My first haircut

-- Post From Kate

Eli and Kjella Taking a Nap

Or maybe not ... Eli was trying to take a nap, Kjella thought it was a game.

Thanksgiving in Minnesota

Oklahoma City

The memorial was only a few blocks from our hotel. We didn't have time to go to the museum but the memorial said it all. Very powerful. I don't know if I would have been able to hold my composure at the museum with all of the photos of the children at the day care who were killed in the bombing.




The fixture on one end said 9:01 and the fixture on the other end said 9:03. The bomb went off at 9:02. They put the numbers up to signify that your entire world can change in one minute.






There are 168 chairs. Each one is engraved with a victim's name. The small chairs represent the 19 children that died.


-- Post From Kate

Playing in the leaves

-- Post From Kate

Sickess

Q: What do you get when you cross the Roseola virus with a horrific head cold?
A: Seven days of pure hell!

Poor Miss Kjella Bea got slammed with Roseola and a horrible cold at the same time (David and Jay still have the cold ... ) It was several days of misery at the Stenehjem house. Luckily it happened when it did and not the next week while I was in Oklahoma ... ! Here is a brief sample of our daily texts back and forth.

November 6, 11:08am
D: how's the morn? how is kjella's cold?
K: her cold is really bad and she's super cranky. we went to wheeler farm just to get outside for a little bit

November 6, 7:45pm
D: how's our baby?
K: sicker than a dog. she just asked if she could go to bed. got her temp for about 5 sec and it was just over 100. couldn't get a very accurate reading b/c she was freaking out.
D: give her some tylenol. poor little lady.

November 7, 7:41pm
K: just took her temp. over 103. what should i do?
D: call angela

November 8, 10:33am (still high fever)
D: dr appt at sugarhouse at 2. she's sleeping now
K: where r u? everything okay? she fell asleep?
D: fell asleep in 5. we are in sandy getting lost.

November 9, 11:04am
D: how is our lady this morning? still feverish?
K: yes, and she's miserable. can't get her to eat or drink anything.

November 9, 4:00pm
K: when r u coming home tonight? i'm going to lose it. i have her strapped down and i'm force-feeding her liquid w/ a syringe

November 11, 12:52pm
D: checking in. how is everything going?
K: she's still completely miserable. she's been asleep since 10am

Same day 2:30pm
K: still out cold
D: wow. poor thing. catching up. i am sure she has not slept well this week and it has been draining for her crying all the time
K: true true. i just checked and she's breathing. i was starting to get worried ...
D: breathing is good
K: i'll take it over crying any day

November 12, 5:10pm
D: how is the lady?
K: i think we may have turned the corner
D: r u sure?
K: she just said 'peace out' and 'sweet'. recovery is a beautiful thing
D: awesome
K: she is putting stickers on gracie and dressing up emma in her hats - then she laughs and says 'silly emma' woo hoo! we have our daughter back!

Old McDonald had a pig, goat, horse, cow, duck, chicken, goose and big fat nasty rats.

As Kjella would say, we went 'farmin' today. And yes, there were rats. Lots and lots of big fat nasty rats. It was a beautiful fall day and colors are peak right now in SLC so there were lots of families at the farm getting professional pictures taken. It was a strange scene to see so many people decked out in their matching family outfits pasting on smiles for the camera one minute and then screaming as a rat scurries by the next. All in all it was one part disturbing and another part hilarious ...
























-- Post From Kate

October Spook-taculars

Even though Halloween is today, here in SLC we do things a little 'different' so everyone celebrated on Saturday. All-in-all this worked out well because it gave us a day to recover.

Yoda and Panda are hanging on the floor checking out everyone's knees and ankles.

Woo-wee. It's almost 10pm. This little Yoda-Rock-Star is getting tuckered out.

Before the Annual De La O Halloween Bash, we headed to the 'Little Gym' to celebrate Charlotte's 1st birthday.

Quite the little gymnasts (well okay, so they are actually just walking but it's fun to pretend).

An evening with Eli at the house always brings non-stop entertainment.

Kjella thought she was mighty big-stuff pushing him around on her purple car.

Cousins :)

Kjella is practicing her climbing skills on the ladder up to the slide. Sneaky .... sneaky ...

All of a sudden she is very serious and concentrating.

Awwww shucks. What's the big deal anyway? I do this every day - sheesh!

Children's Museum

A great place to spend a cold and rainy Sunday!