Wrestling "Boxing" Results

Kyle has been suffering from bronchitis and wrestled for the first time in 2 weeks last Friday. The tournament was in Minnetonka.

I think Kyle and the kid he was wrestling were a bit confused. I think they thought it was a boxing match rather than a wrestling match.

It started by other kid giving a pretty good intentional blow to Kyle's left eye. So hard in fact, Kyle's vision turned blurry and he had a hard time clearing his head. Kyle got MAD. He attempted to drag and throw the kid into the chairs twice....once stopped by the ref......the other not. Several heal of the hand blows to each others faces later, followed by cradles, head locks, and hard knocks ended with the following match results:

Kyle one black and swollen eye, one bruised brow, blurred vision.
Other kid; 2 black eyes, swollen face, scraped forehead, bruised ego.

Winner of Fight: Kyle
Winner of Match: Kyle

Kyle spent the weekend sporting his new look that looked an awful lot like "Rocky".....after Apollo Creed. You remember them, they too were wrestlers :)

Saturday Simple Pleasures

I should title these posts "Saturday Simple Pleasures Posted on Monday", it seems that is when I can finally get them posted!

Busy weekend, but these are some of the simple things I enjoyed on Saturday:

Gregory first noticed the beautiful sunrise. We went out and stood in the quiet, sleepy street and took some photos in the glow of the watercolor painting surrounding us.

I went out in the sunroom to see if I could get a good shot of the sunrise.....it was amazing


When I was out in the sunroom I realized it wasn't freezing! How exciting to know that we are going to get to be spending some time out there. I can't wait to watch the gardens bloom and watch the kids in the backyard in not too long from this great vantage point. This is a photo of 1/2 of our backyard. I can't believe we have yet to use our smokehouse or our sauna.....kind of forgot we had them.


While I was out there I looked over at the daybed and had to laugh. This pillow case on the daybed shows the last time we were out in the sunroom. I will be getting something springy on there!

I had to take a photo of my Valentine's Day flag blowing in the breeze and the melted road beyond it. We're turning that corner into spring!!!!


Saturday Bundt. Was gone by Sunday night. Homemade German Chocolate with a homemade frosting. It was soooooo yummy.



This also brings me to another pleasure. Many have written me asking me why I don't post the recipes to these delights. Very exciting news........we are adding on to our blog house with a recipe wing. It won't be ready for about 7 weeks. I know, but those that know me know...... I don't MOVE fast. It will be very exciting when it is ready to move into and all of these recipes will be there!

Speaking of MOVING. Whenever we have moved, the last thing I have taken off the wall in the "old" house and the last thing I put up in the "new" house to signal the transition is complete is the following :


It was hung up this Saturday signaling the transition from Stillwater is finally complete. If anything can bring a smile to face that is sure it!


Yes, I know it is "wintery" but it stays up all year. If you are going to make something out of that you will probably want to make something out of my kitchen calendar that NEVER gets changed. I hung it up (it was the correct date) the first Christmas after we got married. I am too busy to spend my time re-doing a calendar every month, so it has stayed the exact same ever since. Every December 1st I check it to see if this is its year to be correct. (I don't look beforehand, because it is like a Christmas present and I don't want to peek). Something to look forward to every year!

Some call it laziness. I call it a great life lesson.

I think it's a very creative gift for the entire family once a year. So we have to look at the wrong month and date 11 months out of the year. Here is the great life lesson: With everything great there is always a sacrifice!

And because even after looking at the wrong date for 11 months (sacrificing) it usually still is not correct (another great life lesson: Just because you sacrificed doesn't mean it is always going to turn out the way you hope!)


It is going to bring me great pleasure to walk into all of your kitchens now and see calendars with the wrong month and date, sharing these life lessons with your family :)

Can we come up with a life lesson for falling way behind on laundry?

I'm Sad The Angels Get To Play With You Before I Do

These are the words Cynthiaa said to her son Aiden as she held him in her arms upon his birth.

Cynthiaa was due to deliver her son in just 2 weeks. But on Monday, February 2, when she went to her routine doctor’s appointment she learned that her beautiful baby boy had passed away due to umbilical cord strangulation. They immediately scheduled her for a C-Section and Aiden James was born into heaven at 11:23 that morning.

This is a mother who wants her baby back. She wants everything to be "fixed". God has a plan for all of us and only in time will we know what that is. In the heart of grief it is so hard, nearly impossible, to imagine what His plan could possibly be. He whispers to us through our pain that there is a life beyond the present suffering. He sits silently with us in our anguish, in the moments that are so heavy and unimaginable, the ones that we cannot escape or blink away. He reminds us that the seemingly endless grief is but a moment that will fade in the vast expanse of the Life to come.

