The Burtis Fam

Favorite Children's Books

2010-05-16T15:09:00.001-07:00

This weeks topic over at Kelly's Corner is Favorite Children's Books. I have a favorite Children's author - Sandra Boynton! One of the first books we received after our son Jack was born was a book by Sandra Boynton : Snuggle Puppy! We immediately fell in love with her cute, quaint, rhyming stories, and looked for more of her books every time we hit the bookstore. Here are some of our favorites:

Over the years we have purchased every book she has written, and love them all. Even though our Jack (now 8 years old) has outgrown them I can't get rid of them - they still sit on his bookshelf and every once in awhile he takes one out and reads it to us - it's great!

One other gift we received was a book/CD of songs made up about the books Sandra Boynton has written - It's called Philadelphia Chickens. If you love reading her books, you love singing them even more. I still remember my husband singing "Snuggle Puppy" to Jack at night - Precious!

Thinking PINK...

2010-05-14T11:26:00.000-07:00

This Mother's Day my mom, sister and I participated in the Race for the Cure at Mall of America. I was so happy to spend the morning with them raising money to fight Breast Cancer. We're lucky that this disease has not hit our immediately family - and I pray that it never will. Others have not been so lucky, and for them I pray for healing, peace, and a CURE! Until then, I will definitely continue to contribute to this cause and THINK PINK!

Mom, Sarah and me at 2010 Race for the Cure

~ "Once you choose hope, anything's possible." ~
Christopher Reeve

Birthday Buddies...

2010-04-26T08:54:00.001-07:00

JACK had such a FUN 8th birthday PARTY this weekend with his FRIENDS at PINZ!...

Fun Friends

Goofy Shot

~Many people will walk in and out of your life, but only true friends will leave footprints in your heart.~ Eleanor Roosevelt

What's for Dinner....

2010-04-22T13:08:00.000-07:00

Anyone that knows me well knows that I love Rachael Ray's cooking style and her recipes. I will try anything she suggests. I don't always get the same results visually, but it usually tastes pretty darn good. I happened to see the very end of her show the other day and saw her finish off a super yummy looking dish:

Fettuccini with Sweet Corn and Fresh Dill!

Looks SO good so I'm trying it for dinner tonight and thought I'd share the recipe.

Ingredients

8 ears of corn, peeled
About 1 1/2 cups chicken stock
Salt
1 pound fettuccini, tagliatelle or egg tagliatelle
1 tablespoon EVOO – Extra Virgin Olive Oil
6 slices smoky bacon, chopped
1 bunch sweet green Vidalia onions thinly sliced or 3 medium leeks, trimmed & thinly sliced whites & greens, washed & dried
3 to 4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 small red chile pepper, seeded and finely chopped
7 to 8 stems of fresh thyme, leaves finely chopped, a couple of tablespoons
2 tablespoons butter, cut into small pieces
About 1/4 cup dill, a generous handful, finely chopped
Freshly grated parmesan or Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

Preparation

Place a small bowl in a larger bowl inverted. Balance the ears of corn on the bottom of the small bowl then scrape the kernels off which will be captured in the large bowl.

Puree half of the corn in food processor or blender with the stock.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil for the pasta, salt water and cook the pasta to al dente.

Meanwhile, heat EVOO, a turn of the pan, in a large skillet over medium to medium-high heat. Add the bacon and cook to crisp, drain and reserve the bacon and pour off all but about 2 tablespoons of drippings. Return pan to heat and add whole corn kernels and season with a black pepper and just a bit of salt. Cook corn until it starts to lightly brown at edges, about 5-6 minutes, then add in onions and garlic, chili pepper and thyme and cook together a couple of minutes more. Stir in puree and heat through. Then stir in butter and dill. If sauce is too thick, add a ladle of starchy water to pan just before draining the pasta. Add pasta to sauce and toss vigorously to coat evenly for at least 1 minute. Adjust seasoning and serve with freshly grated cheese on top.

Serves 4-6

Enjoy!

Another Year Older...

2010-04-19T12:01:00.000-07:00

Jack is turning 8 today! Hard to believe that 8 years ago I became a mom. Decided to take out a couple of old photos from April 19th, 2002.

Right after Jack was born, 7:30 pm on a Friday night.

