Atchison, Fort Worth and Abilene

What do Dave and Amelia Earhart have in common? They share a hometown! And not much has changed in Atchison, KY since either of them have been there, far as I could tell - it's kind of small town. But that's great because Dave was able to take us on a little nostalgia tour. We saw the house where he and his brothers used to ride their wagons down the hill to ramp up on the road, the garage roof where they could hide and throw stuff at teens smoking in the alley, and the corner shop where they took spare change to get snacks.

They moved when Dave was in fifth grade but he knew how to drive right to the old house, no problem. I was really quite impressed. As we toured he shared some pretty funny stories from when he was a little kid - I love getting glimpses of his childhood.

From there, we followed in his fifth-grade self's footsteps on down to TX.

First we stayed with Dave's brother Kyle and his wife, Megan, which was just one big party from start to finish!

Welcome goodies!

Puppy cuddles:

Riley and Joe fell in love with Mickey and spent the bulk of our stay trying to get him to chase them.

The Fort Worth Zoo!

We got the whole package: we fed the birds, saw not one but TWO baby elephants, ate the ice cream of the future (that'll be dip 'n dots) and basked in ninety degree temperatures.

 Dance parties:

Acrobatics:

Train Ride! (Riley is a little obsessed with Polar Express so this was a BIG DEAL.)

I'm bummed we didn't get any pictures with Kyle and Megan! It was such a fun visit and I am glad we got to spend a little quality time even though they were still in school while we were there. Thank you so much for having us you guys! Hope to see you all again soon!

We didn't get to see everyone we wanted to but we caught who we could!

Gary and Janet bought the kids scooters! A huge hit around this apartment! Our kids are spoiled.

We got to visit Mark too. Killian and Joe have the same hair color and are close enough in age to look twinnish. I love that they finally met these cousins!

We didn't get to see everyone we wanted to but we caught who we could! Some had to work, one brother had a stroke while we were there, a nephew had a broken bone...oh and Dave threw out his back our first day there. Tough week for the Munions! But everyone seems to be doing better now and next time hopefully we can get together more with you all.

The last few days we spent with the Smiths. We always love catching up with Patti and Joe, and this time they had just gotten back from a trip to the Redwoods and I drooled over their pictures - that is definitely on our bucket list! 

Joe and Riley had too much fun cornering the giant cats, trying to make them chase them. I was concerned Joe would be kitty food at first, but the cats were surprisingly patient as well as agile, so confrontations were minimal.

 Finally on Saturdays, after a big homemade breakfast, Pat stocked us up with about twenty juice boxes and snacks and we drove to Abilene to see Dave's Grandma Anderson in her new home there.

 Grandma Francis Anderson: a force (for good) to be reckoned with! She recently moved into a group home and we didn't know what to expect but she is thriving. She is one of those to be proactive about any situation, but especially here because she is in a position to help a lot of other people - she talks to everyone and helps them get around or calls the staff for people (the staff seem to be quite caring and available - Grandma calls them "her angels"). She kind of has the run of her wing :) . She also has daily physical therapy and exercise sessions and is in better health than she has been since I met her.

Something Grandma made to hang on her wall. I especially loved her title - that is so her!

Uncle Bruce was there too - he'll be down for six months out of the year in the future, and visits several times a week. I wish we could be there too - partly because you want to be there for her but also for yourself - she really is a gem and makes everyone around her feel better about life. Salt of the earth.

We said goodbye Saturday afternoon and drove right into a tornado warning. Eek - my first. We didn't see anything touch down and I hope to keep it that way!

Next stop: Utah!

Over the River and Through the Woods

Road trips are the best! So we are doing a lot of them this summer! Behold:

Right now we are in the Denver phase of our plan. In ten weeks we head to NC. Ten weeks seems like a good length of time to set some exercise goals. I like the look of this race. Also, there has been some talk of meeting the siblings in Moab for an epic biking weekend towards the end of our time here. But I'm getting ahead of myself. 

