minnesota vacation.....and it's summer!

After 3 1/2 years of only returning for cold winter holidays, we finally made it back to Minnesota in the summer. Despite waiting on the runway in Atlanta for 3 hours, we made it exhausted but excited to be back HOME!

We headed straight to Addi's 2nd birthday party for a few hours then headed up to Duluth, the place where it all started with Luke and I. Thanks to Grandma Schipper, we had a luxurious ride in her new Toyota Camry. We stayed at Great Grandma's fancy new condo right on Lake Superior. We couldn't have asked for a more perfect Duluth day. The weather was absolutely beautiful.....no humidity! Grandpa Schipper and Oreo joined us in Duluth for the festivities. We then headed to Grand Rapids to see Grandma and Grandpa's newly remodeled home.

Our road trip continued back to Minneapolis to stay with Uncle Adam and Katy for a few days. We were spoiled by the two of them with great food (stuffed french toast) and drink! Grandpa and Grandma B came up to visit for the day and loved up on Gracyn. I was so good to see the two of them. In between we saw lots of good friends and family.

The week ended with Luke and his brother playing in a softball tournament, and Gracyn and I headed to Spicer for a GIRLS ONLY weekend at the McDonald's cabin. Even 4 week old Chole made it up. Addi and Gracyn were trouble together to say the least. It was so great to catch up with my girls. I miss them so much already!!!

Thank you to everyone who made time to see us. We had such a great vacation! Check out the 3 slide shows below....yes, I love to take pictures.

happy 4th of july!

We had such a great relaxing weekend! We stayed home on Friday and hung around the house. We had our own private fireworks display right in our own backyard. Our neighbors blasted $$$$ worth of fireworks across the swamp. It was comparable to the Austin, MN show!!!

On Saturday we headed up to Hutchinson Island, 60 miles north, to our friend's condo right on the ocean! The Heggerick's were so generous in having us stay for the night. We enjoyed our time on the beach, in the pool, and lounging in the house. Gracyn fell in love with Laddie, the Heggerick's golden retriever! Wherever Laddie went, Gracyn was there! Katie is already almost 4 months old and is smiling like crazy! She was such a trooper! It was so much fun spending time with them. The highlight for Luke was going fishing this morning. Luke, Jarrod, and Jarrod's dad headed out on their boat early this morning. As you can see from above......there was plenty of action! Just think, next week at this time we will be at Addi's 2nd birthday party!!!!

Chloe Elizabeth Yung!!! Gracyn got ear tubes!!!

GIRLS RULE!!! Our very good friends Jamee and Jeff welcomed a baby GIRL to the world on Saturday! We are so excited and anxious to meet her in July.

Gracyn got tubes put in her ears this morning. She was so brave.....much braver than her mama. She is doing great despite the fact that she is getting a few more teeth. Here is our attempt at a family photo this morning.

dada's day, grandma b & aunt carole, AND pearl jam

We had a very busy Father's Day weekend with Grandma B and Aunt Carole in town. We hung out a lot in the Florida sun. Grandma and Carole were determined to leave with blisters.....and blisters is what they got! We had a great time relaxing, although both Gracyn and I were battling pink eye. I also ended up sick with bronchitis!!! Just my luck! We miss them already.

Although I was not feeling well, we made it to see Pearl Jam in both West Palm Beach and Tampa. Gracyn did not enjoy the 3 hour road trip at all! Yes ladies, Eddie is still as gorgeous as when we were in the 10th grade! He looks and sounds better than ever.

We hope you all had a great Dada's Day weekend! Miss you all tons! Only 4 weeks left until MN....

getting ready for grandma b

Grandma B will be here on Tuesday with Aunt Carole! Luke took Gracyn to see the sunrise early Saturday morning while I got to sleep in until 7:30! We stayed close to home and cleaned most of the weekend in preparation for Grandma and Carole. Again, another 90 degree day! The pool was even hot!

Luke and I are going to see Pearl Jam Wednesday in West Palm Beach and Thursday in Tampa. Luke is so excited he can hardly contain himself! Ahhhh Eddie Vedder!!! We are lucky that Grandma is here to babysit!

Memorial Day Weekend

I can't believe that it is already Monday night! This weekend flew by. Probably because we worked on the bathroom for a majority of it. We finished laying the tile on Saturday night. On Sunday we attempted putting in the new toilet and sink. Needless to say, we ran into a few hiccups and will be reattempting later this week. Something to do with the wax ring???!!!

