I have found joy and it is ... CAKE

Phoebe's first birthday was yesterday and to help us celebrate my dad drove up for the weekend and we had a little party with several of our friends and their children.  Although Phoebe has had cupcakes previously this was her first time enjoying cake with frosting, she LOVED it!

Let them eat cake!!!!

This is tasty!

Want some???

Phoebe's First Fest

Today we attended our 6th annual Oktoberfest parade in La Crosse but it was Phoebe's first fest.  I can't believe that last year when everyone was enjoying the festivities we were bringing Phoebe home from the hospital.  My dad joined us this year and was able to fully grasp the spectacle of the Oktoberfest parade, something you have to see to believe.  FYI - It is a four hour parade that is more a big city party than a parade.  People will start "staking their claim" the day before, although technically you aren't allowed to set your stuff out until midnight.  Everyone brings tons of food, beer, and of course brats.  We had a great time this year, as always!   

Phoebe and Audra particularly enjoyed their homemade "letter" pretzels.  I enjoyed donning my authentic "frau frock".  A dress my grandmother brought back from her time in Germany, in the 50's.   

Ben and his friend Brad had a good time marking spots for the horses to....well use your imagination

Phoebe and Audra had a great time with their grandpa and both enjoyed some much needed rest during the looooong parade.  

Bubbly Bubbles

About a month ago our bubble blower broke so I have been serving as the resident bubble maker.  Although I have enjoyed this job I was overjoyed when a package arrived yesterday with a new bubble machine.  Thanks SO MUCH Papa Jim and Grandma Paula.  The weather has been terrific so we were able to try it out.  

The new bubble maker makes huge bubbles which Phoebe loved!  She tried to scoot around and catch some but was not quite fast enough.  

Waiting patently for more bubbles

Oh, here they are

So that is what happens when I touch them

Audra made the comment that the bubbles were as big as Phoebe, she was not kidding

Picture Day

In an attempt to commemorate Phoebe's first birthday we set up the backdrop and tried to snap a few good photos.  This is my favorite out of the bunch...

This is a more natural picture of the girls, totally ignoring mom because they are engrossed in each other.   
By the end Phoebe was ready to be "all done" as she kept trying to communicate with sign language. However, Audra was a trooper and kept working hard to help me get a good picture.

Bugs and Babies

This past weekend I took my jewelry business (Lady Bug Beads) to the next step by participating in the Applefest Craft show in nearby La Crescent, MN.  I had a great time, sold quite a bit, and received many generous compliments. Thanks everyone for your support, especially Ben who stayed home with the girls over the weekend and had the banner made from my business card as a surprise mother's day gift.  Also, a big thank you to Anne Clarkin who "forced" me to sign up for the show and sat with me on Saturday. 

I tried to take pictures of the booth but as you can see it was difficult to find an angle that really captured it so you will have to use your imagination. 
This close-up gives you a better idea of what the jewelry looks like but it is still not great, sorry.  If you would like to see the jewelry check out sunflowersisters.etsy.com.  My sisters and I are going to "open" an on-line store in the near future.  
In addition to my jewelry I took along taggie blankets, my newest project. I was pleased that I was able to sell a few as I have previously only given them away as gifts (as many of you who have had babies in the past 9 months can attest).  I am also going to open a store to sell my baby items the web address for it is ladybugbabies.etsy.com.  However, I have yet to list anything...but soon I promise!

The Big 30!!!

