So you want to be a star...

Last weekend was Zoe's dance recital.

She made it through the whole year.

Practice, practice, practice.

Woo hoo!

with Aunt Laura and Grandma Candy

The the two grandmas :)

Aunt Laura and Uncle Andy

(lil' Audrey was with her grandparents)

Grandpa and Grandma

Family!

Our little star!

By the way, she's all for continuing dance next year.

September

Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. 

Teach your kids to act like a fish and you feed them for a lifetime

Refurbished Japanese Gardens, at Como.

Kind strangers who offer to take a picture with Mom in it: priceless. Although I really don't want to be in the picture.

We have discovered the joy of water in the summer (not at our house)

And we're going back soon!

This is a great place to have some fun and I think will continue to be a great place to have some fun as you become more comfortable in the water. I think I jumped the gun on the swimming lessons last fall. You needed this first.

Pool time can get expensive, except when they offer a special kid time (7 and under) on Saturday mornings.  When I was a kid we used to go to the Richfield municipal pool.  But I was older. And for some reason my most distinct memory is the day they changed the cost of a phone call on the pay phone from 25 cents to 35 cents. I always brought a quarter (and only a quarter) to call home and get picked up. 

Pay phone? What's that?

Your mom left you there?

Well, yeah. With my brothers. 

We had summer passes a couple times.

She dropped us off an a North Star hockey game once too and my oldest brother, the eldest, couldn't have been in more than 9th grade (and probably not that).

Different times, kiddos.

Crystal Cove.

Nearby.

I'm discovering things I didn't know were here.

Roots are taking hold.

Not the intention, but it is what it is.

A slide even Zoe could love.

She is not fond of heights (or tall ceilings for that matter).

But she was having fun on this slide.

A good place to get her feet wet.

Bad pun, good fun.

Later that day we hit a splash pad too in another close-ish part of town. Turns out it was too cold to do much though. Hard to believe because we'd just gotten through some oppressive heat. 

SOAK IT UP, BABY.

I see this picture and I realize how much I’m going to miss my Wednesday’s off with them. We went to the indoor playground a few months back. You too are too big for the little kid area but still unsure about this massive indoor structure. Zoe got herself stuck way up top last year and I had to rescue her, so she’s not so sure about navigating up the tubes and steps and ropes, even with her brother. Which is another thing. You guys have your sibling fighting moments, but you’re actually really close. Which is nice. I hope you maintain a lifelong friendship.

We know who likes to rule the roost.

But you do play nice and take turns.

Sharing is good.

This is what happens when I get tired and fall asleep.

I had no recollection of this.

I remember this.

Blinking noses.

Marble!

(no blinking nose)

Oh Marble, I remember when you were (almost) the size of a marble.

Waaaaah (cry, cry).

He’s like a dog, as soon as he sees you are there he starts begging for food.

Kind of like this, only with arms flayling. That might merit an animated gif (so retro right now!)

Food? Maybe that’s what we should have named the feeder fish. The kids have given names to some of them. We’ve moved on from naming everything Roman and Zoe, but names still take on characteristics of things in the area. Tablet = the variety made of paper. Pearl. Not sure if that’s a necklace or an homage to a character in Finding Nemo…And some others. So far Marble eats a portion of what is given him and keeps others as friends. Or that’s the story I’m spinning today.

Winter 2013

Bundle up kiddos.

Time to go outside.

OUTSIDE?!

Yeppers, on frozen Medicine Lake via access through French Regional Park. The same beach you swam at last summer. That feels like forever ago.

A rare day when your dad was off and an organized preschool-type activity was organized. 

Let's kicksled!

Ok then.

Your dad took some video too. I watched it and at the time it felt like we were really sailing, but the video proves it was more like molasses in January. Oh well. I'm SO out of shape. Something's gotta give. Gotta get motivated. At any rate, you guys had fun on the sled - there's a sit out front for you to relax and enjoy the ride.

Or practice pushing each other.

Once again amazed at the opportunities available to us.

Happy 4th Birthday, you two!

New favorite picture

Underexposed and needs some work with more than I have installed...but they're both looking at the camera. I suppose it's the anticipation of the Sparky the Seal show at Como Zoo...

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