A Weekend in Duluth

This past weekend, Doug, Collin and I took a family trip to Duluth. This was the first time in many years that the Rosenau's have been back to Duluth, the first time being our honeymoon back in 1997! My, how time flies!

I was attending a Conference on children's mental health topics for work and we decided to mix business with pleasure. Since my actual work hours for the weekend were very limited, it left plenty of time for family fun!

The swimming pool was of course the main attraction....the goggles were a spur of the moment splurge. He wore them more in the store as we made our way to the register than actually at the pool. But they did match nicely with his "Nemo" swim trunks!

Collin also loved the birds by the pier on Lake Superior, although it was very windy and those tricky birds never let him quite catch up to them...

We also enjoyed the maritime museum, with Collin taking his turn at Captain and also enjoying the view.

We took some time to do some window shopping as well. This was at the "Grandma's" souvenir shop and at the right he is a tough guy on a motorcycle in the "Grandma's" restaurant lobby.

It was a great experience to take Collin back to such a memorable part of our family history. We purposely visited the same sights and specific restaurants that Doug and I went to all those years ago. I remember walking and talking with Doug about expanding our family someday. Although it took much longer than we would have liked, our little family unit is now complete and we shared an amazing weekend together!

Collin and Mommy posing at a fountain. We have a photo from the honeymoon taken in this exact spot.

Collin and Daddy enjoying the same sights of Duluth we did so many years ago!

A little more Easter

Left to Right: Sybil, holding Tyson, followed by Riley, Kalie, Grace, Collin, Dylan and Danika.

Since it is rare that the Rosenau/Butcher kids are still...and certainly rare that they are all relatively still at the same time, I thought I had better post this photo from Easter to commemorate the occasion...

Happy Easter

Happy Easter Weekend!

We are spending the weekend "back home" with family so that we can have some time with my Aunt & Uncle's family as well as Doug's Mom, the usual assortment of Rosenau siblings, nieces and nephews and Doug's Dad. So, this morning was our family Easter fun before we hit the road.

Growing up, since the Westphals are a pretty small family even when including extended family, most holidays were pretty mellow. Easter was never really made into a large event, but I do remember getting a chocolate bunny every year and coloring Easter eggs at the kitchen table with my parents. I also made an "egg tree" with my Grandma Rose that she took out every year even long after I was grown. What I have very vidid memories of, however, is my Grandpa Albert at Easter. Grandpa was a pretty "stoic" man...your classic dedicated workaholic framer type. He was happiest when he was outside in the fields or in the barn. However, each Easter this man would lead me to find an Easter basket that the bunny had hidden in the garage. This bit of whimsy was remarkable enough that, even as a child, I knew it was a special memory I would always keep with me.

This year, Collin's morning started out as usual...until he started to spy the Easter eggs we had hidden around the living room. An Easter egg hunt began with lots of giggles. He then found the Easter basket, complete with a new bedtime book, markers (washable), some toy cars and, of course, his very own chocolate bunny!

We've spent the morning together enjoying these goodies, making new memories of our own. I wish all of you a very Happy Easter full of great memories too!