Summer Fun

Some fun summer pictures...

German American Chamber of Commerce Bierfest:  

I don't recall ever seeing beers this small anywhere in Germany. 

Posted most of these of fb, but for those who didn't see them:

Double rainbow:

Planting a Garden

I would say that the words "transition" and "temporary" would fairly accurately describe the last 3-4 years of our lives.  I haven't put a lot of time or energy into decorating any of our rooms, consequently Abbey never had a perfectly planned and executed nursery.  This past weekend we moved her into her "big girl bed" in her "big girl room."  The transition went extremely smoothly.  Today we decided to plant a garden in the "big girl room."  The furthest I am going in decorating right now is to hang curtains and put stickers on the wall.  She was very excited to help and she loves her "garden."  

I think her garden is so cute.

Abbey quickly noticed that my blog background was the same as her room!

Fourth of July

Abbey was able to reconnect with her cousin from the Czech Republic this last week when my cousin and his family were in CO.  She met him when he was a meager 9 days old and she was just under year.  Here is their first meeting (in Prague):

And here they are now:

They didn't appear to remember each other. 

We celebrated the 4th up at my parents cabin.  Here is something to remember: never trust a pregnant woman with anything of importance.  The last time we were up at the cabin, my parents told me to check if the travel crib was there, that way we didn't have to bring one every time we came up.  So I looked in the closet and there was the Graco Pack-n-Play box.  So we got up there and it came time for Abbey's nap on Sunday... the box was empty.  Great.  Yes, I did not actually open the box to verify that the travel crib was in it.  Sigh.  We have been talking about moving Abbey to a big girl bed for quite some time, so it seemed this would be our first experience!  So we built a little pillow wall around the bed.  I heard a lot of sounds coming from the room... lots of singing and it sounded like paper rustling.  After about an hour, it was quiet.  My mom got Abbey up from her nap and said, "You really need to go in there and see the bed..."


Here is what we found:

I don't think we'll have too many Kleenex or books in her room when she does make the transition (which will actually be in the next week, I think).

Hiking!

 Oops.  Rotated. 

First the shoes came off:

Then Grammy got in on the action:

And then of course the pants:

An elk: 

One of the things I miss from Germany are the bakeries... specifically Apfeltasche.  It is tasty apple compotte in puff pastry.  Essentially like a turnover, but I don't think as sweet.  So I looked up a recipe and made some.  I even made the recipe from a German recipe.  They tasted really good.

We didn't stay up for any of the fireworks, but we were able to go to a parade in one of the nearby towns.  Abbey doesn't really like anything loud or big, but she enjoyed the parade from a distance.  She got candy, too... always an added bonus.

My mom chased down one of the parade trucks to get a necklace for Abbey.  Grammy's are nice!

Last Picnic at the Farm

Stu's parents have owned a farm/ ranch in North Dakota for over 30 years and have recently sold it.  We had one last big family get-together to celebrate at the end of June.  Abbey enjoyed hanging out with her cousins and spending time with Grandma and "Papa."

I think she is thinking how grateful she is for that metal grate:

Stu's parents built the home and all of the buildings on the property themselves.  Stu and his brother were there to help with quite a bit of it... here is Stu's handprint from when he was a kid. 

Bonus pictures from June:

Crash!

 Taken almost exactly one year earlier: