Buck Family Photos

Around the yard

2009-05-21T19:58:00.000-07:00

Here are some miscellaneous pictures from our yard. Amazing how fast stuff grows when there is sun!

We are growing kids, not grass.

One flower decided to bloom so far

My garden...needs some flowers

Hosta

Front Yard Tree

Mommy...flowers!

2009-05-21T19:52:00.000-07:00

Caleb loves the outdoors. He would live out there, if I let him. It has finally been nice enough to just in the yard and play. Simeon doesn't like the dandelions, but Caleb sure does. He runs up to me all excited and says "Mommy...flowers!" and then hands them to me as if giving me a gift. I treasure his little dandelion bouquets. They are precious to me. Thankfully I have a camera that can capture some of these precious moments...

Caleb running to get one...

His little hands...so sweet.

Happy 11 years!

2009-05-16T19:26:00.000-07:00

Simeon & I celebrated our 11 year anniversary on May 16th. Amazing how time flies and all the things that happen in between when you aren't looking. I took these pictures with the kids. We only had about 3 hours to ourselves, so Simeon and I went to the Bonfire restaurant, did a little shopping, and then ended our "date" with some dairy queen. It was simple, yet nice. We enjoyed the rest of the day with our kids.

Simeon showing his love :)

Goof balls

These are "bontons". They are like wantons but with a kick!

Simeon apparently thought this one was funny.

That is pop, not alcohol :)

Naomi, the Photographer

2009-05-01T19:23:00.000-07:00

Naomi enjoys taking pictures (when I let her use my camera). Here are a few shots she took on a walk.

Field Trip to the Woodbury Police Station

2009-04-21T19:19:00.000-07:00

In April, we took our final field trip with our homeschool group (our homeschool group is no more ..sadly) to the Woodbury Police Station. The kids got to sit in a cop car. We also got a tour of the jail and police station. We heard the sirens up close and what they sound like. It was a good memory for the kids. They still talk about it.

Don't you get any ideas... :)

Art Projects

2009-04-21T19:15:00.000-07:00

In school, we are learning all about different countries. Here are a few project we did this spring. The first pictures are of a Japanese Woodland Scene. Apparently in Japan, these are fairly popular. The create little displays of woodlands and place little animals in them to make them more real. The bottom pictures are of Chinese Lanterns. These were extremely easy and fun to make. The girls love art projects the best.

Buse Birthday Party

2009-03-28T19:05:00.000-07:00

I (Michelle) have been apart of a homeschool group here in Woodbury. We have been blessed by getting to know the Buse Family this year who are also in this group (even though it has ended now). It only took us 3 years to connect!! The girls love their kids and I'm hoping their kids feel the same about our kids. Anyway, we have had the opportunity of having play dates and getting together for field trips. It's been great. We got invited to Tony & Allie Buse's birthday. Here are some photos of that.

Melody Buse

The Birthday Girl: Allie Buse

Beth & Grant Buse with their children: Melody, Allie, Ryan, and Tony

Tony opening presents

Sisters

Michaela and I (Naomi took this picture)

Allie opening gifts.

Naomi coloring

The birthday girl!!

Nature Walk

2009-03-21T19:00:00.000-07:00

For school, we try to take nature walks when the weather is nice. Here are some pictures of one time. This was the first time we were able to go outside in a while and also the first time Caleb was without a stroller. It was cute watching him get excited about the little things!

Caleb catching up to the girls

A friendly robin

3 amigos

The big boy!

Big sister...so precious

March - Random Pictures

2009-03-15T18:56:00.000-07:00

Naomi's 10th Birthday

2009-02-28T18:37:00.000-08:00

Here are some pictures from Naomi's Birthday Party. She turned 10 this year...amazing how time flies.

Happy Birthday Simeon!

2009-02-10T16:20:00.000-08:00

Simeon's family came over for his birthday. We had pizza and watched the office. Simeon had pie..instead of cake! It was laid back, but good to see the fam.

Bella hijacking Simeon's laptop

Birthday Boy

Anna & Michaela playing with the camera

Judah & Michelle

African Tribe

2009-02-10T16:14:00.000-08:00

We are learning about Kenya and the continent of Africa for school. One of the activities was to face paint the kids to look like an African Tribe member. We kind of made it up as we went. It was fun for the kids, but boy did that take a good scrubbing to get that all off!

This picture makes me laugh. It looks like Michaela is dead in the background or something. Hehe.

Michaela got mad at me because I told her she looked like a baboon. Naomi started laughing too so I told her she looked like she had the measles. Then they both were laughing.

Twins!

2009-02-10T16:08:00.000-08:00

Here are some more recent pictures of Nate & Shannon's babies - Gwynn & Judah Buck. They are about 4 months old now...getting bigger every time I see them. We visited them a few weeks ago and here are the pictures from when we saw them.

Gwynn

Judah

Caleb, three wheeling

Gwynn & Michelle

Shannon, Michaela, Naomi, Bella (in the corner!) and Judah

Bucca's!

