Into the Double Digits!!

Andrew turned 10 on Wednesday! I can't believe ithas been 10 years since I became a mom and started on this journey with him. Here he is (with Zach feeling every bit as excited and Ava paying way more attention to the bow than anything else) opening the present from my parents. It was a priceless reaction...to the 'Wipeout' Kinect Game!

So happy that they are wanting to pose with the new game!

Andrew got his new Webelo Scout stuff for his birthday too. Notice that Ava still has the bow from Andrew's present? Everyone was happy!

After presents, Andrew wanted to go to Olive Garden for dinner. On the way, the sky was so, so beautiful that we had to stop and take a picture.

Here we are outside waiting for dinner. Look at those cute kids!

Andrew was in heaven...he ordered everything he wanted and was very happy to have his lemon cake and a little mound of chocolates with a candle as we sang Happy Birthday!

Make a wish...

Yeah!!! Andrew is 10!!! Happy Birthday Andrew - I love, love, love you!

Warming my heart...

Today when I was driving Ava she told me a little story that warmed my heart...

She said that when I was getting ready she sat on the stairs and said a prayer. I asked her what it was about. She said, "I asked Heavenly Father to make it stop raining so that my headband wouldn't get wet." It was raining pretty hard when she did this. I thought it was really cute and asked her what else she prayed about. She said that she just prayed that over and over again that He would make the rain stop and then He said, "yes". I asked her if she heard Him say, "yes" - I was pretty curious to see what she thought. In response to my question, she said, "I didn't hear Him say "yes", I felt Him say "yes"."

It was such a tender little moment while we were in the car...and she couldn't have been happier or felt more listened to because the rain had indeed stopped. My heart is warm.

Anniversary trip to the cities

On Thursday afternoon we left for an anniversary trip - and this time we took friends! We had talked to Kathy and Dave about going on a different trip, but when it didn't work out, we decided to go to the cities together. We had some things really planned out (like the restaurants we wanted to try) and some things were left up to what we felt like in the moment. It was a wonderful trip! We stayed at the Westin in Minneapolis and it ended up being a great, central location.

Thursday night we had reservations at Fogo de Chao. It's a traditional Brazilian steakhouse...can anyone say food?? There was so, so much food! It was all good and we had a great time just starting off the vacation!

On Friday morning we went to Colossal Cafe. It's a great, little (stress the little) place with delicious biscuit sandwiches and really unique flappers (thick, yeasty pancakes). We got lucky and found spots to sit inside. Afterward we walked around the neighborhood a little and then were off to a bookstore, the Apple store, a high end kitchen store and the most beautiful cemetary.

We had reservations at Sea Change for lunch...

And instead of getting dessert there, we went to Patisserie 46 - great decision! We had the most wonderful treats...yummy! Then we headed out to see 'Moneyball'. We all loved the movie...really interesting.

That night we went to Broder's Pasta Bar for dinner. It came very highly recommended and it didn't disappoint. They don't take reservations and so you just show up and wait. We got in about 8:45 (I do love to eat late) and so we had time to walk around and do a little window shopping before we ate.

On Saturday we went on a walking tour. It had 5 places listed, but we stopped at quite a few other places too. It started at a small, local market where we had the BEST chocolate milk. It was not part of the tour...just happened to be there! Then we crossed the Mississippi River - on the bridge pictured above - and headed to a deli, a brick oven pizza place (Punch), and to Greek and Nepali restaurants.

In one of the neighborhoods we walked up to this church and heard a little about the history. It was really beautiful and is the oldest, consecutive running church in the cities. I love places like this. The tour was really great. Fun places to see and so much fun to walk around the city.

This is the public library. I have never really seen anything quite like it. There were floors and floors of books of course, but they had done a really unique job with the architecture of the building. There was even a see through escalator (from the side) that reminded me of a Swatch watch I had in high school!

The walking tour started in one place and ended up somewhere totally different. Much to our happiness, the cities now have these bike systems all over. In fact, we were told that Minneapolis is now the highest bike commuting city in the U.S. You just swipe your credit card and get your bike. It is $5 for a 24 hour period. All you have to do is return the bike anywhere you see the stations. As long as you don't have the bike for more than 30 minutes at a time, you don't play anything additional. You can just hop from station to station all day long for $5...so great! We rented bikes and headed back to the hotel...it was a fun adventure.

That night we went to 112 Eatery. It was the place I was most excited for...and it was everything it was supposed to be. Most delicious. Most delicious.

This burger was so good...Dave was sad he split it with all of us! I think he'll be talking about this burger forever!

After dinner we went to see the play 'Burial at the Thebes'. It was really great. It is taken from the story of Antigone and examines the question of where a person's loyalties should be...with the state - as a citizen - or with themselves and their family and God (or Gods in the case of Antigone). The chorus was amazing. Totally amazing. I even went to ask if there was a soundtrack we could buy!

