Halloween DIY decor.

We learned the hard way that store bought Halloween decor is overpriced and doesn't withstand autumn in South Dakota. Year after year, we would purchase soemthing and usually the day after we put it up, its blown down or completly blown away. We've decided to add a new piece of DIY Halloween decor each year, and this year, it was Sheets. An old bed sheet + two spatulas + an old dodgeball ball was all it took. Making him was the easy part, finding a way to get him strung up in the tree was they hysterical part, seeing Greta's face when she got home from school as Sheets was blowing in the wind was the best part. What will next year bring!?

A speech graduate!

After a literal lifetime of speech therapy, Sully graduated! It consisted of a zoom call, where his therapist, teacher, principal and I met for 5 minutes and Sully received lots of praise before we clicked off. I then took a moment to reflect on all of his speech therapists and all of the rides to and from over the years and how the girls and I used to drop him off at our neighborhood school and we would drive our route; we grabbed coffee and then made a loop down by Falls Park and then it would be time to collect him already. He had mostly good reviews from his therapists, but definitely had a year or two of being silly and pushing his limits. Overall, it was the best experience for us and we are so thankful to have made that call to the Birth to Three program more than 6 years ago. Way to go, buddy, we are SO proud of you!

Yay Sully! 

A 10th anniversary trip, hurdles and all!

Dave and I had actually started planning our 10th anniversary shortly after our 9th anniversary because Dave was able to get a hotel room at the Ahwanee in Yosemite National Park, which is hard to come by. We had lots of tentative plans incorporated with the hiking trip... Napa? Big Sur? Tahoe?, but then the fires started in California and they were relentless, so we decided to go the Tahoe route. We booked the flights pretty last minute because everything was so up in the air with the kids and COVID, but we felt good about it. And then the email came from school, Piper was to be quarantined for two weeks due to a close contact, now what?! Over the next few days, we monitored Piper's symptoms and then the news broke that the wildfires in California shifted and Yosemite closed.

We went to work, googling back up options, and landed on Colorado Springs. A bit closer to home, but it still had hiking options, R&R, restaurants, and time away. We stayed at a resort called the Broadmore, and had a view of the mountains. We had wine with lunch, spa treatments, a golf game, hikes, long dinners, early bedtimes, watched the Office and splurged on plenty of wine and room service. 

It took about 2 hours to settle into resort mode. No schedules, no overbooking, just time and space to enjoy the slower pace and be together. 10 years has gone by in an instant, between kids and work and the house renovation and life, its often hard to take the time to appreciate each other, but I'm so glad we were able to, and Im so thankful for our life. 

FYI- couple photo overload ;).

Seven bridge hike.

Golf outing.

The leaves were changing and the weather was perfect. 

Sunsets in bathrobes. 

Garden of the Gods. 

Anniversary dinner. 

Happy hour.

The drive down from Pikes Peak. 

Munstream Adventures Ahead

After the idea was born in May, and after months of talking and dreaming about adventures to be had, we made it official... we ordered an Airstream! We had been pouring over manuals and styles for a few months and made a quick trip to Minneapolis to purchase our own. Because the industry is booming, the wait time is about 6 months, so we anticipate going pick it up in April, just in time for summer. Our bucket list has grown, we have so many ideas of places we want to explore, and the kids are just as excited. We purchased a Globetrotter, 27ft, in London Grey, and it's absolutely GORGEOUS. Prepare for camping post overload this spring/summer/fall. Upon returning home, Dave read the owners manual from front to back, and the more he reads, the more excited he gets. It's a win all around. 

The layout. 

A photo of the interior. 

Waiting on paperwork. 

See you in April! 

School photos 2020

Ahh, the excitement of school photos, then the anticipation and the satisfaction that they turn out just right. We feel lucky to have made it this far into the school year to even capture school photos. I can't believe how grown up the kids are starting to look. 

Sully- 2nd Grade

Greta- 1st Grade

Growing up fast. 

And our little icing on the cake, 
in her last year of preschool. 

Black Hills Adventure

We were so excited to hit the road and have some good quality family time over Labor Day weekend. We got a late start after the kid's school day, but because of COVID, I feel like everyday the kids can be in school, they should be there. So, we arrived to the cabin late in the evening after a full day. We woke up to mountains and the fresh air. We had perfect weather, we hiked, biked, boated, tubed, ate, drank, explored and celebrated with friends. It was a lovely weekend, just what we needed. I'll let the photos tell the rest of the story. 

Dinner in DTRC.                                                                                                                                                

Lovely cabin with a view.

Celebrating with the Barkers. 

Pontoonin on Pactola.

S'mores. 

Coffee date. 

Legion Lake hike. 

Legion Lake swim.

While the kids swim...

Sweet trio. 

Football in the front yard. 

Final night at the cabin. 

Finally- back in school.

We finished summer strong, it seemed most of our summer was chill, laid back, no real urgency to be anywhere, until the last two weeks. We tried to cram in as much as we possibly could, until they finally went back to school. 

Piper's first day was great! She was so excited to go back to school and be with her friends. She went to school with a mask on, but when I picked her up, it was off. She had a great day and hardly looked back when I dropped her off. The most special part was that we got to go as a whole family since Sully and Greta didn't start until the following day. We were all so proud of the littlest sis on her first day of school. 

Sully and Greta started on Friday. Sully was absolutely thrilled to get back to school. When I had him help me with chores around the house before school started, she would complain and say, "ugh, mom, why can't we skip this and get back to school today!?" Greta was a little quieter, but assured me she was excited and ready to go back. The morning of the first day she was too nervous to eat her breakfast and had just a few tears but walked in brave and ready to tackle the day. The kids are walking in as they arrive to school so there isn't as much commotion on the playground and crowds are smaller which I think is actually going to be great for her once she gets in the swing of things. 

They got off the bus happy and had great days. They both really like their teachers and have a few familiar faces in their classes. We are optimistic for a great year ahead and will do our best to prepare for whatever covid has to throw our way. 

Matching haircuts for my girlies. 

Chatting with the gals, including Megan 
all the way over in Japan! 

Sparkler fun. 

Sweet trio. 

Bootcamp before bed. 

Piper before preschool, so grown up! 

Everyone is so proud of Piper. 

Surprise bday celebrations for Liz. 

The day has finally arrived! 

I love how Sully steps up to the plate for Greta
when she needs it the most. 

The best time of the year for bouquets.