the vacation

And we are back.... and pretty happy about it too. Happy to be back home, close to stores and back in our routine. By the end of our vacation, Emma was ready to come home too. Surprised the heck out of me, but she told me she was ready to play with her toys and see her friends. Friends being Kyra and Kaylee I bet. Although she and her friend Breezy were so excited to see each other at daycare today that Breezy was staring out the window and waiting for Tim to drive in. Once he was there, I am told that Breezy ran outside, gave Emma a big hug and they walked into the house hanging onto hands. Very sweet.

We had a great vacation. It was very nice and relaxing. The only thing I wish is that the weather was a bit warmer. Emma toughed it out and went in the water a lot in the mornings (which was about 55-60 degrees) but only lasted a few minutes before she was shivering. She would exclaim: "Mama, I want to be your bundle!" which is a little song I sing to her and Evan when they are all bundled up in their beach or bath towels. Playing in the lake was really fun though when it was warm - Emma has a blast now jumping off the dock and running into the water and "falling over". Splashing is still her favorite thing and kicking on her kickboard. She was back on the jet-ski after a nose-bleed incident a few weeks ago, so that was nice to see. Evan loves the jet-ski also. He kind of kicks back, lays his head on my lifejacket and relaxes... it is very cute! Other things... building sand castles, Emma and I tubing.. napping... kicking back!


We didn't really do a lot other than relax. Saw the movie "The Wrestler" which was majorly depressing. Good, but depressing. Also rented "August Rush" which was good . We played in the water a lot when it warmed up and saw a lot of Tim's family, which is always very nice. We had a "movie morning" when both kids decided to be wide awake at 6 am - LOVELY. So, we brought kids/food/the movie Shrek downstairs so they could play and watch Shrek AND, Tim and I could doze - kind of. We fished a little bit, Emma and I would take the paddle boat out in the mornings to fish and look in the lake. It was just very, very nice to be away as a family and not have to work. LOVED IT!

Tim and I have now decided to nickname Evan "The Climber" instead of "Mr. Grabby" That kid would climb the walls if he could. It was quite entertaining to some to watch the kid climb on his little kitchen, rocking chairs, and anything else in his way -BUT - it is quite scary for me as I know this little one will be taking some pretty good falls. He already has. As hard as I try to watch the little man, I can't always predict his next move. Evan is also going all over with his walker and decided that he loves suckers. Tim bought a seriously big box of tootsie pops and Emma and Evan Love them.

Emma is almost done with swimming lessons for this session and has graduated to the next class - she loves swimming lessons! So much so that when we asked if she wants to do a dance session or a swimming lesson, she said a swimming lesson! I was impressed, although today she changed her mind, so we will see what we do. We have been enjoying playing outside a lot and "training" for her little race that she is going to do. Yesterday we went outside and ran laps... which was pretty much a figure-eight around a tree. She was wearing her "work-out outfit", which consisted of her dance leotard, necklace, and adidas running shoes. She was pretty excited about that and had a great time running around with me. She is also getting pretty annoyed at Evan and his ability to, well, move. Although, on Sunday morning when I was cleaning up breakfast dishes, they played building blocks together for about a half-an-hour. It was awesome! They were laughing together and knocking down the towers, it was so neat to see them interact like that. Much different that Emma's comment when we were on vacation "Don't put Crabby next to me!" When Evan was having a rough time.

Anyway, pictures....

Tim and Evan enjoying the Tootsie Pops. Normally, we hold Evan's hands and give him the sucker, but Tim decided to give Evan the whole thing. But, he was good about sharing!




Trying, yet again, to take a decent picture of both the kids together.




Evan


Emma - at the cabin heading down to the paddle boat


Evan loves his rocking horse!


Yes, I dunked my daughter. She has to get used to the water over her head somehow, right? I was holding her when we went under water, so that doesn't really count.


Not a bad way to do it.. getting pushed around in the lake, and not getting wet. Thanks Daddy!

a rare moment

both kids are napping... at the same time.... that never happens.

So, I have been powering through it. I did a little internet shopping, which I am very happy about. Tim may not be :-) Hey - pretty soon I am working an extra day a week - making more money, I can do that every once in a while, right??

Shopping and spending too much money - check
Dishes - check
Packing for vacation - somewhat check.
Lounging and watching a "What Not to Wear" - check (luckily, I can do this while doing the others.

We are on vacation starting tonight - yeah! Heading to the cabin, which we are all pretty excited about. But, that means, a lot to pack, a lot of lists, a lot of "oops - cannot forget the (fill-in-blank here).

We had a great week. Work was busy, but I knew that. We went to the Washington County fair last night and Emma had a blast! We went on a few rides and enjoyed some fair food. Even Evan had a great time. Today, we celebrated Kyra's 5th birthday and will do some shopping soon.

Here are some pics - yup, being pretty quick with this post because I know my luck will run out soon.

Yup - I know I am small, but I can TOTALLY make it over this gate.


Finally - a non-goofy picture of Emma


Princess Emma - courtesy of a gift bag from Kyra's birthday breakfast


My not-so-good attempt to get a picture of them both together.


Evan - finally holding his bottle. when it doesn't inconvience him to do so.


