November

Well, we are already half way through November and again I haven't posted in a while. We seem to have so much going on that I never get to it. I started taking a cake decorating class to get some more skills for decorating our cookies. So far it is going well. It is a nice little break and fun to learn something new. I need to get working on our Christmas cookies for an open house we are having.

Mike has been able to get a little hunting in...a lot in my mind but I am sure not in his! He is getting out pretty much every weekend. He is out by himself today. Blake is still enjoying his hockey time. He has been begging us to get him breezers for hockey so I guess Christmas will be good to him. He is improving every week when he skates and it is fun to watch. Next Saturday is their first game day so he is excited! Avery has been getting pumped up for his 3rd birthday. He is so excited for his birthday be we have all been at a loss as to what to buy him! He has come up with a couple ideas for us so that helps.

Here are some of our recent pictures. The one of the two in the old time clothes was taken for a fundraiser. Grandma Sue got them done. They are so cute!

Avery posing so cute

Blake's version of Stomper

Old Time Baseball Players

Welcome November

We made it through another October and Halloween. Blake started hockey practice on the 25th. His first practice he decided to fight with the biggest kid on the ice...and I mean the biggest. I missed that practice but Mike pointed out the kid on Saturday...holy cow! We had to explain to him that he an' tfiHe is having so much fun. He is really excited for his upcoming game days. We had to give him a calendar to keep track of his hockey practices and highlighted the game days in green so he knows when they are coming up. It should be really cute to watch them play!

Blake with our jack-o-lanterns

Halloween was fun for the kids. They are both old enough now to understand what Halloween is all about so they were very excited for it. Avery was an apple tree for Halloween. He decided quite a while ago that was what he wanted to be. It worked out pretty well and was easier. Blake was a hockey player (big surprise there).

Blake the Hockey Player & Avery the Apple Tree

Blake & Avery with Great Grandma Mary Como

Now here we are in November and we started it out with a bang! I took the kids on a walk last night right at the end of the day before the daycare kids left. It was supposed to be short walk just to get a little exercise. Well Avery somehow fell off his bike 3 times and the 3rd time he fell he hit his face on the curb and was bleeding all over! I thought he severed the cord on his top lip but it doesn't really look severed today...we shall see. It is still really swollen. I am very thankful that our friend Joe Grabianowski drove by in his city truck and turned around to see if we needed help. He ended up giving us a ride home. A kind daycare provider came out with kleenex and wipes as well. Thank you to both of them!

Avery with his latest injury!

Let's hope the rest of November is a little kinder to Avery. He does have a birthday coming up on the 28th so let's hope it is a good month. Hard to believe he will be 3!

Busy Month

Wow has this month been busy. Since Blake started skating we have been doing that every Saturday and next week he starts practicing. We went to the Scarecrow Festival at Emma Krumbee's in Belle Plaine and the kids had a blast. It is expensive for everyone to get in and then do any of the extras like ride the ponies or pick out a pumpkin but they enjoyed it. From there we went to pick out some pumpkins at a greenhouse down the road. I posted some pictures below:







The following weekend we had a birthday to celebrate...Blake turned 5! I can hardly believe that he is 5 years old already. Next year he will be going to kindergarten...what a change that will be for us (mostly me)! Friday of that weekend mommy got to go to a concert. It was very fun but also very late. It was a busy weekend to start out that way but it was fine. Saturday morning we had a 'friends' birthday party for Blake. He invited 4 friends and we went to the local craft store to decorate pumpkins. I think the kids really enjoyed it!

Pumpkins decorated by the kids

Then that afternoon we all had time to take a nap and get ready for the family birthday party. Blake got lots of clothes so he is decked out for fall. He only got a couple toys which was a relief for mom and dad as the house continues to be packed with toys. He did however get his one and only request for his birthday...a new John Deere bike! He was so excited. He is having some trouble getting on it by himself and starting but he LOVES it. That also gave Avery a chance to get a bigger bike. He gets to ride the original John Deere bike with the training wheels. Last night I took him for a walk and he did great. They are growing up so fast.

This past weekend was also a busy one. Blake got to go duck hunting in the boat for the first time ever. He was so excited. He wasn't feeling well all weekend but didn't want to miss his chance to go do that with his dad. He had a lot of fun and never asked to go home once according to dad. Then on Sunday mom had a wedding show to do for her dessert business. It was a long day but hopefully worth it in the end.

So that is our month in a nutshell so far and we still have Halloween to get to yet. Avery has decided to be an apple tree for Halloween and Blake a hockey player. Can't wait to see them out there in their costumes!

