Life of Lucy

2009-05-08T17:20:00.002-07:00

Baby Ellen has arrived. Please join us at our new spot www.thekobies.blogspot.com for updates on all of the Kobies.

Kite Flying

2009-04-27T12:41:00.000-07:00

Last week we had a few windy days that were still warm enough to get out and fly a kite. Lucy got a huge kite from Auntie Kim and the Nee family for her birthday and we finally got to try it out.

Here is Jer explaining where to hold the string.

After the first dive - who can get there first??
I hope you can see the amount of string around Lucy's legs. Maybe it wasn't a good idea to have her hold the string while Jer fixed the kite. . .

Letting the streamers fly was just as fun as the actual kite for Lucy.
In the end they did it!

Lucy took a little break before we headed for home.

Toes

2009-04-23T07:21:00.000-07:00

I have been thinking of painting Lucy's toe nails for a while, but have held off. She always notices if mine are a different color and asks me what happened to the last color. I thought it would be so cute to paint hers, but then had visions of nail polish everywhere, fuzz and cracker crusted toe nails and me with a bottle of polish remover trying to clean it all up.

Yesterday, I let the worries go and the possibility of cute little toe nails take over.

We put the polish on and Lucy sat so still while it dried. We even put little flower decals on. Here she is picking out her flowers.

And the finished product. I am by no means, a manicurist, but I think these might be the cutest toes I've ever seen!
I wish I had a camera out when Jer got home. Lucy jumped up, ran to the door and with the biggest smile on her face, she pumped her arms up and down while pointing down at her toes. She was so excited to show them off.

Easter

2009-04-12T16:02:00.001-07:00

After having so much fun coloring Easter eggs, Lucy and I decided that we needed to do another spring time activity on Good Friday. We made a cookie 'bunny house'. Here is Lucy with the cookies laid out and a bag of icing to hold them together.

After I got the pieces together, Lucy carefully lined the ridge of the roof with jelly beans.

Lucy also put all of the bunnies and chickies in the front of the house. Here is the proud girl with her beautiful bunny house.

On Sunday morning, we woke up ready for an Easter basket hunt. Lucy had 2 baskets this year. Here is the one from Mommy and Daddy, hidden under a table and behind a chair.

She also had a basket delivered from Milwaukee Gram. This one was hidden behind the footstool.

With just a little help from Mommy and Daddy, Lucy found both baskets and was excited to see what was in them.

Here she is trying on new slippers.

And eating the best breakfast she has ever had, a chocolate covered 'peep'. Yum!

I took millions of pictures of Lucy in her Easter dress. Here is one of my favorites.

After Easter lunch, Daddy and Lucy got to play outside together in Grandma & Papa's back yard. The game of choice today was soccer. Lucy was kicking the ball all over the place.

She also found a good use for the Easter basket from Grandma's house.

Just a few more pictures from this morning before church.

It is also Lucy's cousin David's birthday today. We got to wish him a Happy Birthday and share some cake with him today. The clowns on the cake were made by David's Abuela who is here visiting from Peru.

Yum Cake! We look forward to celebrating again with David at his birthday party in a few weeks.

Happy Easter to all. We are excited to proclaim today that Jesus is risen! He is risen indeed!

Easter Eggs

2009-04-08T11:42:00.001-07:00

The smell of vinegar was in the air of the Kobielush household today. Lucy dyed eggs for her first time! Just look at all of the beauties that she made.

Here she is; carefully placing an egg on the little holder.

I tried to get it, but I missed the plop and the splash that were made when this egg was 'gently lowered' into the dye.One of Lucy's favorite things is to get an artificial tattoo on the back of her hand. We found an egg kit that had tattoos in it for the eggs. Here is Lucy rubbing one on to an egg.

A couple of the tattoos ended up on Lucy. She chose a turtle and a car. Coincidentally, Lucy's favorite movies right now are about Franklin the Turtle and Cars. . .

Here she is, admiring her work.

One of our favorites.

One of the eggs was lost near the end of our egg dyeing session. It slipped out of our fingers and on to the floor. Lucy was very interested in the cracked egg.

Happy Birthday Mindi

2009-04-01T06:46:00.000-07:00

We have just returned from a few days in Milwaukee to celebrate Mindi's birthday. She had a great Mickey Mouse party.

Gram and Mindi waiting for Kelly to light the candles and cut the cake.

Fingers weren't enough. Maybe big sister, Addy, will help speed things up.Blowing out the candles.Lucy helped Mindi open many of her presents. Here are the girls exploring some new play-doh.

Here are Mindi, Ava and Lucy playing at the party.

One last pic of Mindi blowing her Mickey noise maker.

Como Conservatory

2009-03-19T12:17:00.001-07:00

A few weeks ago Lucy and I went with our buddies, The Goodman's, to Como Zoo and Conservatory. It is one of our favorite places to go, we try to go a lot when it is warm to see the animals and when it is not so warm outside, we see the beautiful plants and flowers inside. I was thinking of the flowers as I got Lucy dressed that day and picked out a sweater that my Grandma made for her. The conservatory is a place that Great Grandma Gray would love. She loves flowers and beautiful scenery. I was thinking of her as I was taking these pictures of the girls.

The last picture was just to pretty to pass up. It made me think of some of the pictures that my grandma has taken and put up in her house.
Thank you for the sweater Grandma, I hope you enjoyed the post today.

2009-03-17T08:19:00.001-07:00

Happy St. Patrick's Day

Puddle Jumping and Other Spring Time Fun

2009-03-16T12:23:00.000-07:00

This morning I was doing a little organizing in our storage space upstairs. I wanted to find some spring clothes for Jer to bring down for Lucy, some spring decorations and Lucy's Easter basket from last year. I brought the decorations and the Easter stuff downstairs and Lucy was very excited to play with the plastic eggs from last year. I let her dump them out and open them all. There were even a few hidden surprises that we didn't get to last year. In one egg there were some Cheerios, in another there were some bubbles and in one other very special egg there was a candy bracelet. Lucy has never had one before, so I told her it was a bracelet and let her put it on her wrist. I let her play with the eggs as I left the room to go put some of the other decorations around the house. A few minutes later I came back into the room and found the eggs abandoned and Lucy in the chair with one thing keeping her occupied. She looked up at me and said: "Mommy, I licked it. It's Candy!"

After we washed up and brushed teeth, we headed outside to be a part of this beautiful warm, sunny day. Our thermometer said it was 61 degrees as we headed out the door. We brought the eggs and the bubbles with us.

Then we headed out for a walk around the block. These past couple of weeks we take this little walk any chance we get. Today, we put on the blue rubber boots and went hunting for puddles!

Here's hoping the weather lasts and it doesn't snow again next week. In good old Minnesota, we take spring where we can get it!

Painting

2009-03-05T12:43:00.001-08:00

This morning, I had a MOPS social planned with some of the ladies from my table at MOPS. We like to do a few things with our kids over the year. Kelly and Mindi, of course, fit right in with the mommies and other kids. We went to Simply Jane, a painting studio by our house. They have canvases, picture frames, bags and tons of other items for the kids to paint. Here is a picture of our group getting started.Lucy, saying cheese.Mindi painting. She had already finished her picture and was moving on to another canvas...

Here is Lucy concentrating on her masterpiece.

Girls, did you get any paint on your hands?Were sad to say that this was our last activity with Mindi and Kelly for this trip. As I write, they are on their way back to Milwaukee. We all had so much fun together, we are sad to see them go. We gladly look forward to seeing them in Milwaukee at the end of the month for Mindi's birthday.

Mindi and Lucy

2009-03-04T07:13:00.000-08:00

Mindi and Kelly are here visiting for the week. The girls are having so much fun together, we wouldn't have to leave the house. Here they are with their babies, getting ready for bed.

Jumping in Lucy's bed.

More jumping on the bed.

Here is Lucy being one of her new favorite movie characters: Franklin.
'Charge!!!'

We did take the girls swimming on Monday, it was a great time. The girls loved splashing in the shallow water and going down a slide. They also jumped off the side of the pool into mommies arms and kicked and splashed. Of course, with pregnant mommies in maternity swim suits, cameras were not allowed on the off chance that one of us would be caught on film. So, there are no pictures of this experience. . .

We do have pictures from the Children's museum on Tuesday. Here are the girls playing in the 'water works' exhibit.

Lucy's favorite part is the hand dryer. She would come and get wet and then go back and dry her hands, over and over.

We also got to see a new exhibit; Clifford, the big red dog!

