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2012-02-07T17:56:00.001-06:00

Watch Me Grow!

Lilli Jo at six months ...

14 lbs 14 oz

24 1/4 inches

She's our little peanut, that's for sure (especially when you compare her to Preston, below).

Lilli Jo is right on track with her developments and she's really strong, she just happens to be petite.

Did anyone really think she was going to be tall? :)

Preston at six months

And a few more pictures ...

I LOVE this shirt!

Cheesy big brother

Playing with Uncle Matt

Where'd everyone go?

There you are!

Hi!

2012-01-07T20:53:00.000-06:00

I'm 5 months old today!

Lilli Jo is quite possibly one of the happiest babies I've ever seen. Her smile lights up the room and melts my heart! And her laugh is infectious. :)

At 5 months old ...

she's reaching for things and has quite a grip. When I pick her up now, she reaches for my face and grabs on tight. I love it!

She's eating rice cereal and vegetables at night. So far we've had green beans and peas. Next up is carrots and maybe some sweet potatoes.

She sleeps through the night too!

(has been since she was about a month old)

She lets you know that she's tired by turning her head to the side and covering her hands with her face. It's pretty cute.

She's been rolling over for a couple months now, although she seems to have decided to take a hiatus from the rolling over. I think because she realized she doesn't care to be on her tummy. But she sure can scoot around when she's on the floor, often going in circles. She's ended up under the couch a couple of times. :)

She loves to sit in her bumbo or in her new activity center as they give her the best view of all the action around her.

EVERYTHING goes in her mouth ... her feet, her hands, her toys, her bib while she's eating (her feet while she's eating too). I've got a hunch that some teeth might be making an appearance very soon.

These last 5 months have flown by. I cherish every minute, but I look forward to the new developments in her life just the same!

2011-12-31T16:31:00.001-06:00

Happy New Year!

Your success and happiness lies in you. Resolve to keep happy, and your joy and you shall form an invincible host against difficulties.

Helen Keller

Cheers to 2012!

2011-12-31T16:14:00.000-06:00

Christmas 2011

Santa baby

Christmas baby

Not sure what happened to Turner's clothes,

but here's the Bjerke grandkids! :)

You would think he's embarrassed by his lack of clothes,

but not really!

The Great-Grandma's with Lilli Jo

Great-Grandma Elsie and Lilli Jo

The Batcave!!

Lilli Jo got a Radio Flyer wagon from Grandma & Grandpa Bjerke

Not sure what this conversation entailed, but knowing Preston he was telling Great-Grandpa that the tractor was not his. :-)

Dad never thought he would be buying a blue tractor! Turner got one too!

Best.Christmas.Present.Ever.

I've worn them every day since Christmas!!

Still can't believe that Mom knew I wanted them. I really don't remember telling her.

The superhero's, ready to save us from impending doom!

Aunt Nichole & Uncle Randy got Preston a superhero chest with these costumes.

Baby's First Christmas

This outfit was Preston's from his first Christmas.

She doesn't look very excited, but she enjoyed her first Christmas!

Santa came to our house ...

And got Preston a batmobile!

Opening presents with the Beringers on Christmas Day

Pez!

My camera was full after that last picture was taken, so I didn't get any more pictures from our time with the Beringers. :(

We had such a great time with both our families. Preston loved all of his presents and I think Lilli Jo was even excited about hers. She got a new rattle and the cutest doll that has the funniest laugh (from Grandma & Grandpa Beringer). Her face just lights up and she giggles right along with the doll.

We hope that you all had a very Merry Christmas as well!!

2011-12-12T19:09:00.000-06:00

Congratulations On Your Retirement, Dad!!

After 25 years of service with the Volga Fire Department, my Dad is retiring tonight.

It seems like my Dad has been a fireman my whole life. He almost has been, really.

I always knew when it was 6:30. Brookings County sent out their radio test at that time. When the radio went off any other time than that, Dad would race off (if it was a call for Volga, that is).

One of the craziest memories I have is from quite some time ago ... I can't even remember when.

My parents drove a Ford Escort station wagon (I think) at the time. We had gone to the movies one night. Mom and Dad went to Backdraft. I don't really remember what movie Nichole and I went to. After the movies, we headed to Econofoods to do some grocery shopping (where Dunham's is now). Mom was commenting on the way there that it had been a while since Volga had gotten a fire call. Sure enough, Volga got a fire call. And we were standing by the meat counter with a grocery cart half full of groceries. Mom and Dad just kind of looked at each other and one of them said to the nearby clerk, "We'll be back!"

We raced out of the store, got in the car and Dad took off like a shot. We headed East on 6th Street to 22nd. From there, we got onto Highway 14 and headed to Volga. My sister didn't care for the ride there, as Dad was driving just a touch above the speed limit. I thought it was awesome! Dad pulled up in front of the fire hall, jumped out and raced inside. We watched the trucks pull out of the station and from there ... well, I don't really remember what happened. I'm sure at some point we went back and finished our grocery shopping.

This year for Halloween, Preston was a fireman. Dad took him to the fire hall to see the trucks yesterday. Preston really got a kick out of it.

Congratulations, Dad, and thank you for your service!

2011-12-12T18:46:00.000-06:00

MMMM! Food!

Let me help you, Mom

Open wide!

I think there's some on my chin

nom, nom, nom!

We gave Lilli Jo rice cereal for the first time last night and she did pretty darn good. Preston freaked out the first time we gave him rice cereal, he just wasn't having it. The second time around for him went much better! We just finished her "supper" tonight and she did even better this time around. I think the bib might even be salvageable for one more feeding. :)

2011-12-12T18:40:00.000-06:00

You Better Watch Out!

Santa Claus came to town!

The LARSON Christmas party for the kids was Friday night. Such a great company ... We don't even work there, yet my children get presents from Santa because my Mom works there.

Grandma and Grandpa brought Turner because Nichole and Allie were in Mitchell for Allie's cheer competition (her team got 2nd!!!! After a rocky start, this is great news!).

Merry Christmas!!

2011-12-07T19:42:00.001-06:00

Watch Me Grow!

Lilli Jo at four months ...

12 lbs 11 oz

23 1/4 inches

Preston at four months

And baby girl started rolling over!

2011-12-04T19:47:00.001-06:00

Ho, Ho, Ho!

Merry Christmas!

That's exactly what Preston said when he threw on the stockings and Santa hat today.

He is obsessed with Santa this year. We watch Santa movies on an almost daily basis and we sing Santa Claus is Coming to Town every night before bed. Throughout the day, he'll sing "You ... better watch out! You not better cry!"