First Time on the Ice

Blake got out there on the ice this morning bright and early. He was a little slow at first but by the time the hour was up he was gaining speed. He really enjoys skating and being out there with the other kids. I am glad he isn't afraid. His first practice is on October 25th. I will be interested to see how it goes with drills and skating with sticks and a puck..although that will probably be more like practice #2 or 3.

I also took the boys to the scarecrow festival at Emma Krumbee's in Belle Plaine along with Grandma Sue. They liked looking at all the scarecrows but really enjoyed the train ride and pony rides. Then we drove down the road a ways to the apple stand. They had lots of different apples to try and buy. I never knew there were so many different kinds of apples. All taste a little different too. The boys enjoyed it. On the way home we stopped and bought pumpkins. It was a fun-filled day that wore them out. And me for that matter!

Tomorrow we are going to try and head down to visit our friend Amy who is now out of ICU but still in Rochester St Mary's Hospital. Things sound like they are getting better but she will continue to be there. We are dropping the boys off at Grandpa Bruce's house to play for the afternoon. Should be fun for them!

I will post some pictures soon from the trip to Emma Krumbee's today!

Growing Up too Fast!

Lately it seems that every time we turn around our boys are hitting a new milestone. Blake learned how to tie his shoes over the weekend. He has needed new shoes for a while but it was hard to find his size without laces. So we took him shopping with us and told him that if he could try really hard to learn how to tie he could get the shoes he liked. We expected it would take him a week or so to learn...NOPE, one night! They are just so smart and quick with things! We are very proud of him for learning so fast.

Also, our thoughts continue to be with our friend Amy Reid and her family as she pushes through to recover after a terrible fall down a flight of stairs. She is currently in a coma in Rochester - St Mary's Hospital. We are praying for her to make a full recovery in a short time because she has two little ones of her own that need her...Kenna, 10 & Luke 7.

It seems that our life is constantly touched by tragedy and illness. It shows a person how precious family and friends really are. So here is a big hug to all of you that we love to say how much we care! We don't say it enough.

Kiss your loved ones and your babies!

Misty

Our lives are about to change!

We just signed Blake up for hockey last night. Our lives are about to be changed forever! There will be no more winter weekends of just sitting around the house...we will be constantly busy with practice and games. I am excited about it but nervous too. He is my little boy and I don't want him to be injured but I am sure he will be just fine. He is so excited. He will start in the "Learn To Skate" program to refresh his skills in October and the practice starts November 1st. I have lots to learn about this sport and thank goodness they are giving some classes for parents on what to expect. I know the cost is going to continually be an issue but we will just have to save (or get second jobs)!

Here are some recent pictures of the boys.

These are from Labor Day weekend. My brother decided to stop by and give the boys a ride on his horse and a friends. They rode around the neighborhood...I am sure they got some funny looks. He had a 'saddle' that straps on behind the saddle so it is easier for kids to ride along. Avery was entertained with it on the ground! Then when they were getting ready to leave Avery decided that he had to go potty...in the middle of the church lawn! '

We also went to Westwood that weekend to celebrate Mike & Jamie's birthdays. We had to get some pictures while we were at the lake. Avery is the ham wanting in EVERY picture...until you want him in it! I painted our kitchen too...it is burnt orange and looks awesome! I will post pictures when I take a couple.

Happy Birthday Mike!

Well, today is Mike's 36th birthday. Hopefully he is having a good day. He told me this morning that his company might be making 12 hour days mandatory for a while because they have to much work to do...what a GREAT birthday present!

Just an update on us:

Avery - has had another heart cath and things are looking good right now. He isn't going to need surgery this year but he did have some stents put into his pulmonary arteries in order to get them to grow and relieve some pressure in his heart. He has grown an inch and three quarters since March and continues to be as active as any 2 1/2 year old. Not much keeps him down.

Avery Mini Golfing

Avery ready to go into his heart cath

Dr Burton examining Avery after his heart cath


Avery & Mommy ready to go home

Blake - is doing great riding his bike and is looking forward to his birthday in another 6 weeks or so. He already has his Christmas list going. He is ready to do some hunting with his daddy this year hopefully. Both boys got to go scouting in the boat yesterday and they loved it.

Blake Mini-golfing

Blake singing in the shower

Fun with our friends (Braeden & Emma)

Mike- is looking forward to doing lots of uninterrupted hunting this year. He hasn't had a fall without surgeries or babies being born for 3 years so hopefully this year is the year.

Misty- is still doing daycare and continues to work on the desserts too. I just finished one wedding and have two more coming up at the end of September. It is busy but fun!

Mike & I at my 10 year class reunion