Gracyn got her first set of golf clubs! Grandpa J is so proud. Her swing needs a little work, but her form is flawless! We hit the sprinkler on Saturday to cool off in the 90 degree weather. Gracyn was not so sure of the crazy caterpillar sprinkler head! On Sunday we headed over to the Heggerick's for a Memorial Day BBQ. Baby Katie is already getting so big. Gracyn also met a new friend to hang with, Jake! On Monday we ended the weekend with a BBQ at John and Julian's house. We played a little Wii Bowling, our first time, and ate some delicious cheeseburgers.

The highlight of the weekend was the toilet box. Both Gracyn, daddy, and Abe spent many moments in that box this weekend!!!

Notice the bite mark on Gracyn's left arm.....someone from her class took a big bite.....ahhhh the joy of being in the toddler room!

Exhausted!

It started out with innocently checking out the pot and literally seconds later..... a dirt pie for a snack! There is absolutely NO break for mom and dad at our house. Gracyn is getting brave and is not afraid to try anything out! We are exhausted!

We were very busy this weekend with home improvements. Luke finished laying the sod in our backyard last weekend and watered and fertilized today. We also started another big project, our bathroom. Since the housing market is so depressing, and it looks like we are not moving anytime soon, we decided to remodel our bathroom. We took out the sink, vanity, toilet, and linoleum. We then painted and prepped the floor to tile. We hope to finish within the next few weeks. Stay tuned........

Gracie and I also walked to the pool after I painted to cool off. We then headed to the Miller household for some smoked brisket and sweetcorn! Sarah and Gracie loved it!!! Lindsey served cookie desert to complete the evening!

Again.....we are exhausted.....have a great week!

Happy Mama's Day

Happy Mother's Day! Or as Gracyn would say Mama's D. We had a fun filled weekend of activities to celebrate motherhood. On Friday, Gracyn's school had a Mother's Day breakfast which included a dance party as you can see from the photo's below. Gracyn made me a photo box that says MOM! So cute! She is starting to talk like crazy...ball.....mine.....bird....bubbles.......kitty......more......NO! Saturday we hit the beach with our neighbors to enjoy the record breaking high in Ft. Lauderdale of 95 degrees!! On Sunday, I woke up to a hand made card, complements of Dada that said MAMA!! Inside was a full agenda of the Mama Day events. I woke up to french toast and strawberries, not to mention freshly brewed coffee! We then headed to Jonathan Dickenson State Park for a picnic and hike. Luke is in the kitchen right now, slaving away making me homemade spaghetti. I also need to mention that Luke also sodded the entire backyard, all 500 square feet of it, on Saturday morning. We feel so lucky to have such a wonderful little family. We hope you all enjoyed your Mama's Day as much as we did!

Teething!!!

No one talks about the getting the teeth part! Gracyn is getting 4 teeth at once and it has NOT been fun. She has been consistently running a fever of 103 degrees and is not sleeping well. She missed school Thursday and Friday but is feeling much better today. We actually ventured out of the house today, and as you can see.......the fresh air did wonders!

He's In!!!

After months of anticipation, Luke heard from Florida Atlantic University this weekend that he has been officially admitted into the Ph.D Psychology program!!! He has worked so hard for this spot and we could not be more excited an proud of him. He will be specializing in Social/Personality Psychology. For more information on the program, check out the website: http://www.psy.fau.edu/research/#Social_Personality_Psychology. What does that mean for the Schipper household??? At least two more years as residents of sunny south Florida and lots and lots of intellectual conversations. Hey, I got my undergraduate degree in Psychology too! Classes start up in August. Go OWLS!!!!!

While Luke slept in from his late night celebration, Gracyn and I headed to the beach to watch the sunrise! The weather was absolutely beautiful this weekend. On Saturday we went to play at the park where Gracyn insisted on sharing her cheerios with some big turkey ducks!

Spring Fling

Gracyn's school through their annual Spring Fling family event on Wednesday. The festivities included a petting zoo, egg hunt, bird show, bubble fun, and art & crafts. Gracie made her very own bird feeder from lard and bird seed. Yum yum! She also attempted a pin-wheel but was unsuccessful. She got the biggest kick out of the petting zoo as she bounced from cage to cage.

Uncle Dan - Spring Break '08

Uncle Dan came out to visit us for Spring Break! Luke and Gracyn anxiously greeted Dan at the airport. It was so nice to spend time with him. We went down to the Miami Sea Aquarium on Saturday and had a blast. Gracyn and Dan loved the dolphins! We also took a trip to the beach, played at the park , watched a lot of college basketball, and took a small road trip up A1A.

This was also a very big week for Gracyn. She has transitioned into the Toddler room at school and LOVES it. It really is amazing how quickly she is learning new things. She is starting to say some more words. Her favorite is Moo, which actually sounds like Woo, and ball. She is completely fascinated with her and other's belly buttons. It's so cute to see her lift up her shirt and point to it when you ask her where her belly button is. Check out the slideshow below!