Butt Naked

So, as I was just updating you all just moments ago on my class reunion I thought my daughter was upstairs for "quiet time" watching Sleeping Beauty. Apparently not. I went upstairs and there is Tayah standing butt naked in front of the T.V. I asked her what she was doing and she told me her clothes were dirty (which they weren't). So, she took it upon herself to take all her clothes off and put them in the dryer (thank goodness she doesn't know how to work the washing machine). What a goof!! Love having an independent almost 3-year-old.

10 Years and Counting

Well, This last month I celebrated my 10 year class reunion at Wild Marsh golf course in Buffalo. We had never really done anything for our 5 year so I was really looking forward to getting everyone together again to see where everyone was at. Ben and I actually had a little cocktail party with some of our high school friends at our house just before the reunion, which turned out to be a nice way to break the ice and to get the party started. I have to say that I do keep in contact with many of my old classmates, we do get together for special events on occassion, and now with the technology of Facebook it is much easier to keep in contact with old friends, which I love. However, there were still some surprises and a few people that were very surprising to see because they have changed sooooo much in the last 10 years (those that were there know exactly who I am talking about) and then there were others that showed up that you were friends with 10 years ago but haven't talked to at all in the last 10 years, but were still able to start back up right where you ended things 10 years ago. It was really alot of fun. My best friend growing up, Lyda, who I grew up living next door to from the time we were 5 to 18 came up from Missouri to stay the weekend with me and to attend our reunion. It was so nice that she got to meet Tayah and to hear about her daughter Ashley, whom were born after we had last seen eachother 4 years ago. I was one that really enjoyed high school and had a lot of fun so I had no hard feelings or hesitations in going to my reunion and really glad that I did. We all had a great time, some of us maybe too great of a time (Ben~ even though he was class of '00. Next time you see him ask him how green #7 is). After the reunion we headed to Perkins for a late night meal (we had two pregnant spouses in our group who needed to EAT), which was funny because a late night at Perkins was totally something we would have done back in high school. It was a great time and I look forward to our 15 year reunion.

The girls of '99: Erin, Sara, Kate, Tara, Kristen, Alicia, Michelle

Tara and Lyda- friends for almost 24 year

April in Review

Well, April came and went so fast that I have not even posted any updates for this month yet. I can hardly believe that May is around the corner, which is nice because the weather is finally starting to warm up so we can enjoy being outside. I love spring!! The flowers are starting to bloom, the grass is getting green, and our cows (the neighbors cows...we call them our cows) are in the pasture. Also spring means, flea market time. I can't wait for it to be warm enough that Tayah and I can hit the flea market in Annandale on Saturdays. Then you know it is spring.
April has been quite an eventful month for the Cade family. Tayah welcomed her baby cousin on April 2, 2009. Baby boy, Blake William Danielson. It will be nice for Tayah to have little cousins to grow up and play with. I can't wait for Blake to be a little bigger so they can play together.
Another thing that occurred this month is that Tayah is officially potty trained. YAY!!! It took us one week to crack down on it hard and fortunately everything clicked for her and we have not turned back to diapers since. And Tayah couldn't look any cuter running around in her little underwear.
Justin and Holly got engaged this April. We have been waiting for this to happen for a while now so I think we were all relieved when we got the call that they were officially engaged. They will be getting married November 28, 2009. Tayah and I will be in the wedding and Tayah had a blast trying on her beautiful flower girl dress. She truly is a girly girl (sometimes) and loved the poofiest dress in the store.
I think that is about it for the latest updates for the Cade family. Stay tuned for more updates in May!!

Bunny in our backyard.

The cows. There are 10 of them this year. I love that we live with the convenience of living within the city but still have cows in our backyard.

Mallard swimming in our pond.

Tayah's first bike (I could not get this to show up below photo, ugh!!)

New baby nephew, Blake.

