Julia's new bike

OK, I have a LOT of blogging to do. I have been trying to remember to take pictures here and there, so the next few posts will be a "blog hotdish."

I'm going to start with two weeks ago when Mike and I picked the cherries from the bushes in our yard and actually made them into a pie. It was grueling...the darn things are about the size of a little bitty marble. Oh well. We were sad watching them get too ripe and fall off the bushes...so we spent five hours picking, pitting, and pie-ing.

Just for the record, and in case I ever read my own blog: SARAH: YOU HATE MAKING PIE CRUST. It is the most abomidable task I can think of. Messy, requries exact measurements, requires lotsa counter space (not little countertops made for an Asian midget like we have), and feeling comfortable about using a recipe that calls for a CUP of crisco. Ew. I pledge to you, my family and friends, that I will always buy extra frozen pie crusts when I"m at cub just in case I get the urge to make a pie at home. !@!!

I was so tired by the time I was making the filling (damn that stupid pie crust) that I accidentally added three tablespoons of baking soda instead of cornstarch to the cherries. It was incredible. Within seconds, the cherries became a molten, fizzing, bubbling, oozing mound. I stared in shock and awe....what the heck? Then I tasted it (because whenever you make some oozing red mound of stuff by accident, the first thing you should do is eat some!). It was very salty. And then I realized what I did. Luckily, the cherries cleaned up nicely with a little bath and we were back to where we started.

Here is psymuhn, with a couple of cherries stuck in his fur. He is trying to tell me, "you idiot. You KNEW they had cherry pies on sale at Super One for only $3.99. Fool."

Here is my replica of the sculpture in the cities in the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden.

I had a weak moment. There was a princess trike on sale at Target and I went for it. Mike frowned. He wanted a red trike for "when" (HA!) we have a boy someday. I guess he has a point: why get more than one trike? Girls can ride on red, boys, too. But before I had a chance to return it, Julia saw the box and started to jump and scream for Joy. You can see the results of our rash, emotional decision. Eldest-daughter bliss. Papa put it together for her right away. What a softie.

Labor Day Weekend

The Sprengeler clan spent Labor Day weekend at the Lake in Deer River with Grandma Beth and Grandpa Dick. We also had the joy of hanging out with auntie Annie and SOON TO BE UNCLE MARK!!!

Yupper, my baby sister, my favorite sister, my only sister, is officially engaged! She somehow found a wonderful guy in her organic chemistry class last fall and they clicked. Let's just say there are eerily similiar characteristics between "Mark" and my "Mike." First of all, their names. Secondly, they are both the same build: Six foot or so, and about a hundred and fifty five pounds. And they can both eat more calories in one sitting than Annie can. Yup, I know...amazing. They both have moms who work at their respective Lutheran churches. Mark knows how to sew. They both like science...Mark is taking analytical chem right now, and Mike wishes he was. Mark wants to be a PA. Mike is a PharmD. Healthcare careers, nerdiness, skinniness....whoa.
I remember meeting Mark in my kitchen one day.....He was standing with his back to me and I didn't know he and Annie were at our house yet. I completely mistook him for Mike...(He had a sweatshirt on from JC penney that could also be found in Mike's closet...) I handed him a knife, and said, "honey, could you cut up this green pepper for me?" He took it and began working straight away. I came in the kitchen a few minutes later to a nicely diced pepper and a look of shock when I realized it was NOT my husband who was standing there. It was then I knew that Annie would marry him. She and I are similiar beings...and he would be a perfect match.

Anyways, we spent Labor Day Weekend with the newlyengageds, had some dinner with DAn and LIndsay, the newlyweds, and went sailing, swimming (after Annie and I jumped ship and left the guys on the sailboat...), hiking, and even NAPPING. Yes...it was a blast. And a nice time to see the fam. Unfortunatly, I forgot my camera. I wished I would have brought it. I could have gotten some hilarious pictures the night I gave my lightweight parents a drink of Bailey's, Brandy, and chocolate ice cream. We put the electric piano on "demo" mode and danced the night away over a game of pool. Ahhh...it was fantastic. Dangit...I WISH I would have had the camera. My mom invented a new pool game, amongst other things. :)

State Fair 2009

This picture was supposed to be at the end, but I accidentally deleted it. Julia was asleep before the car left the parking lot. Nice work, mom and dad!