2009-02-10T16:01:00.000-08:00

My niece Kris was here from Nevada for a few weeks so the family got together at Bucca's in St. Paul. It was fun and alot of the family showed up. We all had a good time and ate too much food!

My brother Dana & Naomi

Some stupid picture at Bucca's. I had to eat staring at that! LOL

Simeon & I

Look at all that food!

Kris, my niece

Professor Buck

2009-02-10T15:58:00.000-08:00

Caleb loves to use chalk (even though he gets its everywhere!) and so I took a few shots of him at the chalk board. He did look like a little Professor.

My little Picaso's

2009-02-10T15:55:00.000-08:00

Christmas with Michelle's Family

2008-12-23T16:33:00.000-08:00

Auntie Laura & Naomi

Uncle John & Caleb

Markie, Michelle's niece

My kids & Noah

Naomi

Caleb & Michaela

Homestudy

2008-12-23T15:58:00.000-08:00

I thought I'd post this picture. I took this before the "big snow". We had to submit a picture (recent one) of the outside of our house to the Adoption agency. So I went outside and took this picture. Who in their right mind would want to live in this state? I wish it was summer..I would have sent them a nice cheery green lawned picture of our house instead. Oh well..this is MN and with that, comes the snow.

Rosemaling

2008-12-23T15:52:00.000-08:00

I am pretty awful about keeping this blog updated, so here are some pictures of when we studied Norway. We learned about Rosemaling. Rosemaling is when people would paint roses and other beautiful things on items inside a home. We did it on a little keepsake box. I think Norwegians use reds, blues, and greens, but we went a little crazy and used other colors. Here are the ones my girls made:

Some creations

2008-12-07T19:57:00.000-08:00

Here are some pictures (sorry the first one is upside down and I'm too lazy to fix it) of some of the knitting I've been doing to raise money for the adoption. Not all of them are on here, but here is just a few. I've done quite a bit. The last picture are of some mittens I made Naomi today. This was my second try...not to bad for being new at it. My adoption blog is here: http://helpusadopt.wordpress.com.

I also would like to share another thing that I've been doing. I have a website that I originally was going to try to and start a business. Well then Obama became President..just kidding. Actually, I felt like I didn't want to hassle with a business right now, so instead I'm volunteering my services to anyone in ministry, missions, or other small church ministries. I'm only taking on two projects a month and already have one slot filled so far, but if you want to take a look around, my website is here: http://www.buckwebdesigns.com.

Family Photo Time!

2008-11-27T10:22:00.000-08:00

Here are some recent pictures of us. I finally am able to upload photos on our new computer now. Turns out IE (Internet Explorer) has issues. So now I'm using Firefox instead. Anyway, its still slow, but atleast I'm able to post some of these pictures. I'll try to get Michaela's dance pictures up to next week.

Simeon's cousin Jennifer Hanson took these. She did such a great job! Her website is http://www.samgraphotos.com
You should definitely use her if you need photography done!

These are just a few of the ones we got from her. It was nice to get some photos of Simeon & I together, especially since all the ones we have of ourselves are either of us half asleep or taken before we even got married. Anyway, here they are. Happy Thanksgiving!

MN Zoo - October 2008

2008-11-07T10:01:00.000-08:00

Here are some pictures from the field trip we took to the zoo. Unfortunately Blogger freezes everytime I try to upload my photos. It must be a Vista issue. But anyway, we took the kids to the zoo and here are those photos.

We are family...somedays

2008-10-19T13:13:00.000-07:00

(back row) Margaret, Barb, and Roberta

(front row) Michelle, Mom

AppleBees Woodbury, MN

October 19, 2008

My sisters and I went out with my mom for our annual Applebees lunch outing. It was fun. We ate, passed around gifts and talked about the economy and dogs and killing red squirrels. Haha. Anyway, all of our birthdays fall in August, September, and October, so we get together every year to celebrate it. It's nice to see my sisters because I don't always get to see them or visit with them.

New Babies!!

2008-10-12T13:20:00.000-07:00

On October 7th, Simeon's brothers wife had twins. She had a boy and a girl. The girl, Guienever (sp?) was almost 6 pounds and Judah, the boy was exactly 7 pounds. They are so cute! I'm just glad its not me this time being up all night. I can enjoy babies from a distance..haha. Anyway here are a few pictures of the babies and big sister, Isabella who isn't even 2 yet. She is now outnumbered and so is Nate & Shannon!

Isabella

Judah - 5 days old

Judah & Gwen

Gwen

School is in session

2008-09-25T16:08:00.001-07:00

We started school August 23rd, so this we are actually in our 6th week of school now. I didn't take too many pictures of the first day of school. So much was going on and I was doing my best to just try to make it through the day with a toddler, a 1st Grader, and a 4th Grader plus using a new curriculum. The first few weeks were rough, but things are going better now. We are learning alot of geography this year. Currently we are studying North America. I will post our Mexican party pictures next too. We are having so much fun learning you can hardly call it school!

