Family Photo Shoot

So we decided to do an outside family photo shoot this year.  My main reason was that I love the fall colors and trees in Thief River turn into such beautiful colors – usually.  I was thinking of last year when we had a beautiful fall but didn’t take too many pictures then and Kason was a baby so it was harder.  But of course, once we set up the date with the photographer, it was pretty obvious that there won’t be pretty colors or nice warm weather.  The trees almost skipped changing to beautiful colors because it got too cold too fast.  The day of the shoot was very cloudy and freezing cold and we kept thinking are we really going to do this to our kids?  But we didn’t want to cancel the shoot because we couldn’t reschedule it so we went ahead with it.  I really didn’t want to take pictures with us wearing big puffy jackets and hats though so we pretty much froze even with 3 or 4 layers of clothes.  Kason was very hard to keep in one spot or to even stay in the shot with us or other kids, which I kind of suspected.  And after a little while of being in the park Anika too got really cold and was not smiling at anything.  Kade had a blast and wanted to run and play even after we were all done but Ehren and I were glad to get into a warm car and get home to warm up.  So I left the photo shoot thinking man, if we get one good picture it will be great.  But Chelsie did a great job and considering the weather and how little Kason and Ani are, we couldn’t get more or better pictures.  We have a lot of good memory pictures that will look great printed so I’m very excited.  I just get tired of the same old pictures so these are very precious.  Chelsie is Ehren’s cousin’s daughter and at only 20 years old she’s starting out her photography career.  I’m sure she can be a great photographer one day, but it does take a lot of experience especially with kids and people and seeing if the poses are good before taking pictures.  Anyway, here are some previews of what she took.  We have a lot more pictures saved and I can’t wait to play around with them.

this is more the real colors and I didn’t enhance it much

Kason is getting so big

with our little girl

Our North Shore getaway

So this last weekend finally came when we took our kids to the North Shore, MN.  I always loved going there in the fall and couldn’t believe the last time we went there was when I was pregnant with Kade – our first child.  I think we’re going to try a lot harder to go there every fall we can from now on.  We had a very special time with our family.   It is never easy with little ones who need naps and can’t walk fast, but we made the best of it.  I was wishing a little bit that we could have gone on more trails and also felt a little bad for Kade who was so eager to try every trail he spotted but we couldn’t with Anika.  We borrowed a backpack kid carrier from our friends for Kason and that was a lifesaver.  He was so good in it and just watched everything around him.  When we were finally hiking I realized it would have been perfect to have 2 of them and have Ani on my back.  First, they weigh about the same with Kason so it wouldn’t feel any different and it would help us cover more trails.  But at the same time, we had fun just being outside and had such a wonderful weather that we couldn’t have asked for more.  I found a great deal for a hotel in Two Harbors so we stayed there overnight on Saturday.  That was an adventure of its own since our kids have never stayed in a hotel before (just Kade) and Kade and Anika were pretty wild in the hotel room.  They loved the swimming pool and the hot tub and it was fun to do that as a family.  On Sunday we went to one more trail and a few lookout places and that was great too.  The kids were just a little tired of taking pictures after that so we didn’t get too many good smiles out of them.   Overall, all the kids were pretty worn out by the end of the weekend but they had fun.  A huge bummer happened at the end when we were finishing off at the Gooseberry Falls, just going through some rocks and water to get a better view.  I had our camera in my pocket but it was too big to zip it and as I bended down to lift Anika, the camera fell right between 2 rocks, in the water.  The pictures were fine, but there is water built up inside the lens and Ehren doesn’t think our camera allows taking apart the lens to clean it.  He’s going to try to take it all apart, but we’re probably hosed there which is a huge bummer.  It is not a high end camera, but not cheap either.  So our 2nd digital camera we owned since we got married ended up in the water as well.  Ehren was responsible for the first one and now it was my turn.  I guess we’re even.

Our drive home wasn’t without drama either as the belt and something else almost broke in the middle of nowhere.  The belt started ripping in pieces but in order to get home we had to drive 15 miles to Grand Rapids and to the auto parts place that was closing in half hour.  So we drove slowly and prayed the whole way and with God’s amazing protection we got there safe.   And not only that but there was a guy who helped Ehren replace both things, one of which Ehren didn’t even know was bad.  We were so thankful after that because we could have been stuck with 3 kids so many times on our trip and before and it would not be easy to get home or get help in the middle of the weekend.  So it was a perfect ending to our little trip.

our drive there

holding hands and giggling

starting the first hike

Kason even fell asleep once in the carrier, it was great.