Off to do more before they wake up - have a great week!

relaxing with some beer and nachos

We had a fabulous day. Emma and I did make it to Church (do I capitalize that??) and she did really well. That was after a yummy breakfast of homemade waffles and sausage. It has been an eating frenzy today really. Good for the tummy ( or stummy) as Emma calls it, bad for the waist. Well, my diet starts tomorrow... maybe :-)

After Church it was playing outside in the kiddie pool, helping Tim hang the last thing on the swingset (like there was room for much more?? I know - we have the swingset utopia in our backyard). But this is one of those horse swing things that two people can ride on. I found it at a garage sale and couldn't resist. The two kids played in the water for quite a bit, then we had a picnic. Emma loves having picnics or eating outside in general. She always says, "Mama, this is such a treat -thank you!" So, we dined on peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, strawberries, cherries, and cheese sticks. Gourmet, I know. I was basically aiming for kid friendly - well, 10.5 month old friendly food. While he technically should not be eating peanut butter yet, he loves it. so, how can I deny him that? No allergy, so we are in the clear.

Both kids napped well, but after spending so much time outside in the morning, I was hoping they would. We had some afternoon guests, which was a lot of fun! Emma played with Kaitlyn and Trevor (8 year old twins) which is basically her trying to run and keep up after them. But, they are very good with her and Evan and they all enjoyed being outside, splashing in the kiddie pool and running in the sprinklers. We had BBQ chicken, a vege hash (which consisted of the squash and kale we got in our CSA box this week and while sounds weird, was actually really good) and brownies.

Swimming lessons and a walk to end the evening and now - quiet.. lovely, lovely quiet. I should be going to bed or at least getting ready for bed. But, what am I doing? Typing ( or clicking as Emma calls it) and drinking a beer.

Overall, this has been an absolutely fabulous weekend. Book club was fun and is a great way to kick-off a weekend. Yesterday we cleaned and played with kids, plus I went for a nice long run. Tim and I watched Gran Tourino last night and loved it! Then today we relaxed with friends. What more can a person want really?

This week is going to be crazy, hectic busy. Work will be the worst of it. My co-worker is on vacation. So, in addition to my normal duties, I am filling in 100% for her, training our new demand planner Cari, and trying to get all of my work done for next week while I am on vacation. Now, one may ask, "Well Kelly, are you not very busy on a normal week so you can cover all of that?" My response - "Hell no!" it will be interesting. Since I am in the "my glass is half-full" kind of mood today, I will just say that it is nice they trust me enough to do all of that. It will be a no lunch, no casual talk, get in there and nose to the grindstone week. But, it will fly by! Thursday night I am going out with Jess & Heidi, who I have not seen for a LONG time, so that will be great. Then Friday - VACATION BABY! Tim and I (plus kids) will be at the cabin for a full week - YEA! Daycare was closed and we figured since we would both end up taking off some time and compensating for that, we might as well take off. Thank goodness. I feel that both Tim and I need that to de-compress. Relax and do nothing but play with the kids, fish, and play in the lake. Sounds wonderful - doesn't it? Hopefully we will get our summer and it won't be 70ish degrees. I want HEAT!

Hmm. shall I discuss the kids more? I described Emma and all of her goings-on. Pretend preschool - sunday school - all over feisty-ness. I described Evan and his "getting-into-trouble-sixth-sense." So, that may be it. I really should try to accomplish something else tonight. But what, I am not sure.

Pictures anyone?! Here are a few pictures..

Evan - getting into trouble. Oh sure, he looks all innocent, sitting in Emma's baby-doll play pen. But what he is really aiming for is the window blind cord (drawstring??) to his left. He loves putting them in his mouth. I forgot to put this one up.



Evan's new favorite way to ride on the lawn. Sitting on the steering wheel...




Hmm. Maybe that is it. I looked over my pictures and I haven't really been taking a lot lately. Some of Evan as he is doing a lot of firsts lately. Emma not so much as she always decides to do a goofy face.

Anyway, I really have to get ready for the week. 5:20am rolls around too early!

Oh, what a beautiful morning!

It is so nice having children! They wake me up so early so I get a chance to enjoy the beautiful morning we are having! Hey, even 6:30 in the morning can be wondeful sometime. Right now I am on the computer, drinking some coffee and enjoying it. Let's just say my glass if half full at the moment. (and where ARE the kids you may ask? Well, one is watching a Barbie cartoon and the other is terrorizing my house. More on that in a minute.) Emma and I are probably heading to church this morning so Tim and Evan can get some bonding time in. I am trying to get Emma used to the whole church thing as she starts Sunday school in September. I think it will be very good for her (and good for me) to get into a religion routine and to start learning about God. I have said before that I am not 100% convinced that the Catholic faith is the way for me to go, but the priest at St. Ambrose doesn't seem as stuck in the old rigid Catholic ways as some of the other priests I have met. Anyway - no need to get into a religious debate at 7 in the morning :-)

We decided to stick around home this weekend, which was okay with me! I have got a LOT of stuff done, although not as much as I had planned... but when does anyone ever get as much done as planned?! I had book club on Friday night, which was nice. We are reading (and supposed to be done with "Always Looking Up" by Michael J. Fox) which is a pretty good book. We have tossed around the idea of a "book club goes running" or some race/event like that and I think we have decided to do some sort of event at the Twin Cities Marathon. We have one member who is doing the whole Marathon ( go Sarah!) one who is doing the 10 miles and 3 (myself included) who are discussing doing the 10K. Since I am considering my triathlon career OVER, I think I need something else. So, we will see. More posted on that later I am sure.

