Chronicles of Minnesota

Can You See Me Now??

2010-12-10T19:51:00.004-06:00

My dear, dear Jacob, who's been getting headaches and a hard time seeing the Smart Board in his room*, is now getting glasses! He picked out a pair of Ray Bans; he looks so cute! They'll be ready in a few days. Hopefully this will help some of the issues he's been having. I am frustrated because I brought him to another eye clinic for the last couple years, and they kept telling me "he's nearsighted, but not enough to need glasses". So I thought I'd get a second opinion, and viola! Glasses.

Jacob is quite excited about them...he told me this day is only second in excitement to going to Disney World!

*What a lucky kid to have a Smart Board in his classroom! I want one!: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smart_Board

Hello...lo...lo...lo...???

2009-12-14T14:54:00.005-06:00

Yes, it's been many many moons since I've written anything. Or even checked this page. I realize that if blogging were my job, I'd have gotten fired a long time ago!

So on this cold, snowy December day, as I sit in my dining room, shivering and hacking into my 3rd cup of coffee, trying in vain to get some feeling back into my fingers because I'm so dang sick and tired, I am hoping that everyone is having a Merry and pleasant Holiday season! The boys are SO excited for Santa to come. Though with the bitter cold outside, Jacob's been feeling a bit cooped up and is acting like the Tazmanian Devil hopped up on Pixie Stix!
I swear he's acting like he wants Santa to fill his stocking with coal! Actually, I'm just waiting for him to tell me he doesn't believe in Santa anymore. Makes me kind of sad.

With that, I'm going to say adieu (for now). Time to take more meds and start planning out dinner. Stay warm!

I'm a bad, bad blogger...

2009-04-25T09:20:00.003-05:00

Yeah, it's been over a month since I've written anything. But my heart hasn't really been in it lately. Plus, what would I say: Kids are sick again, I'm sick again, been having to work more lately than I want to, been busy with 2 monthly newsletters, etc, etc. Not too exciting, that.

My little sister has exciting news though; she's moving to Vegas in a week or two (the date keeps changing) with her boyfriend! He's a dealer...of poker, not drugs. :) And he's been hired to deal in the World Series of Poker this summer! I know NOTHING about poker, but this sounds like a huge deal and a huge honor! I'm happy for him.

They are having trouble finding someone to sublet their apartment in Shakopee...the people who were going to just backed out. It's causing my sister lots of stress...so if you know anyone looking for an apt over there, let me know!

I'm also super excited because we're planning a family road trip out East this summer! The more I think about it, the more insane it sounds: 2 boys in a van driving around the country for a couple weeks!! But we're planning on enjoying the hospitality of friends and relatives that we don't see often, and stay with them along the way...my uncle in Ohio, an uncle in Pennsylvania (who has a cabin in the Poconos that we might stay at briefly!), Dave's friend in Virginia... Dave's friend Lary is really the reason we're taking the drive; he's retiring from the Navy after 23 years. (Lary enlisted right after high school, and they've been friends since elementary school.)

I'm nervous about the whole thing, about how to keep the boys entertained for that long, and what to do with the dog during that time...but then I figure that every family has to have at least one long, chaotic family road trip! The boys are at a good age right now; they're still interested in things going on around them (and wouldn't have their noses stuck in a Gameboy when I'd be trying to get them to pose next to some historical marker)....because if we waited a few years, all I'd hear is how lame everything is, and that they need more batteries for their electronics! Good times!!

Dave and I have been talking a lot lately about family trips we both took as kids...Dave and his two sisters were stuffed in the back of a small car on the way to California, and spent most of the drive to New York in the back of a truck (it did have a topper, and a sofa back there). Not exactly....safe. Especially by today's standards. When I was growing up, we drove to Ohio for my uncle's wedding, Pennsylvania to stay with my other uncle, and visited my brother out in Colorado when I was in high school. This is where the memories form! I'll never forget the time my sister barfed on me on a trip to Mexico (we'd flown to Corpus Christi and drove in a TINY convertible to Mexico)! Or having to pose by tumbleweeds during that same trip (yep, my mom is pretty kooky)! Having pictures also by all the historical monuments in PA.

Fun stuff! And I can't deny my kids that same thrill...

Brothers

2009-03-17T22:00:00.002-05:00

This is a 2-part blog today...

Today would have been my brother Eric's 36th birthday. It's hard to believe he's been gone over a decade! And that he was only 25 when he left us. I doubt a day has gone by that I haven't thought of him. Especially on a day like today. Though I tend to have happy memories of him on his birthday...like explaining to the boys at lunch today that he used to get an entire birthday pie all for himself while the rest of us shared another pie. (He wasn't a cake person!) Anyway, I miss him lots. I think about where he would be with his life if he was still around...he'd probably be married, maybe have a couple kids...my boys could have cousins on my side of the family...my parents would have more grandkids... He would have been in my wedding. He would have gotten to meet my kids (and vice versa). I'd have called him today and teased him about being old. There wouldn't be a gaping hole in my parents' lives...

On the other side of the coin...I am so glad my boys have each other! They fight a lot (an awful lot!) but really do love each other. Jacob's trying to be more patient with Henry, and trying to teach him things. Henry adores Jacob, and everything he does tends to revolve around what Jacob would think of it. (Jacob's word has more stock to it than Dave's or mine!) Henry reminds me an awful lot of me, when I was little and tagged around after Eric. Seeing that bond makes me smile. Jacob's also taken it upon himself to help Henry with potty-training (I have a couple of STUBBORN boys, and it's been a battle!), by sitting in the bathroom with him and reading him stories. It's so incredibly sweet I get all choked up.

Brothers are special; I'm glad I had mine growing up...and I'm glad Jacob and Henry have each other.

I'm Not Dead Yet!

2009-03-13T10:18:00.003-05:00

(Monty Python reference, for anyone who's wondering.)

All joking aside, I've been feeling more or less terrible the last few weeks. I blame my thyroid. It shut down and has screwed up everything else. And that's why I haven't written in awhile. Just wasn't worth the effort. But...there may be one or two people who periodically check this still, so I wanted to say hi. :)

The kids have been busy, Jacob especially with school and Cub Scouts. They're getting ready to participate in the Pinewood Derby next week, which should be fun to watch! Henry gets to race in the Siblings group, so both boys have been working hard to get their cars ready.

Jacob's also been sick quite a bit this winter! It seems like whatever's been going around, he's had it. I've been working a lot lately (sick coworkers), and Dave's been busy working on the new Cub Scouts webpage.

That's been our life in a nutshell!

cough, cough, sneeze, wheeze...

2009-02-05T14:05:00.005-06:00

Wow, I haven't written on here in awhile... My Facebook obsession is in full-force, and sadly, nothing else compares anymore. Besides, what would I write about on my blog: "Spent 4 hours today mindlessly playing on Facebook, in between feeding Henry lunch and picking Jacob up from school."

Yep, not very exciting.

But now I have something to talk about! Dave just got back from New York City last night. And I've come to the conclusion that, whenever Dave goes somewhere, someone gets sick. Last time he was gone, Jacob projectile-vomited all over himself, his bed, and the wall (several times). This times it's less dramatic, but still tiring. Jacob's missed 3 days of school in the last 6. Hacking cough/wheeze, sneezing (complete with snot running down to his chin), fever, and now a middle-ear infection! Poor kid. We have him so drugged up that Michael Phelps would be envious! (That was out of line, I know, but I couldn't resist!)

My parents want to bring the boys to their cabin this weekend, and I am just hoping that Jacob's health improves so that he's able to go! That would be a crushing disappointment if he couldn't go...not to mention that Dave and I have plans to go to a movie!! (Has anyone heard any reviews on "New In Town"? I really want to see that one!)

Brrrr.....

