This is our new tree, in all it's fall glory, taken on a perfect October day! I love how vibrant the red is! 
This is Miss Alexis wearing her "fairy princess skirt" I made her out of tulle--white glitter tulle (I apologize profusely to Liisa and Andrea both for the glittery sparkles that got everywhere from it!) She loved it so much she had to wear it right away, and even wore it to bed that night!
Here is Master Justin playing on the Wii with Aunt Liisa--who taught him how to bowl, box, and play golf (he didn't do so well at Tennis though).
Kids in motion--Alexis loved to dance in her skirt and Justin was enjoying the activity that goes with the Wii controller...
This is what we woke up to on Saturday morning, prior to leaving for Princeton and the Lawn Tractor party...
Everything was such a lovely white!
This is my favorite spot on Jesse's land--it's peaceful and comfortable, and I love the views: looking north up the Rum River (which runs through the back half of his land),and looking south down the river...
Rei, Sydney, and Alex, trying to warm up some by the propane stove in the garage... Liisa set the Wii up on the tv facing the couch and Justin spent most of his time at the party playing on that...
Justin and his "Cousins/girlfriends"... He loves them to pieces, and has really enjoyed spending time with them when I have been in town to create family gatherings!
This is what we woke up to Monday morning, before leaving to head back to Mascoutah...
There was so much wet, heavy snow that we even had to scrape the windshields, and the snow was "waterfalling" off the branches when it got heavier than the branches could hold... Rei and I got nailed waiting at Andrea's for her to open the door and let us in...
Rei decided to crawl through this crawling tube of the little ones, and he got stuck; Alexis first grabbed two handfuls of hair and said "I save you Uncle Rei," then pulled with all her might; she then grabbed his hand and yanked for dear life. When he got out of it finally, she proudly announced she had "helpt to rescue" him! I laughed til I cried!
Brie took this pic of us up at the lawn tractor party. She was so much fun that weekend! We went to the Mall of America, we went to visit family, and we hung out with friends; she even drove part (okay most) of the way there, because the rain we had on the way north, combined with night driving, and my being tired was causing my eyes to act funky and I was struggling with a halo effect from the lights. She did very well, and I must say, her driving training over the summer is showing through!The drive home was terrible: we initially had heavy wet snow, then blizzard-like conditions through southeastern MN and northwestern IA, then rain through much of IA; by the time we got to the MO border it had settled down to just being damp and muggy, but dry. All in all we made decent time though, and were home in exactly 10 hours from when we left Liisa's, despite a few potty stops and one gas and then meal stop. I was glad to be home again, and my honey had missed me while I was gone this trip.
I had a wonderful time being "home" in MN again, and leaving was bitter-sweet. Eric got sick over the weekend (bad cold) and he wanted me home, and Justin got sick with a cold too; when I told Justin I needed to go home to take care of Grandpa Eric, he announced I needed to stay and take care of him cuz he was sick and "mommy don't know how to take care of me!" (what a little bugger, trying to guilt me into staying!) He then tried to convince Rei and I to wait for him while he packed and found his shoes and sweater so he could come home with us! Bless his heart, I miss him so much!
I met up with a girlfriend I haven't seen for 10 years or better for brunch on Sunday and that was so wonderful--it was like the years had never passed us by; and my friend Ann came up to the land to party with us, also very fun. I saw my family; that was most important of all to me... so I came home content.
School is going well for me, although I really do need to get my essay written that is due today. As far as the rest of the family is doing, Eric is feeling much better; his cold ran it's course really quickly and he was only sick for a few days. Aurora is excited that the cross country season is doing well and while she isn't setting any records, she is enjoying running. Rei got a B+ (amazing) on a major project he had to do for his communications project, and other than Brie helping him with his posters (she did the lettering on them) he did it on his own with his partners; Patrick is working many hours (he is picking up extras here and there) and is liking the paychecks... We think school is going ok--but I haven't checked grades in a while... Brie still has not set things up to go back to work, and despite gentle nudges from Eric and I is finding herself in no hurry to return to working... She has some drill weekends coming up and she is not necessarily looking forward to them, although she does like the paychecks. Eric picked up an extra OT shift today, but says he is focusing on homework too this weekend... And I was supposed to work today but my van is in the shop cuz it was overheating something fierce and leaking antifreeze... sounds like it is just a bad heater hose that is leaking but I have not heard back from the shop about it. That shouldn't be too expensive to repair.
I entered my two projects in the Arts and Crafts show on base, and I hope they do well. It starts on the 19th and I am really excited to go to it this year.
Anyhow, that is all I have for today. I was naughty and didn't go to the high school's homecoming parade today--it's just too chilly and ugly out to walk and stand outside for any extended time; not sure what the kids are gonna do about the game tonight--Aurora has to march, Patrick is working, and I have no idea if Brie and/or Rei will go to the football game. Tomorrow night is the dance, and Aurora is planning to go with girlfriends I guess, and while Rei has been invited by a few girls, he is on the fence about going and is leaning towards staying home... I am working on him though--I think he should go!
Okay, now I am done!
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