Christmas becomes just as fun and exciting as it was when I was a kid as each year passes with Preston. I look forward to Lilli Jo's excitement as she gets older!

Last weekend Dustin got the lights up on the house and I got all the decorations up inside. Friday night we bought our tree. We got it up last night and decorated it today.

By Dustin's calculations, there are 1,750 lights on the tree!!

2011-12-04T19:27:00.001-06:00

Preston Makes a Pizza

Preston helped me make our pizza tonight. He's quite the little chef ... it was delicious!

2011-12-04T19:18:00.001-06:00

Little Lady's Man

Dustin's cousin, Amy, got married yesterday down in Sioux Falls.

I have become terrible about taking pictures lately, so I didn't get any of the bride and groom or of our little lady all decked out in her LBD. Oops.

I did manage to remember I had my camera with me when I saw Preston out on the dance floor with these lovely ladies. They were seated at the table next to us. Preston had been sitting on their laps getting his picture taken with them earlier in the night. Such a flirt!!

He's going to be quite the heartbreaker!

2011-11-27T14:43:00.001-06:00

Thanksgiving

My First Thanksgiving!

Snoozin' with Great Grandpa

Chillin' with Daddy

Everyone (except me and Lilli Jo) took Preston down to see the ducks and geese

(at least I think it was ducks and geese) and Preston got to throw some bread their way.

They had just put up the snow fence so he couldn't get real close.

We had tried to go down there the last two times we visited Jeff and Cindy but never got around to it.

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving with the Beringers in Yankton. Jeff and Cindy served as our hosts in their new house and Grandma and Grandpa Beringer, Jon and Deb, and Amy and Derek came for dinner.

We sure missed having Bryan, Jessica and Cyrus there. Bryan, as you know, continues to serve our country and Jessica and Cyrus spent Thanksgiving with her family.

The night before Thanksgiving we headed to my parents house for some homemade pizza and to make lefse. Uncle Rolfie and Abby joined in on the fun as well! I took some of that lefse down to Yankton with me and even got a couple people to try it! Someday they'll all embrace my Norwegian ways! Next time we get together, I'm going to try to get them to eat some smoked oysters, I think. :)

We have much to be thankful for ... two happy, healthy children and wonderful families to support us.

Next weekend, we'll head down to Sioux Falls for Amy and Derek's wedding. Can't wait!

2011-11-27T14:27:00.001-06:00

Lillian's Baptism

November 13, 2011

Almost everyone was able to make it to Lillian's baptism (we sure missed you, Grandma Trego!) and it was a great day. Her baptism was during the early service and we headed to Mom and Dad's house afterwards for a delicious brunch. Mom and I made most of the food the day before and Dad helped finish things up after church.

Nichole, Randy, Matt and Jessica served as sponsors and I cannot thank them all enough for being part of Lillian's special day.

Lilli Jo wore the gown that Allie wore at her baptism. It was made from Nichole's wedding dress. We used the blanket that was made from my wedding dress as well and again used the handkerchief that belonged to Great Grandma Lillian. The handkerchief will someday be Lilli Jo's.

This little girl is quite blessed!

2011-11-18T09:24:00.001-06:00

Our little peanut is growing up so fast! She loves to sit up in her chair and she rolled over (tummy to back) for the first time last night!!

2011-11-18T09:04:00.001-06:00

All Things Halloween

Allie's Spooktacular Birthday!

Nichole and her friend, Courtney, made this super fun cutout for the kids to take their picture with!

Morticia Addams, aka Grandma, stopped by to read some scary ghost stories

The birthday girl (and Turner!) ... I can't believe that Allie is 5 already!!

_________________________________________________________

Family FunFest at the Children's Museum

All you Beringer USD fans ... don't let his face deceive you, it was very close to naptime.

I assure you, Preston still loves his Jackrabbits!! ;-)

Playing a version of ring toss

_____________________________________________________

Boo!

"Gimme Candy" and "Daddy thinks I'm purrrfect" :-)

Our little fireman!

We never did make it to the firehall with Grandpa Russ to see the fire trucks. Still on our to-do list!

Our little pumpkin!

2011-11-14T19:19:00.001-06:00

Preston's 3rd Birthday, Continued

I'm a little behind on the blogging ... after a computer mishap, where we spent a couple days thinking I had lost all of my pictures (YIKES!), everything is back. HUGE thank you to our neighbor for helping us with everything!

Anyway ...

The weekend after Preston's 3rd birthday, we headed down to Yankton to Dustin's parent's new house! We were able to spend a wonderful weekend with his family and especially Dustin's brother, Bryan! Everyone came to the house (which is very nice, by the way!) and we had a huge meal that Saturday. Turkey, prime rib, mashed potatoes, stuffing ... all the fixings for a great holiday meal with the family. We'll still head down that way for Thanksgiving next week, but it was great to have the opportunity to have "Thanksgiving" with Bryan!

And we celebrated Preston's birthday!

"I hear you have cupcakes and presents for me ..."

Uncle Bryan!

"Yep, I'm 3!"

Patiently waiting for Grandpa to open one of his presents

Cyrus, Jess and Grandma!

Puzzles!!

"Um, there's a monster on my puzzles."

2011-11-07T12:42:00.000-06:00

I'm 3 months old today!

2011-10-16T14:19:00.000-05:00

Preston's Birthday Party

Lilli Jo with her Great Grandmothers

Lilli Jo and Grandpa

The spread - taco salad, black bean and corn salad, chips and queso

Presents!

He got some great gifts!

Allie being silly with Preston's Thor helmet

Grandma Mary made his cake - homemade chocolate

Getting ready to blow out the candles

With a little help from Allie

Gotta lick the frosting off the candles

Grandma and Grandpa Bjerke got Preston a pinata for his birthday!

Preston takes a shot at it

And another ...

Allie's turn ...

Camden's turn ...

Turner took a whack at it too!

I put the camera down in favor of the video camera when Dustin took over to finish it off. I'll get that video up soon. Picture the Volkswagen commercial (that's what we were all referring to when he was trying to break it open!). :-)

It turned out to be a beautiful day, allowing the kids to all play outside. We had such a great time and I think Preston did too. Thanks to everyone for making his birthday so special!!

2011-10-15T08:25:00.000-05:00

Happy 3rd Birthday, Preston!

Photo credit: Amy Hennen

Three years ago, Preston James came into our lives.

Today, he says things that crack us up and does things that drive us crazy.