2009-01-15T09:50:00.003-06:00

'Nuff said...

Addicted!

2009-01-12T12:30:00.004-06:00

So now I've got something else to join my addictions to coffee, Cherry Coke, Chipotle chicken burritos, and Cold Stone Creamery's Cake Batter ice cream (I wonder why most of my addictions start with a "C"): Facebook! I just joined a few days ago, and am already addicted! The first day I spent over 3 hours on the damn computer! Today it's been over an hour already... It's just so much fun reconnecting with old friends, finding people I currently know, and finding out what everyone's up to! I moved around a few times as a kid, and have reconnected with some old friends from elementary school even!! How cool is that?!?

Christmas

2009-01-06T09:48:00.010-06:00

So...I haven't fallen off the face of the earth. It feels that way though.

A couple days before Christmas, we drove to a Park 'n Ride and rode the "black and yellow" train to Minneapolis (which in itself is a huge treat for the boys!). We wandered through the stores and skyways and ended up at the Macy's Holiday Display. This year it was "A Day in the Life of an Elf" (or something like that). It was pretty cute!

The kids had a great Christmas! We visited with Dave's side on Christmas Eve, and my side on Christmas Day (and spent the evening and morning with just our little family.) The boys got a bunch of toys (too many, of course!)...they both got what they asked Santa for though; Jacob asked him for Ratchet and Henry asked for "a lot of storm stroopers" (troopers). So, yay, Santa delivered!

My dad gave them both a pair of snowshoes, which they had a ton of fun trying out! We got to see family and eat tons of food. It was a really nice time! Dave took the last 2 weeks of December/beginning of January off of work (vacation days to use or lose), so the 4 of us had lots of time together. Now everything is back to normal, with school and work.

My poor Dad, though! He threw his back out somehow, and has barely been able to walk for a week! He had to go to the ER this morning (by ambulance since my mom couldn't get him to the car) where they treated him with Vicoden and muscle relaxers. I really hope he feels better soon...

I didn't want to have to go to work anyway...

2008-12-15T23:23:00.008-06:00

I know I haven't written in awhile. It's been a week, that's for sure! Ugh.

Dave went to New York for a couple days, which is always tough on the boys. He got home and things got back to normal, and then last Thursday I started having a burning pain in my chest, my arm was numb (left of course!), and I was feeling lightheaded and dizzy! I first called my coworker to see if she could cover my shift (which she did), and then called the nurse line and described my symptoms. She wanted me to call an ambulance right away, but, while I was worried about what was going on, I knew (or at least I thought I knew) that I wasn't going to pass out or anything in the next half hour. I didn't want to freak out the kids, for one thing, while I waited for Dave to come home. (He was the 3rd phone call I made.)

He got home, and we all got bundled up and they brought me to the ER. Dave and the boys parked in the ramp while I checked in, the nurses took my vitals, and I waited... I urged Dave to bring the boys to the cafeteria to get some dinner, and I waited some more. They took me in to have an EKG done, which thankfully was normal (and so they didn't have to bring me back right away), so I waited, and waited, and waited, and waited... After the boys ate I sent them home. Which was a good thing, because I ended up being there 6 hours! Most of that time (probably 4 hours) was spent in the waiting room, in a very uncomfortable chair, with what felt like cold air blowing on me, stuck watching Survivor! Talk about a crappy way to spend a Thursday night. They finally brought me back and ran some tests. I had a chest X Ray, another EKG, and bloodwork done.

Thankfully, my heart seems to be fine. (The doctor was 99.9% sure of that.)

The arm tingling/numbness looks like it's due to inflamed nerves in my neck (bad posture while typing on the computer, basically!), and the burning pain in my chest, which I thought was my heart, was either from stress, or I'm possibly getting an ulcer. There are other ideas, which I need to follow up with my doctor to check on. And the lightheartedness is due to the fact that I'm a bit anemic.

So, while it's really weird and freaky that all those symptoms happened at the same time, I'm just so relieved it's not more serious!! I'm really working on keeping myself as relaxed as possible. Easier said than done with my two active, competitive, vocal, competitive (did I say that already?) boys!!

Funny things...

2008-12-03T09:44:00.002-06:00

...my kids have said recently:

Reasons Henry's given recently for not wanting to eat his vegetables: he has a headache, and my favorite, his fingernails are growing too long! (Which is extra funny because he bites them all off!)

And the other day Dave and the boys were going on a walk. Dave mentioned that we're thinking of replacing our (old/dirty/white) siding with siding that's pale yellow. Jacob immediately started freaking out, telling Dave that all his friends would laugh at him if his house were yellow. (For some reason, he thinks yellow is a "girl" color!)

It's all about the glamor...

2008-12-02T15:53:00.008-06:00

For anyone who doesn't think parenthood is glamorous...

(Warning!! This graphic cry for help may actually invoke feelings of nausea!)

Twice in as many weeks, I've had to clean up various bodily fluids in amounts rarely seen in someone so small. Both times, I encountered serious feelings of helplessness. I stared in shock for a split-second, not knowing where, or how, to begin the massive cleanup. Then, both times, I realized that I just had to roll up my sleeves (literally) and start wiping...

A couple weeks ago, Jacob projectile-vomited up his macaroni and cheese while he was asleep. You just haven't lived until you've had to scrape dried up, partially digested macaroni off the wall...as well as try to clean up his zoo-full of stuffed animals he sleeps with.

Then this afternoon, poor Henry had what can only be described as projectile-diarrhea! The amount of crap running down his legs, and on me before I realized the full extent of the problem, was mind-boggling! Thankfully, about 20 wipes and a sudsy shower alleviated the problem.

I can't wait to see what'll happen next!!

Thanksgiving Weekend

2008-12-01T14:48:00.005-06:00

Well, we've all been taking turns being ill with different versions of flus, colds, etc. Not too pleasant around here for awhile!! The boys are still having some tummy issues and Dave's nose is running like a faucet, but all in all we're much improved.

Thanksgiving was fun! We had a big, huge turkey lunch with all the fixins with my parents and aunt (my sister and her boyfriend came in time for pie), and then went to Dave's sister's house and had a big, huge turkey dinner with all the fixins there! It was nice seeing my nieces and nephew, since we haven't in so long! All the cousins played really well together. Here are Josh, Jacob, Henry, and Isabel: I love this picture of Henry and Isabel too:
Friday morning I got up at 5 AM and went shopping. Got home by 11:00 or so, with a vanful of presents (and I really scaled it back this year compared to others!). Saturday I had to work all day, and Sunday we put the tree up. I'm also going through pretty much everything we own (at least it feels that way!) and deciding what we want to keep out, what we need to store, and what we're going to either sell or give to Goodwill. It's obviously a work in progress. But it makes me feel good that I'm slowly getting it done, since I don't think we could fit any more stuff in our house!! And with Christmas just a few weeks away, that isn't good. So wish me luck on that!!

Coldplay!

2008-11-15T01:09:00.027-06:00

First, let me preface by saying that Jacob is feeling MUCH better (see previous post for our ordeal)! He spent the day napping and resting and over the course of the afternoon became his normal, rambunctious, spastic self. :) If he had still been sick, Dave and I of course wouldn't have gone to the concert....or I would have gone without Dave... ;)

I have been very fortunate this year! I've gotten to go to 3 concerts (R.E.M. in June, New Kids on the Block in October, and now Coldplay last night!) and I even got to go to the theater this summer (Spamalot)! That's not normal...usually I'm lucky if Dave and I get to go to a movie or two (just ourselves) over the course of an entire year...

So, with Jacob feeling 100x better, and our friend Shannon (who is more like family anyway) saying she was still happy to come over and babysit, even after Jacob's rough night, we decided to go to the concert. After the long week both Dave and I had, I'm glad we were able to connect and do something fun!

