THE ERICKSON FIVE

Wordless Wednesday- School Dances Are The Bomb

2012-02-08T07:00:00.000-06:00

Steamboat Part II

2012-02-06T21:58:00.000-06:00

I just realized that in our busy return home last week, I did not get a chance to do a post of our last day of skiing in Steamboat. This happened to be the day we brought the camera out with us as well.

On this special day, we took the kiddos out with us. We all LOVED it. We hit the slopes by 10 AM and Uncle T, E and myself did not stop until the lifts closed down for the day. It was a blast. Sunny weather, nicely groomed slopes, and lots of laughter and fun. The perfect day.

One of my favorite memories of this day was watching the three kiddos follow Grandpa Al down the slopes. He would go and they would follow. The kids also enjoyed skiing through the trees and taking all the mini jumps on the way.

I truly love our time in Steamboat from the skiing, to the hot tub, and the awesome meals and great conversation, and the beauty that surrounds the entire village. It truly is an amazing trip for all of us. Jon and I have sure enjoyed watching the kiddos learn to ski and although they have a ways to go we were pleased that this year in Steamboat they could come and ski the mountain with us and they did awesome. Soon enough we will have to keep up with them.

Wordless Wednesday ~ Better Not Show This Dog Bed to Jon!

2012-02-01T07:00:00.000-06:00

Steamboat Springs 2012

2012-01-28T19:54:00.000-06:00

Uncle T, Jon, AEK on the mountain!

We are on our 2nd annual ski trip to Steamboat Springs this weekend. We are all having such a great time and we have vowed to come back again next year as well.

The kids have been doing great in their ski school. We feel that they are really coming a long way with their skiing and we know that we will all enjoy many skiing adventures together in the months and years ahead.

Yesterday after we dropped them at ski school we were standing at the base of the mountain waiting for everyone to get their ski passes for the day. It was fairly busy around there and soon we heard a ski instructor shouting to his class "Hey class what's my name?" He did this a few times over and over again and low and behold...it was AEK's instructor for the day. It was fun to see so much enthusiasm from the instructor and we were pleased to know that AEK were going to have a great day; have fun, learn a lot, and create great memories. Sure enough they had many stories by the end of the day when we picked them up from ski school.

Today they had a very kind young lady who they just adored. Both of the days went great and they have skied over 12 miles on both days. We know this because they put a GPS tracker on the kids to show where they went on the mountain and what they did for the day.

AEK are up to skiing some of the blue runs and are loving it. Tomorrow we are all going to ski together and we are looking foward to sharing some of our favorite runs with the kiddos tomorrow. We are all getting spoiled here with good times, good food, lots of laughs, and good nights sleep.
Stay tuned for some more pictures soon as Jon plans to bring his camera out tomorrow and get some actions shots along with trying to capture the mountains. It is truly amazing here and there is nothing like cruising down the mountain with the sun shinning, and to top it all off a breath taking view. Awesome, just totally Awesome! Once again, we are loving this vacation! We are truly blessed to have this time.

Wordless Wednesday ~ Oh Gracie How You have Grown

2012-01-25T06:59:00.002-06:00

Water Park Fun

2012-01-24T06:51:00.000-06:00

This past weekend we headed out of town and caught up with some of our favorite "triplet" friends, The Clark Family. Awhile back, a deal came across one of those "Steals" type discounts and we could not turn it down. It was lodging for 12 and water park passes for the weekend. We split this with the Clark family and it was a heck of a deal.
The kids had fun hanging out together and the adults had a great time catching up and relaxing. Oh how life has changed for both our families. The kids are getting so much older and it is easier to just "hang" out since all of the kids do so well together. We have been friends for about five years and we sure do enjoy making memories together.
It was great fun and my only regret is that I did not get the fancy camera out to take some photos at the water park itself. We spent 8 hours at the park on Saturday and another 4 hours on Sunday. It is safe to say we were all tuckered out when it was time to come home.
Thanks Clark family for all the memory making fun. We for sure have to do that again.

Wordless Wednesday ~ Future Architects

2012-01-18T06:40:00.000-06:00

New Years Eve 2011

2012-01-14T16:41:00.000-06:00

What a fun night we had on NYE. We hosted our annual New Years Eve party and although our guest could attending was lower this year than usual, we had an awesome time.

The kids had their very own party downstairs with crafts and at the kid midnight (10 PM) we had a count down and a balloon drop. It was so fun and the kids LOVED it. My fingers were a little sore from tying all those balloons but it was well worth it for the excitement the kids had over.

Later in the evening the women took on the men in a game of Battle of The Sexes. Although it was close, the women won the match. That means we have a girls night out while the guys stay home and watch the kids.

Above the guys are thinking hard about their answers. Below, the Women were having a good laugh and a ton of fun.

Much to our surprise and delight most families stayed until the real mid night and the kids did another count down. It was a lot of fun and we even got to enjoy the fireworks from our local ski hill that we can see right from our front windows.

It truly was a night to remember with lots of laughs, cheer, and fun. It will go down in the books or the blog as another fantastic way to start the new year.

As the evening came to an end, we had lots of dance parties going on with both the kids and the adults. You can see we really rocked the house. Happy New Year to all and may the year ahead be full of lots of laughter, happiness, great health, and joy! We are off to a good start. God Bless.

Wordless Wednesday ~ Look closely, Uncle T is a Sioux fan?!?!?

2012-01-11T07:00:00.001-06:00

Working Hard

2012-01-10T11:24:00.001-06:00

The last two days I have been in Chicago for work! I have been helping to get a new 300 bed hospital's kitchen up and running! Lots of fancy equipment that I would love to bake some cookies in these fancy ovens.

Or make some pizza in this fancy pizza oven.

I have learned that being on these projects is an a amazing experience and for me it is always exciting to watch the project come to an end but sad to say good bye to the team.

Wordless Wednesday ~ Life is always better at Grandma's House

2012-01-04T11:18:00.000-06:00

Wordless Wednesday ~ Who Needs Expensive Toys When the Box is So Entertaining

2011-12-28T07:00:00.001-06:00

Merry Christmas 2011

2011-12-27T19:39:00.000-06:00

This year we headed out of town to spend Christmas with Jon's family. The kids were so excited to see their cousins and to be a part of the Christmas play at Grandma's church. As you can see from the photos the three of them were sheep. They really enjoyed being a part of the Christmas Story and the only disappointment was that K did not get to Baaaa in the play. He has been practicing his Baaa for weeks in advance.

We all had a great time with Appetizers on Christmas Eve night at Aunt Lori and Uncle Chris's house. The adults all visited and ate while the kids watched the movie Polar Express. Then as the night got late, we checked where Santa was located and when we discovered he was in the US we decided it was time to head back to Grandma and Grandpa's house to get the cookies and milk out and get to bed. E was frantic about getting home in time and K kept telling her that he saw Rudolph in the sky.

The kids finally settled into bed, and when Jon and I decided it was time to get to bed ourselves, we checked for Santa one more time and we discovered that he had arrived in the very city we were located so we jumped into bed and went to sleep.
The next morning we were jolted awake by three crazy excited kids. It was 6:45 AM but we do owe a lot to Grandma Carol because they were up at 3 AM, then 3:30 AM, and then 6 AM. She finally unleashed them on us at 6:45 AM. A was still sound asleep however so she needed to be awoken. She did not seem to mind.

