Happy Thanksgiving

Hope everyone had a great thanksgiving, we had a good time. We had about 35 people at our house for dinner. We had awesome food and lots of cards and entertainment.
The meal was fabulous, everyone brought something to share. We did the turkeys, mashed potatoes, gravy, dressing, and some salads. Everyone else brought other things to go with the main meal. Needless to say we had plenty of food! Thnks everyone for all your help with preparation, clean up and serving. We had a pinochle tournament and guess who won??????? yep, it was Paul. Woo hoo, he is getting the hang of it, maybe I will be his partner now.
I have already started a little baking, with a little more to go. We have made cut-out frosted cookies, peanut blossoms, truffles and peanut clusters. I still want to make a chocolate chex mix, caramel rice krispie marshmallows (they looks so good, thanks Jen for the recipe) and a snowman cake.
I have about half of my shopping left to do. I have ordered my Christmas card and they should arrive any day. I feel like I am ahead of the game, but time always seems to slip away from me, so I need to keep ahead.
This week, I need to wrap presents, pack and finish my baking. We are heading to Minnesota for the weekend. It is our nephew Max's birthday, so we are going to celebrate and see family. I want to leave all our present for them there, so I need to be ready.
I will post pictures of our weekend later!
see ya soon
Tammi

STUFF

hello all
I have been kind of busy and forgot to post lately!!!!! Where does the time go. We started out with parent teacher conferences. I am always so nervous for conferences, I am not sure why, but I do not like to go. It is hard to hear any bad things your child does and some teachers forget to mention the good. Oh well, I cannot say I have ever had a really bad conference, so lets keep praying we never do. Will was first this year. This was a different conference because we had to see a lot of teachers. Everyone had very good things to say about Will. They all mentioned that he needs to slow down on his work. Which we hear ALL of the time. Will's teachers said that he is very polite and very nice to his classmates. That made us feel very good to hear. Jack had a good conference also. Jack's main problem is that he talks to much. I am sure we will always hear that about Jack. He needs to learn when it is ok to talk. Jack is a very good reader and scored way above average in his reading scores. School comes easier for Jack. Will has to study to earn his grades, where Jack seems to "get it" much quicker.
This past weekend I headed to Fargo for a Girls Scrapbooking weekend. I don't think I have laughed that much in a very long time. I went with Lori, Cassie, Jodi and LeAnne. We scrapbooked on Friday, Sat and a little bit on Sunday. It was so much fun. I did more laughing and visiting then scrapbooking but I did manage to get 13 pages done. I am proud to announce that I am finished with 2004. YEAH!!!!! I am on a roll now.
Paul and the boys are going to Minot today to cheer for the Linton Lady Lions. Our volleyball team is going to state for the first time ever!!!!! Cheers to all the girls and hope they have an awesome time at state. Lets play hard! I will post later on the games.
We are having thanksgiving in Linton this year. Paul's family is going to come down for dinner and games and cards. We are very excited to have everyone here. It has been about 5 years since we hosted a holiday. The boys are so excited to have their cousins come. We will have about 35 people at our house for dinner. We also invited Lori, Nolan and Karady for dinner. They both have to be on call, so they have to stay in town for the holiday.
No school thursday and Friday for the boys because of state volleyball. They love a break.
thanks for checking in on us. I will post again soon
Tammi

Happy Halloween

Will, Jack and Charlie
Jack as a skeleton

Will as a Minnesota Wild hockey player

Charlie as a lion

We had a fun time on halloween. The boys love to go trick or treating. We left home at about 5:30pm and got back at about 9:00pm. They were all very tired and full of candy. We went trick or treating with Lori and Karady. Karady was a very cute ladybug! She loved the candy too. I am amazed at how much candy the boys got. They each filled a Target bag full of candy and that is not counting the pop and juice bags they got. The dentist is going to love this! I love getting the boys dressed up and watching them, but otherwise halloween is not my favorite holiday. It is definately for the kids. It is way too much candy. They usually forget about it after a week or so. The weather was nice, probably abougt 50' when we started, but as the night went on it did get a little windy. No one seemed to mind though.

thanks for chatting.

Boston Massachusetts

Hello from Boston!

