Twin Cities

This past weekend we made our annual pilgrimage to the Twin Cities. The drive was a little shorter this time, which made it nice. We had a great time staying with Hope & Jeff and seeing a lot of friends. I think that the kids spent most of the weekend adjusting to various dogs, and it has been mostly what they talk about since we returned.

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The Dishwasher is my friend

We have always had a dishwasher. In the beginning I appreciated it for its function. It certainly did do an OK job washing the dishes, most of the time.

When Andrew was young sometimes he seemed to be soothed by its rhythmic noises.

Now, as our kids get older, and recognize the rustling of a bag, or a utensil clanking against a plate or bowl, the dishwasher serves as a cover, as I sneak a few chips, some ice cream, or a piece of cake.

I guess it is a good thing we have never chosen one of the really quiet ones!

Mari's 4th Birthday

Yesterday we celebrated Mari's 4th birthday. It was a fun Summer BBQ, water-balloon fight and all.

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The Infirmary

In the past 6 months we have dealt with both lice and chicken pox. Anything else we need to know about?

Adventureland

This past Friday we went on our first trip to Adventureland. Like most things in Des Moines it is a little smaller than in big cities, a little cheaper, and a lot more convenient. We did not tell the kids we were going until the morning of, and they were very excited. Andrew could not wait to go on a rollercoaster, and Elliot and Mari were up for anything. It was a fun day.


Andrew's First Rollercoaster




If you can't see the video, Click Here.

Playing

I have a rule about asking more questions. Basically if there is a question I want to ask, I have to ask it. Maybe I will share some of the Q/A's here.

Yesterday at Mahoney State Park there was another family at the playground and they were all playing together really well. They had four kids, ranging from 6 or so to an older teenage boy. All four kids seemed to be engaged with each other in various games.

I asked the parents a few questions and I think that the two most interesting answers dealt with how they get them all to play together and how they spend their Friday nights. First of all, they said that in any activity they do as a family they try to find a way to get everyone involved so that the older kids are interacting more with the younger kids, rather than doing their own thing. They also encourage the older kids to play at the littler kids' levels.

They also shared with me that on Friday nights they have 'Special Treat Night' where one kid gets to pick what they eat for dinner and then after dinner they play games - usually one for the younger kids and then after they are asleep they play a game for the older kids.

It seemed like they had to work hard to get where they were, and probably had to make some 'sacrifices'. In the end they seemed very excited about where it has gotten them and were very excited to share with me.

After we left the playground to say goodbye to the Connor's, who were playing tennis, we saw the family again at the tennis courts, playing 'triples', with three members of the family on each side of the court.

Swimming in Omaha

On our way back from Mahoney State Park yesterday we stopped in Omaha to hang out with our friends Andrea and Grace for a while. They are usually in NYC, so it was nice to have them so close. Since we were passing right through we stopped for a little while to hang out and visit.

There was a large number of veggie straws consumed.

Mahoney State Park

Last night we returned from a 4 day trip to Mahoney State Park. Susan's sister, Mary, and her family have been going there for the past few years and this year they convinced the rest of us to come out (it didn't take much convincing). We had a nice time swimming, hiking, fishing, playing tennis, mini-golfing, and melodrama-ing. The kids were totally worn out by the time we made it home. All three were asleep by 8 and slept late this morning.