After Santa gifts, and Mom and Dad gifts, the kids played and played and played all morning. Then went the cousins arrived, we had gift session number 2. As always, it is fun to watch the kids get so excited about gifts and Christmas. We had such a great time visiting and celebrating with Jon's family this year.

We headed back home yesterday and once we were unpacked, we headed over to the ski hill to put our season passes to good use. The kids did awesome and we are so excited about going skiing this season. We all collapsed into bed last night and fell fast asleep with full bellies and happy thoughts. This week will fly by but we are all enjoying some time together and it was a Very Merry Christmas!

A Night With Cinderella

2011-12-23T07:17:00.000-06:00

Around this time of year, we have started a new tradition where every year or every few years, we head to the city and have a fantastic evening with my parents, brother, Jane, and of course all of us.

Last night we went to a fancy dinner out and then headed over to see Cinderella. It was fantastic and I am truly becoming a lover of theater. I was not sure what to expect with Cinderella but it was both funny and magical. The kids have started to like going to the Theater as well and it is always fun to go to a show and watch their reactions.
The first year we went, we saw The Sound of Music, the second year was Joseph and the Amazing Techno Color Dream Coat, and now we can add Cinderella to our list of Holiday shows.
A fantastic evening with some of our fabulous family. Thanks Grandma and Grandpa for such a special night out. We love you.

Wordless Wednesday ~ Please Dexter won't you be my friend?

2011-12-21T07:00:00.000-06:00

The Cub Scouts Went To NYC

2011-12-20T22:25:00.000-06:00

This past weekend, Jon took K's cub scout troop to his work to teach them about airplanes. I was lucky enough to tag along as a chaperon that day and boy did we all enjoy ourselves. Jon lined it up so all of the boys could have a chance to fly the airplanes with the simulator. I even sat in the captains chair and flew a little. It was neat to go inside of the simulator and then it was as equally neat to watch the simulator from the outside move around as the groups each took turns flying the airplane.

It was fun to for K and I to learn and experience what Jon does for his job. Jon had a great time showing it all off to the cub scouts and some of their Dad's who tagged along.

I have much respect for Jon and what he does everyday. It takes brains and guts to fly big planes and Jon makes us all proud.
All the Cub Scouts were so well behaved and excited to experience flying the airplane. We all flew out of New York and then back into JFK. We helped take off and land the airplane and along the way there were different emergencies that arose and we saw how the pilots are supposed to deal with them.

Kendrick was sure proud of his Dad that day and everyone really enjoyed the field trip. Thanks Babe for a fun afternoon!

Wordless Wednesday ~ Santa Came to the Neighborhood

2011-12-14T07:00:00.000-06:00

A Thoughtful Gift

2011-12-10T07:00:00.003-06:00

Our friends and neighbors, who love dogs and have one of their own, Gus, took care of Gracie for us while we were in Seattle for Grandma Mary's retirement party. They were such good puppy sitters and gave us updates all the time. It was awesome. The other night, they gave Gracie a Christmas present. It was the most adorable ornament for our tree.

We sure love it and this ornament will be treasured for years to come. What a precious and thoughtful gift to our sweet puppy. Thank you C family for being so kind.

Sparkle Updated

2011-12-09T22:10:00.001-06:00

This morning we woke up to this...

Sparkle is zip lining from the top of the tree to the fire place hearth. Crazy little Elf! The kids went crazy, especially when they found out that Jon and I had nothing to do with the zip line. We have already had requests from our friends with Elves to have Sparkle show their Elves tonight at the North Pole how to build a Zip Line. We sure love our little Elf Sparkle!

Sparkle Is Back

2011-12-08T07:00:00.002-06:00

Sparkle showed up at our house again right after Thanksgiving. It is so fun to see how excited the kids get when he arrives. He really does become the topic of conversation in our house for most of the Holiday season. He has already been many places in our house this past week.
This year the kids drew him pictures and made bead jewelry to send back to the North Pole with Sparkle. They were thrilled when the next day, Sparkle was wearing his wreath they made him and the letters were gone.

One night he moved while the kids were watching TV and boy was their major excitement over him moving when they were still awake.
We are so grateful that we get to have Sparkle in our lives. He truly does bring so much anticipation and excitement to our Holiday Season. The first thing A, E, K do in the morning is find Sparkle, that's even before they eat their advent chocolate for the day.
What a wonderful time of the year!

Wordless Wednesday ~ Daisys are Cute

2011-12-07T22:45:00.000-06:00

Wordless Wednesday-Hanging with Gramps in Seattle

2011-11-30T07:00:00.000-06:00

Thanksgiving Weekend 2011

2011-11-28T22:44:00.000-06:00

This year for Thanksgiving, we stayed home and went over to Grandma and Grandpa Amiot's house. We were blessed to have Grandma and Grandpa Erickson with us too. The kids were in heaven with both sets of Grandparents around to spoil them.

Grandma Mary's friends Becky and Monica came from Tennessee as well so we had a full house. As usual, Grandma Mary's cooking was outstanding and it was a beautiful day here so overall it was a fun and relaxing day for all. We took Gracie for a walk down in the woods and she loved it. She was running around like crazy; jumping in the water and racing after the kids.

Friday, Grandma Carol and I did a little shopping with Grandma Mary and her friends. It was a fun morning and nice to spend some quality time together.

Saturday, we headed to a play at a local theater and it was fun to see. It was just what I needed to get in the mood for Christmas with it ending with Silent Night. The kids enjoyed the day and then we hosted everyone at our house for some more good food, music, games and fun.

Sunday we headed to church to kick off the Advent season. It was nice to teach the kids about Advent and make plans for how we are going to celebrate the season and help others who are in need.
Overall it was a glorious Holiday weekend and some much needed relaxation time. We may be limited to how much we can decorate the house this year for the Holidays due to Gracie Mae and her chewing habits but I am positive that regardless, we are in for a very magical and merry holiday season. God Bless.

Our Surprise Trip to Seattle

2011-11-26T09:10:00.000-06:00

Last weekend, we all headed out to Seattle to surprise Grandma Mary for her retirement. This was in the plans for months and such a hard secret to keep from Grandma who we see or talk to everyday. I am really proud of the kids because they knew about this surprise for over a month and never said a word to Grandma about it.

We spent the day in Seattle enjoying the sites, going to the top of the Space Needle, the fish market and hanging out at the hotel swimming and chilling out. It was fun. Friday afternoon we checked into our rooms at the Grand Hyatt downtown and the kids were thrilled. From our room we had the perfect view of the Space Needle.

Grandma and Grandpa stayed in the Presidential Suite so we got to check that out. It was fancy and the biggest hit was the electric toilets with seat warmers and butt washers.
That evening we got all dressed up and headed over to another hotel were the big event was happening. We were stowed away in the "green room" until it was time to go out on stage with Grandma Mary.

When it was time K ran out out in front of all of us and gave Grandma a big hug. The girls carried out bouquets to give to her and the rest of us followed behind. She was very surprised and had no idea that we were going to be there to help her celebrate. It was AWESOME.

We really enjoyed meeting so many of the people my mom has worked with these past 20 plus years. They all claimed they are going to miss her so much next year and they begged her to stay. It was very sweet. However, she has made her mind up that it is time to be done and we could not be more thrilled for her.

Now that both Grandma and Grandpa are retired it will be fun to watch them enjoy life a leisurly pace. They both have worked so hard to provide for all of us that we could not be more thrilled about their future.

