Braden riding his bike!!

Braden, for some reason got it in his head that he needed to ride his bike with no training wheels. I do not know if he thought that he would magically be able to do this but we gave in and took off his training wheels. He has been practicing and can make it to the neighbors two houses down driveway. He has also learned how to stop without falling over. It is still a work in progress but he thinks he is hot stuff. Kyra didn't want to miss out on the action so she gave it a try as well. I think that she needs to get a bit bigger yet!!

Re-landscaping!!

So we have had some bad luck the last two years with our shrubs dying. We finally decided to give up on the shrubs and plant perennials instead. Hopefully these will survive!! We redid the front of the house and added a decorative tree to the corner. We also have always planted a garden on the east side of our house and decided to dress it up a bit. The pictures are of the awesome job that Joe did with the landscaping bricks. The kids thought that he needed some help so they joined in. Braden's truck actually came in pretty handy during this process, we could load up the back and make him take items to and from the garage. The single picture of the potted flower arrangement is from my mom! She is always thinking of me and sent it to school for teacher appreciate week. At least someone appreciates me because it is not the students!!! Enjoy!!

Our Trip to the John Deere Pavilion

On April 27, 2008, we took the kids to the John Deere Pavilion in Moline. Braden and Kyra both absolutely loved it. Braden thinks that his Grandpas both need to buy some the really big tractors that have a seat for big boys. The kids tried out four of the newer tractors and got to sit in some of the tires. We also lifted them up so they could sit in the back of the big dump truck. It was a fun day and amazing to see the kids eyes light up at the site of the tractors. Maybe they still have a bit of the John Deere Green in them!!!

Riding in our New Truck

The kids got a bit spoiled this year at Easter. The Easter Bunny decided to bring them a battery operated Arctic Cat. Braden loves driving it and Kyra loves riding, although there are days in which she thinks she needs to drive. Ever since our trip to Colorado and Braden experiencing what is like to get pulled over he is sure to always buckle his sister in with the Velcro straps.

Spring Break!

One of the benefits of being a public school teacher is recieving Spring Break. Our Spring Break happened to fall over Easter this year so I had Good Friday off as well as the whole next week. Since we probably won't be taking a summer vacation we decided to drive to Denver, CO to visit some close friends and give Braden and Joe the chance to do a bit of skiing. We started out the Thursday night before Good Friday and arrived in Denver Friday morning. The trip out went extremely well, we drove straight through!! We headed up to the mountains on Sat. We stayed at a condo in Winter Park. The Easter Bunny still found us on Sunday morning but only left candy and a note made out to the kids saying their present was back in Illinois. We then took Braden to ski school and Joe went skiing with a friend. Kyra and I hung out at the base of the mountain. We visited with the Easter Bunny and went on an easter egg hunt. I was the over protective mother so I was constantly checking on Braden at his school. I think he loved it, he told his teacher he did not want to eat lunch because he wanted to go back outside. He also decided that Joe and I should buy him his own skis and accessories. We didn't, but he did look pretty cute with everything on it was tempting. On Monday, Braden insisted on going down the big mountain with Joe. I think this was by far Joe's longest run ever! By the end of the day Braden was able to stay standing the whole time and he figured out how to turn so he could go where he wanted. We headed back to Denver on Monday night and enjoyed 65+ degree weather for Tuesday and Wed. While in Denver we visited the Science and Nature Museum and the kids and I went to the Children's museum. We then drove back to Iowa on Thursday. Again a pretty peaceful drive. I am thankful my kids are pretty good in the car!! TV's really help! Enjoy the pictures!

Mandy

It's snowy outside!!

On February 1, 2008 we recieved about 6 to 8 inches of snow. Schools were cancelled and the kids got to stay home with both mom and dad. Unfortunately, it was to cold to go outside. However, Monday brought warm weather, up in the 40's, so we took advantage of it and Braden and Kyra went out and built a snow man. Braden wanted to build a whole family but Daddy said it was to much work! Included is a slide show of our snowy adventure.