Our Gingerbread House

After much anticipation, we finally made our gingerbread house. I bought a set this year that had all the cutters and directions to make one from scratch. We decided it would be fun and were up to the challenge, and set off on making our own homemade gingerbread house. It was tricky at times, but thankfully I had a few extra hands with Madison and Sam over. The candy decorating was the best part and we all had a great time making it.
Here are what all four sides looked like- it turned out great!
Check out the cute little gingerbread men we made to go with it- they even fit through the little doorways.

Pretend Library

We discovered a new playtime activity the other day that Jackson absolutely loves-
Play Library.

We set some books up on display on the fireplace

Found a lamp and an old gift card for the self-checkout and a library card

Then checked out books until his heart content!

Try it, we had a blast.

Sled Fun

With the first significant, plowable snow yesterday, we thought we had better get out and enjoy it today by testing out the sled. I pulled Jackson down to get the mail, and then we tried out our little hill. It isn't the greatest for sledding, but we had fun and that is what counts.
Jackson was so excited, he has been talking about sledding every time it snows even a little. It only took him a few times down to figure out how to keep the sled going upright by shifting his balance. Once he did, it was great fun and he didn't want to come in. We are looking forward to much more sledding as the winter continues on. I may even have to go myself this year with my new knee.

Ready to go at the top

Making it all the way to the bottom for the first time

Expression of pure delight on his face on the way down

Thanksgiving Prep

After much anticipation it was finally time to make our Thanksgiving pies. I love making pie, and make everything from scratch, from the crust to using a fresh pumpkin. Jackson was thrilled to participate in the whole process.
Here are the highlights from the last two days of our pie baking:

Prepping the pumpkin to bake in the oven

Using the pastry blender for the first time to make the crust

Time for a cookie break in between pies
(notice the cookies are decorated with a number and as a turkey)

Cutting and peeling the apples
(this is the greatest kitchen gadget)

The finished product-
Pumpkin and Apple pie
We can't wait to enjoy them for dessert on tomorrow.

Happy Thanksgiving!

A Hard Week

Please pray for this family, the dad passed away last week. The oldest daughter is about the same age I was when I lost my mom, and I am really feeling for her. They have an amazing story of strength and faith along with such a great attitude during their entire journey. You can check out their entire story at CarePages-teamgknoll.

The First Snow

Jackson was so excited when he woke up this morning, and the ground was covered in snow. He had been disappointed that the other few days when we saw flakes they didn't stick around, or even amount to enough to get a chance to play.
He made sure to list everything he needed to wear for outside. One of which was boots, and unfortunately we hadn't bought them yet, so before we could do anything we headed to Target to get some boots. While he was waiting to get out and play he made his plan of everything fun to do in the snow. As soon as we were home, and fully dressed it was time to enjoy the snow.

He had such a wonderful time and I enjoyed sharing in his excitement in playing in the season's first snow. I was thrilled that he actually wanted to keep his mittens on for the first year ever. Him staying nice and warm, meant that I had to convince him to eventually go inside, but he got plenty of playtime and had lots of fun.
Happy Snow!

His Snowball- that he eventually threw at Mommy

Making footprints

Making a snow angel- notice how quickly the snow was melting and how wet his snowpants were as a result, especially since he was sliding down the hill on his bottom.

My Amateur Cakes

Every year for Jackson's birthday, I make and decorate his cake myself. I am a total amateur, but it has been a lot of fun to come up with a plan for a fun cake to go with his theme every year.
I have an icing recipe from someone who actually decorates cakes, that is easy to work with, tastes good, and always makes more than enough, so I never have to worry about the icing.
The hardest part is always executing my plan, and trying to make to actual cake look like what I have pictured in my head. I have been very pleased with how they all have turned out, and Jackson had loved them, which really is the real test.
Here's how they all turned out:

Jackson's 1st birthday- Caterpillar from Baby Einstein

Jackson's 2nd birthday- Cars movie

Jackson's 3rd birthday- Thomas the Tank Engine
by far the most complicated and time consuming, but worth every second when I saw his face the next morning.

