New fun

A new "inflatable play zone" opened this past week in town so the kids and I decided to check it out today since it is the 3rd straight day of not so nice weather. So after naps this afternoon, we piled into the van and headed downtown (the place is only 5 minutes from home so that is a huge bonus!). Once we got there, Ryan was in heaven. There were multiple bounce houses, a ball pit, and even a huge inflatable obstacle course that ended with a huge slide - not too shabby. Lauren, who usually loves bounce houses, was a little timid at first. It wasn't until Trav joined us after work that she finally let loose and really got into the fun. Ellie also had her fair share of fun. She was all about the ball pit - so many colors, so many balls to try and put in her mouth (gross!). By the end of our two hours, everyone seemed to enjoy themselves. This place is a definite on our list of "fun indoor activities" to keep us entertained once the long winter sets in! Check out the fun . . .

One loud baby

Here is a quick video of Ellie. She seriously "talked" for about an hour this day. Of course she managed to tone it down a bit when I got the camera out, but you still get the idea.

Another one bites the dust

It was a rainy, windy and just plain gross day today. To brighten our day and make us smile, the girls and I ventured north to visit Aaron, Ann and Colton this morning while Ryan was at school. It was a quick visit (Ryan is only at school for 3 1/2 hrs) so we had to make the most of our time. I of course spent a good portion holding Colt - he is so cute and so little. It's hard to imagine Ellie was that small just 6 months ago - she looks like a giant compared to him now! Lauren also had her first opportunity to hold her newest cousin and she did great as usual. She once again pointed out what a "good mommy" she is while giving Colt some loving (he slept through it so obviously she is doing something right). After our visit, we headed back home to get Ryan off the bus, have some lunch, and enjoy a nice long rest. After naps Lauren listened to some stories on my computer while Ryan and I worked on his flashcards. It is amazing what a little hard work and practice can do. Two weeks ago he was struggling with his numbers and letters, and had no idea how to read words. Today, he nailed all the numbers, missed just a few letters (he gets his b and d mixed up, and also his g and j), and got all ten of the words we worked on - yeah Ryan! Right at the end of working on his words, Ryan started sticking is finger in his mouth and working on his second loose tooth. He was literally bending it completely flat so he asked me to pull it out for him. Now, I can handle vomit and poop, but ask me to pull a tooth, and I nearly pass out. There is nothing more disgusting to me than ripping a tooth out of my child's mouth. So I told Ryan he would have to wait until Trav came home. Apparently he wasn't in the "waiting mood" because two minutes later he came running out of the bathroom shouting, "look at this Mom, I did it!" Not knowing what he had done, I was a little surprised when he came running to me with his tooth in his hand. He was sooo excited!! We had to call Trav immediately and let him know his "teeth pulling services" weren't needed anymore. Here are a couple of pictures of the new smile, and a couple with the girls.

Colton James Loken

A little boy decided to make an early entrance into the world this weekend. Colton James Loken was born on Saturday, October 23rd (two weeks early!) to his proud parents. He weighed in at 7lbs 11oz and was 21 inches long - a peanut by Loken standards. Because we were out in Springfield visiting friends, I wasn't able to get up to see my newest little nephew until Sunday afternoon, but he was well worth the wait! Colton is the exact opposite of what I thought Aaron and Ann's kids would look like. I always pictured a big baby (at least over 8 pounds), and definitely a blondie - Colt was neither. He is long and lean with dark skin and a head full of dark hair - the only part I got right was the fact that he would be a handsome little guy! I'm so happy for Aaron and Ann. There is seriously nothing better than seeing your big brother (literally and figuratively) holding his tiny new baby boy in his arms - it kind of melts my heart. Who knew it would be so fun to see one of my siblings with their first child - can't wait to see Ash doing the same thing some day soon. Here are the only two pictures I took - I was way too busy holding the babe to take anymore - luckily I know where Colton lives so I'll be sure to get more in the future! The kids and Trav stayed home to catch up on some much needed sleep when I went to the hospital so I guess that gives me a good reason to get back and see Colton - he has three cousins and an uncle who are anxious to meet him! Lauren is already pointing to the pictures and saying, "that's Tolt." Tolt - Colt, whatever works!

MEA fun!!

