Merry Christmas

We made our annual trek to the Mall of America to visit Santa. This is our 11 year visiting this guy. The girls love him but he seriously needs some new lines! Enjoy the holiday season.

Ellen's Veteran's Day Letter

I attended the Veteran's Day Ceremony at Washburn Elementary today in Bloomington. Ellen and a few of her classmates wrote letters to the veterans and then read them during the ceremony. Here is a video of her reading her letter. I was so proud of her! Enjoy.

Hannah's First Basketball Tournament

Hannah is playing traveling basketball this year. She practices twice a week and plays in tournaments 2-3 weekends a month. Busy, busy. But oh so fun! She is doing great.

Halloween 2009

We had a fun afternoon and evening with our friends the Erdahls. The kids played, trick or treated and sorted their big bags of candy. The girls picked what they wanted to be and we assembled their costumes together. Hannah loves monkeys and when she found the mask it was a natural to be a monkey. Eehh eehh. The glamorous and beautiful Ellen chose Miss Bloomington, crown sash and pretty dress!

Apple Orchard Fun

We had a fun afternoon at Minnetonka Apple Orchard in September.
Pumpkins, goats, corn maze, picking apples and a hay ride through the woods. Good fall fun!

The Relaxed Final Days of Summer

There is nothing better than the smiles on my kids faces as we cruise around Little Birch Lake. We are truly blessed!

Gopher HOME Game

For the first time in 28 years there was a HOME game at the University of Minnesota. Wayne and my cousin Jim were lucky enough to get tickets from my brother for the first game. It was a pretty great show and they had a great time. Lots of excitement over the new digs and a great win over Airforce.

Target Book Festival at Highland Park

We made our annual visit to Book Festival today. We had a great time even if it was hot and humid. Now that fall is here, summer has decided to arrive. The girls enjoyed stopping at all of the craft booths and listening to the various presenters on stage. We listened to Mia Hamm read her book and then stood in line to have her sign a copy of her book for Ellen and Hannah's bag. We also heard from Mary Casanova, the author of the American Girl Chrissa books. Hannah even asked a question! Hannah got two books for the author to sign, one for her and one for her friend's birthday present. Ellen had her sign her bag and they both had their picture with her. We saw a few friends and after a spin through the jumpers, went home exhausted.

1st Day of School

Hannah and Ellen were both excited and just a little nervous about the first day of school. It went very well. Both girls came home excited about their new teachers and classrooms of friends. They even humored me with all of my photos. Hannah gave me the. "oh mom, I am in 5th grade, enough with the pictures already," and then cheerfully smiled for me! Ellen on the other hand gave me the hand and "no more pictures mom." I fear there will be no pictures of her in 5th grade!

Horse Camp at Camp Christmas Tree

Hannah and Ellen had fun with their friend Inga at Camp Christmas Tree for the week. They spent some time with the horses and the rest of the day doing fun camp stuff. Arts and crafts, archery (a big favorite!), kayaking, swimming, making lanyards, singing songs and hanging out with new friends and cool counselors. They spent their evenings with Nana enjoying her company as well as the Disney Channel!

Bloomington Slow Pitch Cubs Champions!

Hannah's team had a great season this year and finished in first place. They also played some great games in the tournament to become the tournament champions as well! It was a fun weekend of great softball, even if it did a number on the parents nerves! We were so proud of them, they did a great job and had a lot of fun.

A wet trip to the zoo?

Did it rain? No, it was hot! The kids had a fun time running through the water fountains to cool off. We had a fun time with our friends the Bowmans.

A cultural afternoon at the Mpls Institute of Arts

The girls, Hannah's friend Leah and I went downtown to spend some time checking out the art at the Institute. We enjoyed listening to the descriptions at some of the pieces and read about others ourselves. We saw a nice mix of modern and classic things. The girls had a nice time and learned some things along the way. Ellen brought her sketchbook and did some nice drawings.

Cabin Fun with Ellen's friend Abegail

Ellen's friend Abegail is moving to Washington DC. We will all miss her very much. We brought her to the cabin for a long fun good-bye. She got to experience a lot of first with us. Her first loon sighting, tube ride, kayaking, sparklers, driving the boat and hiking around in the woods.

Girls Just Wanna Have Fun... and SHOP!!

Field trips to the MN State Capitol and Gibbs Farm

Mommy was able to accompany both girls on their spring field trips. Hannah's class learned a lot at the State Capitol and the MN History Museum. While Ellen's class went back in time at Gibbs Farm near the University of MN.

AWARDS DAY!

Wayne and I were two very proud parents on Awards Day at Washburn Elementary. Both of our girls received multiple awards. We were so very proud of them. Hannah received the Principal's Award for most improvement. Ellen received the Superintendent's Award for Academic Excellence along with a Math Award for getting better than 95% on all of her math tests for the year and a participation award for Fermi Math, along with an award for "all around outstanding character." They were so excited and surprised. Both of us were there to see them stand proud. It was a great day.

The Washburn Wildcats present Our School Musical

Hannah and Ellen did a great job along with all of the other drama club students in their presentation of Our School Musical. They sang and danced and both girls had some lines to say. Ellen even had to sing a little solo.

Bruce Springsteen Rocks the XCel Center

and Wayne and Michelle are on hand to witness it. In a "dream come true" night, Wayne gets to see Bruce in concert. We were behind the stage but really close. He came to the back of the stage several times to sing to us and the jumbo trons gave clear pictures of the close-up shots. A good time was had by all. :)