The Vergins

The Harlem Globetrotters

2011-04-24T22:04:00.005-05:00

The Harlem Globetrotters were in Morris at the U in April. Darin and I both saw them when we were in Elementary school and were excited to see them again and to bring the kids.

Before the show, Globie did some dancing for us. Here he's "Ice Ice Globie"

As Justin Bieber.

The Globetrotters were introduced. Here the ball is spinning on his head!

They introduced the new "4 point shot). It was near center court. When there were 2 minutes left in each quarter any shots from the circle were worth 4 points and money was donated to a charity for each shot.

Silly antics.

Arguing with refs.

They brought a little girl out on the court and had a ball spinning on her finger - classic Globetrotter move!

Some fun action.

Dribbling while circling on the floor!

The big glow up Globie came out and dance for us.

Just hangin' around

De-pantsing the competition. Notice the Tickle Me boxers? LOL

Spring Kickball

2011-04-24T21:35:00.004-05:00

Spring 2011 was a bummer - snow and cold, cold and snow. We didn't think it would ever end! The kids had enough and decided to take advantage of a "warmer" Saturday and got a game of kickball going. There were very few dry and snow free areas in the yard and they used every inch of it!

Cassidy tries to get Devin out. Love the expression on her face!

Wyatt uses Cassidy as a block with hopes of not getting out at 3rd base (the big old cottonwood tree)

Cole chases a ball through the snow.

Cole waiting on 1st base.

Cassidy's up next!

Cassidy Basketball

2011-04-16T18:24:00.003-05:00

Cassidy likes to play basketball too though hers only involves some Saturday morning rec. She won't start any traveling leagues for 2 more years - until she's in 5th grade. But they do get some action at the Varisity Girls' game.

Going in for a drive...

She shoots and scores!

Gettin ready to get the run-a-way ball.

Cole Basketball

2011-04-16T18:19:00.004-05:00

Cole played in a traveling basketball league this winter. He is in 6th grade but 5th grad only had 5 players making it a challenge to put together a team. The 5th and 6th graders practiced together twice a week and played on weekends. The 6th grade boys took turns playing on the 5th grade team to even it out a bit.

He shoots and scores! Good follow through Cole!

The boys played on one of the varsity boys' basketball games. Makes it challenging when you all know the plays!

Cole's cousin Lukus plays for the 6th grade team in Morris and they look forward to playing each other every year. They don't miss a chance to fight over the ball!

Day 1 - Epcot

2010-02-10T13:34:00.009-06:00

The Florida vacation was a Christmas vacation for the Erickson's. There were 14 in all there.!

Sunday - 1st full day of vacation. We flew in Saturday afternoon but by the time we got our vans, got to the house and went grocery shopping we were pooped!

Epcot is known for the large golf ball thing. Inside is actually a ride - Spaceship Earth. It was a slow ride that took you through the history of the earth and space travel. I didn't find it all that exciting but the kids were begging for another ride!
At Epcot, you can visit a variety of countries. Here in Mexico we took a gondola ride and were entertained by Daffy Duck.
In Italy, they had a mime performing.
In Germany, everyone had to have a beer of course. Except Wyatt - he's holding Grandpa's beer. And, no, he didn't drink any of it! :-)
In Japan, we watched a little girl pick out oysters to find the pearl inside.
In Morocco, we found Aladin and got his autograph.
In France was Marie. Cassidy not only got her autograph but a hug too!
We found Mary Poppins in the United Kingdom. She asked the kids where they were from and then asked if the came to Florida in an umbrella. We haven't watched much of Mary Poppins so I don't think they got it! LOL
Had to do the 3-D experience "Honey I Shrunk the Audience". Don't Wyatt and Grandpa Chuck look stylish?
Hailey and Cassidy enjoy their clam ride through the Little Mermaid. I have one of Wyatt but he's not looking nearly as happy as the girls!

Day 2 - Beaches and Kennedy Space Center

2010-02-10T13:13:00.008-06:00

On Monday morning, we dropped Brian off at the airport to fly back to Minnesota to get his kids who had to stay behind for their grandpa's funeral. Then, we headed out to do some beach loafing.

First stop was Cocoa Beach. The kids collected shells and found lots of dead starfish on the ground. Florida had a large cold front go through a couple of weeks before we went and it killed the starfish. We tried taking a couple to bring home but they got stinky so we threw them away.
The sand was silky smooth and the kids loved playing in it. Cole, Jared and Hailey did venture into the water but they didn't swim very long. We're used to the cold lakes but they just couldn't do it there! LOL
A very quick family photo and then out of the water for me! lolWe had a quick lunch beach side and it was off to Kennedy Space Center. It was getting late so we didn't pay to tour the place. Just stopped, took some pictures and moved on.
The kids were more excited about the Armadillo than the space center anyway! LOLOff to Daytona Beach. The speedway is along the way so of course we have to stop and investigate!
The place is HUGE! Unfortunately, it was gated off and we couldn't get inside. We did however go into the gift shop! :-)
A man who speaks for himself in racing history.Then off the beach.
This beach was very different in Cocoa Beach in that you could drive along the beach which made the sand very hard. Or, because the sand was really hard you could drive on it? At any rate, it didn't sift through your toes like other beaches.
Jared and Cole attempted again to swim! :-)

Day 3 - Hollywood Studios

2010-02-10T12:23:00.008-06:00

Our first park with all 14! If only they walked this all day long!
The blue Mickey hat is the symbol of Hollywood Studios. It looks really cool at night!
First stop was the Tower of Terror. And terror it was! No money was spared on setting the scenes for any of the attractions we experienced this week!
The creepy walk up to the tower was laced with cragly trees and hanging moss.
As you walked in to the ride the hotel was set up with lots of dust and cobwebs. I'm sure the kids were wondering what they were getting into!
The line for pictures with the cars crew was too long to stand in. So we just snapped a picture as we walked by.
The Star Wars ride was pretty cool. It was more of a virtual ride. You sat in a space craft that moved up and down and side to side without ever leaving it's place.
Muppets 3-D was pretty funny!
The kids were hoping to keep their glasses but we had to give them back after the ride.
Ah, the Aerosmith Rock & Roll coaster. Talk about wicked! It was dark and fast - don't need to say more! :-)
You rode in a Cadillac limo....
Imagine that - the kids want to pose with the snowman. Really? We don't have enough of that at home?!? Hollywood Studios is only 1 of 2 places we ate lunch. We had pizzas and pop. Very good pizza too! Kind of reminded me of the Subway pizzas.
Indiana Jones was a disappointment. Darin and I went with Cassidy, Wyatt and my folks while the rest did more rides. It wasn't what we expected.
It was a fake movie set up where they re-enacted a few scenes from one of the movies.
I'm still wondering how they did The Little Mermaid show. It was really hard to get pictures of the puppets - they all turned out blurry. All the characters were lit up puppets with amazing details and effects. You could barely see the strings and the people. A very good show for the youngsters.
Ariel and the prince were the only "people" in the show.
Wyatt hardly ever brought his camera out for the entire trip but by George, he had a lot of pictures of the Lights, Motors, Action Show!
It was a perfect "boy" (and girl) show. It also was based on a movie shot in ?Italy? (can't remember now). They were showing scenes that happened in the movie. There were car chases, motorcycle chases, guns, jumps and much more.

And of course there were ample picture opportunities. I LOVE Eyeore and had to have my pix with him!

Day 4 - Sea World

2010-02-10T11:50:00.008-06:00

We had to do the Shamu photo opp. After Shamu signed the kids' books he tried to eat Cole's pen. The kids thought that was a hoot!
We tried to see the dolphins in Dolphin Cove but they wouldn't come down to our end.
It was fun watching the seals beg for food. Some people did buy fish to feed them.
We were bummed the Atlantis Ride was closed down for the day. It was a flume ride the kids were looking forward to.
We went into the Shark Adventure place (can't remember what it was officially called). We rode on a moving sidewalk through a tunnel that had sharks and fish swimming all around you. If you've ever been to Underwater World in the Mall of America - this was very similar to that.
Half of the group rode up in the sky tower to get a good view of the area. The rest of us went shopping. This was actually at the end of the day but somehow got here in the middle! :-)
OOOHHH - the Manta Ride. Definitely not one I'll do again. OK, so maybe I would.... You rode upside down for the most part. The kids had gone it first and talked Darin and I into doing it. Of course, they lied and said they weren't upside down. But when we got up in the line and noticed they have a bar for your feet I knew they were lying! :-) But we braved it out and did it!
The Shamu show! There were lots of acts with Dolphins and other whales first. I would love to do that for a living. It looks like so much fun!

SHAMU - He's HUGE!
Brian took the kids into the soak zone - and yep, they got soaked! LOL Us smart ones sat further up! ;-)

Day 5 - Busch Gardens and Honeymoon Island

2010-02-10T11:14:00.006-06:00

We were watching the weather and found that Thursday was going to be the hotest day there - around 80 degrees. We figured that would be the best day to head to Tampa Bay to hit Busch Gardens and the Gulf of Mexico. Unfortunately, as the day went on it started to cloud up, the wind picked up and it cooled off.

We headed to the Rino Rally first and were disappointed because the water part of the ride was shut down for the day. So, we rode in this truck for about 10 minutes and the ride was over. Cole rode shot gun and was the blunt of many of the guide's jokes. He was very funy and made the ride fun!
After Rhino Rally we hopped on the train and rode throughout the park. I was a little disappointed in that I expected Bush Gardens to be more like a zoo kind of park. They had some animals but not a lot.
We had to stop for the photo opps!
The kids had a choice - rides or Pirates 4-D. Brian and Jen took some on rides while Darin and I and my parents took Cassidy to the 4-D show. They had water spouts in front of the seats and air vents behind your heads. We knew we were in for a heck of a show!
There was a ride area for smaller children. I think they went on the Cheetah Chase 5 times - as there was not wait! I think the cloudy weather kept everyone away!Last trip was through the Edge of Affrica where we were able to see more animals.
This daddy Gorilla was playing with the baby Gorilla. It was so fun watching the wrestle with each other.
After Busch Gardens we made the hour trek to Honeymoon Island. The island came highly recommended by several locals. I just wish the weather would have cooperated. It didn't rain but it was very windy and cool. That didn't stop the kids from swimming though!
Cassidy didn't go in the water. She collected shells and enjoyed the sand.

