Weekending in Morris....

This past weekend we were in Morris, MN for a wedding (Pete & Amber).  Didn't take many pictures, but here are the few we did take.  It was a catholic mass ceremony, of which Ella lasted through the bride walking down the aisle and then she'd had enough.  So....Ella & I spent the next hour walking around...and around...and around...outside until the ceremony was over.  Thank goodness it was a nice fall day!



Here she is prior to being seated at church. It was obvious that she wasn't going to sit still for the wedding - she's like....hmm...let's see...

  

Jay & I at the reception



Ella with Annie & Andrew.  Ella's face is hilarious!

Dancing with Annie and the girls

Turkey Day 2011

Guess what we did this weekend?  Went to Worthington.  Yes.  And...completed the Turkey Day 10k!  My first race ever (except for the Warrior Dash earlier this year).  I didn't specifically train for this race, just been doing my regular workouts.  And, I don't recommend going into the 10k without running training (even a little bit would have helped!)  Jay & I ran it together, although he finished before me.  I was in a good groove for the first 2 1/2 miles, then I grabbed water at the station and struggled from there.  I had all kinds of issues: had to pee (couldn't find a place to go), couldn't breathe (combo of struggling and a windy cold day), and I could have sworn my lips were going to be stuck together forever they were so chapped from the wind.  It was a LONG 6.2 miles in my un-running training opinion.  I'm not a runner.  I am terrible at the mind over matter mindset that runners have, BUT, I finished it, and can cross that off the ol' Bucket List!  I don't know my official finish, but somewhere around 1 hour 12 minutes. Not breaking records, that's for sure!  But I have the tshirt to prove I finished!  :)

Ella hung out with Grandma Deb while were at the race, here she is showing off her Turkey Day country-ish outfit! 

It was a chilly day at the Turkey Day parade again this year. Ella wore her hat for maybe 2 minutes total.  She didn't want a blanket either. Lovely.



Chase at the parade, all bundled up!

Isn't this the cutest?  Ella & Chase were holding hands after the parade.

Most of the DeGroot family that was in town met up after the parade for some delicious turkey and a few family pictures with Grandma Alice.  Here are a few that were taken on my camera, although I'm hoping others got better shots!

Grandma Alice with her great grandchildren.  Ella wouldn't sit there alone, hence I'm also in the picture (and Tracie is with Annalee).  :)

Grandma Alice with the her children (missing Dennis)



Grandma Alice with her grandchildren present (many are missing). 

Although everyone couldn't be there, it was fun and these pictures will be treasured for years to come!

Happy Turkey Day 2011!

Pink Boots

Ella has received a pair of hand-me-down pink rain boots, which I just took out the other night. She is obsessed with the boots. LOVES the boots.

First night trying on the boots


Next day



Last night - first trip outside with the boots - doesn't she look determined? We're on the way to the sandbox to play. She was excited to play outside wearing those boots!


She was very busy and didn't want to pause for a proper picture....


Last night, after the Vikings loss...looking for grasshoppers!


Isn't this hilarious? Ella wanted to workout with us the other night so she grabbed the workout bands (although she thought the green one was a headband....then apparently it became a necklace)

It feels like Christmas Morning

Guess what? P90X2 is now available for pre-order. I got the email late yesterday and I'm so excited! (for a pre-order!) It sounds like we won't get delivery until close to Christmas, but that's a few short months away! I'm sure you all know what a huge fan we are of Beachbody programs and especially P90X. Love. Wanna start too? Or have you done P90X and you want to pre-order P90X2 too? www.beachbody.com. Seriously, they should pay me for all the awesome stuff I have to say about their products! :)

Labor Day Weekending....

Can you believe it's the first day of school for many people today? So sad that summer is winding down. We had a good Labor Day weekend. We took Ella to a different park to play on Saturday and she (and we) had a great time. There was all kinds of steps for her to climb (her favorite activity to do at a park) and new slides too! Didn't bring the camera (shoot!). Sunday was low key. Yesterday I decided we should do something fun for our long weekend, so we took a trip to Cannon Falls to bike the trail. We've never been, so I was excited!! It was a gorgeous day but Ella wasn't really into the bike trailer. It started out okay, but we got about 3 1/2 miles in and she was done. Unfortunately for all of us, we still had to pedal back to the car - 3 1/2 miles back. She was pretty upset the whole time. Lovely....a crabby Ella made for a crabby Jay. It was just me and two crabbies! HA! Once we made it back to the car, Ella was sleeping shortly afterwards, so I think it was a combination of a new activity she'd never done before and being tired. Anyway, I only got a few pictures....which make me laugh b/c they totally capture the moods of everyone!


