March, April and May
Time to play catch up here. Sure I've written and posted and been taking photos but nary an update has been uploaded to this site. And now it is time. We will dissect March, maybe even the last of February, head into April and end it all with May. The events have been plenty, footie season is in full force and the end of school is nearing. There is much to discuss and share.
So here we go.
So here we go.
March:
A dear friend of mine and I went on a scouting trip to Franklin. Her family was considering a move there and she asked me to be her tour guide of sorts. I am not sure how helpful I was considering we haven't lived there in over five years but I so enjoyed the time away with her and of course being back in Tennessee. We stayed at Union Hotel in downtown Nashville on our first night and I was smitten. The building was the old railway station and it has been preserved so remarkable well. In fact that is the only photograph I have from the weekend. Look at the ceiling. Breathtaking. There was sushi and Loveless cafe and Mellow Mushroom and walking Main Street and taking in all the sights and all the housing developments and all the change that seems to be overtaking that area. Oh and early nights back at the hotel in jammies watching movies in bed. Good times were had.
Shortly after that trip Thing 2 met her best friend in California to celebrate her 16th birthday. The Durbin family flew Thing 2 to LA and they spent a few days touring Hollywood, Universal Studios and Magic Mountain. Shopping trips were marathon and they ate all the good food and shared lots of belly laughs. A sweet treat for the girlies. They've been friends since we moved to Franklin when they wore pig tails and collected rocks. And now they're making memories as teenagers and readying themselves to be world changers together. Friendship like that is such a gift.
Not too long after that Nani and Thing 1 had their Florida trip planned and I went along as a chaperone. Originally we were scheduled to spend the weekend in NYC, when the cold weather blues struck and Thing 1 did not want to tour the city in the slosh we headed South for the sand and sea. Good choice I think. This trip will eventually have it's own post because I have a plethora of photographs and many stories to tell but for now I will leave with you this teaser. More to come.
Sunset from the pier
A dear friend of mine and I went on a scouting trip to Franklin. Her family was considering a move there and she asked me to be her tour guide of sorts. I am not sure how helpful I was considering we haven't lived there in over five years but I so enjoyed the time away with her and of course being back in Tennessee. We stayed at Union Hotel in downtown Nashville on our first night and I was smitten. The building was the old railway station and it has been preserved so remarkable well. In fact that is the only photograph I have from the weekend. Look at the ceiling. Breathtaking. There was sushi and Loveless cafe and Mellow Mushroom and walking Main Street and taking in all the sights and all the housing developments and all the change that seems to be overtaking that area. Oh and early nights back at the hotel in jammies watching movies in bed. Good times were had.
Union Station Historic Hotel
Shortly after that trip Thing 2 met her best friend in California to celebrate her 16th birthday. The Durbin family flew Thing 2 to LA and they spent a few days touring Hollywood, Universal Studios and Magic Mountain. Shopping trips were marathon and they ate all the good food and shared lots of belly laughs. A sweet treat for the girlies. They've been friends since we moved to Franklin when they wore pig tails and collected rocks. And now they're making memories as teenagers and readying themselves to be world changers together. Friendship like that is such a gift.
Thing 2's friend gifted her with a stack of letters at Christmas time, this was one of them.
Yep, these two are friends for life, I can see the adventures ahead!
Not too long after that Nani and Thing 1 had their Florida trip planned and I went along as a chaperone. Originally we were scheduled to spend the weekend in NYC, when the cold weather blues struck and Thing 1 did not want to tour the city in the slosh we headed South for the sand and sea. Good choice I think. This trip will eventually have it's own post because I have a plethora of photographs and many stories to tell but for now I will leave with you this teaser. More to come.
April:
With April we began Spring break for the Things and Easter weekend. Nothing was on the agenda for break and that seemed to suit everyone just fine. Husband Jared took a few days off and we had family footie afternoons and late night taco dinners at our favorite taco place. The days were still a bit chilly and we watched movies and played games, all the usual. We held our traditional day of Easter egg dyeing and Italian cookie baking. There was a field trip to my favorite coffee house to see baby chicks that were visiting from a local co-op. Easter was spent worshipping together and sharing a special meal around our table, just the six of us. Once again the golden egg was found by none other than Thing 1, scoring herself the prize for the third year in a row.
Family Post - Worship Selfie
With April we began Spring break for the Things and Easter weekend. Nothing was on the agenda for break and that seemed to suit everyone just fine. Husband Jared took a few days off and we had family footie afternoons and late night taco dinners at our favorite taco place. The days were still a bit chilly and we watched movies and played games, all the usual. We held our traditional day of Easter egg dyeing and Italian cookie baking. There was a field trip to my favorite coffee house to see baby chicks that were visiting from a local co-op. Easter was spent worshipping together and sharing a special meal around our table, just the six of us. Once again the golden egg was found by none other than Thing 1, scoring herself the prize for the third year in a row.
Nana's Easter Cookies
Golden Egg Winner!