Day 6 - Magic Kingdom

2010-02-10T10:14:00.012-06:00

Magic Kingdom, aka Disney World, was the busiest park we visited. Not sure if it's because it was a Friday or if it's just because it's Disney. We were told by several staff members that what we were experiencing wasn't "busy". I just can't imagine going when it is busy! :-)

After we parked we realized we weren't really at the park. We needed to travel to the park. The tram was backed up so we were sent to the ferry. After we were in line for the ferry the tram started back up. So, we ended up waiting for what seemed like forever to get there.

Maybe it's because it was already late. A storm had come through the night before and we were waiting for the rain to pass before we set out. And, we wanted to do some shopping so we found gift shops galore along a stretch to Magic Kingdom. You know us women can't pass by shopping!

So, here's the ferry we took and the view of the castle as we getting closer and the excitement was starting to build!
Had to stop for a pix in front of the castle!
The first ride was in adventureland. We took this boat through a make shift river and saw fake animals set up in scenes. It was OK - the kids loved it and the boat guide was a hoot with fun stories...
From the movie Tarzan....After Adventure Land it was on to the Pirate's of the Caribbean ride. This one was a "must ride" on most of our lists.
We took a ride through a cave and saw many sites from the Pirates movies. Jack Sparrow even popped up here and there! Wasn't scary - just fun.
And of course you always end up in the gift shop! :-)
The Haunted Mansion!! I didn't think we were going to get the youngest ones to go through. There's quite a bit of scare factor going into it. The ride in and of itself isn't scary - but the atmosphere is.
FUN! Everyone had to have their picture taken in these!
Another highly recommended ride was...
You rode in a train car through fake mountains. It wasn't scary but very bumpy. The kids really enjoyed it!

Timing was perfect as we come off the ride. We got in line for the parade. Brian, Jen and their kids went back to the house to swim while our family and my folks spent the day at the park.
The Tomorrow Land Speedway wasn't anything exciting for adults but the young drivers liked it. Cassidy was unsure about driving the first time so I took her but after she realized how easy it was she had to take her daddy for a ride!Disney at night was worth the wait and the people! The lights and the castle were amazing. The castle changed colors often.
They had another parade in the evening in which the floats were all lit up.
We were looking forward to the evening fireworks and were not disappointed. They were awesome - nothing like anything we've ever seen!
Awwwww.....

Day 7 - Universal Studios

2010-02-10T09:38:00.008-06:00

Universal Studios - in no particular order - just the way they uploaded on here!

I LOVED Universal. We had intentions of making it a shorter day since it was our last day and we needed to get laundry washed and suitcases packed for going home.

But the park was nearly empty - to Disney standards anyway - and we ended up spending the whole day there!!

Shrek 4D - on top of the normal 3D experience, the seats moved and water was sprayed on you. It was GREAT and highly recommended. And, while you waited in line there were all kinds of things to read along the way. Here Wyatt is comparing his hand print to Shrek's.

Thought this sign was humorous!
We ate lunch at Mel's Diner. One of only 2 lunch's we ate all week!
Had to try to Woody Woodpecker coaster. It was pretty small but perfect for the younger kids who couldn't do the bigger rides. Longest wait here was only about 5-10 minutes.

The Simpson's ride had to be the biggest surprise! We did have about a half hour wait on this ride. It was totally virtual but had you squealing and screaming in your seat. I still have no idea how they did it without us actually going on any kind of rail. Definitely worth the wait and highly recommended!

JAWS!!!! The boat ride was cool - really scared the younger kids. I don't think I've ever seen Macy jump so fast in my life. They had the fake jaws in the water and you just never knew when he'd surface!
Ah, revenge of the Mummy. Totally awesome! We went on this ride as a group the first time. The inside was so cool - totally set up as you would have imagined an archaeological dig to have looked like. When the older kids were doing their ride, Darin and I took the middle kids back for a couple more rides on this. There was no wait - it took longer to put our items in the provided locker than it did for the wait!
Twister experience. Based on the movie Twister. Not really worth it. A little wait and then we stood in a room and supposedly experienced what twister winds and rain would feel like. I wouldn't do it again - we experience more winds standing outside at times!
Came across Sponge Bob. We was inside doing autographs and the picture quality wasn't good but the kids were excited!
Scooby and Shaggy were must haves for Cassidy. When we came across them the first time they were taking a break and we couldn't get in line. I thought Cassidy was going to cry. But, we were able to make it back to them - granted we had to practically run across the park to get there - but we did and that's what counts right??

Florida - Flight and House

2010-02-10T08:58:00.008-06:00

Going to Florida, we had an early morning flight. It was supposed to be 7 a.m. but we sat on the runway for about 1 hour and 45 minutes while they fixed communication issues with the plain. Darin and I love early morning flights - we feel it's a great way to make the most of your 1st day. The kids on the other hand, didn't like getting at up 4 a.m.! :-)

Wyatt has flown before, we went on the 7th grade social trip to Washington DC. Cole and Cassidy experienced their first plane ride!

Cassidy, as you can tell, did just fine! :-) Cole did also, he just didn't fall asleep on the flight!

This is the house we rented. It had 6 bedrooms and 5 1/2 baths. It was great as the kids could run around and they weren't under our feet. We had a great big breakfast every morning before we left and ate a big supper when we got back. Saved on money not having to eat out. Saved money means more money we could spend on stuff to bring home! ;-)

The kitchen - we never had a problem with space feeding the 14 of us!

The 1st living room - this is when you came in the front door. Also known as Wyatt's bedroom - he took the hide-a-bed. There was a gaming station in this room the kids loved to play with.

Living Room #2. This is off the kitchen and looks out on to the pool.

The pool was perfect for the kids - shallow enough to be enjoyed by all but yet deep enough to have fun!
Bedrooms...
This was Cassidy's and Macy's. It had a Sponge Bob theme with bedding, stickys on the wall and even a Sponge Bob TV! They also had a bathroom they didn't use. Both girls preferred the big tubs in the adult rooms!
Cole, Gavin and Jared shared the Mickey Room. They had a Cars TV. The shared a bathroom with Grandma and Grandpa.

Our bedroom. King size bed, walk in closet and huge 2-sink bathroom with tub and shower. Unfortunately, the tub wasn't jetted but was still nice to soak my tired bones after a long day of walking! Cassidy took a bath just about every night after swimming. She would have taken the tub home if she'd had the chance! :-)

The had converted the garage into a gameroom. Another good place for the kids to hang out. We could shut the door and keep the noise level down! :-)

Cole Chooses Basketball

2010-02-06T20:10:00.003-06:00

The last few years Cole has wrestled and played basketball. However, this year he had to choose one as they both require quite a bit of travel. Obviously, he chose basketball!

Not only does he play other other towns in scrimmages and tourneys, the elementary boys play at halftime junior and varsity games. I think he likes those just as much as scrimmages even though the time is left. Just being on the "big guys" court is a big deal!

Wyatt Attempts Basketball

2010-02-06T19:48:00.002-06:00

Wyatt was excited to play basketball again this year but after 2 practices we found he had a tear in his miniscus. After time for diagnosis, surgery and recovery as well as our family vacation he was only able to get in 2 games!

Christmas Time is Here Again

2010-02-06T19:41:00.003-06:00

Wyatt loves anything with a flag so this sweatshirt was right up his alley!
Cole was begging for new roller blades!
Cassidy peaking in her stocking...
Just what Wyatt needs - more farm equipment. He's taken over the whole basement already.
Think maybe Cole will switch from the Colts to the Vikings this year? Especially now that he has a Farve jersey and Viking socks?
Hmmm - is that more Littlest Pet Shop stuff?

Christmas Programs Galore

2010-02-06T19:23:00.003-06:00

You can always tell Christmas is coming by the number of Christmas programs the kids do!

Cassidy's Sunday School class this year portrayed the manger scene. Since her class only has 2 boys, some of the girls played the parts of the shepherd. She was so excited to be shepherd because she got to hold a stick (the staf)! :-)

Saying her part.
Cole's 5th grade class had a fun skit with their program this year. He is the loner standing to the far left. They are having a snowball fight (with shredded paper).
He pulled the toboggan across the stage!
Cassidy is waving instead of singing at her school program! :-)

Getting Ready for Christmas

2010-02-06T19:19:00.002-06:00

The day after Thanksgiving has always been set aside for getting ready for Christmas. The kids took over the entire job of putting the tree together this year. I didn't have to help at all! YEAH!They even took over the majority of the village set up. Because the pieces are so delicate I still feel the need to help! :-)
Goofin' Around!

The day after thanksgiving has alwa

Halloween

2010-02-06T19:16:00.002-06:00

Cassidy was the only one jumping on the Halloween wagon. She was the only one decorating a pumpkin....

And, she was the only one dressing up. She was a black cat this year. And, yes, those are mouse ears we tried to convert to cat ears! My mom's dog is trying to figure out what she's doing! :-)

Cole Plays Football

2010-02-06T19:09:00.003-06:00

Cole was so excited to finally have his chance for flag football! They played Saturday mornings for a little over month.

They also played at halftime during home football games. Unfortunately it was a crappy fall and it was either cold or raining at the football games. But it didn't bother Cole - he was so excited to have his chance on the field!

Wyatt Football

2010-02-06T19:02:00.002-06:00

Wyatt played football again this year. Being he's in 8th grade, they don't keep score so I have no idea what his record was but they seemed to do well. And, he loves it - even though Benson has enough for 2 8th grade teams so play time is limited.

Cassidy's Golden Birthday

2010-02-06T18:55:00.003-06:00

Cassidy had her golden birthday September 8th.

