under construction

My dad and brother did a fabulous job framing our basement and getting it to the point of being ready for taping and mudding. I love the way it turned out! Thank you so much Dad and Tory!



This is my brother. He likes glue. :) Just kidding! He's just a funny guy.

science museum

Last week we took a field trip to the Minnesota Science Museum. We went through the exhibits about the human body and weather and also watched the movie, The Alps, in the Omnitheater. We've been studying the human body in science this year and have been in Europe for the past month or so in geography so it all tied in well with our school. The kids really enjoyed it.

back from the break

I didn't think I would take such a long break from blogging! My family has been here for the past week and a half helping us work on our basement and there just hasn't been much time for updating here. We've had a nice time together. We took a field trip to the Minnesota Science Museum last week, went shopping at the Mall of America for a few hours and spent an afternoon last weekend swimming at a local waterpark. When the weather warmed up a little the kids went iceskating, and my brother and sister did a little snowboarding and skiing at a small ski area nearby. We've also played many, many hours of Guitar Hero. :)

And, the basement is looking great! All of the drywall is hung and they are working on hanging doors right now. That means it's almost time for me to get to work on the staining and polyurethaning.....a job I am not looking forward to! I will be back later today or tomorrow with pictures.

I took this picture of Thomas last week. He thought it was cold enough when he woke up to have breakfast in his Mad Bomber hat I guess. He should've been wearing it this morning though because we had the coldest night of the winter so far last night. When we woke up the temperature felt like 34 below zero with the windchill. All schools in the area were cancelled....except ours! :)

minnesota winter

Temperature when we woke up this morning: -20.5 degrees
High for the day: -6 degrees

Brrrr!!!!!!!

mama's little helper

Ava loves to help me around the house. Often when I vacuum the floors I give her the Swiffer sweeper and let her wander all around (Puppa has to help too, of course). She always manages to use up a cloth since there is always plenty of dust on our floors! Her other favorite job is to help move the clothes from the washer to the dryer and then push the buttons to start them up. When I say, "Ava, do you want to help me do laundry?' she always takes off running for the laundry room. It's pretty adorable!

She's also really good at making messes though. They seem to be endless lately. I never feel caught up around here because she's always leaving a trail! See what I mean -


Library books. Ooops! I think she might be an illustrator someday!



How can you be upset with a face like this though?! Notice the little hair clip! Her hair is finally getting long enough again so that I can pull her bangs over into the ittiest bittiest ponytail. :)

orthodonist visit

Thomas was at the orthodontist last week getting a couple of spacers put in between his molars as part of the process of getting his crossbite corrected. After they were put in the dental assistant told him that he wouldn't be able to floss while they are in. To that he replied, "I won't need to worry about that since I never floss anyway."

I'm still laughing about that one! :)

To hear more funny things that kids are saying visit Tiny Talk Tuesday!

swimming lessons

We are back in the routine of having swimming lessons for an hour every Monday afternoon. The kids are enjoying it and Elle was so excited to move up a class into the 'big kid' pool this time. She is learning how to dive now and treaded water in the deep end for the first time today. Pretty exciting stuff! Thomas has had a cough and a fever since last Thursday that just won't completely go away so he sat on the bench by Ava and I for this lesson.


It is really warm by the pool so Ava keeps cool by taking off her tights (love those baby legs!) and drinking lots of water. The water bottle keeps her entertained for a long time!

After swimming lessons we ran errands in town and then came home. Ava fell asleep in her carseat on the way home and was tired enough that she laid down when we got home too. Thomas and Elle each found a spot to read some of the books they picked out at the library for awhile in the living room. Before long they were both asleep as well. Mondays wear us out! When they woke up we had a delicious dinner of peanut butter toast, pickles and animal crackers. Seriously. Scott is traveling and I am without a cooktop again this week. The gas line has to be disconnected for the countertops to be removed and replaced. Last week they did the templating so he disconnected it for that and this Thursday they are getting installed. I should be utilizing the crockpot so that I can feed my family healthy, well-balanced meals but I'm just not that organized right now. Hopefully next week I can get back on track with Menu Plan Monday!

By the way, thank you for all of the sweet comments on the bad hair day post. I showed them to Elle and they made her smile. She is getting used to the bangs and thinks she wants to keep them now, for awhile. We might go in and have a stylist cut her hair to a chin length bob with a few more bangs even. I promised her I won't touch her hair with scissors again! :)

a bad hair day

This afternoon I was fixing Elle's hair and somehow managed to talk her into letting me cut some bangs into her hair. I don't know why, it just seemed like it would be fun and that she would look cute with them. Big mistake! When she first saw them she started laughing and said that she changed her mind about wanting them. She was holding back tears though when I said that we couldn't undo them. I was so happy that I hadn't cut them thick but really wish that I wouldn't have cut them so short. I know how I feel when that happens to me! My mom always used to cut my bangs too short when I was growing up and I didn't like it so I was having flashbacks to that this afternoon! (Sorry Mom, but I have pictures to prove it.) :)

We spent some time wetting them down and blow drying them so that they weren't flat against her forehead. Then I showed her how we could just clip them to the side with Ava's teenie tiny barretts. We also talked about how quickly hair grows and that it wouldn't be long before you won't even notice them. It took some convincing but she did let me take a picture of her with them down.


She said that this is going to be how she wears her hair until they are longer though. Can you tell she wasn't too thrilled about these pics?! I got out a photo album of old pictures of me and we had some good laughs at how weird my hair looked. She really got a kick out of my kindergarten picture though and agreed that if I would put it on my blog that she would let me post these of her. So, here is me on Picture Day, September 1984.

Elle said, "You really went to school like that?" :)

ice skating

Today it was 40 degrees and sunny here! Perfect weather for playing outside for awhile this afternoon. Thomas and Elle and I went ice skating and Thomas challenged me to a game of hockey. We were both getting tired after awhile so we said whoever made the next goal was the winner. Thomas was the first to score since I fell down. He was pretty excited!

goals for the new year

This year I decided to not make any 'resolutions' and instead make some goals for the new year. Here they are -

- Work on getting more organized and get better with my time management. I feel like I am always behind on housework and can't get caught up.

- Run this half marathon at the end of April! I was just going to start running again on a regular basis but decided to give this race a try to keep me accountable and motivated. I also thought it would be kind of a cool thing to do before I turn 30 next year.

- Make throw size quilts for the girls beds. I've been gathering shabby chic looking fabric for them for awhile now but have been nervous to actually start on them since I've never quilted anything before.

- Eat dinner as a family at the table more. Most of the time we sit in the barstools around the kitchen island but I always like it better when we take the time to set the table and enjoy the meal together there instead.

Thomas also posted his goals on his blog. I didn't know he did this and just read them tonight. I love #1 on his list - to have his room clean every day before bedtime! #4 on his list - to catch at least 20 fish in the summer. :) So cute!

new countertops

We decided that 2008 is going to be a year of home improvements for us. The first project we are doing is replacing our formica countertops with granite. Yesterday I picked out the exact slabs that will be used in our kitchen. I was a little overwhelmed at all of the choices but in the end chose the one that is pictured above. It is going to be installed on the 17th and I'm predicting that we will have pie and cut out sugar cookies on the 18th! :) I can't wait to roll out some dough on it!

The other major project we are going to be working on is finishing our basement. We are scrambling to get it all cleaned out and ready to go by the 12th when my dad gets here to start on it. It has been the catch all place for all of the leftover lumber, outdoor furniture and all the other junk we have so this is no small job!

happy new year

Good friends, good food, champagne and games....a perfect way to welcome the new year!








Dale, did you notice the mini eclairs? :)

lollipop from santa