Gabe loses his first TOOTH!!

On Dec 10, we passed another milestone in the history of Gabe. He lost his first baby tooth. It was a bottom tooth. Both bottom teeth and one top tooth have been loose for a while. The bottom two got VERY loose and Gabe wouldn't even wiggle them with his tongue. He was a little concerned about how this whole losing a tooth would work and more importantly, feel.

Needless to say he was pleasantly surprised when it came out and didn't even hurt. (Doug did help it along with some floss, but we didn't want it to fall out during the night.) He didn't want to look in the mirror though...I think he may have seen the tiny bit of blood in the bottom of the tooth.

A couple days later Gabriel told us, "I have a very loose tooth in my mouth." So, we went to the bathroom and Doug got out the floss again. Doug wiggled it free and then Gabe looked like he was going to puke. Here the tooth had landed on his tongue and he didn't like the feel of it. It was so hilarious both Doug and I laughed at him. Once he was able to spit the tooth out into Doug's hand, he laughed also.

Gabe has informed us that he can still whistle even though he is missing two teeth. Now we just wait for the top teeth to go. What a bummer that we won't be able to sing, "All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth."

By the time we took pictures, the next night, Gabe was OK with looking at it in the mirror and actually holding the tooth. Unfortunately, I keep forgetting to take a picture of both bottom teeth gone.

Happy 6th Birthday Gabriel!

This year for Gabriel's bday, we decided to throw a kid party for him. He has been talking about some boys from his class, so we thought it was time to invite them over. Since most of the parents don't know us, we also invited the parents to stay and get to know us. (Why did they all smile and leave when they found out we had 6 boys in the basement???) All the boys we invited showed up, so that made Gabriel (and us) happy.

Doug had the fun job of keeping them all happy and occupied. I think he liked it just as much as the kids though. At one time all 6 of them were piled on top of Doug and he couldn't get them off. The kids just thought that was great. We also had fun sword fighting with the noodles. Surprisingly, we didn't have anyone get hurt or get into any fights. They all did really great taking turns and sharing. Especially with the train track.

For Gabe's actual bday, it was just us. We had the other half of the cake and he got to open presents. Apparently Doug and I are too practical though. For his birthday this year he got all the "fixins" for a new bedroom centered around a Sports Theme. He was excited about the lamp, and the clock with his name on it. We could tell he was dissappointed that he didn't get any toys though. I guess we have crossed over into that age already! He did get some 3D paints and a puzzle from a couple of my friends so those were named "the fun presents." Oh well, at least he will have some toys at Christmas so he doesn't have to wait that long.

Dance Recital

The Sunday before Thanksgiving Anna performed in her first dance recital. She was just so cute and did a great job. The recital was centered around mothers and grandmothers. Many grandmothers were there and on stage with the girls. Since we don't have any grandmothers nearby, I was going to be up there with Anna. I am not really the "on stage" type, but I was going to just deal with it. Well, Doug was asked to be an emcee, so I saw my ticket off the stage. Anna got to walk in with her Daddy, one of the 3 males involved, and she even got to stand by him between a couple songs.

Anna loved the dress she got to wear during her songs. She did a dance in both her ballet shoes and her tap shoes. (She LOVES her tap shoes. When she first got them, she wanted to wear them around the house constantly. I actually had to put them up high so they would be out of her sight and she would not put them on. Tap shoes get noisy when they are confined to the house.)


Towards the end of the recital, the girls got to relax a bit and put on their jammies. While they all changed into their jammies, the three Pastor emcees had their 5 minutes of fame. They performed their own special version of The 12 Days of Christmas. It was fun to watch them all be silly.

The girls then came back out and danced one song with a favorite stuffed animal. (Susie Lambie Pie made it onstage. For those of you wondering, that was one of my favorite stuffed animals when I was a little girl.) Then they finished with a silly song about getting jammies on.

We did have one "totally Anna" moment. After waiting with Doug backstage for her Rudolph song, she came back onstage. But, she didn't have her tap shoes. As I was giving the tap shoes to the teacher to put on, I notice Anna is starting to undress. Apparently she didn't want the dress on anymore...who knows! Anyway, Linda got her dress back on properly and the tap shoes and she was ready to dance. There were a couple in the audience that were paying attention to Doug and missed the "show" from Anna. What a character!!

Snow -- Already??