We arrived at the Xcel a little after 8:00. And, unfortunately, we were subjected to a good half hour of the oddest, trippiest opening act I've ever seen! It was one guy, a keyboard, and a running video of cartoon objects morphing into each other. It went on and on and on... When he was done, I clapped with relief!

Coldplay didn't actually take the stage until about 9:00. They were worth the wait though! It was a fantastic concert!! They didn't play my very favorite Coldplay song (Don't Panic) but since it's an older song, I didn't really expect them to. They played Viva La Vida, which sounded awesome live! I actually got shivers listening to it. They played a ton more from their new album (which, if you've never listened to it, you really should!) and a bunch from their Rush of Blood to the Head album (Clocks sounded fantastic! And I loved hearing Politik live better than on the album--seeing drummer Will Champion--who has the "voice of a tiny angel", according to Chris Martin--pound out that beat was incredible!! But I wasn't a fan of the techno version of God Put a Smile on your Face that they performed, as much as the album version). I actually knew every song they played, which I think is a first for me!

One thing I really liked was how much they tried to connect with the audience. At one point, they strolled through the crowd, up the side near the back, and onto a tiny little stage right in the middle of the crowd! They played an acoustic version of The Scientist, which sounded great! And Chris joked that the kids behind them were the Jonas brothers (which one girl behind us took literally!), and that they made him feel like he was 107 years old!

And what I thought was tons of confetti pouring down from the ceiling was actually tissue-paper butterflies. It made quite a beautiful effect!

Their encour was the song Yellow, and it was a good way to end. Thanks again, Shannon, for babysitting!! We had a fantastic time!

Oh what a week!

2008-11-14T10:09:00.008-06:00

Dave's safely back on Minnesota soil, so now I can talk about my week.

We all got up early on Monday morning and brought him to their airport for his flight to Hartford. The boys were really crabby all day, but I did get to have coffee with my friend Missi, who I hadn't seen in a long time, so that was really nice!

Tuesday morning we brought little 4-year-old Bella her belated birthday present. Henry got to play with her, and I got to chat with her mom (someone else I haven't seen in ages!), and smile at her adorable baby. That evening Jacob had a Cub Scouts meeting; I'm so glad that he's enjoying Scouts so much! I did also find out, unfortunately, that the mom of the girls I babysit just got laid off from her job (so in a nutshell I was laid off too). I hope she finds something soon!

On Wednesday, before preschool, Henry and I went to a planning meeting for my mom's group. (I'm an assistant organizer--at least, I am for the next 16 days or so! Someone else is going to take over after that; it'll be nice to have 1 less responsibility for awhile.) Henry had a great time playing with the other kids and eating coffee cake. Then we jumped in the van and drove him to school. I picked the boys up early (around 2:00) that day because they had flu shot appointments. I took the latest time they had available that day. Jacob had a rough time!! (I remember last year, he got away from me and ran through the clinic shouting "Don't hurt me!") But this year, he locked himself in the bathroom and refused to open the door! One of the nurses gave me a key to get him out. It took me several minutes to get him up on the exam table and able to have the nurse give him the shot. And with Henry, I was holding him on my lap, and his arm got loose and grabbed the needle! He ended up scraping his leg with it! After that whole ordeal, I was ready for a nap/sedative/mojito/lobotomy... We went over to my parents' house and I helped a very crabby, unwilling, angry 1st grader with his homework. (Or at least tried to!) My parents made spaghetti and "neatballs" (according to Henry), my sister and her boyfriend Adam drove down as well, and we all had dinner together! It turned out to be a really nice evening (which was a relief after the traumatic afternoon)!

Thursday, after Jacob went to school, Henry and I took it easy. We watched movies and just hung out. I was exhausted and really couldn't handle anything more than that! After school Jacob and I worked on his homework, and I decided to make macaroni and cheese for dinner, plus cookies for dessert. Jacob was really hungry and ate 5 bowls! I put the boys to bed, did a little laundry, and then settled in to watch ER. I just got to Anthony Edwards' cameo, when I heard Jacob cry out. I ran in his room, to discover that he had thrown up in his sleep! It was all over him, his bed, his stuffed animals, the wall... I've never seen such a mess! I managed to get him into the shower and all cleaned up, then in clean clothes and on the couch (which I draped with towels and blankets). He fell asleep and I worked on cleaning up his bed and wall. Ick!! I think it's going to be a LONG time before I eat macaroni and cheese again! I was walking by him later when he rolled over (pulling all the blankets down off the couch) and threw up again! ALL over himself and the (now unprotected) couch! So he got another shower, and I got more laundry to do, and more surfaces to scrub! Poor Jacob threw up a few more times (but now thankfully in his bucket) and he and I stayed up and read* until 1:00 AM. In spite of him feeling so miserable, it was a nice bonding time for the two of us.

I got him all settled in the living room and he was out for the rest of the night. I slept on the couch to be near him. Henry, who had slept through the whole ordeal and had a great night's sleep, was up bright and early!

Dave just walked in the door, so I'm going to end this long post now... Dave and I had plans to go to the Coldplay concert tonight. Obviously that's probably not going to happen now... Oh well. Such is the life of a parent!

*I'm working on reading him the entire Little House on the Prairie series. We just finished up with the 3rd book last night.

President "Rock" Obama

2008-11-05T09:03:00.010-06:00

I love Jacob's interpretation of Barrack Obama's name so much, I'm going to keep using it (see previous post).

Well, it was a super late night for me, and therefore, a tough morning this morning. I was up until probably 1 AM watching all the news coverage.

I watched McCain's concession speech as it happened, and I gotta say, it was moving, eloquent, and actually brought tears to my eyes. He showed tremendous grace in what must have been a very difficult moment. So kudos for him, for ending his Presidential-hopeful career on such a classy note. I really hope that he and Barrack Obama work together in the future; I think that would be the best for this country that is so far divided.

Watching Obama's acceptance speech brought different feelings....ones of pride, hope for the future, and a good reminder that this is all our country, and we have a responsibility to stand united, and to work together! He is such an eloquent speaker, so humble but full of passion! I cried while watching him speak last night (and again this morning--thank goodness for TiVo!)....and I laughed out loud over the line that his daughters deserved the new puppy that's joining them at the White House! I know people who are fearful that he's our President. Honestly, I don't understand why. He's a family man, a Christian. Just listening to him speak you can tell he wants what's best for our country!

Here's hoping he has a fruitful 4 (8?) years. He has a tough road ahead of him (as would McCain if he had won), and I really hope people put aside their differences and come together in the name of democracy.

Diplomacy

2008-11-04T09:16:00.012-06:00

Hope everyone's either voted or is making plans to go later! Dave and I took the boys this morning, before school. They each got to put our ballots in the machine and got "I Voted" stickers for their help.

Jacob's been having a lot of questions about the voting process, and Dave and I have been explaining it to him, unbiasedly. Jacob first thought he wanted to vote for "Rock" Obama because, well, that is a cool name! But then he decided he wanted to vote for John McCain, because he likes the name John (and he LOVES any and all music by John Williams! Need to have one of the Star Wars, Indiana Jones, or Harry Potter theme songs hummed to you?? Just ask one of my kids!)

So back to voting this morning... Jacob and Henry went back and forth to the booths where Dave and I were voting. Jacob was whispering to me that he decided that Rock Obama and John McCain should both win, and share being president!

Photo from CNN.com

Maybe there should be more 7-year-olds deciding these things!

Halloween

2008-11-02T15:38:00.009-06:00

The kids had a blast this Halloween! I am so happy the weather was so decent (Henry's first 4 Halloweens--on his first, he was only a week old!--were all really cold)! But the temp was in the high 50s during most of the trick or treating.