She had, what felt like, tons of girlfriends for her friend party. They went to Roosevelt Park to play and opened gifts after.

Cassidy's Grandma made the perfect cake for her - Littlest Pet Shop. She has tons of the Pets but can always seem to find more at Wal-Mart that she "really needs".
The perfect gift for Cassidy this year? Her 2 front teeth! :-)

Back to School

2010-02-06T18:47:00.002-06:00

September has come and gone and gone and gone but as always, I'm way behind so it's time to catch up!

School started late this year due to a late Labor Day. 1st Day of school was September 8th - Cassidy's birthday! She LOVED the idea of starting school on her birthday.

This year Wyatt is in 8th grade, Cole in 5th grade and Cassidy in 2nd grade. Wyatt and Cole are in the same school this year - the middle school, or the old Jr. High. Cassidy is at Northside Elementary.

Romantic Weekend

2009-11-05T17:17:00.004-06:00

August marks my and Darin's Anniversary. Generally it arrives at fair time and we don't get to do anything special but eat at the foodstand! This year it happened to fall the week before fair so Darin took advantage of this and booked a secret, romantic weekend getaway. He told me what to pack and took me away!

Much to my delight we ventured to Duluth for the weekend. A bit of a drive but so worth it!

He reserved a lake side suite and arranged for flowers and chamagne for the room when we arrived.

The room was beautiful! It was HUGE and had a great balcony overlooking the lake.

The best thing? A hot tub in the room!

It was a short walk to Canal Park which we did each day. One afternoon we were enjoying drink on Grandma's deck and were blessed to see a ship on it's departure from the harbor! Finding a ship is really hit and miss and we have generally missed them in the past when we've been there!

Now I don't know how familiar you are with Duluth but we stayed in Figers which is just north of Canal Park. It's an old brewery that was converted into a hotel. It was BEAUTIFUL all the way around! We did a tour of the brewery and sampled some the beer they currently make in the micro brewery. It was pretty interesting! If you're ever in Duluth you should stop and see it. www.fitgers.com

We could only spend our first night in the lake side suite. The second night they moved us across the hall to a different one. Though nice, it just did not compare to the lake side. They had a hot tub (an old one) but it was in the bathroom. The ceilings in this one has to be nearly 15 feet hight. Darin took my picture by the window in the bedroom area of the suite. The ceilings weren't as high in this section but they were still up there!

Time to go home! Darin is checking out at the front desk which looks the same as it probably did in the early 1900!

The woodwork in the buidling was dark and beautiful. They did an awesome job in the renovations. Here we are coming down the stair into the lobby.

Cassidy Plays Softball

2009-11-05T17:12:00.003-06:00

Cassidy also played ball this summer though it was the summer Community Ed Rec League. She still loves it even though it's not competitive. I think that will come soon enough!

Cole, the Baseball Addict

2009-11-05T17:00:00.004-06:00

Cole was on two traveling baseball teams this year: 10U and Chippewa Valley League. I was a little burnt out of baseball by the end of the July! :-) But he had fun and both his teams did very well!

He played a variety of positions which was great as it gave all the young players to see where their strengths are. He played outfield, pitcher, catcher and 3rd base. I think of all of them his favorites were pitcher and catcher.

His 10U team competed at the Redwood Falls tourney and they took 2nd place.

So, it was off to state we go! We spent a weekend in Rosemount getting our behinds kicked. But, hey, a group of 10 year olds from little old Benson made it to the big city to compete so they were proud of that. It's hard for a town of 3,300 to compete against cities with more than 3-5 times our populations!

4th of July

2009-11-05T16:45:00.003-06:00

Since we had the camper we didn't get to the lake as much as we would have liked this summer. The weather this year was just plain weird. Cold quite a bit. But, we did manage to get a couple of good quality weekends.

The first was the 4th of July. As usual, the place was hopping with people. We brought our camper and so did my aunt and uncle Connie and Mark. We place our campers in a U-shape with my folks' back up camper (which housed Kathie, Ritchie and kids) in the back lot so that freed up room in the cabin. Butch and Sherrie even tented out in the back lot!

Of course, since we had a late summer we battled lake itch over the 4th weekend. So, we packed the kids on the pontoon and took them to the beach. They had just as much fun over there have water fights and burying each other in the sand!

Marcie brought up her little mini motor bikes and of course we couldn't get Wyatt and Colton off of them. Can you guess what Wyatt is asking us to buy him for Christmas?

We were in luck this year in that the 4th of July also happened to fall on Starbuck Days (I can't remember the name of their celebration - sorry!) So we got fireworks on Saturday! YEAH! Grandma Mary has her own fireworks before the big display which always includes sparklers!

One of the best things about lake weekends is sitting by the fire at nights. It's so quiet and relaxing!

Camping

2009-11-05T16:30:00.006-06:00

We spent many weekends this summer camping. We broke down and bought a camper Memorial Weekend and tried out a few different camping spots in our area. A few were great and we'll be going back to and a few others were just OK!

Here's our camper. The table slides out and there are triple bunks in the back for the kids. If Wyatt keeps growing though he'll soon outgrow his bunk!

Luckily we bought a pickup this past winter. Little did we know how handy the tow package was that came with it would be. The salesman we bought if from had custom ordered it for his father in law who was a snow bird in Florida. He bought it and he ordered another one for him!
We camped in Swift Falls Park Memorial Day weekend and Labor Day Weekend. If you've never been there - it's beautiful and very peaceful. Other than the biting flies that is! :-) Memorial Day was before the tornado went through. That is where these pictures are from. I wish I had brought my camera Labor Day to show the amount of damage that was done. It was very sad to see it!
We also stayed in Ortonville - another great place. Though they don't have a beach to swim in they have other things that make up for it - like mini golf, a pool, volleyball and bumper boats. I also found out they have a GREAT ER room and staff. As we were packing up to go, I lifted our cooler to drain the water and put my back out. :-)

Cole's Field Day

2009-06-05T20:56:00.002-05:00

Cole's Field Day was held the day after Cassidy's. Another windy day!

This was Cole's last Field Day at this school as next year he's moving into the middle school.

He took 1st in the 50 yard dash.
His class took 3rd (out of 3) in the relay/hurdle race. It was hard keeping the hurdles from blowing away!
He took 1st in the long run. Unfortunately she had to walk in front just as I was going to take the picture!!
He struggled with the frisbee throw. Though I don't know how anyone could have thrown it with the wind!!
And, tug-0-war. Every kids' favorite event! His class took 1st in this event. Mr. Maurer told them that what they lack in speed they make up for in strength! :-)

Cassidy's Field Day

2009-06-05T20:44:00.002-05:00

You know Spring is in the air when it's time for the annual Field Day! We've had a very windy spring so I knew it would be interesting having this event!

Cassidy took 2nd in the 50 yard dash.

Cassidy getting ready for the relay race.

New event this year was the frisbee throw. She took 1st place and was as happy as a lark!!
What would Field Day be without Tug-0-War??
Cassidy with her 50 yard dash ribbon. I wish I would've waiting a bit more and got a picture with her 1st place ribbon. Oh well! Did I mention it was windy? Glad I put as much of her hair up as I did!

Mother's Day Landscaping Project

2009-06-05T20:32:00.003-05:00

For Mother's Day this year I decided to tackle the landscaping in our front yard. When we finished the house 5 years ago I was tired of all the projects and just wanted to get something done outside. I didn't have the energy to put a lot into it. Well, year after year things settled and it got uglier and uglier.

This was supposed to be a 4-H project for Wyatt but being the obsessive compulsive person I am I decided to do it myself. I knew he wouldn't appreciate having to use the level for each of the bricks! LOL My poor mom and brother came out to visit and got put to work too!

Before I had 3 mismatched shrubs that were given to me by someone else. There was bark in there at one time but over the years it's either blown away or was absorbed into the ground. And the pink you see is the insulation for the basement (oops!)

New view with a 2 tiered front. 4 shrubs in the back and perinnials in the front.

I didn't do a before side picture but it was straight and closer to the house - very similar to the front. And it was all hostas (that also were free!). Now they are all shade perinnials as this side of the house sees very little sun.

Cassidy's Dance Recital

2009-04-19T21:03:00.014-05:00

Here are some pix of Cassidy's dance recital. This is her 3rd year in dance. They do both a ballet and a tap routine.

Ballet - I love the little tutu!

Tap - they traded in their tutu for a funky little flapper type skirt.

Cassidy posing before her recital.
Cassidy with me and my grandma Peggy after the recital.
All the 1st graders waiting for curtain call.

Cassidy's ballet and tap routines. My camera was struggling with focus but you get the majority of the routine.

Cole's Spring Program

2009-03-20T17:50:00.005-05:00

March is Music in the School's month so the 3rd and 4th graders put on a spring concert. This year's theme was recycling - My Planet, Your Planet.

Cole had a speaking part - something about paper recyling.

The entire 4th grade. Notice how Cole stands out with that red shirt under his t-shirt? :-)

Doesn't he look so excited to be there?

Part of one of their songs.

4-H Share the Fun

2009-03-20T17:42:00.004-05:00

The kids' 4-H club, the Cool Club, participated in Share the Fun again this year. Unfortunately, the auditorium doesn't allow for very good pictures!

The skit title was "Campfire Stories", a spiff off the movie Bedtime Stories. We have some creative parents and kids in our club!

Wyatt was the dad, Megan the mom, Olivia the daughter and Dylan the son. They are camping out in the wilderness. While Wyatt tries fruitlessly to set up the tent, the others are around the campfire roasting marshmallows and being eaten alive by mosquitoes (Cassidy is a mosquito between Wyatt and Olivia). Wyatt finally gives up on the tent and joins the family at the campground only to find the marshmallows keep burning.
They go to bed and Wyatt tells the kids a story about how a family goes camping and the tent is up, there is no fighting between the kids and the marshmallows are nice and gooey.

While they are sleeping the 4-H club puts up the tent and sets up fun activities for them to do - crafts, archery, games, etc. The morning comes and the family wakes up to the wonderful things to do.