Roadtripping.

The babies did surprisingly well considering we just took a couple books and snacks, loaded Frozen onto the Kindle and hoped for the best. 

Riley kept us all entertained with her songs and random conversation. She sang a version of "Itsy Bitsy Spider" that had the spider crawling on all sorts of farm animals at night and then phased into an original piece called "my butt is stuck but I just want to get out of here." Radio? Who needs a radio? Oh and we heard, "Are you kimming me?" about forty times.

 Sassy pants.

When we got to Grandma's that night, we were barely inside the door before she had Joe's heart won completely over with a bowl of popcorn. He didn't even have to reach for it. That pretty much embodies the theme of our stay. :)

But also, we got to spent time with cousin Brice and soon-to-be cousin-in-law Danielle, Aunt Spring and Uncle Doug and my brother Jon. Brice and Danielle are the funnest couple and are especially generous when it comes to watching baby toons and playing random games like "blow the trash across the table," which Joe and Brice played for a good fifteen minutes.

Spring and Doug are helping to get the house ready for sale so there was a lot of inventory-taking and sorting and re-bricking going on. Didn't stop Grandma from getting gourmet meals on for breakfast, lunch and dinner, which I was allowed to help with. Grandma has some killer recipes! Such as the pecan pie of breakfast one day. Yum. Aunt Spring demo'd the easiest pie crust recipe ever too! I am going to kill at next Thanksgiving!

 We walked to "The Park" at least once a day. Nothing special, just close to Grandma's so it's a little piece of my childhood too. Fun to be taking my babies down there.

This is Grandma's award-winning quilt, faded with time. Still awesome and good for dreaming on.

We only had a few days but it was everything I could have hoped for. This will probably be our last visit there as they are moving to Florida for good at the end of the summer. Which we look forward to visiting as well! But Red Oak will always have a special place in my heart. Luckily, Grandma gave us a few pieces of it to take with us - whenever I look at the little cherub-blowing a kiss ring holder by my kitchen window or the tapestry Grandma made of a scene from Germany, I get warm fuzzies reminiscent of summer swim lessons with Grandma, late-night card games, pot roast dinners and long walks with Grandpa and Bear.

Also, one can always hope that my ring-loosing days are over. Seriously, if my head wasn't screwed on so tight...

  Thank you, Grandma and Grandpa, for a wonderful visit and and and extra inch to our waistlines! We love you so!

See ya later St. Paul

I am so behind but so much has happened these past few weeks! The short version is, three weeks ago we packed away all our stuff and said goodbye to St. Paul and are currently on an epic roadtrip. We went to see Grandma and Grandpa Davidson in Iowa, stayed with friends and family in Fort Worth, TX, visited Grandma Anderson in Abilene, and have been with our Herralds here in UT this week, seeing as many of our dear ones here before we head down to Denver this weekend to start our big summer adventure. Or continue it, that is. My head has been full of plans and sentiments and my phone full of pictures so let's just start at the beginning and see how it goes.

Oh and Dave got me this beauty to blog on but technology makes me a little nervous so it is just going to sit next to me and the (semi) trusty old mac till he and I sit down and get it set up with my files and software and stuff.

 Let's start with a goodbye. Temporary, but bittersweet nonetheless. Goodbye St. Paul! Super cool city of rivers, lakes and bridges, culture, unlimited family adventures, Peanuts, and community love like none else. Seriously, of all the places I've lived, this one takes the prize for people investing in each other, in their community. Our neighbors babysat the kids so I could clean and pack before the move, and on the walk down the hill to pick them up, I took a few pictures to illustrate my point.

One of the thousands of mini libraries in the city.

Water bowl with sign, "For the dogs."

There seem to be an inordinate amount of bee-keepers here.

