Table prayer

I took 2 videos of Eleanor today. Gotta capture those sweet moments now!

ABCs

Cobber!

My mom bought this Cobber cheerleading outfit last year. It's been sitting in Eleanor's closet ever since. This morning Eleanor said, "I want to get the dress on with the letter on it." I didn't know what she was talking about so I told her to go get it. Here she brought the cheerleading outfit down!

Of course, we'd love for her to go to Concordia...but, only if she wishes to. And, only if we can afford it! :(

Portrait Session

#1

On Sunday morning, in their dresses, I attempted to get "the perfect shot" of the 2 girls. Of course, none of them turned out perfect...but, I just had to post them all because their expressions are so funny! Miriam just pretty much looks scared in all of them. Enjoy! :)

#2

#3

#4

#5

#6

Which one is your favorite? 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 or 6?

Como Zoo

On Thursday we took Eleanor to Como Zoo! Mari Lee joined us and we had such a fun day. It was quite chilly and we really could have had sweatshirts on, but, we all agreed that we'd rather be slightly chilly than HOT. Eleanor had a great time seeing all the animals and these pictures reflect her excitement!

There were ducks & flamingos in the water in this little pond. Pink flamingos are cool - especially when they're real and not plastic!

A fake giraffe and a real giraffe! There were actually 5 giraffes & a baby giraffe.

A cute little orangutan family...

and our little family...

(Not pictured: Miriam, who was an angel the whole day - mostly sleeping!)

Mari Lee & Eleanor outside the Sparky the Seal show.

Eleanor at the Sparky the Seal show. We waited about 20 minutes for the 7 minute show. But, she loved it!

We also had a lovely picnic in the park and Eleanor was so tired when we left that she was asleep before we even hit the highway! Thanks for joining us there, Mari Lee - it was great to have an extra set of hands!

Fun on the farm!

We were invited to the Heller family farm on Sunday afternoon. Betsy is a Choral Arts & Honors Choirs supporter, and her stepson, Matson, graduated from Michael's Concert Choir last year. Her husband, we called him "Farmer Don", took Eleanor around to see their baby lambs, chickens, horses, cats & their many dogs.

Eleanor got to feed the baby lambs with bottles! We dressed her up in long pants & her rain boots because of the mud (but mostly poop!) on the farm.

Betsy & Don own 9 horses and Eleanor really loved to pet them...but, we couldn't convince her to get on top of one. She wouldn't have been able to ride because there was no saddle, but we were at least hoping (especially for the photo op!) that she would sit on one. Farmer Don tried to convince her several times!
For those of you who know Michael...this was a disturbing sight!!

A special thanks to the Heller family for letting us visit your farm. Betsy - I'm hoping for a bag of pears when your pear tree is full! :)

Sisters!

I took this cute picture of the girls yesterday morning. How cute are they??! :)

The 4th!

We had an interesting 4th of July this year! We attempted to go down to Stewartville to attend of their small town 4th activities (and meet up with our friends, The Nelsons) but things didn't turn out like we would have liked. There were many things for kids to do (train rides, face painting, bouncey things, etc.) but unfortunately Eleanor didn't really want to participate in anything. She finally agreed to face painting after she saw Gloria & Violet do it. She got a butterfly on her cheek. Also, I wanted to post these pictures because she's wearing this cute dress - perfect for the 4th! - that she got from Michael's dad & stepmom.

Later in the day, we were invited to a pool party at our friends, The Hanson's, and Eleanor's mood definitely changed. She loved going swimming! We put her to bed fairly early and watched the fireworks from our living room window!

Miriam Grace, Baptized in Christ

On Sunday we had Miriam baptized at the 8:30 service at Zumbro Lutheran. She wore her dad's baptismal gown and was a perfect angel during the church service and the baptism. Here are some great shots from the day that Amy took. Thanks for having your camera there, Amy!!

Here is a family shot near the baptismal font. Eleanor is eating a donut because there would have been no way she would have cooperated in picture taking if she didn't get her donut!

At two different moments during the baptism Eleanor whispered to me, "Mom, can I get my donut now?"

Miriam's baptismal sponsers were Matt & Melissa and Mark. Mark came all the way from Colorado for the baptism!

The next set of pictures are our individual families. Here is Mari Lee with her crew...

and my folks with their brood...

Michael's Dad, Pat, and his stepmom, Mary.

Aunt Sue with Miriam

Here is her cute little cake that was shaped to look like a bible.

A couple of funny poses from Eleanor from the day. When we got home she took off the cute dress I bought for her and decided to put on her swimming suit cover up!! Don't argue with the 2 1/2 year old on what she wants to wear!

It was a great day and Miriam is a child of God! We feel so blessed to have two beautiful, healthy girls. Thanks to all our friends and relatives who joined us for Miriam's special day! And, thanks again to Amy (and Natalie!) for taking pictures for us.