And, the best part is - it rains gooey marshmallows!

The kids were so excited - they got first place and can take it to the State Fair in August!!

Mat Mom One Last Time

2009-03-20T17:14:00.006-05:00

Cole has decided this is his last year of Kid Wrestling. Next year for 5th grade he has to pick between traveling basketball or Kid Wrestling. At this time, he's choosing basketball. Cole has been since 1st grade. I love wrestling and am going to miss it. My nephew Devin started wrestling this year so hopefully he sticks with it so I can go and watch him!

Cole at the Montevideo tourney.
The Benson tourney was a NWYA qualifier so there were over 400 youth wrestlers there that evening. Cole did OK - lost one and won one so took 2nd place and qualified for regionals. We're not sure yet if he's going to go. He's been struggling this year with motivation. Of course he says he's motivated but it only lasts so long! ;-)

Of course I video taped his losing match! He's struggling here trying not to get pinned in the 2nd period. It went all 3 periods and he lost by points.

Jamaica - Day 8 - Back to Minnesota

2009-03-07T17:42:00.003-06:00

Sigh...Back to the cold. We left for the airport around 9:30 in the morning so our time in Jamaica was done.

Thought I'd shared some last minute photos that didn't really fit in anywhere else.

Most of the evenings we had towel creatures on our bed.

There were goats everywhere. Most grazed along the roads and some were in yards in the towns. We were told they eat the goats so they are raised for food. They do not milk them, they have dairy cows for their milk.

At the buffet if you left food on your plate the birds are quick to take advantage of it. They loved eggs as you can see this one got a hold of someone's omelette.
Wendy, our tour guide on one of our trips told us about their houses. Most people rented their land and had to put up wood structures that could be moved by truck if the landloard wanted his land back. When you saw cement structures it was on land that was owned. They do not take loans so they save and save and then build, save and save and add, save and save and add, etc. So there were structures everywhere that were partially built. Minimum wage was $55 a week so it often took them many years to build their homes.

Jamaica - Day 7 - Last Day Beaching

2009-03-07T17:02:00.008-06:00

Saturday was our last full day in Jamaica. For a week that started off a little slow it sure did go fast and we weren't sure we wanted to go home! We took this time to take some of that last minute photos!

This one's for Di - a wish you were here by the bar!

Their entertainment crew had the most unbelievable energy! We called this guy Red. His act was running and jumping hurdles without moving. He also screeched an Oooh Oooh that could be heard throughout the resort!
And, of course pictures by the swim up bar! :-) We were bummed Owen wasn't working our last day. He was a great bartender!

One last beach photo...
Getting ready for the sunset.

We couldn't resist this guy. Of course Darin and Randy did not want to be in the picture! LOL One night he had a beaded necklace around his neck and a drink in his hand!

We opted for the steak house again for supper but couldn't get reservations until 9 p.m. tonight. Normally this wouln't have been a problem but the entertainment was Grease and it started at 9:30. I LOVE Grease! We missed the beginning but were able to catch a good part of the ending.

Jamaica - Day 6 - Sunset Catamaran and Rick's Cafe

2009-03-07T16:43:00.005-06:00

Friday started of as a lazy day by the pool. A little snooze in the sun and a little rum.

Early afternoon we boarded a bus to head down to the 7-mile beach to catch our catamaran (seen here).

Our destination was a slow cruise along the beach to Rick's Cafe where we'd catch the sunset.

Once we got to Rick's, those that wanted to jump off and swim were welcome to - with a life vest of course. It felt a little weird having to wear and life vest coming from the land of 10,000 lakes where everyone knows how to swim; but they insisted.

Randy, Darin and I jumped in and headed to Rick's. Pam stayed behind to take some pix for us.

I wanted to try the cliff jumping this time. But being someone afraid of heights, I was a little nervous. I "only" did the 10 foot jump. I stood there trying to will myself off the cliff but just couldn't do it so Randy gave me a little push (thanks Randy!) It wasn't bad! So, I did it again but this time I was able to throw my own self off. And, the 2nd time I learned to plug my nose. My sinuses got a good salt water wash the first time. That's me just about hitting the water.
After my couple of jumps I headed back to the boat to hang with Pam. She had already jumped in the water and was just coasting by the water. This time I was loving my life vest. We didn't have to do anything but chill - the salt water and the vest kept us up. The crew was great - we even had our own personal cabana boy. He brought us out some rum to where we were floating. Gotta love their generosity.

It was then we noticed the water slide on the catamaran so Pam and I had a blast going down the slide. I think we did it about 8-10 times. But, man it was a workout swimming from the slide to the backside of the boat only to start all over again.

Here's a view of our sunset. Time to head back to Bloody Bay!

Jamaica - Day 5 - Zip Lining

2009-03-06T22:36:00.003-06:00

On Thursday, we decided to do the big zip line tour offered through Chukka Tours. There were 9 runs, so quite a bit more than what was offered at the YS Falls. We did a group tour with Randy, Kurt and Sara.

To get to this line, we had to go back nearly to Montego Bay so we were gone for quite some time. I didn't dare bring my camera on the lines with me but did manage to catch a few scenery shots along the way.

Off the main road and down a bumpy dirt road we go!
past an old slave master quartersand through an orange grove.

The tour takes photos during the zip lines and then offers them for sale at the end. These are what we purchased.

our group

Thursday evening we opted to give up the buffet lines and make reservations for the steak house. Actually, Pam was great and stood in line for an hour in the morning to make the reservations while we were on our tour. So, we actually had to get out of our swim suits for an evening and get dressed semi-dressed up!

Most nights there is a group of locals that come in and sell their wares. The people vary but the wares are pretty similar. This lady had bracelets and would make bracelets with your name on it while you waited. Pam and I both had bracelets made for ourselves and the girls.

Jamaica - Day 4 - Shopping, Margaritaville, Rick's Cafe

2009-03-06T21:50:00.010-06:00

On Wednesday we met up with our new friends Kurt and Sara that were staying at the Riu Tropical Palace, just a short walk down the beach. We took a taxi to downtown Negril to enjoy the evening.

Up first was some shopping. We stopped at a new "mall" that just opened and then to Times Square, which we had already heard a lot about. Wednesday was a "holiday" (Ash Wednesday) so the place was packed not only with tourists but locals. We were able to get a good jump start on shopping for us and the kids.
We were trying to decide where to end our night - Margaritaville or Rick's Cafe. Our driver recommended we end at Rick's as the sunset there is a highlight of the evening. So, off we went to enjoy one of the 52 boasted flavors of Margaritas.

Darin and Kurt holding up the bar! Just like at home! :-)
Sara, I, Pam and Randy enjoying our drinks!

Last stop, Rick's Cafe!

Hundreds of people gather here

to watch the cliff jumpers

(These 2 are of Darin jumping from the 35 foot jump)

the sunset

and to enjoy the music.

This local climbed a dead tree and jumped from it. He was about 80 feet from the water!

These 2 guys liked to put on a show.

Jamaica - Day 3 - Black River, YS Falls and Appleton Rum Factory

2009-03-06T21:00:00.010-06:00

On Tuesday we did our first excursion. It was an all day trip to the Black River to go on a river safari, a stop at the YS falls and a tour of the Appleton Rum Factory.

At the Black River, we were told we'd see vegetarian crocodiles. Yeah right! LOL We did see crocodiles but looking at the amount of chicken they were fed by our river boat captain, I don't think they were vegetarian!

This was our river boat - a glorified pontoon with room for about 40.
Here we go!

Meeting "Little John" who was far from little! I can't remember how big he was but I think he was the biggest one we saw. The captain called him over with his whistle and then lured him to our boat with chicken. Once close, he grabbed his leg and let us touch him. He was scally but soft - perfect purse condition! :-)We saw several crocs - all with their own names. They are pretty teritorial so they don't venture too far from their spots which makes it easy for the captains to identify them. When we got to our turnaround point, the captain asked if anyone wanted to go swimming to cool off. We all looked at hime like he was crazy. But he did jump in and asked for others to join him. No one did - I think we all had that fear that a croc was near!

This is what they call Bamboo Avenue. It was beautiful and very quiet and peaceful. When we got about half way through the captain cut the motor and we listened to the silence. It was absolutely amazing!

After the river, we made our way to YS Falls. It's not nearly big as the Dunn's Falls on the Ocho Rios side but a lot less populated and probably just as beautiful.
The had a rope swing you could jump off but we were short on time (and the water was cool) so Randy was the only one to enjoy that venture!

While at the falls we wanted to give zip lining a try. They only had 3 lines so we figured it would be a good test to see if it's something we wanted to try again later on another excursion we'd been eyeballing. All 4 of us went for it!
This was the longest run - 700 feet over the river formed by the falls. It was so pretty!

Darin and Randy are coming through!

Our final stop was at the Appleton Rum Factory where we enjoyed some lunch, toured the facilities and enjoyed some taste testing of the different rums that are produced there.

The factory has been in operation since 1749! In the "Aging House" they have rows and rows of rum kegs that age up to 30 years!

One last group photo!

Jamaica - Day 2 - Resort Photos

2009-03-06T17:34:00.006-06:00

Monday - our first full day. What better way to get in the groove of vacation but spend the day by the water! :-)

We met with Teresa, our tour guide so to speak, in the morning. She filled us in on the resort, told us about some excursions and told us that if we wanted to venture off the resort for anything she's the one to talk to (for our group anyway!). She had our number - we had a long list of things to see and do - the hard part was narrowing it down. So, we spent the morning making our list and changing it a few times!

These darker resort pictures were taken on our last night. My camera battery was about dead so I didn't use a very good setting so they aren't the best pictures but you can see the magnificent size of the lobby area.

Everything was open - no windows or doors! The beach side was totally open - including no walls.

Love the chandelier! Below is the front desk.
One of 5 bars - the "Welcome Bar"
View out towards the beach from the front lobby

View looking down the beach. This is all Riu property with the way end being in front of Building #4.