Also before we left we paid a final visit to the zoo. They were celebrating the 100th anniversary of their gigantic hand-carved, hand-painted carousel with unlimited free rides and we took full advantage. Initially, the babies were concerned by the speed and volume but after surviving one go, they couldn't get back in line quick enough! We took a break to picnic with friends and visit the polar bears,  then came back to ride again, until the no-nap melt-downs ensued and the brash carousel music started to seem more like the soundtrack to my life than festive background music. Totally worth it though. We had a great time, plus the little angels were unconscious till dinner. Win win!

Riley and Joe are still talking about Gabriel and Gracie. Riley actually changed the Christmas story book she likes to read once a week or so to include them all (since there was already a Gabriel and Joseph in the book). I think it is so darn cute they are old enough to have friends now. I made them a collage to put on their wall - it will no doubt be as popular as their pictures of family.

We were sorry to leave our framily and St Paul. Less sorry after we slept on the floor the night before (bed was in storage) and woke up to forty degree temperatures. Dave's time in Japan and his natural unruffleablility make him good at sleeping on the floor. I got nothing.

Finally at 10am the next morning we finished cleaning our vacant apartment, took our hulk of a TV to recycling, and hit the road. Next stop: Grandma and Grandpa Davidson's house in Iowa. 

And that seems like a good place to end this one.

I conclude this post in Denver, having moved into our new place two days ago. It is kind of an fantastic place but I am enjoying this catching up business so I'll save that for three or so posts down the road. I imagine it won't take me long now that we are settled and Dave is at work all day and...I have no friends. haha. Although our neighbors seem pretty friendly - chatted with a mom at the playground yesterday, and then on a walk later I got a salute from a hairy guy sitting in a tent in his yard. He was smoking pot. Welcome to Denver!

Making a Toddler's Day

While I was at my friend's baby shower on Saturday, Dave took Riley and Joe on a tour of the bridges of St. Paul. Riley still gushes about it every time she sees a bridge. They also got a kite and found a perfect park on the river for flying it, and that's what we did after they picked me up.

It was windy and brisk and clouds were skudding across the sky. There was a bridal party and a soccer party and someone famous in a large white hummer limo and our six-dollar Target kite turned out to be really good at what kites do. It was perfection. Riley was in ecstasy to finally get to fly a kite - she has been talking about it for weeks. I documented. It was such a fun afternoon, and every one of these pictures makes me smile or flat-out laugh. I cannot edit any of them out so humor me as I share a bagazillion photos.

Riley loving her kite already.

Threw off her coat and jumped circles around Dad while he was assembling.

 Joe got a brief turn now and again and he was happy as a clam. It's the little things, right buddy?

So much happy.

Then we took a little ramble along the river.

 

The last time I flew a kite was with Dave when we were first dating. Dave got dowels and string and materials to make our own and we flew them at Kiwanis in Provo. It was fun. I mean, I was falling in love at the time so of course it was fun. But doing it with giddy toddlers that we made ourselves, wat wat, that was pretty awesome too.

Baby Shower

What better activity for the Saturday before what I thought was supposed to be Mother's Day (yeah, that was a let down) than a baby shower! It was for the lovely Anna, who I met at church only about a month ago after she and her husband moved here from Russia. Can you imagine being six month pregnant and moving to a foreign country?? So my friend Anjela and I decided to throw her a shower; we made tissue paper "clouds" and rain drops, set up a onesie decorating station, and organized a brunch meal for 15, and a bunch of other church ladies brought food and gifts and we had a real rockin' party of a shower.

 Anna herself brought a Russian dessert called a "Napoleon" - layers of pastry and sweet creamy filling and I could eat it every day of my life it was soooo good. We told her she didn't need to bring anything but dang, sure glad she did! She is such a sweet, gracious girl, and I'm glad she let us celebrate with her, even though it isn't done in Russia and we probably made her feel all kinds of awkward.

Wherein I Pranked the Sunbeams

Mostly I want to tell you about my winner of a Sunbeam lesson today. But I'll probably work around to other stuff too - you know how that goes. Anyways, today I finally incorporated the gross cookie object lesson! I pretty much always want to incorporate a gross cookie/good cookie juxtaposition into my lessons but today's topic was keeping the Sabbath holy and I felt like I could really play it up with this topic.