The girls have passports and every time we "enter" a country outside of the US, we put a sticker of that countries flag in the passport and write in the date. Then we read and discover all we can in 2 weeks about that country. The girls have been enjoying the Mexican books we got from the library and tomorrow we will all be Mexican for a day, eating only Mexican foods. We also will play some Mexican games and wear name tags that have our names in Spanish. It's been so much fun.

We were reading about Cameron Townsend today as he travelled into Monterrey. I was reminded of the mission trip I took into Mexico. My limited Spanish vocabulary has come in handy as well. The girls asked me "how do you say goodnight?" or "How do you say Good morning?" Thankfully I actually know the answer and when I don't, the computer is always a help!

Here are some pictures of the Mexican Flowers we made today for decorations & the poster with the Mexican map & Flag:

WILDflowers!

2008-09-10T16:22:00.000-07:00

We took a nature walk early September (we do this once a week) and I told the girls they had to draw something they found interesting. It could be anything in nature. So they picked wildflowers. I will post more of these pictures on my other website, but here are a few. Caleb thought they were like dandelions. He's holding goldenrod and Michaela picked some Canadian Wild Rye. The kids love being outside and they get to learn too!

Swimming in SD

2008-08-05T11:15:00.000-07:00

The girls loved the pool (probably the most, I think...I should have saved my money and went to the Y). We were at the pool a few hours each day while in SD. Daddy taught the girls some swimming lessons and they cooled down (It was hot everyday we were there). Naomi was proud of herself that she could go underwater. Next year, I hope we hang out at the pool alot more...only in MN, not SD..haha.

Some other pics of SD

2008-08-05T11:09:00.000-07:00

We stayed at the Yogi Bear Campground in Brandon, SD. Yogi Bear came out at 6:30 every night and on the final night we were there, we finally got to see him.

Yogi Bear statue when you enter the campgrounds

The real Yogi Bear

They even took our picture (not sure why its so orange)

The bouncing pillow (its like a trampoline)

That thing made me sick, but Caleb wanted to jump (he was too little)

Day 3 - Eros, SD

2008-08-04T10:54:00.000-07:00

We visited the USGS in Eros, SD. We took a self-guided tour with the kids (don't ask me why we went and did one more thing that day! We were kind of crazy!) Even though Caleb was sick and tired of being in his stroller, we learned a little bit about the USGS and got some pics too. You can visit them on the web as here: http://eros.usgs.gov/index.html.

The girls pixelating their hands

This is my new favorite picture

Day 3 - Sertoma Park & Butterfly Garden

2008-08-04T10:31:00.000-07:00

This was probably my most favorite place out of all the places we visited in Sioux Falls. It was called the Sertoma Butterfly Garden and it had a free flying butterfly room where you could walk around and see all the different species of butterflies. Some of them even landed on you. They had nectar dishes which they put out at eye level so you could be within inches of a butterfly. They were quite pretty with all their colors. Outside the room, they also had some spiders and other information on butterflies.

Outside of the Sertoma Butterfly Garden, they had a park and pavillion and an outdoor campus. We visited some of the park, but it was a tiring experience (after going to the falls and on a trolley, then to the butterfly garden) trying to keep up with Caleb. Plus it was hot. But we were able to see alot of things and get alot of good pictures too.

I could have lived the rest of my life without seeing these...

Day 3 - Falls Park SD

2008-08-04T10:01:00.000-07:00

On the 3rd day of our trip, we headed out to Sioux Falls and visited Falls Park which was downtown Sioux Falls. We walked around the Falls for awhile. We also took a trolley around downtown which was a tour of the city. It only last 20 minutes which was perfect for Caleb. It was a full morning of walking around.

Michaela with her Sioux Falls, SD hat

This was part of the sculpture walk in Sioux Falls

The Tower

You can take an elevator up to the top of the tower for better picture taking

In the elevator, up to the top of the tower

A view of the falls from the tower

A nice lady took a picture of all of us together

The Trolley

Inside the Trolley

Day 2 Sioux Falls, SD

2008-08-03T19:15:00.000-07:00

We woke up the next day, had breakfast, and then we had to take our car to a Saturn dealership because our car rattled all the way to South Dakota. We had just got new tires put on, so we weren't sure what the deal was. So Simeon dropped the rest of us off at the Dellbridge Museum & Great Plain Zoo in Sioux Falls and drove back to the Saturn dealership about a mile away. Saturn shuttled him back over to the Zoo and then we spent a few hours with the kids and the animals in the heat. By the time we got shuttled back to Saturn, Caleb was so tired. I even offered him a free cookie (I got myself a free frappuccino thanks to Saturn) but he was so mad he threw it on the floor and started throwing a fit. I was glad to be out of there!

The Dellbridge museum had stuffed animals from differentt continents.

Oh No! Naomi is going to be eaten by a hungry lion. Never fear, its just a video playing in the background..hehe
These animals are real. This was taken at the zoo.