Pam posing with Lobster Bob (everyone's name is Bob down there). He was trying sell her some of his fresh caught cooked lobster. Pam and Randy did buy one on our last day to enjoy. They said it was really good.
Our building. There are 4 buildings on grounds. #1 is very close to the action and #4 is a long ways down there. When we arrived we were assigned to the 2nd half of building #2. We asked Monday morning if anything was available in building #1 and there was! YEAH! So they moved us to the 2nd half of building #1 and we were able to continue with adjoining rooms which was a bonus!

View of the beach from our building.

Pool #2 where we spent most of our time. It housed the swim up bar - very popular place all day long!
Pool #1 looking towards the lobby.
Palm trees were a plenty!

Jamaica - Day 1 - Welcome Home!

2009-03-06T17:12:00.009-06:00

The last week of February, Darin and I went to Negril Jamaica with his cousin Pam and her husband Randy. Kind of a celebration of our 15th wedding anniversary and Darin's 40th birthday. It was one of the best trips I've been on. I fell in love with Jamaica! I'm hoping to journal, with pictures, the week on here so you can all see the beauty of Jamaica.

The Jamaican's said numerous times, when you land in Jamaica, you become Jamaican. They told us "welcome home". I felt at home and wished it were my home.

We came in on a Sunday and went home on a Sunday. We had a direct flight from Minneapolis/St. Paul to Montego Bay, Jamaica. Flight time was a little over 4 hours with some turbulant skies. We were up and down trying to steady. But we were all so excited to get there we didn't let it bother us. (other than eating and drinking trying to clear the ears!)Going through customs and luggage claims went very quickly and before we knew it we were out in the 80 degree weather. Much better than the 0 degree weather we came from! We hit the bathrooms and the bar to stock up for our 1 1/2 hour bus ride to Negril.

About half way we stopped to use the restrooms, buy some local wares and stock up again on beverages and food.
(Darin, Pam and Randy enjoying the local Red Stripe beer)

The bus ride was scenic. Along one side was all sea view.

The other window gave us a look into the real Jamaica. The homes, the people, the landscape and the million little "beer joints" and almost as many churches!

We arrived at the Riu Club and were greeted by very friendly staff and rum punch. I'm thinking I'm going to like it here! :-)

We went to our rooms, dropped everything off and threw on swim suits and came down to check out the place. I'll put some pictures of the resort on another post.

Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow!

2009-01-12T13:25:00.007-06:00

Today was a snow day for the kids. New snow and wind are not a good combination out here in the sticks. We decided after lunch to head outside for a bit - it was warm (18 degrees) and when you're not in the wind - it wasn't bad!

I know we're from Minnesota and we should be used to the snow and cold but we have been so spoiled the last 10 years and haven't had bad weather. This year is making up for it!

So, here are a few snapshots of what our yard is looking like right now.

The evergreens that have been our godsend for the northwest winds this year!
The snow on the back side (road side) of our house. This is our farmers porch which stands about 4 feet off the ground. As you can tell the snow is drifted higher than the porch. After the last storm I was able to shovel off the steps. This time I did not want to attempt!

You can see might tractor (well sort of) and my Christmas trees. I unearthed them about a month ago but figured it was a useless cause. They will now be there until Spring!This is Cole standing between the porch and the drift.
A picture from the house with Wyatt in Cole's snow fort with Mia.This is what we consider the front side of the house - where our front door is. This snow pile is what we've shoveled off of our patio. The snow it getting high enough where it's back breaking to throw the new snow on top. I'm looking at and thinking - - - - tunnel!! :-)
Once again, Cole was nice and modeled to give you a height idea.
Wyatt shoveling out the window well of the boys' bedroom. It was full of snow! Needed the escape route cleared.
Cole and Cassidy ventured out into the field to tredge through the snow.

My baby Mia!

More Christmas Photos

2009-01-03T20:15:00.004-06:00

Christmas with Grandparents Phyllis and Tony.

Wyatt with the bow in his hair! :-) Opening the gun case for his new .22.
Cole and his Webkinz.Cassidy and her Webkinz.Megan having some fun with Cassidy.The cousins acting silly!

Christmas with Grandparents Chuck and Mary.

Cole got a camera....
Cassidy got a camera.....
And Dacotah got a camera! There was flashing everywhere!!!
I'll have to go through Cassidy's and Cole's cameras to see if they captured anything interesting in their 250 pictures they took! OK, so maybe it was only like 150! LOL

My niece Macy got a princess dress up box and was having so much dressing herself, my brother and Darin up in boas and crowns!

Santa Came!!!!!

2009-01-03T19:48:00.006-06:00

A little peak at our Christmas morning...

Santa brought the family the Wii Stars Wars pack - including the light sabors. Don't stand anywhere near the kids when they are playing that game. You'll get kunked on the head! LOLCassidy checking out her stucking stuff.
Wyatt got a suitcase from Santa to use on his 7th grade class trip to Washington DC in March.
All Cole wanted for Christmas was an Eli Manning jersey. I think he'd like anything that wasn't the Vikings. I don't know why Darin allows him to continue to live in the house! LOL
OH BOY! More Webkins stuff!!!
I'm looking a sleepy - can't seem to keep my eyes open! LOLYep - Wyatt is just about as tall as our tree! YIKES!

Jesus is the Reason for the Season

2009-01-03T19:22:00.004-06:00

Mother Nature made having our Sunday School program this year a challenge. Our original date was postponed due to lots and lots of snow and wind.

So, we postponed it a week and guess what? Another winter snowstorm! But we plugged on and hoped families would be able to make it. There were a few kids that missed and other kids picked up their parts.

We made it but unfortunately got stuck in the ditch on they way home. Thank goodness for tow ropes! LOL

Anyway, here a few photos of the kids from their program.

Cassidy saying her part.
Cole and his part.
During Wyatt's parts, the 1st graders came up and open gifts that God has given us. Here Cassidy is opening the World.
I teach 3rd grade and have quite a group of boys! This is my normal Sunday morning! :-)

Spreading the Season

2009-01-03T19:07:00.005-06:00

Each year the kids' 4-H Club goes caroling to the assisted living places in town.

Our first stop was the Meadow Lane nursing home where their great grandpa Myron is living.

Posing with Great Grandparents Myron and Peggy.
Our second stop was Scofield Place where their great Grandma Esther lives.
Great Grandma Esther with all of her grandkids that are in the 4-H Club. Hannah, Katie, Jessica, Wyatt, Cole, Cassidy, Megan, Olivia and Devin.
After caroling we had a short meeting and then played games. They boys are enjoying their John Deere Monopoly with Devin and Olivia.

An Elfis Christmas

2009-01-03T18:45:00.005-06:00

Cassidy's school program this year was an "Elfis" theme (get it - Elvis as an Elf?). Very cute! It was for Kindergarten-2nd graders. I'm bummed I didn't get any video with my camera but I did get a few pix!

Kids were dressed up as Elfis' band, Celine (Dion), Mariah (Carey), Aretha (Franklin), Santa, Mrs. Claus, Elves and the reindeer. The band was fighting over who sang and who didn't. In the end they all became friends and even Santa buggied down!

Cassidy is in the blackdress in the middle of the pix.

The Reindeer

The famous ElfisWith his band.

little of this and that

2008-12-16T12:54:00.001-06:00

Make a Smilebox postcard

Phew - No Broken Bones

2008-12-14T18:34:00.005-06:00

Each year, the 4th graders go skiing in Alexandria as their class trip. I love when I have a 4th grader because then I get to go with! I used to skii often in high school but when the family came along, that went along the wayside.

There are just a hand full of kids that have experienced skiing so you get nervous each year that someone is going to get hurt.

This year was Cole's year to go and I was happy to tag along.

Before they kids can go down the hills, they have to pass the bunny hill. Cole is in the orange coat with the ugly 1972 face mask he found in the basement!
My niece Olivia has mastered the hill AND the cones!!
Cole is passing the bunny hill. The cones were more of a challenge for him.
Cole was more than happy to try his luck on the big hills. They don't teach the kids using poles anymore. He did pretty good. Though he did get a little frustrated when he'd fall. He thought it would be easier than it was.When the day was all said and done he was ready to go again as a family. So, I guess I'll have to take the boys again another time! YIPEE!

Nothin' but Net

2008-12-14T18:24:00.004-06:00

The basketball season has begun. Wyatt is joining 13 other 7th grade boys playing on the 7th grade team. They've only had one game (which they won) and played in one tourney in which they placed 1st. Some of the towns around here are really struggling with enrollment (us included) and have to combine their 7th and 8th graders into one te am. I think we're really lucky to have the amount of kids out for sports that we do!

Getting Ready for Christmas

2008-12-14T18:10:00.004-06:00

I think one of the kids' favorite things to do this time of year is to get ready for Christmas. And, it seems as the kids get older they start to take over the decorating. I think they did the entire tree by themselves this year! Cassidy loves to set out the snowmen and other decorations we have for around the house. And, amazingly she remember exactly where things were last year. I don't think I can remember where I had things last year! LOL

The kids go through the ornaments and pick out "theirs" and hang them on the tree.My pride and joy: My Snow Village. We expanded it this year and as we were setting it up Darin was making big plans for it next year - streets, hills, cul de sacs, etc.
My new pieces this year:
The santa train rides around and around. The kids love this one!

Wyatt's Band Concert

2008-12-14T17:57:00.004-06:00

Here are some pictures from Wyatt's fall band concert. He plays the trumpet. For 7th grade band they have to spiff up a bit which sent me searching at the last minute looking for a tie!

My niece Megan also plays the trumpet and is in 8th grade this year.
The 7th and 8th grade band (or at least most of them)The standing ovation at the end of the performance.

The Hunter Hath Returned

2008-12-14T17:52:00.004-06:00

This was Wyatt's first year of hunting. He just missed the age cut off on gun training the year before which made him one of the older youth in his class the past year.

Darin doesn't hunt so Wyatt went with grandpa Chuck and uncle Brian. He tried his hand at pheasant and deer this year. He didn't have any luck taking anything down but he did get a few good shots off.