Baby Chicks from the Co-op
Family Footie
A rally was held on the UofM campus sponsored by International Justice Mission to raise awareness of the human trafficking bill that was in the Senate. It was the first bill of it's kind that allocated monies to be used in the prosecution of traffickers in specific countries. Thing 2 signed up and asked her friends to come along to help out. So we made signs and headed to the U. People were offered the opportunity to sign a petition in support of the bill and overall our goal was to simply raise awareness around the injustice that is human trafficking, over 27 million people are enslaved globally. More today than any other time in history. Husband Jared and I sat back and watched these kiddos stand for their beliefs and boldly engage in conversations.
Shortly after that Thing 2 flew half way across the world to attend a global conference focused on the 4-14 ministry age group. She was chosen by our church and to say it was an honor would be quite the understatement. Her team was exceptional, three adults and three teenagers, traveling together, experiencing a foreign country, soaking in teaching and worshipping with people from all over the world. The stories she has shared about her time there, what she learned, the people she met, they will be with her forever. She was changed and her heart marked for eternity. Here are a few of her photos from her week.
While Thing 2 was making her way back to us in the North I headed South again to run the Country Music Half Marathon with Jeff and Natalie in Nashville. Thing 2 was supposed to be running with us but in light of her international travel she was unable to join me. Boo hoo. Anyhow, I spent time with Autumn and Gemma, met a dear friends newest baby boy, spent an afternoon with two lovely friends, watched swim class, took a new yoga class and ran the half with my sister and brother. A very full weekend. While there were no PR's this time around I finished and that, after a two year race break, was no small feat for me. The medal came home around my neck and that trip is in the books.
Aunt Natalie celebrated a birthday!
Yay for cake made by Uncle Jeff!
Helping to raise awareness and stand for freedom.
Shortly after that Thing 2 flew half way across the world to attend a global conference focused on the 4-14 ministry age group. She was chosen by our church and to say it was an honor would be quite the understatement. Her team was exceptional, three adults and three teenagers, traveling together, experiencing a foreign country, soaking in teaching and worshipping with people from all over the world. The stories she has shared about her time there, what she learned, the people she met, they will be with her forever. She was changed and her heart marked for eternity. Here are a few of her photos from her week.
Look at that water.
Global worship, let the heavens rejoice! Or more like heaven came down!
Rice terraces.
This little lizard was impressed with the offering too.
While Thing 2 was making her way back to us in the North I headed South again to run the Country Music Half Marathon with Jeff and Natalie in Nashville. Thing 2 was supposed to be running with us but in light of her international travel she was unable to join me. Boo hoo. Anyhow, I spent time with Autumn and Gemma, met a dear friends newest baby boy, spent an afternoon with two lovely friends, watched swim class, took a new yoga class and ran the half with my sister and brother. A very full weekend. While there were no PR's this time around I finished and that, after a two year race break, was no small feat for me. The medal came home around my neck and that trip is in the books.
Pre-race with the Nashville skyline...notice the smiles.
Post race selfie! We did it!
Yay for cake made by Uncle Jeff!
Gemma was trying to wake Gpa for family dinner
This peanut had her last soccer game and a party at the park.
I love her and her cupcake face!
Next, Thing 4 took a belay class for rock climbing and worked on becoming a certified referee this month. As of posting he has already been the AR for two matches and is earning his keep. He loves being on the pitch, anyway he can!
Look at my badge, I'm official!
First time on the pitch as an AR
Thing 3's braces came off and with that an already beautiful smile is now metal free!
Love her and her dimple
May:
On to May and the month of end of the year activities. Art expo, band concerts, field trips, etc. And this Mama is beyond ready for summer time. I mean really, really ready. As are the four Things. We are counting the days and our senior started her senior slide last quarter. I must state here though she made the honor roll for the very first time in her high school career and we couldn't be more proud.
Thing 4's art work being showcased
Band Concert, on the cymbals and snare drum
Thumbs up for our friend's drawing!
Honor roll for Thing 1
This month Thing 3 had a birthday and took her permit test. We now have one licensed driver and two permitted drivers in the house. Wow! Her birthday day was spent home from school, picking up retainers, taking her permit test and having lunch with me. The family celebration in the evening included her usual menu of bbq chicken, homemade mac and cheese and chocolate coffee cake with nutella frosting. Oh, I almost forgot. There was an early family dinner where we all sat around the teppanyaki table at Osaka and caught vegetables in our mouth, or lemonade in Thing 4's case and an unsightly mask was placed on Thing 3's head while the drummer drummed and we sang an Asian pop version of happy birthday. Does it get much better than that? I think not. Memorable to say the least.
The birthday girl, mask and all
The girl Things and I ran in the Donut Dash 5K, a fundraiser for Eagle Ridge Academy. We sported our race gear, ran the 3.1 miles and ate our donuts afterwards! From there we raced to cheer for our favorite special olympians, Rachel and Finn. The area meet was held at Roosevelt HS in Minneapolis and we wanted to cheer on the competitors! Rachel took first place and made an appearance on the podium. What a sight it was to witness the community surrounding this event and the support the olympians had. Loudest cheering section ever!
Catching shrimp...or sake?
Permitted driver, beware!