We went to a neighborhood-type block party first, and then trick or treating up and down our block. Then it was back home where we had the pumpkin-shaped pizza from Papa Murphy's, watched It's The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown, and passed out candy for a good 2 more hours.

Here's the dynamic duo in action:

Have I mentioned Halloween is my favorite holiday??

Party Hardy

2008-10-27T11:25:00.019-05:00

Henry's birthday was on Friday, and we went down to my parents' house for a birthday dinner. We had cheese pizza (Henry's "best favorite" food), and chocolate birthday cake that the boys decorated with sprinkles.

Saturday we went over to Fury Motors who was having various (free) Halloween activities. The boys came in costume (Henry was Thomas the Tank Engine, Jacob was a fireman), had their faces painted and got a free pumpkin. The weather was perfect for outside activities!

On Sunday we had a small birthday party for Henry. It was snowing(!) and the wind was blustery, but it was a good day for an indoor party. Some of Henry's friends and one of his cousins came to celebrate with him.

Henry chatting with his "girlfriend" Megan, while the other kids decorated their gift bags:

The kids playing "Pin the Nose on the Pumpkin". (Thanks, Aunt Nikki, for the use of your scarf to make a blindfold! And didn't Dave do a great job on the pumpkin?):

Not sure what he thinks of all the attention (he really did have a great time):

The boys hamming it up with Auntie Kara:

It was 4 years ago today...

2008-10-24T14:48:00.004-05:00

...that Henry was born!

I remember that day pretty clearly. Since I'd had a c-section with Jacob, I was going to attempt a VBAC with Henry. As such, I had to switch doctors and clinics, since the hospital my doctor was at wouldn't be able to have a team ready for an emergency c-section, and my doctor doesn't have privileges at other hospitals. That was unfortunate, since I'm really comfortable with my own doctor.

So Sunday, October 24, 2004, I woke up feeling crampy. A lot of pressure that came and went pretty consistently every 10 minutes or so. It was a relief, since, because of Jacob's rough start I was considered high risk, and I'd had quite a few appointments and ultrasounds (and again, NEVER got a clear shot on the gender!! Sheesh!), Henry was a full week overdue, and my new doctor said she was going to induce me that Tuesday. Luckily Henry beat her to the punch. I waited around the house for a couple hours, and the contractions started coming every 5 minutes. Dave called our good friend Shannon (who is more like a member of the family than just a friend) and asked her what she was doing... She said, "I'll be right over!" Since she lived in the next town, it took her no time at all to get to our house and watch Jacob. I called my parents and they were able to drive up to get Jacob, but it took them quite a bit longer to head up.

Once we got to the hospital, they had me in a little room to check and see if I was "really" in labor--apparently they'd had to turn away a handful of women that day, and were excited I could actually stay! I got moved to the labor/delivery room and spent the next 10 hours or so there. I'd been all worried about having a room with a shower, and I didn't even use it! My Norah Jones CD helped relax me, and I took walks, and bounced on the big ball for hours. It speeded things along well. Towards evening they gave me an epidural, but it didn't take completely. That was terrible!! It was like the full force of the contractions all got poinpointed to one small area on the right side of my abdomin. Excrutiating, actually!

Eventually, through my pain-fogged head, I realized something was wrong. Like his big brother, Henry's heartrate dropped when I was having contractions. My doctor consulted with another, and it took them awhile to decide what to do. And of course, I found that I got a little relief from the contractions laying on my right side, but when I layed on my left (which made the pain worse!), Henry's heartrate did better.

I ended up getting wheeled into surgery, and had another C-section. Which, once I found out my little bundle of joy was 9 lbs, 14 oz, I was fine with that decision!! :)

We had a long hospital stay; Jacob spent the first night with my parents but became very homesick, so the following 3 nights (I had to stay an extra day because I developed a fever) he stayed in the room with us; the boys slept in a reclining chair and Henry slept in the bassinett next to me. A little cramped and chaotic, but it worked. Jacob was really well behaved, considering.

It seemed like forever before we got to go home, though it was considerably less time than Jacob had spent in the hospital! Right after we got home (where we found hot food on our front step from my in-laws!) Jacob asked if Henry was going back to the hospital...

Yep, I knew I was in trouble then...

My boys are growing up so big and strong and smart and funny and are just amazing kids!! I am the luckiest mom in the world!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, HENRY!!!

I (heart) Donnie!!

2008-10-22T00:29:00.018-05:00

Dani, you ROCK, girl!!

My good friend Dani won tickets to tonight's New Kids on the Block concert. She said when she won them, she immediately thought of me, and I am so glad she did! Back around 1990, we were a couple of geeky middleschoolers/love-struck teenagers. We had the NKOTB bug BAD! As did most of our friends. Most of them also got to go to the concert the summer after 7th grade (a group of them got to go up to the Target Center in a limo)! Not me though. And not Dani. I was mad at my mom about that for a very long time!

Now finally....it was our turn! And man oh man, was it fun!! And we had better seats than we'd thought we would! The tickets Dani won were in Section 209, which is about as far away from the stage as you can get--though, to be fair, at the Xcel, there really isn't a "bad" seat in the place! Anyway, after we got there, we went up, up, up the escalator, and tried to figure out where the heck we were supposed to go. An usher was helping us and actually gave us tickets to sit on the Club level! We were just up the side from the stage, super close to the big video monitor! What a nice surprise.

Back to the concert... The "Kids" were a very well-choreographed, crotch-grabbing group (seriously, at least 3 seperate times). They were energetic and loud, but I underestimated the noise level of 13,000+ screaming women! I swear the 2 women behind us broke the sound barrier a few times with their shreiking! I'm honestly a little nervous about trying to answer the phone at work Wednesday evening, but Dani suggested we just "call in deaf"!

It really was a fun, fun evening! Natasha Bedingfield did a great job as opening act as well...I really like her song "Unwritten".

The guys in the group definitely have a sense of humor. At one point, Joey McIntyre said the difference between today's concert and a concert 15 years ago is that, 15 years ago, girls in the audience wouldn't be drinking beer. And that with all the pregnant women in the audience, they needed to double the attendance number. And Donnie Wahlberg said that the handful of men in the audience were the smartest men on the planet. And that their wives/girlfriends need to give them a little somethin'-somethin' tonight (not going to describe the gestures he made).... He did offer up their band for the rest of us though... Hmmm...

Haircut

2008-10-21T09:57:00.005-05:00

I took Henry to get his hair cut yesterday before preschool. It was long overdue, but I tend to put it off as long as possible, since he's never reacted well to getting one before! His birthday is on Friday, and I wanted it cut before then...and Henry did great! No crying or sobbing or screaming this time around. My little guy is growing up!! And look at what a big boy he's becoming! He's no longer my little chubby-cheeked little toddler...

2 AM & Crabby. part 2...

2008-10-19T10:54:00.004-05:00

Just a little update. I worked about 9 hours yesterday, and thankfully, I was mistaken by some of the new changes made. That first night I assumed I'd have to go through an entire day of credit card receipts and checks and enter them on each fee slip (we used to have to write down that info), but now my understanding is that I made WAY more work for myself last week. It actually went pretty smoothly yesterday. What a relief!

I think the main reason I've been so crabby is that I just haven't been sleeping well lately. Early in the summer, I tore a ligament in my right foot. That's healed, but the foot muscle is still all wonky, and I've been getting very painful leg cramps during the night. Now I'm so worried about those that every time my leg muscle tightens up (which happens several times a night), I wake up and straighten it out, making sure to point my toes upward. It's exhausting! And stupid. But I can't remember the last time I had a good night's sleep. So yeah, I'm a little crabby. :) But at least work is going better. (It really is hard to feel positive when it's 2 in the morning.)

Baby...It's 2 AM, I must be crabby.

