Bennett's All-Star Birthday Bash

Saturday was Bennett's 1st Birthday party!

  We chose a baseball theme since our boy loves to play catch.  

I decided to make and decorate his birthday cakes while Andy dug through his childhood boxes to find old baseball and Twins memorabilia.  

Aunt Liz and Uncle Andrew helped us design the baseball diamond cake with all of us adding our special touch.

The party came together so nicely and we really loved the way it turned out. We had shelled peanuts, Cracker Jacks boxes, and hot dogs for all to enjoy.

Our guests included Liz & Andrew, Eddie, Jess, & Hudson, Papa & Grammy, Grandma Nel, Paul, Keri, Whitnee, and Brandon, and our friend Melissa.

Bennett enjoyed eating his favorite foods at the head of the table and loved all the special attention from everyone on his special day.

Bennett received some very fun toys for gifts.  He was getting bored with his old toys and now he goes from one new toy to the next not sure what to play with first!

He dove right into his baseball bat smash cake and was excited to share with anyone who wanted a bite...he wasted no time and ate most of it with a little help from Gus.

Thanks to everyone for helping us celebrate Bennett's 1st Birthday!

Bennett is One!

Even though we asked him to slow down a little bit, Bennett didn't listen - he is 1 today!

What a year it has been...

Bennett has changed so much and we can hardly believe we have been a family of 4 for one whole year.  

Bennett has been such a sweet little boy.  He is a cuddle bug who loves to just sit and relax with the people he loves. 

He enjoys books about animals or trucks. 

He loves to play with his basketballs, baseballs and footballs.

Lately he has been pointing to toys outside that he wants to play with like the swing, sandbox, or bike. 

This little boy loves anything that he can hold onto - poles, steering wheel, and handle bars. 

Bennett has done so much growing in the past few weeks.

He gets into everything in the cupboards, pulls himself up, walks along the furniture, and chases Marie with his quick crawling skills.
Bennett has 6 teeth with 2 more poking through.
He weighs 25 lbs. and is 31 inches long. 

Bennett is starting to try more words and talking, too.  He says Da-Da, Ma-Ma, yeah, and shakes his head "no."

He has also learned how to throw fits...this part is not fun to go through but it is a little comical to see our easy going boy find some drama. 

Bennett, you are such a joy and we love you very much!

Happy Birthday!

Let's go to Papa's Boat!

 Sunday was the most beautiful day we have had all summer and we got to spend it on the boat!

We swam in the lake, went for rides on the tube, and enjoyed a delicious dinner on the lake as well.

Marie loves Papa's boat and Bennett is definitely liking the snacks that come along with it...but he could do without his life jacket...he did not enjoy that part of it!

 We had such a great day celebrating Father's Day on the boat - just what the Dads wanted.

After the boat we drove back to Sioux City and unpacked from our busy weekend trip.

It was an exhausting vacation but we had so much fun! 

Arnold's Park

We arrived in Spencer after what seemed like a very long trip from Minneapolis. Benny was happy to be out of the car and with his Papa! After playing a little ball...

he decided he should take a snooze...shirtless and pant-less . 

Marie and Grammy were busy playing with the neighbor kids and playing at the park. 

After supper, we decided to take a trip to Arnold's Park and enjoy a little evening boat ride.  

Marie has been itching for the ferris wheel, carousel, and train. We also enjoyed some ice cream of course!

We ended our night with a boat ride watching the sunset. It was a beautiful night and we were so thankful the weather cooperated for a fun summer evening!

Minnesota Vacation

June has been such a whirlwind for us!  Not only are we smack dab in the middle of our celebration month with all our birthdays and our anniversary, we are also lucky enough to have vacation time!

Thursday morning we drove up to Minneapolis to spend a few days with Uncle Don and Aunt Jean.  We always enjoy our time up there and the kids were so excited to visit again. This was Bennett's and Gus' first time but Marie is an old pro at making this trip. We may or may not have used suckers to get us through the last 15 minutes...

Overall the kids traveled great.  We stopped for a picnic lunch and potty breaks for all, especially Gus, at a Rest Area near Worthington.  The little park area was a big hit and helped wear everyone out.

When we arrived at Don & Jean's house, Gus and Marie immediately headed for the back yard. They loved to explore in their backyard and I know they went through the trail at least 15 times over the few days we were there.

After a delicious meal, Jean surprised Marie with birthday cupcakes complete with puppy candles.  They were a big hit!

Friday was a busy day filled with a trip to the zoo and a Minnesota Twins Game in the evening. 

The zoo was a lot of fun and Marie was able to see dinosaurs - her favorite part of the entire vacation.  

We arrived early at the Twins Game to see batting practice, walk around the stadium, and eat dinner at a restaurant inside the stadium. 

Even though we ate a good meal, we still were able to pack away popcorn, cotton candy, and ice cream!  The kids did well overall, but we left a little early to avoid the crowd heading back. 

We were exhausted after the game and still on Saturday morning. After sleeping in a bit, playing around Don & Jean's house, and learning about horses, we packed up and headed out for next stop on the vacation: Spencer.

Marie at 4 years old

At 4 years old, you love to do anything arts & crafts related. You like to play outside, swing, go to the park. You still like the Disney Princess characters and like to sing songs, act out the movies, read their books, and watch their movies.  Your ability to memorize the songs and movie lines is remarkable. 

You are becoming so silly. You love to make up silly stories, voices, and your dancing is hilarious.

You are athletic and love to balance on things. You can jump on one foot, run fast, and you are always trying new jumps or twirls.

You weigh 39 lbs. and are 44 inches tall.

You are the best big sister I have ever seen! You don't lose your patience with Bennett, you are always helping him, and you are always looking out for him.  He is in love with his big sister and laughs at you all the time. 

You are able to write your own name and you like to practice writing other letters of the alphabet, too. 

  

I asked you questions on you birthday and here are your responses:

How old are you? 4

 What is something fun you like to do?  Make silly faces

 What is your favorite animal?  Horsey

 What is your favorite thing to eat? Pizza and watermelon

 What is your favorite thing to do?  Play with friends at school

 What is your favorite movie to watch? Ariel and Brave

 What is something you are good at?  Doing somersaults

 What is your favorite color?  Pink and purple

 Who is your best friend? Trey

What do you like to do with mommy?  Play “mommy & honey”

What do you like to do with daddy? Play Candyland

What do you like to do outside? Swing

Where do you like to go for fun?  A cookie store

What do you want to be when you grow up? A mommy

How tall are you? 3 inches

How much do you weigh? 3 lbs

You keep us on our toes and as soon as we think we have you figured out, you change. 

Daddy & I are so proud of you and so thankful for you, too.

We love you Marie!