The kids are awesome and definitely keeping us busy. Emma has been enjoying the cooler than normal summer and is perfecting her bike pedaling and her new swingset. Below is the final product. I think Tim did an AWESOME job!

Both kids really enjoy the sandbox, which is under the little play house and Emma's favorite thing is the playhouse. She really enjoys all of it, except the tube slide, which stinks because that was by far the biggest investment of the whole play set. Oh well, she is only 3 and I am sure will like it eventually. Emma and I have also started playing preschool at least once a day. That is time where I sit down and really try to teach her more of her letters and numbers. She knows some of them, but her daycare doesn't do a formal preschool, so I want to make sure she is exposed to it as much as she can be.

Evan, oh man, where do I even start?! Let's just say the differences between this little boy and my little girl are HUGE! I just can't keep this little guy down. He is constantly into everything and I swear he has a 6th sense about terrorizing the house. He knows when the baby gate wasn't put back up by the stairs. When he senses this, he looks at me, smiles, and then crawls as FAST as he can to climb up the stairs. He knows (after much trial and error) which cupboards and drawers in the kitchen have baby locks on them. He is constantly into those, pulling stuff out. God forbid I forget to lock up the garbage cupboard, as he can sense that, and he is instantly crawling over there to try and get into it.

Okay, I gotta go for now. Two kids that are now hungry and not understanding why I am clicking on the computer... aka typing.

more later (with pictures!)

But Mom!!

Sometimes, I swear, that if I hear that phrase one more time from my 3 year old, I will go crazy! Tonight is one of those nights. "But Mom - I am JUST not TIRED!" "But Mom, I don't want these Jammie's on!" "But Mom, my fingernails are TOO sharp! They need to be cut!" Argh.. Part of it is my fault. She was doing the same but Mom dance last night and I was too exhausted to fight it. So, she came into bed with me and fell asleep there. So, she is expecting the same thing tonight... argh.

Well - Happy Monday everyone! Life is good here, not too many changes - just good. We were at the cabin this past weekend with some good friends of ours - Megan, Brian & Baby Bennett! It was nice to have some company up there, we were just bummed the weather was cold! Megan and I persevered however, and enjoyed a jet-ski ride in the 60 degree weather on Saturday!

The kids are doing fabulous. Evan has been learning some new things this past week. He can say "Hi!" he can now feed himself a bottle or drink from a sippy, but still prefers if we hold it for him. He can crawl normally - no more army crawl! He will also eat basically anything we put in front of him and must put EVERYTHING in his mouth. I really get nervous that kid is going to choke on something because everything goes in his mouth. Crayons, socks, little things he finds on the floor, barbie stuff - you name it, he finds it and instantly shoves it in his mouth. I do "Evan Checks" on the floor quite often, but Sunday he found a half Easter egg and decided to shove that whole thing in his mouth. He wasn't choking on it, but he had the whole thing shoved in and could not get it out. If I wasn't so scared at the time, I would have grabbed the camera because it looked pretty funny! I cannot believe he is 10 months old already! We are thinking about his birthday party - well, I am, Tim realizes that I am rushing it a little bit.

Emma is good also - the same, feisty, stubborn Emma. She was a bit down and out last week as she had a fever for a few days. No other sickness with it, just a fever of about 100 - 102 from Wednesday to Friday. I think she caught it from daycare and her friend Breezy. Her other friend is out this week with it too. No good. I am a bit worried about her as she has been having a lot more nose bleeds lately. In the winter, I just thought it was because of the dryness, but I am not sure why she would be having so many now. She has had about 5 in the past 5 days. They don't last long, but they scare me. I am going to call the nurse line and check into it.

I am looking into starting grad school within the next year. I figure that my life will only get busier as the kids get older, so thought that starting it sooner rather than later may be a good idea. I will do it slow, taking one class a semester like Tim did, but am kind of excited to do it. Hopefully that will work out okay.

This week is pretty busy for me. I am taking my good friend Katie out for dinner/drinks one night this week as she is leaving for Greece for an entire year! Book club is this week also, which means I need to start reading the book! Then, possibly the cabin again this weekend. hopefully this weekend is nice and hot as I don't think we have had the summer we deserve!

I paid $170 and all I got was this darn t-shirt

So - the triathlon. It came, it went, it conquered. Overall, it went okay. The day started when my alarm went off at 4:15 in the morning as I was meeting John at 5am so we can drive together. The transition area (where we keep all of our stuff for the different legs of the race) closed at 6:30, so we needed to make sure we got there in plenty of time. We did - and it was damn early.

We got our skin marked (we have the race numbers written on both arms and our rounded age (yup, that would be 30 for me folks - gulp!) written on our legs, so the officials knew the wave we started in)) and got everything set up. If you want to see mass chaos and tons of dough - a transition area for a triathlon is a great place to see it. The Lifetime Fitness triathlon is pretty cool because it has the biggest purse of any triathlon, so the pro's are there with the $16,000 bikes and all the expensive gear. Anyway, people are jamming their bikes in the rack and setting up all their stuff in just the right way so they can have a smooth "transition" from one leg to the next.

My wave started at 8:21:47 - and we were off in the water. It is nice as it is not a big group running to the water, they let each person off in 3 second intervals. Not that it matters much because when you get in the water, all the people behind are trying to swim over you/around you to beat you. Lovely.... and enter panic attack. UGH! I was so calm, cool, and collected, singing my relaxing/calm-me-down song in my head and then it all want to crap. Not sure when I lost it, but I did. Not good. Thank god for all the lifeguards lining the swim course.