This giraffe kept staring at us and then started walking towards us.

This little jerk bit Michaela! What a pig.

Day 1 Sioux Falls, SD

2008-08-03T19:06:00.000-07:00

We drove from Grandma H's in Olivia, MN to Brandon, SD (right outside of Sioux Falls) and stayed at some campgrounds. The cabins were VERY hot when we got there. It was like 90 degrees and the A/C had been shutoff as well as the refrigerator. It took until the next day for the rooms to cool down completely. Despite that, we still had fun. The kids hung out at the pool with daddy and mommy tried to cool down with Caleb inside the cabin. We had a bonfire later that night too.

This is going to be an embarassing picture for Caleb when he graduates..hehe

Vacation Time!

2008-08-02T18:42:00.000-07:00

On August 2nd, we took a drive to see Grandma Heinemann in Olivia, MN and then headed to South Dakota. We couldn't take a very long trip with a toddler in toe, but we did make it to Sioux Falls. These first pictures are of the day we headed to Olivia, MN. We also had fun visiting with Uncle Ron & Aunt Cheryl.

Victoria Park

2008-07-29T18:30:00.000-07:00

We took the kids down to the park by our house. Here are some pictures of that.

Pool time & Grandma's House

2008-07-14T18:22:00.000-07:00

Caleb loves the pool. He has so much fun just splashing the water. He never actually gets in the pool enough to get himself wet, but he does drench himself just by splashing himself. What a silly boy!

The next day, I was babysitting my nephew Noah and took the kids over to see Grandma Adams. We had fun looking at all her flowers in her garden and visiting with her.

What did you do at Grandma's house today kids? We watched VeggieTales...hahaha.

Yard Work

2008-07-13T18:18:00.000-07:00

To get the kids to learn some responsibility (well atleast the girls), we told them that we'd pay them for each bag they'd fill up with leaves. Simeon cut back the bushes and the girls picked up the branches and bagged them. Caleb & mom hung out like lazy bums on the deck and heckled..haha.

Exploring Nature July 2008

2008-07-10T18:13:00.000-07:00

The kids and mom took some time to go exploring the outdoors. We found wildflowers, watched birds, found a caterpillar, and encountered some geese along the path. Here are some pictures from our expidition.

Little Helper

2008-06-25T13:27:00.000-07:00

Caleb, the little multi-tasker! Notice the cookie in one hand and dish in the other. He's such a big help!

Summer Fun!

2008-06-05T08:28:00.000-07:00

The kids got a new pool on a day when the sun was actually out (ha, ha). Caleb had so much fun playing in the water. The girls loved splashing and making our whole deck wet. We love summer!

I also cut Naomi's hair (its ALOT shorter but now mom doesn't have to deal with all the tangles and she says she likes it...so its all good)

Caleb filling up the pool

Waiting takes so long!

The girls in summer dresses

Pretty, Pretty Princess

Michaela's new swimsuit

BBQ

2008-06-05T08:24:00.000-07:00

We went to Margaret & Bob's house and grilled on Saturday, May 31st. The kids played together. We ate. Then we played Cranium (I wish we would have had some pictures of that! Try acting out without words "Berlin Wall". You can just imagine how silly we looked).

My hubby & I

Goofy Naomi

Kids Galore!

2008-06-02T08:17:00.000-07:00

I babysat Noah last weekend overnight. The kids had so much fun together. They watched TV and horsed around. Caleb & Noah were best buddies too. It was a great time.

All 4 kids watching a movie

This is what happens when Aunt Michelle babysits!

I don't think my girls like Noah much (hahaha)

Cousins!

A visit from Grandma

2008-06-01T08:11:00.000-07:00

Grandma Adams came for a visit and to give Michaela some birthday gifts. It's fun watching Grandma and the kids interact. They love their Grandma!

A swimdress

Grandma bought an adult proof doll!

Michaela admiring her "cupcake" doll

End of School Year Party

2008-06-01T08:01:00.000-07:00

We celebrated the end of our school year on Friday, May 30th. We had cupcakes and I painted the girls nails. The best part was--no more school! We are doing some science this summer, however its very laid back. More to come in another blog on that. Anyway, here are some pictures of our fun day.

Caleb with a pink cupcake face.

All of us girls with cupcake noses

Wow, she really is my daughter.

Her too!

It's official, We do have a boy in the house

2008-05-28T17:46:00.000-07:00

So I was changing my clothes the other day and Caleb was running around. All of a sudden I heard some coughing. I went to see what the deal was. Caleb was all wet. I smelled him. It was urine. Yah.

So I went to the bathroom and the girls had not flushed. There was a cup filled with toilet water (unflushed, that is) and the floor was all wet. I almost threw up. Caleb drank pee water. I thought I might gag. Why do boys have to be so gross?

