One of Those Posts

This is one of those posts where I dump a random bunch of pictures into the uploader, and then I don't even check to see if I want all the pictures I just selected. Here's to our family journal!

We have been having a lot of fun around here! We have spent three weekends in Minneapolis (is that all?!), and we have tried to do something fun to explore our new city as a family every weekend since we are usually housebound during the week due to subzero temps. It's actually been warming up, so the kids and I have been able to get out a little more on quick bike rides and errands around our neighborhood. For the most part, though, we do a lot of painting, coloring, reading, rolling around in our tunnel, playing legos, and splashing in the tub.

The first weekend here was freezing. We had been packing and unpacking for the last two months, with the flu somewhere in between. We needed to do something random and fun that would get the kids wiggling. Knowing nothing about Minneapolis, we saw the Water Park of America on the side of the freeway... and we went for it. We are not theme-park people. The crowds and craziness is not really our favorite, but we had a good time and so did the kids. It was nice to be in a swimsuit when it was -30 degrees outside! But our kids are still little, and they enjoy splashing in the bathtub just as much as they did the park... so it was probably a one-time deal. 

Our second weekend here, we went to a local indoor park where they had a huge treehouse/climbing structure. The kids loved it! Peter loved climbing to the lookouts and going down slides. Brooklyn loved squirming around the toddler area. Scott and I loved getting down on our knees and really playing with our kids. It was so much fun. No pictures from either of these activities.

Our third weekend here, we were going to take the kids skiing, but we have a hard time paying money to ski the equivalent of the Alta tow-rope. So we decided to visit the Como Zoo instead. It was so much fun! It was the perfect blend of indoor/outdoor enclosures. And it was free! We are big fans of free. We're excited to visit the zoo in the warmer weather, but we were really impressed with this zoo in the winter. There were gorgeous gardens and greenhouses. Scott told me he smelled California the instant we entered one of the greenhouses. We were surrounded by orange trees and avocado trees, so he was kind of right!

We don't have big exploration plans for this weekend... yet. My parents are coming to visit, so that will be an exciting weekend! I am so excited to see them, and I am especially excited for the kids to see their Jamma and Papa who they miss very much! 

I want to include a quick note about Peter and nursery. He is doing so great in his new nursery class, which is so comforting for us! He loves nursery. He's very talkative, sings the songs, makes friends, shares, colors, and loves to tell us all about it. I am so grateful for the smooth transition. I was very anxious about how that would go for him. He loved his old nursery so much and looked forward to all the familiar faces. His excitement and comfort with his new nursery class is a huge blessing. 

Brooklyn is doing great as well! If only she could go to nursery. This social butterfly would LOVE it! She is the happiest girl, especially at church. She jabbers and chats with everyone she sees and smiles her HUGE, cheesy grin at anyone who'll look at her. The man teaching the lesson last week said, "Pretend for a minute that I'm your dad." Brooklyn heard the word, "dad," and went nuts. "DA-DA-DA-DA-DA-DA-DA-DA-DA!" Everyone started laughing while Brooklyn searched for her dad. 

Brooklyn loves her dad. LOVES her dad. LOVES. I can get the occasional "Mama" out of her, but it's usually Dada. She also loves her "Papa" and will always say, "Pa-pa-pa-pa" when we facetime with my dad. She calls my sister "Kik-kik-kik," asks for "na-na-na-na" when she is hungry and wants a "ba-ba-ba-ba-ba" when she's thirsty. I love this baby stage, and I am having a blast with my adorable baby girl!