Memorial Day Weekend

The kickoff to summer is here, and what a weekend it has been! We pretty much have been running all weekend, and we are all pretty pooped.

John has some extended family in town from Nashville, so we ate supper with them on Wednesday night, and then we had a grill out at Johnny and Kristina's house on Friday night. The kids had a blast playing with little Johnny and Anna, while the adults had a chance to catch up. It was nice to visit with Erica and Bert, and meet Kalen, their 9 month old son. We ended up staying out until around 9:30pm, and our poor kids weren't in bed until after 10 pm.

Saturday was another really busy day. We started it off with a trip to Costco and some errands. After some naps, we headed to the zoo to see the new Koala bears. They were pretty cute, but they slept the entire time we saw them. Apparently, they sleep 18-22 hours a day, so they are pretty exciting animals. We walked the rest of the zoo, and the kids had a great time. After the zoo, we headed to Jim and Barb's for some supper and a campfire.

We grilled some brats, ate some supper, and then helped the kids make some smores. It was pretty adorable, and the kids had a great time. But, once again we left late, and it was 10 pm before the kids were asleep. Whoops.

Sunday was another good day. We spent the morning cleaning up, doing laundry, and just tidying up the house. After lunch, we headed to Brookings for Katie's Graduation Party. We helped set up and get the food ready, and then stayed for the duration of the party, from 4-7pm. It was pretty fun. I visited and caught up with some of the family, but mostly I just played with and kept the kids entertained. There were a lot of Brookings peopled I didn't know there though. It is pretty crazy that Katie graduated from High School already, that sure went quick! We made a point to leave shortly after 7pm and got the kids home and to bed a little earlier.

Today was actually Memorial Day, and we had some of John's extended family over for a grill out and bean bag tournament. It was another good opportunity to see everyone, and we all had a pretty good time.

So, like I said our weekend was crazy busy, and it was over in a flash. The kids are both super crabby, and we are winding down with the movie, Moana, right now. It's a pretty cute movie, but mostly I am excited to get these kids to sleep, and just relax for a while. I am so not ready to go back to work tomorrow!!

Out to eat at Jacky's 

Daycare fun

Zoo Day

Roasting Marshmallows 

Elena's Baby Shower

Yesterday, we had Elena's baby shower at Rachel's house. Emma and I headed to Mankato after work on Friday evening, and met my mom and sister (and Elena) at Rachel's house. We went out to eat at Tav on the Ave, and then called it a night. It was like 9:30 pm before we got back to Rachel's house, and like 10:30pm before Emma was in bed. It was a long day.

Saturday was the day of the baby shower, and we all had a pretty good day. We spent the morning decorating Rachel's house, making muffins, and preparing the rest of the food. We also took turns holding and feeding Elena. It made for a pretty busy morning!

By 10:00, guests started arriving. We visited, ate, and then played a couple games as we opened gifts. Emma had fun helping Rachel open all the gifts. We had a pretty good turnout for the shower, and everyone seemed to enjoy themselves.

By 12:30, most of the guests had left, and we spent some time cleaning up and relaxing. Dad and Ryan came to town in the afternoon, and we just spent the rainy, cold day hanging out and visiting and kind of watching the movie "Sing".

We decided to eat supper before heading back to Sioux Falls, so we headed to Bolder Tap House for supper, and then made the trek back home. Emma did very well the entire trip. She watched movies on the car ride, and otherwise just enjoyed the trip. She loved helping with the baby shower, and holding and loving on baby Elena. She also ate 4 muffins on Saturday, so it was a great day for her.

We made it back to Sioux Falls at around 9:15 pm, and we were both beat. John and Elliott also had a good Saturday. They headed to Brookings with Adam, Ashley, Darci and Jeff, and their kids, and hit up the Children's Museum. The kids all had a really good time playing together.

Today was a catch up day. We went to church, did laundry, and cleaned up the house. The kids took some super long naps in the afternoon, trying to catch up on sleep. We also had Lief's graduation party this evening, so we headed to Harrisburg for a little while this evening.

