Photos – Page 107 – M. Sullivan Photography

February 4, 2012 M. Sullivan Photography Daphne, Family, Photos, Skiing, Vacation

T.G.I.F. (Actually It’s Now Saturday)

Friday nights are traditionally pizza nights at our house. This means I am off the hook from cooking. Mike picks up Papa Murphy’s pizzas and we enjoy a movie or game night with the kids. After a long work (or school) week, it’s something that we all look forward to.

Tonight’s Game of Choice – Mario Brothers
Sophia recently learned how to play Mario Brothers. Now that we have a third remote for the Wii, the kids along with Mike are able to sharpen their Wii skills to conquer Mario world. I’ve never actually played the game myself. I’m a little too intimidated since they have nearly mastered the game.

Before pizza and game night, we took Daphne for a walk around the neighborhood. Even though it’s only early February, the melting snow and warm temperatures make it feel like spring. Daphne was busy smelling all the new scents that have appeared. She seems to have the energy of a puppy even though she’s seven years old. Or maybe she has spring fever like the rest of us.

We aren’t planning a winter/spring vacation this year, but will instead spend an overnight at a local hotel so that the kids can enjoy the pool, hot tub and an awesome continental breakfast the next morning complete with Belgian waffles. We won a gift certificate during a silent auction fundraiser last fall and thought it might be a good time to use it. The hotel we will be staying at also has outdoor fire pits for roasting marshmallows and making s’mores. It’s only a mini “staycation”, but we are all looking forward to it.

We will also spend a night in Minneapolis to check out the Twin Cities Auto Show. After over 13 blissful years with our SUV, this is the year that we are going to have to say goodbye. With a leaky sunroof and leaking oil, along with small spots of rust starting to appear, we plan to find something more fuel-efficient (and cool). With two growing kids, a dog, a small boat to tow and winter driving in Duluth, a new four-wheel drive vehicle is an investment we really need to make later this year.

Preparations for our Super Bowl party are underway. I was supposed to spend the day cleaning, grocery shopping and prepping for the big day. The party is pretty low-key with our fellow fantasy football players and friends, along with their kids. Everyone brings something to share. Mike suggested earlier in the week that we go skiing on the weekend and I politely reminded him that we will be hosting the party at our house for the first time. He and the kids made promises to help with everything – cleaning, shopping and cooking – if I would agree to go skiing. I couldn’t turn down a warm, sunny day and ended up playing hooky from my chores to hit the slopes. I have no regrets, but am left with a big to-do list for tomorrow. I hope everyone in our house gets a good night’s rest tonight, because tomorrow is a work day!

January 28, 2012 M. Sullivan Photography Landscapes, Photos, Sledding

Week In Review

Another week has passed. We spent the last two Fridays at Bulldog hockey games. Last week’s game we enjoyed with Mike’s parents with a nice dinner at Valentini’s prior to the game. We had gymnastics class for Sophia and basketball practices for Sebastian during the week. Sebastian had his weekly Saturday morning basketball game. No ski races last week, but the kids are planning to race tomorrow at Chester Bowl. The mornings were cloudy and gray most of the week as seen below.

The gray start to the week was followed by a sunny Friday morning with snow showers in the afternoon and a beautiful sunset.

I have a couple of photos I haven’t posted yet of the kids getting geared up for the ski races two weeks ago. They put on everything except their skis before getting into the car – even their helmets.

I’m sure they received a few looks while they were on the way to the ski hill by other vehicles on the road. I guess the extra head protection would come in handy in case of a fender bender.

Sophia had a playdate with a friend today. They spent some time sliding on the fresh snow, making snow cones (with “white” snow” from the backyard), playing with play dough and mastering Super Mario Brothers on the Wii.

We still hope to get out to Spirit Mountain and Mont Du Lac to ski before winter is over. We keep waiting for a big snow storm to drop some nice powder, but it hasn’t happened yet. This last small storm was enough to cover the bare grass in our yard. Unless we get a major snow event, the “bobsled” course in our backyard will not happen this year. 😦

January 18, 2012 M. Sullivan Photography Landscapes, Photos

A New Perspective

I took a short detour on my drive into work this morning. After dropping the kids off at school, I was determined to get a shot of the spectacular colors from the morning sky. It didn’t quite happen. Now that the days are getting longer and the sun is rising earlier, I’m not able to get out the door before the best part of the sunrise has faded. However, I was able to get some interesting shots along the Lakewalk in Canal Park once the sun had peeked over the horizon.

I guess I can’t complain that with each day there is more sunlight. After weeks of it being dark when I leave for work and dark when I come home, it would be nice to have a little extra daylight. Some warmer temperatures wouldn’t hurt either. A quick look at my weather app says that it is currently -4 degrees with a windchill making it feel like -29 degrees. Spring can’t come soon enough for me.