Easter Time

Easter is only a week away so it was time to color some eggs today. It was a sports theme this year with lots of sticker craziness.

San Antonio Vacation

We had an awesome time with Mike and Lamiae in San Antonio for our Spring break vacation! We were wondering if they would be able to handle the craziness of 3 young Elliott boys and they were the perfect hosts. It was so fun to see their gorgeous new home. Lamiae continues to amaze and spoil us with her cooking. We did so many fun things and yet it was such a nice restful vacation.

Our first day was filled playing in the pool/hot tub. The pool at the new home wasn't quite completed so we drove a few miles to the old home and spent all afternoon swimming. Poor Uncle Mike got to endure the tackles and wrestling of Colin as he attacked him in the water. Justin preferred to be pushed along as he lazily rested on his inflatable raft. Even Adam got in the water for a short while before taking a nice long 2 hour nap.

New this time around was a cute little western themed town called the Enchanted Ranch. There were lots of cute photo opportunities but I would be a bit wary of that pistol packin Paula gal. We thought it best to avoid her and her gun slingin tricks.
Sea World is always a highlight and an all day adventure. It was Monday with a few morning rain showers so there really weren't many people there. Colin loved the Steel Eel roller coaster while Justin enjoyed all the fun rides at the Sesame Street themed play area. The sea lion and Shamu shows were great and we even tried the 4D Sesame Street show. The show included the typical 3D glasses but added sensory elements of air, water, and rumbles in our seats--poor Justin got squirted right in the face (such a trooper).

On our last day we got to explore the trails of Eisenhower Park. I love hiking so it was a super fun place. There are a variety of trails that included paved or more rugged terrain at various distances. It was perfect temps with low humidity after a big storm passed through the previous night dumping 2 inches of rain on the area.

Adam was the perfect baby the entire trip. He slept on the airplane and happily sat in the stroller as he took in all the new surroundings and daytime activities. He was a bit confused by their English Bulldog, Max. He wasn't scared of him like Justin but instead sat and studied him. Max would lay and rest by our feet in the evenings as we played UNO, watched basketball tournaments, and enjoyed outdoor patio time.


Thanks for such a great time, Mike and Lamiae! We had so much fun! Click here to view all the trip pictures.

11 month update

The highlight of this month for Adam has been the breaking through of two top teeth! We've been trying out lots of new foods with those teethers but he has not been a big fan of the table foods thus far. He does likes crackers and cereals but not so much the slippery textures of fruits and vegetables. He is showing interest in the stairs and able to get up one or two by himself. He loves crawling everywhere and loves to chase things especially his brothers. Entertainment consists of making messes including emptying bookshelves, pantry, and intruding on his brothers monster truck races. Our personal favorite of late is a bucket of plastic Easter eggs that he proudly shows you then throws and repeats the process til the bucket is empty and the floor is littered with 50 brightly colored eggs.

Running with the Wolves

As some already know, Colin has become a huge sports nut. When he gets home from school he turns on the TV not to watch cartoons but to see if there is a game on (so proud). Last weekend, at the last minute, I decided to get some Timberwolves tickets. Colin has been wanting to go, and they are somewhat decent this year. I actually thought it would be fun too. On Saturday I purchased 3 tickets so Justin could go to his first T-wolves game. Angie decided she would rather stay home and have some good quality Adam time. I can't blame her, but we were definitely glad she didn't come--more on that later. We got there early because it was Crunch's Kids Day. They had all kinds of fun stuff set up for the kids like face painting, games, music, etc.
After all that fun, we loaded up on our junk food and headed up to our seats to watch the introductions and get ready for game time. About half way through the first quarter, a Timberwolves employee came up to me and asked if it was just the 3 of us. She proceeded to say that some season ticket holders with 3 seats weren't going to make it to the game. They called in and said to give their tickets away to someone with kids in the upper level. She then asked us if we wanted the lower levels seats. Absolutely! We loaded up and headed down but couldn't figure out where these seats were. After speaking to two different ushers we were directed to COURT SIDE SEATS, can you believe it! I still can't, here are our before seats and after seats.
To say the least, it was quite an experience to be 2 feet away from the court of play. The boys thought it was cool, but I don't think they quite grasp what a once in a lifetime experience that probably was. Contrary to what they think, that is not how we usually roll. :) And then if court side seats weren't enough, it was the best game I had been at. Wolves trailed much of the game taking the lead a few times in the fourth quarter. The Wolves were on our end for the second half so we got to see all the Wolves action right in front of us.


Then down by 1, the defense makes a stop and gets the rebound. They call a timeout with 8 seconds left and a chance to win the game. They inbound the ball to Kevin Love who drives to the basket and gets fouled on his shot with 0.1 seconds left on the clock. K-Love was as cool as Colin under pressure and of course knocked the two freethrows both down for a last .1 second victory! Colin and Justin showed the court siders how to properly post game celebrate a great victory and in the process one-uping the Wolves Dance Team.

Valentine Hills Elementary Carnival

Each year the PTA at Colin's school puts on a carnival to raise money. This was our first experience, and it was quite fun. Highlights from the evening included a photo booth, various games in the classrooms including toilet toss, cake walk, junk food alley, various inflatable jumpers in the gym and the most popular dunk tank. I am proud to say Colin dunked the teacher on his first throw of the ball. Yeah, baby!

Valentines Day

The Valentines Day tradition continues it is just that I am a bit slow updating the blog. The red themed menu was a combination of ideas from everyone. Colin came up with the ketchup topped lil cheddar meatloaves, Jason was the crafty mind behind the pink mashed potatoes, and Justin helped me pick out and make the dessert. Love to everyone on this huggable holiday.