The Magic House

While we were enjoying our Thanksgiving trip to St. Louis we had a chance to visit The Magic House, St.Louis' Children's Museum. It was great! Granted, it was busy, but very cool nonetheless. G'Ma and G'Pa joined us for a few hours of exploration. We were lucky to get a picture with everyones favorite curious monkey, George, and Troy got to be the Man With the Yellow hat!

I am huge fan of most museums that cater to the creative exploration of young minds. We have now been to Children's Museums in Atlanta, Saint Louis, and of course, Saint Paul. When we get a chance to go back to Columbus I look forward to taking the child to COSI. I loved going there as a kid and I think Owen will like it, too. One day (sigh) when we get the chance to take Owen to NYC we can overload him on museums there as well.

This keyboard not only played music it also played bubbles!

Just one of the great rooms at The Magic House

Musical and Beautiful and sturdy enough for kids to climb on. My kind of instrument!

This gadget was so cool! It was huge! Kids would push on one side and the shape would pop out on the other. Owen learned fast not to put his face on it! It's not like the little ones!

We had a great time and Owen said the next time we moved he wanted to move to St.Louis.

Thanksgiving in St. Louis

This year we headed for St. Louis, MO for the Thanksgiving holiday. Troy's aunt Barb was kind enough to host this food heavy holiday despite the fact that she was recovering from a recent surgury. Thanks, Barb! We love you!
We packed up the car and hit the road for the 620 (one way) mile trip. We had a really nice time and it was great to see everyone. Great Grandma White even made the trip down from Chicago with the Kinn's. As she is into her 90th decade I thought this was especially great.

G'Ma and G'Pa brought Chief a new version of his favorite game Uno called Uno Flash. He had everyone playing with him. Most everyone tried not to crush the 4 year old. At first. Then they discovered that he was not only lucky- he was good and then they were out to get him. He didn't seem to mind, though. He had a roomful of grownups playing his favorite game with him!

Here's G'Ma helping out in the kitchen

Here is Owen with his daddy's cousins teaching them a thing or two about Uno Flash!

We hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving filled with family, friends, and delicious food!

Halloween 2009!

Stepping Stones 2009 Halloween

Who are these adorable children all dressed up in their Halloween gear? Why it's Owen's preschool class, of course! Each year the preschool has a "costume" day where the kids can dress up in their Halloween gear and have a fun day at school. The kids all bring candy and treats to pass out and they take home a goodie bag that they created. I was able to stay and help this year and it was a lot of fun. They kids were great and there was plenty of leftover candy for the grownups : )

We also had a chance to go to the Minnesota Children's Museum with our friends the Letts' and the Knight's. All of the boys (and baby girl Mia) all dressed up and ran around the museum, playing games and enjoying their favorite activites.

The whole crew had a chance to ride the "bus" in the Our World exhibit. I think this was the only time I was able to snap a piture with everyone in it!

http://lettsdish.blogspot.com/2009/10/halloween-spooktacular.html
(Erinn had some better pictures than I did)

Kaposia Park

The weather this October has been a little less than desirable, so when Mother Nature blessed us with a snow-free, rain-free Sunday afternoon we embraced it. We grabbed a little lunch and popped over to Kaposia Park in South Saint Paul for an afternoon stroll.

Owen walking on the trail

The fall colors were really lovely.

It was a great afternoon!

Little Hawks Soccer

This year we decided to have the child participate in a team sport. We joined the Black Hawk Soccer League. It is a popular organization with tons of kids of all ages participating. Owen is a Little Hawk. He gets to play on the same team as one of his best buddies, Owen L. Being one of the youngest players, he isn't quite into it the way some of the other children are. There are a few kids who are really good! I think his skill level and his ability to pay attention will grow with time. For now the most important thing for us was to get him out there, be part of a team, and learn something new. He loves it!

On our way to the first game

There are about 10 different colors of teams. Owen and Owen L. are on the dark green team.

He's lucky #7

Owen and Owen L. numbers 7 & 8. I think they spend more time wrestling around with each other than playing but hey- they are 4 1/2 and just want to have fun!

Preschool Year 2!

First Day of Preschool - year 2

I began writing this blog when my Little Chief started preschool last year. I remember feeling overwhelmed, happy, and sad all at the same time. My baby was growing up and taking his first steps away from home. This year I felt more assured and, to be honest, I was looking forward to my 6 and 3/4 hours of personal time a week. He loves it and he adores his teachers. There are a few boys from his class last year so he is comfortable. It's a win/win.

