Is it Tuesday?

Hey everybody!  Ellen here!

Guess what!?!  I started Gymnastics!!  

The past few years I have gotten to watch Linden at gymnastics, and we have a lot of fun playing it at home, but this is the first time that I have gotten to take a class myself!

I can't decide what my favorite part was, I really like the beam, but I also liked the bars, and floor was definitely awesome!

I also loved getting to play with new friends, and my coaches Macy and Kate are super fun too.

We decided to hit the local ice cream shop after.  I really love ice cream, but I don't actually like eating it that much.  My favorite part is getting to eat the cone.  Yum Yum!

Is it Tuesday yet?  I can't wait to go back!
Ellen

Skiing in Summer

When Mama told me that I could go skiing in the summer I thought she was just teasing me.  Little did I know, you can ski on water!!

I tried it once last year and didn't have any luck, but this year I was determined that I was going to get it.  We started out trying the same way we did it last year with Daddy sitting on a tube with me.  After a few tries we decided to try it the old way.  Daddy got in the water to help me get my skis lined up and then I yelled, "HIT IT!!"   And just like that, I was out of the water!

A couple weeks later my good friend Anna decided she wanted to try it.  She was amazing and tried it until she figured it out.

She was SO PROUD of herself, and we were all so proud of her!

 Nothing is better than having lake friends!

Have a great night!
Linden

Hanging Out with Friends

 The best part of back to school is getting to see all my friends that I didn't get to see over the summer.  Mama surprised me and told me that we were going to have a girls night with one of my friends.  Hanley and I have known each other for a VERY long time, since even before I can remember.  Our Mamas met in baby class, setup our first playdate, and we were friends ever since. 

Our Mamas surprised us and we met up at the bowling alley!

 We had a great time bowling and hanging out.  I don't remember who the winner was, but it didn't matter because we were having so much fun.

After bowling we ordered burgers and played games while we waited for our food to come.

There is nothing better than hanging out with our friends!

Have a great night!
Linden

Chasing Butterflies

We have been on a fun adventure this summer, we have taken to raising butterflies!

It started back in July when Mama found a lady in town who sells Monarch Chrysalises.  We got some pokey butterflies, but in the end all three came out on the same day while we were at the lake.

We all loved getting to hold them and set them free...

and we loved getting to see how beautiful they are up close.

Fast forward a few weeks, and Mama found some monarch eggs.  So far we haven't been too successful in raising them to maturity, but we are getting better and I have a great feeling about our last two!

Did you know that you can buy Painted Lady caterpillars on Amazon?  We were much more successful with those guys, but they weren't nearly as fun because we didn't have to do anything to feed them, and they really weren't that cute.  The worst part was that the chrysalises wiggle!!  Mama did NOT like that.

Meanwhile, outside, our fall flowering plants are blooming and the Painted Lady butterflies are LOVING those.  We got home from school the other day and there were DOZENS of butterflies on our flowers.  

Mama agreed to let me catch some and put them in our butterfly net if I could.  What she didn't know was that I was going to talk Daddy into helping me and he got home just in time.  We caught 8 butterflies!  Kitten REALLY loved playing with them, though I don't think they liked it much so we moved them away from him.

At the end of the night Mama insisted that we release them back outside where they belong.  I knew she was right, but I really wanted to keep them as pets.

Say a prayer for our last 2 monarchs.  We are trying really hard to help the monarchs out, I hope we can release these two so they can enjoy their migration down to Mexico.
Linden

Back to School - 2017

After 3 long months, school is back in session, and I couldn't be more excited!

Wednesday was meet the teacher day, and it was great.  I love getting to drop off all of my brand new school supplies, and I am so excited to have my own locker!

I was pretty nervous about meeting my teacher, Mrs. Schroepfner, because I hadn't heard of her before.  The minute I met her I knew that it was going to be a great year.  

The next morning was the big day.  I love the first day because Mama always curls my hair.  I ask for curls all the time, and we usually don't have time, but she always makes time on the first day.  After I got ready we had to take our annual pictures in front of the house.  A picture with my sign (it was only 47 degrees, brrr!)

A selfie with Mama...

And of course, Ellen wanted in on the action.  She was pretty bummed that she didn't get to go to first grade too.

Another first day tradition is getting breakfast at KwikTrip.  I wasn't thrilled that Ellen got to join us this year, but we had a great time and all enjoyed our doughnuts.

And lastly, a picture in front of the school sign.  If we compared to last year you would be amazed at how tall I have gotten.

The only complaint that I had about the first day was that it went by way too fast.  I can't wait for all of the fun things that are in store!
Linden