First I fanned a bunch of food pictures in my hands for the kids to draw and show the class and talk about how delicious these foods are. Blueberries, cheese, pretzels, and ketchup on fries.

Me, as I pull out a covered plate: So do you love all those delicious foods?
Salivating, giddy 3-year olds: YES! We love them!
Me: Good, because I made you cookies with those very ingredients!

Yep, that is a ketchup-blueberry-pretzel-mozzerella cookie. Barf.

You should have seen their faces! One who had bounced up when I pulled out the plate collapsed back into his chair with an audible "humph" he was so deflated. Of course, a cookie is a cookie and 3-year old a 3-year-old so they all tried a taste. But they were definitely relieved to see a second plate, this time with legit chocolate chip cookies.

The lesson was that some foods are great but in cookies, not so much. Just like how some activities are great during the week but on Sunday, not so much. BAM! Then after a short video on the principle (Jon Bytheway, found here) I had them make a list of activities they do during the week versus activities that were good for the Sabbath, one list being on the side under the pictures of the ketchup, cheese, etc, and the other listed under pictures of chocolate chips, sugar, butter - good cookie ingredients. I think they got the idea.

Of course I did have to field several questions about when they were getting another cookie. Also, one girl actually preferred the ketchup cookie to the normal one - she downed an entire gross ketchup cookie. I couldn't even watch her eat it without gagging but she did! There's always one... :) Overall, it was still a very successful lesson I think.

I love my Sunbeams - they are good for my soul and I will really miss them when we move.

I write this during another spring thunderstorm and I love the rain pounding down and occasional thunder clap. I am so grateful for spring! I remember a Prairie Home Companion where Garrison Keillor said something like, "In the heart of every true Minnesotan is the hope for just one more snow storm." Don confirmed this as factual. ish. Well, I guess I'm not there yet - I am over the moon with this warmer weather (though 37 degrees is not exactly tropical). But I will say I like Minnesota. I have never lived anywhere with such a sense of community.

Have you seen New in Town? "We talk funny and we ice-fish and we scrapbook and we drag Jesus into regular conversation..."

Uh...kinda? But what's not to love? St. Paul also has this really great blend of cultures going on that makes me feel super modern, actually.

Plus I have the best roommates!

 Except when they are the worst. Seriously, it has been tantrum central this week. Maybe from a lack of naps? We were busy doing important things. Picnicing, zoo, library, conservatory, bath paint, fro-yo, FROZEN about four times...who has time for naps?

Riley has picked up this trick from Frozen where when anyone does anything she doesn't want them to do, she will fling her palms out at you and say "STOP! DON'T COME ANY CLOSER!" It is super endearing. No not really. Joe likewise runs for his gloves when he sees Elsa and hers. 

*PSA on those lunch boxes the kids have in bottom left corner: they are the handiest thing! I love that they can see the portion sized out properly and that I can just pop off the lids when we are out and let them do the rest. So much easier than opening a bunch of baggies that are then thrown away. And the kiddies love having a little more autonomy. easylunchboxes.com yo!

And finally - a big shout out to my man Dave, who took the kids to the park and lunch while I shopped alone, ate alone, and blew no one's nose but my very own! While they were off hunting for the tallest slide in St. Paul (they found it - it is ridiculous and pre-dates modern safety standards I believe), I was able to end the awful hell that is swim suit shopping! I am happy to report my new suit meets both criteria of A) being colorful and happy and B) covers the whole of the butt cheek. Seriously - why is that so hard to find! Why is it so fashionable for suits to cut well above the fanny line?? Exactly how many women want that area exposed in the broad light of day!!! 

Okay rant over. If you are on the hunt as well, here's what works for me: bottoms and top, which is not my exact one but similar.

Right-o then. Off to bed. May April showers sing you to your rest...

That was for you old-school Dr. Doolittle fans out there. Em, I'm looking at you.