conversations, cave exploration & scenic byways

What: About a 3 minute conversation in our Tahoe on the way back from Niagara Falls on Thursday....just to show you a fun glimpse of what it's like with 7 of us in the car together! :)
When: Thursday, July 16
Who: Poppie (driving), Clay (front passenger seat), Nana, Parker & Carrie (all in middle seat), Ashleigh & Kaylee (sharing the backseat)

(Ashleigh & Kaylee in the back seat belting out the theme song from the Disney movie, "Pocohontas" after passing a river...Kaylee has now started to get over the fact that she has not had cell phone service all day...how dare the cell phone companies!!! :) LOVE my KK!)

...the two then decide singing is a great idea & start singing random childhood songs...Clay is in the front seat trying to turn on the radio to drown out the voices...ha ha! That didn't work work very well! :)

Carrie: ...thought of "The Sound of Music" after passing a rolling hill & randomly sung out, "The hills are alive, with the sound of Griswold..." Ok, so my mind went to one of my all-time favorite movies, "Chevy Chase's European Vacation"...
Clay:"I jumped a copperhead at Canyon..." (I must have missed a conversation somewhere as I was thinking of the Griswold's family vacation)
Kaylee: "Why do Texans not say "H's?"
....4 minute discussion in the car of "H" words...
Ashleigh: "This is a cute little town!"
Nana: "Look Parker! There are some tractors!"
Parker gets all excited to see the big machines
Nana then goes back to reading Parker his book
Kaylee randomly breaks into singing some song about rehab...once again, must have missed part of a conversation here!
Clay (to Poppie or anyone who's listening): "What makes them magnetized?" (Referring to the rocks that Poppie had gotten from Niagara)


Yesterday, we drove SE to Harmony, MN for a tour of Niagara Cave. It started by us leaving town around 11am (we actually left the apt around 10:00 but had to make a few stops first...Poppie was so patient with us girls!...by the time we hit the road we decided it would be a good idea to run through a drive-through & get some cold drinks. Great idea! Last stop Poppie...we promise!)

It took about 2 1/2 hrs of driving time to get there. We ate lunch at this quaint little restaurant in town called The Village Square of Harmony...Clay & I shared one of their famous pizzas...it was oh! so yummy! Ashleigh & I shared a delicious slice of homemade pecan pie for dessert; after taking one bite, I decided that I should just order a whole pie for myself. Unfortunately, the restaurant didn't have whole pies for you to order on this day...oh well...I saved myself a few pounds! :)

We then walked downtown (which was maybe a total of 1/8 of a mile), went to the Visitor's center so I could get my brochures & postcards :), & then drove on to the Niagara Cave site.

Can't say enough about this tour! We loved it! Parker did great in his backpack carrier again!
Just to give you a quick run-down on this place & this tour...

Harmony, MN is a VERY small town known for 2 things: being an Amish community (the largest one in MN) & Niagara Caves. This cave has been rated as one of the top ten commercial caves in the US. It has not only beautiful stalactites hanging from the ceiling & stalagmites reaching up from the floor as seen in many caves, but also a variety of soda straws, draperies, ribbons, flowstone, columns, and fossils dating back to between 325 to over 450 million years. One of the most noted features of Niagara Cave is the famous underground stream & waterfall. This cave has a lot of narrow passageways & "high-can't-see-top-ceilings." (There were a few areas that were a little difficult getting the backpack carrier through.) The cave is still active & stays at a constant 48 degree temp.

Funny story how the cave was discovered: In 1924, 3 pigs from a local farm disappeared. A few young men went in search of the pigs & their search led them to the soon to be famous sinkhole located east of the homestead. When they determined the pigs had somehow managed to fall through a narrow crack at the bottom of the sinkhole, they got ropes & lights & made their way down into the hole. After descending over 50 ft, they found the pigs still alive on a rock ledge. Not only that, but they had discovered that the vast rooms & passageways extended far beyond what their dim lights could pierce. When the boys told their adventure to others, no one really took them seriously until about 8 years later when 3 cave explorers from Iowa got word of the interesting hole. The rest is history. The cave was officially opened to the public for tours on June 1, 1934.