Disney Update

Well, I have yet to get around to updating everyone on how our trip to Disney World went and traveling with a two-year-old. I have to say it was PERFECT!! The weather was beautiful and we could not have asked for a better forecast. The first few days were chilly (in the 60's) but it was very comfortable for walking around all of the wonderful parks (ask Ben how much he loved that part of the trip..ha..ha) So we made it to Magic Kingdom (my favorite), Epcot, Animal Kingdom, and Hollywood Studios within the first 3 days of our trip. It was exhausting and Ben had enough with the crowds by day 2 but it was all still alot of fun. We had lunch with the Winnie the Pooh characters on the first day at Magic Kingdom. Tayah thought that was great and was not afraid of them at all (although she didn't really like Piglet too much) but Pooh got a big hug and Eeyore got a kiss from her. We saw a show at the steps of the castle with all of the Princesses, Mickey, Minnie, Donald Duck, Captain Hook, Peter Pan, and the witch from Sleeping Beauty, which was so cool, and Tayah LOVED it!! We went on some rides which Tayah also really enjoyed because there was always so much for her to watch and look at. The second day we did Animal Kingdom and had brunch there with Mickey and Minnie. It was fun to get up close to the famous Mickey and Minnie Mouse and Tayah also really liked that. We took an African safari ride at Animal Kingdom as well, which Tayah of course loved to see all of the wild animals. The last few days of our trip it was warm (in the 80's) so we spent those days by the pool sipping cocktails. There was a little pool that was just over a foot deep for Tayah to play in, so we all could pull up our chairs by the pool and let Tayah swim. Tayah is like a fish and had no problem spending all day in the pool. She would take a break to have lunch by the pool and then was off in the water again. She even asked if she could go swimming after we got home in Minnesota. I guess she didn't want to be back in the Minnesota cold again either (none of us did). And the very exciting part of our trip was that Jason and Katie got engaged!! It was very cool and fun to have shared that with them. Overall the trip was a blast and it was not difficult at all to travel with a two-year-old. We can't wait to go back again with her. Oh...and you will have to check out the slideshow of pictures in the post below. Enjoy!!

Disney Slideshow

My Best Friends Wedding

Saturday I was given the honor to stand up for my best friend Alicia (a close friend since we were 12 years old) as matron of honor in her wedding. The wedding was beautiful!! I gave my speech without stumbling over my words, and the whole day turned out just PERFECT. She was such a beautiful bride. However, a few days before the wedding I discovered that I had the dreaded Shingles. This could not have come at a worse time with the wedding a few days away and a week away from our big vacation. A couple weeks ago I had been complaining about a pain on my left ribs and thought that I had bruised some ribs while playing around with Tayah. Several days later I then broke out in a painful rash in the same spot. It still took me a couple days later to even discover what it was before I made it to the doctor. I was put on some meds. which sorta helped but I mostly just had to wait for everything to take its course. Everyone kept telling me it is from stress but I really didn't even feel like I was that stressed out (not that watching 9 kids under the age of 4 everyday isn't stressful); so who knows what the cause of it all was?
Anyhow, so, the show must go on and with a couple glasses of wine and plenty of tylenol I made it through the wedding and still had plenty of energy to dance the night away. I have to say though, with the wedding behind me, this week I am completely exhausted. I've had something going on every night the last 6 nights so last night was my first night with no plans and was able to finally rest and go to bed early (I think I was asleep before 8:30). Man, did that ever feel good!! I have plans on doing the exact same thing every night with hopes of being 100% by the time we are set off to Disney. I think this vacation just may be the perfect medicine.

Counting Down....4 DAYS UNTIL DISNEY!!

Well, This Sunday we (Myself, Ben, Tayah, Jason, and Katie) are leaving for Florida. We are staying in Disney and have plans to hit the Parks and enjoy a little warmth and sun. I am so excited and I can hardly stand the wait. This will be Tayah's first real big trip where she gets to ride in an airplane and all. We have been trying to prepare her and talk about it as much as possible but I am not sure how much she truly grasps on what is going to happen. We have been watching the Disney movies and getting to know all the characters. We even had a vacation planning DVD for Disney sent to us and we have been watching that. I've been asking Tayah if she wants to ride in a big airplane and go to see Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty. She asks, "Belle and Snow White too." "Yes, Belle and Snow White too", I tell her. Today we were talking about leaving and she got her shoes on and was ready to go. I think even she is getting a little bit excited. I just can't wait to experience everything through her eyes to see what she does when she does see Sleeping Beauty (Tayah's favorite princess) and Cinderella's castle for the first time. It may even bring tears to my eyes. The weather in Orlando has been in the 70's and even into the low 80's so that should be about PERFECT!! We are supposed to be getting 5-7 inches of snow here in the Twin Cities so anything would be better than here and we may get out of town just in time. I will be sure to update the blog when we get back with wonderful pictures and how it all went. 4 days until DISNEY...YAY!!!