences recently and he is doing very well. He seems to know how to stay out of trouble at school ;) and is very diligent about learning and getting his homework done. Every parent's dream! February is Love to Read Month at his school and the goal for his classroom is for the kids to read 1,000 books collectively. He is taking the challenge very seriously - wanting to read 5-7 books a night! We are trying to accommodate his as much as possible and still make it to bed at a decent hour :)

Wellyn and I have been trying to encourage each other to exercise more and are tracking our exercise hours and weight as a motivator (some days it's more motivating than others!). Here is Wellyn pumping some iron - I mean kids!

Taking a break after all that work!(check out the cool Ben 10 poster in the background)
Logan is pretty light compared to our kids so not much of a workout for Wellyn.

Saturday Aiden and I headed to Pump It Up for a birthday party for a preschool classmate. We give her rides to and from preschool and ironically her birthday is the same day as Aiden's! He adores her and she is just a sweet little girl. The kids burned tons of energy on all the inflatables and then loaded up on pizza and cake - every kids dream morning!

We took the boys sledding this past Sunday for our first real trip this winter. Beautiful day to go although the breeze at the top of the hill was brisk and we were glad we threw some scarves in the car. They had a blast flying down the hill at breakneck speed - as I was at the top holding my breath... especially when Brendan kept going down the part of the hill with a huge bump at the end and flying through the air. I accidentally aimed Aiden and I down that part once and it was incredibly painful - the jolting of my bones alone was a rude awakening; add that to having my elbow caught between the sled and the ground and poor Aiden's head making contact with my knee - just no fun! He had a rough go of it since Wellyn had took him over it once too and he flew right off the sled and Wellyn and the sled proceeded to run over him... We made sure to stay away from that section of the hill for the rest of his rides! We're beginning to know a lot more people in the area through the kids going to school and all the after school activities so it was fun to run into two other families on the hill we knew. They had all sorts of 'trains' going down the hill with up to 6 sleds going together. Great time and great exercise.

Wellyn and Aiden before the crash at the bottom: Brendan going down, headed straight for the bump and Wellyn and Aiden at the bottom. Making the walk back up (mom offers to pull him up the hill on the sled ;)
Me and Aiden safely aimed at the gentle, sloping part of the hill - we learned our lesson!
Aiden all bundled up complete with ski goggles borrowed from a friend we met on the hill:
The current focus of our household is Aiden's upcoming birthday party. He picked a Ben 10 theme and we're getting everything ready for it this Saturday. That kid, and his brother, could not be more excited about having the decorations up, the kids over and having cake! Actually I'm pretty excited about the cake too - I ordered it with butter cream frosting! I'll have to put up an actual post just about the party and the preparations later to help out other parents trying to play this theme - it is impossible to find in the party stores and I dislike ordering everything online.

Tomorrow is his 'real' birthday so he is bringing in a special treat for preschool. In addition it is their class Valentine's Day party so it will be an extra fun day. After his special birthday dinner (mini corn dogs and Spiderman Mac 'n Cheese - yuk!) he'll open the presents from us and blow out the candles on his birthday donuts (the cake is for Saturday). My next update will be post-birthday celebrations!

Fun to Play!

2010-01-25T10:47:00.010-06:00

I find it hard to believe the end of January is upon us already! It seems we were just ringing in the New Year and putting away the Christmas decorations and now February is looming. The days are sliding by so quickly so I'll try to update year so far - it's been a busy one!

The kids kept busy imagining all sorts of things and creating new games and play scenarios with their time off from school. They even put on a magic/talent show for us one night. Very original and cute ;)

That's our boy!
Pretending to fly like a bird...
Always out to make the crowd laugh with his antics!

We were so excited to have visitors the first of January - our sister-in-law Stacey was in the Twin Cities for work for a whole week! Even better, she brought our niece Ellie along and they stayed with us. We had so much fun with them and the boys loved having their little cousin here to play. Ellie is a doll! Poor Brendan had to head back to school during the day so he missed a lot of the play, but the kids were always so excited to see him when he came home from school and they would play until dinner.
Ellie loved going on the kids beds to play - here she is up in Aiden's.

Such a good eater :)
Another good eater!
Our little student just a working away!
On Stacey's last day she was able to drop Brendan off at school on her way to work - a huge treat for him!