Maybe next year will be his lucky one!

Visions of an early winter

2008-11-07T14:10:00.003-06:00

We got our first taste of snow last night. Woke up to a white world this morning. I'm guessing it was about an inch. But it's wet heavy snow. You can tell by how the pine trees droop!

Sigh - this gray, drab sight is what we'll see now until Spring. No matter which direction we look on the farms there is baren farm land.

My garden and the swings are about done for the year! The color of the grove in the background is so pretty!

The pumpkins we didn't get off our porch steps. His expression tells it all!
I love winter trees! This one is to the side of our house. This is what we see when we look out our bedroom window.
I LOVE this old tree. It's in our back yard and I'm so going to miss it when it's gone.

Another one of my gardens. Most of it was dead - I just hadn't cleaned it out yet.

Trick or Treat

2008-11-07T13:54:00.002-06:00

Only a week late - how about that! LOL But I guess it's better late than never!!!

Here are the kids pictures for Halloween this year. The 4-H ambassadors (Wyatt included) did a haunted house as a community service project so I didn't get to Cole and Cassidy until after the festivities began! Grandma Mary got them started around their neighborhood.

Here's Wyatt. I have no idea exactly what he's supposed to be! He didn't trick or treat with us but helped Grandma and Grandpa hand out candy this year. He had just as much fun scaring those that came to the door as we would have had he come with us. Plus, the other 2 have enough candy to feed all 5 of us for the year.

Cole is some dead thing. Again, not sure. It was a costume from Wal-Mart and was perfect for him. He liked to hide in his hood. He had a skull axe to go with it but forgot it at home.

Cassidy is hard to tell - but she's a diva. The hat was supposed to be this frumpy sparkly thing but was a little big for her head. It kept falling over her eyes. I think she gave up on it by the end of the evening. Around her neck is a fake microphone that was supposed to go up and around her ear but there was no way it was going to fit with the hat!

The 3some.

Pumpkin Carving

2008-10-27T21:30:00.004-05:00

Nothing like waiting until the last minute but we finally found time to carve pumpkins!!!

I picked them up today from a local family that has hundreds of them. If you're from Minnesota, you know cold it's been the last few days. Those pumpkins know how to retain that coldness inside!

Not only was the goo squishy - it had little icicles attached! The kids are pretty good at pulling out stuff but I have to do the scraping on the sides. My hands were so cold when we were done!!!

Even Cassidy wanted to try to carve hers. We started with one of those tape on patterns. She picked a cat. After about 10 minutes of tracing we called it quits and went to plan B. I knew I would be the one that would have to carve all that intricate details out. She was just as happy with a basic design! Thank goodness!

Our finished products.

Cassidy and I are the traditionalists. We like simple pumpkins with funny faces!

Cole, well let's just say Cole is Cole! :-) He kind of marches by the beat of his own drum and that makes him unique. For you pumpkin carving novices (like me!) that is a Colts helmet and their logo.Yeah, you can look hard and still not see it! But you gotta love that kid!

Wyatt's got a cool pumpkin this year - 2 eyes, 2 noses and a funky mouth. He did everything from start to finish this year!

Faces only a mother could love!

Toothfairy - you need to come and visit!

2008-10-27T21:24:00.002-05:00

After much ado, Cassidy finally freed herself of her first wiggly tooth! It took much patient wiggling back and forth, back and forth, back and forth. We offered to take the pliers to it but that's not Cassidy's style!

For her 6th birthday last year, Cassidy's friend Amy gave her a tooth fairy pillow. She finally got to use it! We made sure the tooth was nice and snug and hung the pillow on her bed. And it worked! The toothfairy left Cassidy $1 - and even left the tooth for her to keep!

Now she has another lose tooth and is patiently working on that one! Toothfairy, if you're reading this, you better get your stash of dollar bills ready - she is on a roll!

Excedrin in Real Life

2008-10-23T15:36:00.004-05:00

Last night while making supper I felt as though I was in one of those Excedrin or Calgon commercials!

I'm standing at the stove with spatula in one hand frying hamburger. In the other hand is Cole's spelling book.

Wyatt was in the living room "putting on a concert" with his trumpet. Musically blaring every song he knows. He does this Name that Tune thing and we have to guess what song he's playing now.

Cole is at the kitchen table practicing spelling words. I'm shouting and over enunciating the words so he can hear them over the concert in the other room.

Cassidy is under foot wanting to play hangman on this tiny little white board of hers with her small 1/2 inch letters that I have to squint to see.

So I'm trying not to burn the hamburger, remember which of the 20 words I've already given to Cole, guessing letters in Cassidy's made up words and still listen to take a guess as to what song Wyatt is playing in the living room. Only thing missing is a crying baby on my hip (which is NOT going to happen!).

And people wonder why moms need a glass of wine with their supper! LOL

Laundry Monster

2008-10-21T19:36:00.003-05:00

Do you ever feel that you have a Laundry Monster in your house? I know we must have one that multiplies my dirty laundry pile! I think he hides in corners and dirties clothes that I don't believe were every worn.

You can be all caught up on clothes on a Sunday and go down on a Tuesday and there is a pile of dirty clothes waist (OK so maybe only knee) high!

I'm thinking the days of Adam and Eve and the fig leaves would be OK. Until winter comes and it gets a little frigid! :-)

So, if anyone wants to borrow a Laundry Monster I'm sure I can borrow mine out for a few days!

Cole's Flag Football

2008-10-21T19:14:00.005-05:00

Poor Cole was a little neglected on his football photos! Our school doesn't do tackle until 7th grade, so as a 4th grader he still does boring old flag football! Much to his dismay!

Good catch!

Yahoo! That's a touchdown!!

Dacotah, Macy and Gavin entertain themselves while Cole plays.

We're an Exciting Family!

2008-10-21T18:56:00.003-05:00

Finally cleaned out the camera and found these pictures of Cassidy. Totally forgot I even took them!

We had family game night and a mean battle of Mario Kart on the Wii. Cassidy was obviously overly excited about all the action. When we finally realized she had gotten a little quiet, we found her fast asleep on top of the couch! Can't imagine it's that comfortable of a position!

Go Vikes! Go Colts!

2008-09-20T19:44:00.006-05:00

For Cole's birthday this year we went to the Vikings and Colts football game in the Metrodome. Cole has become the biggest Colts fan so we knew we had to take full advantage of them playing here in Minnesota. The last time they were here was 11 years ago so you never know when the opportunity will present itself.

The morning of the game, Cole was a little nervous about wearing his Colts clothes. He was worried about being razzed. And, he was razzed and teased! My dad and brother joined us on the trip and had to give him a little grief on the way to the game. But Cole took it in stride.

We were thinking on the way that we should have made a sign to hold up stating he was confused or adopted being a Colts fan in a Vikings family.

When we found our seat (total nosebleed section!) we found we were surrounded by other Colts fans. That made Cole's day and he was given high fives by many of them.

The game started with fireworks as the Vikes came onto the field.

The Colts weren't doing very well in the first half of the game.
Before half time Cole and I went out to get some snacks and I asked him if he was bummed he didn't wear his Vikes clothes and he said he wasn't and that he still had faith in his Colts.

It was a good thing that he had faith as the Colts came back in the end and won the game.Needless to say, our 3 hour drive home after the game was all in Cole's glory. He felt it was worth the jazzing and teasing to know that he made the right choice and kept his loyalty!

More Gifts!

2008-09-20T19:29:00.008-05:00

Last Saturday was an all around party day! After Grandma's party we had Cassidy's family birthday party at our house. Sure makes me wish I was a young one again and getting all those gifts! :0)

Cassidy's favorite person (er animal) lately has been Bobby Jack. When we went school shopping she racked up the Bobby Jack clothes. Not sure who he is? Check out this link: http://www.bobbyjackbrand.com/characters.htm

Grandma Mary (the queen of cake making) made Cassidy her Bobby Jack cake.
Gifts!!!
Think she likes this one?
Annual cousin picture. It's fun looking back at these to see how much everyone changes!!

Blowing out the candles. No boyfriends!

80 Years is a LOOOOONG Time!

2008-09-20T18:57:00.006-05:00

It was a milestone birthday party for my Grandma Peggy and step Grandpa Myron. They hit the bit 8-0 birthdays this year. Myron was in February and grandma's in September.

The kids, (seen here....)

threw a birthday bash complete with the music of the Blues Brothers. It was planned for a park. But of course Mother Nature, who has given us nothing but drought all summer, decides to bless us this day with rain! Go figure! Luckily they planned ahead and had the church on back up.

We had all but 2 of the great grandkids on hand. My how the family grows!!

And if you know Grandma Peggy - she LOVES to dance!! And the great grandkids can't resist either!

I couldn't resist recording a bit of Cassidy and Dacotah dancing. I missed their most creative dance but this one is pretty good!

Friday Night Lights

2008-09-15T21:59:00.002-05:00

OK, so it's actually Tuesday and Thursday afternoons but I love that movie (probably cuz it takes place in the awesome 80s) and have been itchin to use it!

Wyatt is out for 7th grade football this year; along with 27 other 7th grade boys! They split into a "big" team and a "little" team. Wyatt was placed on the "big" team for his height I'm going to guess because the kid is skin over bone when it comes to his weight!

Here's the group before their first game last week. Now I have to give a lot of credit to these coaches. We started school on a Tuesday. They had their first "practice" which was to hand out equipment after school that day. The next day was Wednesday which is religion day so no practice (those that don't have religion can come but it's not a full practice).

So they have their first team practice on Thursday. Another practice on Friday and again on Monday. Then, bam, the boys are thrown into their first game! But they actually did pretty good. It was a bummer in that the team they played (and every team since then) had only 1 team. So, that's 24 boys trying to get playing time. Unfortunately there wasn't much playing time for Wyatt.

Lining up on the offensive line. Wyatt is on the end in the red long sleeve shirt.
Trying a block. Did I mention he was on the "big" team? Sure doesn't look like it next to this opponent!

