Hi friends, Althea here with my good buddy, Santa.
Here we are at the Christmas tree farm the day after Thanksgiving. You can tell it was an amazingly warm day, because I'm actually NOT wearing mittens in this picture. (Mom's a bit of a nut about the whole "mitten thing.")
Anyway, we had a lovely time getting ready for Christmas. I had a nice visit with Santa, although I had not yet figured out what I wanted for Christmas. Daddy picked up a tree--literally! He's so strong, my Baba!
A few weeks later, I visited with Santa again. He had had time to trim his beard, and I had had time to figure out what I really wanted for Christmas--a princess castle, with knights and horses!
In the intervening weeks, life was so hectic. You know how Advent can get. I had so much to do--relearning Christmas songs, reminding everyone that Christmas is FUN, and also taking the time to make a snow princess. Sing with me now: "There's no princess like snow princess . . ."
But despite my hectic Advent schedule, I still found time to reflect on the heart of Christmas--Jesus' birthday! (You may recognize the little angel hovering just to the right of "Jophis.")
A little meditative time is needed now and then, but my favorite song is still "GO! TELL IT ON THE MOUNTAIN!" It needs to be sung LOUDLY, since you're telling people everywhere.
Happy to say, Santa came through. Thanks to him and the building skills of my daddy, it's going to be a wonderful Christmastide!
So . . . spend some time looking at Baby Jesus, remember that Christmas is fun, and SO IS SNOW!! Love, Althea
Well, now that the pics have had a couple of months to mellow, we thought it was about time to share them. Yes, our little girl has turned four. (How did that happen so fast!?!)
I'm still getting used to four, and she explains to me on a daily basis that soon she will be five. Occasionally, she goes on to say that when she's 16, she will drive the car (yikes!).
As you can see, we celebrated the big day at "Chuck E's" and lived to tell the tale.
Thea and some of her friends danced around with the Big Mouse himself, after playing lots and LOTS of games. Watching all these kiddos sticking tokens in machines, bumping buttons and levers, then gradually collecting tickets set me thinking . . . Is Chuck E's a training ground for future casino goers? Has anyone researched the possible correlation between frequent Chuck E visits and later gambling habits?
Given these speculations, I guess I'm glad Thea's favorite rides don't render any tickets. Her absolute favorite being the horse ride. Ride em' Thea!
And then, just in case you're behind on your cute quotient, here's some birthday dancing:
Hey everyone! Well, it was a difficult decision . . . so many Disney princesses to choose from, but I finally decided to be Snow White for Halloween this year. Once that decision was made, the assignments for Grumpy and Sleepy were simple.
We had some extra fun this year, since our church hosted a Trunk or Treat event. Here we are in front of our "cottage motif" trunk. You can see the castle on the next car--even more princesses! Mommy said some of you might not know what a "Trunk or Treat" is. About 20 or so cars from our church were parked in a section of our parking lot and decorated. We all dressed in costumes and passed out candy from our trunks from 2-4 on Saturday. There were prizes for the best trunk and best costumes. Lots and lots and lots of kids came by--it was fun to see all their costumes too.
Of course, it was also nice to come home and get ready for the trick or treaters who came to our house. I gave out ALL the candy this year (until I went to bed) even to the kids in really scary costumes. I'm very brave, you know. Oddly enough, many of the kids thought a 6 -1/2 foot grumpy dwarf was somewhat intimidating. Go fig. Personally, I get a kick out of the grumpy nose. :-) Our count for this year was 69 trick or treaters, with the classic skeleton being the most popular option.
This is my first Halloween finding the scary parts kind of fun. Daddy says that's the point. Because of Jesus, we don't need to be afraid really, so we can make fun and play around with spooky things. Hope you had a really spooky fun Halloween! Princess Althea
Hi everyone! Thea here. My, but we do grow up fast, don't we? One minute I'm a toddler, the next minute, I'm a bride.
Actually, the big news here is our recent trip to Michigan. We went in late July/early August for what we call the Annual Grandparents' Tour.
And a good time was had. Hoo boy!
I got to play dress up at Papa & Nana's house, where I was treated like a well . . . you know. Here I am with Nana and Papa and Tootsie the cat.
They also hosted an early birthday party for me. Here I am with just a few of my "crazy cousins." We had a giggly, silly, hyper, bossing-each-other-around, good time.
We also visited a farm, where I got to pet a pony, see a rabbit get a haircut, and pose coyly by a barn.
The crazy cousin time continued at Grandma Cyndy's house, where the Play-Doh's always fresh and the mac n' cheese is abundant. I really loved her collection of little books and the big-enough-to-ride-and-hence-fight-over-with-your-cousins stuffed pink pony. Our visit with Grandmama Rose included a trip to a park where we could wade in the river. We also had fun going to church with her. I found their children's worksheets a stimulating foray into the realm of preschool religious education (in other words, I found all the words in the word search).
We also got in a little park time with all of mommy's family. Talk about crazy fun! We went swimming and played on the beach. Here's a picture of mommy and I going out on a canoe with Thomas and Ethan (two of my older, cool boy cousins). Michigan appears to be a place where everyone just plays and has fun all the time!
On our way back west, we stopped to visit some of our friends in western Michigan. I became good friends with Mazie the Dog.
I'm glad to say, we also got in some quality beach time. I mostly built sand castles and, of course, a scale model of the Great Wall.
We just happened upon the Blueberry Festival in Grand Haven Michigan, and there I met a REAL princess. Her name is Miss Michigan. Very cool.
Then, just when I thought the fun was over, we stopped at a rest stop in Minnesota, and there was my buddy Matthew and his family! Matthew's one of my best friends at my school. Nothing like a little sliding with a friend to make your road weariness disappear.
