Boundary Waters 2

Ralph showing proof that the load was shared over our 5 portages.

And Dave, wondering why there's so much walking on a canoe trip.

And Dad making sure that we don't go hungry (fishing poles) and make it out alive (first aid kit).

We all had a chance to carry the canoe on our shoulders. Here's C doing it in style.

Boundary Waters 3

Kurtis walking the trail.

Dad with photographic proof that fish were caught...

and fried, in a very dramatic fashion, by C. If you look close you could see the hairs on his forearms curling.

And some very fancy-looking food was dished out, garnished with "backwoods lobster".

What's Up?

I have been remiss in my blogging....
A few fun things have been going on in our household;

1) Quinn started preschool at the YMCA. He's 4 1/2 years old and ready for some fun in the afternoons (he was getting rather bored with Max & Mae napping every afternoon and Ma wanting to clean the kitchen or prepare dinner, where's the excitement in that???). He's gone three times and had a great experience so far. I am giddy when I put the twins down for a nap and have almost 2 hours to myself. So many possibilities!!
2) Mike spent 6 days canoeing in the Boundary Waters of northern MN. My Dad, my brother (C), my brother-in-law (Dave), Mike's Dad and a friend from the ward (Kurtis) joined Mike on this awesome adventure. While they were far from civilization, my Mom and Hilary (C's wife) joined me and the kids here in Rochester for a great girls retreat. We hit Mall of America (LOVE that place), our local mall (we may not have Gap Body, but we've got ColdStone.), stayed up late watching BBC films (North & South and Cranford by Elizabeth Gaskell--amazing stories!!), Mom and Hil helped me grocery shop--a chore I detest (when I made them eat waffles for dinner one night and eggs and toast the next they said, enough! we will help you tackle the grocery aisles! Bless them forever.), they spent morning noon and night with me and the kids, it was glorious!
3) Max split his chin open. Again. Mike's talent with steri-strips was required. Again.
4) Quinn is potty trained! YES! This miracle happened just recently and I've never known such happiness. Quinn is quite proud of himself too. I don't know how it happened, what clicked inside his brain, but he just decided that it was OK to go on the potty and that was that. Why did I stress and struggle with him for 1 1/2 years???! I choose to forget those dark times. It's in the past now.
5) Mike's pediatrics residency at The Mayo Clinic ends in June 2010. Just a short 9 months away. Eeeekkkk! Big decisions on the horizon. Go for a public health/academic fellowship or try for a real job? Intimidating to say the least. I find myself looking fondly on those days when we ranked our choices of schools and programs and then waited to find out where we had matched. This whole choosing your future location and final destination could keep one up at night! Mike's a great pediatrician, I'm sure we'll land in the right spot. Hopefully a little closer to family.....
6) The brain boggles. That's all I can come up with.

I tip my hat to all the outstanding bloggers who post daily, weekly or monthly (you've all got me beat). I thoroughly enjoy checking your blogs and hearing about your inspiring lives.

p.s. Mike is not here to help me figure out my picture struggles. Why am I so pathetic when it comes to computer know-how???! If you will, please envision crisp, beautiful photos of my children taken by Auntie Hil. They will be posted and soon.

Obama’s Health Care Speech

After hearing the health care speech and being in the middle of the Mayo Clinic during all this health care turmoil, thought I'd post this overview of the speech for anyone who's interested.

Obama’s Health Care Speech


And, if you'd like to read the Mayo Clinic's position on health care reform, this is what was circulated internally last week.

http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthpolicycenter/pdfs/viewpoint4.pdf

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Utah Summer Trip--Good Times!

Here we are on our way OUT to Utah, three cheers for a road trip!!!

Here we are, 2.5 weeks later, on our way BACK from Utah, three cheers for coaxing family members to drive back to Minnesota with us!!!

And here are a few things that happened in between:

We walked the beautiful grounds at the Logan Temple.

Mike taught the twins the fine art of leg wrestling. (I can't remember who won, probably Quinn intervened and triumphed)

Mae & Max went fishing while at the cabin. You like Mae's fishing hat? We all decided it looks like it belongs to Cookie Monster! I was worried it would blow off and then we'd have tears, but Mae kept it on.

Max found a warm spring at Mike's family reunion in Saratoga Springs, UT. After stepping one foot in and then two, he decided it wouldn't do to just splash in the stream, he must lay down in it. Very amusing for all of us.

The kids went 4-Wheelin' with Pa at the Whitesides Family Cabin.
(sorry I didn't get a pic with Gran driving the 4-wheeler, she really cruises and the kids love it!)

Here's Quinn, cooling off in Grandma's hot tub. Mae also went for a swim, sitting safely on the stairs. Max refused to put his swimsuit on the entire trip, but as you can see from the photo above, not wearing a swimsuit did not stop him from immersing himself in warm, shallow waters.

Pa took Quinn for a ride around the neighborhood in Logan, UT on the motorcycle (it used to be my brother C's until his wife surprised him with a Harley-Davidson a few years ago. Bu-bye Honda, Hello Hog!)

Here's a pic of Mike's river rafting trip in ID/Montana with his siblings. Mike is not in this pic because he's the one snapping it. What a loaded raft!

A day at Mt. Rushmore on the way back to MN. Fun, fun day! Very cool carvings.

Almost all the cousins (Maren was running to the canoe) on their way to the lake. Jess's great kids, Anna, Maren and Kira and my three make all the grandkids on my fam's side. They had such a fun time together!! We miss you cousins!!!

Mae, playing dress up with cousin Natalie's old dance recital outfits. I'm not sure what the "bunny" is doing here. Playing dead? Love that fluffy little tush!

The favorite toy tractor at Grandma and Grandpa's. There is a pic of Mike playing on this same tractor when he was Quinn's age. Some toys are timeless!

Mae, taking a break from life on our road trip out to UT. We borrowed 2 portable DVD players and while I was rather bent on sticking to books and window gazing, I was VERY grateful to be able to put on a movie when we still had 4 hours to go, it was dark, and the twins were DONE!
(Please note that Mae is not wearing a hairbow in this picture. Rare.)

I feel like I blinked and my glorious 18 day summer vacation was over. It was so fun to see family and to be in beautiful Utah. I miss you all very much and look forward to the day when we live closer than a 20 hour van ride! The good news is that Ty and Connie are hanging out with us for a few more days before heading back to Cache Valley. I don't think I could have handled it had we come back to MN empty handed. Having Ty & Connie in the 'way back' made me feel like my summer vacation was lingering a little longer.

whew. Well, this post has taken me about 2 hours, all of naptime. I 'aint no speed machine! I hope you enjoy all these pics! :)

The park

We have a park. A favorite park. It's a favorite due to how close it is to our house. Most days, it's too much for the kids to resist. "When are we going to play at the park?" Quinn will ask. "Pork?" Max will wonder. We managed to catch some of the joy of the park in video.

struggling w/ photos......

About to post something amazing and interesting about our lives....but can't make the pictures I want work. Boo hoo.
SoooooOOooooo, something nice in my life right now, the weather. It's currently overcast and 68 degrees. Ahhh. My brother called from Texas yesterday to let me know that the heat index was 106 degrees and he's melting. Sizzle, sizzle. Minnesota is an OK place to be in the summer time. The weather is always something you can talk about when there's nothing to talk about. :)
Stay tuned...more soon!