Amelia's Adventures!

Rough Week

2012-02-08T20:32:00.006-06:00

We are having a rough week around here. This is Jason's first full week on overtime at work - which means he is getting home just after 1 a.m. instead of just after 10 p.m. It might seem like no big deal but keep in mind that I get up for work at 3:30 a.m. so if children (Joey in particular) will not go to bed I now have no relief. I have to stay up until everyone is in bed and sleeping. Yesterday night that was 11 p.m. I got into bed by 11:15.

Another factor in this rough week is this:

I woke up like this Monday morning with a fever. Needless to say I called in to work and went back to bed. The fever broke before lunch but I still felt tired - probably because I never sleep - so I went back to bed until Jason had to leave for work. Yesterday morning the eye wasn't any better so I went in to see a doctor. There is no sign of infection and he seems to think it is an allergic reaction to something. I have drops to put in four times a day and am doing cold compresses when I can. Other than that I have to wait it out. There is little pain associated with it but it is very uncomfortable and my eye gets "tired" quickly.

Amelia is a ball of energy, as usual. I continue to be thankful for the "little helper" in her. Last night she had her bath, I took a shower and as I was getting dressed she was all over the place and I kept saying, "next we'll give Joe a bath and then we can play." Eventually she came into my room with an orange rag which I assumed was her Dora washcloth that I made her leave in the tub because it was wet. I started to scold her and then realized it was a baby washcloth. So I went down the hall and into the bathroom and found this:

She had drug the baby bath tub into the bathroom from the kitchen and put it into the tub. She had gotten him a clean towel and laid it out on the floor, just like I do. In her hand she had two washcloths. We always use two for him. One to cover his boy parts and one to wash him with. She is so smart and so helpful! I teared up a little at this gesture. It had been that bad of a night that my (almost) 3-year-old getting a few towels out made me cry.

We gave Joe his bath and went on with the night. It was still not an ideal night. I still was frustrated beyond belief. I still would have given nearly anything for Amelia to go to bed so I could focus on getting Joe to bed so I could get to bed. But in the end I realized that there are far worse things than children who have a hard time with bedtime and there are people with terrible eye problems - not just some swelling. I went to bed - happy with the promise of a fresh start in the morning. And today was better. Not great - but better.

I have a ton of cute pictures to share but for now, Joe is currently sleeping and Amelia is watching Diego...I think I am going to brave crawling into bed pretty quick here!

Light-Up Staff

2012-02-02T15:33:00.006-06:00

Amelia got a flashing, light-up staff at the Holidazzle in December. We recently replaced the batteries in it and it is a BIG hit again!

She took it to bed with her a couple of nights ago and when we went in to check on her before we went to bed this is what we found:

The photos didn't turn out awesome so I took a video too:

The following night we found the same thing...

...except this time her star-bug was there too!

Last night it was the same story only I didn't get a picture!

We don't know if it is mere coincidence but the past two, maybe three, nights (I honestly can't remember...the days are long here!) she has woken up at 3 a.m. exactly and she is upset. I am just getting up for work then and do what I can to soothe her and Jason also gets up. The first night or two she went back to sleep with a movie on her "baby TV" (portable DVD player) and that was that. Jason said this morning she would not go back to sleep after I left. She was acting terrified and kept looking around her room like there was something in there scaring her. They eventually ended up sleeping on the couch - with the lights on, of course.

I am wondering if the flashing lights in her sleep have anything to do with this new trend in her sleeping habits? I'm testing it tonight. I have already hidden the flashing staff so it will not be making an appearance at bedtime. We'll see what happens in the morning! If that does not seem to be the problem I am not sure what we are going to do!

Fun Onesie

2012-01-31T15:17:00.003-06:00

Joey had on an amusing onesie the other night...

It suits him well!

Spilled Milk

2012-01-24T15:45:00.007-06:00

They say, "don't cry over spilled milk" but yesterday that was hard to remember!

That's about 5 ounces of breastmilk - all over the floor. I was bagging up what I had expressed at work that day and wasn't paying close enough attention to what I was doing and the bag just tipped right over. I just stood there - mad. Amelia was next to me, "helping", and when the mess was made she knew just what to do. She ran to the rag drawer, grabbed one and got busy.

Her efforts made me smile and I really was thankful she knows what to do when a mess is made! Together we picked up the mess and by the end I realized I couldn't be upset. Why? There was nothing I could do about it at that point. It had happened and that was that. Once again, a simple gesture from a small girl helped me relax.

I think the hardest part of it all was just breastmilk being wasted. I have to spend my breaks at work pumping, skip chatting time with co-workers and then attempt to eat my lunch in the five or ten minutes I have left after pumping. It's just not fun! Some days I just sit there and think, "I could quit nursing him and then I could actually rest on my break and not inhale my food" etc. In the end, I remember that I had said I'd nurse him as long as he showed interest and I plan to stick to that - as hard as it may be sometimes.

Nursing and pumping is going very well. We got to the point where our freezer looked like this:

So we went out and got ourselves a small chest freezer.

We now store all milk in there along with a few other items. Since the above photo was taken the freezer has been filled a bit more... We are still trying to work out a good system for rotating milk and what additional items we would like to store in there. For now we are just thankful to have the extra freezer space!

Joe has been doing pretty well switching from breast to bottle!

(first bottle, December 6, 2011)

I still nurse him when I am home. Very rarely will he get a bottle when I am around because in order to keep this up we need to nurse! Sometimes I would love for him to just have a bottle - it is much quicker and it would allow me to get more done most days!

I will stick to what I told the doctor from the start, "I will do it as long as he wants to." It's not really about what I want. Breastfeeding him is better for him, better for me and better for the wallet! Three great reasons to keep going even when I don't want to!

Choo Choo!

2012-01-19T21:53:00.002-06:00

Last weekend we took Amelia to the Twin Cities Model Railroad Museum and she had a blast! She loved watching the "choo choos" go 'round and 'round and 'round!

The Hazards of Having a Big Sister

2012-01-12T12:00:00.001-06:00

Amelia is already teaching her little brother to accesorize...

I had turned around for one second and when I looked back she was placing one of her flower headbands on his little head! She was actually gentle as well, which shocked me! She is rough and tough little girl most of the time!

Joe's New Bed

2012-01-11T21:33:00.005-06:00

Joe is still not a fan of his crib :( We have broke him of the swing at night - now he uses his car seat!

The swing was not an ideal situation to us and neither is this. We'd love for the guy to realize his bed isn't that bad! We are pretty sure the main issue with the bed is that it requires him to be flat on his back. He doesn't seem to like that at all. He is a snuggler and loves to be curled up - preferably in someone's arms. The carseat and the swing both curl up his body just a bit and that is why we think he likes them so much!

On a funny note, the other night Amelia and I were watching Dora. She told me, "nigh nigh" so I asked her if she was tired. She wandered off and when I went to find her a few minutes later this is what I found:

It seems that she thinks the carseat is in fact a true bed! A bed for people of all sizes!

Then and Now: Bumbo

2012-01-11T21:27:00.003-06:00

Amelia (left) and Joe (right) at almost three months old.

There are many similarities but also some distinct differences! Their eyes are what stand out to me as very different. No one can compete with Amelia's big and bright blue eyes!

Just Pictures

2012-01-03T14:26:00.008-06:00

Christmas Day

2012-01-01T15:01:00.009-06:00

Christmas morning Joe was the first to rise! Amelia eventually made her way upstairs to find that Santa had come! Santa used light-bulb wrapping paper this year and Amelia was so excited about it that she could hardly unwrap anything.

Amelia was excited about the wagon Santa brought her and Joe!

Mid-morning we got ready and went to Jason's sister's house for Christmas with his family. We had breakfast/brunch this year and it was really good!

Amelia and Joe dressed up for Christmas Day:

Even Cashew was fancied up!

Family photo:

Truthfully, I am glad Christmas is over and the new year is here! We, once again, let the stress of the holidays get to us. It probably didn't help that I went back to work (in a retail setting) just two weeks before Christmas! That's a hard time to get back into the swing of things.

Christmas Eve

2011-12-30T20:23:00.005-06:00

Christmas Eve day I worked my usual 8 hour shift. My day surprised me - it was pretty fun! I spent a lot of time in the electronics and entertainment department trying to put movies away but ended up helping guests all day! I was pleased that the ones who I had interactions with seemed to be in a good mood. I was even thanked by a few for working which I appreciated.

We stopped by a gathering of Jason's family briefly and then spent the night at my parent's house. Kim made stuffed peppers for dinner and we did presents around the tree. Amelia couldn't even get through present opening before she needed something opened so she could play with it:

Joe on his first Christmas Eve:

Family photo by the tree:

Girl's Night

2011-12-30T15:29:00.004-06:00

Last Friday night was a little girl's night out at Acapulco! Marie was in town for the holidays and it worked out that several of us could meet for dinner. We were surprised at how empty the restaurant was. They are notorious for slow service (but the cheese dip is awesome and worth it!) so I was a little worried about it being Friday night and the day before Christmas weekend. I figure everyone would be eating out since they'd be cooking all weekend! This was not the case - we walked right in and sat down.