He is the most amazing little boy ... smart, funny, polite, and so much more.

We love you so much, Preston!

Mom and Dad

2011-10-07T19:25:00.000-05:00

Watch Me Grow!

Lilli Jo at two months ...

11 lbs

20 1/2 inches

And for Preston's stats at two months, click here.

2011-10-01T16:29:00.000-05:00

SVHS Homecoming 2011

I must work on my photo-taking skills. I'm just not quick enough to catch Preston anymore!

Lilli Jo's first parade. Can you feel her excitement?

First Lutheran Preschool float

Hi Allie!!!

And the Distinguished Alum!

Yesterday was my last day of maternity leave and we didn't have daycare, so I got to spend the day with both of my kiddos!

It was a beautiful day and since mom and Allie were in the parade, we headed over to Volga. We met up with Nichole, Turner, Courtney and Kiera at Nichole's house. Then we walked to Main Street for the parade, then walked to the church to pick up Allie and then walked back to Nichole's house. We essentially walked the perimeter of Volga.

It must have worn Preston out because he zonked out on the way home (around 4:00) and then slept until around 7:00! That also meant that he was up until about 10:00 last night. Sure enough, he was up at the crack of dawn this morning! (I think technically he might have been up before the crack of dawn. I'm pretty sure he beat the sun.)

2011-10-01T16:21:00.000-05:00

Happy Birthday, Dad!!

Dad's birthday was this last Wednesday and we had a seafood boil to celebrate.

Yum!!

2011-09-27T10:09:00.000-05:00

2011 Outstanding Alumni of the Year

Sioux Valley High School

Congratulations, Mom!

We're so proud of you and all that you do!

2011-09-25T16:40:00.001-05:00

Sweet baby girl

So hard to believe that she's seven weeks old!

2011-09-25T16:35:00.000-05:00

Sheena & Bryan

09.17.11

My friends Sheena and Bryan got married last weekend! I played the piano for the ceremony and my mom made the cake (we both came out of retirement just for Sheena! Ok ... mom was retired. I never really had a "career" playing for weddings, but most of my friends are married so I figured I was retired!). It was a beautiful ceremony and the reception and dance was a blast!

Congratulations Sheena and Bryan!

The cake

SO good!!

The wedding party

Serious discussion?

Lilli Jo and Grandpa

The bride and groom!

(He didn't know I was taking their picture!)

Preston kept running behind the table wanting to give Sheena a kiss.

He did, several times, but I wasn't fast enough with the camera.

She got him back and he pretended to be all shy about it!

Grandpa and Preston cuttin' a rug!

Bryan, Sheena and their daughter, Amelie

Allie and Sheena

That's Sheena's mom, Kris, to the left with Amelie and Lilli Jo. Kris was holding Lilli Jo and Amelie went up to her and said, "I know I can't hold her by myself, but can I hold her with you?" Too cute!

Who knows.

Preston ran himself ragged!

Photo credit: Allie Jean

I told her we were going to make goofy faces and she opted for sad.

Allie and the bride, dancing away!

Grandpa was out dancing with Allie and Preston all night!

Grandma got in on the fun too!

2011-09-25T16:13:00.003-05:00

My Chiefs Fans!

2011-09-23T09:23:00.001-05:00

"I loved you yesterday, I love you still.

Always have. Always will."

Five years ago today, Dustin and I tied the knot.

We have since been blessed with two beautiful children and continue to have the love and support of our amazing families.

Happy Anniversary, Dustin. I love you!

2011-09-08T14:35:00.000-05:00

Watch Me Grow!

Lilli Jo at one month ...

Weight ~ 9 lbs 13 oz (90th percentile)

Weight at birth ~ 7 lbs 10 oz

Height ~ 19 3/4 inches (10th percentile)

Height at birth ~ 19 inches

Click here to compare to Preston's stats at one month!

2011-09-08T14:19:00.001-05:00

Preston Goes to the Park

Monday was such a nice day that Preston and I headed to the park that's just across the street (kind of) from us. :)

Slides are fun!

This slide made me a little nervous ... it's a LONG ways up!

Made me more nervous when he made me go up, and down, with him. Yikes!

And of course there was swinging!

2011-09-05T09:37:00.000-05:00

Lilli Jo, Preston and more ...

Sleepy baby

BIG eyes!

All dressed up!

Preston "driving"

The other day he came up to me and said "I driving you nuts." How right you are my little man!!

He does drive me nuts on occasion, but I love every minute of it!

Finally got a picture of the four of us!

Me and my baby girl

Lilli Jo hanging out with cousin Cyrus

The Beringer grandchildren

Cyrus found his feet and that was much more interesting!

Cyrus had a bath in the kitchen sink so of course Preston needed one too.

Good thing Grandma Cindy has a big sink!

2011-08-20T16:10:00.008-05:00

And Now We're Four

Lillian JoAnne

08.07.11

7 lbs 10 oz

19 inches

Our beautiful little girl decided to make her grand entrance three days past my due date. But she sure came in a hurry! Around 9:00 Sunday morning I had my first contraction. The next one came ten minutes later and then they didn't stop. Nichole made a mad dash to our house to pick up Preston and we got to the hospital around 10:00. Lilli Jo arrived at 11:23! My heart is full and I have been blessed with this beautiful family.

Lilli Jo's First Week

Much like Preston was, Lilli Jo is quite the content little baby. She loves to eat and she loves to sleep. She gets up once during the night to eat (yes, we know how fortunate we are for that!) and as the days go by she becomes more and more alert throughout the day. I could look into her big, beautiful eyes all day long! While I know that babies don't smile I take those little gassy grins as smiles because they are so darn cute!

Preston is embracing his role of big brother and loves to give Lilli kisses and hugs. He likes to hold her so long as she doesn't start crying. Once the crying starts, he's done. :-)

Lilli and Preston

Sharing his books with his sister

Telling her stories

2011-08-03T11:15:00.000-05:00

Honey Days 2011

The Roaring 20s

The kids all got TONS of candy at the parade

The Volga Fire Department

The Hovey Gang

Rentsch Volleyball!!!

I was terrible about taking pictures this year! But we had a blast at volleyball. Spent most of Saturday out there but only went for a few hours on Sunday ... it was just too darn hot.

The Rentsch team made it all the way to championship (no surprise there) and finished in second place.

Can't wait until next year!!!

2011-07-29T21:01:00.000-05:00

Patiently waiting ...

