Even though we don't go to church, we got a visit from the Easter Bunny. I also tried to get Anders to watch the 1970s Here Comes Peter Cottontail, but given that he doesn't really watch TV, I ended up watching it by myself, which is fine. I had forgotten about the evil Irontail!
Wow! I like the adding multiple pictures option - this is a huge improvement! And, they uploaded where I wanted them to and in the order I wanted them!
Now the Minnesota Zoo. We went on a Friday as we both have Fridays off now. Weekdays are a pretty good time to go, except you do tend to run into field trips. It was the last week of baby farm animals and I wanted to make sure Anders got a chance to pet them if he wanted to. His favorite part of the visit was the playground - figures.
The big thing we did in May was about a 10 day trip to Colorado. We stopped in Des Moines on the way down and stayed over night. On the way down we had to stop to get a bite to eat. Anders is a huge fan of the Culver's grilled cheese sandwich. What he isn't a huge fan of is the fiber glass pole outside the Culver's in Owatonna. He got a handful of fiberglass there and was quite the trooper (no tears) but bummed out the rest of the trip down. Will figured out that using bikini wax worked well to remove the fiberglass that was still in his hand the next morning.
Anders and Drew in their triceratops shirts - totally not planned.
We had a 10 hour drive from Des Moines to Denver and Anders slept for the first two hours and never again. He was so good in the car and we didn't even have to break out a Johnny Cash DVD. The first full day in Denver was a good day, complete with a trip to the Railroad Museum with Dad and Grandpa. And then we were off to La Loma, a family favorite, for some excellent Mexican food and to celebrate Grandpa's birthday Cinco de Mayo style.
My dad got his drums out - Anders is a huge fan and seemed to get the moves immediately.
The Galloping Goose at the Colorado Railroad Museum.
Anders also likes to help in the garden.
Sunday was Mother's day. My mom, sister Becky and I went to Boulder for the Title 9 9K. It was very hot and dry and the altitude got to me. The conditions were a far cry from the snowy and windy half marathon I ran the weekend before - I was not ready for 80 degrees!
Later in the week, we went to Canon City to ride the Royal Gorge Railroad with my parents, my sister Becky, her husband Tom, and Cam and Myles. The train ride was really great, the boys loved it, the adults loved it.
Then it was over to Colorado Springs for a night in a hotel and some pillow hijinks.
The next morning it was off to the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo in Colorado Springs. It was beautiful - built up the side of the mountain. Honestly, I think it was the most attractive zoo I've ever been to.
This bird is called a Kori Bustard.
Hello
Cam got in on the pony ride as well, but Myles declined this time.
Since returning to Minnesota, we've continued to be busy. My parents came out a few days after we got home and some of us went over to my Aunt Mary and Uncle Paul's house to celebrate their 50th anniversary. For some reason I neglected to bring my camera to the party. Happy Anniversary Aunt Mary and Uncle Paul!
Then that same weekend the tornado hit Minneapolis. My mom and I had just gotten home when I wondered what the weekday MPR guy was doing on the radio on a Sunday. Then I realized they were talking about a tornado going through Minneapolis and heading north. Then the sirens went off and the power went out and Anders, my parents and I headed to the basement. The tornado hit the neighborhood just a few blocks from us. Here are some pictures from my bike ride to work the next day. I rode through there tonight and what used to be a cool, shady area is open and sunny. It made me want to cry then and made me want to cry today. The other super sad thing is that the heron rookery on the Mississippi just east of our house got hit too. It sounds like the adults survived but the nests, and I assume chicks, did not. It was so cool to have the rookery right there, we've brought many of you there in the spring to see the huge herons and their nests at the top of the cottonwoods on the island there, and our house was right under a heron super highway to a lake west of us so we saw flying over multiple times a day.
We spent Memorial Day weekend up at the cabin. We had good enough weather to take my parents on a paddle, which they seemed to enjoy. Anders is way more into the canoes than he was the first time we took him out - thankfully! We also enjoyed some delicious food at Nanibijou, the Angry Trout, and the Dockside Fish House. It was very relaxing.
Banana cake, anyone?
I started this post on Saturday morning before our garage sale, which was a success though now we have to put away the stuff we didn't sell. This post has taken too long. Since I started it, we have some big news - Anders can officially ride a bike. Here he is going down the alley. It is very exciting!
