Christmas Treasures

Santa was able to find the girls at grandma and grandpa's house. They had a wonderful time and received many nice gifts. We are looking forward to seeing more family in Shakopee on Saturday!

Merry Christmas!

We hope everyone has a very Merry Christmas! We are going to Jackson for Christmas this year. Enjoy the pictures from the past...

Skating Expo/Christmas Program

On Saturday, Courtney participated in the Ice Skating Expo in Watertown. She did a great job showing off her ice skating skills, Kelsey was also supposed to skate-but chose not to. Grandma and Grandpa drove up to watch the ice skating performance and to watch the girls in the Sunday School program. Warren, Ann, Andrew, Sarah, Dan and Laurie came to Beardsley on Sunday for the program as well. Courtney had a speaking part and both of the girls sang with the group. We had brunch at our house following the program. It was an eventful weekend:) Have a great week everyone!

Group Photo

Here is a photo of Kelsey's friends! Aren't they adorable?!

The Littlest Christmas Tree

I apologize for not being a very good blogger lately...I've been trying to get my dissertation ready for proposal in January. Kelsey's pre-school class performed "The Littlest Christamas Tree" today for their Christmas program. Kelsey was a bunny and McKenzie (Mindy's daughter) was a bird. Kelsey's friend Levi, was the dad. The kids did a great job! Saturday Courtney and Kelsey will be ice skating in a Winter Expo at the Watertown Ice Skating Arena. Courtney passed Basic Level 1, so she will advance to Basic Level 2 in January. Kelsey is in the Snow Plow group. On Sunday, the girls will participate in a Sunday School program in Beardsley. Have a great weekend everyone!

Oklahoma City National Memorial

I was fortunate enough to visit the Oklahoma City National Memorial. It is comprised of an Outdoor Symbolic Memorial, museum and Memorial Institute for the Prevention of Terrorism. The gates of time frame the moment of destruction-9:02 and serve as an entrance to the Memorial. The East gate represents 9:01-right before the bombing occurred. The West Gate represents 9:03, the moment the city was changed forever. The field of 168 chairs is a tragic reminder of the lives lost on April 19, 1995. The chairs are placed in rows, representing the 9 floors of the building. Smaller chairs were used to represent the 19 innocent children killed in the explosion. A 90 year-old American Elm tree stands as The Survivor Tree, a symbol of human resilience. The message surrounding the tree reads: "The spirit of this city and this nation will not be defeated; our deeply rooted faith sustains us." For more information on the memorial you can visit: www.oklahomacitynationalmuseum.org

Greetings from Oklahoma!

Hi Everyone! I just wanted all of my friends and family in Minnesota and South Dakota to know that it was 70 degrees today in Oklahoma City! I was able to take a short walk during lunch and enjoy the beautiful sunshine! The conference is going well, alot of useful information and the days are going by fairly quickly. I definitely miss the girls and Eric but will be home Thursday night. The picture above is blurry, sorry, but it shows the Oklahoma City National Memorial which I will be visiting tomorrow.

Take care!

Beautiful Bouquets

Here is a picture of the beautiful flowers I recieved on my birthday. Eric and I trekked to Watertown for our staff Christmas party today. The interstate was clear, so the drive was fine until we got to Sisseton and Highway 10-then the road was snow packed. The girls enjoyed sledding and playing outside with their babysitter, Katlynn. I leave for Oklahoma City tomorrow and will be gone until Friday. I'm hoping the weather will be nice there and I can take some good pictures to post next weekend. Courtney has her first school Christmas concert on Tuesday evening, so Eric will be videotaping it for me.