FAM{ILY}

Good morning (afternoon of yesterday in the states)

Today has started off lovely! The girls and I are headed to Paint n' Play in the park near our house. It's so nice to have 5 parks within walking distance and one with such a wonderful program like Paint n' Play. At the park they set up paint easels, play dough stations, dress ups and so much more! The girls love going to the park!


My pictures are from our trip again:

When we were in the states I had the opportunity to get my hair cut.

Before

After...about 6 or 7 inches off the bottom and a new color! I feel like a whole new person!

The girls and I with my Grandma Ilene. We were lucky enough to spend 3 days at Grandma Ilene's house. I love being there...it's one of the most comfortable places in the world for me. My Grandma keeps it impossibly clean and makes the most delicious meals! I love her to bits :)

While we were visiting Grandma Ilene, Kayleigh cam over for a visit. She is my cousin's baby. She was darling!

Matt fed her the bottle.

Great Grandma read a book to Destiny.

My cousin's daughter Kaylee came over for a visit one day too. Destiny LOVED playing with her!

Addi the gangster!

My parents and the girls.

Uncle Brady!

Grandma Sue reading to Destiny

Grandma Sue and the girls.

Auntie Bekki

Being so far away and seeing those pictures makes me really miss my family! As you can see, we had a lovely visit that was based around spending time with those we love! I feel so blessed to have a wonderful family.

Enjoy today!

We like our lizards frilled NOT grilled

Hi Friends!

How are you doing today? I am a bit scattered with my schedule change since we arrived back in Australia. Add is only taking one nap now so that gives me a little less time to myself! However, I feel refreshed after a wonderful play group this morning. I am so happy that I have met some wonderful mommies in this area!


Let's take a step back in time:

When we were in North Dakota, my dad had Destiny and Addi join him at the gym while his basketball players had an open gym. Destiny loved playing with all of the gym equipment. She especially loved the hula hoops and balls!

Both the girls got in on the action!

While we were in ND, we had the opportunity to visit my Great Auntie Mona many times. She is such a wonderful and beautiful woman. Here are some of the pictures of us at her house.

Addi reading a book on her couch.

Mona reading to Destiny about the Church Mouse.

Me, Add, Mona, and Destiny. Mona is so special to me. She used to watch me when I was a young girl. I remember making forts out of a mattress and blankets strung over a clothesline. I also remember getting juicy fruit gum from her husband and sitting on his lap watching Lawrence Welk as he smoked his pipe. Such wonderful memories! I hope some day I am as beautiful of a woman as my Great Auntie Mona is!

The last day that we went to visit Mona, Destiny had a BAD accident and I didn't have a change of clothes. Next best thing: A towel and safety pins! Nice skirt, eh?


In the here and now:

Best juice EVER = cucumber apple juice! I love my juicer! If you have a juicer you should try this combo! (also, if you have cucumbers growing ALL over your garden...you should try this combo!)

On President's Day, we took a little trip to Civic (the down town area) and ate at the Pancake Parlor. This is Addi at the table next to us, which is a JUMBO table set up for a game of Chess.
The Pancake Parlor had all of the charm and character that I was looking for! The menu wasn't too shabby either, they offer organic flour and organic meats. In my book, you just can't beat that!

Destiny had fancy pancakes, served with ice cream, hundreds and thousands (sprinkles) topped with chocolate and an Aussie flag! CORRECTION: the UK flag! haha! My friend informed me that this is not the Aussie flag and at a closer look...it indeed is NOT! haha! Thanks, Dianne! Next time I'll use my brain before I type :)

I rolled with hot chocolate with yummy marshmallows, crepes that were to die for! Matt had a cold chocolate drink and Canadian pancakes ?!?!

After breakkie we took a little walk to the National Museum. (okay, actually it was a LOOOONG walk from the Pancake Parlor). We met this fellow on our way. He was a little camera shy.

I laughed out loud at this...but it is pretty serious. It was an exhibit about bush fires.

Destiny with a stuffed roo. Notice it's toe claws! Yikes!

Destiny's model pose!

In the kids area of the National Museum. The girls created a house via the computer and we got to watch it in 3D in a movie!

Destiny wanted me to take a picture of her at play group today and put it on the blog. Here it is...a bit foggy but you can tell it was a beautiful day to get out and play!

I hope you all are having a beautiful day as well! I'm off to get a few chores done as the girlies nap away!

Enjoy today!

What can you do with a carrot, some raisins and sticks?

Happy President's Day! We are celebrating here! Matt has the day off and we plan on some sort of adventure :)

Yesterday we pulled all the weeds in our yard and now we need to haul them to the dump (yes, there are really THAT many weeds in our yard). Some of the weeds were even taller than me! yikes! Matt said he'll have to take 3 trips to the dump with ALL of our weeds! crazy!


Let's travel back in time a bit...to a winter wonderland that has been created in my parent's front yard in North Dakota!

Addi's first time playing in the snow!

We built snowmen together.

Had a snowball fight.

Made snow angels.

We may have even tasted the snow a bit...just not the yellow snow :)

Addi settled in with a hot chocolate from the coffee post.

