LivingFamily

Ringing in 2012 (About 4 hours early. . .oh well!)

2011-12-31T21:04:00.000-06:00

2011 has been a great year for many reasons. Most of them have to do with the wonderful friends and family that we are surrounded with.

I have had a blast (and hope to continue) singing at church and watching my kids become quite comfortable with the church surroundings and people. (Much like my church growing up--which I am grateful to have found a place that reminds me of that.)
Tyler has been working toward his administration degree and we all look forward to him finishing that up in the new year. Hopefully it will bring him new exciting career challenges.
Zoey has been having a great year at Wildwood--she loves everyone there! Her New Year's Resolution is to try to be less wiggly when sitting on the circle rugs.
Zander is happy as a clam at daycare. Most likely the next big change for him will be enrolling in some summer classes and starting some sort of preschool experience in the fall.

I started a new tradition tonight and interviewed each kid separately to get a snapshot of what the kids are like at this age. My hope is to remember to do this each year and see what happens.

1st Annual 2011 Time Freeze:

Zander age 4
Zoey age 6 1/2

What is the best thing about you?
Zoey: It's just like how I feel. . .happy, sad, mad, excited. . .well A LOT excited.
Zander: That I'm cute.

What is your favorite supper?
Zoey: Chicken Parmesean
Zander: Peanut Butter and Jelly

What will you be when you grow up?
Zoey: A rock star and a teacher.
Zander: Spiderman

What do Mommy and Daddy do when you are at daycare?
Zander: Going to work.

What are you good at?
Zoey: Star Wars and Tundercats and Clone Wars
Zander: Fighting

What is your favorite toy?
Zoey: My all around the world dolls and Barbie and Ken.
Zander: Spiderman action figure

Who is your best friend?
Zoey: Ellie, Amiah, and Anabel
Zander: Sammy

What is something that Mommy always says to you?
Zoey: Pick up your room.
Zander: That I'm cool.

What makes Daddy happy?
Zoey: His kids.
Zander: That I love him.

How old is Mommy?
Zoey: 36?
Zander: 100?

How old is Daddy?
Zoey: It's either 34 or 24?
Zander: 400?

How old is Nana?
Zoey: You got to be kidding me! Old!
Zander: I don't know.

What is your favorite place to go?
Zoey: Star Wars Wonderland in my dreams.
Zander: Grandma and Grandpa's cabin.

What is your favorite TV show/movie?
Zoey: Star Wars and Thundercats
Zander: Superheros

What is your favorite book?
Zoey: Star Wars chapter book AND Junie B. Jones--she is FUNny!
Zander: Superheros

How do you know Mommy and Daddy love you?
Zoey: Hugs and Kisses
Zander: Because I'm cute.

What always makes you laugh?
Zoey: When Mommy looks at me funny.
Zander: (makes monkey noises)

When are you allowed to get married?
Zoey: 18?
Zander: 6

Why does Spiderman wear red tights and a mask?
Zander: Cause he doesn't want any bad guys to see he's a person.

What is the hardest thing about being a kid?
Zoey: When I always have to clean my room and listen to what parents have to say.

What is the best gift you have ever been given?
Zoey: Mommy and Daddy
Zander: Spiderman

If you could be invisible for one day, what would you do?
Zoey: I would sneak up on kids and pick up frogs and make it look like a haunted house.
Zander: I would touch people and I couldn't see them.

If you could make up one rule that everyone in the world had to follow, what would it be?
Zoey: They have to watch Thundercats or Star Wars once a night.

Of all the things you are learning in first grade, what will be the most important when you are a grown up?
Zoey: Science.
Why?
Zoey: Because I'm going to do science about rocks sometimes.

What makes you a good friend?
Zoey: I think its whats inside.
Zander: To be nice.

Whats your favorite color?
Zoey: pink and rainbow
Zander: Blue

What is your favorite song?
Zoey: Star Wars Theme
Zander: Away in the Manger

What makes Mommy happy?
Zoey: When I go to sleep.
Zander: Loving her and hugging her.

What did I learn about my kids from this interview? They are extremely kind and loving children who are obsessed with superheroes and Star Wars. Could be worse. . .

2011 Christmas Program

2011-12-21T21:07:00.001-06:00

I made a montage of my favorite moments from the kids' Christmas program this year. Some of the highlights are Zoey having a speaking part (There are no small roles, only small actors!), Zander doing the actions for Away in the Manger (look for the cutie on the left), and Zoey standing on her tiptoes in order to get her face by the microphone and singing Glory to Glory with as much heart and gusto as any 1st grader I've ever seen! I also think that Zander yawning at the end is darn adorable!

Zander's Christmas card

2011-12-21T20:38:00.000-06:00

Zander is in a very giving mood this Christmas. Plus, it seems overnight he has learned how to draw and color pretty darn well, in my humble opinion! This intricate picture above is drawn especially for his friend Sammy at daycare. It is a picture of Batman and Robin. There is rain coming from above and that thing on the left is the rain catcher. There is also an airplane up in the sky.

Zoey's First Piano Recital

2011-12-21T20:07:00.001-06:00

Santa Claus is Coming to Town. . .Then and Now

2011-12-21T18:02:00.001-06:00

Our Shining Stars

2011-12-18T21:08:00.000-06:00

Both our kids got a chance to be in the spotlight today. It was St. Mark's Christmas program today. Zander was a sheep with all of the preschool-Kindergarten kids and Zoey was a talking sheep. . .Bah Bah Lou! She sold all two lines! She also sang a duet in one of the songs. We were so proud of both kids today. This was Zander's first extended time in front an audience and he sang and did actions and everything. Zoey has reaffirmed her love for acting today and told me after the Christmas program, "Next time I'm in a play, I want MORE lines!"

Then later on in the day we got ready for Zoey's very first piano recital at the historical Fillebrown House in White Bear Lake.

Zoey's fan club consisted of Nana, Poppa, and Auntie Tammy, Grandma and Grandpa Nyhlen, and of course Zander, Mom, and Dad.

Zoey and her teacher Ginny Gadbois Green (also her 1st grade music teacher)

Then of course, there's Zander. . . .

Letters to Santa. . .Ready to Go!

2011-12-07T07:21:00.001-06:00

Zoey's Self-Portrait

2011-12-05T22:26:00.001-06:00

Zoey did this as part of her Media class at school. I think that it is perfect and embodies almost everything that I love about my daughter!

Happy November (and early December)!

2011-12-03T21:53:00.000-06:00

On Thanksgiving Day we went over a few bridges to Nana and Poppa's house to celebrate with the family. It was a fabulous day of relaxing and letting other people play with my children, while I read through all the Black Friday ads. :-) The kids enjoyed teaching Nana and Tammy how to play Sorry and they played dress up and went outside (for of course more lovely weather) to play.

Both kids are still addicted to Star Wars. They turn EVERYTHING into a star wars reference. (If you use the words force or darkside--you will be sure to hear about Star Wars!)

Their other obsession at the moment is Wizard of Oz--due to the most recent outing with Nana and Tammy to the Children's Theatre performance.

Zander is all about dressing up and creating these elaborate costumes--that really don't need to be anything all that special--but make sure to follow his lead. When he wanted to be a magician, he told me that we needed a costume. "We can make a hat and I wear black shirt and pants, ok? Is that a good idea?"

On the morning of Thanksgiving, Tyler and I were taking advantage of sleeping in a bit and I heard the kids out on the couch getting all excited about their weekend. Zoey said, "Zander, do you know what day it is? It's the day BEFORE WE DECORATE FOR CHRISTMAS!!!!" Yep, not Thanksgiving, but Christmas Decoration Eve. Friday is always a fun day for us. We thoroughly clean the house (more fun for me than the kids), put out our decorations, then cozy up on the couch as a family and watch Elf for the first time of the season. Great memories!

Here is another one of Zander's costumes. Can you guess who he is?

(Tin Man)

Zoey had a double dose of playdate with her friend Anabel last week. Two playdates in a row! What a deal! These two girls have more creativity and personality in their little fingers than I have in my whole body! I love watching these two get together. Of course my favorite thing was when Anabel was coming over to our house on Friday, Zoey leans over to her and says, "My brother Zander is SO annoying!" (She neglected to tell Anabel that she absolutely adores her brother and plays with him almost all the time.)

Boo! It's October!

2011-11-30T21:08:00.000-06:00

Spiderman is climbing the walls again!

And apparently singing in a band.

This year, as tradition goes, we took the Plumbs and the Livingstons off to McDougall's Apple Junction down near Hastings. It was a rare 80 degree fall day--making looking for pumpkins and enjoying the activities a little harder to bare in the heat. It was, as always though, a good time for all. You can see from the pictures that the kids are growing like weeds. I give it about two more years and Zoey will be at the top of this sign--Zander not far behind!

Zoey kind of loves her Auntie Tammy--can you tell?

In October we also went to the Mahtomedi Halloween Ball at the high school. Again, it was a beautiful evening and the kids left on a hayride around the area as part of the festivities.

We out to Perkins (I know, suprise, right?) after the Halloween Ball and while we waited for the food to come, Zoey drew a great picture of me. (Make sure that you read the directions above her picture.)

Zoey was estatic the day she was picked to be the VIP for the week in her classroom. She went to town on her poster and knew exactly what she wanted to share with the class. The highlight of the poster is the picture of her very own 1st grade teacher, Mrs. Marshall, holding her when she was only 2 months old. Apparently, the whole class got a kid out of that one.

Over a long weekend in October, we took the kids up north to see Grandma and Grandpa and then stopped by to visit the cousins and Uncle Robby and Aunt Nicole. I am always so happy to see how the kids get along so well and enjoy being together.

We went to our friends' annual Pumpkin Carving Party--it was on Oct. 29th and would you believe that it was yet ANOTHER gorgeous day? Of course, as tradition goes, the kids helped out with the pumpkin carving for-oh- about 10 minutes and left the rest for Tyler and I to do.

Halloween night--the menu included cooked mice (my favorite) and brains. Yum!

Then FINALLY it snowed a little and the kids were able to go out and play in some white stuff. Or maybe I should say that Zoey was finally able to go out and EAT some white stuff. She loves her some snow! :-)

Zoey's Halloween Song--The Hungry Spider

2011-10-31T06:59:00.000-05:00

Zander's Ghost Song! Don't Be Scared!

2011-10-31T06:55:00.000-05:00

Renaissance Fair

2011-10-02T18:37:00.003-05:00

This weekend, I took the kids to the Renaissance Fair for a few reasons. First, I had free tickets. Second, Tyler needed some time to finish up some school work. And third, it was a fantastic day to be outside enjoying some good people watching. The people I had my eye on were 4 and 6 years old and enthralled with all the fair goers in costume and all the costume merchandise that was around.

If I were made of money, I would have bought everything for the kids, because they obviously have a knack for dressing up and playing make-believe. Zander is constantly asking me to "make" him costumes of his favorite super heroes and to dress up as a king or a knight. So when I told the kids where we were going on Saturday they immediately went and suited up for the occasion.

Zoey (as always) was picked to join the festivities at the Children's Realm. She learned a new dance before we went to make our magic wands.

Both kids spent a lot of time trying to work the Crystal Styx. It is an impressive talent if you can practice a lot.
I would have to say that the highlight for me was riding the elephant (because there were a ton of elephants back in the renaissance days.) Although, the ride didn't last long enough for what we paid for--at least I can say that we have ridden an elephant.

A Zoey standard at all fair events--getting her face painted.

My little king.

First Day of School!

2011-09-06T20:19:00.003-05:00

Zoey is officially a Wildwood 1st grader! I dropped her off this morning with mixed emotions--she is growing up SO fast! Her teacher this year is Mrs. Marshall. Zoey told me today that she is pretty much the nicest teacher around. I know that Zoey had a great first day at school by all that she told me after school. She got to go to music and Spanish class today. One of her classmates had a birthday and brought treats! She already has a lot of friends and she wants to go back tomorrow. So all in all a great start.

Another new thing for Zoey this fall will be piano lessons! Zoey will be taking lessons from her music teacher--she thinks that is pretty cool! I am looking forward to hearing her learn more songs than Hot Crossed Buns.

Both kids will start swimming lessons in about 2 weeks. They both made so much progress this summer with their swimming, we are looking forward to them even learning more.