Yesterday marked 39 weeks and today was my last day of work. Now we wait for baby b to make his/her arrival. We have our last scheduled appointment bright and early Monday morning (if we make it through the weekend).

This weekend is Honey Days!!! We'll be heading to the parade in the morning and then we'll make our way to the volleyball tournament to take in a little Rentsch volleyball!! This year marks 20 years of Rentsch volleyball! Such a great tradition and ALWAYS a good time. I'm excited to see everyone again ... funny how we only see some of these wonderful people on this particular weekend.

Have a great weekend everyone!

2011-07-23T14:13:00.000-05:00

Preston's Photo Shoot

He wasn't the most cooperative (what 2-year-old is?), but we managed to get some pretty good pictures of the little guy during our photo shoot.

And a picture with dad ...

Preston rediscovered his harmonica a day or two before we had our photo shoot and he hasn't put it down since. I recently inherited all of my Grandpa Rolf's harmonicas ... if Preston's love of the harmonica continues, he just might inherit them some day too. I think Grandpa Rolf would be pretty happy!

2011-07-23T13:58:00.000-05:00

Maternity Photos ~ Baby B

The old train depot and the old firehall served as the backdrop for our photo shoot last Sunday. My wonderful, talented mother was the photographer.

2011-07-05T08:31:00.000-05:00

4th of July

Sunday night we headed to Bruce to spend time with the Hovey clan. Great food and lots of fun! And a spectacular fireworks display courtesy of Uncle Don and Uncle Rolfie, who purchased a boat load of fireworks! Dustin ended up being our guy to light most of them! The guys got together with the neighbors and put on quite a show. At one point I think there were maybe eight of them lined up and they lit them up all at once. It was awesome!

Grandma and Grandpa watching fireworks with the boys

Preston Rides a Pony!

Monday we headed to the Uncle Sam Jam at the Swiftel Center after Preston's nap (we skipped the parade this year in favor of him getting some sleep ... I think we ran him ragged this weekend).

Preston got to go on a pony ride!! He was pretty excited. Until he got on the pony. We were the first in line in our group so he had to sit on the pony until the other kids got on their ponies. He kind of freaked out a little. At one point he saw me and was trying to reach for me and still hold on to the pony, yelling "I hold you, I hold you!". Once they got going he seemed to enjoy it, although Dustin said his knuckles were white from holding on so tight!

The horse he was on, named Buckwheat (which is what my Dad usually calls Preston!), was snorting the whole time Preston was riding him. At one point, Preston even yelled out a yee-haw!

After the pony ride, we headed over to the little petting zoo to check out a miniature donkey, some sheep, a pot-bellied big and some rabbits.

After all that activity it was time to come home and cool off with a freeze pop and some time on the swing!

Then we headed to Mom and Dad's for supper and some more fireworks. (We can't do any fireworks that leave the ground in Brookings. Bummer, right?)

Preston got to help light some smoke bombs!

He would light them and then run away, laughing/screaming the whole way. He thought it was the coolest thing ever, I think.

The neighbors brought over their lantern so Preston and Allie could see it. We saw a couple in Bruce the night before. They are so neat!

There it goes! It took off and headed North and we could still see it maybe a couple miles away.

We were so blessed to be able to spend some time with both our families this weekend. I hope everyone enjoyed the 4th of July weekend as much as we did!

2011-07-02T21:24:00.000-05:00

Farewell, Bryan!

Dustin's brother, Bryan, was able to come home for a few days before leaving for Afghanistan and we were fortunate enough to be able to go see them today for a bit.

The brothers and their boys.

Cyrus is getting SO big!! He's rolling over like a champ!

Bryan, Jessica and Cyrus

The belly makes for a nice little ledge for Preston to sit on ... baby b doesn't appreciate it as much.

Cyrus was much more cooperative for pictures than Preston. :-)

All of us kids with Grandma and Grandpa.

They were kind enough to take us all out to lunch. Thank you!!!

Leave it to Bryan to have some goofy look on his face for a picture.

A little blurry but too cute not to share.

Please keep Bryan, Jessica and Cyrus in your thoughts and prayers while Bryan is deployed.

_________________________________

Zoo!!

On our way home we decided to stop by the zoo. :-)

Checking out the animals.

(These weren't llamas, but I can't remember their name ... same family as llamas though.)

The camel was just hanging out while the keepers raked up around him/her.

Galapagos Turtles!

If you look close, you'll see the baby!

Mama started swinging around the cage and baby just hung on to her leg the whole time.

It was the coolest thing to see.

That baby was CUTE!

A baby rhino.

There were baby animals all over the zoo.

We joke about all the pregnant women at work right now ... glad to see it's not just us. :-)

Preston was pretty enthralled by the tigers

(He kept calling this one Alex. Alex is a lion, not a tiger. Shhh. Don't tell Preston!)

His trademark "ROAR"

Seriously, this kid never stops roaring.

Giving the ape a hug.

We had such a great day and it's just the start of our holiday weekend. Dustin plans to do some fishing tomorrow and then we're off to hang out with the Hoveys in Bruce tomorrow night.

Monday brings the parade, Uncle Sam Jam and FIREWORKS!!!

Have a safe and happy 4th of July everyone!!!

2011-07-02T20:57:00.000-05:00

Happy Birthday, Turner!!

Turner will be 2 this Thursday and we celebrated last night with a little party for him.

Good fun, AMAZING cake and cupcakes and fireworks!

Yummy!

The frosting was amazing!

Turner got all kinds of great presents!

The Hofers

Turner's new four-wheeler

Fireworks!

Cheese!

Such a cute birthday boy!

Every time the loud fireworks would go off, Turner would cover his head. It was pretty cute!

Little buddies

This was Turner making a break for it after some more loud fireworks!

2011-06-30T21:01:00.000-05:00

35 Weeks

Today marks 35 weeks ... can you believe it?!

I think I say this every time I post a belly shot, but I cannot believe how fast this has gone by. Only 5 more weeks until we finally meet baby b!

2011-06-30T20:50:00.000-05:00

We Have a Deck!!!

Dustin and I have wanted a deck on the front of the house for quite some time and we finally made it happen. We have a rather large patio in the back that we utilize and we'll continue to do so. This deck was something we wanted simply because getting in and out of our front door wasn't the easiest thing in the world. We had a cement slab for a front step and to get the door open you had to step back down on the sidewalk, and so on and so forth. This deck makes this much easier, and safer!

