Happy Birthday, Hans!

sisters

The big sisters turned my bathroom in to a beauty salon for the little sisters.   I think I need an appointment!

My Noisy Little Brother...

Hans figured out the world of cupboards today.

He had lots of fun with the pots, pans, and wooden spoons!

Hans will be a year old in only ten days! YIKES!

by 

Megan

Father Daughter Ball

Noquemanon

We had a great race weekend at the Noquemanon.  Started things off with kids races on Friday...

 

Megan is in the middle of this photo.  She and Luke skied a 3K freestyle race - lots of fast kiddos!

 Della and Lars skied a 1K course.  So proud of our little skiers!

 Hannah finished the 5K race with a smile on her face.  

I skied my first half marathon on Saturday.  I am blessed with the best fan club ever!  Thank you to my amazing husband for taking care of our crew so I could enjoy a fantastic race.

It was a beautiful sunny day with lots of snow and gorgeous trails.  

Fun with the cousins

It's always fun and noisy when the gang is all together.  

We are so blessed to share life with wonderful family!

 This is what it looks like when we're getting ready to mobilize in our matching 12-passenger sprinter vans.

 Picnic in January!

 The "big kids" hosted a VBS for the youngers this morning.  Worship leaders were Hannah, Grace & Lars.  Snacks provided by Megan, Lydia and company.  Bible stories, craft and snack around the theme of "David".  So much fun!

homeschool Phy Ed

Awesome afternoon with our crew on the Birkebeiner trail!

Photo update

Our growing family...

The kids had been been asking for another puppy - writing notes and leaving little suggestions around the house like the collage of dog photos on the bathroom mirror.  Little did they know that Matt had already chosen and paid for a surprise Christmas puppy!

Meet Birkie, the newest member of the Bettendorf Bunch.  This sweet little Husky pup joined our family on Christmas Eve.  We took the whole crew cross country skiing on the Birkie trail in Hayward, WI and picked up our new puppy on our way home.  Matt and I had a fantastic time surprising the kids!

A Wooden Nest: Spiced Chai Concentrate

Delicious Chai

We received a bottle of this delicious Chai as a gift this week. We'll be making our own as soon as the bottle is gone. Thanks, Dana!

A Wooden Nest: Spiced Chai Concentrate: I've had this recipe for homemade spiced chai concentrate bookmarked since January, but I finally got around to making up a batch this ...