Carrie, Kaylee, Nana, Clay, Parker, Ashleigh, & Poppie inside Niagara

After the tour, Parker had fun playing outside Niagara with Aunt KK, Aunt Ash & Poppie..Parker would have happily jumped in & sat in the water if we had let him! :)

Aunt KK & Parker

We chose to take the "scenic route" on the way home. (aka Historic Bluff Country National Scenic Byway). GORGEOUS! Clay & I have decided we have to drive it again this fall! Beautiful rolling hills, green, green & green, clear lakes, flowers & crops everywhere you look. "The unique geology of the area brings you to the very edge of the giant glacier that once covered almost all of MN from 25,000 to 12,000 years ago. The very southeast portion of the state remained untouched by glacial activity and is known as the 'driftless area,' meaning it is free of the glacial 'drift' or deposits that glaciers leave behind...West of Spring Valley are the glacially smoothed flat prairies, full of fertile lands and abundance. To the east are older natural landforms containing unique biological systems and the majestic limestone bluffs created by thousands of years of outwash from the melting glacier."

I definately feel another road trip coming up this fall! :) Who wants to come with us?

celebrating togetherness

Last summer, one of mine & Clay's favorite family memories was our 4th of July cookout when the Nolen's came to visit us. This year, we decided to carry on the tradition...so tonight, we enjoyed grilling out, swimming in the pool, soft breezes, feet in the grass, and family togetherness! Such fun!

"Poppie, I'm running low on cheese puffs here!"

We miss you Lacey!!!

family in town!

So fun to have family come visit us!!! Nana, Ashleigh, & Kaylee flew in yesterday; Parker was so excited for them to get here that we waited out on the balcony for them to arrive so that he could wave & squeal at them down below! :) ...Looking forward to good ole' fashioned family time over the next week! Right now, we're off to the store for groceries!

Hope everyone enjoys their weekend!

18 Months!

July 4th, 2008

July 3rd, 2009

Parker is 18 months old today! Can't believe how fast our little boy is growing!
Fun words he says: Cars (sounds like a New Yorker.. "Cahs" :), Quack Quack, Woof, ball, water, outside (sounds like "ouswide"), nose, eye, NO, this (sounds like "dis")...
He still loves the outdoors more than anything. He balls his little fists up & squeals when we pull up at a park! So cute! Loves to throw & kick his balls, build with his blocks, read stories (loves the Dr. Suess book "Go Dog Go" among many others), walk outside, run around the playground area, watch people, Imagination Movers on Disney, & get into mama & daddy's things!

Clay & I are enjoying every single moment we have with this precious boy! He is our constant entertainment & reminds us not to take life too seriously! He is into everything at every moment...but we always love the challenge to try & keep up with him! :)
Happy 18 Months Parker! We love you!

let's go hiking some more...fun day today... :)

Ok, so I said that I would let ya'll know how we liked our new backpack carrier...it's a 10! We have now traveled with it to Mexico & on a short hiking excursion here in MN & loved it both times! Comfy for person carrying & of course for Parker! The sun shade is awesome for hot days like we had on both trips; it makes a world of difference for the baby! There are convenient storage pockets underneath as well as on the sides of the carrier...there are even places to put your bottled water! This is definitely a smart investment & one that will last us (hopefully) for many years!

Now, whenever Parker sees it, he starts trying to climb in it...guess I'll have to plan more hiking adventures! :)
...
We had such a fun day today! Parker got to play on the new Treehouse at Kindercare today. When I went to pick him up, he smiled & waved bye bye to me. :) He was apparantly not ready to go. The kids played outside most of today, & then Parker had a double dose of playtime with other kids (Lifetime & Kindercare) so he crashed when he got in the bed tonight from all the excitement. Nothing like a good hard day of play!!! So fun to watch him!!!

I was on a kick around the house; managed to get through my whole "to do" list for today in record time. Is it ok to pat myself on the back for that one? I was so excited to be able to do some more cleaning & organizing though...loved every second of it! ...Taylor Swift playing on the cd player, comfy clothes, & a "ready-to-run-a-marathon" feeling while I worked...you really can't get much better than that!!

We're looking forward to company arriving tomorrow! Who will it be?! Just wait & see... :)

what i was doing on 07.08.09@10:11:12am

Elizabeth Kartchner, a Creating Keepsakes Scrapbooker of the Year & contributing editor, posted this neat idea on her blog for fun as a challenge for today. We had to take a picture of what we were doing at this time.

Where was I & what was I doing at 10:11:12am today? At the gym sweating like a dog in my aerobics class (unfortunately, I couldn't get anyone to leave their workout mode in the middle of class to have them take a picture of me, so I figured this picture would do instead! I really didn't want a long-standing memory saved in our computer of me "panting, hair-everywhere, pants rolled up because I was so hot, exasperated look of when-is-this-going-to-be-over" anyway!) :)

Just for fun, I took the picture for tonight as well, to remember what I was doing. Not as exciting, but definitely glad I can mark it off my "to do" list...hand washed & did a swimwear protector on all of my bathing suits. Ugh..I have to say, I have been putting that off since we got back from Mexico. Our kitchen floor is now covered with all of our bathing suits, swimsuit covers & hats! :)

our "Minnesota Favorites" album

An album I've wanted to start for awhile now is one that our whole family can enjoy working on together...gradually. I also wanted it to be a coffee table piece where friends & family who come to visit can browse & see some of the great places & experiences that Minnesota has to offer.