And speaking of school, here are the kids pictures from preschool and first grade. They are getting so big! Both are doing very well in their respective classes. Brendan was selected to participate in the Talent Development class again this session. This time the focus is on math - we're so proud of him! Aiden keeps his teachers in stitches with all the funny things he says; he acts so much older than an almost 4 year old!

In case you hadn't heard, our kids really like Legos so imagine how excited they were to hear that Cartoon Network was going to have a new Lego Atlantis movie! We decided to make a real night of it and invited a bunch of boys over from school and preschool for pizza, play, the movie, popcorn and some more play. There were a total of 8 boys and 1 girl - lots of fun! The kids were all so excited and they had such a great time, well worth the effort!
Aiden and his buddy Ryan.
Having some fun before the movie - boys are great ;)
The next morning Brendan went to a Mad Science class through the city parks and rec. They have been talking about science at school so it was perfect timing for him. A few weeks before he had told me he wanted to be a scientist when he grew up so he could 'have those test-tubie things and make little explosions in them'... yeah, that will have to wait! ;) The highlight of the class was taking a rocket outside and launching it!

Meanwhile Aiden and I headed south for a birthday party. Our friends Brian and Jess celebrated their littlest one turning 2! Aiden had a good time and we brought Logan along for the party too. His favorite parts were the Elmo cupcakes with the Elmo ring on top and the cool butterfly tattoo he got. Doesn't take much to make him happy.

The boys had a long weekend for Martin Luther King, Jr., Day. I couldn't have imagined a better day to spend with them. We met Wellyn for lunch at his office, a huge treat for us all. They have a great cafeteria there and the kids loved ordering lunch and eating with Dad. We were able to see his cubicle, meet some co-workers and tour one of the labs. This was Brendan's favorite part! The workers in the lab were extremely kid-friendly and let the boys look through their microscope and see a real catheter, an awesome tour! Afterwards I took the boys for haircuts and then we came home to play. The weather was in the 30s and sunny so it was perfect for going outside and building on the snow fort in the yard. Actually, I built on the snow fort and they played on the sled! ;) They had such a good time sliding backwards down the hill and rolling down it - priceless day!

Christmas Recap

2010-01-06T19:55:00.013-06:00

Christmas is always so much for us and this year was no exception. As always, it involves a lot of planning, packing, early shopping and days on the road, but the time spent with family makes it all worth it. Obviously, I have tons of photos so I'm going to try my best to just put 'some' of them on here ;) We left the Saturday before Christmas and headed to Iron Mountain, MI, for a family gathering on Wellyn's moms side of the family. We stopped in Rhinelander, WI, for the night to relax and let the kids play in the pool. They had a great time in the water and we're tired out by bedtime. Sunday we arrived in Iron Mountain and were able to visit with some of the extended family we don't always get to see. After that we headed to St. Jaques to catch Wellyns' dads Chirstmas concert with the church choir. The kids were so proud to see their Grandpa up there singing and loved clapping after every song and making the audience laugh. Brendans favorite part was when Grandpa let him talk into the microphone at the end. The next morning we were on the road again for Gulliver. There we relaxed, helped my mom decorate and had a little fun outside. The boys always like going there, mostly because they have dogs ;) The weather was nice enough we were able to get out some and enjoy the snow. I can't tell you how many times I knocked icicles down as a kid! One afternoon we took the kids out in the woods by the house where I spent hours playing as a kid. Brendan absolutely loved it; Aiden, well, I think once his legs get longer he'll enjoy it more too. After our walk in the woods we pulled the kids around on the snow tube. Lots of fun for them, lots of exercise for us! And this is what it looks like after falling off the tube face first! ;)

Christmas Eve brought our usual tradition of dinner followed by gift opening. My sister, Katherine, and her family made it the festivites. The kids were super anxious to open gifts and were thrilled when we finally gave them the 'green light' to starting passing out the gifts. The family photo before the wrapping paper started to fly:

Christmas Day we loaded up and went to the Pomeroys to celebrate. We had a great suprise waiting for us - Wellyns brother Ashley had taken leave from the Air Force and was home for the holiday! Brendan just clung to him; he always worries about Ashley being stationed in Pakistan and says special prayers for him to be safe.

