WOF 2009 Top 10 Memorable Moments

For my birthday weekend, I traveled with my small group plus some to the St. Paul Women of Faith Conference. Had a fabulous time with my ladies and at the conference! Below is the list Christy and Carrie came up with as our top 10 memorable moments. Maybe, just maybe, the number one moment comes from yours truly…

1. Directionally challenged drivers..."Rapid City here we come!" "Ahh...we're in the ghetto of the cities right now!" “What?! Another road closed?!?”

2. Yes, I do believe that my "Girls Next Door" t-shirt is JUST the thing I should wear to WOF!

3. Christy and Carrie's McDonalds drive-through or should we say "drive off."

4. Our death defying seats at the Xcel Energy Center.

5. "All the single ladies...."

6. Allison's hiccups.

7. IKEA!!!!!

8. "It's time for the cocoon!

9. Our friendly little Iowa friends in the van behind us while we waited to get off the exit to the Xcel Center

10. Late night bucket game fun

I love you ladies; you are all beautiful! Thank you to our amazing God for an amazing weekend, great friends, and His never ending, never failing promises.

See you all next year??

Oh, remember the day?

….the day I used to blog about what we were doing this very day or even the next? My, I’ve gotten behind! To catch up, I’ll just have to bombard you with pictures and stories from the past two months. Sorry, but really, why else would you be visiting this site unless it was for that very reason? :) Thanks for that by the way.

Every day we get to spend with Anne is a day I am excited for. Kim’s daughter Anne is a perfect playmate for Elizabeth. She is a very laid-back, fun, and hilarious girl. I cringe though for Anne because Elizabeth is, at times, a very bossy and demanding friend… And here is where I feel it’s appropriate to apologize to any of my childhood friends because, I’m afraid, the girl and I have a thing or two in common…

On to a community health fair with Carrie and Conner (followed up by an amazing holiday dinner cooked by her mom!). The kids enjoyed the face painting, balloon animals, and horse ride. The expressions in this next picture crack me up! (Elizabeth: serious driver, Conner: along for a good ride, Alexander: not too sure about his sister’s driving skills)

Somewhere in all this catch-up blogging, I must shout out a Happy 22nd Birthday to my brother! (Please note the birthday balloon Elizabeth picked out especially for him… yes, it would be the pink princess balloon. This girl is getting smart. She knows the balloon will be hers after the candles are blown!) Love ya bud!

 

Next up, the annual Vermillion Fire Department/EMS Open House. It was weird to visit without being able to see Andrew manning a station. We did however get to visit firefighter Uncle Mike. (Sorry the pictures are so horrible. I will for now blame the camera. But after Christmas, when I hopefully get a new one, I will find something else to blame…)

Alexander doesn’t have his full-blown “Alex” grin here because he knows at any moment I will have to take him down from this glorious throne. The kid adores everything with wheels and to be in the drivers seat is near heavenly!!

Getting ready to paint. This picture is fun for me because the first picture I took of Elizabeth painting she wore this shirt. I’m proud to report that Elizabeth is becoming quite the artist!

No joke, they came up with this on their own… Although one day I might regret the craziness of letting the kids ride their bikes in our kitchen (as in the day we have a normal sized kitchen…), for now I will just enjoy the fun!

Alex is actually a great artist too. He loves holding his marker/pencil like his big sister and is very good at controlling his marker (not over analyzing at all here…).

But we do get a tad tired very easily…. Alexander is very good at bed time and even now with naps, he usually offers! This day he fell asleep half on/half off the couch.

Loving the playdoh birthday present from the Quams! This is something else that cracks me up. Elizabeth plays very nice and orderly with her playdoh while Alex is often found tearing up balls to throw across the kitchen and stomping on them. Can we say pink and blue?!

A few I missed…

My goal was to have the blog completely updated when Andrew got home. Thanks to a nasty virus :( , I now have two more days before my deadline. Here are a few random pictures from before Andrew left.

USD Intramural bike race Andrew convinced himself and Mike to compete in the day of. Andrew took second only to a wanna-be professional (picture very big head) and my brother finished with a great time. The other person from the med school team is our friend Tim whose wife is a 3rd year med student.

Snuck in one last camping trip…

Poor Elizabeth experienced her first bee sting and she (and the entire campground) thought she was dying!

The next day we had the most amazing time on the river canoeing.

We stopped at a sand bar in the middle of the river to go swimming. I have never had so much fun swimming! Elizabeth wouldn’t venture out of the boat and Alex was slow warming up to the idea of swimming in the middle of the river with out a swimsuit. Completely unexpected stop and absolutely amazing.

A venture up the Vermillion tourist hill…

Mike had never been to Spirit Mound so we took advantage of Sam and Rusty being in town and took a trip up the big hill.

Wedding Festivities

Mid September we were able to celebrate Andrew’s brother Michael’s wedding. Andrew was Michael’s best man and I was Heather’s personal attendant. It was a wonderful weekend spent with great family!

Elizabeth with her Nana.

Michael the groom and his friend Tyson.

(Sorry, Michael, pretty sure your mouth was stuffed with fried green beans. Mmmm!)

Andrew’s cousin Shane (aka hair stylist, make-up artist, and musician for the wedding. He did a great job!), his daughter CiCi, Mike, and Talon.

Sharon and Shane’s wife Jennifer.

Rehearsal dinner….

The groom and mother of the groom.

(L to R) Maid of Honor: Krista, Bridesmaids: Sarah, Kassie, and Sharon

Oh so cool boys. Shane and the brothers Andrew and Thomas.

Cousins! Talon, Kailey (Heather’s daughter), Elizabeth, Alexander, Laeton. Just missing Oakley (Heather’s son) and Raedon.

There he is! Oakley and Laeton.

A comedian just like her father!

Finally, the ladies can represent in the Van Osdol family!

(L to R) Heather, Christine, Sharon, Shirley)

Good morning beautiful!

The lovely Anderson couple! Even 4 months pregnant she is gorgeous!

Blurry picture but isn’t my nephew Talon adorable in his tux!

Tried to get a family picture but the following picture will explain why it was impossible…

Alexander wore Andrew’s suit Grandma Marilyn bought Andrew when he was a little boy.

The kids were over the wedding before it started.

Beautiful Van Osdol girls!

Sorry Sharon, I know you were trying to discipline but I couldn’t stop giggling at your hilarious boys! They are so cute and funny!!

The beautiful bride!

Alex slept through the whole thing!! Like clock work he fell asleep before everything got crazy busy and then woke up as soon as we had finished cleaning the church and were ready to head to the reception.

Andrew’s Aunt Barb, Cousin David, and Uncle Ted (Shirley’s brother) from Iowa.

We had a blast with the cousins!

Andrew’s cousin Josh and his wife Rebecca and their three kids, Chloe, Olivia, and Noah.

Congratulations and best wishes Mr. & Mrs. Van Osdol!

Thanks for sharing your special day with us!