2008-10-17T01:59:00.002-05:00

Matchbox 20 ripoffs aside, it's 2 in the morning, I can't sleep, my husband is snoring like a rusty jackhammer, I had a crappy evening at work, and I'm freezing cold because we haven't turned the furnace on yet. Yup, doing well.

I'm all stressed out about my job. I liked it, for the most part. It's interesting and challenging, and I thrive in that kind of environment. However, changes keep getting made by the powers that be, which do nothing but add stress and more work to my already hectic evenings. I feel like the part-timers are understaffed and overextended, and nobody's really listening to any of my (our) concerns. It's beyond frustrating! There's a reason, I guess, that the front desk person with the most seniority has been there a little over a year.

Anyway. So I'm anxious and frustrated and a bit enraged about that! Wondering if I should stick it out or look for something else. With this job market, who knows what I would find?? We're really liking the extra paychecks every month, and I love feeling like I'm contributing to our household. I really do think Dave is cherishing the special daddy/sons time he gets when I'm at work. And I like the extra adult conversation. It's a win-win all around for us....now if I could just get over the feeling that they're trying to screw me over.

No wonder I can't sleep!

Fall!

2008-10-15T10:47:00.007-05:00

I LOVE fall! Everything about it: the leaves, the crisp weather, hot cider, pumpkin pie, and Halloween!

The boys spent a couple hours yesterday sweeping leaves off the sidewalk and raking leaves into piles and cannonballing into them.

They also had fun throwing leaves at each other.

Even Odie got into the fun!

Happy Anniversary!

2008-10-14T10:45:00.008-05:00

Last Tuesday was Dave's and my 8-year anniversary! I was actually really crabby that day though...bank issues we had to deal with, rainy/gloomy weather, and PTA and Cub Scout meetings that evening.

My friend Amy volunteered to feed my kids dinner so Dave and I could go out to eat. As I said, I was really crabby, but being able to have an uninterrupted conversation with Dave helped lift my mood. As did the beautiful rainbow that greeted us after we left the restaurant! (The picture really doesn't do it justice!)

I was feeling too tired to run to the PTA meeting, so we got the boys from Amy's house and arrived late at the Cub Scout meeting. Then it was home, get the kids to bed, and veg on the couch. Pretty much business as usual, but dinner sans kids was nice!

Picture from the big day, 10/7/2000!

Saturday

2008-10-04T20:49:00.005-05:00

So... our Saturday. I'm glad it's pretty much over. My mom took the boys to the Children's Theatre Company where they saw a production of Madeleine. It's sort of becoming a Grandma/Grandsons tradition, which Dave and I think is great! It's such a fun way to introduce them to theater.

Since Dave and I knew they'd be well taken care of for a good couple hours, we decided to go see a movie. We hadn't been able to see one together all summer, so it was a treat! We saw Eagle Eye, and I thought it was really good. While occasionally a bit over the top, it does make you think about who might be listening in to your phone conversations, etc. I also really like Shia LaBeouf with facial hair! It was a good way to spend an afternoon.

After the movie, I dropped Dave off at home to wait for the boys, and ran to work to get my check. When I was just about pulling into the parking lot, Dave called. My mom had a flat tire and she and the boys were stranded on the highway! I ran in and grabbed my check, sped back to pick up Dave, and met my mom on the side of the very fast road. Dave offered to change the tire, but my mom had already called the 24-hour roadside assistance number. None of us felt safe with having the boys waiting along the highway, so Dave took them and I waited with my mom. After about 20 minutes, Drew showed up and changed the tire. He was really nice and friendly, and gave us a lot of tire-changing tips. It turns out my mom's spare was really flat, so we had to drive to a gas station and fill it with air. Dave and the boys met us there and then my mom took us all out for dinner.

She's on her way home right now; thankfully she doesn't have very far to go. I told her to call us if she ended up along the side of the road again... So far we haven't heard from her.

Birthdays!

2008-10-02T09:12:00.011-05:00

Yesterday was my birthday! And aside from going in for an hour in the morning for a meeting, Dave took the whole day off. We went out for birthday coffee, had lunch at Jimmy Johns, and got to go to Target and meaner the isles while both boys were at school. Nice and relaxing! At dinner time, I went out to eat at Baja Sol with my family and a few friends. It was great seeing them! Thanks everyone for making my day so special!

(Bad picture of) Me with Melanie and her beautiful little girl!

The far end of the table (Henry, Megan, Don, Chris, Katie, Jacob, Shannon, and "Phil's" arm).

After we got home, the boys decorated my birthday cake with lots and lots of sprinkles, and sang Happy Birthday to me. What a great day!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A couple weeks ago, we were invited to Jacob's friend Noah's birthday party. It was at a bowling alley, and was the first time Henry had ever gone bowling (and the first time for Jacob since before Henry was born)! They all had a great time, and the kids were SO cute!!

Jacob looking like he's about to drop-kick the bowling ball!

Henry perfecting his technique.

Love this picture - Oh, the suspense!

Sickly

2008-09-28T22:04:00.003-05:00

Henry, Dave, and I are all sick. And we all seem to have something different. Henry's got the "green snot hanging down to his bellybutton" virus, I have the "my face is going to explode from all the sinus/ear/throat pain, and when I cough I swear I'm about to lose a lung" condition, and Dave has a "cough and sneeze, sometimes at the same time" episode.

As a result, we've been laying around a lot, and watching a lot of TV. Henry was watching qubo on Friday, and they had a commercial on for some weight training device that you hang onto a doorway. I came into the room and Henry told me I should "be strong and get ripped, Mommy!" It was really hard not laughing at that one!

Dave also asked Henry how he was feeling the other day, and he told him that his nose was "snuffy". Gotta love 3-year-olds!!

Under pressure...

2008-09-24T10:10:00.007-05:00

And yes, it's all from my own doing.

School for the kids started barely 3 weeks ago, and already I'm ready for a break! I take on too much, not always realizing the time constraints involved. The problem is, I (usually) like everything I'm doing and don't want to give it up.

I'm working 2 evenings/week (and every other Saturday). I co-write/edit the kids' school PTA newsletter every month. I started (and co-write) a PTA blog. I'm helping organize Family Fun Night at their school, and want to help with the yearbook. I'm an assistant organizer in my SAHM group (which I actually haven't had to do any work on for a couple months now). I try to volunteer in my kids classrooms when I can. And Jacob just signed up for Cub Scouts this week, and they're looking for Den Leaders. I'm NOT thinking that will be me. At least not this year... Maybe next?? In addition, I bring Jacob to and from school every day, and Henry to and from preschool twice/week. On Wednesdays after school I watch a friend's two girls, and periodically, a couple friends and I swap kids for a few hours. And I'm trying to (with my sister's help) plan a "late" surprise Anniversary party for my parents next month.

No wonder I feel like I need a vacation! Henry's been begging me to go to Florida again (he got bit by the Disney bug!); we're actually considering doing that in April. I can't wait myself!

For now, I just need to pace myself. One dropped-ball, partially complete, half-assed project at a time!

More silly name stuff...

2008-09-23T13:57:00.004-05:00

Because I apparently can't resist a silly "what would your name be" game...

Stephanie, if you were born to Sarah Palin, your name would be:

Plop Hero Palin

Who knows, Plop Hero Palin you just might be president one day!

Pirates Ahoy!

2008-09-19T21:26:00.005-05:00

According to Clare, today is/was Talk Like a Pirate Day. I'm bummed I missed it... I spent the day helping at a friend's garage sale, and I'm sure that yelling "Ahoy, matey" and spearing people with swords would have helped sales...

But I digress.

I LOVE my new name; very catchy! What's yours?

