Here's to a new year and a new attempt to make it through all of 2013 with photos from every week.   I really love looking back and seeing what has changed and what has stayed the same.    So,   here's week 1 in photos.    

Who knew there was a physical version of the digital game of Angry Birds.    The kids love it!

   

 Thursday was the first day back to school.   I should have recorded how cold it was, but it was cold after being in Central America for most of December.   

 I have decided to try Ignite Yoga.     I am enjoying it so far.    But it's HOT!! 

 Hockey is in full swing.    Ben has games every weekend from now until the second week in March.  

 I started back to work on Monday the 7th.   At least I have a lighter teaching load this semester.  

 Ethan's Birthday in on Friday, so I took him to Cold Stone.    We had a birthday coupon that we could not let expire.   

 The temperatures have warmed and the snow is very packable.   The kids spent about 2 hours outside after school on Tuesday.    

Iowa games was this past weekend. Ben tried a new sport of jump rope sprint. He needs a little practice, but he had fun.

The boys have been participating in Disc Golf for several years.

Ethan earned the silver metal, second behind our neighbor and his friend. Ben moved up age and competed against the high school kids as well.  It was a little more challenging for him.  

We had the opportunity to dog sit for a couple days.    Nadia loved to walk cookie.  

Unfortunately,  Nadia had a bad cough and low fever all week.   It turns out she had a bit of pneumonia.     Just 1 day of antibiotics and she was much better. 

A picnic in the park.    It was really hot this week.   We actually avoided spending to much time outside.    We actually spent a hour or so wondering around Bass Pro Shop before the Museum opened.    Why shop Bass Pro while on vacation and there is a store really close to home?    The Air conditioning!

We spent Sunday afternoon wondering around the art gallery.   I was impressed with the kid's stamina for the gallery.   The boys really enjoyed it. 

We only built a fire on a couple evening,  it was just to hot to sit by a fire.

Everyone takes turns with the dishes.   It was Ethan's turn.

Oceans of Fun on Monday.   It was the perfect place to be with the heat.    Andrew actually ended the day with a headache from the heat.   Thankfully he felt much better after some food.

We took a trip to the mall on Tuesday,   Our destination was the American Girl Doll Store.  We had promised Nadia,  and she had been asking all week.    She watched with eager expectation as they combed her dolls hair.  

In the afternoon,  we visited the WW1 museum.    We really could have spent more time here.    Ethan really enjoyed it.  

Wednesday we packed up our camp and headed back to Iowa, but made a quick stop at a fireworks stand for some evening entertainment. 

We spent the day at Grandma's house and the girls decided to play a couple holes of golf.  It was fun to spend the time together. 

Andrew headed home and back to work, but the kids and I stayed 1 more day.    We just hung out with Rachel and Sienna and took a walk to see Great-grandma. 

Back home on Thursday evening to clean-up from our short, hot vacation.

We finally decided it was time to have the radon levels in our house mitigated.   We found out they were high when we moved 2 years ago, but we had lots of other things to spend our money on.   We still have lots of other things to spend our money on, but Ben is now sleeping in the basement.   I guess it was a $1,300 peace of mind.

Just a photo of my daisy that's blooming

The weather has been relentlessly hot.    So the kids and I headed to our "beach"   Peterson Pits.  Sometimes, it's just more fun to build a sand castle.  

This is what I mean by Hot.   The temperature reading in my car on Thursday. 

On Thursday, we went down to Altoona to spend the day with my sisters.    Grandma treated us all to ice cream after the afternoon of swimming.

Saturday we left Iowa and headed to Kansas City for a few days.    The Van is packed and ready to go.

A quick stop along the Iowa border to buy a new basket from the Amish in Southern Iowa.

My Uncle John lives in KC.   He joined us for dinner at a truly authentic KC BBQ.   It was delicious.

Here's great description from a website review:

Restaurant Details

Many purists consider L.C.’s the best place to eat authentic Kansas City-style barbecue: succulent slow-smoked ribs, meaty rib tips and hefty beef sandwiches on soft white bread. The L.C.’s pit crew also pulls homemade sausage, chicken wings, turkey and shrimp out of this tiny restaurant’s aromatic pit. The side dishes are almost as famous as the meats — the hearty, molasses-rich baked beans, mixed with so many pieces of tender beef, could make a satisfying meal on its own. Onion rings are fat and crunchy, and L.C.’s fabled French fries live up to their reputation — nearly as thick as a small tree branch, one crispy L.C.’s fry is equal to a small sack of the greasy fast-food variety. L.C.’s is tiny, with fewer than a dozen tables, and everything made here is served in disposable containers with paper towels and plastic flatware. But what the interior lacks in glamour, it more than makes up in the quality and consistency of its signature dishes.

LC, himself, has his office right in the small restaurant.   He has his table piled with papers that he is slowing filing in the cabinet behind him.  The KC Royals were playing on the TV with people commenting about the game.  A stray dog was wondering around the building.   The atmosphere was part of the experience.    It was worth the trip.
  

Despite the heat,  the garden has been growing well.   We have been watering it pretty faithfully.   We recently commented that we should keep on eye on the rabbits and maybe get a fence put up.    The next morning,  the lettuce had been eaten to the ground and the peas were chewed off in many spots.    A rabbit fence is a necessity.  

Swimming lessons for Ethan and Nadia started this week.    We decided to save a little money and take lesson from the City and not Swim America.   I was a little unsure what level Ethan would be since the levels are not equivalent.   I was surprised how much better Ethan's form and stoke mechanics were compared to most of his class.   I guess the money paid to Swim America was well spent. 

We left early on Friday for the 1st of our mini vacations.    We went to Chicago to pick-up Rachel and Sienna from the Airport.  On Saturday, we took the Metro train into downtown.    

And wondered around the city, seeing the sites

When we arrived at the aquarium, we were surprised at the 1 1/2 hour wait for tickets.    The dad's volunteered to stand in line, while we wondered along the lake and played in the grass.

 We discovered a red-winged black bird feeding her babies, but she was not very happy that we were close to her. 

Once inside,  we enjoyed the aquarium.   The special jellies exhibit was really amazing.   Who know there were so many types of jelly fish.

One of my favorite photos of the weekend:   We don't get to see Tito very often and we truly enjoyed the day and half we spent with him.

Catching up another week:
Not many photos for this week, but we were very busy.    We picked Strawberries, Raspberries and Blueberries at the Berry Patch.   There is really nothing better than fresh berries.

 We spent a couple hours on Wednesday afternoon playing at Ledges State Park.   

 An Thursday afternoon at the pool.    Some days, we prefer the indoor pool.   No sunscreen required, it is often less busy, except on certain days when the day cares arrive.   The boys also like that they can dive down to the bottom of the 12 foot section.