Friday, July 31, 2009
Sunday, July 26, 2009
Ozarks
Our vacation was great! The weather was just perfect. We had one day of rain and the rest were sunny and hot. We packed the Acadia up Friday night. Complete with the "clam" on the roof for strollers and pack and plays and a hitch mounted cargo rack (a big thanks to uncle Bernie for letting us use it!). We were LOADED, no room to spare! The drive took us (Ruth, Christy, Connor, Ashlyn and I) 9.5 hours, with 2 stops. We were on the road at 4:30am. We thought that the kids would sleep, but they stayed awake for about an hour then napped. Ashlyn only slept for about 2 hours total the whole way... I was surprised that she was as happy as she was. Connor napped much better. The drive actually wasn't all that bad, we thought it would be a rough one, but the kids did great!
The week went by pretty fast. We met Joe's dad at the resort (Tim was speaking at a conference on Monday, hence the reason behind our vacation). The conference was over on Wednesday and Joe and Bryan flew down to join us that day.... they decided to fly since they were only going to be there Wed - Sat. Our neighbor Wade Yahnke is a pilot and he's going to school for aviation. Since he needs flight hours, he gave us a pretty good deal on flight. Don't worry, he has a lot of experience, he actually gives flying lessons! It only took them 2.5hrs to fly from Mankato to Osage Beach and the airport was only 10 minutes away from our resort!
Most of our days were the same, wake up with the kids, have breakfast, put the kids down for a nap, wait for them to wake up, have lunch, go to the pool until their afternoon nap time then get ready for supper. The guys golfed Thursday, Friday and Saturday morning. We went shopping on Thursday while the guys watched the kids. We ate at the resort restaurants a couple nights, ordered in pizza one night and had a "date" night on Thursday. Tim and Ruth went out for an early supper and came back to babysit the kids after they went to bed. Bryan & Christy and Joe & I made reservations at a really good steakhouse. We sat at different tables in separate rooms to make it feel more like a date with our spouse :) It was wonderful, I had the best lobster ever... yum! Then on Friday afternoon we rented a pontoon and cruised around the lake. It was 90 degrees and sunny, perfect for a boat ride. We took the boat to Captain Ron's for supper. It was so cool, the whole place was pirate themed and the food was excellent. We took a family picture there that Christy has... I'll post it when I get a copy :) When we got home we packed everything up and loaded up the Acadia for our early morning departure. The guys weren't flying out until after lunch so they got another round of golf in Saturday morning
Our trip home took longer, we didn't leave till a little after 6am and we made a few more stops on the way home than we did on the way down so we didn't get back until about 4:30pm in Mankato where we met the guys who had just landed. Then Joe, Ashlyn and I had to go pick up our dog at Jeff's house by Lake Crystal. By the time we got home it was after 6pm. Ashlyn and I had enough driving for the day!
Overall it was a great trip!
At the baby pool on our fist day
having some mac and cheese for lunch
feeding the carp and ducks
lots of carp... yuck!
Ashlyn and Connor watching the fish
sharing a snack of grapes and ham
bath time!
looking at the lake
So happy!
Taking a break at the indoor water park on our rain day.
We took the kids on the lazy river for about an hour. They liked it!
Their view, they enjoyed watching the kids play.
Dad and Ashlyn watching the sunset before bedtime
Hanging out at the big pool
Drinking from a water bottle on the deck... she was soaked!
Packing for the trip
While I was busy packing for our trip, Ashlyn was busy getting into trouble!
Pulling out the plastic containers in the
only cupboard that isn't child proofed in the kitchen....
Oh this is fun! Look how fast I can spin the roll mom!
I'm out of here... maybe mom won't know it was me! I'll blame it on the dog :)
Saturday, July 25, 2009
We're home!
We're home safe and sound after a wonderful weeklong vacation to the Lake of the Ozarks in Missouri. I will be posting pictures soon!
Thursday, July 16, 2009
Birthday Party
I'm finally posting pictures from Ashlyn's 1st birthday party!! We had it out at grandma and grandpa Loula's on the lake. It was a perfect day! Good food, great weather and of course, wonderful family! We grilled out and grandma Deb made her a cake in the shape of a number one. It was delicious :) We just hung out by the lake and visited. Joe took a few of us for a pontoon ride and Joe, Jared and Molly went swimming in the lake. Ashlyn loved watching them swim and wanted to get in the water too! Then we came back to eat, have cake and open presents. She LOVED the cake... it was so much fun to watch her feed herself. She had frosting everywhere! It was the first time she really got to eat a sweet treat :) She got lots of wonderful gifts. She's lucky to have such a great family!
A big THANK YOU to Joe's aunt Mary who came and took many, many wonderful pictures, helped decorate and made the party run smoothly. The pictures tuned out great... her are just a few... ok, a lot!
Her birthday dress from Mary, it was so cute!
She didn't like the grass
(tutu from Aunt Christy)
Connor LOVED the car too... he lit up when he saw it!
He's a such a little gear head already!
Cake!!
she had her own little cake
yummy....
this is really good!
what? I have cake and frosting where??
What a mess! Too cute!
Cousin Chloe is so smily... she's a doll :)
First family picture in a long time!
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
Thursday, July 9, 2009
Birthday Girl
Our little girl is growing up! Hard to believe that she is one year old today. It really does seem like we just brought her home! It has been a fun, challenging and rewarding year. Looking back it's at all the pictures makes me realize how far she's come. From the tiny newborn who couldn't do anything for herself to the big girl who wants to do everything by herself. It almost scares me to think about how fast the coming years will go... time, can you please slow down?!
She had her one year appointment today and the Dr said she was doing great! She got a few more shots but it didn't seem to bother too much once the nurse gave her a sucker (her first!). It was so cute to see her go from tears to joy with that sucker. It was a mess but well worth it.
Her stats:
Height: 31" (95%)
Weight: 23lbs 8oz (90%)
This seat was really supposed to make it to one year?? Ha!
After her appointment we went to North Mankato's Fun Day's with some friends. She didn't get her normal naps in today so the rides weren't a big hit. Oh well, she liked watching all the kids run around though. We went out to eat after and she got to have her first french fries. It will be time for cake and ice cream on Sunday when we have her birthday party with the family, she can't wait! :)
Sunday, July 5, 2009
Happy 4th!
We went to the pool on Friday afternoon with Grandma Ruth, Christy and Connor. The weather wasn't that nice and the water was a little cool but we had fun. We spent Friday night at the lake hanging out and trying to enjoy the wet weather. Ashlyn got to hang out with cousin Connor and it was fun to watch them since she can almost keep up with him now. They both love to climb the steps and they both had a great time on the pontoon. They had their little faces looking through the front gate as we crusied around the lake. Too bad none of us had our cameras since it was kind of sprinkling before we took off.
Saturday was a nice lazy day at the Loula house. All three of us took turns napping... it was great! We went out to eat with the Grommersch family that night and hung out at their house after dinner. The kids had fun playing together. It was a nice relaxing night.
Sunday we went out to the lake again and enjoyed the sunshine! It was a beautiful day to be on the water. Joe took Ashlyn swimming in the lake for the first time. The water was a little chilly at first, but they swam together for quite a while. I jumped in for a quick family picture. She actually cried when we took her out! She definetly loves the water! Can't wait for our family trip to the Lake of the Ozarks in a few weeks :) Overall it was a great weekend. Can't believe her birthday is only a few days away.... our little girl is growing up!
Ashlyn and Grandma Ruth
She liked it when dad made the fish squirt water
Loula Family :)
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