us girls

swimming at the hotel

getting a shot with the Split Rock Lighthouse (on the right)

the last picture before I dropped the came in the water. :(

Anika’s 3rd birthday

Our princess Anika turned 3 yesterday and it was a special day for her.  We haven’t gotten together with the family for a while so we had everyone over for dinner and cake.  Mark and Audrey, Kjell and Jess, and Judith all came and Ani was so excited about her birthday party.  She knew a lot more about birthdays because Kade just had his a month ago so she was way into it this year.  Anika loves butterflies so I made her a butterfly birthday cake.  Not exactly professional looking but it was alright and she really liked it.  Instead of party hats we had princess crowns for the kids and even Kade was all game wearing it and being a part of the princess kind of a birthday.  Ani was also super excited to get presents and every time she started to open one she would say “Whatever can it be?” which is a line from one of her books where a little girl opens a present.  She got some cute clothes, a cross necklace from Judith, a really great winter jacket from nanna and papa, wooden food that you can cut, a tea pot set and a nail polish set from Ehren.  I think it will take a while for her to share the new toys with Emily and other friends without a fight.  It was just a fun time for us to watch her get all excited about her day.  She is growing up so quick and I can’t believe how much more mature she’s getting.

Ani is all girl and loves girly plays, girly clothes, purses and she loves to paint/color and do art projects.  It is fun for me because I was such an opposite of her.  I was a big tom boy growing up, wearing my brothers’ clothes and I hated when mom would make me wear a dress.  I hated coloring and crafts and just wanted to play sports stuff with my brothers.  Now in my “old age” I’m more appreciative of this girliness Ani brings me and it makes me remember to do different things with her than the boys.  It can be a little frustrating for me to watch Ani in physical play because she is such a girl.   When I was little I used to be offended if someone thought I couldn’t play soccer, ice skate, bike or run as fast as boys and I’d be proving them wrong the next minute.  So it is a little funny that Anika is that girl.  She runs like a girl, throws like a girl, and is just really weak.  I don’t mean it in a bad way and I love her just as she is, but I have to keep reminding myself that some things are a lot harder for her than our boys.  To be fair, a lot of it comes from Ani’s delayed motor skills which we worked and worked on this last year with a physical therapist and now she improved enough that she doesn’t need it anymore.  I think she had to get over some of the fear of balancing and stuff and now she’s doing great.  She still has a lot of fun running around with the kids and even if she would not pick playing catch she will eagerly do it because that’s what the other kids want to do.   Ani is very social and loves being with other kids, especially other girls.  Her and Emily (her cousin) have become such good playmates since I started watching her during the day and now if Emily is not here Anika misses her.  They are a bit of opposites from each other but somehow they get along great and love doing things together.  Growing up I spent a lot of time with my cousin Saci who’s the same age as me and we became inseparable.  It is such a special relationship when you don’t have a sister.  I miss her a lot and wish we could hang out like the old times.

Anyway, this last year Anika has changed so much.  It’s probably because of the interaction with other kids but she is expressing herself so much better now.  It is so nice to be able to have little conversations with her and a deepening relationship.  It feels like the older she gets the closer we are and I love that.  She also loves her daddy time and I know it’s special to Ehren and he really cherishes his little girl.  Of course, we do get reminded from time to time of all that estrogen in her because of her screaming and little outbursts and they make me think it’s just preparation for the teenage hormones that are coming.   All in all, I feel very blessed to have a daughter to share our life with and am looking forward to what God has in store for her as she grows.

Our big teddy bear

I’m just realizing that I have barely written anything about how our Kason’s doing so I better write a few words about him.  He seems to be growing up so fast in front of our eyes, maybe it’s because he’s #3.  He still doesn’t say much, just a few words but he understands a lot and there are some things I can’t say in front of him like the “froggy movie” or else he has a fit that he’s not getting what he heard.  The froggie movie, as we call it is his new favorite and he can sit and watch the whole 25 minutes of it.  It is a leapfrog movie about letters, letter sounds and putting some simple words together.  Both Kade and Anika learned the whole alphabet and all the letter sounds from it before they were 2 and I’m sure it helped Kade with his reading too.  I just can’t believe how much Kason loves these shows and he even repeats some letter sounds from it.   We usually put it on in the evening when I’m trying to cook dinner because that is his fussy time when he just wants me to hold him.

Kason is 16 months old this month but is as big as many 2 year olds and most of his clothes he wears are 2T.  For fall/winter jackets he’s going to wear 3T and they’re not even that big which is a little scary.  He just got his 15th month shots last week and he is still in 100th percentile for height, 90th for weight and about 75th for how big his head is.  He looks really long but he’s built strong like Ehren, nothing like my brothers who are all tall but skinny.  So now he’s officially the same weight if not bigger than Ani’s.  She is just a skinny peanut, but she’s still quite a bit taller than him.  Kason is also a really good eater.  There are very few things he doesn’t eat and if he sees anyone eat in the kitchen he has to eat too.  I don’t know if it’s good or bad that he likes food so much, but I’m really glad he’s like this in comparison to being a finicky eater.