This morning woke up to snow on the ground. It is still coming down also. I know we are in MN, but I don't think we should be getting snow quite this early. Of course, Gabriel was so excited when I had him look out the window. Then when I told him that he would start school 2 hours late, he was even more excited. He got showered and dressed in record time this morning! All because he wanted dig out his snow pants and snow boots so he could play. The kids were out playing in the snow by 8:15am. They are a little on the odd side. It comes from Doug's side of the family though!! hahah

Anway, they had a blast, but did come in about an hour later because they were cold. As I mentioned it is still snowing and we have about 2 1/2 - 3 inches according to Gabe's ruler.

Anna had to make a snow angel and then EAT the fresh snow. Gabe went immediately to the garage and got his shovel. He is such a great helper!

Oh, when Gabe came in because he was getting cold, he excitedly told Doug, "Daddy, this means we can go sledding in a couple days!!"

Trick or Treat!

It was a great day this year for Trick or Treating. We had temps in the 50's so it was great! It did get cooler as the evening went on and my nose was chilled by the time we got home. On the flip side, Doug was getting hot as we were walking. Odd duck!

This year we had dueling clowns in our house. We had 2 clown costumes that happened to fit the kids perfectly this year. (Thank you to my big sister for that!!) We did have to get some fun curly clown hair. The kids even thought it would be fun to have their face painted. And, it actually stayed on!! Anna wanted red lips, but Gabe decided he didn't want red lips.

The kids had fun going around town and got lots of goodies. We went to the nursing home in town and that was fun. One resident handing out candy had a clown wig on also. She thought it was so neat that she matched the kids. So precious.

They were not so impressed with anyone with a scary mask on. We tried to stear clear of the scary looking houses or kids. We did have a few people handing out candy wearing masks, and it spooked them a bit.

Taco Tuesday - 2008

Last night we had the annual Taco Tuesday at preschool. This time it was Anna's turn to be up in front of everyone. She had a blast and did great! She even got to stand next to Zoey for the event. They sang songs and recited 2 Bible verses. Mrs Harms also had them answer questions about the Bible stories they have learned about.

The evening started out with a taco supper. They had a great turnout and we had to stand in line for a while. I had gone over early and helped fry out all the hamburger. I think I ended up frying 8 lbs and my wrist sure did hurt.

After supper, we moved upstairs in the Church for the program. Doug started out the program by introducing himself and talking a little about his time with the kids each week. Then, he went upstairs with the video camera while I stayed in the pews to take pictures. The pictures didn't turn out that well, because I was so far back the flash didn't do so good. Oh well, everything can't be perfect. Not in the Minton household at least. hahah

After the program, Anna showed us the artwork she made for the evening. She made a Noah's Ark with a rainbow. She also made a "self portrait" with curly yarn for her hair. Very cute if I may say so myself.

Fall Leaves...already

This past weekend was a little warmer again and the kids wanted to rake leaves. We didn't really have a chance, so Doug took off work an hour early to play in the leaves with the kids. Isn't that sweet?? Anyway, we made a big pile and the kids had a blast. Gabe thought the best part was us swinging him by his arms and legs and dropping him in the pile. Anna wasn't too sure about that so we just each had one of her arms and swung her in the pile.

Doug tripped the kids a few times and they landed in the leaves. Once Gabe landed face first. He got up giggling, but did have to lift up his shirt to get the leaves off his belly. It was just too funny.

Looking at the pile of leaves that we were able to make, then looking at the tree in our backyard which is still basically full, we still have lots of time left for playing and working with the leaves. But, it is such a pretty shade of yellow, I just had to take a picture for you all to see.

Now, we are caught up with the pictures I had on camera.

Fun at the Farm

A couple weeks ago, we headed out to the farm again. (My kids would go everyday if I let them.) This time it was for a new and exciting adventure. They got to take a ride on the combine with Dave to get some corn. Gabe thought the best thing was the camera on the tractor to see behind them. Anna was just excited to be in the tractor. (As you can tell, it doesn't take much to keep my kids happy.) Then Ricky took Doug out in another tractor to check on them and he got to drive it back from the field. Doug had fun driving and was apparently fighting the urge to sing "Thank God I'm a Country Boy." I just stayed back with the girls and stayed warm by the fire.

I forgot the mention they LOVE playing with Murphy, the dog. They would really like a dog at home, but we just don't have the ourdoor space for a dog. I just tell them they can play with Murphy at the farm. Am I mean or what?!?