A whole gaggle of girls

2008-09-15T21:36:00.002-05:00

Sigh. My baby is now 7! Where does the time go???

Cassidy's birthday was September 8th and she was a saint and agreed to a laid back birthday party in the park. In return, she invited 10 girls. Last year it was just 5 girls but it was in our house. The noise level was just a bit tad high for me.

So, we met after school and started our treck to the park. Here the girls are blocking the slide so no one else could get down. One of their favorite things to do!

For gifts she did spin the bottle to decide whose gift to open next.
During opening time it was all hands on deck, or rather all heads piled high to see what she was getting. I could barely get in to take pictures!
The group of girls for one last picture before they headed home.

It's that time of year again

2008-09-15T21:27:00.002-05:00

Yeah, I know, I'm way behind again! UGH!

But here they are - the first day of school pictures. Our routine has been to take a picture by the front door to see how much they change from year to year. This is the first time in 7 years of first days that it rained! So we had to take the pictures in the house this year.

Cassidy is in 1st grade this year. She has Mrs. Tatge and so far is loving it!

Cole is in 4th grade. His last year at our elementary school. He has Mr. Maurer and seems to be adjusting to the increased responsibility and homework (though he hasn't brought much home yet).
Wyatt is in 7th grade. The dreaded Junior High! :-) He has so much running to do between the Senior High and Junior High for classes he should stay fit. And, he hasn't been tardy yet so that's a good sign!
Loving siblings - at least for the few minutes it took to take the picture. Then it was back to fighting as usual!

Got any leftovers?

2008-08-21T18:56:00.002-05:00

Mia has learned to climb up on our bench swing on our porch to peak in our kitchen window! Normally she has her paws on the window sill and her nose against the screen. Tonight I had the window open to air out the fried chicken smell. At least I know someone likes my cookin! :-) I tried to get outside quick to get her picture from the other side but she was pretty quick hopping down.
I haven't taken a picture of her for while - she's gotten so big!

Showing Dairy at the Fair

2008-08-21T11:25:00.005-05:00

It was all hands on deck Saturday morning washing the calves to get them ready to show!

All the kids dress in their whites ready to show!!! Back row is Katie Young, Wyatt, Hannah Young and Cole. In the front are Devin Vergin and Cassidy.
Cole and Cassidy with Crystal waiting for the show to start. We waited to decide what calf Cassidy would show until fair. After seeing the personalities of the calves we decided that mellow Crystal was definately the way to go!

Wyatt with some Bessie time before the show starts.
The cloverbuds waiting to go in. Cassidy's friend Lizzy looks like she's telling her calf to behave in the arena!

Because Cassidy is a Cloverbud, a parent needs to be in the arena with her and have control of the leash. Darin got volunteered for the job since I was working the show.
The judge is asking Cassidy some questions about her calf.

The boys and Hannah were up next.

Wyatt and Hannah lining up their calves.
The boys both got blue ribbons on their calves. Cole's was in 2nd place for a while but then was bumped down to the 3rd blue. I was surprised because she's a bit chubby - she likes to eat! I thought Wyatt's Bessie would have beat her out.

Because they had blue ribbons they were both able to take the girls through the Blue Ribbon Auction on Sunday but I forgot to download those. I'll have to come back later and add those here!

Getting Ready for Fair

2008-08-21T11:03:00.002-05:00

I forgot I had thiese pictures. The boys wanted to show dairy calves this summer so we leased a couple from Darin's uncle Walter. Here is Cole with Crystal. She ended up to be the biggest puppy dog - would follow him around very nicely.

Wyatt names his calf Bessie. She was a bit more of a handful. She was very stubborn! She only wanted to do what she wanted!
Our first attempt at clipping them. Bessie did very well. Crystal hated it and became a Kung Fu Fighter. She could kick her back leg out at a 90 degree angle and get me every time!
Cassidy had no interest in helping with the cattle. She and Katie played with Scout or tortured the poor kittens!

Cassidy's 4-H Clothing Project

2008-08-21T10:20:00.006-05:00

First a little story behind this project area. For the 5 years I've worked with 4-H program, I've been waiting patiently for Cassidy to get old enough to participate. This year, as a kindergartner, she was able to join 4-H. When it came time to get our projects together I talked to her a little about the Clothes You Buy project area.

The idea is to buy an outfit for a good price that can fit in well with your existing wardrobe. I told her we could spend some quality time shopping - just the two of us. She thought about it for 2 seconds and said no - she didn't want to do it. I let it go and tried again and again. Finally about the 3rd time (with some Darin persuasion) she decided to do it - but only if she could buy a green shirt. Why a green shirt? I have no idea but I was going to take her yes and run with it.

We went shopping with our friends Sue and Jenna because Jenna was in the clothing project and also hates shopping. Our first stop was Herbergers and we found a green shirt on the yellow dot clearance rack! It was $40 with a final price of $12. Can't go wrong on that! The pants we found at Penney's.

So, here she is in the outfit and how she can mix and match with other pieces of clothing in her wardrobe.

She was judged in early August and did well. Since she is a "cloverbud" she could only get a participation ribbon. But the fashion revue judge (the judge that judges how the outfit looks on her and how she answers questions) wanted to give her (and the other cloverbuds) an honorable mention. But again, she's a cloverbud so she can't get any competitive type ribbons. Now she does have something to look forward to when she gets older! I talked to the judge a little after judging to see how Cassidy did. I was nervous the judge would notice the pants were way to big and were quite "buckly" by the belt. The judge did say that Cassidy said she had to keep the pants on with the belt that they were too big. I didn't prep her much for the interview so she must have done all right!

Then at the fair we put on a public Fashion Revue so friends and family can come see them in their outfits. Here she is on stage.

All of the clothing and quilting members that were part of the Fashion Revue. After we were all said and done she actually enjoyed the project and will do it again next year!

I was taking pictures for work so I didn't get to video tape her part on the stage so I asked my intern if she would be willing to read Cassidy's part again so I can get it on film. Cassidy was such a hoot on how she turned herself around. The second time around wasn't nearly as good as the first time. They were setting up the stage for the band that was to play when we were done so she lost some of her walking room. But you get the idea. You can barely hear her narrative but I think if you turn up your volume you can catch it. Oh, and I think you need to pause the music that plays so you can hear it.

Cole's Swimming Lessons

2008-08-21T08:43:00.004-05:00

Cole was in level 4 swimming lessons this summer. There are 5 lessons before you get into lifeguard training so he's nearing the end!

Treading water....

The front crawl.

The back crawl.

Free time at the end - the kids love diving in. Here he is diving with no arms (the penguin dive).

Is he graceful or what?? LOL

Cassidy Swimming Lessons

2008-08-21T08:26:00.004-05:00

Cassidy was in level 2 swimming lessons this year. This level is still in the shallow part of the pool so it's a bonus for her. Though she is getting braver and doing things I never would have dreamt she would do 5 years ago when she was deathly afraid of any water!

Working on her back crawl with her teacher's help.
Trying the back crawl on her own. She has little problems with the back crawl.

A little more challenging for her is the front crawl.
When she tries it on her own she has a hard time keeping her bottom half floating on the water! She seems to be a sinker not a floater!

Hear that Whistle Blow

2008-07-08T19:18:00.003-05:00

About the only boring thing we did was go on a train ride. We bought this tourist package deal - the aquarium, the vista boat ride and the train ride. You go to 2 of them and the 3rd thing is free. This was our free thing. But it was nice to take 1 1/2 hours to relax and enjoy the little scenery we saw.

You could tell how old each of the passenger cars were by how they looked on the inside. We started off in the "brown" car but the seats we were in were broken. So we moved back to the "green" car where we actually had about the whole car to ourselves!

After a bit we got bored so decided to see what the next car was. Lo and behold it was an old, old car. I believe it was from like 1918 or something like that. It was actually used in the move Iron Will (note to self to rent that movie to watch it). This car was really cool!
Here it is from the outside.
Check out the bench seats - they were hard as a rock. But the windows opened so that was a bonus!

Wyatt's sitting in the ticket taker's seat.

Waterfront Plaza Marina

2008-07-08T19:00:00.004-05:00

Everytime we walked down to the canal Wyatt begged to tour the Coast Guard ship they had harbored in Duluth and set up as a museum. On our last day we finally gave in and went on a tour of the USCG Sundew. This ship was built in Duluth in the early 1940s and was used almost immediately for World War 2.

After the war it was brought back to the great lakes and used to bust ice and for search and rescue efforts. It was actually still in use until 2004 when it was retired and set up as a museum.

The Waterfront Plaza Marine was set apart by it's own special bridge. When down it was a walk way for pedestrians.
But, when a boat or yacht needed to get through, it folded up. The boys enjoyed watching it.
The William A. Irvin was a freighter that was also docked and turned into a museum. We were contemplating touring it after our Coast Guard tour when we were startled by a low blow horn and noticed that a freighter was leaving the bay. We opted to run for the pier to try to see the on the go freighter instead of touring this one.

Duluth's Canal Park

2008-07-08T18:45:00.003-05:00

Another place the kids loved to hang out was on Canal Park.

Cassidy got tired of walking so got a lift from her dad every so often. We are walking out to the end of the pier to see if we can see any big ships coming in.

Wyatt and Cassidy tried to skip stones. They were going to wade in the water but once they figured out the water is only about 38 degrees they quickly changed their minds!

Cole liked climbing on the big rocks!!

An old anchor that's bigger than them makes a great picture opportunity!

On Saturday before we left we finally got to see a large freighter leave the harbor. We heard and saw it and ran like the wind trying to catch it. Wyatt got there first and got to see it close up. Me and my flip flops can only run so fast so it was already out on the lake before I got there but I was able to snap a couple of pix of it!

The Vista King

2008-07-08T18:28:00.004-05:00

What better thing to do on a lake than go on a boat ride??? The Vista King took us around the harbor and out onto the lake. It was a very windy day that day and being on the lake just made it that much more so!

