The Eisels

Crystal Beach 2010

2010-07-23T12:47:00.002-05:00

It has been 9 months since we have updated this blog!! Yes, that is horrible. We will be sure to be better about updates, and will have to share pics from our summer trip north.

But first, here are some shots from our trip to the Bolivar peninsula in May for our annual visit to Crystal Beach, Texas. Gotta love CB!!

A picture of all the children lined up in the surf.

Landrie trying to bury her feet with Andrew's help.

Love this shot of Landrie...who did have to sample the salty sand again. Notice the sand on her face!

Jenna and Kylie loved playing in the waves as usual.

An annual family shot...not much sun that morning.

We love making this trip every spring to stay in Crystal Beach. Great little town, still rebuilding from Hurricane Ike in September 2008. It is always fun to spent the time with great friends too!!

Early November visit from Grandy

2009-11-21T20:57:00.000-06:00

The blog has been neglected lately, but it seems that everyone is so busy---it all goes by so fast at times!
Grandy Jean came for a visit in the beginning of November for a long weekend trip from Minnesota. The girls, and us of course, were so excited for her visit. It was a nice weekend of relaxing and catching up. Over that weekend all of the girls took a trip to a local park; we call it the "Wood Park", because it has a bunch of kid stuff to climb on and it is all made of wood! Imagine that:)
Landrie enjoyed the tire swing...

Grandy and Jenna took a moment to visit on the bench swing...

And a nice little shot of the girls all together.

November came and went---we made a trip north to Illinois for Thanksgiving to Steve and Jeanne's. We had a great visit to see the Geneseo/Atkinson branch of the family. We always have a good time with Pop Pop and Shanny! The girls enjoyed visiting with Conor, Mike, Mitch and Jamie and it was the first time the girls got to meet their newest cousin, London. That was fun for them...I will have to post some of those too.

The one thing we didn't get done in Illinois that we like to---we didn't make it down to Grandma Marge's basement for a drink with her!! Next time Marge:)

Happy Halloween 2009!

2009-10-31T21:35:00.003-05:00

Halloween night was a great time again this year---we ventured over to Deanna and Jodi's neighborhood in Mansfield for trick or treating and Andrew's annual Halloween camp out. The camp out ended up inside because of some rather frigid temperatures(at least in my terms)...it got down to like 50 degrees or so, maybe even 49!!
The kids camped in tents in the garage, so they had a great night. The adventure through the neighborhood proved fruitful...this was evident by Landrie's labored and hunched little walk as the evening went on.

This first pic is toward the end when I made her get into the wagon---as you can see I had an angry gnome on my hands!!

A little earlier the Landrie gnome was much happier:)

Here come the children after getting more candy...

Yes, the pictures are way out of order...this was just prior to heading out...we got all five kids on the couch for a group photo. Jenna, Kylie, Ian, Andrew and Landrie.

That way to my garden said the little girl gnome...no, not really...she was pointing at this giant spider that would drop down on or near your head when it heard a loud noise nearby. Landrie would say, "Spider scares me!"

It was a much cooler Halloween than last year, but a great night for trick or treating. It was a nice night to spend with some scary friends! :)

Jenna, the new Student Council Historian

2009-10-21T22:25:00.007-05:00

The last two weeks or so of campaigning at school have paid off. On Tuesday, Jenna was elected to the Sallye Moore Elementary School Student Council as the historian. She beat out 11 other candidates for the job...

Jenna decided she wanted to run for Student Council at school...and since third graders can only run for historian or treasurer, she decided that being historian would be great. She had to prepare campaign posters and a speech. She had great ideas, but of course, Katie and I helped her touch them up. Katie and Jenna came up with her slogan--"Jenna for Historian, All in favor, say, e-I-sel". She came up with her main points to her speech, and I helped her to polish it up, and then she practiced. I was pretty impressed because she had it memorized in like 30 minutes?! Yeah, she doesn't get that from me...and thank goodness she doesn't get my nerves or anxiety either!

Here is Jenna, waiting to speak---I think maybe there are a few nerves?!

So, Tuesday afternoon, just before the election, all of the candidates presented their speeches to the 3rd-5th graders. I was more nervous than her, I know that. Here is the speech, from the most excited little 3rd grader in this house!

Congratulations Jenna, mommy and I are very proud of you!! Love you...

Our newest niece, London Jean Scofield

2009-09-30T22:31:00.003-05:00

We want to welcome our newest niece to the family!
London Jean Scofield was born in the wee hours of the morning on September 22, 2009 at Fairview Red Wing Hospital in scenic Red Wing, Minnesota. You know Red Wing, home of the Red Wing HS Wingers??!!
Congrats to the new mom and dad too---try to get in as much sleep as possible, whenever you can Jamie and Mitch!!
Jamie and Mitch sent us this pic on Wednesday at one day old--looks like she might be a peaceful sleeper?

Here she was 'smiling' shortly after being born. I have to apologize, I don't even have her birth stats in front of me, and Katie is sleeping. I think she was born 8 lbs 4 ozs, and maybe 20 inches long. I know I must be somewhat close:) I do know that the girls are so excited to meet her, but they will have to wait until Thanksgiving. It will be here before we know it though. Katie is making a long weekend trip up to meet London, see Jamie and Mitch and her parents too. I know she is very excited about that.

Besides London being born, all is pretty hectic here.

School has been very busy for Katie and I. The girls are doing well, Landrie is quite the Chatty Cathy girl. Jenna and Kylie talk my ear off to and from school every day. Sometimes I have to announce 'talk break'--and turn up the radio a bit to decompress and clear my mind. Life is hectic, and one just has to enjoy every moment, no matter how crazy it seems. I found myself reminiscing about college life in Bemidji today---seems like yesterday, but actually about a decade ago, plus a couple of years!!! REALLY!!?? Wow, that is crazy. I have rambled a bit much. Anyway, back to the reason for the post, London: Look forward to meeting you soon, don't be too hard on your mom and dad.:)

First Day of School

2009-08-30T08:22:00.003-05:00

Monday was a big day at our house. Jenna had her first day as a 3rd grader and Kylie started Kindergarten.

Here they are sporting their new backpacks. Kylie's with princesses (of course) and Jenna's with iCarly on it. They were set.

A couple quick pics before getting in the car.

All smiles.
Jenna took a picture of Jed and I with Kylie on her first day of school. Landrie snuck in too.
Here's Kylie with her teacher, Ms. Wood. She had a great first day. When I drove to pick them all up because we were all carpooling due to some Jetta issues...anyway...when I got there Kylie flew out the front doors of the school screaming "Mommy, I liked it." Jed said he saw her throughout the day in passing and she was just bouncing, ponytails swinging and smiling from ear to ear. That's my Kindergarten Kylie!

A Night at the Drive-In

2009-08-15T20:56:00.005-05:00

A few weeks ago we all packed up the family and headed for Ennis, Texas. What's in Ennis you ask...the galaxy drive in theatre.

Landrie sat in her lawn chair for exactly 7 min. After that she was walking around, getting in and out of the van, and really just content when sitting by the popcorn.

It is about a 40 minute drive from our house, so we don't go often, but have been a few times. $5 gets you in to watch one of their four screens. Each screen shows 2 movies a night. I know we watched Ice Age 3, and Landrie was not about to sit through another movie, so we called it a night after that.

Sea World & San Antonio

2009-07-20T12:18:00.000-05:00

In the middle of July we had the chance to take a little family trip to San Antonio Texas. The biggest reason for our trip was to hit Sea World. We lucked out and got two-day tickets for the price on one-day tickets so we enjoyed two Shamu-packed days.Of course the first thing we did when we got there was to head to the Shamu show. It was approximately 104 degrees out so we found ourselves a seat in the splash zone. This picture was after Landrie was soaked...she was not happy!

Jenna, Kylie and I took a ride on the Wild River. If you look closely you can see Jenna and I waving at Jed and Landrie. It felt so good to get a little wet.

Riding the Shamu express. Again, you can only see Jenna and I, Kylie was sitting next to me.

I think i rode this roller coaster 4 times and the girls probably 6 times each. (the line was short)

Another ride with a short line (which automatically make it a favorite of mine) was this one. Matter of fact they didn't even have to get off of it.

Wheeeee! And no they were not topless.

The girls watching the Sealion Show. One of their favorites. Jed and Landrie missed this one. Landrie was trying to fall asleep in the stroller so they walked around a little.

On day 2 we decided to get the girls caracatures done. Here's the start of it.

Working on Kylie in this picture. I'll have to take a picture of the finished product to post. It turned out really cute.

A picture on the way out of the park on day two. Landrie was done!

The sign of a great day. Sleeping as soon as we hit the car.

