Gobble Gobble

Jeff was pretty pleased...BOTH girls put on their camo, hopped on the four-wheeler and went to the bottom of the hill to target practice with the pink shooter.  You never know, they may just get their own show some day just like Uncle Ted.  Kate was so proud of her marksmanship that she had to post the targets on her closet door.  Actually, I think daddy was more proud of his girls than anyone.  However, it should be noted that Kate has full Cabela's camo on and Anna wore her camo skirt (she only has been half converted).

Gotta Raise Them Right

Kate saw a particular car which resulted in the following statements...

Kate:  Daddy, we are going to have 5 cars.

Jeff:  Who is we?

Kate:  Well actually, I am going to have four cars and the boy is going to have one.

Jeff:  Who is the boy?

Kate:  My husband...pause...one car will be a Bug, another a convertible, a van, and a fast car.  The boy will have a truck.

Jeff:  Why do you get four cars and your husband only gets one?

Kate:  He'll be fine with that.

CEO Demotion

Last week Kate brought home a form from school regarding the upcoming career day at school this spring.  Jeff sat down and read through it with her and explained that the school was looking for willing parents to come in and explain their careers (a.k.a. jobs) to all the other students.  Jeff asked Kate if that would be okay with her if he came in and talked about what he did.  She agreed and then looked at me and said, "Mommy doesn't have a job.  She can't come in."

Anna's 5th Birthday Party

What a beautiful day to celebrate with family Anna's 5th birthday!  Miss Anna chose a rainbow theme for her birthday this year that also included a pasta lunch.

Eating lunch with cousins Ryan, Emily & Maggie.  

Gift opening...all girls need more dresses.  This dress was given to Anna from Aunt Sally, Uncle Steve, Emily, Maggie and Ryan.

Oh yes, more American Girl clothes for Samantha.  She is going to look so nice with a little bigger (and more modern) wardrobe.  Thank you Aunt Merry.

Birthday Wishes for a Wonderful Little Girl

Anna Turns 5!

It's official.  Anna turned the big 5 today, March 19th, 2009.  She is now one whole hand!  For her birthday celebration daddy took the day off from work and we headed out to the Mall of America to have some fun which included a visit to the new American Girl Store.  Both girls had so much fun shopping and finding just the right item for their dolls (Kit & Samantha).   With their own money, Kate purchased Kit's school kit and Anna purchased a new dress and glasses for Samantha (Anna has an obsession with glasses).

After some serious shopping we headed over to the Nickelodeon Universe for some more fun.    At first the girls weren't too sure they wanted to ride on anything except for the merry-go-round but quickly warmed up.  Here they are are on the Balloon Ride which they enjoyed with daddy.

After the rides it was some down time and primping for our dinner date at the American Girl Bistro.  Here Anna is getting Samantha ready in her new dress for dinner.

The girls were thrilled with the details at the American Girl Bistro.  Each doll received her own chair, menu and cup of pink lemonade.  Very intriguing for a 5 and 6 year old.  I wonder what Kit and Samantha are going to order?

To top off our meal Anna received a strawberry milkshake to celebrate her big 5th birthday.

Overall a great day at the Mall of America but the highlight was the American Girl Store.  I told Jeff this is the equivalent to his Cabela's for them which us girls have had to muster through several times.  If money were no object we know where the girls would be spending it...at American Girl!

Five Things About Anna at Five

1.  She loves glasses...for herself or her dolls

2.  She loves to watch a movie and eat buttered popcorn

3.  She loves school and coloring

4.  She can write her full name:  Anna Caroline Bartig

5.  She has some Anna-isms when pronouncing words such as ca-parade/parade, balini/bikini, gassert/dessert, eye-tacts/contacts, dry-up/cover-up

Awards Night

Kate had a big accomplishment tonight! She completed her AWANA book at church and received an award for all of her hard work memorizing scripture this year! Way to go Kate! We are so proud of you! You couldn't take the smile off your face tonight!

After a very challenging recovery from cataract surgery last week it was really nice to laugh with mom today. The girls found some balloons in the drawers of the sunroom and wanted grandma to blow them up...well, she tried and then she tried again. Grandma really was trying to blow up these balloons but it became fast entertainment for the girls and me.