Amelia stayed home with her daddy for the evening. She's not that into mexican food and I also knew Joe would keep me busy enough while trying to visit and eat! He did pretty well though. He slept part of the time even!

I wish we could all get together like this a little more often - it was a good time!

2 Months

2011-12-22T21:17:00.006-06:00

Last week Joe was two months old!

We had his check-up and he is looking great. He was 26 inches long (100th percentile) and 14 pounds 5 ounces (90th percentile). We have a fast growing, big baby boy!

We started having some sleeping issues. Joe doesn't like his crib most nights and spends the night in his swing in our room:

It is not an ideal situation or one that we are entirely happy with but it's what we have to do to get any rest. Since I started back at work last week and have been averaging around 3 hours of sleep on work nights (I get up at 3 a.m.) the swing has been a lifesaver. We keep hoping one night he'll realize his crib is comfy but so far it hasn't happened :(

These first two months have flown by - he'll be one before we know it!

Kitty Cat, Night Night

2011-12-14T18:52:00.002-06:00

Amelia loves to take people "ny, ny." What that means is she takes you to her room and closes the door and basically holds you hostage. She will even go so far as to "block" the door with whatever she can find. She honestly believes that her sippy cup or step stool will keep you barricaded in her room!

She is always running around the house yelling, "kitty cat, night night! Kitty cat, night night!" Her father has let a kitty cat go "night, night" before. I on the other hand am opposed to it. Here she is seeking out a cat to go "ny, ny."

Searching for Tubing

2011-12-10T23:31:00.003-06:00

Do you know what it takes to get these?

A LOT.

This afternoon our cats found the tubes to the breastpump and decided they looked like a fun toy and chewed them up. Sweet. I go back to work in the morning (well, in just a few hours) and definately need that tubing!

We went on with the day knowing that we would be in Woodbury this evening and we would stop in at Babies R Us and get some new tubing. Guess what? You can't buy the tubing there! They have every other replacement part you can think of except the tubing. We stopped in at a few pharmacies thinking they might have some for some reason. Nope.

In a last effort on the way home we stopped at the hospital. They have surgical tubing and that's really all we needed. A few feet of surgical tubing. They must have miles of it in a hospital! The triage nurse sent us to Target. I knew Target didn't carry it because I work there but just in case we went over there. They did not have it.

I called the OB department of the hospital directly and went through it all again and basically said, "I need this tubing ASAP and I know you have it. What do I need to do to get and I am more than willing to pay for it." They ended up putting me on hold and then decided they'd call me back once pricing was figured out. Well, they called back and we went and got it.

We expected just a few feet of surgical tubing. Instead we got a brand new Medela tubing set in the packaging. Apparently there was some confusion on what we needed and the nurses just found the whole thing hilarious because they have cases of what we needed just sitting there. I was not laughing so much but was happy to get what we needed and get home.

I go back to work for the first time since Joe was born in just a few hours and our adventures this evening/night have led to me needing to pull an all-nighter! Sunday is going to be an interesting day for me :)

Christmas Tree 2011

2011-12-08T15:10:00.007-06:00

This past Sunday we went to the St. Croix Tree Farm to get a tree for Jason's sister's house! This year it snowed the night before we went - just like last year!

We brought a sled with this year for Amelia to ride around on and she loved it!

She also figured this year that throwing snow is fun!

While the tree was being trimmed our family snuck off to get a picture of the four of us for our Christmas card! All three of them turned out ok but this one was our favorite:

Thanks Auntie Liz for being our photographer!

The group shot this year wasn't as good as last years...

...the spot we chose had the sun right behind us! We'll have to plan better next year :)

This was the second year that I went to cut down a real tree and I am starting to think that once we are living in our own home I might want to give a real tree a try! We never had one growing up because cats got sick from eating the tree and needed medicine etc. For now, we will use our artificial tree which we hope to have up this weekend!

Small Gestures

2011-11-19T12:00:00.000-06:00

With two little ones at home life can be really frustrating sometimes. Some evenings, while Jason is at work, all three of us end up in tears because there is just so much going on and so, so much noise (ie- Joe crying and Amelia yelling about something.)

One evening not too long ago we had one of those nights where we were all in tears. I felt like I spent the whole evening yelling at Amelia to stop doing things she shouldn't be doing or telling her "no" she could not have whatever it was she wanted etc. After I put her to bed and put up the baby gate so she had to stay in her room. After putting up the gate and telling her to stop screaming and crying I turned around to see this:

Amelia had wound the vacuum cord up (sort of) for me. All night I was telling her "no" and "stop" and asking why she was not listening. At some point though she saw something that needed to be done and she did it as best she could. She knew I was needing some help so she did it. She was trying to help her mama out. It was such a sweet, small gesture from a sweet, small girl. I need to remember that gesture when we are having a bad night and she is unruly because if I look harder I bet she is helping me out in ways I am not even aware of.

Baby Boys

2011-11-18T12:00:00.000-06:00

Joe and his friend, D

These two have lots of good times to look forward to!

Joe's First Month

2011-11-17T18:43:00.012-06:00

We've had a busy month! This past Sunday Joe turned one month old. Instead of trying to remember all we've done, here are a few pictures:

First night at home:

Sleeping in the bilibed:

Snoozing:

Halloween:

Siblings:

(I had to sneak this after she fell asleep on the couch! Amelia is not quite ready to be close to him just yet)

Joe met his first friend, D:

Meeting "Auntie M" and "Uncle J":

Lastly, I caught a smile on camera just the other day:

It has been a busy, busy first month full of frustrations and joys. All in all, we are adjusting pretty well to life with two little ones.

We still don't have Internet at our apartment but it is at the top of the "to-do list" finally so hopefully we can get that taken care of next week!

Joseph Leonard

2011-10-26T16:57:00.004-05:00

On October 13th we welcomed our new baby, Joseph.

He weighed 8 pounds, 12 ounces and was 22 inches long! Quite a relief for me since big sister was over ten pounds! Labor and delivery was just under 12 hours compared to 28 hours with big sister which was also a relief to me :)

I was induced, as I was with big sister, and it was slow going. Around dinner time I was only 4 centimeters dilated so Jason left to get some dinner at a drive-thru and I settled in to rest. I knew I was going to need some energy later in the night but my body had other plans. Before Jason could even get back (he was gone less than a half an hour) I was in a lot of pain and felt like I needed to push. I was completely numb with Amelia and they had to tell me when to push so this was a whole new thing and concerned me since thirty minutes earlier I wasn't even halfway dilated.

Jason got back, got a nurse and they checked and I was ten centimeters. No one could believe it, including me! Here I was, expecting to settle in for a few hour nap and they were telling me it was time to push? My epidural did not take very well so pushing was much different this time around - much more painful. Maybe the pain helped me push harder because he was out in 25 minutes (vs 3 hours with big sister)!

Going home outfit:

Tuxedo...with tails!

39 Weeks "Overdue"

2011-10-07T20:08:00.004-05:00

Yesterday I was 39 weeks and was scheduled for induction due to a history of "infant macrosomia" - aka big baby. On Tuesday at my regular OB appointment it was discovered that I am not dilated at all. This didn't surprise me at all since I was 9 days late with Amelia and still at zero centimeters when they induced me. I explained this to my current doctor but she wouldn't budge - so another week we wait. I am almost certain I will still be a zero next week but only time will tell.

My ankles (or lack there of) are quite a sight these days:

Tonight my sister said, "no offense but your feet are gross." She's right so I couldn't be mad.

Since midway through this pregnancy I have had carpal tunnel and since Labor Day weekend it has left me with numb hands - fingers in particular. I am typing this using the only three fingers I have sensation in these days. The rest tingle. You can understand the lack of blogging the past few months I am sure...

We are just taking things a day at a time and hoping baby boy decides to join us sooner rather than later!

First ER Visit

2011-10-04T19:56:00.005-05:00

Saturday evening while we were at Jason's sister's house Amelia had a little accident. She was in the next room playing with the dog and we heard a crash and then a cry. All we could determine for sure was that she hit the back of her head on a side table. The result was this:

Coloring while waiting to be looked at a second time. The gauze had a numbing agent in it.

The end result...

5 staples :(

She is recovering well and will get her staples out at the end if this week/early next week. She is one tough cookie ;)

Still Here...Just Moving

2011-09-12T19:13:00.003-05:00

We're still alive! We have been keeping beyond busy.

We traveled to Indiana at the end of August unexpectedly to say goodbye to my grandpa. Upon returning home it was MN State Fair time. After that we moved. We are still moving... It has been a slow process with us working nearly every single day, trying to keep a toddler entertained and myself being 8 months pregnant.

Once we have Internet at our new place I am looking forward to posting more often again! It is a great way to document the things our family does and to share with family and friends we don't get to see very often :)

Sunday Afternoon at the Zoo

2011-08-15T19:24:00.009-05:00

Yesterday afternoon we were looking for something fun to do. We didn't want to spend any money so we decided to take advantage of our Minnesota Zoo membership!

