Basketball Champs!

RJ’s church ball team won the most exciting tournament in church ball history.  It was so fun to watch.  What a game!  What a finish!  Three point buzzer beater after going back and forth from one foul line to the other.

Story Time

Daddy took a picture of me and the girls during the bedtime routine.  They are quite adorable those two girls!  I’m glad we are all still smiling.  Two hours into bedtime routine, nobody is smiling.

Great Urban Race

Lori Thomas, Me, Stephanie Flint and Melissa Peterson attempted the great urban race in down town Minneapolis.  Our team name was derived from the first letter of our names Small and Mighty Laughing Misfits.  We met in Hubert’s in Target Center and received an envelope with 12 clues at 12 pm.  We had until 5 pm to complete 11 of the 12 clues.  The clues were difficult and required smart phones unless you’re well versed in the Fibonacci sequence and where Prince was ranked in 2002 on the list of 100 most beautiful people!  There were puzzles and math problems we had to solve to get the clue which gave us the address we had to go to.  Once there, we had to perform a task.  We could only use public transportation and that proved to be exceedingly difficult.  We ended up walked 11.5 miles and completing the course 20 minutes late.  I felt like dead weight since I had no smart phone and no knowledge of the bus system (stops and routes).  My one contribution was climbing a rock wall at vertical endeavor.  One person in our team had to scale to the top which was quite high.  I’m fairly confident that I’m the only one who could have done it (not trying to brag) so for that, I’m glad I was there.  We got to play a Swedish game at a Museum, built something (a cat) out of clay blindfolded, do a ring toss with bike tires, sing 20 seconds of a Prince song on a stage, buy and donate paper products to Ronald McDonald house, and complete a quiz about alcoholic beverages.   I did have a fun time but wish I had been more useful.  I would do it again but would put more effort into learning about transportation.

Now I know that I would be a horrible contestant on the Amazing Race as much as I love to watch the show and pretend I’d be great.  We did get medals and appetizers afterward.  Another bonus… I had zero guilt eating donuts and peanut butter bars while watching fireworks that night.

The Purple Dragons

My friends Cheryl asked if I wanted to sign Hunter up to play soccer with her son Will.  We hadn’t planned on it since we put Hunter in baseball but decided it would be fun to sit on the sidelines with friends while we cheer Hunter on. 

Here’s a picture of Hunter and Will fighting like dragons to maintain their undefeated status.  It is a lot of fun watching Hunter compete.  He is a great athlete and always plays hard.  I am always proud of him (not only for scoring) but for never quitting.

Summer Fun

After going to the lake in the morning, Reagan decided she needed more water fun at home.  She loved dipping her head in and getting her hair wet.  Her swimming suit was dirty so she wore this pink leotard but it’s as close to naked as you can get!

4th of July

RJ and I made our delicious cinnamon rolls and boy did we enjoy them!

We went on a bike ride to the park, finished our flag while listening to patriotic music, visited a nature center in Minneapolis where we got to feed and touch turtles, salamanders, and toads, then we barbequed with the Rowleys and did our own fireworks at home.

I am grateful to be an American citizen.

Braces on My Baby

 

We have known since Hunter was five that he would have to get braces to correct his under bite thanks to RJ and myself.  Once his permanent teeth (in the front) were in, he was ready.  He will likely have to have braces again after he finishes growing.  He was terrified of the unknown and discomfort of it all but he did a great job!

Before

After

Father/Son Campout

Hunter always looks forward to camping with his dad.  There were scattered thunder storms all week so I looked up the forecast for the campout.  It did not look good.  There was a good chance of severe thunder storms all through the night.  When RJ told Hunter, he was very down and wanted to go anyway.  For Hunter’s sake, RJ loaded up and headed out.  They stopped and got subs on the way.

The rain started coming down in an instant and pretty soon it was coming in side ways and the sky was turning green.  RJ texted me to say they would  wait out the storm then drive home.  The tornado sirens were going off and a tree branch fell and landed on the Rolphs’ car.  The boys came home around 11pm.  Two people ended up staying the whole night.  It was all the talk on Sunday.

MOTAB

For our June date, RJ bought tickets to see the Mormon Tabernacle Choir at the Target Center.  We bought four tickets and he invited Donna (from work) and her husband.  We had dinner at Hubert’s beforehand.  It was fun to see the choir in a different light than what we usually experience during conference.  My favorite number by far was when they sang “Come Thou Fount.”  I was also very happy to meet Donna at last.  RJ has talked about her for a long time and she has had a big impact on him.  When I met her, she said, “It is so nice to meet the wife of a happily married man.”

Time for Panties!

 

Reagan has been using the potty off and on for a couple months.  I figured I would just let her decide to potty train when she was ready.  I knew she was ready but didn’t want to make much of an effort (cleaning up accidents and being stuck at home all day).  One morning, she used the toilet three times in a row so I up and decided the day had come (Thursday, June 20th).  She was very happy to wear big girl underwear.  She only had two accidents the first day.  She has done a great job!

Way to go Reag!

We continue to encourage her with various treats (M&M’s, fruit snacks, Skittles etc).

Mommy School

We are focusing on “The Natural World” (plants and animals), American History, and basic Spanish this year for mommy school.  We started history with Christopher Columbus.  We built the Santa Maria, Nina, and La Pinta.  Our neighbor, Neeru, helped us.

We talked about the seasons and did something special each day that corresponded with that season.  Summer- picnicked with Cheryl at the park, Fall- carved peppers, Winter- went ice skating, Spring- went on a bike ride.

For Spanish, we learned colors, numbers and articles of clothing.  We played a game dressing Reagan up to practice the words for clothing.  Reagan is adorable in her bufanda.

We bought a sheet from Goodwill and made the American flag.  We talked about the symbols of the colors, the number of stripes and stars and Hunter labeled the stars with each state’s abbreviation.  It was a fun project.

We love America! 

Hopefully the kids will gain a love of learning.

Father’s Day

Reagan helped me make a delicious devil’s food cake with caramel, heath bars, and cool whip while daddy slept in.

Then we made french toast, sausage, bacon, hash browns, and juice.  Daddy chose to eat it at the table instead of in bed.

The kids are always very excited to “help” anyone open presents.  They both made him something at school and we also bought him a bench scraper (kitchen tool for his scones and cinnamon rolls) and a basket-like bin for tennis balls.  We have had the wonderful opportunity of playing a lot more.

A wrapping paper war ensued.

We had some delicious ribs, roasted potatoes, salad, homemade rolls, veggies and cake for dinner.  Happy Father’s Day RJ!  You’re the best,