We left on our trip to Boston at 5:00am Friday October 23, 2009 and returned home at 7:00pm Thursday, October 29, 2009. Thanks Lori for taking us to the airport and for picking us up again. I was very skeptical about even going because of all the H1N1 stuff going around. I stocked up on all the essentials and made sure everyone was healthy. I was so excited to go to Boston. I had heard that it is a very beautiful city and lots of fun. The weather in Boston was rainy most days, on Sunday and Monday we had beautiful weather. The temp on those days was about 65'. The rest of the time it was 50' and very rainy. We went to Boston because of our annual National Funeral Directors Association Convention (NFDA). Paul is on the policy board for the national funeral directors representing North Dakota. He had some meetings in the morning, but most of the day we were on our own! I was very nervous to fly, but everything went well. Well, almost! We missed our first connection in Minneapolis on Friday and almost (yes by 5 minutes) missed our connection to Bismarck on Thursday night. Boston was ablsolutely beautiful and so much fun. I am amazed at how much history that city holds. I knew of the obvious, Paul Revere, The Boston Tea Party, The USS Constitution and the boston massacre; however learned a great deal more. There were a few things I didn't realize took place in Boston. We took a Trolley on Sunday all over town. We could get off and back on again after we were finished at a location. On Sunday we toured Fenway Park, home to the Boston Red Sox, which was very interesting. I had never heard of the "Green Monster" and now I know all about it. We had lunch at "Cheers" which was an awesome burger and a pretty cool bar. The bar is exactly the same as the tv show. We had very very good dinners. We had dinner at 2 seafood places. Paul had lobster at each of them. The lobsters were HUGE! I of course, do not like seafood, so chicken was my choice. We also had italian for dinner on 2 nights. I love italian, so it was awesome for me. Everyone also loved every dinner. All of the food was very good and it was fun to eat with new and old friends. I met a lot of new friends. One thing about these conventions is that you meet so many new people and they become instant friends. Everyone is so warm and friendly. It is always fun to see them at the next years convention and it is like you were just together.

Ok, now back to my story. Monday we went on board and toured the USS Constitution. Will was very excited for us to go on that tour. He studied it last year and was very knowledgable about it. It was a very interesting tour. I for one, cannot imagine sleeping in the small hammocks with about 300 other sailer sleeping next to me. The quarters were very close. It always amazes me to think of these sailors on this small ship for so many days. "Old Ironsides" as it is called is an amazing ship and will be ready for another voyage in about 2 years. They do take her out frequently for small cruises around the Boston Harbor. We had lunch at the "Cheesecake Factory" on Monday which was so good. I must say you have to try the avacado egg rolls, they are soooooo good. After lunch we went on the Boston Duck boats. A duck boat is a vehicle that drives on land throughout the city and then goes in water. We went for a cruise on the Charles River. Our driver said about 5 times....."what a beautiful day for a cruise on the Chahles".....that was not a typo....that is how they talk!

This is a duck boat!!!

We did a little shopping a a huge market. It had shops and fresh market foods. Everything in Boston is expensive! At our hotel a glass of orange juice was $6.00 no room service for me. Tuesday we had dinner at Hard Rock Cafe' and then went on a haunted trolley ride. I think that was one of the funnest things we did. My sister thought I was crazy, but it was so much fun. We had a 2 hour tour after dark! We went in 2 cemeteries and heard of many ghost stories. At one point I thought to myself.....what am I doing in Boston, in the dark, at a cemetery, in the rain and fog?? They told us about haunted hotels, and stories about the boston strangler. The tour guides were of course dressed up and they were funny and crazy. Before we left the trolley station, they would stand outside the trolley with their faces against the window, hoping to scare people. We highly reccomend this if you are ever in Boston. Finally after so much fun and so much good food, it was time to head home. I was ready, I missed the boys a lot and couldn't wait to tell them about our journey. We had bought them a few things too and of course, they were so excited to see what they got. Good bye Boston!

See ya all next year in New Orleans!

Tammi with one of our tour guides on the

"Haunted Trolley Ride"
Paul taking a rest in the sleeping quarters aboard the "USS Constitution"


The USS Constitution

"Old Iron sides"

one of Paul's lobster dinners

look how big it is compared to the corn on the cob!

Paul and Tammi out to dinner at Anthony's Pier 4

Papa's Pumpkin Patch

Will, Jack and Charlie each picked out a couple small pumpkins

My boys!

