Lund Family Reunion

Last night we got together with the Lund side of our family - my Grandma Wennerstrom's brother Don and his family. These are my dad's cousins, and they all live locally, but we don't see them very often.

We really had a great time, and I think both Kelly and I will see all of the cousins and their kids more often.

Jeff and Bonnie hosted the get together at their beautiful home in Prior Lake.

Here is Kelly and Bonnie.

It was really nice to get to know Jen and her husband Adam better. Jen is the daughter of one of my dad's cousins. Turns out she's a crafty one too.

The boys thoroughly enjoyed Jeff's ginormous projection screen in the basement. They watched Cars and had fresh popcorn out of a movie theatre style popcorn maker.

The boys also played hide and seek (quite an adventure in this house!) with Aleck, Lisa's son. He is ten and such a nice little guy.

It was really fun to get to reunite with this side of our family and get to know them better, know that we are adults.

Nancy's 90th Birthday

Yesterday we gathered at Uncle Gregg's to celebrate my Great Aunt Nancy's 90th birthday, which is today, Sept. 20th, the same day Brian and I were married.

I'm so happy we were here to celebrate with Nancy. She is very dear to me. One of the positives about having lived away for 8 years is that Nancy and I started to correspond. I always loved receiving letters in the mail from her.

Here is Nancy with her two brothers, my grandpa Paul on the left, and Richard on the right.

The boys sure enjoyed the afternoon too! They got their playtime in, that's for sure.

Papa Gordy played with the boys quite a bit. They kept asking for "the claw!"

Uncle Wes played with the boys in the yard for awhile too. He taught Dylan how to do the wheelbarrow.

And then, Great Grandpa Wennerstrom convinced Dylan to get down on the floor for "the Treatment." It was hysterical when my Grandpa threw his leg over Dylan and started wrestling him. I'm not sure if Dylan found it that funny, but the rest of us were giggling.

Grandpa has always loved to get his hands on the little ticklish kids, and yesterday was no exception.

The boys loved all the attention and slept well, all night long!

Scrapfest 2010

My friends Tracey and Erin came up from Rockford for Scrapfest 2010 this weekend at the Mall of America.

It was really nice to hang out with them again. It was kind of a relief to hang out with people who know the current situation. Though I am happy to be meeting new people,  I feel a little tired of explaining the situation to all the new people we are meeting at ECFE, preschool, etc.

This was Tracey and Erin's very first weekend get away with the girls. By the amount of shopping they did, I think they enjoyed it, but I know they were also ready to get back to their families by the end of the weekend.

We took four classes for various projects, as well as waited at a few of the Make and Take stations that were set up throughout the mall. It was a tad crazy at the mall, and I learned just how hard core some scrapbooking/paper crafting fans are. A few times, ladies would start to get a little pushy to get closer to a booth or get their hands on a certain piece of paper. Whoa Nelly!

We had a nice time and are hoping to make a habit out of attending Scrapfest. The classes were 45 minutes long, so I have a few projects that I need to finish up at home.

First day of school

Dylan had his first day of preschool yesterday. The day seemed to go really well. Only once during the morning did Dylan say he didn't want to go. When it was time to put shoes and back pack on, he didn't hesitate at all. We got to school and I barely had time to plant a kiss on his cheek before he ran over to the circle.

He said he had a good day. He played trains. They had chocolate chip teddy grahams and grape juice for snack. He made lots of new friends, but couldn't remember their names. He glued red squares on a picture of Clifford - their theme of the week.

He seems pretty happy and is looking forward to going back on Wednesday.

MN Zoo

Yesterday morning we met my friend Erica and her girls Lola and Stella at the MN Zoo. We bought our membership before going in, and I think it's going to be money well spent.

It was so nice to just stroll around and look at things, not feeling like we had to see it all because of the amount of money we spent or the rarity with which we visit the zoo. Now we can go whenever we want, and just for an hour or two at a time.

We spent the vast majority of our time playing in the Woodland Adventure play area. It is a great little playground. I was very impressed with the attention to detail the builders used on the playground.