Dad met me at Lowe's to get all the materials and last Friday night Dustin and some of his friends got to work. He finished up on Saturday with a friend of ours. They did an excellent job!! And thank you, guys, for all your help! We still need to get the sealant on there, which hopefully happens sometime this weekend. (Don't you just love how I manage to find all these fun projects when I'm pregnant and not much help?!)

Sunday brought us back to Lowe's so I could get a new hosta, some flowers and more wood chips for the landscaping. There's a bit of landscaping that I want to do in front of the deck but I think I may have used up all my honey-do projects for the year. Might have to wait until next year for that one. :-)

2011-06-13T14:47:00.000-05:00

Baby B's Bedroom

The room has been cleared out and painted (the walls are Clarified Butter and the ceiling, trim and doors are Del Coronado Tequila - or as Dustin would tell you, yellow and white)!!

We got the crib re-assembled and moved the rocker and dresser in as well.

We're getting there ...

2011-06-13T14:35:00.000-05:00

Old Timer's Day!

06.11.11

Let's get this parade started!

Here comes the parade!

Mayor (Grandma) Mary and some of the city council members

Preston's first big boy slide. He loved it and would have stayed there all day if I would have let him.

Wildfire!

The kids from Wildfire performed at the park that afternoon. It was so much fun to watch them cheer, tumble and dance and they all did a great job!!

Allie and Logan performing their cheer routine. Too cute!

2011-06-05T18:10:00.000-05:00

Weekend in Winner

We hit the road Friday afternoon to spend the weekend with Dustin's family.

Shortly after we got on the Interstate, Preston was asleep.

This lasted about 40 minutes and then he decided that was enough of a nap.

We made a stop at Cabela's on the way to Winner so Dustin could cash in on some gift cards. Preston got a kick out of the fish and all the big animals. He really liked this ATV-thing!

Grandma and Grandpa Beringer bought Preston a t-ball set the last time they were home, but it never made it up to Brookings. Much to Preston's delight, it was waiting for him in Winner!

Grandma wanted a turn too!

Preston might have a future in baseball (or at least his Dad hopes so!). He had a pretty darn good hit on his first try!

Happy Birthday Grandma!

Saturday afternoon we had a birthday party for Dustin's Grandma Donna (Cindy's mom), who recently turned 80. We had most of the family there to celebrate and the Legion was filled with tons of her friends that afternoon.

The guestbook table with the invitation that I made for the party.

Cake and cupcakes courtesy of Aunt Jackie (delicious!)

Silly boy

Donna with her kids: Cindy (Jeff), Jackie (Larry), Jim (Tammy) and Bruce's wife, Liz. Bruce wasn't able to make it ... I'm really looking forward to being able to meet him someday! :-)

Donna with the grandchildren (some of them anyway) and a couple great-grandchildren

Dustin, Preston and myself, Bayley and Tyler (Jim and Tammy) and Bryan's wife Jessica with their son, Cyrus

I lost count of how many pictures were taken of all of us, trying to get Preston to cooperate.

Preston and Cyrus

Preston was having some serious conversations with his grandfathers, but it turned to the lighter side when they decided to be race car drivers.

Grandma is so funny!

Love those cupcakes!!

We had such a great weekend, as we always do when spending time with family, and look forward to seeing everyone again soon!!

2011-05-26T20:18:00.000-05:00

30 Weeks!

Today marks 30 weeks and everything is going very well! I've been feeling pretty good and baby b is doing excellent. Kicking like crazy ... I had a friend joke that Preston was going to be the calm child. All I thought was "oh dear". If that ends up being true, we will certainly have our hands full!

The bedding arrived last weekend and I found a few paint samples. Now I just need to choose the colors and find some free time to paint!

Preston gives baby b kisses all the time now and seems to understand, somewhat, that we're having a baby. His baby is in his tummy and daddy has a baby in his tummy too. :-) If you ask him whether he's going to have a baby brother or a baby sister, he usually answers with whatever you said last. But more often than not, he's insistent that he's going to have a sister. We shall see ... just 10 more weeks until we find out!

2011-05-26T20:11:00.000-05:00

Marathon Weekend

The Brookings Marathon, Half Marathon and Relay was held a couple weekends ago and this year the Children's Museum was involved. Registration was held, and the Scotty Roberts 5K began, at the Children's Museum this year. After the 5K, the museum had a fun run for kids. The run took us around the museum, in to the Prairie play yard, passed mama and baby T-Rex and then finished in front of the museum. After the run, the kids were treated to ice cream cones! Preston was so excited for the run (but mostly the ice cream). We all had a blast. He did great, only slowing down when he went passed the dinosaurs. No surprise there!

The next morning I was at my usual post, directing runners at the split. It was a chilly morning but the rain held off until the last runner was in and the course was cleared.

My sister ran a 3-mile leg on a relay team (and did a great job!) and my uncle Don ran the marathon ... in just over four hours!

2011-04-24T20:04:00.000-05:00

Allie and Preston helped Grandpa plant a tree this afternoon. Preston didn't even seem to mind that his hands got a little dirty!

After they were done, Grandpa took them for a ride in the golf cart.

As we were getting ready to leave we told Preston to give Grandpa a hug and kiss and to thank him for the ride. Preston did just that, but then looked at him and said "one more ride?". Needless to say, we didn't leave right then. We had to wait for one more ride!

2011-04-24T19:59:00.000-05:00

Happy Easter!

The Easter Bunny was at Mom & Dad's house last night ...

Left a little something behind ...

And left some tracks on his way out.

It's near impossible to get them all to sit and smile at the same time, so this is what you get. Good thing they're all so darn cute.

Preston wasn't very interested in smiling and showing off his handsome little outfit.

Preston got a choo-choo train flashlight thing from Grandma & Grandpa and Dad couldn't get it open fast enough for him. The whole time Dustin was trying to open it, Preston was jumping up and down shouting, "Choo-Choo Train, Choo-Choo Train!"

Finally got it open ... he hasn't stopped playing with it since. :-)

Blowing bubbles outside

Get the bubbles!!

Preston & Turner ... just hanging out again

And a nice Easter roar to finish out the day, 'cause why not?

2011-04-24T19:50:00.000-05:00

Easter Egg Hunt

Preston was really excited to see the Jackrabbit and the Easter Bunny, the operative word being was. Not sure why he got so bummed when he finally saw them.

Managed to give the Easter Bunny a high-five.

Lots of kids!

Turner gave most of his goods away to all the other kids. I think he did manage to get some for himself.

Preston had no trouble grabbing what he could, although initially he just ran around all crazy!

That's a lot of goodies!

All the kiddos with their bunny ears!