They have lots of trips planned and some that even include all of us. Cheers to Grandma Mary on her retirement! We are so proud and happy for her.

Wordless Wednesday ~ Grandma Carol & the American Girl Clothes She Made

2011-11-23T08:39:00.000-06:00

Happy Retirement Grandma Mary

2011-11-20T09:23:00.000-06:00

The Above Video we sent in to Grandma's friends at their request for a special video on Grandma Mary. This was played to the entire room of her friends (220) the night we surprised her.

Wordless Wednesday ~ Wood Working Girls

2011-11-16T07:00:00.003-06:00

A Proud Boy Scout

2011-11-13T21:30:00.000-06:00

On Friday, K earned his first badge for boy scouts and it was the Bobcat Badge. I had no idea this was as big of a deal as it was for him so I did not bring the camera but luckily, one of the mom's took some photos for me. He was so proud of his accomplishment and getting the Bobcat print on his back. It was very sweet.

His Den leader announced K as the "brains" of the group. That made Jon and I both proud. It was a fun evening and we are both thrilled that K loves Boy Scouts so much. Both Jon and I are new to Boy Scouts this year but there seems to be some nice families and a well organized pack. Way to go K on your first badge of many more to come. Love you buddy!

Wordless Wednesday ~ Counting the Goods

2011-11-09T06:43:00.003-06:00

The She/Me Event

2011-11-07T07:00:00.000-06:00

Yesterday, the girls and I had the privilege of attending a She/Me event for Girl Scouts. This is our 2nd year of Daisy's for the girls and we all love it. I have sort of immersed myself into it this year as we had no one to step up and lead and well I did not want this to go away for my girls or the troop so well, I am sort of the leader. Thankfully, another mom who just moved to the area is helping me out and after our troop meeting yesterday, a ton of the Mom's have volunteered to help us out this year so it is going to be great.

On Saturday, at the She/Me event, we got to hike in the woods, make fire starters, learn about and make bat houses, learn how to make knots, and of course we learned how and made Gourpe. It was a fun afternoon, the weather was awesome, and the girls/moms were all happy. It was a blast.

Yesterday, we had our first troop meeting of the year and it went awesome. We are holding our meetings at the Gun Club near us as the co leaders, husband, is the manager there. It is a perfect space and we have a ton of room to spread out and do our thing.

I loved being a Girl Scout when I was growing up and it is awesome to get to see my girls join in on the Girl Scout fun too. I am still really good friends with some of the girls I got to know from Girl Scouts. We will be selling cookies this year so watch out Grandma and Granpa's, Aunt and Uncles. We are going to be hitting you guys up.

School Pictures 2011

2011-11-03T07:00:00.000-05:00

Wordless Wednesday ~ Da Boys

2011-11-02T21:56:00.000-05:00

Happy Halloween 2011

2011-10-31T22:48:00.000-05:00

Tonight we all had a blast. We did our tradition with Jane on pizza before trick or treating and off to scout up some candy. This year we did not do as big of a production as last year but Jon managed to get the house decorated and some music playing in the front yard and it was pretty spooky.

We joined our other neighborhood friends tonight and the kids all rode on a wagon and went trick or treating. They had a blast. The adults all walked along side the wagon and had fun with the kids and catching up with each other.

We have a TON of candy left over and the kids all got a big buckets full. Needless to say, we are not in need of any sugar in this house for the next year.

We ran into some of the older kids in the neighborhood tonight and they all knew K. He was so proud to stand there and talk to the Teenagers. They all were chumming with him and it was cute to watch how proud he was. So fun.

It is hard to believe that tomorrow will be November already. Where has this year gone!?!? WOW! Time is sure flying by. It think there is like 50 some days until Christmas now! YIKES!
Happy Halloween from The Erickson Five!

Spooky Good Times

2011-10-30T21:56:00.000-05:00

Wow! It has been a crazy fun and busy weekend for all of us. Jon missed out as he got called out on a trip on Friday afternoon but we still managed to have some good times regardless of his absence.
Friday night we headed over to a city sponsored spooky event.

It was fun and the weather was not so bad so we managed to stay for a few hours. We then headed back to our house and some friends from school came over along with their mom. It was a fun night.
Saturday, K started his basketball program and had a blast. It was good to see him get back into it and he has been down in the basement practicing a ton ever since.

Saturday night we headed to an annual neighborhood Halloween party where EVERYONE must dress up. This year I went as a Nun and the kids could not stop looking at me.... A said I looked weird, K did not say much but just kept staring at me, and E asked me what I was and when I explained it to her she said" Mom do nuns still exist"? I thought that was pretty funny.

Tomorrow is the big night and we have some fun stuff planned with the kiddos and of course Jane is coming over to get in on all the fun and excitement. Let's just hope the weather holds out so we can have a fun and semi warm night out in the hood.

Wordless Wednesday ~ Happy Halloween

2011-10-26T07:00:00.002-05:00

Halloween Fun Has Begun

2011-10-24T22:04:00.000-05:00

This past weekend, Jon was out of town so the kids and I along with Grandma Mary decided to have some Halloween Fun. We headed over to her grocery store for the 3rd annual Halloween party. The best part about it is that the kids get tons of good stuff and a free pumpkin. We always have a fun time at this event and it has become tradition for all of us including Grandma Mary to partake.

On Sunday, we headed over to Kristin and Kyle's house for the annual Pumpkin Carving Party. It is fun to get together with such great friends, eat good food, carve great looking pumpkins, and have some fun. What I discovered this year is that it is getting easier with the kiddos to get their pumpkins carved. This year, K even cut out his pumpkins eyes and nose all by himself. He did a great job. Oh how grown up they are getting.

Saturday night I headed out to a 40th birthday party for one of our neighbors. Jon was gone so I had to go solo but boy it was sure fun. The theme was 80's so we all had to dress up in 80's attire. We had some great laughs and a good memory making fun.

The last milestone of the weekend was that Grandma Mary and I decided it was time for Gracie to have her first bath. I was up for a big challenge but much to my surprise, she was awesome and I think she kind of liked it. She smells much better now and Jon will be so surprised when he hears about it when he arrives home this evening. We have all missed him these past 7 days and we are all ready for him to be home. I am sure Gracie will be the most happy about it. I am the big you know what always telling her "NO"!

It was a busy but totally awesome weekend! Big THANKS to Grandma Mary for helping us out while the boys were away. Love you Mom/Grandma!

Heart String Puller

2011-10-22T09:00:00.000-05:00

So after a long, busy, and stressful day last week, I told Jon that I was not sure that we were going to be able to keep Gracie. I was tired and at my wits end.

The next morning I find this in my Inbox...

Does Jon know how to get my heart strings or what! Oh and for the record, we are keeping Gracie....for now!

Time to Catch My Breath

2011-10-21T22:37:00.000-05:00

Holy Cow, life has gotten crazy busy around our household. Some days it is hard to catch my breath as my head is spinning out of control. There are a lot of demands that need to be met every day around here and I just had to tighten my seat belt a little more for this crazy ride.

Fall is always a time for adjustment to a new school year, new work schedules, and of course this year a new addition to the family. Honestly, I can say that Gracie Mae is sure like a new baby and it some ways even harder. So far I have lost a coffee table and an ottoman to her tiny but sharp little teeth. She is growing at a rampant pace and after her last vet visit, they predict she will be about 80 lbs.. She is going to be a big pup.