This was in the van after day one. on our way to the hotel. It was not a long ride, but they sure zonked out.

After checking inot the hotel having some showers and some pizza we ventured out in San Antonio. Here's jed and the girls waiting for the trolley that would take us the four blocks to the river walk.

Long story short: the trolley ended up being a scary city bus, so we walked back to the hotel when we were finished.

The Alamo.

The river walk.

It ended up being a very quick walk on the river walk. You can imagine how tired we all were after spening close to 7 hours that day walking around in the 100+ degree weather. So, we saw it, took a few pictures, walked back to the hotel and slept really well.

Illinois Trip

2009-07-19T15:33:00.006-05:00

About 10 minutes after arriving in Illinois Jenna found the motercycle helmet and pretty much spent the next several dasy either one the motorcycle or asking to ride the motorcycle.

Speed Racer.

Kylie was a little nervous so jed took her for a spin.

Landrie - not nervous at all, but wishing her legs were a little longer.
Thanks Aunt Jamie for the ride.

Cheeeeese with Pop Pop.

I am so upset with myself that I did not do a better job of taking pictures.

Sparkler fun!

Between the first two nights I think we set off a record breaking number of fireworks...big ones!

The girls got to hang with Grandma Marge on the 4th.

Jed and I volunteered to got pick up Grandma Marge in Geneseo. We went a little early so that we could visit a little and have a drink with her in her basement that brings back great memories.

The girls with their cousin Kyle. Thanks Kyle for letting the girls take over your motorcycle for a few days.

Laughing with my Landrie!

The girls had a good time building blocks in the basement.

Jenna giving Pop Pop a tractor ride.

Kylie and Uncle Mitch checking out Conors new truck.

Conor did such a great job helping Kylie on the motorcycle.

And, did I mention that he saved Jenna from a huge accident. The first time she got on it she reved it up and practically wheelied her way across the driveway...thanks Conoc for being in the right place at the right time and helping to catch her. Once we set the speed to not exceed 1st gear they were good to go.

In no time at all Kylie was on her own racing around the yard!

A more mellow ride for Landrie.

Jenna going off the diving board at the local pool.

Kylie shooting out the slide.

And of course a bath in the driveway with a hose and some spray foam soap.

Thanks for a great trip Pop Pop and Shanny!

A Sundae Party for Three

2009-06-30T11:59:00.002-05:00

A couple weekends ago we celebrates all three girls birthdays with a "Sundae Party".

It was a very warm day so lots of people were in the pool trying to stay cool.

The girls watched me work on the cake all morning. It turned out very cute.
I got them out of the pool just long enough for a picture and a quick verse of Happy Birthday.

Jenna showing off her flippers from Aunt Jamie.

Only in Texas

2009-06-28T21:19:00.006-05:00

This is the funniest thing I had seen in a long time.

Driving down the road we come upon this. Here's how it went...

The next minute in the car was me pleaing with Jed to drive faster so i could get the camera. Then, I was not satisfyed that my picture encompassed the hideousness that I was seeing so my next plea was for Jed to get up next to them.

The following pictures speak for themselves.

Yee Haw!

Trying to Stay Cool

2009-06-28T21:01:00.002-05:00

Landrie in her favorite outfit!

Kylie catching a little air.

Karate chop.

Notice the theme. Honestly it has been too warm here to do anything other than swim. When the 7-day forcast ranges from 99 to 103 just plan to get up get your suit on and be thankful we have the pool. We wouldn't know what to do without it!

Who has the Green Thumb?

2009-06-20T21:13:00.000-05:00

Below you will see a picture of what started as two identical plants.

As the end of the school year got closer we started to bring some things home and just so happened to bring home our classroom plant on the same day. As you can see, one of them thrived and the other practically died.

Who in our family has the Green Thumb? It's Jed. As a matter of fact the other plant I had in my classroom was rescued by another teacher who could no longer watch the abuse...I'll do better next year. :)

A night at the races

2009-06-18T21:28:00.004-05:00

Last week while Grandy was here we thought we would take her to the horse races and try our luck. We had a great time...won a little, lost a little and really enjoyed the beautiful night.

(Notice all the empty seats around us. Kids are great for keeping the crowds away)

Jenna, Kylie and Andrew checking out the horses before a race.
Deanna, Grandy and I pooled our money and placed some bets. No winners for the first 4 races or so, but then on race number 5 is where it got fun. We picked horse 8 to win and he did! $66.00 later we were cheering like we won the lottery...$22.00 a peice not bad. Enough for a couple of hot dogs. Did I mention that we happend to go on dollar dog night? What luck!

We had a great time. Jenna seemed to be the one that could pick the winners :)

Mother's Day

2009-06-11T13:54:00.002-05:00

I know this is a little late, but this is a picture from Mother's Day. We spent a good part of the day in the car driving home from Crystal Beach. Before getting in the car I got to hang with my girlies on the swing under our beach house for a while...some might say I was hiding so I didn't have to help pack the van.

Crystal Beach

2009-06-02T19:48:00.006-05:00

Oh my goodness, I did it again. Another month has passed and no post from the Eisels. That being said I am sure that you guessed it, May was a crazy month.

One of the highlights of May was our 3rd annual trip to Crystal Beach Texas. This year was a little different. Hurrican Ike blew through Crystal beach almost 9 months ago. We had been watching the websites to see the damage, but were not sure what it would be like.

Of course we rode the ferry there. This was a highlight for Landrie seeing as "bird" is one of her favorite words. Very cute unless you ride with her everyday and she feels the need to point out every bird she sees...and, doesn't just say "bird", but instead yells "BIRD, BIRD, BIRD" unitll I comment on the fact that she does in fact see a bird. OK, I guess it is still cute.
Here shi is spoting a bird I'm sure.

Like I mentiond, the hurricane hit this part of Texas hard. This is a picture on the main road of the peninsula. Piles of trees and branches and random garbage. It will take them forever to get back to normal, but they are well on their way.

Here is a picture of a neighborhood that was once house after house after house. Now you can see it is pretty sparce. Some have rebuilt and some are still waiting to be demolished.

Here is a house we came across on the beach. Like the front had been sliced off.

Here is a shot of our house...great place.

The view off of the front deck. That blue house on the beach is the one that was missing it's front. From the back it looked like they were just missing a few peices of siding.

Landries favorite past time on day 1...eating sand.

I really thought she would figure out that it didn't taste great and be done, but not untill she was pooping sand did she figure that out.

Kylie and Andrew.

The whole gang.

The pool helped with the sand eating a little.

What a great trip!

My baby is in a big girl bed!

2009-06-01T20:23:00.000-05:00

CHEESE!

One milestone we hit in May was getting Landrie out of her crib and into her very own big girl bed.

I'm not going to lie...it was hard to watch Jed take apart the crib that all the girls used and pack it away in the garage. It now waits there for Jamie and Mitch to haul it to Minnesota to use for their baby girl that they are expecting in September.
Who needs a bed when you have a rug?

What a big girl! She has done so well. She lays down well, stays in her bed and every once in a while we will hear her little toy piano go off in the morning...guess she's awake.

Jenna's Very Own Blog

2009-05-13T09:06:00.002-05:00

Just in case you want to check it out...

Jenna started her own Blog last night. She was so excited. She wanted to get up early this morning and write more on it. I have added a link to her blog from ours...leave her a comment...She'll LOVE that!

April in a Nutshell

2009-05-04T20:58:00.005-05:00

Oh My Goodness! Where has the month of April gone? Here is the quick version of what we have have been up to this month.

The girls used the clues that the Easter Bunny left to find their baskets in Landrie's closet...silly rabbit! Note: Kylie is getting lots of use out of the shoes she got for Jamie and Mitch's wedding, yes, check out her shoes!Easter eggs were colored. Landrie did not get the dye...just stickers for her. That crazy bunny put eggs everywhere.

Landrie wore her rain boots and pulled Kylie's hair. This is a daily occurance. Doesn't bother Jenna...she just keeps reading.
Jenna and Kylie took the first swim of the season...burrr! 68 degrees.

Her teeth are chattering, you just can't see it.

Here we are at CiCi's Pizza. This was on Kylie's birthday. Since I blogged last we have celebrated 3 birthdays. Mine on the 13th(32!), Kylie turned 5 on the 15th and Jenna turned 7 on the 29th. We are holding off on the actual birthday party until we can swim. End of May, maybe June.

Sammy snuggled with our favorite stuffed animal, Polka Dot Murray. Cozy!Landrie finally started letting us put ponies in her hair. Hard to see, but you get the idea.