On the scale - a whopping 5 lb 7 oz.

Jack at his 8th birthday party with the fam.

8 years old and getting cuter every year! Love being your mom little buddy!!

~ A birthday is just the first day of another 365-day journey around the sun. Enjoy the trip. ~ unknown

Easter 2010 and Blog Resurrection

2010-04-10T15:09:00.000-07:00

Haven't posted on the blog for awhile - getting to used to and spoiled by the ease of just posting photos on Facebook. I originally wanted to use this blog as a nice timeline of family events and memories, so I'm going to try to get back to it.

We had a great Easter this year.....

Jack Decorated Eggs.

Jack was serious about his egg decorating.

Colorful Eggs.

The Easter Bunny stopped by and left some presents.

Grandma and Grandpa came over and set up an egg hunt.

Of course the best part of Easter this and every year....

For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life.

– John 3:16

Day trip to Fusson - Bavarian Alps

2010-01-18T05:28:00.000-08:00

Photos from our day in Fusson - near the border of Germany and Switzerland...

Waiting for the train to Fusson
Hot air balloons everywhere
On the train heading to the alps
The alps from the balcony of the castle
Downtown Fusson with the alps in the background
Streets of Fusson
A castle (can't remember the name right now)
Scenic
Very Scenic
The climb to Schloss Newschwanstein Castle
Schloss Newschwanstein Castle
Waterfall along the climb
Schloss Newschwanstein Castle
Waterfall in the gorge behind the castle
Bridge over the gorge
Scenic
Another view of the castle
Again
After we came back down the hill
Alps from the train

Dusseldorf Germany

2010-01-14T12:33:00.001-08:00

Dusseldorf Germany...

Our Hotel

Me along the Rhine
John in Dusseldorf Old Town Marketplatz...
Old Town signs...
Old Town buildings...
Church and museums along the Rhine...
Oberkasseler Bridge over the Rhine...
A favorite in Old Town Dusseldorf.... Frietbox Fries with hollandaise mayonaise...
John with Frietbox Fries (right net to BK)...
Old Town at night...
The Rhine at sunset... Rhein Tower and Rheinknie Bridge...Dusseldorf landmarks
John along the Rhine...
John in Old Town...
Another Marketplatz in old town...
Old Town - lots of pubs...
Along the Rhine in the AM... Love the palm trees - yes they are real...
Rhein Tower in the AM...
Along the Rhine in the AM...
Loved the city of Dusseldorf! A fun place to walk around, eat, and shop, with great vistas....

Friday was a very busy day...

2009-11-28T10:30:00.001-08:00

Here are some photos from our day on Friday...
Jack at the Rodin Museum (He likes to pose like the pieces)
Rodin Museum
The Thinker at Rodin Museum
The Thinker again
Jack and the Thinker. He was excited to see this because it was in the most recent Night at the Museum movie.
Napoleon's tomb - it's enormous.
Jack and a small model of the building that houses Napoleons tomb.
Building that houses Napoleons tomb.
Sacre Ceour (sp?)
View of Paris from Sacre Ceour (SP?)
The steps we had to climb to get to Sacre Ceour(SP?)
Musee' de'Orsay (impressionists)
Jack and Monet's waterlilies.
Jack and my favorite Monet painting
Jack and a Rodin sculpture. He couldn't figure out how to hide his head for the photo.
Musee De'Orsay

Happy Thanksgiving from the City of Lights

2009-11-26T13:19:00.001-08:00

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone! We miss celebrating the holiday with our family, but at the same time are having new experiences and a great time in Paris. We've had a busy couple of days exploring the city. Here is a small fraction of the hundreds of photos we've taken.

Inside Notre Dame
Outside top half of Notre Dame

Jack In Notre Dame

Jack in Notre Dame

Outside ND
Gargoyles on ND
Eiffel Tower
Top level Bus Tour of the city
Out fav place - "La Pasteries"
John and Jack alone the Sienne
Eiffel Tower
ET Again
The Louvre
The Louvre
Entrance to the Louvre
Inside the Louvre
Jack posing
Jack loved his museum guide
Mona Lisa
Jack liked this one of Christopher Columbus
Jack learning about another painting on his museum guide - he was so funny with that thing
Louvre at night

