When Grandma and Grandpa come to town

Grandma and Grandpa Baum came to visit us the past 9 days. It was such a great visit! We really enjoyed having them here. Tate got so attached to them that when they were getting ready to leave and rolling out their suitcases he started crying. After they left he stood at the door just sobbing for about 10 minutes, I then picked him up and he continued to cry on my shoulder for a while. I couldn't hold back the tears either with this sweet boy crying for his grandparents. He just fell in love with them. Donny and I have always said how blessed we are to have the families we have, and this week just reaffirmed the love we have for our families. I wish I would have taken more pictures while they were here. I'm still not as good as I should be with taking pictures. The funny thing is that I now have it down to have it with me all the time, I just forget to get it out! This is kind of a picture dump but I couldn't leave any out and well I know most people look at blog for the pictures anyway, so I guess I shouldn't apologize for it. These first few are from our walk around Minnehaha park and falls. We are so happy to live in such a beautiful place.


We spent 6 hours at the Mall of America one day. The boys were all troopers, especially Tate! He did so well! He got to ride a few rides at the Nickelodeon Park with Donny and Grandpa. He loved it of course. I swear that place is like the Lotus, you can spend hours in there and not realize how long you were there. Also a picture of Greg feeding Tate his first Twinkie and Tate doing ab exercises with Valynn.

These pictures are from our trip to Stillwater. The "birthplace of Minnesota", it was a beautiful day and the views were gorgeous!


These are a couple houses we saw on our drive around Stillwater. The scariest house on the block and a gorgeous Victorian house with pretty fall leaves. I wish I would have taken pictures of more houses, there were some really pretty ones.
Happy Halloween!

Most smiles are started by another smile.

This little boy's smile is infectious. He smiles at everyone who passes by him. I love his little personality. He is such a happy baby and makes everyone around him happy. He has been loving having Grandma and Grandpa here this week. He's been playing with Grandpa outside throwing rocks and wrestling. Every time we get in the car he puts on his biggest smile and says "Hi", looking straight at Grandma. It's impossible not to fall completely captive of this sweet little boys charms.

Apple Junction

We have been having so much fun with Grandma and Grandpa Baum here! Tate is loving every minute, as are we. Today we went to an apple orchard, there at least 50 or so surrounding the twin cities. We were in the little store buying apples and I look over and Tate is eating an apple that he had gotten out of a basket of apples on the floor. He loved it, he ate at least half of it before he got tired.




I was terrified that they just let those chickens roam around not fenced in while people are walking around. One started to charge Tate (probably just a few steps toward him, but it felt like charging to me)and freaked me out!

Divine Role

"Motherhood is more than bearing children. … It is the essence of who we are as women."
--Sheri Dew

Sunday Drives

I love a Sunday drive. Especially in the fall when all the leaves are changing and it's so beautiful. We have been wanting to drive to a town called Stillwater for a while but just haven't done it. It's about 20 minutes east of us. Little fun fact about Stillwater is that it was the fist town in Minnesota. It was gorgeous by the water of the St. Croix river. Across the bridge is Wisconsin.....now I can say I've been to Wisconsin.

He's not ready

For the past few days Tate has been taking two really short naps. So today I thought I would try to see if he would do better with just one, hopefully, long nap. By about 11:30 he was toast, crying and throwing everything. He was picking up his cup and throwing in on the ground over and over. So I think he's not ready for the switch.....we'll be sticking with two for a while.

Fall is in the air

Fall is one of our favorite times of year. We love the crisp air and the change of color all around us. Fall has a way of making me feel warm and cozy. We went for a walk in the old neighborhood today, trees are changing and leaves are on the sidewalk. The cool crisp air and the sun on your face and being cuddles under the scarf around your neck is something I cherish this time of year. I hope you all are taking the time to appreciate this lovely time of year.