We were first in line to board so were fortunate enough to be on the upper deck in the front for a good view!
View of Duluth from the lake.
The bridge that takes you across the lake from Duluth MN to Superior WI. The kids were itching to drive across it so we did on our way home.
Another picture of the Aerial Bridge. Notice it's about half way up this time!

The Paul something or another freighter ship. It was loading up ore to take to New York.
You can tell how tall the ore pile is by comparing it to the railroad cars in the front. They had to constantly water the ore down with water to control the amount of dust produced by loading it.

Great Lakes Aquarium

2008-07-08T08:19:00.003-05:00

The Great Lakes Aquarium in Duluth housed marine and wild life found in the Lake Superior area.

Wyatt wanted a picture of this duck.Nope, not a real moose but sure fooled us - we thought it was stuffed when it was plastic!

A bald eagle.

They had an activity where you could guide your ship through the gate lakes and out into the ocean. They had locks and channels and the depths listed of each of the great lakes. The kids could have spent hours doing this activity!

The one display that really didn't apply to Lake Superior and that was the Sea Horses. Cassidy loves Sea Horses so this was the perfect place for her!

Duluth's Aerial Lift Bridge

2008-07-08T08:05:00.002-05:00

One of the main attractions in Duluth is the Aerial Lift Bridge. I believe it's only 1 of 2 in the U.S. It's pretty cool. In this picture the bridge is as normal - down to allow cars and pedestrians cross it.Of course, have to have the kids in a picture!
Here the bridge is raised a level to allow sail boats and tour boats to travel underneath. Unfortunately, I wasn't there at a time when it was raised all the way to the top. I think it only does this when a large freighter travels underneath.
Finally, the bridge at night.

Gooseberry Falls

2008-07-07T21:57:00.007-05:00

I could use the whole bandwith of this blog and never be able to relay the beauty of Gooseberry Falls!!! We didn't realize until we arrived back at the visitor center that there are actually 3 water falls at this state park near Two Harbors. We found the lower two as they are quite close to the other. But there was one more "upper" falls that we missed. Here are just a few of my favorites! I believe you can click on the pictures and they will open in another window for a better view.
The kids loved it here. They spent a lot of time wading out on the rocks and into the water.

We even got ourselves a family photo! Christmas cards here we come!
And, I couldn't resist taking this picture of a hole in the rock!

Split Rock Lighthouse

2008-07-07T21:28:00.006-05:00

The Split Rock Lighthouse is one of the many "must sees" in the Duluth area. It's north of Duluth a few miles. We stopped at it on our way to Duluth from Ely (where we spent Wednesday night).

Here is the view of Lake Superior from the light house.

The lighthouse which is no longer in use and is part of the National Historic Registrar.

The fog horn building. They blew the horns on our tour.

The Light House Keepers homes. The first one has been restored and we were given a tour. The light house keepers that stayed there in the early 1900s felt they were staying in what today is compared to the Hilton. The homes were very nice!

Some of 177 steps we went down to lake side. Going down wasn't bad - it was the going up!

The kids with the lighthouse in the background. Now you can see why it's called "Split Rock"!
The same lake view as the top but at lake side.

Soudan Underground Mine

2008-07-07T20:11:00.005-05:00

Near the towns of Tower and Soudan is the "Cadillac of Mines". This mine is also no longer producing but was once considered one of the best in the nation for producing iron ore. It was also one of the safest. It produced for nearly 80 years ending in the 70s (or was it the 80s?)
This is what the ore looked like before it went through the crushing machine. It was then sent to Duluth/Superior where it was loaded onto freighter ships and sent out.
The neatest thing about this mine is that it actually takes you underground into the mine. 2341 feet to be exact - 27 levels down in a little old elevator type car. It was a quick ride and our ears popped like we were flying in an airplane.

We have our had hats on and are ready to go.

This is the head frame shaft that sent us down and brought us back up. It operated on a sheave wheel and cables.

Once in the mine we climbed into mining cars and went for a ride. It was cold - about 50 degrees. They had mannequins set up showing what different jobs the men did. At one time they turned off the lights to illustrate what it was like when their candles burnt out and I've never seen such total blackness. You could not see the nose at the end of your face!

Our guides are getting the cars ready for us to take the trip back up to the top.

Hill Annex Mine

2008-07-07T19:45:00.005-05:00

Wednesday morning we were itching to see some mines since we were heading into the Iron Ranges of Minnesota.

Our first stop was the Hill Annex Mine located between Grand Rapids and Hibbing. It's no longer in production but produced Iron Ore at one time.

The scoop that picked up the iron ore was huge!

We got there pretty early so wasted some time doing some site seeing on our own. It's beautiful how the mine fills with water and forms a lake!

One of the tours they offer is fossil hunting. For a mere $40 (which in the end we realized was a total waste of money) we were taken to the reject pile of rocks and allowed to hunt for fossils and other remains for about 45 minutes. The reject pile contained rocks from pretty far down underground that was once an ocean so they have found shark teeth, snails and other water and marine life.

Though we were told the best fossils are found at the bottom of the pile (as they are lighter and tend to wash down in the rain), the boys were more interested in climbing the rocks. This left them totally full of red dust (it seemed more of a rust mine).

On our bottom searching Darin and I did find some snail fossils but that was about it!

Heading North

2008-07-07T19:30:00.005-05:00

Over the last couple of years we have spent the week of the 4th of July on a family vacation to some location that has 4th of July fireworks.

This year we headed to the great north of Minnesota. We left Tuesday morning. Around lunch time we started to look for a place to have a picnic. We happened into Akeley and found a sign for a "city park". After driving down a side road for what seemed forever we came upon a beautiful lake beach and playground.

After the picnic and some play time to wear off energy we headed out again but HAD to stop to have the kids' picture taken with Paul Bunyan!

Tuesday night we stayed in Grand Rapids - birthplace home to Judy Garland. That's Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz. Even though her house and museum were practically next door to our hotel the kids didn't find it interesting enough to beat out the calling of the hotel swimming pool. But we did make them take a drive around the town to see some sites.

About the only touristy thing we did was to go into the Center School shown below in the picture. It was the coolest old school (now various shops). The staircases were in the center of the school and formed a sort of circle. So in order to get to the classrooms you walked in a circle around the stairs. Hard to explain but soooo cool. Unfortunately the museum located at the top of the school had closed as we arrived.

It's a Swing and a Miss!

2008-06-20T08:19:00.008-05:00

I chose this title as it fits perfectly with our Father's Day outing this year!

We ventured north to Alexandria to spend some quality time with Darin. We started out at Casey's Amusement Park with a very competitive game of mini golf. Fortunately we didn't have any swing and misses but some of us took several swings to sink the ball in the hole! No names mentioned! :-)

Cassidy started off the day by getting the first hole in one on the 2nd hole. She was so excited and pumped ! Unfortunately that excitement slowly dwindled as she struggled with 6 and 7 hits for the rest of the holes!
The kids size up this hole trying to figure out the best way to get it the hole in as few shots as possible.

Cassidy needs a little hitting lesson from Darin to try to get her back on track.
Wyatt sinks one in the hole!

Is Cole's ball going to make it up and over in one swing??

Someone offered to take our family picture as we were finishing up. Of course it's windy and us girls are a bit wind blown. Actually, Cassidy's hair is in her face more than it's not! :-)

In the end, Darin and I tied for 1st place thanks to his struggle with the 18th hole. His 8 strikes versus my hole in one really helped me out. Otherwise I think I would have placed 4th!!! Wyatt took 2nd, Cole 3rd and Cassidy last. But for a 6 year she did pretty good!

After Mini Golf we rode the Go Karts and Bumper Boats. Well, at least the boys did the bumper boats. Darin and I knew it was way to cold to go in and Cassidy just isn't all that fond of water so she stuck to a mini Go Kart.

Here she is trying to keep her sunglasses up around the curves!

The boys had the bumper boats all to themselves!
After Casey's Amusement Park we went to Pizza Hut and then to an Alexandria Beetles game. The Beetles were taking on the St. Cloud River Rats. The kids wanted their picture taken with the Beetle who roamed around giving everyone High 5s.

It was Harley Davidson night. Free tickets from Apol's Harley Davidson which was cool and unexpected. They gave away Harley gear throughout the evening but we weren't lucky enough to be drawn for any of that! But, at the start of the game, all of the Beetles players got rides out to their spots on Harleys. The kids thought that was pretty cool and that their Grandpa Chuck should have been there with his Harley!

At the end of the 1st inning the kids got to ride in Subway's Yellow Submarine around the field while they played the Yellow Submarine song.

Considering Cassidy has an absolute fit that morning about "having" to go to the game, it turned out to be a great time (and she even enjoyed herself!) As it was Fathers Day, all dads were put into a drawing to win a grill an inning. Unfortunately we didn't win one of those either! But the Beetles did end up winning in extra innings. And, Cole caught a foul ball so that made his day.

Drive Faster Mom!

2008-06-15T08:41:00.002-05:00

This has been a crappy start of summer. It's been cold - only a handful of days in the 70s and lots of rain and severe weather.

Thursday night we were coming home about 9:15 after seeing a movie and notice a storm was moving in. As we were leaving the theatre, we heard the radio stating this storm was producing heavy rain and winds in excess of 60 mph.

As we were leaving town we were mesmerized by the clouds so I had to stop and take a few pictures. Of course as I was stopped the fire trucks and police cars whizzed by me. I knew then that the spotters were called out and I best hit the road.

Unfortunately the few minutes I spent taking pictures cost me later. I got caught up in the wind and rain. I was able to keep an eye on the white line to the side of the road so I plugged on driving about 15 mph trying the keep our truck on the road. Wyatt and Cassidy were with me and were totally freaked out! Cole was with Darin who was several miles ahead of me. They didn't get caught in the storm but saw a lot of cloud to ground lightening.

Found out when we got home that a funnel cloud was spotted in about the area in which we were driving. Luckily we didn't encounter or even notice it!

I didn't take the time to change the settings on my camera so they are a bit grainy - sorry about that - but they turned out neat anyway!