The girls had fun running around Birdwell Island, playing with all of the Clifford characters and doggies.

Today is Kelly's birthday. Happy Birthday Kelly! We are going to have a slow day at home and then take Kelly out for dinner and a manicure tonight.
More fun is in store as the week goes on. Stay tuned.

Blogoversary

2009-02-25T05:58:00.000-08:00

Today is the 'Life of Lucy' Blogoversary! It has been one year since I started this blog. The intent of the blog was to keep those near and far updated on Lucy's life. I remember wondering on the day that I started if I would be able to keep this up. I hoped it would stay fun and that it wouldn't turn into a chore. Quite to the contrary, over the year, I have had so much fun posting. I love choosing the pictures and reflecting on all of the fun we are having. I think I probably log on and read it more than anyone else.
There will be some changes to the blog over the next few months as we welcome another member to our family. We will have to have a new name to reflect the change as well, so be prepared to update your bookmarks at some point.

I chose 2 pictures to post today that I felt were good indicators of our family today.

Adorable little booties, knit by Jer's mom for the new baby. Soft, pink and very cute.

Lucy's latest crocs. Still her favorite shoe by far. This version is slightly winterized, with the addition of the sheepskin lining. Still not enough for most Minnesota winter days, although, Lucy did take them for one test drive through a snow bank before I could catch her the other day.

I hope you keep reading for another year. I know I'm excited to live and write the stories about Lucy and her new baby sister. As I sit here again I'm thinking, I hope I will find the time to post with 2 little girls to keep up with. With any luck, I'll see you here next year.

Making the Bed

2009-02-23T09:32:00.000-08:00

Some days it really is the simple things that make Lucy happy. This morning I let her help me make the bed. Not how I usually let her help; pull the sheet corner here, tug the comforter back there. Nope, this morning I let her do it her way.

Valentine's Day

2009-02-17T06:53:00.001-08:00

Valentine's Day was a big success this year due to daddy and husband extraordinaire, Jer!

He was up early with Lucy so mommy could sleep in. By the time I woke up, the kitchen was decorated with streamers and balloons and Lucy was eating her special breakfast of strawberries and pancakes with whip cream and valentine sprinkles.

Lucy got a few little gifts for the special day. Her is Jer reading her a new book.

And Lucy playing with her new markers, stickers and other valentine craft supplies.

Happy Valentine's Day!

2009-02-13T07:35:00.001-08:00

Children's Museum

2009-02-03T15:49:00.000-08:00

Last week Lucy and I joined some friends at the Children's Museum in St. Paul. It was our first time there, but will definitely not be our last. There was so much to see that we didn't even get through all of the exhibits.

One of Lucy's favorite parts was the 'Water Works' exhibit.Natalie liked the bubble making station.

Here is Lucy being a turtle.

The girls also got to play with plastic tadpoles, frogs and fish in a stream.

Thanks to Katie, Natalie and Baby Emma for being our guides for the day. We will have to get back soon to see the rest.

Big Girl Bed

2009-02-02T06:21:00.000-08:00

On Friday night, Lucy helped Jer take her crib down and she said 'Bye-Bye crib' as he brought it upstairs for storage. She also excitedly helped put her new bed together. As soon as the mattress was on, she jumped right up. We had to get her off again to make the bed, then she wanted to lay on it and jump on it. She was very happy to finally get the big girl bed that we had been talking about.
When it came to bed time, she was happy to climb in and read books, sing songs and say prayers. When Mommy and Daddy were getting ready to say good night and leave the room, well, that's when the tears came. 'Mommy and Daddy sleep with me!' was the request. Against the strong tugs at our heart-strings, we held our ground and left the room.
She only cried for a little while, then fell asleep in her new bed. However, there were a few bumps in the night. The first one woke me at about 4am. We ran into Lucy's room to find her still asleep on the rug on her floor. The next time she fell out, she didn't stay asleep and we let her finish the last few hours of sleep safely between Mommy and Daddy in our bed.
She now has a mesh side rail attached to the side of the bed and last night she slept soundly until after 7 o'clock this morning. Hooray! We will hope for more good nights in our future.
It is amazing that everyone goes through this, but it still is such a big accomplishment in your household when it is your child. We are so proud of Lucy and of course, a little sad to see one stage pass as we are happy for the next stage at the same time.

Lucy's Birthday

2009-01-27T12:37:00.001-08:00

Lucy's Birthday was filled with fun, presents, cake and more cake!

We woke up to a full house. Auntie Sandy, Auntie Kelly, Mindi and Gram had come the day before. Lucy opened a present from Mommy and Daddy right away so the girls could play in it in the morning.

Then we went to have portraits taken. It was a little rough with 2 tired girls, but we managed to get a few good shots, see the post below for one of them. We will also have a special Valentines day edition with some of both of the girls.

After this, we went to the Rainforest Cafe for lunch. Lucy was visited by the Froggy mascot.We also got her (and us) a special birthday volcano cake, complete with a sparkling candle.We managed to squeak in a nap for the girls in the car as we zipped around town picking up various things for the evening. We had more family members coming to celebrate with Lucy.
Once we were home, the festivities began again with some supper and, of course, another birthday cake.
Blowing out the candle.Yum!Opening a new baby stroller from Grandma & Papa.Here is Daddy putting it together.

For baby dolls? Or for Lucy?

Here are Gram and Lucy taking a breather and getting ready for more wrapping ripping!

Lucy with her new stir fry set from Gram.

Here are Mindi and Lucy checking out a croquet set from Auntie Katie and Uncle Tom.

Lucy with Uncle Sam, Tia Paola and David.

Here are Lucy and Auntie Kelly checking out more of Lucy's birthday gifts.

And, Mandi and the girls winding down for the night.

Thanks so much to all of you for making Lucy's Birthday a special one.

2009-01-24T19:46:00.001-08:00

Happy 2nd Birthday Lucy!

2009-01-23T07:11:00.000-08:00

As a mommy, having an uninterrupted shower is a rare occurrence. Today, I had one of those wonderful showers. A warm shower on a cold winter morning, good smelling shampoo, what a great way to start the day. Usually I hear little feet running back and forth from the living room to the bathroom, the shower curtain is pulled back many times, getting the floor and the child wet. There are lots of crouched over conversations to hear what Lucy is doing or what is happening on Sesame Street. Then there is the game of grab mommy's legs through the shower curtain that all ends with rinsing my hair with luke-warm water. Today, I did not hear the feet running to the bathroom until the water was turned off. Then, I saw Lucy's face look up at me and she said so proudly 'Mommy, I'm beautiful with color on my legs and feet!'.
'What Honey?'
'I colored with PEN!'

Then she pulled up her jammie pants and I saw the damage. After telling her that pens were 'no-no's and that she was not allowed to use pen anymore (where did she find one in the first place?) I did what any normal mother would do. I took Pictures!

First Movie at the Theater

2009-01-18T16:27:00.001-08:00

Last night we took Lucy to see her first movie at the movie theater. We went to see Madagascar 2. We know Lucy loves the first one and we thought she would be happy to see Alex, Gloria, Melman and Marty again. She was!

In the picture below she is checking out the big screen.

Our friends, Jordan and Katie, also brought their daughter Natalie (who is one of Lucy's favorite playmates) to the movie. Here are the daddies showing the girls the screen up close.

It's hard to get good pictures without a flash in a dark theater, but I managed to snap 2 that actually had the girl's faces. I think Lucy just spotted her favorite Lion in the picture below and is shouting "ALEX!!". It was good that there were lots of kids and lots of talking, shouting and laughing in the theater last night.

In the next one you can see Natalie munching on some popcorn, the girls each got their own little bag. Lucy told me this morning that the popcorn was one of her favorite parts of the night.

Muffin Tin Meals

2009-01-08T13:24:00.001-08:00

One of my friends, Jess, also has a blog for her family (www.justablink.com). Along with family updates, she puts out some very crafty ideas. One of her more recent posts was about 'muffin tin meals'. She gives her kids some special meals all separated in muffin tins. I was reminded of this today while shopping and saw this heart shaped muffin tin on sale for $2.50. Lucy wanted to hold it in the cart and was so excited to get her lunch in it when we got home.
I put it on the table and couldn't snap the picture before her little hands were pulling it towards her.

Thanks for the idea Jess! This made for an extra fun lunch on an ordinary day.

Ice Skating

2009-01-05T08:35:00.000-08:00

On New Years Day our big activity was to take Lucy Ice Skating. We went with some of Jer's cousins and their kids. It was a blast. Lucy LOVED it. She did not want to stop.