Last year I experienced the "firsts" of preschool and this year it's the "lasts." Now it's only one more year until my baby goes to kindergarten (oh don't get me started on that!). Soon he will be 5 years old and then it's on to driving and college. OK- I maybe skipped a few years, but I am in constant surprise at the speed of life. Sometimes I want to go backwards. I want to fix the mistakes I have made and relive the triumphs. I want to cuddle my baby and be there again when he takes his first steps and says his first words. I defiantly would have introduced vegetables first. : )

Or, maybe I want to freeze time and keep us here in this stage where we as parents are still the smartest, safest people in his world. Where the child finds complete joy in Batman and a stuffed bunny named Teddy. Sure this means I would be tying shoes and and reading the Magic School Bus over and over and over again, but it also means we would be able to snuggle three deep for bedtime stories forever.

I suppose I should just chalk it up to a good life. We must be doing something right if it means so much. So there he is, taking his first-last preschool steps. Our last year before the big ol' elementary school bus comes down the street and scoops my little baby off to a whole new level of childhood. It's all so dang bittersweet.

Florida- part three

While we were in sunny Florida we went on a 3 hour pontoon ride through the Sebastian Inlet. (I know- "a three hour tour...") It was a beautiful day and we were on the lookout for Manatee. Unfortunately, we missed them while on our tour, but we did catch sight of one as we were returning to dock. I spent most of the ride standing on the front of the boat taking pictures and talking with another boater and the crew. It was very peaceful and lovely.

Sebastian Inlet State Park is on the right in this photo. Apparently you can not only walk through this park, but ride your horse through it as well. Awesome!

Sitting on the pontoon

One afternoon while G.Ma and I were out tooling about Melbourne, Papa Bear and G'Pa took Owen to the Brevard Zoo. From the pictures Troy took it looked like loads of fun. Next time we get down that way I will be sure to check it out.

Owen with the camera taking pictures of Papa and G'Pa

macaw

Owen on the giant turtle. Being Florida, and with all that sunshine, Troy said the turtle was hot! He had to have Owen stand in it instead of sit :)

Florida- part deux!

While we were beginning our vacation, my cousin Jessica and her friends were wrapping theirs up. We had a day overlap and we decided to meet in Cocoa Beach for a little dinner and conversation. Most of the girls were attending OSU and had met because of their fondness for Harry Potter : ) I think the restaurant was called Captain J's. The food was good, the service slow, but I had crab cakes made with real crab. Yum!

Jess and her gal pals having dinner with us in Cocoa Beach

This was the walkway that leads to the beach.

Owen and Mama on the beach

My friend Dawn suggested I take some water wings for the swimming pool. She is a genius! The child turned into a little fish. He was floating and racing and really enjoying the pool. The water was pretty deep so these were perfect. Seriously. I can't say it enough. Perfect! Thanks for the loan of water wings, Dawn! Such a smart mama!

Beautiful sky

Oh, Summer! Miss you already!

Florida! 2009 Vacation!! Whoo hoo!

Well it only took a few years but we finally went on a non-holiday vacation. We were able to go down to to Florida and spend a week on the coast. The Atlantic Ocean was awe inspiring with the waves crashing against the shore and the vastness of the water and sky would humble the biggest giant. It was beautiful!

We were lucky enough to be right on the beach, just a few stories up. It afforded us beautiful views and easy beach access. G'Ma and G'Pa really made the trip happen for us. They organized the housing, the food, the activities, the car, and the I think they may have even ordered the perfect weather! All we had to do was enjoy it : ) I have so many pictures of our trip it will take about 3 or 4 posts to get even a portion of it in!

Troy and I were so excited to have Owen visiting the beach. He was tentative for about a second with the big waves and soon he was running full force into them. Even as he was being tossed and pulled he was thrilled. The rip tide was very strong, so the bunch of us would form a line in the water and catch the little booger when the tide pulled him out. Talk about scary from mom's perspective. I thought my heart would fall out every time the waves pulled and pushed him, but that child just laughed and ran back in.

So you can see that we spent the majority of our time on the beach. At least once or twice a day we were playing in the sand and enjoying the waves. I miss it. I want to go back.

Mama Bear Celebrates 34!