Zander will be taking a sports sampler class in October. It is time to get him into some organized activities. This one is a parent/child class--so that will be a blast!

Tyler starts up with his Administration classes again tomorrow night. This go around: School Financing--sounds riveting, huh?

I plan on just trying to keep everything moving smoothly and get the kids where they need to go when needed.

Other Florida Highlights. . .

2011-09-01T20:46:00.000-05:00

One of the highlights of our Florida vacation (and the reason that spurred it all) was that I got to see and visit with my grandparents for a few days. It has been quite a while since I had been down to Florida. We played cards (Garbage of course.) Zoey played checkers with great-grandpa. We went out to eat and we enjoyed their company! Above is all of us at the Cracker Barrel restaurant.

Swimming at the pool.
This is the hotel room after our day at Epcot. The kids had just gotten their Star Wars action figures and they literally sat on the floor (after an exhausting day) for an hour and played very nicely together before conking out for the night.

Zoey and I at Steak n' Shake. The hats were the best!Here is Zander the morning of our return trip at the airport. NOT a happy camper.

Zoey was glad to be home!

Zander was even happier. . .

The Atlantic Ocean

2011-09-01T20:36:00.001-05:00

On our vacation this summer we made an afternoon of seeing the ocean. My first inclination was that the waves would scare the children and they wouldn't want to swim there that long--I was so wrong. Both kids loved the big waves and the nice soft sand. It was a blast for us too!

If you look closely in the picture below, you just might see Zoey underneath that big wave. It hit her fast and hard!

She looked a little defeated when she emerged from the wave, but it didn't stop her from spending every minute she could jumping the waves.
Zander enjoyed the water as much as Zoey did. He, of course, was always with one of us, but he almost always had a smile when the waves crashed by.

The waves created puddles (or more like ponds) in the sand. The shallow water and the sun made the ponds very warm. Zoey dubbed it her "spa" and liked to sit in the water and soak.

Zander and I fought the waves and we won!

More Disneyworld & Florida Pictures

2011-08-31T22:12:00.000-05:00

Zander went off exploring with Daddy for a bit. He found Mickey, Minnie, and the Swiss Family Robinson treehouse. He really liked that one.

Above. . .Zoey is practicing to be a street performer. It may actually happen one day!

A highlight for both kids was all the Star Wars stuff. In the store above, you were able to build your own lightsaber. Zander made himself a green one, but Zoey at the last minute opted for her Minnie Mouse princess.

Zoey joined every conga line she could.

I think they each one a game. We will have to have a tie breaker some day soon!

What? Its the end of summer?

2011-08-31T21:21:00.002-05:00

So you are probably thinking that we didn't do anything over the summer because Judy is usually so good about updating the blog on a regular basis. Well. . .that is just not true. The truth is we were so busy, we haven't have any time to put all our great pictures up on the blog. So to make up for lost time this and the next few posts will hopefully bring us all up to speed. It may not be in the exact order that it all happened--but the gist is there.

In July, Zoey spent one of the hottest weeks of the summer at Tamarack Nature Center. She got to go on lots of hikes, learn a lot of new games, and enjoy a lot of nature.

We spent a bunch of weekends at the cabin up at Grace Lake. It is quickly becoming one of the kids' favorite places to be. They get to swim when ever they want, they know every one on the complex, there are other kids to play with, Grandma and Grandpa are there, and they fixed up the playhouse with Grandma. That was a big deal this summer too! They spent a whole 5 days away from Mommy and Daddy up at the lake. They did great!

Earlier this summer, I had to buy a new pair of sunglasses. So I went to the best place around. . .Poppa's work! The kids can with and got to see where Poppa spent his time and who he worked with. They loved trying on glasses.

Despite all the trips and things going on, we also did enjoy some downtime at home in the backyard just playing around.

Zoey and Zander with the neighbors.

The church near our house puts on a summer fair each year and it seems to have more and more each time we go. This year's new thing was the bungee jumping. . .Zoey all over it!

DISNEYWORLD!!!!

2011-08-31T21:00:00.000-05:00

What a trip this was! I can't even describe how much fun it was to see the kids meet their Disney idols and be able to talk to them and get their autographs! Even though the weather was very hot and we got tired, we all had a great time! Grandma and Grandpa were there to share the fun. Grandpa told me when we were planning the trip that he couldn't wait to see Zoey's reaction to the Disney castle and the princesses. It was all that could be imagined. When we got to Magic Kingdom in the morning, we walked in the front gates and it actually took a while for the kids to notice the castle. But when they did, their mouths dropped and Zoey went all giddy with excitement. It was priceless!

Zoey, in her true fashion, joined every dance party available to her. Below is her dancing with Baloo the Bear (from The Jungle Book). Zander, in his true fashion, took a more reserved approach and watched things mostly from afar. Although he did join in some dancing later on in the day.

Mulan was a must-see when we went to Epcot.

Grandma and Grandpa were celebrating their 38th anniversary the week we were in Florida. Happy Anniversary!
Princess Aurora signed the inside of Zoey's princess hat. She told Zoey that it was their secret. I'll never tell a soul. Oops. . .

There are so many pictures that we took at Disneyworld that I had a hard time choosing what to put up on the blog. On of my projects this fall is to put all our pictures in a photo album and have the kids help me write captions about what they remember from our trip. Then we can always remember what a great time we had.

Mid-Summer Report

2011-07-22T10:29:00.002-05:00

So I have a lot of catching up to do with the blog and that will come as soon as I have the time and energy (at the same time). It has been a busy summer. The kids have accomplished A LOT and there have been some funny quotes that need to be documented. Here we go:

Zoey

Has learned how to ride a two wheeler!
Has learned how to tie her shoes!
Took swimming lessons for 2 weeks and now can float and go under the water effortlessly (with goggles).
Went to Nature Camp and survived the hottest week of the summer!

Zoey-isms:

June 9th: So I have a headache and Zander saw my pills sitting on the counter and asked what they were. Zoey told him is was "ass brain" to help mommy's head.
May 19th: Another Zoey quote: "Mommy, the screen porch is looking very nice! You're doing a nice job. Soon it will be old again and you will need to fix it. . .that's the life cycle you know."

Zander

Is POTTY-TRAINED!
Took swimming lessons and is quite brave in the water now.
Obsessed with Batman and superheros.
Loves to play dress-up: knight in shining armor, batman, pirate, cowboy.
Has taken an interest in making everything into a gun and shooting people.

Zander-isms:

Topic: death. Zander: When I die you will be sad. But then I come ALIVE again. Me: I would be really sad if you die. But once your dead you don't come back to life. Zander: Uh-huh! Remember Jesus? (Wow! He is really listening!)
"Zander! Stop running! You're going to fall!" Zander tells me, "I was running to tell Zoey not to run!" I reply, "So you broke the rules to tell Zoey not to break the rules?" Zander comes back, "Well that's what police guys do!" (I wasn't expecting that one.)
Dinner conversation tonight: bullies. Zoey and I were talking about what to do if a bully was around. Zander says, "Be careful, bullies don't like red."

Both Kiddos:

Were recently introduced to the magic that is STAR WARS. Zoey didn't want to watch it at first--but has really gotten into it. Both she and Zander are pretty good at telling about the plot and the characters. Their Star Wars knowledge is now far greater then their mom's.
Will be spending their first week at Camp Grandma and Grandpa next week--as I will be out of town for a conference and Tyler will be working. It will be the longest time they have ever been away from mommy/daddy. Might be harder on me than them.

May and June

2011-07-07T14:23:00.004-05:00

In May we took the kids to the Wildwood/OHA School carnival. It was a lot of fun and when I asked Zoey what her favorite part was, she said it was meeting the king and the queen (aka the principals of the two schools.)

Zander has been experimenting with different hairstyles. He calls this one his spiky hair.

May Projects

2011-07-07T14:03:00.005-05:00

With the amazing help of my cousin Allen, we were able to finally redo our porch and deck. It is now one of our favorite spots in the house. Now that the kids are a bit more independent, Tyler and I have spent many nights on the porch--it is so relaxing!

Now when anything in our house needs to be fixed, the kids tell us to call Allen.

Zoey's 6th Birthday Party

2011-06-11T21:07:00.001-05:00

Zoey had her very first friend party at Flips' Gymnastics Center. She was very excited and she and her friends got to spend an hour jumping and tumbling in the gym, followed by cake and presents afterwards.
Above is the birthday crew including Anabel, Zander, Jocelyn, Anna, Hazel, Kristie, Zoey, and Kylie.

Funny kids!

Annie (as told by Nana)

2011-06-09T21:22:00.004-05:00

I'd been holding three tickets to ANNIE for what seemed like a year (9 months...). I thought this would be a perfect play for Zoey's sixth birthday and that she would find it really exciting. After I ordered two tickets, I suddenly thought, "Gee, my grown up little girl never got to go to a play likeAnnie. Tammy used to love Annie. Why don't I see if she can come, too." I got lucky and was able to get Tammy a ticket sitting right with us row three center stage. Perfect!

Auntie Tammy and I picked up our little ball of energy all ready to go. She was dressed in her red and white ladybug dress with her hair curled - a Zoey first - just to celebrate Annie. She seems like a miniature adult sometimes with her insightful conversation, though.

The play was done strictly sticking to the original. The staging was done extremely well. The acting, singing and dancing was thoroughly entertaining. I recognized my favorite actors in new roles. Zoey was mesmerized and applauded exuberantly. She is becoming so accustomed to the theatre that she knows her way around. The souvenir area always draws her but even though I was tempted to buy her something like a t-shirt or cap, I only bought her a $1.00 button that says "I love Annie" I didn't want to start a habit of her expecting a toy or something every time we went some place. She held on to the button all through the play even when she was sitting in my lap toward the end. Unfortunately, this may be the last year she will sit in laps. She is growing so much.

Zoey can read so well that she was able to sift through the program and find next years listing of plays. "Nana, can we go to this one too?" (pointing to Pippi Longstocking). "Nana, can we go to all of them? Can we bring Zander with us?" Looking at where she was pointing I noticed "TheWizard of Oz" ohhh! "Yes, Zoey, we have to go to some of these. How about The Wizard of Oz! That is Auntie Tammy's favorite movie!"

We started home in the car and Zoey was still perusing the program. "Nana, Madagascar is also coming. Can we go to that one, too?" "Oh, that would be a good one!" I said.

"Nana, I want to do that. I want to be an actress like them."

"You,d be good at it, Zoey."

Birthday Extravaganza Continues. . .

2011-05-31T21:27:00.003-05:00

Happy Birthday my sweet Zoey! It has been a wonderful 6 years so far. You have made us laugh and cry. We are proud of everything that you do. Although, we don't want the years to go too fast, we are excited to continue to watch you grow and learn. Please always be the sweet, genuine princess that you are! Love Mommy and Daddy

It was quite the day for Miss Zoey. "Dress Your Best" Day just happen to coincide with her birthday day--which meant everyone at school dressed their nicest. Zoey brought donut holes to daycare for a treat and mommy dropped off the cupcakes for her class at school--they had the brightest neon colored frosting I had ever seen. Not natural, but definitely matching with Zoey's color schemes. She got to eat a Dairy Queen lunch with her teacher, Mrs. Kostuch. We won that from the silent auction at her school carnival. Then she got to celebrate a little more with her daycare family and then again tonight with Zander, Daddy, and me. She basically turned the day into her own Yes Day (based on one of our favorite books by the same title written by Amy Krause Rosenthal.) We had to say yes to everything she asked. So. . .she got to stay up late, have extra screen time, climb up the ladder in the backyard (with daddy spotting her, of course), have lots of cake, etc. All in all it was a pretty good day!
She also really liked the present from us. . .her very own scooter.

Zoey's Birthday Season--Part 1

2011-05-29T21:27:00.003-05:00

As much as I don't want it to happen, Zoey grows up a little bit more each day. On Tuesday, May 31st she will turn 6 years old. Since we are not throwing a big family party this year, Zoey will celebrate her birthday in parts. Today was part 1--Nana and Poppa cam over for dinner and dessert to help Zoey celebrate her birthday. Zoey was especially excited to receive another Magic Ticket as a gift. This ticket will get her, Nana, and Auntie Tammy into the play Annie next Sunday! It is now a tradition to go to plays with Nana--the kids love it! She also received some nice clothes--including a nightgown.