In the Louvre again

Thanksgiving dinner at a restaurant near the Louvre

A Second Round of Photos

2009-11-24T23:12:00.000-08:00

I'm posting a second round of photos thanks to jet-lag. I've been up since 4am and there's not much else to do that's quiet while the rest of the room sleeps. Those 2 can sleep anywhere, anytime. So here they are...
Eiffel Tower with blue lights.
Jack looking out from top of the eiffel tower.
Top half of the Eiffel tower with twinkle lights (they call it the electric shimmey) and happens every hour for 5 minutes followed by a music and light show.
Top half of eiffel tower. Taken from deck level 1.
View of Paris and Sienne from top of eiffel tower.
Another of the ET.
Louis Vuitton store on the Champps Eleysse. Decorated for Christmas.
Jack on the Champps Eleysse. Decorated for Christmas in purple lights.
Tomb of the unknown soldier at the Arc de Triumph.
Detailed sculpture on the side of Arc de Triumph.
Inside the dome of the Arc de Triumph.
Arc de Triumph up close.
Jack waiting for our Air France flight - (the most uncomfortable airline ever).

Well that's it for now. Going to try to catch a few z's before it's gets too light out.

France Photos

2009-11-24T13:31:00.000-08:00

Photos are in reverse order...

Jack at our hotel in Versailles.
At the top of the Eiffel Tower..
Eiffel Tower at Night.
Eifel Tower at night.
Jack organizing his Euros for souviners. He's really getting into the new culture here.
Dinner at an Italian restaurant on the Champs Elysses.
Champs-Elysees at night - lit up in purple for Holidays - Beautiful!
Jack ate lunch at McDonalds - Star Wars Happy Meal he loved!
Climbing the 284 steps to the top of the Arc de Triumph.
Jack Loves Eifel Tower souveniers...
Jack at the Top of the Arc De Triumph.
Top of the Arc de Triumph.
View of the Eiffel Tower from the Arc de Triumph.
Arc de Triumph from the street level.

Hudson Booster Days...Some things never change....

2009-07-05T17:03:00.000-07:00

Growing up in Hudson, one of the annual events we always looked forward to was "Booster Days". It coincided every year with the 4th of July Weekend Holiday. It's the typical small town carnival, parade, bands, beer garden, fishing events, etc. This year was our first year back living in Hudson over the 4th and Jack got his first Hudson 4th of July Booster Day experience. His cub scout troop had a slot in the parade, and not only did the boys get to participate by walking in the parade, they got to bring their super-soakers. When Jack found out about this he was so excited. I really couldn't picture my shy little Jack walking down main street in Hudson, shooting down people with water. Well, he absolutely loved it and had a blast. It was so much fun watching him have such a great time, especially in a parade that John and I participated in so many times growing up. It's a great tradition that I hope will continue. Here are some pictures of the parade...

Here comes cub scout pack 148/215...

Super-soaker extreme...(Jack is on the far right in the blue crocs)

John even walked along to help out...such a great dad!...

A boy and his super-soaker!....

Luckily mom stayed dry all day!...

Happy 4th Everyone!

We have a 2nd Grader....

2009-07-03T13:39:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, I realized that I needed some potting soil for some of my new house plants, so I decided to put it on my list for my daily trip to Target. As I headed back to the seasonal department, I noticed a very disturbing change. The usual rows and rows of patio furniture, grilling supplies, and gardening equipment and been consolidated into a couple of rows, and in their place were.... school supplies!....What!.... We've only been out of school for 3 weeks, I'm not ready to start thinking about buying supplies for next fall. I haven't even come close to achieving my perfect summer tan yet. Even though I didn't want to think about school starting up again, we of course had go through each aisle and look at everything. Jack even picked out his backpack and lunchbox, although I refused to buy it this early. It's hard to believe that Jack will be starting 2nd grade in 2 short months. He had a great 1st grade year and learned so much. Here are a few photos from the last day....

Last Day of 1st Grade!

Reading to the class and parents from his writing journal...

Jack and his friend Brody....

Last day family lunch with inflatables...

Friends Brock and Scotty...

See ya next year in 2nd grade guys...

We're Back.....

