Feeling Better!

It is so good to finally be feeling better! I am still going to be taking it easy today and for the weekend but there is such a big improvement and I am so glad! Thanks for everyone's prayers - it's good to breathe again! The girls are going a bit stir crazy, but we managed the week quite well and they were troopers and have kept themselves busy quite well. I think it's a good thing that VBS is next week in the mornings. They need something to do next week that will keep them really busy. And then next weekend my family will be here so we're all looking forward to that!

Quiet Days

Thanks to everyone for making other daycare arrangements the next couple of days. It's been so many years since I had trouble like this with my asthma - and hopefully by staying very quiet the next couple of days I can avoid any hospital trips because no one likes that! Thank you again and hopefully I will see everyone like usual on Thursday morning.

University Splash Park

We had fun playing at University Splash Park today. We went late this morning and got to play, had some free lunch, played a little more and the kids came back to the house and crashed!

Another Fun Trip

Weekend 3 in a row of our travels.... this time we headed over to the Minneapolis area to spend the weekend with Ted, Jill, AJ and Trenton Radloff. We had so much fun hanging out with them for the weekend! We stayed up chatting Friday night while the kids ran around and played. After getting everyone settled to sleep the kids were up bright and early and ready to play again. Saturday was chilly but we spent the day at the Minneapolis Children's Museum and then some 4 wheeling back at the house and toasting marsh mallows.

Sunday morning Jon and Ted got a chance to go golfing so Jill and I took all the kids to the Como Zoo. Everyone was a bit worn out, but they had fun checking out the animals and taking pictures. The guys joined us at the end and then we headed home from there. We got a bit sidetracked on the way home when we stopped and did some shopping at the outlet mall, but got some good school shopping done!

The road weary travelers made it home late Sunday night and today the girls just vegged out for the day. The daycare crew sounds like they'd had a busy weekend too, so everyone took long naps and spent today just getting back into the groove. I'm sure the rest of the week will be full of park trips and maybe some water play and other things to keep everyone busy.

Thanks to Ted, Jill, A.J. and Trenton for a wonderful weekend! We all had so much fun hanging out with you guys!!! Emmy, A.J. and Bria on the giraffe statues

Trenton, A.J., Emmy and Bria watching the penguins at feeding time - Como Zoo

A.J. busy posing for a picture

Bria and Trenton - burning marshmallows

Trenton chasing down Emmy on the 4 wheeler

Ted with the kids on the 4 wheeler - Trenton, Emmy and Bria

Trenton doing some water painting.

Bria and Trenton on a giant ant - Children's Museum

Emmy and Clifford - Children's Museum
A.J. entertaining Emmy and Ted with a shadow show

Trenton and A.J. doing some shopping at the Children's Museum

Emmy, her favorite thing at the Children's Museum - delivering mail Bria and Trenton - face painting at the Children's Museum

Bria's letter to Clifford - Children's Museum

Bria, Trenton, A.J. and Emmy with Ronald McDonald

Ted, dumping all the kids out of the hammock

Hi Jadyn!

Last week we had a visit from very dear friends who have been missed very much! Jadyn and Teri stopped by and brought snacks for the daycare crew on Jadyn's birthday last week. It was so good to see Jadyn again - I can't believe how she has grown and I had a WONDERFUL time chatting with Teri! Thanks for stopping by guys!!!!

Ruttgers Lodge, Bemidji, MN

Oh we miss you Bemidji!!! We had a wonderful time relaxing at Ruttgers Lodge on Lake Bemidji this weekend. If I didn't have to work and we could afford to rent a cabin there for the enitre summer, I don't think I'd leave from the day school gets out until it starts up again in August. It was so nice to go and relax with just the 4 of us. It was a treat to just relax, not to be rushing here and there and having to do a lot of things all weekend. We can't wait to go back next summer and hopefully spend a week there! We also had fun visiting Paul Bunyan Animal Land, Bemidji State Park, Itasca State Park and the Mississippi Headwaters. Bria has a story to tell about getting attacked by a deer at Paul Bunyan Animal Land and the girls really enjoyed geocaching at Bemidji State Park. (Bria survived the "attack" just fine!) Here are a few fun shots from our weekend.... now we just wait until next Summer to go back!

Bria at the Headwaters for the Mississippi River

The "mighty" Mississippi

Emmy and Kelli toasting marshmallows
Bria and Emmy enjoying the beach at Ruttgers Lodge

Emmy and Kelli in Bemidji State Park

Jon, Bria and Emmy with their GPS units to being geocaching at Bemidji State Park

Sandcastles on the beach

Emmy watching the duck that flew up to the beach

Lake Bemidji

Feeding the deer at Paul Bunyan Animal Land

Emmy and "Bambi"

Feed me!

Bria is surrounded!

Emmy and "Whitey"

Bria and Emmy with Paul Bunyan and Babe the Big Blue Ox

Home Again

We had a great 4th of July weekend with our families. We spent Sunday in Logan with Jon's parents and his sister Sarah enjoying the parade and hanging out at the house. We also got to see a lot of good friends at the Logan parade, the church lunch, at the carnival and hanging out at Matheny's. Saturday night we enjoyed fireworks in Harlan with all of my family. Sunday was the day for the cousins to play together: lots of running, chasing, giggling, swimming, motorcycle rides and some tears at saying good-bye. Monday we drove home and stopped in Alcester to see Jon's grandparents and one of his uncles and his cousin, Todd. Lots of good times hanging out wiht people and we are all now very exhausted and dealing with allergies from our Iowa trip! It was worth it though!

Bria and Emmy swimming in Harlan

Tru and Emmy LOVE hanging out together!
Emmy, Bria, Tre & Tru (and Megan and Greg)

Jon, Kelli, Bria and EMmy waiting for fireworks to start

Emmy with a sparkler

Tabbi, Trever, Tru & Tre

This is what happens to Grandpa Holthe when Emmy catches him falling asleep - she covers him in tic-tac-toe pieces

Bria and Emmy picking mulberries in Logan

Bria and Grandpa Holthe

Jon & Kelli

Emmy and Grandma Holthe mixing up homemade ice cream

Happy 4th of July

Hope everyone enjoys a nice long holiday weekend! We are excited to head to Iowa and spend some time with our families. Before we leave, here are some pictures of the kids at one of the parks in town today.