I am still trying...

So, it seems these posts keeps getting further and further apart., but I keep trying!! I actually started writing this post on 9/21…and I am just finishing it up now!

Since the last post:

7/12/13 – Joe and I got a night out in Minneapolis! We went to the Kenny Chesney Concert at Target Field. It was an amazing night. We enjoyed fantastic music with fantastic weather! Great time. I was even able to catch up (briefly) with a friend from long ago! Glad we were able to meet up Dawn!

7/18-21/13 – The girls got to have some cabin time with Nonna and Grandpa. Lucky girls. They so love to be at the cabin!! Both of them love to be in the lake and play outside. Leah is still too nervous to try tubing, but she is now navigating the kayak by herself!

7/22-26/13 – Leah got to go to gymnastic camp at Jam Hops. It is a day camp. She just loves gymnastics. She works so hard. She has made so much progress in the last year.

7/29/13 – We went to the 4^th birthday party of my beautiful goddaughter, Kaysee. I love how Kaysee and Amber and Kaylee (her older sister) and Leah are such good friends even though they don’t see each other often! Kaysee was not happy when we were going to bring Kaylee home for a sleepover, so it turned out that I just had to bring her home too!:) So, Amber had her first sleepover. They just played so well together.

7/30/13 –Leah, Kaylee, Amber, Kaysee and I along with Sara, Michael, and Joshua went to Bunker Beach. It was not the nicest day – chilly and cloudy, but not raining – so we decided to brave it and go anyway! The nice thing was that since the weather wasn’t great, we nearly had the place to ourselves. The kids didn’t care, they enjoyed playing in the water and going down the slides! Leah, however, was not fond of the wave pool this year. Fun summer memories!!

8/2-6/13 – The girls and I headed up for more cabin fun. This is the place the girls most like to be during the summer. We also go to see Blake and Drew- my cousins who live in Colorado. We even met Drew’s girlfriend, Stephanie. We had fun visiting with them, and they both are just fabulous with the girls! Delila joined us on 8/4. Her first time at the cabin without Mom and Dad and she did great.

8/9/13 – The girls headed back to the cabin! Can we say that my mom spoiled them a bit this summer. Amber came home on 8/11 and Leah got to stay until 8/15!! They have both gotten to know the neighbors on both sides of my parent’s cabin, that I think they now think they have 3 cabins!! The kids all play so well together. It is so great that they have get to have that experience.  

8/13/13- Amber and I headed to Chippewa Falls to visit my friend Beth and her little cutie Noah. We had a fun day at Irvine Park.

8/15/13 – Leah and Joe had a date night – to the Twins Game. They had a great time. Front row seats, can’t beat that!

8/17/13 – Michael turns 9! So hard to believe that the little man is already 9! He is the son of my great friend, Sara, as well as one of Leah’s best friends. We spent the day helping him celebrate his special day! The weather was perfect for an outdoor party.

8/18/13 – The girls and I went to Duluth to visit Aunt Vicky and Uncle Jim and bonus – we also got to see John and Chris! The girls are just drawn to John and Chris (just like they are with Blake and Drew). I have to say that these young men will all make great fathers someday as they are absolutely wonderful with my girls! We spent the day on the lake. It was a perfect day –boating (both girls loved), trampoline (both LOVED), Jet Ski (Amber loved, Leah not so much), and hot tub (both loved). They were tired souls when we left and it didn’t take long for them to fall asleep on our way home!

8/24/13 – MN Science Museum for the Mayan Ruins exhibit. Amber was a bit young for this experience, lesson learned!!

8/25/13 – MN Zoo – much more pleasant day for both girls. Hot day, but very fun.

8/28/13 – Joe, Leah, Nonna and I went to the Twins game. These tickets were courtesy of Joe’s boss, Thanks Mark! It was fun to take Nonna to her first Twins game at Target Field. They played awful and lost, but we had a fun evening anyway!!