There was also a package from Grandma and Grandpa Nyhlen waiting for Zoey. We let her open it tonight only to find this super cool bed-tent! Just perfect for a princess! Tonight after Tyler put her to bed, she had some adjustment issues with the tent. She came upstairs crying that it was scary in the tent and that she felt like there were monsters in her room. I of course told her she was crazy--however I took her back downstairs to reset her. As I was tucking her in again, she said, "The girl on the box looks so happy while she sleeps!" I promised her that she will look that peaceful too when she finally falls asleep.

On a different note. . .here is a picture of the kids when they returned from a random trip to the public library. It makes me happy that they can't even wait to get up the stairs before they start digging into their books.
Zander has a new found interest in learning his letters thanks to my iPad. He came up to me today and said, "Let's learn more letters on the iPad, Mommy!" (You had to be there to really appreciate this, but when he says iPad, he points to his eye--I love that kid!)

The Livingston Porch Band

2011-05-29T21:04:00.001-05:00

The Family Show

2011-04-25T12:52:00.001-05:00

I am sure glad that I got to video tape this show! I think the director should win an award for this!

Try to Knock Me Down!

2011-04-24T21:50:00.000-05:00

Zander invented a new game. The rules are simple. Throw a ball at him and try to knock him over. Notice how most of us were being gentle. . .but then there was daddy!

Easter (or as Zoey called it. . ."THE BEST DAY EVER!!!"

2011-04-24T20:07:00.008-05:00

I have to admit, my favorite holiday is Easter. I love the message of Easter, the church service, the music, and mostly the memories that have been made playing in the backyard after a big Easter dinner. We have been fortunate to have beautiful weather on Easter--so playing in the sun has been fantastically fun! Here are more than a few pictures highlighting our day.

The day started bright and early with an Easter Basket hunt. The riddles, read by Zoey herself, led them all over looking for clues. The mailbox was just one of the places they had to go. They finally did find the baskets. . .in the bathtub!

Grandma and Grandpa Nyhlen came to visit for the whole weekend. On Sunday afternoon Nana, Poppa, Tammy, and Eric came to join us. Zander started the party with a little friendly sword fight with Nana. Argh. . .

After dinner, there was another egg hunt in the backyard.
I have to say, they are getting better at finding the eggs.

Zoey and Zander tried to catch Uncle Eric while playing "Frogger" on the swing set. It is an unsafe childhood game I remembered from my elementary days. One player had to walk down the middle of the swing set while everyone was swinging and try not to get hit--doesn't that sound like a good time?

Zoey wanted to be a human sling shot. Just wait until we introduce her to the game Angry Birds--I think she'll get a kick out of that.

She still has some mad hula-hooping skills. She just keeps getting better.

We have to give credit to Grandma for trying to show Zoey up.
It was a valiant effort on her part.

Nana and Grandma played a little game of Noodle Hockey.

Little Slugger

Gracie hid from all the excitement. She didn't like the game that used a big ball.

The Livingstons and The Plumbs

Zoey may be getting a bit old for this game. But daddy proved that he could still throw her up in the air (without dropping her!).

Another Lost Tooth

2011-04-04T18:37:00.001-05:00

It has been loose forever, but tonight when I dropped Zoey while we were dancing, the top front tooth finally came out!

March Maddness

2011-04-03T20:17:00.006-05:00

Happy Birthday to Dr. Seuss (March 2nd). Zoey chose to go to school all decked out in Seuss gear. She borrowed my shirt and a Cat in the Hat hat--she was very proud of her ensemble.

I got some free t-shirts from school--since Zoey rides the Gopher bus to school this year, she was very excited to get a shirt with Goldie Gopher.

Zander has basically given up napping in the afternoon when he is at home with us. However, every once in a while his tiredness catches up with him and he ends up like this. . .

. . .at quiet time.

First time trying to rollerskate

As a fun girl scout outing, we took the family to try out roller skating. It didn't take me or Tyler very long to remember how to skate (although we both figured we haven't done it since about our middle school days.) It is a lot harder now that we are in our thirties, though.

The kids both gave it a try. Zoey gave it a girl scout effort. . .even though she was very unstable the entire time, she didn't want to leave and she wanted to keep trying. Zander, however, did not like the feeling for rolling around. He opted to just run around in his shoes.

Still smiling, even after taking a fall. . .that a girl!

2011-03-02T20:29:00.002-06:00

"Kisses aren't treats. They're love." ~ Zander, Age 3.5

Head-head. . .tomp-tomp. . .tummy FULL!

2011-03-01T20:08:00.003-06:00

There are a lot of dance parties going on at our house lately. One of Zander's favorite shows is Yo Gabba Gabba and one of the bits is called Dancey Dance. Most the time a famous person will come on the show and teach the kids/characters a new dance move. The video above shows Zanders original dancey dance moves. He narrates it just like the show. "Head-head. . .tomp-tomp. . tummy FULL!"

Fun facts about the kids at this moment in time:

Zander can't say his s-blends. (Hence the cuteness that is tomp-tomp. He will also ask for us to read a tory, and let us know when he is cared.)
Zoey can read just about anything. Today she read all about Helen Keller and was very interested in how she went to college when she was 20 years old!
Zoey can't stand guacamole.
Zander still doesn't eat much meat.
Zander has become totally comfortable at church. When I am singing up front, he will just walk up and hand me his garbage or stand next to me or go hang out in front of the alter--just for kicks. At least he keeps things interesting.
Zander is 3 years 7 months and still no interest in the potty. (I know that he will want to know about this when he is older.)
Both Zoey and Zander start swimming lessons this week at the YMCA.
Favorite Movies at the moment: Toy Story 3 and Despicable Me

Funny things the kids have said this past month or so:

Zander woke up at 5:45 in the morning. I told him to play in his room while Mommy and Daddy slept. Every 5 minutes he came into the room asking for something. "Mommy, can I have lemonade in a sippy cup?" Me--"No! Mommy wants to sleep. You have to wait." Zander--"Ok. . . .I'll try daddy."
Out delivering cookies with Zoey. She played shy with most everyone. I asked her why she is always so quiet around my friends but so LOUD with me? Her response, "Loud is how I say I love you."
Zander 'wrote' a book called, "How you to find a balloon."
Zander broke his buzz lightyear doll. He wants me to send it back to Santa's workshop. "Santa will fix it."
Loves that Zander calls the humidifier in his room "that thing that makes me have no hiccups!"
In my quest for the "Mother of the Year" title, I decided that it would be FUN to let the kids play around with my kickboxing gloves. Zoey punches a lot harder with the gloves on and Zander was just overheard saying, "Let's go downstairs and I can hit you!"

My bundles of joy!

Feburary 2011

2011-02-27T17:44:00.002-06:00

Last weekend we went to the Mall of America. Zoey hated it--she said she nevers wants to go back again. So don't dare take her there. She does not like it!!!! She also told us that she never ever wants to go to Florida or to Disneyland. That would be the pits! (Zoey is reading this over my shoulder. . .it is so annoying to have a kid that reads!)

But truly, we had a good time. Zoey went on her first roller-coaster ride. The whole family went on the Log Chute. Tyler and I had a bet on whether or not Zander would freak out. Turns out the break down came from Zoey. We figured out that it was the fact that there were no seat belts on the ride that really caused the melt down. She is a rule follower--especially when it comes to wearing her seat belt. (Yeah!)

Zoey was proud to show us her ribbon at school.

Zoey's Kindergarten Program

2011-02-27T17:35:00.002-06:00

On Feb. 10th, Zoey performed with her kindergarten class at Richardson. They sang many songs and all looked so proud of themselves. The clip above is the kids singing "Skinnamarink." Zoey is somewhat in the center and told me before the concert that she was going to point to me and daddy as she sang the song.

Abracadabra

2011-02-27T15:38:00.000-06:00

Love this boy!

2011-02-02T20:06:00.003-06:00

Zander is my adorable little music man. He loves to play and listen to music. One of my favorite things about him is how he likes to make our family into a band. He assigns us each an instrument to play. He is usually the drummer and he counts us in. "A one, a two, a one, two, free, four. . ."

What's new. . .

2011-01-29T14:55:00.002-06:00

The kids are growing like crazy! Everyday there seems like they are able to do something new. Zoey is reading almost everything, which is making it hard to read to her. She knows when I am making things up and keeps pointing out random words on the pages that she knows!

Zoey has lost another tooth. One of the top teeth and now the one next to it is loose too! She will have the cutest smile in a little over a week!

Last weekend we went to a celebration at the Roseville Library. Zoey got her very own library card. I am positive she will put it to good use.
Zoey also became a first degree yellow belt in Karate. (We didn't buy the belt--because she decided not to continue with karate.)

Zander is kind of working on the whole potty training thing. It is a slow go, but I am sure he will eventually "get it." He seems a little torn (as am I) of becoming a big boy and leaving behind the diapers and sippy cups and stuff.

He has started showing a lot of interest in his letters and reading. He likes to make books. Today he scribbled on about 4 pages and asked me to staple them together. I asked him what his book was called and he said, "Where Can We Find a Spaceship?" It is a page-turner. At the end of February, Zander goes in for his preschool screening--it seems too soon.

Merry Christmas!

2010-12-26T16:22:00.002-06:00

December Happenings

2010-12-26T16:07:00.002-06:00

December flew by as always and I can't believe all that we snuck in. Above is a picture of Zoey's letter to Santa. Here is the translation: Dear Santa, I want a Tangled Castle. I be good diss year. I already have lots of toys. I help my family on Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday. Love, Zoey. Below is a gift tag that she made at a girl scout function. I'll let you try to figure it out. (The answer is at the end of this post.)

Speaking of Girl Scouts. Zoey is enjoying being a Daisy. We went with the girls in her troop to see Disney on Ice. Her expression is a good clue--if you are wondering if she likes it or not.

Zoey sang at church a few Sundays ago and Nana and Auntie Tammy came to watch her sing. She had a lot of fun sitting with them after she was done.
We attended the annual Cookie Party at Mary's house. All the daycare kids gathered around Santa when he stopped by for a visit.
Zander had no fear and went up and asked Santa for a Buzz Lightyear.
Zoey, believe it or not, was speechless when she sat on Santa's lap. She asked for nothing.
Here is a happy Zander sitting on Mary's lap after opening his gift from Santa and Mary.
We also found some time to go outside and sit in a fort.
(Answer to Zoey's gift tag: Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle All the Way.)

Our Karate Kid/Daisy Girl

2010-12-01T19:50:00.002-06:00

The countdown to Christmas has begun in our house this year. We are decorated and ready to get the holiday season started. As is tradition for the past 2 years, I have an elaborate advent calendar that consists of a bag for each night counting down to Christmas Day. Each bag has a very small toy/game or craft inside for me and the kids to do. This year, my idea is to teach them about appreciating the people in our lives that do so much for us. So tonight's activity was making a list of all the people that are special to us so that we can think about them this season and make a small gift for them during our craft times. Simple enough, right?

Zoey was all over this idea. . .she had no problem filling up her page with all fantastic people and then another page after this. Once again Mrs. Kostuch tops her list and the last one is Mr. M the principal at her school. "I can't forget the principal!" Zoey said.
Zander was a little less into it. . .

Our little Zoey is filling up her social calendar with lots of neat events. She is now an official Daisy in the River Valley Girl Scout Group. She has enjoyed the her meetings and events so far. She went to the annual Sock Hop dance--which consisted of 2 hours of girl scouts running around and occasionally finding the beat to a song. It was fun to watch Zoey hang out with friends. Our next scouting event is going to Disney on Ice next weekend. She and I are both very excited about that one.

Zoey has also started her second session of Karate. We bought her the outfit so now she really feels like she has some moves. Watch out!

Zoey's Shopping List

2010-11-24T20:42:00.002-06:00

Had to take a picture of the list that Zoey made me for our shopping trip the other day. She wrote down everything that I told her too and didn't ask for help on the spelling at all! I am so proud of her! My personal favorites on the list are in no particular order--the toofbrushes, the chicken in a can, and the Mountain Dew 4 mom.

