The Holden Family: July 2015

June was a month full of new adventures. We are really trying to get out and explore our new city and the surrounding areas.

Our first adventure was to Minnehaha Falls. We had a picnic, explored the paths by the creek, waded in the creek, saw the waterfall and did some bike riding.

These girls loved every minute of riding while Mom and Dad pedaled. It was hard work and having Mia strapped to me really gave me a work out!

We love the zoo! We got season passes and have been going on our own and with friends!

Ellie and her friend Miles!

We have been going to the Puppet Wagon each week!

We are having lots of water fun in our backyard!

We are making lots of pizza!

We got some bar stools!

We are eating lots of ice cream!

At the zoo again with Mrs. Joan and Sarah!

Enjoying some sprinklers in the yard...

and splashpads around town.

A little lady worked hard to earn a bike. We have been wanting to get Ellie a bike for quite a while. Two years ago for her birthday and Christmas we were not sure if we would be moving and did not want to make big purchases, then last year we lived in Minnesota and at her birthday and Christmas it snowed and we knew she wouldn't be able to ride it, and who wants a gift that they just look at, so we waited until spring and she did many chores and read many books to achieve her goal. It took her about a month but she earned every bit of this bike!

Playing with some homemade foam!

Making homemade cinnamon rolls! I am raising these little ladies of mine right! These girls LOVE to watch house shows and cooking shows and have been waiting to move to make cinnamon rolls like The Pioneer Woman!

Ellie-O, as Quinny refers to her, took her next level of swimming lessons. I am SO proud of her! She had not been in the pool since last summer and the Y completely changed their lessons in the interim. She started the first day needing the most work in the group and finished the two weeks working on things in the next level. She earned her blue band at the Y and now every time we go she gets one and can swim in the smaller pool on her own. She swims on her back like nobody's business! I love watching her come into her own. She was so brave and persevered to be completely on par with everyone else!

Working on new skills!

More splashpads!

A little lady needed goggles like her sister, not only to be just like her, but to prepare for her own lessons this fall!

Finished up the month back at the zoo!

In May we went to Tennessee to see my family. There is just something special about that place. My soul is always at peace and I am home. I recently was telling a friend of mine that when I returned back to Minnesota and having lived here quite a while she completely understood what I meant as she feels the same way about where she is originally from. It was nice to feel I am not the only one as it is hard to describe and does not mean you can't be satisfied where you are but there is just no place like a home and the way I feel when I am there. I will enjoy where I am at the time but there will never be a place that makes me feel the way Tennessee does.

I miss my family immensely and was so happy to get to be there with them for 10 days. We packed a lot in and had some time of relaxing. The girls did great on our flights, we got to say final good byes to my grandparents at their final service, we were able to have a reunion with my aunt and uncle and 11 cousins and their families, we got to eat at some favorite places and see some favorite people. We swam, picked strawberries and visited parks I went to as a kid. We spent lots of time with my parents, Nana and PopPop, and my brother and his family. We went swimming and had our on mini color run for the kids! My mom and I got a much needed girls afternoon (man, do I miss her!) and Ellie got to do the two things she requested, fly a kite with PopPop and go fishing with PopPop. It was a good time and we are looking forward to their visit here soon to show them around this new city of ours.

Our plane got in late and this is what Nana and PopPop got on the way to their house!

First Day there: Donuts and the Park!

Swimming with Riley and Xavier!

Strawberry Picking in the hills of Tennessee! It was off the beaten path in the country and was beautiful!

Ellie wearing her Grandmary Cross!

Me and My Coopie! I could eat this boy up!

Cooking/Taste Testing with Nana! My Mom has always loved a full kitchen and without her my cooking skills would not be what they are. I have many memories with my mom in the kitchen, a lot of life has happened in our kitchens and a lot learning on many fronts.

Fun with Cousins. The family rented a great pavilion at a halfway point and we had a great time together. Mia and I had just seen many of them in March so it was good to see them all again so soon. Already looking forward to next time!

My Cousin Mary Lee, aka MurMur, was a hit with the girls. They were stuck to her like glue!

Nana and Ellie showcasing our view from our pavilion.

The Fam! Or as we like to say Grandmary and PawPaw's Legacy! Man, do they have a legacy! Missing just a few, but happy to have seen as many as we did!

Kites with PopPop! Ellie did most of the flying with a little help from PopPop! My parents have 10 acres, so plenty of space for kites!

Baby Coop sporting my brother's old outfit and getting ready to cheer on the runners!

Color Run 2015! Uncle Drew and Miss B went on a color run a few days before and got extra powder. We had our on run for the kids in my parent's backyard. Ellie was SO excited!! She is already planning a color run for us to do that is official! The adults each had a bag and they would run the course my Dad laid out and we would throw color on them. They had a blast! Someone, (Daddy), threw some in Quinny's face, so one round was all she was good for. She doesn't like to be dirty! Ha!

The Runners!

A little swinging with Uncle Drew!

PopPop, aka the Baby Whisperer, and His Kiddos!

Playing some Dominoes!

My Mom found plans for making a tire swing and my Dad implemented them! The girls loved it and talked about it for days and days. That swing got some good height!

Visiting the Dragon Park! This park has many memories for me. My grandparents lived near downtown Nashville when I was growing up and we would walk to this park and Baskin Robbins. We went there many times and when I was little they only had the dragons. It has many more things to play on now, but I was so happy to take my girls there as I have so many good memories there.

Swinging!

Fishing with PopPop! Ellie wanted to do this so bad with PopPop! Their neighbor has a pond that they keep stocked and my Dad asked if they could fish there. It was a great place as she was pretty much guaranteed to catch something pretty fast. She had a great time and can't wait to do it again!

On our last day there we had to get over to Uncle Drew's and Miss B's for creek time. I love wading and floating in creeks. It brings back so many memories for me as a child and there is something about a creek in the country that gives my soul rest.

Me and My Girl!

The creek was pretty cold, so Quinny wanted some snuggs!

Miss B and Ellie out for an adventure!

The Fam!

Our Family of 5!

This Boy! We fought hard growing up, much to the anguish of our mother, but we love hard too! I am so proud of who he is becoming! He likes to take the path less traveled, which is sometimes the harder path, but that path defines him in a way I could not be prouder of. He is becoming a very humble man and one I know would be there for me anytime I called.