The Loud Americans

The rest of the story....

2012-02-15T08:36:00.000-08:00

So heres the rest of the story, or as they say, what happened after that:0

Tom had a surprise dinner in his back pocket - No Manners Meal!

In our house, once or twice a year, we'll have a No Manners Meal, basically a shrimp boil/dump meal. You boil a bunch of shrimp, veggies, potatotes, etc, lay out newspaper on the table, buy a few roles of paper towels and "dump" the cooked food in the middle the of the table. The kids use their hands and are allowed ot burp/toot/not use "please/thank you" the whole meal. Its a riot! Tom embelished it a bit last night with crab legs and brussel sprouts (for Kay). Overall, it was a huge messy success. we all loved it!

It was also Glee night and the Valentines day Glee episode, so we were wrapped in blankets on the couch for some good family TV time (really, its the only family TV we watch all week too busy to watch TV!).

We opened cards and the mini- presents/treats we had gotten each other (tshirts for each of the kids, a tortilla press for Tom - for chapati, and a Lonely Planet Canada book for me). Really nice little gooders. Billy had the best idea to cap the night - an UNO tournament. Kay got out prizes (aka, crap from her room) and we had a knockdown, drag out game. Have I mentioned my kids are competitive?

We also had cupcakes ready, but given it a was 9pm by this time, they'd have to wait for breakfast. Nothing like a little cake, frosting and ice cream before a long day of school:)

What would Valentines be without a visit from the famous Target dog Bullseye!

Big Hugs and Love to EVERYONE!!

Do you feel the Love???

2012-02-14T13:42:00.000-08:00

I am having a great day (so far)! My wonderful husband made me my favorite breakfast today...

Back story, last week we stayed at a great European hotel in Toronto, breakfast was hard rolls, chutney, cheese, nuts, fruit, yogart, granola, etc ... I mentioned that it was my favorite breakfast of all time ... and guess what .??!!! Thats what he made today, including fresh baked bread. Love it!!

Then, my VERY good friend from Bangalore is in town for work, I havent seen her in 3 years. We managed an impromptu coffee today, are having lunch tomorrow and drinks on Thursday.
When we hugged, I almost cried, it was so good to see her.

Hope you all are having an equally loving V-Day. More to come on the rest of the day!!

Update on Jimmy ***

2012-02-01T05:07:00.000-08:00

The lad had the time of his life this past weekend and was so worn out he fell asleep standing up, (not literally) but here's what went down:

Saturday morning it was off the the recording studio with his band. Its a three boy band - Jimmy on the drums, Will on the guitar/piano and Isak on the piano/ guitar along with Mr. Kim (instructor). They are still yet an unnamed ensemble but that didnt stop them! We all arrived around 9:00 and got down to work. Our friend Mike was gracious enough to donate his time and the studio. Now if you have never been to a recording session there is a reason they are called a session. That is because it takes a long time to get each of the instruments properly sounded, the mics and voices set and the in between time is well.... boring. Then there is the broken strings on the guitar, busted drum sticks and the like. None the less Jimmy was all in, and he had a blast. Wearing his headphones and realising he was " mic'ed up" and able to hear himself as well as the band mates through his headphones was a kick. He even noted " Hey Dad I can hear Will and he is in a different room, cool!" About 4 hours later they had three songs recorded and on a disk, totally cool. They were amazing and sound a like a REAL band, check it out on the YouTube links below! We'll get copies of the CD's out to anyone that's interested. They did:

Pumped up Kicks

A mash up of Jason Mraz and Train

Adele's Someone like you

(yep, they are a pop band:))
How could a day get better than that?!!!

After a bit of rest, it was off to basketball. Jimmy and his team, the Wildcats along with their returning world champion coach, Coach Milstein, have been on fire. They came out a bit soft in the first quarter and then Jimmy stepped up. He carried the team in the second half scoring in the double digits for the first time ever and ended the game with a fad away 2 pointer and a gigantic smile, what a game. This is especially amazing since they only have 6 kids on their team (5 4th graders and 1 5th grader) and are in a league with 4-6th graders. They are playing up!

Then it was off to his new favorite restaurant, Pachero's. His team mate and side kick Jacob, aka; snowflake (his wrestling name), and his family treated Jimmy to dinner. He came home around 8:30 and talked non-stop for about an hour and then announced, "I have to go to bed". what a day! Oh to be a 10 year old boy!

Next up??? Culture Box......

The fourth graders at Meadowbrooke all have to create a culture Box, which is a white bankers box that gets transformed into a story box about which ever culture/ country the individual chooses. Jimmy chose Costa Rica, because his Aunt Julie moved there about 10 years ago to enjoy the Purda Vida (pure life). He researched and wrote a 3 page overview of Costa Rica and had his box decorated with 10+ artifacts from there. THEN, he had to do a stand up presentation with his whole class. He did a great job! Man, what they put 4th graders through these days:) They girl in the red t-Shirt hand in the air is maned Iza and guess who has a crush on her?

Needless to say, he's doing great. He's busy, has a ton of friends and seems really happy.

We love you Jimmy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p-3hu7hMv9c&feature=mfu_in_order&list=UL
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P61oeqC1e00&feature=mfu_in_order&list=UL
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WXfHW7QfTeY&feature=mfu_in_order&list=UL
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FqUZ9JxYdGY&feature=mfu_in_order&list=UL
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JSa7HoNLw_U&feature=mfu_in_order&list=UL

Update on Billy :)

2012-01-31T05:08:00.000-08:00

Billy has been busy these days perfecting his lay up and going for the 3 pointers from the top of the key!

Well not quite that, but this year the cities of Golden Valley and Crystal have created a program for Kindergarten and 1st graders to participate in an entry level basketball program. This is an event where boys and girls 6-7 years old gather in a gymnasium and basically play a combination of Red Rover and Tug of war with the goal being getting their hands on the basketball. Billy loves it and the kids all seem to have fun! Its like watching squirrels play basketball. I have to say, Billy is quite the dribbler and has even made a few baskets. Now, if we can just get him to stop touching other kids and rolling around on the ground.

Bill is also doing great in school! He is scoring very high in spelling, math and reading. On his last assessment, full marks! Each year the kids of all classes have one big project that they create and present to the class. Billy created a Totem Pole and is very proud of it!

He had to represent his family in a Totem Pole - he included: (spelling is all accurate to Billy's own words)

~ my to pets (hand drawn picture of Nikki and Timmy)

~ Being Korean (drawing of the Korean flag)

~ Living in India (drawing of the Indian flag)

~ My Mom works at Target (red bullseye)

~ We are moving Canada (drawing of the Canadian flag - seeing a pattern?)

~ I love my family (love was actually a red heart

Bill continues to be incisorly challenged, but when your favorite food is noddles with red sauce, who needs teeth?! He currently only has 1 front tooth on the top (missing the 2 around it) and a few bottom teeth as well.

Lego's continue to be his favorite past time and he is currently lobbying to join an on line Lego's group, God Help us! He's also trying to figure out how to be a scientist AND a lego engineer when he grows up. If anyone can strike that balance, Billy can:)

Billy and Mom had a date night (same night as Tom/Kay's dance). We went to McD's for dinner and then to The Muppet Movie and he had a gas. He laughed so loud I was worried we'd get kicked out. He bonded with Walter (go see the movie) as he's a world class whistler. In fact, we cant get him to stop, he whistles none stop. Its good to have a talent:)

We Love you Billy!

Update on Kay!

2012-01-27T08:40:00.000-08:00

Well, Kay has been quite busy lately with school , gymnastics and of course her busy social schedule.

This past weekend she invited Dad to the Girl Scouts " Someone Special Dance" and he was thrilled, especially when it was announced it was a 70's Disco Theme! Tom and Kay went around town looking for just the right outfits and were ready when the day came, " Right On Man". The first stop was LeeAnn Chins, Kay's favorite place for a special dinner then it was off to Faith Presbyterian Church for Disco Fever! They danced to many songs however there were only a couple of 70's hits but Dance Fever and

The BeeGee's got the crowd going!

Next up for Kay is the Special Research Project all third graders at Meadowbrooke MUST complete. Kay, after much deliberation chose Canada, because according to her " since we are moving there I may as well know what I am in for" she is so cute sometimes!

She designed a big board with a Maple Leaf in the center and research several questions about Canada that she attached via a string to each point of the Maple Leaf and for the life of her could not wait to spell CANADA in red glitter, seriously Mom told her the last thing to do was the glitter and every time Mom left the house Kay was diving for the glue and glitter, can you say obsessed? She then practiced her delivery and style and was ready for her big day.

Some of the key questions and answers were:
How many people immigrate to Canada? 559,105
What is the bird of Canada? The Loon
What is the Flower of Canada? The White Trillon
When did Canada become a country? July 1st 1867
What three oceans border Canada? The Atlantic, the pacific and the Arctic?
As you can see she left no stone unturned! The class was getting a little upset as they were not able to answer any of Kay's questions and her response" Well that what these independent projects are for!" So she decided to throw them a bone: What are the two languages of Canada? The whole, class screamed " English and French!" Kay just smiled!

Next up for Kay is a sleep over at a Hotel/Water park...The Water Park of America! She is very excited so much so she has made the following list and preparation for the Party:

Cancun 2012

2012-01-12T11:28:00.000-08:00

Stepped on a pop top, blew out my flip flop....

We headed off to Cancun Mexico on New Years day our destination, The Great Parnassuus Resort and Spa- All Inclusive...yes that's right ALL!

The plane trip was uneventful and we landed up at the resort on Sunday night a little travel weary but we had great expectations for our trip. The place was all a glow with Christmas and Santa and even a Nativity scene, after all we were in Mexico the leading supporters of the Virgin Mary.

We hit Big Ben for dinner, which is a steak place and the food was actually really good, however if you starve your kids all day traveling, any food would be good! We wandered around the hotel trying to get a lay of the land and got to our rooms around 10:00 completely worn out. The room was great from the stand point there was a king size bed, and a small type room with a bunk bed and a trundle bed for the kids! Everyone collapsed into bed tired from the long journey.

The days seemed to take on the same theme. The first morning we had to report to the front desk for a tour and a sales pitch which we successfully dodged ( hint: tell them you booked your trip using free points and the you are unemployed, the leave you alone:). The days would begin around 9:00 with a trip through the breakfast buffet which had everything from sushi to Mexican casadia's - we were in heaven! Then it was off the kids zone. yes the hotel had a kids area where you could drop off you kids and leave them for a few hours! Awesome, Tracy and I headed tot he gym, got in a workout and then picked up the kids and it was off to the pool for lunch. The kids got a kick out of being able to swim up to the bar and order soda and not having to pay. The kids had their own buffet for lunch and in the course of the week Billy must have eaten 20 hamburgers.

After lunch by the pool, the social directors from the hotel would gather up the kids and take them to the beach for football, dodge ball, volleyball or shelling, it was great. From there we would hit the ocean and the kids would play in the waves and build sand castles for the rest of the day. 5:00 found us relaxing in our room, reading, playing with Lego's or watching some TV show in Spanish, AH culture. We even caught the Rose Bowl and Orange Bowl!

The dinner rush would start around 6:30 for all the families and every night there was a family event from a Michael Jackson impersonator, a Circus de Sol, inappropriate dating game ect. So all the families headed to the different restaurant's to get dinner before the show. They were all really fun and interactive, to the point where the last night the kids were trying to pass flour over their heads to the kids behind them all trying to fill a cup with flour, what a mess!!! Very summer camp-ish and of course the kids all loved it!

For a break on Thursday we headed out of the compound for a day of swimming with the dolphins and a tubing at a local water park. The dolphin's were incredible, having never done it before we were all a little nervous. Jimmy went first and the smiles told the story. Kay to a little convincing but out she went and again had a huge smile. Bill not to outdone made the trip with the biggest smile of all. The dolphins even swam up and kissed you on the check and the lips, really cute. They would not allow you to bring a camera but for $30.00 US you could get a picture, so trust us it is really fun!

The water park is your typical water park you would visit anywhere with maybe a few exceptions:

It is all inclusive and yes that means all you can eat and drink, which is odd. The second is that they have bumper boats, which at first seemed innocent enough, round rubber rafts with seats and like jackets for the occupant, the difference is these boats a powered by and actual functioning 9.5 horse powered motor, complete with a propeller...really. Needless to say, this was Billy's second favorite thing of the day after the dolfins. The third interesting component of this water park was the detailed escape procedures post everywhere, that you were to follow in case of a fire. This is a water park constructed of concrete and well, WATER! The best was you were instructed to stay calm, locate the fire, put it out, then notify the staff, then exit. The rides were breath taking drops from 3 stories in a round raft while going backwards. yikes! The kids could not get enough even though the temp was about 55 degrees, did I mention all inclusive?

The trip was a blast, we all had a great time relaxing, swimming, eating and collecting shells. When we came home, Kay even went around our neighborhood selling the shells and made $5.00 and gave Billy a buck 25 as his share.

Happy New Year to all and to all God's Blessings!

Happy New Year!

2011-12-31T06:58:00.000-08:00

Since we no longer send out Christmas cards, we thought we'd share photos we had taken this summer. They turned out pretty cute:)

Hope everyone has a WONDERFUL 2012!
Peace,
T.T.J.K.B.

Christmas Festivities - part 2

2011-12-27T14:25:00.000-08:00

As mentioned in the previous blog, we had a VERY gourmet dinner with Wendy & AM. They got dressed up and brought PJ's for lying around in later. We had a full combat game of UNO and Connect Four with the kids and watched the Packer game. After the kids went to bed, we almost got sucked into "The Birdcage", but thank god better sense prevailed and we were off to bed.
We had a really relaxing Monday morning with coffee/tea and pastries.

After another full day of lazing around and playing with all our new toys, we thought we'd better get the kids out of the house. So, off to the club for swimming, or so we thought..... Turns out, while the rest of the world was considering Monday a day off and extra weekend day, the club was back on their usual schedule. Meaning, adult swim only and basketball games in the gym. Total bummer! The kids did throw a few baskets but it was treacherous and we quickly left.

Luckily, we still had plans up our sleeves - dinner at Des & Gregs. They made homemade pizza and the adults got to catch up while the kids played video games and with makeup (guess which one played which:))

Tuesday was back to work for Mommy and the kids/Tom came down to see her office, meet her friends, have lunch and return all the Christmas presents that didnt fit to Target. It was a ZOO! The kids loved the office and after initial trepidation that the Indian buffet wouldnt measure up to their standards, ended up eating 2 plate fulls each (Jimmy only gave it a 3 of 5 stars but Billy kept saying "ohhhh...this is good"). It was fun to show them where I work, of course everyone on the floor knew they were in the building, they are LOUD!.

The rest of the week is full of playdates, dinners, basketball camp, work and getting ready for vacation. We'll post 1-2 more blogs before the end of the year.

Hope everyone is enjoying their holidays! We sure are:)

Merry Christmas Everyone

2011-12-25T12:53:00.001-08:00

Merry Christmas! Here's a chronical of our holiday to date (3:05pm cstL:))

This is not in chronological order, but no worries, we'll get it all in! We were able to talk on the phone with Tammy and her family as well as Tracy's parents. They are ALL good and having a nice peaceful Christmas. Cant wait until we can all be together for the holidays again (maybe Christmas 2012 is the year!)

Grandma Kay came over again for her annual cookie baking with the kids (well, really Kay, the boys love seeing Grandma but they arent going to be pastry chefs). Kay worked at it for 3 straight hours and made a huge mess. She was in heaven!

Tom with all his new presents, a camera, clothes, wine decantor, etc. Santa even brought him a Canada Olympic jersey and sunscreen (for our vacation to Mexico next week)

Santa also gave Tracy a Canada jersey and Tom REALLY surprised Tracy with a trainer for her bike and some new bling - a silver necklace from Shanes. She was VERY spoiled this Christmas.

Nikki even got great gifts, treats, chew bones and a chewable doggy card.

Grandma Bunny made Kay a Packer nightgown (perfect for the game tonight) and knitted her the cutest hot pink shrug. She is way too cute (both Grandma AND Kay)

Kay raked it in with crafts, an Easy Bake microwave with extra ingrediants from Santa, clothes a new swim suit and all the kids got goggles from Santa in their stocking (how did HE know we were going on vacation?!)

Billy posing in his new Ochocinco Patriots jersey (Thanks Santa) even more Hot Wheels and Legos, a new swimsuit and Leapster game. He said it was his "best Christmas EVER!". We heard from Julie that Solomon said the same thing, it must be a 7 yr old boy thing:)

Jimmy got his LONG awaited Ponder Jersey, Santa is amazing since these arent even sold in stores! He also got paperjams, new clothes, a swimsuit in Clemson colors, football gloves, tee stand and a foosball table. Everything a 10 yr old sports fanatic needs!

Here's the tree with ALL the gifts underneath (note our traditional Grinch on top)

After photo, Santa ate his cookies, drank his coffee and the reindeer ate the grapes (for blitzen) and carrots. He also left a really nice note for the kids and encouraged them to be good this year too.

The before stocking photo with the aforementioned treats laid out.
Note the traditional Christmas photo of Mavis. She still lives on in our hearts (and nightmares....)

Friday night was a family Christmas sleep over at the Millers with seafood cataplana, pizza, appetizers, a GREAT new drink called a Poinsetta (Thanks Gary!), flaming cheese (ooopa!) and chocotinis. The kids had a blast and woke up to have a gingerbread decorating contest. Once again, Kay was in heaven!

More to come.... Wendy and Annemiek are coming over in an hour. They have been craving a BIG traditional Christmas feast and Tom is only too happy to oblige. We are all going to cook together and so far, the menu features, scallop soup, traditional Dutch potatoes, roast brussel sprouts, beef tenderloin, hollandiase sauce, smoked salmon, salad and last but not least, pumpkin tiramisu. YUMMMM!!

Then, we have just about another full week of celebrating with friends - Des & Greg for pizza tomorrow, the Gated Community (our dear friends who we are lucky enough to be neighbors with - we are celebrating Niel's birthday!) and Christmas dinner next Friday with Jim and Jen.

we'll keep you appraised as we go:)

We are so thankful for all that we have - each other, our families, our friends, our neighbors, our school, our teachers, our church and all the people, all over the world that have helped us become who we are. We love you ALL!!! (a special call out to everyone we love in other countries, we wish we could be with ALL of you! Costa Rica, Korea, Canada, China, Switzerland, Germany, the Netherlands)

Merry Christmas EVERYONE!

Weekend Update (not the SNL version)

2011-12-19T15:19:00.000-08:00

Here's our weekend update:0

Friday was an AWESOME night out with Wendy and AnneMiek. The kids had a birthday party at Chuck E Cheese and so we had a 3 hour time period where we could go to dinner and NOT get a sitter. Never happened before, we felt set free!! We went to a local place that has high brow food and low brow atmosphere and honestly, while the food was good, the company was better. I think the kids would give the same rating to Chuck E Cheese:)

Saturday brought homework and gymnastics follow by Billy's birthday party. He invited 10 friends to the nature center by our house. It was AWESOME! The naturalist took charge and all I had to do was sit back and watch. Billy got to pick which snake they were going to learn about and pet (fox snake in case you are interested). They went on a hike, spotted animal "sign" and even saw a horned owl (heard him too, calling back and forth to his friend).

There was Transformer themed cake (note to self, grey is not an appetizing color for frosting), presents and a combat version of Duck Duck Goose (ok ok, it was Duck Duck Grey Duck but I still haven't wrapped my head around this MN vernacular and the fact that my children actually play it that way!) Billy's friends must know him REALLY well, all but 1 gave him Lego's. We are swimming in Lego's. Billy is in heaven. OR, could it be....that all 7 yr old boys are easy, give them a pack of Lego's and they are happy for hours?

Dinner Saturday night was a Portuguese cataplana seafood feast with Michelle, Pete, Annette and Steve. Katy and Noah came as well (8 and 6 respectively) and had a blast. The girls made a gingerbread house totally on their own and it turned out great and the boys played Lego's (go figure) and Plants vs Aliens on the computer. The girls then put together a karaoke band and sang us 6 songs. (they named themselves Katy and Kay's Karaoke, but used the acronym - which I wont repeat here but I trust you'll figure it out). They were awesome and Jimmy closed the show with a borderline inappropriate rendition of "I'm so sexy" by FMAO. I was laughing to hard to stop him. I don't think he realized that not everyone wants to see a 10 year dancing shirtless.

Sunday was our 1st visit to Jen's house (Jim F's girlfriend) for a WAY over the top brunch and Vikings game. It was a gas and nice to have someone else do the cooking. The Vikings AND the Packers lost, so that was a bit depressing. Jimmy and Jim were insisting we call Grandpa Jim to rub in the Packers loss. I said "well the Vikings lost too" to which Jimmy said "yeah, but we are used to it". Too funny (and yes, all these Jim's are not coincidental -Jimmy is named after my Dad with a strong call out to Jim F, his godfather)

Back home for more homework, baths, pizza and The Smurfs movie.

Only 1 more week until school vacation and we ALL cant wait:) (oh yeah, and for Christmas too).

happy holidays!

2011-12-17T10:38:00.000-08:00

click on this
http://elfyourself.jibjab.com/view/smwCYOPhhK3Ztxvt?cmpid=ey_fb_self

Happy Birthday Billy!

2011-12-13T11:45:00.000-08:00

Wow hard to believe Bill has turned 7. He is such a great little kid, loves Lego's, is doing great in school and is looking forward to his Birthday party. We had planned to have Bill's party on his birthday but the Nature Center decided to not open and we had to postpone the party until the 17th, but no matter we had a nice family birthday for Bill complete with ice cream.

Bill has been keeping track (for about the last 363 days) asking "when", "how long until", "how many days" ???? (you get the picture). So when he woke up on Sunday he was all smiles and stated " Today is MY birthday!"

We headed out to the Minnesota Historical Society with the Millers for an afternoon of 1968 and tornado reenactments (its a seriously well done museum and the kids loved it!) Topped off by ice cream! Then it was back home for his new favorite dinner Venison Stroganoff! ( Really he loves it).

Bill opened a few presents from family (putting together all the Legos in record time) , had his second favorite thing, Brownies, and was lucky enough to get to do his third favorite thing, sit on the heated floor with his Mom and catch up on the latest episodes of Glee!