Gabriel Milestones

A couple weeks after school started, Gabe came home very excited. He had finally mastered the Art of Skipping! Now, we had been working on learning to skip for about a year but his little feet just kept getting tangled up with each other. For those of you that know my hubby, this will not come as a surprise. Doug can't skip either. I was a little shocked about that. Now, Gabriel is trying to teach Daddy how to skip so he won't feel left out.

I just had to take a little video of Gabe skipping (finally) because he is just so happy and likes to skip all over the place. Enjoy!!

You may notice that he can even skip through our big pile of leaves. You may even notice that my strange child has no shoes on. It was a nice day out, but he still had on a shirt and sweatshirt, but didn't want shoes on. Whatever!!

Our other major milestone was learning to tie his shoes. Apparently they have a big shoe at school and they have been working on learning to tie. He mastered it and got a certificate and a treat! He was more excited about the Skittles he got to bring home. I don't have pictures of that yet, but I will take some for the scrapbook...since he does already have a certificate. Now, before you start laughing at me, remember that some moms scrapbook their kids Potty Training. I did not do that, basically because I didn't have a desire to document that. =)

Anna's First Day of Preschool!!

It was a very busy time in our house with school starting. Gabe started Kindergarten and then Anna started Preschool the next week.

She just LOVES going over to preschool!! We had a conference with her teacher before school started. She got to meet Mrs Harms, even though Anna knew her from last year, and she got to do an activity paper. She even got to make a small craft while we all talked. She did great, but she was more quiet and reserved than normal. I was thinking, "Where is my usual outgoing, crazy Anna?" But, towards the end of the conference she was more her normal self. I guess even Anna can get a little shy!

Before Gabriel went to school that morning, he gave Anna and Zoey some pointers about preschool. After he was done he said, "Oh yeah, and just have fun." He is just a sweet big brother. The girls were just so excited to go they kept asking me if it was time yet. {Zoey, the little girl I babysit, also started preschool. She gets her about 7:40 each morning. Well, that morning she had her backpack on and didn't want to take it off. So, that meant that Anna then thought it was time to go. It was a long hour before it was time to get ready} I told them we would get shoes on, then take pictures, then it would be time to walk over for preschool. They were so excited, you would have thought I told them we had just inherited a candy store!

We got over to school after the normal first day photos. Anna dropped her backpack on the floor and ran to the tree house. Needless to say, I had to remind her of the process...hang up your backpack and jacket, then you get to play. She is still learning!!

Both girls are tired by naptime so they both take good naps on preschool days. They both go on Tues and Thurs. Twice week for 2 1/2 hours I have quiet time around the house. {Luke, Zoey's brother still takes a morning nap.} It is nice, but I am glad when they get back. Anna loves to tell me all about her day and show me her papers. I can't wait until she tells me that she climbed out the window to get home. I can just imagine her face!! {The preschool is in the basement, so they have a window that can be used in time of emergency. They practice going out it the beginning of each year.}

I am glad that Anna is in preschool, but I am glad that she is only gone 2 1/2 hrs at a time. I am not ready for both kids to be in school full time!! I forgot to mention that Anna thinks it is very neat that she has Leah's backpack from when Leah was in preschool. I must be old because that doesn't seem that long ago!

Gabriel's First Day of Kindergarten!!

Oh my, who can believe that Gabriel is ready to start Kindergarten?!?!? His mom sure can't!

Before school started we had a conference with the teacher. That gave us time to meet her and tell her a little about Gabe and our family. Gabriel also got a chance to put away all his school supplies and even got to pick a desk. It was so nice to be able to do that before school started.

The first day of school was a bit chilly, so we had jackets on. That is really wierd for me!! I am used to starting school when it feels like the dead of summer and you sweat so much that you slide off your chair. Although, I remember how miserable that was, and I am glad that Gabe didn't have to deal with that. It may happen towards the end of school though.

He did a great job that first day. We walked in...you know I had to get pictures...and he put up his backpack and found his desk. Then he was listening so intently to his teacher that he didn't look at me for pictures at his desk. That was good though. He was also listening so well, that he didn't even say goodbye to me. That is fine too though because I would rather have that than him crying that he didn't want to stay.

Now, for my part. I did fine in the classroom, but I cried when I got back in the car. My little guy was growing up and in Kindergarten!! When I got back home, Doug had the nerve to laugh at me. I had to punch him..after I got the hug I needed.