My pirate name is:

Red Ethel Cash

Passion is a big part of your life, which makes sense for a pirate. You're musical, and you've got a certain style if not flair. You'll do just fine. Arr!

Get your own pirate name from piratequiz.com.
part of the fidius.org network

Anniversaries

2008-09-16T09:02:00.011-05:00

This past weekend we went up to my parents' cabin in Wisconsin. My parents and sister were there as well.

It was actually a pretty bittersweet weekend: Sunday was my parents 40th wedding anniversary (the happy/sweet part), and Saturday was the 10 year anniversary of the day my brother passed away (definitely the bitter part). September 13th is always a tough day for us...I can't believe it's been 10 years though! I kept thinking that Eric should be here with us, celebrating Mom and Dad's anniversary...

Anyway, the boys being there was a great help (both as a mood-lifter & distraction). The weather was oddly appropriate; it pretty much rained all weekend! In between rain showers, however, Jacob and Henry built a cool little fort in the woods right next to the cabin (with Grandpa's help). Everyone was cold, soaked, and muddy when they finally came in, but they had a great time!

(Dave and I both commented that the fort, while really cool, looks a little Blair Witch Project-esque.)

Kara spent the evening typing on her computer...I don't have many pictures of her with the boys so I wanted to make sure I got a couple! I thought this one turned out really well!
My parents were given a bottle of Dom Pérignon from a friend, and toasted their anniversary in style! (I think that was the most expensive alcohol I've ever tasted!) In addition to pictures of them together with that champagne, I got them to get a family picture with the boys (and Odie, who jumped up on Dad's lap of course):
By the end of the evening, everyone was tuckered out!

I have a preschooler!

2008-09-10T15:59:00.010-05:00

Henry started preschool this week! All along, I figured that since I've done these "first days" with Jacob many times, I would be ok. But Henry was SO excited and looked so grown up on me, that I got pretty weepy.

We picked Daddy up on the way so he could help bring Henry to school. This is one of my favorite pictures, ever! He just looks so small with his big backpack, on his way to his big school!
He showed us how to open his locker and put in his backpack and jacket. Here he is pointing to his name (H for Henry).
His friend Megan is in his class too, so that is much cause for celebration!
As soon as his teacher opened the door, Henry ran on in (without checking to see if we were following!), checked out the art easel, and then sat down next to Megan and played with Play-Doh.

A short 2 hours later, he was telling me all about the songs they sang, stories they heard, snack they ate... I am quite proud of him and know this is going to be a terrific step towards independence!

1st Day of 1st Grade!

2008-09-02T09:35:00.007-05:00

Well, it's official. I have a first-grader! My child has a desk that he will sit at every day and put all his school supplies in. I had a difficult time dealing with that concept over the summer, but this morning I was remarkably composed...

...though probably just excited for the prospect of having several hours argument-free!

We'd spent the long weekend enjoying BBQs at two different friends' houses, and lots of time playing outside. The boys had showers last night, and got to bed right on time.

Between the boys and the dog, this morning was a flurry of activity. Jacob was ready well before we had to leave so he got to watch a little TV, and was excited that the new show Martha Speaks was on. Dave had gone in to work for a couple hours, but came back in time to bring Jacob to school on his first day (that's one of our traditions).

Jacob still looks so small here...but check out his new shoes!

We saw Katie and (Henry's "girlfriend") Megan outside the school and waited with them for the bell to ring. Christine (their mom) and I were laughing about the kids keeping as far apart from each other as possible!

Showing off his locker and his new backpack (and his unfortunately-placed mosquito bite):
Have a great day, sweetie!!

Lake Elmo Park Reserve

2008-09-01T11:18:00.008-05:00

Last Monday we went to the beach one last time before school starts. (Since I'm apparently a week behind on blogging, next week I'll let you know how the first day of school went!)

Anyway. It was a hot, sunny day. We drove to Lake Elmo and met Alicia and her kids, and Missi and her son there. The kids all had fun splashing in the lake and playing in the sand. And even though they don't get to see each other very often (hint, hint) they seemed to pick up right where they left off last time and played well with each other--even Natalie, who was the only girl playing with 5 boys!!

Splashing around (l-r): Colin, Ryan, Henry, Natalie, Jacob:

Jacob and Ryan building moats, and Nat looking on:

Colin and Henry scooping up sand:

Henry, Jacob, and Casey:

The only bad thing was that I forgot my sunscreen. (D'oh!) I borrowed both Alicia's and Missi's and applied them both on my kids over the course of the 3+ hours we were there, but apparently I didn't do a very good job. The kids both suffered from bad sunburns; a week later, and they're still red and peeling in spots! Talk about feeling like a bad mommy...

The Great Get-Together

2008-08-31T12:27:00.009-05:00

We went to the Fair last weekend. It was a gorgeous afternoon; you really couldn't ask for more perfect Fair weather!

As always, the boys loved "working" on the Little Farm. I was sad to realize though that this was probably Jacob's last year of being able to ride the tractors. He is 4 chickens tall (according to their chart) and that's the maximum height allowed.

Henry and I also rode on the Giant Slide. It was the first time for both of us! We couldn't get Jacob to go on it though....next year! It was fun, and I think he would like it if he gave it a chance.

The kids probably loved the Kidway the best! Henry (my little daredevil) wanted to go on every ride there. We reigned him in by allowing him to only go on rides that Jacob (who is way more cautious) would go on, too.

They used up their tickets right away, so we bought a few more. They were a blur going by on motorcycles and in boats, and it's obvious they had a great time.

We were finally leaving the Kidway, when someone stopped us and gave us a few more tickets--enough for the boys to ride in the firetrucks! That really made their day!!

For the first time, we were there when the fireworks started, which were beautiful! We stayed long enough to scarf down a few more delectable treats, and finally left after 11. Can't wait for next year!!

What I missed...

2008-08-22T11:49:00.006-05:00

I worked both Wednesday and Thursday evenings this week, and here are a couple conversations with the boys I missed out on:

Dave and the boys were watching the Olympics on Wednesday, and they showed highlights of the women's gymnastics. Jacob apparently saw Nastia Liukin, and his eyes got really big. "Daddy, she is so pretty!" Awww.....

(Photo taken from her website: http://www.nastialiukin.com)

And Thursday we saw Jacob's kindergarten teacher and were excited to discover she's pregnant! I told Henry she had a baby inside her tummy. That evening he was telling Dave that Jacob's teacher ate her baby and it was in her tummy! Nothing Dave said could make him change his mind on the matter! I'm at a bit of a loss as to how to properly explain that concept to a 3-year-old... Any ideas??

I really hope we don't bump into her again until Henry forgets the whole conversation!

THAT could've been awkward...

2008-08-21T22:24:00.003-05:00

My friend Tami and I share a share of vegetables from a local CSA, and we alternate picking them up and bringing them to the other's house. Today was Tami's day to pick up (and drop off) the veggies. Around 11:00 this morning, after a slow-going morning with the boys, I was finally getting ready to hop in the shower. I literally had the water running and was about to step into the tub.

All of a sudden, Henry bursts through the door holding the bag of vegetables! I quickly wrapped a towel around me and hurried into the other room, horrified that Tami might inadvertently walk in on me!

She was getting back into her van (and I think, stalling to make sure I was aware of what was going on). The front door was hanging open so I waved goodbye to her (still in my towel). After sending her an apologetic e-mail, I found out that Henry had in fact opened the door and tried to convince her to come talk to me in the shower! Yikes!!

After the whole ordeal, Henry and I had a big talk about not opening the door without finding me first. Let's hope he listens; I shudder to think of him letting strangers meander around the house while I'm showering or in the basement doing laundry!!

Busy, Busy, Busy!