Next - the bike. It honestly took me awhile to get over the swim and I was still breathing pretty heavily for the first part of the bike. My time was okay - my avg was about 15/mph. I was hoping to do better, but what are you going to do?

Next - the run. I was pretty proud of my run. While I was getting pretty tired, I managed to run the whole thing (only stopping to re-tie my shoe and drink some water.) My avg was a 10 minute mile - finished this in about 31 minutes.

Total time with transitions: 1:54. Definitely not great, finished in the last third of the women, but okay. I do want to beat it - I know I can beat it, if I can get over the swim.

I am looking online for some open-water swim courses and haven't really found anything, but I will see. The problem is that when I am in the water, I honestly feel like I am going to drown. Then, I get on the bike and I think "Gosh Kelly, you can do better than that! You have to do another one!" Plus, when I get my times, I know I can do better. I just have to mentally get over the swim part.

So, that is it. As of now, I really want to do another one, I really want to beat my times, but I know that I probably shouldn't unless something drastically changes with the swim.

The kids

I don't really have a lot to say tonight. All is good here - we had a very nice weekend (more on the triathlon in my next post). Yesterday morning was the tri, which went okay. Then a celebratory lunch with my friend John who also did the tri with me. After that, back home to play with the kids a bit and then out to supper and a motorcycle ride with some friends of ours. Overall, it was a very eventful day for me - not the norm - that is for sure!!

Today we hung out here. Tim finished up more on the swingset - he is fencing in the sandbox to keep unwanted animals out. I cleaned the house and played with the kids.

The kids are doing awesome... (which Emma now says - which is funny. Tim asked her what she thought of his swingset and she said "Wow Dad, it is awesome!)

Emma had swimming lessons again tonight and does really well with them. It makes me happy to see how much she enjoys them AND listens to her teacher. There is one kid in the class who does NOT listen to the teacher - at all! If I was the parent of that one, I would be having a serious conversation with that little one. Emma just has swimming lessons now - but keeps asking for dance class or a tumbling class at the Y. We will see about that one next. Same interests for her, same stuff going on. Still talking and singing all of the time.

Evan is doing equally as well. This kid eats like a horse - so much more than Emma. Friday he ate an entire hotdog, about 10 cherries, a piece of banana bread and washed it all down with apple/prune juice. He is still moving all over the place and really feels that we restrict his freedom at times. He constantly wants to go up our stairs, so the baby gate has moved downstairs. Everything goes in his mouth, which is driving me absolutely crazy. He is starting to crawl the normal way now, not just the army crawl. He is always carrying around or chewing on a play utensil, such as a plastic spoon, fork, or knife. Those are his favorite toys for the most part. He LOVES the lawnmower - probably more than Emma did, which I never thought anyone could beat. Plus, if he is on the lawnmower, he is trying to drive it. If he is sitting on Tim's lap, he is trying to stand or sit on the steering wheel and steer. If he is on my lap, right next to Tim, he is reaching around me and Tim to try and steer. Then, if he gets his wish to steer, he is standing on the seat, bouncing on his little legs and steering like mad - HUGE smile on his face. It is hilarious.

Tim and I are good. Nothing really to comment about that.

Pictures.... I realize most are of Evan. Emma now, when I try to take a picture of her, smiles goofy. Hopefully she is out of that stage soon.

The lawnmower ride, we try to do this nightly now since the kids like it so much. Emma feels so big riding on the side of Tim and Evan, well, he just loves steering.



Evan's new toy: The Retro Rocket - probably the most fought over toy in the house now. I got it free with credit card points and thought Evan would enjoy it. He does and Emma loves it too.



Emma and the strawberries we bought this week. Much better than the other ones :-) We gobbled them all up right away.




Evan standing on the chair. He pretty much figures if he can sit on it - he can stand on it.



Evan on the bike. Another toy that is constantly fought over. Notice his feet - not sitting, but standing again.

crying it out

Evan is crying... still... after 45 minutes in his crib. Keep in mind, he is SO tired, yet will not allow himself to fall asleep. This is driving me crazy! It all started about 3 weeks ago. Prior to that, he was an awesome sleeper. I would lay him down at night or for naps and he would roll over and suck on his Nuk. Now that he can pull himself up - he immediately is turning over even before I leave the room and is standing up as I am walking down the stairs. We go in his room and he is screaming and staring at the door. All I want to do is go in there and lay him down, rub his back, but I know that I shouldn't. So, I am doing the 15 minute wait thing.. Of course his new trick is? "Mama!! Mama!!" while he is crying. Nothing like making the heart break or anything.

Sorry, it has been a long time since I last posted. Crazy busy here with the holiday. We had a wonderful 4th - very busy 4th, but wonderful. My sisters and family came up to the cabin along with Eric & Gaeb and it led to a pretty packed cabin. The kids had a great time playing in the water and it couldn't have been better weather for it. Tim and I went up on Wednesday evening after work to enjoy the cabin to ourselves before the craziness set in! We lounged, ate meals on the deck (which Emma thinks is a real treat!) and played in the water. It was great.

