iphone dump

Just a few random iphone pictures...

Liv still continues to LOVE gymnastics and gets better each day.

The boys spend every second they get after school playing a combination between soccer, football, rugby, and whatever else they can make up.  They are LOVIN' the outside time (and so do I because they come home tired)

Today was Cole' lunch date day at school.  We had pepperoni pizza, fruit, and chocolate milk.

Before Cole came for lunch I was able to catch the last few minutes of Liv's lunch.  She was on trash can duty today and even though the pictures is blurry I thought it was too cute not to share.

Visitors, a birthday and Chicago

We had a great weekend and lucky for us we had family in town to share it with.  Sunday was Shawn's Birthday!!  We started celebrating on Thursday when Shawn's parents came to visit and didn't stop until Monday morning when they flew back to Utah.

Friday morning I took the kids to school and then Shawn and I were able to have a few hours of piece and quiet with his parents.  We went to the Elegant Farmer, a true Wisconsin farm, and had lunch at their deli.  Our main purpose in going there was to try their famous apple pie baked in a bag.  This pie has won several awards and been called the best apple pie by Wall Street Journal.  Bobby Flay even stopped by a few years ago and did a throw down episode here.  This pie was delicious and definetly worth the drive.

We drove back home and picked up the kids from school and headed swimming.  The kids had a great time jumping all over grandpa while I sat and watched :)

After this we headed to Maggiano's for Shawn's birthday dinner.  Dinner was amazing.  Everything we had was perfect and delicious and we had leftovers for days following.

Saturday morning we got up early and headed down to Chicago for the day.  Our first stop was the Science and Industry Museum.  This museum is our favorite of all Chicago museums.  The kids had a great time.

After this we drove downtown Chicago to the Lakefront.  Our goal was to get some good Chicago Deep Dish Pizza, but the line at our intended restaurant was way long, so we ended up at CPK for pizza instead.

We came home late that night and watched a movie that Grandpa and Grandma bought for the kids and then went to bed.

Sunday was the actual birthday and we started with presents first thing in the morning.  I made Shawn wear this crown, and he was a good sport about it.  Shawn was showered with lots of love notes from the kids, Big Bang theory DVDs also from the kids, some fancy new clothes from me, and a card with money from his parents.  We went to church, ate cake, and played games the rest of the night.  We had a great time.

It was fun to celebrate Shawn's birthday with family.  They spoiled us all weekend with great food and great company.  Everyone was sad to see them leave Monday morning.

Madison

We did a little school sluffing this past week and took the kids to Madison on Thursday for the weekend.  Our main purpose in going was for an interview for Shawn, but the kids and I didn't want to pass up on a free hotel (with free food and concierge service).  We had an amazing hotel right next to the Capitol.  Here was our view coming in to town.

We headed for dinner at Ella's Deli and Ice Cream Parlor.  I've heard about this restaurant for a while as a "must see".  It has a large carousel outside that the kids can ride, but it was closed down for the winter season.  The restaurant is filled with circus memorabilia and figures, candy, and all kids of fun toys.  

After arriving at the hotel the first thing we did was head for the pool.  

We got ready for bed and watched some movies.

Then we woke up bright and early the next morning and had breakfast and then Shawn headed off to his interview, while the kids and I went to the Madison Children's Museum.

Following the museum I took the kids out for lunch and then headed to the State Capitol for a tour.

bike trail

The kids are obsessed with making their own bike trail.  Lately they have been taking buckets of dirt and making trails down the driveway and onto the sidewalk.  They learned the hard way that dumping water on the dirt and making it a mud path is VERY difficult to clean up.

Lunch date

Every night before bed, Shawn and I make three school lunches.  But every once in a while the kids will get persuaded by the offering of Nachos, pizza or corn dogs on the school lunch menu.

Last week Liv told me that she wanted to have school lunch, but in a shy voice also admitted to me that she was nervous about getting school lunch her first time.

So we made a deal.  I would come and be her lunch date, and help her feel comfortable getting school lunch.  She worked hard all day to memorize her 6 digit number so she could type it in the computer. 

Monday was our special lunch date.  Liv was excited and so was I.  For her first school lunch she had the choice between hot dogs, french toast stick, or salad.  She chose salad.  She loves salads.  We laughed alot.  She was pretty silly the whole time and kept pulling funny faces anytime I tried to take a picture with my phone.  After lunch I stayed, at her request, while she played with her friends at recess.  

The funny thing is that while Liv and I were planning our special lunch date, Cole and Ethan both requested special lunch dates also.  I was surprised that Ethan wanted anything to do with me coming and eating lunch with him, but he was.  So, next month I'm going to have a lunch with Cole and then in December with Ethan.  

Halloween 2012

We've been busy doing halloween/fall related activities lately.  This past week I attended two halloween parties for the kids at school.  We played the mummy game in Cole's class and then I got to read stories and celebrate with Liv's class.  Liv also participated in the school Halloween Parade.

Trick or Treating in our neighbor is done the weekend before Halloween.  So Saturday was the big day.  It was our ward Halloween Party as well.  This year Ethan went as a hobo, Cole went as Frankenstein, and Liv as a witch.

Cole won an award for best child costume and shoveled as much candy in his mouth that would fit for most of the night.  Here he is in the back of our van stopping for a candy break with his friend, Nathan.

We carved pumpkins.

We had a chili cook-off at the ward party and then went trick or treating around the neighborhood...and ate lots more candy.

Then, to top the night off, we went over to our neighbors for a bonfire...and ate lots of candy.

By this time Cole was almost ready to throw-up.  Shawn took him home to shower and get ready for bed, and I took Ethan and Liv home later.  It was a long night, but the kids had a great time.