Tinker Reflections:)

Tonight we had some of our friends over to watch the new Tinkerbell movie! I must be honest, I love hosting these little shindigs at our house. I was reflecting recently on when Bryan and I first decided to build the house. In one of those father/daughter conversations, my dad gently asked some questions, wanting to make sure we weren't going too big too soon, or biting off more than we could chew. We chuckle now at the 'too big' concern...our house is PLENTY big, but it does seem to have gotten smaller since being inhabited by our two little ladies:) I remember responding to my Dad with confidence telling him how this house was not just for us, we wanted this to be a home to gather in, a home for our kids to bring their friends too and for there to be plenty of space for them, a home everyone would feel comfortable in. Dad seemed reassured, pleased by my answer and said, "Well I wouldn't be your father if I didn't ask". Oh Dad, I miss you so!

Anyhow, back to the point:) We love opening up our home and welcoming in our buddies. Tonight I was struck by something. The kids are getting older. For the most part they were on their own downstairs watching them movie. Parents assisted with some of the food, dinner, juice boxes...but the kids are getting older, less squabbles or disagreements to sort out, less issues, etc...
But there we all were, moms and dads (and in the case of Kristi and Tyler, dear friends who lovingly care and dote over our children), just up the stairs, just a call away. We had our own time to talk, to share, to socialize, to strengthen our relationships as parents and friends. And our kids knew we were there, nobody dropped their kid and ran off, we were all there.
I hope this trend continues as the kids grow older. Certainly there are times for them to be on their own, and times for us parents to be on our own, but I just really loved tonight, loved what it said to our kids, I loved that they knew we were there, that we cared, that we weren't too busy.

And at the heart of it all, is that I am so incredibly grateful for the friends, really the family, we have in our life! What an incredible blessing these friendships are. God is so good...HE has truly given us amazing gifts. I marvel at how HE knows just what we need and has brought it to us in the means of an amazing village of friends.

Here's to the THE TINK:)

Happy Birthday Baby!

Why did Papa have to go to Heaven?

So here we are...September...nearly 6 months without our beloved Papa Strom here on earth with us.

The girls took the news of Papa passing very well. Isabella had been at Great Grandpa Rowe's funeral just a month or so before Papa Strom's passing, so I think that helped her to understand everything. Even with Gpa Rowe, she exhibited a great maturity and faith about the whole matter. When we told her, she said to Bryan, "Don't be said, Daddy, you will get to see him in Heaven again".

When we told her about Papa Strom, her response was, "No more Papa at the house anymore, just a Grandma and a Dutchy" and off she went to play.

Despite the fact that we knew she wouldn't really 'understand' we did take the time to tell Veronica, and she took that well and went off to play.

The funeral services went well too. At both the prayer service and funeral Isabella took the time to wipe tears from Grandma's cheeks.
The girls were very comfortable seeing Papa in his casket. He looked good, like he was just sleeping. They were used to seeing him sleeping, so that made it easy, I think. At the visitation they hung out by the casket and enjoyed looking at the flowers. Veronica blew Papa a kiss before she went to go get some dinner. In all honesty, it was very easy. Isabella has a very mature understanding of God and heaven and so she knew her Papa was in a good place and that his body didn't hurt anymore.

At Papa's burial in May, we all let off balloons to Papa in heaven, a suggestion from my dear friend, Tami.

Months have passed and Papa is still asked about regularly and talked about often. I don't hide tears from the girls and so Isabella knows that sometimes Mommy just misses her Dad a whole lot. She will ask me if I am sad because Papa died and I tell her yes, but that I am thankful that he is healed in God's loving embrace.

In the early weeks, Veronica asked where Papa was each time we went to Grandma's. Sometimes she would say "Papa at the hospital, my Papa sick" or ask if he was still at the hospital. Those questions have now turned into, "Why did Papa have to go to Heaven?".
This past week she has asked about Papa a lot and has told me in a rather frustrated voice, "I miss him, I just waaaaaaaaaant him!". She than asked me if his tummy was all better. I told her it was but that he would still need to stay in heaven...she wasn't totally jiggy with that:) I than asked her what was her favorite thing about Papa and she said, "M favorite thing about Papa was he feed me chocolate at the table"...LOVE IT!!!!!