Gabriel seems to like school. We have only had one problem and that was this past Friday. He is used to having Fridays off with Daddy, so he wasn't happy to hear that he still had to go to school. But, we got him going and he had a great day. It was nice out so we walked to school in the morning. Then, I picked him up on the bike. The other kids thought our 2 person bike looked so cool.

He is tired when he gets home and a couple nights went to bed at 7p. Other nights he just has to take some rest time in the afternoon or he is not so nice to be around. We still love him though, he just gets crabby from being tired.

Dancing Anna

As I mentioned, after the Jail and Bail for Doug, we had to hurry to get to the Talent Show on time. Anna has graduated to dance class without us and is doing just great! And, she LOVES it! I think it may be the fact that she gets to wear ballet shoes and pretty dresses, but she loves it just the same.

This was her first appearance and she did just fine. It didn't seem to faze her that there was an audience. Like I said she did great, with a little help from the bigger girls. She was in the back row so she could watch the bigger girls. That made it extremely hard to take pictures, but I managed to get one salvageable shot. All the other ones were just a bit too late and she was behind someone. I did get a cute before and after shot though. Oh well, she will have other performances this year for me to photograph.

Doug in Jail!!

As part of the Murray County Fair, Doug went to "Jail" for a group in town. He was raising money for the Early Childhood Initiative. Unfortunately, at about the same time he was to "turn himself in" we got severe weather. So, they moved everything inside. He still got the orange shirt, but didn't have to be behind bars. And I barely remembered the camera to at least get a picture of that. As you can see, I didn't get one from the side. It was just crazy that afternoon. After we got back home from him being released from jail, it was time to eat something quick and get Anna ready for dancing in the talent show. More pictures to come of our little dancer....

Off to Sioux City, IA

We started home from NE Wednesday Aug 6 in the morning. We stopped in Sioux Falls SD for some shopping on our way. So, we didn't get home until that evening. (I didn't have my babysitting kids this week since the Mom was on vacation.) Thursday mid morning we rented a cleaner for the carpets. So, I started that huge task. And I just did the living room/dining room, but it took forever and was hard work. The carpet really needed it though and it looks great now!! During this process my brother returns Doug's call for the day before. (Doug had called to ask if it was a sin to have Christmas trees and decorations out by Aug 6...hahah) Anyway, Lyle casually mentions they are going out of town that weekend...to Sioux City IA. Doug informs him that they will only be 2 1/2 hrs from us. So, long story short, Friday afternoon we get in the car again and head to IA.

We met them for supper when they got into town and then visited at the cabin they had rented for the weekend. The kids enjoyed playing on the playground and then down at the swimming lake. Needless to say, the kids were drenched, but had a blast. They had to wait until we got back to the hotel to get jammies on. Saturday we visited them again and got to do a little hiking. We saw the herd of elk they have at the park. It was such a nice weekend...not too hot. After lunch, we said our good byes and headed back home. They had to get to their party, which was the reason they were there anyway....we were only secondary. hahah

On the way home that afternoon we stopped in LeMars IA. It is the "Ice Cream Capital of the World." It is the home of Blue Bunny. It was a neat little museum and interesting. Then we had to get back in the car and finish our journey.

It was nice to visit with everyone, but it was GREAT to get back home! We were all sick of riding in the car.

Visit to NE

The beginning of Aug, we headed to Columbus, NE to visit some friends - Sarah and Kurt. Kurt is a Pastor there and we hadn't been to visit yet. Sarah is pregnant with twins so we wanted to see them before their world got extremely crazy! Unfortunately, I didn't get a picture of Sarah and Kurt or Sarah's baby belly. She is very cute as a pregnant lady, but she is getting uncomfortable already...the blessings of having 2 in there.

We were able to take a trip to Omaha to the Zoo even though it was really hot. We were not prepared for the upper 90's temp. It was 102 while we were driving the day before, so at least it cooled down a little. The zoo was so neat and had a lot of inside stuff. Thank goodness or none of us would have lasted!

We got to visit and the kids enjoyed the park near their home. We also took in some mini golf, but didn't even attempt to score it. Gabe and Anna have decided they like their way of playing -- hit the ball, then pick it up and put it right next to the hole, then hit it in. Works like a charm every time!!

We were so happy to get to visit them and see their new home and all the fun baby things. I think Gabe and Anna traumatized the cat while we were there, but they were just breaking him in for the fun yet to come with the twins.