Grandma

My mom made a daring choice to head north recently to spend some time with her grand kids. Prior to her arrival, I mentioned she would definitely find the temperatures chilling and should plan to dress a bit warmer. I don't think she believed me. Her first request was to go shopping for some long sleeved sweaters! Mike and I chuckled every time she commented on the cold (temps were in the teens, and twenties while she was in town), because those temps felt a bit refreshing compared to the "real cold" we had in earlier months! Funny how weather can be so relative to what you are familiar with. The visit was a fun excuse to do some out-of-the-usual-routine activities.

While she was here, Max's preschool had an art show and winter song fest. They sang a few winter themed tunes, and then headed over to their exhibit to show off some of their recent art projects. The kids had been asked to make their own type of snowman for the show. It was fun to see the different types of snowman the kids made - from snow-princesses, to snow-dogs, to snow-astronaut. Max chose a snow-robot. Also on display was a clay animal. Each child chose an animal they wanted to create out of clay. Dogs, horses, and giraffes seemed to be the most popular. What did Max pick? A moose. Definitely original. Another fun art project they did was the big yellow fish. The teacher brought an actual fish (from a kind ice-fisherman), the kids painted it, and then pressed paper to the fish to capture the texture and shape of the fish. I hadn't heard of that before. Seemed pretty creative. And a bit stinky.We took her to the Children's Museum. The kids had fun showing her their favorite spots at the museum, and it was fun to check out the new interactive Lego exhibit.

You can't have a winter visit to Minnesota and not go to the Mall of America! This time we checked out the aquarium. Max took his camera and loved taking pics of everything (posting his pics is on the to-do list). Alexis was a bit scared with the sharks (I can only imagine how huge they seemed from her perspective!), but finally warmed up a bit (we have a cute video, but I have yet to figure out how to upload it correctly. Another one on the to-do list).



From the aquarium, we headed over for our second Lego experience - the new Lego Land store that was recently remodeled. It is a pretty fun place to see - there are some places for the kids to build, and the Lego creations they have are so big! It is hard to imagine someone having the patience to actually assemble it. Max has a definite interest in building and using his imagination with his creations - and Legos seem to be a natural fit. Grandma was so sweet to let them pick something out - a gift they have used countless times since going!
In addition to the sightseeing, my mom helped me with some projects at home. I accomplished my first ever sewing project thanks to her guidance, and while I won't be tackling complicated patterns at this point, knowing and having the capability to do some mends and small projects here and there will be fantastic.

She joined me at the gym and while I was teaching, she headed to the pool to try out some water fitness and may have found a new hobby! She spent some one on one time with each of the kids, went to the library and spoiled them with plenty of ice cream.

And, she was a great babysitter. Mike and I were able to get out as a couple and enjoy some grown up time. Cross country skiing, a visit to the temple, dinner with friends, catching up on random errands, we even caught a movie. Knowing that those opportunities don't come by with the blink of an eye make them so much more appreciated.

Thanks for the fun trip mom!