It's been awhile

Well it has been awhile. We have quite a lot to share. We went on a trip at the end of April (which seems like forever ago) to Leavenworth and Seattle, WA. It was a blast! Leavenworth is a little tourist town that is built with Bavarian decor. It has quite a few specialty shops and great little hole in the wall restaurants. One of our favorites is Uncle Uli's. Then we headed over to Seattle and to the Woodland Park Zoo. The kids had so much fun! I think one of their favorite

animal exhibits was the gorillas.
The zoo even had a baby gorilla; which was a popular stop for everyone at the zoo that day.

The whole day was spent at the zoo. Everyone was exhausted; especially the kiddos. Ella even climbed into the stroller with TJ because she was so tired. And then...

Ella fell asleep in the stroller! What a sight!

The last day was spent shopping at IKEA and the outlet mall before we headed home. It was a fun trip, but it would have been fun to have more time.

Next came Ella's 4th birthday! She went to breakfast with Daddy (a tradition that BJ started with her last year). Then we had a fun filled day. She had a western themed birthday party complete with horse rides. The kids had a lot of fun and the birthday girl was happy!

Then at the beginning of June, we were able to take a trip to visit my parents in the St. Louis area. We flew in and then drove down to Branson, MO for a few days. We went to Silver Dollar City, rode the DUCKS, and then went and played mini
golf at Pirates Cove. Argh matey! Shiver me timbers! (Sorry I couldn't resist.) We had a really good time; it was nice for me to be able to show BJ and Ella where we went on vacation when I was a kid. Although it looks much different now than when I was there last.

Ella in front of the DUCK

Ella driving the DUCK

Turner driving the DUCK

All of us in front of Silver Dollar City.

BJ and my dad came across a store that sold Dukes of Hazard merchandise (BJ is a big fan of the old show, but mostly the car) and they also had a replica of the General Lee. TJ thought it was the greatest thing ever. He likes anything with wheels, just like his daddy and Papaw. The car even had the song the General Lee played when the horn was honked.

We also went to Grant's Farm, which is owned by Anheuser Busch. This was also a place I frequented when I was little. Grant's Farm is home to the famous Clydesdale draft horses. We got to meet Matt; he was the horse in the Superbowl ad from a few years ago that kicked the football. Ella was in heaven surrounded by the enormous creatures.

One of the most popular animal exhibits are the baby goats. They pretty much attack you when you walk in with the milk bottle. Then when the bottle is gone, they will eat anything. I mean anything! They started to eat Ella's shirt, then my shirt, and then finally BJ's shorts.

When we returned from our trip, we got to work on one of our summer projects: the kitchen. We worked two days straight tearing out trim, painting walls, cabinet, and drawers. We have just a few minor things left like the trim and replacing the faucet. But the bulk is done and it looks beautiful!!

Well, I think that brings us up to date for now. Sorry I have been horrible at keeping up with the blogs, but man things never seem to slow down. We hope everyone is doing well and having a nice summer so far. Take care and we look forward to hear from you.

Sarah

I haven't fallen off the face of the earth...

Despite what you have heard, I have not fallen off of the face of the earth. No I am still here.

Well it is hard to believe it is already April! Where does the time go??? We have been so busy that I haven't kept up on blogging. Turkey season just started and so BJ is planning days with a buddy to go out hunting. They got up early on Wednesday and saw 3 Toms, but they weren't close enough and they didn't stick around long enough. He is looking forward to going out some more and hopefully he will get one.

We are heading over to Seattle with some friends in a couple of weeks. We are looking forward to a break from work, school, and everything else. I will hopefully post a blog with pics after.

Ella is loving preschool and mommy is loving that there is only 5 weeks left. Don't get me wrong, I love doing it, but man, it is a lot of work (and I don't even write the curriculum). It will be nice just to hang out with her friends (and mine) and just have fun! It is hard to believe she is almost 4! She is growing up so fast. I often wish I could freeze time and enjoy the stages a little longer, but alas, that is not how life works.

We moved her to a "big girl bed" and she is doing so well. She had fun picking out the sheets and quilt on a mommy/Ella day and then we worked on cleaning and rearranging the room to make (almost) everything fit.

Ella's new twin bed and new sheet set/quilt.

Ella's new book shelves.

Ella so proud of her big girl bed.

Turner (TJ) officially started crawling a week or so ago. It was much awaited and has given him much more freedom. Now he is exploring everything. He also started pulling up and standing. It seems that he is a little quicker than Ella was on the standing; I think he will be walking before Ella started. He is very pleased with himself and grows more and more confident each day in what he is doing. He still hasn't said mama or dada, but will soon I am sure. You ask him to say it and he just looks at you and smiles and kind of laughs. What a turkey!!

First time standing on his own.

So proud of himself for standing on his own!!

Next came Easter...We had a fun day. We went to church, then came home and ate a yummy lunch with all the trimmings. After lunch, Ella and her cousin, Tristan (BJ's sister's little boy) hunted eggs in our backyard. Then we went over to our friends' house and she hunted eggs in the rain with her friends. They had great fun, but the parents were none too thrilled with standing out in the rain waiting for the kiddos to get all the eggs.

Turner (TJ) in his Easter outfit.

Awww! So sweet kisses!

Two cuties on Easter

Sweet smiles from both!

Well, I guess that is about all for now! We will try to keep on top of things better! Take care!

Love, Sarah

Update

Such love!!


TJ on his Christmas present. I think he will have to grow into that one.



He likes it for now, but just wait a couple of years.

We are training him early who to root for!!

Such a pretty girl!

Well, hello everyone. I cannot believe it is almost February! Wasn't it just Jan 1st??? We are doing well. Surviving the record snowfall in December and the really cold temps we have had off and on. I am really ready for spring. BJ has been busy at work, but is having some difficulty with the guys sometimes. I tell him that is what he gets paid the big bucks for. :) We have been busy with Ella's preschool group. We started two days a week the beginning of January. It is more of a time commitment, but Ella really loves going and learning. She is doing so well with it too. She can write her name!! I am amazed. I didn't even know she could do it, but one day she sat down and just wrote it. She is such a social butterfly. She loves her friends and can't wait until she gets to go to school and see them again. TJ is growing so fast. He is almost 6 months old already! We have started the baby food; which is always an adventure. He doesn't like the rice cereal, but will eat it begrudgingly if it has bananas in it. He loves peas, carrots, and squash. He talks all the time. I thought Ella talked a lot, but I think he has her beat. He talks when he eats. Not just "mmm" noises, he will actually jabber while he is eating. For awhile he was even talking in his sleep. Ella even complained; I asked her if she slept well and she said "Brother talked and talked and wouldn't be quiet". Too cute! Luckily that only lasted for a week or so. We have his 6 month check up on Feb 17th and so we will see where he sits on height and weight. Attached are some recent pictures. Hope everyone is doing well!! We love and miss everyone!

sarah