At this point we are just washing our hands trying to keep the Swine Flu away and counting down the days until summer. We are headed south to Crystal Beach on Wednesday for our annual long beach weekend and are really looking forward to it. It will be interesting to see it since Hurricane Ike hit last September!

So, that was April in a nutshell. Hopefully, I can get another post up before the end of May :)

Mitch & Jamie's Wedding

2009-04-08T18:36:00.007-05:00

This past weekend we ventured to Minnesota to take part in my sister's wedding. Jamie and Mitch dated in high school. They both went in different directions on their own paths. Last summer thanks to their 10 year high school reunion their paths crossed again...the rest is history!

I was so happy to be a part of their big day. Everything went smoothly and turned out to be just beautiful. The only exception...my toast. Talk about a sobbing mess :)

Jenna and Kylie served as flower girls. Kylie got a little nervous and never did make the walk down the aisle. Jenna ended up being escorted part of the way by my brother Conor. Nice improvising Con!

Grandy posing with the flower girls.

My favorite picture of Jamie and I.

Landrie pretty much did her own thing. Thanks so much to Grandy and Shanny for helping us keep her under wraps...made it much less stressful on us. Landrie even got to have a slumber party with Pop Pop and Shanny in their hotel room on the night of the wedding.

Groomsman daddy with his little girls.

Daddy and Kylie sharing a dance.

Mitch and Jamie's first dance. They danced to "Let's stay together."

My brother Mike and I.

All night Kylie kept asking..."Mom, can I slide on my dress?"..."Not yet" I would reply. Finally after 12 times I caved. "Fine, go for it" And she did.

Kylie was nodding off towards the end. My flash didn't go off, but this is still one of my favorite pictures of the night. She was so tired we pushed a few chairs together and she was good to go.

Congratulations Mitch and Jamie---here's to many happy years!!

FACEinHOLE

2009-03-24T20:22:00.001-05:00

Create your own FACEinHOLE

Best Chrome Dome in the Metroplex? Maybe Next Year!!

2009-03-20T15:06:00.002-05:00

A big THANK YOU to those who voted and showed their support during the March Baldness contest for "Best Chrome Dome in DFW".

I ended up in 2nd place--getting beat in the final round. Quite a blowout it was, so I guess I need to build up my connections in the world:) Bemidji State University didn't help me pull out the win!! Oh well, it was quite a ride.

Ryan, I don't use anything to make my head shiny---especially not any women's products---how many bald women's hair products do you know of anyway. So, I am willing to guess that you are using more feminine hair products that I. I hear Sesame Oil is good for making your head shiny though...

Thanks again for your support and for helping spread the word!!

Taking advantage of a beautiful day

2009-03-08T19:28:00.003-05:00

Today was a perfect day.

The temperature hit 82 degrees and we got a ton of things done around the house. Jed tackled the yard with a little mowing and edging. Jenna, Kylie and I washed both cars inside and out. Then when Landrie woke up from her nap they played outside while Jed and I pulled weeds and raked out the flower beds.Here's big sister giving the others a ride in the wagon.

Switch! Kylie's turn to pull.

And, just because you're small doesn't mean you don't get to take a turn. Of course, she couldn't move them, but I thought it would be a great picture.

Some sun in their eyes with some great smiles.

One more week of work until our spring break. We are crossing our fingers that our break will be filled with many days like today.

A Gymnastics Party

2009-03-08T19:23:00.003-05:00

Saturday we got to go to Ian's Birthday party at ASI Gymnastics. All the girls had a great time. We hardly saw Jenna and Kylie because they were going a mile a minute. Landrie was also going a mile a minute, but requires a little more supervision, so we were able to snap a few pics of her enjoying herself.

She loved the pit of foam blocks. Climbed around in there for quite a while.

Here she is on the trampoline.

Black History Program

2009-02-25T19:49:00.005-06:00

To celebrate Black History Month, Jenna's school had a program. Here's Jenna and Ian before the program.

Here they are on stage. It was a Langston Hughes poem; they did a fantastic job reciting it together. Jenna was so animated and natural. We were very proud of her.

After the show, posing for a few pictures.

Kylie and Andrew hamming it up at the program.

This is what Landrie looked like all night because if she didn't have a sucker she was yelling "Jeeennnnnnaaaa" across the cafeteria.

"Brown skin and earin' holes."

2009-02-25T19:36:00.004-06:00

Okay...so the title may not make sense to all of you.

A couple of years ago Jenna came home from school declaring that she had two wishes. She wished that she could have brown skin and earin' holes.

This past weekend we were able to grant one of those wishes. Here she is waiting for her skin transplant...just kidding.

She did such a good job. While we were waiting we watched a 2 month old baby get her ears pierced. The lady warned me to take Jenna out of the store because that baby was going to scream, but we had a talk about how the baby is too little to know that it only hurts for a second and didn't understand how cute she would be when it was over. Yes, that baby SCREAMED, but Jenna stood strong and got up in the chair. After the first ear she gave me this look as if to say...that was it? I thought this was supposed to hurt? All of this from the girl you can probably hear getting a shot from a couple states away.

Big Smile

2009-02-24T19:29:00.001-06:00

Landrie is getting to be such a little girl. Here she is in her little pink jumper. All dressed up and happy as can be...

Yesterday morning I was waking the girls up; I started in Jenna and Kylies room. While I was trying to convince them that it was morning and they had a great day ahead of them, I sneezed. Here's the funny part. From the next room I hear Landrie(who I thought was still sleeping)... guess what she said...I am not even kidding...she said "Bless You". It was so funny. That made my morning.

2 Flower Girls in the Making

2009-02-16T18:26:00.004-06:00

With Auntie Jamies wedding getting close, we got the girls in to be fitted for their flower girl dresses. They are SO excited. I am sure that on April 4th they will both want to sleep in their dresses, because it was a fight just to get these off of them at the store.
This is the actual style that they are getting.

I know that it is Jamie and Mitch that are getting anxious for their special day, but I'm pretty sure that these two will think it is all about them.

The Father-Daughter Dance

2009-02-15T20:39:00.002-06:00

Jed, Jenna and Kylie at the Father-Daughter Dance.

What a special night for these two. Having their Daddy all to themselves.

A Beautiful January Day

2009-01-29T20:18:00.000-06:00

All smiles at the park.

It was nearly 80 degrees. It felt like May. Deanna, Jodi, and Andrew met us there to run around and have some popsicles. Before we know it everyday will be in the 80's. Can't wait!

A Night Out!

2009-01-28T19:44:00.001-06:00

It is a rare occasion when Jed and I get to go out. On this night we were celebrating our friend Stacy's 30th birthday. Ingris was set to babysit and we were headed to downtown Dallas.

In this picture the girls were anxious for Ingris to arrive. They have so much fun with her. We are grateful to have someone who loves hanging with the girls that we trust so that we can enjoy ourselves.

Jed and I at BARCADIA. Just like it sounds. It's a bar, it's an arcade and it's a great time.
The girls and I. From the left Stacy, Jessica, myself, Emily (who is such a good sport being 7 months pregnant, but wouldn't miss her friends birthday) and Anna.

Here's Emily and Ruben getting ready for a game of Jenga out on the patio. We had a ton of fun with this.

Almost February?

2009-01-26T19:03:00.002-06:00

First of all I would like to appologize for our lack of blogging lately. I know we took some pictures these past few weeks, but am having trouble locating them. We got a new camera after Christmas and it seems that when we download our pictures they go to a random non-disclosed location. So, we are currently hunting them down. Until we find them or take more, here's Landrie imposing on Sammys personal space.

Christmas 2008

2008-12-25T11:35:00.001-06:00

Here we are on Christmas morning. The girls were up at the crack of dawn eager to begin opening gifts.

Stockings first.

High School Musical 3 Barbies. A big hit!
Landries Rescue Pet. I had no idea what this was, but Landries daycare lady kept telling us about how she freaks out when the commercial comes on TV, so we found it and bought it.

She loves it. The dog walks and swims. It also comes with some very stylish green goggles.

Landries favorite part.
Walkie-talkies. Also a hit, but they try to use them while in the same room. We'll keep practicing.
Landrie also got a ride on princess thing. She can sit on it and scoot around the house. And the bonus is that it plays really loud princess music and has no volume control. Thanks Santa!

Jenna got a bigger bike this year. We are working on getting rid of the training wheels.

Christmas day was so nice out that we were able to got for a walk and test out Jennas new bike. I have to admit that a small part of me would have liked to be around a little bit of snow, but it was nice to be outside too.

Merry Christmas Everyone!

Christmas Eve 2008

2008-12-24T11:25:00.000-06:00

We allowed the girls to open one present on Christmas Eve. Of course the girls talked about it all day and were a little let down to open up a pair of pajamas.

