Happy Birthday Tara!

Hope it is a great birthday!

First Days of School

This week the boys went back to school and Marisa is at her first day of Pre-K. Mom is keeping her fingers crossed that she is having fun. She was excited this morning, but looked a little apprehensive when I left, but no tears that I could see.

Ready to head to Pre-K:
Marisa and her teacher, Mrs. Judd:

Nicholas on the first day of second grade:

Nicholas with his teacher, Mrs. Stack:

Tyler on the first day of 7th grade:

Tyler and his homeroom teacher, Mrs. Perrizo:

Here's hoping they all have a great first week and an amazing school year!

What a Month!

Nicholas has had quite the month. In the last few weeks he learned to tie his shoes, ride his bike without training wheels, went on the Spaceship ride at the State Fair, started second grade and lost his first tooth. WOW - way to go Nicholas - we are proud of you and can't wait to see what your next accomplishment is going to be!

Riding a two wheeler:
Tied them himself:
A new smile:

Happy Fourth Birthday!

While we were at the cabin - Marisa turned Four! How the heck did that happen, where did the last four years go? She had fun having cupcakes at the cabin and then when we got home, we had another birthday party for her. She was excited to see her friends Sara and Madelyn and her new cousin Mikayla, and to eat more cupcakes! YUM!

Yum....more cupcakes, I love birthdays!

Make a wish:

Happy Birthday Baby Girl!

Pink Family Trip

This year we took our Annual Pink Family trip to a cabin just outside of McGregor, MN. We had perfect weather - not too hot, not too cold and only a few drizzles. The kids had fun fishing from the dock...Marisa loved to get the wax worms out of the container! The boys had fun tubing and Tyler finally gave waterskiing another try and was able to get out of the water and had a blast! He was wishing he had tried it before Friday!

Here's the cabin we rented:

Family picture on the dock:
Family picture on the deck:

They are off to go fishing:

There he goes! Tyler waterskiing:

Marisa celebrated her birthday by taking her first (and only) tube ride with Mom:

The boys loved tubing:

On Monday, the weather was a little cool so we decided to head to Duluth to check out the tall ships event that was in town. It was cool to see all the ships - especially when they were out on the water with the sails up:

We had a great week and can't wait to see what adventure is in store for next year!

Eichten Family Reunion

At the end of July we went to the Eichten Family Reunion. The boys had fun reconnecting with Jacob and Cole from Texas. They had a blast swimming in Lake Pepin and also enjoyed a sleepover with them. A fun time was had by all.

Marisa and Nancy watching over Lake Pepin:
Family Photo with Great Grandpa and Grandma:
Swimming in Lake Pepin with Jake and Cole:

We love Aunt Nancy!

Can't wait for the next reunion!

June and July

Really -it's the middle of July already? Where does the time go? This summer is flying by fast....both in a good and bad way! As school ended, Ron was able to take a work trip to London. He had a good time with some really long days but the kids were excited to "see" him via Skype.

The whole family was able to take a trip to Valleyfair with Grandma - Thanks Grandma for getting the free tickets - we had a great time! We talked Nicholas into trying the Mad Mouse coaster ride. Although he held on for dear life the first time, he liked it and we ended up riding it a few more times. He also enjoyed the scrambler and the bumper cars. Marisa loved the bumper cars as well. She would ride with me, (Laurel) and would giggle every time we hit someone. She especially loved to hit one of her brothers! Tyler was super-excited to be able to ride every ride. He loved the Power Tower and Wild Thing, but wasn't sure about the Steel Venom. He also loved the corkscrew and Renegade. The weather was beautiful and a fun time was had by all.

Marisa on the carousel:

Waiting for the train ride with Grandma:

Marisa mini-golfing:

Mom and Nicholas on the scrambler:

One of Tyler's favorite rides....Power Tower.... He went on the one where it takes you to the top and drops you....he started screaming at the top and couldn't breathe until they got to the bottom. He also liked the one that shot you up from the bottom.

We finally were able to spend a full weekend at the camper towards the end of June - with all of the soccer and lacrosse practices and games, we were unable to make it to the camper too much this spring. We are hoping to make up for it the rest of the summer! The fourth of July was hot and humid...and the parade was wet but we still had a great time at the camper.

After three years of trying, Leo finally was able to convince Marisa to sit in his lap. I don't know who was more surprised, Leo or Mom!

The campground held bean bag tournaments for the both adults and kids. Nicholas' partner wasn't thrilled to be with a 'little kid' but soon changed his tune when he was hitting the board. Nicholas and his partner Cole took second place...Way to Go!

Such form Nicholas has when throwing the bag:
Second place winners!

Marisa loves to play on the playground at the campground. Here she is climbing up the slide:

Unfortunately, the Fourth of July parade ended up being wet - it was raining pretty much the whole time. Most of the time it was light sprinkles and the kids still got a bag full of candy and a few freezies!

The campground usually has a horseshoe tourney during the weekend. Grandpa usually does pretty good and if I remember correctly - his team won this tournament:

You know it's been a good weekend when all the bottle are empty:

Marisa and Grandma - Marisa took Aunty Pat's water bottle on one of the really hot afternoons and was spraying everyone and everything that she could!

Ron making camper pizza/pies in the heat...yummy!

Tyler and Grandpa playing bean bags:

Marisa with an inchworm on her hands...she thinks it is fun when they move along her hand/arm:

The kids love to swim - especially on the days when there aren't as many people at the campground:

The first weekend we were at the camper, the weather got nasty Friday night...we ended up spending an hour in the laundry room as the sirens went off indicating severe weather. The kids were scared and still ask about tornadoes every time there is a storm coming. We made it through okay (funnel was on the other side of the county) and unfortunately it rained hard again on Saturday night so we were unable to make smores outside. The next best thing...indoor smores....they were an ooey gooey mess, but the kids liked them!

On the fourth of July weekend - Dad and Grandma took the boys to see the fireworks in Cannon Falls. They drove to a road that was in the "middle of a stitch" according to Nicholas but once the show began the boys realized they were in a good spot to see everything. Marisa had fallen asleep at the table during dinner and never woke up until the next morning so Mom stayed back with her that night.

Nicholas watching the fireworks from the top of the van: Fireworks:

Both boys on top of the van:

Nicholas has been playing nearball this summer. It is baseball where the coaches pitch the ball. He is having a good time and likes that his dad is coaching the team.

Batter Up:

Nearball fans:

Waiting for the next batter to hit:

Out in the field with dad:

Coaches (Dad) pitch:

Nicholas loves to play catcher:

Tyler had a lacrosse tourney last weekend where it was also hot but he had a good time. Five games in two days is a lot, but his team played well and came out with a third place finish out of eight teams. Way to Go boys.

What you get when you mix a three year old, a Scooby Doo ice cream treat, and a hot humid day at a lacrosse tourney:

Tyler:

Making a leap for the ball:

How many boys can you squeeze on one little bench:

Waiting for the ball:

Getting directions from the assistant coach:

Trying to get the ball in the middle of the pile:

The next few weeks look to be busy ones in our household. We are looking forward to Aunt Nancy's visit next week as she comes in for the Eichten family reunion being held in Lake City. After that, we are taking our annual trip up north with Grandpa and Aunt Tara and Uncle Brian. We always have a great time and this year will hopefully be the same...minus the swimmers itch!

Hope everyone else is having an awesome summer!