I do enjoy her and all the joy she brings to all of us. It is fun to watch Grandpa Al and Jon with her. She LOVES them and they LOVE her. They cannot wait until she can go hunting with them next fall, (Secretly, I cannot wait either...but shhhhh don't tell anyone!)

On top of getting adjusted to a new puppy in our house, the kids have all been having a great time at school but this has been an adjustment as well. I had not clue that when we decided to put them in three separate classes for 1st grade, how crazy it would be with three sets of homework coming home every night.

It is hard to keep it all straight but so far, I think Jon and I are doing a good job. E's teacher told me the other night at conferences that she has no idea how we do but Jon and I are really doing a great job with the kids. It felt good to hear that because on days when my head is spinning from such crazy schedules, it is hard to see the big picture.

I do realize though and often what gets me through all these crazy times is that someday in the not so distant future, I will look back on these crazy days and truly miss them. Life is going by so fast that it feels like we just went from FF x2 to FF x8. Every year seems to go by faster than the past year.

Today the kiddos did not have school so I tool K and A to the Children's Museum and E had a date with Grandma Mary. We all had a great time and it was fun to slow life down a little and have some fun together. Looking forward to a couple of fun days ahead just relaxing and hanging out with the kiddos and Gracie Mae.

Wordless Wednesday ~ Girls and Their Dolls

2011-10-19T07:02:00.000-05:00

Wordless Wednesday ~ Like Father, Like Son

2011-10-12T07:00:00.001-05:00

Soccer Games, Birthday Parties, and Play Dates

2011-10-10T06:31:00.000-05:00

This is what our day consisted of yesterday. Can we just say busy busy busy! We started out with Soccer all morning. The girls and K both had games so that took up our Saturday morning. Gracie was lucky enough to attend K's game with us but we brought her home before the girls game as she was wore out.

After Soccer, the girls came home to get dressed up for their Birthday party at the American Girl store. They were so excited and wanted to dress up just like their dolls. They loved it.

K had a play date with one of his favorite new friends from school. they had a busy day playing football, board games, wrestling, and break dancing. It was a full day for the boys.

Tonight as I tucked in all the kids, we talked about their day and how much fun we all had. The weather has been great, the leaves are changing, and it is just awesome outside. Thank you God for being so good to us today.

Walk A Thon 2011

2011-10-08T21:43:00.000-05:00

This past Friday at the kids school, they did a walk a thon for their fall fundraiser. The parents were invited to join their kids and walk along with them.

Friday Grandma Mary and I, headed over to the school to join the 1st graders in their Walk a Thon. It was a blast. We had a ton of fun walking and talking with the kids and the parents.

This was the first annual Walk A Thon Fundraiser for the school and it replaced the Gift Wrap and Pizza sales.

It was a HUGE success. The fundraising goal was $15K and they raised over that.

What a fun and successful event to be a part of. The money raised is going to go to support the additional computer equipment, along with some playground equipment for the school.

So happy the event was a success and we are looking forward to partaking in the 2nd annual event next year.

Wordless Wednesday ~ Sister and Brother Love

2011-10-05T07:00:00.000-05:00

Gracie- A Chore Luv'in Pup

2011-09-29T06:56:00.001-05:00

Gracie has been very helpful around the house lately. She loves to help me with the dishes, finding and testing out the cat toys, keeping the floor clean, retrieving (shredding) the morning paper, finding all of the kids shoes and hats that are left out, helping the kids with their homework, and her all time favorite chore is to help with cleaning up the cat dishes (eating the left overs) so they are clean for the next cat feeding. See below for some pictures of our helpful, chore loving puppy!

Yup this cat toy is tested and approved for the cats.

A great listener to beginner readers.

Hmmm...where did all the food go?

Daddy will be so proud I got his paper for him!

Wordless Wednesday ~ Fantasy Football Shop Talk

2011-09-28T07:02:00.000-05:00

Our Seperate Ways

2011-09-26T23:08:00.000-05:00

Yesterday, after we spent the morning at church and then doing our home school lesson for the Kids religious education, we all went our separate ways (well almost). Jon dropped K and A off at Uncle T's to watch some football, he dropped Gracie off at Grandma and Grandpa's for some extra love and attention and Ella and I wet on our errands and hung out together. A eventually got sick of watching football so she ended up at Grandma's house too. It was great for each of the kids to have their own "dates" with family members. I know K had a great time watching football with Uncle T. They love to spend time together and play their own game during half time and before and after watching the game. A had fun with Grandma as she loves to have Grandma Mary all to herself. As for Ella and I, we really bonded and I am so impressed with what a sweet and polite girl I have. I bought Ella some new clothes while we were out. As we left the store and we headed to our next destination, she squeezed my hand and said "Thank you mommy for buying me those treats" This warmed my heart so much as it was one of those moments where I knew Jon and I are doing "something right" with our kids. I think as a parent you just never know but this was an ahh haa moment for me. We truly had a great afternoon together. Next up is A's turn to have some mommy time. I can't wait.

Just a side note, Jon had to work yesterday so he missed all the fun. Big thanks to Grandma Mary, Grandpa Al, and Uncle T for helping to make our individual dates happen if it weren't for all of you, we would not get the opportunity for those special dates that are so important.

Wordless Wednesday ~ Gracie Mae

2011-09-21T07:02:00.000-05:00

Picture Day At School

2011-09-20T22:38:00.000-05:00

Today was picture day at school. Sadly, I had to leave the house before the kids were up this morning for work and so that left Jon in charge of getting the kids ready. The girls wanted to wear their hair curly for pictures so we had to give Jon a lesson on how to use the curling iron. I got the report tonight that daddy did a great job. Jon told me that E was encouraging him the whole time. She would tell him "nice job daddy, keep up the good work"! So cute. It is nice to be married to a guy that is not afraid to take on two little (slightly becoming high maintenance) girls and a boy who does NOT like to wear "church" shirts to school.

It sounds like Jon did a great job and from the pictures he took before school, the kids looked awesome too for their 1st grade pictures.

The Corn Maze

2011-09-19T22:57:00.000-05:00

This past Sunday, we decided it would be fun to check out a local Corn Maze. We found tickets from Groupon that were half off the admission so it worked out perfect.

It was a nice Sunday afternoon of the five of us hanging out together and making memories. We spent a long time in the corn maze finding all of the letters of the alphabet. We learned all about space and the kids worked on their map skills. Also, at this corn maze they had live animals, pig races, air pillows, and the most favorite and unusual thing to the kids was the ginormis bin of corn that they could play in. Kendrick let us bury him in the corn.

Oh and just so it is documented. E threw Jon into the corn pit with her. She worked and worked and worked at it and finally got him to fall in.
Jon and I have vowed to do more things together as a family. This was a great kick off to that idea. We all really had a great time together and have vowed that we will go back again next year for more fun.

Wordless Wednesday ~ The Corn Kids

2011-09-14T07:02:00.000-05:00

Week full of Excitement

2011-09-11T21:41:00.001-05:00

Wow! It has been a crazy week for all of us. The kids started 1st grade on Tuesday and they are all in their own separate class from each other this year. They LOVE it! I knew we made the right decision about splitting them up when they came home from school the first day and they all fought over who could tell the next story at the dinner table. It was awesome. Jon and I have our work cut out for us since all of the teachers are very different in their rules and processes but I am sure we are off to a good start and the kids are so happy.
This past weekend we had crazy times with a church festival, soccer for all three, a fun neighborhood party, church, and Birthday parties this evening for Jane and Uncle T. WOW! Now I am sitting at my computer trying to catch my breath.
It was a fun fun fun weekend and great to see all the kids thriving so well at school and activities. They are all doing awesome at soccer and they each scored a goal on Saturday. They were all pretty excited about that.