All hail the birthday princess
Fifteen
The girl Things and I ran in the Donut Dash 5K, a fundraiser for Eagle Ridge Academy. We sported our race gear, ran the 3.1 miles and ate our donuts afterwards! From there we raced to cheer for our favorite special olympians, Rachel and Finn. The area meet was held at Roosevelt HS in Minneapolis and we wanted to cheer on the competitors! Rachel took first place and made an appearance on the podium. What a sight it was to witness the community surrounding this event and the support the olympians had. Loudest cheering section ever!
Me and my girlies
The Finn-ster and part of his cheering section!
There is a Rachel in there, surrounded by my girls. Group hug for the super star!
Mother's day was next on the celebratory agenda and we did it up right. The entire day was all about me and I was spoiled from sun up to sun down. Breakfast on the couch in my jammies while watching footie, lunch with my peeps at a yummy pizza place where we played in the photo booth and took silly pictures, a church service with friends where we sung one of my favorite songs and dinner with the same friends at a burger joint that makes everyone smile. Such a good day.
Extended Siblings - the only photo I have from Mother's Day...It doesn't get much sweeter than this.
From there we are on to prom weekend. And it really was the weekend. Our house was full of girlies from Friday afternoon to Sunday morning. I wouldn't want it any other way. There was a movie premier night, the entire getting ready process where there was more make up than I've used in my entire life, girls and Mamas everywhere, photos at the lake, dinner at Chipotle(love), prom itself and then an after pancake party here until the wee hours of the morn. The girls were beautiful and what struck me while I was watching all this activity was that each and everyone of them, my own two included, have a style unique to themselves and their dress choice showed that. No two were alike and it was so refreshing for this Mama to see. Not to mention that they are gorgeous girls inside and out. Husband Jared and I were thankful the Things and their friends wanted to be at our house and we willingly made pancakes and played their music and then went upstairs and listened through the vents to their giggles and whispers.
Also in May, we hosted a dinner for a new church, Turning Point. About twenty people, mostly strangers, gathered in our home and sat around the table. It was beautiful to witness. I cooked and loved every minute of the prep and planning, even setting up the tables. Although I wasn't able to make the rounds and sit and hear stories from everyone the low roar that was steady throughout the night was enough to fill my heart. I didn't share our toast and a prayer or say any words about how sacred the table is to us. At first I was frustrated that I didn't take the time to do that, to share my heart with these new comrades. Then I was reminded I didn't need to. They got it. When everyone was sitting and eating, they were the ones that created the sacred space, made the night holy. I couldn't have manufactured that. That my friends is a beautiful thing.
We also managed to squeeze in a professional footie match. To clarify, the football played with your feet. Proper football in this house. Some dear friends of ours had never been to a match before other than their own child's so we took it upon ourselves to introduce them to the phenomenon. Our two families went to a Minnesota United FC match at the National Sports Center in Blaine. It was quite the night, beginning with our picnic dinner in the parking lot, also known as tail gating by us Americans. United FC won 3-2 and we learned their chants and watch super fans light smoke bombs and cheer wildly.
So thank you to March, April and May. As of this posting June is almost over, we've had one celebration after another, more house guests than I can count and are preparing Things to depart from the nest for summer activities. More posting to come. Fingers crossed.
Seesters.
Thing 2
One of my favs, nice photo bomb Mama North!
Thing 3 helping out Madi
Thing 2 and her date, Marissa, these girls never stop laughing!
Prom Queen and Prom Princess
Beautimous.
Thing 1 and Anna, love those smiles.
Thing 1.
Pancake after party!
The group, love these kids.
Also in May, we hosted a dinner for a new church, Turning Point. About twenty people, mostly strangers, gathered in our home and sat around the table. It was beautiful to witness. I cooked and loved every minute of the prep and planning, even setting up the tables. Although I wasn't able to make the rounds and sit and hear stories from everyone the low roar that was steady throughout the night was enough to fill my heart. I didn't share our toast and a prayer or say any words about how sacred the table is to us. At first I was frustrated that I didn't take the time to do that, to share my heart with these new comrades. Then I was reminded I didn't need to. They got it. When everyone was sitting and eating, they were the ones that created the sacred space, made the night holy. I couldn't have manufactured that. That my friends is a beautiful thing.
The messy preparation for launch team dinner.
We also managed to squeeze in a professional footie match. To clarify, the football played with your feet. Proper football in this house. Some dear friends of ours had never been to a match before other than their own child's so we took it upon ourselves to introduce them to the phenomenon. Our two families went to a Minnesota United FC match at the National Sports Center in Blaine. It was quite the night, beginning with our picnic dinner in the parking lot, also known as tail gating by us Americans. United FC won 3-2 and we learned their chants and watch super fans light smoke bombs and cheer wildly.
Tailgating- family style!
Kind of a selfie, we caught Thing 3 eating snacks, oops!
And another selfie!
So thank you to March, April and May. As of this posting June is almost over, we've had one celebration after another, more house guests than I can count and are preparing Things to depart from the nest for summer activities. More posting to come. Fingers crossed.
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