2011-04-21T20:36:00.000-05:00

The belly, 25 weeks

As I was uploading this picture I was looking the shot from just five weeks ago. It doesn't really seem like the belly is that much bigger. But I sure feel bigger!

We have a very active baby b on our hands. I've been feeling baby move around for quite some time and Dustin has been able to feel baby for a couple weeks too. Last night, baby was kicking up a storm and Dustin got to feel a rather big one. Doesn't seem possible that baby b is big enough to be kicking like that! Second time around, it's still an amazing feeling! :-)

2011-04-17T18:00:00.000-05:00

Weekend with the Beringers

We headed down to Vermillion on Friday to spend the weekend with the Beringers. It was a busy weekend filled with a birthday (Dustin's), a baby shower and a baptism for Cyrus James, Bryan and Jessica's baby boy. It was a great weekend!

Preston was SO excited to see Cyrus and couldn't wait to hold him!

More and more, I'm thinking that he's going to be a good big brother. :-)

Uncle Bryan couldn't resist taking Preston to meet Murphy.

Yep, that's my son holding a snake. GROSS!! He got a kick out of it though.

I somehow managed to not get a single picture during the baptism (I'm sure someone will share their pictures with me, right?), but I managed to get a picture of the three of us. It's not very often that we all look this spiffy, so I had to take advantage!

2011-04-17T17:49:00.000-05:00

Fun at the Carnival

There was a carnival last weekend for the Tehlula Lee Foundation, and Dustin brought Preston while I worked there for a bit.

2011-04-17T17:43:00.000-05:00

Polar Plunge 2011 for Special Olympics

My mom and a group of her friends/co-workers participated in the Polar Plunge this year, jumping once after raising over $1,400 for Special Olympics. We're convinced that next year they will do the super plunge - 24 jumps in 24 hours. :-)

Ready ...

Jump!!

Mom's in there somewhere, trying to catch her breath.

There she is!

It was a gorgeous day for us spectators with temps in the 40s to low 50s. Since it was so nice out they made sure to pour lots of extra ice in the water for the jumpers!

2011-04-17T17:34:00.000-05:00

Goofy Kids

Turner

Allie

Turner again

Preston

He would say cheese with a huge grin, but refused to look at the camera.

2011-03-17T18:06:00.000-05:00

Baby B!

Today marked the halfway point of my pregnancy, 20 weeks! These first 20 weeks have gone by so fast, I can only imagine how fast the next 20 will go!

Here's a shot of the belly so far. I'm still wearing all my non-pregnancy clothes, but I do wear maternity tops on occasion because they're quite comfy!

We had our ultrasound last week and just the same as the first pregnancy, we did not find out what we're having. We would rather be surprised in August. I don't know that we could have found out what we're having anyway ... baby b is quite the mover and shaker!

2011-03-17T17:59:00.000-05:00

Wild Child

Allie had her last performance of the year the other night (Feed the Fire) in Volga. It's so fun to watch her and she does such a great job!

2011-03-12T16:55:00.000-06:00

Fun at the "Umeum"

(Children's Museum in Preston's words)

"These blocks are heavy"

A future in construction?

Light it up

Maybe a future as a musician?

"Roar"

"I see you!"

Hiding!

"I love to get wet!"

Splash!

Knocking down the tower someone built earlier

Lining them up

"I do such fine work."

"Hi, chicken."

"An egg!"

2011-03-12T16:40:00.000-06:00

Preston & Turner

Just hanging out

2011-02-12T14:44:00.000-06:00

Sledding!

We took Preston to Larson Hill for some sledding ... what better way to enjoy the beautiful weather we are finally having!

Are we there yet?!

That's a big hill to climb ...

Made it to the top

(thanks to me carrying Preston ... awesome workout though!)

He would walk down a little, then walk back up to the top.

Still not quite ready to go down on the sled yet.

Finally went down with Dad ... crying and screaming the whole way down.

"You want me to do that again?"

"Maybe it will be better with Mom."

(Laughing at this point.)

Not so much ... more crying and screaming all the way down.

And again, nice little workout on the way back up.

"How 'bout you just go by yourself, Dad."

"Here ... I'll push you!"

Preston didn't enjoy the sledding part as much as we thought (or hoped) he would, but he loved being up on top of that hill watching all the other kids sled down.

Maybe next year?

2011-02-04T13:19:00.000-06:00

Preston's "Lining Things Up" Phase

Preston REALLY likes to line up his toys and he's got some mad skills ...

First it was his dinosaurs (and it's pretty much been his dinosaurs exclusively).

Today, he discovered blocks.

He likes to stack things every once in a while too.

2011-01-16T14:32:00.000-06:00

Update: Big Boy Bed

Last night was a breeze. Preston and I read our bedtime stories like we always do, this time in his bed rather than the rocking chair. He put up the usual fuss when the stories were over and it was time to go to sleep. But it lasted only a few minutes (just like every other night) and soon he was sound asleep. We didn't hear a peep out of him until about 7:45 this morning when he pushed open our door and quietly said, "Hi Daddy. Hi Mommy."

So first night in his big boy bed: SUCCESS!

I knew the real challenge would be naptime. Preston is never very interested in taking naps. Whether it's the fear of missing out on something (I know, laundry is very exciting) or the simple fact that he can't be bothered to slow down that much ... he just doesn't want to do it. When he was in his crib, he couldn't go anywhere. So he would kick and scream and eventually fall asleep.

Big boy bed is a different story. He can get in and out of this bed as he pleases and we soon found out he is just tall enough to get his door open. This afternoon proved to be interesting. We spent about an hour and a half putting him back in bed, telling him he needed to take a nap. I tried a couple stories, the promise of his favorite movie when he woke up, all to no avail. Finally ... it was quiet. Dustin and I were both afraid to go back and check on him. But finally Dustin did. He came and got me, laughing the whole time. This is what we found ...

I knew he would fall asleep eventually.

2011-01-15T20:27:00.000-06:00

Goodbye Crib, Hello Big Boy Bed!

Preston got his new bed the other day and Dustin got it all set up today!

While Dustin was setting it up, Preston and I went shopping with Grandma Mary for sheets and a comforter.

We're hoping the transition is smooth ... most of his transitions have been so far!

We decided to forgo a toddler bed and purchased bunk beds. The other will be stored away until it's needed in the future.

2010-12-31T14:48:00.000-06:00

Since we've no place to go ...

Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow!

We had planned all along to ring in the new year at home, so this wonderful blizzard doesn't bother me at all!