Now its time to hunker down for a crazy busy week. We are lucky this week because we have Grandma Carol and Grandpa Ronnie coming for a visit. They can't wait to meet Miss Gracie Mae! Oh and speaking of that cute lil thing, she gained over two pounds in a week and I swear we are watching her grow during the day. She is doing well and so far we have only had 3 accidents in the house. Not bad for a week and a few days. I will post some more pics soon but I especially love the one below of Gracie playing with the cat toy. Let's just say Toby and Dexter are not Impressed!

Wordless Wednesday ~ 1st Day of 1st Grade

2011-09-07T07:00:00.000-05:00

Puppy Love

2011-09-05T22:41:00.000-05:00

This weekend we dedicated to bringing home our new puppy. Her name is Gracie and she is so cute. We have bonded, Gracie and I. To my surprise, Gracie has chosen me as her "safety" person. I can't believe it as I was the last one on board to adopt her, I do not know much about dogs in general and well to be honest, I was just down right scared. She loves me and I have to admit, I love her.

She has really warmed up to us and seems to be making herself right at home. She is in the "teething" mode and well she is biting everything and everyone right now. The kids have all shed a few tears but we are trying to train her not to do that right now.

Gracie is very smart as she really seems to be "getting" it most of the time. We owe a lot to the Jones family as they did a tremendous job with all of the puppies. Gracie is almost potty trained. She had an accident in the house today but that was because I did not let her out right away when she was whining at the door.

I am amazed at how quickly she can pick things up. Jon is already starting to train her on some stuff and he is so good with her. He has always wanted a dog and he is such a natural with her that I can see why.
The kids are all a little different with her right now.

E is thrilled about her and cannot get enough. When we were at the fair on Sunday, Grandma Mary was dog sitting for us and E asked every 15 minutes if it was time to go home because she missed her. A likes Gracie but at this point, is not all thrilled about the "teething" part. K likes her and wants her to chase him but she is still a little young for that. He does not like how she bites at him either but Jon promised him that in no time Gracie will love to play fetch, K is anxiously awaiting that day.
Toby and Dexter our two senior cats are not impressed but so far they seem to be handling our new addition well.

Toby and Gracie had a stare down today and Toby won as Gracie decided to go back to her "Safety Zone" after that happened.

I feel bad for the cats as this will be something that is not going to be easy to get used too. Toby has been snuggling at night with me and so has Dexter so they are both getting good attention.

Gracie chose us to come and live with and we could not be more thrilled about it. I realize that she will bring more work to our daily schedule but I know that we are all crazy about her and that she will soon be, if not already, all of our best friend.

Wordless Wednesday ~ A Whole Lot of Pizza

2011-08-31T07:02:00.002-05:00

VDL Vacation 2011

2011-08-29T20:37:00.001-05:00

This past week we were lucky enough to spend on vacation at a beautiful lake resort. We had a fantastic time, great weather, great food, great entertainment, and most of all awesome quality family time. I never in my life remember needing a vacation more than I needed one last week. I missed Jon, I missed the kids and I need to unwind with no distractions. That is exactly what I got.

Grandpa Al and Grandma Mary along with Uncle T also joined us for the fun. We had lots of game time, laughs, and memory making. We could not have asked for better weather. We were on the lake everyday with the Pontoon we rented. We saw some amazing sunsets and met some incredible people and one special dog.

The kids had fun tubing and skiing (or trying to ski) behind Grandpa Al's new boat. Jon and I even got in on the tubing action along with Uncle T and Grandma Mary. A was the only one that got up on water ski's but they all tried.

We were all so thrilled for A that we were jumping up and down. She felt pretty special about that. K made two news friends on the trip and he as so excited to meet some boys his own age.

They had great fun playing tether ball, swimming, and even tubing together.
We are all tan and relaxed before this busy school year takes off and I head back to work tomorrow.

Wordless Wednesday ~ We Love Sunsets

2011-08-24T09:25:00.002-05:00

Fort City

2011-08-18T23:13:00.000-05:00

Tonight when I got home from work, I found a huge fort in the basement that Jon and the kids built today. This is something they like to do every so often and the kids LOVE IT! Jon took it one step further and promised the kids they could have a sleep over in the basement.

Of course as they were all getting tucked into their beds, I had to grab the camera and take some photos. It is a little lonely up here with the whole family in the basement but I decided I was not going to sleep on the floor tonight. Even the cats are sleeping downstairs.

I am sure I will hear lots of stories in the morning of the big camp out. In my eyes, Jon gets Dad of the Year award once again. He is truly such and AWESOME father to our kiddos.

Introducing....our new Pup!

2011-08-17T22:44:00.000-05:00

A few weeks back for our Wordless Wednesday Picture, I gave a hint about what was to come. If you have not figured it out, we are going to become dog owners. Our nanny, Erin, helped her parents raise puppies from their yellow lab. We went to see the puppies the day they were born and we have been back weekly ever since.

At first, we (I) had no intentions of getting one of these puppies but after much debate, discussion, and prayer, we decided that if we are ever going to get a dog, now is the time.

The kids are at a perfect age and well, Jon has always wanted a dog. Our puppy will be put through extensive training to be a hunting dog.

I would lie if I did not tell you that I am VERY nervous about bringing a puppy into our already crazy world but I can say that the more I go and see these puppies, the more in love I have become.

Tonight we went to pick out our puppy. There are five girls puppies to choose from and well, it is not an easy decision. We do plan to go back one more time before we make the FINAL decision but we are 99.9% sure we have picked her...well she kind of picked us.

Below is the note that we sent to our extended family tonight:

Above is the puppy that we selected tonight. HER name is Gracie! She is really sweet and loves to play. Gracie kind of picked us tonight. Every time we sat down or turned around she was right at one of our feet. When we were getting ready to leave and could not decide, I looked down to her sitting at my feet looking up at me with these eyes. When Jon sat down she came right over and snuggled up to him. It was really hard to pick because we had all five girl puppies running around in the grass with us. They are all great puppies and all of them would make great hunting and family dogs. However, we are only taking ONE and we had to decide. We did not tell them who we were going to take when we left but we discussed in on our walk home and we all said the same thing....Gracie! So here she is you will all fall in love with her.

Wish us luck!

The Erickson Five

Wordless Wednesday ~ We're Gonna Be In Trouble Some Day

2011-08-17T07:00:00.000-05:00

Wordless Wednsday ~ Grandma's Garden

2011-08-10T07:00:00.000-05:00

Reunions and Birthday Celebrations

2011-08-05T22:10:00.000-05:00

It was a crazy, busy weekend for The Erickson 5 as we were up north for Jon's high school reunion. It was a ton of fun, especially, golfing on Saturday. Jon got to see a lot of old friends and catch up. I managed to have some fun myself. The kids were in high heaven spending time with their Grandma, Grandpa, and cousins for the weekend. They were spoiled rotten as usual.

Sunday was my Birthday, so we headed to brunch with Grandma and Grandpa before we hit the road for home. It was a long drive but when we got home, we went over to Grandma Mary's for a Birthday Celebration.

