Family – Page 96 – M. Sullivan Photography

December 21, 2009 M. Sullivan Photography Family, Flowers, Landscapes, Photos

Room With A View

We had nearly 24 hours without the kids thanks to the generosity of Mike’s parents who drove to Duluth to spend the night with Sebastian and Sophia on our anniversary. We both worked half the day and before I left the office, flowers from Mike were delivered. A beautiful arrangement of red and white tulips with holiday greens – perfection! A former co-worker of mine was kind enough to give us a great rate on a whirlpool suite in Canal Park for the evening. The room was gorgeous and she surprised us with a bottle of wine and a cheese and fruit tray in our room. We had a quiet dinner at Nokomis along the “scenic route” of the North Shore. The food was unique and delicious. We had a relaxing evening back at the hotel. After breakfast the next morning, we spent the day checking out shops in Canal Park and used a gift card for lunch Bellisio’s. We couldn’t have had a more relaxing time.

Evening view from the hotel room.

Daytime view from the hotel room.

December 8, 2009December 8, 2009 M. Sullivan Photography Family, Photos

Sophia’s Room Makeover

Last year I promised Sophia that we would transform her room into a space fit for a BIG GIRL. She had been in Sebastian’s old room (“the nursery”) since she was born. We decorated it before Sebastian was born in a moon and stars theme. Very cute for a newborn, perhaps even a toddler, but not so cool when you’re four or five. I had great intentions of painting her room last year, but never did. This past spring I wanted to get it done before her 5th birthday in June. Unfortunately, I didn’t even start the project before her birthday. She turned five and still had a baby room. In July, while the kids were with their grandparents for a few days, I picked out paint and completed one test wall. I was hoping to finish the whole room before the kids returned home, but that didn’t happen. I thought I would get it done before she started Kindergarten in September – didn’t happen. Then, I decided to take the entire Thanksgiving week off from work. Why not start a room makeover before you have a dozen people at your house? It certainly motivated me to complete the task.

Here are pictures from what the room looked like right after she was born…

Here are pictures after the transformation…

I think she likes her new space…

December 2, 2009December 2, 2009 M. Sullivan Photography Family, Photos

Thanksgiving Leftovers

We still have leftover turkey from our Thanksgiving dinner. Mike has been happily eating turkey sandwiches each day since Thursday. Our 24 pound turkey may have been too much for him though. He finally threw in the towel and heated up veggie burgers for a quick meal last night instead of turkey. If Mike is eating a veggie burger, it may be time toss the rest of the turkey. Or maybe I can disguise it in some soup?

Here are some highlights from our long Thanksgiving weekend.

Wednesday – Sean, Melissa & the kids arrive in Duluth and head to the hotel water park. Sebastian eagerly accepts an invitation to join them for an evening of swimming, games and pizza.

Thursday – Turkey Day! No pictures of the ginormous turkey, but a couple of table shots before the adults sat down for dinner.

Dinner was followed by a family football game, dessert and the Wii game Deal or No Deal.

Friday – Skating and Bentleyville

We rented ice time at the DECC and had the whole Arena to ourselves for a family skate. We made the kids (and Tom) wear helmets, so that we could make it through the weekend without an emergency room visit. The kids (and adults) had fun skating and hitting the puck around. We even set up the goal and made some shots.

After skating, we headed back to the house for hors d’oeurves and a birthday celebration for Tom.

And since we didn’t have enough fun yet, we drove down to Bayfront Park to see the Bentleyville Tour of Lights. It was opening night and we heard later that up to 10,000 people attended that night. The lines were a bit too long for Santa, but we all enjoyed seeing the reindeer, Frosty and Mrs. Frosty, eating cookies and marshmallows and drinking hot chocolate and coffee. Of course, I can’t forget all of the spectacular lights.