Fishing Opener

On Fishing Opener we went up to Norwoods cabin on the lake. Arlie's uncle Ryan was there as well as Arlie's sister and family. Since the kids were older we really wanted to take them out more than we have in other years. Both kids caught fish and we ended up with our fair share of Walleyes and Northern. We had several good fish fries...nothing like fresh fish frying up in a pan...yummy :) On Sunday when we brought the kids out fishing there was no wind in the big part of the lake. It was amazing and warm. It was the first time I remember it being so warm during fishing opener. It sure makes fishing more enjoyable. We had some great family time.

When bored fishing, why not just watch the fish in the live well :0 )

During the middle of the day on Saturday some friends of ours from up North were celebrating their sons birthday in Duluth. So the kids and I went and met them at a water park (The Edge) and played there. My kids loved that and I'm sure Arlie's parents enjoyed a bit of a break from the kids as they aren't always the most quiet.



I'm looking forward to fishing again this year. I love that the kids are older now because even if they don't want to fish, they can sit and color or draw or entertain themselves, but still be out there with us. What a great season of life!

Sydney reading to Bjorn

Track and Field - Jordan

Jordan likes being active, but I'm not sure that I would call him super athletic (unless you consider climbing anything and everything athletic). That being said, he did AWESOME at track and field this year. He got 4 blue ribbons and 2 red ribbons. The 2 red was for the baseball throw and the 50 yard dash. I was proud of him. In the 50 yard dash it was totally who you were paired up against, they didn't put the "good" runners against the "good" runners, so it was all luck of the draw and he still got 2nd. He got a first place in the "Shoe toss (yes I'm pretty sure they could find a better "sport" than a shoe toss...but the kids seemed to enjoy it. What is it? you toss the shoe off your foot and see how far it goes. Not really something I want him to be good at or practicing at home :) ), jump rope, long distance run and long jump. It was really fun to watch him this year as he tried hard at everything he did. Last year, he walk the long distance track with a friend of his instead of running. This year, he ditched his friend and gave it his all. Jordan's class was the grand champion for the boys at tug of war. I'm sure it was all because of Jordan's super strength :)

Resturant Critic - Osaka

If you want to have not just food, but an experience, Osaka is a resturant you should definately try. I've sat at both the Sushi bar side and the Hibachi side. Kids can come and will have a good time. On the Hibachi side of the resturant, the chefs cook on a grill right in front of you. They entertain while they cook. We ordered a Spicy Crab Roll, the Hibachi chicken and shrimp with salad and fried rice and then ended with an Alaskan Roll. The Spicy crab roll was DELICIOUS! Great texture, wonderful flavor. The Hibachi chicken and shrimp along with the fried rice was made in front of us. It was the best fried rice I've had recently. The chicken was amazingly tender. The Shrimp was cook very well, but I've had better. The salad dressing had an interesting flavor to it, almost like a mix between a thousand island and sushi sauce of some sort. It tasted good, but definately wasn't "Classic" if that's what you like. The Alaskan Roll tasted too fishy for my liking. The cost wasn't terrible. The sushi rolls were only around $5.00 and the Hibachi combo was about $25.00. It was a clean, fun resturant with a great upbeat atmosphere. The food was good, some of it great, but definately a place that we'll go to again.

My mom

A lot of people say that once they become a parent they are really thankful for their parents because they now realize just how tough it is and what a good job they did. I did come to appreciate my parents more after I had kids...however, my mom was honestly so great that I remember bragging to my friends, and people that I knew, about how my mom was the perfect mom. She was patient and kind. Loving, even in her punishments. She laughed a lot. She always included us in what she was doing whether it be cooking, cleaning, crafts...we got to do it to (which me begin a control freak understands that having kids help you is NOT always a help :) ). She ALWAYS seemed to have time for us, whether it was reading our bedtime stories (when it was sad, she would start crying and dad would have to finish reading it...if it was happy sometimes she'd laugh so hard, we couldn't understand her) or watching our many, MANY dance routines and performances. She was encouraging and proud of what we did. She had a great balance, in my opinion, of keeping the house clean to teach us not to be pigs, but knowing that there are also more important things to do than always cleaning. She let us be kids, but taught us responsibility. She had the patience to teach us all the way from K-11th grade (for me), which I know wasn't easy because I would get very frustrated when I didn't know something. She made life fun. She is the most giving person I know. She would give the shirt off her back if she thought someone could use it, and yet she is so humble she wouldn't think that she did anything big. She taught me how to love, how to give, how to be a wife and mom that is Godly, how to live life for the moments and appreciate all the things in life...little and big. I know this sounds cliche, but I would NOT be the person I am if it wasn't for her amazing influence on my life. My mom is the most amazing person I know. If I can become half the person she is, I'll be pretty proud! I love you mom!

A wonderful Mother's day!

Mother's day was wonderful this year. I had to teach my 2 and 3 year old Sunday School (but they were all really good for me). After church was over, we went to a Sushi and Hibachi grill.

I wasn't sure if the kids would like it or not, but it was so cool. They cook all the food (besides the sushi) right in front of you. They light the grills on fire, they toss food into peoples mouths, do cool things with their knives. It's all very entertaining and the food is great.


Sydney tried Sushi (although she decided she didn't like it much). She loved the fried rice. Jordan just had a salad, but loved watching everything. It's Sydney's new "Favorite" resturant. We came home for a short time and then I decided that we should go for walk/scooter ride around Lake Calhoun.


The day couldn't have been better. Arlie and I brought books. We'd walk for awhile until the kids wanted to play and then we'd sit down and read and let the kids play. We spent a couple of hours there...until Jordan didn't get his way and then all went down hill from there. We had to leave. Fortunately, it had still been so much fun that it was worth going! We came home and I read a book for the evening. It was perfect, wonderful and lovely. I loved the time together with my family! God really blessed me by giving me the best family ever :)

Bell Museum

Sydney's class got to go on a field trip to the Bell Museum off the University of Minnesota campus. I love Kindergarten because they don't limit the number of chaperons (in Jordan's class they draw names and my hasn't ever been drawn :( ). I had another mom and 10 kids with me. We spent a good 3-4 hours there and they didn't get to even see a portion of the museum. It is filled with dioramas.
The student tour guides were great. They played games to show how different animals got their food or different habit of the animals.



They have a great touch and feel room where the kids can literally touch almost everything in the room. You could spend hours just in that room.


They did a presentation for the kids about the differences between moths and butterflies. I learned something new and hopefully the kids did as well. I love getting to see Sydney interacting with her friends and getting to know her classmates. It was a fun day :)

May 7th....ARE YOU KIDDING ME?

Really? Really? It really is snowing in Minnesota on May 7th/8th? I have nothing else to say other than...REALLY?