I got myself a new camera for Christmas, so I thought I would share some pictures on this snowy day.

Preston loves his new toys he got for Christmas!

Took him to get a haircut yesterday ... such a big boy!

And ... Preston's idea of a good time when you're snowed in. Wear your pants on your head!

Happy New Year Everyone!

“We will open the book. Its pages are blank. We are going to put words on them ourselves. The book is called Opportunity and its first chapter is New Year's Day.”

Edith Lovejoy Pierce

2010-12-27T15:22:00.000-06:00

Bjerke Christmas 2010

Preston opening his present from Mom & Dad - Crayola's Color Me a Song

Turner opening his present from Aunt Christi, Uncle Dustin & Preston - Chuck trucks

Preston got Rumbling Chuck from Grandma & Grandpa!

Allie got some Baby Alive accessories from Aunt Christi, Uncle Dustin & Preston

"I think I'll just lay down under this chair"

Turner was a little tuckered out from all the Christmas fun!

The Bjerke grandkids in their Christmas pj's from Grandma & Grandpa

A Christmas roar from our little dinosar

2010-12-24T13:00:00.000-06:00

Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas

~ the Beringers ~

"It is Christmas every time you let God love others through you ...

Yes, it is Christmas every time you smile at your brother and offer him your hand."

Mother Teresa

2010-12-23T09:00:00.000-06:00

Christmas Cookies

I had to bring some goodies to work the other day so I decided to make some sugar cookies. These are my absolute favorite sugar cookies, a recipe from Land 'O Lakes. Yum!

2010-12-23T08:56:00.000-06:00

W-I-L-D F-I-R-E

Allie is participating in competitive cheer through Wildfire Cheer & Dance. The other weekend, Nichole and I braved the weather to take Allie to a competition in Mitchell. Allie did a great job and her team, Shimmer, placed second!

We attempted to come home after the competition on Saturday (which ended quite early due to lack of teams), but neither of us felt like driving when we couldn't see the road! So we stayed at the hotel for another night and ended up having a FUN girls weekend.

Dustin, meanwhile, had a "fun" boys weekend with Preston and Turner!

2010-12-04T08:56:00.000-06:00

Santa Claus is Coming to Town!

Preston and Allie got to go see Santa last night at the Larson Kids Christmas Party!

Preston got dinosaurs from Santa!

Wonder what he'll get when Santa comes to visit again?

Allie got a jewelry set. This year, she walked right up to Santa and Mrs. Claus all by herself. She still wouldn't sit in Santa's lap, but she's getting better!

There were cookies to decorate and as you can see above, Preston enjoyed those very much. Then we went into the rec center, grabbed some popcorn and watched Shrek the Halls and The Grinch.

It was getting close to bedtime, so we decided to call it a night. I had just passed the mall on my way home when I got a call from my mother. She told me that I HAD to go to Lewis. So I turned around and headed for the mall.

There were live reindeer in the parking lot of Lewis!! They were so beautiful. Named Snowflake and Tinsel, they were both adult females. I wish I had taken a picture of them, but it was almost time for them to leave when we arrived. Click here for information about the reindeer and where they came from.

2010-11-28T17:10:00.000-06:00

'Tis the Season!

Preston helped decorate the tree

The finished product (with about 1700 lights per Dustin's calculations)

Picture without the flash

My new Christmas decorations - it says "MERRY" in case you can't tell

This Santa went perfectly with the garland I found, I just had to get it!

Close up of the garland and letters

New wreath for the front door

2010-11-25T09:31:00.000-06:00

Not what we say about our blessings, but how we use them, is the true measure of our thanksgiving.

-- W.T. Purkiser

Happy Thanksgiving!

2010-11-17T19:45:00.000-06:00

Mom & Dad's New House!

Dining room/Front entrance

Sitting room

Kitchen (I'm crazy-jealous of this kitchen)

Guest bedroom (aka Don & Shelly's room)

Master bath

There's another room upstairs that will be used as an office, as well as another bathroom. Downstairs, when it's finished, will include the living room (which will be much the same as their old house, complete with a fireplace and wet bar), a bathroom and two more bedrooms that may or may not be finished.

After 5 months of living in their trailer, Mom and Dad are very excited to be in their new home. I helped them move the last of their things out of the trailer this last Saturday. They'll move the rest of their belongings (currently in a semi-trailer) as time allows and as the house gets finished.

I look forward to posting pictures of the finished house, complete with pictures of the outside as well (the front door area promises to be amazing!!!).

2010-11-01T17:31:00.000-05:00

One Cute Little Monkey!

Happy Halloween!

2010-10-31T14:52:00.000-05:00

BOO!

Preston is currently resting up before we hit the road for some trick or treating, so I thought I would post some advice for everyone for this evening. Stay tuned for pictures of our little monkey!!

Happy Halloween!!

2010-10-17T16:33:00.002-05:00

Birthday Party!

Cake by Grandma Mary

What kind of cake was it, you ask? Ho-Ho cake! And it was delicious.

Preston liked it so much he had three pieces!

Splashing in the pool

All our wonderful guests! Thank you all so much for coming!

Time for presents!

Preston got so many great, new toys and he loves them all. He even got some new clothes and some new shoes too.

All in all, it was a great birthday weekend for Preston and we owe a huge thank you to everyone that helped make it so great!

And now, a little happy birthday song ...

2010-10-16T13:00:00.001-05:00

I Got a New Car!!!

Okay, it's not new, new ... but it's new to me!

It's a 2006 Chrysler Pacifica and I'm in heaven! While I loved my good 'ol Stratus, she just wasn't cutting it anymore. Everything just fell into place with this new one, so we just had to get it! Nichole was actually the one that found it for me, so thanks Nichole!!!

Leather seats (with a heater), heated mirrors, 6-disc CD changer and LOADS of room. Yay!!

2010-10-15T13:49:00.001-05:00

I'm 2-Years Old Today!!!

No daycare today meant that I got to take the day off from work and spend it with Preston (thanks Amber)!

I have no idea where the last two years have gone, but I tell you what. I have the most amazing little boy on earth and I love him ... to the moon and back. Preston is smart and funny and brings so much joy into our lives.

We met up with (Great) Grandma & Grandpa Bjerke at the Children's Museum this morning and had lunch there as well. Preston loves the museum. Thanks again Grandma & Grandpa ... It was a great morning!!

Preston loves a good book!

I think this is one of his favorite rooms at the museum

Getting a little help from Great Grandpa

Gotta feed the pigs!

Here he was taking the carrots out of the garden to his wheelbarrow

Roar!