8/30/13- 9/2/13 – Cabin time for Labor Day weekend/ Joe’s Bday.

-We had a beautiful Saturday which was spent enjoying the lake and being outside. Steve, Linda, Kris, Nico and Reese came to visit. We had such a fun day.

-Sunday we decided to head up to Lake Itasca and bring the girls to the start of the Mississippi. It was cold and cloudy. I didn’t pack a change of clothes (I always pack a change of clothes for the girls, not sure why I didn’t). Instead of walking, they decided to swim in the Mississippi! But, remember, it was cold, so their lovely Nonna bought them new clothes because they were freezing! Thanks Nonna!! It really was a fun day shared by Nonna, Grandpa, Joe, Leah, Amber and I with some great memories…including dirty looks from other parents because we allowed the girls to get so wet. They were enjoying it, and I couldn’t tell them no!!

-Monday was Joe’s birthday. Nonna, the girls and I made cupcakes and the girls decorated them. Fun! Joe and Grandpa took the girls out fishing. Amber lost her Barbie Pole to the lake. Oops. Guess she will get a new one next year.

9/3/13 – Leah’s first day of 3^rd grade, plus a new school (East Bethel Community School). We had open enrolled Leah in the school district north of us as it was easier for us for K-2, but we decided this would be the best year to make the transition to our school district. I think I was more nervous for Leah than Leah was about starting a new school. She made friends and likes her teacher, so far so good! She has even gotten 2 birthday party invites since school started. She does miss a few close friends from her old school, but we are trying to make sure that she doesn’t lose touch with them. What I wasn’t prepared for is the reaction Amber would have. She so misses having Leah at daycare. She mentions to me almost daily when we drop of Leah at the before school care that she missed Leah and doesn’t like daycare now that Leah isn’t there. Funny thing is, Amber rarely saw Leah. But, like Joe said, it is all Amber knows to have her big sister there with her!

Through the first week of September – Leah and Amber start Dance class, continued with gymnastics and started swimming lessons. They love to be active and Amber wants to do everything her big sister does. Amber is also enrolled in Soccer Shots at Daycare. She calls all soccer, “soccer shots.” So, if we go by a park where kids are playing soccer, it “soccer shots.”

9/8/13 – Leah finally gets to use her birthday present from Feb 10, 2013! Taylor Swift Concert tickets! I took her to the concert, Joe made her an amazing t-shirt, and Leah and I made a sign. We did the t-shirt and sign to capture the attention of a certain radio station, only to get to the concert and realize that they were not there (they had been at the concert the night before). Oh, well. We had pretty good seats- side of stage, front row of upper deck. Leah was able to see everything and had an amazing time. She sang along with every song. It was a great night.

9/12/13 – We got to spend an evening visiting with some of my extended family – Aunt Susan and Uncle Joel, Aunt Sara, Aunt Linda and Uncle Steve – at dinner at my parent’s house. It was fun to see everyone.

9/21/13 – Leah had 2 friends from her “old” daycare spend the night – Abby and Ava. The three have been buddies since preschool days. Amber got to have a sleepover too – at Grandma Mary’s house (to avoid the “she won’t leave us alone” whine). The girls started out at open gym, then I took them to our house (Joe was gone – painting at the cabin), so it was a girls’ night. We baked cookies, the girls sang and played dress up, and did what 7 and 8 year old girls do! Lucky for me, they crashed by 10:45! I think they all had a really good time.

9/28/13- Nonna, Leah, Amber and I went to Stages Theater to see “Lily’s Purple Plastic Purse.” It was a cute production. Amber struggled to stay still, well, she didn’t stay still. I guess she was paying attention though because she knew what happened during the show.

So, that is July, August and September in a nutshell. I am sure I left out something, but I think that is most of it. Crazy, busy life we have but I wouldn’t have it any other way!! Of course, we have to thank Nonna and Grandma Mary for all they do for us. As a working mom, I can’t always get the kids to their activities , and they help us so much and for that we are so grateful!