Charlie was on top of the world, he had a ball.

What a beautiful day we had at papa's pumpkin patch. It was about 70' and very sunny. A lot of people had the same idea to make a trip to the patch before it gets cold, there were a lot of people! The boys had a lot of fun, they ran and ran and played on the maze of bales. Charlie loved it, I was a little nervous because I couldn't see him at all times. Will and Jack took him with them so he could play.

Grandma Sannes came to stay at our house for almost a week. She is off work because she had rotator cuff surgery. She is feeling much better, so she decided to come and stay before she has to go back to work. We had a great time with her here.

The weather here is starting to get colder, fall is definatly in the air. Most of the leaves have fallen and it is getting cold. We have to dig out warmer coats. gloves, hats and possibly boots real soon.

I will post about our trip to Boston soon! We had a blast!

Happy Wednesday

hello
Halloween is in the air! It is very crisp and rainy outside. Tonight Jack and I decorated the house for halloween. He loves to help me and he does a good job. He really likes the lights.
It is Wednesday and so far, we have had a very quiet week, lets hope for more relaxation.
Last Saturday, Will had a basketball tournament in Hazelton, Linton took 3rd place. They did very well and had a great time. Basketball season is done for this year. I am always kind of sad when a season is over, we really enjoy watching the boys play sports.
Grandma Sannes is coming to visit on Friday. We love having her come, we don't have any major plans. Probably play cards and maybe go to the pumpkin patch on Sunday.
Saturday night Paul and I go to the annual Ducks Unlimited banquet in Braddock. It is a very fun time, good food and a fun auction.
The swine flu is making me very nervous. I just hate when I hear of someone dying from it with no other medical issues. I pray that we all stay healthy during this flu season. I do plan on getting the boys the regular flu shot, but I am leaning towards not doing the H1N1 shot. I left a message for our pediatrician to call me so I can visit with her regarding it. I have been crazy with hand washing, I am using the dish washer now and I am also very cautious about even leaving the house. Can you say PARANOID!!!!!! Any one have any thoughts on this, please post in the comments. I would love to hear from you!
We have had very rainy and snowy weather, I love winter, so the snow doesn't bother me. I know though, if we get snow this early, we will be crazy for spring by January. It is supposed to warm up somewhat this weekend. I wonder what it will be like for halloween.
Thanks for checking on us. Hope everyone is doing well and staying healthy!

Happy Anniversary

16 years ago today Paul and I got married. It was such an amazing day and we have had many, many more amazing days since. Thanks for being my best friend, soul mate and the best husband anyone could ask for. You always know how to make me laugh and how to cheer me up when I am sad. You are an awesome father to our 3 boys. Thanks for the best 16 years of my life and here's to many, many more. The best is yet to come!
We are not planning on having a big celebration. Tonight we are having some friends over to have dinner, watch Linton play football, and maybe play some cards. We decided to stay home and celebrate with our friends and the boys because we just had a fun weekend in Minneapolis and in 2 weeks Paul and I are going to Boston for a week. We will go out and have a nice dinner there. I can't wait.
Happy Anniversary Paul, I love you!

Minnesota Twins !!!!!!

We had an awesome weekend in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

We arrived on Thursday night ready to go to the Minnesota Twins games over the weekend. Paul, Will and Jack went to Twins games on Friday night, Saturday afternoon and then everyone went on Sunday afternoon. We had a lot of fun! Some of Paul's family went also, so we had a pretty big group. On Saturday morning we went to the Twins pro shop and met Bert Blyleven. He is now a Twins announcer, but was a previous pitcher. He was so nice and very friendly. He visited with everyone and was actually kind of funny. Charlie and mommy spent time at the Mall of America and swimming at the hotel while they were at the games. We couldn't wait for Sunday to come so we could all go to the game. We all had Twins shirts and I had found some Twins tattoos back in March so all the kids had tattoos on their cheeks. We had a blast at the Metrodome. We all got homer hankeys when we got inside, so everyone was waving them whenever the Twins did something awesome, which was often. The crowd roared and everyone was on their feet! I couldn't believe how loud it got in there. Of course we had to have some snacks, we had hotdogs, cotton candy, cracker jacks and pop. The twins won, so they had to play Detroit on Tuesday night. Paul did consider getting tickets for that game, but it wouldn't have worked out. Twins won on Tuesday night so they are the AL Central Division Champions. They will play the New York Yankees on Wednesday afternoon.