2009-06-24T13:12:00.000-07:00

After 4 months of inactivity, the Burtis Fam Blog is finally coming back to life! I have decided it's time to start working on the blog again. Took some time off because things got so busy around here, and I figured I'd start posting again when things slowed down. Well, I'm realizing that life is never going to slow down (which is not a bad thing), so I'm just going to have to make some time in it for my blog. So keep posted, because The Burtis Fam is back.....

Excellent Ice Skating at the Excel...

2009-02-06T09:25:00.000-08:00

A few weekends ago we had the opportunity to spend a couple of hours ice skating at the Excel Energy Center - home of the Minnesota Wild Hockey team. Even though we have lived in "hockey land" for most of our lives, we have never been huge hockey fan - baseball is our sport. However, it was really fun to get out on the big rink and see what the hockey players experience up close. Of course we had no fans filling the stands, but it was a fun afternoon and Jack really improved his skating skills. He is still learning on figure skates which he thinks is a bit too "girly" - so we are in the market for some hockey skates....

A future MN Wild player? ... probably not, but you never know....

Where Did December Go?...

2009-01-09T14:53:00.000-08:00

As you can see from my lack of posts last month, December flew by at our house. By the time we had the tree up and decorated, it seemed like we were saying goodbye to 2008. However, we had a fun December back home, in our new home (with lots of snow) celebrating the holidays with family and friends. Some highlights:

Decorating gingerbread chapels at our church:

Cousin Jake even showed up to help out. He added some great features such as the marshmallow/pretzal vehicle, and licorice fence lined sidewalk.

Jack's Sunday School program:

"Lookin' For A King" with shades of course. Awesome job Jack!

Breakfast with Santa for Boyscouts at Camp St. Croix: Looks like some serious discussion with santa...

The Polar Express Party in Mrs. Burgraff's 1st grade class... PJ's in school!!!

And finally bringing out Jack's favorite outdoor decoration "Mr Frosty". Mommy thought (ugly, cheesy, tacky, noisy) "Mr. Frosty" missed the moving truck from Texas, but no such luck - he was right on top of the box with the lights. So we put him front and center of the house, ready to welcome all to our home for the holidays.

"Oh Christmas Tree, Oh Christmas Tree"...

2008-12-05T16:52:00.000-08:00

Well, the Burtis family Christmas tree is finally up and beautifully glowing. We were so excited to get the tree up in our new home this year, as last year we had a meager "charlie brown" tree. Christmas 2007 we were in the process of moving from TX to MN and the movers were coming to pack up on Dec 26th, so we decided to leave the big tree and ornaments packed up in their boxes for the move. I think Jack was the most excited this year - he is a tree decorating maniac and loves it. Usually we put on some Frank and Ella christmas classics to decorate, but this year Jack insisted on his Disney Christmas tunes. So with Mickey singing "Jingle Bells" and Goofy shouting out "Oh Christmas Tree" we went to work.

Placing the star...

Of course pictures don't do it justice - so if your in the area and want to stop by we'd love to have visitors anytime!

Even Lucy loves the tree, as she has found her new comfy spot to lounge on the tree skirt - Just as long as she doesn't start using it as her "pee pad". Happy Holidays everyone!

Baseball on the Brain in December...

2008-11-30T16:54:00.000-08:00

Baseball season is long since over, but in our house it is still a daily topic of conversation. Jack is having serious baseball withdrawl and misses watching his beloved MN Twins. So, to cheer up our little fan, this year we decided to decorate Jack's Christmas tree in a baseball theme. We spent the past couple of months searching shops for various baseball ornaments, and with help from the family, we managed to come up with quite a collection. We even made some of Jack's MN Twins baseball cards into ornaments.

Setting up the tree...

Our baseball ornament collection...

Decorating the tree...

Take me out to the Ball Game!

Enjoy your tree little fan...Only 4 more months till baseball season!

Wacky Friday...

2008-11-21T13:27:00.000-08:00

Today was Wacky Dress Up Day at Jack's school. Jack has been looking forward to it all week, and was so excited to get dressed up. Jack tends to be a bit self-conscious (takes after his mom that way) so his idea of all out wackyness was:

Wear his Joe Mauer jersey backwards
Wear 2 different colored socks and tuck them in his pants
Wear his hair spiked up

Have a Fun and Wacky Weekend everybody!

"First Sleep Over"...

