One hot September Saturday...

It is hot, the boys are sweaty (they even felt the need to take their shirts off), but they are playing perfectly together.  I love moments like these.  They are camera worthy!  I love these boys!

Movie Under the Stars...

We spent Friday night watching Wreck It Ralph on an outdoor theater nearby.  It was a fun family night!

We went to MUMFORD!!!!

Jay and I had so much fun at the Mumford and Sons concert this week!  THANKS a million to Jay's parents for watching the boys late on a school night!

We met friends downtown for dinner ahead of time.  It was a lot of fun!  The sound was crystal clear, and the performance will be remembered!  We loved every minute of it!

He's a 1st grader!!!

I already miss him, but I am very thankful he LOVES school!  He teacher is Ms. Fix.  He completed his first week at school, and he only has positive things to say so far.  How awesome!

He started his first day of school with a hearty oatmeal breakfast.  I packed him a sloppy joe sandwich for lunch.  What an awesome guy!

 It was warm and foggy on this day.

 I love that dimple!

 His new backpack...

 In front of the school...

I must brag for a moment...

Jay has taken great pride in the yard this year, as always.  It is the end of the season and you would think we have a sprinkler system.  He really works hard and it shows!  I love him!

 It will make me sad when it is all covered with snow again!

What having a boy is all about...

This is just sooooo gross, but I must post it!  ET really is ALLLL BOY!  Here is his cicada shell collection...

What is he going to do with all these, you ask?  He wants to feed them to his future pet frog collection!!!  YUCK! 

A daycare privilege and honor...

I was asked recently to open up my home to Providers Choice so they could film a promotional healthy cooking video with the daycare kids.  Providers Choice is the company I go through for the daycare's federal food program.  We scheduled the filming for Friday, August 30th at 8am.  They were here for over four hours, and filmed five videos!  It was a lot to ask of the kids, but it was fun nonetheless.  I even learned a few things.  The chef made five recipes...

• Green Smoothies
• Black Bean Brownies
• Tasty Turkey Tomato Bites on Red Potaoes
• Breakfast Burritos
• and Kohlrabi, and Roasted Brussel Sprouts

The videos will be shown to all MN providers in an attempt to educate on healthy cooking, and to motivate them into providing a large variety of foods.

I was also asked to be in the "Provider Spotlight" in their upcoming newsletter.  It is a way to recognize some of the top providers in the area.  How awesome!  I answered a few interview questions and submitted a picture of me with the kids.  It believe it will be printed sometime during the month of September.

 

ET still LOVES his furry friends...

Jay took this cute picture.  ET still loves each and every one of his stuffed animals.  It makes me so happy to watch him care for them.  It really shows his sensitive side.  So sweet!

Another Stay-cation (August 19-23)...

Jay and I took another week of work off recently to soak of the last bit of summer before school starts.  I didn't take a whole lot of photos, but we enjoyed each day!

We started out our weekend by dropping off the boys to Jay's parents for two nights!  On Friday we ate dinner together in Stillwater out on the patio and LOVED it!  On Saturday, we headed over to a nearby State Park and did some hiking on the rocks along the riverbank.  The weather was absolutely perfect!

Saturday night we met a few couples out for dinner and drinks.  It was so much fun to be out with friends and no kids!  It made for a really late night, but that was okay with us...it was so worth it!

Unfortunately, the boys ended up being sick with a terrible cold and fever while at their grandparents.  We picked them up early Sunday morning, and by then Grandma/pa had worked their magic and they were practically recovered.  I felt terrible leaving Jay's parents with sick kids, but we were so thankful they could!!!  The boys had a wonderful time...they LOVE it there!

Here is a mid-week picture of my three boys playing with Lego's together.  Nate is really starting to show an interest in little Lego's, and always wants to help find pieces as they are building together.  ET enjoys building something, but then Nate uses it the most through play.  (Sunday was spent mostly hanging around the house.)

On Monday we headed over to a nearby amusement park.  We rode go-carts, played mini-golf, and ET hit some balls at the batting cage for the first time.  Monday evening we stayed home and grilled chicken on the charcoal grill - yummy!

On Tuesday we headed back to the state park where Jay and I went on Saturday.  We had the whole beach to ourselves!!!  It was so peaceful to watch the boys swim & play, and to watch the boats go by!  Pure bliss!

Tuesday evening we went to Smurfs 2 in the theaters, and then out to dinner at one of our new favorite restaurants (Cowboy Jacks).

Wednesday was my birthday.  All three of my boys surprised me with a new Pandora bead!  It was so sweet of them!  I had the privilege of doing whatever I wanted to on my birthday, so I woke up and had my coffee while I watched the Today Show peacefully.  Next, I headed out to just browse around at a nearby shopping strip.  I then used a gift certificate to go have an hour long massage at a nearby spa!  Afterwards, I used another gift certificate to order out some sushi for my lunch.  ET shared my sushi with me (I'm happy I have a fellow sushi loving friend).  Friends came over to our place for a BBQ later that evening.  We grilled marinated flank steak wraps - Yummy!  Unfortunately, I have no pictures to show.  Jay took this picture of the boys outside while I was out...

Thursday was spent cleaning and preparing food.  My sister, her youngest daughter, and my parents arrived at our house this evening.  They planned on staying at our house through the weekend.  Friday we all went to the State Fair together.  The weather was a bit warm, but we had a great time.  We watched a bike/skateboard show, a two-man trampoline show, the lumberjack show, and the parade!  The kids went in the butterfly house and both went down the big yellow slide!  The kids ate plenty, but Jay and I ended up leaving hungry.  We tried our best to save as much money as we could  and to stay on the healthier side.  We didn't even eat one fried food...I am pretty proud of that.  Don't count on it for next year though.  I was bummed when I heard I missed the new food: deep fried cream cheese stuffed green olives! Yum!

On Saturday we hosted a BIG BBQ for my parents 40th wedding anniversary.  What a privilege!!!!  The BBQ chicken we grilled has been a tradition in our family for years.  We do it BIG!  The guys basted 32 half chickens every five minutes on a rented five foot grill! 

 My middle sister and I... Our big sister bought us aprons! Fun!

The kids playing on the shark!  It was SO HOT outside!  They played so well together.  Unfortunately, I did not get a picture after cousin Andy had joined in the fun.  He helped so much by entertaining the kids.

My Dad and Jay grilling the chicken.  This is such a long and messy job, the men have to shower before eating!

Cousin Matt got a lot of giggles out of these two cuties...

I made three different cheesecakes in small jelly jars for dessert.  Cheesecake is my Mom's favorite dessert...

My sister Twyla gave a wonderful speech in honor of my parents.  It was so great to listen to!  My Aunt Diane also wrote a trivia game about my parents history over the past 40 years.  We broke into teams of four.  The team with the most correct won Target gift cards.  I was thankful they took the time to bring meaning and intention to the party.  It made our time together that much more memorable!

 Happy Anniversary!  Celebrating 40 years of love!  Jim & Terri 1973-2013

They truly are in love with one another!  They were on cloud 9 after the party.  They said it was such a memorable and awesome day, which fulfilled our wish for them.  My parents have taught Jay and I how to love without conditions.  Much to be learned through them!

Cousins just having fun and being silly together!  I have loved having my sister stay with us this summer!  The kids are even closer now than ever before!

Sunday was spent cleaning and preparing for work.  Our vacation felt short, but very, very sweet!

Bye Bye Summer!

What a great group of kids!

Water Day!!!!

We missed a few water days in August due to the chili weather.  Fortunately though, the other weeks were filled with fun and laughter!!!