Lets go Twins!

It was kind of bittersweet leaving the metrodome, that was the last time we will watch the Twins in the metrodome. Next year they will be playing outside in their new baseball field. We hope to go to "Target Field" next year to see them play again.

It would be awesome if they could be in the world series this year!

Cheer for the Minnesota Twins today!

Charlie getting an autograph of Twins pitcher Pat Neshek

Charlie with his "M" tattoo

waiting for the game to start

"Go Twins"

the whole group outside the metrodome!

"Circle me Bert"

Will and Jack with previous Twins pitcher

Bert Blyleven

physical therapy

Hello all
I wanted to send an update on my physical therapy. I have had 2 sessions. Last week was my first, it was very interesting. I didn't realize how many facial muscles you have. Everything is connected, so when you have a problem, it just goes on and on. Now, I understand why I have headaches, neck pain, jaw pain, shoulder pain and facial pain. The therapist didn't do too much the first visit because I was so inflammed. He did do some ultrasound massage with a gel to help reduce the inflamation. He has me take 2 ibuprofen 2x a day for the next week. He gave me three different exercises to do each day. I really like him and feel very comfortable with him. He said it usually takes 4 to 6 times to get my tmj under control. I will never been healed, but should be free of problems and if and when the issues come back, I will know how to exercise to reduce the swelling and be free of pain again.
This past Tuesday, I went for another visit, he did a lot of manipulation. It hurt a little, but it was a good hurt. I was sore for the rest of the day. He did some massage inside of my mouth, moving my jaw and pushing on my cheeks. Then he massaged my neck and shoulders. I could have layed there all day! I have to go back again next week. I sure hope it helps, I am so tired of being sore. I have another exercise to do for my shoulders. I also need to watch what I eat, some foods are so hard to eat and really cause me pain. He said I will never eat gum again or eat a whole apple, I need to slice my apples first. Who would have thought that my jaw could cause so many problems. I would never believe the pain and discomfort if I didn't experience it myself. I wouldn't wish this on my worst enemy.
Hopefully I will see some changes soon. I will keep you updated.
thanks for checking in on us!

sick boys

hello from the sannes infirmary.
Last week, Will had a slight fever and very sore throat. He was home from school for 2 days. He was pretty miserable the first day and then started to feel better. Sunday morning, Jack started with a sore throat, earache, headache and feeling pretty rough. By 6:00pm, he had a temp of 103'. He was very sore and was feeling awful. I called our family dr at home and he went to the er and got Jack an antibiotic. By bedtime, he was better. He had a high fever in the middle of the night and now he is mostly suffering from a very sore throat and headache. I just hate when the boys are sick. I feel so helpless. I have been on the couch with him all morning. He likes when I rub his feet. I think it helps him to relax. He really needs to sleep and get rid of this bug! I hope the rest of us don't get this. I had a bout of strep throat that wouldn't go away about 5 years ago. I was miserable and I don't want it again. It will be tough if Charlie gets it, since he is so small. He fell of the stool this morning, so he was crying and crying. Jack was in the bathtub crying. It was a very interesting morning. I always tell Charlie to stop pushing the stool back when he is sitting in it, well this morning he pushed it back and fell off and cut his lip and hit the bottom of his chin. He was very upset. Lets just hope the rest of the day gets better and no one else gets sick!
I will post again when we are all healthy. talk to you soon.
Tammi

I DID IT !!!!!!!!!