We packed a picnic lunch and ate it in the parking lot before heading into the zoo since we got there right around lunch time!

Once inside we saw tons of animals but, of course, Amelia gravitated towards anything in water. We spent a lot of time looking at turtles, fish, empty tanks and more fish. She did not give up on the "empty" sea otter tank and it paid off!

He came out of his cave, swam to her, did a somersault and swam away!

To take a break we rode the monorail.

Amelia enjoyed looking out the windows and I think she saw a couple of animals but mostly she just looked around and said, "wow!"

When she saw the leopard napping she thought it sounded like a good idea:

Riding on a wolf with her zebra:

There is a "splash pad" near the monorail where kiddos can run around in their swimsuits and cool off. We avoided it one time but on our way off the trail it is near Amelia noticed it and had to go. We debated, tried telling her not today but in the end we gave her the go-ahead. Once she heard, "ok" she was gone!

She had an absolute blast!

Once we were done at the "splash pad" we got Amelia changed into her spare clothes and a new diaper and looked through one more area of the zoo before heading home! Amelia fell asleep super fast on the ride home:

We had a fun day and can't wait to go back!

Oh!

2011-08-05T19:40:00.002-05:00

Amelia says "yes" now...only to her "yes" is "OH!"

We think she associates "yes" with "oh" because it usually takes us a long time to figure out what she is trying to tell us/ask for and when we finally figure it out we say, "oh! You want (blank)." I love how big her eyes get when she says "oh."

Wisconsin Dells

2011-08-04T19:50:00.009-05:00

Tuesday and Wednesday of this week Amelia, myself and my parents met some cousins in Wisconsin Dells! Before our cousins arrived we went on an Original Duck tour!

Somehow Amelia managed to fall asleep part way through the tour!

We stayed at a hotel that had a huge indoor and outdoor waterpark included as part of your room cost. Amelia had a blast in the kiddie areas. She was not a fan of anywhere she could not touch but had fun in wading pools and on kid waterslides :)

I didn't take a lot of pictures because I was playing with kiddos and was wet most of the time! I did get at least one picture of each baby though:

One of Amelia coming down a waterslide for the first time:

Unfortunately her Papa fell over on the last turn so I really only got a picture of his leg in the air...

Amelia and her cousin P had a blast together. We aren't around small kids often and when we are it doesn't go great usually but Amelia loved hanging out with her cousin.

Watching them interact with each other was the highlight of the trip for me.

Amelia was wiped out after our overnight trip and so is this mama.

26 Years

2011-08-04T19:42:00.003-05:00

Last week was my 26th birthday. We celebrated it a little early so Jason could join us! We had dinner with my family and they got me an ice cream cake! I think the design on it was a little more for Amelia's sake...

Yep, I had a Dora cake this year :) Jason had it personalized...

The following night I had a taco pizza with Jason's sister before she left for Mayo. On the night of my actual birthday my dad wanted to do dinner so we had half-price schnitzel and appetizers at a local German restaurant.

The Twins/Brewers game earlier in July was my birthday present from my family but they also got me a Coach purse. Now I am cool like my mom and sister ;)

I don't feel like I have aged a ton in the past couple of years but at the same time I feel like time is flying because Amelia is getting so big so fast! It's funny how my age seems to stand still but to me she is aging so fast!

Meet Ah-Huh

2011-07-26T10:32:00.005-05:00

Amelia has a new friend. She named him Ah-Huh.

She got him from Marie's wedding! He was the centerpiece of my family's table at the reception. We had to get him a covered home because of curious cats.

Amelia is in love with this fish. She stares at him at great length:

She even tries to give him her other friends:

Last night before bed she ran out of her room, down the stairs, got her stool and stared at him a little longer.

Welcome to our family, Ah-Huh.

Mr. and Mrs. Howard!

2011-07-26T10:00:00.013-05:00

Over the weekend I was maid of honor in my friend Marie's wedding! We started our day bright and early at the salon. I had never had my hair done before so I wasn't real sure what I wanted done so I gave my lady a few ideas and she created this:

I was pleased with it and it held up all day, night and overnight! The next day I pulled 28 bobby pins out of my hair and it didn't move too much because of all the hairspray!

I drove two other bridesmaids to the church (a 45 minute drive) and poor Nicolle was stuck in the backseat with 4 dresses draped over her lap!

We were the first ones to the church so we decided they'd put make-up on me for the day. I never wear make-up. I don't even own make-up so this was a big deal! In fact, here is my "make-up bag" that Lisa made me for the day so I wouldn't feel left out:

The lone item in it is the lip gloss given to us by the bride! Here is me with actual make-up on:

They did a great job I think! I didn't feel like myself at all!

Before the ceremony we had some time so we got a picture of all the pregnant bridesmaids together! I am 7 months and the other two are 6 months!

The bride and her mom before the ceremony:

The ceremony was beautiful and Marie is married now, crazy!

Our limo was waiting for us outside the front of the church:

This was my first time in a limo and they can get a little cramped! Lisa and I indulged in a celebratory glass of champagne on the ride to the reception:

Yes, we drank it. No, we didn't feel bad!

Our ride to the reception got a little complicated a few miles from our destination. Our driver hit a 15-year-old riding her bike in a crosswalk. Someone saw it coming and yelled, "stop!" just in time for us all to look out the front and see it happen. Trust me, that is something you never want to see happen. I felt so sick for a couple of hours. By some stroke of luck the girl walked away from the accident and as far as we know she is going to be fine.

I was kind of a dud at the reception because I am not a big dancer :( I wish I was because everyone was having a blast! I had fun watching them though. Plus, it felt good to sit and have my feet up after the long day :)

Amelia was at the reception briefly and wanted nothing to do with me so I tried to bribe her with glow sticks:

They thrilled her to death but she still was Papa's girl and wanted nothing to do with me!

Jason and I:

Marie and Jordan are in Maui on their honeymoon now and I can't wait to hear all about that! For now, I am going to get some rest :)

Set-Up and Rehearsal

2011-07-22T21:26:00.006-05:00

This afternoon we helped set-up the reception hall for Marie's wedding tomorrow. Tons of people came to help. So many in fact that there were times when some of us had nothing to do!

I really liked the centerpieces that Marie came up with:

The rehearsal tonight went smoothly and we had a grill-out at a nearby park after. Other than the heat it was a great night!

The entire bridal party:

Tomorrow is Marie's big day!

Pregnancy Update

2011-07-18T18:30:00.006-05:00

I am 27 weeks and 5 days pregnant so it seemed about time for an update before I hit the third trimester!

Things are going well. We are having some heat this week up here. We are under an extreme heat advisory until mid-week and it has not been fun so far. Today the heat index was up to 111! Last night I felt flu-like and it was likely from the heat.

My cravings this time have been salads and most recently stuffed peppers! We made some two weekends ago and I am thinking we will make them again before North Hudson's Pepper Festival where I will have them yet again!

Here is a comparison picture:

I think I look pretty much the exact same size as I was with Amelia at this point with baby boy!

Marie's Bachelorette Party!

2011-07-18T17:48:00.010-05:00

Saturday night was my friend Marie's bachelorette party in Minneapolis.

We met at a hotel downtown, hung out for awhile and then went to dinner at the Rock Bottom Brewery.

After dinner we headed back to the hotel for a bit. We played a guessing game where we each brought a pair of underwear for Marie and she had to guess who brought each pair.

She actually did very well at it somehow! She guessed almost each pair correctly!

Marie with her maid and matron of honor:

Jason's sister Liz and I:

Group shot before we headed out "on the town":

We had quite a long night out. Lisa and I (both pregnant) somehow managed to tag along until after one in the morning. It was fun watching everyone have a good time and celebrating with Marie but I can tell you that bar-hopping downtown is not high on my list of things to do again soon! Especially on such a sweltering evening! It was definately a new experience.

All in all, it was a successful night. Lisa and I headed back to the hotel and talked for a bit while we waited for everyone else to get back. Then we ate Marie's cake and had some snacks before bed.

Fawns

2011-07-06T12:00:00.001-05:00

Yesterday afternoon we had a couple of fawns in the yard! One of them was much more adventurous that the other and I was able to get a good shot of him (of her):

This is the only shot of the two of them I got:

There really are two there, I swear! The second one is on the left in the shadows. If you enlarge the picture it may be easier to see!

Fourth of July Weekend

2011-07-05T19:19:00.013-05:00

We had a laid back holiday weekend this year! I, of course, had to work all weekend but in between work we had fun! Saturday I got home from work and swam with a few people who had gathered at grandpa's house. Marie was kind enough to sit on the steps with Amelia towards the end and Amelia decided they should swap sunglasses!

Saturday we went to the Twins/Brewers game.

That evening we watched fireworks with Jason's sister and her boyfriend.

