Ronnie Turns 45!

Ronnie's birthday celebration was a fun celebration. He started the day by sleeping in until 10 AM. We greeted him with balloons around the house and pull apart cinnamon rolls. We opened presents and he enjoyed an afternoon of skating with the kids in our backyard. Our evening started with Canyon's hockey game (and watching him score 2 goals) followed by live music at Gluek's with about 25 friends who showed up to celebrate with Ronnie. He was happy! Happy Birthday Ronnie!

Winter Sports 2011

We are officially in winter and winter sport season has begun. Canyon is now a Squirt in Hockey. He made the Squirt Red B Team. His team is off to great start from a social perspective and a team perspective. We kicked off the season with a great team parent party. And the kids kicked off the season with a great fundraiser, raising over 800 lbs. of food for PROP, a local food shelf. The picture below includes just the bags of food that Canyon collected from our very generous neighbors. Presley is currently on hiatus from hockey and has joined Team Gilboa, a local ski team. She and Canyon are having a blast. Not much more we can ask for.

Cambria 2011

Our annual trip with the Gray and Hanson family is always a highlight for our family. This year proved to be exceptional in many ways. Our first day started strong as we explored and hiked in San Simeon State Park. We also visited the town of Harmony (population 18) to watch some glass blowing and check out local pottery.



On Thanksgiving, we had another full day, enjoying football in the park, playing in the playground, and making pyramids. We also enjoyed some nice walks on the cliffside. And the kids absolutely loved playing in the ocean. Our Thanksgiving feast was amazing with great food, great wine, and great friends.







On Friday, we enjoyed wine tasting in Paso Robles, checking out Turley, ZinAlley, Castoro, Halter Ranch, and Adelaida wineries. Absolutely amazing day with nice picnics, guitar playing, and great wines! Our evening ended with the lighting ceremony in downtown Paso Robles. We enjoyed a relaxing Saturday morning before heading back to the airport for home.

Quick but Packed Visit with the Kohls Family

En route to our annual Thanksgiving trip to Cambria, CA, we had a short but jam packed visit with the Kohls family. We played games, saw the movie Jack and Jill, visited our beloved In-and-Out Burger, went trampolining at Sky High, enjoyed dinner at a Japanese steak house, celebrated Christmas and some birthdays together, and enjoyed some lovely Kohls glasses of wine. Whooo!

Halloween 2011

Halloween 2011 was a great holiday filled with fun memories for both the parents and the kids. On Saturday before the holiday, Ron and Trisha went to our pals', the Coopers, annual Halloween party as Green M&Ms and handed out green M&Ms, trying to infuse a festive spirit into the crowd. On Sunday, the kids enjoyed carving pumpkins and for the first time, really took it on as their own, with minimal help from Mom & Dad. And the grand finale was actual Halloween where the kids enjoyed trick or treating as scary ghouls and jesters. This was a big candy year, with the kids taking over 10 lbs each and with our home hosting many visitors. We had over 150 kids by 7:30 (when Mom had to shut down). Great holiday! Great fun!

Blue Dogs Win 4th Grade Championship

This was Canyon's first year playing football. But I don't think it is his last. His team, the Blue Dogs, won the championship and now Canyon is hooked. Canyon "the flattener" Pergande, played Quarterback, front lineman, and middle linebacker this year. Fun season, great team!

MEA Weekend 2011

Mom and kids headed north (Dad out of town for work) for the long MEA weekend with friends. We stayed at Cross Lake and also played at Gull Lake with more friends. We enjoyed lots of fishing, swimming (inside and outside -- brrr....), sunsets, bonfires, and a Haunted House with all the kids (a lot of them). Mom was also went to the spa for some relaxing treatments and enjoyed some nice walks in the woods! Nice weekend, just missed Dad!

Fun Fall Activities

Canyon started football this year. So it was a special treat when Mom got club level tickets to the new Gopher Stadium and was able to take Canyon for a night of football. It was a beautiful night (even though the Gophers lost to North Dakota).



Each year, the kids' school hosts a fund raiser "Fun Run" where the kids and parents run 1 mile around Round Lake. This year, Mom and Presley enjoyed the race. Presley did AWESOME, running the entire time around the lake. She stayed tough and kept running! It was also fun to see her with all of her friends!

Back to School

Our little babies are growing up so fast. Canyon is starting 4th grade at the upper campus of Eagle Heights while Presley is now one of the older students as a 2nd grader on the lower campus. School is off to a great start and fall sports have begun. Canyon broke us down and has started football for the first time. And Presley is enjoying fall soccer on Team USA with Coach Ron.

Gray Family Visit

Our good pals, the Grays, came for an end of summer visit to Minnesota. We were thrilled that they came and enjoyed showing them around our "hometown". Ron and Eric enjoyed nice late nights playing the guitar while Audrey and Trish enjoyed their power walks on the trails of Eden Prairie. We enjoyed several days of Minnesota fun.

Our our first full day together, we enjoyed fishing at Lake Calhoun (in the no fishing zone), fresh fish from Tin Fish, and boating on Lake Minnetonka.





On our second day, we enjoyed gluten free pizzas at Pizza Luce, time in the Walker Art Sculpture Garden, and bonfires at Casa Pergande.




And no visit would be complete to Minnesota without a trip to the State Fair. We enjoyed fair favorites like the Giant Slide, Martha's Cookies, Cheese Curds, and Fresh Tiny Donuts. We also enjoyed fun rides and great music. And this year Presley surprised us by getting a very cool crazy hair with Eden Prairie spirt colors.



Come again soon Gray family!