What a day it has been. I am so glad it is over. I had my first set of fillings today. I was a little nervous, but not as bad as I thought. It didn't really hurt, just very weird. I haven't had any dental work done, except for cleanings, so I had no idea what was about to happen. I think the worst was the novacaine shot, she put a little on the roof of my mouth and that did sting. I really have a hard time keeping my mouth open that long. I know some of you beg to differ, because my mouth is rarely closed, but it was really hard. I do have a sore jaw tonight, which I expected. I did not like the numbness either. I even went to Sam's Club after, boy did I feel weird. It only lasted about 3 hours. Thank God! The hygienist told me it should be gone within 4 to 5 days. She was NOT funny. Dr. Kay and Laura were really having fun with me today, they loved getting me all excited. They couldn't believe that I never had a filling before.
I don't know why I get so worked up about this kind of stuff. I try to relax, but it doesn't always work. I have my first physical therapy session next Wednesday. I am hoping for lots of massages. Actually I just hope it works. TMJ really sucks. I am sure that is why I am sore tonight. I am having a very relaxing evening at home. I forgot to watch "The Biggest Loser" last night, so I hope it is online.
We have a busy weekend planned. Friday night I am going scrapbooking. Yeah, I am almost finished with 2004. It has been a little while since I did any scrapbooking, so it will be a lot of fun. Saturday Will has a basketball game. We will be going to Napoleon (about 35 miles from Linton). We love watching him play. Sunday we have our church supper, Paul and I are working in the kitchen from 3:00pm to 7:00pm. We have the best fall supper, if you are in the area come on over!
Well I better go for now, I need to help Will with a little homework. It just never ends.
good night

There is a First Time for Everything!!!!!!

Hello all. I am so surprised at what happened to me yesterday, I just have to tell you about my day. First of all I had a Dentist appt yesterday. I have been really suffering with what I thought was either TMJ or my 4 wisdom teeth that are through. I have been having tightness in my jaw, headaches, pain in my neck and shoulders, even my ears hurt. I broke down and made an appt with our dentist. Did I mention that I HATE going to the dentist??? I just had enough. I was very nervous about this visit because I was sure I was going to have my wisdom teeth pulled. So off we went to Bismarck to see Dr. Kay, which by the way is an very awesome dentist! She is so nice and made me feel so much better. I wasn't going to have my teeth cleaned because I was too worried about the wisom teeth removal, but they had time, so the hygienist said we would go ahead. Let me tell you she had her work cut out for her. I do not go to the dentist. I know, I know I need to go. Well, she had to remove a lot of tarter. Now that all of you are totally grossed out, I will continue with me story. I had full x-rays, cleaning and she measured and counted my teeth. It was quite the ordeal. I have always had such a hard time flossing and brushing way in the back and my teeth are very close together. When Dr. Kay came in, she was very surprised that I had such healthy teeth. She did a lot of poking and pushing on my jaw. She said that I didn't have a horrible bite, it was off a little so I do not need to have my wisdom teeth removed at this time. She said that they were all very straight and seemed to be ok. Whew, what a relief. She said it was TMJ, but my bite was good enough that I didn't require an appliance. Thank God!!!!! She felt that I needed to go to a physical therapist who specializes in TMJ, so she will refer me to one in Bismarck. I have never heard of physical therapy on your jaw. She said I will be amazed at how much better I feel. YEAH, I hope this requires lots and lots of facial massages. Now for the scary part, she found a little bit of decay on 2 teeth. Yes, I know you are amazed, as was I. At 41 years of age, I have my first cavity!!!!!!!! I have to go back for 2 fillings. The decay is right on top of the teeth and there isn't too much, so hopefully not much drilling. Can you believe that, how crazy is that. Wish me luck, I am a little nervous. I have never had novacaine or fillings or anything! Dr. Kay said she didn't feel too sorry for me since I hadn't had any yet. I have to promise her that I will floss my teeth once a day, every day. I went straight to WalMart and bought floss and new toothpaste. I will update you on the filling prcedure and the physical therapy.

Bemidji, Minnesota

Hello from Bemidji, Minnesota. We hadn't been able to come to Bemidji all summer. We are finally finished with t-ball, baseball and swimming lessons, so we packed up for a 4 day trip to visit grandma. the boys had such a fun time in Bemidji. The highlight of my trip was, of course seeing my sister, nephews, and mom, but right up there was eating at "Dave's Pizza". Ooooohhhh, it is so good. It is our favorite place to eat when we go home. we all went out for pizza on Tuesday night when we arrived in town. We stayed at my sister's house. The kids all had so much fun together, Will was a little disappointed because Taylor was in Michigan, so he was kind of bored. Jack and Max had fun catching little frogs. Those poor frogs, they squeezed them and played with them ALL day long! Charlie and Joey had fun outside, they played and played until bedtime. We al went to "Put n Go" to ride bumper boats and go-carts. Everyone rode except Grandma. Grandma, Will, Jack, Charlie, Paul and I also had a picnic at Diamond Point Park. I used to play there when I was little. It has really changed a lot. We had Paul Bunyan Sub Shop... YUMMY! Can you tell we have our favorite places to eat when we are in Bemidji. If you ever visit Bemidji, you have to go to Dave's Pizza and Paul Bunyan Sub Shop. I am positive you will love each place. We had a very relaxing time in Bemidji. Tiffany and Jim left on Thursday afternoon to go on a cruise to Greece. We stayed with the boys until Friday afternoon. I love spending time with Max and Joey. they are so cute and sweet. I wish we could spend more time with them. They boys really miss their cousins. We headed back home on Friday. School starts on Monday. See you again soon!

