Day 2781 | Here's to 2025!

We had a quiet New Year’s Eve at our house last night – just how we like it. It was packed with some of our favorite things: a delicious soup buffet followed by a yummy dessert, a comedy special on tv, and an epic Heptathlon Game Challenge.

What seven games did we play, you might be wondering? Here’s the lineup:

Our New Year’s Eve Heptathlon Game Challenge categories:

1. Outdoor: Ghost in the Graveyard

2. Active: Popdarts

3. Board: Doomlings

4. Card: Kent

5. Video: Super Smash Bros.

6. New (to all of us): Pick a Pen - Garden Edition

7. Pinball: Avengers

It turns out you can accomplish a lot when you stay up until midnight.

Happy 2025 to all of you! I hope this year is the best yet.

Day 2780 | Christmas Comes to an End

After three Christmas celebrations spread out over three days, we’re back home and enjoying the post-holiday recovery time. We’re feeling very loved and very thankful for the time with our family. We missed the brothers (and their families) that couldn’t make it back, but we’ll appreciate the time we do get!

Merry Christmas!

Day 2779 | Teeny Tiny Christmas

We celebrated Teeny Tiny Christmas up at the lake again this year. We did it all: ice skating, hot tubbing, puzzling, movie-watching, fire building, cocoa sipping, holiday crafting, and lots of board gaming.

Why can’t the weekends be just a little longer?

Day 2778 | Snow Day

After a full school year with no snow day last year, we had one today! It wasn’t quite as much as the experts estimated, but we’ll take it. It sure looks pretty out there.

Day 2777 | 4-H Banquet

We made it to the county 4-H awards banquet this year. Both boys were recognized for their record books and Chase got a shout out for Space Camp. We ate some yummy pasta, played some bingo, and walked away with three gift cards. Three more than we were expecting.

Day 2776 | Wicked!

The boys and I went to see Wicked this weekend and it was everything I hoped it would be. And the boys liked it, too! Now we just have to wait patiently for part two.

Day 2775 | Cat Burrito

Robbe made this cat burrito and wanted me to post the photo. Marv looks thrilled, doesn’t he?

Day 2774 | Virtual Concert

Our adorable nephew had his first-ever holiday concert tonight…and we got to watch it! Virtual concerts will always bring me quickly back to the Covid days, but I won’t pretend I wasn’t happy for the technology so we could see his sweet little performance.

Day 2773 | Robots on Campus

I haven’t been avoiding the blog lately…I just haven’t been taking any photos! So, even though this photo doesn’t really require a blog post, here it is. This is a food delivery robot that roams around the university near our house. There are a bunch of them on campus and every time I see them, it makes me smile. Enjoy.

Day 2772 | My Dream

All snuggled up with these two tonight. My dream. For real, my dream.

Day 2771 | Bell Ringing

I’m thankful for 4-H to make us pause during a busy week and focus on others. And, we got to catch up with friends at the same time. Talk about a win-win!

Day 2770 | Cozy Reading

Chase leaves the house at 7am to catch the bus. Robbe can’t be dropped off at school until 810am even though he’s up and ready by the time Chase leaves. That means we have over an hour of time that we fill every morning. A lot of that time looks something like this—with or without a cat by his side. And it warms my heart.

Day 2769 | Happy Thanksgiving!

Our Thanksgiving was lovely…but also a bit sicklier than expected. We made the best of our time with family, though, and even met the big guy while we were out shopping. Christmas is coming!

Day 2768 | Children’s Museum

When your 3.5 year old nephew/cousin is in town, it’s the perfect excuse to [finally] check out the new Children’s Museum in Eau Claire. We used to go all the time in its old location but haven’t been since it moved in to an upgraded and beautiful space. We had so much fun! The perfect cold-day activity.

Day 2767 | Visitors!

This sweet little guy flew in from Denver to see us today! The cats really enjoyed his fishing game—even if it wasn’t meant for them.

Day 2766 | My Favorites

This crew makes my heart very happy.

Day 2765 | Co-Workers

These two kept me company for a bit during work today. They aren’t great with social cues but they sure are cute.

Day 2764 | Fancy Coffee

Look at these! I can’t handle the cuteness. And the warm beverages from Phoenix Coffee taste delicious, too. Win-win!

Day 2763 | Sleeping Kitten

These kittens do get themselves into some odd sleeping situations. This might be one of my favorites so far.

Day 2762 | Back to Rock Climbing

Robbe is back at rock climbing this fall and today he got on the big wall–his favorite! According to his report, he even maneuvered the hardest route. Woohoo!

BOOK DONATION UPDATE: We’re a couple of days in and things have been going well with the book drive. Thanks to everyone who has already supported us! If it’s still on your list, you’ve got plenty of time (we’re collecting through November 30). Click here for all the details.