Toys, what toys?

Who needs toys when there's a box of socks? This shoebox full of daddy's socks has kept Natalie busy for about 20 minutes now. She's sorting, pairing, throwing, whipping them around, whatever. It's also giving me time to work on lessons for next week. Kudos box of socks! =) We've had a busy day already. Daddy's out with friends watching the Twins/Vikings games, mommy's already been to the Y, done two loads of laundry, baked a pie, watched Project Runway and is now planning for school. It's not even 2! Last night we went to G and G Heaner's for dinner. Great G and G were there too -- we went for Joey's birthday dinner. Good times!

We're gonna win Twins ...

We're gonna score. We're gonna win Twins, watch that baseball soar. Knock out a homerun, shout a hip-hooray! Cheer for the Minnesota Twins today!

Oh, wish the boys luck! Natalie's excited!

Joey

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JOEY! You are so loved by your wife and daughter.

I hear E-Trade Calling

Okay, so I started this video as something to go along with a report on how big Natalie is. She went to the doc for a well-baby check yesterday and is now 15 lbs, 14 oz. and 28 inches long. But the video took on it's own personality. It's short, but funny. And it's not computer generated, which makes her the best E-Trade Baby ever!

Overnight

Natalie spent the night at Grandma and Grandpa H's last night while Joey and I went up north to cousin Erin's wedding. It was hard to leave her because she's just so fun to be with. But she had a blast with grandma and grandpa. They got some new toys that she'll have to learn to share with Annika when the time comes. She didn't even cry with grandpa -- he must not be too scarry. The wedding was nice and it was great to see my grandma and all the other "up north" relatives. But Joey and I were chompin' at the bit to get Natalie back today.

Who knew?

Okay, so when I was a little younger I was grossed out by little, sticky, slimy kids. I used to tell my friend Rachel that she'd have to raise my kid from age 6 months to about age 7. But how can you resist this? She loves graham crackers, and it's become an after-school tradition. Throw some bananas in to the mix, and the stickiness is unparallelled.

Lazy Sunday

Natalie and mommy slept in until 8:30 this morning! When we got up daddy had to go into work for a little while so we read the paper together. She loves what Grandma Lee calls "the guts" of the paper. We're off to a Gustner family reunion today (Grandpa Craig's family). The rain has cleared and it looks like a good day for a picnic.

Doing Dishes?

Our little girl is too big for her baby bathtub and our big-person bathtub isn't done being remodeled yet, so until further notice, the kitchen sink is her spa. =) She LOVES it! She could sit in there all day. The funny thing is that we have bath toys but she'd rather play with bottles and dishes.

She had a great week at daycare, and I must admit, my favorite part of the day is when she sees me when I pick her up in the afternoon. She crawls as fast as her little legs will carry her over to me. She's the best part of life.

Back to School

Well, tomorrow I head back to school and Natalie heads back to daycare full time for good. It's a sad time. We had a great weekend together though. On Saturday, Joey and I headed to a wedding for one of Joey's employees. Natalie spent some quality time with grandma and grandpa Gustafson while we attended the ceremony. Then Sunday, we headed out to Kate's to spend most of the day out there. We went to an apple orchard. Natalie saw goats and chickens and had her first experience crawling all over in grass. Today we had Emily and Ben over for lunch and just a lot of play time with our little girl.

Here's to all the teachers out there -- Good luck on another year!