My 8th Birthday Party

We had my 8th birthday party at my karate school, Dojo Karate.  It was a lot of fun to have all of my friends and my brother and sister there. 

We started out warming up.  Didn't Ainsley look cute in her karate outfit?

After some basic karate moves, we took a break and played dodgeball!

Then Mr. Lefavor brought out the kicking towers and we all got to do flying kicks! Ainsley and Ben did awesome.

After kicking the towers, we got to do battle with Nerf like swords.  Most kids were nice.  Ben and I really went after each other. 

Mom and Ainsley even had a turn.

Just before dinner, we all got to break boards with our hands.  Ainsley  had some help from Mr. Lefavor, but she did an awesome job!

We ended the party by having a massive Nerf gun battle.  It was soooooo much fun.

Love,
Cameron

Atop the Foshay Tower

Mom and Dad and I visited the top of the Foshay Tower this morning.  It was awesome to see everything in the Twin Cities.

This was the view facing south.  You can see an airplane landing in the left, just above the horizon.

This is the IDS tower, where you might recall the boys and Mom and Dad having brunch a few years back before I was born.

This is Capella Tower, where Dad used to work.

 This is Wells Fargo place, and we just thought it was cool.

 

Here's a cute shot of me and Mom.

 

And here's another of us, sitting down and resting while Dad took more pictures.

Love,
Ainsley

Lacrosse Showcase

While Cameron was in Minneapolis, I was in St. Paul competing in the Minnesota Swarm's box lacrosse showcase for 3rd and 4th graders.

In the end, my team won 4-3.  It was a lot of fun to play at the Xcel Energy Center.

Love,
Ben

Cameron's First Karate Tournament

Today was my 8th birthday and it was also my first karate tournament.  The morning started very early because we had to be in downtown Minneapolis by 7:30 in the morning.

After some waiting, it was time for my first competition - intramurals.

I did pretty well.  In fact, I came in first in my group.

I was pretty excited.

My next event was the Mega Team, which is where everyone at my school competes together. The official photographer took these two pictures of me.

We ended up winning the Mega Team competition!

I came in third in my last event.  By then, I was really tired I was ready to be done.

Love,
Cameron

Hunting Eggs on the Farm

We went down to the Bierstedt ranch for Easter. We started the weekend by putting together the Skyward Summit, the latest contraption at Park Biesterdt. We paused to take a few pictures of the sun while it set.

On Saturday, we had an egg hunt. There were eggs everywhere.

Later in the day, Aunt Michelle sent the boys on a scavenger hunt.

While they hunted, the rest of us teeter-tottered...

Played with the cats...

Or watched the funny baby cows run around!

In the morning, we got up early and went to Easter church at 7am!

Love,
Ainsley, Ben, and Cameron

Up North: Part 2 - The Hotel Pool

We spent the night up in Walker, MN, at a really great place called Chase on the Lake. We had a big room - in fact Cameron and Ben had their own room and Ainsley shacked up with Mom and Dad. The best part of the hotel? The pool!





Love,
Ben and Cameron

Up North: Part 1 - Itasca State Park

We visited Itasca State Park today. We must have been the only ones in the park at times!

When you come into the park, the first thing most people stop by is "Preacher's Grove." It was named that after a bunch of pastors camped here in the late 1800s. It's also pretty special, as it is a virgin grove of pines that dates back to 1870.






Next, we went up the road to the beach and the picnic area. There was a little playground, and we had a fun picnic lunch. Dad took some silly pictures of Ainsley, got some shots of the lake, and then we all played on the playground equipment.



Most people come to Lake Itasca to see the headwaters of the Mississippi River, so that was our next stop.





This is us, about 20 feet into the 2,552 miles!


The rest of the park took us on the wildlife loop. Here we saw things like the largest red pine in the state and the largest white pine in the state. Although, as you'll see, one of them had their top lightning'd off and it's no longer the tallest.



We also hiked the half mile to this tower and climbed it! Dad took this picture of us halfway up!



Love,
Ainsley, Ben, and Cameron