Making lemonade. . .

What does lemonade have to do with all this snow? Well, I will tell you at the end but for now I will show you what we did yesterday.

We bundled up and headed out to Papa's Polar Patch. What a great idea! The local Pumpkin Patch gears up for winter and thrills the children with a winter wonderland after Christmas.
A great picture of all three rarely happens and Annelise was working hard at not smiling for the camera.

In the background you can see a great big slide, the blue bales are the exterior of the ice skating rink, and some great climbing structures for the little ones.

All Aboard!!!!!!

Bodie LOVES the snow. He was in heaven here!

We went on an old fashioned sleigh ride where Anna was loving the horses. What I didn't get a picture of was of us on a sled ride being a 4-wheeler. I was curious if the children would be scared of it but to my surprise they all laughed hysterically the entire time!

She has been one of the greatest gifts ever!

Their favorite part was the maze. Brayton loved bouncing around in my arms as we chased the twins.

Now, to my lemonade part. Yes. We are making lemonade out of lemons. We are happy to be doing it. We are excited about the adventure we are on and we are all happy to be together in a beautiful state with some of the sweetest people we have ever met. WE are doing great. I realize that many of you would NEVER come here to stay or to visit though most have never set foot in the state. We totally understand that not all people like the cold weather but what we don't enjoy is hearing how everyone else thinks they would be miserable here. We understand but we are busy making lots of lemonade over here in North Dakota and hope that everyone will stop in for a glass! You might find you like lemonade. . . and if not, that's ok too but we will still be enjoying ours! :)

Jump!

A few days after Christmas we met my cousin Brandy and her little ladies at Fun on the Run to do a little jumping! Sadly, I busted out the camera before they got there and it never did surface again that day but we all had a great time even if I have no proof! We love that they aren't too far away and the children all play so well together that the time we have together is always a blessing! We followed up the evening with dinner at Space Aliens where the kids loved the games and food. Great day!

Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night~

Merry Christmas!!!! A few days ago, our new friend's from a few farms down called and inquired what we were doing for Christmas. We hadn't planned anything other than doing a whole lot of nothing so when she declared "We will be your family here!" I was very touched. So on Christmas Eve afternoon we loaded the children and kitty cat snowmobile to head on over. The children had so much fun playing together and everyone was excited when we suited up and headed outside. They have so many animals to play with that Annelise was in HEAVEN!!! Chickens, ducks, turkeys, goats, kittens, dogs, cows, horses, and even a few rabbits! Anna told me "I wuv it here!" and I was so happy to hear that she continues to love our move to ND and all her new adventures. Bodie and Daddy became snowmobile crazy with their older daughter Austyn taking numerous runs around the farm. Bodie was so serious about his riding and we are pretty sure we have a future pro on our hands!

Here he is taking the Kitty for a spin!
Austyn taking Brayton for a ride. She was such a great little host making the kids feel so welcome and invited. We can already tell that the 5 of them will be fast friends!
Annelise in one of the barns observing some of the animals. She has loved animals for as long as I can remember and was just so happy to be surrounded by them!

Misty showing Annelise how to feed the birds. She was a great listener and happy to do the work! The afternoon was followed up by some snacks and chatting and ended all too soon for sure!

After a great afternoon at the Schafer residence, we headed home to eat a little dinner, get in our jammies, and write the Santa letter. Annelise is seriously certain she wants "nothing" so that is what I wrote. She is too funny but not an ounce greedy. They also decided that Santa should drink water instead of milk. Guess he's lactose intolerant in their minds? They also left him some art work just incase he needs a little something for his wall!

Leave a letter. . . . .

Get a letter!!! Sideways, but if you think I know how to fix that now, you would be wrong!

So bright and early, we were up as usual and so happy to see Santa found us.

The rain boots have been the big hit around here so far although, give it an hour and I could repost a new favorite.

So now we are just enjoying the afternoon of nothing and playing with our new stuff. The children didn't get a lot but they were sure happy with it all. What a relief to know that you don't need a tree mounding with gifts to make the holiday special. We hope all our friend's and family are having a wonderful day filled with love, peace, and all the joy in the world! It's a beautiful, chilly, white wonderland here and we are loving every minute. Just wanted to pop on here so the grandparent's could see what the kid's were up to!