Yesterday after work we grilled out with Auntie Liz, Uncle Kory and Lisa while we swam. It was a nice way to end a long day at work! Amelia was not interested in the pool at all again. She preferred to hang out outside the pool area on her horse:

Eventually we decided to force her into the pool. I put her lifejacket on her and brought her in for about ten minutes. She screamed the whole time! A short time after I put her back on the pool deck she wanted to come back in! She pointed to her fish floatie and I put her right into it with her lifejacket on!

She floated around contently the rest of the time we were swimming.

After swimming we all went out to Kory's mom's house to watch fireworks. We got there early so we took Amelia to see the horses. She got so excited when she saw them and she yelled, "HELLO! Hi cows!!!" It was so cute.

She thought they were the greatest thing ever!

Uncle Kory also brought out a John Deere pedal tractor!

She couldn't quite figure out pedaling so Kory pushed her. She ended up going in circles because she also wasn't quite grasping steering. She kept pointing other ways and he had to keep telling her to steer them that way!

We headed out to the field to watch the fireworks and then headed home. We had a long weekend outside and I think we were all beat!

Twins vs. Brewers

2011-07-05T18:28:00.014-05:00

This past Sunday Jason and I went to Target Field to see the Twins play the Brewers! My family got us the tickets as early birthday presents. We had great seats and were lucky enough that they were in the shade - it was a hot, hot day!

Since the Brewers had won the night before, Amelia wore her Twins dress to give them some support.

(It must have worked because they won!)

We were able to get some great pictures from our seats!

We knew a TON of people at the game that day. A local bar had two full party buses of people that they brought to the game and they got a welcome on the big screen:

I met friends Marie and Molly as well as Auntie Liz and Uncle Kory around the seventh inning.

We found out after the game that our friends Lisa and Al were there too! Had we known, we would have asked them over to the empty seats next to us to get them out of the left-field sun!

It was an exciting game to be at and in the end the Twins won. I would have preferred the Brewers win but the plus side to them not winning was that Jason was in a good mood for the rest of the evening :)

Car Wash

2011-06-30T18:40:00.010-05:00

Today the heat index was expected to get up to 107 degrees so I decided it would be a good day to do something outside involving water. I decided Amelia should have her first car wash and get her princess cozy coupe all washed up to start the summer off right.

I didn't have to ask her twice to wash her car - she went right to it!

Auntie Kim came home mid-wash and started a sprinkler so running from that took her attention away from her car for a bit.

To get her back into the car wash mood I showed her how to spray her car off. Next it was her turn to try...

She thought it was far more entertaining to chase after auntie and myself with the hose. She eventually decided her car needed to be rinsed off though.

I'd say Amelia's first car wash was a success. Her car is cleaner than it was, she stayed cool in the heat and she got some energy out! All good things :)

Tantrum

2011-06-29T20:30:00.002-05:00

The other day, at Target, Amelia would not listen so she had to be put into the cart and buckled in.

As you can see, she was not appreciative of this. I took this photo because I just know she will appreciate it as an adult ;)

Shopping is one of our biggest struggles currently. We have given Amelia freedom at the store in the past and now she is getting a little too free and wandering off and adding items that she wants to the cart! This is resulting in frustration for us all while at the store. Each time we go to the store it is unpredictable. Sometimes we have a near perfect, easy trip and other trips we are all frustrated when we leave!

Menards is by far the easiest shopping stop we ever make - they have carts with cars attached to the front! It is genius and Amelia loves it. We love it too because she "drives" around the store and we get to get our shopping done with some ease. Too bad we never need more than one or two things while we are there! I really wish all stores would get fun carts!

Windows Down!

2011-06-27T19:03:00.003-05:00

Amelia LOVES to have her window down in the car :)

She only gets her window down in daddy's car since mommy's car doesn't have backseat windows. One more reason to drive daddy's car in the summer months :)

Sleeping Sweetly

2011-06-26T14:45:00.003-05:00

I checked in on Amelia a few nights ago and this is what I found:

Terrible Twos

2011-06-23T19:32:00.006-05:00

We have finally reached a really terrible point in the "terrible twos." Amelia is so headstrong and so difficult some days it is beyond exhausting. She has taken to yelling for everything and refuses to "ask" nicely. We have a baby sign for "please" that we use and the past couple of days she won't even use it and I have no idea why!

So many little things are adding up these days with her that I sometimes have to walk away from her when she is acting up just to relax and keep my cool. It's hard to stay frustrated with her when we arrive home after a trying afternoon and evening and she is sleeping so sweetly in the backseat:

I know that part of our problems stem from communication. Amelia still isn't talking very much and I think it is becoming more frustrating for us all - herself included! We have noticed just this past week that she is trying really hard to say things sometimes. For example, she wanted cheese last night and we kept asking her to not climb up the stool and to please just tell us what she wanted. She got up on the stool and said, "heeeeee" which I can only assume meant cheese since that is what she was reaching for which shows that she is trying.

Another part of the problems we have stems from pure stubbornness. I wonder where she gets that from? This morning she brought me a box of crackers and said, "please." I gave her a cracker and she happily ate it. When it came time for another cracker she would not say "please" and she threw the empty cracker box across the room. I told her it was not ok to throw things like that and asked her to please get me the box and then she could have another cracker. She put the box on the edge of the bed eventually and then demanded another cracker. I told her I appreciated that she picked the box up but she needed to bring it all the way to me. I know she understood the entire situation and what was being asked of her. After fifteen minutes, I got the box and put the crackers away and that was that. I didn't cave in and that is what needs to keep happening!

I have the number for a program through the school district that will evaluate your child if you have developmental concerns. We do plan on calling them but we are hoping to wait until we are living on our own again since they do come to your home for the evaluation. We have recently started looking for places to live and are currently weighing the options of a few towns that are possibilities. Once we have that narrowed down our search will become much more serious!

For the time being though, this shirt seems quite appropriate:

(it says, sometimes crabby - but always cute!)

Rocking Cow

2011-06-22T18:22:00.005-05:00

Amelia is still into cows!

My sister and mom were shopping over the weekend and found this rocking cow at Once Upon a Child.

For now it will stay at Nana's house and once we are on our own again we will bring to our new place!

Father's Day 2011

2011-06-20T19:03:00.005-05:00

Yesterday Jason had a pretty laid back Father's Day. I worked in the early morning and Amelia was kind enough to let us sleep late (I went back to bed upon returning home!) I think we can thank the gloomy weather for that - it was pretty dark out all morning so I don't think she knew it was morning!

In the afternoon we met up with my parents and ran a few errands with them before we had a late lunch/early dinner at Boca Chica followed by dessert at Izzy's Ice Cream! We missed Izzy's People's Flavor Awards by just a few minutes :( Each summer they create new flavors and the customers get to taste and vote on them. We caught a glimpse of some of the flavors as we walked in and the one that intrigued me the most was buttered sweet corn... Maybe it will win and I will get to taste it?

I wanted a picture of Amelia with her daddy and papa. They got down to her level for it but then she saw that they got lower so she decided she should sit down!

Bridal Shower

2011-06-20T18:28:00.007-05:00

Over the weekend my friend, Lisa, and I hosted a bridal shower for our friend, Marie! We spent Friday evening preparing everything that we could so the day of the shower would go smoothly. We designed and made the cake, made pretzel and fruit dips, cut fruit and got games ready!

Saturday everything went smoothly. We played several games including 20 questions about the bride, groom and them as a couple, the "mystery sock" game and bridal bingo!

The hit game was the "mystery sock" game. We put an item in each sock that pertained to Marie and Jordan's honeymoon (in Hawaii) and people felt the items through the sock and had to try and guess what they were! It was funny watching people try and guess the items. One person got them all right even!

We prepared lots of food and sherbert punch.

For the punch we mixed fruit punch (made from powder) with sprite and a touch of orange juice concentrate. We put scoops of raspberry sherbet on the top which gave it a fun taste!

Marie with her matron and maid of honor (Lisa and I):

Marie with all of her bridesmaids except one who lives in California!

We had a fun afternoon. Next - Marie's bachelorette party in one month followed by the wedding!

Creative Bridal Shower Cake

2011-06-20T18:17:00.004-05:00

As a co-host for a recent bridal shower I knew that I did not want to pay for an expensive store bought cake! I knew I could come up with something more creative and with a personal touch for one of my best friends.

The bride's favorite cake is, and has always been, Funfetti cake. So that is where we started. While I was at work, my co-host Lisa baked two Funfetti bundt cakes. Once I arrived in the evening it was time to find some way to create the cake I had in my head.

I wanted it to look like two interlocking wedding bands. We cut a chunk out of one of the cakes and put them together:

Once we frosted the cake it looked more like an 8 we decided

An 8 would have been appropriate since it does happen to be the bride's favorite number! Using the chunk that we cut out of one of the cakes we made a diamond to add to one of the rings and it looks more like what it was intended to be!

About half the people who saw the cake thought it was an 8 and the other half knew it was wedding rings. Either way, I was happy with how it turned out! The bride and her cake:

I think she was happy with it!