MEA got off to a rough start for us - Ryan and I both got the flu - but once we got over that, things were great! First up, a visit to the Olson family to hang out and meet their newest member, Weston. It was a great visit. The older kids entertained themselves while Katie and I were able to keep the babies happy and have some much needed adult conversation. After a quick stop at Grandma and Grandpa Loken's house, we headed back home to rest before a weekend full of fun. Trav took a half day on Friday so we headed out early to Gaylord to help Uncle Willie celebrate his birthday. Unfortunately Trav celebrated too much so he ended up spending most of the next two days in bed. While Trav was "resting," the kids and I used our time to carve pumpkins and spend time with aunts, uncles, and cousins. By 2:00pm on Saturday, it was time to head out again. This time we were meeting up with some friends and their kids in New Ulm for the Schell's Brewery tour. The kids did a good job considering it wasn't probably the most exciting thing for them, and the adults certainly liked the beer tasting section of the tour so overall it was a success! After the tour we all packed up and headed to Springfield to check out the Kreft's new home. It was a beautiful home and as always, Abby did a great job of decorating the place. After our Saturday night sleepover, we got back on the road again Sunday morning to make the two hour drive back home. The ride was not a pleasant one as the kids were tired and ready to be back home but we made it and were able to see lots of people over the long weekend. Here are a couple of random pictures from the past couple of days. Check out Ryan's eyes in the first picture. He put some little plastic globes over his eyes for "professor glasses" - such a creative little nerd!Lauren got into the Halloween spirit by putting on her Batgirl costume - and a cute little Batgirl she was!

Bonfires, birthdays, and lights?

We had a very eventful couple of days this past weekend. The fun started on Friday night when Trav started a bonfire for the kids to enjoy. As it turned out, the bonfire for the kids became a mini gathering for the neighbors and their kids too. Unfortunately because the bonfire was spur of the moment, we were unprepared and didn't have the makings for smores. To tide the kids over we substituted cookies and warm cocoa instead - not a bad trade if you ask me! By 8:30pm the kids were tuckered out and ready for bed which left just the adults. I managed to stay awake until 10ish, then it was time for bed for me. Trav followed a couple of hours later and we all had a good night of sleep. Saturday brought another busy day. Ryan spent the majority of the day at his friend's birthday party (the highlight of the party being a trip to the water park at the Mall of America) while Trav, myself, and the girls did some major shopping at Home Depot. We decided it was time to finally update the lighting in our house so off we went to make some big purchases - 1 chandelier, 2 pendant lights, and a ceiling fan - not bad for a quick shopping trip. The real fun started when we got home and Trav started the installation process. Up first, the ceiling fan with a light (nothing like tackling the big stuff first). Although it took longer than he wanted, Trav managed to get the fan up and running before we joined up with Ryan at his friend's house (also our neighbor). We spent the evening hanging out with the neighbors and celebrating Reid's 5th birthday - good times! On our walk back home (a major benefit of having friends who are neighbors) we came across a different neighbor having a bonfire - must have been our lucky night! So Trav and I put the kids to bed and headed back outside for the 2nd bonfire in as many nights. We had some good conversation then headed back in before it got too late - another fun day in the books. Sunday proved just as busy as the past two days. After everyone rolled out of bed (Ryan at 7:45am and the girls not until close to 8:30am - guess the long day caught up to everyone) we started right back up. I got in a quick grocery run while Trav started in on the three remaining lights. By the end of the day all the lights were hung and working (Trav is turning into a real "handyman" these days), the ceiling fan was fixed (it made a loud humming noise initially), and lots of food was made - a very productive day for both of us! The kids used the day to relax, play, and even create a "chore board" (Ryan's new thing to start earning money so he can buy the toys that he wants).

Tomorrow we're back into our normal routine, but with MEA this week, Ryan only has two days of school. We're planning on using the time off to travel south to see some friends and stop in at Grandma and Grandpa Loken's for a day or two - it'll certainly be nice to get out of town for a while and have some adult interaction!

Bath time!

Rub-a-dub-dub two little ladies in a tub! The girls took their first bath together tonight. Lauren was a great help. She dubbed herself "Barbie Mommy" and when onto further compliment herself by saying she was, "a really nice Barbie Mommy." She is so humble. I do have to agree with her though, she did a great job of holding Ellie "really, really tight", and never let her fall into the water - if that is what makes a really nice Barbie Mommy, then she nailed it! Ellie seemed to enjoy her new perspective of being upright in the tub. She was able to play with some toys and even kick her feet around a bit. Enough with the words though, here are some pictures of the little ladies enjoying their bath.And here is a picture of the boy just to prove that he does in fact still exist. He's just too busy doing his thing to take time out and let his loving Mom take pictures of him anymore!

