The Dells 2015

It was time again for our second annual winter trip to the Dells, thanks to Grandma & Grandpa A's Christmas present.  And the girls could NOT have been more excited!!

Much to Hadley's surprise and delight, Piper tried ALL of the slides this year!!  (Last year, Piper was only brave enough to try one slide.) They did more slides than you could even count, and loved every minute of it.  They were most often seen running off together for the next slide holding hands :)

Kyle was with them every step of the way.

Bryndel found parts of the waterpark she enjoyed as well. 

She probably most enjoyed sitting on the edge of the wave pool and letting the water run up and over her cute little legs.

And, we made sure to adhere to the strict Anderson Family Vacation rules: eat ice cream every day :)  I think its safe to say, we had a howling good time at the Great Wolf Lodge!

Y Ball

As Hadley's first season of Y basketball comes to a close, we can only smile thinking about it.  It was so. much. fun. watching her out there!  

With the encouragement and guidance of two very patient coaches, Hadley made progress every single time she went out there.

Hard to tell from the picture, but this kid did not run from one end of the court to the other... she skipped!!  Seriously, happiness exuded from her even on the court.  

She really made strides in her defensive play, intimidating the other team enough to start backing away from her incessant bird arms!

This may not have been the most aggressive or talented team out there, but they were definitely the most polite and kind :)  Always smiling and cheering for one another.

Bernie, Coach Jenny, Malia, Hadley, Coach Jeff, Terese, Ashley, Emilie, & Kara

Way to go, Hadley!  

Mystery Reader Weekend

Just as Hadley did in Kindergarten, Piper was treated to a little Mystery Reader surprise this past weekend... Grandma & Grandpa came to her classroom to read!  How special!  I'm not sure who had more fun :)

Both of Piper's sisters were also surprised to have Grandma & Grandpa for the whole weekend, and got right down to the business of reading together.

More reading Saturday morning! As well as a little snuggling and even some card playing before heading off to Hadley's last basketball game. 

We finished out the weekend with a little snowshoeing at the land, followed by an evening at our church. 

These two yahoos slid so fast down the hill, they had to bail at the end to avoid the cliff!
 
















How cute are they!?!

Thanks for such a special weekend, Grandma & Grandpa!




















We slipped out early Sunday morning for a trip up to see Grandpa A!

Kyle had fun sharing some old camping, hunting, & fishing photos with his family. 

The girls enjoyed crafting with Auntie Kara, and getting some good hugs in :)

Hard to tell from this photo, but Bryndel is sporting a pretty good looking rug burned Rudolph nose thanks to a brave attempt she made at climbing out of her crib Saturday afternoon!! Thankfully, just her nose and pride were hurt.  We hope to keep her in the crib until her 3rd birthday like we did with Hadley & Piper, but we'll keep a good eye/ear on it!

Anderson Family Love

We were blessed with a long three day weekend up north with Kyle's family; some members came all they way in from Alaska!  It was pretty special to say the least.  We began the weekend with some great basketball; Hayden's game Friday evening, and Ava's game Saturday morning.  Her cheering section below...

Her biggest fans :). 





















Grandpa A got just a 'few' smiley visitors over the weekend, at his new nursing home. I think the staff may have been a little surprised at just how big (and loud), and joyful his family is! 

Brooke, Kennedy, Anne, & Kim

Bryndel, Sydney, Hadley, Kara, Brooke, Ava, Piper, & Annie 

Piper & Kennedy

 Kara & Ava


















Three hooligan brothers :)

All of the present cousins: Paige, Piper, Kennedy, Hadley, Sydney, Bryndel, Brooke, Hayden & Ava (Missing Brent, Tyler, & Cole up in Alaska, and their lovely wives Cali & Bethany)

And this is what it looks like when you are the newbie on the block... That is Paige's fiancee, Luke, who was made to lie across the back of everyone, hehe.

Kyle & Kim working in the kitchen together.

















Brooke, Kara, & Bryndel 

Kennedy & Sydney, who are both about a month or so away from turning 15!

All 6 siblings together :)

Hadley was near tears when she realized that we were going to leave town without visiting any animals.  Never mind that the whole weekend was subzero temperatures!  Uncle Frank happily showed us his new calf, and saved the day.

Little Auntie Anne love; man we wish she (& Uncle Kurt) lived closer!

Our last stop before heading home, was a lunch date with Grandpa A, who was very happy to see those three smiling sisters.  Thanks for the special weekend, Anderson Family!  We love you!!!

Basketball Hugs

Grandma and Grandpa came for the weekend to catch a little basketball action and and lay some hugs on us!  Both were much appreciated :)  

Little Simon Says before the game.

Thumb wrestling too.

That's our Hadley girl with the ball.

And this is what your face looks like after you've made a basket!  Thanks for coming, Grandma & Grandpa, we LOVED it!

Little Helper

Bryndel was my 'helper' today while shoveling the driveway. She was entertained by her own tiny shovel for all of 3 minutes while zig-zagging the driveway, and then proceeded to face plant herself in any fluffy pile of snow she could find. To eat it, of course :)

As I was finishing up I noticed she was trying to make something in the snow. "It's bacon, Mama, lick lick lick." I pushed my shovel closer to admire her bacon, and she said, "Don't shovel me, Mama, that be weird."