Our "Minnesota Favorites" album is just the key! In this album, we will document our "family favorite" places here in MN. The book is not supposed to be a complete collection of everything we do while we are living here; it will specifically hold our favorite parks, hiking trails, & other fun places that we would recommend others to visit for fun if they get the chance!

So far, a few of the favorites include: Cleary Lake Park, Minnehaha Falls, Lake Superior/Duluth, Patricks Bakery & Cafe (restaurants are included in this!), Stillwater & Emma Krumbees Apple Orchard.

One of the things I love about this, is that it's simple, simple, simple. All that is needed is an 8x8 album, 2 pics from each favorite place, & a pen! There are no frills with this book, but it is still a priceless keepsake!

bounces & determination in your steps

touring MN in red, white & blue

This weekend we had a fun, fast-paced schedule as Clay, Parker & I showed friends from Nashville, Terra & Allen, around the Twin Cities. Friday, we started out early to the Overlook at Fort Snelling & then to the Mall of America for fun adventures. We then went driving to Lake Nokomis for a quick view of one of the "10,000 lakes," & next to hiking at Minnehaha Falls where we trailed down to sit by the banks of the MS River. On the way home, we caught a quick tour of Grand & Summit Ave in St. Paul & the Cathedral, & lastly, had dinner at our place. Whew...I get tired just writing about it!!!

Saturday, we ventured out just as early to park at the MSP airport to catch the train downtown. We rode the Light Rail for about a half an hour until we reached downtown Minneapolis, where we walked down the streets & stopped in a couple of stores. At lunchtime, we stopped to eat at the Newsroom - a popular downtown eatery. With full & happy tummies, we strolled on towards the stadium for the Twins game. They gave us these for free!!!

Allen had gotten us great seats in the home run section down at the bottom, but we found that Parker needed more space than allotted down there, so we moved here after a couple of innings. ...much more space...it worked out great!
In the middle of the 9th inning, we knew the victory was ours so we hightailed it to the light rail station to try & fight the mobs & snag a spot on the train. Boy, were we glad we got there early!! Just leaving that few minutes early saved us hours!!! We were in Apple Valley in less than 45 minutes from the time we left the game!

Of course, what would July 4th be with a baseball game & no hot dogs or hamburgers...so for dinner we cooked these at the apartment. So yummy!!! By the time we finished whoofing our dogs down, it was time for the Apple Valley fireworks. We were hoping to get the same spot as last year, but the police had it blocked off as being illegal to park there this year. Boo. Clay handled it like a pro though & snagged us great spots in the main parking lot! We put down the tailgate to "Old Trouble," turned on K102 & waited a half an hour for the lights to begin! We joked over how in Grenada at Thunder on Water, every truck & every jeep & every car would have their radios blaring on the same station...yeah, that's not how they do it here! Clay's truck out of several hundred, was the ONLY vehicle who's radio was on. Oh well, hope our neighbors beside us liked watching the fireworks "country music" style! It was like mad-dash-at-the-mall-on- the-night-before-Christmas trying to get out of there, but so worth it!

Terra & Allen, thanks for coming to visit us up North! Next, it's our turn...if Parker has a say in it, we'll be down next weekend! :) (Parker adored these two the whole weekend...especially Allen...I think he cried his first real tears the whole weekend when we dropped them off at the airport this morning!)

Happy 4th of July!!!

Happy Independence Day!!!

Love these 2...

Nothing makes me happier than watching you two playing & laughing together!

snapshots & blessings of today

Have I mentioned how much I miss my camera? I'm so thankful that Clay has his for us to use...I just need to get in the habit of grabbing it before I walk out the door. I left it at home for 3/4 of our day before I remembered to pick it up. I did manage to snap some cute ones of Parker playing late this afternoon though!!!

Totally in the moment!
These are the two books I'm reading this week! Love the cute illustrations & creative ideas in the first & the awesome tried & true practices with invaluable information in the second.

I said this tonight as I laid Parker down to sleep:
"Our family will never be the same,
because a special someone came.
We thank God every morning,
and we thank him every night,
when we kiss your precious head
and put you sleeping into bed."

Love the sweet sayings & blessings in this book; I pick it up frequently!!

short naps + harder playtime= happy boy ready for bedtime!

Ok, I will admit... I was a little worried when Parker was woken up from his afternoon nap today after only 20 minutes (yes, he is now taking an afternoon nap every day....this being the same little boy who for almost the whole first year of his existence would not nap...and when he did it was for a total of 30 minutes per day!!!)