Crawling through the pipes

Time for lunch!

2010-10-03T15:13:00.000-05:00

Some Random Pictures of Preston

2010-10-03T15:08:00.000-05:00

Party of the "Half" Century!!

Dad's 50th Birthday Party featuring Beg For Justice (this band was amazing!!)

2010-09-28T18:38:00.000-05:00

Happy 50th Birthday Dad!!!

We Love You!

2010-09-23T17:07:00.000-05:00

Happy Anniversary!

Four years ago today, I married a wonderful man who has become an amazing father.

" ... I love you without knowing how, or when, or from where,
I love you simply, without problems or pride:
I love you in this way because I don't know any other way of loving but this,

in which there is no I or you,
so intimate that your hand upon my chest is my hand,
so intimate that when I fall asleep it is your eyes that close."

Pablo Neruda

2010-09-13T21:16:00.000-05:00

Are You Ready For Some Football??

Go Chiefs!

2010-08-31T20:34:00.000-05:00

The Wheels on the Bus Go Round and Round

Allie's First Day of Preschool Was Today!!

2010-08-30T20:32:00.000-05:00

A New Toy Box for Preston!

And a New Entertainment Stand for Mom & Dad!

I've been wanting/needing a toy box for Preston since about the day he was born, but I struggled to find one anywhere.

Yesterday, Nichole tipped me off to an entertainment stand that she saw at Target. While we didn't need one, we wanted one. Our corner unit, which we love and intend to keep and use again someday, really limited us in our living room arrangement and we felt a standard unit would give us some more space. It does and we love it!

While I was looking for assistance to get the entertainment unit, I stumbled upon the toy box. It was kismet! While he can still take toys out and throw them all over, he can't pick it up and dump them all out like he could with the mesh thingamajig we had. I plan to jazz up the toy box someday ... just need to figure out what I want to do with it.

2010-08-27T16:02:00.000-05:00

Happy Anniversary Nichole & Randy!

2010-08-25T20:49:00.000-05:00

Preston Got Another Present Today

This time from Great Grandma & Grandpa Beringer!

A fun, new outfit and an alphabet caterpillar (that matches his numbers turtle)!

Thank you!!

2010-08-24T21:16:00.000-05:00

Preston Took a Trip to the ER ...

As most of you know, this was not his first trip. We had that wonderful experience last winter only to find out he just needed some Benadryl.

This time he meant business.

We were playing around after we got home last night and he was jumping on the bed, just like he always does ... just like he does on the couch or anything else he can climb and jump on. He likes to "fall" on us, whether on the couch or on the bed, and that's what he did. He fell on my head but with a little more gusto than usual and smoked his head on the corner of my nightstand. I heard the awful thud and then the screaming. Sure enough, he got himself a nice little hole in his head. And we were off to the ER. By the time we got in the car he had calmed down quite a bit and was in fine form to flirt with the girl at the registration desk and then the nurses and the doctor in the ER.

He did quite well through the whole thing, letting them clean his wound and check his temp/weight/etc. First it was decided that we would glue and tape the wound. Preston was fine with that. After the doctor was done, she noticed that the wound had already started to open again. After some deliberation it was decided that it would be best to remove the glue/tape and stitch it closed.

Preston was no longer fine with this. He was ready to be done. They ended up having to "papoose" him (wrap him in a blanket and strap him down) and he did not care for that at all. There was lots of kicking and screaming. Then came the shot. This would be the point that Mom started tearing up. Once that lidocaine kicked in though it was smooth sailing. He watched quietly as the doctor stitched him up.

Three stitches total.

He had a bit of a sleepless night last night, which is understandable. I don't think I would have slept well either. And I didn't. Nor did Dustin.

Rest assured though, it was business as usual come today. We had to get after him for climbing on the coffee table, the arm of the couch, not paying attention and running into the wall ... the list goes on and on.

... And Gets a Present From Grandma & Grandpa Bjerke

A fun little monkey-themed gift for our little monkey.

I've been told several times that boys will be boys and no one is really all that surprised that this has happened, not even us. We knew it was just a matter of time. I just thought he would wait until well after he turned 2.

We go to the doctor Friday afternoon to have the stitches removed.

2010-08-22T11:02:00.000-05:00

We Had a Guest This Weekend

Our neighbors went to a family reunion this weekend and couldn't bring along their dog, Zeus. We offered to keep an eye on him so they didn't have to bring him to a pet hotel. He hung out outside during the day and then came into our house to sleep at night.

Meet Zeus

When I took out the camera to get a picture of Zeus, Preston immediately started yelling "Cheeeese!", so of course I had to get some pictures of him as well. He can be quite the little ham when the camera comes out.

2010-08-21T12:02:00.002-05:00

Well, Isn't That Interesting ...

This morning Dustin peered out the window, through all the fog, and noticed something rather interesting in our tree.

Can you see it?

How about now?

This is quite possibly the biggest spider web I have ever seen, outside of Arachnophobia (a movie I watch every time it's on even though I loathe spiders).

2010-08-20T19:58:00.001-05:00

“Life may not be the party we hoped for,

but while we’re here we should dance.”

~ Author Unknown

2010-08-19T20:56:00.000-05:00

Allie & Turner come for a visit

Nichole and Randy headed to the Cities for a Twins game last weekend, so we took the kiddos (Friday night through Sunday afternoon). We watched movies, played outside, swam, went to see my cousin Wayne at his parents house in Bruce ... is that all? We had a great time!! Dustin and I were pretty much exhausted by Sunday night and may still be a bit sleep deprived, but it was completely worth it! Preston loved having the extra playmates around and Allie and Turner are quite possibly two of the greatest kids around!

Time to swing!

Turner seemed more interested in climbing up the slide than going down it.

There we go, made it to the bottom.

Preston could probably swing all day if we let him.

Allie may have to pursue a hobby in rock/mountain climbing. She's pretty good!

2010-08-08T15:15:00.000-05:00

Preston's New Pool

We got Preston a new pool a few weeks back. It was time to upgrade from the turtle. While he still fit in that pool, he always wants us to sit in the pool with him and we do not fit in the turtle. :-)

Dustin's aunt Jackie found the slide for us, which he loves!

2010-08-07T12:39:00.000-05:00

Honey Days 2010

2010-08-07T12:25:00.000-05:00

Photo Shoot

Volga City Park

We brought the kids to the park the weekend of the 4th for a little photo shoot. It didn't quite go as planned, but Mom managed to get some pretty good shots!