All Aboard!

A perfect letter F. Good job D!



D and M got train conductor outfits from Uncle Robb and Aunt Lynne for Christmas and they just LOVE playing in them. The little conductors gave me train rides to Colorado Springs, Costco, Target, Grandma and Papa's house, the cabin, and ECFE. The little walkie talkies play train sounds and they like blowing the train whistle (although M just makes a squeaky noise with his own voice, not realizing that if you blow it, the whistle makes the noise).





The train conductors.



The inchworm sometimes served as the train engine.



We went to the cabin last Saturday and Friday. Steve was so happy to wake up and see all these turkeys in our front yard.



All bundled up and ready to play in the snow. We built a family of snowpeople, but I neglected to take a picture of it.

Cabin Skiing and Birthdays

D with her letter E's.



One day last week, D said she didn't want to play, she wanted to work. So I set her and M up with wet rags to wash the floor. They loved it. Why didn't I think of this before?



M and his mango lassi moustache. We bought a mango last week, and I wanted try a smoothie-like recipe I found at Gourmet Mom on the Go. We left out the last three ingredients, so it was quite healthy and super yummy. All three of us scarfed it down for a treat with lunch.



We went up to the cabin last weekend and did some more work on it. At one point, we had no kitchen sink (pictured below) and our toilet wasn't working. This all right before our friends Ron and Jennifer and their son came up to visit us. Luckily, the boys got everything fixed and working better than ever. Thanks for the help!



Luckily, it was a beautiful day and we were able to enjoy some cross county skiing on our property.



We celebrated Steve's and my birthday (early) at my parents' this past weekend, too. We had a lot of great food and a nice time visiting. Here is the traditional cherry chip(homemade!) "Oh" cake my mom made me.



Grandma eating with the grandkids.

Como Zoo and New Big Girl Bed

D working on her D's.



Jamming in her new rock star guitar dress.



M is still a fan of food in his hair.



We went to Como Zoo last Friday with some friends. It turned out to be colder than we thought it was going to be, so we ended up staying inside and looking at plants, snakes, fish and the like. There was a small play area for the kids where they could "make" rain and "feed" the animals. The kids had a great time and the tropical display was so warm and steamy, I actually felt warm for the first time in months!







Looking at the fish in the pond.



On Friday evening, our brother-in-law Bill flew in to Minneapolis and we spent the evening at the Mall of America walking around and eating Cold Stone ice cream. We had a nice time visiting and the BEST chocolate peanut butter malt ever (thanks Bill!).





Saturday, D had professional pictures taken for her dance recital. She looked very cute in her Raggedy Ann doll dress.



D made the transition on Monday from a toddler bed...



...to a big girl bed (she has to make sure it's soft enough first).





I put the finishing touches in the bedroom tonight.

New Year's Day

Our last day in Colorado was New Year's Day, and we took a bunch of family pictures.

Mike, Meredith, D and M.



Mommy and M.



Mike and D.



Some of the family.



Three generations of Stiehl men.



Papa, Grandma, Mike, D and M.



The whole gang in Colorado for Christmas 2009.



Rob and Haley opened some wedding gifts early.





Why are the boxes always the best toy?

Skydiving in Denver

Yep, you read that right. We went skydiving. Okay, it was indoor skydiving, but skydiving nonetheless! Rob and Haley treated the family to their new favorite pastime. Here are Steve and I in our skydiving duds.





Here are some of our favorite pictures of everyone.

Haley





Rob





Mike





Sonja





Larry





Steve





Me







Thanks Rob and Haley. We had a blast!


After skydiving, we ate at a restaurant in Denver called Casa Bonita. It is Mexican, yes, but also has live entertainment. There are various rooms/caves you can sit and eat in and watch shows like divers, magicians, puppet shows, mariachi bands, and entertainers. The kids had a lot of fun.



D and Haley cutting a rug to the mariachi band music.



Watching the divers from a cave behind the waterfall.



The Nelson Family.



M munching on a delicious sopaipilla (he's really just licking off the honey).