If you know me well, you know that I am not the most domestic person so this really was out of the ordinary for me to have a creative idea that actually panned out. Lisa and I decided it was because I am a mom now - domestic things are slowly coming more naturally to me :)

Amelia and Daddy

2011-06-14T17:43:00.001-05:00

These two cuddle at night and watch cartoons

and before you know it

she is out like a light :)

Baby BOY

2011-06-07T18:11:00.008-05:00

I've been MIA for quite awhile...lack of Internet will do that!

The BIG news is that:

Amelia is going to be a BIG sister!

I am over halfway there already at 21 weeks and 5 days.

My weight gain has been minimal so far which is the exact opposite of my pregnancy with Amelia! I have only gained about 7 pounds so far.

Today was the big ultrasound. I had my first 3-D imaging done which was pretty cool.

The doctor was kind enough to print a shot of boy parts for Jason since he wasn't able to come with to the appointment!

(look in the bottom left corner and there are two legs and a penis. You are looking from beneath if that helps anyone...)

I found a fun way to tell Jason it was a boy. I wrapped up a hammer rattle and baseball sleeper for him to open after work:

I of course don't have a lot of time to blog so I will end with a short video from the 3-D ultrasound that the doctor made for Jason to see:

I'm hoping to start getting online more as the summer progresses. Hopefully it happens :)

Fair Oaks Farm

2011-06-01T17:48:00.000-05:00

Over Memorial Day weekend this year, Amelia and I went to Indiana with my parents. We used one of our days there to do something fun/touristy! We decided to go to Fair Oaks Farm since Amelia has recently been really into cows.

We went on a bus tour of one of their ten farms. Amelia got really excited when she saw cows and tried to get off the bus but once she realized that wasn't happening she just sat on Papa's lap:

We saw baby cows

an (empty) pasture between barns

and the rotary where the cows are milked

The rotary was the most interesting part to me. It holds 72 cows and when it is their turn they just walk into a stall, ride around, get milked and when the circle is complete they back right out. It was pretty interesting to see. Some people who I told about this seemed really upset about it and I just wanted to ask them, where do you think your milk comes from? This is what large-scale, modern farming looks like!

After our tour we went to the birthing barn and saw a baby calf be born.

This is something that we always miss at the state fair each year so it was interesting to see it.

Amelia rode around in this train several times.

(she is in the yellow car)

The first time she went she insisted that Papa ride with her so he squeezed in with her. Nana and I were in the birthing barn so unfortunately we weren't able to witness it.

Before we left we had fresh ice cream and cheese curds! Both were delicious. It was a long day for Amelia and she passed out in no time on the car ride to visit grandpa at the nursing home!

Bubbles

2011-05-05T17:07:00.004-05:00

With another warm afternoon today we spent more time outside! Amelia had her first experience blowing bubbles. She was so hysterical blowing bubbles!

She never quit with the sound effects. It was pretty fun watching her! We might have to keep the bubbles hidden from now on. She already found another bottle and demanded to blow bubbles (inside) so they are conveniently "lost" until we are outside again!

Walking to Cure MS

2011-05-01T16:08:00.007-05:00

This morning our family participated in the local MS Walk. Jason's sister has MS and organized a team which her employer sponsored. We raised over $2,000 as a team towards curing MS! It was in the mid-thirties this morning so most of us opted for the one mile course over the 3.5 mile course. Afterwards there was Jimmy John's in the middle school cafeteria and then we all went to Season's Tavern (our sponsor) for more food! Here are some pictures:

Amelia and Auntie Liz:

Myra, Marie, Liz, Me and Lisa:

Girl's Night Out

2011-04-29T14:35:00.003-05:00

Last night I went to a Twins game with friends. It was pretty funny because Jason's sister had the tickets and she invited myself, Marie and Molly - ALL Brewer fans! She wanted a fun girl's night out even if we wouldn't be rooting for the Twins.

It was a little chilly towards the end of the game but at least it wasn't snowing like it did for the game the night before!

Easter 2011

2011-04-24T19:06:00.010-05:00

This year we were able to celebrate Easter with both families. After I got home from work this morning (yes, I worked and yes Target was closed) we got ready and had brunch at Kilkarney Hills Golf Course with Jason's family.

(everyone but Grandpa's friend, Ardie - she was our photographer!)

It was tasty and I think we all left very full!

We managed to get a pretty good photo of Amelia all dressed up before we went in for brunch:

By the end of the meal her dress was covered in chocolate from the chocolate chip cookie her cousin gave her!

After leaving the golf course Jason, Amelia and I headed over to my parent's house. She dug through her Easter basket for awhile:

Afterwards she went down for a nap. For dinner we had frozen pizza from Cossetta's. Not the traditional Easter meal for most families!

After dinner we took advantage of the weather and had a small Easter egg hunt for Amelia.

She picked up right away and we ended up re-hiding the eggs two more times for her.

The third and final time Jason hid them a little to hard for her and she lost interest.

While we were outside we set up the cubes and tunnels Amelia got for her birthday. I think she'll have a lot of fun in them this summer!

So far this evening we don't have a photo with my family. Maybe we'll get one before the night is over. Maybe not though - someone is in meltdown mode in the basement right now...

Happy Easter, Everyone!

Easter Eggs

2011-04-21T08:00:00.006-05:00

Last night we decided to dye Easter eggs with my family. I thought that this would be the first year Amelia had an interest in the whole thing. Well, she thought it was fun to color on the egg with the clear crayon:

When I dropped the egg into a color cup she freaked out. She was crying and pointing at her egg and just so upset.

Here is her one and only egg she designed:

I put her on my lap and she eventually calmed down enough to watch:

Maybe next year she will have fun with egg dye! For this year, here are the eggs that the adults made:

Playing Outside

2011-04-20T17:16:00.006-05:00

Earlier this week we spent almost the whole day outside! Amelia walked around the yard and had a blast pointing at everything:

She rode in her swing:

Amelia watched Daddy on the John Deere and everytime he shifted gears she made this face:

It was pretty funny!

After dinner we went on a walk as a family.

Amelia topped the night off with her favorite snack - frozen GoGurt!

Since our day outside we have had more snow fall (and melt) and I think everyone around here is anxious for spring to arrive once and for all!

Mommy's Shoes

2011-04-20T17:09:00.003-05:00

Amelia found my work shoes the other day and decided to put them on as we were getting ready to leave the house!

It didn't work out too well for her when she tried to walk in them though!

What We've Been Up To

2011-04-17T19:40:00.010-05:00

It's been one week since I have been on a computer. I hardly remember what it is I used to do on the computer for several hours at a time. So what have we been up to? Not much actually.

Last Sunday Jason and I went to the final Wild game of the season against the Dallas Stars. Jason really wanted to attend that particular game because the Stars were originally the Minnesota North Stars before the club moved to Texas.

The Wild won by two and it was an exciting game to attend! Nordy ran around the whole night with his end of the season sign:

We had a really good night and even came close to winning the night's raffle! We were 200 numbers off. I should have let Jason grab a couple more tickets when he asked! Oh well. Half the proceeds benefited Minnesota Hockey and the other half went to the raffle winner. Maybe next year!

Not too much else has been happening with us. Just Amelia and her usual shenanigans. Here are some pictures:

Choosing bedtime snacks:

Sleeping with rugs:

Being twice as cool with shades inside:

Multi-tasking in the bathroom:

We're never bored - that is for sure!

Silly Girl

2011-04-09T19:19:00.002-05:00

I looked over at Amelia while she was watching Dora the other day and saw a funny sight:

She was having a hard time getting comfortable on her car. Did you see why?

She seemed to think it was pretty funny too!

No Peanuts :(

2011-04-09T19:16:00.003-05:00

It is official - Amelia cannot eat peanuts. We have tried and tried and every single time she looks like this within minutes of ingesting peanut butter:

It's not the best picture but if you enlarge it you can see a little better.

We love peanut butter so this is going to be a challenge for us! There is still the hope that maybe she'll grow out of it. For now though we will steer clear of peanuts :(

A Visitor

2011-04-03T14:34:00.004-05:00

This weekend Jason, Amelia and I had a special visitor! Amelia's birthday buddy! S was the first friend I made in Milwaukee and she is now in MN for grad school so she took a break from school to visit us for a couple of days!

Friday evening she and I went for a drive around the area because she had never been here before. We had dinner in downtown Hudson and while we waited for a table we stopped in on an artist reception at a local gallery. She and I were art history majors together so it was fun to be able to do that!

We spent so much time trying to get Amelia to sit still for a picture that this is the only good one I ended up with:

S headed back to school this morning when I got home from work. It was great to be able to visit with her and catch up!

Wild Game

2011-04-03T14:23:00.004-05:00

Last Thursday evening Jason and I had a night out! We received free tickets to a Minnesota Wild game! I had never been to a professional hockey game or an event at our Xcel Center so it was a night of firsts for me!

We got there early and had dinner at a nearby Italian place that is a family favorite of us all. I hadn't had a sense of smell or taste all week (I thought it was a cold but in reality it turns out to be my allergies) and Thursday was the first time I tasted all week!

