The show must go on.

Today during church, Jacob was in the band and I was in the Pond (aka the nursery for the 0-2 set). A couple of moms with older kids came by to collect their babies earlier than the rest, and while I was attending to an unhappy child, Freddie snuck out with one of the families. Soon thereafter, someone popped their head in to tell me that my son was heading down the hall on his own. By the time I got to the Commons, I saw Freddie had decided to go be with his Daddy. On stage. There he stood and rocked until the song was over, once trying to give his blankie to Jacob so that he could play air drums and air bass. Remarkably, Freddie showed no signs of stage fright and actually clapped for himself when it was all over. We wish we had a picture of the whole deal because it was quite a sight.

The World's Meanest Kid

Today the fam went to Morris Park for a fun afternoon outside. Sadly, we encountered The World's Meanest Kid, who greeted Freddie with a pinch, then took several swings at him - completely unprovoked! For a second we thought Freddie was going to toss TWMK down the stairs. Thankfully he did not. We attempted to avoid TWMK by heading to the other side, but he followed us carrying a full-sized Coke can. We went back to the other side, TWMK followed again. He took another swing at Freddie, missed with the right hook, and then proceeded to pour his Coke (which he was then drinking out of a Styrofoam cup) on Freddie's shoes. Then, Sammy went over to protect his brother and TWMK hit Sammy over the back of the head! Sammy looked like he was about to throttle him, but the mom swooped in a dragged TWMK off by the arm. Needless to say, Sammy's feelings were hurt by the encounter. Freddie was unphased, but was happy to tell someone "No, back!" and nearly come to blows. TWMK was probably about two-years-old and half the size of Freddie. Sorry, words do not do this story justice. It was one of the most shocking things we've seen at a park.

You go left, I'll go right.

You go left, I'll go right., originally uploaded by sweetietooth.

One more 'cause I can't get enough of these two. <3 Even though at the moment this picture was taken I know they were telepathically communicating, "You go left, I'll go right! Keep her on her toes!" I'm speaking from experience here. They have pretty much perfected the above plan. Punks.

Sammy and Ike

Sammy and Ike, originally uploaded by sweetietooth.

Sammy totally ditched Cal and their road construction (which mostly involved mass quantities of mud) to have a turn riding on top of the car. Sammy really likes Ike, he just tries to play it cool since Ike's still such a little kid and all.

Isaac and Freddie

Isaac and Freddie, originally uploaded by sweetietooth.

Round two is finally starting to really play together! Hoooooray! Here they are being super cute and silly over the weekend. What's even better is that they played like this for a while, long enough for me to grab my camera and snap a picture. Way to go, toddlers!

Typical.

Typical., originally uploaded by sweetietooth.

Boys! Look at ME next time. Just once. At the same time. Dude.

More pictures of our Memorial Day Weekend fun up at Flickr. Except strangely none from Monday, which was also a great day. Thanks to Emily E. for inviting us to her house for a fun, super family-friendly BBQ. We all had a fantastic time! :)

My rockstars on screen.

on screen, originally uploaded by sweetietooth.

This part of the museum is always a hit. The kids love "playing" along to the songs and seeing themselves on TV. I love seeing them, I just wish MCM would get some new songs already! (Or at least ditch some of the really sucky ones, like Wheels on the Bus and the French -?- one we can't sing along to.)

En route to the Minnesota Children's Museum.

, originally uploaded by sweetietooth.

We kicked off the holiday weekend with a trip to MCM.

Sammy's Shirts

Sammy's Shirts, originally uploaded by sweetietooth.

Or, how to tell if your child favors one color above all others. Thankfully I have managed to sneak a few other colors into the line-up, otherwise Freddie would probably notice his wardrobe becoming monotonous in a couple years.

Sammy's shoes

Sammy's shoes, originally uploaded by sweetietooth.

Well, shoot. I still need to change this blog layout to one that is horizontal-picture friendly. Click on the Flick link if you're interested in seeing the complete Croc pair.

Mr. Super Cutes

Mr. Super Cutes, originally uploaded by sweetietooth.

Lounging after a long hot day playing outside. Look at those gorgeous blue blue eyes! More pictures from the week up on Flickr! :)

Just add ketchup.

Just add ketchup., originally uploaded by sweetietooth.

Freddie applied his own condiments. He squeezed on about a half cup of ketchup to his mac-and-cheese. Why not? It is a vegetable afterall. You can't see the Smart Dogs (2) because he already ate them. This boy loves his Smart Dogs.

The red on his shirt is from homemade snow cones (thanks, Grandma!!!) they kids had for snacks that afternoon.

97 degrees

97 degrees, originally uploaded by sweetietooth.

This week it hit 97 degrees in Minneapolis. We celebrated with kiddie pools, dirt and popsicles. And a Kong for Emma the Dog.

As tall as a tower.

As tall as a tower., originally uploaded by sweetietooth.

Can you see how much Sammy has grown this year?! I can actually hear him getting bigger. :)

Two Monkeys / Preschool Graduation

Two Monkeys, originally uploaded by sweetietooth.

From their Lamb class graduation Creation program. Aren't they adorable?! More pictures of the Creation Musical on Flickr!

And the winner is...

Jess felt I needed to blog about what is quickly becoming one of my favorite pastimes...the quest for the best Juicy Lucy in the Twin Cities. Now for those of you who aren't residents of South Minneapolis and/or haven't seen any of the Food Network specials that have been done about Minneapolis, the Juicy Lucy is a hamburger claimed to have originated in South Minneapolis off Cedar Avenue. You can "wiki" them if you like but a Juicy Lucy is essentially two 1/3lb patties cooked together with cheese in the middle. Cooking the two hallow patties with cheese turns the cheese into molten lava which smells and tastes wonderful.

Well after trying the two places that claim to have originated the Juicy Lucy, Matt's and the 5-8 Club, both off Cedar in South Minneapolis, I started leaning towards the 5-8 Club. Having said that, I tried a tie-breaker, the Nook in St. Paul, and let me tell you, the verdict was in. The Nook is my favorite hands down though I guarantee I will frequent all 3 establishments again and again. Next time any of you visit the Twin Cities, let's plan on a visit to one of these places:

If you like your burger well done, we'll go to Matt's.
If you like your burger medium rare like I do, we'll go to the Nook.
If you like your burger medium well, we'll go to the 5-8 Club.

Jacob

watching a show

watching a show, originally uploaded by sweetietooth.

Freddie loves his shows. And the nice thing is that he is still when he watches them. Too bad they only hold his attention for, like, five minutes. :p

Monkey

Monkey, originally uploaded by sweetietooth.

Sammy model the costume I made for his school musical. He's a monkey, and he's holding a banana in case you couldn't tell. They are singing a song about Creation. The complete ensemble will include a brown shirt and pants with a tail taped on his booty. :)

The good life.

The good life., originally uploaded by sweetietooth.

Leah was really sitting like this and it was hilarious. The model face was thrown in for the picture.

Too funny not to blog. Leah, I love you! :D

Bouncy House Bliss - A 2nd Birthday Party!

Freddie, originally uploaded by sweetietooth.

Celebrating Freddie's second birthday with an outdoor family friends party this weekend! It was great fun!

Birthday party photos to be found here: Flickr: Freddie's 2nd Birthday