End of the School Year Summary

2008-05-28T11:37:00.000-07:00

For school, I have kept a book with samples of Naomi's work and grades and her schedule so we can remember what we learned this year (or atleast so I can remember!). I had Naomi tell me some of her favorite things that we learned about. I'm kind of sad its coming to an end. I had such a great time learning about the composers, artists, folksongs, and history, geography, and the biographies of great men like George Washington, Ben Franklin, and the Pilgrims. Shakespeare was a surprise hit for me. I was really getting into some of the stories even though the girls probably didn't like it as much. Naomi had a few stories from Shakespeare she liked though regardless of the language barrier.

I thought I'd share some of it with you. I hope you enjoy this as much as I have!

In the Words of Naomi
(Transcribed by Michelle Buck)

My favorite Composer is Camille Saint-Saens. I like the Sympony No 3 song the best. I like the instruments in it. This song was played in the movie “Babe”. He’s a great composer. This song makes me happy.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aHxzX3zqWAM

(The above link will play the song)

My favorite artist is Leonardo Da Vinci. He painted Genevra for her wedding, a Self Portrait that looked like his father, the Last Supper, Virgin on the rocks, and the Mona Lisa which is his most famous painting. My favorite was the Lady with the Ermine. I like the Ermine, also called a ferret.

Leonardo Da Vinci painted a lot of pictures. He was a great artist. He was from Italy.

Some artwork by Naomi & me (click on the links to see Da Vinci's originals):

Virgin of the Rocks

Mona Lisa

Lady with an Ermine

(Naomi's is above, I drew the one below)

The Last Supper

My favorite Bible story was the story of Ruth. She’s my favorite character. I don’t like Bathsheba though because she was naked. Ruth is pretty and a nice person. She went to a cornfield and she saw Boaz. He said not to go to any other field or she’d get hurt. He let her pick from his field. She went to Naomi, her mother in law. Naomi asked “where have you picked the corn?” and Ruth said “At Boaz’s place”. Ruth and Boaz fell in love with each other and got married.

Favorite Books we read:

Shakespeare…I like some of the Shakespeare stories like the one of Celia and Rosalind, called As You Like It. But some of them I don’t like because when I read it, it sounds like Spanish.

I like the Light and the Glory because it has George Washington, Columbus, the Indians, and the Pilgrims. I liked George Washington the best. He told people about God. He signed the Constitution. He was the first President of the United States.

Bubbles!

2008-05-27T17:59:00.000-07:00

This is pretty cool

I love this one too

Happy 6th Birthday

2008-05-26T17:52:00.000-07:00

May 23rd was Michaela's 6th birthday. We just had the Buck's over on Memorial Day. She had fun with her cousins. Here are a few pictures.

I messed up her name on here. Oh well, it still tasted like cake!

Presents from Uncle Nate & Auntie Shannon

Play-Dough & Bubbles..a girls dream!

Cute Little Bella

Grandpa picked the best present: An art set!

The Birthday Girl

Yard Work & other non fun stuff

2008-05-22T16:59:00.000-07:00

Here are some pics of us around the house, mostly. We have been doing a ton of stuff to our front yard...its only taken us two years to get on it! Thankfully we are making some headway now, but yard work will always be a complete pain.

Sim cutting down the dandelions

Caleb loves the great outdoors

Try to stop me!

Anniversary & other stuff.

2008-05-19T16:53:00.000-07:00

We went to Keys Cafe for our 10 year anniversary. It was kind of boring, but since Simeon is in school, we decided we would wait until this summer to officially celebrate our 10 year. Hopefully sometime in June, we can get away.

Michelle at Keys Cafe in Woodbury

Us goofing around

Caleb with his silly face

Naomi doing homework

This and That

2008-05-05T16:46:00.000-07:00

My mom came over and helped me fix up my garden. IT looks a ton better. It was a big job fixing it up, but atleast now I don't have to weed every second of the day.

This isn't quite finished, but you get the idea.

April 2008 Dance Performance

2008-04-27T16:36:00.000-07:00

At the end of April, the girls both had a dance performance to show their family what they learned in class. The girls both did well and had so much fun.

Grandma Adams, Caleb, Uncle John, and Noah.

Naomi on the end in the back row.

Michaela on the end

Caleb!

Naomi doing her tap performance

Michaela in the middle

Around the house

2008-04-25T21:16:00.000-07:00

Playtime at the playground

2008-04-21T21:12:00.000-07:00

Finally a warm day! I took the kids down to the park. Caleb loved the slide and just being able to run. He loves the outdoors, but its hard to leave!

Clap for summer!

Don't ask me what this was about! haha.

Running!

Some more fun

2008-04-20T21:08:00.000-07:00

My husband, the ham.

Silly Sis in law

Smiley Bella

Outdoor fun

2008-04-20T21:02:00.000-07:00

Sim & I fighting over the frisbee

The toddlers are toddling

He's always happiest outside

Play Time!

2008-04-10T20:51:00.000-07:00

We spent an afternoon at Nate & Shannon's place in Cottage Grove. The kids had lots of fun playing Life (do you know that Life is now Electronic...wow), and running around together.