Kylie's class made reindeer food at her Christmas party, so we saved it until Christmas Eve and went out to sprinkle it in the yard. For those of you who have not made reindeer food it is made up of oatmeal and rasins, with a little bit of glitter to help the reindeer fly.

It couldn't have been more perfect. The minute we walked out side a plane must have been flying by. Red bliking lights in the sky. We panicked at first thinking we should all get in bed quick in case Santa was a little ahead of schedule.

After the reindeer food was down we went inside and Jed and I enjoyed the easiest bedtime of the year. No one getting up for a drink of water or to tell on their sister on Christmas Eve...love it!

Sister Similarities

2008-12-23T11:08:00.002-06:00

The other day, and a lot over the past month or so, Landrie made a face that reminded us of Kylie so we began our research. We went looking for pictures of Kylie when she was Landrie's age. As far as Jenna goes, that would require us digging through a bag of developed photos that span 4 years...no digital camera then. Here's what we found...

Landrie with her scrunched up nose smile. Christmas 2008.

Kylie with her scrunched up nose smile. Christmas 2005.

Landrie in the rocker at Pop Pop and Shanny's in Illinois 2008.

Kylie in the rocker at Pop Pop and Shannys' in Florida 2005.

Kylie Brynn

2008-12-22T14:04:00.000-06:00

Kylie's class had their Christmas program last Friday. The theme was T'was Night Before Christmas. Each class had a different theme within the theme. For example there was a class that did a Dinosaurs Night Before Christmas, one did a Soldiers Night Before Christmas and so on. Kylie's class was a Texas Night Before Christmas. She slept with curlers in her hair so she could have curly hair for her program, or as Jed and I call it, "Big Texas Hair". She did a great job! Delivered her lines nice and loud and closed the show with "We Wish You A Rootin' Tootin' Christmas. Unfortunately we were not very close, so didn't get may great pictures.

Here is a picture of her at the microphone.
I am not sure what brough it on, but Kylie has a new obsession with Japan. For the last couple of days she has been carrying this book around pretending to read it. It is a guide to Japan and the Japanese Language. When the girls play school and she is the teacher they are always learning about Japan. She takes it to bed with her because Jenna always reads a little at night, so she looks at this book before bed.
She will "read" it to anyone who will listen.
Sammy seems to be her biggest fan.

Now that Jed and I laughed at her and took pictures of her with the Japan book I am sure that she will keep it up because she is a little ham like that.

She is our crazy one. She keeps us all laughing.

Making Cookies

2008-12-17T13:38:00.000-06:00

Our Christmas Cookie tradition continued this year. Deanna and Jodi always do a fabulous job of hosting this event. The kids have a great time and make a huge mess.
Landrie enjoyed the frosting the most. At first she was dipping and licking the knife. Then she figured to skip the knife all together and just dip the coolie right into the frosting.

Here's Landries smile. Jenna had a great time. It is very interesting how different she and Jenna are. Jenna wanted to decorate cookie after cookie and finish fast and back outside to play. Kylie on the other hand would sit there decorating cookies all afternoon.

Prairie Lights

2008-12-16T13:47:00.000-06:00

One thing we like to do every year is pack in to the mini van with Deanna, Jodi and Andrew for a drive through the Prairie Lights display. I wish I had pictures of some of the displays, but they did not turn out.

From the warmth of you car you can drive through the park and see all the lights, listen to music and Ooo and Ahhh. The kids love it. It might be the only time I enjoy listening to Christmas music. After the driving through the park there is a large tent with all sorts of things to do and buy . Jed and I call it the money pit. Pictures with Santa, hot chocolate, kettle corn, and a lights and music display.

Notice that Jed and I made the picture with Santa this year.

Our being in the picture was not by choice, more by necessity. Landrie wanted nothing to do with Santa this year. We even tried to put her on the cute rocking horse far a way from Santa, but no luck. I will say that for the first time, Kylie stood within his reach, so there is hope.

Girls Only Photo Shoot

2008-12-15T13:31:00.000-06:00

The girls LOVE taking pictures, so here are a few shots from the other night just before bed. Landrie took turns going from lap to lap and the rest of us took turn snapping pics.

Only one small injury occured when Landrie threw her head back right into Kylies cheek. A few tears, but she survived.

The Ever Crazy Smiling Landrie!

2008-12-14T22:57:00.001-06:00

Okay, Okay...this one doesn't fit the post title, but I had to throw it in here just for the shock value!! This was a week or so ago, when we were trying to get a nice family shot for the annual Christmas card. No, Landrie wasn't cooperating and was getting pretty fed up, but we made it through the turmoil! Now, on with the crazy smiles!!

As you can see, Landrie tends to over smile. Her nose gets all crinkled up and she really shows off the handful of teeth that she has at the tender age of 18 months.

This was is a little more relaxed and natural...maybe it was the bowling?

Still bowling, still natural, but a little more excitement than the previous.

Okay, back to the wild smile. It must be attributed to Pop Pop or her bath. And she was in the buff too?

This is a "lean forward and really smile"...careful...yes, Landrie you could fall out of the rocker.

Here's a "no dad, just a calm smile here...what are you trying to make me look like, a crazy girl?"

Yes!! Got one more shot of the crazy smile...quite a personality she is showing lately. Hearing a lot more "No", both Jenna and Kylie are known as "Jenna", she likes Jenna's old glasses--they make her giggle like crazy and she is still doing the eye closing disassociation thing. She hates her winter coat and being in her carseat, so the two of those together make for a really mad 18 month old--gotta love that:)

Illinois Thanksgiving 2008

2008-12-04T19:34:00.001-06:00

Thanksgiving 2008 started out with our road trip north on Interstate 35 on our way to Atkinson/Geneseo, Illinois to see Pop Pop, Shanny and the rest of the family. The girls did pretty well on the road, we drove through the night and arrived in about 15 hours total. It worked out well, Landrie was our biggest worry, but she ended up being more cooperative and fought less than Jenna and Kylie. We didn't take as many pictures as we should have, but here are a few highlights.

The annual bowling venture to Lee's Lanes was fun. All had a good time, especially Kylie and Jenna. They used bumpers, one bright pink bowling ball and another bright orange--so perfect for them! Here is Kylie being a ham.

Landrie was quite a little clown. She is doing this strange eye closing thing when she gets scolded, like she is disassociating herself, or saying, "Um, I can't see you and therefore can't hear you either." It is quite amusing. She is also doing this over the top smile, which I will do a separate post for since I have so many shots of just that. She loved spending time with everyone, and loved running around naked by the fireplace after her bath. Crazy girl!

Uncle Conor was a big hit as always. He is so good with the girls, playing pool, rockband, whatever, they just adore him! He is a sophomore this year--6 months away from getting his license.

Pop Pop, Shanny and Uncle Mike posing for a shot at Lee's Lanes. The deal was the losers would do clean up after dinner.

It was so nice to spend some time with Grandma Marge. The girls loved playing in her basement again, they always seem to remember her basement. It is a comfy, cozy place--I guess that's why.

Pop Pop and Shanny were so helpful once again. They even had a roomate while we visited, Landrie slept in with them in their room! They got up with her every morning and got her started with breakfast, etc, so we were able to sleep in and rest. That was GREAT!!
It was a great Thanksgiving Break, we were so fortunate to have the whole week off from school and to be able to make the trip to spend this time with family. We stayed the whole week and left on Friday night about 6:45 and made it home in even better time--14 hours and 15 minutes.

Girls Day

2008-11-15T18:32:00.004-06:00

Jed has started working Saturday School on Saturday mornings, so this morning we declared it a girls day! First stop...only stop, the Mall. For those of you who know me, you know that I hate the mall. I especially hate the mall on a Saturday around holiday shopping time. Jenna had a birthday party to attend so I put on my smile and off we went. Me and 3 small children.

Warning: This post contains more hot pink and glitter than anyone can take in one sitting.

First stop Libby Lu. This is the location of the birthday party. For those of you who have not been to a Libby Lu's party here is the just of it. The girls all put on matching dresses, pick out a "Libby-do" hairstyle put make-up on, paint their fingernails, roll around in glitter, sing and dance and pick out some party favors and call it a day. Check out the picks!

It was really a very cool party. Jenna of course loved it. The sad news is that in Feburuary all the Libby Lu stores are closing down.

Now for my business proposal...People spend money on Birthday parties for their kids. I am thinking you could take something like this on the road. Do all this stuff, but in peoples homes. It's like a party clown, but way more fun and with much more glitter. Anybody in?

Kylie was along for the ride and really, if you would have asked her she wanted nothing to do with the whole process. Untill they left the make-up station unattended that is. Her she is sneaking over and getting all the left over glitter off of the table top and then rubbing it on herself.

