Extended Weekend at the Cabin

Grandma and Papa are in town from Colorado and brought these warm snuggly blankets that have become the kids' favorites.



Book reading time.



The kids modeled some of the new clothes they got from Grandma and Papa.





Steve's sister Becky got in to town Friday and we all headed up to the cabin. She brought these aprons for the kids and they wore them all weekend long--even out to dinner and to bed.



Good times at the cabin.





It was a beautiful weekend at the cabin--warm weather and great colors on the leaves. We had a campfire a couple of nights.





The kids doing one of their favorite fall-time activities--collecting leaves.



My side of the family came up to the cabin Sunday to celebrate September and October birthdays. The cousins all had a great time together. Do you like the boys in their matching camo outfits?







Dan managed to fit all five grandkids/nieces/nephews/cousins on the four-wheeler for a ride.



On Monday, we decided to take a day trip to Hayward, Wisconsin to do some shopping.



We also saw some cranberry bogs along our drive there. I was unaware that Wisconsin was a big producer of cranberries!



Aunt Becky curled D's hair--she loved it!





D made "lunch" for Aunt Becky and Grandma.



Working the field.



Going for a ride.

Outdoor Movie Night

Wow. I guess I haven't had my camera out lately because I thought I'd update my blog with a post covering the past couple of weeks, but the most recent pictures I had were taken tonight!

Our neighbors invited families over to watch a movie on their giant outdoor inflatable TV/movie screen (I didn't even know there was such a thing until tonight!). It turned out to be a beautiful night and the kids were all engaged in the movie (Planet 51) and the snacks.

Broncos vs. Vikings

Tool Time!





The kids have invented a new game where M is a baby and D puts him to sleep in his "crib" and covers him with about 10 blankets.



Playing restaurant. Apparantly this room was a little too bright for them as they are both wearing their sunglasses.



D found another one of my childhood dresses in her closet and decided to try it on.



Steve surprised us on Thursday with tickets to see the Broncos play the Vikings at the Metrodome. Of course we got all decked out in our Broncos garb. I was seriously afraid we were going to get killed while walking downtown in the opposing team's gear, but there were actually a lot of Broncos fans (relatively speaking) at the game. Having two cute kids dressed in their Broncos gear didn't hurt either. People were snapping pictures of them and giving them high fives. And we even got to hear Tim Mahoney sing the National Anthem.



We had pretty decent seats. Which meant it was a long walk back up to the top. We made that trek many, many times with M and decided while the game was really fun the first quarter, not so much by the third quarter. It will be several years before the kids accompany us to another professional football game.



I am actually wearing a Broncos sweatshirt and hat--just not blaze orange and bright blue like the rest of the family.



Can you see the craziness starting?



While the kids were definitely more interested in making friends with the Vikings fans sitting by us, they did actually watch a teeny bit of the game. They both insisted they bring their own tiny footballs to the game (see M's hand).

The Great Minnesota Get Together

We went to the State Fair on Friday and Sunday with the kids. Here they are watching a cow being milked.



Tractor time!



Can't go to the State Fair without getting a corndog!





Steve loves to relax and catch some of the free concerts at the fair. Once you make it to a concert area and are within a reasonable time frame of catching a concert so your 2-year old and 4-year old don't have to sit and wait forever, you are kind of committed to whatever is playing. We found a seat 15 minutes before Neil Dynamite played at the International Bazaar, and weren't sure what to expect. M kept telling us he was going to dance while waiting for the music to start. Turns out, this group did all Neil Diamond covers and M must be a big ND fan, because I've never seen him move like this at all. Ever. I was crying I was laughing so hard, and he was quite the entertainment for all the concert-goers. The picture just doesn't do it justice. Of course, big sister doesn't like it when he gets all the attention, so she joined in with her own crazy moves.



Back to the fair again Sunday, this time early in the morning as I ran the Milk Run 5K. This race starts in the fair, then winds its way through the neighboring streets, and back to the fair. My friend Julia ran with me and here we are bright and early, before the race.



Steve got the kids up early to come and watch. Supposedly I'm in this crowd somewhere crossing the finish line. It was very crowded and Steve didn't catch me until it was almost too late.



The best thing about the Milk Run is you get a free malt for running. Plus the nifty shirt I am sporting. Julia placed first in her age group (thus the plaque) and her sister Kristin also ran with us. Good times!



Steve took the kids around the fair while I changed out of my stinky clothes. They did lots of fun things. D insisted in pulling the wagon with her brother in it.



They went to the Little Hands farm. At the end, you can choose something to take home. D chose a can of corn so we could eat it together as a family. M chose a bag of chips and promptly ate the whole bag.







A picture with the gopher.



We knew the kids would only last so long at the fair as Steve got them up two hours earlier than usual to make it there for the race. M told us exactly when it was time to go home. He got a wee bit crabby and decided to make the wagon his own personal bed.

Sillies

Last weekend, we decided to ride our bikes on the Gandy Dancer trail in Danbury. We put the kids in the Burley and did about a 9 mile round trip. It was a nice day out and the trail has great scenery. We will probably get a year pass next year and try to use the trail more often.

Here we are on a bridge overlooking a river on the trail.



D decorated herself with stickers.



D has been in princess mode lately.



And M is still learning how to put a shirt on. He's getting there.



Almost immediately after convincing her brother to put on a Cinderella dress and Snow White shoes, M decided he wasn't going for it and tore the outfit off. So, she decided to have one of her stuffed animals join her and Princess Puppy was created.



M preferred to play with the kitchen toys.

Soccer

Monday night was the last night of soccer for D. They played a game with kids vs. parents. Steve got to play with D while M and I watched. Each kid got to make a goal. Here is D making hers. (BTW, Steve scored four goals on the kids...oops!).



GOAL!



And here's D getting her participation award.