And the cuteness continues

The Bellus-Penz household has been taking it day by day...Kristin back at work, Alix waiting for school (yes, she actually looks forward to it), and Steve as he looks for new work. Nothing very exciting has happened lately on any of these fronts, so for now I'll just share some more cute pix of little Anna who will turn 2 mos old on tuesday Sept 2nd! She is a great little baby...very little crying, sleeping 7 hours at a time first time last night!), giving her mom/dad/big sis smiles all the time!


my onesie says it all, "bad hair day!"

nature girl

our friend Jen gave us this onesie that says, "My name is Lu-Lu and I'm a ladybug". So cute! Especially since my little girl will always be Lou-lu to me!!

Uncle Mike, Aunt Lindsay, and good bud Marek sent Anna this adorable shirt to go with her "rocker hair"!

Daddy is a wonderful daddy, but he is still learning front from back on Anna's little outfits ;)

It's hard to see, but this is the way the cute outfit should look (are you paying attention, daddy?!) The cute heart pockets and ruffle detail along the neck go in the front...buttons in the back.

Anna in one of her favorite spots...playing in her rainforest activity gym. It is SO fun to kick the rattle and make it make noise...goooooood times!!

Up in the woods

Steve, Anna, Dino and I took a jaunt up to the Bellus cabin this past weekend (Amy joined us too!) We had beautiful weather and a few cold brews (not to mention some very tasty spanish wine)... what more could you want out of a weekend (well, besides having Alix there with us)? We needed a little relaxation after Steve's job news, and with my upcoming start to the school year, so it was perfect timing. During the weekend, Anna got her first chance to take a dip in the lake, as did Dino. Neither one was too fond of it. Dino is not a water loving dog, but I was able to pull him far enough out on his leash to know that he can at least swim a little bit. Anna on the other hand doesn't mind water...in a bathtub...but apparently lake water left a little to be desired in her mind. Both found their first boat rides, walks in the northwoods, and cabin sunrises to be much more enjoyable...lots of smiles all around. There was one scary moment with Anna and a run in with a bear, but luckily all turned out well (see the picture below for the story.) All in all I think Anna and Dino enjoyed what is sure to be the first of many cabin adventures.


Some pictures of the fun:

Anna and Steve enjoying sunrise at the cabin...Steve's story is that Anna crawled over to beg him (in perfect spanish nonetheless) to take her to see the sunrise, so while I was sleeping they headed down to the lake together (and with Dino) to check it out. Now there are several oddities to the story which makes it almost unbelievable...but despite the crazy story, the pictures are BEAUTIFUL!


I left Anna in the bedroom unattended for just a moment and when I returned I found her being attacked by a northwoods bear. No worries though, we came to find out he was a friendly bear and only wanted hugs.

Pure leisure!

So you see Anna, back in the day all trees looked like that. That's just how it was. It's not like these days where... (And the crazy dad stories begin.)

NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!

Walkin' in the woods...you can't tell it here, but Anna couldn't get enough of looking at all the trees along the way.

There's gotta be a window to crawl through somewhere!

I guess they say, when a door closes a window opens. So, Steve is now looking for this elusive open window. Yep, the failing Cash Systems Inc.(Steve's employer) was bought by what is apparently the biggest cash access business around. what does that mean? Who knows. All I know is that it leaves my wonderful hubby out of a job as of today. I know that losing a job is never fun, and hunting for a new job is even less fun, but I've also come to realize that this crazy little thing we call life has a way of working itself out in the long run. Steve is one of the hardest working people I know...any company should find themselves lucky to have him. The best part of all this madness is that this gives Steve a wonderful oportunity to find a job where he feels fulfilled and challenged. Here's to new opportunities that await...now, where is that damn open window???

Meetin' and Greetin'

On August 10th we held a family meet and greet BBQ for Anna. This was a great chance for us to be forced to clean our home, as well as have our extended family over so they could meet Anna before our next scheduled get together in November for Thanksgiving...when she'll look much different and not be a "baby" anymore. It was a beautiful day, filled with wonderful family...the makings of a great memory!

We were also lucky enough that this event brought my bro (Mike) our sis-in-law (Lindsay) and our one and a half year old nephew (Marek) to town for a visit. It is so hard to go months at a time without seeing them, especially now that there is a little one to watch grow up! Last time we saw Marek it was Christmas and he couldn't even walk...now he's walking/running and talking up a storm. We had a chance to go up to the cabin where his favorite activity was cutting the grass with his plastic mower...he must have said, "mowing, mowing" about a hundred times throughout the weekend...he was so excited to cut that grass...what a cutie!!! We also enjoyed a fun time on his first trip to the zoo. It's amazing to think that in a little over a year that's what Anna will be like.


Enjoying some good company on the patio during the meet and greet BBQ


Anna meets Mackenzie at the BBQ


BBQ fun


Big Kisses from Marek to baby Anna


Marek...such a big boy!

our trip to the zoo

only a couple of days left of summer and today was too beautiful to pass up getting outside and just enjoying something fun, so...Anna's first trip to the zoo!! She loved it so much that she just couldn't contain her glee and slept through it all. The rest of us actually kept our eyes open and it reminded me just how much I enjoy the simplicity of the Como Zoo...it brings back treasured memories of my childhood and I'm so happy to be able to pass those memories along to my children too.


getting ready...is that a smile???

Anna and Alix enjoying the view of the lillypads

What's a trip to the zoo without a ride on the carousel?

Gammy and her 2 grandgirls after our picnic

Power to the People!

zzzz...I love the zoo...zzzzzz

momma and baby...too cute!

Much awaited Patio Photos

The old patio...green, red and yellow pavers that only a previous owner could love. During their removal we found out that they had actually been placed right on top of a layer of bright green pavers--bad taste on top of bad taste...nice.

Getting ready for the new beautiful patio

Our new lovely patio complete with a privacy screen (thanks Steve, Ed and Dad!) I couldn't be happier!!

Bad Doggie...B-A-D!!

Why doggie???? why???? Why must you tear two ginormous holes into our sod (and that does not count the one you did earlier in the day) right before we have to host 40 friends/family back there??? :( Why have you decided to become a digger now? Could you not wait just one more week??? I guess those seams that have not yet grown together are just too tempting to a doggie like you. Please stop digging doggie...I am too tired to deal with all this right now. If you stop I promise to give you as many yummy doggie treats as you want...and the good kind too...not those crummy milkbones. Pleeeeeeeeeeeeease??? Thank you.

*sigh* Why can't things just fall into place without any issues...just once???? Let's just hope we locate all the dug up holes before one of our guests falls into it next weekend and then decides to sue us for the $10 we have left to our names. *sigh*