A Much Needed Update

It's been awhile, so I will recap the last couple of months.

With a few nice days before the snow flew, we spent some time out at the farm. Uncle Jon taught the boys how to properly shoot a gun. As you can see, they are all paying very close attention.

The Manning girls had their sister's weekend at Dianne's house. We had a good time of shopping, bowling, playing games and just having fun.

All bets are off when Elvis starts playing. Things do tend to get a little out of hand!

Tori is our good helper. She is always wanting to feed Cam or help with changing his diaper.

We spent Thanksgiving out at the farm. We had our annual hay ride, and if you can believe it, this year was much warmer than others.

This is Tori's new best friend. This cat is perfect for her. The kitty lets Tori drag her around without any complaints. Tori is in heaven with kitty.

Camden is getting so big. He looks like such a little man. He is crawling all over the place, and getting into everything...just like a little boy should!

We love to have the Christmas tree up, but it really is a chore to do so. Tori was at least in a festive mood, and is ready to put the star on the top.

Tori and I went to see Disney's Princesses on Ice with the neighbors. Here she is proudly displaying her Minnie Mouse ears from the night before.

And Nolan has started a new season of hockey. He is #15 on the black mite team of the Mound Westonka Hockey Association. He has practice on Saturday's and Sunday's, and has his first "game" coming up over the Christmas weekend. All are welcome to come and watch!

And so that takes us to Christmas break. We only have a few days of shopping left, and a few days of work to get through, and then Santa arrives. I am ready for a break and a few relaxing days.

Wishing you all the best and warmest holidays!

Trick or Treat 2009

Happy Halloween!

Here are our trick-or-treaters posing before our company came over. What is Tori you ask? Well, she's a blue haired ballerina princess of course! And Nolan is our blue haired dirt biker. Why the blue hair? They just thought it was cool!

The Halloran's and the Witte's

Our little skeleton was the only one that didn't get to hit the streets to collect candy. I think he was OK with that!

And we're off!

We had a really great evening. The Witte's joined us for pizza before we went out trick-or-treating. Then after the kids had their fill of candy, we headed to the Swenson's for a post candy collecting party. It was a very Happy Halloween!

Happy 70th Birthday Dad!!!

On October 11th, my Dad turned 70! We celebrated on Saturday afternoon at Dad & Shirley's in Litchfield.

We decided to give Dad a gift from the heart this year. The kids all got together pictures from the past and the present. Chris collaborated everything into a slide show DVD, and even set it to some of Dad's favorite Willie Nelson and Elvis tunes. I think it's safe to say we all had a little tear at the end of the DVD. All Dad could say was it was the best Birthday ever! We couldn't have asked for a better reaction!

Yes...there are really 70 candles on the cake!

It took 2 people (and 1 supervisor) to light all of the candles.

At least it took only 1 person to blow them out!

Even though it was Grandpa's Birthday, Tori was over the moon with the present that Grandma Shirley gave her. What little girl wouldn't love a purse full of lip gloss, jewelry and other goodies?

Camden is ready to party! Bring it on!

It was a really great day spent with family for such a special occasion. I mean, your Dad only turns 70 once, right?

We love you Dad!

Finding Something To Do

Sometimes, when we have a slow afternoon, the kids get a little antsy. And, being the mother, it's my job to keep them entertained. Today, my bright idea was a cowboy treasure hunt...map and all. The kids were fighting over the map, so I ripped the map in half. Their first job was to work as a team to tape the map back together. Then I sent them to the basement to find their treasure. They make really good treasure hunting cowboys!

Halloween or Christmas???

MN has decided to skip fall all together and go straight to winter, snatching our beloved Halloween from us! On Sunday, October 11th, this is what we woke to. And since, there has been even more snow. Yuck!




What sad Halloween decorations.

Torrance - Our Little Gymnast

Hoping for Tori to break out of her shell, we tried a trial gymnastics class at a new gym in Waconia. I wasn't sure how it would go, but as you can see, she had a blast. She did NOT want to leave when the class ended! She is now enrolled in the Cuddly Cubs class every Saturday morning.

2009 St. Thomas Softball Tournament

It was a close game, but the St. Thomas Sportsmans team took 2nd this year at the annual Fireman's tournament. Here are the guys at their best.

Tom

Ryan

Jon

Dan

Brandon

Bert

Jon & Jim

And the kids as always had a blast too. Here is Logan & Nolan on the slide.

Tori on the swings

Nolan

Class of 2022 - Nolan Starts Kindergarten

Can you believe it? Nolan started Kindergarten on Thursday. He is doing all day/everyday school at Shirley Hills Elementary in Mound-Westonka. It was just another day to him...no big deal. We went out for breakfast for the big day, and then brought him to school where he lined up with his entire class and that was it...one quick hug and he was on his way. He was quite amazing!

Yikes...how old will that make Tom and I?

Hi-fiving the neighbor who had a daughter starting the same day.

His teacher sent this picture. Here he is hard at work in his journal.

Mrs. Schneider's class.

Camden - 6 Months Old

Camden Thomas

Cam & Dad having a good time

'Ol blue eyes

His new favorite face to make

A bath in the kitchen sink

Night Night