Liesland News

We're Moving

noreply@blogger.com (Rob) — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 04:51:00 +0000

I am revamping the liesland site and the rss feed is going to be moving. I am not sure of the new address yet, but if you are subscribed check back over the next couple of days for the new feed.

http://www.liesland.com

Winter in Des Moines

noreply@blogger.com (Rob) — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 04:42:00 +0000

This Winter has been fun. We got our first major snow in early December and there has been snow on the ground ever since. Our kids are doing really well playing in the snow and have come a long way in learning to deal with snow in the face and in between the mitten and the coat.

For a while it was so cold that it was hard to enjoy the snow, but it has warmed up in the past week and we have made our way outside for some hiking and sledding. In Cincinnati there were hills everywhere, but in Des Moines good sledding hills are harder to come by. The past weekend we tried out Waveland Golf course and had a great time. The hills are probably about as big as the kids can handle at this point. We have also spent some time at the hill behind Susan's parents' house.

Thoughts from Myself

noreply@blogger.com (Rob) — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 23:24:00 +0000

Susan was cleaning up the attic and she found a note that said 'Open May 10, 2008.' After some thinking, I came to the conclusion that I had written myself this letter on Senior Retreat, when I was in college. Here is what I wrote:

Staying up late is always worth it
Sometimes is is good to be late
We are all different
The phone is never as good as the face
Sometimes it is good to be uncomfortable
Sometimes computers do more harm than good
Lines aren't always necessary
Some sleep is
Outside is always better than inside
We are always in a bubble
The weather always changes
Don't get too comfortable
Music is good
Pretty House is about more than just a good view
Communication always makes things better
Sometimes old is better than new
Look at it again
Don't settle
Don't get greedy
It is all relative
My time for myself
Be who you are
Be who you want to be
Keep trying
Keep looking
Enjoy it
Take time to walk
Take your time
Bring your own bags to the store
Be not afraid
Desafios son oportunidades
There are people everywhere
The cheese doesn't stand alone
Sometimes people talk out of turn.

2009 Pictures

noreply@blogger.com (Rob) — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 19:31:00 +0000

I updated our online photo galleries to include our photos from the second half of 2009.

The end of the year finished in a hurry for us, with Christmas and New Year's. We had a great 2009 and have some fun things planned for 2010.

The Return to School

noreply@blogger.com (Rob) — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 21:49:00 +0000

After two snow days Andrew and Mari were back in school today. There is a lot of snow around town and in our yard. Some reports say we got 16", but it is hard to tell because there were also high winds so there are a lot of large drifts. Temps this weekend are supposed to be in the upper 20's, so hopefully we will be able to get out and do some sledding.

Snow

noreply@blogger.com (Rob) — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 03:27:00 +0000

Our third snowfall of the year has started. We actually got our first snow two months ago, on Andrew's birthday. He was supposed to have a soccer game that day, but it was cancelled. We had some more snow a few days ago, but it was mostly flurries and didn't amount to much. It looks like we will get an inch or two tonight, with more coming Tuesday.

The Cincinnatian in me still loves the snow. I suppose at some point I will get used to the fact that it is a more regular occurrence in IA. Hopefully the kids will be able to get out to play in it over the next few days.

Welcome, Winter

noreply@blogger.com (Rob) — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 03:14:00 +0000

We had a bit of a Winter welcoming this weekend, and just in time.

Last week we put up our outdoor decorations.
Saturday morning we got our tree, and put the lights on.
Saturday night we celebrated Wintergarten with the Des Moines Waldorf Association.
Sunday morning we prepared for the Winter term of Susan's Bean Sprout Parents & Tots class.
Sunday afternoon we went to Winter Magic at the Des Moines Art Center.
Sunday evening, just as some snow flakes were beginning to fall, we lit a fire in the fireplace and decorated our tree.

I will get some pictures up ASAP. Our computers are our of commission right now.

Living History Farms CC Race

noreply@blogger.com (Rob) — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 03:21:00 +0000

Erin, Eric Martinez, and I ran in this year's Living History Farms Cross Country Race. We had a great time and plan on doing it again next year.

Susan and the kids made it out to cheer us on and the kids tried their feet at a creek crossing (there were nine in the race).

Elliot's First Haircut

noreply@blogger.com (Rob) — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 03:09:00 +0000

School Pics

noreply@blogger.com (Rob) — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 19:34:00 +0000

Mari

Andrew

Bonus - Andrew Soccer

Beggars' Night

noreply@blogger.com (Rob) — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 00:37:00 +0000

It took us a minute to find the sweet spot in our new neighborhood and it was pretty cold and misty, but our first Beggars' Night was a success.

» View Pictures

PS - I forgot to mention that there was one guy who was passing out hotdogs. He was grilling in his driveway and he told us that he buys 400 of 'em. Interesting.

End of Soccer Season

noreply@blogger.com (Rob) — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 12:10:00 +0000

Tuesday marked the end of the soccer season. Andrew played and I coached, and we both had a good time. We plan on doing the same in the Spring, and Mari may be joining us. I am not quite sure if she is ready to start yet, but I think she may be planning on it.

Andrew Turns 6

noreply@blogger.com (Rob) — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 18:04:00 +0000

Andrew turned six a couple of weeks back. We had a big party the day before his birthday, in conjunction with his friend Bianca, who was turning five. This party involved a parade, skyline, cool weather, cool lighting, and cool people.

The day of his birthday was more chill. Soccer was cancelled because of the snow so we hung out at the Reagens' some and then headed to Mimi & Papa's for dinner.

» here are some pics from his actual birthday

Once I get some pictures from the parade I will post those.