When we asked him Monday about his birthday, he gave it 10 thumbs up:)

Bill we love you, we are blessed by you and are grateful you have chosen us as your forever family! A special call out and hug to Billy's birth parents and foster parents in Korea. We are forever grateful for your courage, love and selflessness in helping Billy become part of our family. You are amazing and he is awesome.

Happy 7th Bill!

More to come when the " real" party happens!

Loudamericans meet GameON!

2011-12-09T08:17:00.000-08:00

Our friend and fellow adoption champion, Rod Simons, is the host of a regional sports talk show called GameOn!. This is an awesome show featuring local athletes from the professional teams, college teams and even local high school stars. The show has a family flair with sports insights and is a key contributor to the success of one of our favorite charities, Gift of Adoption.

It was at a local fundraiser that we bid for and "won" a live viewing of the show, the ability to meet and get pictures taken with the guests and a live on air interview with the up and coming broadcaster, Jimmy!

The show is taped at a local steak and sushi restaurant here in Minneapolis, Seven, and we arrived in style complete with valet parking. The guest list for tonight's show included none other than the rookie sensation for the Vikings, Tight End Kyle Rudolph, who in the last game made an amazing catch that Jimmy is still talking about. The other guest for the night is the current hockey coach for the Minnesota Golden Gophers, Don Lucci. We did not know at the time that Kay is a big hockey fan and believes Coach Lucci walks on water. Bill was along for the food and to see if Kyle Rudolph was really as big as Jimmy said, and he was!

Rod is a gracious host and Jimmy did a great job, even predicating the Vikings would beat the Lions in the next game the score "By far". It was a fun night and a great time. Jimmy received a signed Football from Kyle, talked football and just like Ralphy in a Christmas Story he fell asleep with both hands on that football; dreaming of ...confusing the defense, opening up the running game and going deep at anytime!

Thanks Rod for helping make a dream come true!

Billy Loses His 6th Tooth

2011-12-06T10:40:00.000-08:00

Billy, on the cusp of turning 7, doubles down and loses tooth number 6. In a remarkable turn of events this tooth actually was removed by the owner.

In a letter to the Tooth Fairly Billy recalls the event:

Dear Tooth fairy, from Billy,
this is my 6's tooth and I pulled my tooth by myself and my brother did not pulled it out this is me when I lost my tooth.( see pic). (remember, Jimmy knocked out his last 3 teeth, 2 on purpose and 1 on accident)

At the beginning of November Mrs. Vaughn asked the 1st grade class how many teeth did they think would be lost that month, to which everyone said 6 and Billy steadfastly said, 7. Which is why he was adamantly working his front loose tooth for 2 straight days from 11/28-29. He was also adamant that on November 30th at 4:17pm, when he lost his tooth, we had to document the loss as that tooth made it a total of 7 for the class! Coincidence ?! I think not!

Billy ran into school the next morning to share the news and let his teacher know he "won" the bet. But, in a striking turn of events, Max had done the same thing. Wiggled a tooth out at the last minute. Making it 8 teeth lost in November. No one "won" but I admire the 1st grade classes dedication to racking up the score board. Lets hope none of them become financial analysts on Wall Street.

Billy is now counting the days and minutes until his birthday (T minus 5 days) more to come on that next week!

Way to go Bill!!

Happy Thanksgiving

2011-11-29T05:32:00.000-08:00

It is that time of year where many of us load up the family van with half of what we own and trek across county to visit our families and friends and give thanks for all that we have, Thanksgiving!

This year the Loudamericans set out for what some people refer to as " Football Mecca", Green Bay. Our Aunt Sue lives there and she secured us a rental house complete with a hot tub and big screen TV. You see, only in Green Bay can you find homes that are equipped and rented for Packer games, really! The house was perfect and we arrive there Wednesday evening without any traffic problems or more importantly no meltdowns. Grandma and Grandpa, along with Tracy's sister Tammy and her husband Jeff and their kids, Georgia, Joey and Herbie greeted us with a warm welcome. The kids took one look around, shed their clothes, donned their swim suits and jumped into he hot tub, where I might add the would have stayed the entire weekend had we not pulled them out for dinner!

Thursday being Thanksgiving there are really only three things of importance, the meal, Football and dessert. We spent the day watching football and true to his word (because he lost a bet with his Aunt), Jimmy watched the entire Packer game with a cheese head hat, whilst he face and body where painted with various encouragement statements for the Detroit Lions (aka Packers stink, written backwards because he did it while looknnig in the mirror). He is the quintessential crazed fan, Rudy has nothing on Jimmy. The rest of the clan visited, Kay and Georgia created many different works of art while Billy and Herbie battled it out over race cars and Nintendo football.

For the first time I can remember, we purchased a full Thanksgiving meal that was basically a cook in the bag sort of affair. Target has the package deal, turkey, stuffing, green bean casserole, mashed potatoes, gravy, walnut cranberry sauce and pie. I am here to say... it was easy, and very good. So it was fun to be able to just follow the directions and not worry about the meal. Because the Packer game was on and since they were playing in Detroit, they had to come back to Green Bay. So this lead to an outing to the airport to get a glimps of the players. This is a somewhat well kept secret and we got a piece of bum information and missed the opportunity, but not for lack of effort! (ie 2 trips to the airport with a van full of crazed fans - I mean kids)

Friday found us needing to get out of the house so in keeping with the theme, it was off to Lambeau Field and the Packer Hall of Fame. Curly and Vince greeted us as we went in and the tour was quite cool. However when you walk down the tunnel onto the field passing over some of the original bricks from the original Acme Packer Stadium, even Jimmy was in awe. I know a few adults that even got teary eyed.

Kay being a member of the Power Packers, received a free lunch coupon for her Birthday and was in heaven. Curly's, named after Curly Lambeau, is a sports bar/ family restaurant and lunch was awesome. Having be fortified we headed downstairs to the Hall of Fame. There is only one team that can pull this off and it is the Packers. The thing has everything from telegraphs and western union cables Vince Lombardi received to a place where kids can do the Lambeau Leap. There are highlights off every key game won or lost and each had one thing in common, screaming fans, unreal. We all enjoyed the entire day and it was really a blast. So what do you do as an encore to that?! Back home for more football on TV!

Saturday brought rain and cold weather. ESPN brought us the Michigan/ Ohio State game, the Wisconsin Badgers and who ever they played and round the evening out with the Clemson Tigers. In the midst we dragged the kids to the Y where we donated some can goods and were all able to work off the Thanksgiving Feast and the excess energy of sitting out our butts and watching football. Sammy's pizza, a must while in Green Bay was the Saturday Night Special and we thank Grandpa Jim for his generosity!

Sunday we packed up gave hugs and made plans for the next gathering. No trip over the holiday's is complete without running into traffic. We were making great time until right outside of Menominee, suffice it to say what should have taken an hour and a half took three. However in the midst of the delay we were treated to yet another brilliant insight from Billy. The entire way home he was relentlessly trying to figure out how many day until his birthday. He went at it from every angle and when he asked Tracy " Now what day is my birthday?" She replied December 10th Bill." He was quiet for a moment and then exclaimed " I get it your birthday is the same day you were born!" Enough said. Hes a genious.

Happy Thanksgiving to all and may your holiday's be full of happiness and good cheer!

Love

The Loudamericans

Featured Alumni

2011-11-21T10:15:00.000-08:00

Thought it would be fun to brag on my dad for a while:) He was recently featured in his college newsletter as Alumni Spotlight. The photos are great, wish I could figure out how to load them into here, but you'll have to do with the content... (He went to Carroll College in Waukesha Wi, they are the Pioneers)

Jim graduated from Carroll in 1964. During his time at Carroll, Jim was honoroed for his tremendous work ethic and leadership. He was named "Hinky Hero" as the outstanding male student athlete, sevred as "C" club president, and was team captain for men's basketball for two years. We are proud to have him as our Pioneer for life.

Why did you choose Carroll? I was from Wausau. That March (1960), we had won the State Basketball Championship (think Hoosiers!!). I then began looking for a Division III college that would provide and excellent education first and where I could play basketball and tennis. ...After making campus visits, Carroll won hands down over the others. An added bonus, Mancer Cyr and Chuck Wienkauf, both memebers of our state championship team, also made the decision to attend Carroll. The three of us chose Caroll in spite of knowing we would be spending our next four years in Waukesha. Waukesha High was undefeated when we beat them in the semi finals of the State Tournament. We knew we would be welcomed into the Carroll community, but we were not so sure of our reception into the Waukesha community.

What are your favorite memories of playing for Carroll? There are too many to list. However, here are a few: The great friendships I developed over four years with some very talented basketball palyers, many of whom are in the Carroll Hall of Fame. Being elected by my teammmate as captain in my junior and senior years. Being honored, in my senior year, by a faculty committee as outstanding scholar/athlete. Winning the College Conference of Illinois championship in two of the years I played.

Do you still keep in touch with former teammmates? Yes, with some, in particular, Bill and Karla Mullen and Mancer Cyr. Karla was my wife's college roommate and they were cheerleaders together. Bil and I went to work for the same company right out of Carroll and for the first few years of our married life, worked and lived close to each other in Chicago. .....

What are your other fond memories of Carroll? First and foremost, meeting my wife Denise (Bunny). We dated for two years and then married the summer we graduated. We have been happily married for 47 years.

What are you doing now? Living the good life. I retired in 1999 after 35 years with Wausau Insurance Companies. We live in the winter in the mountains of western South Carolina. We spend our summers on the shores of Lake Michigan just outside of Traverse City Michigan. We spend lots of time visiting our three daughters and our eight grandchildren. After retiring, I entered into somewhat of a second career. I became a volunteer firefighter with the local South Carolina fire department. I am entering my 10th year. While I am still fully certified, I no longer do interior fire attacks (my basketball days have finally caught up wtih my knees). However, there are enough other jobs on the fire ground to keep me busy.

So, that's my dad. He's an amazing athlete and a loyal and thoguhtful friend. And, a wonderful dad:)

Regular Stuff & Life

2011-11-14T21:17:00.000-08:00

We realized that we haven't blogged since Halloween, how did that happen? Regular life got in the way I guess. What does regular life look like and what have we been up to? We'll start at the top...

Tom has been super busy with his United Way special project (figuring out how to market to for profit companies that have a community based focus - for example; Tom's shoes is a for profit company that donates 50% of their profits to the community) as well as getting more involved with his board work with Gift of Adoption. He is also tutoring 1st grade math on Wednesdays (counting backward and skip counting is harder than you'd think) and has been fighting off the leaves in our yard and all the fall house work that seems never ending. He also made a huge batch of wine that should be ready just in time for New Years:) Finally, he spent the day taking our good friends Radha and Krishna around the twin cities. They are moving here in February on a 2 year work assignment and he made daycare, school, townhouse, etc appointments for them so that they can get a lay of the land. Little do they know that we are angling for them to life swap with us when we move to Canada, so he was laying the ground work:)

Tracy is crazy busy at work and is SUPER thankful that Tom does the needful at home. We are on a full on sprint to opening our 1st stores in Canada and there will be no rest for the weary until 2013. She is also trying to do her share of cooking, homework with the kids while keeping up with the 3 mile daily walks that Nikki needs. She's asleep 30 seconds after her head hits the pillow every night. We did get a good 11/11/11 fix in last week. We watched Oceans 11 and toasted each other at 11:11:11pm. (11 is Angela's favorite/superstitious #, she only sets her alarm clock in numbers divisible by 11, so needless to say, it was a big night).

Jimmy has started basketball warm ups (drills, skills, etc) and is now playing in a band. They are playing lots of Bruno Mars and Foster the People. He seems to be having fun and the other kids don't seem to notice that he's 3-4 years younger than the other kids. He's still in piano and drum lessons and is obsessing about Christian Ponder. He's in a fantasy football league and has been picking the football picks in Tracy's weekly football pool at work. He may just win this week. I think he's grown again, he's skinny at 105 lbs, size 8 men's shoe and 5' 2". its crazy! He's also needs to read and write a book report on 20 books this year in order to 'win' a trip to Mall of America in May. He just finished his 10th book. Never say the kid cant be motivated by bribery.

Kay is in gymnastics, piano and girl scouts. The latest addition to her activities is cheer leading (god help us) and is selling candy bars to raise money for the group. Her goal is to sell enough to get a free set of pom poms. She can now do a front handspring and can play Ode to Joy on the piano. We are on night 7 of her sleeping the WHOLE night in her own room. I think this is the 1st time this has happened in 8 years. She came up with a motivation chart for herself and she's following it. If she does it 14 nights in a row, she earns a trip to the beauty salon. As she said yesterday "this systems working pretty well, don't you think?" We agree! Its amazing how much nicer we are when we've all had a good night sleep. She's pretty amazing.

Billy is in gymnastics and just finished a 3 week basketball warm up himself. Imagine 15 6 year old boys learning basketball basics. (think squirrels chasing a ball) He's also in a 4 week Lego class at school and declared "I'm never going win a prize". Thinking he was just being negative, we tried to talk to him about it. Then, we realized, he really is never going to win a prize since, to win a prize, you have to be the 1st one to listen and pick up. Not Billy's strong suit as he doesn't want the Lego fun to end. He's reading and is a math whiz. He cant wait to turn 7 (12/11) and we've been busy planning and re planning his birthday party (who to invite, where to go, what toys he wants) its pretty fun.

Nikki and Timmy are fine, lots of walks, treats and mauling by the kids.

Overall, regular life. Fun, hectic, crazy and full of everyday funny little adventures.

Here's a good example of a "normal" Friday night http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y-glEitjSxE

"till our next big adventure...

Peace!

Happy Haddaween!

2011-11-05T08:36:00.001-07:00

As Jimmy used to say "Happy Haddaween!" Last weekend was full on Halloween madness. It started Friday night when we took them to Target to pick out their costumes and buy candy. Word of warning - Friday night before Halloween is a little late to start getting ready. The good news? all costumes were 75% off, the bad news? we got what we got. In the long run, everyone was happy. Billy was a storm trooper, Kay a vampire and Jimmy, Stuy from The Family Guy.

Kay and Billy Treat or Treating with their BFF, Ella and Cole.

More Trick or Treating, they bagged about 10lbs of candy. Kay had to come home when she sprained her arm from carrying such a heavy bag. She hit the jack pot at 1 house when she rang the door bell, the Mom said "ok, we just decided, the next kid to ring the door bell gets all our candy - we are shutting down for the night". Then, she proceeded to dump a WHOLE bowl of candy into Kays bag

Eating along the route to keep energy up.

Billy - storm trooper

Jordan stopped by for some treats

Our pumpkins, the kids each designed their own, from left, Kay, Billy and below - Jimmy's

Spooky!

Trick or treating at the strip mall by our house on Sat afternoon. Another haul.

Carmen as a cowgirl and Kay

Kay - vampire, cat, witch - you decide

At the school fall festival - there was a costume parade, treats, games, fire trucks, and a pancake breakfast. I sugared start to the weekend.

Sean as Lugi - last year he was Mario. He cracks us up.

Jimmy and Kay

kay with her best vampire, devil impersonation

Billy ready to conquer the world

Jimmy is noticably missing. Now that he's 10, he's too cool for school and went trick or treating with his BFF Ben in Ben's neighborhood so we are woefully short photos of him. Next year...maybe....

Happy Haddaween!!!!

Introducing this week's Star of the Week

2011-10-28T05:47:00.000-07:00

William Francis Kim "Billy" Murphy!

The tradition continues as we work our way into the school year, Meadowbrook has each child in the the first grade class take center stage for a week and this week the star is.... Billy!

The child has to create a "bio" so to speak and list their favorite food, pizza, toy, icecream, activity etc. They also describe their families and what they want to do when they grow up. As you can imagine, Billy has it all covered. A few highlights?

Ice Cream - mint chocolate chip

Food - peperoni pizza

Toy - tie between Legos and Hot Wheels

Activity - swimming

Color - Golden

Best Friend - Cole

Siblings/Pets - Jimmy, Kay, Nikki, Timmy

What does he want to be when he grows up? A lego engineer

He also had to bring in his favorite stuffed animal and book. His choices? a stuffed beagle and the book "under the sea".

He's a pretty funny nut. He's reading like a fiend and is really doing well in school. Conferences are next week, so we'll get the full scoop then.

Love you Billy!

MEA, Garrison and Clearwater lake

2011-10-24T08:42:00.000-07:00

Last weekend was MEA, for those of you non-Minnesotans, its a 2 day holiday from school for the kids while the teachers go to continuing education. Now, most of the teachers I know also had the days off, so I'm not sure how that works, but in Minnesota tradition, everyone takes off, Our destination? Clearwater lake for some perch fishing with the Millers. Tom found a cool old cabin on Vacation Rentals.com and we were off.

The weather was gorgeous, low 60's sunny, trees were just past the prime colors but wonderful none the less. Ang and I were loaded down with People, US Weekly and other fashion magazines. Tom, Wade and the kids had life vests and fishing poles. There was even a rumor that Paul Bunyon Land was still open (not true). We all had snack food and drinks:)

The cabin itself was your typical mid '70's structure, 2 tone green shag carpeting, a loft area that slept 8 kids and a double spiral staircase. They were also outfitted with ALL the best movies (Groundhogs Day, Planes, Trains and Automobiles, Young Frankenstien...) we could have stayed for weeks!

The crew set off for fishing and the 1st day it looked promising, they pulled in 3 perch! We lit a bonfire and threw stones into the lake. Saturday was equally gorgeous and Kay & Caden were up at the crack of dawn, ready to go fishing. They actually had to wake Tom up, it was pretty cute. But, to no avail, the fish stopped biting.

We needed to have an alternative plan so we went in search of Paul Bunyan Land. It seems that we drove right past it without realizing it (what does that say about it as an attraction) and then learned it was closed. No worriess, Mini Golf was calling. Billy got a hole in 1 and won a free round of golf. The kids all got gift bags and Wyatt even had a blast.

Jimmy self regulated and determined that he was "out" for golf. He's too competitive and gets too upset so he and I headed off to the mall in Brainerd. I figured we'd just stroll around, but no... he found a new pair of basketball shoes, he just HAD to have. They were on sale and I even sprung for yellow laces. He is WAY too cool for school. He asked if he could sleep with them (not on, just cuddling them) and kept asking "do you want to touch them? Arent they cool? Smell them, they smell so fresh!". He's pretty damn funny. Now, we just need to wait 2 weeks for basketball to start.
More food, drinks, playing, movies, books, magazines, etc and it was Sunday before we knew it. We woke to drizzling rain and a great excuse to stay in and relax. Tom, Wade, Kay and Caden had the excitement of the day when moving the boat back to the trailer, it almost started on fire and the trailer had a flat. No worries, the handymen fixed it and we were off (again).

We drove home listening to the Packer/Viking game on the radio and planning our next long weekend away (Presidents Day ski/tubing adventure anyone?). The Vikings played a tough game, but the better team prevailed. Jimmy handled it well and Christian Ponder sure has everyone here excited. Football in MN is back.

Go Pack!

Football Wrap-Up

2011-10-18T05:56:00.000-07:00

The boy's took the field for their final game this past weekend against the dreaded team from Wayzata. The boy's could not get the past out of the heads and true to beliefs that they have never beat Wayzata, the trend continued.

This game however had a very different outcome, which was very heartwarming and made us all proud to be parents. The boys played their hearts out and at the end of the first half we Hopkins was trailing by 18 to 0. The boys had done a great job and did not allow Wayzata any extra points. The second half Hopkins only allowed one touchdown and instead of giving up they played their best all the way to the end. The game ended with Hopkins running an 65 yard sweep and they were tackled on the 3 yard line when time ran out.

At this point things changed, the boys from Hopkins lined up as usual to congratulate the other team, the parents lined up as usual and created a tunnel for the boys to run through, which after a defeat is not a real happy and energetic affair, not this time. The boys all rang through yelling at the top of their lungs, WHO! WHO! WHO! The chant continued, HOPKINS,HOPKINS, HOPKINS, 123 GO BLUE CRUSH, Jimmy leading the way. The celebration on our side of the field would lead people to believe we had just won the Super Bowl. Looking across the field towards the Wayzata team they were standing there looking bewildered and wondering which team had really won the game!

The team gathered at our house for the year end celebration, hot dogs, cake, ice cream and of course football. The team had a great year learning many new aspects of team sports and perhaps the biggest and most important item, sportsmanship. They did a great job with every victory and with every loss, which is the harder of the two to keep your spirits up. The coaches, John, Doug and Dave all did a great job teaching our kids and keeping the focused on having fun and we thank them for all their hard work.

The coaches handed out Trophy's for all the boys and acknowledged each individual for the efforts and contributions, and the boy's were all smiles.

In the course of the pick up game in our back yard a new football phenomenon was found as a small,, quick, running back an a great tackler and her name is Kay, YIKES!!

Football Update

2011-10-07T06:01:00.000-07:00

The chant " Who, Who, Who, Who, Who are we? HOPKINS, Who are we? HOPKINS, Who are HOPKINS, Blue Crush on 3, One Two Three, GO BLUE CRUSH" is heard rolling over the field and the opponent as Jimmy and the boy's from Hopkins take the field!

This is nothing other than 4TH GRADE FOOTBALL at its best! In the off season Jimmy did some recruiting and thanks to his efforts the team now has 7 black stripes (kids over 90lbs who are not allowed to advance the ball), a new quarterback along with several returning members of the 3rd grade squad making this years team a formidable opponent. The team has been playing well and each game they have learned something new and had nothing short of "a blast!".

This year the league has instituted a new part of the overall football experience and that is to identify and reward good sportsmanship, both individual and team. In a recent game the boy's were playing a team from St. Louis Park and Hopkins was winning the game very handily. The boy's told the other team how well they were playing, pointing out good plays and one of our players, while helping one or the opposing players up off the ground said "you guys are playing really hard". The kids on the side lines were giving encouragement to St. Louis Park to the point where parents from the team pulled our Coach aside and commented " what great sportsmen his team has". That is heart warming to us parents.