Merry Christmas!!!!!

"Da Da, Wasch B!"

What you say? What on earth am I talking about? "Da Da Wasch B!" is exactly what I meant. Brayton's first sentence is what that is! Bodie and Annelise were running back and forth and yelling "Daddy, watch me!" when Brayton decided to join in. So he promptly ran to the step and yelled for Daddy to watch him. Love it.

On a more holiday, festive, seasonal type of note. We put up our tree the other day and oh boy, what an event! We put on our jolly Christmas/Holiday music, sipped warm cider by the gallon, broke more ornaments than you can imagine, and danced like fools. The day was not so smoothe but we had a great time anyway.

This is just part of the mess that we had going on that day. After the broken snowglobe and coffee mug filled to the brim with cider, the mess traveled to the family and kitchen as well. :) I like how a three year old has to lay EVERYTHING out in order to see what must go on the tree first. I didn't understand their logic but I did say that they were in charge and that is exactly how it went.
Brayton in the highchair sipping cider while I was sweeping up one of the numerous broken ornaments. At least he looks jolly!

What you can't see from here is the serious lean our tree has going on. Notice how short it is? Well, like I said, we decided to let them do everything but the lights and that is why we chose the Mini tree!

Brayton testing lights. . . .seems logical to let the 17 month old do this right? He was a bit determined all day to play with the light sockets. So, there you have it. Our day of putting up what could be the most interesting tree we have ever had. I will have to post photos of the finale later!

Happy Holidays!!!

Are we the only family that cannot believe the holiday season is already in full swing and rapidly passing you by? Most likely not! This year I actually sent out a card and letter! Every year I fully intend to get that letter written but it simply has never happened. With all the changes we have had this year, I figured it would be a great year to finally do it. Well, now the mystery is how you fit an entire year into one 8.5"x11" sheet of paper. Sigh! After writing it, I felt like I left out so many great moments. In the process, I also managed to write something in a way that I was bombarded with phone calls asking if I was pregnant. LOL! Leave it to me!!! The long and the short of the letter is that we are all well, we are all as happy as we have ever been, we love our family, our friends, and we hope that this year will bring love, laughter, joy, and peace to everyone we know!

Bodie all "googley-eyed" in the morning.
Annelise our resident artist. So thankful that she has been down the Great-Grandma Lois gene and loves anything to do with art.

This is how our riveting game of hide and seek looks around here. Do you see anyone?

The children all take swim lessons here at the YMCA and love it! They all love playing in the water wherever we are but I cannot stress enough how great it is to know you children are learning how to actually swim. That simple act can save their life one day and I am all for the lesson while having blast!

These beautiful horses live here. . . lucky us!

Everyone keeps asking us about the cold. Yes, it's cold but if you ask me, after a certain degree, it's all the same. You still get bundled up and layered up to go play. The snow has certainly fallen and our property looks so beautiful all blanketed in white. We have chosen to embrace this weather and love it. After all, the children love the snow and it's all in how you chose to view it.

This is Kitty Kitty, Pokie Pokie, and Alice out in the barn with Anna. Everyone loves the new additions and although Bodie and I are not cat people, even the two of us have come to love them. The cats just follow us around everywhere we go and it's pretty funny to watch them play in the snow too. They may convert us yet!

We joined my cousin Brandy and her family in Minot for a day of swimming recently. We also got to spend some time with my Aunt Debbie and Uncle Randy that day as well. Having some family near is an added bonus for sure. They also got to witness a nice melt down by Annelise that day while we all went shopping. To put it mildly, Target may never let us back in!!! :)

Annelise swimming. She is quite the Ham now days!

Thought we leave you with a smile. . . .worth a thousand words! We hope that everyone has a wonderful holiday and even though we are far away from friends and family, we think of everyone often! Love and miss you!!!!

B-Licious!

What is the little mans new obsession you dare ask?
What does this 16 month old love to do all day long now?

He will race Annelise and Bodie both to be the first to get one. . .

He will even go where no man has gone before. . . under this kitchen table is pretty disgusting so believe me when I say, not many will go there!

