Happy 26th........and the next morning

I had a great birthday yesterday. Donny had the whole day off from school and I had birthday money burning a whole in my purse.

We spent most of the day at the Mall of America. We were there for 4 hours and didn't even cover the whole thing! Tate was such a good boy the whole time!
We had to take a little break from shopping for a little lunch at the rain forest cafe. Tate loved the thunder storm and the jungle table top. We only got about 2 pictures where he wasn't starring at the table.

Donny got us a baby sitter last night and took me to the Cheesecake factory. It was so good! The key lime cheesecake is the best. I mean look how happy I am!

Birthday girl got the last bite!

I woke up this morning to see everything covered in a blanket of snow. I even went out in my pj's to catch a few pictures of our first Minnesota snow.

It hasn't stopped snowing all day! So you can imagine how much snow there is out there now! It was a nice day to stay in.

Our little Tate is 4 months old

I can't imagine life without this little guy. It seems like there wasn't a time when he wasn't with us, and at this same time I can't believe he is already 4 months old. I wanted to post some pictures of our little guy. I wanted to do them in order of time but it didn't work out. I'm not that great at blogging yet so some are out of order.

In the hospital the day he was born

On the day of his blessing
Captain Binki with his cape. About 2 months old

loves the "duck dangle" with Donny
a variation of a "turkey trot" about 3 months old

big yawn. I think a week old

Tired Mom and Baby. Two weeks old

He has always made the best faces. He has always been so animated since the day he was born.

He's such a big boy, he loves to be standing all the time! Taken today

Love him!

Tribute to Siblings

Today I am feeling very moved by the love I have for my siblings. It's such an amazing process you go through to get to where I am today about how I feel about my siblings. When you are little they are mean, annoying, and copy everything you do. I think it is through that very process that I have come to feel the way I do about mine. I love my siblings so much. They are the most incredible people in my life. I look up to every single on e of them. They all have qualities that I aspire to have. They are my heroes and my very best friends.
Dustin (Sorry this is such an old pic, he no longer has braces and is a lot bigger!) is an amazing young man. He is the most caring loving guy. He is such a great example to everyone around him. He is not only talented athletically but he has the sweetest heart.

I not only have 3 great siblings of my own but came into 7 more through marriage. Katie is the kindest, most pure person I have ever met. She is so talented in everything she does.

The Baum boys (none of which are actually Baums but you know what I mean) All fun, loving, and amazing husbands and fathers.

Sisters.....every girls should have at least one sister. I now have 5. Amber...what can you even say about Amber, she is the best. Funny, entertaining and just glows with personality. Everybody loves Amber. Over the years we have become so close, I love her and miss her so much since she has been gone in China.

Kensie is my one sister-in-law on the Bingham side. She would do anything for her family. She is selfless in all she does. Her bubbly personality always makes everyone feel welcome and loved.

Not a great picture of me..........but the other two never look bad, the Baum girls are all stunningly beautiful. Jess, I would say has a personality most like mine out of the Baum girls. Stories about her from childhood remind me too much of myself. She was the big sister that I probably needed to put me in my place when I was younger. All the Baum girls are such amazing mothers. I look up to everyone of them. Elle is well I don't even know how to describe her. She is one of a kind. I have never known anyone who sees the world as Elle does. I think I would say she sees everything as it should be, completely wonderful and full of emotion. I love them all.

Aaron, I can't even talk about how I feel about Aaron without getting a little chocked up. Aaron has been my hero my whole life. I have always looked up to him and wanted to be just like him. He was always so cool. One thing I love about Aaron is that he always gives people the benefit of the doubt. He sees good in everyone. He is strong and loving. There is nothing Aaron can't do, he's athletic, handy and a world class charmer. He looks out for us younger siblings and I love that about him.

I could go on forever about these people. They are all so great. I have learn so much from each and every one of them. So I just want to say thanks to you all for everything, you all mean the world to me and I know Donny feels the same. Love you guys!

The Move

For those who don't know we have relocated to the beautiful state of Minnesota. It has been a huge change for our family, but we are happy to be out here and ready to start this new chapter in our lives. We live in a wonderful neighborhood, it is old but very historic. We have found there is a lot to do here, and lots within walking distance, although that won't be great come winter. Everything seems to be in a close distance from where we are. With the GPS I do pretty good getting myself around!

Our apartment building was built in 1927! It is small but cozy, one bedroom and a little nook for Tate. We have found there is a lot to do here and we have loved the fall. It is so gorgeous! Donny is busy with school and I am currently staying home with Tate.We actually have a bed frame now (obviously not pictured here) but pictures a black iron frame

First Post

I decided to start a blog for our families, against Donny's wishes, but I'm sure he'll come around. I feel so far away from everyone I wanted something to stay connected. If you know me then you know I'm not the best and staying in constant contact. I'm sure some if you are thinking to yourselves that you haven't heard from me in a while and wondering if I really care about you. Well my answers is yes I love you all very much. I'm not very good at being the one to call and stay in touch. Although I want to be better. My Sister who is always completely honest with me and never hides it, has told me before that I'm slightly awkward to talk to on the phone so now I'm paranoid about my phone skills! So I'm using this a form of communication to keep those I love posted on our lives here in the mid-west.