The kids putting on the first puppet show with the puppet theater made by Grandpa Herb and Grandma Donna. I wish we would have had the first ones on video - too funny!
The boys love holding their little cousins; thankfully Emmit didn't mind :)
The Saturday after Christmas was the Alumni basketball game at Big Bay de Noc High School. With all four of the Pomeroy boys home it was 'game on'! Ellie having some snacks - way more fun than anything else going on... although she did yell 'HI DADDY!' to cheer Colin on.

Ellie and Max kept Lindsey and Stacey busy finding things for them to do and eat - whatever one cousin was eating, the other one wanted too!

The guys after the game.

Sunday morning we needed to head out for MN. It was a crazy holiday with all the kids running around and all the different nap schedules so we missed a full family photo at Christmas but we did manage to get on of Ashley with the next generation before we left.

Our trip back was uneventful with the exception of trying out several bathrooms all across Wisconsin... kids always have to go; even after they just went! It took a while to get them settled, but finially they were asleep for the night and Santa made his stop.

The kids before the opening started...

Unfortunately, the rest of our winter break was frigid so the kids weren't able to go out and play much in the huge snowbanks that accumulated while we were gone. I'm still hoping for a little bit of a thaw - at least double digits???

Bring on the Holidays

2009-12-17T06:04:00.010-06:00

As in many households the upcoming Christmas season brings lots of extra activity - decorating, shopping, increased school functions, wrapping, shopping (because it is hard to get it done!). The past weeks have been filled with those activities and we still have two more days to go (to finish it all!) before we hit the road for Christmas in Michigan. Here's a look back at what's been keeping us busy: Decorating the tree, finally! The boys have been asking to do this since Halloween. Unfortuanately I didn't get many pictures since I was more focused on keeping the ornaments from having accidents ;)
Watching the Packers play: 'Tailgating' on Santa's annual trip through the neighborhood as part of the fire departments food drive. This involves bundling up, putting the seats down, lots of snacks and sometimes a movie. We almost had to call it quits before Santa showed up due to it being so late, Santa must have taken a different route this year! Bundling up for some outside fun! And then coming in to warm up with hot chocolate and cake. Some very rosy cheeks! A nice afternoon visit with our friend Jess and her two kids, Ethan and Grace. Grace really likes the kitties - a lot! Ethan wasn't as enamored with the cats, but did have a good time with the toys. Unfortunately before they came I had a little stove mishap so lunch was delivered and the house was a little smelly and cold due to many open windows, I'll explain more later ;) So, I was going to make lunch for Jess and the kids. I had cleaned up the counters and in the process put one of Brendans 'experiments' (consisting of rocks, sand, water and chalk) in a plastic bowl and set it in the oven where I wouldn't spill it and it would be out of the way. Yeah, you guessed it, I preheated the oven (to 450 no less!) and walked away. Obviously plastic and ovens don't mix very well - the result was a very stinky smoke and a huge puddle of melted plastic on the bottom of the oven. Thankgoodness for delivery to save the day for lunch! Here is the result: Wellyn celebrated the big 3-6 this past Monday, but due the kids having school a preschool program, work, etc we celebrated on Saturday morning. The kids were having a great weekend playing dress-up and doing all sorts of adventures so they were in pirate costume for the gift opening. Some birthday pie ;)

Playing in the snow after our first real storm of the season:

A little baking with the babysitter while we were out shopping. (thankfully all cleaned up by the time we got home ;) Last Monday was Aidens first preschool program, the Birthday Party for Jesus. He was so excited about it - unfortunately he was feeling down with a cold, but there was no missing this performance! Brendan with his buddy Mason, buddies from their year in preschool.

Enjoying the cupcakes and their friends afterwards!

This will be the last post before the holidays and we wish all of you a safe and joyous Christmas and New Year. May the new year bring many new joys, adventures and memories.

Lots to be Thankful For

2009-12-02T07:30:00.002-06:00

I actually started this post over a week ago but due to many interruptions and half the post not being saved before the computer restarted... well, let's just say it's been a rocky road getting it done!

After having a cold October, November was a much welcomed if not unexpected treat weather-wise. We were able to take advantage of some really nice sunny days and get out to play. Brendan has been perfecting his technique on the monkey bars at his school playground and wanted to show off his new skills so off we went for some play there on a sunny Saturday.