The biggest joy Kason brings me right now is how much he loves books and puzzle toys like shapes, legos and stuff.  I was a little worried when he was an infant because he had no interest in sitting and looking at the picture books, he was always on the go.  Now he can sit in my lap and read books one after another for a long time.  He also keeps bringing me books or if I’m sitting down he’ll grab my hand and place the book in it because he wants to make sure I read it to him.

He also loves cuddling with me or Ehren on the couch and suck his thumb while rubbing his ear.  He really is like a big snugly teddy bear.  He is very strong and can be a tough guy but really he is so gentle and soft inside.   Probably a little bit of being the baby of the family.  Kason also follows the older kids around and wants to have everything they are playing with.  But he doesn’t cry about wanting something, just comes right in and takes stuff away or ruins something the kids have been working on, and it’s usually Anika who ends up screaming.  His fascination is still with Ehren’s laptop or my computer, but he can’t ruin the keyboard I have.  Poor laptop is not looking so good with all the missing keys he broke off, but Ehren will soon need a new one so it’s not the end of the world.

Kason also loves loves going outside, but I on the other hand don’t like taking him outside much unless it’s really dry.  If there is one tiny puddle in our yard he will find it and is sitting in it before I know it.  So I pretty much have to chase him around because he’s so fast that I turn around and he’s gone.  He also wants to take off for any road he sees so that is really the scary part.  At least there are a couple playgrounds in town where I can watch him from a distance and he can’t run away easily.  I’m just hoping he’ll grow out of this stage soon and will listen to me when I yell his name or when I tell him to stop.  Most of the times, if I see him running for the road and I yell at him or tell him to stop he just starts running faster, not even looking back at me.  I used to smile when I would see kids doing that to their parents, well now when I’m the parent it’s just not that funny.

So, that about summs up what Kason’s been up to.  It really feels like he completes our little family because when it’s just Kade and Anika it is so quiet and peaceful (well, most of the times) and like something is missing.

A long weekend trip

Our last little trip for the summer was this last weekend when we went to see Brent and Ingrid in Omaha.  I almost thought I shouldn’t post anything because it’s pathetic how few pictures we took but we had such a good time there.  Well, maybe minus the drive there and back, which took 9 hours both times because of road construction.  When we were leaving Kade said he wanted to stay there because it’s so much more fun than at home.  There is just so much more to do in a bigger city.  We went to a cool dinosaur park with all the kids and it was great to just be outside on the nature trails.  We were smart to go early because as we were leaving the parking lot was full of cars.  In the afternoon Brent took Kade and Sage to the zoo which they loved but it was good we didn’t all go because on a Labor day weekend it got pretty crowded.  Ehren and I both did some shopping and I am really happy about the deals I found on clothes for the kids.  And for Ehren, of course, because he now needs a whole new wardrobe.   On Saturday evening we went out with Brent and Ingrid to a really great restaurant called Espana.  It had some really unique Spanish food and it all tasted delicious.  It’s always fun to try a new place with them.  Their babysitter watched all 5 kids for us and put them all to bed so it was an extra special treat.  On Sunday we played outside with the kids a lot and they had so much fun playing baseball and running around.  I just couldn’t get over how nice it was to sit outside, day and evening without one single mosquito around.  It was so nice to have a barbecue dinner on the deck too, which was really delicious.  We always get spoiled with food when we see Brent and Ingrid.  Brent is a great cook and Ingrid too makes fun new dishes all the time.  We also played some badminton and I forgot how much I liked playing it.  The weather was perfect for it too with hardly any wind to blow the “shuttlecocks” away. (It took me a while to find that word online and I’m still not sure if that’s right)

The drive both ways was pretty slow because of the construction on the road but the kids did great for being in the van for 9 hours.  They watched some dvds, but not as much as I thought they would.  I was really hoping Kason and Ani would sleep some since it was their usual nap time, but all of our kids must have inherited Ehren’s ways in the car.   That is – inability to sleep.  Kason was sooo tired both ways but when he would finally fall asleep, he was up in 10 minutes.  I just don’t understand it because me and my brothers always slept in the car on long trips, almost the whole time.  That’s all I remember, how we slept all over each other (no car seats back then, of course).  But, I was really glad that neither of them were crabby for being so tired.  They really did great for such a long trip.  I was telling Ehren that it is like driving to the sea side in Croatia from Slovakia which always seemed like a huge trip.

So here is a glympse of what we did.  I am bumming I didn’t even get any cute pictures of all the cousins playing together.  But like I told Ingrid, it seems like when we’re really enjoying ourselves that’s when we take the least amount of pictures because we forget all about it.

Kason loves his books – especially the “Brown Bear”

watching the portable dvd player, it was a blessing

sooo tired, but we won’t sleep!

real size dinosaurs park

Ani with binoculars in the tree house

somehow the Barnstubles are never in our pictures, but we went together :)