A note from Sofia to Sophia

"I like you Sophia, I want you to have a slumber party with me and my family."

Sofia created this and asked me how she could give it this to Sophia.  Daddy texted it to her dad.

So cute and sweet!

Family Reunion in St. Louis

As I write this, we are returning from a family reunion in St. Louis.  Last Wednesday, Daddy drove the girls down by himself since I had to stay for a work meeting.  I caught a ride with Nana and Papa on Thursday.  Once I got there, it was 13 people sleeping at Uncie and Antie's house.  Surprisingly, it wasn't too bad with all the folks and it was great to spend some time with Jenna and Archer too!

While I was on the road, the girls and Daddy went to the City Museum with JoAnn.  Unfortunately the heat was nearly unbearable, yet they still climbed the 10-story slide.  On Friday I went to work at my company's St. Louis office and Daddy took the girls to the Magic House since the weather was so hot again.  Uncle Todd, Aunt Shelly , Jordan and Dylan, Nana and Papa all went too... everyone said it was crowded, but it was fun.  We ended the night with dinner at Uncle Bob's house.

Saturday began with family pictures near Faust Park. There was some coordination, but we will see what the results look like.  Everyone made it so that made the event special.  We let the kids play for a while, then met some of our friends for lunch before letting our kids play with water at Uncle Bob's again.  Then everyone came over to Uncie's for the rest of the night.  

Now we are trekking home.  All of us loved seeing cousins and the relatives we don't talk to often.  I'm happy I got to talk to mostly everyone, including the kids.  Samantha's favorite thing was City Museum and playing with Molly.  Sofia liked getting pushed in the toy car by Archer at Uncie and Antie's house and going to City Museum.  Daddy and I enjoyed Saturday and catching up with relatives.

Thanks to Grammy for watching Ely... maybe next time we'll bring both of them too!

4th of July Weekend

We managed to squeeze a lot of things into the weekend.  There was a progressive dinner with some of our neighbors, lots of playtime with the neighborhood kids, fireworks and another relaxing dinner with other friends.

There was some apprehension from us on how Ely would handle the holiday, but he did great.  He was definitely anxious, but there wasn't any destructive behavior thankfully!

I was humbled by the reminder that it shouldn't be so hard for me to not do anything productive (cleaning projects, computer or yard maintenance) for a day.  I decided to take it as a lesson that I should chill out more often.

Also, we are happy to celebrate one year with Ely.  We hope the best for his original family and sent an update to RAGOM's Happy Endings page...

Camping at Kathio

Camping at Kathio

Antie She and I took the girls camping to try out our new tent with the girls.  We headed northwest to Kathio State Park right by Mille Lacs.  We left earlier than planned, didn't encounter too much traffic and made excellent time in getting to the park.  Checking in wasn't a problem and neither was finding our campsite.  As we backed the car into the site though, we noticed a bog and SWARMS of various insects.  

Uh-oh.

Both kids freaked and I fought the urge to panic.  Antie She's legs were covered in horse fly bites from before we got the DEET applied.  Once the repellent was applied, we settled in and got the tent set up.  The girls helped get things organized inside the tent, Antie She worked at the site and I attempted to kill the majority of bugs that had entered our vehicle.  Then it started to rain, which quickly accelerated to a downpour.  Unfortunately I didn't remember that I had opened a tent window right by Antie She's sleeping bag.  Whoops... she got my sleeping bag that night while I slept under towels.  

Due to the rain, we went to a nearby Dairy Queen for dinner and looked around the park.  Thankfully, the rain stopped long enough to get the girls showered and settled in their sleeping bags.  Sofia was the only one who slept through the overnight thunder storm, but it was fine.  

Saturday was our only full day at the park, so we made the most of it.  We went to a nature lecture on the archaeology of the area, climbed the fire tower, went canoeing, made snacks at the playground and beach (where Antie She showed off her fire-making skills) and ended the night with s'mores.  Everyone slept better without the rain and it was a beautiful day!

On Sunday, we headed home fairly early.  Daddy missed us and we needed to prepare for the upcoming week.  The girls told everyone they had a great time and I made notes on what to bring/do differently  next time.