Babyshower...

Last Saturday we had Rissa's baby shower. We rented a hospitality room at Black Bear Casino. We had a wonderful time and were thankful that so many friends and family arrived for the occasion.
The guests especially enjoyed the playdough babies game that we played. We had many interesting looking babies!! Too bad my camera died. Rissa received many gifts. To me, the most interesting gift was a bear that you put in the babies crib and it plays the sounds of a mother's womb.
Rissa only has eight weeks left of her pregnancy!! I can't believe how fast the time went by.

Birthday Time!!

On January 26th, my baby turned 10!! Tomorrow my eldest will be 18!! Everyday I thank God for giving me three beautiful children. Sometime I wish I could turn the clock back to when they were babies and stop time.
We had Tristan's party at Brag Game Rights. I knew that I had picked the right place when one of the little boys looked up at me with his big eyes and said to me " This is the best party I have ever been to in my whole life."
The boys picked out video games that they wanted to play and they were given pop and candy. We had ordered 10 pizza's from Little Caesars but they boys didn't want to eat. We had 6 pizza's left over and ended up giving them away!!
Here are the pictures from Tristan's party.

Skiing

When I was a little girl I remember going skiing all the time with my parents. The image of my mothers bright orange ski jacket will always come to mind when I think about skiing. As a chid I loved to ski and would always be the first one down the hill. Ryan on the otherhand was always a bit fearful and always struggled to make it down the hill.

As a teenager I loved going skiing with my friends. I think we did more boy chasing then skiing though. I was really happy in college when I was able to take skiing for a college credit!!! I loved teaching others how to ski and hated when the season ended!!

Then Kyle and I moved to the cities and we didn't ski one time since we had moved. Today we decided to take advantage of my day off and go skiing. We had a blast!!! Tanner didn't want to go and Rissa is pregnant. So Kyle, me and Tristan headed out to Spirit Mountain for a day of skiing. Ines was already there with friends.

It really was like riding a bike and I was able to ski just like I used too. I struggled a bit because of my weight and my hip locked up on me at one point but overall it was a great day!!! It was Tristan's first time skiing and by the end of the day he really had a hang of things.

Next time we are going to try moun-ta-lac ( Spelling)!!!

Sundays

Sundays have always had a significant meaning in my family. When I was little every Sunday after church we would head to Grandma and Grandpas for a wonderful pot roast dinner with potatoes, gravy and carrots. Sometimes my parents would take us to Saints Roller Rink or we would go ice skating or sliding. As a child I always looked forward to Sundays because I knew that they would be filled with fun and adventure. I have continued this tradition with my children.
We usually wake up around 9 and have breakfast and then we start getting ready for church. We start Church at 11 but seem to always be running late. After an enjoyable service we usually visit with friends for a bit and then leave church to begin our afternoon adventures.
In the summer we usually drive up the shore and stop at Kendall's to have smoked fish. We have been going there since I was a little girl. The next stop is the Candy Shop a few miles up the road they sell chocolate covered sunflower seeds that are to die for.
In the winter we usually go to lunch and then we head over to UWS for an afternoon of Racquetball, swimming, ping pong, and other activities.
I hope my children will pass this tradition on to my grandchildren!!!

Ice breaking on the lake

The noise on this video is not the wind. It is the acutal noise of the ice hitting the shore. This video was taken at Brighton Beach in Duluth. Lake Superior

Photography.

For many years I always have the same dream.... I am taking pictures by the lake, I am older and my hair is very long and I am at perfect peace. I always wonder if that means I should go into photography. I love taking pictures- especially black and white ones. Here are a few of my favorites.

A perfect day.

Today was a perfect day. Everything just fell into place. We started the day by traveling to Two Harbors for Tristan's basketball tournament. Tristan was on track and shot over nine baskets. His team came in first place.
On the way back I decided we should take the scenic route. The boys and I stopped at French River and went on a hike. We were shocked to see at least twenty mallards floating in the water. The boys had fun throwing rocks and braking the ice. I on the other hand had the opportunity to take some photos. On the way back we saw a bald eagle flying overhead.
We then headed to the Edge water park and resort to celebrate Brittany and Alex's tenth birthdays. Tristan and uncle Ryan had a blast going down the giant water slides. The girls loved the presents I had purchased for them. Even great grandma Donna made it to the party!!!
We then headed home for an evening of relaxing and hopefully early bedtime.