Will and Charlie playing outside
Max and Jack caught little frogs and had a blast playing with them

Charlie, Will and Jack

we had a picnic in the park with Grandma

Charlie, Jack, Will, Joey and Max

Riding the go-carts

First Day of School

Will and Jack heading off to school.

I have taken a picture of them in front of this wall for years.

It is fun to see how they grow from year to year

Jack and his Twins stuff

Will is so proud of his Colts backpack

Hello again.

Today was our first day of school. We have had a very busy week, so I am afraid the boys were a bit tired for their first day of school. We bought a few new clothes and tennis shoes for each of them. They were more excited for their school supplies. Will got a Colts backpack and Colts stuff for his locker and colts supplies. Jack got Twins stuff and he is going to use his Twins backpack from last year.

Jack is in 2nd grade this year. He said this morning that he is excited to see all of his friends again. Jack is such a social butterfly and so friendly to all. He will have a good year in 2nd grade, he has an awesome teacher and all of his friends are in his class.

Will started middle school this year, he is in 6th grade. I can't believe he is so old already, I still feel like he is my "baby". He was a little nervous with all the changes in middle school. He has to change teachers each hour and has a locker com to worry about. We went up to the school last week to get his locker and practice his com. It took him a couple tries, but he got it. This morning Jack and I walked with him to his locker and he opened it on his first try. I know he felt better after that.

Charlie and I had a lazy morning at home, it felt really good to relax and just be home. Charlie asked me this morning "Where are my boys" he will miss them. Of course, I did some laundry and Charlie watched cartoons. We went to the grocery store and had lunch with daddy. It looks like we are all back into the swing of a new school year. I hope the boys had a great first day!

Great Grandma

Grandma, Will and Jack having donuts

Will, Grandma and Jack

We loved having Grandma come and stay.

My grandma came to Linton for a visit. She stayed with us from Monday until Thursday afternoon. She lives in Theif River Falls, MN. My grandpa died 19 days after Paul and I got married, so Paul never got to know him. We had such a nice visit. She is the only grandma that I have. She is such a sweet lady. She is almost 86 and to me doesn't look much past her sixty's. I hope I look that good when I am her age. It was fun to hear her stories about when she had her kids all at home. She had 4 girls and 3 boys. Her youngest is only 2 years older then I am. I always remember when we would visit, she made chocolate chip cookies and homemade buns. Yummy!!!!! We didn't do too much when she was here, it was fun to just visit. She hadn't been to our house since Charlie was 3 months old. The boys enjoyed her too. She went to swimming lessons with us, we played cards, went out to eat, went to morning mass and just had fun.
I hope she can come back sometime soon.

We are getting ready for school to start again, they start on Monday, August 24. Will is going to be in 6th grade and Jack will be in 2nd grade. Tuesday we are going to Bemidji to see my family. we don't have much planned, hopefully relaxing and playing with cousins. I will post about our trip later. bye for now!

swimming Lessons

not sure what he called this dive...

side stroke

relaxing!

Will was in level V and had his lessons in 10 feet of water. He loves the water and does very well in swimming. He told me to jump in the water by the diving board. I told him if I did, he would have to save me. He thought that was funny. I am amazed at what he has learned. He has to tread water for 5 minutes, many different dives, floating, breast stroke, side stroke and so many I don't remember. Will passed this level on the first try. He was very proud of himself. Great job Will! He has one level left and then he takes a lifesaving level.

Jack in the pool, ready for lessons to start

Cannon ball !!!!!!!

doing the back float

Jack was in Level IV. He has all of his lesson in 10 feet of water. I am so glad that they all love swimming and are taking lessons. I do not like to be in the water where I cannot touch bottom.