We had King Crab Legs, Steak, great wine, AWESOME cake and ice cream and then I was showered with gifts...needless to say, I felt spoiled and had a blast celebrating my birthday. The kids sure enjoyed it too. Especially the cake and ice cream. Another year has flown by and more and more I realize how quickly that time goes. I feel so blessed as I turn another year older. Thank you lord for an awesome weekend and the extra special love that I felt today and I turned yet another year older. God Bless.

U2 360 Tour

2011-08-05T22:03:00.000-05:00

A few weekends back, I was lucky enough to go to the U2 360 tour. It was AWESOME! My Brother bought me a ticket to this show last year for my Birthday. When Jon caught wind that I had a ticket to the show he then decided to take matters into his own hands and buy himself a set of tickets.

As the concert approached, we started to learn that a ton of people we knew where headed to the concert. We then made plans to car pool down to the show and have a little pre-party beforehand.

It was such an incredible night. We got poured on as it started to rain shortly after U2 came out on stage. It did not matter though because the show was that good. I have not been to a concert in years and it felt GREAT to go to a show again and get caught up in the moment. Such fun memories for my brother and I and the best part is that just last week on my Birthday this year, he gave me the U2 360 DVD so we can relive the concert all over again. Thanks T for knowing what I love. You ROCK!

Water Sking Fun

2011-08-05T21:55:00.000-05:00

Last night, we were lucky enough to get to spend sometime with an old sorority sister of mine that lives very close to us. They invited us out on their boat. We had a blast.

They are big time water skiers and my girlfriend used to be on a professional water ski team so you can imagine that they were anxious to get us out skiing. They had a great beginners board for the kids and K and E decided they wanted to try it and they did it each twice.

Jon had the opportunity to try wake boarding and he LOVED it. A and I just opted to swim in the lake and take it easy. We are so much alike.

What a beautiful night it was with great friends, great weather, good lessons, and a beautiful sunset to end our time together.

Thanks H family for the great memories. We can't wait to hang out again sometime.

Wordless Wednesday ~ Slip N Slidding

2011-08-03T07:00:00.000-05:00

Wordless Wednesday ~ VBS Delight

2011-07-27T06:54:00.000-05:00

Wordless Wednesday ~ Big Changes Coming Our Way

2011-07-20T07:00:00.000-05:00

Weekends in the Summer

2011-07-18T07:39:00.004-05:00

Okay, I am way behind on this blog and the updates. I will spare all the details but my computer is in the shop right now so my computer time has been cut.
Anyway, a few weekends ago we had a ton of fun with our friends the Clark's. There kiddos and our kiddos just love to get together and play.

We had planned to go to a blues festival with the kiddos and hang out but the weather was so warm that we opted to go out to eat and come back to our house to hang out.

The kids played, danced, watched a movie, and just plain hung out. The adults had some serious Jokers games. It is always the men against the women and sadly I have to report that the men won the round of Jokers games for the night but overall, the women are still ahead. It was a fun night and very relaxing to just hang out. We need more of these types of nights.

The picture below is from Friday night of this weekend. We were lucky enough to get to hang out with our friends the Littles, this seems to e a rare occurrence these days since Jon, Steve, and Lisa all travel a lot for their jobs. The littles treated us to a pontoon ride out on the beautiful lake they live on. It was a fun night and our kids had fun catching up with the Little's girls. The kids jumped off the Pontoon and ran around together. It was a wonderful evening.

This summer is flying by us. I look forward to the next weeks of summer as our activities are all winding down and it is truly time to chill out and hang together as a family.

Wordless Wednesday ~ My Everythings

2011-07-13T07:00:00.001-05:00

Swimming at Uncle T's

2011-07-11T06:30:00.000-05:00

We started our weekend out with swimming at Uncle T's pool. We all had a great time.

Uncle T lives in a housing community that shares a pool. We were lucky enough on Friday night to have the pool all to ourselves. It was such a beautiful summer evening and the weather was warm so it felt great to jump in the pool and swim around. We did three way chicken fights with the kiddos and we all laughed and laughed.

This summer, the kids have gone swimming a ton. Whether is has been at Uncle T's pool, friends house with pool, or public pools around town, they have managed to swim almost every single day this summer. It truly is so much fun to watch them and swim.

They have all really turned a corner with their swimming skills and Jon and I can see that Swimming lessons have really paid off.

A Sparkly 4th of July

2011-07-07T23:06:00.000-05:00

One thing that I have not been doing so great this summer is getting the camera out and taking photos. The Erickson 5 had a great 4th of July weekend. We headed down to some dear friends of ours for the weekend and we had a very relaxing and great time.

Sisters and Sparklers and take special note their matching shirts!

It was so nice to catch up with our dear friends while the kids got to play with the other kids. We went to a party while we were down there and there was all boys there for K to play with. He had a blast.

Look at that smile!

He learned how to drive a 4 wheeler, go cart, and he even got to ride on a Spider. Don't think the girls got left out though. One of my favorite memories of the weekend was learning that those girls jumped in that go cart and took off. Pedal to the medal with big grins on their faces the whole time.

Even Dad enjoyed the Fireworks

We spent the 4th of July with Uncle T, Grandma and Grandpa A and Jane. It was a great weekend.

Mom in on the sparkler fun

We ended our celebration with sparklers and finally the camera to document our fun in the driveway and watching all the amazing fireworks in the neighborhood together huddle on our bed.
Happy Birthday America!

Wordless Wednesday ~ Family Smiles

2011-07-06T07:02:00.001-05:00

Wordless Wednesday ~ Brother and Sister Love

2011-06-29T06:25:00.000-05:00

The G Word

2011-06-28T17:32:00.000-05:00

Today was a big day for me. After 8 years of being off medication for my MS, it as time to get back on some medication. I started Gilenya today which is the first oral medication for RRMS patients. Due to a drop in blood pressure you have to be monitored on your first dose of this medication. So this morning I headed off to the hospital to take my first dose. It was a long boring day just sitting around being monitored but I am happy to announce that there were no side effects and I feel pretty good tonight. Just a little tired.
As I sat there today in the infusion center I could not help but see so many Chemo patients pass my room. As much as I wanted to feel sorry for myself, I could not. I know that in my life I could be battling such bigger battles that what I do.
So tonight I am grateful for a terrific nursing staff, a uneventful day, and big hugs and smooches from my kiddos when I got home.

Wordless Wednesday ~ A's First Goal

2011-06-22T07:00:00.001-05:00

Worldless Wednesday ~ Brule Friends Rock

2011-06-15T07:00:00.001-05:00

Wordless Wednesday ~ K and his Angels

2011-06-08T22:43:00.000-05:00

A Party Weekend

2011-06-05T22:49:00.000-05:00

Tonight as I write this blog post, I am going to keep it short and sweet. This has been one busy but totally awesome weekend for the Erickson Five.

Friday the big "Mystery Bus" Moonwalk/slide combo arrived. This is arrived while Jon and I were at the kids school volunteering for Spring Fun Day. At school that day they had a carnival, moonwalks, crafts, crazy hair, face painting, dance parties, a picnic lunch, and it all ended with a talent show. You can imagine how tired they were when they got home....until they saw the bouncy house in our yard and then they were...well bouncing off the walls...literally. We had some neighborhood friends over on Friday night and all the kids had a blast while the adults had fun catching up.