2008-11-21T13:26:00.000-08:00

Last weekend Jack had his first sleep over with his friend Brody. I don't really know if we should call it a sleepover because there was not a whole lot of sleeping that went on. Here's a recap of the night: After picking the boys up at school we headed down to Mall of America for some fun. On the way we had to stop at Kid's Hair for Jack's haircut. The boys were so excited talking about their sleepover, so the stylist decided that they needed some stand out hairdo's. She gave them both stylish "faux hawks", and then we headed out back on the road to MOA.

First stop: Build a Bear Workshop:
Jack created "Christmas" the Penguin, and Brody created "Rocky" the Dinosaur. Both were stylishly outfitted in Timberwolves uniforms.
Next stop: Underwater Adventures:
Then it was on to Nickelodeon Universe for some rides:
After a fun night at MOA it was time to head home to bed. They started out by having an indoor campout in the tent.

Then they moved on to try out the bunk bed. Of course by the end of the night they were both so tired that they ended up falling asleep on the floor.

Luckily after a late night we were all able to sleep in a bit. But both boys woke up full of energy, so we headed off to The Giggle Factory to play.
It was a fun and successful first sleepover - I'm sure there will be many more to come!

One more day of playing in the leaves...

2008-11-06T16:42:00.001-08:00

As we approach winter and the looming threat of our first significant snow fall (the state next door is under blizzard conditions and heading our way), Jack had one more day of playing in the fall leaves (in grandma and grandpa's back yard - where I grew up playing in the leaves every fall).

Raking up a pile of leaves...
Getting a running start...Target Hit....

AHHH!!!

Happy Halloween from the Burtis Clan!...

2008-10-31T17:55:00.000-07:00

Happy Halloween from...

Super Mario Jack...

Calvin the Ladybug...

Lucy the Great Pumpkin...
Hope y'all had a fun day!

Soccer Star....

2008-10-28T16:41:00.000-07:00

Jack made his first attempt at playing soccer this fall. This past Saturday was the final game, so the season is already over. He had a great time, learned a lot, and I was really impressed at the team's improvement over the short season. Coach Dan was a great coach!

Here are a few pictures from the season...

Too Cute!
Team Picture!
Go Jack!
Team Huddle!
Medal!
Next up - Winter Basketball!

Winter is Coming - Break out the Cocoa...

2008-10-28T10:31:00.000-07:00

This weekend we had our first brush with winter. Sunday was a blustery 30 some degree day with snow flurries - yes, snow flurries already. Luckily the ground was too warm for accumulation, but like it or not winter is right around the corner. For me, cold weather requires a good warm cup of cocoa. I used to go out buy a variety of cocoa mixes for the winter, looking for the best. Last year I found it, and now I make my own. Jack's kindergarten teacher in Texas gave me a bag of cocoa mix as a gift, and is was better than anything I've ever bought. After asking, she shared the recipe with me, and so I thought I'd share it with all with you. Once you make a batch it should last you most of the winter.
8 Cups Powdered Milk
6 Cups Nestle Quick
4 Cups Powdered Sugar
2- 8 oz jars Flavored Coffeemate Creamer(powder)
11 oz Regular Coffeemate Creamer(powder)
1/2 t Salt

Mix all ingredients together in a very large bowl.
Store in an airtight container.
For each cup of cocoa:
Add 1/4 Cup of mix to 1 Cup Hot Water.
ENJOY, and watch the snow fall!

How Do You Like Them Apples?...

2008-10-13T16:27:00.000-07:00

Fall is my definitely my favorite season living up north. The weather gets cooler, the leaves turn color, you can start turning on the fireplace, and it's time for the yearly trip to the apple orchard. This weekend we took our annual family trek out to the Afton apple orchard. Jack just started eating apples (after his Johnny Appleseed party at school) so I knew he would really get into it. It was a fun afternoon of picking apples, hayrides, pumpkin patches, looking at the fall colored trees, and eating all kinds of apple treats.

Our "Apple Loot"

One of the best things about apple picking day - John's apple pie! Every year when we get home John bakes the best apple pie. It's so nice to have a husband that can and will bake.

Here is his recipe:

3/4 to 1 cup Sugar

1tsp Cinnamon

6 to 7 Cups Apples

1 1/2 Tbsp Butter (I know JB uses much more than this)

Bake at 425 for 50 to 60 minutes

Enjoy!