Ducky Days

2008-04-05T20:48:00.000-07:00

One morning, Michaela called me down to the basement window. There was a duck banging his beak against the window. It was very cute. However, I tried to take a few pictures and then he flew off. I wonder if he was trying to get in?

This old house

2008-03-28T20:32:00.000-07:00

On March 28th, a friend and I visited my old house in South St. Paul. This house held alot of memories for me. I had alot of good memories and some bad ones too, but mostly good ones. My sister and I used to skate up and down the driveway and we'd play "war" in the woods with my brother. It always seemed that we were outside doing something. Anyway, it was good for me to visit. I had not seen it since I was a teenager.

This is the long driveway my sister and I spent many days skating on.

The woods has now been replaced by houses..sad day.

That red garage actually used to be pink. I guess its an improvement.

The house still looks the same except they ripped out the sidewalk in front and made it shorter. The neighbor across the way remembered me which was really odd. Overall, it was a good experience to revisit.

An Eating Machine

2008-03-26T20:27:00.000-07:00

Caleb loves to eat, but he's a picky eater. Sometimes its downright maddening. But then there are times when he actually will eat what we give him...and this was one of those times. Otherwise he just throws his food on the floor and throws a fit. Oh the joys!

I can do it all by myself!

Let's see how far this spoon can actually go!

Easter 2008

2008-03-23T20:22:00.000-07:00

Sigh. It's so hard to get a good pic..

Now he smiles..

Big Sis, Little Bro

Our little Man!

2008-03-05T20:16:00.000-08:00

There he goes, there he goes again!! Here are some updated pictures of our little guy. These were taken in March. He has changed so much from even a few months ago. He loves to say "ow si" (Outside) and he talks so much now. He loves to sit in pans too for some weird reason. He's a ham! I'm so thankful to have such a fun, joyful, energetic little boy.

Caleb using our pot as a seat..haha

Naomi's 9th Birthday

2008-02-28T09:52:00.000-08:00

Naomi's 9th Birthday is today, February 28th. It's hard to believe that 9 years ago at 3:44 am, I pushed out this little baby. Now she's 9! Wow. She's been such a sweet girl and she lives up to the meaning of her name which is "pleasant spirit". Naomi is truly a pleasant, lovely little girl and I can't wait to see what kind of lady she becomes. She's a joy to our world.

Here are a few pictures I took of her this morning in her birthday dress. We also made her cake together which the girls had great fun making. I'll put up some more pictures of her too.

Super Bowl Snooze

2008-02-04T19:50:00.000-08:00

If you know me, you know I hate football. So in the meantime, I take pictures of my crazy in laws (well atleast some of them) watching the game. I will never understand gathering in front of a TV and yelling. Newsflash: they can't hear you!

It's a boy thing: Isaiah, Caleb, Simeon & David

Isabella

Shannon & Isabella

The Cousins playing together..awww

Dance Classes!

2008-01-29T19:41:00.000-08:00

In January, the girls both started dance classes with Spirited Feet. The classes are laid back and include ballet & tap. They have so much fun! Michaela is opening up more in her classes and loves her teacher, Ms. Heidi. Naomi is getting better at learning her steps and enjoys being in her class as well. Here are some pictures of the girls in their classes.

Michaela in her ballet class

Naomi with her class & her teacher Ms. Anna (in yellow)

Ms. Heidi (Michaela took this picture..haha)

Michaela tap, tap, tap

Michaela's class

Women's Retreat

2008-01-20T19:34:00.000-08:00

The weekend of January 19th, I headed for Cumberland WI. It was too cold to go outside, but we stayed inside and played games, talked, and got a pedicure, among other things. It was nice to get to know some of the ladies in my Bible Study.

Ann & Cherie

Fearless Leader: Cheryl, Debbi (back), and Cherie

My best buddy & sis in law, Shannon and Me

A beautiful view

Winter Days

2008-01-17T14:54:00.000-08:00

This month, we finally got around to getting Caleb a new seat. He didn't like it at first, but now its cute seeing him in the car and he's actually sitting so we can see him now.

Caleb being fitted for his new car seat

The happy boy!

I signed the girls up for iceskating lessons. The instructor used to skate for Disney on Ice and she's really good with kids. The class can at times be chaotic, with all the boys, but the girls are learning alot and having fun being surrounded by their friends. It's just a cold wait for Mom!

Michaela trying to perfect a move

Amanda, the instructor, teaching Michaela some moves

March, march, glide, STOP!

(There Naomi is in the way back with pink jacket on!)

Ring in 2008 with some pictures!

2008-01-04T14:17:00.001-08:00

Poor Caleb is surrounded by girls all day. The 2 pictures below are the result of being around females only. The girls dressed him up in this apron and I gave him the spatula. It was just too cute to resist. Sorry, little man. Don't be downhearted. Good men cook.

I bought the girls some iceskates and they will be taking lessons starting Jan 9th. They did pretty good breaking them in at the rink near our house. Michaela was scared at first, but then she let go and was even picking up her feet a little. They both did good for never iceskating before.