Jackson's 4th birthday- Word World cake

A Day of Parties

Sunday was the big day- Jackson finally turned 4! He has hardly been able to contain his excitement the last couple weeks, but the day finally arrived.
We started the day off at home, just the three of us. He requested muffins and donuts for breakfast, not the most healthy, but a perfect kid meal. We also let him open his gifts from us, which was nice for him to get a chance to play with his new toys a little before the big festivities of the day began.
A little before lunch we were off to the Eagles Nest for the kid party. Jackson was overjoyed to have his friends there to play with at the Eagles Nest. It was very cute how they had their own little pack traveling through the play area together.

After about an hour of playing we managed to get them all out to have lunch and birthday cupcakes. Then they were off again to play. I think that Jackson must have played really hard because he didn't complain too much when it was time to go home.

In the late afternoon, we had our families over at our house for dinner to celebrate. We were very blessed to have such a glorious day. Jackson was able to get outside to and play with some of the family members.
It was so fun to be able to share Jackson's birthday with everyone. It was extra special this year since we were able to celebrate on his actual birthday this year. We had a wonderful day, and Jackson went to bed very happy from his fun day and thrilled that he would still be 4 for the whole next year.

Happy Halloween

Halloween is always squished in amongst the birthday excitement at our house. We always go to the Pumpkin Patch party at our church, and Jackson had a great time. He was greatly anticipating the trick-or-treating due to the receiving of candy. It was so much fun to share in his excitement and great participation in the tradition, especially since he could actually say "Trick or Treat" this year. We did come home with lots of candy, and lots of his favorites- M&Ms and tootsie rolls, so the evening did not disappoint.
He also had a great time with all of the carnival games, and he was thrilled that they even had golf to play.
Earlier in the day he even had a chance to do a little trick or treating at speech, so he had a very full day of Halloween.
A very fun Halloween.

Our Lighting McQueen Pit Crew member

Happy Birthday Jackson!

Happy Birthday My Darling Boy!

I can't believe how fast the last four years have gone by. They have been the best four years, and I love watching you grow. You amaze me everyday with all that you know, the things you come up with, and everything else you do. I constantly overwhelmed at how cute and adorable you are, and how lucky I am to be your mom.

I love your great interest in all learning things; letters, numbers, shapes, colors, time and the calendar. It is so much fun to explore and share in your excitement of these concepts as you learn them. I love that you have taken such an interest in baking, it is so fun to share the time in the kitchen with you and teaching you all I know.

Thank you for making my life so wonderful and full of joy.
I hope you have a very special and wonderful birthday. Enjoy being 4.
I love you!

My Mom

Today is a sad day for me. Twenty years ago today my mom passed away from cancer. I was only nine years old at the time, which meant I was old enough to have many wonderful memories and really know what I lost.
She was a great mom, and I always felt that my brother and I were always her greatest joy and priority. I am sad that I was never able to get her know her for who she was, outside of being my mother. I am thankful for her family, just to have them close, and for the stories they can share with me about her.
I miss her every day, and at times my heart aches for her. I wish she could have met Paul and Jackson, and had the chance to be a part of their lives. I know I am a better person because of her, and I only hope I can give my child as much love and wonderful memories as she gave me.
I love you Mom!

My Little Chef part II

This morning my little chef convinced his dad to help him make pancakes for breakfast. Paul was impressed that Jackson could tell him where the ingredients were in the kitchen. I was still in bed sleeping when they were making the pancakes, and it was nice to wake up to a fresh, hot breakfast.
I did get a little sneak peek into what was happening in my kitchen though, when a little boy ran into the bedroom and said, "I'm making pancakes Mommy, and I measured the flour".
A very delightful start to the weekend, thanks to my boys.

My Little Chef

I think that I have passed on my love of baking. Jackson has always enjoyed helping my in the kitchen with whatever I am making, but recently I been hearing "Mom, let's make something?".
We always enjoy making muffins, but our most recent baking has been much more creative. I have been even trying to add in a little science along the way. We have been talking about the ingredients, the different measurements, and how to measure. You can see us working on measuring flour, which is always a tricky one.