We had great seats and had a good night. Our team even won!

Funny story about the evening: Event parking is insane and I decided that we were not going to spend $15 to park our car. We headed up onto Cathedral Hill to park (for free) because 6-ish blocks is not big deal to walk. We got parked, checked signs and curbs and decided we were in fact legally parked. Guess again! We got back to a parking ticket that was over twice the amount of the event parking across the street from the venue! What lesson did we learn? Just pay for event parking!

We are headed to the season's final game against Dallas next Sunday evening and you better believe I will have and extra twenty in my purse for parking!

Dropping In

2011-03-27T18:41:00.002-05:00

Hey everyone!

We are still here :) Sickness has been moving through our family the past week. First Amelia got it, then Jason and as of this morning I have it. It's just a cold but it has been kicking our butts this past week!

A lot has been going on for us and I will share more soon!

For now, here is Amelia in her new bike helmet:

Spring is coming!

Shutterfly Books

2011-03-27T14:11:00.003-05:00

A couple of months ago I got a coupon at the Target checkout for a FREE 8x8 photo book from Shutterfly. I held onto it because I thought maybe I'd check it out. I figured there was some catch because nothing is really free these days, is it? Well, there was a small catch - I had to pay shipping and handling (which was minimal.) That was it though. I was able to make an 8x8, 20-page color photo book for eight dollars. I hope I come across another coupon like this...soon!

Hopefully the window below works and you can view the book about the trip we took to the North Shore last fall!

Click here to view this photo book larger

Zoo Day

2011-03-18T17:13:00.003-05:00

This afternoon the sun was out (a rarity the past few months) and the temperature was in the mid-30s...so we went to the zoo! We decided to go to Como Zoo over the MN Zoo (where we a have a membership) because it was a little chilly out still and most of the animals would be inside anyways. So, for a quick zoo trip Como made more sense today.

We saw polar bears in the newly renovated exhibit:

We chuckled at this lion:

Native to a warmer climate, he has embraced the snow surrounding his rock.

Amelia liked to monkeys and apes the best. They were the most active. She had a great time and we can't wait to take her to the MN Zoo this summer!

St. Patty's Parade

2011-03-18T17:04:00.005-05:00

Yesterday our friend Lisa invited to a local St. Patrick's Day parade! It was such a nice afternoon out that we couldn't turn her down. Amelia watched so intently the whole time:

Some of our favorite parts were the unicyclists:

The really tall man:

And the "Irish" camels:

Lisa grabbed a few pieces of candy, a sticker and beads for Amelia. We are looking forward to more parades as the weather warms up!

Here is about the best picture of Amelia that I could get in her St. Patrick's Day outfit:

She is far too busy to stop for a minute or two to take a picture!

Playing Outside

2011-03-14T19:29:00.004-05:00

Today if was almost forty degrees (which felt very warm to us here) so we went outside after dinner to play! Amelia got to use her cozy coupe outside for the first time and she was loving it!

She had to bring her ball with her. We told her that she and her ball wouldn't fit into the car together but she was determined and she found a way!

I am looking forward to some warmer weather coming so we can play outside often! Amelia has so much energy and playing outside is a great way to burn it off and get to bed on time!*

*We're a little messed up here because of daylight savings but we'll get back on track...eventually.

Two Years Old

2011-02-27T13:26:00.007-06:00

Friday Amelia turned two years old! She got a few presents from my family on her actual birthday including this new princess kitchen:

We had dinner out with my family at Boca Chica and dessert at Izzy's in St. Paul.

Saturday we had a little birthday party for Amelia at my parent's house and my family and Jason's family came. Both days I had Amelia dressed up in the same birthday dress she wore last year. It was a tad short so I threw some leggings on under it and it was pretty cute!

I was pretty impressed I got two years of use out of the dress since it is size 18-month!

Amelia was so funny opening her presents. She would just empty the bags but throwing everything over her shoulder:

Auntie Lisa (one of my best friends) started to fold tissue paper and after that Amelia brought her every single piece and helped her smooth it out so she could fold it. Kids pick up on every little thing!

Auntie Kimmie got Amelia her first trike and We took turns pushing and pulling her around on it and when I stopped to get her picture on it she made sure I knew she did not like that I stopped pulling her:

She can be so demanding sometimes. We definately are entering the "terrible twos."

Amelia had a big cake and cupcakes. She tried so hard to blow out her candle on her cupcake:

We had to give her a little help. After all the work blowing out the candle she didn't even want to eat it! She picked sprinkles off and that was about it!

Amelia got a lot of great stuff for her birthday including new clothes for this spring/summer that we are anxious to wear! Auntie Liz got her a little suitcase which was perfect to bring home all her new clothes in.

That's really all the pictures I have to share. I didn't get any of her with family members because after presents and lunch she dragged her Nana to her bed and pretty much asked for a nap. So, the guest of honor slept through the last half of her party which meant no pictures really!

Lisa, Kim and I went bowling with Amelia in the evening. We thought we could get Amelia in on the bowling but she pretty much just liked walking out to the lane and then back. We'll take her again and hopefully she'll be more interested in it since it won't be a totally new envoronment for her. That means we'll have go sometime soon!

Online Again!

2011-02-14T17:14:00.007-06:00

I haven't been online in nearly two weeks. Wow! We don't have Internet at Grandpa's and I just haven't been able to get on at my parent's house except for banking and bill pay.

We haven't been up to much. We celebrated my dad's 60th birthday with dinner out and cake at home. I tried to get a picture of his cake with all the candles but he blew it out before I got a chance:

That's what it looks like after sixty candles are blown out.

Amelia wore a wild outfit for grandpa's birthday:

Look at those pigtails!

We've been playing around the house a lot. Amelia uses this little stool as a goofy chair all the time:

We have been having a bit of a heat wave (thirties and even forties!) so I took Amelia outside to play yesterday. She thought it was the best!

I haven't taken her out much this winter with the weather we have had the past few months. It was just too cold for her!

Molly

2011-02-14T17:10:00.004-06:00

Last week we said goodbye to our friend, Molly.

The night before I went to Wendy's and got the ol' girl a special dinner...a bacon cheeseburger and some fries. She gobbled it up in no time!

Sometimes when I ask Amelia where her dog is (I actually asking about her Slinky dog from Toy Story) she runs around but other than that she has no idea - for that I am thankful. She loved that dog!

For the Love of Cats

2011-02-02T17:05:00.008-06:00

Last Saturday we took Amelia to the 'Saintly City Cat Show' which is part of the St. Paul Winter Carnival. Amelia LOVES cats and this was pretty much the coolest thing to her.

She ran from cat to cat and got really upset when she had to leave each cat.

She had two favorites and their owner was very patient with Amelia each time we stopped to see her cats.

As you can see she even opened their cages so Amelia could pet them but she was way more interested in opening and closing their cage doors than anything.

Since we were nearby we stopped in Rice Park to see some of this year's ice sculptures.

This year is the 125th St. Paul Winter Carnival and I liked this sculpture because it has each of the century logos for the event carved.

Mom and I:

Afterwards we had a cozy dinner at Mama's Pizza. By cozy I mean we fit all 5 of us into a little booth that would comfortably hold 3 or 4 people. It was interesting...

Nana and Grandpa had the pleasure of sitting with Amelia...who insisted on eating off of Grandpa's plate instead of her own (even though they had the same thing) and she was close enough to reach on over and help herself!

Date Day

2011-01-27T19:02:00.004-06:00

Yesterday afternoon Jason and I dropped Amelia off with my mom and had a little date afternoon/evening. We browsed a few stores and then went to find something to eat. We decided on Cecil's for dinner and each ordered a sandwich and we shared them:

After we left the restaurant we ran into a little movie theatre and decided to park and see what they had and at what time.

We got there just a few minutes before "The King's Speech" started and we knew nothing about it. Nothing but someone on my Facebook saw it recently and loved it so we went on that and saw it as well. Ironically, we saw it at the same theatre she saw it at too since we were in her neighborhood!

Amelia had a good time with her Nana and Jason and I enjoyed some time on our own.

Win or Lose

2011-01-25T19:49:00.003-06:00

Win or lose - Jason, Amelia and I enjoy football. Period. Want proof? Here's Amelia and I just after the Bears lost the NFC championship to the Packers (the only team mommy and daddy can't stand - with a passion btw):

BIG smiles :)

Next week we'll enjoy the Pro Bowl and the following week, on my dad's birthday, we will be hoping for a Steelers win (since we have that strong dislike for GB and all.) After that? We'll gear up for some baseball. Maybe we'll even be able to score some Twins/Brewers tickets this season...

What can I say - we like our sports around here...whether our teams win or lose!

Wrap-Up

2011-01-22T18:35:00.008-06:00

Now that I am on a computer again, with Internet access, I figured I should wrap up our trip to Indiana! Wednesday morning we had breakfast with dad's side of the family. Amelia took this lovely picture of her grandpa and cousin P.