The sun decided to shine for a little while this evening, for like the first time in 5 days, so we took advantage and spent some time outside this evening.

We had a great weekend, but now it's time to wind down and prepare for another busy week.

Emma and Elena 

Baby Elena 

Selfie time 

Emma can't get enough of Elena 

Baby shower 

Sam made it to the shower 

Feeding Elena 

Emma's Preschool Graduation

Emma had her Preschool Graduation Ceremony today at daycare, and it was pretty darn adorable. They had the kids all wear graduation caps, and then they marched onto the stage and sang some songs for the audience.

After three adorable songs, they had their names called one by one, and walked across the stage and got their diplomas. It was really cute. After they received their diplomas, they went to sit with their families, and we watched a video of the kids. It was really sweet. It choked me up a little to think that these kids have spent the last 5 years together, and pretty soon most of them will go their own ways. They have made a lot of memories and spent a lot of time together, I know Emma is going to miss them when she goes off to Kindergarten this fall.

After the video, we took pictures, had cookies, and watched the kids run around like crazy. And then we called it a night. We are so proud of Emma, and so excited for what her future holds. I can't believe I almost have a Kindergartener!

P.S. They asked Emma at daycare what she wants to be when she grows up. And most kids said a doctor, or a teacher, or a mommy, and what do you suppose Emma said? Emma said she wants to be a chicken. That's right, she want to be a chicken when she grows up. I'm not sure if she was being funny on purpose, or if she didn't quite understand the question, but you gotta love 4 year olds. :)

Emma and Sunnie

Birthdays, and Nurse's Week, and Mother's Day. Oh my!

May has started off with a bang, and now we are halfway through the month, and I haven't even had a chance to blog all of our activities!

I turned the big 30 at the beginning of the month. I had a pretty low-key day, but it was very nice and I was able to spend it with family. I took a couple days off of work around my birthday, and just had a couple nice days at home with the kids. The weather was gorgeous, so I took them to the zoo one day. We also had dentist appointments and eye appointments sprinkled in there. It was a good week. We capped it off with some Old Chicago Pizza. I guess turning 30 wasn't so bad!

We also celebrated nurses week last week, which basically just meant some extra treats at work. But, it was very nice to feel a little extra appreciated, and to help celebrate a great profession!

Softball has been in full swing around here as well. I am playing two nights a week again this summer, so the weeks just seem to fly by. Between the softball, and work, and busy weekend, I feel like we are always on the go. I love the busyness, but it starts to overwhelm me sometimes.

We have been spending the last couple weekends out at the Greenhouse, mostly just enjoying the weather and being on the farm, but also helping a little out in the greenhouse. We also get to peek at their house that they are building, and it's always fun to check out all the progress from one week to another.

Sunday was Mother's Day, and we had a great weekend. My mom came to visit this past weekend, since my dad was still in the field planting. She really enjoyed seeing and playing with the kids, and we had a good weekend. It also allowed John and I to go out and have a date night, which was awesome. We went to Hydra and enjoyed some beer and adult conversation. It was great!

On Mother's Day, the family, including my mom, headed out to the Greenhouse. We brought some lunch out, and then helped a little while they were open to the customers. My mom helped chase the kids around for a while, and I made her a Mother's Day planter, and then she headed home again. We at some supper at the farm after the greenhouse closed for the day, and then headed home. We had two very tired kids that passed out on the way home, and they were out for the night. It was a great Mother's Day weekend :)

Right now, I am enjoying a movie while I blog before I go and play softball in the heat. Later this week, Emma has her preschool graduation ceremony, which is really hard to believe. We also have Rachel's Baby Shower this weekend, so Emma and I will be heading to Mankato on Friday evening. It should be a fun time! We just keep moving in the Nelson house.

There's a short synapsis on the last couple of weeks with the Nelsons. I will try to blog a little more frequently.

My beautiful kids

Park date

Dental xrays

Birthday cupcakes

Zoo visit 

Two cuties in a tote

Fun at the Library 

Elliott likes to catch chickens 

Daycare friends 

Hannah's Birthday Party

Birthday Cake