OK - The skates are on!

Mary is ready to go.

Lucy really liked to use the 'walker' to help her stay up.Here is Jer telling Lucy to keep her feet together and glide. . .

Jer, Lucy, Kathy and Mary going for a lap.

Here is Jer getting a little practice time on his skates and maybe getting a few pointers from his cousin Dave.

Here is Kathy with her boys, Ivan and Grant. Brother Dave is helping Ivan stay upright.

Little Buddies: Mary and Lucy.

Christmas

2008-12-29T07:43:00.001-08:00

As with most families, we have had several times and places to celebrate Christmas this year.

Lucy had a couple of occasions to wear her Christmas dress. Here are some pictures of her in front of our tree posing in it.

Here is Christmas morning at our house. Lucy was excited to see presents under the tree. . . then she realized that she had to wait for a little bit to open them.
Here is Jer reading the Christmas story from Luke 2.After reading the story, Lucy got to pass out the presents for her, Mommy and Daddy. She handed them all out.

Here she is opening her big Lion.

Later that day, we went up to Grandma and Papa's house for Christmas with Jer's side of the family. Here are all of the grandkids: Ryan, Allie, David, Lucy and Emily.

Here is some of the family with Papa reading the Christmas Story.

Here is David reading the Christmas story.

He's not only smart, he's strong too! Here is David bringing his dad, Sam, a huge present. Here are Grandma and Papa leading the family in some Christmas carols.

Katie, Kim and the kids singing along.

We also had some special visitors all the way from Alaska this year. Here are Molly and Scott reading with Lucy before they headed to Viroqua.

Once the rest of the family got to Viroqua, they got a chance to have some reading time with Mindi too.Here is Lucy opening her new suitcase from Gram.

She also got some new jammies that she wanted to put on right away. She didn't quite get her pants off first. The girls gave Auntie Sandy a new moose that had their voices recorded in.

Lucy found a neat new chair.Here are the girls in their moose outfits and Auntie Sandy in hers.

Here Lucy is learning an important part of family celebrations in Wisconsin. Playing cards and having a Leinies. I'm sure there is some cheese on the table somewhere too. The 'girls' all got new jammies again this year. Lucy and Mindi, come on over for a picture!

Got 'em.

And, the annual cousins picture.

Thank you to all of you for great Christmas celebrations.

Merry Christmas

2008-12-25T07:29:00.001-08:00

We would like to wish you all a Merry Christmas

More Sledding

2008-12-15T11:30:00.000-08:00

We were in Milwaukee this weekend to visit with family. Before we got there, Uncle Jim built a snow fort in his back yard for Mindi and Lucy to play in.

After the girls played in the yard, we all got bundled and went to the sledding hill that Jim and I used to sled at when we were little.

Here is Mindi getting a ride to the top of the hill.

Here are Lucy and Jer getting ready to go down.

Since Mindi went down by herself, Lucy had to give it a try. Here is Mindi giving her some pointers before she went down.

Here she goes. . .

Here is part of the gang at the bottom of the hill. Jer and Geno are building a jump for them to go over and Lucy is getting a ride back to the top from Uncle Jim.

I'm thinking there will be more pictures to come on Mindi's blog soon. These were the only ones I got, since my fingers were too frozen to hold the camera any longer.

Sledding

2008-12-11T11:34:00.000-08:00

Jer took Lucy sledding for her first time this week. I headed over to the hill for some pictures, but it was hard to find Jer and Lucy through the snow flakes. This is the best one I got of them on the sled.

I had to include this one of Lucy all bundled. I could hear the little brother from 'The Christmas Story' in my head: 'I can't put my arms down!'.

St. Nick

2008-12-06T19:23:00.000-08:00

It has been my family's tradition for as long as I can remember to fill stockings to be opened on the morning of December 6th. We remember the European tradition of St. Nicholas, who filled children's shoes with gifts. This morning Lucy founds gifts in her stocking and in a special box that was sent from Gram.

This year Lucy found books, a toy, a cup and a coloring book from her favorite movie, Madagascar.

Her favorite gift came in this special box from Gram.

It was a very cute, very large gingerbread cookie.

Then, she immediately developed two 'owies' on her knees when she saw that there were some special band-aids in the box as well.Of course, the cute monkey band-aids fixed the owies.

Growing up, St. Nick was our first reminder that Christmas was coming soon. This was when we got our Advent calendars and would start the count down to Christmas Day. Lucy received a nativity set this morning. We will continue to talk about the Christmas story so she will understand that on Christmas Day we celebrate receiving the greatest gift, Jesus.

O Christmas Tree

2008-11-30T14:00:00.000-08:00

Yesterday we bundled up and headed to the tree farm to cut our own Christmas tree. This is the first time I have ever done this and I just loved it! It was fun to watch Lucy run around in the rows of trees. Of course, she could run because there was no snow. . . She got her own branch to carry and was very excited to help.

Here are Jer and Lucy getting ready to chop.

And here is our beautiful, perfect for our house, little Charlie Brown Christmas tree!

Later that night Lucy got to help dig through the storage bins and decorate the tree. We have set the bottom of the tree as a 'Lucy zone' with non-breakable ornaments that Lucy could put on herself. The one below is a music box tree that has a train inside that goes around in a circle. It is Lucy's favorite. I don't think it will ever actually make it on the tree, she loves to carry it around with her.

Does every kid go through the phase where they close their eyes when they say cheese? Does this drive every parent crazy? For the next few months, or years, my only smiles might be candid ones.

Here is Lucy putting an ornament on the tree .She thought the tree skirt was a blanket and wanted to lay on it.

She didn't sleep on it all night, but she did try to bring an electric candle to bed.

The Cutest Things Lucy Said Today

2008-11-25T20:10:00.000-08:00

Today at supper Lucy looked at Jer and said: 'Daddy, you're not a monster, you're my friend.'

Then for the first time, she said her own bed time prayers. She said, in this order:
Dear God,
Thank you for the food
Thank you for supper
Thank you for sandwich
Thank you for cheese
Thank you for the butter
Thank you for Auntie Sandy
Thank you for Mandi
Thank you for Daddy
Thank you for Mommy
Thank you for Lucy
Thank you for Lucy
AaaaMEN!

Big Sister

2008-11-05T09:42:00.000-08:00

Many of you have already heard the news: Lucy is going to be a Big Sister. Jer and I are happy to be expecting again. I'm due on May 8th. Lucy is already doing her part to help Mommy while I get through the 'all day sickness' and fatigue that comes along with this pregnancy. She is also already being a great 'big sis' by praying for the new baby every night. She also wants to pray for the new baby that is in her tummy. . . OK, maybe she doesn't completely understand just yet.
We will keep you posted on any new developments.

I voted!

2008-11-04T14:43:00.000-08:00

Well, my mom did. I got a sticker though!

Happy Halloween!

2008-10-31T07:36:00.000-07:00

Happy Halloween! What a full day Lucy had. We started the day with pumpkin pancakes and 'boo' berries before taking a quick picture of Lucy on the front steps.

Then we headed over to church for a Mops play day. Here is Lucy getting a sugar free sucker from the tooth fairy. Yum!

Here are the kids. They had to sit while they had their suckers.

We headed home to rest and re-group before trick-or-treating. We got some real food in for supper with a pumpkin shaped pizza, yummy mummies, apples and blood red punch. I'm pretty sure I enjoyed all of that more than Lucy did. . .

Then, we got Lucy in her pink piggy costume.

And, we headed out trick-or-treating.

Here is Lucy with buddies; Annika, Luke and Sam.

Here are Tigist, Besselot, Miki and Sylvie with Lucy.

To finish the day, Lucy got into her Halloween jammies.

Gram and Lucy

2008-10-28T08:16:00.000-07:00

We have to rewind a few weeks for this post. For our 10th Anniversary, Jer and I went to Lutsen for the weekend. My mom came up for 4 days to watch Lucy while we were gone. I got a few pictures of the fun they had while we were gone.

Gram and Lucy went to visit Mandi and went to the park by her house. Here is Gram pushing Lucy on the swing.

Here are Mandi and Lucy on the big slide.

They also took a walk up to our favorite popcorn and malt shop.

Muuuaaahhhh! Thanks for coming Gram!

Halloween Camping

2008-10-21T06:16:00.000-07:00

We got to join Uncle Jim, Auntie Kelly, Addy and Mindi this weekend for their annual Halloween Camping weekend. Jim and Addy have done this for three years and now we know why they love it so much. We got to the camp ground late Friday night and were shocked to see that all of the campsites were decorated for Halloween and were glowing with lights or candles. It was amazing. On Saturday I got a shot of Jim's campsite. In the picture below you can see part of it. The other half was a complete graveyard with moving and talking heads. The pumpkins up the path were lit up at night.