School conference time

After a fun Saturday spent with Aaron and Ann at a pumpkin patch (thanks for the fun guys!), it was back to our normal, everyday routine. This weeks excitement . . . parent/teacher conferences! Ryan's (or should I say, my) conference was scheduled for tonight and after the 20 minute conversation with his teacher and about two hours of thinking about it afterwards, it is safe to say that I'm a little overwhelmed. Now, I'm not overwhelmed because his teacher said anything negative about Ryan, I'm just overwhelmed by all that he is learning, or has to learn. I'm not sure what I thought kids learned in kindergarten, but when Mrs. Addler told me all the stuff they are working on and when she hopes to have things accomplished, I'm pretty sure my face went from, "yes, I agree" to, "oh my god, are you kidding me?" For example, she showed me Ryan's test results from the first week of kindergarten. The "test" was how many upper case letters does he recognize - 25, how many lower case letters does he recognize - 22 - so far so good. The next section was, how many sight words does he recognize - 0 out of 25 - pretty sure that one is my fault. For starters, I had no idea what a "sight word" was, and once the teacher explained them to me, I was a little shocked. Apparently "sight words" are words that are very common (ex. "I", "me", "see", you get the idea). Anyway, I had no idea that these "sight words" (there are 25 of them) were so important. And I certainly had no idea that Ryan (or any kid at the age of 5) was supposed to be able to read/recognize them. I guess I maybe thought kindergarten would still be lots of coloring, learning rules, and the "basics" - obviously that is not the case! Guess that means it's time for this family to crack down and learn some sight words (along with more letters, numbers, sentence structures and whatever else we're told to do)! Even though this whole thing is overwhelming, it is also very exciting. To think that Ryan will be reading and writing soon - crazy! Another sure sign our little boy is no longer just our little boy - he's becoming so independent and creative and social, and so many other things - it's so fun to see!

Almost time for the costumes . . .

The other day the kids and I were bored so I suggested that we take out their Halloween costumes (I purchased them all shortly after Halloween last year for about $2 a piece) and try them out to make sure they still fit (or in Ellie's case, make sure it sort of fits - I bought the costume before I even knew if we were having a boy or a girl so it had to be gender neutral as well). Anyway, Ryan fit into his Captain American costume just fine. Getting the mask on though was a bit tricky. Think big head and little mask - not a good combo. After a little stretching and pulling on the mask, we managed to get it on and make it work so he could both see and breathe - not an easy task when your dealing with limited material. Then it was Lauren's turn. Her costume was Batgirl (apparently I was going for a "Superhero" theme when I bought these). Other than the bodysuit being a little snug on the arms, the costume fit just fine and I have to say, she looked adorable in her little bat mask. With the two of them dressed, it was time to try out Ellie's costume. I couldn't even remember what I bought so when I pulled out an elephant costume I just had to smile . . . Ellie the Elephant - how cute! You would almost think we planned it - but trust me, we didn't. Getting her costume on was easy. It is a 12 month outfit so it was plenty big in the body and arms, but just fit in the length. Her head mask or gear, or whatever it is called was way too big, but I figure once we put a hat on underneath it, it will work just fine. Here are a couple of picture of the three of them . . . Captain America, Batgirl, and the little elephant!

More fun

I decided it was time to get my camera out again so here are some pictures of the girls playing outside and in. We've been taking advantage of the nice weather lately by spending most of our time outside going for walks, riding bikes, and playing with the neighbor kids - what a great way to spend October! You'll notice there are no pictures of Ryan again - that darn Kindergarten takes up so much of his time! And here is another video of Ellie. This time she is enjoying what we call her, "baby bounce house." I'm not sure who enjoys it more, Ellie because she can bounce around, or Lauren because she can "gently" push her sister all over the place without getting in trouble - what a deal!

Rolling

Ellie is finally feeling motivated enough to try to move herself a little bit, and I do mean, just a little bit. I can't blame the kid though. Whenever something is near and she can't get to it, there are always helping hands waiting to get it for her and bring it right to her grubby little paws (I wish someone would do that for me). Anyway, here is the little lady in action. She is only rolling from her stomach to her back - maybe she'll master back to stomach in the next month or so. I guess we'll wait and see . . .

Oh, and don't worry, no babies were squished by their big sisters during this film!