Otherwise - all is good. Work is crazy - but good. We received news that our daycare provider's daughter is pretty sick, so we need to juggle our schedules so we can stay home with our kiddo's. One thing I have learned? Working part-time makes it very difficult to accommodate things like this. My days are as jam-packed as they can be usually, so to stay home or work a half day really throws my work week off. However, there is no chance my kids are going there tomorrow as I really don't want them to get what the little girl has. So, work will deal. It is always there when you get back :-)

Triathlon is less than a week away and I feel pretty prepared actually. I can make it through the swim to get to my stronger suits, which are the biking and the running. I am actually looking forward to it! I am going in with a different mind-set about the swimming and I think it will be okay.

Have a great week everyone!

back to the hum-drum....

I LOVE having something to look forward too... a vacation here... girls time there... wings and beer for happy hour perhaps? Right now, I got nothing. My vacations are done, no good girl time scheduled for awhile, nothing.... well, I have a big birthday coming up. (gulp!) Maybe a party for that??

Anyway, my last vacation was fabulous! Tim and I had a great time doing nothing. We went golfing one day AND, I am proud to say, I didn't do too badly. I had some great shots off the tee, but was horrible on the short game. I love (when love really means HATE) the inconsistency of golf. I can't figure it out and I don't like IT! Anyway, back to the vacation... we golfed, had some yummy food, drove Mopeds around Madelline Island, shopped, gawked at some HUGE, very expensive boats at Bayfield, and just relaxed. I never quite realized how small Bayfield was. But, it is. There were times when Tim and I weren't quite sure what to do next. But, we were not gone too long, so we managed. It was nice to just be away and not have to worry about the kids.. and to sleep in... and to take a nap... and to read a book. It really was a very nice time.

The kids had a great time with my parents. Emma barely noticed when we were leaving and I had to go and get her from playing Barbies so she could say good-bye to us. Evan noticed (and it was hard for me to give him to Mom) but he was okay. We received a good report from my parents that both kids did very well. WHEW- big relief.

The rest of the weekend was spent at the cabin and finally - we experienced summer up there. It was hot and humid and I loved every minute of it. I got a little color, tried to swim in the lake for the tri, and just spent as much time outside as I could.

Emma enjoyed her part birthday-part garage sale money gift. A little jet-ski that she can drive all on her own. She was disappointed that she couldn't drive and find the waves, but she had fun driving around the shallow end by the dock. She, like always, is very expressive and made the comment "I don't know what all this crap is doing on the beach" while we were by the lake one day. (it was just some weeds that we were raking up, but of course, she had some comment on it) She gets that from her father, trust me!

Evan had his first real time in the lake also and loved it! More than Emma I would say at this age. He was splashing and smiling while we pushed him in his floaty. He is constantly pulling himself up to things now and trying to balance on his own. He has figured out how to pull out drawers and climb up the handles. He climbed up our two steps leading from the kitchen into the living room. I think that kid will be walking sooner than I am ready for :-)

Work for both Tim and I is the same. Not too much to report there. Tim and I are good too. The tri is 2.5 weeks away. I have to make one comment about the Jon & Kate Plus 8 drama, as I know some of my blog readers watch the show. I am on Team Jon for the most part, as I never understood how Kate could treat him like that. However, I obviously don't know if he was cheating on her and don't agree with that if he was. Anyway - do you guys remember that not even a year ago they renewed their vows in Hawaii?? That is the biggest thing that bugs me about this whole thing. They promised a year ago that they would be together forever, blah, blah, blah, and apparently they were having problems then. Stupid reality TV.

Finally - some pictures. Well, a lot of pictures..

First - our vacation. All of these were self portraits, so not good quality, but you understand.

Golfing in Bayfield.


A shot of the beautiful course overlooking the lake:


Naked Evan playing in the lake. He enjoyed being naked more than wearing his trunks.


In his floaty and loving every minute!


Emma on her kickboard.


Happy Fathers Day! Tim is mounting his trophy bass for his main gift - but here he is sporting the shirt that Emma and Evan made him for Fathers Day. "Best Dad in the World" and then it has their hand prints on it. Emma signed her name also and stamped this that Tim liked on it.


The jet-ski's


Emma enjoying her little one.

complete craziness around here

(insert snappy melody here) I'm going on vacation! I'm going on vacation - YEA!

Yes, that is right faithful blog readers - I am going on another vacation. Nothing huge, nothing fancy, but Tim and I are going away for our 5 year anniversary. Can it be 5 years already? Where has the time gone? Oh yeah... kids. That is where the time has gone.

Evan is pulling himself up to things! He loves a little table like toy that has a steering wheel, buttons, lights, colors, etc and most times if he is not playing with it, he is crying because he wants to be. Anyway - we stand him up to it so he can balance on it and play. Now, he is trying to pull himself up to it. AND - yesterday he even was brave enough to let go of it completely with both hands and balance. He let go with one hand and I swear looked at me and mentally said, "Dare me, Mom?" and let go with the other hand. He smiled, then fell, and then cried. However, not a minute later, he was doing the same thing. He lasted maybe a second longer, fell, but did not cry. The third time (maybe another minute after) let go again, balanced for about 3 seconds, fell, and then got a HUGE smile on his face. Yup - it is starting already.

The little stinker is getting into stuff like you would not believe! He army crawls wherever he wants and has discovered that drawers and cupboards have fun stuff in them that he can pull out. He loves playing peek-a-boo with doors, so I need to be extremely careful if I am going into a room where he is, because there is a good chance he is right by the door and I could clock him. He loves the door stops and is moving his little fingers and boinging them back and forth.