The team is now 4-2-1 and I will have to say, even though 3 of our victories were shut outs, the best game we played was the game that ended in a tie. Of course Jimmy is quick to point out that even though we tied Wayzata, we have never beaten them (not in 3rd grade and not this year). Alas, the tie game was a come back from a 14 point deficit to tie the game late in the 3rd quarter and hold Wayzata to no points in the 4th. It also included a late in the 4th stop, a 1st and goal attempt, and... it was awesome. The boy's were beside themselves and congratulated each other on a great game. It was a great performance by the whole team. (keep in mind that Wayzata is KNOWN for football, they have 10, yes 10 4th grade teams. Hopkins has 2).

To sum up the season at this point would be to quote Jimmy "You know Dad 4th grade football is a lot harder than 3rd grade" He is still one of the biggest but not one of the fastest. But he is in every play, he's a great leader with the team - leading push ups, sits ups, and encouraging EVERYONE and he gets his teammates pumped up to the point where a coach of the other 4th grade Hopkins team said "My team is missing that spark, you know we need to have a Jimmy Murphy on our team", makes for proud parents. Jimmy is so passionate, it makes your heart hurt. He's the most excited to play, the most energetic on and off the field and the hardest hit when they lose. In the huddle against their loss to Wayzata 2 weeks ago, he was literally sobbing, snot running out of his nose and everything. This teammates were wonderful, patting him on the back and consoling him (VERY nice since I think about 1/2 the team didnt know they lost and were unclear as to the score). Its hard to be a passionate 10 year old boy.

The games are harder hitting, there are pass plays, and most of the parents spend the entire time pacing the sidelines cheering and worrying at the same time, football you gotta love it! (Tracy is going to have an ulcer by high school, the tension is palpatable!)
The final game is coming up on Saturday, October 15th, and of course it is against none other than.... Wayzata.The boy's are practicing hard and the coaches are working overtime to get the boy's out of their heads and to stop thinking about our no win record agaist Wayzata. We are thinking about having the team over for popcorn and a" Hoziers Movie Marathan" to help drive the point home. Either way we will report the outcome.

WHO WHO WHO WHO ARE WE HOPKINS..........

Star of the Week- Kay Marie Jeon Murphy

2011-10-05T13:11:00.001-07:00

School is back in full gear and with it comes many of the Meadowbrook traditions - Star of The Week being a key one.

Kay spent the weekend digging through the cartons of memories she has stored throughout the house, attic, garage, basement, etc (you get the picture). She finally made her choices and adhered them to a large white board, practiced her presentation 2- 3 times and was ready to show the class.

The Star of the Week is a nice way for the kids to share their story with their classmates in a manner they are comfortable with and it is a nice way to spotlight each kid. Kay had a blast! She is doing very well in her reading and is working the spelling program quite hard. She has begun gymnastics and is going to attend Cheer America and learn to be a cheer leader, God help us.

Tom joined Kay at school on the BIG reveal day and took her to lunch in the cafeteria. Luckily being 8 means that you arent too embarrased by your parents (yet) and she was happy to show him off to her friends.

Way to go Kay you are always a star in our eyes!

Happy 3rd Annual 49th Birthday TOM!!!

2011-09-27T16:23:00.001-07:00

Tom celebrated in style last weekend his 3rd annual 49th birthday. (I'll let you do the math:))

It started with a "Hangover III" trip to Dallas Tx with his high school buddies. Long story short, the consumate bachelor (Tom H) in the group got married earlier in the year and this was a weekend to celebrate. The guys traveled down, sans their wifes, for a party weekend. Typical of men "of a certain age", they overestimated their ability to have fun without their significant others. While a good time was had by all, the common theme seemed to be "we should have brought our wifes!". It seems there were stories, beer, dancing, beer, practical jokes, beer and a really good time by all. I think its a successful weekend when you are considering staying and extra day to get over your hangover:) Congratulations Tom and Susan, all the best!

Tom managed to make it home alive and un-hungover on Saturday, just in time for our date night out with his birthday buddy. Yes, Wade and Tom share a birthday! In our annual style, we headed out for a good dinner, wine, talk and dessert. We were dying to try Sea Salt and it did not disappoint. Its an open air seafood restaruant right at the top of Minnehaha Falls. It was a gorgeous fall night and there was even an acostic guitar/singer. Perfect! We then felt VERY cosmopolitan and took the light rail downtown for dessert/wine at Ike's. You GOTTA love a place that serves a 7 layer chocolate/chocolate cake. YUM! And, I hear they have a killer brunch and bloody mary. Do I hear next year calling already? We took no risks and cabbed it home. The kids were actually asleep that was probably the best present of all:)

Sunday morning was present opening and cupcakes with the kids. Tom is now newly outfitted with a new summer wardrobe, just in time for fall:) AND, he's got a Target gift card burning a hole in his pocket for the new Lee Child book.

Many, many of you made Tom's birthday really special with your calls, emails and Facebook posts. They came from all over the world and I KNOW he loved connecting with each of you in his own way. Thanks for being such an important part of his and our lives!

Tom, a birthday message to you...Thank you for all you do for us as a family, as a Dad, as a friend, as a partner, as a board member, as a volunteer, as a backup parent to the neighbor kids and football/basketball/baseball team kids and for.....well, just EVERYTHING! You are incredibly special and make so many peoples lives richer because of who you are. We love you. I love you! SMOOCH!!

Grandma and Grandpa Weekend!

2011-09-19T14:56:00.000-07:00

We just wrapped up our Grandma and Grandpa weekend and it was a blast! Grandma Bunny and Grandpa Jim came into town on their way from their summer cabin in Michigan to their winter condo in South Carolina. Yes, South Carolina from Michigan by way of Minnesota, not necessarily a linear route, but one we really apprecaited!

We kicked off the weekend with a viewing of gymnastics practice for Kay and Billy on Thursday night. This is sort of like watching paint dry with an occasional squirrel running past. But, they were hardy and good sports and Kay and Billy loved showing off their tricks on the bars, balance beam, trampoline and rings. Billy must have done about 40 hand stands and even HAD to do some push ups (although I think that was a behavior issue, not showing off). We also learned that Kay likes the chalk for the bars...a lot... over and over...every chance she gets:) We ended the night with full combat UNO. Jimmy took 1st and Billy took 2nd, they were thrilled and used every opportunity they could to rub it in.

Friday was a nice low key day of running errands, tailoring some of my shirts (thanks Mom!), and general enjoyment of Minnesota in the fall. We had dinner that night with Aubrey and Patti, Grandpa Jim's best friend since junior high. Aub is a famous teller of jokes, funny stories and practical jokes. We had a great time catching up. Also to show what a small world it really is...Aub's daughter Sarah and I used to work together in the same department at Target. Really, a super small (and fun) world.

Saturday had BIG plans in store. 1st up?! Hopkins 4th grade football (vs Wayzata team 10 - yes Wayzata has 10, count them 10 4th grade football teams. CRAZY!). It was a cold and windy match. Blue Crush (Hopkins) scored the 1st touchdown, only to be closely followed by Wayzata. Then, Wayzata pulled ahead and the boys in blue got discouraged. The parents and coaches did their part to "amp" them back up and they came from behind to tie it. With 3 minutes left on the clock, Wayzata had the ball on their 3 yd line. The tension was palpable. Could Blue Crush hold them and secure a tie? THEY DID! The crowd went crazy! I think I have an ulcer (seriously, the stomach ache that comes with watching your 4th grader play a competitive game of football is indescripable, I'm never going to make it to the high school level). Jimmy played almost every down of the game and made a couple great plays. We also had an interception on both sides (1 reason you dont usually see passing at 4th grade games) and some great runs. The boys in blue were VERY proud of themselves and it was a great lesson in not giving up and persevering. Go Blue Crush!!

We were hoping to catch the Twins game post the football game, but given it was overcast, windy, cold and the Twins arent playing up to major league standards, we skipped that opiton and headed straight home. Grandma Bunny spent the afternoon teaching Kay to knit and sew on Kay's new sewing machine. Kay is a natural. Seriously, she had the house covered in bits of fabric and yarn. She was in heaven and I think my Mom was too. Let's just say my sisters and I never showed the same passion for the creative arts as Kay does. I think they are kindred souls. Speaking of kindred souls...that afternoon, Jimmy & Grandpa watched more sports on TV and Billy played Legos.

Grandma Bunny made us a delicious dinner of Algerian chicken, Kay made a homemade apple pie (with apples from our tree) and I made a batch of turkey noodle soup, the house smelled DIVINE!

We ended the night with family movie night "Soul Surfer". It was SO good, seriously, see it. Very inspirational and the fact that its all shot in Hawaii doesnt hurt.

The Grandparents were up an early on Sunday as they have a long 2 day drive ahead of themselves to South Carolina.

THANK YOU so much for coming and hanging out with us. It was perfect! We love you!!
T.T.J.K.B.

Back to School

2011-09-11T08:14:00.001-07:00

Meadowbrooke, ready or not, here we come!

The 104 days of summer vacation sadly have come to end. The Loudamericans had quite a summer as you have seen visa the many blogs we posted. We were able to have an incredible ' rock star" summer traveling, having visitors, sporting events, (playing in them and going to them), birthdays, parties and more, wow we are truly blessed.The kids learned whom there teachers would be and whom was in their classes and they packed their school supplies and we were ready to go.

Billy, it is hard to believe, is now as Jimmy says, " a school ager". Bill and his new 25 best friends have Mrs. Vaughn as their teacher. Upon meeting her on the first day it was hard to tell who was more excited to be there her or the kids. Mrs. Vaughn has been a forth grade teacher for several years and this is the first time teaching first grade and boy is she excited. Bill is one of the lucky kids, as they say, because he has his own locker, which is unheard of until 5th grade.When we dropped Bill for his first day we helped him begin his new routine and when were leaving leaving wished Bill good luck, to which he responded " I know I will have some".

Kay received the news she would have Mrs. Skalicky, Jimmy's teacher from last year, and she breathed a sigh of relief. Kay just loves Mrs. Skalicky, mostly because she announced that there would be no homework the first week of class, we will see how long this love lasts! Kay has 26 kids in her class and the spent the first week getting acquainted. The main focus this year is reading and research, a couple of Kay's strong points. The year is shaping up just perfectly and as we heard her say '"I love it when a plan comes together"! Good luck Mrs. Skalicky!

Jimmy, the 4th grader and school veteran, is in Mrs. Bell's class along with his locker partner and teammate, Landon - both were ecstatic. The class has several interesting turning points for the kids, the main one being book reports... to the tune of 20 this year, YIKES. Jimmy needs to read and do 3 book reports per month to make the coveted trip to Mall of America. Those who complete the required amount of reading go to the Mall and those who do not stay at school with a substitute and have a normal school day, we will see if this is a big enough incentive to drive the young minds to excel.

We wish everyone a happy and prosperous school year, stay tuned as the kids accomplishments are chronicled, critiqued and recorded!

Happy Labor Day

2011-09-07T05:56:00.000-07:00

Headed off to Richard Bong State Park for the "Labor Day weekend show" (bonus points if you can name the song & singer), we got the car loaded down with Nikki as well and e set off to met Tammy, Jeff, Georgia, Joey and Herbie, at this scenic and beautiful park. Kenosha Wisconsin!!

The trip down, to our surprise, was uneventful as the good folks of Wisconsin suspended all road work until after Labor Day. The roads were great and we made the journey down without a hitch, as they say. You have to love Wisconsin where when you ask for directions they say things like " Go down the road here a bit till the road bends the curb around and then at the stop and go light, turn left and the store she's right there. have a great day, oh sure you betcha ya!" We made one quick stop at Target and made it to the park in about 6 hours and with enough light left to set up camp. Tammy and Jeff were right behind us and after we set up camp, the real reason for getting there early.... the Friday Night Fish Fry, another great thing about Wisconsin!

Driving around the country side in the dark with directions to the Eagle INN Supper club, we were super excited. Then the first problem ...the road you need to take is closed so you need to "go down this way till the road, well she stops and then you need to follow around this way a bit till road you she keeps going and the supper club will be around there ya know". We never found the Eagle Inn, however we did find the local Sports Bar that had a big Neon sign that said " Come for the fish and stay for the volleyball" our kind of place! The security guard at the front door took one look at this crew and got us a special table where he could keep an eye on us. The kids loved the place, Jimmy however was giving this big, over served guy a hard time about the Brewers and Packers to the point where the security guy was inching a bit closer to our table. All in all it was a great time but we never did get to see any volleyball.

Saturday was all about exploring the park. The kids went to the morning art and nature class while Tracy took a hike around with Nikki to get the lay of the land. The park, it turned out, has a great swimming beach which was on the agenda for that afternoon. It was warm and muggy with impending doom being broadcast via the weather channel. If I could for just a moment, make a point of reference.... Here we were in the middle of 16,000 acres of beautiful Wisconsin parries and forestland looking at Jeff's Ipad2 watching the weather channel, really. Technology has it place and I guess watching a storm brewing in the woods could constitute a good reason, maybe. Anyway we headed into town to gather some supplies and while the storm sirens went on, the sky was midnight dark and the lightening was spectacular. We had lunch in camp and as the first wave of rain rolled in we headed into the only real oasis around, the bowling alley!

We waited out the storm , the kids had a ball (no pun intended) and Billy was able to perfect his bowling form. I felt a bit sorry for the owner of the alley as the lanes we were bowling on are no longer flat but more rolling like a rolling road, from the kids not so gently throwing the ball toward the pins, everyone was able to get a strike or spare so from that point well worth it!

Back to camp... where we had dinner, started a camp fire and were able to have a nice and somewhat dry night. The heat had broke so the sleeping was great and the rain added a nice and soothing pitter patter on the tent.

Sunday was a great weather day, no rain and all sun. We headed off to the "find the slither and slim program" however due to a bit of a late start and perhaps the weather the day before, the program seemed to be cancelled, no matter tot his hardy group it was off to take over the playground/ jungle gym at the beach. The kids got involved in some kind of obstacle course complete with rules only kids understand and after a couple of hours it was a tie for first place. That was enough so it was time for lunch. Then an afternoon at the beach wear there were several shark attacks and the kids had a blast playing "Jaws". Link below for Jaws - Kenosha Scenes 1-3.

Then we headed back to town to watch the water ski show, featuring kids from 8-18. The lake was super windy creating waves to which challenged the best skiers, however the show went on.

It was pretty cool to see these up and coming water ski show superstars, pull off the pyramids, double trick ski exercises and group ski trick among the winds and the waves, impressive. They even had a jump, the kids were most impressed by that, as we were!

That night we had the traditional family Chalupa meal and shared our favorite summer vacation stories. It was hard to believe that the summer was drawing to an end and there was so much we were thankful for. Monday we packed up made plans for a Thanksgiving Extravaganza and we all headed home with butterfly's in our stomach because...."tomorrow was the first day of school!"

Happy Birthday Jimmy! Double Digits

2011-08-27T08:31:00.001-07:00

10 - Jimmy reaches his first decade, claims to have additional knowledge, listening capabilities and is ready for decade number 2, we shall see....

Play Ball! Yes, this years birthday "theme", which is another blog all in itself, was all about baseball. Jimmy invited 16 of his closest friends and relatives to join him at the diamond for a game of sand lot baseball. Mom and Dad, seeing the potential in the event, immediately hired an outside third party to be the umpire, as these things have a tendency to create disagreements, and contacted the city to secure Lions Park Field #1 for the big game.

Now for Jimmy this game was slightly bigger in his mind than the World Series and preparation began in earnest. Jimmy of course wanted to be the pitcher and throw 125 mile and hour fast balls, so every night we had to practice. He was so excited he could hardly focus on anything else, which is good his birthday is in the Summer. The day finally came and he was ready. The kids met at the ballpark, the umpire helped them choose sides and laid out the rules and with enough fanfare announced " Let's Play Ball", and play ball they did. It was a proud moment as a parent to watch the kids interact, and Jimmy made sure everyone got to play where they wanted, even if it meant that someone else would pitch. He made the kids who did not play baseball or were not at the level of the others feel wanted and part of the teams. The pitches to these kids were under hand or slower and it was a super fun time. There were several great plays and of course at one point the money spent on the umpire came through. It was a close play at second Preston was trying to turn a single into a double, Jimmy was catching and threw the ball to Parker at second base, the throw was a little off the mark. Parker leaped up to catch the ball, Preston was running to fast and slid off the base and Parker landed on Preston holding the ball, " You're out" was the call. The kids stormed the umpire, who was a couple of inches shorter than they were, and a discussion began, ceremoniously someone kicked sand, the umpire held his own, more pointing and explaining from the players until finally the umpire had enough and stated vary calmly " Do you know why I know he was out a second?" The kids replied " No", " Because I am the ump" was the reply, heads down the filed back to the dug out, " Batter Up!".

The pizza was delivered and the cupcakes eaten and it was back to the game. The kids played for almost two hours and the game ended on account of darkness. Then when Jimmy was not looking the kids grabbed the water jugs and dumped them over Jimmy's head, he was in heaven.

He was blessed with many great gifts, gift cards and cash, and was very thankful and even humble. We opened the gifts at home with Aunt Sue and had a perfect end to the perfect day, that however was not the end of Jimmy's celebration OH no..... Next up: Ball Boy at the Saints Game.

Jimmy invited his friend Jacob to be ball boy with him so on an extremely hot and muggy night off to the Saints Game we all headed the next night. Jim Fellows, Jimmy's God Father, and his girl friend, Jen meet us at the game. Jimmy and Jacob went into the tunnel, meet the other lucky kids who were ball boys/girls and bat boys/ girl and waited in the tunnel until it was time to take the field. There names were announced out onto the field they ran big smiles on their faces', priceless. They were lead to their posts, which for Jimmy and Jacob ,was a lawn chair, strategically placed in right field, where there was no chance of anyone actually hitting the ball. There they stayed through the entire game.

The Saint's were down 9 - 1 after two innings and it appeared we would be getting home earlier than we thought.... not even close. The boy's were cheering away from the lawn chairs, sweating up a storm, the Saints were battling away and after 8 innings the game was tied. Much to the happiness of the lawn chair cheering section, and as it was approaching 9:30, not so much to Mom and Dad. The hot dogs, gyro's and frozen strawberry lemonade helped in the battle against the heat and for the staying power of Thing 1 and Thing 2. Jim and Jen left after the 8th inning and Jimmy and Jacob poring water over their heads donned their rally caps and were back to cheering on the home town team. The crowd was thinning out after the 10th, the Saints got the opponents out 1,2,3 in the top of the 11th. The first batter hit a double followed buy the next batter hitting a walk off single, Saints win 10-9 in 11 hard fought innings. Jimmy and Jacob were ecstatic running all over the outfield screaming and dancing. Finally they calmed down, folded up their lawn chairs and we headed home, 10:30, so much for getting home early.! This was also Sue's birthday and we planned cake and ice cream however we had to postpone that for the next day, which began the third phase of Jimmy's birthday. Jimmy and Sue each got a ticket to the Twins game for the next night!.

The Twins have not been playing well but no matter to Jimmy, any chance to go to a professional game and he is in. We dropped them off at the game and took Thing 1 and 2 to see Cars 2, to give them some special time. Sue and Jimmy had a blast at the game however being 10, and running at full speed for three days has it's toll. The twins were down 5 to 1 after 7 innings and Jimmy was spent. He called for a pick up and we all got to have cake and special fruit kabob's Kay made for Sue's birthday.

It was a grand birthday celebration for Jimmy and Sue.

We love you both and wish everyone a great and Happy Birthday!

The Great Outdoors

2011-08-21T12:12:00.000-07:00

Just when you thought it was safe to go back into the woods the ex-pat's and their kids choose to experience Interstate State Park, s scenic and quaint campground between Taylor's Fall and St. Croix on the Minnesota and Wisconsin borders.

4 adults and eight children descended on this quiet camp for only two nights on communing with nature and extended play dates for the kids, the objective to wear the kids out and give them a summer experience every child should share. The Thorne's, Larrie, Jess and their new dog Rex, the Miller's Wade, Cayden and Wyatt, the Heihn's, Alex, Preton and Ellise along with the Loudamericans less two (Tracy and Nikki), met Wednesday afternoon set up camp and the fun began.

The kids had a blast wondering around the campground, finding and fighting over sticks, playing baseball, dodge ball and killing mosquito's at will. The bugs were a bit aggressive. That evening the kids chowed on hot dogs, corn on the cob and sugar laced drinks. the adults on the other hand created an awesome salmon feast over the wood fire, it was inspiring. the kids were having so much fun the ranger only had to come three times to tell them to quiet down. State Parks have a couple of their rules backwards one being no alcohol is allowed, which we all know means ,do not get caught, however if they really wanted to enforce quiet hours from 10:00 Pm- 8:00 AM they would ban any sugar based children's refreshments.
Thursday was spent across the boarder in Wisconsin swimming in the swimming hole, Minnesota bans swimming because of veracious whirlpools, drop offs and man eating mosquitoes. We packed a picnic lunch, fishing polls, as boundary waters are fair game, swim toys and such and spent the whole day there. The fishing was tough, but we managed a blue gill, a fish landed is a fish landed, so we did not get skunked.

Thursday night was a bit more subdued we had KFC, smore's and a camp fire with lights out at 9:30. We packed up Friday morning and managed to hit the road back home. the group as usual got along great and we have planned a fall camping trip......

Another childhood rite of passage - PASSED!

2011-08-09T14:33:00.000-07:00

Billy is having an incredible summer and year when it comes to "ticking off" childhood rites of passage - learning to read, losing teeth and now, the monster of them all?! ..... NO TRAINING WHEELS:)
We have been trying to convince him, all summer, that he can do this ... ride a two-wheeler. To no avail. He believed that he could "go faster" with the training wheels on (and it IS all about speed, isn't it?!) Kay even joined forces with us...."if you THINK you can do it, you can DO it". Overall a great life philosophy but we ARE a bit concerned that its her philosophy already at an early age 8. She could get seriously hurt.

After all our biking in the Netherlands and being my navigator/turn signaler, he must have convinced himself to give it a go.
Sunday we grabbed his bike and headed out back to the secret spot (neighbors enclosed tennis court) for some lessons. He was FABULOUS! He was riding a two wheeler after the 1st 2 minutes. He learned to stop in the 1st 5 minutes, able to turn left in the 1st 10 min's. Turning right and starting without help were a bit of an issue, but he was HOOKED. He insisted on riding his bike all night and we had to drag him in at 8:30pm with promises of a bike ride on Monday.