Snowbound

2007-12-28T12:28:00.000-08:00

It was so bright outside...

My fun girls

Yes, I too can have fun!

Time for hot cocoa!

Christmas Eve

2007-12-24T12:24:00.000-08:00

At JoAnn & Gary's place - Crystal & Caleb

Eating, of course, in his christmas pj's

The Girls new princess tent

Long legs...

Michelle's Family Christmas Party

2007-12-22T12:19:00.000-08:00

On Dec 22nd, we had a Christmas party with my family at my sister Barb's place in Lino Lakes. It was good to see everyone again. The kids all had fun with their cousins.

Naomi & Noah

Daddy & Caleb (eating of course!)

Some family (My sis is in the black/white shirt)

Naomi, Markie, and Michaela

A new adventure

2007-12-17T12:16:00.000-08:00

Caleb had his first time out in the snow. We weren't out there long because I was lacking some gloves for him, but it was fun to watch him in the snow.

Some Christmas Pics

2007-12-16T12:12:00.000-08:00

December Photos!

2007-12-13T12:08:00.000-08:00

Caleb's new haircut

My hack job in the back

Caleb in a princess chair

I think we need another boy!

Gingerbread

2007-12-10T12:03:00.000-08:00

Us girls took a stab at creating this gingerbread house. You think it looks good, but it actually tasted pretty gross. I ended up throwing it out afterwards. We didn't make the thing from scratch, but we did have fun putting it together. The candy wasn't that great tasting nor was the gingerbread...maybe next year we can find one that is actually worth eating which is the best part!

The Adventures of Little Caleb

2007-12-08T11:48:00.000-08:00

You can never learn too young...

Playtime with Daddy & Michaela

All that work! Time to eat!

Ducks in December!

2007-12-05T11:36:00.000-08:00

One morning while we were taking a quick break from school, Michaela noticed in the backyard were some ducks. I went out to investigate off our deck and grabbed some bread. The ducks ran over to the deck and started picking out the bread from the snow. Their beaks were saturated with snow. They were so cute. The kids got a good close up look at some ducks. It was cold outside, but so worth it!

Thanksgiving/Bella's Bday

2007-11-30T15:09:00.000-08:00

Happy 1 year Bella!

The only real thanksgiving photo I took

Little Instigator!

2007-11-30T11:30:00.000-08:00

Caleb has developed a cute personality. He likes to sit and learn with the girls, which sometimes is a huge distraction because he is so funny. He also likes to get into pretty much everything!

Mommy & Me

2007-11-10T15:05:00.000-08:00

November Pics

2007-11-05T15:01:00.000-08:00

Halloween

2007-10-31T14:54:00.000-07:00

The girls were going to be butterflies for Halloween, but instead they found some old dresses in the closet and princess crowns and I made them some wands and they went as fairies. I colored their hair with some fake color spray (which by the way comes out and gets on everything!). It was cold to wear dresses like this so I had them put sweatshirts and gloves on. We went down the block and got plenty of candy in like 10 minutes...it was fun.

More Outdoor Pics

2007-10-17T14:47:00.000-07:00

More ducks!

October Birthdays Celebrations

2007-10-15T14:38:00.000-07:00

In October, my mom took me and my sisters out for lunch. It was a fun time. All of our birthdays are either in August, September or October (including my mom's who turned 70 in October).

Barb, Margaret, and Roberta

My mommy!

Us sisters outside of Applebee's

(L to R) Roberta, Michelle, Margaret & Barb

Signs of Fall

2007-10-01T14:25:00.000-07:00

For school, I took the kids on a nature walk. I told them to find things that reminded them of fall. I took some shots too. It was a memorable day...

Trees changing colors

Odd looking plants

Birds in flight

Crawling things

beautiful colored berries

Wildflowers

Ducks Swimming

My Big Boy!

Shadows

Beautiful!

Birdhouses

September Photos

2007-09-30T14:09:00.000-07:00

Back to School Pictures. We do alot of outdoor stuff when the weather is nice. We like to talk about different seasons, birds, habitats, and just be outside. Simeon even has been in school too. Caleb likes to learn as well although he has no idea its good for him!

See the bird taking flight?

Geese at a field trip

Not a school pic, but cute.

Goofy mom and Naomi

Nature walks

Ducks!

Sim doing school

And Caleb too!

Memorial Day Weekend/State Fair

2007-09-01T13:59:00.000-07:00

On labor day weekend, we ventured out to the MN State Fair. The girls had won a reading contest/drawing at the library and got 3 tickets each, so we brought Nate & Shannon too. I wasn't overly impressed and the kids were hot and tired, but it was ok. Caleb got a bunch of junk in his eye that was blowing around at the fair so he was exhausted after crying so much because his eye hurt. I was glad to go home.

My poor little guy!

I felt this way too!

End of Summer photos

2007-08-31T13:47:00.000-07:00

Uncle Nate & Caleb singing

Daddy & Caleb

Peekaboo!

