Things that get us through the winter

What do you do when the temps are lower than your age? You tough it out and make the best of it. Teyah, Kyler and Dave ventured into the city for a fun trip to the Minnesota History Museum.

We also have been creating some awesome projects at Home Depot each month to keep our minds off the cold.

And don't forget pigging out on treats with your buddy. This is Kyler and his best bud Lauren who love treat time.

We enjoyed attending the Grand Opening of a new shop, Nadia Cakes, that won Food Network's Cupcake Wars.  However, we were having second thoughts when we stood in the line for nearly an hour.

Despite Kyler's enthusiasm in this picture, once we tasted the cupcakes, we had no doubt that the lines in the frigid conditions were well worth the wait.  Simple pleasures like these help us make it through each winter day.

Aubrie's 12th Birthday

Aubrie has wanted an ice cream cake for a long time. Since I was still having some major morning sickness, I knew that birthday number 12 was the right year to satisfy her desire.

True to Aubrie fashion, she had a large party with lots of fun friends.

And of course she requested karaoke.

After the crowds left, Aubrie had some sibling times as she carefully showed her gratitude in a way that only Aubrie can do.

This girl is becoming a lovely young lady! We sure love our Aubrie!

   12 things about Aubrie:
1. an excellent student
2. a fast learner
3. a beautiful ballerina
4. a talented singer and pianist
5. outgoing
6. a talker
7. sensitive to others' feelings and needs
8. a hard worker
9. makes friends easily
10. a talented wordsmith. She loves words and is a brilliant speller and has a huge vocabulary. She amazes me how quickly she picks up difficult vocabulary words.
11. She gets a bit anxious and has some perfectionism, but apparently the apple doesn't fall far from the tree.
12. She prides herself on not being addicted to her phone and not having a social media account.

Bubble bath craziness

Bathtime in mom and dad's jacuzzi tub is always a treat, but especially with an overabundance of bubbles!

Daddy always knows how to make life fun!

Grandma time is the best time

We absolutely loved having Grandma here for Nutcracker, Christmas and New Year's. It seems this may have been her longest visit to our house and it was such a delight! 

The kids enjoyed Home Depot's craft workshop with her.

They enjoyed viewing animals....and having the animals view them at the Como Zoo

Seeing some flowers and color in the winter in Minnesota is always a treat.

This ninja enjoyed playtime and gametime with her.

And of course, we always enjoy some delicious food when she's around!

Christmas Day

Christmas is always such a blast with kids. We were blessed to have Grandma here for the second year in a row to celebrate with us.

These two were surprised when they realized they bought each other the exact same gift!

Ellie went right to work on her easel.

Aubrie's gifts are changing. She isn't receiving toys anymore, but nail polish, jewelry, etc. She also got her first cell phone as a combined gift from her grandparents. This is a pretty big deal.

Kyler seems to come away with some pretty over the top gifts since he is the only boy. This corvette battery-operated mini car was a definite hit! His driving skills seem to match his personality -- intense and sometimes a little reckless!

Christmas Eve Surprise

Every Christmas Eve our kids get to open one small present. This year we decided to let them open one BIG present together. We told them it was something we didn't want them fighting over, and it was something we couldn't take back. As their minds stirred wondering what it could be, they were all a bit confused when they opened it up to find a baby car seat. It wasn't until they read the accompanying chalkboard that those looks of confusion turned to giddy excitement; "188 DAYS UNTIL BABY."

Our kids have begged for a baby sibling for a few years, and Kyler has often talked about "his little brother" as if it were a certainty.  As the night went on and the kids processed it more and more, it was fun to see their excitement rise. This is one Christmas Eve they will never forget.

Christmas Angel

Kyler made his stage debut at "A Christmas from around the World" concert at his preschool. He did not disappoint.

Kyler got to represent the nation of Mexico by saying, "Feliz Navidad"

We really loved it when he slipped on his shades for this song.