2008-08-20T14:05:00.003-05:00

We spent the weekend at my parents' cabin in northern Wisconsin. Of course I forgot the camera (duh!), which is a shame since we did some fun stuff! Dave wasn't feeling well on Sunday, so to let him rest, my mom took the boys, me, and Odie out on the pontoon for 3 hours or so. Henry and I floated in the lake for a long time, and even Odie got some swimming in! Jacob decided he wasn't comfortable leaving the safety of the boat this time, so he just played with the toy trucks we brought on board.

The weather was gorgeous, the water was cool, and it was a really nice afternoon! Afterwards, Dave grilled burgers and we had fresh sweet corn and tomatoes and potato salad! Delicious!! And definitely what we needed.

Over the last month or so, Dave's sister and her family have been moving, and now his parents are moving as well! It's been a little overwhelming with Dave working during the day, my evening/weekend job, swimming lessons, soccer, and going to their town to help pack and move boxes and furniture. So we haven't had much (any) free time. I'll be glad when school starts again (less than 2 weeks!) just so life can slow down a bit...

I am trying to throw in some end-of-summer activities though. I took the boys to the beach recently, and I'm hoping we can all go mini-golfing as a family. We've done lots of ice cream excursions and the boys have enjoyed riding their bikes and scooters up and down the sidewalk. Fall may be my favorite season, but I'm not quite ready for summer to end.

Interesting stuff

2008-08-11T13:50:00.003-05:00

My friend Melanie talked about this link in her blog.

It says that my birth tree is:
Hazelnut Tree, the Extraordinary Charming, undemanding, very understanding, knows how to make an impression, active fighter for social cause, popular, moody and capricious lover, honest and tolerant partner, precise sense of judgement.

Yep, that's me! Especially the moody part... Anyway, it's silly but still interesting.

If you're interested, here's a whole bunch more fascinating information about yours truly: http://www.paulsadowski.com/BirthData.asp

A Saturday with Soccer and Strep!

2008-08-03T21:36:00.009-05:00

I had to work all day on Saturday, and decided, since I had to get there before 8:00 AM, that I'd just drive myself so Dave didn't have to get the boys up and moving quite so early.

Since Jacob had a mid-morning soccer game and I had our only vehicle, we pre-planned it with Dave's parents to come up to our house and bring everyone to the game (and since they hadn't been able to watch one of his games yet, it worked out well). Jacob had a great game! Here he is making a goal kick... The kid sure is graceful!
Around 4 AM Saturday morning, Henry had woken up with a fever. Dave gave him some Tylenol and he fell back asleep. I had assumed it would go away on its own, but no. I got a call from Dave after Jacob's soccer game; Henry's temp was rising (up to 103.6), he was lethargic and in pain, and when Dave called the triage nurse at our clinic, she wanted him to come in. Thank goodness my in-laws (and their van) were still there! They were able to drop Dave and Henry off at the clinic, and watch Jacob during the appointment. It turns out that Henry has strep!! NO idea how he came to acquire that! Here he is, hiding from everyone:
He seems to be feeling better today. Giving him his antibiotics is stressful though, since he doesn't like the taste AT ALL! He was quite energized when we were all playing Wii tonight... Hopefully he's on the mend!

Henry Picasso

2008-07-31T23:24:00.018-05:00

My part-time job is going well...I'm learning the ins and outs fairly quickly (or so they keep telling me), and everyone is really nice. I am pretty tired when I get home though.

Anyway, I had to work this evening, so it was a boy's night in for my guys. Dave has been having some insanely early mornings at his job, so while Jacob and Henry watched some cartoons, Dave took a very short nap. He got up and discovered that Henry had"helped" him with his budget report!

He's going to turn it in to his boss tomorrow... Wish him luck that he still has a job after that!

Saints baseball

2008-07-26T14:50:00.009-05:00

Last night, in (yet another) celebration of Jacob's birth, we went to the St. Paul Saints baseball game with my parents and sister. Those games are an absolute riot!! I recommend going, if you never have before.

Even if the Saints lose (like they did last night, 12-2!), it's still super fun!

Here's a rarity: Henry was actually watching the game--and enjoying his BIG lemonade!--with Grandpa, Grandma, and Aunt Kara:
The birthday boy hamming it up with Daddy:

Henry's best Gene Simmons impersonation:

Jacob shoveling in the popcorn:
Oh boy!! Cotton candy! Why didn't anyone tell me about this before?!?
We ended up leaving early, since it was so late for the kids, and at that point, the Saints didn't actually have any runs! Since the game had sold out, we had to park pretty far away, and when we were walking to the parking lot, a foul ball soared out of Midway Stadium and landed right by our feet! Dave had the presence of mind to grab it before somebody else did, and he gave it to the boys! Jacob said that was the most exciting part of the whole evening!

It was 7 years ago today...

2008-07-23T07:35:00.005-05:00

On the anniversary of Jacob's birth, I'm reminded of that dramatic day 7 years ago:

Jacob was actually due early August, 2001. My doctor was worried about how much he wasn't growing, so for several weeks before he was born, every week, I was having ultrasounds to measure his growth. Actually, with all of those ultrasounds, I never was able to have a definite "yes, you're having a boy" conversation with the technician! I should've known I was having a stubborn kid...

Anyway. I went in on Friday afternoon, as usual, to have my ultrasound, and that weekend Dave and I spent time browsing through the craft fair happening in a nearby town. We ended up getting a call from our doctor telling us that, since Jacob only grew about 2 days worth in a week, we should come in that afternoon and I would be induced!

And then, panic set in!! All of a sudden it hit me that we'd be coming home with a baby! It definitely made it all real to me, and I realized how much I didn't know about taking care of babies! So we ran home, and I decided I needed to have all of our baby clothes washed (I have NO idea why that was so important at the time!). I showered, did some laundry, double checked that I had everything ready, etc. Took us a good couple hours at the house before we were ready to go. Finally we got down to the hospital where our doctor was waiting. (The mom of one of my best friends is a nurse and was working that night, which was a great comfort to me!! And she assured my doctor that Missi and I occasionally have trouble getting anywhere in a timely manner...and not to worry.) :)

We finally got settled in our room and I was induced. After only about an hour on Pitocin my doctor had to stop the induction. Every time I would have a contraction, Jacob's heart rate would drop in half! It was clear he wouldn't tolerate labor, and that I would need a c-section. Thankfully his heart rate went back to normal when I was taken off the Pitocin, so I could wait until morning to have him. I called my parents, who were anxiously waiting by the phone, and told them the news and time of surgery (8 AM). This was at about midnight; it wasn't easy to get a good night's sleep that night! I was actually terrified about what was to be, and felt extremely guilty. In the birthing classes that Dave and I had taken, they made it seem like having a c-section was the last thing you wanted to do! So when I found myself in that situation, it wasn't easy to deal with.

I got wheeled down to the operating room the next morning and had Jacob without a hitch! Missi's mom, Linda, whose shift had actually ended a few hours before, stayed on with me in the operating room to help me through it. I will be forever grateful for that! (Thanks Linda!!)

Dave and I had decided on a boy and girl name beforehand, since we weren't 100% sure what we were having. Jacob Eric (Eric was my brother's name, who had passed away a couple years before) was only about 4 1/2 lbs but seemed to be doing really well! He had a really hard time nursing though. There was one nurse whom I was really frustrated with; she kept trying to force Jacob to nurse, though it just didn't happen. I did some pumping, which helped. A couple nights later, about 3 AM, I got woken up and told that Jacob's blood sugar had dropped dangerously low (minimum levels should have been 30-50 and his dropped down to 12!), and since that hospital wasn't equipped to give newborns IVs, he had to be transported to a different one up in St. Paul. That was one of the hardest things I had ever done: let my baby be taken away from me! I sobbed and sobbed as the 4 paramedics hooked him up to an incubator on wheels and took him away from me!