Remembering PCK...

2008-10-01T18:08:00.000-07:00

Today's blog is a shout out to my little brother Paul. As most of you know, almost two years ago God decided to take my brother Paul home to Heaven at the young age of 25. It was way too sudden and way too soon, but I know there must have been a reason and part of God's plan. Today would have been Paul's 27th birthday and I've spent most of the day thinking about him and remembering him. I've noticed that Paul's birthday is the hardest day to go thru since he's been gone. Probably because I think about past birthdays, and memories, and can almost picture how he would have been celebrating another year of life and planning for the future. I know that if he were still here he would be enjoying life to the fullest as he always did. He was a great guy, a great brother and a great uncle! I'm posting a few of my favorite pictures of Paul doing some the things he loved. If you want to read more about him go to http://www.pckfoundation.org/.

Miss you Bro, P, P-Man, Pauly, Uncle P!

We love you.

My Little Tiger Cub...

2008-09-30T18:15:00.000-07:00

It's hard to believe that my little baby is so grown up. He's already old enough to be in the Boy Scouts. Jack is officially a Tiger Cub and had his first pack meeting tonight. He was so excited to wear his new uniform and came home excited to start earning beads and badges. Our next boy scout event is family tent camping (in cold October weather) in a few weeks. That should be interesting - stay tuned for that adventure...

I.P.O.D...

2008-09-30T13:39:00.001-07:00

Everyday in Jack's class someone gets to be the I.P.O.D (Important Person of the Day). It's a great way for all the kids to get to know each other better. So, last week it was Jack's turn. He brought home the IPOD bag and we went to work. First you have to complete the "All about Me" poster. Then you have to fill the bag with 5 things about you. You can include anything you want, and the one rule is that you can only have one toy.

Jack's All About Me poster:

Of course it's pretty much all about baseball and the MN Twins.

Favorite Place: Metrodome
What you want to be: Baseball Player
Favorite thing to do: Play Baseball
What is your one wish: That the Twins win the World Series

Here's what he wanted to put in the IPOD bag:

His baseball trophy from the Woodbury Gophers season.

His favorite Joe Mauer baseball.

His souvenier key chain from our Hawaii Trip this winter with his Hawaiian name:
Jack in Hawaiian is KEAKA

One of his favorite books and vacations: Walt Disney World

A picture of him with his dog and best buddy Calvin.

Way to go Keaka... You were a great I.P.O.D!

Meet the New Member of our Family...

2008-09-24T18:18:00.001-07:00

We have a new four legged member of the family...

Meet Lucy, our new Chihuahua puppy!

She just came home on Monday so we are still getting to know her, but right now she is pretty mellow, playful and very cuddly. She weighs about 3 pounds and should only grow to about 6-7 pounds. We've been taking her everywhere with us since she is so easy to transport.

Isn't she cute...

Yes, she's wearing a sweater. When your only 3 pounds you need something extra to keep warm.

Hopefully Lucy and Calvin will become close dog pals. Check back to see how that's going...

Woof!

First day of School......

2008-09-02T15:24:00.000-07:00

It's here.... the first day of first grade! Luckily, school doesn't start until 9:00 so we have plenty of time to get "Mr. late sleeper" out of bed and wide awake for the start of the school day. The only thing he cared about this morning was that he had to wear his Joe Mauer jersey. Here are some pictures from his first day....

Showing off the Twins backpack...

Waiting outside...

Jack's desk and classroom....

Jack and Mrs. Burgraff....

Finished with the first day (and still smiling)! Luckily he found the right bus and got off at the right stop. We're looking forward to a great year!

Hello 1st Grade...

2008-08-29T14:07:00.000-07:00

This past week we had meet the teacher night at Jack's new school. He will be going to a brand new school in Hudson: River Crest Elementary. www.hudson.k12.wi.us/home.aspx His teacher is Mrs. Burgraff, and I think we are going to have a great year with her! Here are a couple of pictures from the night. Check back on Sept 2nd and we'll have pictures from the first day of school.

We picked out Jack's desk and filled out some worksheets.

Ready for 1st Grade!

Summer's almost over? .... say it isn't so....