Here are the girls up by the lodge getting ready for the costume parade.The girls again, getting ready for trick-or-treating.
Here are Mindi and Lucy, thinking that all of this is for them. . .

Lucy, with her pumpkin, trick-or-treating for her first time!

Scary Addy and Lucy. Lucy thought it was funny to steal Addy's teeth.

We also got to carve some pumpkins. Lucy is getting to be a pretty good goop scooper. She will have one more chance when we do pumpkins again at church this weekend.

I have to end with a big thank you to Jim for telling us about this super fun weekend and for reserving our campsite for us. We cannot wait for next year!!!

Lunch Today

2008-10-14T10:34:00.001-07:00

Lunch conversation went like this today:
Me: Lucy, you look so tired. Are you tired, honey?
Lucy: Yes.
Me: Do you want to go have some rockies and take a nap?
Lucy: No.

I turned around and turned back and this is what I found:

She was actually sleeping. I went to take her out of the high chair and she woke up and said 'No, more macaroni and cheese.' Then she drifted off again.

Daddy's Birthday

2008-10-06T16:36:00.000-07:00

Lucy and I started getting ready for Jer to come home from work early in the afternoon. We went shopping for ingredients and Lucy helped me make German Chocolate cupcakes. She did great with the stirring and putting the cupcake liners in the pan.

Then, for Daddy's October birthday, he and Lucy carved a pumpkin.

Squishy hands.

Lucy 'helped' with the carving.

Lucy and Daddy with 'Jack'.

Happy Birthday Daddy!

Wisconsin

2008-10-02T19:29:00.000-07:00

Lucy and I are back from a week long trip to Wisconsin. Our first stop was in Fond du lac to visit Lucy's Great Grandparents. Lucy had lots of fun in the toy box.

She also had some fun with Grandpa. Here they are with kitties on their heads. Lucy determined that the big kitty was Grandpas and the little kitty was hers. I'm not sure how she chose the body parts, but the kitties were on their heads, their knees and a whole bunch of other silly places. She also learned a new word and in the week since we were there, she has reminded me several times that Grandpa (not Lucy) is a 'corker'.

Here is Lucy taking a break from getting her jammies on, so she could read a book with Grandma.
After Grandma & Grandpa's we were on our way to Milwaukee. Lucy and Mindi started having fun right away with Mindi's new dress up clothes and all of her fun toys.
Mindi was the clown first and Lucy was a 'cow girl'.

Lucy also had a major 'first'. I thought it was very appropriate that Lucy had her first drink from a bubbler in Milwaukee. For those of you who don't know what a bubbler is, see the picture below.

We also got to go to our friend Debbie's house to play for the afternoon. Debbie has four horses that the girls were very excited to see. Mindi hopped up for a ride on Rusty. Lucy held out for a ride on the Clydesdale.

The girls had plenty of time to get dirty, and when ever they did, Gram was there to clean them up.

I was very excited to be able to take Lucy for a ride on the train at the Milwaukee County Zoo. I have pictures of me and my mom just like this one on the train when I was little.

Here is Mindi waving at the people as we went by.

The girls also got to do something really special. They got to feed the giraffes. We got to go with a zookeeper up on a platform and feed the giraffes rye crisp crackers and leafy branches.

It was a great trip. We miss our Milwaukee family and look forward to our next visit!

Another Day on the Farm

2008-09-20T17:42:00.001-07:00

We spent the afternoon at Fall Harvest Farm. We went with Lucy's cousins; Emily, Allie, Ryan and David. We celebrated Ryan's first birthday. Right out of the car, Lucy and Emily were off and running.

Then we took time to feed some goats.

And feed some chickens.Lucy got to hold some baby chicks under Papa's careful guidance. She also got to pet the baby goats.
Some of the party favors for the birthday part were animal noses. Here is Allie with her mousie nose.
Paola and David with there kitty noses.
And the Birthday boy with his family. Emily, Matt, Ryan, Kim and Allie.

Happy Birthday Ryan!

Hi

2008-09-09T15:35:00.000-07:00

Lucy wanted to say 'hi' to a few people that she doesn't see very often. There is also a 'shout out' of her very own at the end.

Labor Day

2008-09-03T16:36:00.001-07:00

One of our Labor Day activities this year was to go to Jeremy's Aunt and Uncle's house for supper and a hay ride. Some of Jer's cousins were home visiting with their kids, which is always fun for Lucy.

Here we are - on our way down for the hayride.

Here is Julie with Kyle.

Bill and Ellie on the hayride.

Here is Alex with his Daddy Greg.
Another cute picture of Alex.

Rachael, Carrie, Todd & Jacob enjoying the ride.

After the hayride, a few of us got a tour of Jodi's amazing garden. Here are some of the multitudes of tomato plants.

There are also peppers, zucchini, beans, herbs, corn, broccoli, squash and pumpkins. I'm sure I'm missing a few things too,

Here is Rachael enjoying a fresh piece of broccoli.Jodi is showing the kids the inside of the bean tepee.

We came home with full tummies, happy hearts and a big bag of veggies. Lucy and I can make some more zucchini bread together now.

Duluth

2008-08-27T11:38:00.000-07:00

The last day of family camp, Jer and I decided we were so close to Duluth, we should go up for the day. Our friends, Pete and Jess McWilliams decided that they would bring their kids and come too.
It wasn't your typical day in Duluth. I had envisioned a day of cold wind, of quickly sneaking a peek at the water and then dashing into shops or restaurants to warm up and pull the hair off my face. It was, however, so warm when we got there, we had to peel off layers of sweatshirts and long pants. We let the kids play in the water and get wet. It was so much fun and so much better than I expected it would be!

We went to Grandmas for lunch and then headed out for a walk down to the light house. After that, we stopped by the edge of the pier to let the kids play in the rocks.

Here are Jer and Lucy checking the water temp. Cold, but refreshing.

Lucy just had to get her feet in.

Here are Jess and Molly.

Molly decided she needed to get a little more than her feet wet. Just before this she did a belly flop into the water. The boys skipped rocks.
Ryan loved to pose for pictures. It was so cute to see the fun places that he would find.

After the rock beach and a little shopping, we decided to go to a sandy beach to play. Here are Jess and Molly. Cute Mommy, cute baby.

Here is Lucy, laying in the sand. All of the people around us were laying out, trying to get tans, Lucy thought she should lay down too.

Bay Watch Baby?

Molly and Lucy found one last fun spot to play for a few minutes before we had to head for home.

Family Camp

2008-08-27T10:42:00.001-07:00

Some of the adult Sunday school classes at our church do an annual Family Camp weekend. Jer and I decided this would be a good year for us to join in the tradition. So, we packed up the mini and headed up to Covenant Park Bible Camp last Friday afternoon.

Lucy and I had a little walk around the camp to explore. Lucy loved picking flowers.

Saturday afternoon we all got to go on a hayride. Here are some of the kids waiting for the ride to start.

Bella, Jocelyn and Lucy

Lucy and Mommy before the ride started.

It was a very long ride. Ryan was asleep in his Daddy's arms just about half way through.

Here we are in the main lodge gathered around the fire. It was a chilly weekend. It was nice to have a warm place to relax.The kids in the middle of the group. We all sang a few camp songs. I think I see Ryan, Lucille, Christina, Colin, Jocelyn, Bella, and Holly.

Doug and Annika Brown.And Bella Carter, showing us how clean her feet were.

We were fed well. Here are Doug, Peter, Molly, Jess, Kimber, Ted, Jer and Lucy (yep, she's in there) enjoying a spaghetti dinner.

The kids table.

Lucy and Molly had so much fun with these booster seats. They would take off after we got them out of the high chairs and go play with these chairs. Look at Lucy's little finger pointing down. I think she is telling one to 'stay right there'.

On Sunday we left the camp and went just about a half hour north to Duluth for the day. I hope to have that post up soon. We'll see how long Lucy naps for. . .

Lazy Days of Summer

2008-08-21T13:14:00.000-07:00

Lucy and I have had a slow week at home this week. Several times each day the phrase 'lazy days of summer' passed through my head. It was a hot, sticky, still week. I was so lazy that I didn't even get my camera out. All of the pictures were snapped with my phone.

Here are a few of the fun things we did this week. We tried to stay in the water, the shade or in the air conditioning.