Jack did very well in his lesson. They are usually in a level 2 times before they pass. He learned to float, dive, tread water and lots lots more. Jack will be in level IV again next summer, he needs to get stronger and keep practicing. He was ok with that. Great job Jack!

Charlie going down the slide

fun at lessons

Charlie had swimming lessons for 1 week, he was in level I. He is not afraid at all, so it was a fun time for him. He wasn't too sure about going off the diving board, but he finally did on the last day, with a little help from the life guards! He will go into level I again because he is only 3 years.

MEDORA

Outside at Sanford's

It was very good!

a huge buffalo coming right to me

Jack had to get into the Medora fashion and buy himsself a cowboy hat

The Medora Musical!!!

Hello again. I have so much to tell you all, so I am going to have to blog a lot in the next couple days. We went to Medora on August 2 and 3. We had such a fun time. We went with the Brown's, Doug, Sarah, Ian and Ryan. We had not been to Medora since I was pregnant with Charlie, the boys didn't really even remember what is was like. They had so much fun, they didn't want to go home.
We ate in Dickinson at a really cool restaurant called "Sanford's". They had amazing food and the decorations were neat to look at. Thanks Brandt and Janelle for giving us a "Heads up" on this restaurant. We had a great time and will definitely go there again. If you ever go to Medora, I would highly recommend Sanford's.
We took in the 4M Revue. We saw Milo Hatzenbuler, he was a hoot. The boys laughed and laughed. They thought he really was from Strasburg!
Sunday evening we went to the Medora Musical. It was so good. All five of the boys sat so well for the musical. They were all in awe! You just have to go and see it. I am amazed how well they can dance, sing and entertain. The weather was a little cool, but we didn't mind. No bugs and we were comfortable with a sweatshirt. On Monday before we went home, we drove through the Teddy Roosevelt State Park. the scenery was unbelieveable and we saw a lot of wildlife. There were bison on the road, I could almost reach out and touch them. Don't worry, I didn't.
Thanks for checking in, I will talk to you again soon!

cousins come for a visit

Glenda and Lloyd

Jack and Lydia

Will and Noah

Tammi, Charlie and Lydia

Noah, Jack, Lloyd, Charlie and Lydia

Hello again.

We have been having a busy summer, we really love when we get company. you are welcome anytime! Glenda (Paul's sister), Noah, Lloyd and Lydia came for a few days this summer. We had a lot of fun. the boys really enjoy playing with their cousins. We had a fire one evening, which was awesome. You can't beat a fire roasted hot dog and s'mores. the kids really had fun. Jack and Lydia stayed outside with us until the end. It was very relaxing and a perfect evening. We spent one whole afternoon at the pool. Linton has such a nice pool, it is only 2 years old. I have posted pictures of our fun day, and we had no sunburns.....YEAH!!!!!! I guess I have finally figured out the sunscreen. Thanks Glenda for coming to stay, we love having you.

We're off to see the Wizard!!!!!!!

We (Tammi, Will, Jack, Charlie, Tiffany, Taylor, Max, Joey, Cassie, Sarah, Ian, Ryan and Grandma) all went to Sleepy Hollow Park for the Wizard of Oz. That is one of my favorite movies, so I was very excited to go. We have been to several musicals at sleepy hollow and they do such an awesome job. I knew it would be good. We went and got Subway for supper and brought it along to eat while we waited. We did get a little rain, but no one seemed to mind too much. The only bad thing was that it was soooooo cold, it was about 56'. Let me tell you we were all freezing. Who would think in the middle of July we would all be cuddling under blankets and drinking hot chocolate. Other then that, it was awesome. The musical started at 8:30pm and went until 11:00pm with a short intermission. Everyone had so much fun. It is amazing what a good job they do. The special effects were really good. All the kids seemed to agree that the lion was their favorite charcter. Will thought Dorothy was "hot". I loved the scarecrow, but everyone was so good. I sure hope you you had the chance to attend, if not you will want to go next summer. I am not sure what they will do, but I know it will be good.

thanks for checking in on us.

The Wizard of Oz

It was so much fun!

Jack and Cassie

mommy and Charlie

Tiffany, Max and Joey

Ian, Sarah, Will, Grandma Kathy, Joey, Tiffany and Charlie