Monday night, he's bugging me to go with him for HOURS...I finally acquiesce and we are off for a 20 min bike around the neighborhood. Now, he can start without help and is figuring out how to turn right. He even has visions of motocross and racing in his future. He "wishes he had a big bike and could go with me on really long rides. This is SO fun!". We stopped by all the neighbors houses to show off and I have to admit, he rides like a pro.

Ahhh...our little motor head.
You are awesome Billy!

KCC - otherwise known as the "best" week of the summer

2011-08-08T08:50:00.000-07:00

Last week was, what is known around our house as...the BEST week of the summer. Korean Culture Camp.
The kids wait all year for camp, they count down and are in heaven all week. They were too excited to sleep on Sunday night and Jimmy even told us "I'd trade Christmas and my birthday if I could go to KCC ALL year long!"

What's all the excitement? KCC is a camp full of their friends and kids just like them. 97% of the kids are Korean, either adopted from Korea or children from parents who were adopted from Korea, so they have families that dont necessary look like them. They have 2 cultures and share a similar history. (The 3% of the kids that arent Korean? blondies that are their siblings:)).

This year, over 500 people were at camp, 350+ campers and 150+ helpers. This camp has been running for 30+ years and many of the kids that attend are 2nd generation. VERY cool.

They get to spend the week learning about Korean cooking, culture, language, Tae Kwon Do, dancing, food and what it means to be adopted. They even take self esteem class (Jimmy's favorite class) and play baseball at every "recess".

Lunch everyday is a hysterical event. Tom is 1 of the 2 main cooks and volunteers his time for the whole week. They go through an amazing amount of sugar, soy sauce, garlic and hot pepper. Tracy volunteers in the kitchen on Wednesday and its fun to see the kids come thorugh the line with Korean food stacked HIGH on their plate AND they come back for seconds. Easily, lunch is the favorite part of the day and thanks to the planning of the kitchen staff, all leftovers can be brought home by the kitchen volunteers. We now have a freezer full of spicy meat, yum!

Its also a great week to reconnect with the families that we met when we were going through the adptions of each of the kids. We see friends we only see 1 time/year and even have friends come in for their annual pilgrimage from NY. Its sort of like an annual reunion of your birthing class participants. The kids share an amazing connection as do the adults.

The Netherlands - WOW!

2011-08-03T14:46:00.000-07:00

We spent 10 days in the Netherlands and have totally fallen in love with it! Kay wants to live there when she grows up. The people, the flowers, the cheese, the chocolate, the biking, the vibe...you name it, its a very cool place we had a WONDERFUL time.

We landed in Amsterdam and were met by Annemieks parents, Maria and Andre. They were EXTREMELY gracious hosts; showing us how to buy train tickets, reserved us and helped us pick up our bikes and basically insuring we got to the place we were staying safe and sound. This is a god send after 10+ hours of air travel with 3 kids!

We walked to a very yummy restaurant for dinner. Kay proceeded to fall asleep in her food and Billy was begging to go to bed. Needless to say, we were all exhausted but felt like we needed to stay up until at least the sunset. Well....That's not until 10:15pm. YIKES!

We made plans to meet Andre at the train station the next morning, he gave us a biking tour of the city, including important landmarks like the grocery store, the bus station, his apartment (where Annemiek and Wendy would be staying, his summer house, and Erick's home (where the reception would be). It was a great way to get a lay of the land. We biked all over, even taking a bike ferry from one side of the canal to the other. They treated us to a nice relaxing lunch of bread, cheese, fresh tomatoes, chocolate spread, apples, etc. Yum!

Bike Ferry

Andre and Maria at their summer home

We headed back to our place and noticed a WaterSport about 2 blocks from us. What is that?!

the kids were intrigued and so were we. It is a series of canals for swimming that have a zip line, rope bridge and rafts that you can "pole" around. The kids were hooked. We spent most of the evening playing in the water and getting our "thrills" on the zip line.

Kay and Jimmy doing Tarzan and Jane on the zip line

A crowd of kids patiently (not) waiting for their turn on the zip line

Jimmy having a gas on the zip line

It was nice to spend the 1st day close to "home". Home was a dormitory type townhouse that could be opened or closed with the adjacent unit. It was concert construction with tile floor, a propane stove, dorm fridge and NO decorations at all. It really reminded us of our place in India; basic but really all we needed. We even had a thatched roof! (which sounded cool in the rain). It is situated on a camp ground that had a HUGE green open space, trampoline, climbing pole and tons of kids and families. There were hiking cabins, RV's and tents. Like in the US, the campers were friendly and we soon had friends. Natalie and her son Louis are French and it was Natalie's 10th visit to Leiden and this camp ground. Louis (her son) was 7 and didn't speak a lick of English, didn't matter though, the kids were fast friends and played together 5 nights in a row. We had great conversation with Natalie on politics, education, family, etc.

Our place

Thursday we decided to get adventurous and took the train into Amsterdam. Leiden is about 30 miles south east of Amsterdam, and once you were at the train station, only about a 25 minute train ride. VERY easy and fun. Our main goal was the Amsterdam zoo and the Van Gogh museum. We were NOT disappointed.

The zoo is in the heart of the city and is how I imagine New York's zoo, the whole city has grown around it and its this beautiful old zoo. And....the best? They had 5 new babies born this spring! That seems amazing to me, you don't hear of that many new babies in 1 year. They had a baby elephant, gorilla, seal, giraffe and lion.

The baby elephant

We headed to the Van Gogh museum, I was a bit concerned about the kids interest, but they really got into it. The museum is cool in that it's set up by year, so as you walk through, you can really see how he grew and developed as an artist. What's even more amazing is that he didn't decide to become an artist until he was 29 and died at 37 (I think I have my ages right). When he died, he had left over 900 paintings and 1000+ sketches. That's just crazy! (pun intended).

We then started wandering around Amsterdam, its a really cool city. The kids had their 1st taste of gelato and they are hooked!

We got home late, but not too late for a glass of wine with Natalie and a jump on the tramp with Louis:)

Jimmy in front of the I Amsterdam sign:)

Interesting signs we saw during our walk

Friday we decided to try the bus system, bought ourselves a "busser" (family bus pass that lets you ride all day) and headed to Katwijk. Katwijk is a small sea side town. It sits on the North Sea and while the day wasn't very nice, Jimmy went straight into the water. (it was about 65 degrees and the rest of us had sweatshirts on). We meant to go to the Space Expo, but it closed at 5pm and we missed that small type (too much time on the beach)

Jimmy in his element

The beach board with all the conditions

Billy trying to stay warm but enthralled with the sand and shells

Kay cartwheeled through the Netherlands

Our 2nd taste of gelato:)

Since we missed the Space Expo timing, we headed back to Leiden and decided to catch the Windmill museum (De Valk). Billy walked in, took a look around and promptly declared "oh, I know how this works! Look Jimmy, the blades turn, which turns this pole, which turns this mill and grinds the wheat. I get this!" Our little engineer:) As an aside, we counted windmills during our trip. Total count? 37.

De Valk

View of Leiden from the top of De Valk

Billy in his element

A photo of us with Natalie and Louis
Too bad we didn't have any fun with them!

The kids on the "tramp". It was a nightly activity and allowed us to meet Louis, Alex, Reinke, Aston and JJ. Billy and Kay learned to do front flips and they made up a game called "hot dog" and "mama". Can't say I really understand the rules, but they all did. Tom and I met Natalie, Linda and Marianne. It really is nice to compare travel notes over a glass of wine with other adults. Especially like minded adults with kids!

Saturday we decided to stay in town to see the farmers market and take a walking tour of Leiden. Leiden is the birthplace of Rembrandt, the oldest university in the Netherlands (alma mater Rene Descartes) and the port the pilgrims left from for the new world. There are tons of canals, walk ways, bike paths and shops. There are also over 40 poems written on the sides of buildings in 40 languages. The town is over 500 years old and has a rich history. VERY cool.

We met Wendy for lunch and saw the Burcht (old fort), Pieterkerk church (church of the pilgrims) and tried fresh herring with onions (yum!). Wendy needed to leave for wedding prep "stuff" so we decided to ride our bikes down to Zoeterwoude Dorp. Its a small city about 3 miles south east of Leiden, it was a nice bike ride, but since everything in the Netherlands seems to close at 5pm, unfortunately, there wasn't much to see. The kids were good sports though!

Another aside, we rode bikes EVERYWHERE! Tom and I each had a kids seat on our bikes for Billy/Kay and Jimmy had his own bike, Jimmy did an amazing job! Every street has an accompanying bike lane and we saw more bikes than cars. EVERYONE rides: grandparents, new parents with babies, women in short skirts and heals, kids, you name it. Even the stop lights had a separate light for cars, bikes and people. AND, bikes ALWAYS have the right of way...I loved it!

City Hall, the place of the wedding and established in the late 1600's.

Sunday was the only day that was a bust. It rained ALL DAY!. Not a mist or a drizzle, but a true all day down pour. We started to go stir crazy about 3pm, so we decided to get on our bikes and find the indoor pool Natalie had told us about. We got horribly lost and ended riding in the down pour for 90 minutes. We were all soaked to the skin but at least we had worn ourselves out!

The weather while we were there was exactly my favorite kind of weather. Low 70's, high 60's, slightly cloudy, light drizzle everyday followed by sun. You could wear jeans and short sleeve shirt or a sweatshirt and shorts. You could ride or walk all day and not get sweaty.
Red wine and coffee tasted equally good at the end of each day.

Monday we were off for adventure again. We got a busser and headed to Den Haag. Den Haag is the center of the royalty and Parliament. Its a cool city on the North Sea and has impressive palaces, courthouse, museums and parks. Of course, on Mondays all museums are closed, but we learned a lot just walking around and reading plaques. It was the only day we indulged in fast food (KFC and McD's) and the kids were in heaven. We did find an aquarium that was open and headed for that. Always fun to see fish, eels, sharks and manta rays.

There is art in all the parks in Den Haag

Petting "zoo" in the aquarium

Billy's "bike rack" (see the below blog)

Tuesday was the day before the wedding and we thought we'd better stay close in case Wendy and Annemiek needed anything. We also had to move out of our "townhouse" and into a hiking cabin on the grounds. It was nice but smaller. Very cozy. We met Wendy, Cate and Laurie for lunch on the cannal (and I had my covetted beer at an outside cafe). Then it was off for a cannal boat tour of the city.

De Valk from the bridge before our boat tour

On the canal tour

Then, it was back to our place, more tramp and Kay decided to try and scale the pole. She must have tried 60 times and got WAY further than ANY of the boys.

Kay in her element

Wednesday was the wedding (see below for ALL the details:)

Thursday was our last full and day we decided to hit the beach. We rode our bikes the 10km to Katwijk again and spent the FULL day on the beach. We were going to try for the Space Expo again, but it was WAY too nice. We rented a little cabana, plopped down in our chairs and took turns taking naps. Jimmy swam in the waves for hours and Kay & Billy played in the sand. It was by far the nicest day of the whole trip. Beautiful!

The beach with all the holiday "go-ers"

Kay burying Jimmy

Billy digging his own grave - actually, he did dig a hole that he could crawl into.

Since most activities close by 5pm and the sun doesnt go down until after 10pm, we found ourselves with LOTS of family time. Between the trampoline, climbing poles and socializing, we also found time to teach Kay and Billy how to play solitaire. That's an interesting endevor if you ever should partake. The picked it up and now beg to play all the time

Breakfast in our hiking cabin

Our hiking cabin

It was a wonderful trip in so many ways. It was great to really spend time in 1 place and get to know the people, the culture and the daily habits. Thank god we werent in a hotel driving each other up the walls! We'd recommend this trip to ANYONE. A perfect vacation:)

7/27/2011 - Wendy & Annemiek - Perfection

2011-08-01T14:47:00.000-07:00

We thought we'd start our vacation blog entries with the REASON for the visit - the wedding and marriage of Wendy & Annemiek:)

It was a gorgeous day, a beautiful wedding, a joyful crowd and a serene, happy and celebrated couple.

Wendy and Annemiek met through their love of biking and their support of causes like AIDS, Breast Cancer and MS through their biking efforts. That, and given they were getting married in Annemiek's hometown of Leiden - The Netherlands (biking capital of the world), its no surprise that biking played a central theme of the day.

The 1st order of events? Cake & tea at Brian and Jeroen's home. A small group of family and friends showed up at 1:30pm for a "surprise" pre-wedding gathering. Brian & Jeroen's home is a reconditioned "row house" on one of the main canals in town. Its gorgeously modern and was the perfect place to start the festivities. Upon arriving everyone was asked to pick out and where a bicycle pin from either Kay or Billy and Femke (AM's niece). Jimmy was working the room with the guest book and everyone was eye-ing the gorgeous chocolate cake. The brides arrived on bike with Andre (AM's father) and it was fun to give hugs and meet all the people that are important in Wendy & AM's life. The highlight of the tea? Billy lost his 4th tooth, what an auspicious start to the day! (he lost the tooth directly above the current lost tooth he has, in the Netherlands, this is calling having a "bike rack" - cute).

At 2:45, the group rallied on their bikes and everyone bike caravanned to the court house for pictures and the wedding. The courthouse dates back to the late 1600's and its wonderful architecture, very grand and formal. It sits on a courtyard that overlooks the main canal, a perfect setting for a wedding. Kay walked Wendy down the aisle and Femca walked Annemiek. Billy was ring bearer and Tom & Eric (Annemiek's brother) both gave a speech. I was a witness along with Petra, Kurt and Cate, a feat that entailed signing the registry and office marriage license. The woman who presided over the wedding also had married Brian and Jeroen so she was very personable and did a nice job of bringing warm, humor and formality to the occasion. It was a shining success and both Wendy and Annemiek had smiles on their faces the WHOLE time. (we dont have any photos of this part as only the official wedding photographer was allowed to snap photos. We'll try to secure some from W & AM when they are back from their honeymoon and will add them later.)

Post the wedding, Jimmy circulated once more with the guest book and then the brides led the bike caravan to the reception. HOWEVER, this time it was on a tandem bike for 2 that was heavily decorated by AM's nieces for the occasion. I will say, this got a TON of attention from everyone in the square, lots of paparazzi taking photos:)

We biked about 20 min's through town to the reception - a local/organic restaurant with a garden area and food, drink, appetizers, singing and more well wishes and speeches. Kay spent her time collecting clover and making each woman at the reception their own bouquet. Billy played legos and helped Kay out. Jimmy played PSP and then warmed up to the crowd and began entertaining people with his knack for trivia. We tried bitteballs, which are small bite sized deep fried heaven. (imagine sausage, garlic, butter, mashed potatoes rolled into a ball an deep fried....Kay must have eaten 12 herself!)

From there, a small group ventured back out on our bikes, following Wendy & Annemieks lead again, to Eric's house for the dinner. We had a "walking" dinner - basically a buffet style dinner where you stand and visit. The food was AMAZING (again) and now it was time for presents, video well wishes from the states (thank you Jim F, you DID make Wendy cry:)) and the lighting of paper lanterns into the sky. It was so wonderful to relax and reflect with W & AM's close friends and family on the day. It was too perfect.

We socialized much past our bedtimes and Kay managed to get ahold of the camera and took some very candid but also very good snaps of the celebrators. She does have an artist eye!

Then, at 12:15am, it was time to head home to bed. We were 45 min's from home, on bikes, dressed up, with 3 VERY tired kids. AND...we had no idea how to get home. THANK GOD for the kindness of strangers. AM's good friends heard our dilemma and volunteered to lead us home as they live just past where we were staying. I am not sure how "true" that is, but I will say, we wouldnt have made it home without them. It was nice to bike home, in the dark peaceful streets of Leiden and have time to absorb the day.

It was a perfect day for a perfect couple and a perfect start to their married life together.

All our love to Wendy, AM and all their friends and family. Thank you SO MUCH for asking us to be a part of this day and to bear witness to your "official" start as a married couple. We feel so blessed have you in our lifes and to share these wonderful moments with you.

We love you!

T.T.J.K.B.

(And, yes, the kids really were THIS GOOD. Which... they arent letting us forget and are using as currency to get everything they want lately - ice cream sandwiches for breakfast, etc. but... they deserve it. They were wonderful!)

Radio Silence

2011-07-17T18:53:00.000-07:00

We are headed off to Leiden, in the Netherlands, to be part of Wendy and Annemieks Wedding!
The loudamericans will be quiet until around the 1st of August so check back for the details of the trip!
Love,
TTJKB

Julie, Cedric and Solomon

2011-07-15T05:49:00.000-07:00

The past week, along with Kay's birthday, Tracy's sister Julie and her two kids, Ced and Solly, arrived from Costa Rica, the first time Julie has been here in 9 years!

They arrived late Wednesday night and after collecting them from the airport and bringing them home they had something to eat and the boy's promptly fell asleep. We visited with Julie for a while and planned the next few days.

Meanwhile our kids were up at 7:00am looking for their cousins and we had to run interference until they woke up around 8:00, and thus the mayhem begins. Jimmy and Ced are the same age and are great pals. The caught up as only 9 year old can and in no time were playing PSP games, baseball in the back yard, basketball, more PSP and an occasion TV show mixed in. Solly and Bill are kindred souls and were co-creating Lego Cleations as well as having the Indy 500 on the floor in Bills room. They are also both Star Wars fanatics. Julie was treated to a 'Spa" day from Kay and looked splendid in her sky blue eye shadow and bright pink eye liner.

Tracy took Friday off work and we made a trip to the pool. The pool also has a couple of water slides which Ced and Solly though were the highlight. We spent the whole day just hanging out and doing summer cousin type things. We had a fire in the backyard, (which was intentional and not a uncontrolled burn) and cooked S'mores. The kids climbed tress and rollerbladed, rode bikes, you know summer cousin things. The kids decided on Thursday afternoon that they were going to make the basement into a sleeping fort. They dragged all their stuff downstairs and every night the five of the cuddled up and actually slept. The basement gets quite dark and much to our surprise they slept in!

Saturday, Tracy's mom and Dad arrived and we took the group over to the Dragon Boat Races in St.Paul, which also featured kiosks of different Asian arts, crafts and food. The festival was more local vendors trying to get your e-mail id, however we watched a Martial arts exhibition which featured a couple of the instructor's from Korea Camp, and of course Jimmy knew them by name. We wandered around the kids collected bags of candy, just like Halloween. After we had an impromptu baseball game at the park (which after 3 innings was called due to excessive heat... taken literally to mean the kids were done).

Julie is an awesome masseuse and knows several different types and both Tracy and I were gifted with an hour of relaxation each.

Then, the mayhem of Kay's birthday ensued (as you can read below) and they were off for Michigan to see our other sister.

It was SO fun to be able to hang out, play and just be together with family.

Ah.....summer....:)

Happy 8th Birthday Kay

2011-07-12T11:09:00.001-07:00

Sunday July 10th at 4:30 in the afternoon, the universe felt a tremendous void as all the energy was focused on the Pook-a-Rook turning 8, YIKES.

In the days prior to her birthday Kay would wake up, look around and say, "how many more days 'till my birthday?" Kay invited several friends from school as well as her cousins Cedric and Solomon (Julie's kids - watch for another blog on the subject), and of course her brothers. The plan: a dog cupcake theme along with make up and art. The girls arrived and proceeded to run from on event to the other without really finishing anything BUT having a blast.

The menu was hand picked by Kay: Jimmy John's subs, thinny chips and pickles as well as the dog themed cupcake/cake a combination cake and pull away cupcakes, a kids dream come true.

The meal was a success and then it was time for the main attraction, the presents. Kay received a great deal of awesome gifts and was very blessed. She had her picture taken with each gift giver and thanked them, it was very cute.

The next activity, the cupcake shape Pinata. YES, a giant cupcake doubling as a Pinata complete with candy gently stuffed inside by the birthday girl herself. Kay struck first but the Pinata held firm, several kids later and Jimmy whacked it a couple times, to no avail. Sam connected with a home run hit however the Pinata fell but did not open. While the Pinata lay helpless and inviting on the ground Solomon brought forth the final blow causing a feeding frenzy and yelps of victory from the crowd! Luckily no one was hurt by a stray bat!

Kay was blessed with several guest appearances at her birthday, her Godfather Mike and son Jack arrived early to spend time with her and give her an incredible necklace Libby, Mike's wife, made out of coins from all the places Kay has lived. Karen and Jeff arrived as did both sets of Grandparents. She was all smiles and just thrilled with all the special attention.

On Saturday night when we were asking her about her favorite part of being 7, she said "learning to ride my bike without training wheels". That's just 1 example of how much she has learned and grown. She amazes us with her creativity, gymnastics skills, fearless approach to live, independence, perseverance and ability to work hard. She's passionate and very much her own person.

Happy Birthday Kay! WE LOVE YOU!

We bless you and we are blessed by you being here!

Happy Gotcha Day Billy!

2011-07-05T06:52:00.000-07:00

Today is Billy's Gotcha Day - 6 years ago today (7/5), he came home from Korea to be part of our forever family. We are SO blessed that he has loving birth and foster parents AND that these parents loved him so much that they made incredibly hard decisions so that he could have a life in which he would thrive. I cant even imagine the courage, heartbreak and selflessness that went into those decisions. We are SO GRATEFUL!

Billy has had another banner year. Some major accomplishments:
~ He has learned to read! He continues to be a total book worm and given a choice of just about anything, will always pick reading a book with Mom or Dad. Its fun to read with him as he can read about 1/2 of the book himself.

~ He is a major Legos "fan" and went to Lego camp last week. Upon arrive, and being the youngest kid in the camp, the instructor said "Do you like Lego's?" Billy's reply "This IS Lego camp, right?" The instructor countered with "Do you have Lego's at home?" Billy's response, dripping with sarcasm "Well, yeah, (duh) I'm a big fan, that's why I'm at camp". He can spend HOURS in his room making creations (cleations in Billy speak).

