gracias a los abuelos
What could be better than spending your holiday on a sunny beach in Mexico? Sharing it with cousins Ethan, Lydia, Maria! Thanks to some wonderfully generous Grandparents, that's exactly what we did.
"gracias a los abuelos" = thank you Grandma and Grandpa (I think...)
lots more to come!
samson
Dog week continues... via a friend of a friend we met Samson, who as it turns out needed a new home. We found out on Friday, he moved in on Saturday and now Clarke's considering legal action. The rest of us kind of like the big fella. He's 6 months old, towers over Clarke and will likely grow another 4 inches and 50 pounds before he's through. A Great Dane he is, but whether he'll stay for good remains to be seen.
This is what I'm up against ~ Clarke's the wee one in the front, the Dane photo I pulled from the web.
three dog days
Thursday Clarke turned 5, Friday he and the girls marched in the Christmas City of the North parade supporting Animal Allies, and for the third dog day, the girls worked the "Love a Pet" adoption event at the local Subaru dealer.
thank you!
Mark, Hiedy and cousin Maria made a last-minute road trip attending Grace's gymnastics meet yesterday. I worked this weekend missing the meet, but despite the cellar like lighting in the Superior, Wisconsin gymnasium, Mark saved the day with this fantastic shot.
A great weekend for us, made particularly special with cousin, and fellow gymnast Maria in attendance.
three generations
I shared a photo of some loft beds I thought would be a cool Christmas gift with my Dad ~ while I'm well aware he doesn't
stand around much, I didn't think they'd arrive this early...
He obviously crafted the metal frames, which are stout enough they've surely improved the tornado tolerance of my entire home. I managed the wood trim, and the girls decorated the undersides (without parental guidance I might add).
The finished product is pretty amazing, and even better, built by three generations of Marshiks.
ghosts & goblins
Apparently unafraid of the ghoulish theme, Grace put up some of her better scores of the year.
bel the builder
Spotted in the recycling bin at school, Isabel asked if she could have a particularly interesting piece of cardboard. Brought it home and turned it into this...
welcome home
Don't think anyone looks forward to the end of the school day like Clarke ~ Welcome home Isabel!
rocky mountain high... Wyoming
Couldn't resist on the soundtrack... it's copyrighted so you'll need the password. Hint, what's a pack animal that beings with "Lla "?
a day in the life
Like the famous Beatles song, Isabel and her piano camp friends let the final chord of their silent film music score ring.
Here they are alternating pianos/kids to keep the music seamless and in time with the film.
under the sea
come on... sing it!
Under the sea
Darling it's better
Down where it's wetter
Take it from me
Up on the shore they work all day
Out in the sun they slave away
While we devotin'
Full time to floatin'
Under the sea
Under the sea is where Grace and Isabel will be spending this week; surfacing only occasionally in Grandma's pool for food and air.
music in the park
Here's another reason why Duluth was voted Outside magazine's best outdoors town. Chester Park's weekly, and free summer concert series. With sun and 70 degrees we took in local legend Charlie Parr playing at the base of Chester ski hill and it's towering old school ski jump.
Isabel brought a friend, they listened briefly, but spent most of their time scaling the ski slope.
wind chill
The second of Duluth's two seasons is upon us... Mosquito season. Hoping that a bit of wind would help keep the pests at bay, I installed a ceiling fan on the deck. While it does work, you need a lot of fleece to deal with the wind chill.
finals week
Isabel passed out cramming for finals week... that is if you call a field trip to the YMCA and Fort Folle Avoine Historical Park a final.