We played with sidewalk chalk.

We played in the pool.

And in the pink sand.

Today, when we got our weekly load of produce from our CSA, we made zucchini bread.
This was the first time that I really let Lucy help me cook. She loved to stir. She also got to pour out the the measuring spoons and cups after I filled them with ingredients.

'Looks Lip Smackin' good Mom!'

When we were done cooking, I pulled the chair over and Lucy helped me do the dishes. She was a very good rinser.

She really likes to help clean up. Here she is wiping down the cabinets after doing the dishes. They were a little wet, so were her clothes, the walls, the floor, the window. . .

Added Bonus: The zucchini bread is good. I'm munching on a piece as I write this.

I'm So Proud of You

2008-08-18T17:31:00.001-07:00

No pictures, just a cute story:
Lucy has been using the potty for the past few days, not every time, but about once a day. Jer and I have been telling her 'Good job!' We're so proud of you!' Yea Lucy!' and any other encouraging things that we can think to tell her when she goes.
Today, I went to the bathroom and of course, Lucy followed me in there. She stood in front of me, looked right in my eyes and said 'I'm so proud of you!'.

Girls Weekend

2008-08-11T11:56:00.000-07:00

Another fun summer weekend has gone by. Last weekend we were in Viroqua again for 'Girls Weekend'. These happen once or twice a year for the 'Gray' girls. These are the girls on my mom's side of the family. This weekend it was my mom, Auntie Sandy, Mandi, Kelly, Mindi, Lucy and me. Mandi was with us for the beginning of the weekend, before she left for another girls outing in Iowa. Mandi got the girls t-shirts while she was in Italy last month. They say 'Ciao Bella'. Here is a shot of them together.

Sandy got the girls this cute pool to hang out in. Here they are splashing with Gram, Mandi and one of Mandi's friends.

Mindi loved scooping up the water and dumping it out with these cups.

Lucy's version of coming by mommy and saying 'cheese'.

Of course I spent a large part of the day behind the camera. I caught this cute shot while I was spying on Lucy and Gram having a conversation on the steps.

Later that day we got to go visit some of Sandy's friends, The Leum's. They are organic dairy farmers. They had baby cows and baby kittens on the farm this weekend.

Here are some of their cows. They came right up to see us. One of them would moo when we would get close. At first, Lucy was a little scared, but then she thought it was pretty neat. Here she is saying 'Moo'.
And, the kitties. Here Kitty, kitty.

This one climbed this ladder to get up to his favorite spot in the barn.

Mindi liked the kitties the best. She is waiting for one to come by her.

Lucy and Mommy, petting the Mommy cat.

Here are Gram and the Girls walking up the hill to get to the tire swing. And. . . Mindi coming back down. Check out Gram in the background.

Lucy with Auntie Sandy. Mindi and Lucy.

The girls with sweet Charlie.

On Sunday, we had a nice morning at the house before everyone had to go home. Here are the girls with Auntie Sandy. They are wearing Elephant t-shirts in Sandy's honor.

Of course we tried to get some shots of the girls together in their matchy matchy shirts. And, of course, they would not sit still. Here they are being so silly on the chair together.

Camping

2008-08-06T09:54:00.001-07:00

This past weekend Lucy and I went camping with some of the Macsurak side of our family. We celebrated Geno (my cousin) and Addy's (Lucy's cousin) birthdays while we were camping. Geno's was Friday and Addy's was Sunday. My Auntie Ginny made each of the kids a cake with 12 candles each. They were both delicious.

Although eating is usually a main theme of our family get togethers, we did do some other activities as well. My Auntie Sandy came along with me and Lucy and she brought a favorite toy of all children. They are little plastic eggs with turtles inside of them. They come in a cute egg crate and all of the kids love them. Here are Addy and Sandy playing with the eggs with Mindi and Lucy.

There was also a new and very popular game, of which I do not know the name. Its the one where you throw the golf balls at the ladders (good description, I know). Here are Addy and Sabrina taking a break from their game to pose for a picture.

And, my cousin Lynn and her new husband John taking time to. . . pose for a picture.

The girls, just playing.

Part of the gang, trying to find shade.

Although, I don't seem to have any pictures of them, my cousin Katie and her husband Luke were with also. Here Mindi and Lucy have decided to join their son Tristan in his pack and play.

They did good in there for a little while, until. . .

Auntie Ginny sharing some cake with Lucy.

Mindi sharing some cake with Addy.

Here are Geno and his friend hanging out by the fire. Sabrina and Addy by the fire. Happy Birthday to Addy and Geno, I hope you guys had a great weekend.
There are more great pictures on Jim & Kelly's blog, Mindi Mac. You can link to it here, or above in the links list.

A Taste of Minnesota

2008-08-01T14:48:00.002-07:00

Lucy went to her first Minnesota Twins game this week. I think she had a lot of fun. We got to walk around the Metrodome, see the sights and smell the smells of the game. Our favorite smell is of an official Dome Dog! Yep, Lucy had her first Dome Dog and she loved it. After the walking and the eating, there was enough energy for the singing of the National Anthem, watching the first pitch and about half of the first inning. Since the game started at 7:10, Lucy was already one tired little girl. It was a good first experience though, next time we'll try to make it through a whole inning.

Here are Mommy and Lucy somewhere in the Dome. Lucy is looking at the tickets.

Daddy and Lucy laughing at that crazy T.C.

Ohhh look - There's Joe Mauer.

Yeah Minnesota! Go Twins!

Our official 'At the Metrodome' picture. When a stranger is taking the picture, you take what you can get.

The next day we went to Red Wing, MN for a little hiking excursion. We hiked up the Barn Bluff Trail and were rewarded with a great view of Red Wing and the Mississippi River when we reached the top.

OK - when you are taking your own picture, you take what you can get. . .

What fun mid-week events. This weekend Lucy and I are headed to Wisconsin for some camping fun. Hopefully there will be a recap next week.

More Fun at the Cabin

2008-07-29T09:52:00.000-07:00

This past weekend we were at the cabin again! More fun with more people. This time it was a fun cousin weekend. All of Lucy's Kobielush cousins were there.
Due to the swimmers itch episode last weekend, the guys started this visit by removing all of the snails from the beach in front of the cabin. Jer and dad created a snail shovel with a pitch fork and some screen. It is a great invention. The patent is pending and it will be in stores in the summer of '09.
Here are Jer and Sam hard at work. It is a pretty great image of Jer with no shirt and waders. He said he felt like going noodeling when he was done.

While the guys were working on the lake, the kids got to do some monster bubbles. Lucy is holding two of the bottles here.

Here they are - Ali, Lucy, Auntie Katie, Emily, Alyssa, David and Paola. Although you can't see her very well, Alyssa is in there. She is Jer's cousin and was visiting from California. We just met her for the first time. It was so fun to have her in MN.

Matt and Ryan. . . checking out the bubbles.
In and out and around and around.
Hmmm, Mommy says I'm not allowed to go outside by myself. If David is going, then I'm not by myself, right?
Bedtime Story.

The tent on the left is our new family tent. It is huge and it is great. Lucy slept in a tent for her first time on this trip. She loved the airmatress.

She also loved having her own lantern.

We made a stop at one of our favorite cabin spots. Rutger's lodge. We usually stop in for ice cream or iced coffees. This time we got to make an extra stop in the lodge for a quick ride.

And of course, we got ice cream. I just love blue ice cream (blue moon is my favorite). I think Lucy likes it too. She is licking it off her lips.

Another lick from Daddy.

Tom and Katie, just relaxing.

Grandma and her Girls.

Red Tongue Club

2008-07-25T10:14:00.001-07:00

On Wednesday night some of the extended Kobielush Family got together and had dinner and went on a walk to Dairy Queen. Here is my favorite picture of the night. After having some red slushies and ice cream treats, some of us had some bright red tongues. We thought it would make a funny picture. Lucy was happy to be a part of the club.

Mommy's Birthday!

2008-07-22T19:53:00.000-07:00

As I was writing the title for this post, I realized that I always think of myself in the third person now. Do all Mommies do that? I remember the first time I called myself Mommy in my head. I realized what I had done and I thought it was so crazy. Now it is normal. I guess crazy is normal for many mommies. . . I also think for many mommies the thought of celebrating includes their children. Today it did for me. I wanted to do something fun for my birthday, so I thought of something that I have been wanting to do for months. I've been wanting to go to the MN Landscape Arboretum. I wanted to take pictures of Lucy in a pretty dress among the flowers. I got to do that and more today. Lucy and I went with Auntie Katie, Tia (Auntie) Paola, David and Grandma K. It was hot, but it was fun.