Fun times at the park

Seesaw

Boys love dirt!

God's beautiful creation

Caleb's Party

2007-08-27T08:25:00.000-07:00

We had Caleb's 1st bday party on Aug 25th even though his birthday isn't until August 29th. John (Michelle's brother) brought his giant bounce for the kids to jump in and we had a pinata and of course, cake, icecream and presents for Caleb. It was a really fun time. Thanks John & Linda for bringing the bounce! You guys rock!

This is where the party was at...whoo hooo

Margaret in the Bounce

I took this while bouncing

Anna's super jump

Caleb in the Bounce

Opening presents

Time for Cake!

Noah & the pinata at war

Michaela takes a crack

Caleb & Daddy's turn

CANDYYYYY!!!!

I'm outta here!

As summer comes to an end...

2007-08-27T08:21:00.000-07:00

Caleb walking around furniture

Head stand

Messy face

Michaela, Naomi, & Emily (our neighbor) playing on the deck

Attention Shoppers

2007-08-20T08:16:00.000-07:00

We often times take the kids to Sams Club together. It's a really funny experience sometimes with 3 kids all in one cart. Anyway, I took my camera along one time and it was funny to watch Caleb and the girls.

This pic cracks me up

Caleb isn't a hugger...beware future wife

Summer Fun

2007-08-16T08:11:00.000-07:00

Isabella & Caleb

Michaela Riding her bike

Sim on the b-ball court

Sim & Nate playing b-ball

American Idol Concert - Aug 2007

2007-08-05T15:28:00.001-07:00

My awesome brother, John and his lovely wife, Linda had some extra tickets to American Idol Concert which was DT St. Paul at the Xcel Energy Center. So I invited Nate & Shannon and brought Naomi as well (although I think she got bored halfway through). We had fun. As Randy would say on AI "It was just alright for me dawg". I think it was just fun to be around my family and crack jokes and get out of the house. Here are some pictures from the event from Saturday, Aug 4th, 2007. Enjoy!

Down under

2007-07-30T11:19:00.000-07:00

I don't know if you've seen our basement or not, but it was craptastic. The previous owners slapped mud and tape on the walls and didn't do it right and so they covered it up with blue paint. It looked ridiculous. The ceiling was a hanging ceiling, also put in incorrectly. We fixed up our basement by redoing everything. We had to mud and tape and sand. That took forever. We ripped out the old ceiling and put in another one. Then we painted (I think I put 5 coats on the walls which = 2 days of painting). Simeon painted the ceiling and then his friend from work came and textured the ceiling. I think it looks ALOT better than it did. We still have to put the carpet in, but its coming along nicely.

Finished walls and ceiling
Another view of the walls/ceiling

We still have to finish this part - the steps that lead to the basement.

Summertime Fun

2007-07-30T11:13:00.000-07:00

Last week, Naomi and I were bored so we played this karaoke game for the xbox. It tells you if you are good or not. The audience boos or applauds you if you can sing or can't sing. Anyway, Naomi beat me. Michelle doesn't got talent..

Naomi singing in the mic

Naomi's character on the TV

I look really stupid, but yes, I am singing

I got Gold!

Like mother, like daughter

The Babies

2007-07-30T10:51:00.000-07:00

Isabella and Caleb are cousins and 12 weeks apart. These are some recent photos of them together playing the piano.

July 2007 - Park & Pond

2007-07-19T10:54:00.000-07:00

Today we went for a walk to the pond and watched the geese. Then we went to the park and had some fun. Here are some pictures from that:

July Pics

2007-07-14T09:31:00.000-07:00

Jailbird (our baby gate at home)

Caleb trying to drink his food...LOL

Michaela...and her silly face

Laughing Baby

2007-07-14T09:30:00.000-07:00

The above video is of Caleb--he has the cutest laugh ever!

June 2007 at G-ma's

2007-07-06T09:03:00.000-07:00

Here are some recent pictures of our trip to Grandma H's house. We had fun with Nate & Shannon (Sim's brother & wife) and the kids had fun playing with Bella and Grandma. It was also nice to see Sim's other family--Uncle Ron & Aunt Cheryl and his cousins who came out to Grandma's while we were there.

The guys (Nate & Simeon) had fun playing Frisbee Golf and us girls (Shannon & I) realized that throwing a frisbee was alot harder than it looked! And as much as the guys said how fun it was, we had to disagree (hehe). Enjoy the pics!

Shannon & Isabella (Bella)

Bella-Bella

Grandma's Wild Kitties

Nate catching a frisbee

Shannon & Bella watching the guys play

Sim & Michaela playing Frisbee

The kids & Grandma enjoying the day

Bella using Caleb as leverage (haha)

Baby kitten hiding in a bush

Corn Fields....
Grandma's Barn

The dirt road to Grandma's House

Nate & Bella

The Kids on Grandma's Swing

Grandma's Barn

Grandma's House (Sim is working on the window)

Caleb back at home with his silly face

Caleb & Bella playing by the deck