You may notice where it says fre Zoey and fre Zander. When my kids go shopping with me they like to stand in the aisle or on a bottom shelf and yell "Free Zoeys! Get your free Zoeys!" Then of course Zander gets in on the game and says, "Free Zandas! Get your free Zandas!" So I go over and inspect them (when I am in the mood for this game) and say, "Oh this one is too dirty." To which Zoey replies, "They're washable AND free!" My only fear is that someday someone else is going to realize what a great deal that really is and take these two joys home with them.

Thank you Zoey and Zander for making us laugh each day!

Zander and Nana's first theatre outing:

2010-11-24T20:30:00.001-06:00

The weather was rainy and threatening to freeze up everything, but we carefully took a window of opportunity for a 2 p.m. show of "A Christmas Story." Zander was happy to go with no hesitation. Judy got him hooked into the car seat and I drove the big SUV very carefully taking many side roads away from freeways. Zander was very quiet. I was expecting the Zoey chatter of earlier days. Not so with Zander. He fell asleep on the way to the theatre. I asked him to sing a song before he fell asleep and he said, "I don't know any songs." His eyes glazed over and the next thing I knew he slept. As we exited the downtown area he was wide awake. We had to look for parking - there was nothing available in the free ramp but I found a free outside lot just across the street. It only took me 5-6 minutes to get him out of the car seat... whew! I was willing to break a nail if I had to.

Again, I have to make a distinction between Zoey and Zander. Zander took my hand and we walked together to get to the door, to get the tickets, hang up the coats, stand in line to give the ticket to the lady and walk to our seats. I had to chase Zoey on her first trip. Zander was always near and never wandered or ran away. We sat in great seats. Just perfect for the little guy to see everything. He kept saying, "what movie are we going to see?" I explained he would see real people acting as different characters. This would be a story about a boy who wanted a "Red Rider BB Rifle" for Christmas and his adventures leading up to Christmas. This is called a play. He said, "Oh."

I read a book to him as we waiting for the light to go out and the play to start. This play was done very well but wasn't as slapstick as "Cinderella" and "Mulan." He didn't belly laugh real loud like Zoey - he'd smile as the story went along. He was fascinated by the kids in the show. One kid pretended to be a pig for his mother. This way she got him to eat his oatmeal and he got oatmeal all over his face. So, if Zander tries that at home you know where it came from. We spent the intermission eating a rice crispy bar and some juice. He wasn't interested in any of the toys for sale...

He sat in my lap a couple of times but mostly he paid full attention to the play. He applauded at the right times. Very little conversation because I think he was taking it all in. As we walked back to the car he held my hand with one hand and held his program with the other. All buckled up again, we drove past the theatre he said, "Can we go to this play again, Nana?" Wow, I think he liked this.

How can two children be so very unique. I'm looking forward to more fun times individually so I can experience the extremes the Z's are capable of. They are so fun! Next time I hope to pick a more raucous show for Zander.

What the Zs do when they think no one is watching. . .

2010-11-01T20:25:00.003-05:00

Because I know what I was like to my brother when we were little, I am posting this video to myself as a reminder of how well my kids get along and enjoy each other. After a full day of Halloween, the kids helped pass out candy to a few trick-or-treaters. They were super excited and very impatient for people to come for our candy.

However, I am always amazed at how well they entertain themselves and what actually keeps their attention. This video was taken without them ever knowing I was spying on them. It makes me smile.

October has been a GREAT month!

2010-10-23T16:45:00.007-05:00

This weekend has been fantastic! Tyler and I had two days off of work and we spent Thursday getting things done. That included some of our school work, house work, and earning our right to say "WE'RE DEBT FREE!!!!" Twenty-eight months ago, Tyler and I made a commitment to get rid of all of our debt based on the teachings and guidance of Dave Ramsey. I have to admit when Tyler first brought it up, I thought we would be joining a cult, but that was not the case.

It turns out that when you are purposeful with every dollar and live on less than you make, knocking out debt is pretty easy! Not to say that we didn't have rough bumps and things come up, but over all it has been a great experience. Tyler and I looked forward to each budget meeting as we watched our 100K of debt (cars, 2nd mortgage, student loans) dwindle.

Last Thursday night we decided to make it official. We sat the kids down with us in front of the computer with us and explained the momentous occasion. The kids have been subjected to many hours of listening to Dave Ramsey, so they knew that this was a big deal. Both Zander and Zoey know that borrowing money is bad. We all pressed the mouse button to pay off our student loans.

To celebrate we had Family Fun Day on Friday. This consisted of running errands, painting pumpkins, a family bowling trip, and dinner out! A fun day!

Zoey enjoyed a blue drink at the restaurant.

Today we went over to the annual Pumpkin Carving party at our friends' Randy's and Sharon's house. The kids had a blast jumping on the trampoline and eating, while the adults all carved the pumpkins. (That doesn't seem right to me. . .)

Zoey and Zoe!

In other news. . .here is a picture of one of Zoey's latest writings. I absolutely love watching the development of her writing and reading. You really get to know what your child is thinking when you watch her write. She did all this writing on her own. Here is the translation. The title is at the top: I Know a Fruit That Grows on Trees. The song starts at the bottom left and goes up. I know a fruit that grows on trees and apple is its name-o. A-P-P-L-E. A-P-P-L-E. A-P-P-L-E and apple is its name-o.

Zoey is very envious of our neighbor's Halloween decorations. They really do go all out--a graveyard, lights, pumpkins, webs, ghosts, and bats, etc. Zoey has been trying to duplicate those decorations in our yard. Below is a picture of the trash bag ghosts and the scarecrow that we made.

Another cute picture from the pumpkin patch.
This is an oldie--but worth mentioning. This is a picture of Zoey on the morning of school picture day. I am looking forward to seeing if the pig tails stayed in long enough for them to get the shot.

Some Artsy Shots from Uncle Eric

2010-10-12T22:20:00.002-05:00

Thanks Eric for the pictures! You always manage to get some pretty cool shots!

Beautiful Day at the Pumpkin Patch

2010-10-10T18:44:00.005-05:00

No trip to the Pumpkin Patch and Apple Orchard is complete with out a bag of mini-apple donuts! And that was the last thing we did today before coming home to our chores. These pictures are out of order, but I am too lazy to put them in order. They do, however, paint a good picture of how we spent our day. It was GORGEOUS! Almost too hot, but we won't complain!

We headed out to McDougall's Apple Orchard in Hastings, MN again this year. It is our 3rd consecutive year and they really do put on a good time for the family. Nana, Auntie Tammy, and Uncle Eric came with us--which the kids were super excited about!

Here are the 3 pumpkins we picked out for our family. They are such jokesters! Oh, the glasses? It was the prize that the kids picked out for successfully completing the corn maze.

Zander thoughtfully roaming through the pumpkin patch.

Tyler found himself a pumpkin!

Tammy took it personally that the kids kept sticking their tongues out when she tried to take a picture of them.

What a cute bunch!

One lap around the race course.

How tall this fall? Taller than last year! I am pretty sure that Zoey is at least a half a foot taller than this time last year.

A Little Detail

2010-10-03T19:28:00.003-05:00

Zoey came home from school about a week ago very happy because her teacher gave her a compliment. Zoey said that each day the teacher picks about 5 people to give a compliment at the end of the day and they each get a pretzel. The compliment was that Zoey always puts so much detail into her drawings. Zoey didn't think that I knew what "detail" was--so she worked on the picture above during her quiet time that weekend. The picture shows everything that we can see outside our windows at our house. How is that for details?

Time flies. . .

2010-10-02T14:18:00.004-05:00

. . . when you are really busy! I can't believe that it is already October! There has been so much going on. It is always interesting getting back into the routine of school. So far Zoey is LOVING kindergarten. She adores her teacher and comes home everyday with millions of stories to tell about what happened and who said what, etc.

From the brief conversations that I have had with her teacher, it seems that Zoey is doing quite well. Mrs. Kostuch told me that she is amazed at Zoey's ability to make connections to stories. The example she gave me was that in class they have read Knuffle Bunny by Mo Willems (which is one of Zoey's favorites and she has heard it many times in the past few years.) Her teacher started to read the book That's Good. No That's Bad to the class and on the very first page there is a little boy floating away with a balloon. His parents are at the bottom of the page trying to get him back. Zoey raises her hand and says, "This story is just like Knuffle Bunny!" Mrs. Kostuch asks her to say more about that--not really sure what she was talking about. Zoey explained, "In Knuffle Bunny, Trixie really really wanted to find Knuffle Bunny when he was lost. In this book, the parents really really want to find their son!" Mrs. Kostuch said that she has never had a kid who made such interesting connections to stories. That's our girl!

In other news, Zoey started Karate class last week and also signed up for Girl Scouts--she is a Daisy. So watch out. . .we'll be selling cookies on your doorsteps before you know it!

Yesterday, our daycare was closed for the day. I stayed home with the kids, got Zoey on the bus and then was SO excited to spend the day with Zander--all by himself! Zoey has gotten to do so many new and exciting things, that I really felt like Zander needed some extra attention. So we took advantage of the beautiful day and went to Como Zoo. It was perfect! Not crowded at all. Zander is such a neat kid!

Here are some pictures from our September!

Zander in front of the polar bear window.

Raking leaves in our yard is an endless job. . .but the kids love jumping in them!

On Sunday, Sept. 26th, we participated in Light the Night with Tyler's friend JJ and his family. It was our second year doing the walk. This year it was at the new Target Field--which was amazing! I had never been there and as part of the walk, we were able to be right on the field.

FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL!!! (and my birthday)

2010-09-08T20:36:00.002-05:00

Today was eventful for many reasons. It was my birthday (which I am perfectly happy with it coming and going) and Zoey's first day of Kindergarten. She was so excited! It took her a while to finally calm down last night and get to sleep. But she was ready to go this morning. I did play hookie from work for a bit to watch her get on the school bus. It all happened so fast! The bus came, she got on, and it took off. Then I made it at the end of the day to watch her almost not get off the bus! It was scary for just a bit. The bus stopped and three kids got off and none of them was Zoey. So I ran across the street and flagged down the bus driver asking where she was. Zoey came to the door looking a little overwhelmed and confused. But she was fine and we went and decompressed a bit at Mary's.

Overall she seemed like she had a really good day. She was happy to see kids she knew. She loved going outside and playing. Her teacher called tonight to see how Zoey felt about the first day. Mrs. Kostuch said that she really enjoyed Zoey today and that she worked really hard, especially on her first day of school picture--lots of details! I can't wait to see it. Mrs. Kostuch also said that when she was giving the kids a tour of the classroom, she got to the writing center and told the kids that this is where they will be able to write their own books. Zoey raised her hand and said, "I'm already a writer."

Zoey got off to a great start and I am so looking forward to watching her grow and learn this year. I just hope that time slows down just a little--I kind of like her and Zander the way they are right now.

All the kids from daycare walked Zoey and Makaelya to the bus stop this morning.
It was very sweet and made Zoey feel extra special.

Annual State Fair Outing

2010-09-04T13:54:00.005-05:00

It was 10 hours of State Fair frenzy! A little cold and windy, but a good time had by all! We ate lots of stuff: turkey leg, deep fried twinkie, cheese curds, french toast tots, pronto pups, corn on the cob, chocolate malt, ice cream, and of course Sweet Martha's cookies!

Grandma and Grandpa Nyhlen took the kids on the rides. Zander's favorite was the motorcycles. Both Zoey and Zander also truly enjoyed the Giant burlap bag slide. (I did too!) When Zander and I got to the bottom and finally slid to a stop, he turned to me and said, "Let's do THAT again!"

Zoey and Zander also got to be helpers on the farm again. It is fun to see them do things year after year and see how they have grown. Zoey remembers everything from previous years and had specific things that she wanted to see or do again!

A little bonus time with Dora the Explorer as we left the Eco Experience.

"Let's do it. . .a break it down!"

Deep fried Twinkies. . .on a stick of course.

"I'm an Auggie!"

Open House 2010

2010-09-04T13:44:00.003-05:00

Last Wednesday was Zoey's Open House at her new school. We were all very excited! Above, Zoey is standing in front of the door to her classroom. (And below, Zander didn't want to be left out.) It was a very nice evening. Her teacher got to spend a lot of time with Zoey as there weren't many kids in the room at the time. In fact, the only other student in the room when we got there was Maddie! Zoey will start the school year already knowing 2 kids in her class and we are sure she will make many more friends quickly!