We started with the kids in strollers and just wandered around the rose garden, the hosta garden and other garden spots. Then we spotted a comfy, shady spot to take a rest.

I actually think Lucy would have stayed here all day.

Then our walkway turned into a crunchy path. Uh-Oh, Lucy found her favorite thing.
Ooooooh Rocks!I LOVE rocks!

We went inside for lunch. 1-2-3 Weeeeeee!

After lunch it was back out to the gardens. Lucy wanted to go up the pretty stone stairs.

Cousins.

Then with Auntie Katie pushing our stroller, I got to snap away.

I got to sit in for a birthday picture with my girl also. Thanks for taking the picture Katie! After touring the gardens, we drove through the trees to the children's shrub maze. Now it was time for the kids to run and play.

Cabin with the Thomsens

2008-07-21T09:20:00.000-07:00

We have just returned from another fun weekend at the cabin. We went up with our friends, the Thomsens. Jer and I have known Ed and Shelley since our early working days at Lutheran Brotherhood. It is so fun to watch our kids play together now.

It was a gloomy day on Saturday, we got to play in the lake a little before the storms rolled in.

It cleared up in the afternoon, so we got to go on a boat tour around the lake.

Here are Ed, Peyton and Miles.Shelley and Sawyer

Lucy, Peyton and Miles
We made a quick visit to Jer's Aunt and Uncle's cabin. They were up along with cousins Jodi and Greg and their son Alex. Alex had a lot of fun playing the kids. We just have one picture of the kids playing with Greg.On Sunday morning we had good weather so we all got to play outside. Peyton caught his very first fish off the dock!

They also got in some swimming time. Here is Miles enjoying the water.

Peyton cooled off after fishing.

Miles and Lucy were instant friends. Here they are taking a tour of the yard on Sunday.

We have to end with a sad report. Lucy had her first experience with swimmer's itch. Jer had some bumps show up on Saturday and Lucy woke up with red bumpy legs on Sunday morning. Here they are checking it out.

Don't worry, Lucy is just fine. We heard some complaints about the itching from Jer, but our little trooper Lucy hasn't even fussed.

Thanks to Ed, Miles, Sawyer, Shelley, & Peyton for a great weekend.

Gram's Weekend With Lucy

2008-07-14T13:07:00.001-07:00

It was a fun filled weekend with Gram in town! Gram was here for an extra long weekend to visit her Lucy Jane and to spend a special night with her while Mommy and Daddy had a night out.

We started the weekend by going to the Mall of America on Friday to do some shopping. We took Lucy to the Rain Forest Cafe for lunch. She loved the fishies swimming all around the tables, but was a little unsure of the thunder and lightning that happened a few times while we were eating. We tried to get a few good pictures, but you will see that some of us (myself included) just couldn't get a camera face going. . .

On Saturday, we hung out at the house. Gram got Lucy a new 'comfy chair' as Lucy calls it. She even got to have some rides around the house in it.

Of course, she played with Gram's shoes.Then, after Mommy and Daddy headed out Lucy had a good dinner with Gram. . .

I've heard that she actually had a nutritious dinner first, but I didn't see any pictures of that. . .
Lucy also got to play with some new books and toys that Gram brought for her.

They tried for the self portrait.

They also had a visitor. Mandi came by to play, newly back from her trip abroad. She was hitting the beaches in Italy, Greece and Turkey. Notice the glowing tan.

On Sunday we all had a little R&R after our big nights, then we made it out for dinner at a So. Minneapolis favorite, Fat Lorenzo's. Lucy was doing her big open mouthed laugh for all of the pictures.
We took some gelato to the park across the street after eating. Lucy was a huge fan of the little spoons that came with the gelato.

Today, we got in some play time and snuggle time before Gram had to leave for the drive back to Milwaukee. Lucy and Mommy are both a little sad, but are really looking forward to seeing Gram again in a few weeks.

Aunt Sandy

2008-07-10T12:39:00.000-07:00

'AuntSannie, AuntSannie', that is more how Lucy says it. And she says it a lot! Aunt Sandy just left this morning and now the conversation has been: 'AuntSannie home?', 'Yes, Peanut. Aunt Sandy went home today'
She was here for a few days just to see us and we had a lot of fun. We went to Como Zoo yesterday, blew bubbles, and got some new pink sand for the sand box. Aunt Sandy built many a sand castle for Lucy and Lucy knocked every one of them down.
Here are a few pics:

Independence Day

2008-07-05T08:18:00.000-07:00

Happy Independence Day! We spent the day at the cabin with Grandma & Papa, Auntie Katie and Uncle Tom. It was a true Minnesota 4th of July. We played in the lake, grilled bbq chicken for supper and watched fireworks at night. Of course, we swatted a few mosquitoes too.

2008-06-30T20:54:00.001-07:00

Here are some pictures of Lucy playing in the yard. I had to pass on some of the cuteness I get every day.

Texas

2008-06-21T21:13:00.001-07:00

Lucy is such a great travel companion. She had her first airplane ride on the way down to Texas and her first road trip on the way back. We flew down to Texas where we bit the bullet and bought a mini van. We stayed a day to have some fun, then drove the mini van back to MN. We made it to Kansas City the first day and home the second day of the road trip.

After the big car purchase, we headed to Grapevine, Texas. It is a historic town with one little strip of a Main street. Lucy and I stopped to get a cool touch of water in the fountain in the town square.

Lucy stopped for a rest and to make a new friend. This looks like a nice fellow.

We stopped for a true Texas lunch. When I was in Texas about 10 years ago, I had Texas Frito pie for the first time. We have been making it as close as we could at home ever since. We were excited to see it on the menu where we stopped for lunch.

After we toured Grapevine, we headed to Fort Worth where we went to the worlds largest Honky Tonk. Only in Texas. . .
Lucy headed out to the dance floor all by herself and started dancing to the music.

Apparently, her boots were made for dancing. Thanks to Mandi for the cute pink boots. They were perfect for the occasion.

We noticed that there were two older ladies that were close to us as we were walking around. At one point I heard one of them say that she should 'probably ask the parents first'. I turned around and she asked if she could give Lucy a $2 bill. She said that her and her husband had the bank save $2 bills for them because whenever they saw someone 'really special' they would give them one.

Jer and Lucy getting a closer look at the bull riding.

There was a wall of hand prints of the people that had played there. Here are Jer and Lucy with their hands on Johnny Cash's square.
Lucy wanted to give kisses to all of the cows.

We saw a lot of them at the Texas Stock Yards.

They still do a daily cattle drive.

Lucy got to meet a real cowgirl and pet her horse.

On the way home we had to get some BBQ in KC. Here is our lunch - BBQ beef and burnt ends all wrapped up in a lunch sandwich. Yum!

And, here is Lucy's lunch. Yum? Lucy's preferred mode of transportation.

A break from the car on the way home. As long as Lucy had her paci and blanket in the car, she was happy.

Father's Day at the Cabin

2008-06-16T15:24:00.000-07:00

We've just returned from spending a long weekend at the cabin with Jim, Kelly and Mindi. It was a great time for all. We got to do some relaxing, some boating and some general goofing around with the girls.
Since this was the first time at the cabin for Jim, Kelly and Mindi, we made sure to stop at some of the touristy cabin spots. Here are the Dads and girls by the big 'Welcome to Garrison' fish. This is by Lake Mille Lacs.

Hey Mindi, What's in there?The girls

Lucy and Mindi spent a lot of time in these pint sized chairs this weekend.

Lucy testing the waters

More fun in the water

Tube rides - just being pulled by the Dads, not the boat. . .

Boat ridesLucy and Jer driving the boatJim & MindiThe Macsuraks - Jim, Mindi & KellyAnd us on the boat
I was saying all weekend that I wanted to get a picture of the girls with their dads on Father's day. Finally Sunday night, I got them all to sit down together. Here are the pictures. . .
Well, you get the jist of that. . . At least you got to see what the shirts said. Take a look below for the back side.A great weekend, A great Father's day. Thanks Jim, Kelly and Mindi for driving through flood waters and many miles of detours to get to us. We miss you already.

Happy Father's Day

2008-06-16T15:18:00.000-07:00

After Lucy and David had their pictures taken a few weeks ago, I decided to hold one picture back to give it to Jer for a Father's Day present. Here it is. Daddy's little baseball fan.

We spent Father's Day with Jim, Kelly and Mindi at the cabin. There will be more Father's Day pictures to follow.