He promises, trust in Him, He will carry us through this, there will be Goodness, but it is difficult to see beyond our grief at the moment.

Please pray for Cynthiaa and that she lets Him carry her right now. Pray He will comfort her and hold her close. Pray that she will hear His whispers and know that she is not alone.

To read more about Cynthiaa and Aiden please read her blog here.

On Wednesday, February 11th, there is going to be a balloon release for Angel Aiden. They are looking for everyone possible to join in. If you could release a blue balloon (or a few of them..your choice) and take a picture, then email it, they would like to put them into an album, showing all the places that balloons were released for Angel Aiden.

If you would like to participate...THANK YOU...please spread the word. Contact information is:

e-mail address: yummy_mummy_x@live.com.

Coordinator's Corner

I just received my layouts for publication from Pat, a wonderful photographer (Sandhill Photography), who I had shoot a wedding we planned, designed, provided the decor and flowers and coordinated last fall. (Look at Kathy's beautiful flowers :) )

This is the ONLY wedding I have ever had that it was a complete downpour from start to finish, and, of course, it was an outdoor ceremony. Rain was not in the forecast, but we are always prepared! In Minnesota, if you have an outdoor wedding, you always have a Plan B (usually a tent (in this case a couple)). You never, ever, know what the weather is going to do.

The reception had originally been planned to be an outdoor reception on a rooftop, but due to many different circumstances, we had to change that just a week before the wedding (and had to totally redesign the reception). We did end up with it indoors, which worked out perfect for the weather conditions.

For so many reasons, and not just the pouring rain, I do believe this is the most difficult wedding and reception I have ever planned and "made the magic happen". This gives me all that much more fulfillment and gratification to see it take life and come together.

If you will notice the violinist, Jim. Bless his heart for playing in the rain. I do believe he is the only musician I know that would do that, and with good reason, those instruments are expensive and rather fragile with the elements. Most of the time we were holding an umbrella over his head as he strolled the pathway upon guest arrival. He insisted we do one quick shot without it.

These are the beautiful shots after everything came together. (click on photos to enlarge).















Beautiful Weddings Don't JUST HAPPEN

Now a look behind the scenes (remember this was all done in the POURING RAIN!) (this is why people hire us :) :

Parenting other than you imagined

I have been blessed with healthy children. I thank God for them and their amazing abilities every single day.

When I was pregnant with the kids I would dream about what they would look like (it always consisted of ten fingers and ten toes), how they would smile, laugh, talk, how smart they would be, how energetic and how they would run and play. This is what I imagined......and praise the Lord, was given. Isn't this what most of us imagine and dream of our children?

I, however, have worked with, know and love many amazing parents that were not given what they imagined and dreamed, and are dealing with a situation quite different than what they thought it would be.

I stumbled upon this poem and thought it was wonderful and worth sharing.


WELCOME TO HOLLAND
byEmily Perl Kingsley.
c1987 by Emily Perl Kingsley. All rights reserved

I am often asked to describe the experience of raising a child with a disability - to try to help people who have not shared that unique experience to understand it, to imagine how it would feel. It's like this......

When you're going to have a baby, it's like planning a fabulous vacation trip - to Italy. You buy a bunch of guide books and make your wonderful plans. The Coliseum. The Michelangelo David. The gondolas in Venice. You may learn some handy phrases in Italian. It's all very exciting.

After months of eager anticipation, the day finally arrives. You pack your bags and off you go. Several hours later, the plane lands. The stewardess comes in and says, "Welcome to Holland."

"Holland?!?" you say. "What do you mean Holland?? I signed up for Italy! I'm supposed to be in Italy. All my life I've dreamed of going to Italy."

But there's been a change in the flight plan. They've landed in Holland and there you must stay.

The important thing is that they haven't taken you to a horrible, disgusting, filthy place, full of pestilence, famine and disease. It's just a different place.

So you must go out and buy new guide books. And you must learn a whole new language. And you will meet a whole new group of people you would never have met.

It's just a different place. It's slower-paced than Italy, less flashy than Italy. But after you've been there for a while and you catch your breath, you look around.... and you begin to notice that Holland has windmills....and Holland has tulips. Holland even has Rembrandts.

