Lil' John & Snowflake

We went to the zoo again today where the girls got a VERY special treat from Grammy...a ride on the ponies. It was a beautiful day and we had an enjoyable time. Alex & Katie both loved their horses and enjoyed the rides. Alex was on Lil' John while Katie was on Snowflake.Here is a short video of a snack break at the zoo...narrated by Katie...

An Apology to Atomic Beans!

I am sorry to say that, when it comes to letterboxing, my husband has no boundaries! I guess that there is a reason why I go on our letterboxing adventures...to keep him focused and out of trouble! For those of you who haven't heard the story...let me relay it. While out on the trail at the Birds of A Feather gathering last weekend, Matt (Hartx6) found a box beside the tent of Atomic Beans (Congratulations by the way...how is married life??). From what I understand, there was another clue within that box for a second box. The clue stated something like "for the 2nd box, look for another camping essential and look within". Being the one track mind letterboxer that he can be, he saw the tent and knew that was the other essential! So...he headed to the tent and started rummaging around! I was so glad that I was hearing about this after the fact! I hear that a few other boxers walked by and Matt poked his head out to confer with them...the picture above is perfect for what I imagined him looking like! So, in closing...Atomic Beans, I am very very sorry for my husband's loss of boundaries. I can't guarantee that it won't happen again, especially when a stamp from you guys is at stake!

PS - the tent was not the other essential...it was the firepit!

The new birdfeeder

Alex won a beautiful birdfeeder at the "Birds of a Feather" letterbox gathering. The girls were so excited to see that we had hung it on the Holly tree in the back yard.

Blue Angels

We got a special treat today...while meeting Matt for lunch in Davenport, we heard/saw the Blue Angels flying overhead. They were practicing for the airshow this weekend. Matt went back to work and we headed further out - towards the airshow airport. We found a place to park and watch the Blue Angels - they are so impressive!

A Belated Happy Father's Day

Happy Father's Day - a bit late to all of our friends/family members who are fathers. Aside from Matt being on call, we had a good day. We enjoyed the day and drove around a bit. We then headed out to Mom & Dad's for the afternoon. It was a relaxing day for all of us.

I wanted to share our Father's day present for Matt. I decided it was time to get a picture of me & the kids again. I have done this in the past with Katie and then again with Katie & Alex but I haven't done it since the twins were born. Upon arrival, I was told it would be a few minutes since I was early. By the time we got in, the twins were ready to lose it...and I was out of snacks! I sat on the floor first and Will ran over to sit on my lap. The photographer than asked Maddie to sit on my lap. She was behind me, sucking on her finger (she was tired) and her reply to that was a shake of her head with her finger still in her mouth. The photographer than asked if she would like to stand next to Katie (who was laying at my side)...again, her reply was a shake of the head and her finger in her mouth. This is not going as planned! I lifted Will off my lap and grabbed Maddie - much to her dismay. I than grabbed Will - who was no longer happy to sit on my lap. Alex was placed on Katie's back and one picture was taken. Yes, I said ONE. At that point, all heck broke lose with the twins! The photographer showed me the picture she got and we decided it was good enough. The remainder of the session was of Katie & Alex. Here is the end result. It actually is pretty good, all things considered. I may have to rethink this next year...although I will probably have forgotten how ugly it got by then!

Happy Father's Day, Matt. You are a wonderful Father and we love you very much!

Beautiful Grammy among her beautiful flowers

Mom's flowers are all in bloom. They are almost as beautiful as her! One of the girls took this picture over the weekend. The stepping stones are a favorite for the kids...they will run in circles all night if we let them.

Zoo Days

No, I am not talking about life at our house...although many days it seems that way! We have been blessed with some beautiful weather this past week (finally!) and have gone out to the zoo twice. The first day we went with a few friends from church and yesterday we went by ourselves. Here are a few pictures to share.
Both girls know that when we walk anywhere, when I say "stroller", they hold on to the stroller. I let Will & Maddie run around at the zoo a bit too and Maddie did a wonderful job of running back whenever I said "stroller". Will on the other hand...maybe I should have his ears checked!

Yesterday we ended our day by running a few errands (one of them being getting the van washed). I looked back at Maddie and she had her fingers stuck in her ears. It was too funny and I had my camera so I started filming. Last summer Maddie & Will were TERRIFIED of the carwash and we wished we had been able to tape their reactions...we knew that we would have been $10,000 richer!

Maddie is successfully opening all doors now, including the fridge. I went to the store this morning and bought a fridge lock and installed it...only to walk in a few MINUTES later and find her & Will standing inside the fridge! Urgh...Yesterday she was in the bathroom and washed away my contacts! So, last night all of the doors received baby proof locks. Now I have to open the door every time Katie & Alex need the bathroom, want a drink of water, etc. I know that the latter is the less of the two evils...but I can't win!

Matt & the girls are planning on heading to a Letterbox gathering on Saturday near DeKalb. I will be hanging out with the twins and getting a few things done around the house. If it is nice we may head over towards Matt's old work and watch the Blue Angels flying for the airshow. They are always so impressive. This is also the weekend for the Hot Air Balloons in Clinton. We are hoping for nice weather so we can enjoy them too.

Rain, Rain, Go Away...

We are tired of rain. Rain everyday for the past...I don't know how many weeks! Tonight was really bad though. I don't have totals for the night, but we spent the majority of our evening in the basement due to tornado warnings. The twins thought it was a blast since they never get to see the basement!