2008-08-29T12:42:00.000-07:00

It's hard to believe that summer is almost over, and school is starting in just 4 short days! Time has flown this summer and I didn't even realize that it's been about a month since my last entry. We've have had a busy August trying to fit in as much fun as possible in between moving in, unpacking, and setting up the house. Here's a short picture of the things we've been up to this past month...

Playing at the park

Swimming at Grandma and Grandpa's pool

Zoo visit with cousin Jake

Trips to Mall of America for...

Nickleodeon Universe

Underwater World

Jack's favorite store at MOA:

Build A Bear

And of course Twins games!

We've had a great first summer back in MN. Fall is already in the air and first grade is right around the corner.

Happy Birthday Grandma!

2008-07-24T19:42:00.001-07:00

Today we celebrated Grandma's birthday (another nice thing about living close to family - we missed a lot of birthdays the past few years). After dinner at Chili's we celebrated with presents and cake.

My grandma is loved more and more every year
She gives so much of herself… she is so very dear
She’s a special kind of grandma, who can brighten any minute
Because of all the thoughtfulness and kindness she puts in it
She’s a special kind of grandma who adds so much joy to living
She is always very supportive very loving and so giving.

Happy Birthday Grandma! We love you!

Carbonara...Mmm!

2008-07-22T18:24:00.000-07:00

Over the past few months I set out to improve my cooking skills. Enough of the Mac and Cheese, and boring spaghetti dinner. So, I went to Borders and found a few new cookbooks and have been trying new recipes when I have the time. Well, we found a winner that is so good I thought I needed to share it with all of you. Before that, I have to recommend Rachel Ray's 30 Minutes Meals cookbook. You can actually make great dinner (yes in 30 minutes) and some of them even turn out looking like a gourmet dinner. I have to tell you that John has been impressed and it's so nice to have someone actually request your dinners. Anyways, here's the recipe....

Carbonara
Ingredients:
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 pound rigatoni
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil (enough to coat bottom of pan)
1/4 pound pancetta (Italian bacon), chopped
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
5 to 6 cloves garlic, chopped
1/2 cup dry white wine
2 large egg yolks
Freshly grated Romano cheese
Handful of finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley, for garnish
Directions:
1. Put a large saucepot of water on to boil. Add a liberal amount of salt and the pasta. Cook to al dente, about 8 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add the olive oil and pancetta. Brown pancetta 2 minutes. Add red pepper flakes and garlic and cook 2 to 3 minutes more. Add wine and stir up all the pan drippings.
3. In a separate bowl, beat yolks, then add 1 large ladleful (about 1/2 cup) of the pasta cooking water. This tempers the eggs and keeps them from scrambling when added to the pasta.
4. Drain pasta well and add it directly to the skillet with pancetta and oil. Pour the egg mixture over the pasta. Toss rapidly to coat the pasta without cooking the egg. Remove pan from heat and add a big handful of cheese, lots of pepper, and a little salt. Continue to toss and turn the pasta until it soaks up egg mixture and thickens, 1 to 2 minutes. Garnish with parsley and extra grated Romano.

Try it out! Happy Cooking!

Great Season Woodbury Gophers!

2008-07-15T05:10:00.000-07:00

Sadly, baseball season has ended at the Burtis house. Jack played coach's pitch baseball this summer and was on the Woodbury Gopher team. It was a great season, and Jack definitely improved his game.

The team went from everyone running after the ball and fighting for it at the first practice, to playing their positions and actually making some great plays together at the final tournament. They are definitely all well on their way to becoming major league players.

Look at that batting stance...

Run #10...

Jack's best Joe Mauer impression while playing catcher...

Buddies in the dug out...

Jack with coach Peter...

And of course the all important end of the season trophy...

Great season #10. Can't wait until next year!

A Taste of Texas Heat in Minnesota!

2008-07-11T17:42:00.000-07:00

Today was the first day since we've moved north that we had weather that made me feel like I was back in Texas. It was a hot 9o some degrees, humid and the air was heavy. Summer heat was the one thing in Texas that I could never get used to or like (along with the scorpions, snakes, and gi-normous bugs). Once the humidity set in in Texas (usually April) it didn't leave until well into fall. Then I got to thinking, what is worse, the Texas summer or the Minnesota winter? Not a hard one for me...the Texas summer of course! Jack and I had a blast in the snow this winter. So I thought I'd take a look and share some of the pictures of our adventures in the cold and snow this past winter in anticipation of some cooler weather. This was Jack's first real opportunity to enjoy snow and winter activities (he was only 3 when we moved to TX), and we tried everything... skiing, sliding, skating, snowman and fort building.