Everyday changes

2008-06-11T13:30:00.000-07:00

Until today, Lucy would sit on my lap to brush her teeth. Usually I'll brush and then give her the toothbrush to finish the job. Today Lucy really wanted to put the brush under the water by herself. She just couldn't reach from my lap, so we decided to see if she could reach if she stood on her stool.

Cabin

2008-06-08T20:45:00.001-07:00

This past weekend we made our first trip up to the cabin for this year. Jer and his Dad did a lot of work getting the cabin, the dock and the boat all ready for the summer. Lucy and I did a lot of exploring, playing and relaxing. . .
Here is Lucy watching Papa bring the boat to the dock to pick us up for a boat ride.

On the boat. . . I was worried that Lucy would be afraid. What was I thinking? Not my little daredevil! She loved the wind in her hair.
(Don't worry mom, I held her on my lap when the boat was actually moving)

Toes in the water. We'll wait for warmer days to swim.

Ringing the dinner bell. Hey, I'm hungry after all of that playing!

We will be headed back up this weekend. This time we will get to go with Jim, Kelly and Mindi. We are so excited!

Pictures

2008-06-06T07:14:00.000-07:00

Lucy has been able to spend some quality time with her cousin David this week. We thought it would be fun to go get their pictures taken together and get some updated pictures of them alone as well. We decided to do an all American theme with red, white & blue and baseball outfits. They both had fun running around the studio and did manage to be still in front of the camera for a few seconds for some very cute pictures.

Swank

2008-06-02T19:06:00.000-07:00

Tonight we went to a very swanky condo in downtown Minneapolis that is currently inhabited by Hollywood actor and producer, David Austin. . . aka Jer's cousin David.
Lucy had a great time exploring the condo.

Is this thing real?

Auntie Katie came down with us. Uncle Sam, Auntie Paola and Lucy's cousin David were there also, but we didn't get any snaps of them before they had to go.

Here is a view from the building. It is a great view of Minneapolis.

We also got a tour of the balcony.

Lucy and Mommy checking out the view.

The Guthrie Theater is just next to the condo. Here are Jer and Lucy checking it out. Can you see the yellow box on the left side of the Guthrie building?
After visiting David, we went over to the Guthrie. The yellow box that you could see in the last picture is a room with a great view of the Mississippi River. Here is Lucy taking a look. Jer and Lucy on the balcony. Jer is pointing out the construction of the new 35W bridge. Look to the left part of the picture below and you will see a blue crane. The crane is doing some of the construction of the new bridge. The bridge goes to just about the middle of the picture.

Memorial Day

2008-05-27T13:30:00.001-07:00

Lucy and I were on the road again for Memorial Day. We went to Milwaukee for a Memorial Day/Birthday party for Uncle Jim. Here are some pics of Mindi and Lucy together at the party.

For more pictures of the girls and the family, head on over to Mindi's blog: Mindi Mac.

Mandi's Graduation

2008-05-21T08:49:00.000-07:00

On Monday night Lucy and I attended Mandi's graduation ceremony for her Masters degree. We were so excited that we could celebrate with her. Auntie Sandy (Mandi's mom) came up on Monday afternoon too. We all went to the ceremony together. Then we went to dinner with Jer and a few of Mandi's friends to celebrate. Here are a few pics:

Mandi walking down to the stage

The stage had a flag for each of the countries that the students were from

Lucy and Auntie Sandy enjoying the ceremony

Lucy and Mandi

Jer, Sandy, Mandi, Lucy and me

Mandi, we are so proud of you and so glad that you chose to study in Minnesota. We will be searching for a job for you that is in the twin cities so you don't leave us!

Cup

2008-05-19T09:54:00.000-07:00

I started to let Lucy drink out of a regular cup this morning. I was watching the older kids in the nursery drink water out of dixie cups yesterday and started thinking that this could be our next accomplishment. So, I gave Lucy a little cup this morning with a little bit of water and just thought I would see how she did. Every day I'm surprised at how smart she is. She picked up the cup and took a big gulp like she had been drinking from a regular cup her whole life. Then. . . she shook the cup and the water spilled on her shirt. She looked at me and said 'wet'. . . 'paper towel'. I'm not kidding, this kid is so stinkin' smart! In Lucy language, the word paper towel sounds like 'peetalow', but she says it every time I use one. It must be fun to say. I thought it was so smart and so hilarious that she knew that a paper towel was for wet spills.
I really wanted to get a video, but I couldn't find the camera. I did get her drinking and spilling a little later with my phone.

I also got her saying one of her new favorite words: Heavy. Everything is heavy these days.

P.S. Thank you Grandma for giving me the little plastic cups!
My Grandma saved the cups that my brother, cousins and I used at her house when we were little. I remember drinking from them.

Mops

2008-05-16T10:43:00.001-07:00

Today was the last day of the Mops 2007-2008 year. We had a very lovely tea party today as our last meeting and we heard some of our members reflect on what Mops means to them. As I was listening to them, I was thinking of how much Mops means to me. It was one of the best things that I did after Lucy was born. It was a great way to connect with other moms, learn some tips from other more experienced mommies, learn that other mommies are going through the same things that I am and to have some time for myself while Lucy is being well cared for in Moppets (the church nursery upstairs). I'll sure miss these ladies over the summer. We do have a few play dates planned to keep us connected. I'm looking forward to next year where I'll take on a different role as well. I'll be a part of the steering committee so I can give a little to this group that has given so much to me.
Here is just one picture of my table members. No, we don't always wear the hats, it was a part of the tea party theme.

And. . . Since this blog is really about Lucy, I have to share that she was so worn out from playing in Moppets that this is what she is doing while I'm blogging.

Mother's Day

2008-05-14T11:49:00.000-07:00

For Mother's day we got a new jogger stroller. This might not be so exciting to some of you, but this is something that I have been wanting for months. We've been doing lots of research and lots of searching for a used jogger. We haven't been able to find the one I wanted used, so for Mother's day, I got to get a brand new one. I just love it. Lucy and I have been out running twice with it and it is great. I'm pretty sure it is comfortable for Lucy, she has fallen asleep in it both times.
You'll notice that the picture is only of Lucy and the stroller as I'm sure no one wants to see my red faced, dripping with sweat, almost ready to die jogging picture. So, here's hoping for many happy miles for Lucy AND mommy.

Springtime

2008-05-08T06:29:00.001-07:00

Here are some pictures from the past few days. It has been so nice, we have been outside as much as possible. Jer and I have been cleaning up the back yard and getting it ready for Lucy to play in and for me to plant some more flowers. Lucy has been a great help as you can see below.

Lucy - could you get me just one more bag?

Helping Mommy dig. Do you think the dirt is yummy?

It isn't all work. We've had some play time too.

Pigtails!Fun at the park.
A new bike from Gram! Her favorite part is the bell.

Backyard Bonfires

2008-05-05T20:29:00.000-07:00

We are back in MN and the Nee's are here for a visit. We all headed up to Grandma and Papa's house last night to hang out. Matt and Jer started a fire in the back yard for us all to enjoy and Grandma provided fixin's for s'mores, Yum!

Allie didn't quite wait for the s'more part. . .

David, Emily, Lucy & Allie

All of the grandkids together with their Grandma.

The Nee's minus Ryan. . . Kim, Emily, Matt & Allie.

Today we were all invited to Katie and Tom's house for a cook out and another bonfire. Thanks to Tom for doing the grilling before he had to head back to work for a meeting.
Here is Katie and Lucy enjoying the fire.
Emily, Katie, Allie, David & Paola
Of course we tried to get all of the kids together for a picture. This is the only one I got with all five faces showing. Someone just kept getting up to come to her mama. I think she was pretty proud that she could pick up the heavy bocce ball.
Emily just couldn't wait any longer for Ryan to grow some hair. Grass was the perfect fit. All of the girls thought this was hillarious.
There was also time for a game of catch.
And a little R&R.
Papa got some snuggle time in.
And I got to hand the camera over to Jer for snap shot of Lucy and Mama.

It is so wonderful to finally have some weather that is warm enough to be outside! I love this time of year when it is warm during the day, but cool enough to bundle up by the fire at night. I have so many memories like this growing up. It is great to think that Lucy will have that too.

Viroqua

2008-05-05T06:38:00.001-07:00

What a great weekend we had in Viroqua. Lucy and I got to spend some time with Auntie Sandy, Great Grandpa, Great Grandma and we had a surprise visit from Gram. Here is Lucy having a walk around Sandy's yard.