Zoey spent the night before Open House making a book for her teacher. She told me that the story was mostly about how she already knows her letters, so don't try to teach them to me! However, it was mostly pictures of her and her teacher. It was nice that she had a chance to share the book with Mrs. Kostuch. Zoey gets on the bus for her first day on Sept. 8th!

A New School Year

2010-08-28T20:38:00.003-05:00

Although Tyler and I are used to new school years, this one will be completely different for us as we experience for the first time being on the parent side of open houses, first days, conferences, field trips, etc. That's right. Zoey is starting kindergarten.

We got a postcard in the mail on Thursday from her new teacher, Ms. Kostuch. I don't know who was more excited to find out who the teacher was, me or Zoey (probably me!). We found out the same day that Zoey is in Maddie's class. Maddie is one of Zoey's friends from another daycare. They have had a couple of play-dates over the summer and seem to really get along well. I am excited that Zoey will be on the same bus and in the same class as Maddie. Zoey is looking forward to making many new friends.

This coming Wednesday is her open house. She gets to meet her teacher and explore the school a little.

Here are the kids at a recent play-date. Zoey, Daniel, Maddie, and Zander.

A little too much juice?

Daniel is Maddie's little brother who is just a bit younger than Zander. They too are good friends!

Teddy Bear Park

2010-08-17T11:56:00.002-05:00

What a difference 3 years makes. The picture above was taken 7 days shy of 3 years ago. Zander was only a month old! We try to make it Teddy Bear Park at least once a summer, and today was PERFECT! Nice cool weather and lots of kids to play with.

Zander had lots of fun pretending to ride in the boat and drive the train as did Zoey.

Carver County Fair 2010

2010-08-17T09:01:00.004-05:00

We went to the Carver County fair with our friends Roslyn, Kevin and Hazel. It was an extremely hot day, but that didn't stop the kids from enjoying as many rides as possible. Zander (above) picked a helicopter ride.

Roslyn and I took the kids on the Ferris wheel. They were pretty brave!

Zoey and Hazel got to meet and pet a llama.

The Annual Sleepover

2010-08-11T14:39:00.002-05:00

by Nana

The Z duo came over on Friday to spend the night while Tyler and Judy got some time to themselves. Both Zoey and Zander were full of vim and vigor the minute they arrived. Zander kept asking, "Is it time to go to bed now," about every half hour.

They wanted "mac and cheese" and applesauce for supper. (I wouldn't expect anything else from Tyler's kids.) After snarfing it down they wanted a dessert and when I offered them a package of mini cookies...

Zoey: "That's not a dessert! You know it needs to be sweet like candy, Nana!"

Nana: "Yes, it's a dessert, these are little tiny cookies." Zander chooses a package.

Zoey: "Nana, this is not a dessert! Remember Halloween when kids get candy - that's a dessert. I want something sweet with sugar."

Nana: "OK, I'll eat these, I don't have any candy."

Zoey: "OK, I'll have some, too. But, remember last week, you said we could have a popsicle when we came to your house."

Nana: "Yeah, I remember, we will have popsicles later out on the deck."

Kids: Yeah!!!

After the mini-cookie fake dessert we went outside in the cul-de-sac to ride bikes. Zoey and Zander grabbed their vehicles and politely untangled so they could ride. Zoey decided her dress was not conducive to bike riding and Zander wanted to pull the wagon into the park. After parking the bikes safely in the garage Zander took off running and pulling the wagon behind him. It was picture postcard cute. Zoey decided to make a chalk line up to the park so we could find our way back. She drew a line completely across the cul-de-sac. I suggested she count to 5 and mark with the chalk so it didn't take forever. So, she counted to five and stopped and drew a 5 foot line. "How about counting to ten?" That worked better - every ten counts she put down a one foot line. "How about counting to 20?" Zoey: "I can't count that high!" Nana: "I bet you can because I've heard you." So, she counted up to 20.

After playing in the park Zoey wanted us to race home. Zander ran with his wagon and Zoey raced backwards drawing her line back home. Why don't adults do these fun things when they are out for a walk??

Relaxing with our Popsicles on the deck chairs, all four of us had a different color Popsicle. We munched and had a great giggly discussion about blue, yellow, green and red tongues. Zander was very talkative which was so fun to listen to what he had to say.

Last year Zander cried himself to sleep at the sleepover, but this year... He kept asking if he could go to bed. So, we had the kids help us blow up the air mattresses with the air machine, but they kept jumping on the mattresses before we got the air vent shut off. We finally got enough air in and the sheets and blankets and pillows where they should be. Zoey volunteered both of them for a bath. Zoey was first and she was so grown up about getting in and out. (Apart from the "naked baby run" into the living room.) She has no modesty yet.

Zander also wanted to get a bath by himself. We tried the big potty first but no success. He did point out, the second he was in the tub, that he could pee. Oh, well. He knows when he pees.

All dried off they wanted to watch Madagascar. Zander would say, "Nana, I go to bed now." Off he would trot to the bedroom and lie down. He'd stay about a minute or two and then he'd come back in the living room. He did this about 4-5 times. Just practicing for the time when we really would shut off the lights and go to bed.

Both went to bed with no problem except they both flip-flopped around like fish out of water for 20 minutes. By morning light I was awake and tip-toed out of the room to find Zander lying on the floor instead of the air mattress. (Good thing Ron didn't step on him.) I'm thinking... well, the carpet is probably wet... but, when he got up he was entirely dry? Wow. Did he get up and change himself? I couldn't figure it out. It seemed like there was an extra dry diaper in the bathroom?? He, a few minutes later, let me know that he did pee with the Zander diaper point. (A special signal he has developed.) Nana... point point...

Zoey had giggled and talked in her sleep about 5 a.m. Zoey had thought the commercial with Sasquatch was the funniest thing she ever saw. She couldn't stop talking about it and she said she was thinking about it in her sleep.

All in all it was a very successful night away from the parents. They are growing up so fast!!! They both know their manners and seem to feel so entirely at home. I appreciate these special times that we have with them.

P.S.
I forgot to mention: Zoey could not find her nightgown in her suitcase so I helped her look. I pulled out what I thought was a nightgown, (it was) but she said, "No, Nana, that's not a night gown. I'll just have to wear one of yours." So, knowing she really likes my nightgowns, I took out a shorty one and pinned the straps up for her. She really thought she was cool in that nightie! Now, she wants to wear it next time she sleeps over.

Be careful of sarcasm. . .

2010-08-01T18:33:00.004-05:00

Mommy is on her cell phone. Zoey is following her around.
Zoey: Mommy, who are you talking to?
Mommy: (tired of constant questions all day) God.
Zoey looks at mommy with an unbelieving look.
Zoey: You can call your heart?

Happy 3rd Birthday, Zan Man!

2010-07-24T19:08:00.005-05:00

Happy Birthday to my little Zan the Man! You are an absolute joy and you make me smile each and every day! Here is just an example: A couple weeks ago when Zoey was at Nature Camp, Zander and I bonded a little at a park. We were swinging on a tire swing, just talking and I decided to ask him what he wanted to be when he grew up. He thought about it for a bit and then said, "I want to be a tire swing!" So that is where he is at at this time--not really thinking ahead, enjoying the moments he is in.

Zander celebrated his birthday today with family and friends. It was a fantastic day and we were able to spend a lot of time outside in the backyard.

Zander had a guitar cake for his birthday. He devoured the cake and asked for more!

I love the hand made cards. This one is from the Derrs.
Zander was blessed with many nice gifts. He really didn't know what to play with first!
Zoey was very proud of her gift to Zander (which was also from Mommy and Daddy). She and I went to the store this week to pick it out. Zoey spent a lot of her own money to buy Zander his own talking Woody Doll from the Toy Story movies. She worked really hard to keep everything a secret from Zander. The night we went to buy the gift, she kept telling Zander that we were going to get shots. (We figured that he wouldn't want to go to the doctor's to get a shot, so it was a safe bet.) Zander really didn't care where we were going, but I was impressed that Zoey kept the secret all week long. She also decorated the wrapping paper with a special picture of our family.

Zander got a golf set today also and seemed to know just what to do with it. He is a natural! He is looking forward to golfing lessons with Poppa in the near future.
Cousin Kylie was really hamming it up at the party!

Hazel had a good time also!

Owen was very interested in the spiky squishy ball that Zander got. It was a big hit!

Thanks to everyone for spending the afternoon with us and helping us celebrate Zander's birthday! I know that he will be talking about it for awhile!

Let's Get Down to Business!

2010-07-14T20:48:00.002-05:00

Here are both kids doing their best Mulan dancing and singing in the backyard.

The words: "Let's get down to business, to defeat the Huns. Did they send me daughters, when I asked for sons? You're the saddest bunch I ever met, and you haven't got a clue. Mister, I'll make a man out of you."

Little Gems

2010-07-14T20:30:00.004-05:00

Zoey has been at Nature Camp every morning this week, giving Zander and I some quality time together. It has been fun, he is quite the conversationalist, that is when he isn't asking for "daddy juice in a sippy cup." (Which by the way is 75% of what he says in a day.)

Today as the two of us were talking about this and that, he said, "Call me Thunder. Thunder is scary." I think that it could work for him as a fun nickname!

Zander is also in a little bit of a hitting phase. But he doesn't quite understand the terminology or the severity of the situation. When we catch him hitting (usually Zoey), he says, "I not hit. I punched!" Tyler jokes about showing him a continuum of hits, hoping that it may show him the differences.

A few weeks ago, I was reading the Mrs. Wishy Washy books to Zander for the umpteenth time and started to ad-lib to make it more interesting for me. The read words say, "Just look at you she screamed." I said, "Just look at you she screamed from the top of her lungs." Zander matter of factly told me, "No she didn't, she screamed from her mouth."

Because I don't feel like I do this enough, here are some lists about the kids at this time in our lives.

Favorite Movie: Mulan (for both kids)
Favorite Song: I'll Make a Man Out of You from Mulan (for both kids)
Favorite Book: Zander asks for the Mulan book all the time lately. Previously he likes all 5 Mrs. Wishy Washy Books and when we read them, we have to read ALL five!
Zoey is still partial to all of her princess books and Fancy Nancy.
Favorite Colors: Zander likes blue. Zoey likes pink.

Family Vacation

2010-07-12T14:34:00.003-05:00

Tyler was off of teaching last week, so up to the lake we went. We left on Thursday and stayed through Sunday. We had beautiful weather and lots of fun! Grandma and Grandpa joined us for the weekend. They bought a fire pit so that we could teach the kids the fine art of making s'mores. Zoey was ready for the beach each morning at about 7:30 am--although we held her off until about 9am. Tyler and I even celebrated our 6th year anniversary by going out to dinner on Friday night! Thanks Grandma and Grandpa!

As an extra bonus, Tyler and the kids "camped" outside for two nights in the tent. I passed on the experience and enjoyed a lovely time inside! They sure seemed to have fun, though. There was a HUGE storm really early Sunday morning (like 4am) that woke most of us up--but the kids stayed sleeping in the tent.

Last Wednesday we had family pictures taken at Como Park. It was fun and afterwards we went to the Como Zoo and Amusement Park. Zoey went on her favorite ride and so did Zander.

4th of July

2010-07-05T14:55:00.002-05:00

On the 4th of July, we had the Livingstons and the Plumbs over for a bbq. We had a lot of fun just hanging out. The kids enjoyed their first experience with sparklers. Zoey really enjoyed them, until she grabbed the wrong end. As you can see in the photo below--Tyler was having a blast!
This is as close as Zander got to having one.

Tammy was a little cautious also. . .
Then there was Eric. . .

Zoey showed off her sword to Nana. Ever since she went to Mulan with Nana for her birthday--it has been a little bit of an obsession.

Zoey, Daddy, and Poppa went to the firework show in Roseville that night. Zoey wanted to be dressed like a flag, so she agreed--just this once--to wear a pair of jeans, since they were blue.
Zander taught Uncle Eric the fine art of Hungry Hungry Hippo.

Father's Day Traditions

2010-06-24T12:23:00.006-05:00

Our first tradition for father's day comes from what my brother and I used to do for my dad. Each year, my mom would have us draw a portrait of our dad and then it would hang up on the wall. It was fun to see how the drawings changed as we got older. I have had both kids do this for father's day.