We had his 9 month appointment and all is well with my little man. He is 20#, which is a bit below normal, and I cannot remember how tall, but that was like 60th %. So, everything is good there.

His current favorite foods?? Cut up cherries, watermelon, grilled cheese, chocolate pudding, stove top stuffing, mashed potatoes & chicken. Oh yeah - and string cheese.

Emma is awesome also and is getting to the point where Tim and I have to really watch what she says because she is a sponge. We were at our friends house on Saturday night for a game feed and she comes in the house and says "Holy Moly Rocky!" I blink twice, look at her and say, "Emma - where on earth did you get that expression?" Her bright blue eyes twinkle up at me and she says, "Papa says that at the cabin, Mama!" Great - thankfully, that is a tame one.

Her 3 year appoinment was good too. The doctor was very impressed with her speech and spoke with her for about 5 minutes, asking her questions to gauge her comprehension and her speech. He said that Emma is advanced for her speech (um, duh! haha :-) My favorite thing she told him? He asked her what summer means and Emma responds: "Summer means the lake is warm and I can go swimming at the cabin."

My father and I DID go in the hot air balloon on Thursday night and it was awesome! It was about an hour ride through Stillwater and we landed about 3-5 miles away from the house. The weather was perfect, the driver was fun, and I would totally do it again. We had quite the entourage with us when we were going to take off. The neighbors and the little kids were with us and it was pretty neat to see them blow up the balloon. We had 9 people in ours and it took 2 huge fans to blow up. Then, we were off. Much fun - want to do it again.

Work is good - I told my boss today that, come this fall, I will do another full day. Thankfully, it is looking pretty good that I will get to do one from home. I hope. Bittersweet totally, but I think in the end, this is a good decision. Now, just tell my heart that.

Pictures from the hot air balloon ride:

Our balloon all layed out -



Fill 'er up...






The brave riders...





The troops watching the fun....




Climb on in....



It got a bit loud.



and away we go...


Our balloon -




The view (awesome!)



Us again:




The inside of the balloon: (how fun!)


Sorry, I know there are a lot of pictures, but it was so fun! We asked the driver, as we were landing in someone's yard, if they ever had anyone tell them that no, the hot air balloon could not land there (they always ask permission first). Scott (aka, driver) said not really, most everyone is excited to see the balloon and doesn't get mad when they land. After all, Scott says, how can anyone be mad at a balloon.? word.

Aamodt's Hot Air Balloon - check it out. It was awesome.

Dear Brett Favre...

Seriously?? A Viking? Please tell me it isn't so! I understood last year with your go-round with the Jets, you still had the urge to play, the Packers cut you off to early...whatever... I got it, I understood. But to play for the team I love to hate?? Yup, can't take it. I know - you were being all coy in your interview tonight, jumping around the questions and joking throughout it all, but I understood. I got the low-down on what you were saying. If you can plan, you WILL play, and it will be in purple and gold. Yuck.

I supported you as a Jet - cheered for you as a Jet. But, I am not so sure with the Vikings. How can I watch you play with your boyish charm, rugged good looks (oh yeah baby!), and honest-to-God love of the game in a Viking jersey? I don't know if I can. My dear-ole-husband already promised to buy a Favre Viking Jersey and hang it on his beloved side in our basement. I cannot bear the thought of it.

So, please, Brett - don't do it. I would hate to cheer against you, against my beloved Brett Favre, against our main man in Green Bay for the most of my football cheering life - but I may have too.

I am sad...

Swingset - check.

Well, the swingset is finished and is fabulous! Emma would sleep out there if she could, she loves it so much. Her favorite part is the little play house that Tim made. I am hoping to take some pictures tomorrow and will post soon so everyone can see. Tim is still working on the sandbox and fencing it in, but for all purposes, it is done. Emma has definitely developed into a Daddy's girl throughout this whole process. If Tim is outside, she is outside. If he is pounding a nail, she is trying too. If he is gardening, she is stepping on the plants that he is planting. Of course, Emma is talking the whole time she is out there and it is so fun to watch her. She is up in her house and Tim is working on the sandbox. She will look out the window and yell, "Daddy, I love you!" He will be in the garden and she is talking and singing to him. If he is driving the lawnmower to the swingset, she will wait patiently for him to stop and will skip from her house to the slide, go down the slide, and run over to him with her blond curls bouncing up and down. Of course, a huge smile on her face the whole time. I told Tim tonight that I would love to bottle her emotions right now for both of us and keep them for 10 years and release when needed.

The kids have their well-check doctor appointments tomorrow. Evan's 9 month appointment (AH!)- and Emma's 3 year check. Both are doing well and I don't really think that Emma really needed one, but I was taking Evan in anyway and thought it didn't hurt. Evan is good - well, for the most part. He has been really fussy lately in the evening for supper. Not sure if it is a combination of teeth coming in and him being too tired or what, but man, that kid can holler. and NOTHING makes him happy -well almost nothing. He is loving the cherries we have been buying and that sometimes makes him happy. Beef jerky makes him happy. He also enjoyed a bit of a croissant that I gave him. But - nothing made him happy for too long.

