The Wonder Spot: July 2006

Ballard Seafood Fest

Oh No! Campbelle is being swallowed by a giant fish!

Kelly visits

Our dear friend Kelly Bates-Felany came to visit us this weekend. We loved seeing her and can't wait for her and Toni to move to Vancover so we can see them more often!

The South 47 Farm

We went to South 47 Organic Farms this morning with some friends for a special children's farm event. The kids learned about worms and caterpillars, did and art project, dug for worms and their eggs, got a tractor trailer ride, and picked a pint of raspberries. Christian prettty much ate his as he picked them, but Campbelle decided she wanted to turn hers into jelly to put on toast. What a fun day!!!!

Kidney Kid

Christian had a doctors appointment today at Childrens Hospital with his nephrologist for his.... well... lack of a kidney. :-) All appears to be just fine, his blood pressure was slightly elevated, but it most likely had to do with his screaming and major freak out with the bp cuff than with anything renal related!! So he's good to go until next year when they will be doing more extensive testing (VCUG, Ultrasound, etc...) just to make sure his one kidney is growing with him. Which will probably be the plan to go to every other year testing until he gets to his teen years ... then there's pubirty issues for them to watch a bit more closely.... wow, I'll just worry about my diaper days for now - because that seems really far in the future!!

Microsoft Company Picnic

This weekend was the Microsoft Family Picnic and again, an amazing display out at an equestrian farm near North Bend, WA. You name it, it was there... pony rides, bumper cars, petting zoo, bouncy stuff, clowns, balloon artists, train rides, et.... The kids had a blast despite the 100 degree weather.

It was one year ago that I started this blog... amazing that I've actually kept updating. Click on the link jump to my first posting about last year's company picnic. It's amazing how the kids have grown!
http://brennekids.blogspot.com/2005_07_01_brennekids_archive.html

What would a picnic be without sticky faces and bellies....

You can always just dump water all over yourself to get clean!

Cool tattos!

Beating the Heat

We've had record temps in Seattle the last few days... yesterday 100 and today 95! That's warm, especially when there is no AC!! So to beat the heat today, we went swimming in Lake Washington. Campbelle is a fish in water... and Christian quite the sand castle destroyer. What a great way to spend hot morning/afternoon!

Vacation Bible School

The kids and I attended Vacation Bible School this past week at our church in Sammamish. I was Campbelle's crew leader for the week. It was alot of fun. Campbelle had a blast singing, dancing, doing crafts, and making silly snacks. It makes me smile when I hearing her singing her little heart out about "Lifting Jesus High." They have a mini-concert in church this Sunday. We'll see if she sings as loudly and does her actions as well in front of a large crowd of adults!! Christian went to VBS day care for the week. I broke down and let him take his 'stinky binky' and 'Jack' blanket for security. He did really well and hardly cried when I dropped him off, but everytime I saw him he was clinging to Jack and binky for dear life. It was a huge step for our shy little man!

Summer Vacation 2006

Yes, finally back with Maddi and Will!! We traveled back to the midwest in late June. We spent a few days with the Gallagher family in St. Michael, MN before heading back to my hometown of Eureka, SD for an All School Reunion and the 4th of July. We had a great time in Eureka and got to see a lot of old friends from my graduating class and all other years. There were street dances, parades, pony rides and community picnics. It was so much fun to experience small town life again, and I certainly feel fortunate to have grown up in such a great little community. After 5 days in Eureka, Leif and I and the kids (including Maddi and Will) spent an afternoon at the Curran Ranch in Veblen, SD. The kids loved all the excitment of the farm and enjoyed seeing the cows and a tractor ride. We then headed to Fargo, ND to visit friends and former collegues. We stayed with our good friend Kelly Bates-Falaney and had a nice time seeing our old town. We hadn't been back in 3 years and wow it's grown. Then back to St Michael for some slow days of playing with cousins, kicking in the pool and relaxing. Oh, and don't forget the World Cup final! We had such a great vacation and it was so much fun to see family and friends again. There were lots of tears at the airport yesterday... but will look forward to being together again in no time!