Anja

Anja had a great time playing with this basketball today. Maybe a hint of things to come?

Elise's Birthday Party

Today we had Elise's "big" party at my mom and dad's, where friends and family could come.

Where is spring?

I really like to think that March is a spring month. Well, not in northern Minnesota! The girls and I came up Sunday to visit my mom and dad for a while. Down in Lismore, we had been enjoying a series of 40, 50, even 60 degree days. On Monday in the north country, a blizzard hit! About a foot of snow, and major winds that created big drifts (one as tall as Elise...3 1/2 feet). Very depressing!

Elise is Four!

Well, it's been a while. One explanation...I have become a Facebook adict. And this poor blog has been suffering from neglect because of it.

Updates...we are still living in Lismore. For now. Jason will be transferred some time around November. We don't yet know where. It is very frustrating because we would like to be able to plan, especially since Elise will start preschool in the fall.

Speaking of Elise...she is four! She turned four on the 7th. We had a small party at our house in Lismore, with our little family, my mom and dad, and our friends Amy and Richard who drove down from the Cities for the day. It was a fun time. On the 14th we will have a larger party with more friends and family at my mom and dad's.

It was a big week, turning four. Elise had her first dentist appointment. She did just great, sat with her mouth wide open even when no one was working on her! She has some cavities, and the family dentist recommended we see a pediatric dentist for that. So in a couple of weeks she will have another appointment. We have to go to Sioux Falls to find a dentist that is covered by our insurance (it is an hour drive).

Elise also had a check-up at the doctor. She is 3 1/2 feet tall (45%) and 34 pounds (50%). Elise is more than ready for school, and I can't wait until she starts in the fall because she REALLY needs more stimulation and experiences than I can give her (I'm afraid she gets bored with me). In the meantime, I try to keep her entertained with library story time once a week and on the 23rd she starts gymnastics once a week. The beginning of April she will start swimming lessons once a week. And hopefully the summer will bring even more opportunities for activities to keep her mind and body occupied.

We have had some beautiful weather in Lismore in the past month. Several 40 and 50 degree days. Last week I know it hit 60. We had a great time playing outside, riding bikes, going for walks, and generally exploring the outdoors. It brightened all our moods!

Getting Away

I couldn't take it anymore and took the girls for a get away weekend. We visited friends and have been lifted out of our winter induced funk, at least for the time being.

Just Life

Jason is in NY this week for training. To keep my sanity, we are keeping busy. Monday we went to Sioux Falls. Oh, I thought I had died and gone to heaven! At first I just drove around and took in the urbanity of it all. Stores! Restaurants! Multi-lane traffic! I felt so at home! We shopped at Target...Oh, I just strolled and strolled and did not want to leave! We also went to the mall. Quite nice, with a play area for the kids and lots of stores. I think I could live in Sioux Falls, I really like it. A few months ago there was talk of Jason being transferred to Sioux Falls, so who knows.

Tuesday we went swimming at the pool in Luverne (about 20 miles away). Really nice, with a kiddie pool set at 90 degrees. Tuesdays and Thursdays are dollar days, so we all swam for $3! Quite a bargain.

Wednesday we have our regular date at the Worthington Library for story time. That is also about 20 miles away. We've been going there regularly so are friendly with the others who go. There are about 5 families who are "regulars".

Today we've been playing at home, then this afternoon we have ECFE.

Tomorrow I don't have any grand plans yet, but it is supposed to be beautiful (in the 40s), so hopefully we will get out for a nice walk at least.

Saturday we are going to see my friend Lori in Owatonna for an overnight visit. She has a daughter Elise's age and they get along very well. By the time we get back home on Sunday Jason should also be home! He has no idea how he is going to be smothered because I'm in need of adult companionship!

January

It's been a while since I updated this blog. We don't yet have internet service at the house, so it is a little more difficult to update.

So far this month, things have been pretty steady. We have dealt with car issues, but that's been the only hiccup. On the way home after Christmas our Explorer broke down and that was a costly repair (and it took the garage two weeks to fix it!). Now the windshield washer pump on our Honda doesn't work. The closest Honda dealer is Sioux Falls, about an hour away. So, we need to find a mechanic in this area. Fun, fun.

One of the wind turbines Jason's crew is responsible had a major blade malfunction. In the words of a co-worker, it "peeled like a banana". So Jason's crew has had to replace a blade, a major project. They had to bring in cranes, huge lights (so they could work when it is dark), and some extra people. If you haven't ever seen one of these blades up close, they are each 125 feet long. Each one is hauled on a special semi trailer because the normal trailers aren't long enough. They had all the equipment in last week and were supposed to start replacement, but the weather did not cooperate. It was too windy to do the job. But the past two days there has been a window of opportunity and they have been working 12 hour shifts to get the blade replaced.

Update on the girls...mostly we've been dealing with colds this week. First Elise, now Anja. Just stuffy noses, but Anja has been having a really hard time because she can't breathe.

My mom and dad came for a visit last weekend and brought Dutch with. We really miss him so it is nice to have him around for a few days.