A mix of photography, recipes, personal thoughts, faith, and lots of family stuff, but not necessarily in that order.

Monday, August 5, 2013

Getting them all to myself....

My "younger" sister and I are almost 7 years apart,
Me and my sis
 (this photo was from a few years ago)

 Her oldest child and my youngest are 7 years apart.
  
Nephew Sam (15), & Niece Jensen (11) at their birthday party celebration on Saturday

It's kinda fun having the "youngers" when your own kids are "olders" When Sam was just 2 we started having him over for a couple of nights every summer so mommy and daddy could have a little break, Jensen started coming for the overnights when she was 2 as well. The last few years we have missed the overnights in Rochester, because these "youngers" are now getting older....and involved with extracurricular activities.

So this year it worked out for me to come to their home in the Twin Cities to hang out with them while my sis and bro-in-law have a get-away to Duluth.
 as always I had a great time with the "youngers"...
 This is how I bond with the dog (Ruby), body massage with my feet, 
 I was treated to a pedicure, Jensen does a good job!

Jensen has really taken an interest in Baking
 so we decided to make a cheese cake  from scratch...
Sam did his part in making the cheesecake..... crumb basher 
Preparing the crust
Nom nom, we made a strawberry sauce for the topping
She's a goof
 The kids and I went to one of my favorite places, not far from my sister's house....
The Woods
This sign cracked us up....they really are a nice family 
(not sure about the "normal")

 We decided to have dinner at Ihop..... oh.my.goodness!!!
I had never been to this delicious eatery....I left pleasantly full.
Jensen with her "Red Velvet pancakes", 
I was allowed a taste, they were yummy, 
but seemed more like a dessert to me ... pure sweetness  :)

We stayed busy, playing frisbee outside, baking, shopping and playing pictionary late into the
 night, exhausted from laughing at our crazy drawings.

Love these kids and feel blessed to be part of their lives! 

9 comments:

  1. Oh, Jackie, this post just made me smile because my youngest brother and his wife would take our kids once a year, too, so we could get away. What a treat for all involved. Kids loved time with auntie and uncle and they loved having the kids. And the parents loved the break. Looks like an all around fantastic weekend with your nephew and niece.

    I think I need that "nice and normal" sign.

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    1. Rick and I have always lived in the same town as our parents so always had someone to "take" the kids for us. My sis lives 2 hours from the parents and an hour from the other set, so not real convenient, I love to be able to help out and have the kids all to myself :)
      I think I need to have one of those sighs too :)

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    2. Believe me, your sister appreciates you.

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  2. Look how much fun you had! Such cute kids! Love the sign too! :)

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    1. We had a great time Jill, they are good kids !

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  3. Awww, I just love this blog! You guys did such fun stuff! You are such a cool aunt. Love the cheesecake adventure, yum! The pic of Sam's arm around Jensen with the sign is the most hilarious thing ever, I hope Jodi and Darin see that, too funny. I love Jensen's hair down, so pretty! What a nice thing you did to stay with them :)

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    1. We had a good time, yah the sign was a killer, Sam is the one who actually found it :)

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  4. What a great aunty to help out with the kids and let your sister get away with her hubby:)

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    1. I loved the one on one time !

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