Gardening with Grandpa

LW and I went down to Grandpa John's one afternoon. He was wanting some help digging up some yummy vegetables from his garden. LW was the perfect candidate. Grandpa and LW had a blast. I just love to see the two of them interact.

 Gardening Buddies

 LW was sharing her ice cream treat with Grandpa

Ice cream anyone?

Summer Time Fun

We have been having some summer time fun. Going to the splash pad in EP and swimming at Uncle Brad's friends pool. It's been a great summer!

Up North to Lake Mille Lacs

A couple of weeks ago I got to take the girls up to my friend Sandy's cabin on Lake Mille Lacs. We had a blast! The weather was amazing and the girls loved playing by the water or just rock in the water. The most important thing about the whole trip is NW and LW were nervous about the 3 dogs but they sure warmed up to them. NW loved them! Especially the two dogs named Theo and Lucy. We built sand castles and LW loved walking on the dock. NW loved hanging out in the inner tube and rocking with all the waves. We had a great time and can't wait to go up again!

NW just would hang out in the inner tube and laugh.

 LW was driving the big boat.

 NW and Mark (Sandy's husband) hung out and chatted. What a big girl!

LW loved being dragged through the water.

Duluth for the Day

NW and I went to Duluth for the day to watch a bike race at Spirit Mountain. We were only there for a couple of hours and then it started raining. She was a great sport. After the race, we hit a coffee shop, park, climbed Enger Tower, went shopping at Fitger's and went out for pizza. We were in town for about 5 hours and we were busy. It was a great time and I was super proud of her.

Queen of the mountian.

We climbed up these rocks countless times.

Pizza at Clydes. She had 2 pieces and a chocolate milk.

She was wiped out on the way back home.

More Como Zoo

Here are some more pictures from como zoo. Lots of fun!

Daddy & LW on the train.

NW on the front of the train.

LW in her own ride.

Urban Farming

Grandpa John and Rosemary have a bit of land at their house that they grow some vegetables on. Grandpa was saving picking the cucumbers for when NW came by. It was time to harvest the fields. They picked everything, it didn't matter what size the cucumber was. Nothing was safe. They checked the onions, jalapeno peppers and carrots too, but they weren't ready yet. Looks like we get to go back in a few weeks. Stay tuned.

This was the prized cucumber. It was huge, she could barely lift it over her head.

Seeing her looking under leaves and crawling on the ground reminded me of looking for golf balls when I was a kid. It is still a great memory for me and this will always be special to her too. She had a blast.

When they weren't spraying me, they did water the plants.

Look Who Is 4....

NW finally turned 4. She has been anxiously awaiting this day for about 4 months. It was a major milestone for her. In her mind, turning 4 was when she became a big girl. That means no more whining, no more screaming, no breaks and going to the bathroom at night by herself. All of those things were her idea and she came up with them on her own. It has been 5 days and she has been doing pretty well acting like a 4 year old. It was like a switch flipped.It takes 21 days for something to become a habit.

She had 3 parties this year. The first one was for the adults, the second one was on her birthday and the third one was for her friends. She has been in heaven for the past week.

She is a hugger.

Look how excited she is over a roll of duct tape.

Costume change. Wearing all of her gifts.

Grandpa John and the birthday girl.

4 out of 5 looking at the camera.

LW and Grandpa Jim.

A cake from The Bakers Wife. This thing weighed a ton.

You might remember Charlie. He was at the bday party at Michaels. His new thing is that he says he is going to marry NW in 3 years. That might be a little young. But I like him and would be fine if they got married in 25+ years. Until then, keep you hands to yourself.

Of course there was popcorn and of course LW put the hurt on it.

      Isnt it funny that only the boys are looking at me and the girls are looking everywhere else. Back row: LW, Emily, NW, Ella, Mary and Olivia. Front row: Charlie and Anthony.

On her bday we went to Como park and rode the rides and looked a few animals. It was the best $25 I have spent in a long time.

After riding one of the rides she wanted to go check out the other side of the car. She didnt notice the big bar that makes the cars go and she fell and split her lip. It was a little messy and she cried for a little bit. But she rebounded nicely and got back into the bday mood. Taco's, gifts and cake helped.

This was her big bday present...A new bike. Check it out, it is purple with butterflies. Exactly what she said she wanted. I got lucky and someone really made a bike like that.

The Schaffers, the Gettys and the Wings

Just the Wings of Bloomington and St Paul.