OK so I know that not everyone is as freaked out as I am about turning 30 but to me it is a big deal.  Let me wallow in my own misery people!  Just kidding.  Although our lives are in a state of "flux" right now I am happy to be where I am in life.  I could not have wished for a better life at 30 than the one I have been given. I am eternally grateful for my wonderful husband, two beautiful daughters, adoring family, and faithful friends.  You all make my life wonderful and I hope to enjoy the next 30 years with all of you.  In the end, 30 is not as bad as I though it would be...then again I have only been 30 for about 12 hours now, perhaps I should give it more time =)

At her own pace

So a few posts ago I mentioned that Phoebe has been uncharacteristically cranky lately.  Well today I just happened to look in her mouth while she was crying and I discovered that she is getting her molars...all four of them. The upper and lower ones on the right side of her mouth have just barely poked through and the left side of her mouth is all swollen.  I feel terrible that I did not realize she was cutting more teeth.  I guess it is just one more demonstration of how mellow she is most of the time.  So it appears that by the age of one she will have 12 teeth, be saying a few words such as "mama", "dada", and "bye bye" but the girl still REFUSES to stand on her own and will only "walk" if you are holding on to both of her hands and standing behind her.  To each their own...at least she has perfected the scoot.  

Paint changes everything

While we were in St. Louis we had our great room painted.  Ben has been able to paint the rest of our house but the great room had walls that were just too high for our ladders and a dangerous section over the stairs.  Thus, we hired someone to be brave for us (Thanks for the great recommendation Sarah!).  The color we choose was perfect and we are really pleased with how it looks.  We should have done this much earlier. 

Take me out to the ball game

We traveled up to the cities today to watch the Twins play the Royals.  Although we were in the minority we enjoyed cheering on our "home" team the Royals.  It was especially exciting because the Royals were able to score one final run in the 10th inning and win the game!

The girls had a great time at their first major league baseball game. However, I think it may have had more to do with the "special treats" from the snack bar rather than the actual game.  

Coffee Talk

On Monday afternoon we were able to get together with a friend of mine from high school and his family.  Thanks again Kenny, Megan, Leci, and Abi.  It was really great to see you guys and spend some time reconnecting over water rings and Qudoba (Chipotle still wins - hands down!)  Although Audra and Leci were a bit shy at first they became fast friends and really seemed to enjoy each others company.  Audra was especially excited to have a friend "just her size" (Audra is only 2 weeks older than Leci, while most of her playmates at home are about a year younger than she is).  The girls were nice enough to suspend their "conversation" so that I could snap a quick picture.  They were just too cute!

Audra asked me this morning if we could go back to the hotel soon so that she could go swimming with her new friend again.    

We're going to the Zoo, Zoo, Zoo

On Sunday, after a wonderful time with the members of St. Louis Mennonite Fellowship church, we headed down to the St. Louis Zoo.  It was a terrific zoo, plus it is FREE.  This first picture was taken near the zoo entrance and does not do justice to the true magnitude and beauty of this sculpture.  

As you can see from the following picture Phoebe had a great time and Audra was just a little worn out from the excitement of the weekend and found a little time to take a quick break.
The penguins were by far our favorite exhibit.  They were super close, we could have reached out and touched one if we would have been so inclined.  Not so sure how they would have interpreted the gesture, especially since they seemed to take such joy in jumping in the water and splashing all of their adoring fans.  
Auntie Holly:  we snapped this picture of the Baby Giraffe just for you!

St. Louis

Ben had a meeting in St. Louis this past weekend and instead of sending him down on his own we decided to load up the family and all enjoy a Yoder Family Road Trip.  Audra was a little confused when I brought up the idea. She did not understand that St. Louis was a place and that we were not going to visit her new cousin Lewis.    

Audra had a great time as usual.  Who wouldn't love sitting back and watching movies while someone else does the driving?  Ben and I certainly enjoy the trip a lot more now that Audra will wear headphones and we can listen to music instead of the soundtrack to her movie.  
This was Phoebe's first time facing forward for a long trip. I thought that she would love it but she was uncharacteristically cranky for most of the trip.  She is not quite interested in the DVD player yet and was not enjoying the toys I provided for her amusement. Mostly she looked at them for about 5 seconds and the threw them on the floor beside her seat.  My theory is that she enjoys her mobility so much that she hates to be cooped up in her seat for more than an hour or so.  On the plus side she will take a nap in her carseat, so at least we have that going for us.