Revolver

noreply@blogger.com (Rob) — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 23:21:00 +0000

We used to deal with diapers, pacifiers, and baby monitors.

Now, it is soccer, school, and Capoeira.

Where has the time gone?

The Pacifier Fairy

noreply@blogger.com (Rob) — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 21:23:00 +0000

Two years ago the pacifier fairy paid a visit to our house in Cincinnati to take Andrew's pacifiers. Elliot stopped using his pacifier when he was one, so the only one left was Mari. Heading into a long weekend we decided it was time for the Pacifier Fairy to come visit again. We hung Mari's pacifiers in a basket in a tree in the back yard and, sure enough, the pacifier fairy came again.

» View Pictures

Ledges State Park

noreply@blogger.com (Rob) — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 03:13:00 +0000

While Susan was in Seattle this weekend, the kids, Rebecca, Bianca, and I went camping at Ledges State Park. We had a great time, and there were no major catastrophes. On Sunday we packed up early and headed back to Des Moines for the Every Family Rocks music festival. Justin Roberts and the Not Ready for Naptime Players, one of our favorite kid musicians (he is not a kid, but he plays kid-friendly music), was playing.

Check out some pictures from our trip.

Andrew Sliding Down the Rock Slide

If you can't see the video, Click Here.

Happy Ending

noreply@blogger.com (Rob) — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 01:55:00 +0000

Our weekend started off well, with a bike ride on Saturday morning. It ended well, too, as today was spent biking, at the Iowa Cubs game, and the Iowa Midwives pot-luck for dinner.

The bike ride this morning actually wasn't too great, as I was headed to meet our naturopath to talk about my pink eye.

The I-Cubs game was fun. It was nice to see some baseball, and it was cheap and easy. The only problem was that I kept cheering for the other team by accident, probably because they looked a little like the Reds, and the I-Cubs look like, well, the Cubs. The other team was actually the Albuquerque Isotopes.

The Iowa Midwives pot-luck was a lot of fun. I feel like I knew most people there, and the ones I didn't know I was glad to meet. There was Capoeira, belly-dancing, guitars, food, & good weather.

I'm Worn Out

noreply@blogger.com (Rob) — Sat, 05 Sep 2009 20:11:00 +0000

We just got back from a great bike ride with our whole family, the Reagens (Susan's sister's family), and the Liesses, Susan's parents. We start off by Erin & Nate's house, and rode along the river for about an hour. We stopped for lunch at one of the beaches along the river. The kids had a great time playing.

Then we had to ride back to our cars.

Capoeira

noreply@blogger.com (Rob) — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 02:39:00 +0000

Andrew and Mari have been taking Capoeira classes at the Roots Capoeira Wellness Center. It is a Brazilian martial art that is sort of like a combination of martial arts and dance. It is really neat. My favorite thing about it is that it is always set to music and has a really nice rhythm.

Grilled Pizza

noreply@blogger.com (Rob) — Sun, 30 Aug 2009 13:35:00 +0000

Kathie, Susan's mom, made some great grilled pizzas last night. First she grilled the crust for a few minutes, put some toppings on, and then grilled a little longer. My favorite was the BBQ Chicken & Mango.

While she borrowed the neighbors' grill, the kids had a great time jumping on the trampoline with their cousins.

PS - This is actually a double-post, as I also posted it on my the dinner blog. I was going to just post it there, but I decided to post it on both.

Photo Update

noreply@blogger.com (Rob) — Sun, 30 Aug 2009 13:28:00 +0000

I just added about 60 pictures to our 2009 photo gallery - including shots from the Spring up through our recent vacation.

Kicking in the Rain

noreply@blogger.com (Rob) — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 01:54:00 +0000

We had our first official soccer practice tonight for Andrew's soccer team. It rained all day and I was hoping it would take a break for practice, but no luck. The kids had a great time, and I think the adults enjoyed it also. Our first game is Saturday.

East Coast

noreply@blogger.com (Rob) — Sun, 23 Aug 2009 13:33:00 +0000

On Thursday, we got back from a two week vacation. We spent five days in Cincinnati, for my cousin Jeff's wedding, five days in Leesburg, VA, for a work conference, and then three days in Virginia Beach. The trip was capped off with two straight days of driving - the first being nauseously hilly, the second being mind-numbingly flat.

It was a really fun trip and everything went well. It was nice to see family/friends/coworkers while in Cincinnati. We were really busy, but we got to see a lot of people.

The conference in Leesburg was for ColdFusion, a programming language that I use for work. I had a great time at the conference and Susan and the kids had a nice time at the hotel. They were swimming for at least 4 hours every day and the kids had a great time.

Once that was over we got to have a few days of real vacation in Virginia Beach. The kids (and I) really liked playing in the ocean. It took a little while to get used to all the sand, and the taste of the water, but after that it was smooth sailing.

Some time in the next few days I will get some pictures posted.

Potty-Training Update

noreply@blogger.com (Rob) — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 18:37:00 +0000

Elliot has been doing well with the potty training. He has been staying dry at night and has been relatively accident free. We just need to work on getting him using the potty more, and the tree less.

Some Videos

noreply@blogger.com (Rob) — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 15:06:00 +0000

Here are some videos from the past couple weekends.

The first video is Mari riding her bike. She is a little distracted by the camera, I think, and forgets to make the turn at the end, but you get the idea.

Mari Riding a Bike

If you can't see the video, Click Here.

There has also been a lot of hula hooping going on this summer. Here is a video of Mari trying to get things figured out.

Mari Hula Hooping

If you can't see the video, Click Here.

The third video is just a short chat with Elliot. Generally, he is a fairly quiet kid, who would much rather use body language than words.

Elliot Talking

If you can't see the video, Click Here.