Wedding in Minnesota and Jonah's Photo Shoot

Cousin Ted with Jonah and Calvin

Jonah and Mor Mor on the dance floor

We visited Minnesota for a quick weekend to celebrate Kyle's cousin Claire and her husband Mikes wedding. For such a quick trip it was full of family and friends. We stayed with Jeff and Danielle where we got to experience the X-box 360 complete with a game that let us have a dance off until all hours of the night. My stomach hurt from laughing so hard at our dance moves.
Prior to the wedding we spent the afternoon with Kyle' s extended family. What fun it was to be with the whole Anderson crew. It was a real party with the kind of joyful chaos that only a family of around 30 can create. The wedding reception was delightful and held in an old theatre complete with a great stage for dancing and tasty treats to munch on. Jonah really danced for the first time he even sat down on the floor to stomp his feet to the music. It was such a joy to see him taking in the love from his family in Minnesota.
Somehow with all the fun I did not take too many pictures. But here are the ones I walked away with.
Best of all Steph Bloom one of Kyle's cousins is a professional photographer and she took these very sweet and candid shots of Jonah while we were there.

New Years in Yosemite

Bringing in the New Year in the Yosemite Valley was about as good as it gets. Ice skating on Tenaya Lake in the middle of a giant granite bowl was in the top 20 experiences of my life. As we skated along the edge of the lake we could see through the ice like it was a window. It gave you the feeling of flying. I could not get enough of it. It was such a special moment to share with Kyle. While we were skating Jonah was getting his first taste of rock climbing with my parents who joined us in our burst of spontaneity. That first night was New Years Eve and we slept in a heated wall tent. Kyle and I went to the Ahwahnee Lodge to sit on the benches that are inside the fireplace and I got to eat a great chili-dog as my last meal of 2011. Sad to say we did not make it to midnight!On the second day we rode our bikes all around the valley while Jonah slept in the trailer Kyle pulled behind the bike.  We also climbed 3/4 of the way up the hike to Yosemite Falls. We had a great lunch some serious sunshine and views straight out of Ansel Adams view finder. If you have not been to Yosemite, I suggest putting it high on your list. On the way home we stopped to hike down to the Mariposa Grove of Giant Sequoia. These trees blow your mind! Between their age and size and I have to say "spirit" they leave you- well speechless.

Jonah and Granny with the popsicles we made from the grape juice from grapes grown in their yard.

Jonah sharing the popsicle with Granny.