On the sign, there are various animal's depicted:

Inside, there is a treehouse with 3 different ways to access it, including a "secret" staircase inside the tree trunk.

There is a lighthouse, again with creative ways to get up and inside, with a giant slide or a bridge to the treehouse.

There are unique play "things" in the play area too. The boys just loved this fishing boat, with real (but no hooks) fishing poles ready for use.

Inside one of the caves, a bear is hiding in the corner. The first time we went through, Dylan stopped in his tracks. He wasn't sure if he was going to proceed or not. Once I confirmed for him that it was not real, he ran through as fast as he could, and didn't go back. Brody however, visited the bear several times during the morning.

The boys and I are pretty  happy to have this membership. I think we're going to get our money's worth. We have several friends who have memberships as well, so we can just meet there for a few hours in the morning before school, or just to play if we want a change of scenery.

Easter Preschool Orientation

Today was orientation for Easter Preschool. Class officially starts on Monday. Dylan will go M, W, F from 12:30 to 3. For today however, class went from 1 to 2:30 and I attended with Dylan. I thought having a parent there for the first time was a good way for the kids to get acclimated to school.

There are only a handful of returning kids from last year, with most of the class being new to the school or new to preschool. The class is blended between ages 3-5, with most of the kids being in their second year of preschool, although the occasional 3 year old (and even one little sweetie who turns 3 next week!!) is in the class. I haven't told Dylan this, as I'm sure he'd be insulted to realize 3 year olds are in his class.

Here he is, with his new backpack outside the house. He was more than happy to pose for me this year. He chose his own outfit today, including his cowboy boots. I think he looks so cute!

Class started with circle time, where the kids and teacher identify the day/date on the calendar, as well as discuss the weather. Dylan was more than willing to offer information about the weather, his name, etc. The shyness or hesitancy to join in that I anticipated was nowhere to be seen! All of his anxiety about having to go to a new school and meet new friends was totally gone. I was so relieved.

We played outside for awhile too. The kids seemed to have fun, and Dylan was no exception, but he didn't let me get too far from his sight. I think he was worried that I would dip out on him when he wasn't looking!

Back inside, the kids had a little bit of free play time. They had a little more circle time, where the teacher told them their "project" was to color the little person shaped cut-out with their name on it, then to turn it in for a Scavenger Hunt list. It was fun to explore the building with Dylan, to find the bathroom, the sanctuary, etc.

One important thing this classroom has going for it is the train table and train collection. A must-have in Dylan's world!

Before we left, the kids all held hands and sang a goodbye song. Dylan didn't know he was holding the hand of the little one who isn't 3 until next week.

After class, Dylan and I went to Caribou Coffee for his first hot cocoa. He acted so grown up, like he was soooo sophisticated now that he was at a coffee shop. He noted that Brody hadn't been to a coffee shop or had hot cocoa yet.

It was a positive experience today, and I think Dylan is not only ready but excited to go to school on Monday.

Family fun at Raceway Park

One thing I love about being back in the Twin Cities is that there is no lack of things to do. Sunday evening races have been held at Raceway Park for as long as I can remember. We went a few times when I was a kid, and now the boys have gone too.

Raceway is a short track, mostly good for the little cars that sound like bumblebees or the "bomber's" as they are called. They do all different classes of cars though, as well as the famous (well...at least in the TC famous) crazy 8 races. Sunday's first crazy 8 race was wild! It's quite exciting watching the cars try to cross through the traffic without getting hit. Unfortunately, they did get hit this night, but they were all okay. It was an exciting 3 car crash!

They both wore ear plugs for awhile.

Predictably, Brody didn't wear his for long. He really enjoys thrills and noises. This child is not kept entertained by much for four hours, but he sat almost the entire evening and watched the races.

He also snacked a little too...

Once I bought Dylan some ear muffs he was a much happier spectator and enjoyed the evening too.

It might be a little bit hillbilly, but I think the entire family enjoyed the heck out of our evening at Raceway and I'd bet money we'll be back!