I just knew we were doomed for sour attitudes & exhausting times for the rest of the day. What did I know?! Apparantly, it was all parker needed because he was perfect as a pea for the whole afternoon! I must give credit where credit is due though...i'm sure this was in part because of a visit from a girlfriend...Parker did his own thing while at the same time, showing out for us! And after that it was off to the park for a playdate with Greta & Jami! Fresh air is so good for the soul! :)

Don't let the pictures fool you though; it took like 50 shots just to get a few of them together!!! Once we would get them in the same place, by the time we would bend down to take the picture, one of them would be off starting up a slide or running to play in the waterpark!! Let me tell you, the Energizer Bunny has nothing on these two!!!

Carrie, Parker, Greta, & Jami

Love this picture of the two of them trying to hug!!! Too cute!

They had such fun going down the slides!!! Thanks for a good time at the park Jami & Greta!!! We'll have to do it again soon!

(Note for scrapbook...today was the first day Parker went down the slides on his own without us helping him sit down or push him to get him started..he had gone down some by himself with us helping him to the slide & catching him at the bottom, but he did the whole sha-bang on his own today...& of course I was a nervous wreck watching him...it actually started by him going through the playground equipment so fast that I couldn't catch him & then all of a sudden he has sat himself down & is going down the slide!!! Now to all of our loving family out there...do not worry, this was a little slide. I was truthfully watching over him & following him everywhere I went. The little stinker is just getting a little too quick for his own good.

Note to self: pump up the aerobic classes a bit!

After coming in to dinner & a bath, the little munchkin was tuckered out & ready for bed. Aaahhh...time for mama to sit down...is it sad that my legs & feet hurt from 1 hour & 15 minutes of play at the park?!?! Please tell me it isn't so! Clay baby, I nominate you for the next park visit! :)

Today you...

Today you...

-made me laugh at your silly faces
-took my imagination back to a long time ago when I would pretend the blocks I were stacking were being used to build a castle or dreamplace
-had me read your "Planes" book to you 4 times in less than 45 minutes
-laughed & giggled when we danced to "Jump Up & Down" on your "Music for Me" cd
-felt so warm & perfect as I laid beside you on the couch while you napped
-enjoyed talking to Rassie & Daddy on the phone..you didn't want to give the phone up
-had meatballs & spaghetti noodles for lunch
-said "Quack, Quack" to the rubber duckies in your bath (sounded like "Qwok")
-showed me how you could place the puzzle pieces in their exact spot on the board
-curled up in my lap to give me a hug during the middle of your playing
-had me in awe over your sweet, attentive face while I read to you
-fell & bumped your head once while playing
-crawled & climbed over & up mama like a monkey (he has recently found ways to climb onto the couch & the coffee table..all he has to do is step on a couch pillow & Vahlah! Also, last night, Clay & I were getting him ready for his bath...all he had on was his diaper...we turned around for something & had left him sitting on the bathroom floor...we hear a splash that startled us...Parker had, by himself, climbed into the tub with his diaper on!)
-went on a stroll outside
-made your daddy & I smile :)

-made airplane noises with your airplane

-cried when daddy walked out from the bedroom with his uniform on (you've figured out you know this is when he is leaving)

-loved dunking your whole head in your bathwater to show me how you can blow bubbles

-tried taking things out of my kitchen cabinets 3 times

-danced to "Imagination Movers" when they sang

-ate with your fork in your left hand again

-went barefoot the whole day

-got excited & pointed as usual as soon as you spotted an airplane outside

-wore a blue summer onesie that really brought out the blue in your eyes

-made me realize again that I am the luckiest mom in the world!!!

summer 2008 memories

As I was going through pictures while scrapbooking today, I came across some of my favorites that highlighted some of our activities from last summer: hiking to Minnehaha Falls & sitting out over the MS River on Memorial Day Weekend, grilling out on the 4th of July with family, relaxing on blankets outside on the lush grass, a memorable trip with Clay's sisters to Duluth, MN, Parker's baby dedication, trips to MS to visit friends & family, sunny days at the pool, outings to nearby lakes & beaches, & just sunny days in general.

Since living in MN, I have learned to appreciate the warm, sunny days so much more! So far this summer, we have been on several fun, unforgettable trips. While those are things that we always look forward to, I'm also excited about the simple, lazy summer days outside at the pool, hikes to new places, & basically just being a tourist of this state while enjoying new sights & adventures.

This summer, one of my hopes & goals for our family is to visit some of the State Parks. What are some fun things you plan to do with your family over the next couple of months?