We participated in Operation Christmas Child this year for our first time. The boys each filled up a shoe box with small toys and school supplies to send to another little boy in need. The cool thing is our boxes have tracking labels on them so after they are on their way we'll be able to track their progress to the intended country. It was so much fun to fill the boxes - they would have filled many more if they could have ;)

Also new this year, we've adopted a family for Christmas through the Salvation Army. We will go shopping for them and then meet with them to give them their gifts. The kids are pretty excited about it and I think it will be better than Toys For Tots at this point since putting toys in a box at a store or filling a bus with them doesn't really let them see where the toys are going. Our family has two boys the same age as ours as well as a ten year old girl. I'm nervous about shopping for a girl that age since I've never done that before!

Our Thanksgiving was spent here in the cities this year. Wellyn doesn't have any extra vacation time left after we take the days at Christmas and given the distance to get home it's hard to make the trip for just a couple days (after subtracting the days for traveling!). The boys had a good time playing with friends, using their endless imagination and going out for some fun family activities. One of the best was going to a theater grill - very cool. We ordered our dinner and ate while watching Cloudy With A Chance of Meatballs. The kids thought it was really cool and Brendan scored us some free popcorn by having the same birthdate as our server! Wellyn built a rolling storage shelf for our basement so some of our time was spent organizing and reorganizing the space.

Here they are with their imaginations running full throttle:

And playing in the garage while Wellyn was working on the shelf:

This just cracks me up - we've had the iPod for a couple years now, but over the holiday everyone kind of 'rediscovered' it. It was a huge deal whose turn it was to play with it: Wellyn, Aiden or Brendan. I think the biggest contributor to it was time; Wellyn doesn't seem to have a lot of just downtime here to do stuff for fun so a few laid back days here and he was able to download a bunch of new aps for it and it became the hot toy of the weekend.

Earlier this week we put up the tree much to the boys delight! They've been asking since Halloween when we're going to put it up ;)

I have just about all of our decorations up now; the Christmas village is up as of last night, all the decor is out and the outside of the house is lighted. I need to run out and throw some lights on a couple of bushes and the kids are going to decorate two little trees in the basement and then we're done.

This week will be busy wrapping up gifts and trying to finish up our shopping. The kids are anxious to go shopping for each other although it is so hard for them to wait to give the gifts they buy ;)

Meeting Emmit!

2009-11-12T19:09:00.007-06:00

The first weekend of the month we packed up the family and hit the road for Wisconsin. It was our first time visiting our newest nephew Emmit. The boys were super excited for the trip - even more so when we arrived to find a tent in the basement at our disposal. It was the greatest 'camp out' ever ;) I do believe the boys will be extremely disappointed if they ever finish the basement.

The game of choice for the weekend was Sorry!

Saturday morning arrived bright and early and we were able to hold and cuddle Emmit. A truly adorable, easy-going baby with an abundance of smiles to give. We had so much fun getting to know him and catching up with big sister Ellie. The boys were on Cloud 9 to meet Emmit, play with Ellie (and all her toys ;) and all the other fun grown ups around for the weekend.

After breakfast and lunch with the gang, we took a road trip up to see my sister in Peshtigo. They have an absolutely adorable new kitten - one they were lucky to keep ;) Both Brendan and I were in kitty love. Both boys were there for the weekend giving us a chance to catch up with them. Preston just finished out his soccer season with the honor of being named All-State! Brendan would have stayed all day between the kitten and being able to play Preston's guitar, but we eventually headed back to see some more of Emmit.

I'm sure someday when the kids are older they will NOT appreciate these pictures, but for now they are just cute! Why give one a bath when two need to get in?? Especially when they could care less about differences ;)

This is certainly one way to make sure your ear gets clean.

He was totally loving the hooded towel... maybe Santa needs to round one of those up!
Showing off at the campsite.

I'm not sure how it happened, but we were all able to get ready for church at 8:30am with time to spare! It was relaxing and not the way our Sundays at home seem to go for 11am mass... Needless to say, I had plenty of time to take pictures. Brendan holding Emmit for the first time:
Ellie just being adorable.
Brendan hanging with buddy Andy while playing the Leapster.
Gorgeous new mommy Stacey ready with the bottle for chubby little Emmit.Ellie told me 'no smile'...
So handsome in the clothes he picked out on his own.
Even enough extra time for a story!
Aiden holding Emmit for the first time with a little assistance from Daddy.
Too cute!
Moving on to hanging with Ellie and Shannon...
Me and my boys!
The proud family...
With Donna and Herb afterwards - Emmit is looking at Wellyn since he was making him laugh right before I took the picture.
Working his baby magic ;)
My newest nephew - such a chubby laid back little guy! Wellyn 'pretending' to help with the brunch... Emmit very content to have his bottle and call it a day!
Ellie and Colin all worn out!