You didn't think I really took all the girls to the mall by myself did you?

As you can see from the picture I called for reinforcement in the form of Auntie Jamie. Here she is helping me contain Landrie.

Here she is watching Landrie also get into all the glitter.

My hero...Jed showed up after Saturday School to pick up Landrie and head home for a nap.

Then it was off to the food court for birthday cake and presents.

After the party we all headed to a movie. Madagascar 2. Deanna and Andrew joined us and I think that Jamie, Deanna and I enjoyed it way more than the kids.

After all the fun we were anxous to get home. But...here is why I HATE the mall. It took us 55 min. to get out of the parking lot and on to the highway. I am not even exaggerating! Cars were cutting me off and pulling out right in front of me as I sat in gridlock at the mall. What a nightmare.

A Cowgirl, a Giraffe and Super Girl!

2008-11-03T20:42:00.003-06:00

Here they are. We had a heck of a time getting a picture of the three of them. Had no luck on Halloween, so this was actually Sunday afternoon. All dressed up for round two. You can imagine the disappointment when we headed inside after a few shots instead of raiding the neighborhood for treats.
Jenna the Cowgirl. Grandy and I actually made this costume. It looked so good.

Super Girl! Kylie played the part perfectly!

And of course... Landrie the giraffe. She did so well in this costume considering that it was 80 degrees out. Thanks auntie Jamie for a fabulous costume.

The whole gang. Andrew was a Transformer and Ian was Speed Racer.

After a little trick-or-treating we headed back to Deanna and Jodi's for a Halloween campout. Perfect weather for a campfire and sleeping in the tents!

Just Dance!

2008-10-28T18:56:00.003-05:00

I finally figured out how to post a video. Here is one of Landrie showing off all moves that she learned from her daddy. Still can't figure out how to rotate it, so crank your head to the side and enjoy!

Step to the side Kristi Yamaguchi & Sasha Cohen

2008-10-25T19:51:00.009-05:00

Here is Jenna's debut as an ice skater. Auntie Jamie took Jenna for a very special day. First stop was the ice skating rink at the mall. Jenna has been bugging Jamie for months now to take her skating and today was the big day. Here are a few pics that Jamie sent from her phone.

Paparazzi already? Who does that man think he is?

I might be wrong, but maybe she was going for the "shoot the duck" move. Does anyone know what that is? Jed thinks I made it up, but I promise it was a real move...roller skating maybe?

Looks like she had a great time. When I talked to her on the phone she wanted to go back tomorrow.

After skating it was off to the movie: High School Musical 3. Thanks Jamie for sparing Jed and I the trip to the theater.

And to top off an action packed afternoon, back to Auntie Jamie's for a sleepover!!!! What a special treat!

Our littlest daredevil

2008-10-16T20:55:00.000-05:00

Landrie continues to be a daredevil...being little supergirl on mommy's feet. She sees Jenna and Kylie getting lift off, so she has to have her chance to.
Ever since Jenna and Kylie got their bunk beds, she wants a piece of that action too. This one is in the form of climbing the ladder, which she does pretty well. We have to watch her very closely, as we think she is about as accident prone and clumsy as Kylie. Her problem comes in if and when she gets to the top. Then, she has to scream out...but we usually catch her before she gets to that point!
Up the ladder she goes...
This doesn't fit the daredevil theme, but after taking her out of dangerous predicaments, Landrie must be distracted. She is a little high strung:)!! She loves to close and snap the cover on Kylie's little learning computer. We open it and she closes it, and every time she closes it, we tickle her neck. She loves it, and forgets about being taken down from the ladder.

The Dallas Zoo

2008-10-08T19:56:00.003-05:00

This past weekend we had a visitor. Grandy flew in to spend the weekend with us. Kylie got to stay home Monday and spend the day with Grandy and Jenna had a surprise when Grandy showed up for lunch with her at school on Tuesday. We had a great visit. We spent Sunday at the Dallas Zoo. It was perfect weather and we all enjoyed ourselves.
Jenna and Jed getting up close with the penguins.
Jenna and Grandy waiting for a sting ray to swim by. This was a touch pond. It was neat.

Here we are on the monorail.
I love this picture! This gorilla was really watching us. He sure knows how to pose.

For those of you wondering why I have all sorts of pictures of Jenna at the zoo near animals and not Kylie...the reason is that Kylie is more of an "enjoy the animals from the wagon type of girl". You never know when a penguin or a sting ray might brake loose...as for the gorilla, I wouldn't have sat there either!

A good book before bed.

2008-10-04T19:50:00.000-05:00

Landrie LOVES to read. She usually turns the pages faster than a person could read, but we have time to work on that.
Here are a few pictures of her getting ready for bed with Jed and I.

Warning: If you are at our house and sitting low to the ground you will find Landrie in your lap armed with a good book.

The other day Jenna was sitting on the floor reading. To Landrie, that is an open invitation. She got so excited she climbed right onto her lap and plopped down right on top of the book.

The Frog Prince...Starring Jenna Eisel!

2008-10-03T19:45:00.000-05:00

Last Friday Jennas class did a performance of The Frog Prince. She read the part of the Queen. Of course like every other school event it took place in the middle of the day. I am just glad that Jed works in the same building because he can usually get away from what he is doing to snap a few pictures so I don't miss out entirely.
I hear it was quite a performance.

New Beds, Curly Hair and more!

2008-09-18T19:33:00.005-05:00

After seaching and watching Craigslist for the perfect bunkbeds, we found them! A few weekends ago we borrowed Auntie Jamie's truck and headed towards McKinney, Texas to pick them up(north of Dallas). The man selling them had hand made them years ago for his daughters and we love them. They are sturdy and strong and we loved the railings on the top. We got them home and Jed worked very hard sanding, priming and getting a fresh coat of white paint on them. Getting them in the house was probably the biggest part of the job. Anyway, now they are in and the girls have worked out a two night rotation. So far so good!
Here are the girls one morning after sleeping in curlers. They looked like two little Shirly Temples. They truly had big "Texas" hair on that day! All smiles as you can tell.

We recently dusted off the bike and decided to try it out with a passenger. It really did not go over well. Landrie HATES the helmet. I am really quite surprised that we got these pictures because most of the time she was on the bike she was thrashing around trying to yank the helmet off of her head! Oh yeah, did I mention how hard it is to ride a bike with someone flailing about on the back of it?!
I know from these pictures it looks like she really enjoyed herself...she has you all fooled!

Daredevil and Lover of Sammy

2008-09-11T21:53:00.001-05:00

The 15 month old Landrie is quite a character. She just had a well visit with a few shots, which as you can guess, she did not love! She is in the 50th percentile for weight and 75th for height.
She is also getting more and more hair...finally, and is saying more and more words. You can tell she understands a lot more lately too. We will all be happier as she builds more vocabulary and uses the screech/scream a lot less to tell us what she wants:)
Besides having those positive milestones, she is also quite a daredevil/risktaker/messmaker. Oh, and she loves her bedtime friend, her sheepie...
Here she is using sheepie as if she is a matador in Mexico, if only he were red and we had a bull for her to tease. Maybe Sammy would be the bull?
Here is some of the risk-taking, not sitting in the chair...standing and climbing, using it as a stepstool. She was up on that table this afternoon!
All of this craziness aside, Landrie sure does love Sammy. She is not saying Sammy very well yet, it is always "PUPPY". Here she is giving him a little hug.
A nice gesture, a smile and why not share your food, right? She is always giving him food, or teases him with it and then he "chases" her around. Really it is just following her, but to a 15 month old, I bet Sammy has some speed skills too:) He does good putting up with the harassment from all three girls.

Pj's with Heels?

2008-08-31T20:11:00.002-05:00

Jed was getting out the 18-24 month tote and came across these. They have quickly become the favorite. I know it is because of the click that they make on the floor. So, we will be wearing them with skirts, shorts and yes Jammies. The funny thing.....Kylie got mad because she does not have any shoes that are as fancy as Landries.

You might be able to see Landries newest tumble in the picture. We were over at a friends house and she fell and got the corner of a little shelf with her eye. Poor thing. She is a trooper.

A Morning at the Zoo

2008-08-31T19:53:00.004-05:00

Neither a level orange air pollution warning nor 93 degrees will keep us from a morning at the zoo. We are fools.

Even though all of the animals were too hot to move Landrie loved the petting zoo. Here she was trying to call the piggy over to the fence.

Kylie hanging with the monkeys.
Jenna posing with her otter friends.
Now, lets play a game.......what is wrong with this picture? How about that Landrie walked more at the zoo than either of her sisters! Man they had it made in the shade.
We always end the day with a carousel ride. Evil looking tiger.