~ He is still our dog whisperer and loves any dog that comes in his path but Nikki is his soul mate, they spend hours watching TV and cuddling. Thank God Nikki is mellow enough to not mind being used as a Hot Wheel track. Which brings me to...

~ Hot Wheels, Cars, Motorcycles, Submarines, Planes , Helicopters...basically get Billy's attention with anything that has an engine and you have him hooked. He's very curious how they work and I think he'll be ready to change the oil in our car within the year.
Billy is still a big hugger and loves to tell us how much he loves us.

Billy is also a huge Clemson fan!

We love you Billy Baloo!! More than the whole universe:)

Jimmy's First Concert in a real band

2011-07-03T08:30:00.000-07:00

Many of you now the passion that Jimmy has for music and especially for the drums. As a young lad he had always wanted to play the drums and his desire has never waived. He took piano for two years starting at the age of 3 and half, from a Russian Theorist, and learned piano so he could then learn drums, and here we are at age 9 a master drummer.

Jimmy saw a poster last year at one of his drum classes talking about Rock Band Camp and he immediately wanted to sign up, the problem, the camps are for kids age 12 and up. Jimmy thought these were 'not fair' rules and protested. Then this year we found a camp, The West Bank School of Rock, this camp was for 12-18 year olds. There was an intake interview, and a discussion with Jimmy's drum teacher who asked 'what is the focus of this camp?', and he replied that 'Jimmy already knows all of that and he is playing several years ahead of his age', and with that he was in!

The camp was one week, 5 hours a day and very focused. The first night Jimmy came home somewhat glassy eyed stating, ' wow I am tired it is hard playing drums and learning songs all day'. He had homework, which was to look up the drums notes for the song Purple Haze by Jimi Hendricks and listen to the song. He was a little concerned when looking at the sheet music stating " This is pretty detailed and there are some hard transitions", it looked like Greek to us. The next day we asked him if he needed the sheet music to bring to camp, " NoI looked at it and already know the notes, I got it".

The last night was the concert with his new band mates and in front of an audience, on the way to the show he told Tracy, 'I am not sure I can do this and my stomach hurts'.

He knocked it out of the park. His band mates were 17, 15, and 13 and they all refused to sing or talk so Jimmy ended up introducing the whole band. He was even the only one brave enough to try and sing. He wasnt sure he wanted to or even could do it but then proclaimed, 'what the heck, I'll give it a try'. Again, he blew it away. They named their band Crush and it leans heavy towards heavy metal.

The singer is his band instructor and what his facial expressions, you can tell when he makes it through a tough part and when he's in the groove and having a great time.

The Play List:
Purple Haze - Jimi Hendrix
What a Wonderful World - Joey Ramone
Blues Fusion - original composition by Crush
Hunk of Burning Love - Elvis Presley

And for an encore...
Back in Black - AC/DC

We are really excited for him and how much he learned in a week. We are proud of him and hope that he's proud of himself, he should be!!

Take a look:)

www.youtube.com/watch?v=8VmpSw-0Zew

Boys of Summer

2011-06-29T10:22:00.000-07:00

Baseball, who knew how many rain delays, cancellations and the like we would have to endure this year, crazy.

The Marlins came together as a team early this Spring and right out of the gate they were 2 and 0, slipping as the season slowly dragged on to the depths of the standings... a disappointing 2 and 10. Not to worry with Jimmy on the team the Marlins team spirit did not waiver. The other parents giving Jimmy high praise as he spurred the team onward, " Who are we, We are the Marlin's, give me M...., " the team hung in there.

The season dragged on like the winter and there was a game in late May where the temp at game time was 34 degrees! The kids pitching came out of the dirt and started to find the catchers glove, the boy's opened their eye's and the ball met the bat, the pop fly and ground ball found the mitt and the boy's slowed down and there throws found the mark, the times they were a changing!

The Marlins finished , 4 and 10 and entered the playoffs as a long shot. The playoffs were two fold one inner league play and the other city league play. The Marlins went down swinging in the first round of inner league play but they were not discouraged. They came back in the first round of city league play and took the first game away from St. Louis Park with a well deserved forfeit, we were on the way!

Game two was a hard fought battle over Hopkins. The game tied at 2 a piece the Marlins, the home team were up in the bottom of the second, 1 out runners on first and second, next up Jimmy Murphy. He stepped into the box look around squared up and ball one. Jimmy looked down the pitcher, strike one, not swayed Jimmy stepped back in, let out a deep breath raised his bat, SMACK, the ball flew over the right fielders head two runs score Jimmy (all teeth), a stand up triple, all was well in kid-dom. The Marlins went on from there to win 12 to 3 and were all of a sudden 2 and o !
Game three was played against the Hamel Heat, a name derived no doubt from the velocity of there two pitchers. Now not to complain because the boy's played well, however in the city league play the rules and ages are a bit different our team is made up of 9 and 10 year old, where the Hamel rules call for 10-12 years, that said the battle was on. The Heat was up 10 to 1 after, after 5 it was 11 to 6. Now in the rules a team can get no more than 5 runs an inning, which means if you are behind by more than 5 going into the 6 inning or your last at bat, game over. Which was the fate that befell the Marlin and brought an end to the season.

The boy's will be celebrating the season with a party at our house.

Great season " Way to Go Marlins !"

Happy Fathers Day Tom!!

2011-06-25T12:09:00.000-07:00

Not only has Tom had an incredible week (as you can see from the fishing and rock concert blog) he has had an incredible year.

He's worked hard to insure the kids are active, happy and healthy. Thanks to him, they are able to be involved in scouts, football, basketball, baseball, gymnastics, piano, drum, rock camp, Korean camp and all the plethera of play dates that they get invited on. He's a fixture at their school and the 1st parent the teachers call for field trips, extra supplies or a helping hand.

He's been active on the board of the Gift of Adoption Fund which had their cornerstone golf tournament on Thursday. This year, thanks to Tom's efforts, they matched the $'s they had raised in the past, the amazing part? This was the 1st year they DIDNT have a major sponsor, Tom drummed it up all on his own.

He's dedicated time and his heart to deep personal reflection and I believe we are in the best place we have ever been as a couple. He's exploring who he is, who shaped him, who he wants to be and most importantly, how he's going to get there. Part of this included making a donation to a local non-profit in honor of his Uncle Don.

What's in store the next year?

Our trip to the Netherlands for Wendy & Annemeik's wedding! Tom has been asked to speak at the wedding and is taking his role very seriously (as he should, he was asked to represent Wendy's "family" :).

He is exploring getting back into the work force and trying to figure out how to combine his love of sales and people with his desire to work in non-profit.

Continuing to be involved and the main support for the kids busy lifes, thats a full time job in itself!

We celebrated Tom and all he is on Fathers Day. It was a day out of Americana, a family bike ride to Dairy Queen, a pick up baseball game in the backyard (Jimmy & Billy beating Jim Fellows and Tom handily - Kay sat out due to a pitch to the face) and pork chops (and applesauce) on the grill.

Happy Fathers Day Tom, you are a wonderful husband, partner and father.

We love you!

Jimmy Live

2011-06-24T20:07:00.000-07:00

This is just a quick post of one of the songs Jimmy learned and performed at Band Camp. We will post the whole show with clearer video as soon as we find the cable to connect the camcorder to the computer.

Lake Vermillion here we come!

2011-06-18T14:05:00.000-07:00

It is that time of year again to get the boat tuned up, sort through tackle, life jackets, flashlights and get ready to catch fish, have fun and stay up late!!

The annual fishing trip took a couple of turns this year. First off all it was just Carl and his kids, his friend Jim and the Loudamericans, minus one. That would be the second turn off events as I brought all three kids for the first time, what was I thinking?! To tell the truth I was thinking how fun it would be to have the kids on the water, catching fish, and having a great time.

Tracy left on Friday for the MS 150, (previous blog) while the kids and I packed the boat and car. Carl and his group arrived late Friday night and we had a blast catching up and talking trash about big fish and more big fish. They left early Saturday morning while we ran around and got Kay to her friends birthday/ sleepover, which is why we did not leave until Sunday.

Sunday we set out and I was treated to my first shock of the trip which was how well the kids 'where' and 'how much fun ' we were to have. We got along and the trip which is about 5 hours, went by fast as Kay pointed out, " they say time flies when you are having fun". The cabin is a 2.5 room, one bathroom small kitchen type place and if you have been " up north" before you will understand what I mean when I say the floor was not level, but no mind, there was a dock a lake and that means running and jumping. Now most people like lakes and to swim in them, however there are usually a guideline or two, such as the water needs to be warm and perhaps you need a way out of the water after jumping in, not Jimmy. Right off the dock 62 degree water and he was gone before I even had the car unpacked. Turns out it was a great idea to bring all the kids because while one is not helping the other two are. Kay and Billy, Thing 1 & Thing 2, helped unload the car, make the beds and put away the food, nice!

Carl and the boy's had caught a few fish and so we headed off to an island for a Sunday night fish fry, it was awesome. Johnny started a fire with a wooden bow and a rock and made the fire the old fashion way which we all thought was super cool. Swimming in the lake followed by a bonfire and then bed, it was a great day. Carl and Kay bonded over a can of sardines and they both were in sardine heaven!

The kids spent most of the time in the boat telling stories, making up songs ( see below) and talking about how cool it was to go super fast in the boat. We had a picnic in the boat and even decided that since the fish were not biting it would be cool to jump in and swim instead, so we did. There is a great of fun and bonding to be had on a fishing trip even if the trip does not include catching fish as Billy said, "it is not about how many fish you catch it is about how much fun we had!"

The last night was a full on bonfire complete with fireworks, roman candles and a few (mostly) controlled 'real' fireworks which the kids loved. We had an awesome time with Carl, Jim and the boys and we did manage to catch and bring home enough fish for a fish fry for Mommy's birthday. I was hard pressed to drag Kay out of the boat and old Bill spent his spare time in the boat helping to row while Jimmy was content to watch his bobber. I think it was the best trip I have had in a long time and I am very proud of the kids attitude and demeanor on the trip.

As we said we caught enough fish to fry for Tracy's b-day, more to come!

Another year...another 150 miles:)

2011-06-13T13:04:00.000-07:00

Well, we did it! Wendy and I, along with 80 of our team mates finished, whew!!

Overall it was a record breaking year:

~ The Target team grew from 10 to 80 riders (thats 12,000 miles!)

~ The Target team raised over $40,000 of MS

~ The ride raised over $2.7 MILLION

~ I raised $2,305 (well over my goal of $2,000, I might have to up my goal next year!

~ I was part of Club 150 - top fundraisers from 2010

The weather was PERFECT! High 50's on Saturday, overcast with a slight tail wind. We started the day at 6:00am (butts on bikes) and raced through the day at an average of 17 mph. We finished by Noon and were massaged, showered, tented and ready to celebrate with our team mates at the Target tent. Hamburgers, brats, Bocca burgers, Archer farms snacks and beer. Its was ALL good. Annemeik and Lucy even came to cheer us on:)

Sunday started out in a similar fashion at 6:20am (butts on bikes), but the temp quickly started to rise and the head wind picked up. It was lows 70's by 9am, with a 5-10 mph headwind and I was getting nervous (nothing worse than riding your bike in the blazing sun into a headwind) but... the clouds prevailed, it cooled down (high 60's) and I managed to ride directly behind Wendy the whole way (thus avoiding the wind). You might want to ask her how her ride was, mine was manageable thanks to her! We averaged 15-16 mph and finished about 12:15pm, not bad for a couple of girls in their 40's!!

A few interesting side notes of the weekend:

~ Jan (friend of Wendy's from church) drove us up to Duluth and we had our traditional 'Lil Angies mexican feista with Dick and Cathy. THANK YOU JAN!!

~ Our latest tradition is to count all the white cement polar bear lawn ornaments as we ride through White Bear Lake (last leg of the ride before the finish). This year we got to 60! keep in mind, we counted 60 polar bears in just 7 miles. Makes you wonder....

~ We met someone that was riding their 30th MS 150, that's dedication!

~ We saw riders of past years and people we know through "friends of friends", pretty amazing when you consider there are 3,900 riders and 2,000 volunteers.

Thank you for ALL your good vibes, dances to the weather gods, insipiration, support, money and friendship. You make it ALL worth it!!

It's the end of school and I know it

2011-06-08T08:13:00.000-07:00

And I feel fine, really.

Otherwise known as...104 days of summer vacation ....

Bonus points to anyone that can name those 2 songs:)

The end of school this year was celebrated with a Paris Day, a sing a long, a trip or two to the zoo, Girl Scouts in a parade, and dinner at Mirror of Korea!!!

Billy ended school this year with a class singing performance just shy of Grammy caliber. The Kindergartner's worked with Mr. Barry to produce several great songs and dance numbers which were quite cute ( see video below). Bill then headed to the zoo for a day with his classmates and his Dad in tow. The kids saw dolphins, ants, turtles and even rode on the monorail, quite "awesome" according to Bill. His favorite "animal" the eel - eewww!!

So it is with great pride that we announce Billy Murphy is now a first grader!!! Watch out Mrs VanBatavia!

Way to go Bill!!

Kay was very busy finishing up school this year with girl scouts, a trip to the zoo and more girl scouts. Kay and her classmates did a rerun of Billy's zoo trip and of course they had fun. It was a busy group so much so we missed the dolphin show however we managed to see most of the zoo and stay out of the water!

Kay had a blast with the girl scouts this year making several badges and carrying the flag in the Golden Valley "Day" Parade. All smiles and in the rain! She worked very hard this year and with great accomplishment she is doing great in reading and math!! So now Kay bids a fond farewell to the likes of grade 2 and embraces all that it means to be a 3rd grader! We are proud of you Kay, well done.

As the song goes " He went to Paris looking for answers to questions, that bothered him so".... (another bonus point on that song) Jimmy and the 3rd graders ended with the 20th Annual Paris Day, an what a day, or I should say couple of weeks it was. The class created a Paris Style Restaurant, which he was, Mater D' complete with a full course menu, one item to note on the menu, Milk $5.00 and Wine $4:00, it is France after all.

The kids put on a fashion show, had a Tour de France with their bikes in the bus lot, played with stilts and bouche ball and the parents turned the cafeteria into a sidewalk Paris market, complete with a mime, great fun! So at 4:05 on June 3rd Jimmy announced " I am now a 4th grader", Way to go Jimmy and with full marks! We are proud of you!

We made a trip to Mirror of Korea to celebrate with Tracy's Aunt Lynn and her son, Tracy's cousin Dan, his wife Sarah and their kids Lola and Astrid. We visited and the kids ate once again like it was their last meal. We always have fun when we get together with them and this time was no exception, it was the perfect ending of school and beginning to the summer. Thanks to them for a great time.

So speaking of Summer have a great one and more to follow......

Aunt Sue here we come!

2011-06-07T06:04:00.001-07:00

Memorial Day brings many traditions and perhaps a new one for the Loudamericans, a trip to Green Bay. May people may not place Green Bay Wisconsin on the top of their must see places however it has quite a bit to offer and, most importantly, Aunt Sue is there!

Friday afternoon was Paris days for Jimmy (more on that in the next blog) so we had to wait until the send of the school day to head out. We loaded the car, plus Nikki, picked the kids up promptly at 4:00 and left directly for Aunt Sue's. We actually made great time and managed to make it to Wausau for dinner. PSA: We have over the years offered several public service announcements via the blog and the experience and information in the PSA is a direct reflection of The Loudamericans. In Wausau there is a Wendy's which you must avoid at all costs, if fast food is what you are after. Twice we have "made great time" and stopped here for dinner, for some reason the kids like Wendy's, and each time it was well over an hour before getting back into the car! You know those fast food places where they have to few employees, no real manager to complain to and everyone seems to be oblivious to the line forming at the register and then they look afraid to ask for you order, beware!

We reached Sue's around 10:00 and she was very happy to see us. The kids gave her big hugs and kisses and even Nikki was excited! Being that we were in the car for so long we let the kids watch some old Packer Highlight films and caught up with Sue while we unloaded and made the plans for the weekend.

Saturday was Bay Beach, a circa late 60's amusement park complete with bumper cars, giant slide, a family of ducks waddling around and tickets for each ride, 25 cents! We spent $10.00 for tickets and were ready to go. Kay was fearless and finally an amusement park that had rides she was tall enough to go on, and go on them she did. Sue was brave enough to follow Kay onto the spinning box ride (the video is below). The boys were big into bumper cars, the giant slide and the tilt a whirl, ("I got on it last night and my shirt got caught, and it kept me spinning Sandy, didn't think I would ever get off"... sorry old Bruce Springsteen lyric seqway). We packed a lunch and sat by the park and had a nice picnic complete with cheddar cheese and pretzel's, AHHHH... Wisconsin.

That night we had a BBQ in Sue's back yard complete with burgers for the kids and an awesome salmon creation by Tracy for the adults. Billy and Kay made a "nest" at the end of Sues bed while Jimmy slept downstairs on a comfortable futon in now what is referred to " My man cave", it was a great ending to a beautiful day.

Sunday brought us to Heritage Village, which is just what is sounds like, a recreation of sorts, of an old Wisconsin fur trading post and working farm. The kids complained the whole way there (of course) and then proclaimed it "super cool". We went to a fur trading cabin/store where the people were dressed and spoke in the language of the times (which was French) except that the guy only knew how to say hello in French, "Bonjour", so Jimmy, having come of a month or so of French in preparation for Paris Day, began speaking French with the fur trader who finally admitted he knew no more French and kindly ask Jimmy to stop stealing the show. We visited a working farm complete with a chicken coop, pig sty and an old oxen, we had a blast. There was even a wedding going on, complete with a horse drawn carriage. VERY cool!

We dragged the kids out of there and headed back to Sues for yet another BBQ, more fun and laughs and of course old packer Football highlights. We all slept in on Sunday and headed to Happy Joe's for all you can eat pizza and salad. They have the BLT pizza that is out of this world as well as the traditional Wisconsin salad bar complete with bacon bits and peas, AHHHH.... Wisconsin.

Thanks you Sue for the great time and sharing Green Bay once again with the Loudamericans!

Happy Memorial Day!

Final MS 150 Training/Fundraising update

2011-06-02T07:42:00.000-07:00

Here's the 1 week count down update!!

Fundraising - going GREAT! It turns out I am in 'Club 150'. I had no idea wha that meant, Wendy looked it up and it turns out I'm 1 of the top 150 fundraisers for the event. That's cool! Thanks to all of you that made this happen! I have raised $1750 so far and have a week to go, its not to late to participate:) (hey, thats a rhyme)

Training - the weather FINALLY broke and I have been spending every extra free minute on my bike, hoping its not too late. Got in a couple long rides on our weekend to Green Bay and am planning rides after work and this weekend. Fingers crossed that it'll be enough to make the actual ride fun vs hard work. (Either way, I know we'll finish, the question now is...how sore will we be?)

Team - Our team through work is now 80+ members and we are sponsoring the finish. Should be lots of cool branded 'stuff' along with the fact that we are going to have a tent with food/beer at the half way mark. This feels like a MAJOR upgrade from what Wendy and I used to do in the beginning (steal snacks from the rest stops and wrap wine in a garbage bag in our sleeping bags). Sort of the Ritz Carlton of ride support, I'd say. Should make this year even more fun.

My next post will be an update on the ride itself.

Happy June!

Batter Up

2011-05-25T08:18:00.000-07:00

It has been quite the baseball season with lightening storms, flooding, heavy rains and even a tornado causing delays in the progress of the young players.

The season has had a few ups and downs as Jimmy and The Marlin's work their way toward the Gold League Championship in late June. This year it is no longer pitch by coach with its unlimited plate time and a series of pitches whist the young batter dreams of the fence without the worry of striking out, or walking for that matter. NO... this is Gold league where the young pitcher has a strike count and the threat of a walk, baseball!!!

Jimmy has been playing several positions and really likes third base and left field. He has a couple of developmental needs associated with each position. In his capacity to play third base he gets over excited when a ball is hit in the infield and regardless of a runner at second or not takes it upon himself to charge the ball, now this can be deemed as a positive strength, however when the ball is not in the vicinity of second base, it is an issue when third base is left unattended. Then when young James fields the ball he stops looks, has the runner by 20 plus feet, takes aim and throws a wicked throw right over the first baseman's head.

He has a keen sense of vision and with his glasses a vision some what akin to "eagle eye's" so while playing left field and a pop fly was hit in his direction he was tracking the ball when suddenly the ball bounced off his head and into the outfield. He did get the ball into the cut off man and kept the runner at first. I inquired into the error to which he responded " Dad it's Alex's fault" ( Alex is the coach) I replied " Why is it Alex's fault?" " Because he won't let me wear my hat backwards and the ball hit the bill of my hat" " Why did you not get your glove up instead of your hat?" " I couldn't get my glove up because my hat was in the way"!

Several parents have pointed out how great it is having Jimmy on the team because he is a great team player, cheers on his teammates and is seemingly unaware what a batting average is or means. Now most kids get up to bat walk into the batters box and have what can only be compared to as writers block. They stand the mesmerized by the size of the 10 year old pitcher, how fast he can pitch, and nervelessly try to wait him or her out. Meaning the kids can't pitch 3 strikes within the 7 pitch count and mostly they walk the batters, not Jim. One Parent made the comment" it is obvious that Jimmy did not come here to paint!" Jimmy is in the batting box to hit and so far he has 3 singles, two doubles and a triple, along with 2 walks and about 20 strike outs. God help us he has turned to watching old Kirby Puckett, may he rest in peace, films and is now practicing lifting his front foot up to help him drive the ball over the fence, as with all 9 year olds, he is looking for that elusive first home run.

The little league season will end with a play off and the Gold League Championship Series, Jimmy is cheering his team into the winners circle. Mostly he is having fun and saving being upset about the teams losses (they are 4 and 7) for football, great.

Touch 'em all Jimmy Murphy!

A moment of Silence

2011-05-20T11:18:00.001-07:00

We received VERY sad news yesterday. Old Dr Kim from Eastern Social Welfare Society passed away at the age of 96.

