Andie, Sawyer and I went to a craft retreat in St. Cloud, Minnesota for a few days with my mother-in-law and several of Shane's aunts and cousins. It's ladies only, so Wyatt stayed home for some special time with daddy and Papa. (And Sawyers ticket in is he's still breastfeeding.) It was SO fun!! We worked, laughed a lot, ate lots of
nibblies and got little sleep. I felt so special because half of the group was working on gifts for my kids - quilts, little pillows (like yours, Meg) and pajamas for Andie... it was great. Of course, they had to tease me that at the rate I have babies, they have been pretty busy :). Really, I love them to pieces and am so blessed to be a part of this family. They are so wonderful and have truly made me feel like one of their own.
This is Aunt Julie. We stayed at their house the first night in Cambridge, MN, and Andie is STILL talking about cousin Daniel!! He is the best kid - gave Andie toys to play with, took her to the park and even tucked her in that night! WE LOVE YOU, DAN!! (When are you guys moving in next door?) :) This pic is Aunt Julie giving Sawyer a sewing lesson with the beautiful quilt she made just for him! Man, can these ladies sew!
Aunt Betty (Great Great Aunt Betty to the kids) is one of the sweetest ladies you could ever meet. She brought her scrapbook album to work on and she does recall the show I Love Lucy (Emily, you're cute).
This is cousin Emily and cousin Andrea. Now let me just say these girls are the most WONDERFUL young people!!! They are so nice and played with Andie, held Sawyer and offered help left and right. I LOVE THEM! Thank you, sweethearts!
Aunt Sandi Sue (who is really a cousin, but we call her aunt) with Sandi and her rotary cutter. We met Sandi Sue in
Ames on the way up to caravan and because our car was packed to the gills. She is so fun! These two together = trouble! Ha!
Cousin Barb with her
scrapbooking supplies. (Yea - another
scrapbooker!) She actually got 15 pages done...but how is she the lucky one who lives right there in St. Cloud?
Andie's first little meet the teacher night for preschool - do you think the sassy red boots gave the teacher any worries about this girl? :)
Shane has been building a new front porch for our house (since it didn't have one) and the kids have a new interest in their play tools. I found them measuring and fixing their trampoline. too cute.
And now the infamous "letting go" of things...
There is something about Grandpa Great's scooter that all of the kids love. When they were little, it was almost mesmerizing to gently glide around, now Andie pretends she is riding a bus and Wyatt wants to DRIVE the thing!
Doing chalks together...the simple pleasures of summer.
Andie went to visit my mom and dad for a couple of days with her cousin Raeanna. They went to a butterfly garden in Ames, then down to their house at the lake. She had so much fun! (Her mom and dad were a little nervous, though, as it was her first time spending the night away from us!) She came home exhausted, but as they were pulling away, she was crying and said between sniffles, "I...don't want...Gammie and Papa... to go." 
My mom and Andie at the gardens.
This is Aunt Julie. We stayed at their house the first night in Cambridge, MN, and Andie is STILL talking about cousin Daniel!! He is the best kid - gave Andie toys to play with, took her to the park and even tucked her in that night! WE LOVE YOU, DAN!! (When are you guys moving in next door?) :) This pic is Aunt Julie giving Sawyer a sewing lesson with the beautiful quilt she made just for him! Man, can these ladies sew!
Aunt Betty (Great Great Aunt Betty to the kids) is one of the sweetest ladies you could ever meet. She brought her scrapbook album to work on and she does recall the show I Love Lucy (Emily, you're cute).
This is cousin Emily and cousin Andrea. Now let me just say these girls are the most WONDERFUL young people!!! They are so nice and played with Andie, held Sawyer and offered help left and right. I LOVE THEM! Thank you, sweethearts!
Aunt Sandi Sue (who is really a cousin, but we call her aunt) with Sandi and her rotary cutter. We met Sandi Sue in Ames on the way up to caravan and because our car was packed to the gills. She is so fun! These two together = trouble! Ha!
Cousin Barb with her scrapbooking supplies. (Yea - another scrapbooker!) She actually got 15 pages done...but how is she the lucky one who lives right there in St. Cloud?
Sissy making crafts. She had a blast. Cousins to love on her, chocolate to eat... yep, she had a fun time. When I asked her if she missed Wyatt, she just looked at me and said, "Noo-o".
This has to be one of my favorite things! Shane plays bass guitar for the church band and whenever he practices, the kids drag all of their little instruments into our little office room to play along with him. Here, Andie has made her own sheet music like daddy's and is playing on the floor right next to his chair. But often they are dancing around AND playing various instruments at the same time with quite fancy moves. I'm pretty sure this is counterproductive to Shane's practice time - but it is so cute.
Wyatt gave Sawyer a trumpet. :)
Just thought this was cute...let me sleep!