This was after their ride. I had to get one of the triceratops...really....who is going to choose that one?

We had a good time and ended up buying a membership for the year. I think if we go one more time we got our money out of it. The nice thing is that it is only a 12 minute drive from our house. I am sure we will be back once it cools down a little.

First Day of School

2008-08-27T18:42:00.003-05:00

Get ready Pre-K, here comes Kylie! Here she is so excited...nope not about school, about her pop-tart in a fancy baggie.

Here's the whole gang. The were both so excited about these sparkling butterfly t-shirts that they HAD to wear them on the first day.....no we did not plan it of dress them alike on purpose.

This was a very special 1st day for Jenna. Over the summer she took the 1st grade CBE (credit by exam). Because of her scores we were given the choice to put her into a 2nd grade classroom instead of a first. Jed and I went back and forth on the decision for a while, but when all was said and done we felt that that would be the best for her. Jenna was not keen on leaving her first grade friends behind, but decided to give it a try on a trial basis of course. Jed and I both knew that if the first day went well, she would be fine. She loved it! She was actually upset at the end of the day because she wanted to stay longer. I think it is safe to say that she will remain a second grader.

A Weekend at the Lake

2008-08-27T18:32:00.002-05:00

A few weeks ago we joined our friends Deanna and Jodi for a weekend trip to their lake. We had a great time swimming, grilling and relaxing.

Here is Jed and Jenna out for a spin on the jet ski. They have such a beautiful place on Possum Kingdom Lake. It is about a two hour drive west from our house so not bad at all.

Kylie and I out for a ride.

Here is what Kylie liked the best. She was a little timid about being in the water, so spent a good part of her days tooling around the yard on this toy that she is about 2 years too old for. Even gave her sister a few rides.

I love this picture for a couple reasons....no...myself in the background isn't one of them. First of all every picture we have of Andrew he has these superman PJ's on....I love it. And also, how grown up does Landrie look? Sitting at the table with all the big kids.

A potpourri of pictures

2008-08-19T19:26:00.004-05:00

I love these chairs! They belong to Grandpa Dave's sister Laurie and her husband. This picture was taken outside of their cabin on Crane Lake in Minnesota.
This is where the girls spent a lot of time while at the lake with Grandy and Grandpa Dave. They called it their magic carpet.
A family shot at Bay Point Park in Red Wing.
Curious in the grass.
Grandy and the girls.

Sorry for the quick post, but I am back in the working world. Speaking of which......our district has what they call a convocation every year. Ours was today. Every district employee gathers at the Nokia Theater in Grand Prairie and it is quite a production....kind of like a pep rally for the adults. Anyway, every year they bring in some guest speaker that usually talks forever about who knows what because I usually busy myself with a good Sudoku puzzle. But this year was different. I am sure that lots of you saw the movie Freedom Writers? It is a true story about Erin Gruwell, a teacher that began teaching in Long Beach, California and all her kids who had never experienced any success and many had labeled them as hopeless. Eventually, they went on to graduate high school and college. Many of them were the first in their families to do so. Her part was played by Hilary Swank in the movie. Erin was our speaker and she was very entertaining and inspirational--and very real! She even brought one of her students with her and she spoke as well. So, mission accomplished because we left there very excited to begin this next school year. So much for that quick post. More pics to come!

I feel a fever coming on.

2008-08-17T19:50:00.002-05:00

So it is 8:00 on Sunday night and I have to go to work tomorrow!!!!!!! YUCK! We have been so spoiled. The summer flew by. I can't tell you how many times Jed and I looked at each other today and made the comment "I can;t believe we have to go to work tomorrow." This week is just for teachers and then we'll have kids in our rooms next Monday. So I better get a good nights rest and then I'll begin my countdown to summer all over.

"Planes, Trains, and Automobiles" has nothing on us!

2008-07-26T16:18:00.003-05:00

We quickly figured out that the pattern of this trip was all about things for the girls to ride on and play with....so, here is my post about all of the modes of transportation that we encountered.

First of course the van. It was 3,200 miles traveled in it to be exact, and thank goodness this is how the girls spent some of that time as passengers.

Ahh, America...next it was tractor rides in Illinois. Definitely a hit, and I liked driving.

Dirtbikes. My cousin, Eric, has this set up for his son Kyle. It is a little dirtbike with training wheels. Jenna really liked this and took advantage of every chance she had to ride it!

Kylie on the other hand would rather be the passenger. She liked riding with Uncle Conor.

Conor's fishing boat on the canal.

Conor also took the girls for a spin in the Bronco.

Four wheeler rides with Grandpa.

Horse & cart. I guess that is what it is called, but it sounds funny.

Horse. This is Brittny's horse, Lilly.

Golf Cart. It is funny that the picture is of Jed driving, because I had so much fun, I was driving it all the time. I don't remember him driving. I bet they snuck out there while I was taking a nap?

Pontoon Boat with Grandy and Grandpa Dave.

Summer Voyage: Battle Lake & Red Wing, Minnesota

2008-07-20T15:48:00.001-05:00

Our adventure continued as went east towards Battle Lake to spend a couple of days with Grandy and Grandpa Dave. Grandpa Dave had gotten the girls a couple of fishing poles and we spent some time fishing off of their dock. It got to be too much work...with every cast the girls were catching little sunfish.
Emphasis on the word little. It was still lots of fun. The girls made great fishermen. They wouldn't put the worms on or take the fish off, but they did all the hard work.
After our time in Battle Lake, we headed south to Red Wing. Dave's son, Shane, came over one morning with his kids. The girls had such a great time with them. Here they are doing a little spin art!
Picture time for Landrie, Grandy and Grandpa Dave.
One of our favorite things to do in Red Wing was to enjoy a camp fire out on the deck. Here's a nice picture of Jamie and Grandy and I. You can see the moon behind us, and if you look really close you can see the face of Wilma Flintstone's mother, Pearl Slaghoople.(This legend was unveiled to us by Grandy on this trip)

Meeting up with friends in Brainerd

2008-07-18T16:07:00.001-05:00

We were lucky that some of our friends were able to come see us while in Brainerd. We met up with Jen and Bryan Miller along with their handsome little guy, Carter. They live in Brainerd and we were very glad to have some time to visit with them and to finally get to meet their little boy. Becs and her boyfriend, Bryan, and Andrea all made the trip from the Twin Cities to come hang with us for the night. I am very glad that it worked out. It is always nice to reconnect.

Here is Carter with Jenna, Kylie and Brittny after conquering the large dirt pile!

Summer Voyage: Brainerd, Minnesota

2008-07-17T10:54:00.000-05:00

After Illinois, we headed north to Brainerd for a few days. We spent time with Grandma and Grandpa Eisel, Uncle Rick, Auntie Lisa, Brittny and the newest cousin, Garrett. We also saw some great friends too...they will be in a separate post. It was fun to see Landrie and Garrett interact, they were almost oblivious to the other one being there some of the time. Landrie would hijack toys and pat him on the head(similar to the "patting" she did when Addyson visited). All in all, they did a little baby bonding.
As most would suspect, it was difficult to get a picture with both of them looking, but we finally pulled it off.
Grandpa loved spending time with all of his girls. They loved the four wheeler rides, and always wanted to go "just one more time"!
Grandma was a big help with Landrie when she wasn't tied up with Garrett. Two little grandbabies can be a challenge! Landrie enjoyed her time with Grandma, especially the night that Grandma followed her around while she explored the lawn for at least two hours so we could relax with friends. Thanks mom!
On our last day in Brainerd, my Aunt and Uncle, Dorothy and Clayton, invited us down to the lake for a cookout. We had hot dogs, brats, potato salad, chinese chicken salad, desserts and some wine. The girls got to swim a little too, and Landrie enjoyed some time in the tree swing as the sisters pushed her.

Summer Voyage: Illinois

2008-07-12T16:21:00.002-05:00

Our summer excursion from Texas took us to the far north. Our first stop was Atkinson, Illinois to visit Pop Pop and Shanny. We also spent some time with Uncle Conor, Uncle Mike, Grandma Marge and Aunt LeAnn's family...it was a great time. The weather was great, with some "cooler than we are used to" evenings, but we made it:)
Uncle Conor took us for a ride in his boat on the canal, that was fun. Conor you are growing up so fast...you are taller than I am now!!
The girls enjoyed time with Uncle Mike too. They all balanced the front of the boat and smiled for this snapshot in a large culvert.
Pop Pop and Shanny were a big help with Landrie!! Thanks so much for getting her in the mornings and letting us sleep another hour or two, that was awesome. She can be quite a handful:)

Landrie's pool pics

2008-07-06T19:56:00.004-05:00

Here are some pics of Landrie at her happiest......because she is naked!