Last Thursday was our annual trip to the Great Minnesota Get-Together, aka the State Fair. Mike's family is nutso about the fair, so we always "get-together" with them and make a go at it. This year, we went on opening day. What fun we had!

We have also sort of made it a tradition to stay in a fancy hotel for as cheaply as possible (thanks priceline.com...) the night before so we can get the most of the day with the kiddos. They expire in the early afternoon, so walking onto the grounds by nine gets us through a few extra exhibits.

Julia partakes in the raspberries that grandma brought. She is eating them on a featherbed...

Mary explores the new turf

The first food of the fair: foot-long CORN dog. Julia had the first bite. It was a delicious breakfast.

mmmmmm...

The next series of photos are quite amusing. After eating Kettle Corn, the Corn Dog, a Deep Fried CAndy Bar (Jenny ate that herself..), we mosied on over to the Horticulture building because Julia wanted to see the honeybees. In the Horticulture building, you can buy a frozen apple cider for 75 cents...probably the best buy at the fair. It's like an apple juice freezie.

Well, I bought one of them for each of the girls. Julia liked hers for a few minutes, then left it in the stroller. Mary, on the other hand, was in seventh heaven. She wrapped both hands around the frosty thing and started digging in with her incisors. Of course, after a minute or so, she had eaten all of the freezie she could reach...the plastic sleeve got in the way. A blood-curdling scream echoed through the Horticulture Building. Mary was in tears. John had a fingernail clipper in his pocket, so I tried to take it away from her so I could cut some of the plastic away.

The second I took it away, my second child went completely postal.

She stopped shrieking and mounted a loud, deep HOLLER. Tears of anger flew slid down her frozen cheeks as she walloped her daddy with the back of her noggin. She was VERY UNHAPPY. She wanted that freezie back NOW.

I tried to cut it as quickly as I could...I managed to bathe my entire face and chest in the sticky apple juice that poured out of the holes she had gnawed in the bottom. I finally was able to cut an inch or so off the top and I gave it back to her.

Silence. No more tears. Smile!

Whoa.

Because I like science, I decided to try this little experiment again just to see if Mary would predictably behave in the same way. See the pictures below for your amusement.

Before. Happy. Life is excellent and everything is in its place...

Papa's hand reaches in and moves the freezie away from the Baby. Fear and anguish...

NOOOOOOOO!!!!

GIVE ME THAT BACK, YOU #(&!$& (!$)%$#!!!!!!!

oh my gosh oh my gosh oh my gosh oh my gosh

Damn you, papa.

Ahh...I love my children!

Next, we took a ride on Ye Old Mill. Julia loved it. Mary's freezie ended somewhere inside, so she had another nuclear meltdown in the dark, wet tunnel. Our boat rocked something crazy...Grandma's sweater took home a sampling of the unnatural blue-hued water.

Mary, recovered, plays with giant legos at the Thrivent booth

They had this cute little farm exhibit for kids. We took the girls through it. They picked corn, fed fake animals, drove fake tractors, and even had the opportunity to plant plastic veggies in real dirt!

Mary takes a ride on her big green tractor

Julia's favorite moment of her life: she got to sit in the cab of an EXCAVATOR. She adores construction equipment. The excavator is her favorite, and she will drive one for her job someday. Then, she informed me, she will "also tell the other men how they should be driving their excavators."

Look out, world.

Auntie Jenny took Julia down the big slide. Julia had a great time.

This was a very odd scene. While we were waiting for J and J to get down from the slide, I noticed a 50-something woman taking a nap on the very busy boulevard. She didn't have anyone with her, and she was wearing ALL WHITE. I checked to see if she was still breathing, just in case. She was. And now, she has her picture on the internet. Ha!

Julia was getting very very tired toward the end of the day. She did get the chance to see a huge pig give birth to piglets. She was fascinated with the placenta. I didn't want to start explaining that one...

Mary took a nap in the stroller and awoke with vigor. She is saying, "Ohhh..."

Julia and uncle John

Julia had the chance to meet a real live princess! This one was about to have her head carved in butter. Julia was green with envy.

By 4:00, we were in the car. Mary does not sleep in the car. She would rather shriek and demand things that are out of her reach.

There is supposed to be a picture of Julia here, who fell asleep before our van left the parking lot. It's at the top of the page.

Farewell, state fair! FArewell, calories!

Farewell H1N1! I'm glad we didn't spend too much time in the 4H building.... eek!