Perfect Summer Day

This Saturday we were finally able to welcome Summer to Minnesota. This was the first weekend we've had truly beautiful weather and we took advantage of every moment!

This year we added chairs and a fire pit and new flower pots to our patio. On Saturday morning we moved around some shrubs to accentuate the area and did some other lawn work.Both boys had to take their shirts off to mow like Daddy. It was all I could do to keep Cal's shorts on. He wanted to mow in just his diaper!

That afternoon was all about water play with lots of neighborhood friends.

What's better than an ice cream sandwich after a long day in the sun?Cal didn't want to get his hands dirty!

That night we built our first fire in the new fire pit and it was a success! Meg joined Jim and I for a couple drinks and great conversation. It was the perfect end to a perfect day. Can't wait to do it all again!!

Calvin is Two!!!

Calvin turned 2 over Memorial Day weekend and Gammy and Poppy came into town to celebrate. We had lots of fun going out to eat and playing outside. On his actual birthday we went to a restaurant with an electric train that ran around the top of the restaurant. Whenever Cal saw it he waved and called to it at the top of his lungs. He thought it was Thomas the Train. When he couldn't see it he would ask repeatedly where it went and if choo choo was night night. He was really quite amusing. On Sunday we grilled out and had Jim's family over to celebrate. The cousins all had a blast together. Ryan really wanted to fish off the bridge and actually caught one! It was fun to eat outside finally and the kids got to try out the new picnic table from Gammy and Poppy. What a wonderful weekend and birthday! Here are some pictures and a video of Cal.













Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing

Miles Matthew Murphy

A couple weeks ago I got to go to Houston and visit my dear sweet friend Genni who just had her second baby, Miles. I had a wonderful weekend spending time with Genni, her husband, Chad, Grace, their 3 year old and Miles. He is such a sweet baby, loving to sleep and eat! Grace was a doll and kept us entertained throughout the day with her imaginative storytelling. I also got to see my friend Ashley while I was visiting. I had so much fun catching up with everyone. My favorite times were late at night sitting around talking with Genni and Chad and holding that sweet baby. Thanks for sharing this time with me Genni. I love you!

Last Day of School

Today was Tyler's last day of preschool. One of his classmates brought in balloons for everyone. This very thoughtful gesture sparked extremely different reactions in our house:

Elation and Joy
"Woo Hoo! I have a balloon!"

Abject Despair
"My brother has a balloon!"

T Ball

Here's Ty before his first T ball game!! His team is the Huskies and his best friend William is on the team too. As you can see, Jim got roped into assistant coaching, hee hee :)
The game was a little crazy and their was never a dull moment. From running off the field into a nearby neighborhood to totally ignoring the game to play in the dirt (pictured below), the 4 yr olds certainly provided a lot of entertainment. Ty hit the ball well off the tee twice and got to run for the ball once in the outfield. Tyler seemed to have the most fun on the bench, goofing off with the other players and cheering on their teammates as they were up to bat. Go Huskies!!

Summer Sports

This summer Tyler is taking golf lessons and is in a 4 yr old T-ball league. Both started last week and so far he is loving them. Here are some pictures from his golf lesson. Jim has been taking him to the putting green and driving range almost every Saturday for the past 2 summers so he's pretty comfortable there. I'll post T-ball pictures soon. Happy summer!

Easter 2011

We had a wonderful Easter holiday! Nana and Papa watched the kids for us the night before and stayed over. In the morning Tyler and Cal hunted for their Easter baskets and consumed untold amounts of candy by 8:30am. After an amazing church service in the morning we came home and the boys hunted for Easter eggs in the backyard and we all ate a yummy Easter brunch. Happy Easter!