I am the first one to admit that I have a charmed life. I have a home and a family. Friends who love me and whom I adore. Oh, and enough Tootsie Rolls to last a lifetime.

When your loving spouse asks you what you want for your birthday while you are strolling the candy isle at Costco and you see a giant tub of tootsie goodness and you say "That! I want that huge tub of Tootsie Rolls!" beware- you may just get the 280 count of candy goodness- especially if you ask for nothing else.

Not that I am complaining. (I'm not!) I am steadily chipping away at the Tootsie's and have managed to cram them all into the corner cookie jar so as not to appear completely gluttonous when guests pop over. And truly, I never would have said anything if I didn't absolutely love them. Of course we will see if almost 300 pieces of candy cures my predilections or not.

For my birthday dinner this year I picked out a lovely fillet mignon and Papa treated himself to a porterhouse. We had baked potatoes, corn, and salad. Yum!!! I love birthday dinners!

What birthday meal is complete without a cake? We had an ice cream log cake from DQ per my request. I love it. I really do. It doesn't compare to the homemade ice cream cake that Troy made me a few years ago, but it's a good second.

I would love to tell you all my birthday wish but we know it won't come true if I do (hey- those are the universal birthday rules- I have no say on the matter) so you have to trust me when I say it was a good one. Keep your fingers crossed for me ;p

Happy 34th Birthday to me!

I should add my birthday was at the end of May- I'm a little behind in my postings.

How does your garden grow?

Well, we finally decided to try our hands at gardening. Papa built us a great little 4x4 foot garden box and a fantastic deer/bunny proof fence! I gave him a bit of grief for it taking 3 days to build the enclosure, but it really is wonderful and I have eaten my words. Now hopefully soon we will be able to eat out of veggie garden. We have broccoli, peppers, onion, cucumber, spinach, and lettuce. Yum! Wish us luck- it's our first garden : )

Happy Birthday Papa Bear!!!

April 14th, 2009 Papa Bear turned 35 years old!!!

This year we got Papa a fun gift - Owen and I picked out racquetball racquets for Troy's present this year. He also got a spiffy new bicycle a few weeks before. And a helmet! Safety first!!

The requested birthday dinner this year: Spaghetti Spinach Pie, a salad with pepperoni, mozzarella, bacos, and Italian dressing, a loaf of garlic bread, and milk to drink.

Now I don't know how many people have attempted to make a spring formed spaghetti pie, but other than being multi-stepped, it wasn't so bad. And to toot my own horn- it tasted GREAT. Yeah to me for making a tomato meringue.

Dessert was a requested Poke-n-Pour cake. White cake, poked multiple times with a fork, strawberry liquid jello to pour over into the holes, and topped with Cool Whip. you might notice the crazy strawberry design on top of the cake. There was a reason for that. When the Cool Whip container says not to stir it up as causes the whip to get liquidy, well, they ain't lying. I failed to let it defrost for the suggested 4 hours before use so I tried to thaw it with a few stirs. Don't. Mistakes were made! So I decided to try to hide the soupish Cool Whip with lots of fresh berries. It may have been a bit ugly but it was still super tasty and we devoured it!

Owen put on the candles- there were MANY : )

Make a wish, Papa Bear!!!
Happy Birthday Sweetie. We love you so much. I hope all of your wishes come true!

Easter Breakfast 2009

This year for Easter we made bunny shaped pancakes!

Here is Papa bear and Chief showing off their yummy bunnies!

I'm not quite sure how I missed taking pictures of the goody basket, but I did! not that the child missed out on any candy. Not only did he receive a basket from the great bunny himself, but Grandma and Grandpa sent a chocolate filled delivery all the way from Georgia! We had (have) lots of goodies :)

I hope everyone had a wonderful Easter!

Coloring Eggs

A few days before Easter Owen and I sat down to an afternoon of Easter Egg coloring. He had such a great time! I was going to be the super enviro-mom and treat him to all natural egg coloring with boiling vegetables, but the standard vinegar and water colored dye tabs beckoned me as we meandered through Target's isles. They were non- toxic, so what the heck :)

We used crayons to color on the eggs before we dipped them.

He started getting really good with the bent wire dipping spoon.

Look at that! the child was very proud of his egg coloring skills and I was proud of him, too!

I think he was more excited to eat the eggs than to color them. He loves the white part, not so much the yolk. A little sprinkle of salt and voila! An egg-stra special snack!