Look at this perfect fit.
She loved it.
Testing out her walking in the water.
This was great! The girls always want to do a silly picture after I ask them to smile for a nice one. It was funny because they didn't know Jed held Landrie up until they saw the picture on the camera!

Beating the Texas Heat

2008-07-06T19:50:00.002-05:00

We have been spending lots of time in the water these past few days. It seems like the only way to be out of the house and comfortable.
Here are a few pics from our afternoons.
Poolside table for two.

Wii-ing

2008-07-01T19:37:00.002-05:00

Our friends Deanna and Jodi just got a Wii. We have been over there several times to play. One thing that you can do is to create a "Mii". The point of the Mii is so that when you play the games your character plays and it is supposed to be a likeness of yourself. Anyway......We all made one. Here is a picture of mine.

I agree....not really close. But get this.....
Freakish isn't it. We laugh so hard everytime we see it. Jenna and I were playing baseball over there the other day and I guess the game automatically puts in the other mii players because every once in awhile Jed would show up to bat for my team. Great fun!
Our two favorite games are American Idol and Rock Band. Here's a picture of Jenna and Kylie singing a duet. I believe the song was Glamorous. I wish I had a picture of us playing Rock Band. We have got it all figured out. With me on the guitar, Deanna on the drums and Jed on vocals we sure do rock! I know what will be on the top of this years Christmas wish list. The girls would sure enjoy one too! Ha!

It's a bird, it's a plane.......it's Andrew!

2008-06-29T09:53:00.004-05:00

Thursday night the girls had Andrew over for some sleepover fun.

We swam, we ate pizza, then we unrolled the sleeping bags and popped some popcorn.
The movie of choice was The Cat in the Hat. The girls love Thing 1 and Thing 2.
Once we turned the movie off it didn't take long for Jenna to opt out of the sleepover. Kylie and Andrew get a little crazy and they were annoying her. So she slept comfy on her bed while these two slept like this.

Thanks For the Visit

2008-06-21T15:30:00.002-05:00

We want to thank Ryan, Kristi and Addyson for a great visit. We had a great time. It was nice to just lay around the pool and stay close to home. Kristi and I did venture out onto the lake one afternoon with some friends of mine. Left the boys at home with all four kids. Thanks to Jed and Ryan for giving us that time away. We had a great time.

Here is a picture at Texas Roadhouse. You just can't come to Texas and not go eat steak.

Getting ready to head to the airport.

Here's a nice picture......

....here is what was really going on. Who can look taller? What a couple of weirdos.

Thanks again for the great visit.

Hawaiian Falls Fun!

2008-06-21T15:20:00.002-05:00

One thing we did with our Seattle company is try out the new water park that opened just a few weeks ago. It was fun, but will probably be the last time we are there for a while. One tough thing is that all three girls wanted to do different things. I say that, but really Kylie didn't want to do anything. I think she just had a hard time adjusting to the number of people there. We finally coaxed her onto a small slide that instantly became her favorite.
Jenna enjoyed these small slide at first, but would have rather spent the entire time swimmin in the lazy river or in the wave pool.

Landrie just wanted to get down and splash. Of course that can just be done in the backyard, so I think we will stick to that for a while.

A Friendly Kiss

2008-06-21T15:05:00.002-05:00

Landrie sure enjoyed having a buddy here that was just about her size. She and Addyson played a lot together. Landrie took the opportunity to polish up two of her favorite skills. Saying "baby" and giving kisses. She prefers the open mouth sloppy kiss. Here they are enjoying the view off that back of the park swing....Landrie going in for a kiss.
Wearing the matching jammies and of course another kiss.

I am really surprised that I didn't get a picture of it, but Landrie would get so excited....walk over to Addyson say "baby" and pat her on the head. I say pat....Ryan and Kristi may use the word hit, whack, smack or slap. I did see her wind up on a few of them.

Happy Father's Day!

2008-06-15T09:58:00.000-05:00

hi dad happy fathers day. you are a great dad. i love you. you are nice. kylie and landrie love you to. i hope you had a great father's day.

love jenna

Happy 1st Birthday Landrie!

2008-06-07T17:23:00.000-05:00

We can not believe how fast the last year has gone. Landrie is now 1 and it completely snuck up on us. She was not sure what to think untill we let her dig in.
We had a little cake to celebrate and let her dive in and get dirty. She was all smiles. Here is the birthday girl posing with her sisters.
I love this picture...check out her arm wrinkles.

Summer Days in the pool.

2008-06-06T14:38:00.002-05:00

Well, aside from getting ready for a garage sale, re-doing our bathroom, starting summer school and writing Geometry curriculum, these pictures pretty well sum it up.
Most of our free time is spent in the backyard. Feels good on these 90+ degree days.
Kylie has gotten so brave just in the past couple days. She went from life jacket to floaties and has gone from crying when someone splashes her to putting her face in the water on purpose. She loves the goggles....even if they do fill with water everytime she goes under.
This is how Landrie plans to spend all of her free time this summer.

Kindergarten Awards

2008-05-31T14:45:00.000-05:00

Here is Jenna with two of her buddies. This was after the awards ceremony. Jenna recieved the Outstanding Attitude award. She is very proud of herself and so are we.

Jenna's new toy

2008-05-20T19:54:00.002-05:00

Thanks to Deanna, Jodi and Andrew for the coolest birthday gift. They got Jenna an underwater digtal camera. Very cool! We have been playing with it a lot and figuring out all the things it can do. These are the first "underwater" pictures we got loaded onto the computer. Actually there were about 60...these were the only 2 that actually had someone in them. Lots of pictures of the bottom of the pool.
Here is Landrie being dunked. She loves it. Comes up laughing and smiling.

A Sunday in the sun.

2008-05-18T17:32:00.001-05:00

Landrie splashing in her pool.

Kylie still sporting the Luau look from the day before. I wasn't sure if you would be able to see it so I wanted to point out the Hibiscus in her hair.
I promise we use sunscreen. It is hard to believe these girls are already so tan. I especially love the tan line on Landrie's arms. And a special thanks to Kylie for covering up Landrie's upper unmentionable. Ha!

A Birthday Luau

2008-05-17T17:22:00.002-05:00

No...it is not Hawaii...it's our backyard. Here is the best picture we have of the decorations for Jenna and Kylie's B-day Luau.

For some reason we cannot have great weather for a birthday party. Every year we wait until the middle of May for the pool to be warm enough to swim and it is cloudy. This year was especially bad because it was a gorgeous untill about 2:00...and yep, you guessed it...that is when the party started.
Jenna and Kylie by their hibiscus cakes.
Opening some gifts.
Not just any Barbie. Nope...this one comes with a hair streaking device. Not only can you give barbie pink, purple or blue highlights....it works in your hair too! We all had highlights on Sunday(except Jed).
Jed and I enjoying the theme. Gosh he is buff!!

Field Day

2008-05-16T17:16:00.000-05:00

Big day in Kindergarten this past Friday. You are looking at Jenna in action. She got 4 first place ribbons and had a great time.

Adults playing on the beach.

2008-05-12T18:18:00.000-05:00

Every year....ok, for the last two years we have had a sand sculpting contest. Last year Jed's team of him, Jodi and Laurie blew us away with their mermaid.

I am pleased to announce that was not the case this year.

Here they are posing with this years sculpture. It is a shark. I apologize for the bad angle....you can see the fin. Turned out well.

And the winners are........Here is a picture of me, Deanna and Brenda. This year's winner with our giant clam. Pearl and all.

Kids playing on the beach.

2008-05-11T18:12:00.000-05:00

This was early. We spent all day on the beach Satuday. We took breaks for the potty and sandwiches for lunch. It was a long, but great day. Everyone slept good that night.
With a little help from Deanna, the kids created their very own sand castle complete with a moat.
Gosh Andrew, it would be nice if I could get you to smile!!:)
Jenna burried in the sand. She and Andrew took turns. Kylie wanted nothing to do with laying down in a hole and being covered with sand.

Keeping the sand intake to a minimum.

2008-05-10T18:00:00.000-05:00

Here are some shots of our attempts to keep Landrie from eating sand. Pack-n-play with an umbrella for shade.

(we were not there to impress anyone)

We stole this idea from the people next to us on the first day. Enough water to splash, but with limited sand. Ha ha...we are still smarter!
Eventually she figured out that she could crawl over the sides and get to that tasty sand. We figured it would happen.