And why not a little wink for the ladies. Actually, he winked at me about a hundred times during his show! It was cracking us up! That's why it was so easy to catch on camera! What a little cutie!

The Nutcracker Stars

We may be biased, but this little German doll and angel stole the show.

This year Aubrie had even more parts and costume changes than last year, which created a very busy and stressful Nutcracker.

Because she was a friend in the living room scene, we also had the pleasure..cough, cough...of doing her hair in these awful curlers several times. Just this hairdo alone, was so much work and so exhausting.

The Nutcracker week is like a full-time job for mom with all the behind-the-scenes work. The kids didn't know at the time, but mommy was battling some serious morning sickness throughout the week. Fortunately, Grandma was there to help out!

Aubrie was hoping for well over a year that she may be picked as German Doll. It is a pointe solo in a very fun scene. She was thrilled to do the part and she did wonderful! She dances with strings around her wrists, and Drosselmeyer makes it look like she is a marionette. In her first show, he dropped one of the strings, causing it to go between her legs. But she didn't break her character, and continued to dance her part until she could quickly remove it without a distraction to the audience. Her improvisation and courage to keep dancing was impressive! She also received many compliments on her stage presence.

Teyah also was amazing. She was the "lead" angel and radiated joy as she led all of the angels on stage and also had a separate solo where she pretended to light the Christmas tree with her candle. She also showed great poise on stage when the rat king accidentally dropped the crown and it rolled over the orchestra pit. Part of her role was to take the crown from the rat king, wrap it around her wrist, do her dance, and then give it to the prince at the end of her dance. But when the rat king didn't have the crown, she didn't break character, and continued with the dance. Even though mom was having a panic attack in the audience, Teyah kept her sweet little smile through the whole dance -- even with the prince asking her over and over again for the crown! These little performers impressed their mama!

This Chinese umbrella girl costume was one of our favorites! Aubrie did a great job in this cute little dance in the second act.

And what fun it was to be a Madame Ginger child, sliding down the slide and dancing this cute part.

AND, she was a war soldier, which also changed into a unicorn that pulled Clara's sleigh. She was such a good sport with all these costumes!

A Swashbucklin' Birthday Party

Ahoy Matey! This, here pirate, had one swashbucklin' 5th birthday party. I made a special "pirate's booty" treasure chest full of all kinds of sugary delight.

As you can see, a special pirate, Captain Blackbeard, showed up to the pirate along with several other pirate friends. Kyler has his special "pirate thug" face on.

This party had a treasure hunt and plenty of pirate dancing for all.

His big sisters got into the act as well.

Happy birthday Kyler!

Kyler at 5....

He is a delight to be around. His quick mind, large vocabulary, and zest for life make each day with him a joy! He likes to play Legos and color and play swords and spy. He doesn't like playing by himself, or ever being by himself. In fact, if he has to go to a room of the house by himself he will sing at the top of his lungs so that he isn't scared! He has a great singing voice, by the way, and carries a tune well. He is a great student at preschool and keeps track of his preschool calendar better than an adult. He is independent and capable of many things around the house. He has an amazing memory. He doesn't forget anything. Needless to say, Kyler is a delight!

Thanksgiving Getaway

After plans to have family come to the frozen north for Thanksgiving fell through, we decided to join some of our church friends who were all without family by going north to the Grand View Lodge in Nisswa, MN.

We piled eight families and 30+ kids into a giant cabin in Nisswa, MN.  

 

Many of these families we've known since we moved to Minnesota eight years ago, so it actually did feel like we were with family for Thanksgiving.

 

The cabin had its own "kid section" equipped with a pool table and lots of snacks.

Our kids spent plenty of time watching movies, swimming, playing games, and having kid time.  One of our favorite moments happened when every person in the cabin took time to tell something they were thankful for that happened within the past year. The spirit of gratitude was strong in the cabin that night.



The scenery outside was beautiful.

Although we hit -8 real temp, it was breaktakingly beautiful walking onto Gull Lake and taking in the winter wonderland.