We had lunch at the Old Market Deli, which is apparently where President Obama had lunch during his visit a few weeks ago for the town hall meeting. We didn't know that, and that's NOT why we chose to eat there, but the food was delicious! Notice the flowers on the table? Ella thought that was awesome....she kept talking about those flowers!


Ella in the trailer...don't let this expression fool you. This was during a whining episode, she's not really smiling...


'nuf said


See....I was the only one who was happy.

:)

North Shore 2011

Hey! We had a great trip to the North Shore last week/weekend. I wouldn't say it was relaxing but we had a good time and Ella had lots of new adventures. We went swimming in the (as Ella will say) "biiiiiiiiiiiiig pool!", we went rock hunting along Superior's shores in Grand Marais and Lutsen, and we went hiking as a family for the first time (it was so fun!) Here are a few pictures from our trip.

Ella taking in the view at our home away from home on Lutsen Mountain


View from our place on the mountain


Our first family hike - a spur trail for the Superior Hiking Trail at Temperance River State Park


Waving to Jay while hiking. Ella did so great in the carrier. And it was fun to hear her ramblings along the way. At one point she was singing Twinkle Twinkle Little Star (random!) and she pointed out the big rocks and waterfalls along the way.


This picture was SUPPOSED to be a family hike picture.


Jay took Ella in the pack for a short bit since he was still recovering from another back injury (our chiropractor is practically on speed dial!)


Ella in her adorable swim coverup. She looks so grown up here!


First time in a big pool!


She had a lot of fun


Ella's expression is hilarious in this picture, but she is enjoying the most delicious donut you will ever eat from World's Best Donuts in Grand Marais. I'm serious. You should go there. RIGHT NOW. Best ever. We don't have any pictures of us enjoying the donuts. I think I inhaled mine, there wouldn't have been time to snap a picture.

FOGGY Friday & Ella's first trip to Lake Superior






She thought it was pretty sweet to sit on the big rocks.















Oh, if we could only go back tomorrow for another trip.
We love the North Shore!

Oh where, oh where, have we been?!?

Oh my gosh! Where have I been? I can't believe just about a month has past since my last post. So sorry. I don't really have any pictures of significance but here are some things going down (and for me to add to Ella's book):

- Ella has become obsessed with singing. At random times. All kinds of songs. Recent favs: Jesus Loves me and the "ABCD" song. Every time she belts out Jesus Loves Me I just smile. It's darn adorable. And isn't it funny that she calls it hte "ABCD" song...I don't get why the "D" got added in there. :) She is often singing songs while carting around stores, so if you hear a young child singing Jesus Loves Me in a high-pitched tune, check, b/c it might be us!

- Ella is really picking up words/phrases we say. For example, last week, we were lounging and Ella had her milk cup, and somehow she spilled some milk on the couch. Me: "ugh" Ella: "Ohmygosh" She says Oh my gosh! I couldn't help but laugh. And when Ella says this phrase, all the words run together and she says it really fast. I think I say this phrase more than I realized.

- The other night on the way upstairs for bed, Ella said goodnight to normal things/people, and then said "Goodnight table....sleep tight table.....see you tomorrow" HA! It was funny. She was dead serious.

- If Ella fake cries, which is happening more and more now that we're in 2's, she insists on being given a kleenex, when there usually is no need for one. She'll wipe her nose and then tell me "so better"

- Ella's favorite meal of late is a cheeseburger, fries & ketchup, which is how she requests it - all three things together. Eating out recently, the waitress came and asked if we were ready to order, but Jay & I weren't yet, but Ella sure was - she looked at the waitress and said "Cheeseburger, Fries & Ketchup!" HA! The waitress sort of looked at her like, wow!

- Again, eating out this week with Grandma Jolyn, we were done and were handling the bill, but Ella was antsy, so we got up and were getting her stuff ready to go, and Ella looked at Jolyn and said "Come on Grandma....let's go..." And she repeated this about 5 times while we were getting ready to leave. It was so cute!

We had a fun time this past weekend with Kaila & Chase up to visit us. Ella & Chase had a great time - so fun they were just running around & giggling all the time. Cute. Of course, I didn't get any pictures of them together. And I forgot my camera for our trip to the Dakota County Fair on Saturday, but I did grab these pictures on my phone:


Checking out the chickens.


Another picture from the Chicken barn! This was a highlight of Ella's trip. She loved hearing the roosters.

And since I was transferring pictures from my phone, here are a couple I don't think I ever posted:


CHEESE!


Ella in Jay's trucker hat (I'm SO glad it happens to be an alcohol endorsed hat) but she still looks cute. The picture quality, however, is terrible!

More next week (or next weekend more likely) Big 6 year anniversary on 8/27. Trip to the North Shore. You know it!