Old Dr Kim (as he was affectionately know) was the founder of our childrens adoption agency in Seoul Korea. He started the agency at the age of 60 when he retired from public service. In the 36 years of the agency, they have grown to be one of the best & world renouned agencies for orphans, special needs children, foster care programs and medical treatment. The agency as also been run by Young Dr Kim (his son) and currently his daugther, Mrs Kim.

Old Dr Kim is a prominent feature in our kids adoption story, their coming home photo albums and family "lore". Tom and I had the privledge to meet Old Dr Kim on each of our trips to Korea, meetings which included lunch, conversations about our family and even a trip to church with him.

The trip to church is one of our favorite stories. Old Dr Kim was Methodist (which I also grew up in), he helped found the church and served on their board. He helped grow the church to OVER 70,000 members. They had a 200 member choir and 2 full orchestras. The service was in Korean, but they had translators on staff that translated the service into 5 different languages that you had immediate access to via headphones. It was like attending church with your Grandpa, everyone knew and loved him and we had the best seats in the house. The best part, realizing that churches everywhere are plagued by the same problems. The announcements at the end of service focused on treats/coffee and parking issues:)

Old Dr Kim is proof of the human spirit and that 1 person really CAN make a difference. He fought in the Korean War, escaped from a North Korea prisoner of war camp, had a successful career in public service, had multiple awards and medals AND STILL after retiring at age 60, decided to follow his dream - making lives better for the children of Korea.

So, when you think that you are too old to try or start something new or to have a dream - consider that Old Dr Kim made a difference to tens of thousands of kids AFTER he retired at age 60. What is your dream and what's keeping you for realizing it?

When you think that you are "only 1 person", remember that Old Dr Kim helped create families for (again) tens of thousands of families. What are you called to do as "1 person"?

When you think you dont have the time, patience, energy, etc ... to do that which are you called to do, remember...Old Dr Kim climbed a mountain every day at 4am into his 90's to start his day in prayer and meditation for all the children waiting for families, placed in families and all the children he personally touched in his life. What can you do, every day in a small way, to make your dream a reality?

For us, we are saddened by the lose of an amazing man, one who made our family possible in a way that no one else could.

God Bless you ALL!

(Below are the website postings on Old Dr Kim)

Dr. Kim, Duk Whang1915 - 2011
On May 18, 2011, Dr. Kim, Duk Whang, the founder of Eastern Social Welfare Society, passed away at the age of 96.

A man of great vision, passion and faith, Dr. Kim devoted more than three decades of his life to caring for orphans, single mothers and children with disabilities.

At 60 years old and soon after retiring from a career with the Ministry of Health and Welfare, Dr. Kim founded ESWS in the early 1970s. There were few services in South Korea for orphans and single mothers at that time. Domestic adoption was regarded as a confidential, personal matter and only a few children were adopted in the country. There were hundreds of thousands of children abandoned in the streets, bus stations, train stations and on doorsteps until the early 1980s. Through the efforts of Dr. Kim and ESWS, attitudes changed and tens of thousands of children have had the opportunity to grow up in a loving family formed through international and domestic adoption.

Until he was no longer strong enough, Dr. Kim would go to the mountain every day at dawn to pray for the well-being of the children waiting to be adopted, for the adoptees and the adoptive families. One of the things he enjoyed most was meeting and talking with adult adoptees and their parents – their happiness showed that his prayers had been answered.

From Eastern Social Welfare Society, Inc.
Dr. Kim, Duk Whang, the founder of Eastern Social Welfare Society, has completed his natural span of life and passed away at 96 years of age on May 18, 2011.

He served the Ministry of Home Affairs as vice-minister and the Korean Overseas Development Corporation as president. Retired from public office, he has devoted his life to social welfare services. In recognition of his distinguished services, he was awarded with Dongbaek Order of Civil Merit, 5.16 National Order of Merit, and Wubong Volunteer Recognition Award.

He was a faithful Christian, who has devoted his life for the vulnerable and the socially marginalized, especially children in need. He was one of the first generation historical researchers specializing in Gando and has written various articles and books on Korean history and religion and culture.

http://www.chsfs.org/rememberingdrkim

Happy Mothers Day

2011-05-14T13:29:00.000-07:00

I must beg forgiveness for the delay in which I have posted this years Mothers Day Blog, no excuses.

This year Mom wanted to have a quiet day at home and we delivered. The day began with a nice breakfast for Mom of a banana and peanut butter and she was off, before the kids were up, for a training ride for the MS-150. The day was great and sunny and Tracy was able to get in two hours on her bike. The bike ride was followed by a yummy lunch and a walk with Nikki. The kids, especially Kay, had created some very heart felt and personal Mothers Day gifts and Kay could not wait for dinner & gift opening. Mom just HAD to open one of the masterpieces. It contained a hand-made clay pot with some type of greenery in it (not real sure what). It almost looks like she grabbed a couple of stray dandelion leaves and covered them in dirt. However the card she created is a precious:

My Mom:
By Kay:
Mom you are sweet as a rose. You are no ordnery Mom. You are a loving caring Mom that loves me. You are not a plain mom you are a charming mom. I love you for who you are no one can change that. No one can love you as much as I do.

The morning ride over Mom returned home to a nice lunch and then headed out with Nikki for a walk. We all got dinner ready and when she returned home Jimmy surprised her with an afternoon pedicure appointment. Jimmy created a beautiful gift bag and also gave Mom a cup of tea along with a gift card for one free yard mowing. He did create a tea cup out of art paper with beautiful flowers on one side and this saying on the other:
To Mom:
A cup of tea to say thank you
For all the things you've done,
And wishes that the day will bring
You happiness and fun.
Happy Mother's Day!
Love, Jimmy

Mexican fiesta was the dinner plan as it is one of Mom's favorite meals. Complete with homemade Kay style guacamole and black beans. Bill presented Mom with the a special book, The Lonely Planet Netherlands, as we are heading there this summer for a wedding, and he created a beautiful card with his smiling face in the middle of a sunflower along with,
I love you Mom
LOVE BILLY!

The kids talked with the Grandam's to wish them Happy Mother's Day and Tracy and I did to. It was great to connect with them and let them know we love them and we are blessed by them.

The kids and I are also blessed with a Mom/wife, that spends a great deal of energy giving us a special life and a happy home. Tracy is a hard working, dedicated, loving, thoughtful, charming and no ordnery Mom. We love you, we bless you and were glad you are are MOM.
Love,
Jimmy, Kay, Billy,Nikki, Tom

MS150 - Training/Fundraising Update - 30 days down, 30 to go!

2011-05-09T13:02:00.000-07:00

FINALLY, the weather broke and we had a GORGEOUS weekend! For those of you who do not live in Minnesota, 1st of all – good for you! 2nd of all let me describe April – cold (35 degrees), wet (rain/snow) and windy. NOT good biking weather. Needless to say, myself and my co-riders are off to a slow start on the training front. But, we were blessed with perfect biking weather last weekend and I got 4 hours in on my bike. Yeah! (The perfect Mothers Day gift)

From a fundraising perspective, you are all amazing and April was a GREAT month! As a reminder, my goal is $1,000 and I’m already at $855, Woo Hoo!! It’s so fun to know that even if the weather is not cooperating, my friends/family are supportive. THANK YOU!

So…I need a little more $ and a LOT more riding, but I’ll get there.

More training updates to come,
Peace!
Tracy

Billy Update

2011-04-26T17:29:00.000-07:00

Bill has been keeping himself quite busy lately, I mean with school gymnastics, reading, trips to the Library and swimming lessons. Hard to find time to sit down and talk with the ol' kindergartner but I caught up with Bill during a down moment in between Zoobumafoo and Sponge Bob and being a squirrel monkey:

Bill takes swimming lessons on Monday morning however not being able to completely read yet and having no appointment book Bill needs to consult periodically which goes something like this;

"Dad do I have swimming on this day?" "Yes Bill you do", " How do you know Dad", " Because it is Monday Bill", "Oh, thanks for telling me Dad,now let's go". He has improved steadily throughout and will move from 201 to 401 next month! 2 whole levels! We are still hoping he'll wnat to join the swim team:)

Bill can also be found on Thursday morning at the gymnastics center doing round offs into cartwheels into the wall. He is getting pretty good and loves the trampoline and the balance beam. He has his friend Jordan in class and the 2 of them are a bundle of energy. He tends to turn most of what he learns at gymnastics into break dancing moves at home. He will be performing at the end of the year program, along with the rest of his class, dates and time to be announced! Should be entertaining in more than one way.

Two or three times a week Bill hits the Library. He must have the busiest Library card of any 6 year old as he checks out 6-10 books every time along with a couple of DVDs. Bill's taste run towards fast moving automobiles and space adventures in his books and for the video portion of his selections he learns towards bugs, specifically pond relate slugs, turtles and the like, he is a 6 year old boy! He loves the pbs computer games and is a pro at the self check out.

Bill has made several new friends this year in class and is finally starting to get some play dates of his own, which are fun. He and his friends tend toward the same activities, Lego's and hot wheels, awesome. Bill has been doing a great deal of reading and brings home " books" to read to Mom and Dad. He also is a good count-er and just the other night he asked " Dad can I have some frozen peas?" (As a side note our kids have somehow been tricked into believing frozen peas are the worlds greatest snack). So in response to Bill we said "sure!" and handed him a bowl. About 10 minutes later he handed us the empty bowl and exclaimed " There were 160 peas in that bowl", "How do you know that Billy?" "I kept count"

I asked Bill " So what's next" He looked at me with determination in his eyes and stated " I need to loose these training wheels!" especially now that Kay is riding without!! Look out world!!

We are proud of you Billy and we love you!

Happy Easter!!

2011-04-26T11:57:00.000-07:00

The Bunny was exceptional this year and arrived with eggs, candy, and gum!! The bunny also brought squirt guns, kites and other outdoor goodies as spring is (sort of) here in Minnesota.

As usual Kay climbed into our bed inquiring, " Did the Bunny come?". It was two hours later when Jim and Bill climbed out of bed looking for info regarding the Bunny. Kay was losing her mind having to wait two whole hours for the boys....all the while threatening to go into their room and drag them out. Finally it was downstairs to hunt for eggs. The Bunny is quite smart and put eggs for each of the kids in a different room, leaving a note explaining who's goodies were where, also placing the eggs in the basement prohibits Nikki from getting into them, one smart Bunny. The entire hunt, 45 eggs in all last roughly 1 and a half minuets, give or take a minute. The kids were amped up and had a ball.

We had breakfast and a relaxing morning, well as relaxing as it could be, with three kids loaded up on sugar. It was a super nice day so we decided to wash the cars and the kids really got into it. Now I say super nice, it was still only 55 but the sun was out, so why not stand on a 5 gallon bucket and spray your brothers with cold water from the hose while they try to hind behind an umbrella, screaming " Do it again Kay" ...really. Only in Minnesota.

We put a turkey on the smoker and let it cook all day, got to the gym, a long bike ride, walked Nikki while Billy and Kay rode their bikes and Tom and Jimmy played one on one basketball.

We were in the process of getting dinner ready when Jimmy found the movie Titanic on TV. For those of you who follow the blog you know all about the recent trip to Iowa and the Titanic exhibit. For those who do not, long story short.... on our trip to Davenport a few weeks ago we went to the Titanic exhibit, which featured the people who travelled on the fatal voyage. When you go into the exhibit you are given a boarding pass which contains all the information about the travelers, and you get to be one of those people for the tour. The kids were enthralled with this and have been wanting to watch the movie ever since. So we "broke the rules" and moved the TV in place so we could watch the movie while we ate, the kids were very well behaved, and the dinner was fun. The only problem is that the movie is 4 hours long and it was a school night, no matter, break one rule, break em all, so we stayed up and watched the movie until it ended around 10:30. It was fun to watch after having been at the exhibit too, they kept commenting "oh that's me" "I remember ...." etc - glad they were paying attention at the museum!

That was not, however, the end. Both Kay and Jimmy had nightmares and ended up in our bed. Lesson Learned: preview movies about momunental death before you show them to your 9, 7, and 6 year olds.

The day was awesome and a very fun quiet family Easter. We hope Easter was full of love and joy for everyone.

Love,
The Loudamericans

Hello Mother Hello Father Here I am at Camp ....

2011-04-19T07:46:00.000-07:00

Yes the annual Boy Scouts camp out and spring snow storm have arrived again. This past Saturday morning we woke up to 35 degree weather along with 3 inches of fresh new fallen snow! Perfect timing as Jimmy and I were packing for the Boy Scout overnight, YIPPEE!!!

Seriously this is the second year of two years that the overnight has been plagued by snow, wind, ice and freezing temps, I mean this is the boy Scouts not Seal training. We loaded as many blankets, sleeping bags and long underwear we could carry and it was off to Baker Park, a mere 20 minutes from the house.

The group arrived at high noon, we all set up our tents, arranged them and got the beds set up and then headed off for survival training, well in a sense we went to meet the Docent whom was scheduled to spend the afternoon with us in the woods. The fella we met was one of the smarter of the group when he explained because of the weather and the impending high winds, we would have a shortened afternoon. He taught the boys how to respect the woods, leave no trace and perhaps, at least for this day, how to build a fire. Because of the high winds and potential sleet, we were allowed to use matches instead of the o' tried and true method of rubbing sticks together. I questioned this as the energy produced from rubbing the sticks together would help the numbness in my hands but I was overruled.

The session ended, no one was injured and best off all the woods remained without a trace of our presence, well done boy's!. The rest of the afternoon was spent trying to stay warm as the boy's play football. It is amazing to me as all of us were standing around watching the kids wearing all the clothes we brought, complaining about this and that and in the midst of all this there stands Jimmy in a t-shirt and a pair of jeans sweating and complaining that he is hot.

That evening for dinner each of us brought a "component" of the main meal. the goal was to get the scouts to make their own foil pack dinner and then make one for their parent. I was surprised how well this turned out and jimmy did a great job. I said to him "Hey Jim. Nice job with my foil pack", to which he replied " Come on Dad I know what you like" Wow, never knew he was paying attention. There was a program after dinner called the Arrow of Light, which is a ceremony honoring the Webelo's as they transition to Boy Scouts, due to the highly secretive aspect of the scouts no further information regarding the ceremony can be revealed.

It was lights out and heavy wind on, as we settled into our tents to brace the long night of cold temps and shivering kids. I noticed in the middle of the night (as I headed off to the bathroom), the clouds had cleared making the sky full of beautiful stars and a full moon, which here in Minnesota means only one thing, low 20's. I mentioned earlier that we were only 20 minutes from home, what was keeping us here? I think that fact that Jimmy weighs about 110 lbs and I could not carry him the 100 or so yards to the car.We lasted until about 6:45 am at which time it was up and at 'em. I noticed when we climbed out of the tent that several of the campers had left during the night. The strong winds must have hidden the sound of the cars starting or much more likely the Fellas pushed their cars down the hill jumped in and made a quiet get away so as not to have to endure the ridicule that would be forth coming.
The event for the most part was a success, Jimmy enjoyed himself, received a couple of new badges and we drew a line through another item on the road to becoming a full fledged Boy Scout. They say three is a trend so we will have to wait until next year!

Boy Scout Motto used for this event PMA, Positive Mental Attitude.

Happy Gotcha Day Jimmy!

2011-04-13T05:27:00.000-07:00

Mr. Davis, Jimmy's second grade teacher and the parking lot heavy, pulled me aside the other day to inquire" Kay says there is a Korean celebration tonight at your house, what is the celebration?" I replied "Gotcha day!" Mr. Davis, being in charge of the parking lot, can do a mean deer in the headlight look, so I explained "Gotcha Day is a celebration we do for the kids celebrating the day we brought each of them home from Korea" to which he replied " Gotcha", with a big smile.

(Photo of Jimmy at his 1st Cmas with us:))

So it is hard to believe our 'little' Jimmy came home 9 years ago and has not stop growing, eating, talking and providing us love, joy and happiness everyday. His inquisitive mind is swirling with questions, insight and observation and his heart is full, of determination, commitment and care for his friends and love for his family.

Jimmy is just beginning his first baseball season, finishing up this years Boy Scouts, taking the Minnesota Comprehensive Exams at school and building wrestling rings in our front yard. He used some old boxes, bungee cords and tent poles.... watch out WWE. He stated that this is a proto type, he is planning on talking his parents out of one of the mattresses in the house for the mat and using our best towels for turn buckles....

Once again, this year we met Hayden and his family for our traditional celebration, as many of you know Hayden and Jimmy came home together, at Broadway pizza. Jimmy and Hayden continue to be great friends and it appears each year Jimmy is twice as tall as Hayden.

We had a cake, of course made and decorated by Kay, watched videos of Jimmy as a baby and after seeing himself, as a round mound of sound, he laughed, "Hey, look that's me, I was big". The time does fly and the kids grow and change but the one constant is the love and smiles they give us everyday!

Happy Gotcha Day to Jimmy, and kids everywhere! We love you!

Kay Update

2011-04-12T12:30:00.000-07:00

Kay has been spending the winter studying up a storm, so much so, that when grades came out last week we were blown away. Kay had changed several marks this report card and posted all A's, yep major good work Kay!

Along with school she has been concentrating on her gymnastics and in the test last week she again jumped a level, that is her third jump this year, IMPRESSIVE!

Kay continues to sharpen her pack rat skills, much to the chagrin of her Mom and Dad, and she maintains inventory control like now one else. If we can not find something all we need to say is ' Kay do you know where... is?' and she gives the precise location. Barbie, Paula Dean and Taylor Swift continue as role models and the oven is getting a serious work out.

This just in, literally. Kay lost another tooth. While getting ready for bed and brushing her teeth, out it came. " Mom , Dad I lost my tooth". A picture is worth a million words!

Last but not least, last Saturday, Kay decided that she was going to learn to ride her bike without training wheels, the video below tells it all! (A major motiviation was learning to do this before her younger -but not so much littler brother- Billy).

Way to go Kay we love you and are very Proud of all you do!

Davenport or Bust

2011-04-07T13:22:00.000-07:00

Spring break arrived and the kids were super excited to head down to Iowa, to Davenport, to see where Sue and Jim, aka, Aunt Sue and Grandpa Jim were born and raised, well.... up to a point.

The trip down was pretty uneventful thanks to full on electronics for each of the kids. One has to ponder then affects of electronics versus conversation or lack there of, I mean the contraptions do keep the kids attention but effect the child's ability to hear. Enough of that, we made the trip in 5 1/2 hours, no stops and arrived in town just in time to hit the kids favorite on the road dinner buffet, Golden Corral. Now I must point of the PSA: not all Golden Corrals are alike. Jimmy was saddened by the lack of quality fried chicken and the limited soda selections, ie; no Dr. Pepper. Kay was in heaven with grits, potato bar, fried fish and a block long dessert bar. Bill can take or leave food at any given point. The grown ups were sorely disappointed in the lack of adult beverages but in the end, that's probably a good thing. The hotel was great and clean and besides locking ourselves out of our own room and having to use a hammer and straight bar to get in...very comfortable.

Friday began with the second all you can eat meal. You see we chose carefully grasshopper when we travel and the AmericInn has a hot all you can eat breakfast featuring Belgium waffles!

Once the troops were fortified it was off to see Davenport. When asked " Kids what do you want to do today" The reply in a chant was "we are here for Sue!", which we were but it was nice for the kids to acknowledge the fact. So off to the house were Sue and Grandpa Jim's Grandma and Grandpa live. It was fortunate the the person who now owns the home was there and Sue and Kay went in to look around. Sue says it is just like she remembered, with a few 20th century updates of course. Next we traveled across town to the home where Sue and Jim grew up, which was right around the corner from the grade school. Jimmy was impressed by the size of the school and the several basketball hoops.

Next came a trip to the different cemeteries, where we were unable to locate one set of Grandparents. However not for lack of trying. The caretaker must have thought we were nuts as Jimmy was reading from the medical dictionary as to determine the cause of death, oh some 80 years ago or so. The caretaker did get a small chuckle as we uncovered in the list of attendees that one of them had died from falling in a bread mixer back in 1915! We then headed over to visit the graves of Sue and Jim's mom and dad and the other set of Grandparents and lucked out ... we were able to locate them! The kids stayed in the car as they were being loud and were afraid of waking the dead.

Next up lunch, at Happy Joe's. Yep... all you can eat pizza! they even had an omelet pizza but no one got past the sausage and pepperoni to give it a try. Then we were off to the Titanic exhibit which was really fun. They give you a boarding pass, but no life jacket, and you get to pretend that you are one of the original passengers. The boarding pass gives you all the info about the person, where they were from where they were going, where they stayed on board and like that. When you exit the exhibit there is a board that show who was lost and who was saved. It is really done nicely and we followed up with a movie in the Imax theater about the Titanic. It was somewhat of a let down to the kids as the movie was about the recovery of the artifacts and not so much about the voyage. That night the kids and Sue had take out Korean food, for Davenport Iowa, not bad.... Sue watched the kids and we had a nice quiet dinner out and alone! Ahhh....

Saturday was about green, that is John Deer Green. The John Deer museum was fun and interactive even though we almost lost Bill, several times. Then we headed out to the Amory, which was very cool. All the weapons the army have used over the years are there and they were all made in Davenport. We stopped by the park where Sue and Jim played as kids and of course Jimmy and Bill got into a pick up football game with two other kids, a 12 year old and a 7 year old. Jimmy had the size but not the speed. Bill can take a hit but he is a bit of a bleeder, we will leave the score out it for now.

After the park it was time for the other main attraction, no trip to Davenport is complete without a stop at Maid Rite, world famous loose meat sandwich. This particular establishment is billed as the best in Davenport because they still have the original cast iron cooker, WOW. None of got Dehli belly so they must keep their hygene up appropriately.

Sue took us out to eat at a Ruby Tuesdays which Jimmy exclaimed "the best meal of his life!". I suppose 2 Dr. Peppers, his own Asian chicken wings, an adult chicken sandwich along with his team Butler winning in the final 4 may have influenced the vote.

Sunday we headed home as the final act of spring Break 2011 was about to begin. This long awaited, Parent despised, kid heaven event goes by the name of WRESTLEMANIA! Yes, we rushed home from Iowa only to head over to our friends house for the mecca of wrestling. We had put off the decision to watch as long was we could and falling under pressure of enormous proportions we gave in. In the long run it may have turned out a blessing as the event was awful, from the kids point of view and talk of wrestling has gone down considerably since, coincident? I think not. Thank you to the wrestling gods!!!