She had her little finger over the flash!

Amelia must like P because she shared her yogis (Gerber yogurt melts) with her:

Breakfast turned into over two hours and we were eventually on our way back to MN by eleven. Amelia slept in the car a lot:

Much like cousin A slept through breakfast earlier in the day:

We are back now. Back to the frigid temperatures. It was -20 on Thursday before windchill was factored in - which made it -30. I have been working on un-packing and doing laundry as well as staying warm!

This little one doesn't seem to mind the cold. The brief periods she is outside (heading to and from the car) she manages to dig around in the snow and whines when I pull her to her carseat! She is definately a lover of the outdoors!

Tonight I am having dinner with my family and leaving Amelia with them. I wish I could say I had some great plans for my night of freedom but I am merely going to get groceries - sans Amelia. What a wild night!

Visiting Great-Grandpa

2011-01-18T23:20:00.009-06:00

This evening, a huge chunk of my dad's side of the family got together to visit grandpa. All of his grandkids and great-grandkids were there with the exception of my sister and my dad's brother's daughters.

It was grandpa's first time meeting his new great-grandson, A.

My mom found "big sister" and "little brother" shirts for little A and his sister P.

Tonight grandpa said he didn't think he'd live to see great-grandchildren and he has four!

Four who are impossible to get a picture of with them all looking at the same time!

It was nice spending the evening visiting with everyone.

It was also nice to see grandpa smile as much as he did tonight.

Cupcakes

2011-01-18T16:55:00.004-06:00

After lunch today we stopped by a place called Designer Desserts in Valpo that was recommended by family. It was pretty tasty! Amelia devoured her cupcake faster than lightning.

She wasted no time in letting us know that she wanted another.

We are lucky we don't live here otherwise we'd be in trouble. I split a red velvet with mom and a mocha java with dad. Both were really good! I definately don't need to be eating those things more than once or twice a year - that's for sure!

Amelia Meets "Sue"

2011-01-17T22:36:00.012-06:00

Today Amelia had a big day out in Chicago. We went to the Field Museum! Amelia saw her first 3-D movie:

It was only about 20 minutes long so we thought we'd give it a try. She did pretty well in it - except when the T-rex would roar. I was sure that she would be scared of dinosaurs after that but here she is in the gift shop...

...arms loaded up with dinos! She settled on just one:

He roars and his eyes light up. Not exactly the toy I thought she'd be loving after being scared by a 3-D t-rex!

She could have spent all day looking at "Sue" in the lobby I think.

Here are some more pictures from the museum:

We stayed at the museum until they were asking people to leave. Time flew! It was dinner time so we went to get some of our favorite pizza at the original Gino's East.

Amelia even had some pizza :)

We Made it to Indiana

2011-01-16T22:02:00.006-06:00

Amelia, Nana, Grandpa and I made it to Indiana late last night. Amelia enjoyed a couple of DVDs in the car:

She had new Thomas and Veggie Tales DVDs she picked out at Target.

We didn't take any pictures (that turned out) today except those of Amelia and her orange lolli she had to celebrate the Bears' win!

Hanging at Target with Amelia

2011-01-13T19:18:00.005-06:00

Amelia had her own agenda at target the other day. After her diaper change she got to stretch her legs a little while we looked for daddy. She did fine until she decided that her legs didn't work in electronics and I had a limp, laughing baby hanging off my arm. I let go and she proceeded to lay down in the middle of the aisle, put her hands behind her head and crossed her legs.

I carried her to another part of the store and she walked a little and then laid down again. Then she saw her daddy and ran to him. She picked out a banana and got herself a few Chiquita stickers. We made it to greeting cards and she laid down one more time while we looked for a card.

Life is never boring with Amelia around!

**I should also clarify - she was not throwing tantrums. She was in a great mood and was laughing the whole trip. She's just a little strange sometimes!

Falling

2011-01-13T19:06:00.004-06:00

It finally happened. Amelia fell/crawled out of her crib for the first time. It happened a few nights ago. I had gone in to remind her that it was bedtime, not playtime, and I tucked her in (again) and left. Not ten minutes later I heard an awful, loud thud followed by a screech.

I found her face down. Screaming and crying. Once I had picked her up she wouldn't let go of me and just clung to me. I brought her to bed with me and offered to let her sleep with me but she didn't want that surprisingly. So, we just hung out together in bed for awhile:

Amelia has been very wild in the evening the past week and a half and I feel that that might be the cause for this accident. She's too wound up in the evening which is probably a result of late naps and sugar intake. So...no more juice for Amelia after naptime, limited fruit-type snacks and also as early of a nap as I can get out of the little lady.

I can't wait until we are in our own space/home and we can transition her bed to a toddler daybed! She's just getting too big and too strong for her crib it seems.

Teeth Pickin'

2011-01-11T20:35:00.002-06:00

Amelia picked up a new habit from her grandpa:

Now that she has some teeth she apparently needs to pick them! She walked around with her toothpick until we took it away so we wouldn't have to watch her like hawks. She is such a little character!

Happy New Christmas Giving Year

2011-01-09T17:58:00.005-06:00

Last night, Amelia, Jason and I had a holiday dinner with our friends Lisa, Al, Marie and Jordan. We weren't sure what exactly we were celebrating but came up with "Happy New Christmas Giving Year." We decided to do this a few months ago while carving pumpkins and yesterday was the first Saturday that no one had conflicts.

We did a full turkey dinner, watched football and played a few games. It was so fun to get a chance to hang out as a group. Amelia recieved a Christmas jumper after the holidays as a gift and this was the perfect chance for her to get to wear it!

I had wanted to get a picture of the seven of us but knew that might not happen so the girls took a picture early on in the evening:

I guess this one has us all in it...you can see the three guys in the background watching football...

We are hoping to make this a yearly tradition!

Pajamas 2010 [in 2011]

2011-01-06T20:20:00.004-06:00

I finally got a picture of Amelia and my mom in their matching pajamas!

These are just two of about a dozen priceless pictures! That last one was just too perfect but it was so washed out and I fixed it as best I knew how with Picasa.

We Have 3 Kids!

2011-01-06T20:14:00.003-06:00

Tonight my life-long friend, Laura, came over for dinner with my family and before she left we snapped a photo of us with our THREE children!

We have come a long way since our Brownies/Girl Scout days!

And yes, Amelia is stark naked at the kitchen table. She is a messy eater on pasta night so I took precautions to keep her new, white outfit from her Auntie Liz presentable!

So Grown Up

2011-01-03T12:00:00.000-06:00

Amelia seems so much older than almost two some days. Dipping her own chips in salsa

and eating them while listening to her g-grandma talk

and washing them down with an diet Mt. Dew

(it was empty of course)

NFL Cheerleader in Training

2011-01-02T19:29:00.006-06:00

Amelia and I cheer for the Chicago Bears.

Except for when she cheers for the Vikings with her daddy. This is all she can say about the Vikings 50th anniversary season:

Amelia, you got that one right! Better luck next year I suppose.

For now, she'll cheer the Bears on in the playoffs and be their little "cheerleader in training."

A Quiet End to 2010

2011-01-01T18:30:00.005-06:00

The last few days of 2010 were very quiet for our family. Nothing too interesting has happened around here. Amelia and I had a quiet New Year's Eve - just the two of us.

We had dinner at Culver's and then hit Target since I noticed at work that day that the Christmas decor went 75% clearance... We stocked up on LED lights for next year at $2.99 a box! Amelia even got a box of pink lights for her room because that girl loves, loves, loves lights!

This morning I got together for lunch, child-free I might add (between us we have 3), with my longest friend at the Olive Garden!

We have been going to OG since high school and it is so fun to get a chance to go there when she is home! Today was a special treat because we actually had a chance to talk without worrying about crayons falling, food flying and all the joys that come with eating out with little ones!

We hope everyone had a great 2010 and we wish them a blessed 2011!

Christmas Day

2010-12-26T18:20:00.007-06:00

Christmas Day we spent time with Jason's family at his sister's house. Amelia wasn't in the best of moods for most of the day and this is pretty much what she looked like all day:

She is cutting more teeth, the gathering got going at her naptime and she's not used to being around more than a few people at a time so we really couldn't blame her for being confused and upset. We put her into a spare room (that we quickly babyproofed) for some quiet time and that helped immensely.

She just chilled out on the bed while the adults and older children opened gifts.

I didn't manage to take many pictures and we remembered family pictures after mostly everyone had left but we got one of us with Jason's mom, sister, Kory and Cashew:

Our little family:

We hope everyone had a Merry Christmas :)

Christmas Eve

2010-12-24T21:30:00.004-06:00

This afternoon, after I got home from work, Jason and I made our way to my parent's house to celebrate Christmas with them. On our way we stopped at the marina to drop in on Jason's mom's side of the family Christmas gathering.

Amelia spent a lot of time eating cookies and "talking" with her Great-Grandpa.

We've had dinner, opened gifts, put the squirt to bed and now are just relaxing.

Merry Christmas, everyone!

