July Family Album!

It doesn't get any better than this! Family fun including....

Mary, Paul and Alistair dining al fresco...


Al trying out his new smile...



Rebecca, Manuel, Annie & Grace heading out for a stroll....


Annie and Grace showing off their new mobile moves....


...and demonstrating a mealtime moment...



Ben and Caitlin travelling home from South Korea....


Nick, Amy, Mary, Paul and Alistair hanging out on the couch... (where's Charley?!)


Auntie Caitlin taking a turn in the rocking chair with Charley....



The whole Krueger Klan posing under the maple tree...






All our children and all their children laughing and loving some time together...



The whole Robfam gathering with great big smiles!


I'll say it again...it doesn't get any better than this!

The Pit Crew is Back in Action!

We love July in Minnesota! The cherry trees are full; the days are long and sometimes sunny!




It's hard to be patient; every day we inspect the cherries. Are they ripe enough yet? Just imagine....cherry pie, cherry pudding, cherry torte....! Do we have to wait? Beware the birds, the squirrels and especially the raccoons. Some years we have to race them to the trees!



We've had a bumper crop this year!



Bring on Barb & Brenda, the Pit Crew!



I tried to take a picture of the first cherry pie....but I wasn't fast enough! We ate it all!

Backyard Babies!

While three sets of grandparents looked on, three of the Roseville Breakfast Buddies reunited with their babies. Breakfast Buddies Sarah, Polly and Becca exchanged tips about nap time, crawling, walking and feeding. The new generation of buddies enjoyed a beautiful sunny afternoon in the Kings' backyard. Someday they'll play with each other, and meet the other two Breakfast Buddies, Mary and Roosta. All six of the grandparents hovered, smiled and stood behind cameras - thrilled to see each other and to have our kids and grandkids together.

Sarah and Abigail, 15 months old



Abigail explores her new tent...will she take a nap in it?



Sarah, Jamie and Abigail have a snack in the afternoon



Polly and Callon, 3 weeks old



Annie goes flying with Manuel




Becca, Manuel, Annie and Grace, 7 months old, on the grass!



Priceless moments!

Another week in Babyland!

What a week! Little Al recovered from his first cold and fever...the whole McKie family shared the germs...and we're happy to report that they're all back in action.



As Granny & Gramps finished their tour of duty in day care...we had a lot to celebrate.

Annie, newly accomplished at rolling front to back and back to front, managed to move halfway across the living room while Gramps watched, pretending to be on the telephone!



Grace devoured her prunes, peas, green beans and rice cereal, but punctuated each mouthful with her favorite trick...spitting! Granny learned a new trick too...holding the spoon in front of her mouth to catch the spray!



The greatest celebration, though, took place each afternoon when Mom & Dad returned from school to greet the gals. What a wonderful welcome home! Granny & Gramps have turned in their burp cloths and baby bottles for the summer. How long do you think we can stay away from these girls and their cousin, Al? Not long, I'm predicting!









And...news hot off the presses...another baby has joined our family...Charley Dylan Krueger...son of Nick & Amy Krueger, grandson of Susan & Dick Krueger, second cousin (we think) of Annie, Grace and Alistair.

Grandma Susan gets a peek...



Grandpa Dick is loving it!

Granny & Gramps Lose Track of Time!

I think we lost a week or two! Never mind, though, we're still rocking babies...sometimes in Rochester, sometimes in South St. Paul, and sometimes in Maplewood!

Alistair is almost 3 weeks old in this picture, posing for his new best friend, Amy Jo!



Amy Jo (formerly Mary's Furman roommate, currently Dr. AJ, pediatrician in North Carolina) came to spend Memorial Day weekend with little AJ and his parents.



Here is Alistair a week later, visiting his cousins' house for the first time!



Meanwhile, back at the Maplewood Ranch... Gramps gets in a little twin time!



Rebecca celebrates her 30th birthday!




Now...it's quiz time....

1. To whom do these feet belong?

a) Alistair
b) Grace
c) Gramps
d) Blue








2. Which noteworthy person inspired Alistair's latest hairstyle?

a) Joe Mauer
b) Bob Dylan
c) William Shakespeare
d) Albert Einstein




Rock on, Robfam!

Day Care, Week 6!

The flowers are blooming, the babies are growing...and the weeks are flying by!




Little Al enjoys bathtime.






Annie and Grace hit the road for a stroll.



It's a beautiful and blessed time.

Mother's Day 2009

Mother's Day began with our 10th annual Race for the Cure! We're celebrating 10 years of cancer free fun for Susan...



after the race, we met the Spreigls and the McKies at the Marsh for our annual Mother's Day Brunch. The only folks missing were Ben & Caitlin, who are spending the weekend in Seoul, taking a break from teaching in South Korea...



But...we added some new family members to our celebration! Nick and Amy are practicing with Alistair Joseph...just 6 days old! Baby K will arrive on June 11th (or earlier!). Alistair was happy as can be to share some snuggle time with Nick!




The three cousins met for the first time...Annie, Alistair and Grace shared the stage and the limelight. Next year there will be 4 one year olds at the brunch! Look out world!

Day Care, Week 5!

Oh, Boy! What a week!


Our week started off with the arrival of Cousin Alistair! On Monday afternoon, Mary & Paul called with exciting news. We all piled into the van....Granny & Gramps, Becca and Manuel, and Annie and Grace. We took a rapid road trip to Rochester to meet Little Al and his parents at the hospital. Isn't he cute?!



Annie and Grace missed their rice cereal challenge, opting instead for a quick bottle of milk on the road. That decision came with a price tag....Tuesday! Hungry, tired and perhaps a little jealous of the attention showered on their new cousin, our gals managed to communicate their true feelings all night and all day on Tuesday!

The rest of the week, though, was perfect! Good weather allowed us to take walks every day....


and Friday arrived quickly, with smiley girls...of all ages! Happy Mothers' Day!

Boy, oh Boy!

Alistair Joseph McKie joined the Robfam on May 4, 2009 at 3:38 p.m. Mom and Dad are thrilled...




as is Grandpa! Can you tell?



Paul assures us that, although little Al is a perfectly healthy baby, he has retained an inhouse pediatrician to keep things in order!!


Meet Dr. Blue!

Day Care, Week 4!

This was truly a week of accomplishments! It's too bad that there were no witnesses to document our success, but both Brenda and Dick spent one on two time with the twins! What that really means...you'll have to imagine each of us feeding two babies at once! Dick perfected the two bottle juggle, using the bouncy seat and the couch as stabilizers; Brenda resorted to feeding on the floor, using the bouncy seat and a blanket as back up! There were a few complaints from Annie and Grace, but nobody went hungry...and we had a teachable moment..."undivided attention is a figure of speech!"

We weren't the only ones who made great accomplishments this week...
Annie and Grace mastered some of the gymnastic equipment,


and conquered the rice cereal challenge in their new high chairs! Thank goodness for bibs!










Two more accomplishments rounded out the week, but the camera wasn't quick enough to capture them...again...use your visual imagination! Grace demonstrated her new ability to sit up ...oops! over she went! Annie captured her big toe and got in a couple of good sucks on it before it popped out of her mouth...and she rolled over! All moments of success were greeted with great cheers and applause from the audience!