1st day on the beach

2008-05-09T17:51:00.000-05:00

Landrie loved watching Andrew and the girls play in the sand. She was very comfortable sitting in the sand and splashing in the water.
Oh....eating the sand too. At first we watched her constantly. Washing every bit of sand out of her hands. That got exhausting. Then we thought we'd let her take in a handful....surely she wouldn't do it more than once. Yeah we were wrong, she ate lots of sand and a few seashells too!

Here is a shot of our set-up. That is our beach house, the tall one in the background was ours for the weekend. Great deal. We loved it and will look to rent the same one again.
Daddy and the big girls playing in the waves.

A Ferry Ride to the Beach

2008-05-09T17:43:00.001-05:00

This past weekend was our second annual trip to Crystal Beach. Crystal beach is just a 20 min. ferry ride away from Galveston. Here are a few shots from the ride. Jenna, Kylie and Andrew loved watching the seagulls.
Landrie and Daddy. This was Landrie's first time on a boat of any kind.
I had to get this picture because of the ferry in the background. I guess there are no schools on Crystal beach. If you live there you have a very interesting bus ride to school.

A Visit From Grandy

2008-04-29T17:21:00.000-05:00

With permission from Aunt Jamie, Grandy came with gifts. You can see the girls wearing them in this picture. They are the Koala backpacks from when Jamie and I were little. They wore them on a bike ride and pretty much everywhere else we went.
What beautiful weather for a couple nice walks.
We ended her visit with a birthday celebration for Jenna. Thanks again mom for a great visit.

All Smiles in Texas!

2008-04-22T20:00:00.002-05:00

Landrie showing off her two teeth.
I love this picture of Jenna and Kylie. Just ignore the mess you see in the background.

Kylie took her gift card from Auntie Lisa and Uncle Rick and got herself this bouncing ball at Target. At this point it is the coolest thing she owns. She bounces everywhere. Bounces through the house to go brush her teeth. In this picture she is bouncing outside in her jammies after he bath while daddy finished up so yard work. No she didn't bounce into the pool.

Texas wins AGAIN!

2008-04-19T19:37:00.005-05:00

It was a big night last Friday at the Eisel's...watching Miss USA 2008. The girls and I were rooting for our two favorites, Texas and Minnesota. You have to have allegiance to your homestate and your homestate. Sidenote--Katie fell asleep about 25 minutes into the show...
Minnesota and Texas made the Top 15, but then Minnesota failed to make the

top 10 as a result of a lackluster performance in swimsuit. All of our attention moved to Miss Texas USA who went on and on and on, and brought home the crown once again.

Jenna and Kylie were very excited, especially Jenna who jumped up about 3 feet into the air and screamed!! Go TEXAS! Texas sure knows how to grow em':)

Toothless Jenna

2008-04-16T18:59:00.002-05:00

Jenna lost her second front tooth today at school. Here she is showing off her toothless grin. I hope the tooth fairy does not let us down. Someone has been telling us that she really pays up for those front teeth. :)

Happy Birthday Kylie!!!!

2008-04-16T18:53:00.002-05:00

Yesterday was Kylies 4th birthday! She had a great day that included taking Little Mermaid cupcakes to school for a little party with her friends. We are planning a May party when the pool water will be a little warmer so we can swim.

Here are a couple pictures of the birthday gift from Grandy. I think she called it a doll house..??......maybe for giant dolls. We think it is more like a condo.
You can see that it will probably be more of an outdoor toy. Should be nice this summer. Thanks Grandy! Can't wait to see you next week.

The Japanese Macaque and other random pics.

2008-04-01T20:25:00.000-05:00

This picture is from Jennas open hose last week. In her GT class they have been studying about Japan and Cuba. For their project they had to choose an animal from one of those places. Jenna chose the Japanese Macaque. a.k.a. snow monkey. She was given the option of doing a poster or a shadowbox about her animal, but she told her teacher that she didn't want to do either, she wanted to dress up like her animal and talk about it. So, here she is reporting to us about what her animal eats and where it lives. And yes, that is a garbage bag with yarn taped to it.
Silly Sisters.

Michelin Man! I love it!

FARKLE!

2008-03-25T19:55:00.001-05:00

We enjoyed a little Farkle on Easter. Great dice game. We are kind of addicted now. Thanks for the game Amy and David.
Silly Aunt Jamie...those sunglasses belong to Landrie.

Easter Fun

2008-03-25T19:46:00.001-05:00

Jenna had an easter egg hunt at school.
Dying easter eggs with Flat Stanley. He was here visiting from Minnesota. He was part of Cousin Brittny's school project.
Easter baskets.
The girls woke up to a note from the easter bunny. It was the first clue about where to find their baskets. They went all over...from one clue to the next.
Here they are getting clue 5 out of the fridge.

The finally found the baskets after 7 clues. They had a great time. We even re-hid them for Jamie and Phillip when they came over.

New Pics of Landrie

2008-03-18T19:58:00.000-05:00

All smiles. We went swimming at my school over our spring break with Amy David and Sophie. Landrie had a great time. She is going to love hanging in the pool this summer. Very content just floating and splashing.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

2008-03-18T19:28:00.001-05:00

Here are the girls sporting their St. Patricks day garb.
Thanks for the shirts Shanny!

Andrew's Pirate Water War

2008-03-17T19:17:00.000-05:00

So who won this battle?
Andrew turned 3, and the girls enjoyed his big birthday celebration. This year they were pirates, and they all had to walk the plank! The water war was quite a sight...water balloons and water squirters all around. It was funny watching them chase each other around, and then turning on some of the adults!!

Bedtime

2008-03-12T18:29:00.004-05:00

Daddy with two girlies in their PJ's and relaxing.
Story time. Kylie usually goes first. She "reads" from jennas Junie B. Jones books. Usually goes something like this....He said I said he said.

Check out her chin. A nasty rug burn from school.
Landrie proving that she can fall asleep anywhere.
Jenna reads Kylie and I a chapter or two every evening. This week we have been reading Junie B. Jones and the Stupid Smelly Bus.

Destination Imagination

2008-03-12T18:16:00.002-05:00

Here is Jenna at her Destination Imagination competition on Saturday. She is on K-2nd team with kids at her school. The best way to describe it is as a creative problem solving team. They had a long-term project that they did and then they also had an instant challenge. Her level is non-competitive, but they enjoyed it!
The long-term project was an 8 minute play that depicts an event that they change the outcome to. The kids have to come up with the idea, script, props and costumes on their own. They chose the great fire of Japan......didn't even know about that myself, but whatever. Jenna was a Japanese woman. The play was complete with pirates and ninjas.
Here is the team in a "silly" pose with coach Mrs. Wren.

It's official...Favre Retires

2008-03-04T20:43:00.002-06:00

It has been quite a career for Brett. The above cover says it all. I wish he were leaving on the highest note possible(...the Super Bowl), but hey, it was quite a record breaking season. Hats off to you Brett, enjoy your retirement. Green Bay will always love you!!

Happy March!

2008-03-01T10:41:00.002-06:00

Happy March Everyone!

Here are a few snapshots from this morning.

Here is Jenna helping Landrie stand up. Jenna is sporting a new summer dress, I couldn't reason with her that it is only 55 degrees out.

Cute one of Landrie chewing on an elephant ear!

Jenna's Eye Surgery

2008-02-26T22:05:00.002-06:00

Yesterday was a big day for Jenna. She had surgery on her eyes to correct Esotropia, a form of Strabismus...which many people commonly refer to as "lazy eye". She has been monitored for the past two years by her opthamalogist and he decided it was time to do surgery so that the eye that was being lazy would actually pull its weight and do something!
Everything went smoothly...we were both nervous while we sat in the waiting room thinking about our little girl getting this procedure done on her fragile little eyes. She did have a rough time coming out of anesthesia, was a bit combative...but they said that was normal with little ones. We took a couple pictures after she was admitted and before the surgery.
Getting settled in her hospital gear, working the remote for the TV...or to call the nurse?
All settled in with Barbie...or I mean 'Chelsea'...she was the toy she chose to bring in to help her get through the big day. Thanks Chelsea!!
Afterwards, we made it home, and Jenna slept most of the rest of the day. She wore sunglasses, as her eyes are very light sensitive and still are today. We will go back to the doctor next Monday and hope and pray for good news (no more glasses). Either way, we are just blessed to have a healthy little girl...glasses or not:) Love you Jenna Paige!

That's What Big Sisters are For!

2008-02-18T17:33:00.002-06:00

What are Big Sisters For?

They will help you wash the parts you can't quite reach.......
They will feed you dessert.............
And hold your bottle!

What a helper.

Tired of Jumping....

2008-02-18T17:30:00.001-06:00

It was the craziest thing...Landrie is jumping like crazy...jumping jumping and seriously like 10 seconds later she's out cold. So sweet! We've all had days like that.