I had a very enjoyable time in Chicago last weekend! Kristen and I got to the airport around 6:45 - flight left at 8. All went well with that and made it to Chicago for some power shopping! Our plan was to pack very minimal clothing, so we HAD to buy clothes down there and for the most part, that is what we did. I packed a brown skirt and pajama's (along with toiletries and such) but that was it. So, shopping took on a whole new meaning! We met up with the cousins for happy hour at Tessa's - tapas for supper and fabulous sangria - and a beer after that. We had so much fun catching up and laughing about old times/ new times/ and how much older Kristen is than us. Haha! OH YES - and we celebrated some good news that Tessa received about her MBA program! All-in-all Chicago was fabulous! We got home Saturday night to help the kids get ready for bed. This is going to sound weird, but this trip really made me realize how much Lori and Tessa have grown up. To see them on their own turf, taking us around the city and showing us the landmarks, was awesome. But, it also made me see that they are not the kids playing in their awesome sandbox with us anymore and playing marching band in their driveway. We have all come a long way and have matured into pretty awesome adults.

Still have not totally made a work decision yet. I am leaning towards working the extra day a week, but still am not totally sold on it yet. My benefits would be a LOT cheaper and a LOT better than Tim's. We would have extra cash each month, which would be nice too. Still struggling with leaving the kids another day. Although, as Tim pointed out, we are both very hands on parents and Emma and Evan are always with us on the days we are not working. With the cabin and the new swingset, they are having wonderful memories already and they probably will not be affected that much. So, starting in September, I may be working Monday thru Thursday. Hopefully, Thursday will be from home.

Tomorrow night I may be going up in a hot air balloon! Weather permitting, we will be taking off (we being my father and I) around 6:30 from Stillwater and enjoying a 2 hour flight. Weather conditions have to be about perfect, so we will see.

Other than that - all is good. Triathlon... hmm.. not ready for that, but it is now a month away.

Hopefully I will be posting pictures very soon. sorry, long post...

work dilemma

Okay, I have a work dilemma. My boss scheduled a meeting with me on Tuesday out of the blue (yup, made me nervous) just to talk. Turns out we are going to be getting some new responsibilties in our group and wanted to know if I wanted more hours. He is open to anything or nothing, but just wanted to know. He said I could work a few days every day, go to 4 or 5 days - he is open. Now, I have always been somewhat nervous of my part-time status as that makes me vulnerable to being let go as it is not the norm. My employer doesn't have a lot of those 'non-typical' work arrangements and I am definitely in the minority with my job-share. My boss told me I wasn't vulnerable, but was a strong player in our group (YEAH!) and he wanted to check with me.

So... this has been in the back of my mind. Do I go to 4 full days a week (with the possibility of working from home for one of those) and become a full-time employee? 32 hours is all I need there for full time status. The extra money would be nice, I would get all the benefits, which would be nice... BUT - one less day with the kids. I REALLY value my time at home. I feel fortunate that I have been able to work part-time as long as I have. However, I would still have 3 day weekends, still have one extra day with the kids that most parents, I would get vacation, could plan more for our futures, etc. But, sometimes the thought still makes me sad. Emma sometimes still cries for me in the morning if she is awake when I leave. THAT KILLS ME! Evan is still so tiny yet, I haven't stayed home with him that long yet. Tim said to put together a list of pro's/con's, dollar amounts with more money vs. the added costs.

How do I put a quantity on 11 more hours with my kids each week??

If I did decide to work more, I would not start until the end of summer, so I would still have that.

So.. that is my dilemma. I hate making decisions...

All about Evan

Normally my posts are centered around Emma's crazy antics, silly stuf she says, busy/crazy life around here, etc. And, a few comments are added about Evan. Not this time, no sir-ee bob. This time, it is all about my little Evan.

First - he is almost 9 months old - ALREADY! He is a happy go-lucky little guy for the most part. He sleeps much better at night - not so good during the day. He takes about 3, half-hour catnaps during the day. I am trying to work on that, but it isn't going too well.

HE HAS A TOOTH! Finally, I was starting to get worried. It seemed as though the other little one that I am not really mentioning in this post had one around 4-5 months. Tim was feeding him or something the other yesterday and felt it. The sharp little start of a tooth. I finally got a look at it today. He doesn't like opening his mouth much so you can see in it. He always sticks his tongue around and won't let me look - Anyway, I saw it. YEAH! I cannot tell how much it is bothering him. Today he was a little crabby, but his naps were worse than normal today, so he could have been overtired. Not sure. Tim and I were planning on a nice supper of steak/ alfredo noodles/ grilled bread/ captain cokes (YUM!) and instead dined at separate times so I could take care of a fussy Evan and get him to bed earlier than normal. Oh well... cold steak isn't that bad....

His new favorite past-time? Sitting in his exersaucer and playing with his johnie jump-up toy. It was the funniest thing tonight while Tim and I were making supper. We look over to him sitting in his exersaucer and he bats at his jumper. He keeps batting at it until it is swinging pretty good and then grabs it. Once he gets it in his hands, he does a little dance because he is excited, and then starts chewing on it. Once he is bored with chewing on it, he pushes it out, let's it swing and tries to catch it again. Then, the whole process starts over again. And then, little stinker, when I look over at him a little later, he is reaching over the side of the exersaucer, both feet dangling in the air, trying to reach the plastic kitchen whisk he likes to chew on (no, we don't buy him toys). I could not believe that he was able to do that - I thought he was going to fall over and off the exersaucer!! Tim and I laugh about it though because his arms are so strong! He scoots around the house pushing on his arms, so he was able to pull himself up and over the exersaucer to get his beloved plastic kitchen whisk. Ahhh... priceless.