Hope all of you have enjoyed your summer too! Love, Althea
Hey all, Althea here. I suppose you've all been wondering what I've been up to lately.
In addition to taking in some rays pool side, we've been having some exciting adventures the past few weeks. THE big social event of the year on my calendar was the wedding of my Kia to Tommy. Kia has held MFB status (most favored babysitter) at Chez Burnett for . . .well, most of my life! I'm going to miss her and her crazy fun now that she and Tommy have moved to the far away land of Minneapolis. I'm waiting to see pictures of their castle there. As I explained to my mommy--Kia is the bride and Tommy is her handsome prince. By the way, I am REALLY into weddings right now. If you happen to appear in my mommy and baba's wedding photos--you're a celebrity in my book! Despite my fascination, I've decided not to get married until I'm older . . .5 or 6. My daddy thought 6 at least. We've also been doing a bit of travelling since I saw you last. (This blog proudly brought to you by Travelocity.)
No, seriously, we took Cindi & Mark's gnome with us to the Black Hills for various photos ops. Cute little guy, isn't he? Of course, while we were there, we had to visit Mart Mushmore . . .I mean . . .oh, you know, the faces on the mountain. Mommy says I look quite presidential in this shot. Then she shuddered. Silly mommy!
We went to the Black Hills with my Grandma Cyndy. (She's my grandma!) I'm a little bit concerned in the picture at right because the gnome is taking this one. Should we really be entrusting our camera to this guy?
One of the best parts of our Black Hills trip was riding the 1880's train. Very cool.
Once you're on and the train is moving though, they explain that it actually recreates a train ride more from the 1890's. What's the deal with that!?!
Despite their historical sleight of hand, it was a very fun trip. I got to hold the tickets.
We spent only a few days out there--just long enough to celebrate mommy and grandma's birthday. They share a birthday. Weird eh? They seem o.k. with it, but I'm glad my birthday is all mine!
We got back home and took grandma out to see the falls. Seems last time she was in town, the folks forgot to take her to see them. She thought the town was called Sioux Falls just as one of those fanciful whims--sort of like the 1880's train. Well, she knows better now.
So toodaloo for now from all of us here in lovely Sioux Falls. Hope you're all having fun summer advntures too! Don't forget to be silly sometimes. Love, Althea
Hi everyone! Thea here. According to my mommy, I've been "growing like a weed." I has something to do with the fact that I can now reach all the light switches in the house. (That, of course, means I am now in charge of them all. At least, that's my logic.) I've gotten so long, mommy couldn't even get all of my long, long legs in this picture.
So now you're all wondering . . . how does she do it? What is her secret? Well, if it came in a bottle . . . babies would drink it. (ah,ha,ha,ha,ha! sorry, a little pre-schooler humor there.) Anyway, for you, my dear friends and family, I am finally ready to share the formula to my success. You too can "grow like a weed" if you just follow these simple steps.
Step #1--get plenty of exercise. When you jump on the back of a dolphin, don't just ride it for fun. Get serious, people! You've got to really ride that crazy thing! It helps if you can pretend that you're Ariel the Mermaid.
Step #2--eat plenty of protein Now I know some of you out there get a power trip out of being a "picky eater." That's all very well, but you can find real power by scarfing every bit of meat you can find.
Here I am at Famous Dave's, having finished off the "kids' meal" ribs (yeah, right). Now I'm tucking into several from daddy's plate. As far as I'm concerned, happiness is spelled "p-o-r-k!"
And, last but not least . . .
step #3--take time to stop and smell the flowers And if you're trying to grow like a weed, there's just no better flower to stop and smell than dandelions. :-) They are everywhere! And, for some reason, mommy never stops me when I want to pick them. In addition to being plentiful and pickable, they turn your nose yellow when you smell them! What's not to love?
Surprise! It's me on Easter Sunday! Like the hat? I had a ball with it. This Easter, Mommy dressed me to the 9's (or perhaps event the 10's). I'll be honest with you. The hat, gloves, and even my pretty hair ribbon thingy didn't stay on all that long. But really, given my basic mode of operation, everyone should be grateful the dress stayed on.
Easter Sunday was very fun. The Easter Bunny came by and brought me candy AND cool Spiderman books AND pretty princess markers.
Then we went to church where many of my fans enjoyed the hat and gloves, right before they were history.
In the service, the little kids didn't go out like we usually do. This time, I got to stay with mommy and watch a fritata . . . I mean a cantabla . . .well a bunch of adults in funny costumes singing and talking and telling Jesus' story. (My Baba was Peter. Mr Bill was Jesus.)
I liked the Palm Sunday part with the branches and the shouting "hosanna!" But then things got a little scary. People started looking angry and shouting, then some soldiers came and took Jesus away. Then they hung him on a cross.
I began to cry when they carried him over and put him in the cave. My daddy (I mean Peter) and another guy ran to the cave to look in, but they just came away, shaking their heads. Mommy held me and said it would be o.k.
And sure enough, she was right! There came Jesus again, alive! I was so relieved. Then after another song, up, up, up he went, right up to the ceiling in our church, which is sooooooo high!
It helped that the church gave me a book of the story so I could follow along as the people sang. I really wondered about the page where a guy is kissing Jesus and looking kind of funny with his eyes. Daddy says that guy pretended to be Jesus' friend, but he really wasn't. He showed the soldiers where they could find him so they could take him away. That was naughty. Easter--it's a lot to take in. New dresses and candy and presents are fun.
But I find it quite fascinating . . . the story of when Jesus died, then, three days later he was alive again!
This blog has been created to track our trip to China to pick up our daughter. Stop by to see how we're doing and especially how you can support us with your prayers. Many thanks and much love to all our family and friends.
--Dawn & Andrew Burnett
Hi friends,