Saturday started out with two soccer games and then we headed home to get ready for the big party. I have to admit the party was causing me some stress due to the fact that we had 35 children there to celebrate.

I am happy to report that the day was a success, there were no injuries, everyone had a great time, and most of all, it was very memorable. We were lucky enough to have both Grandma's at the party, Grandpa Ronnie, Uncle Tony, Janie, some of my bestest friends and of course some of the parents of the kids stayed to help out. It truly was a perfect day with the sun shining, a cool breeze, and most of all great kids. This party will be one to go down in the record books as a success!
After we got done celebrating the kids party, we switched gears and celebrated Jon's birthday. We had an awesome steak dinner thanks to grandma Mary and we helped Jon to celebrate his 39th year! It was truly a magical day.

Tonight as I was tucking the kids into bed, K told me he was sad that the bouncy house had to go away tomorrow. I told him that we were all sad that it had to go but that we had great memories of such an awesome weekend. He agreed and then asked about what we were going to do for the Birthday party next year! For now, I just need to catch my breath and enjoy all the memories from this weekend. It does not seem possible that my "babies" are 7 but I know that their 8th birthday will be here before we know it and we will be saying the same thing.
Thank you God for such an awesome weekend, Great family, Great Friends, and great memories. Amen!

Wordless Wednesday ~ The Birthday Kids

2011-06-01T07:00:00.000-05:00

Birthday Kids

2011-05-31T22:34:00.000-05:00

On the eve of my Kiddos 7th Birthday, I am full of emotions and overwhelming Joy and Awe of how fast these past 7 years have gone by. WOW! We truly have little kids who are growing up so fast. K told Jon just the other night that he is going to grow a half of inch over night so when he wakes up and he is 7 years old, he will be bigger. At this point, I am not sure that his wishful thinking is that far off.
Tomorrow I get to spend sometime in their classroom to help them celebrate the big day. Then we are going to take them out to do some of their favorite rides tomorrow night. I could not be more thrilled and excited for my kiddos on their 7th Birthday. I can't help but feel so blessed that they are in my life and truly fill Jon and I with so much Joy.
Happy Birthday AEK! We could not be more proud of the little people you have become. We love you.

Field Trip to the Farm

2011-05-27T09:09:00.000-05:00

On Monday I had the pleasure of escorting the Kindergarten class to a local farm and then to a park for a lunch picnic. WOW! It was such a fun day. The kids learned all about farms, farm animals, how they are feed and cared for. They had an opportunity to hold baby chicks, a personal favorite for E who loves Ducks. They fed the chickens and we saw a baby calf who was 2 months old.

This is the last field trip of the year for the kiddos as in a few weeks they will have completed their school year and they will be officially considered 1st graders. Yikes did that go by way to fast.

I truly enjoyed this field trip and I realized that Jon and I have meet so many incredible families this year. The teacher they had this year, Mrs. R is truly amazing and from what I hear, these kids are more than ready for 1st. It is amazing how far they have come this year and we are so proud of all of them. We have had a few bumps in the road with some stuff this school year but in the end, we are so pleased with how it turned out.

I get to spend some more time in the class room next week for the kids 7th Birthday. I can't wait. I will be bringing a fun snack and I will get to see all the kids do the "Birthday Stuff" that each kid gets to do on their Birthday.

Wordless Wednesday ~ Cute Chicks

2011-05-25T07:00:00.000-05:00

Soaking Wet

2011-05-20T22:38:00.000-05:00

Tonight the kids and I headed over to the Cub Scout picnic in the rain. There was a shelter there so I was lucky enough to stay out of the rain most of the time. The kids however had a blast running around with all the other kids in the rain.

The tradition at this final Cub Scout meeting of the year is to do a water gun fight at the end. All three of my kiddos got into the water fight and they had so much fun. They were dripping wet and freezing by the time we left the park. When we got home, the girls jumped into the tub and took a long warm bath and K took a shower.
It was a fun night and for as much as I was dreading going, I am sure glad we did. It was great to see Kendrick get honored for his Lion Cub year of Boy Scouts. I know the real fun starts next year for him. What a great organization and such nice people who are involved.

Wordless Wednesday ~ School Programs Rock

2011-05-18T07:00:00.000-05:00

Going to Grandpa's Farm

2011-05-17T22:54:00.000-05:00

Tonight we had the kids end of the school year music concert at their school. It was such a fun program and they all did a great job. Each of the kids had a special job during the concert and Jon and I could not be more proud of them.

It was great to see all the parents there that we have met and befriended this year. It was fun to see all the kids and see how much they have all grown this year. What a year of transition it has been for all of these little people. AWESOME!
I can't help but reflect on how much my little people are growing into such big kids. As we are a few weeks out from their 7th Birthday, I shake my head and ask myself where all the time has gone. It goes by so fast. I love the stage we are at and it is so fun to watch them and spend time with them. We have really been having some great family time these past few months and I LOVE IT.

Here are some pigs that the kids made to help decorate the gym for their concerts. To cute not to share.

Enjoy the photos from their concert. It was so fun.

Metropolis Memories

2011-05-16T21:31:00.000-05:00

This past week, the kids did not have school on Friday so we headed to a water park hotel for some fun. This hotel included a large water park area with slides, a lazy river, and lots of fun water activities. One of the slides scared me to death because it was PITCH black inside. I am not fond of the dark so I put my "mom" face on and went down that slide over and over and over again. Tina and I even braved the big green water slide that literally went straight down. We both laughed and Dave caught it on video so I am sure that will be back to haunt me.

There was also an action center that had bowling, KoKarts, games, bumper cars and so much more. It was a fun overnight trip and the best part about it was spending time with some of our favorite friends the Clarks. I think we all vowed to do it again sometime.
We even managed to get a few games of Jokers in and Tina and I are proud to announce that we beat the guys! Yahoo as the win was a LONG time coming.

Wordless Wednesday ~ We Love Our Bismarck Friends

2011-05-11T07:00:00.001-05:00

Happy Mother's Day 2011

2011-05-07T22:28:00.000-05:00

I love these three little people so much! WOW! What a blessing Motherhood is.
To my Mom, I love you so much and thank you for teaching me how to be a mom to my three kiddos.
To my Mom In Law, Thank you for raising Jon to be such a great husband and friend.
To all my friends who are mothers, God Bless You today and everyday. Being a Mom is such a big and important job. Enjoy your day today and everyday with all your blessings. God Bless!

Wordless Wednesday A's New Smile

2011-05-04T14:16:00.000-05:00

MS Walk 2011

2011-05-02T07:00:00.000-05:00

WOW! What an incredibly AWESOME day we had yesterday for the MS Walk! The weather was freezing cold with an outside temp of 37 degrees but with a windshield of 22 degrees. Regardless, my heart was warm and my enthusiasm was high. Together, Jon and I raised $3600! We were both so proud of that and I am even more proud of my team that raised over $7000 for MS. I think we reached a new high this year in fund raising!

I have to give a BIG shout out to my Mom, my friend Jane, and Rachel for helping out so much with the food, driving, and entertaining of all the kids while the adults walked. What an amazing day it was for and I owe a lot of that to the people who are my support staff for the walk. Yahoo! THANK YOU!

Next year, Jon and I have both discussed including the kids in the walk. It is a long 6.5 mile walk but we will have to get them ready for it. I would love for them to experience the enthusiasm and excitement of the day with us. I think they would like it too.