Playing Catch-Up

2010-12-22T21:13:00.013-06:00

Today I finally did something I have been trying to do for an entire week now...laundry. In fact, I did this much laundry:

And there is still more going down there! Life just got in the way of doing any laundry this past week. Last Wednesday Amelia and I opted to spend the day with this guy

and his mom and sister at the Mall of America! We had a blast and were glad to spend the afternoon with them!

After that there was work and more work. We also had a bout with a fever:

She finally accepted a little (off-brand) Pedialyte:

After that, she seemed thrilled about life:

(see all her teeth!!!)

Now we are just trying our best to enjoy this week of Christmas and not let ourselves get too stressed.

This little girl helps with that :)

I will end with a better picture of Jason's great Christmas surprise:

I'm still not sure how he managed to pull it off!

Toddler's Choice

2010-12-21T12:00:00.002-06:00

This is what you get when you dress a toddler in everything she brings you. Nana's hat, her coat, mittens and a puppy in a purse. No shoes.

Santa Came Early

2010-12-20T18:18:00.008-06:00

I got home from work this afternoon, went up to our room and found something on the bed. "Santa" came to visit us early this year.

Jason did a little Black Friday shopping this year and got us these personalized Bears and Vikings jerseys online. I had no idea he had been saving his "allowance" (we each get a little cash each pay period for ourselves) for months to get me a gift. I felt awful that he had done it and I hadn't done anything special for him. After I said that a few times he stood up, took his sweatshirt off and said, "don't worry, I got myself one too!"

We're wearing them tonight as we watch the Bears and the Vikings play the first outdoor, professional football game in Minnesota (at the U of M's TCF Bank stadium) in 29 years. In fact, tonight is the 29th anniversary of their last (outdoor) home game at Met Stadium. This is a game that almost bought tickets to earlier this fall but didn't after he lost his job in September. I don't know if we are happy that we aren't at the game or relieved... It is -1 windchill in Minneapolis tonight with yet another winter storm in progress. We are due to get another 6-10 inches this evening (on top of the 17-20 inches we received just over a week ago). I wonder how many people will still want an outdoor stadium in Minnesota after tonight's game...

Another Blizzard

2010-12-11T20:15:00.005-06:00

Today we had our third sever winter storm in WI. This was projected 15-18" and I'd say they were right on this time. It is crazy here! I went to work at 3:30 AM today and the roads were already less than ideal. When I left just after 8 they were only worse. In fact, I got stuck at the end of grandpa's driveway coming home:

I was really stuck. No amount of backing up and gunning it forward made any difference at all. Jason had to get the snowblower going because it was just the only way we were going to get it out.

I felt bad. Grandpa has a long driveway. Really long. We eventually got it out. He dug out grandpa's Jeep so he could drive it to work. He made it out and Amelia and I spent the night snowed-in. She enjoyed the view onto the back patio:

There is so much snow back there right now! I am relieved that grandpa took the dog with him this weekend so we don't have to worry about letting her out in all that!

I have been worried about being snowed-in in the morning because I have to work but then I heard a "beep, beep, beep"...

Someone in a Bobcat came to plow us out! Thank goodness!

Tree Cutting Day!

2010-12-05T14:39:00.024-06:00

Today we went to cut down the Christmas tree for this holiday season! I have never had a real tree so it was very cool to go with to cut down the tree for Jason's sister's house (she is hosting Christmas this year.) We rode out to the trees on a covered wagon

After being dropped off we walked through the woods

Following posted signs

Admiring the beautiful trees

Until we found the tagged lot

We found our tree and Uncle Kory cut it down

He and Auntie Liz pulled it on a tarp back to the wagon

Where they bagged it up...

...and loaded it up on the back of the wagon

and we rode back to the barns where Liz and I warmed up with some hot apple cider

Once our tree was ready Kory carried it to the car

Where he and Jason loaded it up!

It was a nice, crisp, 13-degree day here in northern WI...complete with a light snowfall! It was pretty perfect out!

Napping Buddies

2010-12-02T19:58:00.002-06:00

Ludo has found himself another napping buddy:

Grandpa and him spend a lot of time together on the couch. Until grandpa's lap gets too warm that is :)

Christmas Lights!

2010-12-01T18:59:00.006-06:00

Yesterday we put up Christmas lights at grandpa's house! Jason and I got a pretty good deal on LED lights so we got a bunch and are happy to have them to use in the following years! Grandpa ok'd us putting them up at his house and he even helped us (well, Jason) put them up in the cold:

They look so, so great up! I think we may even get a couple more boxes :) Amelia even has her own twinkle lights in her room which she loves to admire:

Yesterday after her nap it was dark out already and this was her reaction to seeing the lights outside through the windows:

pure joy

Christmas lights are my favorite Christmas decoration and it seems that Amelia is following in my footsteps. I just love how excited she gets when she sees them. Car rides are a whole new ballgame at night now.

It is starting to feel like the Christmas season this week and Jason and I are doing great on our gift shopping. We have a lot of gifts already and a list for the remaining people. Now all we have to do is get the remaining gifts as we can and we are done! For now, we will enjoy seeing Christmas lights each night and remembering the reason for this season.

Welcoming Home Friends!

2010-11-29T22:14:00.010-06:00

Tonight, Jason, Amelia and I went and dropped off some baby gear at our friend's house for her to use while she is home for the holidays! Amelia and J had some fun playing on a box. They made it into a new slide and took turns going down it:

We also got to meet little A!

These two will hopefully play a few more times before they leave in January!

When it was time to go, J walked Amelia all the way to the door. Holding her hand.

It was so, so cute!!!

A Little Holiday Spirit

2010-11-24T18:41:00.006-06:00

Today has been spent getting into the holiday spirit. This morning Jason and his grandpa tried their hand at making the family recipe cranberry relish:

This afternoon my sister and I put up our parent's tree:

We didn't put any ornaments up again this year since Amelia is even more curious this year and Shad (my mom's cat) broke a few ornaments last year! Instead we have the ribbons and six different kinds of candy canes adorning the tree!

Now we are watching A Deep Fried Korean Thanksgiving while Kim wraps gifts and I eat oreos. It's been a pretty good day off!

Pajamas 2010 v. 2.0

2010-11-23T19:42:00.003-06:00

My family really liked mine and Amelia's matching pajamas this year and last year and decided to get in on the fun! Tonight, Amelia and Auntie K are twins:

One more person has matching pajamas with Amelia this year...

Daddy's Lil' Doe

2010-11-21T19:41:00.004-06:00

Jason might not have had luck hunting this weekend but he'll always have his "lil' doe" to come home to!

And who wouldn't love to come home to this:

She's quite the little character!

Family Fun Night

2010-11-20T21:44:00.008-06:00

This evening Amelia and I went with my family to Macy's for their annual 8th floor Christmas display! We have been going each year since, well, forever. This is the third year that they have had the "Day in the Life of an Elf" display so I really didn't take too many pictures.

Amelia's favorite scene was one with dancing animals:

She didn't want to leave this one!

Afterwards we got her picture with Santa again this year and our photographer happened to be someone I was in synchronized swimming with throughout high school - small world! This year's visit with Santa didn't go too well...

(pardon the quality of this picture, it is a picture of a picture taken on my sister's fancy phone)

...she was terrified! Oh well. I think we might try again this holiday season and see what happens the second (maybe even third) time around!

Tonight there was a little birthday celebration for Uncle Kory but I am so beat from working all day before the family fun that I opted out of joining in the fun. I work at 4AM tomorrow so I know they understand! Hopefully they are having a fun (and safe) night out!

**Go HERE to see photos from last year's Macy's

Pajamas 2010

2010-11-19T19:56:00.002-06:00

Amelia and I are staying with my parents for the weekend while Jason deer hunts and we broke out this year's matching pajamas for the occasion!

We went with snowmen this year :) I love being able to wear matching jammies with my little girl! I know in a few more years she might not want to match me because it won't be "cool" so I am enjoying it now!

Check out last year's pajamas HERE.

18-Month Appointment...

2010-11-18T17:45:00.007-06:00

...almost three months late...

Yes, we finally took Amelia in for her "18-month" check-up yesterday even though she will be 21-months old in one week. She was almost 35 inches long and weighed a mere 26.6 pounds! She is long and lean :) She is now caught up on all of her vaccines and looks great! She isn't talking all that much (in English that is) but the doctor wasn't too worried and said that we'd see how things were at two years old and go from there. That was a huge relief to me!

After her appointment we went to luch at Buffalo Wild Wings:

Then we went to the bookstore:

(yes, she plopped herself down in front of the Bibles. What can I say?)

Then we dropped Daddy off to grocery shop for hunting with grandpa and the girls went to Target for a few things. Amelia was so silly while we were there!

She is also at a stage where she refuses to ride in a cart. There is no way she will sit in the seat so I let her walk and she sticks close most of the time!

We spent the evening at home. Jason made chili for the weekend, I attempted to help when I could, Amelia emptied her ball pit all over the living room. It was a pretty typical night for us!