Here are Zander's from the last two years (2009-2010):

The interesting thing about this year's picture is how deliberate each of the marks is. I wish I would have video taped him as he was drawing it, because he carefully explained everything as he worked. I told him to draw a picture of daddy and he took a blue marker and said, "'ere is the 'ead. And his 'egs. A nose. A arm." I asked him if Daddy needed ears? "Yes, 'ere are the ears." Then in the lower left hand corner is his name. I love it!

Here are Zoey's pictures from the last 5 years. (2006-2010)

Our other tradition is to leave Daddy at home all by himself while for a weekend, while we all go enjoy the weekend at the lake. . .odd, but fun!

The weather wasn't so hot on Saturday--until the evening. It turned out to be perfect paddle boating weather. The kids had fun taking turns with Grandma and Grandpa.

Sunday the weather cooperated completely! It was a perfect day! The kids and I hung out on the beach for most of it. There was some more paddle boating in the evening. Zoey is turning into quite the beach bunny!

At the library this week, we got a Summer WishList to fill out. Zoey was very excited to make her list. I am excited to see her want to write so much! She asked me for help with the spelling, but all I really did was give her the standard reading teacher lines, "What sound do you hear next?" "What letter makes that sound?" Etc. She decided to use lines to show where the spaces go--even though I advised against it. Oh well. Baby steps.

Summer Vacation

2010-06-12T13:43:00.003-05:00

Mommy: Zoey, I'm going to the grocery store. Can you think of anything we need?
Zoey: Um. . .I know I'm not in school yet, but could you maybe pick me up some school tools?
Mommy: Like what? What are school tools?
Zoey: You know, pencils.
Mommy: Well, we have pencils around home. I will find you some and you can use those.
Zoey: Ok. Well, if you see any homework, can you buy that?

Zoey's Mulan Adventure

2010-06-10T21:42:00.002-05:00

Here is Nana's account of the evening. Thank you so much for taking Zoey on these excursions. She is so appreciative of them and she talks about them all the time!

Going to Children's Theatre is now a yearly tradition for Zoey and I. In our second adventure, I drove my own car and Zoey was able to use her new big-kid-car-seat that she was easily fastened into. (We decided more outings would be great since the car seat was so versatile.)

The bouncing bundle of excitement was waiting in the driveway. She was smiling so big and clapping her hands - a really fired up five year old. I got her strapped in, we waved goodbye and I felt so bad that Zander wasn't coming with. When he is four he will have special trips to the Children's Theatre, too.

Zoey, the conversationalist extraordinaire, kept talking non-stop the whole way to the theatre. I learned the boy next door wanted to marry her... but, that wasn't a big deal to her, just a passing fact in her everyday life. I asked how was daycare and she said it was good and told me all about her friends in and out of daycare.

She recognized the Children's Theatre when we arrived. We parked the car one block away. She had on a really cute outfit that she got for her birthday ala Auntie Tammy and Uncle Eric and she had on sparkly flip flops. The flip flops kept flipping off when she walked but we managed to get in and up the flight of stairs. Such a fashionista!

She used her magic ticket along with her "real" ticket to enter. The teenager taking the tickets ruined the moment by saying, "I don't want this..." handing the magic ticket back. But, the more mature gentleman taking tickets wanted to take a look and said he really liked Zoey's magic ticket - a slight save...

As we found our seats Zoey was much more the theatre goer. She stayed close to me and didn't run too far ahead. We had third row seats and a great view.

The show started with silver and white clad, 15 foot tall, Chinese ancestors setting the storyline. Everyone ooohed and ahhhed. There was singing and dancing and tai chi moves and humor and an exciting sword fight. There was slapstick and more dancing and funny jokes from the "red dragon" (actor who was one of the ugly stepsisters last time we went). He was marvelous and so was the actor playing Mulan. Zoey laughed and stayed glued watching everything. Her five year old laugh is loud and super expressive so everyone in the theatre could hear. People sitting around us loved her reactions and commented to me that she was so cute.

During the sword fight she got scared a little and I whispered to her that is was just acting and no one would get hurt. She nodded OK and watched with her hands ready to cover her eyes. Then the red dragon came out and blew out paper fire into the audience to stop the fight. It was great. Everyone screamed and applauded.

I think Zoey single-handed kept the audience willing to be involved. The place was only about 2/3 full and I'm sure the actors were disappointed in the turnout. One guy said he had tickets for the night before but the show was canceled. (Probably due to low ticket sales.) They swapped his tickets for whenever he wanted to come back. Two other shows later in the year have also been canceled due to budget cuts. But, with Zoey so lively and into the show the actors get infused with adrenalin and do a good job. It makes their job worthwhile. They should hire her as a plant to get everyone engaged and comfortable.

Zoey was falling asleep on the way home. She was a joy to take out and I look forward to another Nana and Zoey evening at the theatre.

p.s. Mulan is the story of a girl who finds success in being herself. She bravely breaks the tradition of girls being less worthy than boys. By using her brain she was able to show everyone that it is what is inside that counts. Zoey is definitely that type of girl.

The Magic Ticket

2010-06-09T19:01:00.002-05:00

Tonight was the night that Zoey was able to redeem Nana's Magic Ticket. The two ladies went off to a night at the Children's Theatre to enjoy Mulan. I am sure they will have a marvelous time. I look forward to Nana's written account of the evening.

Here are some pictures of our exuberant 5 year old as she waited for her carriage to arrive.

Zander was pretty exuberant too!

Excited to use her new car seat in Nana's car.

The neighbor boy confessed to wanting to marry Zoey when they are older. Here is the proof written in chalk. "Alex wants to marry Zoey."

Happy Birthday Bean!

2010-05-30T20:37:00.004-05:00

5 Years ago today I was hungry and on my way to a Memorial Day picnic. Instead, my water broke and Zoey decided it was time to come into the world! The world hasn't been the same since! Every day she makes me laugh and I love to see the world through her eyes as she is learning how our world works.

Today we celebrated her birthday with our friends and family. It was great to see everyone! By the end of the day, as I was reading Zoey her bedtime story, she fell asleep in my arms. I can't remember the last time she has done that. I didn't want to get up!

Zoey's Monster Cake

I'm just a little excited!

Everyone enjoyed the cake. . .

Almost everyone?

Family Slip and Slide!

2010-05-29T20:24:00.006-05:00

Today we hung out with Rob, Nicole, Kylie and Kristie. It was a blast. We brought out the slip n' slide and tried to teach the kids how to use it. They weren't really getting it until Nicole stepped in and did some good modeling! We really didn't think she'd do it, but we weren't going to let her have all the fun! I truly believe that the "adults" had more fun than the kids today.

Here is the movie that captures the fun we had. Enjoy!

Go Far!

2010-05-23T17:08:00.004-05:00

This weekend Tyler and I participated in the Fargo 10K and 1/2 Marathon events. It had been planned since last summer, but our training wasn't super intense. . .meaning that we were both a bit hesitant to actually do the races--since it was the longest distance either of us has ever run at one time. It had been a beautiful week--until the day of the race. It was raining, which actually made it easier to run as it helped us stay cool.

The results:

Judy's 10K (6.2miles): Finished in 1hr 13 min. and `10 seconds. That is 11:47 a mile. I finished 1768 out of 2666 runners. I am very happy with those results.

Tyler's 1/2 Marathon (13.1 miles): Finished in 2 hr 27 min. and 15 seconds. That is 11:15 a mile. He finished 4077 out of 5365 runners. He ran the entire way!

The rest of the weekend was spent hanging out with family. The cousins got lots of time to spend with Grandma and Grandpa Nyhlen and we all got to sit and relax a bit! Thanks for being such good hosts this weekend, Rob and Nicole! We will probably run the race again next year! :-)

Happy May!

2010-05-20T20:41:00.005-05:00

How did they get so dirty?

Oh. . .it's their favorite dirt!

Last weekend we went to visit Hazel. The kids are at this great age where they can play and the adults can actually carry on a conversation. It is great!

Here is a picture of the bag that I got for Mother's Day! I love it!

Zander's favorite past time lately is playing the i pod touch. He is very good at it. He enjoys the puzzles and watching the intro to the golf game.

Uh oh! Fell in a box. . .

The Future

2010-04-27T19:03:00.002-05:00

I hope that in the future I find all of these quotes and stories as cute and funny as they are in the moment.

Tonight Zoey and I just sat on the bed and talked about stuff. It was fun and really sweet. She told me (as she has in the past) that when she grows up she will be a mom and have 5 kids. Their names will be Fauna, Launa, Treea, Trevor, and Emily Elizabeth. She will send them to Mary's daycare. (I hope Mary will have room for them all!)

She also told me tonight that she is glad that we have Zander. "You know why? Because I loved holding him when he was just a little guy." I thought I would write this quote down so when they grow a little older and are fighting like cats and dogs, we can all remember that they really do love each other!

So wise!

2010-04-21T20:06:00.004-05:00

Zoey and Daddy going downstairs for bedtime.

Zoey: "It stinks down here."

Daddy: "Hmm... I don't smell anything."

Zoey: "Well, if you can't smell it, it might be you."

Jesus Loves Me!

2010-04-21T19:57:00.002-05:00

An equally cute Zander story from today:

As part of his bedtime routine, we sing songs to Zander. Both Tyler and I have our own songs that we sing, but sometimes Zander requests the other parent's song. Tonight he wanted all three of his songs sung--so I obliged. Daddy's song is "Jesus Loves Me."

Mommy: (singing) Jesus loves me, this I . . .
Zander: No, mommy. Jesus loves daddy. . .
Mommy: (singing and laughing) Jesus loves daddy, this I know. . .

Then I sang my song--Godspeed (by the Dixie Chicks)--and by the way we have never had an issue with this song until tonight.

Mommy: (singing again) Godspeed, little man. . .Sweet dreams, little man. . .
Zander: Little man? Man is scary--I a little boy.

A Kid Rainbow Pancake!

2010-04-21T07:18:00.002-05:00

Mommy: Zoey, that shirt doesn't match your pants. It's red and you have no red on your pants.
Zoey: Ah, can't just today I be a rainbow?
Mommy: So you don't care that your outfit doesn't match?
Zoey: Nope, I will be like a kid rainbow pancake. Look, There are red and green and pink sprinkles. And I am going to wear a sweater!

Something that I always have and will admire about my daughter is her uniqueness. I think my mom once compared her style to Punky Brewster. Anytime I see an outrageously colorful outfit, I think of Zoey.

Another Perfect Sunday!

2010-04-11T19:15:00.006-05:00

Our pastor at church always starts out the services on Sunday, "I promise you your week will go better because you started it in the house of the Lord." I have found that to be true quite often. Even the Sunday that Tyler fell off the ladder. . . at first I thought, yeah, my week is going horrible! But in hindsight, our week could have been a lot worse. But back to today.

It was just a great day all around. Sang at church this morning, went running with Tyler around Lake Phalen. The kids went and played at Nana's and Poppa's. Then we all came home for our quite time. Then, it was off to Casey Lake Park. Zoey rode her bike there for the first time. She was so proud of herself! Zander enjoyed a wagon ride. He is very ready for a bike too, though.

Enjoy the pictures!

Uncle Eric's Easter Pictures

2010-04-11T19:12:00.002-05:00

Uncle Eric had a camera along for our fun Easter celebration. Here are just a few of the pictures that he took. . . Love them!

Easter Weekend

2010-04-07T20:53:00.008-05:00

Since we moved into our current house, Easter is fast becoming one of my favorite holidays. The weather has been nice and we tend to spend most of the afternoon out in the backyard. . .playing. The Easter Bunny spoils the kids with lots of candy, egg hunts, and overflowing Easter Baskets. The church service is always wonderful. This year was especially fun to watch Zander's face when all the brass and percussion instruments were playing. Zoey is the complete opposite of what I remember being like as a kid. She LOVES to dress up in a pretty dress for the occasion.
It is just fun!

A little noodle-fighting with the family.

Watch out Nana and Poppa--Zoey is pretty good. "En Garde!"

This is the game that Daddy and Zoey affectionately call "Run, Catch, and Throw Up!"

Nana is ready to hit against the up and coming pitcher for the Minnesota Twins!

Auntie Tammy and Zoey taking a brief break from the action.

Uncle Eric's sister Molly and her son Darian joined us for our Easter celebration.

