Daddy/Daughter Dance

Dan heard about a daddy-daughter dance held at a middle school in Apple Valley. He signed them up to go and it was tonight. Anya has been so excited for two weeks now. So today it was as if she was getting ready for prom. She took a bath, we painted her nails, I curled her hair and put flowers in it, she picked out her purple dress, and then we proceeded with the pictures out on the front lawn. Oh my gosh she was so funny. She reminded me of Rapunzel in the movie Tangled. There's a scene where she is exploring the beauty of the outdoors and is just singing and dancing and rolling in the grass...that's totally what Anya did. Then we got a bunch of cute pictures of Anya and Dan together. Anya had a great time at the ball. The first thing she said when she got home was that she was crying in the car because she just wanted to stay at the ball forever! She had lemonaide and cookies, got a princess wand, fished under the sea with Ariel and won a necklace, she sat on a magic carpet and read a story with Jazmine, and got to dance with Belle and Cinderella. She was thrilled.

Whew it's been a while!

It's been quite a while since I've posted and feel just a little guilty about that. I haven't even taken all that many pictures lately! There hasn't been much snow, but I did try to get the kids out playing in it. By playing I mean making Anya shovel. :)



Just a cute one of Finn. Still sweet sweet boy. He is really talking a ton lately. He tries to repeat almost any word you say. Momma, daddy, anya, aebo, pup pup, bampa (grandpa), gamma, kitty, up, please, more, help, no, mine, stop, baby, book, car, truck, duck, cow moo, bye bye, applesauce, outside, etc..When we read brown bear brown bear he can point to the yellow duck, black sheep, etc... He loves reading books and playing with cars. He is just a happy boy. He loves to dance with Anya, and just loves doing anything with Anya. The other day he was sitting in her lap and she was "reading" him a book. They really get along well.
Anya and Dan have been cooking a lot together. Anya loves making cupcakes. She can do all the steps even cracking the eggs!


Dan recently made a piece of artwork for our main living room wall. It was inspired by something Hannah and I saw at West Elm, we came home and told the boys about it and then Dan thought up this amazing piece. He used spare canoe wood that my dad had in his garage! It's woven together and holds it's own so it only needed 2 nails into the wall to hold it up. I really like that it has dimension and takes on different shades depending on how the light hits it. The pictures hanging on it are pictures Dan has taken on different hikes.

My school's dance team hosted a dance clinic for girls pre-school up to about 14. I couldn't pass up the opportunity for Anya. It was right during when her nap time is so she fell asleep in the car on the way and was really grumpy when we first got there. She didn't want to do anything. Luckily a patient teenaged girl sat with her until she warmed up to the idea. Then, oh boy, she was ready to dance! They danced, had a snack, made a pretty headband and then performed the dance they learned. I just thought that the dance team was going to perform, but all of the groups got up and did their routine. That was a fun surprise. My camera was not on the best setting so I don't have very many pictures, but Anya was doing the moves and you know...socializing a little bit.


Finn was Superman for Halloween this year. It was fitting as Dan was superman when he was a little boy too. I love this picture of Finn flying.

Anya was a princess, mostly because she has about a zillion princess outfits at her disposal.


How long do you think this wig lasted?
After Finn went to bed, I took Anya out trick-or-treating for the first time. She had so much fun and ran to each house giggling all the way. Hardly anyone comes to our block, so Anya got handfuls of candy from our neighbors.
Carving pumpkins and making home made pizzas with Kristin, Gabriel, and Hannah.



Anya continues to amaze us with her vocabulary and the funny things she says. The other day she told me to fold my hands for prayer and then said "Thank you God for this wonderful day. I like to watch over you because....I think I like to watch over you." She LOVES the music to The Lion King and belts out "I Just Can't Wait to be King!" She drew her first stick person today and is really good at tracing and writing letters. She can write A,G,T,O,P,and C

Finn is running all around, still loves to eat and go to bed early. He gives kisses and hugs now. he can say momma, dada, anya, bye bye, no, allright, I did it, ... He is a happy boy and is having a good time at school.

Dan and I are doing good, pretty busy with school stuff and my class at the U of MN. The kids definitely keep us on our toes and entertained.

We recently took a trip to the Minnesota zoo.

I just love this outfit. She looks so much older than a 3 year old!


They had tractor simulations that day so Anya got to "drive" a tractor.



Gotta love when mom's make their kids stick their head through the picture holes...
Finn was having a blast!
Molly, Claire, Anya, Finn and I went to Pine Tree apple orchard.
Again with the cut outs!
Just a cute picture of Anya and her cousin Hannah and their matching pj's.
Finn and Anya cuddling. Look how long Finn is getting!

Also and update on Finn. He is officially walking! He still crawls a little bit, but he walks all over the living room and kitchen, down the hall into Anya's room. He has also added words to his vocabulary. He can say Anya, Mama, Dada, daddy, pa pa, bampa (grandpa), nummy, there, nigh nigh, hi, dog, and probably a few more I'm forgetting. He absolutely loves music and starts to dance and clap as soon as it turns on. His favorite toy is a Kung Fu Panda figurine. He loves looking at books and puzzles and loves playing with Anya.