I like to think that once I have done something, deliberate, twice
I can call it a tradition. So, with that in mind,
we celebrated the end of 2011 with our annual trip
to visit Uncle Dean, Aunt Rachel, Cousin Sophie,
and the American Girl Doll store!
Traditiiooonnnn, Tradition!
(Again, you really need to be a fan of
Fiddler on the Roof to appreciate my blog)
I think this trip ranks right up there with Bear Country
for my girls. They love their cousin, they love
their Uncle/Aunt, they love their house/basement,
and they really love Mall of America.
We started the trip with a visit to Nickelodeon Hell,
oh my, I'm sorry, I meant Funland.
After a teary, sweaty, stressful afternoon we learned that it is
much better to enjoy all the rides at night. After dinner, we went back
in and had a great time! I can't tell you how many times we rode the log ride,
but I can tell you that Claire, Ella, Avery and I all rode the big coaster,
that goes all over the whole place, 5 times in a row!!!
In between rides, lines and snacks, we did manage to hit
the AG store and the Lego store. The big girls easily managed to spend
their allotted money (and a little more) and have some great stuff
to show for it. Ella welcomed Molly to our family, and
Claire is now the proud mayor of an incredibly large Lego
village, police station and NASA moon mission/station.
After the chaos, I mean fun, of the mall we headed to Dean and Rachel's
house. As always, they were wonderful hosts and we had a
wonderful, fun, relaxing and delicious time. It's hard to pick our
favorite part, but I'd say the overall favorite was the RockBand.
As it turns out, Wangerins/Rouses Rock!!
Most importantly, we didn't get snowed in! Wait, that's not it!
The most important part is that I get to live my dream.
I love my family! I really do! I love opportunities to watch my
children grow confident in their relationships with their extended
family. I think those bonds are incredibly important. I trust my brother
completely with my children and I'm so grateful that they are growing up
knowing their family and feeling comfortable in their home.
Just think, it won't be long and they can go visit, for
long periods of time, when their teenagers!!
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| Avery was very unsure about the first ride. I was the mean mom that forced her, teary eyed, into the seat ~ |
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| This is Avery after the ride, so grateful I forced her to try it! |
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| And here she is, "ride-crazy", so excited to do more! |
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| Roller coaster!! |
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| My sweet girls! |
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| Ella and Molly |
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| Dean and Rachel joined us at the Minneapolis Children's Museum. It was a great time, but poor prego Rachel needed to rest a bit. |
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| My strong Claire ~ |
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| Sadly, I didn't get any good pictures, but Claire was a great cousin to Sophie and loved taking care of her. She is a natural caregiver! |
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| The Wangerin Rockers! |
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| Claire really took to the guitar. She is a musical genius! |
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| Ella, Avery and I took some time to go back to the mall and do a bit more shopping. Avery all dolled up in her beautiful new dress and jewelry. |
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| Ella loves to shop and she found lots of beautiful things at the mall. My little fashion plate! |
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| Ok, no,Claire did not turn to drinking! Just a shot of sparkling grape juice! |
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| Eventually, even Ella succumbed to the call of the rockstar life! |
2011 was a great year! I think I can honestly say that
we are all in a good place right now. We are settled in school,
we are settled in work, we are settled in home.
Our kids are happy, healthy, busy, and well-loved.
Dave and I are rested, happy and busy.
Jack is still a pain, but a good dog none the less.
2011 reminded us over and over again what is important in life:
Love, hope and faith.
Happy New Year!
