Beach Time!

It has been a couple of weeks since our last posting. It is SUMMER and our days seem to be jam packed- with a whole lot of fun of course!!

We have been spending a lot of time at the beach. Lake Bebe is fairly close to our house- it is nice for weeknight evening beach trips. Elm Creek is in Maple Grove and we also really enjoy going there too. It is a man-made pond that is chlorinated. The grounds are gorgeous and supply hours of FUN!

Jaxson getting ready to build his sand castle

Two little water bugs!




Jaxson started T-ball this summer. Presten is coaching and really loving getting to know all the kids. Jaxson does have a little bit of a hard time that Presten has give his attention to all the other players on his team and not just him. We have had a couple sad moments- but at least they were short lived.

Jaxson at bat!

Vada sitting on the bench with all the players...of course she would not have it any other way. We call her the cheerleader! Here she must be giving a pep talk to one Jaxson's teammates. From behind it looks like it could be Jaxson, but it is not.

So-long Daddy's Truck! This past weekend we went down to Rochester and traded in Presten's truck for a mini van!!

Saying Good Bye to BIG RED!!

After the mini van was purchased we headed down to the Rochester Fest Parade. The kids did really well- it was a two hour parade, but I should of known that they would be fine. When there is candy involved the kids always want to be there!

Cheese!

Auntie Katie was also in the parade! She plays on the historical society's baseball team. Jaxson thought it was pretty cool to see her there!

After a busy weekend in Rochester we are all exhausted! We are already looking forward to the 4th of July! I can't believe that it is next weekend!

Have a great week! The Bean's

and the winner is......Team Vanderhorst!!

Happy Birthday to Chris!! We celebrated Chris's birthday Vanderhorst style on Saturday night -
filled with a fabulous dinner, maybe a cocktail and of course a little competition! Team Vanderhorst came out the winners of our Wii bowling tourney. They brought their "A" game and tied up the score as Team Bean took the pumpkin carving contest back in October. Don't worry we are ready for the tie breaker......lawn bowling!! Team Bean has this one in the bag!!!

TEAM BEAN!!

of course we had to take a picture of what Vada does best! She could not be happier!

This past week we decided it was time for some tennis. Jaxson has been working so hard it..he's getting it, but it does take some hand-eye coordination which is a little tricky. He did not get discouraged at all- he just kept trying.

Here is a picture of Dianna and Jaxson


Determined!



My other little tennis pro!



Sometimes you just have to figure out another way!

This week we are looking forward to a week of projects! Presten and I both have some time off this week. We are going to finish some painting projects, stain the deck and possibly on a day trip with the kids.

Have a great week! The Bean's

Wedding Day!!

Tanya, Presten's cousin married Chad on Saturday afternoon in Elk River. What a day for a Wedding! Tanya was gorgeous! The ceremony took place outside overlooking the Mississippi river.

Jaxson had the time of his life at the reception - playing with his cousin Tyler.

Vada, our little turkey didn't sit still for two minutes all day! I don't think that all the sugar Tanya was feeding her had anything to do with it ...do you?

So sweet!

"hi mama" Love the hair Vada!

Presten, didn't work this weekend so really enjoyed some family time this weekend. Saturday morning we went down to the Mpls farmers market - what a busy place! If you haven't been go! There are so many vendors selling plants, fresh fruits and veggies, oh but of course we couldn't leave without the mini donuts!

Jaxson's last day of preschool was on Thursday. I can't believe how fast the school year went. He will be going to Sarah's with Vada until fall when school starts again. We are looking forward to a summer of camping, BBQ's, family and friends!! We are officially ready for summer!!

We hope that everyone else is doing well..we all seem to be kicking around a cold here! Have a great week! Krista

Summer - here we come!!!

Jaxson and Vada- taking a break this afternoon after playing hard on this gorgeous day!

Finally a day with no WIND!! We played and played and played outside today!! I even had two little helpers plant my garden with me this afternoon. I sure hope I have the same vegetables in each row...it is questionable:) Jaxson has done a lot of planting at school so he was talking to me about the soil and the worms...it was quite educating! Vada was covered in dirt from head to toe after we were done.

We decided to do our first bonfire tonight and of course broke out the smores! This was Vada's first real experience with them. As you can see...the chocolate was her favorite part! Mine too!

Jaxson testing out his smore!

On Saturday, I had a girls day with my college girlfriends and Lacey stayed over at our house. This is baby Hayden and Jaxson. She is so sweet


Since I am on every other weekend blog update - I thought I would include some pictures from mother's day. After Jaxson did an awesome job singing in church we headed over to the Kelley Farm to the farm animals.