Uncle Eric took a lot of photos. . .I am hoping to get some copies of them, because I know he captured a lot of neat shots!

Zoey was an expert egg hunter this year.
(She should be, this was her 3rd egg hunt of the weekend!)

On Good Friday the kids and I decorated our Easter Eggs.

There was also the annual egg hunt at daycare.

Other exciting events from our weekend included a visit to Hazel's house to help her celebrate her 3rd birthday! It was a lot of fun! The kids especially enjoyed the cake!

Happy Birthday Kylie and Kristie!

2010-03-28T15:34:00.005-05:00

This past week both our nieces had their birthday. On Friday when we got to Rob and Nicole's we had a 1 year old, a two year old, a three year old, and a four year old all under the same roof! Kristie turned one last Wednesday and Kylie turned 4 on Saturday. We partied hard on Saturday to help them celebrate. It was nice to see everyone. . .it had been a while!

Rob told me that Kristie hardly ever smiles for pictures. Here is my collage of pictures that I took of her in the span of about an hour. I wish she would smile more!

Kristie thought that the gift from Grandma and Grandpa Nyhlen made a nice cup holder!

Here is Uncle Tyler and Kristie hanging out at the YMCA during Kylie's party.

The birthday girl herself. . .

Kylie, her cousins, and her friends all played hard in the YMCA Playland. They all had a blast!

Zoey thought that Kristie was just the cutest thing ever! We all agree!

A rare shot with everyone looking at the camera. . .

Kylie and Zoey doing a little reading together. It made my heart happy to see how well they get along--even though they don't see each other that often. Hopefully we can get the cousins together more in the future.

(I know the above picture isn't the most flattering of Zander,
but it was just too cute not to post!)

Auntie Nicole and Cousin Kristie. . .

Our little musician!

2010-03-15T09:17:00.000-05:00

A Fantastic Way to Begin March!!!

2010-03-05T16:15:00.006-06:00

First of all (and most importantly), Grandpa Nyhlen had surgery last Monday on his colon. The pathology report came back and showed no signs of any cancer left in his body. We are all thankful for that news and continue to pray for a speedy recovery! We love you Grandpa!

Second, Zoey lost ANOTHER tooth. I will let the video tell her story. (Make sure to watch for the Monkey See Monkey Do!)

Winter Fun!

2010-02-28T20:00:00.006-06:00

We spent our last couple of days of February playing outside in the beautiful weather. The kids have had a blast and I am beginning to like the outdoors in the winter more and more. Grandma and Grandpa are in town and came yesterday. Grandpa Nyhlen is having his surgery at Fairview Southdale Hospital tomorrow evening. So our prayers are for a quick recovery!

Zoey and Grandma made a snow-woman today. Zoey named her "Fauna." I am glad that she and I had the talk that snow-people don't stay forever, because Fauna melted away just hours later. It was fun while it lasted.

Zoey still wants a dog and is saving most of her money in a piggy bank so that one day (when she's 7) she can have one. This, however, is the face she made when she found some of Gracie's dog poop in the backyard. I hope she gets used to it, because that will be one of her chores!

Grandma and Zoey played Pie Tag in the backyard.

Gracie had a blast running around in the snow!

Zoey has been making laptop computers lately. She is very specific in the design. As you can see below, the one she made a few days ago has a game where you catch bananas. The mouse was later cut out and made wireless.

Seeing that Grandpa will be in the hospital for a few days, Zoey thought it would be nice to make him a laptop too! Here is the Zoey 3.0 version. Instead of catching bananas, he will be catching hearts.

In other news, Zoey is officially registered for Kindergarten. I am more excited now that I have actually visited the school and met some of the teachers. Zoey also has another loose tooth--although I think it will take a while for her to actually loose this one.

Zander had his first dentist appointment last week. According to Tyler, he was a very brave boy!

Happy Valentine's Day!

2010-02-14T18:35:00.003-06:00

Happy Valentine's Day! Above is one of Zoey's Valentine crafts from daycare. She did the writing and the cutting! She is really growing. I can't believe that we register her this month for kindergarten in the fall. Both kids are just growing up to be such neat kids. We are lucky to have them as our Valentines!

Here are Zander and Zoey making their Valentine's for friends.

Here are my funny Valentines:

The Chicken or the Egg

2010-02-11T20:39:00.002-06:00

Me: Zoey, which came first: the chicken or the egg?
Zoey: The chicken.
Me: Where did the chicken come from?
Zoey: The egg.
Me: Where did the egg come from?
Zoey (without flinching): The carton.

Happy Birthday Nana!

2010-02-09T20:23:00.001-06:00

January Happenings

2010-01-10T13:53:00.004-06:00

Happy New Year!

The kids are growing like crazy! Tyler and I are just trying to enjoy them and soak up all the cuteness that it them. Zoey is going through a growth spurt at the moment--she is constantly eating. She has been a member of the "clean plate club" all week long. And as for Zander, as soon as we put him in his big boy bed and got his haircut, he has decided to be a big boy in his communication too. He now talks in mostly complete sentences and is all about his big sister. Whatever she does, he is sure to follow.

Zoey lost another tooth yesterday (that is number 2 if you are counting). She was very excited about it and when she found another toothbrush and 4 quarters under her pillow again this morning, she declared that 3 quarters will go to the church. (She has declared that the tradition.)

Zander is very into music lately. Ever since Nana and Poppa gave him the percussion set, he plays the drums all day long! You would think that it is annoying, but it is actually pretty cute! Look at the set-up he put together to help accompany me while practicing for church last night--that's right, he set up this "drum set" all by himself, and put on his rockstar glasses.

This was another of Zander's ideas--it is part of him loving his sister so much! His favorite part of the outfit is the dancing shoes.

On New Year's Day, Grandma and Grandpa Nyhlen came down to celebrate Christmas with us. It was fantastic to have them around for the weekend. The kids enjoyed all the gifts and especially loved going to the movies with them. They saw Disney's Princess and the Frog.

I put this picture in just to remember that I love this robe! It is so comfy, I have worn it a lot. The funny thing is that one of the nights that Tyler was reffing, I declared another pajama party night with the kids. Zander looked at me and said that he would be right back. He left and came back with my robe, stating that I needed to put it on. How can you argue with that!

More Big Boy Excitement!

2009-12-29T14:05:00.003-06:00

And the big boy events just keep coming! This haircut was way overdue, but he just didn't seem to have that much to cut! He wasn't keen on the idea of a haircut, but once he was in the chair, he just went with the flow. Zoey was there the whole time giving him a pep-talk. She was saying things like, "Don't worry little buddy, I'm right here for you." It was sweet.

Before:

During:

After:

A view from the back. . .
After a little shopping trip yesterday, I semi-completed Zander's room with some accessories. Zoey loves Zander's "Feme Room." She now wants a "feme" room of her own--a princess "feme".

The little pirate enjoying his new digs.

Follow Up

2009-12-28T08:15:00.001-06:00

At about 3am this morning, Zander decided it was time to go back into his crib. I told him it was his last night in his crib and he said ok and went back to sleep.

The Big Boy Bed

2009-12-27T20:26:00.003-06:00

We took the plunge today and bought Zander his brand new big boy bed. He was very excited about it and couldn't wait to try it out. Didn't even wait for the box to be opened! Tyler spent the good part of the evening working on it so that Zander could use it tonight.

All done! (The cool thing about this bed, is that when he is a little older and used to the bed, it flips over and bunks--so that he will have all that floor space underneath as a play fort.)

I got to put Zander to bed and he seemed pretty excited, but I think he felt the same bittersweetness that I did. He asked for more stories and songs than usual and was a little extra cuddly. But I told him that the rule was he had to stay in bed! He repeated the rule and within about 10 minutes of leaving his room, he was snoring away in his new bed. I am so proud of him!
We'll see if it is always this easy, but he did good tonight! That's what counts!

Christmas 2009

2009-12-25T15:13:00.007-06:00

We hope that everyone has had a blessed Christmas! It is definitely a white one and we are all snug at home enjoying a very lazy day!

Here is Zoey at her Church Christmas program this year, next to her "best friend" Paige.

After Zoey's Christmas program at church, we came home and
she and I put together the gingerbread train.

This is really mostly what she did. . .
The final product. . .

On Wednesday we went to the Annual Daycare Cookie Party and enjoyed a visit
from Santa. The kids got their last chance to ask Santa for what they really wanted.
We were glad that they stuck to their list!

On Christmas Eve, the snow was falling and Mommy was cleaning for guests--so Daddy took the kids outside to enjoy the snow. Zoey stayed out for almost 2 hours! Here she is in her snow fort.

Nana, Poppa, Auntie Tammy and Uncle Eric all came over that evening to enjoy dinner and company. It was a nice relaxing evening and the kids really enjoyed all of their gifts. Zander opened his baseball beanbag first and thought that was the greatest gift. . .that is until he opened the percussion set from Nana and Poppa! Can't get him to stop playing the tambourine with his maracas--we have a little rock star on our hands!

The Livingston Family Band
Zoey really wanted to leave a note for Santa so that he would know the cookies were for him.

The note must have worked, because in the morning, the cookies were eaten and Santa had left a red bag with everything the kids asked for. Zoey even got a dog toy for her dog (that she will get when she is 7 years old.) Zander got his baseball and a baseball mitt. He was so happy!

We thought he can start the potty training process by learning from Elmo!
Zander's face says it all. . .Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas!

2009-12-20T18:53:00.000-06:00

The HolliDisaster Parade, A Christmas Story. . .

2009-12-20T14:16:00.005-06:00

It has been literally months since we have gotten together with our good friends Roz, Kevin and Hazel. Tyler was away reffing again, so I took it upon myself to make plans for the kids and me to meet up with them in a naively grand fashion. The plan was perfect! Meet downtown Minneapolis (the weekend before Christmas on a weekend night) and go to the Macy's Christmas display--the kids would love it-- "A Day in the Life of an Elf!" then eat, exchange gifts, and catch the Hollidazzle parade as none of us had ever seen it before. I wish the story went even close to this, but alas. . .it is nothing like our vision of the evening.

I was actually pretty proud of myself that I successfully drove the kids and myself to the Macy's downtown, parked and found Roz, Kevin, and Hazel with no problems. Then we headed up to the 8th floor to see the Elf display. Never a good sign, the elevator doors opened on the fifth floor and we were told that this is where the line started. Yikes! Then came the news that it was an hour and a half wait. There was NO way that the three adults were going to entertain two 2 year olds and a 4 year old for that long. So plan B. We went back to the cars to exchange gifts tailgate style as we didn't want to be lugging around the extra weight all night.

Then back inside for some dinner. Macy's food court was packed so Plan C was to walk over to the IDS tower where we enjoyed the really big Christmas tree and tried to find some food.

It was about 5ish at this time and Kevin wen t to get us some food and Roz and the Kids and I sat in the skyway, thinking that we can just hang out there until the parade started--at 6:30. That's right, we sat for an hour and a half, ate our dinner and enjoyed very little conversation, as it is difficult to carry on a conversation with the kids around. Zander and Hazel took everything is stride, but Zoey was having a few meltdowns during all of this. She wanted to see the parade, but she also really wanted to go home--I just couldn't win.

Thank goodness for cookies!

This is Roz's "How much longer. . ." Face

The parade started and we watched from the skyway for a while. Kevin and Hazel ventured outside to the street, but Zoey didn't want to go. Finally Zoey decides that she does want to go outside. It takes a while to pack up three kids and all our stuff. We made it outside JUST in time to see Santa's float go by and then parade was over.

Luckily it was surprisingly easy to leave the city and come back home. We did climb 7 flights of stairs with kids in tow to get to our cars faster, but the sore muscles today are worth it. It is a story worth laughing at and planning out better in the future. Thanks Roz and Kevin and Hazel for a memorable evening.

Zoey's Christmas Writing--isn't she good?

December Update

2009-12-13T20:16:00.003-06:00

It has been a busy December! So before I begin with any updates and such, I would like to extend our loving birthday wishes to both Poppa Livingston and Grandma Nyhlen! We hope that you both enjoyed your birthday.

Most of our busy-ness has been just the usual stuff. I have recently started singing with the contemporary Christian band at church, so we rehearse once a week and sing every Sunday. It has been a blast! I am really enjoying it.