It happened...I inched another year closer to 40.  Lately, I am feeling old and definitely have more grey hair to cover up.  Overall, a beautiful day to have a birthday with 60 degree weather.  A little different from when I was born...according to mom dad went snowmobiling on the day I came home from the hospital.  Jeff made me breakfast before heading off to church and the rest of the day was spent relaxing while the rest of the family cleaned up the house...why can't this happen every day?   In keeping with tradition we went out to dinner with Mike and Kathy Price since Mike and I share the same birthday.  This year we traveled downtown Minneapolis to Fogo De Chao.  If you love to eat meat this is the place to be.  All you have to do is turn your chip to green and they just keep bringing you meat on a large skewer and when your plate is full turn your chip over to red.  The filet mignon and parmesan crusted pork were fabulous!  Overall, a great birthday!  

Daddy's Day Off Part 2

Daddy and Anna got to spend the afternoon together at school celebrating her 5th birthday.

Anna loves coloring on the warming tray.  Today they were talking about wizards so Anna was coloring a wizard hat.

How did Mrs. Eiring know that Anna's 5th birthday celebration theme was going to be rainbows?  

A special celebration snack today for Anna's class:  chocolate cupcakes with white frosting and rainbow sprinkles (per Anna's request).

One of daddy's favorite parts of the day:  going with Anna's class to feed the deer.  We think daddy may have gotten the jitters but it was from excitement about what the class was learning at school about local wildlife rather than a possible freezer selection.

Overall a great day off for daddy and his little ladies.  Daddy was very impressed with the girls' school (so am I) and being able to spend some quality one-on-one time with his daughters.

Daddy's Day Off Part 1

Jeff was able to take a day off and spend time with his little ladies.  His day began at breakfast with Kate who had the day off because of Kindergarten registration for next year.  Kate insisted on getting donuts for breakfast while daddy wanted something more substantial.  So, in compromising fashion, daddy got donuts for Kate at the grocery store and  brought them to the restaurant so they could enjoy the best of both worlds at Keys.

Kate and daddy's self portrait.

While Kate and daddy were away Anna and I were busy baking these....we had to prepare for part II of daddy's day off.

Daily Musings

It is very frigid today and very windy. In fact the wind kept me up most of the night. So much for a good night's sleep. When it is this cold for a March day this picture makes me smile...Anna loves to wear sunglasses (any glasses for that matter). Here we are waiting to go into school for Jr. Kindergarten and my sunglasses happen to be handy...

Yogurt. It is a common snack in our house. Today Anna needed an "appetizer" while she waited for her breakfast to be ready. Yogurt is great in our smoothies too...

Hashbrowns. Something we eat a lot around here also. If Anna had her way she would eat these breakfast, lunch and dinner. Hashbrowns with a little ketchup is a delicacy in our house.

Crockpot. One of my best friends. Whoever invented this little gem of a kitchen gadget must have been a full -fledged mom! When we have a busy day scheduled this is my companion for sanity (and eating healthy). Thank you crockpot inventor! Today's crockpot meal: rigatoni.

Do you ever feel like you are in a movie?

Pajama Day was a great success last Friday for Kate.  Her classroom was showing Space Buddies and the other four classrooms were showing other movies.  She decided to stay in her classroom and enjoy popcorn and treats.  Rumor has it NO work was done that day either!  Just fun stuff...according to Kate.  And, neighbor Jack, who is in Ms. Roth's class came to her class to watch Space Buddies.

Now today, Monday, Anna and I had to take Grandma Joyce to the doctor for a check up to make sure she is healthy enough for her cataract surgery on Wednesday.  Going outside the doors of the Comforts of Home can be quite an "adventure" for my mom.  As we drive down Crest View Drive we pass many businesses on our short distance to the clinic.  However, mom always has to read every business name we pass...Pizza Hut, Dave Holt Ford, County Market, Holiday...as I sit and listen to her commentary I am transposed to the scene in the movie Forget Paris when Debra Winger is taking her elderly father-in-law some place in her car and he proceeds to read every business sign on their drive.  She obviously becomes annoyed and when she gets home she retells her experience to her husband Billy Crystal who in Billy Crystal-style explains this is just a part of getting old.