Veronica also says, "There Papa's service, we send him balloons upa heaven, Papa not sick anymore" almost every time we pass by the funeral home. The balloon idea was fantastic...it's something she correlates to Papa in heaven.

Isabella was taking pictures while we were driving this summer and she pointed the camera up at the sky and said, "Smile Papa, smile"! LOVE IT!!!

And so our Papa is no longer here on earth and that is not always easy. But we carry on and we remember him and do what we can to help the girls feel close to him and remember all the special times they shared with him!

WE LOVE YOU PAPA! Papa is the best....yeahhhhhhh Papa!

Summer Memories - Mother/Daughter MSP Excursion!!!

What an adventure we had with the Knudson and Aaker girls on a getaway to MSP!!!! Many rides were ridden at the Mall of America, our little fish made a splash in the hotel pool, and we all enjoyed the magic of the American Girl Bistro together!

Can you believe we slept with 3 moms and 5 little girls (ages 6, 5, 2 @ 3 1/2, and a 2 1/2 year old) in a double hotel room with a cot thrown in and had no issues at bedtime?????? We turned off the lights and the only little raucus was Veronica loudly whispering, "Who's that? Who's that talking over there? Is that you Debbie?"...we laughed so hard!!!! And than they were all asleep! I couldn't believe it!!!!

I really have to take this moment to say to all parents...GO FOR IT!!!! Adventures and road trips are not always easy (but is anything in parenting supposed to be?) but oh the fun you have and the memories...the memories are worth it all!!!! Get out there, experience the world with your kids...ride roller coasters that make your stomach turn, go see things you've never seen, experience the world...and by the way, do it with your friends!!! What special memories and traditions to share in!!!!

I frequently get looks like I am crazy for all of the things I do with the girls or how we are always go go going! (Don't worry, we do take breaks:)! I can't imagine life any other way! I want my girls to know that I am game, ready to go where the road takes us, ready to live each day to the fullest, ready to see all the sights and experience all the adventures life has to offer!!!! Doesn't sound too bad, does it? Just jump in your car and GO FOR IT:)

Summer Memories - the Ya Ya Weekend:)

One of our best summer memories was traveling with Mindy and Gretchen to visit Mariah, Lily, and Josie in the cities! Josie and Lily are almost 2 and call their friends 'ya ya's' so it was the 1st Annual Ya Ya Weekend!

Friendships that began in 8th grade while riding horses at Jon Schauer's house continue and have seen us celebrate the weddings of each other and the birth of our children! What an absolute blessing!

So to MSP we went for a little mother/daughter fun! We swam, we made pizzas, we read bedtime stories, we did manicures and pedicures, we experienced the American Girl Store and Bistro together, and on and on and on! And the moms were so tired, we accomplished very little catching up...we'll have to plan a moms only weekend for that:)

What a special time! What a blessing to share such a history together and to now pass it on to our daughters! I can only hope that they will be like a pack of sisters taking care of one another as they grow up together!

We love you ya yas!!!! Can't wait for next summer!!!

Summer Memories...A Zoorific Time!!!

I can say with complete confidence that we are a Zoo Family:) We love zoos! The girls each had visited a zoo in their infant days and it became a regular 'thing' for us when Isabella was 2!

We are regulars at the Red River Valley Zoo in Fargo, the Wahpeton Zoo, Como Zoo, and the Minnesota Zoo! We've also been able to visit the amazing Denver Zoo, the Dakota Zoo in Bismarck, Paul Bunyan Animal Land in Bemidji, the Des Moines Zoo, the Winnipeg Zoo, and the Reid Park Zoo in Tucson.

We have fed goats, chickens, camels, ducks, monkeys, giraffes, and more! We've spent hours leisurely walking through zoos watching the antics of the animals and learning about them! We've laughed at monkeys swinging around and squealed with delight at two bears wrestling...the memories are never ending!

