Happy Birthday Mike!

We Love You...

We hope that you had a good day! (Go Pack G0!)

Love,

Ang, Patrick, and Aaron

Happy Birthday Angie

We Love you . . .

. . . Rock Climbing Momma.

With love from all your boys.

For Our Iowa Family Connections

O.k. in over 25 years of my college football allegiance with the UW Badgers, I am about to do something that I am not sure I have ever done - root for Iowa. Yep - you heard me right, I will be cheering for the Hawkeyes (whatever that is) to win next week against those slimey Gophers. Why you may ask? Well, if both Iowa and Wisconsin win next week, that should put Wisconsin in the 6th position in the Big Ten, having won the head to head against MN this week and that means Wisconsin, not Minnesota, has a good shot at coming here to Arizona at the end of December for the Consolation (Oops, I mean, Insight.com) bowl. That will serve two purposes for me. One, I will be able to see my beloved Badgers a second time here in Arizona. Two, I do not have to see all of those MN Gopher fans showing up here wearing what very well could be the ugliest colors in football and showing up at the restaurants and hotels in those clothes, except on Sunday when they wear their clothes with the same yellow color but with purple and that picture of what very well could be the ugliest picture of Heidi ever drawn. Now don't get me wrong, its not like this state gets taken over with MN fans when the Gophers come here. Being the most fair weather of all football fans, I really only think about a total of 50 of them show up anyway, but it only takes about 5 of them to ruin a meal.

So Katy, Kent & Lucia - mark next Saturday on your calendars because your big brother is going to be rooting for the Hawkeyes next week. Please don't let me down.

So as much as it pains me to say this . . . Go Hawkeyes. (Ouch, that hurt)

On Wisconsin (that's better).

HAPPY HALLOWEEN ~ 2008

Halloween 2008 was a lot of fun! I was able to pick Patrick up a little early from school. We headed to Mike's office where they were able to trick-or-treat from office to office. They really enjoyed this and received LOTS of candy! And they were pretty cute too! Patrick had to be the HULK and Aaron was the cutest little Dragon! His tail swayed when he walked which made him even more adorable. After the rounds at LBBS we loaded back into the car and headed to trick-or-treat with Patrick's friend Evan and his sister Reagan. We go around their grandparents' neighborhood. They really do their house up including having a fog machine. They both really enjoyed all the decorations. Aaron enjoyed walking up into the yards to check out all the decorations. Nana was able to join us part way into our adventure. That was a good thing as I needed more hands! The kids had a great time and Aaron really got into getting the candy. He also learned to say "candy" quite well. All in all I think it was a memorable day for both of them.

JDRF Walk ~ November 1st

The walk yesterday for the "Walk to Cure Diabetes" was held at Tempe Town Lake. There were 27,500 walkers!!!!!!!!!! That is more than the population of my hometown (Watertown, WI)! It was amazing. It is estimated that $2.1 million was raised. That is awesome!! So many stories, so many people to talk to. Technology has certainly come a long way. There is new and exciting equipment out there that I cannot wait to research further. Thank you to ALL who donated for such an important cause. A cure is within reach and hopefully we will see it within our lifetime.
(Sorry there are no photos. I completely forgot. Probably because Aaron wasn't thrilled to ride in his stroller so I carried him most of the 3 miles!)

Summertime Fun...

We spent lots of time in the water this summer. The water adventures brought many firsts. Patrick went on his first water slides and then went on the low diving board and HIGH diving board for the first time. Aaron LOVES the water and is kicking his feet and moving his arms. He is Papa's sidekick in the water. Aaron doesn't like to wear any floating device or sit in any device much. So we are left to hold him or he tends to enjoy walking on a step in my parents' pool. It's been a fun summer watching their growth in the water. Many fun times were had this summer.

First water slide adventures.

The diving board...not so sure about that HIGH dive!

Couldn't resist this cute shot!

Camping in Prescott

During our Prescott trip we hiked, visited downtown, and went to the zoo. The campground wasn't the nicest ever, but we managed.

Camping in Sedona

While camping in Sedona we took the boys to a Rainbow Trout Farm. Here Daddy and Patrick caught two fish. Patrick was SO excited. We brought them home and Mike grilled them. First Patrick had to scare me with one that still had it's head on! YUCK! Aaron enjoyed camping, but decided he'd see how much damage he could do to his face. You'll notice some nice marks on his nose from face planting into the cement slab. We hiked while there and visited the shops downtown. Always pretty scenery in Sedona.

First Day of Kindergarten

Patrick started kindergarten today! It's unbelievable how fast time has gone! Seems like yesterday when he started preschool and now it's two years later. A few weeks ago when asked if he was ready for kindergarten he responded with "I am DEFINITELY NOT going to Kindergarten!" I was a little worried about today after that. However, he did very well and his teacher, Ms. Bailey, informed me that he "DEFINITELY had a good time!" There are 20 students in his class and 20 in the kindergarten class next door. In fact, they share a bathroom and will also be spending time together for different subjects. He has been in class with some of the students before. He did make some new friends today though. It was his first FULL day of class and he had to take lunch too! All in all I think it was a good day! Let's hope for a fantastic year! Even Aaron wanted in on the action. He was NOT very happy when I made him leave the room!