Snow Day

Ahhh the fun of a snowy day!  Sledding, hot chocolate, rosy cheeks.  It's all fun and games until you're sick of the snow, cold, wind, driving in the snow, having to plow every other day.  But I'm not complaing, just so you know.  Yes these pics are from December, and yes it is nearing the end of March, and yes it STILL looks like this outside.  *sigh*  Spring will come, I just know it will....

Cheese!!

We have a fantastic sledding hill, and the girls are pros at stopping at the bottom before hitting the electric fence.  Hey, it's what we do in the country.

I love this pic, because Maci the cat even got in on the fun.  Although this was right after Alayna thought it would be fun to put Maci on the sled and push her down the hill.  Maci didn't think it was funny.  Have I ever told you that Alayna has a lot of energy? 

Rachel's Orchestra Concert

Rachel's orchestra class got the chance to perform at the Mall of America in December.  It was so fun to see them perform, and they did so well!  She plays the violin and loves it.  Don't ask how often she practices though....thankfully I think she just naturally gets it.  She did not get that from me!

Before performances, she helps her teacher tune all of the instruments.  I am glad she is playing an instrument, I always wished I would have been in band, or something.

Cookie Baking Day

I always chuckle when I look back at pictures of our cookie baking days.  We bake 400 dozen (ok, maybe more like 4) cookies that no one eats.  Seriously.  The kids aren't big cookie eaters, so we always send some home with others.

This year Mom came over and brought her sister in law Sharon with.  Sharon had a ball watching the girls decorate the cookies.  The girls absolutely love her, they call her Grandma Sharon!  We enjoyed potato soup and grilled cheese for lunch, and of course, cookies.

It appears that Emma is in a sugar coma already...poor girl...

Lot's of awesome looking cookies, that unfortunately met there demise a few months later.....

Halloween

Halloween 2012 was full of fun, embarrassment, sugar highs, crappy weather and sugar lows (see picture below).  The girls had some pretty sweet outfits...Emma decided she wanted to be a Pizza Ranch delivery girl, so Brad contacted the manager at our local Pizza Ranch and she gave Emma the t-shirt, hat, name tag and pizza box!  She was tha-rilled!  Rachel was an 80's girl....*sigh*...a girl after my own heart. I may have spent a little too much time getting all the stuff for her outfit, but it was so fun reminiscing.  Alayna was a black cat, we tried to convince her to be a mouse, which is her nickname, but it was a no-go.

As you can see, the end of the evening proved to be a bit too much for the poor kitty cat.  She was D.O.N.E.  Fun had by all, and we shall eat candy for the next year now....

Spring Break

We did an impromptu spring break vacation.  Friends of ours were going to Wisconsin Dells and asked us to go with.  At first we declined because we are going to Disney in June.  Yes I said June, the hottest time of the year in Florida.  We then thought it would be fun to go for a few days, Sunday-Tuesday.  We were just there last June, so the girls were stoked to be going again!

We all had a blast.  Well, maybe except for Brad.  This feller is notorious for getting sick before going on vacation.  I'm serious.  Never fails.  The last time he got sick was right before we went to Mexico, three years ago. 

The girls got to try the rock climbing wall.  Emma almost made it to the top, Rachel's fear of heights took over so she didn't get too far.  Poor kid is just like me.

Emma and Brad did this rope course that takes you waaaaaay up, and then they have different rope obstacles to do.  My hands and feet were a ball of sweat watching them.  At one point I quit watching...

Alayna got to do the little kids course, she thought it was pretty cool!  Our favorite ride was the simulator.  You wear 3D glasses and sit in a movie theater like setting.  The simulator is a mine and everybody has these laser guns that you shoot at the screen.  Your chairs move around with the movie.  It was a blast,  I think I screamed more than the kids, haha!

Of course we had to do the photo booth.  Bet you never knew my eyes could get so big....

Mini Vacation to Duluth

This was one of those rare times when we had a free weekend available and decided to take advantage of the gorgeous fall weather and head up to Duluth.  Duluth is one of my favorites places to vacation, it's almost like it's a different part of the country but it's only a few hours away.  Just driving into Duluth is such a beautiful experience!

We were able to fit in a lot of sightseeing, but it didn't feel like it was too much.  We went to the pier first and let the girls explore for awhile.  We visited the museum there and Emma really got a kick out the documentaries they were showing about the different ships that come it.

After the pier we walked over to Grandma's Saloon and waited an hour to get a table.  We met a couple who had ties to my hometown which was fun to talk with them about.  Small world!  

The food was amazing and the girls loved the atmosphere.  I love showing them places we've been to!

The next morning we got up and decided to take a tour of Glensheen mansion.  I've been there several times and I couldn't wait for the girls to see it.  Of course within about 5 minutes Alayna asked if it was almost done...*sigh*...  After Glensheen we took the scenic drive up the northshore.  We stopped and let the girls wander along the beach and grab some rocks.  The colors were amazing!

Even though it was a quicky trip, we had such a great time, and the weather couldn't have been better!

Canning Lid Pumpkin

This is probably one of my favorite Pinterest finds so far!  I was happily pinning a few days ago when I came across this and knew I had a fun craft to do.  I have a ton of canning jars and lids from my Grandma Omi that I haven't done much with.  She had all these old lids tied together and I've always thought about throwing them away but never did, thank goodness!!

This is how mine turned out, and I LOVE it!  How simple and cute is this???!  All you do is tie the lids together and spread them out as needed, add some twigs and ribbon, and that's it!  Took all of 5 minutes.  I love crafts like these that can remind me of my Grandma:)

Linking To:

Get Your Craft On

Wow Me Wednesday

Semi Homemade Mom