While Destiny tried walking through the 3 foot deep snow!

A few hats, a scarf, carrots, raisins, sticks and our snowmen were complete!

Later that night we went to a basketball game at my old high school. My dad helps coach the boys varsity basketball team. (they are headed into regional play next week) Grandma Sue and AddiSue watching the game!

Destiny visiting her "Pa" while he coached.

We really enjoyed the snow, but we are happy to be back in sunny Australia ready to explore!

Enjoy today!

**Crazy Cousins**

Hello! It's Sunday morning here and I am ready to BLOG!

Yesterday, I forgot to add a photo of a photo collage I made for my Grandfather's funeral. It's difficult to see all the pictures, but you get the drift! It was an honor to be able to put together some pictures of my Grandpa. He was such a special man to me!

When we first arrived in Williston (my home town), My Uncle John, his wife Renee, and my cousins Jenae, Josiah and Caelic stopped by for a visit.

Uncle John playing with baby AddiSue

The big kids played down stairs. They really keep Destiny entertained. She LOVES being with them!

Upstairs, they used the blanket to roll each other up and do a surprise jump on the rolled up kid!

A few days later, we got to celebrate Caelic's Birthday at my Grandma's house in Tioga. We played a few games like "Button Button Who's got the Button" and "Drop the clothespin in the Jar while you are Blindfolded". Classics! It was so much fun!

I made Caelic a "LarryBoy" cake out of cupcakes and Renee made a lovely chocolate cake! Lucky boy, got 2 cakes for his birthday.

My Cousin Mike's baby, Kayleigh stopped over for a visit. She is just darling! Addi and Destiny loved giving her hugs and kisses.

I am so thankful for the wonderful family I have. I love that my kids can grow up knowing their "cousins". These pictures make me want to turn right back around and head back to the States!

As for the here and now: yesterday Matt made me a wonderful chocolate cake all from scratch! It is so delicious!

Today is Sunday so we are off to church (Matt is running the sound) and then we have a neighborhood BBQ for all of the U.S. Embassy people who live in our suburb. It will be nice to meet some new people that live close to us!

I hope you make the best of this day! Enjoy it!

Hot and Cold

Hello Friends! The weekend is here! For us it's a 3 day one. I am excited to see what kind of adventures we will be able to find.

Yesterday I hosted a super fun Valentine's day party (I know it was a little late, but we were flying high above the Earth on the 14th). The moms and their kiddos were happy to be there. We had morning tea and decorated sugar cookies!

Those are Destiny's masterpieces.

A few that I decorated!

I had to post a picture of our delicious dinner. Chives was the theme. I'm not a huge chive eater, but we got a whole bunch of them in our box of fruits and veggies from the farm this week. We enjoyed some trout seasoned with garlic, chives, seasoning salt, pepper and lemon juice served with a hollandaise sauce, baked potatoes with sour cream and chives, salad of kale and chives in a balsamic vinaigrette and cucumbers from the garden! It was amazing!

Let's travel back in time for a bit this morning. The more I think about our trip back to the states, the theme of "hot and cold" really resonates with me. We left HOT Australia to return to COLD North Dakota. My emotions were HOT while seeing much of my family and enjoying being back in the states, but COLD because I had lost my Grandfather.

Today I want to share a bit about the funeral.

As we drove to a tiny town where my Grandmother lives and my Grandfather lived for many years, the snow shimmered as the sun beamed down. It was cold! Very cold!

My Grandfather's funeral service was beautiful. We sang songs that meant a lot to my Grandfather and a song that is particularly meaningful to me. On the Wings of a Snow White Dove has been sung at nearly every funeral I have ever attended including my Great Grandmother's and my Grandmother's on my dad's side.

This is my Grandmother and I. My Grandmother and Grandfather cared for each other so much through the years. My Grandmother is an exceptional lady and I am so happy she was there to help celebrate my Grandfather's life with us.

Here are the kiddos. The three older kids are my cousins. Jenae, Josiah and Caelic. Destiny is holding her dress up in front of her face and Addi is looking down! Silly kids!

The guest book and Programs. The programs told about my Grandpa's love for fishing and his time in the military.

My mom and Matt holding roses to be placed on the casket.

Destiny carried a rose in honor of my sister (who was unable to attend).

My cousin Jenae and her brother Caelic played a piano piece. Jenae also shared a verse. Their brother Josiah accepted the flag during the military salute to my Grandpa.

The military salute was an amazing honor. My Grandpa served in Korea. A honor guard troop did a special ceremony that involved the folding of the flag that was on my Grandfather's casket and shooting guns outside the funeral home door. There was not a dry eye in the place. What an honor!

Addi playing in the funeral home as we ate a little lunch after the service.

My mom and her brothers, opening cards after the service.

It has been great for me to have a chance to come back and look through these pictures. It helps me relive and comprehend all that has happened. It is still a very strange thing to think that my Grandpa has passed. I still feel the urge to write him a letter every now and then. He will be missed but I am SO happy he doesn't have any more pain!

I'm off to enjoy some time with my family.

Enjoy today!