I firmly believe that one of these days, most likely with in my lifetime, there will be a cure for this rotten disease. Until then, I will continue to fight. Fight for my health, fight for a cure, fight for funding to help those affected by MS.

For all of those who pledged me, supported me, and walked with me.....THANK YOU! You have no idea how much it warms my heart and gives me strength. May God Bless all of you.

Easter 2011

2011-04-27T07:02:00.002-05:00

Easter this year was jammed pack full of fun and events. First we started off the day with an egg hunt at hour house. The Easter Bunny came, hit all of our eggs, and left these cuddles pillow pets behind. K got the TC Bear and the girls got bunnies. K was convinced that the Easter Bunny must "make" the pillow pets.

After our egg hunt we all got dolled up and went to church. It was a wonderful service with such awesome music and praise for our Lord Jesus Christ. It was a beautiful sunny day and we saw so many friends at church. I was awesome.
After church we headed over to Grandma Mary's where she informed the Easter bunny there would be no pooping in her house....he listened...well kind of...there was a whole pile of it outside on the patio. This happened a few years ago...

We had an awesome brunch at Grandma's house and then we took some time to do photos. Above is a picture of our friend (and adopted family member) Jane!

Then we did pics of the kids and of course Grandma Mary needed all of us in a pic as well. Notice Aimee holding up the Peace sign. We all had a great laugh about this one.

After our photo shoot and breakfast, we headed over to our friend Sue's house for more hunting of eggs. The kids had a blast running around her yard looking for eggs. The best part about it...they were filled with money!

After the egg hunt at Sue's we spent some time playing ball, jumping rope, and hanging out. It was a glorious day.

We then headed back to Grandma's where I helped Grandma get the feast ready for that afternoon. It was the traditional meal of ham, fennel potatoes, salads, bread, and carrots. It was so YUMMY!

The kids had another egg hunt in the afternoon with Uncle T. They had a blast running around Grandpa's yard looking for the eggs. Uncle T had hid them well so it was a bit challenging to find them all but they managed.
After dinner, the whole family joined in the fun of a baseball game. I think Daddy and K won but we gave them a good run for their money. I even hit a home run!
It was such a fun, beautiful day. The kids were all so beautiful in their nice clothes and awesome Hair bows and head bands (thanks Grandma Carol). This Easter I could not help but feel grateful for Jesus to die on the cross for our sins, for my family and friends, and simply for the sun to shine on what has been such a long winter. Thank you Lord for all the gifts you have given to all of us. God Bless!

Wordless Wednesday ~ Happy Easter

2011-04-27T07:00:00.000-05:00

MS Day at the Baseball Game

2011-04-23T22:57:00.000-05:00

Today was MS Day at the baseball game. Last month when the MS Society sent out notification to all teams doing an MS Fundraising event, to letting us know about tickets to the Twins game, I jumped all over it. The Erickson Five along with 35 of our friends headed to the MN Twins baseball game.

We were able to walk on the new field before the game and get up close and personal with some of the Twins players. My favorite memory of the day is when we walked by the Twins dug out and Denard Span was just coming out onto the field. I said look K there's your guy...that is the jersey you are wearing and he must have heard me as he came over and gave K a high five. The look on K's faces was priceless. Tonight Jon and I were explaining to him what a BIG deal that really was. He was super excited and can't wait to tell his buddies all about it at school on Monday.

It was a cold day for a baseball game but we really did have a great time. Most people have told me that they are "in" for next year. I sure hope we have the opportunity to buy tickets again. It was truly a great day and the best part is that we raised money for the MS Society by partaking in the festivities and going to the game!
Awesome!

Pamper Me Kind of Day

2011-04-22T22:23:00.000-05:00

Today on Good Friday, our plans were originally to get together with some family that we have not seen in almost 7 or 8 months. However, due to some illness that came onto the scene on their end, they had to cancel. There for, we ended up doing our second set of plans which was a play date our friend Shelby's house both for the Moms and the kids.

Shelby is a long time Friend of mine from my youth and she is also the person that keeps my hair brown and looking good and now she can claim that she takes care of my nails both hand and toe! Shelby does hair and now she has added nails to her list of services too. A few weeks back she asked me to be her model for her new business card she will be sending out to introduce her new services. Of course I was flattered and all over being pampered and then photographed so I happily obliged.

Shelby also has twin girls how are just a year younger than my kiddos so they love to hang out together as well. So this morning the girls and I headed over to Shelby's so she could give me the works with hair color, cut, mani, pedi, and make up while the kids played. We were there from 10 AM until 4 PM...yes I know it takes a long time to get all that gray out of this hair...and it was a very relaxing and fun day for all of us. K joined us later after Jon dropped him off. He and K had some "boy" time together this morning until K was lonely for his "girls" and asked to come over.
It was a great day and so fun to hang out with one of my favorite people in this world. She is happy with how the pictures turned out and I am happy that the gray is gone, the nails are painted and I felt so pretty as Jon took me out for a nice dinner and conversation tonight. Life is so great and we are so incredibly blessed to have so many awesome people in our lives.

Also, I have to post about the kids time in the rain today. As we were nearing completion of the session at Shelby's, we told the kiddos they could go outside and play. It was wet out but they really wanted to jump on the trampoline so we let them head out. It started to rain when they were outside and they had a blast running around and jumping while it rained on them. I remember when I was young, loving to be outside in the rain. Something about it just makes it fun. It was fun to watch our kiddos enjoy that today. Such a great great day.

Wordless Wednesday ~ We've Got Some Good Looking Eggs

2011-04-20T06:14:00.000-05:00

A Visit to Grandpa's Work

2011-04-19T18:23:00.000-05:00

Tooth Fairy Frequency

2011-04-17T22:08:00.000-05:00

So this past weekend, the Tooth Fairy has visited the Erickson Five house twice. Aimee lost one of her two front top teeth yesterday and KJ pulled one of his top teeth today. Yes, he pulled out his own tooth. He was so proud of himself. I could not believe when he just took the kleenex and pulled it right out.
The above picture of Aimee makes me smile. She loves to have curly hair so we are getting good at putting the foam rollers in her hair. You can see in this picture that she is one proud little girl that she has lost her front tooth. I think one day, she may have a fit when she realizes that I posted this picture of her! I love it!

Bowling for MS

2011-04-17T22:02:00.001-05:00

This past Friday we had our annual Bowl for MS event. It was such a fun evening and a huge success. We were able to raise over $1500 for the MS Walk that is coming up in two weeks.

Thanks to so many incredible people in my life, both family and friends, this event was truly a huge success. We had over 22 silent auction packages along with a raffle and of course bowling for dollars that it was a fun evening.

I would have to say that my bowling skills leave little to be desired but it did not matter.

I even bought some of the silent auction packages so I came home with some fun new stuff.

So I will end by saying a great big Thank You to all of you who came to support myself and the Walk in Maniacs team on Friday night. It looks like this event will become an annual deal so if you were not able to make it, heads up on the one for next year.

I feel so amazingly blessed and loved by all the support that I get for the walk and for my MS. The Walk is in less that 2 weeks and I am not quite to my goal for fundraising but I'm getting close.

Wordless Wednesday ~ Macy's Spring Flower Show Rocks...and Smells Great Too!

2011-04-13T06:38:00.000-05:00

Wordless Wednesday ~ Lunch with Gramps at his work

2011-04-06T06:53:00.000-05:00

Girl Scout Fun

2011-04-04T06:26:00.000-05:00