Let's see - what else? He is talking/jabbering all of the time. We went to Target/Cub today and he was talking the whole time. I got about 5 comments from women, "oh, what a little talker he is" "Ah - how sweet - he is talking to him Mama." Yup... just what I need, another talker. I am sure he is trying to compete with Emma.

Yesterday I filled up 2 little pools for the kids to play in. (why 2 pools you ask? Because the green frog pool pictured below is more for Evan than Emma, but Emma insisted on blowing it up. Well, me blowing it up. (Thank goodness for our air compressor) So, I needed one she could bounce in) It was really more work than it was worth. First - blowing up the green frog pool Emma got for her birthday when I could not figure out all the gadgets that fit on the end of the air hose. Then, filling up 6: 5-gallon buckets of warmish water - moving 2 at a time in the kids wagon. Picture me pushing Evan in the stroller, pulling the buckets in the wagon and trying to avoid a dancing/running/excited Emma who doesn't personal boundaries. It took about 1.5 hours to get everything ready, kids dressed, sunblocked, toys, towels, camera, etc for 20 - 30 minutes in the pool. Oh - but what excited minutes they were! Both kids had fun. Evan was splashing and smiling. Emma, much to my chagrin, was dumping all of the water OUT of the pool with her bucket. Yup, of all the time I took filling the damn pools, she is having the best time dumping it out. Go figure.










This weekend we are getting a lot of home stuff done. Tim is finishing the swing set. I am planting our garden and cleaning. I was able to do a 16 mile bike ride this morning with fellow triathlete John and that was really good. The wind was pretty strong but still did it in a little over an hour. Not where I would like to be with time, but not horrible either. I am now less than 7 days to my Chicago trip - YEAH!! I am so excited! About 3 weeks to go until Tim & my vacation for our 5 year anniversary! Yeah - I got some great stuff coming up.

Well, I did pretty good updating the blog about my little guy. I am sure I am forgetting something, but will write more later.

Have a nice Sunday!

Things a 3 year old can do - AND - Evan's new trick

Emma's favorite phrase right now? "Mama, I am 3, I can do that now" or something along those lines. More on that later.

Happy Memorial Holiday! We had a fabulous long weekend at the cabin. Tim (in an attempt to use up all his extra vacation) scheduled a long weekend and we left on Wednesday night. It was very nice weather - the kids were fabulous & had a great time - and it was nice to spend some quality time outside & with my family. Emma was so excited that she could play on the beach and in the water (although it was pretty cold) and Evan enjoyed chewing on some sand toys and eating sand.

Thursday and Friday were spent relaxing and not doing much of anything. We layed low, played outside, did some fishing, and went to Emma's favorite place for Breakfast - JoJo Mom's where she had chocolate chip pancakes. That is all she could talk about the entire time - "and then for breakfast, I ate at JoJoMom's and I ate a huge pancake with chocolate chips." Friday night my parents arrived with my sister Kim and her son Andrew. Emma was happy to have someone else to run around and play with and since they live in Wausau, we don't get to see them often, so that was nice.

Saturday was a gorgeous day! I went water skiing (where, yes, it was incredibly cold) jet-skiing, and played with the kids. After seeing me water-ski, Emma was pretty sure that she could do it to. "Mama, I am 3, I am big enough to water-ski now." Let me tell you, she changed her tune pretty quick once she was in the water, with a life jacket and water ski's on her feet. "MAMA! I am only 3! I am not big enough to ski yet!!" Which is really how I thought she would react, but wanted to let her figure that out on her own :-) That night we celebrated Emma's birthday with Tim's side of the family and played some games - fun!

Sunday was more time outside, Tim's son Eric came up also to spend some time with the family, and we went golfing. Golfing didn't go so well, I am not going to lie :-) I am getting pretty frustrated with the game as I don't get out as much as I would like. AND - after 7 years of playing, I am not getting much better. Maybe time for me to give up the game? Not sure.

This week seems completely out of whack for me. Not going to work on Monday has thrown everything off :-) Work is busy - but I only have one more day left, so I am happy. This week we are just relaxing at home - playing garden, mowing lawn, Tim is continuing work on the swing set and getting everything back in place. I feel like my house is constantly a clutter and I need a few hours alone to put everything back and do some spring cleaning that hasn't happened yet.

Emma - now that she is three- has a new lease on life. She feels that many things have changed for her now that she is three and isn't afraid to tell us what should be changed. The water-skiing example for one. Another one yesterday when she was getting ready for bed. Tim asked her if she wanted warm milk for bed (her staple along with stories). Emma replied, "Dad, I am 3 now. Three year olds don't drink milk. They drink apple juice before bed." I have been trying to tell her that 3 year olds don't suck their thumbs, but that isn't going over so well.

Evan is learning new things every day! He scoots around the house very well now - not a standard crawl - just a scoot with his knees and pushing on his toes. He is clapping, almost waving, and a happy go-lucky kid. He really enjoyed the beach and it amazed me how well he sat on the blanket down on the beach, under an umbrella, playing with toys. He sat that way for over an hour at least, looking & laughing at goofy Emma and eating sand.

Here are some pics from the weekend. Emma with her new crocodile for her birthday - which she absolutely loves!! Evan took his first boat ride ever and enjoyed it (but did not like the life jacket) and other random ones.