Happy Halloween!

2009-10-31T20:09:00.016-05:00

Once again I'm running just a 'little' behind on my posts... I'll skip to the photos - it's what you came to see anyway, right? ;)

Our visit to the local fire department open house early in October was a huge hit with the boys. There was lots to see and do!

Sitting in the back of an ambulance - someplace I hope they never end up!

Putting out a 'house on fire'...

Aiden having a turn.

Practicing putting out a fire with an extinguisher...

The backseat of a police car - another place I hope they don't end up!

A few weekends ago I took off for the weekend with friends for our annual spa weekend. We headed up to Brainerd, MN, for some relaxation and shopping. It's always so fun to get away and shop at the outlets - we even fit in a movie, without animated characters!

Coming home was back to the reality of life though. Brendan's sore throat and cough from the previous week got worse bringing us once again to the doctor to find out he had bronchitis and an ear infection. He missed a few days of school and was miserable, but was healthy enough to go on his class field trip to the Hugo Animal Farm that he had been so looking forward to.

For those of you who don't know, I love fall and Halloween decorations - not the scary ones, but the cute pumpkins, etc. I indulged in a hot knife this year to better 'carve' my craft pumpkins. Here is my first attempt with the new knife:
And then the next two I did...
The ones from last year that have been mauled by the cat (bad kitty!)...

The one from last year Brendan and I did together...

A random picture of Aiden and I hanging out in the office.

Aiden came down with the same cold/cough Brendan had earlier so he spent a day home from preschool and daycare this week. It has been a long-lasting cold with the first week bringing sniffles, sore throats and a cough; the second week bringing fevers and a really bad cough... lots of sleep lost for everyone and some sad little boys :(

And I'm so proud of my little Aiden, look he wrote his name for the first time all by himself this week!

About six weeks ago I emailed a few of the other moms in the neighborhood to see if they were interested in doing a Halloween party for the kids - seems like every year we miss seeing some of the kids during trick-or-treating and the kids sometimes don't see their friends at all depending on what time everyone goes out. Everyone was one board so we hosted it at our house! The planning for it went really well and we had a huge turnout for the event - 26 kids (plus 3 babies!); three kids were over age 6 and the rest were between 2yrs and 6yrs old. Along with the kids, parents were here as well. We had some game stations for them to rotate through, treats (of course!) and then we just let them play. Amazingly, with that many kids here it went pretty smooth. Only a couple minor injuries and no spills!

I'm sure I'll have more photos as time goes on from some of the other cameras going off during the party. It was a huge hit with kids and adults alike. Brendan gave us both a hug at night and thanked us for the best Halloween party ever - made all the work and stress leading up to it worth it ;)

Here are some of the decorations we put up for the party:
I found these online and it was something easy the kids and I could do. We used empty milk jugs to make the faces on and then put Christmas lights in them. The boys had so much fun; and yes, we drink a lot of milk.
The horrible spider web stuff over the shot glass collection. That stuff is so hard to put up - it truly clings to everything!
One of my favorites - the pumpkin in the aquarium! The kids thought it was so funny.

Somehow, we seem to plan our parties just right - right when Wellyn's parents come to town! Some extra hands to help get things ready for the party are always needed. Not to mention during the party to find drinks, napkins, etc for all the kids.

Party night! My biker dude hubby and reggae father-in-law ;)

Me with my little ninja... he was oblivious to the fact we were having our photo taken.

Our sick little Power Ranger... looking a little tired.
The kids waiting for their turn at the Eyeball Bounce game. Brendan kept getting hot with his costume on so it went off and on all night!
Pin the Nose on the Pumpkin was a huge hit.
Brendan with his friend Martina - one of the cutest, sweetest little girls around.

Halloween brought continued fevers and terrible coughing for Aiden sending us to urgent care once again. An antibiotic for bronchitis and we were on our way! Hopefully he'll feel better soon. Here the kids are all dressed up (and bundled up) to go trick or treating.

Our little Ninja ;)
And Power Ranger...
Such good brothers!
With biker dude daddy ;)
Kicking back after getting candy to do some coloring with Grandma Donna.

Hope you all have had a wonderful October and a Happy Halloween!