Here is Vada checkin out the chickens

Mr. Jaxson posing for a quick picture

Love birds!

Mommy and my sweet boy

Jaxson, Vada and I went on a nature hike one morning and this was taken during the hike - Jaxson hiding in the trees!

Vada decided that she wanted to be 20 steps behind us at all times because she wanted to do some exploring on her own.

We had a great couple weeks! We are getting really anxious for summer..it is amazing how fast the weekends fill up!

Have a great week..or two:) The Bean's

Potty Time!

Vada has decided that she wants to start using the potty! She is so funny, she started going to the toilet in the bathroom and standing next to the toilet, lifting her shirt up and pushing her hips forward.....this of course is what Jaxson does when he goes potty! We decided that was time to get her potty out and see what happens. ALL she wants to do now is sit on it- she hasn't gone in it once, but that doesn't seem to bother her! She would rather sit on her potty than sit at the table for dinner...This was very new for us because Vada NEVER turns down FOOD! We'll see how far this goes:)

Vada deciding that she needs to the baby in her baby dolls pack-n-play! Na-night:)

Jaxson and Deanna playing on the swing set. They played and played today...What a gorgeous afternoon! Presten and I even broke out the Rollerblades today....and the training BEGINS!!

We also celebrated Ella's (our niece) first birthday on Saturday, but my camera was not

working:( -hopefully I can get some pictures that I will be able to post.

Have a great week! The Bean's

The BEAN'S are back!!

Vada on her new slide!!

After a two week break- the Bean Blog is back!! I have no excuses except LIFE and possibly a little laziness!

I will give a little recap of the last couple weeks. For by birthday Presten and I went to a restaurant called Brasa in NE Minneapolis. It was A-mazingly good! If you are the area GO! All the food is locally raised- natural and organic and FULL of flavor! YUM! The kiddos spent the night at my parents and then we headed down to Rochester on Saturday for Easter. The kids had such a good time at grandma and grandpa's...and Vada was on her best behavior!- at least until mom and dad got there. While we were in Rochester we also went minivan shopping- I think that we have the one picked out that we want...so it shouldn't be too much longer until Presten trades in his truck for a minivan!

The Thursday after Easter I left for a four day scrapbooking getaway. It was at Covenant Pines in McGregor, MN. They have a gorgeous retreat center and I was able to get Vada's one year book almost done. Presten took Friday off that week to spend with the kids. He also took Vada to her 18 month appointment. She is the 80th percentile for weight and 75th for height- so at least somewhat proportionate. She still loves food, but it seems like we have been having less battles with it. We are working hard on her verbal skills- she just gets so frustrated because we can't understand her that it tends to turn into a full out tantrum. We'll get there!

We are loving the sunshine! The kids have been playing outside every moment they can. This past week the swing set from grandma Vickie's and grandpa Steve's was delivered to our house!! The kids are having so much fun on it. Jaxson has turned it into his own little ship and Vada is never tired of going down the slide. They are sleeping better than they ever have after spending hours playing outside!

Saturday, I attend Tanya's (Presten's cousin) bridal shower. She is getting married the end of May and we can't wait for the Wedding!

Vickie came over Saturday evening to watch the kids for us so that we could go out with Stacy and Darrin. We went to the restaurant Seven -it is a sushi restaurant. It was our first full sushi expedience. The ambiance was really cool-it was very laid back. The kids had a really good time with grandma!

I have been a little under the weather today, so I am hoping that I will feel a little better by tomorrow- I have no time to be sick!

I hope that everyone else is doing well!! Have a great week! The Bean's

The Easter Bunny hops on over to Otsego!!

Vada was just not sure about the Bunny!

Easter is fast approaching and would not be complete without a visit with the Easter Bunny! The park and rec commission hosts an Easter event each year and this year we had a record turnout! I think that everyone is starting to look for more activities closer to home and this event I think proved that. With the housing market crisis and fewer families moving into our area these events are not growing due to an increase of population, but people seeking out more local opportunities.

I had to work at the event so I was not able to walk around with the kids. I think that next year I am going to have them come a little closer to the end so I can walk around with them. We had an Easter egg Hunt, Teensy the clown, tattoos, face painting and of course the Easter Bunny!

We had a pretty low key week otherwise. Vada is still keeping us on our toes...we have now not only had tape the pantry shut, but now the refrigerator! If she is not in the kitchen she still going up and down those stairs!

Jaxson is still his silly self and coming up with new ways to make us laugh everyday! The kids are going to stay at my parents on Friday night so that we can go out for my birthday. I think that he asked me 55 times today if it is time to go to grandma's yet. He already has his bag packed!

Off to do laundry!! Have a great week! The Bean's!