Road Trip

We just got back from an amazing road trip through 5 states. I had a conference in Colorado Springs, so the whole family decided to come along. We had a great time. The weather was great and the sights were better. I was amazed by the vastness of the western landscape. The kids did well in the car. Breaking the trip up into 8 hour days really helped. The first day we drove up Pike's Peak. It was bitter cold and windy, so we didn't stay long. While I was conferencing, the kids went to the Garden of the Gods, Focus on the Family and of course Chic-fil-a. On the way home we hit the Black Hills, Mount Rushmore, Crazy Horse and Wall Drug. We're already planning our next road trip. It was a great time.  You can see all the photos here.

Christmas Update

I know, I know.  I'm a bad parent and a terrible blogger.  We celebrated Christmas at home with just our family and then did some time with Amanda's family.  Then we were off to Michigan.  We were in Alpena for a wonderful Christmas with my mom and Tricia's family.  It was a great time.  Mom was AMAZING with the food and acting as our hostess.  The kids had a great time with their cousins and we enjoyed the wonderful north woods.  Here are a few photo highlights from our time.







You can view all of the photos here.

Some pictures I've wanted to post

I've wanted to share these for a while.  We've had an amazing fail weather wise.  We have spent as much time outside as possible, trying to bank all of the vitamin D we can for February.








I love this last one. Even though it's blurry, Lucy looks so pretty. The sweater is one that Shirley knit for Amanda lo so many years ago.

Pretty in Pink

This is exactly who Molly is right now.



You can see more of her in this gallery.

Happy One Month Birthday, Lucy

From January

Today we celebrate the first month of Lucy's life.  And oh what a month it's been.  We love her so much and are so thankful to God for the gift of her that He has given.  You can see some pics here (MOM!)

How are the kids adjusting?

From Lucy Ruth

"How are the kids adjusting?"  That's the question that I've gotten a lot at work today.  I love the picture above.  It shows just how excited all of the kids are about their new sister.  All of the boys love holding Lucy and as I've mentioned before, Molly "wants to hold she."  When the boys aren't holding her, they pretty much go along with their normal routine.  It has been the biggest shock for Molly.  While she is very excited about "Sis", I'm not sure she's very excited about sharing Amanda's attention.  Gigi is here now though, which helps with all of that.  I've added some more photos for those of you who are interested.

Lucy Ruth

Christmas recap

While it was a somewhat distracted Christmas with the arrival of our new sweetheart, it was certainly an enjoyable one.  Here are some photos of some of the highlights.

My Favorite Picture

I love the innocence in Matthew's face. That's who he is all the time. I love the interest in Aunt Loretta's face. That's who she is. I love the light.

Surprise!

This weekend we had a surprise party to celebrate the 31st anniversary of Shube's 29th birthday. It was a great time. As you can see from the above picture she was very surprised. (Sorry about the photo quality. My lens has been having some problems.) All of Shube's family from Chicago made the six hour drive up to celebrate with us. Gregg and Allison even flew in for a whirl wind 24 hour trip. Shube's friends Jim and Jean Anderson were the only non-Wendts who made the cut. (But they are both very Scandinavian so that has to count for something.) The Nagel girls (Amanda, Sarah and Allison) put a ton of work into making it a success. The food was good, the setting was beautiful and the company was close. It was great to see everyone and great to celebrate our love for Shube. We are all very blessed.

You can see all of our pictures here.

Follow the Yellow Brick Road

From October

We had a great time on Saturday night. Shube came over as usual to help pass out candy while Amanda and I took the kids first to my bosses house and then to our neighbors. My boss has a whole room full of sports memorabilia like autographed balls from Larry Bird, Michael Jordan, Joe Montana and others. Ben thought this was one of the highlights of his night. While we were there, he kept slipping back to the room to check things out. My boss thought that was pretty cool. She loved having us and I was so glad we went.

Trick or treating is always a highlight because we get to see a lot of the neighbors that we don't see all year. There are some old people that really like to see the kids and I like to stand and talk with them for a while. Each year, I get a little braver and stay and talk a little longer.

As soon as the costumes hit the floor we started talking about what we would be for Trick o' Tweet next year. Any ideas for three boys, a little girl and a baby? So far, Robin Hood, his merry men, and Maid Marian are at the top of the list. You can see all of our photos here.

Another Great Door County Vacation

From Door County

For the past few years, we have traveled to Door County, Wisconsin to meet up with Amanda's mom's family. This year's vacation was made a little less fun by Shirley not being able to join us. But we felt it was our duty to have a great time on her behalf. We did our duty well.

The rainy weather did not dampen the spirits of all those present. We hit all of our favorite places and enjoyed some new haunts as well. Here are some highlights.

• Al Johnson's Restaurant--I had a delicious lunch of Clam Chowder and perch sandwich.
  
• Door County fish boil--We ventured from our normal spot of The Old Post Office restaurant to try White Gull Inn. It was even more quaint and "Door Countyish". If you don't know what a fish boil is, you can see my video from last year here.
  
• The view from the Fjlander's condo and lobby. See picture below.
• Our day at Peninsula State Park, Wisconsin's largest state park. If you have an opportunity to go here, it's great. Camping here would be a dream.
  
• Climbing the Eagle Tower just before dark with my family on Monday night.
• Swimming in the poll every day with the kids.
  
• Seeing and spending time with the Wendt clan.
  

Although we missed have Shube with us, it was great for our family to be together all day for four days. Thanks so much for a great vacation, Shirley. It will be one that we'll all remember. You can see all of our photos by clicking the photo below.

Door County

From Door County

A few Molly favorites

2 years of Molly Pearl

This weekend we celebrated 2 years of joy that God has brought into our lives through Molly Pearl. When each of our kids has been born, I always wonder to myself, "Will I love this child as much as I love Ben . . . Caleb . . . Matthew?" In the case of Molly, I love her unlike I love her brothers. Her sweet spirit, her smile and her strong will, draw me to her in special ways. Amanda and I consistently look at each other in wonder when she says things and does things that tickle us. We are so thankful for her and look forward to more joy that God will give us through her life.

Alpena Vacation: Day 7

Alpena Vacation: Day 6

From Gammons Family Photos

Alpena Vacation: Day 5

From Alpena Trip

Alpena Vacation: Day 4

Alpena Vacation: Day 3

From Alpena Trip

Alpena Vacation: Day 2

From Alpena Trip

Alpena Vacation: Day 1

From Alpena Trip