Oklahoma Family

This past Tuesday, my uncle, aunt and cousin visited from Oklahoma to stay with my parents for a few nights. They were able to see Mall of America, go to a Twins game and spend some time with us. It was the first time they saw Elyse and she loved all the attention. We hope to see them again soon.

Our New Niece

Introducing...
Greta Simone Klauser
Born July 27th @ 4:51 pm, weighing 7 lbs 8 oz and 20.25" long
Nate's brother, Shawn and sister-in-law, Amelia were blessed this past Monday with a beautiful healthy little girl. They already have a son so Liam gets the opportunity to be a big brother. We are very happy to have a little niece and super excited for the new Klauser family of four. Love you guys.

Learning 101

Every night Nate and I go for a walk. Well tonight right before we left Elyse was talking up a storm and repeating what Nate was doing. So I went and grabbed the video camera and here is somethings I caught.

I took the picture below of Nate and Elyse while walking, I love it!

Really Better Than the Park

Since the last slide post Nate has found even a better buy on Craig's List. Elyse now has the Little Tikes 8-in-1 play set. It has two slides, climbing walls, a door and a tunnel. She really loves it all and has gotten really good at going down the slides.

Visit from Grandpa and Grandma K

Nate, Elyse and I had a wonderful weekend! We had two special visitors for about three days, Nate's parents came to visit. It's been a while since Elyse has seen them, but you could tell she really missed them. Even though Friday and Saturday's weather was crappy, Sunday turned out to be a beautiful day. We spent the weekend playing inside and out, going for walks, playing cards, eating great food and going downtown to the Aquatennial in Minneapolis.

Thank you for coming to visit! Hope to see you again soon.

Better Than the Park

Okay, so this new slide really isn't better than going to the park, but I was trying to follow the "Better Than McDonalds" trend with Elyse's new bargain toys. Nate found this slide for only $10 and Elyse loves it! She already loved being outside but now she has something more to do which brings her even more joy.

Fun in the Sun

Today had to be one of my best days of the summer so far. Elyse and I got invited by my good friend, Kelly to go swimming at her parents' house. Sarah and Mason also joined us, as well as Kelly's college friend Stacey and her daughter. All eight of us swam from 11:15-12, then ate lunch, then swam again for about 30 minutes. Then at 2:00 we laid all the babies in their pack n'plays in separate rooms, brought the monitors down to the pool and enjoyed the sun for over two hours. That's right, us mamas got to lay on rafts in the pool while getting tan, it was awesome! A special thanks to Kelly and her family for having a mama and baby pool day!!!

Sarah & Mason and Kelly & Mariana (Elyse really did have fun)
Elyse playing with Mason and trying to steal his teeth
Elyse having fun and modeling in the hammock after swimming

Better Than McDonald's

As I have mentioned many times, Nate and I LOVE garage sales and Craig's List. Well this weekend, Elyse got spoiled with many things! I will try to post more videos of her playing with them throughout the week. However, today was the balls. Elyse started saying, "ball" so we thought perfect time to throw her in her pack n'play and go crazy. She loved it. The video is kind of long, but she plays, talks and even says, "ball" in it. Therefore, who needs McDonald's balls when you have your own ;)

Loving Nate's Bed Rest

Since Nate had surgery he will have to be on bed rest for 6 weeks. This means he is allowed to lay on the floor, couch, bed, walk for no more than 6 times a day for about 20 minutes, and sit for only 30 minutes at a time. It's been just about 2 weeks now and I love having him home, it's super nice! However, I think Elyse loves having him home more because, she gets to
read books in Dada and Mama's bed every morning
get kisses from Dada all day long
play with Dada whenever she wants (can't hold her until 6 weeks)
cuddle with Dada all day long
Overall, I don't know who it is going to be harder on, Nate, Elyse or I when Nate goes back to work everyday.

10 Months Old

Happy 10 Month Birthday Baby Girl! We love you oh so very much!

Who Knew...

...a little blowing on Mama's leg could
-be so entertaining
-make such a nice farting sound
-let Mama know that it's time to do more squats at the gym

Happy Independence Day

Hope you all have a happy, memorable and enjoyable 4th of July!
May you take sometime today to celebrate the freedom we have, and give thanks for those who are serving right now to keep it that way.

She's Got Rhythm

Elyse loves to dance! This video I caught of her cracks me up. She dances different dances to each song that's played. Waving her arm is one of her favorite things to do while music plays, but her last dance I think is most entertaining.

Two other interesting things you may have noticed in the video:
1. Elyse signs "all done" when she is done wanting to dance.
2. Elyse is wearing a sweatshirt, not because our air conditioning is on, but because it only hit the high 60s today, seriously, it's July.