Life is Beautiful: July 2011

Can't believe this was almost 2 years ago!

It is almost 7, kitchen is a mess after we just devoured a very tasty meal and I sat down to catch a few blog updates. Yes, I know. How can I sit down before the dishes are all put away? But as I was reading, something made me stop and listen to the sound of my house. Our kids are actually enjoying their time together in the basement, just squealing and laughing for the past half hour. This sound, even though it can be pretty distracting or annoying, right now sounds like a heavenly music to my ears. It is so nice to listen to our kids having a good time with each other, without us trying to coach them thru it, or telling them what they should be doing together. :) They are growing up so quickly and it seems like we are already entering the next stage of life - kids beyond toddler/preschool age. Even though technically both Kason and Ani are considered preschool age it feels like they're older and so much more mature. We can talk about more things, expectations, rules, feelings and somehow it feels so freeing. I enjoyed every new steps our kids have taken and it seems like I am still enjoying the new steps they're taking. It is nice to watch who they are becoming, how they're forming into their own little persons. I think watching 2 one year olds all day during the week is really making me appreciate my own kids and being thankful we are over that stage. None of it was bad, but when they get to certain age it is really fun to do things with them, taking them places and watching their excitement. And now is that stage. I must say it is my favorite when all 3 are becoming more equal and capable to do things together. Of course, every stage has its many challenges. Life would be pretty boring without them but today I am going to be thankful for where we are and where our precious children are. They can be so sweet and so well behaved sometimes. :) I am pretty happy that pre-teen or teenage years are still ways away and I pray once they come we have the wisdom and love with each of our kids so they never feel alone or lost in this world.

It really feels as if God spoke to me just now. I had a pretty rough day, I could just feel getting worn out emotionally from taking care of 7 kids and started getting frustrated about everything. But all of a sudden I could not help but smile at my kids, or at the sounds of my kids and just feel happy and blessed that I am their mom. It is a privilege God gives me every day and not a burden or a pain. Thank you Lord for this reminder. I love my little family.

I can't even remember the last time our whole family had a vacation other than a 3 day weekend here and there. It is sad we don't get to have time away more often but hopefully we'll be able to more in the future. This last weekend though we finally managed to have a few days away together as a family and it was so wonderful. We all needed some time together and it was perfect. We managed to do a lot of things in the short time but at the same time it felt so restful.

We started off the weekend by going to the cabin where Ehren's mom's family had their annual family reunion. We stayed there until Saturday afternoon and enjoyed some lake time. After that we went down to the Cities and stayed with Ehren's aunt's family who we love staying with. We always have such a nice and relaxing time there. Of course, we had to do some fun things with the kids over the 4 days we were there and they had a blast. We went to the children's museum, Mall of America and Rainforest Cafe, boat ride on lake Minnetonka, we swam in the lake and pool, did a little shopping, I met up with an old friend, and finally Ehren and Kade got to their most anticipated Twins game. It felt so nice to have more time down there and not rush through a quick weekend like we usually do when we're there.

As it happens, the Children's museum has free admissions for all every 3rd Sunday of the month so that was a no brainer to me. Both Ehren and I braced ourselves for the craziest place on Earth, especially when we kept being warned about no strollers allowed inside on the 3rd Sunday. But to our surprise (and probably due to a 100 degree weather outside) it was the emptiest I have seen it the few times we've been there. We never had to stay in line for anything, the kids got to try all the things right away so it was just a win win. Kason loved exploring all the things there and wanted to try everything. To my surprise he was the sweetest boy to all the kids there and was so polite. However, we did have to remind him a few times over the weekend that we don't talk to strangers. :) He just has no fear of anyone or anything. Afterwards we drove to Mall of America with the kids, went to see Legoland and to eat at the Rainforest Cafe. The Rainforest Cafe was pretty cool for the kids, but I decided it is enough to go there like every 5-10 years. :) Our poor little Kason was getting so tired though as we were waiting for the food. He skipped his nap the day before and was up pretty early. He was so good though, no crabbiness at all which is what I was expecting, just very tired and he wanted to be held as we walked a little bit around the mall. So after we walked around the Nickelodeon park for a while we went back to the house so we could all rest the remainder of the day.

On Monday Ehren's uncle Kevin took us on their boat on lake Minnetonka which we always enjoy. There are the most magnificent houses there to look at and also a big mixture of houses, new and old and you could drive a boat around the lakes for a week to see everything. It was so hot though we had to stop and cool off in the lake and the kids just loved that because there was a nice sand by the shore. Really, just as a big welcome back to the Cities from "way up North" it was the hottest weekend of the year with a record high for humidity and heat index, which was kind of funny. I really wanted to do some outdoor stuff like going to Como zoo and some parks but it was way too hot to do anything other than being in the water or in the air conditioned buildings. But in the end, we did plenty of stuff and doing more would just make the trip crazy for all of us.

Ehren and Kade got to go to their very first Twins game at the new stadium and they were so excited to go. Well, Ehren was the one sooo excited to go and Kade didn't quite know what to expect. Poor guys though, it was very muggy out but at least it was in the evening so it was bearable. Ehren had a blast there and Kade enjoyed it a lot despite being so hot. The rest of us had a chance to witness a very fun photo shoot at Ehren's aunts' place during the game. It was a shoot for a bridal magazine, a wedding idea for a Southern wedding, Kentucky Derby style. They had a model who posed for a bride and created the most beautiful table outside, with fresh flowers, table settings and all the tiny little details. They also had a little dessert table and that was cute too. The bride also posed with their 3 horses. I could not believe how many people and how much effort goes into just a few pictures you see in a magazine. They worked in the 100 degree weather from around 3pm until 8pm, just crazy. They were very thankful for being able to use the air conditioned house for short breaks and for storing flowers, food, etc.

So I have to say it was one of our most successful trips since child #3 where everybody was happy and had a great time. It is so fun to create memories like this with our kids, now that they're old enough to understand and remember what we've done. Now back to our craziness we go, but at least another weekend is almost here.