Downhill Skiing

A snow heart for mom on Valentine's Day. Don't be fooled by that sweet little grin...that heart was thrown in my face about 2 minutes after taking this picture.

And of course a Twins snowman.

Snow Angel?

Winter trips to the zoo:
Yes the zoo is open year round here.

For those of you who think I'm crazy to think fondly of living here in the cold winter and look forward to it, go try to happily survive the month of August in the Texas heat!

A Blast From the Past...A Summer Day Trip to Valleyfair.

2008-07-09T19:42:00.000-07:00

When we were growing up we always eagerly awaited the annual summer day trip to Valley Fair. For those of you not from Minnesota it is one of the only large scale amusement parks in the area. We usually went with neighbors, cousins or school groups and went on rides non-stop dawn to dusk. As we got older the excitement wore off and years went by without visiting Valleyfair. Well, now that were back in MN it's time to start the tradition with Jack. So we packed up the car with grandma, aunt Kristi and cousin Andrew and headed out for a fun filled day at Valleyfair. Here are some pictures from the day...

Hangin' out with the Valley Fair Mascot (never knew what the mascot actually was and I'm still not sure today - but the kids must love him.)

Buddies on the balloon ride...

Jack's most daring ride of the day - The Wild Thing... or does that say "Mild Thing"

Even the "big boys" can try out the kiddie rides. Their excuse was of course that they were only on it to help out my younger cousin Noah (pictured in front) on the ride.

And Jack's favorite part of the day - the air ball arcade. Think hundreds of small nerf balls flying thru the air shot from various air pressurized contraptions.

I wish I had more pictures of Jack and I on the "big people" rides, but I was too busy hanging on for life and making sure my lunch stayed in my stomach. This was hopefully the first of many trips for us to Valleyfair with Jack, but it made me realize just how old I'm getting, and how I better step it up if I'm ever going to keep up with Jack and his friends.

Next year he might want to try Steel Venom... I don't think so...

Home Sweet Home...

2008-06-26T14:14:00.001-07:00

It's official..........we are now Wisconsinites! We have left the great state of Minnesota, crossed the border, and can now call ourselves "Cheeseheads". Today we closed on our new house in Hudson. We are so excited to be moving into a house that we hope will be home for a long time. Hudson is where John and I were raised, and we hope Jack will development as many fond memories growing up here as we did. The house is out of town a few miles in the country and has a northwoods lodge feel to it. We love watching the wildlife and having deer come out of the woods in the backyard (I'm sure that happy feeling will change when they start eating my flowers). We are really looking forward to being Wisconsinites, but Jack wants everyone to know that there's no chance that he will become a Brewers fan - MN Twins all the way! Vikings fan vs Packers fan? that's still up in the air...

"Take me out to the ball game..."

2008-06-26T06:20:00.000-07:00

We have one of the biggest Minnesota Twins fan at our house. Jack went to his first Twins game at the Metrodome when he was 2 and it's been Twins mania ever since. So, this summer we have been spending quite a bit of time at the Metrodome (thanks to Grandpa's season tickets).
Here are some highlights so far...

Hanging out in the stands.

Keeping score with Dad.

Going down on the field....

to run the bases. Go Jack!

Making our "Circle me Bert" sign (haven't been circled yet).

Celebrating Jack's 6th brithday at the dome.

Sharing a birthdate with our favorite player...

#7 Joe Mauer - April 19th.
GO TWINS!

My First Blog Confession...

2008-06-26T06:10:00.001-07:00

Hey Y'all. Ok, I have to admit - I have become quite the "blog stalker" over the past couple of months. After moving from Texas it's been a great way to keep in touch with friends and see what's going on in everyone's lives. So, I thought it was finally time to start the Burtis family blog. I've had this set up for awhile, so it's about time to get some posts out there. Hopefully this will lead me to spending more time working on my blog rather then stalking all of you. So here goes.... hope you all enjoy getting to know the happenings of The Burtis Fam!