Tyler is doing a lot of reffing basketball, so the kids and I have had a lot of time to hang out. Yesterday we made it outside for a while to enjoy all the snow that we got this week. Both kids had a blast in the snow--especially being pulled around in the sleds. Zoey couldn't wait to get outside to make snow angels!

In other news, Zoey has ANOTHER loose tooth. It is the one right next to the tooth she just lost.

Just think this is a fun picture!

Zoey and Nana go to Cinderella

2009-12-05T09:39:00.002-06:00

Thank you Nana and Poppa for treating Zoey to such a wonderful evening! She tells everyone about how much fun she had!

Story written by Nana:

Zoey got a magic ticket on her fourth birthday from her Nana and Poppa. It was a fun but risky plot of ours to give this gift 5 months ahead of time. We kept our fingers crossed that all of us would be healthy during the flu season when the date came for us to see Cinderella at the Children's Theater. Finally, November 29, 2009 arrived. Poppa became the driver of the family coach, and Nana and Zoey, of course, were the Princesses being driven to the theater.

During the drive Zoey made conversation by pointing out the city buildings and lights of Minneapolis. She knew already that it was a big city that we were in, but how, I don't know. It is so amazing to view the world through Zoey! AND I really can't say that enough. That's one of the best things about children and grandchildren -- taking a look at the world anew.

When extracted out of the car seat, quite a feat for Nana and Poppa to deal with, she bravely walked right up to the huge glass doors of the Children's Theater building like she belonged there. She and I climbed some long stairs to behold a wonderland of activity. Little girls were dressed in their best dresses. Some were sporting tiaras. Zoey started waving at all the 4-6 year olds as if they were her closest friends. One little girl even had a Cinderella costume on. Zoey made a beeline over to the costumed cutie to say hi! The little "Cinderella" was shy and taken back to have such a friendly little encounter. Zoey scooted over to see her three times. I finally got Zoey distracted to something else and she told me that the little girl was Cinderella, her friend, and she was going to be in the play. I filled her in that this little "Cinderella" was just a little girl, who, like her, was there to watch the play and that she had worn a costume just for fun and Zoey would see another Cinderella very soon. The real Cinderella would probably be wearing rags to start off with. Zoey accepted this with a little skepticism but soon believed me.

I had Zoey pose in front of the Cinderella Coach for pictures but it was hard to get her to be still. There was so much going on. (The pictures didn't turn out great.) Overhead they announced the start of the play - we had 5 minutes until show time. A strolling choir came up the stairs dressed in Dickens-like attire and they led everyone to the lobby entrance. Zoey headed for the ticket takers by slithering in among the parents and Nanas. I had to hold her back to stay in line to keep her from budding in front. I gave her the ticket that was hers and she, very gown up like, presented it to the lady ticket taker. Zoey has no shyness at all... she was on a mission. We entered the theatre. She didn't realize we had reserved seats so she headed right to the front near the stage. "I want a front row seat! let's go," she said. "Don't worry, (I'm almost running) we have good seats in the third row." I explain as we hurry along.

We found our seats. Great view - seats perfect for Nanas and grandkids. Good support for the back and lots of room for squirmy kids. Zoey could not take her eyes off the whole auditorium and all the great decorations. It was done up extra for Christmas.

The play was out of this world fabulous. I loved every minute and so did Zoey. This was not the Disney version of Cinderella but it had all the wonderful characters including the mice and the birds that help Cinderella. The main characters were the two ugly stepsisters, Pearl and Dorca, played by two guys - one who looked like Chris Farley, as huge as a line backer, and one tall, with bulging muscles. The mean Stepmother ran the show and moved the story along. These characters were the stars of the show. They were so funny and so very pitifully ugly women (although they thought they were gorgeous!). A lot of the humor was not only directed to the kids, who love the slapstick comedy, but to the adults, with little asides that only the adults would get. The scene where they are all getting ready for the ball was outrageously funny -- plucking nose hairs with surgical instruments and shaving under arms and tying up corsets made for all sorts of gross things kids laugh at. Zoey laughed really hard at this and kept up with the story and knew intuitively that the old hag that came to the door later was really the fairy godmother. She said in a whisper to me. "that's the Fairy Godmother, Nana."

The scenes kept changing, there was lots of singing and dancing and the special effects were wonderful. The fairy godmother's wand turned the pumpkin turned into a coach, the mice into footmen all in the blink of an eye and Cinderella was breathtaking when she arrived at the ball. Zoey's sparkling eyes and amazing grin was something I'll never forget when she saw Cinderella come down the staircase at the ball. Zoey would look at me and back to the stage and look at me with the WOW factor that we both understood. The Prince danced with Cinderella and her gown shimmered and the glass slippers shone. The ensemble was decked out in powdered wigs and purple Louie the 16th gowns and finery. We feasted on the spectacle. After all I'm a ballroom gal and I totally understand all that sparkle on the gowns and fine lace and delicate dancing. AND, I think Zoey has some genetic material that indicates we both really love dressing up like that. "Birds of a feather" and all.

There was so much excitement over the whole thing and laughter for us both and wonderment for us both that at the end we were both exhausted from the adrenaline. The family coach came and Poppa got us home. What a fantastic evening. One we both will remember for a long time.

It happened. . .

2009-11-28T11:21:00.004-06:00

Yesterday morning, Zoey's loose tooth finally decided to come out. It is so little! Since Grandma and Grandpa are in town for the weekend, Zoey is sleeping in our room which gave Tyler and I an enjoyable experience of being in the same room with her when she discovered that the tooth fairy had visited. Here is how it went down. . .

Zoey put her tooth in a little gold organza bag for the Tooth Fairy and put it under her pillow. Then she eventually went to sleep.

Zoey woke up at around 5 am this morning. She reached under her pillow and pulled out the toothbrush that was left by the tooth fairy. From under my covers, I hear her whisper, "Yes!" Then she very politely comes over to me to show me the toothbrush. I asked her to try to go back to sleep for a couple of hours and she did.

At around 7 am she sits up in her bed and starts to examine the toothbrush in the light of the window. Again from under my covers, I hear her whisper in just a sweet voice, "Wow! It's a Barbie toothbrush! It is the one I have always wanted!" Then she leaves the room to go tell Daddy about this awesome toothbrush. When she comes back to get the toothbrush, she can't find it. She looks under her pillow and finds the organza bag with four quarters inside. She squeals in delight, "Mommy! The Tooth Fairy left the bag! And there's money in it!" Then she went back on the hunt for the toothbrush.

So she looks around a bit and decides that maybe the Tooth Fairy made a mistake and came back for the toothbrush. I assured her that I didn't think that was the case and I got up to help her look. There was a little glitter spread around on her bed. I asked her what that was, and she and I decided that it was a little fairy dust left behind. Zoey figured it was a clue and if we followed the fairy dust we'd find the toothbrush. That wasn't the case, but we did finally find the toothbrush in the living room, for those of you who are wondering where it went.

Happy Thanksgiving!

2009-11-26T11:13:00.004-06:00

We hope that everyone had a happy Thanksgiving. We went over to Nana's and Poppa's house for dinner. As always, the food was delicious and it was nice to hang out with the family. The kids had an abundance of energy--I guess they didn't eat enough turkey.

Zander and Zoey pretended to take a quick nap.

Mmm. . .pie.

Zoey's goal was to get in as many pictures as possible.

Some other updates and funny quotes from the family. . .

Zander is officially climbing out of his crib. It has only happened twice (that we know of) but it means that a big boy bed is not far off.
Zander is a proficient singer of the alphabet. He sings it when he wakes up and to help him fall asleep.
Zoey is learning all about money. She gets a commission each week for doing her chores. She is expected to give a portion of her earnings to church each week, the rest is hers to save and spend. We are trying to teach her that giving is good and all that stuff. . .so I asked her last Sunday if she knows what the church does with the money she gives. Her response, "They give it to other people. People who don't go to church so they don't have to give away their money."
Zoey's language is developing daily. Some of her new vocabulary includes words such as--"ah-zah-wah" According to Zoey that is Spanish for "I have an idea." "Botswana" is Spanish for "There is underwear in my sock drawer."

The Tooth Fairy Will Be Coming Soon!!!

2009-11-18T19:18:00.004-06:00

Zoey is 4 years old. Tonight she came to us with a loose tooth! I was under the assumption that this doesn't happen until the 1st grade, so I didn't believe her at first. But, she proved me wrong. Zoey has mixed feelings about this loose tooth thing. She has gone from scared to excited to sad back to scared and a little excited. She told me what she is most scared of is swallowing her tooth. That is my worry too! She is however excited for the Tooth Fairy to visit, now that we explained who she was. (No, not the scary tooth fairy that was Uncle Eric at Halloween . . .

We will keep you updated on the actual loosing of the tooth and give updated pictures!

A Wordle for Grandpa

2009-11-02T21:15:00.006-06:00

Today is Grandpa Nyhlen's 60th birthday!
We want to wish him a happy one!

I had a tech class late tonight and learned how to
do a wordle. Our homework was to figure out a way to use it.
When I got home Zoey was still awake (big surprise!),
so I asked her to tell me about grandpa and what makes him special.
If you click on the picture below,  you will see her words.

Happy Birthday Grandpa!

LivingFamily

Ringing in 2012 (About 4 hours early. . .oh well!)

2011 Christmas Program

Zander's Christmas card

Zoey's First Piano Recital

Santa Claus is Coming to Town. . .Then and Now

Our Shining Stars

Letters to Santa. . .Ready to Go!

Zoey's Self-Portrait

Happy November (and early December)!

Boo! It's October!

Zoey's Halloween Song--The Hungry Spider

Zander's Ghost Song! Don't Be Scared!

Renaissance Fair

First Day of School!

Other Florida Highlights. . .

The Atlantic Ocean

More Disneyworld & Florida Pictures

What? Its the end of summer?

DISNEYWORLD!!!!

Mid-Summer Report

May and June

May Projects

Zoey's 6th Birthday Party

Annie (as told by Nana)

Birthday Extravaganza Continues. . .

Zoey's Birthday Season--Part 1

The Livingston Porch Band

The Family Show

Try to Knock Me Down!

Easter (or as Zoey called it. . ."THE BEST DAY EVER!!!"

Another Lost Tooth

March Maddness

"Kisses aren't treats. They're love." ~ Zander, Age 3.5

Head-head. . .tomp-tomp. . .tummy FULL!

Zander woke up at 5:45 in the morning. I told him to play in his room while Mommy and Daddy slept. Every 5 minutes he came into the room asking for something. "Mommy, can I have lemonade in a sippy cup?" Me--"No! Mommy wants to sleep. You have to wait." Zander--"Ok. . . .I'll try daddy."

Out delivering cookies with Zoey. She played shy with most everyone. I asked her why she is always so quiet around my friends but so LOUD with me? Her response, "Loud is how I say I love you."

Zander 'wrote' a book called, "How you to find a balloon."

Zander broke his buzz lightyear doll. He wants me to send it back to Santa's workshop. "Santa will fix it."

Loves that Zander calls the humidifier in his room "that thing that makes me have no hiccups!"

In my quest for the "Mother of the Year" title, I decided that it would be FUN to let the kids play around with my kickboxing gloves. Zoey punches a lot harder with the gloves on and Zander was just overheard saying, "Let's go downstairs and I can hit you!"

Feburary 2011

Zoey's Kindergarten Program

Abracadabra

Love this boy!

What's new. . .

Merry Christmas!

December Happenings

Our Karate Kid/Daisy Girl

Zoey's Shopping List

Zander and Nana's first theatre outing:

What the Zs do when they think no one is watching. . .

October has been a GREAT month!

Some Artsy Shots from Uncle Eric

Beautiful Day at the Pumpkin Patch

A Little Detail

Time flies. . .

FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL!!! (and my birthday)

Annual State Fair Outing

Open House 2010

A New School Year

Teddy Bear Park

Carver County Fair 2010

The Annual Sleepover

Be careful of sarcasm. . .

Happy 3rd Birthday, Zan Man!

Let's Get Down to Business!

Little Gems

Family Vacation

4th of July

Father's Day Traditions

Summer Vacation

Zoey's Mulan Adventure

The Magic Ticket

Happy Birthday Bean!

Family Slip and Slide!

Go Far!

Happy May!

The Future

So wise!