But everyone you know is busy coming and going from Italy... and they're all bragging about what a wonderful time they had there. And for the rest of your life, you will say "Yes, that's where I was supposed to go. That's what I had planned."

And the pain of that will never, ever, ever, ever go away... because the loss of that dream is a very very significant loss.

But... if you spend your life mourning the fact that you didn't get to Italy, you may never be free to enjoy the very special, the very lovely things ... about Holland.

Guess Who Is Going Home Today!

Miss Harper!!

All your prayers have been hard at work. After the possibility of losing her and 20 days in the hospital she is doing amazing and will be on her way home with her mom and dad today.

God is sooo good!

Dogs........Boys?

This is interesting, and perhaps should be posted under Wiener Wednesday, but I have already posted that for today.

I have been wanting to make a little "area" for Theodore and Winston in my office. Something that feels comfy cozy to them. I thought it would be fun to look up information for:

"Decorating dog's room". So I googled it. I typed in....

"Decorating Dog's Room", in the search bar.

Up came information for:

"Decorating Ideas for Boys Room".

I had to laugh. They obviously know my boys!!

I did eventually, through the world of blogs, come up with some very fun dog room ideas:

Is that not the cutest thing ever?

It actually looks like the Puppy Inn that Theodore and Winston stay at when we have to go out of town. It used to be a hotel that has been renovated to a puppy inn. They share a room with two doggie beds as shown above. They have their own television and VCR/DVD combo, get to watch movies, have climate control for what temperature they are most comfortable in, get doggie ice cream sundaes and twice a day they get "Yappy Hour" (which, I must add, Theodore has been kicked out of Yappy Hour twice because he was getting a little rowdy with everyone and carrying on so. They had to put him in time out.) Leave it to Theodore to take Yappy Hour a bit too far.

That photo came from this blog which has some really fun and creative ideas for painting and accessorizing the room of your dog.

I also came across this site with all kinds of different shapes and sizes of dog beds. Remember these are DOG beds:

This is such a Bud bed!

This one would actually be perfect for having out in my sun room. It even has a drawer to hold their toys or extra bedding!

Here's to happy napping to all you 4 legged family members!

Wiener Wednesday

BIG plans around here.

Theodore and Winston have decided to begin their campaign to run for President/Vice President in the next election. Theodore has decided to take the President role on the ticket. His name has a rather presidential ring to it......don't you think?

They already have their materials printed and ready for distribution:



They just need to get some rest before they get started. This could be exhausting!


To get your own fun poster.

The Bride Has Spoken.........

The wedding reception for the July 25, 2009 wedding will be at:


You are all soooo good! I think that is what everyone thought would work best!

I am very excited. When I walked into the ballroom I knew it was the place for them. The groom's face lit up and all he could say was "Charlotte is going to love this!".

She did!

We are going on Wednesday night to nail down all the details and begin designing for linens, chair covers, flowers and lighting.

Since ya'll did so well, I'll be looking for your opinion more often. Don't go anywhere!!

"Super" Sunday

Wasn't the game today great?

Neither one of the teams are "my" team, but since my team didn't seem to be on the field I was rooting for Arizona.

What an exciting game from start to finish. Congratulations Pittsburgh!

Not only was there excitement on the field, there was also quite a bit of excitement in my kitchen.

Guess who got to come out today?

I knew you would guess..............


Yes, it is one of the few days of the year he gets to come out........the football Crock-Pot.

He was filled with all kinds of delicious for his big day.

Tavern with Cheesy Potatoes

Delicious from my Crock-Pot roots. LeMars, Iowa!

The 1924 original tavern from Bob's Drive Inn on Hwy 75, LeMars.

Gary, Nancy, Jay and I (and Great Grandma Teddy if she was in town) would pile in the station wagon and head over to Bobs. I always liked my tavern with the hot dog. The first time I ate a tavern I didn't realize along with my tavern I was also eating the thin white sheet of paper that came with it.

We would always get extra taverns. One to eat there in the station wagon in the parking lot and another to eat when we got to the house. There we would be all crammed in the station wagon in the dusty gravel parking lot devouring our taverns.......laughing. Gary would always look around with a smile on his face, laugh and say "Doesn't get any better than this".

As our taverns were getting dressed on steamed buns with mustard and pickles yesterday Kyle and I could almost hear Grandpa Gary laughing. When Kyle took his first bite and said "Doesn't get any better than this", I looked around at the kids and all of us having fun together and knew exactly what Gary had meant. I think I even said in a whisper out loud, "You're right Gary, it doesn't get any better than this".