Birthday Hamster

Our Norah Bear turned 8 on Monday. She chose to celebrate by inviting a few friends over to play and have a party after school. We did a Beanie Boo theme for the second year in a row. I think it's pretty safe to say she is obsessed with those things. 

 One of our friends knitted her a scarf and hat along with a matching one that would fit a Beanie Boo. So fun!

 The four of us went out to dinner and then enjoyed red velvet cake at home. 

 The only thing Norah wanted for her birthday was a hamster. She has been wanting a pet for a very long time, and after doing lots of research she decided a hamster was the right pet for her. And I think she knew it was something I might actually agree to. It took some convincing, but we decided to give her a hamster for her birthday. We went to the pet store and she knew right away which one she wanted. And she thought of the name on the way home...Goldie. 

 We haven't had much action out of Goldie yet, and they recommend you give hamsters a few days to get used to their new environment. She sleeps all day and wakes up at about 8:00 at night. One evening we put her in the exercise ball and had so much fun watching her scamper around. But today Norah got her first hamster bite, and that was really sad! So we're taking it slow with Goldie, hoping she's get used to us and will be the snuggly playful pet Norah was hoping for. 

Parade of Lights

Denver has a Parade of Lights every year, but the only time we went was the year we were first married. We talk about taking the girls nearly every year, then the night rolls around and it is freezing and we decide we don't want to spend hours standing outside in the frigid temperatures. We have some friends who make it an annual tradition for their family, and they make a fun night of it by staying in a hotel room and avoiding all the traffic, walking, etc. We've had some pretty warm weather lately, so we decided to try it!

We checked into the hotel and the girls got to go swimming. Then we ate pizza in our room.

 We just went downstairs, walked out the door, and watched the parade.

 Apparently there were some protesters early in the parade route, so we ended up having to wait awhile. Norah was beginning to wonder if all the waiting would be worth it. She was getting pretty grumpy about it. This picture was taken toward the beginning of the parade when she was still not quite sure if she liked it. 

By the end she had really enjoyed it and said it was worth the wait. The hot chocolate at the end was a pretty good bonus too!

Thanksgiving with Pops, Mum, and Pete

Joel's parents came to Colorado for Thanksgiving this year. His brother Peter did too, so we enjoyed a week together. We missed Ben and his family! 

The weather was great, so one day we hiked at Evergreen Lake.

 Norah Bear!

 This was the first year I've cooked Thanksgiving. I've helped my mom and other people, but never tackled it myself. I had lots of help from the girls and Peter and Mum, and it all turned out pretty tasty. Joel carved the turkey for us. 

 Anna and Norah set the table.

 Mum loves to make sugar cookies, so she and the girls made a batch while she was here. 

 And as we do most years, we decorated the tree the weekend after Thanksgiving. This year I hardly did anything. Once Joel put up the tree, I got out the boxes and let the girls take over. They did a fabulous job!

Superhero Halloween

The girls decided months ago what they wanted to be for Halloween. Joel started a weekend tradition of watching old Batman TV shows with them, and that sparked an interest in other comic book superheroes. My mom was here a few weeks ago and she helped us put together these costumes.

 We spent the evening trick or treating in our neighborhood with some friends from school. It took us half an hour just to get down one side of our block because we got to stop and talk to so many neighbors. The weather was pretty warm, so I think everyone was out. We had a great time!

Track Meet

Now that we're a month into school, it feels like we are finally getting settled into our routine. And part of that new routine was track practice two mornings a week. The PE coach at our school invites 4th, 5th, and 6th graders to be on the track team, and they have one track meet in the fall. Anna decided she wanted to do it, and she really enjoyed it. 

The track meet was on Saturday, and she ran in the 4x100 relay. She was the lead off runner for her team, and they ended up winning their heat! 

 I think part of the reason she enjoyed it so much was that her friends were there with her. And Joel helped "coach" the kids too. Norah even went to a few practices, and she's looking forward to when she gets to be on the team in a few years. 

Week at the lake with cousins!

 Joel's parents rented a cabin by a lake for the week so we could all stay together. It was the perfect place for a family vacation! 

We did lots of canoeing, which was a new experience for our girls. 

I think the best part of the week was seeing our kids have so much fun with their cousins! They live overseas, so we don't get to see them very often. We met Elisabeth for the first time. 

 The kids played on the beach and in the water most of the time. 

 Sam and Caroline gave the girls beautiful outfits from the country where they live in Asia. The girls LOVED them, and still wear them even at home. 

 We enjoyed evenings by the campfire talking, making s'mores, swatting mosquitos...

 Newton family picture minus Peter. He's a chef at a camp in Maine and summer is his busiest time so he couldn't get time off work. We missed having him there!

 And Pops got to read his book to all his grandkids at once, which was very special. 

We loved our week together, but it was hard to say goodbye! 

Walnut Grove

After our trip to NM, we were home for a few days then we got right back in the car to drive to Minnesota to spend time with Joel's side of the family. It was a pretty long road trip, so we decided to  stop in Walnut Grove, Minnesota. It was where the Ingalls family of Little House on the Prairie lived for a few years. We've read parts of those books and seen a few episodes of the TV show, so it was a fun place to visit. 

And then we hit the trail again toward Brainerd, Minnesota to a cabin by a lake.

4th of July in NM

I have not been very good about posting pictures this summer. Guess I've been having too much fun relaxing and enjoying the time off school and work. And July was a busy month with lots of travel. It started with 4th of July in New Mexico with my side of the family.

 We saw a pretty amazing fireworks show near Ruidoso NM. 

 We surprised my parents with an anniversary party. They celebrated their 40th anniversary back in June,  but since we were all going to be together we planned a surprise party with the help of my aunts. It was a huge success! They were totally surprised and lots of friends and family were able to come. 

 The girls were in charge of running the photo booth for guests to take silly pictures. 

I really can't believe we pulled it off long distance. But it was really fun to celebrate my parents together.