And We're Off!

Only the 2nd full week of school and the humorous stories have started.

Let me set the scene. It was close to the end of the day, and  I was trying to read something real quick. One of my angels came up to me and asked, "Mrs. Harstad, can I show the class my nuts?"

You can only imagine how fast my head shot up and calmly ask, "What was that, sweetie?"

My angel holds them up and says,"These."   

It was only a bag of acorns.

Whew! That was a close one!

A Nice Little Saturday

Yesterday, the weather was perfect. And by perfect, that means no wind, no rain, and no heat. Clay suggested we make a trip up to Stillwater and visit my alma mater. It's been at least a year since we've been up there and after this weekend football season starts. And all of us in this region of the country know that college football is a HUGE deal.  

So we set off and had lunch at one of my old stomping grounds - Eskimo Joe's.  

Courtney quickly recognized the restaurant's mascot and his dog, Buffy. She loves that dog!

We all enjoyed dining on cheese fries and sandwiches.  Courtney loved drinking from her new cup!  Notice that she's wearing my bracelet. What can I say? The girl loves to accessorize.

After lunch, we visited some shops and browsed around.  Then we walked over to the campus and went to Theta Pond to visit the ducks.  

Here she is talking to the ducks. One of them was being really mean to the other ducks in the pond and Courtney was shaking her finger telling that duck, "NO!"  

Courtney and I decided to play peek-a-boo with Clay.

She loved running across the bridge.

We paid a visit to the Tridelta plaque on the Greek Walk.

Courtney caught a ride on Clay's shoulder's on the way over to the library fountain.

Courtney loved the fountain, but didn't understand why she couldn't splash around in it.  We let her walk around in it, but had to get her out since she decided to sit down in it like it was an outdoor bathtub!  Thank goodness for the extra outfit I had in her bag!

Hope your Saturday was as much fun as our family outing!

Times They Are A'Changin

There have been lots of changes going on in the Harstad house. 

For those of you that don't know, I changed from teaching 4th grade to 3rd grade. I'm still adjusting, but I certainly like not having the drama that comes with older students. I think it will be a good year, I just need to give it time and take it all in. All while teaching, of course!

Another big change is our house.  You see, 1993 called they wanted their country blue garage door back.  How could I deny the 90's that ugly color? We went with a dark taupe color with black door and trim. 

 Clay and I spent at least a good, solid three weekends painting the exterior of the house. We now know why people pay the big bucks to have it done. what a chore!  The house looks great and the cherry on top is our new glass door.  The previous owner thought a bright white storm door looked good facing the front.  We love our new door and Holly loves being able to look outside and watch everybody in the neighborhood.  We also painted the wooden door and changed out the 1993 brass kick board and door handle with brushed nickel in it's place.  Here are some pics of our house now.

Our flowers are looking great too thanks to all the rain we've been getting. Let's hear it for free water!

Finally, our little ladybug is changing!  Our now 18 month-old is officially in 18 month clothing. WOO HOO!  The downside is she's gotten tall enough to reach things sitting on the table.  So much for just leaving stuff laying around!  She's also gotten into the "No" phase. Everything is no.  Oh well. It's part of parenthood, right?  Her vocabulary is growing daily. She can now say Kelsi pretty clear.  She can say Please, Drink, and some guy named Bobby. We're pretty sure it's her imaginary friend.  

This is how she rolls lately.  Cowboy hat sideways and any of her shoes she can get on her feet. She loves her black mary janes.  Notice they're on the wrong feet.  Eat your heart our Lady Gaga!

Go Vikings! Minus their new QB.

Here she is all decked out in a dress from her Grammie. She knew she looked good that morning!

So what kinds of changes are going on in your life?

18 Months Ago...

As of yesterday, we have an 18 month old in the house. Hard to believe. The other night, Clay pulled up some early pictures of Courtney. It was amazing to see how much she's changed.  She had her check up yesterday and got an A+ from the doctor.  She weighs 22 lbs 14 oz and is 30 1/2 inches in height. Not the biggest kid on the block, but she's got a big personality!

It's amazing how she's like a sponge when it comes to learning!  Everyday she learns something new, it seems.  Here are some new things we can add to her learning list:

1. She knows what a lion says and what a happy, "ROAR!", we get. When we ask what a monkey says she puts her hands under her armpit and moves that up and down.  No noise though.

2. When we ask her a question she can either shake her head yes or no. It's great for letting us know when to change her diaper!

3. She now likes to clink her cup with yours when you say, "CHEERS!".  After she takes a drink, she opens her mouth and says, "AHHH....".  We can thank Ms. Biv for these two tricks!

4. She loves to help me clean!  If she has a paper towel, she helps me out by wiping the floor. If I'm dusting, she wants to help out. Now if I could just get her to help out with the laundry. 

5. Everything is know a hat. A bucket, a scarf, a frisbee, and, er.....underwear...well, you get the picture!

6. She loves Fiber One bars!  I can pull one of those out while we're shopping and I don't hear a peep out of her. We just have to be home in time for the aftermath she leaves in the diaper!

7. The girl hasn't met a veggie or fruit she doesn't like. Even lima beans and beets!  We have one healthy eater. Hey, she's a Harstad. She's gotta eat.

8. She's still in love with music.  She loves to do the motions for the "Itsy Bitsy Spider" and "Wheels On the Bus".  

9. Coloring time is now one of her favorites. Thanks to Amy and Melissa for the crayons, we have a budding artist in the house.

10. She loves her Holly dog. It's so sweet to watch her give Holly hugs and kisses. Every time we leave the house, we tell her to go tell Holly bye-bye she goes over and gives her a kiss on the head. Too sweet!

Enough bragging! Time for pictures!

Courtney and her pal, Katie Beth, enjoying their big girl chairs.

Hamming it up for the mirror, camera and most importantly, herself!

Our sweet little ladybug!

Hope everyone is enjoying the last of their summer. It sure has been a fun one here at the Harstad House. Now it's back to the daily grind!