Monday was back to reality and school. Sue headed home and we want to say" We are here for Sue!" and were glad to make the trip. It was fun to hear her stories about growing up and actually see the sites. Plus, it just goes to show, the Loudamericans can find fun anywhere:)

We love you Sue!

Vikings Kids Combine

2011-03-30T06:06:00.000-07:00

This winter I decided to pick 1 day and have a date day with each of the kids. Lunch and then their choice of activities. Kay picked Chili's and shopping at the Mall of America. Billy picked McDonalds and the Lego exhibit at the Childrens Museum and last weekend as Jimmy's turn. His choices? KFC and the Mini Vikings Combine Boot Camp. I was skeptical but promised not to wear my green & gold (in fact, I even did sport a purple sweater but the VIkings ball cap was a bit too much to ask). Needless to say, I was mightily impressed. It was a 2 1/2 hour affair included 8 stations, Viktor the Viking, cheerleaders and even Chuck Foreman. They did a great job with the event and the kids had a blast. Jimmy talked non-stop and couldnt stop moving he was so excited. Afterward, he said "thanks Mom, this was the best day of my life". You cant ask for much more than that! Check out the photos Saving this photo for 50 years from now when he's inducted into the Hall of Fame himself:)

Meeting Chuck Foreman, purple people eater. Jimmy started talking to him about a random football play. Seems a rookie returned a punt return inside the 10 yd line for a touchdown and while the team was celebrating Bud Grant pulled him aside and said "Never do that again or you wont amke another play on my team. We dont return punt returns inside the 10". Needless to say, Jimmy had all the names, dates and data right. Chuck looked at him and said "How old are you?"

"9"

"What Grade?"

"3rd"

"wow, I'm impressed, I've never met a 9 yr old that knows so much about football" As Jimmy later said, "Chuck had a face of disbelief on how much I know about the game".

Jimmy's BFF Ben was also there and they got their photo with Viktor

Viktor was a key contributor to Jimmy's mascot project so we brought him a photo of Jimmy in front of his project along with a thank you note for helping.

Touch down reception and celebration. Quarterpack pass test, and press box experience all below. We also got a tour of the locker room, gym and cafeteria. Brett Favres locker is cleaned out, they have a glassed in tribute locker to Corey Stringer and Andrean Peterson has 2 lockers. All very impressive to a 9 yr old fan.

Wearing O' The Green

2011-03-23T08:47:00.000-07:00

The 10Th Annual St.Pat's Party commenced Saturday March 19th amidst the best weather one could hope for in Minnesota during March, a balmy & sunny 55 degrees!

The day started with Tracy and Kay creating the what is now known as the "Chili Masterpiece"

a creation of spicy and less spicy that the crowd devoured with gusto and which may have been the driving force behind the first keg getting polished off by 5:50. (the crowd went through 37 quarts of the stuff and we were bummed that we didn't even get leftovers!!) Kay also created the schedule of events o' the day, I digress...

The set up began on Friday evening Sandy arrived at 6:00pm (THANK YOU SANDY!!!) By 9:00pm the tables were washed, set and the party favors were all laid out about the house. The 60 peppers, 9 onions and 18 tomato's were cut, diced and sliced; all placed in strategic locations awaiting the Saturday morning madness. The 60 cans of various beans were lined up and ready for the can opener. With out Sandy's help we never could have pulled it off, hats off to Sandy!

Saturday began in earnest as the previous mentioned items were combined, sauteed, simmered and the chili was born. Marital promises keep me from revealing the exact recipe but...let it be known that the recipe secret is safe with Kay., God help those who taste her first batch! She has been known to say " Mom this isn't that spicy, really". The hard work behind us let us have a moment of leisure where Tracy took Nikki for a walk and Tom and the kids did homework, piano, drums and the like.

The Grand Marshal and Marshalete's along with the Miniature Marshals arrived around 2:00pm (Welcome Jan, Chris, Jet and Charlie from Chicago) and a lively football game ensued. They are our daycare friends, fellow Adoptive Parents and currently living in Chicago. They came up for the day and made sure the festivities hit an all time high!

The crowd began to gather around 4:00 and this year appears to have been the all time high with kids and adults pushing the 'wearing 'o the green' number into triple digits! The parade began in earnest at 5:00pm sharp with the marshalls leading the way - around the neighborhood, beverage in hand, kids running around with sugar induced power, left me with the thought that perhaps we may actually need a permit for this event. That thought lead to the next which was, if we got a permit the city would know what we were up to, which means that open container discussions would come up leading to well, better leave the permit out of it.... The good news is ... another year, another dodge of the authorities.

This year the group was full of school friends, family friends, new and old neighbors alike and the day was a blast. There were a couple of special guests beside the marshalls, which were: Jimmy's second grade teacher Mr. Davis and his boys came and unbeknownst to us our neighbor Charles, (just learned his name today), was our friend Pete's college landlord! Small world moments continued.

The crowd wound down and by 10:00pm we were reminiscing of parades gone by..

Thanks to all for a great day and remember- mark your calenders for 2012, I will warn you all now, next year ....St.Patrick's Day falls on the same day as the parade, ERIN GO BRAUGH!!

God help us all.....

Week in Review

2011-03-19T08:21:00.000-07:00

Sports Update:

With a final rebound at the buzzer Jimmy and the Wildcats ended their historic basketball season 6 and 2! Coach Milstein was heard to say : "Keep at it Boy's"

This season was full of excitement, tense moments and great highlights, who knew third grade basketball could produce weight loss and clammy hands.The boys loved to play for Coach Milstein and from their humble beginnings the boy's learned basketball and to the shock of the parents they even had 5 different plays, which the executed without fail.The team has two losses: one by only 2 points, which hardly counts as a loss and the one 15 point spread is not a game that gets a lot of mention. Jimmy loved Coach Milstein's direct approach and how hard he was on the boy's, never letting up and always challenging. The coach rubbed off on the other kids as well and when I mentioned to Kay that Bernie may be coming to this years St. Patrick's Parade she stated " Well I hope he is not hard on anybody!"

Coach Milstein had this to say to the boys:

This recognizes your completion and competency, & achievement of the Wildcats 2011 coaching and Basketball season. And the Bernie Milstein, coaching Basketball Boot Camp. We have tried to coach you basketball skills and fundamentals, and a desire to have a winning attitude.!

Practice your skills, develop new skills, and become more proficient at what you do, and play with purpose and focus! Play with confidence, be aggressive, do your BEST in LIFE and in playing your sports! Always, do your best effort! Don't be a goof off. Love the game you live, and play, and you'll have success and fun in LIFE & SPORTS!

Gretchen Turns 21!

Tom's college roommate, Kay's Godfather and our good friend Mike's daughter Gretchen turn 21. About 10 years ago while sitting in a goose blind with Tom and Mike, Gretchen asked them both of them if they would come to her 21st birthday, which they responded 'sure!'.

That conversation was brought to their attention a couple of weeks ago and being the guy's they are Tom and Mike left town late Saturday night and drove to Stevens Point Wisconsin to arrive at Midnight to be there for Gretchen's 21st! We took Gretchen, and her boy friend to the local watering hole where the bouncer checked her id and asked her " We have a policy that on your 21st you can drink free all day. Do you want to come in the morning or do you want your free glass now, remember we are only open until 2:00?'' To which Gretchen replied " I am here now" so off she went.

The night or at this point morning could not end without a trip to the local Perkins for a little post bar feast! Happy 21st to Gretchen and I am glad I made no such promise to any of Mike's other kids!!

GO Mommy Go

2011-03-08T05:56:00.001-08:00

It comes as no real surprise knowing the hard work, dedication and awesomeness of Tracy that she has again been promoted! This time around there was no lengthy interview process, just one meeting and Tracy is now: Director, Merchandising and Merchandise Planning, (MMP), Business Process, Canada.

So for those of you not in the know, her company recently acquired the lease option on 250 stores in Canada, and plans to convert 100-150 of these stores to 'the brand' and Tracy will be working with the supply chain group to help accomplish this task. To answer the $10,000 question 'will we move to Canada?' the answer is ....that it is part of the job but when, and for how long remain to be seen.

The kids took great pride in their Mom, as did I. We sprang into action to create a 'Congratulations' theme in our kitchen. Kay, the most enthusiastic party planner of the bunch, decided she needed to make a cake, not just any cake but 'a special cake just for Mommy'. She had to mix it and then to my horror (well maybe that is a strong word, perhaps fear is better) she announced that she would decorate the cake in her room so Mom would not see it. She wanted to make her own frosting complete with using small plastic bags to mix food coloring into the frosting to write with and a special can of frosting to make the "corner's"... you get the picture.

The boys helped Kay with the streamers and banners, Sandy helped Kay with the frosting. We ALL got out of Kay's way when she made the 'present corner' and finally the garage door went up and we all got to our places as the star walked into the kitchen - rounds of applause rang out for Tracy!!! The dinner was planned ahead of time (shrimp boil), however in the planning process the newly appointed Director declared the dinner a 'no manners' dinner! The kids ever vigilant of trick questions began a frenzy of carefully asked questions,'Really Mom? Can we burp? Yes, Can we eat with our hands? Yes' and the citadel of all " Can we fart?" We'll leave that up to your own imagination.....

The dinner was a gas, pun intended, the kids asked a ton of questions. It was great for Sandy to be there to celebrate as she and Tracy have worked together forever. But mostly it was fun to acknowledge Tracy, tell her how much we love her and how proud of her we all are. She works hard and deserves to be acknowledged " GO MOMMY GO!!!"

Stars of the Week

2011-02-27T08:39:00.000-08:00

The past week or so has been full of shining stars!

First star up is Billy! He was the star of the week in his Kindergarten class, which meant he brought to school several Lego Creations, photos, books and several other "keepsakes" Bill has been collecting. He spent the week as the center of attention and even had his Dad come to school and read his favorite books! To say Bill has a favorite would not really do justice to his love of books. The kid goes to the library about once a week and checks out about a dozen books brings them home and make anyone who is around read to him. He is very close to reading himself and when that happens we will never see Bill again. A few highlights of Billy - he likes:legos, hot wheels, black olives, brocoli, green beans, gymnastics and swimming.

It is hard to believe that Nikki came home 2 years ago but alas it was Nikki's Gotcha Day. She was well taken care of by the kids but Kay especially was attentive to Nikki's needs. So much so she spent a couple of hours searching the Internet for dogie cake recipes, I kid you not. After relentlessly looking she came up with a recipe, and thank God we had all the ingredients and made a bundt cake for Nikki. Nikki for her part torn into the cake with gusto and looked at Kay like she was some kind of cake god or something. Nikki has settled into her role as pillow, make up practice doll, friend and companion.

The next star of the week rose above Kay. She made her Star of the Week poster showcasing her artistic skills while also featuring her stubbornness about rules thus coloring outside of the lines. A few highlights of her poster: tochuring my brothers, cooking, gymnastics, korean food, the color green and Nikki. Then Kay brought the poster, her Hanbok, gymnastic trophy and several other items to create her Star of the Week corner at school (we had to talk her out of bringing a suitcase with 1/2 her room). This year the "Star" was given the option of reading one of their favorite books to the class and Kay chose BI BIM BOP, a the story of a young girl and her love of rice. really the story is about how to make this Korean recipe which is a rice dish. Kay's teacher pulled me aside on Friday, after she Kay read the story, and told me Kay was very confident and handled the story and question and answer session with ease.

Jimmy finally did his Mascot presentation. For those of you who havent heard the mascot saga, it goes basically as... In November they had to sign a contract on a personal research project. It had to be something they could present to class and couldnt be anything they already knew something about (and absolutely NO written reports). The research project needs to be completed by 3/18 and needless to say, months for a 3rd grader is a really long time to keep sustained interest. He chose mascots and began his research with gusto. The issue, once he learned everything he wanted to know, he promptly lost interest in his project and didnt want to present. It took quite a bit of cajoling but he finally put together a jeopardy game about mascots (5 categories, about ... being.. crunch...viktor the viking and goldie). He presented this week at school and it was a wild success. Whew! I'm glad my (I mean Jimmy's) mascot project is over!

Pre Valentines from Kay or otherwise known as passive agressive Valentines

2011-02-11T18:55:00.000-08:00

Kay decided the other day that we all needed to have a Valentines card, homemade from Kay. She also made special containers and filled them with the candy that she had hidden in several crevices around the house (many of which had been hidden for AGES! I think I recognized some Easter candy in the mix).

Here is what the cards said:
Dear Jimmy you are a nice brother.
I know he be's mean sometimes but that doesn't mean I don't love him. But I also like playing football with him and wrestling.
Love; Billy for Jimmy

Dear Billy I think sometimes I call you Bunku but I still love you.
Love :Kay
For: Billy

Dear Mom and Dad: Even though you sometimes yell at me I still love you
Love Kay
For: Mom and Dad

She created separate card for Mom and Dad that each said we are a nice Mom and a nice Dad, however the cards were addressed to Tom and Tracy.

The other day Kay came home from school obsessed with having marshmellows to the point that she was completely crazy. Now giving the kids marshmallows is not a big deal however, we did not have any which completely drove her over the top. She then put herself on a time out and came off her time out and slipped this card onto my lap:

Sorry Dad,
Dear Dad, I am sorry can you forgive me I hope you can. Love Kay
ps: I love you I am sorry about the marshmallows thing.

Kay is very much her own guiding light.

Thank god she loves us inspite of our faults. We love her too:)

Sports Update

2011-02-08T05:51:00.000-08:00

Basketball is in full swing here and Jimmy and the Wildcats ( get your head in the game) are off and running. To quote Jimmy "Dad never before in my life has any team started off 2 and 0!".

The third graders were in for a rude awakening that cold January evening when they wandered into Davis Gymnasium to meet their new coach - Bernie. Jimmy was upset that Dad was not coaching again this year and did not want to play for someone he did not know. By the end of the first practice Coach Bernie had the boys towing the line and following basketball protocol to the point that Jimmy said " Dad Bernie is great- he really pushes us, it is awesome, last year the coach was way to easy on us", Hey... that was me!

Practice and enthusiasm have payed off and the Wildcats are 2-0, while it has not been pretty, a win is a win. Jimmy and his team mates have racked up 64 points on offense and only allowed 39 points on defense. This past Saturday it was a real nail bitter with the Wildcats pulling out in the last 10 seconds winning 32-31 crazy. All parents were nervous wrecks - what the heck are we going to be like in high school?!

Here is the last 3 minutes of the game - you will need to watch both videos to see the ending!:
(small technical issue - give us a few days to sort out and check back for the highlights:))

In other exciting sporting news - GO PACK!! Big hugs to all my packer fan compariots and my condolensces to the "other" team:)

Happy Ground Hogs Day!!

2011-02-02T06:33:00.001-08:00

Our dear friend Jim is a MAJOR Ground Hogs Day fan. He celebrates this above the ranks of Christmas, Thanksgiving and the other winter holidays. (Actually this says more for his distain for those holidays than it does for his love of the hog). In fact, he's always said that if he had kids, he'd raise them to believe that Ground Hogs Day is THE event of the year. (the therapy bills have been blatantly underforecast for such a mindset. Can you imagine kids going to school, wondering what all the fuss is about around Christmas and wondering why there isnt more comericialism around Ground Hogs Day?)

Needless to say, we indulge this quirk of Jim's and celebrate with him. Plus, who can argue that spring is right around the corner when we've experienced the snowiest winter in 25 years?! We all need a sprig of hope:)

How do you celebrate? Watch "Ground Hogs Day" (Angelas favorite movie) and get ready to cheer for the Packers...

So, here's the official media wire on this holiest of days....

PUNXSUTAWNEY, Pa. - The world's most famous groundhog predicted an early spring Wednesday, but wasn't willing to go out on a limb to forecast whether the nearby Pittsburgh Steelers will win Sunday's Super Bowl.
Punxsutawney Phil emerged just after dawn on Groundhog Day to make his 125th annual weather forecast in front of a smaller-than-usual crowd who braved muddy, icy conditions to hear his handlers reveal that he had not seen his shadow.
Including Wednesday's forecast, Phil has seen his shadow 98 times and hasn't seen it just 16 times since 1887, according to the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club's Inner Circle, which runs the event. There are no records for the remaining years, though the group has never failed to issue a forecast.
Two years ago, Phil's forecast also acknowledged the Pittsburgh Steelers' Super Bowl XLIII win the night before. This year, Sunday's game was mentioned in the forecast but no winner was predicted between the Steelers and the Green Bay Packers, who meet in Dallas for Super Bowl XLV.
"The Steelers are going to the Super Bowl," Mike Johnson, vice president of the Inner Circle, said just before the forecast was read, drawing cheers from the clearly partisan crowd gathered on Gobbler's Knob, a tiny hill in this borough of about 6,100 residents some 65 miles northeast of Pittsburgh.
The Groundhog Day celebration is rooted in a German superstition that says if a hibernating animal casts a shadow on Feb. 2, the Christian holiday of Candlemas, winter will last another six weeks. If no shadow was seen, legend said spring would come early.
In reality, Pennsylvania's prophetic rodent doesn't see much of anything. The result is actually decided in advance by 14 members of the Inner Circle, who don tuxedos and top hats for the event.
The celebration usually draws 10,000 to 15,000 spectators when it falls on a weekday, Groundhog club spokesman Luke Webber said. The area was under a winter weather warning and while heavier snows and sleet never materialized, rain falling in about 35-degree temperatures made for a below-average crowd, said Webber, who offered no specific estimate.

Tribute to Dave the Dog

2011-01-30T07:16:00.000-08:00

Dave the Dog was a great big, long haired Golden Retriever and he's part of what made Meadowbrook Elementary extra special. He came to school every Friday for 13 years and spent the day with the kids. He was in every year book and even has his own bulletin board (Dave in the library, Dave at music, Dave at recess, etc). The kids loved him and we loved him. Here is the notice that came home from school on Friday. The kids were very sad and made homemade cards for Joan.

" Good Morning Everyone,

Some of you may have noticed that Dave, our office dog, is not at school today. Dave died this week. He was 13 1/2 years old and that is very old for a dog - if he was a human he would have been almost a hundred years old. His body just wore out. But, for 13 1/2 years Joan shared her dog, Dave, with us. This means that the students who were in kindergarten when Dave was a puppy are now in college. Students who were in sixth grade when Dave was a pully are now finished with college, have jobs and some of them have dogs of their own. Dave wore Halloween costumes, was in the Paris style show and was always available to be petted, read to or to be greeted by you with a "hi Dave!"

If you have happy memories of Dave or a fun story about Dave that you would like to share, write it down and bring it to the office and give it to Joan. Or if you would just like to thank Joan for sharing her dog, Dave, with us or tell her that you miss him too, you can come by and tell Joan. Greta (the principle)".

The silver lining? Toby, the pug/boxer puppy, started school a few weeks back. He got to train in under Dave and will be taking up where Dave left off:)

Big hugs to all the dog lovers out there!

Gentlemen Start your engines!!

2011-01-28T05:20:00.000-08:00

Yes it is that time of year again for the Pinewood Derby,

In the past Jimmy waited until the last minute to design , paint and create his car and he learned that procrastination kills creativity.

This year Jim took the hands on approach and started thinking about his car way back in December. Talking about colors designs, his biggest concern, " Dad you need to make sure the wheels don't fall off again this year". Well... one wheel falls off and you are marked as a flawed car builder. Plus why is it my problem when Jimmy is to be designing and making this car! So with that in mind he came up with a plan, Lets go see if Reo can help us.

Reo and Mary live next door and are great neighbors and friends. They have a garage sale every year that the kids can not wait for, they haul all their precious unused toys, books, etc, over to Reo and Mary, they sell them and the kids get cash, plus Mary always has a treat for them. Reo has a real shop in his garage complete with a belt sander, table saw and a grinder, all necessary for crafting the perfect car out of a block of wood. Jimmy decided that they could be his honorary Grand Parents for the day and they agreed to come to the Derby.

The car made... Jimmy needed to figure out colors and chose black and red. Last year the colors coincided with the local football team however this year that team will remain nameless, another story. The car was completed on Tuesday, two whole days before the race, procrastination... not Jim. Race day came, nerves and butterflies abound we entered into the race facility. The line for the dreaded weigh in was short. Jimmy walked up and gently placed his masterpiece, "The Cobra" on the scale. Now the goal of any successful Pinewood derby car is reliant on the weight the closer you can get to 5 ounces the better, over 5 ounces you must remove whatever you can to reach 5 ounces or below, Jimmy came in at a whopping 3.2 ounces, OH no! Fortunately Dad smuggled in a repair kit and after some side bartering with the other Dads we returned to the scale complete with 4 quarters taped to the bottom of the car and surprise, 4.9 ounces, we were in!

The actual race takes forever. There were nine dens each with about 8 scouts in the den and Jimmy's den which had 18, I have to wonder if anything this kid does involves small or low key. We waited through 5 groups, Tracy arrived just in time as Jimmy's "The Cobra" reach the starting gate. I glanced over at Jimmy and he gave me the thumbs up. The gate was opened and the cars thundered down the track and to our horror the started had put The Cobra, on the track backwards, Foul! Jimmy yelled as the other car reached the finish line first. We talked with the race officials who informed us there is nothing they could do to which Jimmy responded "Hey Dad can I get a Dr. Pepper?", this ain't no football game!

The race was fun and after all the smoked settled Jimmy's cousin Ben won the heat to chants led by Jimmy of ' We believe in Ben". Jimmy was too cute when after the race he wanted to pay Reo for all his help even though he did not win, that's our boy.

Three Bears and a Bog

2011-01-23T07:54:00.000-08:00

Martin Luther King stated " I have a dream" which I firmly believe had nothing to do with water parks, really!

In Warrens Wisconsin, tucked into the side of the highway is the picturesque Three Bears Water park. The Millers met us and we found out (eading the fine line details would have told us this too) why the rooms were so inexpensive, that is to say the water park was open until 9:00 pm on Saturday and open 9:00-1:00 on Sunday and closed on Monday. So much for taking advantage of a long weekend and a no school Monday. That did not stop the Loudamericans...off to the water!

