The Linns in Minn

It's been a while since the last update so I should have plenty to cover. Benny started walking right around his first birthday. He doesn't have a lot of fear. I like to say he leads with his head. And he has quite a few times. We got a patio put in this summer and the very next day Benny decided to lean on a sliding patio door to check it out. Unfortunately, the door wasn't closed so he got a real close look at the new concrete. He came out with a pretty good scuff on his forehead, a cut lip, and a new understanding of gravity. The only thing that he really seems to be afraid of is new food. If it were up to him, he would live completely on crackers. Whenever he's hungry he wanders around chanting his mantra "Crackers, crackers, crackers." More recently he's started to try a few new things but still perks up anytime he hears the C-word.

Last September while I was attending an annual group motorcycle ride in Wisconsin, Melody packed up the kids and hauled them over to see me. It was a nice surprise to walk into my hotel room after a ride and find them all waiting for me. Everyone else there was really happy to get a chance to see the kids (of course), and it was fun for me to show them off. Ruby was a big help in taking care of Benny and was on her best behavior all weekend. Because of that, and because Benny had been taking up a lot of our attention, we decided to hold a "Ruby Day". She woke up to a pile of balloons and a new Minnie Mouse (her favorite at the time) and got to pick an activity for the day, choose a restaurant for lunch, then pretty much have her run of the house for the day. She even got to bring a friend along for the festivities. She decided she wanted to go to the Bounce House and play on the big bouncers, then we all went to McDonalds for lunch. Then she and her friend played in the house for a while, watched movies, and had a great day. Her special day was well deserved.

Ruby also started taking some swim classes last fall. It was mostly a way to help her get used to the water but she had a good time and got a nice ribbon for finishing the class. She was so proud of how well she did that we signed her up for more classes this winter and spring. She's been doing really well learning to float and go underwater and got a really good review from her teacher. She also took a soccer class and is looking forward to more this summer. I can't wait to start calling Melody a soccer-mom.

November was a busy month. We went to Michigan for our annual holiday visit with family. The kids were spoiled as usual and had a good time visiting all their grandmas and grandpas of both the regular and great varieties. While we were visitng Granny Dorothy and Grandpa Joe, the power went out when a utility pole caught fire down the road. We all crowded around a little battery lantern and a few flashlights and had a nice dinner of Big John's and baloney sandwiches. The kids thought it was a grand adventure.

That same month, the kids' daycare center closed but they were able to move her entire class - teachers and students - to another center that's part of the same system. So the kids got to stay with their old friends, meet some new friends, and stay with the teachers we all trust. The new location is still on the way to work for us, so drop-offs and pick-ups are just as convenient as before. Another benefit to the new place is that they will bus Ruby from her kindergarten when she starts next year (next year?? That doesn't seem possible.)

Speaking of kids being older than they ought to be, Ruby turned five in March. She wanted a big party at Chuck E. Cheese, so we joined forces with the parents of another girl whose birthday is around the same time as Ruby's and had a double party with all their friends from daycare. Each of the girls got their own cakes - My Little Ponies for Ruby, and a Wiggle Car for Lily. It was a big improvement over last year when we unknowingly scheduled their birthdays on the same day at two different places and forced all the parents to cart their kids across town to make both parties.

Spring is starting to peek around the corner and we are looking forward to getting out for some family bike rides. We'll also be having some campfires on our new patio while we perfect the art of making S'mores. One of Ruby's yet-to-be-delivered birthday presents will be a new bike to replace the one she's already outgrown. We'll probably be taking the training wheels off before long, so hopefully she can learn to ride it without too many trips to the emergency room - either for her boo-boos or for Mommy and Daddy's heart attacks. Benny is already eyeing her old ride ("more bike, more bike") and doesn't seem to mind the purple and pink color scheme.

New pictures in the photo albums. Update coming soon...

- 2012
- 2011
- 2010
- 2009
- 2008
- 2007