Todd's race in the Twin Cities

Todd and I went to the Twin Cities, for his marathon. It was beautiful and we were treated like royalty. The people there were very nice and we were shuttled, fed and informed really well by the race coordinators. Can't say enough about the beautiful location. We stayed right on the Mississippi River and wandered St. Paul's beautiful downtown and theatre district. Todd's race went well - given that he had been suffering from an injury for the last couple of months and wasn't able to get the miles in that he wanted. Part of the excitement of the weekend was running into my former student, Ilsa Paulson. She ended up winning the women's race and $25,000! Pretty exciting!

Ryan's Un-Birthday Party

So - because we all managed to get sick this week...we had to postpone Ryan's birthday party - originally scheduled for today, Sunday 9/27. So, in the spirit of his un-birthday party - we let him open Jack's present and one of our presents..he was THRILLED! Jack got him a Lego set and we got him an Anakin as a Pod Racer costume.

More from the inside..

Master bath

One of the guest rooms

Utility Room

View from the front door

Dining Room

We got inside...

Master Bedroom

Guest Bath

Kitchen - Todd's kicking the cabinets! :-)

Kitchen Island

View from the Great Room

So we went out yesterday and got to see the semi-finished state of the house. We are getting pretty excited - they said hopefully by the end of the month! :-) Here are some pictures of the inside and from the inside looking out. We also met another set of the neighbors - they seem very nice...although it sounds like we've moved into a retirement area - didn't know those existed in rural Oracle!??!

The cabin has arrived!

so - does it look like it's leaning a little bit?!?! :-)

So - on Friday our manufactured home was delivered to our property! It was really fun to watch them manuever the two sections around 2 hair pin turns and up to the pad...let me just say...these drivers are GOOD! We can hardly wait for it to get all hooked up and the inside finished so we can officially call it complete! Here are a few pictures of the move and with the two pieces sitting side by side...they were in the process of connecting the halves when we left Friday afternoon.

Soccer...soccer...soccer!

The boys started soccer games this morning. It was so fun to watch them both learn the game.

Ryan plays U6 (4 & 5 year-olds), has a lavendar uniform, is #9 team name: purple dragons, plays 3-on-3, has 4 - 5min quarters.

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Jack plays U8 (6 & 7 year-olds), has orange and black uniforms (w/white socks??), is #10, team name: speeding bullets (parents liked smashing pumpkins or flaming balls - but thought inappropriate for the team banner :-) ), plays 6-on-6 with longer quarters and half time.

Both boys really enjoy it and run a lot! This morning Jack scored a goal - although Grandpa described it as Jack dragged the opposing team (who had the ball) through the goal post. And, Ryan had an assist to the one goal his team scored! Both boys are the tallest on their team - and therefore got the biggest uniforms - if you're wondering why they look so big! The weather was great - overcast w/sprinkles...reminded us a little of Oregon soccer!

Losing an incredible Mother, Grandmother and Friend

I haven't blogged for awhile, mostly because we were dealing with the loss of Todd's Mom. It came on very suddenly, but the cancer returned and ravaged her bone marrow - we lost her within 4 days of learning that her cancer had returned. Since her death on August 24th, we have been dealing with the affects on the children, ourselves and Jim by spending a lot of time together. She was a brave, incredibly giving woman - who battled this cancer for 10 years, enduring countless treatments and 2 stem cell transplants. We find some peace in knowing that those years she spent here with us have provided us many, many special memories. The woman known to us as Grandma Jane, Mom and my friend is dearly missed.

Here are a few pictures from some of the fun and special memories we have with Grandma Jane.