St. Olaf Choir Centennial Reunion and Surrounding Activities

Warning: This post is oozing with UM YA YA. You fellow Oles will be loving it. Everyone else...you've been warned.

The St. Olaf Choir is celebrating its centennial anniversary this year, and in honor of that all the alumni were invited back to sing in a centennial concert. Singing in the choir was one of the most memorable experiences of my life, so I didn't want to miss the opportunity to return to The Hill and sing.

The weekend was a whirlwind - saw so many friends, went to rehearsals, and spent some good time walking around St. Olaf, a place I love so much.
It was a little crazy trying to juggle two young kids while doing all of this, so I took only a couple of photos. I was too busy getting in my visit time when I could and showing off Adam, Clara, and Phil to lots of old friends.

If you are interested, you can CLICK HERE to see some photos of the events as well as video of the concert. The current St. Olaf Choir sings first, so if you want to see just the Centennial Choir (about 800 singers!) you can fast forward to 90:55.

It was so great to sing for Dr. A again. I underestimated how good it would feel and how much I miss really singing like that. The picture below is very poor quality since the lighting was low, but it shows a special part of our rehearsal. Dr. Jennings (Dr. A's predecessor) came to the podium and directed us for Beautiful Savior. As you can see, he couldn't quite actually make it up to the podium, but it was still really cool. He directed the piece during the concert as well.

This was both Adam and Clara's first time on campus and it was so fun to see them running around (or in Clara's case riding in the stroller) this place I love.
My two future Oles.

Adam already has the UM YA YA.

I also got to co-host a baby shower for my good friend Beth (also an Ole Alum, so it goes with the theme). We're so excited to meet Baby in August!
Here are some friends chatting. It is so rare that we all get to be together, so this was a special gift.

Clara got to meet her friend Marla (Shana's daughter). They had their first snoozer together (Marla is in the pack and play).

The spread.

The Mama-to-be opening a homemade blanket from Sara.

How many mamas does it take to figure out a Moby wrap???

Brothers and Sisters

I have the best brother and sister. Seriously. The. Best. I don't think anyone can make me laugh harder. Sure, Matty and I used to want to kill each other, but luckily we moved past that stage.

My mom took advantage of having all three of her kids in the same place - doesn't happen too often anymore - and took some pictures. This one is my favorite.

Adam had a blast playing with Unco Matty. Matty taught him lots of new games playing on Adam's new passion for crashing things together and general silliness. I wish I would have gotten pictures of Adam playing baseball in the front yard with Matty and Grace, but I was having way too much fun watching. Matty was doing a play-by-play commentary that had me on the floor. If you've ever heard him do this, you know what I'm talking about.

Unco Matty met Clara for the fist time. This is my favorite of the two of them.

These are good too.

I can't leave out my fabulous sister and brother-in-law. Aunt Jessie had great fun getting to know Clara. Don't they both just look beautiful? Seriously beautiful.
Jessie got to spend some quality time with Clara on the airplane ride home to VA. Jessie had a work conference out here and I was so thankful that she got on our flight and helped me out with the kids. Couldn't have done it without her!

Clara loves her Uncle Matt. Both kids had fun playing with him while we were visiting Grandma and Grandpa Swenson down in Albert Lea.

So thankful for all you brothers and sisters! It was so great to watch my kids loving them...I just wish it could happen more often.

Water, Water, Water

I am so glad my kids love the water because some days it's so hot that the only way we can really be outside is if we're doing a water-related activity. Here are some of our first water adventures of the summer. Not included is our trip to the fountain, which Adam absolutely adored. I'll have to get photos next time we go.

Some fun in the sprinkler. Adam's first sprinkler experience.

For some reason he really wanted to hold his paintbrush while he ran in the sprinkler. You'll see what the brush is for in a couple of photos.

I wish I could claim this idea as my own, but I actually got it from a friend. Using water to "paint" the deck. Brilliant. Kept him occupied for a long while.

Our first trip to the pool this summer. Adam having some fun with Daddy in the big pool.

Clara's first time swimming. We stuck to the wading pool.

Serious Shopper

We recently discovered that the Trader Joe's by our house has carts for little kids during the week. (Yeah, get this - they put them away during the weekend because stupid teenagers were messing around with them and running into old people. Idiots.)

"Too busy to smile for the camera, Dad. Can't you see I'm shopping?"

Yes, those are two bottles of wine in his cart. What can I say, He's got good taste.

Another cute picture of Adam that I just wanted to share.

Month Four Came and Went

The blog has been quiet, which usually means we've been busy. We just returned from a trip to MN and are getting back into the swing of summer around here. I figure I needed to do a four month post for Miss Clara before she went and turned five months old right under my nose.
She is doing beautifully. Weighed in at 13 lbs. 13 oz. and 26 inches long at the doctor this week. She also rolled over for the first time a couple of days ago!
Still blue eyed and fuzzy as a peach on top...

This month brought her first plane trip (to Minnesota), which she handled beautifully. She is just like her brother in that she loves her baths. Here she is having a bath in Grandma Ann's sink.
"Hmmm this is a little different..."
She has really developed her own little personality, though, and in a lot of ways she and Adam could not be more different.
The most noticeable difference...she sleeps! It is amazing to me that she will just fall asleep wherever she might be. Notice: she also loves the pacifier and sucking on things in general.

People say she looks more like me, where as Adam looks so much like Phil.
Guess you can't really judge from this picture - sleeping again!
Do you see a resemblance here?
Clara and Grandpa Rob, doing what they do best.
She also went in the pool for the first time this month. She loved it just like her brother! Here she is in her little swimsuit waiting to take her dip.
Just like her brother, she has developed a deep love for Sophie. She's just figuring out how to get various parts into her mouth. Unfortunately, Adam thinks bonking Clara on the head is a great way to activate Sophie's squeaker. Clara isn't much help, though, since she smiles away at Adam as he is doing this.
She smiles so easily now, but she is so fascinated by the camera, she often looks like my little serious girl.

Did I mention she sleeps???
Playmat wasn't quite exciting enough for her.