However, if he can find something to read under that table, it's all good! Brayton has recently joined the reading frenzy going on at our house. It's hard to say if it's the weather or the recent change but all our children are just crazy about reading right now. Annelise has been in the phase since birth it seems and Bodie's desire is a little more like a yo-yo but around here we can be found reading for hours lately. I mean that seriously! HOURS! Good thing we have nothing but time to spend with each other and a cozy spot by the window to curl up together!

Another day. . .More play!

We were on our way to the YMCA. . . .Seriously! We were!!! Then, I admit that I didn't feel like working out at all, I asked the children what they would like to do. They, all together (minus the baby) yelled park!!!!!!! So, that is what we did. I have been getting up CRAZY early since daylight savings time and we were actually at the prk at 8:30 a.m.. We also live 27 miles from town. . . .needless to say, we were early! It was a great park and we had a lot of fun. The sun was shining and we were all thrilled to be outside. I understand snow is coming so we better enjoy the warmth while it lasts

I think I'm gonna like it here!!!!

Sometimes you can just see happiness. I know I can. As many of you know, we are 27 miles out of Bismarck. Well, it may not be for everybody but we love it. I mean LOVE it! One thing I have noticed is that when you take away all the distractions in your life, you are able to focus on the most important things like your family. No wonder we are so thrilled with North Dakota! With no television or electronic games for the children our entertainment really comes from each other. Can't say I mind it at all!

The windmills in the background are all around us. It's far more windy out here than we are use to but the children are excited about so much kit flying weather. Their Nanny got them a kite last year and it has been put to good use!

That's an old school house on the property. Quaint huh? Built in the early 1800's and the owner's of the property stay there when in town. Luckily, they are really great people and we don't mind at all. We love the charm of it out here and the children think it's pretty cool too.

When you have nothing else to do, go bowling with pumpkins. Down slides of course!

Brayton running. . . .he does a lot of that around here! We have so much wide open space that we all run around a lot these days. Quite frankly, it's fun. Try it!

One of the many bird houses on the property. We cannot wait to see who sets up nest in there come spring.

On our front porch playing. It's a little older than our old house. A little more lived in. Not quite as big or renovated but it sure is cozy. The bushes are overgrown and the paint needs a little love but we are all tucked snuggly under that shake roof and nothing seems to be more important than that these days.

School WAS in session.. . . .Old school house actually has old school bench. Kids find this thrilling!

This is the nest above the barn door. We plan on getting a ladder and looking in this week. Not touching but certainly looking. Who can resist? We use to have hummingbird nests in our old yard (Now our renters have them, LUCKY!) but now we are anxious to see who will be living here!

Why was Bodie so happy? I actually have no idea. Perhaps it was because his entire family is all under one roof and has been for three weeks. Maybe it's because he's 3 and I typically find this age to be a happy one. Maybe it's because he has a little crush on his swim teacher? Neither here, nor there. . . does it actually matter why? Nope! I didn't think so either!

This is a picture from our first playgroup. I would love to have called it a total success, except it wasn't. The crowd was. . . .interesting. The kids were. . . .. tougher than normal, and the parent's were. . . .distracted by starbucks. However, one kind mother reassured me that not every week is like that and it really is a great group of kids so we shall try again this week. After all, we don't have any other plans. Fingers crossed everyone!!!

This is Kelly. Kelly is amazing. Not sure? Ask Bodie! He LOVES her! The twins started swim lessons this week at the YMCA. We recently became members there and love it. I normally HATE working out but actually find the little time away from the kids relaxing now. They love the play center and I love my limited time away. Plus, the swim lessons have been great for the twins. Those of you with singletons have no idea how hard it is to do swim lessons with twins. They love it! We love it! We have made friends! What more could we ask for?

Because I love her! She has been so, "Girly" lately. She is a little dramatic at times. A tad sensitive and a bit goofy too. What can we say. . .we have our girl. This girl is also the most generous, kind, polite, and thoughtful 3 year old I know.

Say no more! He is a dream. However, can someone tell me why my toddler that slept thru the night is now getting up? Up once, twice, even three times every now and then? Who is he? What and why on earth? Please sweet baby that takes all his naps so sweetly, please sleep!!!!