The water park itself was no different that any other water park, meaning a big open space with a couple of different slides, a lazy river, a small kids area and the potential for any number of air born viruses and no heat. We let the kids go crazy and they had a ball. There is a hot tub with an opening that went outside and Jimmy thought that was awesome. He entertained the rest of the guests by climbing out of the hot tub and rolling around in the snow. I forgot to mention that the temp was about 10 below! Kay on the other hand could not get enough of the slides and the tunnel. She was consatantly running fron one tunnel to the next with a manical laugh and a shout. Bill was content to play in the tower and castle and make new friends.

Dinner that night was a bad buffet but it was fast and when the kids need to eat, there is no time to wait!

The rooms were actually the best part of the place. We had a suite which had two sets of bunk beds a nice sitting area with a table and a master bedroom complete with a door that closed off the kids and allowed for a peacefil night sleep!

Saturday the kids slept until 10:00 and we hit the water park for a couple hours of play and then it was off to Fort McCoy, outside of Tomah for snow tubing. The thought was the kids would be outside in the cold for a couple of hours and get worn out. As it turned out they all loved it, even Wyatt and we were there until they kicked us out around 5:30. The place is great they have 5 different runs with a special tow rope that hooks unto the inner tube and pulls you up the hill. All you had to do was line up the tube, jump on and hang on for dear life. They had singles and doubles so Tracy and Billy paired up and Tom with Kay leaving Jimmy on his own, which he loved.

As many of you know Wade and Angela are hosting Rica, who is from Germany and spending the school year in Minnesota. Rica is a blessing and she signed up to watch the kids on Saturday night so we could have a date night. Tracy has been obsessing about this place called The Bog. It is a restaurant at the same exit as the water park and the place is great. Brad and Georgette Martin own and operate The Bog and their food is great and the prices super reasonable. No trip to Warrens is complete without a stop at the Bog, make sure to tell them the Loudamericans sent you! (Be sure to order a house specialty cranberry drink, they are YUMMY!)

Monday we checked out and headed back towards home with a stop at the Stout Ale house in Menominee , note to self, on your birthday you can drink all day for free! The weekend was a blast and as usual the company great. We look forward to the next Murphy/Miller outing!

Next blog The Pinewood Derby!

Radio Silence

2011-01-20T11:12:00.000-08:00

Ok ok, we know, we havent posted in a while. In fact, there are a few times through out the year when we go into 'radio silence' so to speak. What's up? What in the world are we doing? Well, like everyone our little family goes through cycles of adventure, fun, happiness and routine and then... dullness, work and introspection. I'd say the 1st few week of 2011 were the later.

As we re-started school after break and began staring down a long winter ahead of us, we've been nesting, reflecting, resting and getting back into our normal routines again (whatever normal is).

From a nesting, resting and routine perspective, the kids are back at it with:

~ drum lessons

~ piano lessons

~ basketball practice has started, 1st game this weekend!

~ gymnastics fall session is coming to an end and so evaluations for the next level are this week

~ boy scout pine wood derby prep, the race is tonight!

~ getting ready for girl scout cookie sales and a cool Feed My Starving Children volunteer event

~ Tracy signed up for yoga (yes, I know, I hate yoga and this class is underscoring that, but...I do feel better when its done and its 1 of my self improvement projects for 2011)

~ Tom (finally) went in to get his hearing checked and sure enough, he cant hear. So, now its a deep consideration of hearing aids (he's being very open about this and I'm proud of his decision as hard as it had to be!)

All this "reordering" of our lives has also forced us to reflect. The last year has been "the best of times/the worst of times". We have really had amazing adventures and experiences in 2010. We are blessed with a strong support network of people we love and enjoy being around.

ALL the good are faithfully logged on this site so that we can share with you!

Unfortunately, life also hands everyone "unbloggable" events as well. NONE of which have been logged. Why? Well...they are hard, heart wrenching, life changing decisions, changes and new patterns we are trying to establish and posting them for the world to see feels a bit TOO vulnerable with the stage we are at. Tom and I have been trying to live very intentionally as people, partners, parents and friends. Much of what we are struggling with are internal struggles that we both carry separately and need to work through independently but with each others support. We firmly believe that we will continue to grow through this and it'll flow down into our relationship and all our other relationships, but its not easy. We are both trying to change habits, let go of beliefs about ourselves that no longer serve us and understand who we want to be vs who we've always been. This has caused pain for ourselves and unfortunately, for others. Unfortunately, the largest is a rather deep riff with Tom's immediate family that we hope to heal one day, but we also know that we each need to heal 1st. We are very grateful that we have been able to continue a relationship with his mother as it gives us hope that there is healing for all in the future.

So, without sharing too much on a internet wide public site (:)) that's what we are up to in these times of radio silence. Stick with us. We'll be back with more adventures and a sunny attitude, but know, these times of silence are equally as necessary and important.

Big hugs of love!!

(P.S. we promise to post a pine wood derby update and water park weekend update SOON!!)

Christmas - Finally!

2010-12-31T11:39:00.001-08:00

Christmas finally arrived! We had a really nice, peaceful 2 days with friends and family.

Christmas Eve we headed out to the family service at Mike & Libbys church. It was really nice, lots of music, kids and a short sermon. 1/2 way through the service, they showed a picture of Joseph with the baby Jesus. Billy piped up right away "That's God with his Daddy, isnt it? I know all about God. He was born and then he died, but that's ok because he came back to life and now he lives in our hearts". There you have it. No need for any further church school, we are outa here:) We went back to their house and ate tons of appetisers, open little presents and just caught up. Kay and Betsy made cookies for Santa and the boys played Xbox 360.

Christmas Eve night Jim Fellows graced us with his homemade lasgana. It is SO good that the kids each ate 2 huge servings. Jim couldnt believe it. We opened more presents and "won" the best tacky religous gift contest. We found him a "Jesus Shaves" mug. Jesus has a full beard and when you fill the mug with a hot drink, his beard disappears and it changes from saying Jesus Saves to Jesus Shaves. Too too funny.

We wrote Santa a note and Jimmy had a final panic attack. He still didnt know what he wanted from Santa. In desparation, he listed Smack Down vs Raw PSP game. Unfortunately Santa was already on the way, so his request was a little late.

Christmas was a narrowly averted disaster. After Jimmy woke at 4:30am I was worried we were in for a LONG day... He did manage to get back to sleep by 6:30am and we all woke MUCH less crabby at 8:30. The kids opened presents and read their note from Santa. Billy even "fainted" 1/2 way through the morning as he was so excited about all his gifts (see his birthday blog for the reference). Santa brought Jimmy a karoke, Kay a Barbie laptop and Billy a Hot Wheels set. PERFECT! Tom's mom (Grandma Kay) came over for a late brunch and hung out with us for the better part of the day. She and Kay made more cookies and it was nice to have her all to ourselves!

That afternoon, we headed out to our friend Michelle and Petes for their annual Christmas party. Pete has a big family and Michelle's sisters family was there as well, so lots of kids, food and football. Jimmy hung with the "seniors" watching football all afternoon (his term, not ours). Kay & Billy worked with the other kids to make a haunted house in the basement. It was crazy fun and we (Tom and I) had our annual mug of Tom and Jerry.

We got home about 8pm, only to find that the kids still had 1 more present! We had set up a scavenger hunt for each of them to find their "last" present. It was a gas. Jimmy & Kay got new bikes and Billy got a backyard snowboard. What a day!

The rest of mid winter break has been; sledding, skating, playdates, friends over for dinner, swimming at the club, and basically trying to wear ourselves out. In fact, today, we all slept until 9:30. LOVING IT!

Here's to ALL of you - we wish you a wonderful 2011 - peace, prosperity, ease, grace, love, forgiveness, spirituality, adventure, joy and most of all FUN!!

Love to all of you!!

I'm too excited to sleep!!

2010-12-27T11:06:00.000-08:00

Well, suffice it to say, we had a great time, but we aren't a "theme park" family. Read on for more info:)

Activities:
We raced around the house on Saturday getting packed and trying to keep the kids from asking 8 thousand questions about Disney. We managed to get to the airport just in time to wait in line (4 separate lines to be clear) and immediately board the plane. The flight uneventful and got some good "catch up" time with Angela on the flight (including a few cocktails:)) Orlando was drizzly and cool when we landed, but no matter! We had arrived!

Sunday was up early (for us 9am) and off to our 1st theme park - Magic Kingdom. Again, perfect weather... mid 60's, overcast and cool. The park was too crowded for us, but probably very lightly attended from Disney standards. The highlights? the "train" roller coaster, the Laugh Floor (interactive comedy cartoon with Mac & Cheese as the Siamese cartoon hosts - how'd they do that?!), the 3D movie that included smells, water and mice running under your seat, the BIG parade and seeing the castle lit up at night. We road as many rides as we could (given height limitations and long wait time frustrations) and I even convinced Jimmy to go on Its a Small World with Billy. He complained the whole time but at the end did relinquish with "this is a waste of time, but it is a catchy tune".

Monday was Animal Kingdom and not our best day as a family or our proudest day as parents. The kids were overstimulated and tired of crowds and lines. We had a few major melt downs and voices were raised. Its too bad because Animal Kingdom is gorgeous! There is tons of green space, animal, bird and plant "hikes" and regional food from all over the world. In hindsight, we should have gone here 1st... oh well, live and learn! Highlight of this day included: another 3D movie, safari ride, bird scavenger "hunt", a Jungle Jingle parade, a dinosaur excavation and a HUGE ropes play area that the kids ran wild in for an hour (and gave us a much needed break). Half way through the day, Jimmy asked "do we HAVE to go to a theme park tomorrow?" No...no we don't....

And so...Tuesday was our "day off" on vacation. We slept in, ate late, caught a trolley, road through Orlando, ate at a Chinese buffet for lunch and found a great little spot (Fun Spot) that had rides Kay & Bill's size with only 1 entrance/exit. Why is is important you ask? because they were able to ride as many rides as they wanted without Mom & Dad hovering and without having to wait in line! We also did a little pool time (finally got into the lower 70's and sunny - perfect pool weather when you are 9, 7 & 6, but then again, any weather is good pool weather for our kids). We ended the night with their all time favorite event, a Pirate Dinner. It was an interactive dinner on a ship where pirates took over and the kids had to "save" the princesses. There were magicians, acrobats, sword fighting, guns, singing, cheering, bad guys, good guys and fireworks. What's not to love?! They are still talking about how much fun that was. Definitely a recommendation if you go to Orlando (to add on to the above, while it seems we aren't a theme park family, I guess we ARE an interactive dinner theater family. Who knew?!)

Wednesday we were back at it at Sea World. Much more our speed but I think our day off helped. We saw an amazing dolphin show, rode on a "splash" ride, hung out in the "kids park" and rode kiddie rides for hours and even saw the REAL Santa Claus waiting in line behind us on the Polar Express. Really, he had silver white hair, small glasses, candy canes in every pocket and a red polo shirt. He was waiting in line on vacation like the rest of us. We figured he needed a quick get away before his big night out. Plus, what a better place to see who's being naughty or nice but at a theme park! We also stayed for the ice skating show (interesting watching an outdoor ice skating show in Orlando in December) and made the most of our time.

Thursday, we took advantage of the 2nd day free clause on our Sea World tickets and went back for 2 hours to: see the sea lion show and feed the dolphins, sea lions and sharks. (oh, and to ride more kiddie rides). We then high tailed it back to the hotel for more pool time. Our flight was off at 7:45pm and we were exhausted.

Other items of interest:

It was awesome to travel with friends - the kids had built in distractions, we could divide and conquer on rides and attractions, plus you get a much needed break and change in conversation. I think we had the right balance of together and alone time as well as park vs down time. But, you might want to ask the Millers:) We have a water park weekend planned with them in January, so if they don't cancel, we'll know it was a success.

My parents gave each of the kids a bit of cash for the trip as their Xmas presents. That was awesome! Jimmy had a very cute and accurate characature made, Kay bought a cool pink Shamu hat & Tinker Bell rings and Billy got a Pirate sword and "surprise" Disney souvenir (remember how Billy likes surprises, well, there is a new collection of "surprise" souvenirs at Disney. You pick a box, open it and then can pick/trade up to 2 more times by choosing other "doors' that have prizes behind them - it was the PERFECT thing for him). THANKS Grandma and Grandpa, they loved the thought and had so much fun picking out their souvenirs!

The word of the trip was obstreperous - It basically means rude, loud, aggressive, orger-ish and a bully. Jimmy learned it in his 3rd grade class and when anyone acted up, they got reprimanded for being obstreperous (from everyone, even the kids!). Too funny.

So, I slightly take back my above remark about not being a theme park family. Kay is ALL about theme parks. She was the kid on every ride, arms in the air, eyes wide open and ready to go. Jimmy is a big talker until he gets to the start of the ride, then he chickens out. Billy has no interest. He'd rather go from learning "station" to learning "station" to learn about nature and get his "stamp" on his card. I suspect none of the above comes as a surprise to anyone:)

So, we are back, happy to have had a fun, active vacation, but ready to cross theme parks off our "bucket list". On to the next adventure!!! (hopefully it'll include an interactive dinner theater experience!)

Toys for Tots and What to do for Winter Break

2010-12-18T10:19:00.000-08:00

Jimmy and the other scouts from troop 306 collected toys during November and were chosen to appear on our local news KARE 11 to drop off the toys.

The boys were all served piping hot hot chocolate and it was full of sugar causing even the most strident scout to loose his mind and run around like well crazed scouts! On a more serious note this program has been helping kids for a long time and during this holiday season it is in giving that we receive.

Jimmy, his cousin Ben and his friend Simon were all bundled up for the event.

The morning of the 18Th began winter break and for our kids that means two weeks with no school YIKES! So we had a family meeting and Tracy and I told the kids that we were going to Disneyland! So for the next few days we will be visiting sunny Florida and we will update the blog upon our return! In the meantime enjoy the Holiday's. Below is the video response from the kids.

Billy is 6!!!

2010-12-13T18:52:00.000-08:00

So, amongst the biggest storm in 10 years and the 5th biggest storm to ever hit Minneapolis, Billy turned 6. We got 18+"'s of snow and it was white out blizzard conditions. But, we live in MN and we are hardy folk. We had a birthday party planned for Chuck E Cheese and dang it, we were going to make it!

Billy woke up and begged to open 2 presents (after declaring..."oh my goodness, look at all that snow!"), He judiciously picked the 2 largest and with the help of Kay, had them open in 2 minutes flat. His next exclamation? "I think I'm going to faint...I only opened 2 presents and I already got everything I wanted for my birthday. I think I'm going to faint." (the esteemed gifts? legos and a new leapster)

We then proceeded to dig a path out of driveway and headed off (at 20 mph in a white out) for Chuck E Cheese. Billy's firends were all troupers and all but 1 of them were able to make it. I have to admit, it was the most relaxing Chuck E Cheese experience I've ever had. 3 of the 5 birthday parties canceled that day and we had the place to ourselves. Billy played games, was sung to, ate pizza, talked to Chuck E, blew out his candles and opened his presents. He even did the tour of tickets and discovered the secret trick. Instead of jumping around like a maniac, its much more effective to hold your hand out out, palm down and grab tickets as they flew "up". The guys at Chuck E Cheese had never seen that technique before and it scored Billy a record 1000 points. That's my little engineer ( see video below)

The other favorite "game" was actually a simulated amusement park ride. You lay on the seat and the screen "virtually" takes you on a roller coaster. He and Rochen road that 10x's, using up all their tokens ( see video below).

Back home, after all the excitement, we opened more presents (more legos, a sleeping bag and a sorry game) and Billy spent the next 8 hours putting together this legos. Kay made him a beautiful cake & cupcakes and we all sang to him again.

Then, at dinner, we all went around the table and said what we like best about Billy...

Daddy - "oh my goodness"
Mommy - his hugs!

Jimmy - that when he quits, he doesnt really quit, he always comes back to play again

Kay - that he plays pretend with me

Nikki - all the hugs and love!

There are many many more things we love about Billy: he's curious, friendly, funny, serious, smart, gentle, loves animals, loves being at home and is our peacemaker. We are so so thankful that his birth parents chose us to be his forever family and are grateful for all the loving care he received from his foster family and adoption caregivers. They have all played a part in shaping the Billy we love.

We love you Billy!

(Billy's 1st comment when he woke up the next morning? "For my 7th birthday, I'm going to.....")

Lambeau Field or our trip to Mecca

2010-12-09T05:20:00.000-08:00

To the true Packer fan not much more needs to be said besides, Lambeau.

To those of you whom have not had the opportunity to go to a Packers game and experience Lambeau, well all I can say is do NOT pass up the chance.

It was a cold December Day at Lambeau field when we arrived into the sea of humanity tailgating in the adjoining parking lots, front yards, patio's and basically any space big enough to place a smokey Joe and fire it up. It was a balmy 7 degrees that not so sunny Sunday morning as Pete, Laura, Tracy and I put on all the clothes we had and opened the truck doors to begin our tailgating adventure.

Tailgating is something that is learned or taught by those relatives whom have experienced the event passed down form the previous generation, that is to say in Wisconsin it is a rite of passage where in Minnesota I am sorry to say it has become a lost art. One cannot tailgate and then go into a dome, it goes against all reason but that is a different platform.

The hoard of people began playing games, tossing the football and cheering on those who tried to out due the others (like the young lady who walked by in a yellow bikini, yes a bikini in 7 degree weather, I did say we were at Lambeau?!) Pete cooked some great Hungarian brats which were the perfect spicy food for this weather along with a couple of frozen beers and it was GAME TIME!

Sitting in the bleachers is somewhat like being at a carnival where a football game spontaneously breaks out. Beer vendors know their customers by name and like a good bartender know exactly what they want.. in fact, at one point, the beer vendor walked down our aisle and gave the two guys setting next to us each a free beer and said "thanks for coming today". Tell me, at what other stadium would that happen? As I said, we were at Lambeau Field.

The Packers were playing the 49ers and at the beginning it appeared the 9ers were going to have an easy game of it, they were up 6 nothing midway through the first quarter but the ghost of Lombardi came blowing in like the wind (literally) as the Packers missed a 25 yard field goal. No matter, that wind had more effect on the boys from the coast and by halftime the Pack was leading by 10. The throwback uniforms were ugly as was the play calling by the refs, at least that's what the free beer drinking guy next to us said as he spent the entire third quarter trying to unroll a gold colored aluminum foil fire blanket (really) and when he finally got in unrolled he turned to his buddy and said " help me up, I have to go shopping", ah Lambeau!

We had a blast with Pete and Laura along with the rest of the Packer fans and cheered for the home team as they won the game. We walked out of the hoard, us to head home, most of the rest to continue tailgating, singing Go Packers and other related songs designed to ignore the weather and consume more beer. The crowd was remarkably good natured and supportive of those who chose to cheer for the opponent and as we were walking back to the car a couple in 49er apparel walked by, and a Packer fan, handed each of them a beer and said " Here you probably need this it must be hard to be you today".

I must admit being from Minnesota and a Vikings fan I did cheer for the Pack that day however, unlike the rest of Wisconsin, I did not at any time refer to the Packers as 'we'! Below is Jimmy's take on Connie Gumper and football:
Go Pack!!

Happy Belated Thanksgiving

2010-12-07T14:32:00.000-08:00

With Billy dropping teeth like the Vikings Wide receivers and Kay's Gotcha Day we almost forgot Thanksgiving.

We loaded up the family truckster sans Nikki and Timmy and headed off to Tammy and Jeff's in Grand Haven, Michigan for Thanksgiving, meeting up with Grandma and Grandpa Hickey. Tracy and I picked the real Loudamericans up at school and left directly for Michigan. We had snacks, PSP's, I-pods, DVD, VCR's and Simon Blink and the Forbidden Forrest... virtually guaranteeing that would would have no real conversation the entire way! The only thing missing was the porta potty. (we did utilize our pee-ing skills learned in India and Billy/Kay did the side of the road stop in mid Wisconsin at one point).

The kids are great travelers (as those of you who follow this circus know) and we were able to make quite a dent into the journey until we stopped for dinner, of course at the Chinese Buffet in Mauston. We ran into the first glitch when Kay announced we could not listen to Simon Blink at night because she got scared. The 2nd glitch...we passed through Chicago without the usual traffic issues and reached the Skyway, which would take us to Indiana. The Skyway cuts directly around the lake and therefore there are no places to stop, like for instance a hotel. We pressed on (it was now almost mid-night) we were in the steel mills of Gary and I was starting to understand what Kay was referring to in terms of being scared at night. Up a head was it a hotel no... it was a Casino! "They had to have a room!", wrong!!!... only slots, noises, grumpy people. On we drove onto the deep dark night I could almost see Paradise by the dash board lights, I was getting tired, the kids were starting to complain that they were tired (duh, it WAS 1 am) and we finally found an oasis in Portage Indiana. The kids were amazed that they were still awake and it was 1:45 in the morning and to be honest we were too!

The good news about driving 11.5 hours of a 14 hour trip is the next day you do not have that far. Everyone slept in and we were on the road again around 11:00 our time, 12 noon Michigan time. At the point the blogs start to overlap as we met Grandma and Grandpa at Wendy's for Kay's gotcha day blog, the full story is two blogs back. Jumping over the blog about Billy and his missing teeth, we reached Tammy and Jeff's mid- afternoon and settled in for the long weekend.

Thanksgiving day was awesome. We watched football, the girls played dress up/make up and we had the meal prepared for us at the country club and it was grand! The food was great, the company and conversation better and the parents and cousins had a blast all around. The kids took a swim at the hotel where Grandma and Grandpa were staying and Jimmy was heard to say 'I think I may go to bed a tad bit earlier tonight".

The rest of the weekend was spent in a blur of food, football, a non-stop play date, catching up on everyone's lives and finally ... the grand finale ... Grandma & Grandpa's 46Th wedding anniversary. Without them...none of this could have happened:)

Here's to family, food, football, Thanksgiving and an All American tradition:)

Love and peace to all!

ps; We almost forgot that Grandma brought some new outfits for Jimmy , Kay and Billy:

Billy was a little preoccupied to try his on: