We set out for Rochester, MN on Sunday, beginning the more relaxed leg of our vacation trip. Not that it hasn’t been fun – it’s been great. But the pace has been much more relaxed. We’ve spent much of our time hanging out at the “Mouse House” with Steve and Sali and Gabe and Eli. [...]

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Day three of our vacation started with breakfast at Keys Cafe Bakery at the Foshay, a spot-on referral from the Concierge here at The Ivy. As an aside, I really can’t say enough good things about this hotel and its staff. Our room is beautiful, with a great view of downtown Minneapolis from the 19th [...]

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We promised Mikaela on Thursday night that we wouldn’t wake her up at 5 a.m. to leave for Minnesota (she was TIRED Thursday night, after the flurry of packing activities). But we didn’t promise her that we wouldn’t wake her up BEFORE 5 a.m.
In an effort to avoid the local KC traffic on [...]

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We decided that the best chance for getting the kids to cooperate with doing chores was to start them early. Luckily Jonathan LOVES doing his laundry. And he’s darned cute doing it too. My favorite is when he disappears into the washer to make sure that he’s gotten all of his clothes out and moved [...]

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We had an activity-packed day this past Saturday. We started with a trip to the City Market, where Mikaela scored that cool frog balloon animal (Jonathan got a dragon). From the City Market, we headed to Crown Center. The plan was to grab some lunch and then let the kids run in the Crown Center [...]

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We got a nice treat when Annie came to town for her high school reunion. We had a fun, casual dinner at Aunt Judy and Uncle Lloyd’s. Matt and Uncle Lloyd talked car repair. Mikaela gave Annie a refresher course in slapjack. And Mikaela and Jonathan provided some extra entertainment when they found Annie’s old [...]

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Fourth of July weekend celebrations started early, with the Kramers getting in town from Dallas the week before the Fourth. It was great to see them – we got to eat a few meals together and the kids got to enjoy time together – like in this picture from our outing to Deanna Rose Farmstead. [...]

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Not to be outdone by her punk-rocking little brother, Mikaela decided to perform yesterday as well. She put on a “costume” and proceeded to show off a dance that she choreographed herself – on the fly. I cheated a bit and added the music in afterward.

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Jonathan go all wound up Saturday afternoon, turned his bucket-o-dinosaurs upside down, climbed up on it like it was a stage and started to sing. But like a true punk, he didn’t just sing. He also lept from the stage, like a veteran stage diver, flinging his body around the room from his perch. Add [...]

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Our Memorial Day Weekend fun started with celebrating Jeff Perkins’ graduation from Pittsburg State University. The party at Marcia and Chuck’s was the usual combination of great food, drink, family and friends. Mikaela and Jonathan had a blast in the backyard, playing tag and hide and seek with Cousin Margo.
On Sunday, it was on to [...]

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