This summer was a zoorific time for us with several different zoo adventures! Some fun memories include:

*Veronica feeding ducks...she loves it, now! She used to be a bit terrified of them! But over this summer, in particular during a visit to the Dakota Zoo, she became fully comfortable with it. So one day at the Wahpeton Zoo she came pleading to me, "Oh Mom, the ducks are so hungry, their tummies rumbling, I need to feed them", and "More mommy, they are so hungry!". Than she was hilarious and would throw out her little pellets of food one by one picking a duck and saying, "And this one's fooooooor...you (throws the food), and this one foooor...you (throws another one)"...HILARIOUS!

*Isabella trying to teach Veronica about feeding the animals, "You need to have a really delicate hand, like this Veronica" (you can see a photo of her showing us the delicate hand:).

*An extended stay at the Dakota Zoo in Bismarck...we had gone through most of the Dakota Zoo and we're just going for one last look at the goats which turned into another almost 2 hours. The girls kept finding pellets of food on the ground and would gather them up and feed them to the animals, than I discovered coins I didn't know I had and we just kept feeding and feeding them. This was the day Veronica became really comfortable feeding them. Such a simple day, but one of my favorite summer memories with them!

*Paul Bunyan's Animal Land has this amazing deer pasture! Deers everywhere! It was so wonderful! Daddy was with us and it was fun to watch him and Isabella go from one 'Bambi' to the next feeding them! Veronica was a bit scared and stayed in Momma's arms, but sent me chasing after the 'Baby Bambis':)

The girls favorite animals change, but I have noticed some consistencies...they are always interested in turtles, monkeys, tigers, and those sea otters!

I hope you enjoy these photos from our zoorific summer!!!!

The preschooler becomes preschool teacher

Isabella has decided this morning that she will be Veronica's preschool teacher. Funny how things like this start.

Veronica took note of two decorative pumpkins in the kitchen today - one is big, one is small. Veronica said, "Oh Bella, look pumpkins, a big one and a little one. I get the big one, you get the little one cause I little, you big".

Isabella: "You are little, but you're getting bigger (pause) and you'll be big enough for preschool"

Veronica: "YEAHHHHHHHHHHHHH"

Isabella: "Ok and I'll be your teacher, I'll get you ready for preschool. Let's get the counting book".

So first they practiced counting, than they 'cleaned up' (a few random toys in the living room) because as Isabella said, "You have to keep neat and clean at preschool" and than they moved into the bedroom to tidy up, because as Isabella said, "That's what you do for preschool":)

Isabella just told V, "Don't mess that up, I worked very hard to clean it up":) Let the preschool lesson continue:)

Enjoy the pics of our preschooler/preschool teacher and of the girls during their tidy up time during the preschool lesson:)

Saddle Up Your Horses...oh Dear Sweet Isabella!

My Isabella sings and I swear I hear the sounds of angels...not necessarily because she is so in tune (but not too bad), but because she sings with such passion and heart...she belts out a tune with every ounce of her sole. At a bible camp this summer, during song time they asked for suggestions and Isabella shouted out 'Saddle Up Your Horses'. I than sat back in TOTAL AWE as I watched my daughter sing and do the actions of this song along with the leaders. It was one of those breathtaking Isabella moments where I fell madly in love with my daughter as she threw back her head and sang out that song to the Lord with every fiber of her being. Oh Isabella, I just LOVE LOVE LOVE YOU SO SO SO SO SO MUCH!!!! Saddle up your horses, little girl...God has a great plan for you!

Barbie Nation:)

Barbie dolls have become all the rage in our household! This is fun as they were one of my favorite toys, let's be honest, THE FAVORITE TOY:)
I often am invited to join in and end up being the hair brusher or changer of outfits:)

I get the biggest kick out of watching how the girls 'play' with the dolls. For the most part, it seems to involve 'set up' and getting them ready, but here are a couple of funnies...

*Now that we have Prince dolls, Isabella likes to group them into families with husbands, wives, and a baby and do a little wedding.

*Last week, Veronica took all their clothes off and lined them up on the dining room window ledge. It looked like they were doing some naked suntanning...they were actually sleeping according to V.

*I came home from work one Friday and went downstairs to find many Barbie undressed, set up and covered up to sleep on the rocking chair downstairs.