Put together baker Mommy, a boy who loves numbers and letters, some patience and a little help from a cooking art book, and this is the result:

Number Pretzels

Cinnamon Letters

All of our creations were delicious, but most important, they were so much fun to make.

Next week I am taking on the task of trying to make a Word World cake for Jackson's birthday. Hopefully things will go well, check back to see how it turns out.

Enjoying the Fall Season

Jackson has taken a great interest in learning about the seasons of the year. As a result he has been thrilled about participating in all the activities and outings fall has to offer. Here are the highlights of the last few weeks.

The Corn Maze in Shafer.
Jackson was so excited to go when he found out they had a little alphabet maze. They had two main mazes, and he had so much fun finding the designated markers in the mazes. It was challenging at times, but not to bad when we paid close attention to our map. Jackson was thrilled when he had a chance to hold the map and try to lead the way. He has been working on understanding his right and left, and it was a great opportunity to practice those new skills.

Putting the letters he found in the Alphabet maze into the board of letters.

Lendt's pumpkin patch in Wyoming.
We had a blast climbing through the patch to find the best pumpkin. Jackson had a delightful ride in the wagon with the pumpkins, back from the field and to the car with our purchases, which even included some Indian corn. Jackson thought we needed some for decoration, and enjoyed picking from the variety of colors they had to offer. If you are looking for a pumpkin patch, you should check them out at lendtspumpkinpatch.com. They had great prices and lots of fun for kids and families.

Our tree in the front yard dropped all it's leaves on Saturday, so on Sunday afternoon we took the opportunity to enjoy our freshly fallen leaves. We raked, jumped and buried ourselves in the leaves. I even got a chance to sit (on the ground) in the big pile. We had a such a great time.

We hope everyone is enjoying the fall season as much as we are.

Fall Has Arrived

Playing in the first fallen leaves

I have been slacking a little on posting. With preschool and speech starting again along with going back to work and my new found freedom thanks to me knee, things have been a little busy.

We are so happy to back into our routines though. Jackson has been having a wonderful time back at school. He is so excited that his friend Aaron is in his class, and talks about him daily. His mom and I are also on the school's parent board together, and has the chance to spend even more time with his friend. Having a friend in his class does seem to help him on days when he has a hard time going into the classroom. He is making wonderful progress at school thanks to our great team.


I have been so greatly enjoying my new knee and the freedom is has given me. I have been enjoying such little things like keeping up with my husband and son while walking, running errands, shopping, and just walking anywhere and everywhere.

I have finished my physical therapy, but still continue to do some exercises at home to make sure things stay strong. I also went in for my 8 week check-up to the surgeon, and he couldn't tell which knee, just by looking at me, I had replaced. He said patients are still favoring that surgical leg, but I showed non of that favoritism. I took that as an extreme compliment to my rehabilitation. I am thrilled to have such a normal walk, and all the energy I can use elsewhere now instead of using it all for walking and standing.

We have had the chance to enjoy some outings where I have had a chance to put that knee for a good workout. We've been to Como Zoo, an apple festival and even the Mall of America. Life is good.

Our fun day at the Mall Of America

Surprise!

When I was at work today I thought I would try and get Jackson to work on his pedaling some more. The trike he had last year really was too small for his long legs and big feet, so he has been behind on the pedaling. This year we got him a bike with training wheels, but the brakes on it have caused some frustration. All in all he really hasn't been that excited about riding a bike. Paul tried to work with him some more recently, but he still didn't seem to making a ton of progress. So imagine my surprise today when he just pedaled away this afternoon. I was so excited and full of praise as I watched him pedal all around the driveway. Something must have finally clicked enabling him to master this tricky skill. I am so proud of you Jackson!

A Day at the Beach

With the sudden change in temperatures this week, I am so glad we were able to enjoy the beautiful day on Labor day. We spent the day with the Ford's at Snail Lake beach enjoying a picnic lunch, warm sunshine, and all the fun the beach has to offer.

Making Sandcastles

Lots of water fun

Frisbee

And even football- a sure sign that fall is just around the corner