The best freight I ever had delivered to me!

The kids have been pretending to haul "Walter freight" and "Rose E freight." Always a train in some way, shape, or form in this household! Little miss Rose E has been such a monkey see monkey do lately too! Often when we are walking Walter likes to help push the stroller and now Rose E is insisting on pushing too. People chuckle a little as we walk by with two kids out of the stroller and pushing it. Speaking of being in public, I had to laugh the other day because we where shopping and we where in a dressing room in a store where every time someone would walk into the dressing room a bell would ring, anyway, Rose E kept saying "is anybody home?" Her other newest phrase has been "hi, how are you?"

THE COOL KIDS IN TOWN!

My parents came for a visit this weekend. Here Rose E and Walter are reading books with Grandma. It was cute because at one point I called my Mom, "Mom" and Rose E looked at me and her with the most puzzled look and said "Mom?!?"
My dad and Walter had fun building different race tracks, they made it pretty fancy with ramps and Walter made his race car jump over everything from toy animals to trains.

Our weather has been funny this year, one day it is warm the next day it feels like winter. Anyway here the kids where enjoying the rays and the yard! Today it was cold and windy and Rose E heard the wind blowing against the house and said "Uh oh, wind hurting the house.

Spring has sprung....

Well in our house at least (Story hour was cancelled this week due to a snowstorm, ughh!!). But on the brighter side of things baby animals have been hatching out of there eggs here. Oh and take note of the firetruck wrapped in tape, according to Walter it "crashed so it has been bandaged up until it is better."
And Rose E here...from glamour to

green in...


2.5 seconds. She has been hopping around our house saying "rib bit, rib bit... I a frog." Gotta love it!

Jeff took us all out to eat this weekend....in Chicago!

It was a last minute trip, though it had been planned for about two years (we just didn't know when we would go). We drove to Milwaukee, WI and rode on the Amtrak train to Chicago, IL. We spent a few hours in Chicago and then rode the train back to Milwaukee. Then we spent the night with Jeff's brother and his family. It was a fast and furious trip but was well worth it. Walter was in his glory (and Daddy too) riding a train and seeing lots of train action (along with skyscrapers and airplanes and city buses). Walter told me that he wanted to "spend three weeks in the Amtrak station." In this picture he is peering out of the train window at another passing train.

Here we are in the train. Jeff gave Walter his old camera and Walter was so thrilled to take his own pictures, especially of his favorite subject TRAINS! Anyway this was one that he took.This picture turned out a little dark since we where in the train terminal but I added it since we where standing next to one of the Amtrak trains.
The inside of Union Station in Chicago was beautiful with such intricate ceilings!

It was fun to walk around, Jeff had researched where to eat and we ate at a place with all homemade food that lots of famous people have eaten at and had the special treat of Fanny May chocolate for dessert (which was special for me since my grandparents used to give us Fanny May chocolate often for special occasions).

Happy Birthday Great Gramma (and Grandma)!

Sweet!

Walter and I joined Ariel on an egg hunt at his church this weekend before his Birthday party, here they are with the Easter Bunny.
On the look-out for eggs. Since Daddy wasn't with us Walter said "I'm gonna share my candy with Daddy when we get home so that he doesn't feel left out," such a sweety!
Happy 10Th Birthday big guy!
Here is Ariel with his basketball cake, it was of great concern to Walter that nobody should eat the toy basketball in the middle.
Back on the subject of sweethearts, I came home to this surprise! It was my Grandparents tradition every year growing-up to have a lamb cake at every Easter meal. It was usually special ordered all the way from Illinois. I'll never forget the Easter when my relatives from Illinois transported it all the way to their house(my Grandparent's) in Wisconsin and my Grandfather dropped the cake. Anyway, it brought tears to my eyes that my husband remembered, as for it has been several years since my Grandparents have passed. Hopefully, now the polish tradition will continue and according to Rose E it is called a "moo cake."
Easter morning the kids had their own Easter egg hunt with train eggs of course!

Walter had quite a special Easter! It started out that he wanted the same train as Daddy did for the trains in our kitchen, so the Easter bunny ordered the train and Walter discovered it in our house about a week before Easter(the Easter bunny must have known how badly these boys wanted that train)! Then the Easter bunny returned with a photo book full of train pictures along with a few other little goodies.

Rose E loved all of her girly Easter gifts too.

A family picture taken at church.

Rose E in my Sunday school classroom all decked out and loving it

....and Walter with his ears on!

Hope everybody has a Happy Easter!

The kids decorated Easter eggs today and for the first time Rose E got to join in, they had lots of fun!

Speaking of fun, the kids discovered my exercise mat and it has been nonstop entertainment since! It has been turned into everything from tunnels, to beds, to rooms, to trains. Just never know what is going to get those wheels turning I guess.
Peek- a- boo!

Of course the hats and the dolls are still top on the list for Rose E also! Here she decided the doll needed a hat too!

and.... shop till something drops, a true girl!

Walter and I are heading with Jeff's parents to Depere, Wisconsin tomorrow, for the day, to celebrate Ariel's Birthday, which was two days ago, HAPPY BIRTHDAY ARIEL!

Cool Cats!

This kid has been a cutting machine lately! I can't throw any packaging out either, it all gets cut-up and turned into something else such as "maps" or "signs for restaurants." He has also been making me laugh lately when he wants to do something on his own he will mean to say that he is strong but instead he says "I'm heavy I can do it" (I think he's thinking along the lines of heavy duty)!
And this one.. will make just about anything into a hat, yes that is indeed a napkin on her head! Before this meal I said "Rose E it's time to wash your hands and she said "no I butterfly, I flying" and she flapped her arms up in down while running away to hide. Goof!
Some funyuns turned into a little too much fun! They where "O glasses." Everything lately too is configured in some way into a letter with this guy.
Miss fashion statement here, this combination just makes me smile. Speaking of smiling, Rose E has really been picking-up lately on feelings. If she sees a baby crying she says "Uh oh baby crying, baby sad." Or if someone in our house is upset she goes up to them and kisses them and strokes their hair, such a sweetheart.

See ya later alligator, after while crocodile (someday, hopefully soon,we will be able to leave our house without wearing winter gear)!

Snuggle Time

Jeff snapped this picture, a rare moment with Walter asleep in my arms. He had a big day today, he sang in church, I was proud of him as for he sang the whole time.

Around the world in one day!

Geo Trax, a true passion for this kid (well may I say trains in general are his true passion). Anyway, lately whenever we go anywhere he tells anyone who will listen to him about his Geo Trax trains and that even includes people that we pass by on the sidewalk during walks.
Speaking of going places, we have been taking many train trips in this household all around the world. Walter keeps a hole puncher in this container along with calculator receipts, train museum tickets, etc. Then he asks where we want to go, picks out a ticket for us, punches it and assigns a train to us (such as a Soo Line or Burlington Northern). Sometimes I get a kick out of the price of the ticket it will often be something like fourteen seventy dollars.

Miss fashion queen here didn't want to put Walter's sunglasses down for a snack so snapped them onto her belly. Such a goof! I just love her high pitched laughs lately too and what is even more funny about it is what makes her laugh(it's often something one of the pets are doing) she certainly is developing her own sense of humor!

And....we're outta here....Hasta La vista Baby!