Natalie turns 3!!!

Her big day finally came!

The puppy cake:
It did not turn out as I had hoped. It actually started with about 3-4 more inches of a neck, but gravity took its toll and I had my first cake collapse. I managed to salvage enough cake to make a shorter version of a puppy. I was relieved when the kids saw it and knew it was a puppy. To me, it almost looked like a version of Sony's robotic dog.

The puppy even had a bone, which I made into Natalie's personal piece.



She seemed happy to finally turn 3, and we were left to think how quickly she's grown!

A Dairy Queen treat

It was a beautiful Saturday this past weekend. After lunch, we decided to take the kids to Dairy Queen by the Iowa River for an ice cream treat. Both Peter and Natalie knew exactly what they wanted: blueberry sundaes...and that's what they got!

They sat down eating their ice cream while saying hi to joggers and bicyclists going by on the trail.


After we finished our treats, we took a short walk along the trail ourselves. Elaine seemed to enjoy the warm sun with her hair pulled up...

with Daddy behind the wheel!


I don't know what it is about this picture, but I love it.

Peter and Natalie liked watching things float along the river, like the leaves they kept tossing in. Doesn't Natalie look cool in her shades!?! :)

Then a train came along and it was very loud, but the kids didn't mind at all. They were excited to see a moving train! The trail we were on goes right under the tracks. A little scary for Mommy and exciting for the kids!

Is this is a half-thumbs up from Peter?...maybe Mommy snapped the picture a little too soon before he gave the outting a total thumbs up!