Leah's Birthday Party

Wednesday would have been Leah's 5th birthday, so we made our annual trip to the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum to celebrate her birthday. It was an absolutely beautiful day - the 80 degree weather was quite refreshing after the unrelenting 90's. It wasn't all that hot, but the kids needed to make sure they got their water breaks in.

Kelson is ready for the group photo, but nobody else showed up!

Koleman found the captain's chair, high up in the treehouse.

Hey, there they all are! Looking pretty cute.

It's not a birthday party without treats! The kids eagerly await the Special K Bars.

After singing Happy Birthday the kids (well, Koleman mostly) blow out the candles. Finally time to dig in.

Eli and Kelson enjoy the bars.

One of the highlights of our trip to the Arboretum is playing in the small houses they have which show the benefits of having your house shaded by trees. The kids completely missed the educational opportunities, and just played.

The door pretty much lends itself to that pose. She pulls it off well, I think.

Eli says, "Welcome to my house!"

Kelson checks out the view from the east wing of the house.

And here's a picture of all of us. Even though the only pictures were of kids, Michelle and I were there too, along with Grandma Karen and Grandpa Gary. It was a beautiful day, and a very nice way to remember Leah. She still touches our life to this day.

Just Some Random Pictures

Here's a cute picture of Eli with his Annie Bear.

For no good reason at all, we set up a tent in our living room. Kelson took it upon himself to be the head camp cook. No reason to rough it completely, I suppose.

Milena was hard at work at the campsite kitchen as well.

In this picture, Kelson is pointing to the location of a small, metal magnet ball. "It's in my tummy!" Michelle said that it was quite easy to spot in the x-ray. Darn kids. Anyway, we're supposed to, um, watch for it to make sure it passes properly. Anybody have a portable metal detector that I can use to scan dirty diapers? Anybody?

The Lund Desert Eating Extravaganza

A couple of weekends ago we went to the Lund Family Reunion, but as the pictures show it was mostly the kids eating deserts. Look at all those treats!

It was hot, and Milena was a bit flushed, but she still somehow managed to eat cake and brownies. Amazing.

This looks like one happy boy!

Mmmmmm, chocolate!

And, of course, there was Rommegrot. As you can tell by the recipe, it's extremely healthy and non-fattening. Which is probably why the kids wouldn't stop eating it. I think they're Norwegian heritage is really showing!

Milena could have eaten Rommegrot all day long.

Grandpa Lindy is excited to see the kids eating the traditional dish, just like he did in the old country. (By "old country", I mean central Minnesota)

Milena's Parade

Milena turned 4 last week (July 3), and the city of St. Peter had a big parade the next day in celebration of her big day. As you can see here, Milena is ready to go!

A fire truck. There were a lot more than just this one, but I'll spare you the repitition.

Grandma Karen, Grandpa Gary and Grandpa Larry all came along to Milena's Parade with us. While Karen bravely watches the children, the old men are nowhere to be seen.

In honor of Milena's Guatemalan heritage, a fat white man dressed up as an indian chief and handed out beads.

Kelson watches Milena's Parade intently.

Koleman watches Milena's Parade intently.

Oh, Eli was along as well. However, he got scared right away and spent the rest of the time in the porch of the house we were at.

Segway! Segway! Segway!

What Would Jesus Drive? A yellow Ford Mustang convertible with his name in foot high font on the side, naturally.

And, conveniently, Jesus would have his own band following him wherever he drives. Here you can see that they are playing Stairway to Heaven.

No parade is complete without a hearse. And, if you have a hearse...

... you need to have a freaky zombie guy with buggy eyes handing out candy. He's my new best friend.

And here's the place where we watched the parade. We had friends who lived along the parade route who put down a huge tarp on their boulevard to keep nasty people away from us. In their house they had bagels, cream cheese, salmon, fruit, drinks - definitely the way to view a parade. There are a few things of note in this picture. First, Eli has become brave enough to come close to the street. Second, the two grandpas found a nice relaxing spot in the shade, safely away from both the sun and children. Third, you can see one of my favorite professors from college. And lastly, you can't see Milena. I think she went to steal some kid's juice box. Hey, it was her parade, she should get to have some fun.

Milena's Birthday!

Milena decided to have a birthday, so we decided to have a little party for her. She was lucky enough to have 7 of her grandparents in town for the party. Of course there were lots of presents.

It's Milena and her new friend, Dora the Explorer.

Hey! It's Kelson the Explorer!

Milena got to pick out a cake to make, and then got to blow out the candle. (Koleman decorated her chair for her)

Everyone thought it was a fun party and had a good time ... except for Eli. He was bored by the whole thing.

Super Cute Kids!

The kids are going to be in a wedding in August, and we decided to try on their special wedding outfits. They are, naturally, adorable. You will notice that Kelson isn't in this picture because he screams like a madman when we try to put the clothes on him. And don't even consider asking him to wear the hat. But the other three sure were cute!

And here is photographic evidence that Eli and Koleman do actually like each other sometimes (generally they limit it to three minutes a day).

Swimming Lessons!

Koleman, Eli and Milena just finished up two weeks of swimming lessons. They absolutely loved it. Eli and Milena were in Dolphins, where they started to learn some swimming strokes. Here they are!

Eli, Milena and two friends drive their boat. The reason there is no instructer is that they just drove over her. Quite sad.

Koleman did a great job with his lessons. He can actually swim now! For some reason he attempts to escape. Not sure if that is part of the lesson.

Since it's the last day of class, Koleman is going to jump off the high dive. Will he do it?

Yes he will! Way to go, Koleman!