Christmas Eve Scavenger Hunt

December 26, 2011 - Posted by althea- 1 Comment

Hope you all had a great Christmas! Here’s a little video from a Christmas Eve scavenger hunt we all did.



Almost Christmas!

December 22, 2011 - Posted by althea- 0 Comments

I wish I’d been posting more this month!  The kids have been so adorable, and our calendar has been so full of fun Christmas-y activities!  We’re heading out to Texas in the morning, and while we’re gone, we have some good family friends staying at our place.  Feels good to have the bags packed, the [...]



Rest in peace, Grandpa Harvey

November 30, 2011 - Posted by althea- 2 Comments

Sad news to share today.  Bryan’s maternal grandpa, Grandpa Harvey passed away last night. I feel really lucky to have married into a family with so many lovely people.  And Grandpa (and Grandma) Harvey are two of the sweetest, kindest people I’ve known.  Since I first met Grandpa 14 years ago, he’s felt just like [...]



Ballet and tap – the cuteness pierces my heart

November 19, 2011 - Posted by althea- 1 Comment

Sylvia has been taking ballet and tap classes at the YMCA since January, and she L.O.V.E. loves it.  It’s actually a little hard to believe that dance class is such a relatively new part of our lives.  My Sylvie girl just eats it up. Parents get to come into the classroom to watch the last [...]



Breaking it down with Eli and Celia

November 18, 2011 - Posted by althea- 1 Comment

One afternoon in late October, we had Eli and Celia over, and all the kids engaged in a little dance show.  The boys were caped wonders, dancing fiercely and courageously with ninja moves and powerful dances. The girls seemed to prefer a more flowing dance style.  Yet they still had a lot of power in [...]



Playing with Evelyn, Amalia, and Alex

November 17, 2011 - Posted by althea- 0 Comments

My friend Heather’s little girl Evelyn was in Wisconsin with Heather’s parents (her first solo visit!), and we got to join them for a play date at the Dream Park.  Here’s Sylvie, Evie, and Celia on the tire swing together. There’s Evie on the swings. Three girls eating carrots on the playground bench. We had [...]



Sylvie’s room – after

November 16, 2011 - Posted by althea- 0 Comments

Sylvia’s new room is all pulled together.  I hung her fairy bower over the bed, I got a small 9-cubby shelf for her treasures, her dresser went into Andrew’s room, the rocking chairs went away, and my grandma’s secretary came in as her new dresser.  It feels so colorful and clean and pulled-together!  So happy [...]



Sylvie’s room – before

November 15, 2011 - Posted by althea- 0 Comments

Here’s Sylvie’s bedroom when she still had her sweet toddler bed.  Oh, so cute! Tucking her dolls in to her bed and into their crib. Here’s her dresser (now with the mirror removed, it’s Andrew’s dresser), and the bookshelf in the spot where it’s been for the last 6.5 years.  Big girl with her pacifier [...]



Andrew’s new bedroom

November 14, 2011 - Posted by althea- 0 Comments

Andrew and Sylvia got new beds this fall.  Since he moved out of his toddler bed, Andrew’s had the lower trundle from the bed I had a kid.  I kind of wanted Andrew and Sylvie to share one bedroom and have the other room be a play room.  But Sylvie really needs her own space [...]



Pumpkin patch

November 12, 2011 - Posted by althea- 0 Comments

My dad and I took the kids to the Eplegaarden orchard and pumpkin patch while Bryan was on a Kickapoo River kayaking trip last month.  We collected apples, discovered pumpkins, and braved the crowds for a fun visit.  Andrew was so strong, he even carried a gallon of cider all the way back to the [...]