The Twin Cities

I have always had a special place in my heart for Minnesota because my grandma was born there and I have quite a few relatives that still live there but my true love for the Twin Cities developed once Paul and Cheryl moved out there.  I have lost count of the number of times I've visited but each time I go it's as good as the last.  My absolute favorite time to be in MN is during the Fall--it is gorgeous!  My least favorite time to be there?  You guessed it!  Winter!  I hope we never have to live somewhere that is so cold for so long.  Opening the door for a mere few seconds makes the whole house freezing and walking outside only happened for me when it was an absolute must.  Thank goodness our primary purpose for the trip was to see that new little baby so we could just stay cuddled up by the fire most days!

I brought my good camera and for some reason never took it out of its case the entire time I was there.  I was too into all of my boys!  The only pictures I have were taken with my phone so forgive the poor quality.

Happy 1 month baby Stir Fry!

Sterling LOVES Will!  My mom calls Will the baby whisperer and it couldn't be more fitting.  Aside from his mom, Will has the easiest time calming Sterling down when he walks around with him like this :)

Lovin Frozen just like everybody else!

Love this boy!  None of these pictures show it but his eyes are quite blue!

We have a thumb sucker already!

 Aside from kissing on the boys as much as I could, we had a busy week full of fun!  My Aunt Deb (who is technically my mom's cousin) was able to come over for a visit and it was so good to see her!  She has been so wonderful to us the past year and donated much of what ended up on Eli's tree.  Love you, Deb!

Adam turned 4 the day before I got there and Tanner's 8th birthday is this week so they had a combined birthday party.  Around Christmas time the boys entered a drawing at Home Depot for a private party and they recently got a call saying they had won!  Home Depot has a craft/project event for kids every Saturday but this was their very own party.  We were so impressed with the setup and how well they took care of us we asked how much it would cost to do something like this again.  We were told they don't offer private parties as a rule so you just have to be fortunate enough to win.  The kids had a great time building, opening presents and eating cake.

Cooper, T, Alex and Max

Reagan, Lucas, Adam and Elizabeth (If only I could say those names in Adam's accent it would be 10x better!)

I have to give a quick shout out to my Tan Man!  To those of you that are lucky enough to know him: he is doing so well!  He has made SO much progress in every way!  Socially and academically he is leaps and bounds ahead of where he has been, it was so fun to see.  Thank goodness for the fantastic Minnesota school system!

Paul and Cheryl hired a babysitter one night which allowed the 4 of us to go out to dinner and enjoy a few kid free hours.  I unfortunately didn't take a single picture but I promise we had a wonderful time!  Our final evening was spent with some dear friends who recently joined the church and have become like parents to Paul and Cheryl and grandparents to their boys.  It was so good to see you, Jan and Duane!

Our trip went way too fast and I miss all of you already!  I'm already counting down the days until I get to visit again!