Of course, Lucy got some 'sagges' from Auntie Sandy. For those of you not 'in the know' these are the combination of massages and baby tickles.

Lucy also gave us a fashion show. The first walk down the runway was in a stunning blue fleece vest that was designed by Gram. Unfortunately, we didn't get a picture of Lucy in only a shirt and a safari hat with a flashlight for her accessory.

Before they left, Grandpa and Lucy got in a quick game of poker. They are both looking forward to their first game of cribbage together.

Go Twins!

2008-04-29T06:40:00.000-07:00

The cutest Twins fan ever!

Throw the Ball!

Just like her Mama - a little worried about catching the ball.

Paparazzi

2008-04-25T12:58:00.000-07:00

The Paparazzi have sighted the elusive Lucy Kobielush. She was seen earlier this week coming out of the new hit restaurant 'Cheerio'. She was photographed getting in her car and driving away with a cup in her hand. We are sad to report that she looked a little 'tipsy'.

Walks

2008-04-24T07:08:00.000-07:00

Here are a few pictures of Lucy from last week. We went for a little walk down the street. This is one of her new favorite things to do and one of her new favorite words to say; 'walk'.

Times Have Changed

2008-04-17T07:37:00.000-07:00

Growing up in Wisconsin, a kid could get a learners permit to drive at age 15. Then you could practice your driving with another licensed driver in the car. Apparently, in Minnesota, the age is 15 months and they let you drive with just about anyone. . .

From Mandi

2008-04-16T17:46:00.001-07:00

Mandi was over last night and brought her computer. Along with lots of great music, Mandi has over 200 pictures of Lucy on her computer. I had a great time looking back over the last 14 months in pictures. Here are a few of my favorites.

Feliz Cumpleanos David

2008-04-13T14:15:00.000-07:00

Well, Lucy is feeling better and better and was able to go to her cousin David's birthday party on Saturday. David had an Elmo theme as you will see below. Paola brought him his own special cake while Papa was holding him. He dug right in to the blue and red Elmo frosting.

He is such a good little boy, so he decided he should share some of his frosting.

Then David thought that he could share Papa with Lucy. She was happy to get some cuddle time with her Papa too.

The kids got some play time together as well. Thanks for letting us celebrate with you David. Happy Birthday.

Long Week at Home

2008-04-11T09:41:00.000-07:00

It has been a long week at home this week. Lucy has been very sick and has been to the doctor three times. Other than that, we haven't been able to do much. In my boredom of being in the house for days, I figured out that I could take a video with my telephone and e-mail it to myself. So, last night Lucy was feeling a little better and was reading her picture book on the kitchen floor while I was making supper. She was saying the people that she saw in the pictures; 'Mama, Dada' etc. When she got to George Foreman she got stuck. I just heard 'What dat?' over and over. I told her it was George and she moved on. Then she saw the pages with Auntie Katie and Auntie Kelly. In her world they both have the same name: 'AuntieAAA'. I grabbed my phone and took a video of her.

This morning, Lucy seems to be feeling better yet. She is playing and seems happy. AND, no fever, hooray! We are hoping she will stay well and might be able to make a brief visit to her cousin David's house tomorrow for his 1st birthday party.

All Aboard

2008-04-05T08:12:00.000-07:00

Lucy and I are back from Milwaukee. We took the train back on Thursday night. I feel the ride is best summed up in numbers:
87,500 Cheerios eaten (ok, maybe that is a slight exaggeration)
500 crackers eaten (again, possibly exaggerated)
15 minutes to change 1 diaper in the tiny train bathroom
7 hours from Milwaukee to St. Paul
3 new books read
2 people
1 seat

It all equals 0 pictures taken.

Happy Birthday Mindi!

2008-04-01T09:02:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday Mindi! This weekend we celebrated Mindi's first birthday. As you can see, she enjoyed some cake at her birthday party.

There was also a ball pit set up downstairs with tons of plastic balls and stuffed animals for the kids to play in.
Since Lucy and I are staying in Milwaukee until Thursday, Lucy and Mindi are getting in lots of play time. They have been playing at the house and we have gone out for a few activities also.
Here they are playing at a water table at a nearby restaurant. Although pizza and pasta was on the menu, Lucy did try to eat a few fish. . .
They also got some play time in with Big sis/Big cousin Addy Jane. She took the girls all over the play area and down a huge slide. All three had a great time. Addy loves to play with the little girls and is so good with them. I keep telling her that I need her full time. Here is Lucy on the slide with Addy.

Here are Addy and Mindi on the slide.

Busy, Busy, Busy

2008-03-27T12:05:00.000-07:00

I've been wanting to write this new post since Monday and haven't had time to sit down at the computer since then. Lucy and I have been all over the cities this week. We went to the zoo with Grandma, Auntie Kim and the kids on Tuesday. We had a play date on Wednesday and then went to spend the night at Grandma's. Then today we had a lunch date downtown. I had to get home and take a few minutes now since we are leaving for Milwaukee tomorrow to go to Mindi Jane's birthday party.
So. . . Monday was Lucy's last swimming lesson. Here is a little video of what she has been learning. Don't worry, the bouncing baby only flies twice.

Easter

2008-03-23T14:14:00.000-07:00

Easter with the Kobielush kids. I guess that used to mean different people. Here is the next generation. . . Allie, David, Lucy, Emily and Ryan gave us about 3.5 seconds to snap as many pictures as we could of them all in one spot. I was so intent on Lucy having her Easter dress on for the picture. Isn't it cute????

It really has been a fun few days having all of these kids together. Yesterday Allie and Emily were asking Lucy; 'What does the cow say?' 'What does the kitty say?'. Lucy would say 'Moooo' and 'Meow'. Then Lucy grabbed a box and said 'Bok'. Now the question is 'What does the boxsss say?' and Lucy answers 'bok'. They all think this is hilarious.

You may also notice that there are some new links on the blog: Nee Caps and David Luis. Kim, Paola and I have been upstairs in the office working on the blogs as much as we could for the past few days. We've had Katie up here as our tech support and have actually been outsourcing some of our tech questions to Mississippi as well - thanks Kathy!!

So check out the new links for more pictures of the rest of the Kobielush Fam.

An Early Easter Brunch

2008-03-22T12:33:00.000-07:00

Allie and Lucy just couldn't wait for the rest of us to have Easter brunch, so they had theirs a day early. Allie was the perfect host and made coffee and hot chocolate for Lucy.
Missing from the picture are Emily, Ryan and David - who were all napping. . . Hopefully we will get a picture of all of the kids together before the weekend is over!

Here you go Gram!

2008-03-12T14:11:00.001-07:00

Gram, we know you are going crazy since you cannot be here with the girls. Here are a few pictures of them playing.

Mindi Jane is HERE!

2008-03-10T08:38:00.001-07:00

Mindi Jane and Auntie Kelly have arrived! Auntie Kelly brought a bubble machine that the girls just loved. Mindi's hair was wet with bubbles by the time they were done. She could even turn it on all by herself.

Yum!!

2008-03-06T08:25:00.001-08:00

What a fun morning! Lucy ate her yogurt all by herself. She started by putting the spoon in her mouth after I got the yogurt on it, then she dipped the spoon in the dish and got it in her mouth all by herself. Ok, there might have been a few stops along the way and some exploring with the other hand, but the spoon did eventually make it to her mouth with some yogurt left on it.
When I put the spoon in her hand I put it in her right hand since that seemed natural for me. However, each time I did this, she switched it to her left hand before she dipped it back in the yogurt. We just might have a Lefty Lucy on our hands (some company for Auntie Kim!).

We have got a very busy month to look forward to here in the Kobielush household. We have some VERY special guests coming to visit on Sunday. Auntie Kelly and Cousin Mindi Jane are coming! We are so excited. Then Auntie Kim, Uncle Matt and cousins Emily, Allie and Ryan are coming to MN for Easter. Nope, that's not all. We get to go to Milwaukee at the end of the Month for Mindi Jane's Birthday party.
We'll try to keep updating along the way. . .

Leap Day

2008-02-29T12:58:00.000-08:00

Happy Leap Day! Lucy and I went to the Como Zoo, frog exhibit today. The little white blobs on the right side of the picture above are actually tree frogs stuck to the glass in the aquarium. I'm SURE Lucy saw them and was really smiling at them (not the zoo volunteer that was making faces at her from the side).

We also went to Lucy's favorite place, the Aquatic Animal building, where she and Sparky the seal spent some quality time together.

Lucy Pics

2008-02-25T20:54:00.001-08:00