2013 wrap up!

The boys ended 2013 with lots of fun holiday festivities with friends and family. This included picking out and decorating our biggest tree to date. Meeting a few reindeer with their buddies at a Christmas tree lighting at Union Depot in St Paul. 

We also got to attend the last Holidazzle parade in downtown Minneapolis with Uncle Daniel & Vanessa.

When Christmas Eve arrived we spent the day in PJs baking cookies and eating candy cane pizzas for lunch.

That night we attended a wonderful Christmas service and then enjoyed a low key celebration and gift exchange at home.

The next morning the boys were excited (and relieved) to see what Santa had left for them. Owen had had trouble falling asleep that night because he was a little worried that he might not have made the nice list! Luckily he had and his request for 2 legendary Pokemon sets were waiting for him. Gavin got a Ninja turtle vehicle and the all the turtles to go with it.

After a yummy Christmas breakfast we headed to Iowa for more family celebrations. We spent time with the Staples in Jewell and then headed to the Caruths in Ankeny. The boys had fun opening presents with their cousins and sharing the new toys.

Unfortunately all of our stays were brief and the next day we were off to Grandpa Mike's.

Earlier this month I shared with Grandpa that the boys were asking for a zip line that they'd seen in a catalog. Joel and I laughed at this request knowing we had no intention of getting this for them. However Grandpa Mike, who's still a kid at heart, got a zip line for his house. We all got to try it out and I have to admit it was pretty fun! The weather was beautiful and it was great to get outside and have some fun. Of course this meant that a few snowball fights had to happen too!

The other surprise I received from Grandpa Mike is our new "pet" Polly the electronic parrot. We had an "entertainment" theme for our gift exchange this year. So he thought he would be clever and get a gift that was from "As seen on TV". Of course the real entertainment was for him to watch me open this silly gift! The boys are also very entertained by Polly so she now resides in the playroom.

The next day we continued to enjoy really beautiful, mild December weather and met up with Grandma Theresie for a little ice skating in downtown Des Moines. It was really fun and Owen especially loved it! Even Joel tried out some skates which went well until the very end when he fell pretty hard. He has quite the bruise to show for it!

It was really nice to spend time with family even though it was in brief segments. 

After our final Christmas gift exchange we headed home and got ready to ring in the New Year with some good friends. We were invited to a NYE party at Beth and Jennon's. They set up a balloon drop and milk and cookie toast for the kids. It was really cute and the boys really enjoyed it! I got a little video of it as well.

Click here to see the video- http://youtu.be/mFW7Pj3oNjA

2013 was FILLED with change. There were many new beginnings and a few sad losses. We are hoping that 2014 is a little calmer! What ever it brings we will always be thankful for our 2 happy, healthy and lovable boys. We wish everyone all the best in the coming year!

 -The Caruths

End of summer post...finally!

So this summer really got away from us here at the Caruth house! So much so that a blog post hasn't been posted since June! Oops! I made a vow to get it in before October so September 30th it is! It was a jammed packed summer with a move, trips, sports and camps! The boys had a great time, but are also doing well settling back in to the school year!

We moved from our beloved little Richfield house at the end of June. All the moving and several new home projects kept us really busy. The boys love the new house and all the extra space we have now. They especially enjoy having their own rooms and a huge fenced in back yard! Here are a few pics of the boys showing where they spend their time.

The boys made huge gains in their swimming skills this summer! Both are swimming more independently. Owen can now go off the diving board and high dive! Gavin can now jump into the deep end and swim a few feet on his own. Owen also loved playing soccer and attending a engineering camp in July. As always we had so much fun meeting buddies at the park, zoo and pool!

       
                                         

As I mentioned the new 1st grader and Pre K students are doing well! Owen is continuing in a spanish immersion program but changed to our now local Eden Prairie school, Eagle Heights.

Gavin continues at Bernie's Montessori with sweet Ms Bonnie Jo!

We look forward to wrapping up 2013 enjoying our new house getting to know our new community.

Enjoy ALL the pics!

School's Out!

The boys are officially out of school for the summer! We are so proud of how far they have come this past school year. Both have learned so much and grown in many ways. Here are a few things about each of them.

We'll start with Gavin who is now a 3 ft 6 1/2 in tall 4 yr old who weighs 38 lbs. He has grown over 3 1/2 inches in the last year and I think these first and last day of school comparison shots confirm just how much he has grown up these past few months.

While it took Gavin some time to adjust to going to preschool, he has learned to love it! He has also learned to do so many new skills. Gavin loves drawing and writing. He has very nice handwriting and can write his name, all letters and even most numbers. He enjoys drawing pictures of people and animals. Gavin continues to be interested in music and dancing. This past month he participated in his school's 25th anniversary program. He was chosen to learn a special jazz dance routine and he had a blast doing it. Gavin also continues to enjoy building and creating with legos and blocks, putting together puzzles and of course playing trains! He is still our sweet, happy go lucky little guy. His teachers say that he is a kind friend and very good listener. We are glad that Gavin will be able to continue with the same teachers next year.


On to our practically 4ft tall, 6yr old, soon to be 1st grader Owen!

Owen has come so far this past year! He has become quite comfortable in his spanish immersion setting. He understands, speaks, reads and writes in spanish. Owen's teachers are amazed at how much he has learned this past year. He is now doing a great job using all spanish to participate in class discussions. He is also using a lot more spanish at home. It is really fun to chat with him in spanish or to hear him speak with Aunt Cailin & Uncle Adam. 

Owen still LOVES reading and hasn't met a dinosaur book or Magic Tree House book he doesn't like. He continues to be interested in all things science. This past year he has thoroughly enjoyed his school's partnership with Woodlake Nature Center. They were able to go there 6 times and focus on different topics. He loved it! 

This last week Owen's school held a Kindergarten concert and graduation ceremony. The program was very nice and the kids did a great job. Below are some pictures and a cute video from the concert.

Kindergarten Graduation Video

Owen with his teacher, Sra Amy

  

Owen with his favorite Amity teacher Jennifer.

Owen had a truly wonderful experience at RDLS. His teacher was simply the best! He will dearly miss his friends and school community. We hope that our move to Eden Prairie and Eagle Heights Spanish Immersion will be equally as positive and full of new opportunities.