Grandparent Celebration

On Friday, Marie's school had a special program and visitation celebrating Grandparents. 

She was lucky enough to have Papa and Grandma Nel surprise her at school.

Her class sang "It's a Small World" and painted autumn leaves. 

She loved being in the spotlight and was very happy she had her special visitors see her school and meet her teacher.

Enjoying Fall

This weekend while Andy was away at his annual residency retreat, the kids and I stayed busy with a visit from Abby, Alissa, Anneke, Aunt Mindy, and Grandma Nel.

We braved the cold and windy day while having a blast at the pumpkin patch.

The kids took their time enjoying every activity at the patch.

 

After the pumpkin patch we went back to our home to meet up with Paul and Keri for Alissa's birthday celebration.  

It was a great way to distract us from Dad being gone this weekend!

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On Sunday, after a residency brunch, we took a little time to tour the fire station during an open house. 

Bennett was in awe of all the tools, uniforms, boots, and of course the fire trucks. 

 

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We also took some time this week to enjoy the pond for maybe one last time this season.

The dogs loved retrieving in the water and the kids loved digging for snails. 

It definitely became chilly once the sun began setting but it was a great fall evening to enjoy as a family.

Thank Goodness for Siblings

The past few weeks Bennett has proven to us over and over again that he is 2. 

He is full of energy, asks a million questions, prefers his ideas over ours, runs everywhere instead of walking, oh and one more thing...he throws tantrums.

It is much different parenting Bennett and Marie. 

We have to approach them differently, discipline differently, and even reward them differently. 

When Marie was little, it was all up to us.  

But thankfully, Marie is our little helper with Bennett.

When Bennett doesn't want help from one of us, he goes right to Marie.

On more than one occasion Marie has been the only one to pull him out of his fit and back to reality. 

This usually happens in the morning when we are trying to get out the door with all our chores done.

Marie takes his hand, reads him a book, and calms him down. 

The best part is even though she is caring for him she still gets him to complete his chores.

"Don't worry, Mom.  I'll take care of it."  She says.

 This new little baby is going to be so lucky to have a big sister and big brother here to help him whenever he needs it.

 

A Weekend in Aplington

We continued our busy weekends of September with a trip to Aplington, IA to see Andrew & Liz.

They recently moved into a new house there as well as started a new chiropractic clinic.

The kids were so excited to make the trip to their "craziest" Aunt - Marie's words, not mine.

Friday afternoon started with the whole family getting adjusted by Uncle Andrew at the clinic. The kids colored pictures for his office and we all walked out feeling much better. 

After pizza on the deck we went to an Aplington-Parkersburg football game. 

It was a beautiful cool evening and we all enjoyed the fresh air and popcorn. 

Saturday was busy and filled with fun adventures. After a relaxing morning which included playing with the dogs, visiting some horses, and trimming trees, we went to lunch so we could watch the Iowa game. 

The boys and girls were ready for some alone time so the the girls headed to Cedar Falls for shopping & cupcakes while the boys watched more football and went golfing.

Marie enjoyed helping us look for baby items while Bennett drove the truck, golf cart, and played in the sand traps.

We all came together at night to play at the park, grill supper, and watch the Nebraska game. 

Meanwhile, the dogs were busy wrestling and chasing each other non stop.  

They were all very tired by the end of the day. 

We woke up Sunday to a cool and cloudy day. We all took the dogs out to a gravel road for a run before lunch.

This was such a great weekend!

It's so much fun to see Marie and Bennett with their aunts and uncles. 

Thanks to Andrew & Liz for letting us stay with them and thanks to Cali for putting up with our 2 crazy dogs. 

Weekend Visitors

 This weekend we were so excited to welcome the Dickes family to Sioux City. 

The kids played until they were ready to fall over from exhaustion. 

 Saturday morning was spent at the railroad museum in Sioux City. 

The kids enjoyed climbing on the old train cars, going for a train ride, and ringing the bell.

 Hudson and Marie loved running off on their own but they did a nice job of playing with the younger two boys, too. 

 Both Marie and Bennett loved playing with Beckett and agreed they were ready for a little brother of their own. 

Thanks for coming Eddie, Jess, Hudson, and Beckett!

Mid Week Visitor

 

 Uncle Nathan came to visit for a night this week. 

It was perfect timing as Andy was gone for a recruiting trip in Des Moines for the residency.

He helped me with the kids and dogs while the kids played with him and tackled him as much as possible. It was fun having a visitor and we appreciated all the help!

Clay County Fair

On our first cool day this early fall we were able to enjoy the Clay County Fair in Spencer 

with Papa & Grammy.

Highlights of our trip were horses, cows, baby chicks, and petting any animal we could get our hands on along with all the delicious food.

 The kids enjoyed a few rides including the big slide. 

Bennett loved climbing on the tractors and combines the best of all.

 The kids were exhausted to say the least. After a nice long nap we drove through Sheldon on our way home for supper with Grandma Nel. 

It was a great way to end our summer and start our busy fall!