On Sunday morning we decided to go to St. Paul's Cathedral and attend mass. It was a really beautiful service with music fit for a cathedral. It really is an amazing building.

After mass we went to the M Street Cafe at the St. Paul Hotel. We looked at the hotel when we were making reservations, but were quickly detoured when we saw that it was $1200 per night! Just a tiny bit over our budget!! So...we ate at their delicious brunch instead and washed our hands in their fancy bathroom!

We had great weather, lots of laughs, a wide variety of activities, excellent food, fun shopping (the I Like You store was a favorite) and the best, best company! It was a perfect way to spend our 12th anniversary. Happy, happy 12th!!!

September Soccer!!!

It has been a relatively warm week this past week - until today! Last night a cold front came in and dropped the temperature about 20 degrees from the mid-seventies during the day to the mid-fifties. When we left for Andrew's soccer game tonight it was in the low fifties, but during the game the wind kicked up and brought another crazy cold front with it. By half time everyone on the sidelines was wrapped in blankets and trying to remain supportive (and cursing the fact that it has to lightning to have a game called for weather)!

This is not snow...it is HAIL!!! And that is Andrew, just playing his heart out! The kids were awesome and just kept on playing - and won!

When we got to the car after the game, it was 38 degrees (not the best day for the sandles I was wearing)!!! Ahhh, September soccer in Minnesota!

School pants...

I got some shirts for Ava that are really "busy", but have fall colors in them and needed some pants to go with them. Melissa needed the same things and found these great fabrics. She was nice enough to share with me and so I was off making school pants! These are my first try at leggings. They turned out so cute...I'm really happy.

And here is a good, ol' pair of cute, wide leg pants...can't go wrong with these!

And I just never get tired of being able to put my label on her clothes! So much satisfaction...Mick Jagger should have tried sewing!

If this reminds you of your grandmother's couch...

You just may be right!! Greg and I were in a furniture store a little while back and the woman helping us commented on something Ava was wearing. I had made it and so we started to talk about sewing a little. She mentioned that there was a box of upholstery samples in the back that was going to be thrown out and wondered if I wanted them. I figured it was worth taking - you never know when you're going to need a box of upholstery, right??

Well, Monday at dance class the instructor told the girls they needed a dance bag. Ava was really excited and I immediately thought of the upholstery. I figured it would hold up well and who knew what I could find in there! I picked a few things out and then let Ava choose her favorite (the grandmother's sofa floral). Then I picked three other fabrics that I thought would work. Then I got to work!! I could not be happier with how it turned out. Here is how the bag looks hanging...

Here's a view from the back...

And from the front. The white tie was left over from some pajama's I made for girl's camp and so this bag was entirely FREE!! And, if I saw it in the store, I would want it. It just doesn't get better than that for me!

Some firsts for Ava

Monday was Ava's first dance class. She is so, so excited to be taking a tap/ballet class. I don't know why, but she wanted to take these pictures while holding the stick. I just had to laugh because of the old 'Fame' t.v. show where Debbie Allen's character bangs the stick on the ground..."right now's when you start paying - with sweat"!!!

I told Ava to make a dance pose. This is what she did!

So fun!

Today was Ava's first gymnastics lesson and her first day of pre-school. It was a big day here! It was really fun to watch her at both dance and gymnastics - she just loves being there and is really having a great time. She was really happy to go back to school too. It's great to be back in the swing of things and watch the kids be so excited about their activities too.

School is in session!

Last Thursday was back to school for the boys - so today they finished their first week! Andrew is in 4th grade and Zach is in 2nd. They are so big...and so cute! I'm really glad that both boys enjoy school and were happy to go...that sure makes things nice for everyone!

Hurray for school!!!

Lemon Meringue for raspberries

Every year since we've been in Duluth, we go and pick raspberries at Glen's house. This past spring I wanted to plant some raspberry bushes of my own, but we decided not to spend the money and we planted flowers instead.

About 3 weeks ago Glen let everyone know that he was planning on selling his house and that the raspberries were going to be taken out so that there was more yard (for resale purposes) - there are LOTS of raspberry bushes in the yard!! He said that anyone who wanted bushes could come dig them up and transplant them. I was not going to let that opportunity pass by!

Greg went and dug up 15 plants and put them in the back raised bed (where we had the wild flowers this year). I wanted to do something for Glen, but didn't quite know what to do. I called his daughter Jaime and asked if there was somewhere he loved to go (so I could get him a gift certificate) and she gave me a different route. She said that what he would really love was a lemon meringue pie! I got right on it.

Now, anyone who knows me well, knows I am not a pie person - so I have very limited pie experience. But, I do love to bake and I love to find a great recipe and try to make it my own. So...I did just that. I combined a few recipes and made some changes based on other things I had baked and was so, so happy with the end result. I took a pie to Glen and we ate the other (it was my first "normal" pie crust too - I'm kind of a cookie or graham cracker crust girl).

Delicious. Maybe I am a pie girl afterall!