While on a break from the weather, I tucked Katie in for bed. A weather bulletin came on the radio and I asked Katie to be quiet for a moment so I could listen. Her response, "It's okay, mommy. I heard it already and it told me to stay away from Alex's window". They have a window above their bunk bed (Alex is on the top bed).

Our street flooded and many streets in the area were closed due to flash flooding. Many prayers were said throughout the evening and by God's grace, we are safe. Thank you Lord!

"Katie's Very First Carving Stamp . . ."

Today I decided it was time to introduce Skeeter to the fine art of carving her very own stamps!!

I decided on the image of our first signature stamp, perhaps a little over ambitious, though you would never know it. Katie handeled the exacto knife like a pro!!

After transfering over the image, I made one thin cut (on the inside left lobe of the heart . . . she hollowed the rest out).

I went before her and marked the stamp with a ball point pen (one short line at a time), so she would see where she needed to make the next cut . . . with the instructions, "Don't go over any black lines." A few black lines met their demise . . . only a few though :-)

Skeeter was a quick learn and did a fantastic job!! I'm so incredibly proud of her!!

Way to go Katie!!

Sorry Judah

You may remember a post a few weeks ago about Katie marrying Judah instead of Puppy. She told us today (and Mom confirmed this as Katie told her yesterday!) that Puppy will be her husband again. She said that they will have a covered wagon and will use it to move their things. She asked if we could put all of the outside toys into the loft in the garage and then Puppy can make stalls in the garage for all of their animals. While they are on the wagon, she will hold their baby (Carrie)...they will also have Laura, Mary & Grace...hmmm, it sounds like another family I know...

Alex has become rather sneaky the past few days. I had the digital camera on the desk but when I went to grab it, I couldn't find it! I know that I am losing it, but I KNOW that I had the camera just minutes before. So, I asked the girls if they knew where it went. Katie said no, but Alex had a sheepish look and then said...in her very sweet voice..."camera under bed". Oh Alex. I am finally getting around to getting it out and checked to make sure that it was still working. I found 5 pictures on the camera that were taken around the room (the window, the tv, something close up...her hand?, under the bed and the bed). I laughed out loud as I was reviewing the pictures.

Here is a picture of the girls and the log cabins that we made earlier today...

Oooohhh Will!

While dressing the girls this morning, I got out their matching dresses. Katie wasn't upstairs yet so Will grabbed her dress and started to put it on. I gave him his clothes and proceeded to put his shirt on. He pulled it off and grabbed the dress again. Fine...I will play along. I did get another dress for him since Katie's was too big. He seemed pleased with that! It is hot & humid, as you can see in the picture (from their hair).

Uf Duh & Other Good Memories - Day #4

Our final day on our Little House on the Prairie trip started early. We knew that we had a lot of driving to do to make it home at a reasonable time...plus stopping in Pepin for Laura's Log Cabin...plus letterboxing. We grabbed breakfast and were on the road by 7:30.

We drove to Hastings, MN where we stopped to admire the Vermillion Falls. It was very noisy and Alex didn't care for it, but it was a beautiful site! There is something so majestic about waterfalls!

Next stop was Pepin, WI. We went to the Wayside Cabin to see the area & cabin where Laura was born (Little House in the Big Woods). We also looked for the Little House letterbox by The Red Cat with no luck.

We stopped for lunch in Pepin at The Pickle Factory. Matt was able to talk with the owner and placed a box inside of the restaurant. It was good food and a great view of Lake Pepin. We had a melt down with Katie since she wasn't eating her food...she later told us "The time slithered away like a little rattlesnake". Where does she come up with her sayings???

Continuing towards Osseo for another Letterbox, we were challenged in our driving by finding a way around a whole town - shut down due to a parade! Between the meltdown at The Pickle Factory and the driving detour...we decided to forego the Osseo box and head towards Black River Falls.

Black River Falls - How many times have I driven through this town as a child and I NEVER remember seeing this moose? We stopped to log in to the "Oh Mooose!!!" box and looked for the Coffee Stop box (with no luck...couldn't find the location).

Spirits were starting to improve now and we headed to Sparta, WI. Once again I had driven through this town so many times as a child but never saw the man on the bike or this park. Letterboxing does such a wonderful job of showing us places we never knew existed! We were able to find "Baby Maeghan's Baptism" and log in.

Our favorite part of the day was stopping at "Uf Duh". This is a ski jump north of Westby, WI. We took one look at the hill and couldn't believe that we would have to hike up it! All 4 of us headed out - skirting the golf course - and found ourselves at the bottom of the old - not so well maintained - stairs. The girls and Matt did remarkable. Me (afraid of heights), took my time and kept my eye on the stairs! Getting to the top, it was a beautiful view and well worth the energy. We logged in to the box and headed back down - just as scary! This will be a favorite family memory of mine for a long time.

Matt looked for "Legend of Wisconsin River" in Boscobel, but had no luck. We have learned to not take much time looking if we don't find it right away. If we stop for any longer, it throws the whole trip off!

Our last stop for the day was at McDonald's in Lancaster, WI. The girls had the new play area all to themselves and Matt & I were able to enjoy some quiet newspaper time. It was blissful!

It was a fun trip. As with any trip, it is nice to go and see new things and meet new people, but it is also nice to get home and back into routine. We will be meeting up with Mom & Dad sometime this morning to pick up Maddie & Will. Hopefully they won't shun us like after Oregon last year!