Around 6:00 that morning, my doctor discharged me so Dave and I could join our son. I had to have the staples removed, which took a little bit. I took my pain meds, but was so discombobulated that I didn't really eat any breakfast, which was a big mistake! On the way up to St. Paul we stopped at our house to drop off presents and flowers, grab more clothes, and feed our cat. I was so sick from the meds that I could barely function, and Dave had to stop the car a few times! We got to the hospital and met with Jacob's doctor, who gave us an update. I was honestly so ill that I don't remember anything that he said!

Jacob was in the NICU about a week. He had to eat every 3 hours around the clock (until he hit 7 1/2 lbs), and still wasn't nursing, so I pumped for him and the nurses gave him formula by Gavage feeding him (sticking a tube down his throat); it made me gag watching it, but Jacob didn't have a gag reflex yet. After every meal he had to have his foot pricked to test his blood sugar, so by the end of the week both feet looked like hamburger! The nurses were great, though, and showed us what to do to take care of him.

We had lots of friends visit throughout that week, which was nice. Dave had had to go back to work mid-way through, but I just stayed at the hospital the whole time (they had rooms set aside). Dave and I ran home every once in awhile to feed the cat and get clean clothes, but the majority of the time we were there, so we could be near him.

He finally got discharged, and it was the happiest (and most scared) I think I'd ever felt! All the nurses there, and him being hooked up to so many things, was actually very reassuring. And now, it was just us. We got through it, though. We stayed at my parents' house for about a week immediately afterward (it was early August and we don't have central air at our house; plus I couldn't drive due to the surgery, and Jacob needed to go to the clinic to get weighed every couple days); it was wonderful having people there to watch him while I took a shower or napped, and to be able to eat wonderful, home-cooked meals!

Finally we got up the nerve to go home, just the 3 of us. It hasn't always been easy, but Dave and I are so grateful for our miraculous little Jacob, every single day! He's growing up so much, and I'm thinking he'll actually be taller than me in a couple years!! Jacob is so smart and inquisitive...he's really come a long way!! Here he is: at 1 day old, and on his last day of kindergarten:

My Life Wordle

2008-07-21T23:35:00.004-05:00

I shamelessly copyied my friend Amber and created a Wordle based on my blog. Isn't it cool?? (And just saying "Wordle" amuses me so!)

Birthday party with pictures...and tons of extra cupcakes!

2008-07-20T10:45:00.019-05:00

*Update on the party*

A fun time was had by all...there were about 10 kids there, which was a nice amount. However, as a result, we had about 30 cupcakes leftover... Yikes!! THAT'LL help my diet...

Here are the kids enjoying those cupcakes:
Eagerly opening gifts:

Henry cozying up to his "bestest" girlfriend Megan:
And a cleverly built sand volcano:

Also, thanks to my friend(ly acquaintance) Deb, I won a box of customized Fruit Roll-Ups! It's kinda hard to see it in the picture, but it says "7 Rocks! Happy Birthday Jacob". Thanks again, Deb, for the great goodie-bag treat!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Jacob's birthday party is in about 3 hours. I was completely nuts (I realize that now!) and, on the last day of school, had him give an invitation to everyone in his class! Well, it was a good idea in theory... Now it's the day of the party, and I've only heard from the parents of 6 of his classmates; I have no idea if the other 15 are coming or not!

So we went to Sam's Club yesterday and bought 60 cupcakes (just in case), 40 juice boxes, almost as many bottles of water, and other assorted snacks. Just our luck that we end up with 40 extra cupcakes! Actually, that problem does have potential...

Bitchy and the beast

2008-07-19T19:35:00.012-05:00

I'm trying to be more open in my blogs. I've always been a fairly reserved person. But it's really not satisfying when there are troubling things in your life. And right now, I feel like I NEED to get out what I've been dealing with lately, and I NEED to do more than the typical "ha ha isn't life amusing" blogs I usually put out. But alas, I'm not sure how. So bear with me.

To start off with, I've now had 2 days of training with my job; it's interesting, and once I figure things out, I think I'll enjoy it, but right now...Ugh! All of the different forms, what goes where, who gets what, it's all jumbled up in my head at the moment. It's going to be difficult with only one vehicle and Dave not always getting home at the same time. I've talked to a bunch of friends and neighbors about being back-up babysitters for me. I just hope that won't have to be every week! Jacob doesn't understand why I started back to work, and I'm sort of wondering myself. Once things get figured out and a routine gets made, that should help everyone (I hope)!

I've been having a dickens of a time with the boys lately. To call it "acting up" would be an understatement. I thought maybe they were bored hanging out at home with me (especially since I've been feeling too crummy to take them places, and they haven't been behaving well when I do!), so I brought them to a fantastic park in St. Paul the other day, and on the car ride home (after 2 solid hours of playing) we almost got into an accident on the freeway because they were fighting and kicking so much and I was trying to break it up! They spent a good deal of the afternoon in timeouts.

Today was similar. Jacob's hopefully having his birthday party tomorrow (I've threatened to cancel it if he doesn't start behaving himself), and we were out buying cupcakes, balloons, party favors, you name it. We had a big talk with the boys about behaving themselves. All day they were pushing each other, purposely blocking each other's way, tripping the other one, and whining and being argumentative with us! I am literally exhausted from dealing with them! I think a (lone) trip to the library or bookstore for this book might be in order... I don't have it yet but heard it's very insightful. Especially because, while my boys are similar in many ways, at the core they are very different. One is shy, cautious, and introverted (and stubborn!) and the other is headstrong, daredevilish, and extroverted (and stubborn!). And I'm overwhelmed!

Another stresser in my life is...well...personal. While my thyroid levels seem to be getting back on track, other levels/areas are way out of control! I honestly don't know or understand my body anymore. I see myself in pictures and go, "who is that?" The weight keeps piling on. I want to start working out; I should have done it weeks (months) ago, but I hurt my foot last week and it's still a little sore, which makes walking/working out all the more difficult.

We here in Minnesota have a pretty short summer, and because I've felt so crummy MOST OF THE TIME lately, I haven't been able to enjoy much of it yet. And I'm so hormonal, it's no wonder the boys are driving me crazy (and I'm probably driving them crazy, too)! Probably not the best time to get a new job, huh??

So, that is my life right now. Thanks for bearing with me!

Aches and Pains

2008-07-13T22:42:00.005-05:00

My right foot has been bothering me lately. For several weeks I've had a hard time walking on it. My husband thinks he knows what it is, since he's dealt with it in the past. It's caused my foot to get swollen and irritated, and I should have realized I needed to leave both feet safely on the ground...

Thursday started off crummy: my computer stopped working (which lasted for a couple more days!) and the TV wouldn't turn on. A big storm was coming in, so I was putting things away outside. I leaped over a small garden and heard a *pop* in my foot. Couldn't put any weight on it. And I was trapped at home for the rest of the day; my van was parked in the back (our garage faces the alley) and I didn't think I would be able to make the short trek to the backyard.

I did go in to the clinic Thursday evening (Dave drove), and there was a chance I tore a ligament. Whatever I did, it sure hurt like the dickens! Still does. It's all wrapped up which helps. And I can walk on it more than I was able to. I felt so stupid telling the doctor exactly what happened.

And when the doc told me to stay off of it for a couple days, I almost laughed out loud! Jacob was a big help to me, but I still had to hop up and down the basement steps to do laundry. There really is no rest for us stay-at-home moms!

New job!

2008-07-08T10:20:00.005-05:00

Recently, I was browsing through the paper that was sitting on our table. Or, more accurately, I was browsing through the classifieds. I like to see what other jobs are out there, and if there's something that might work for me. The hours have to work out (I still want to be able to take my kids to and from school) and, with gas prices what they are, it can't be too far away. I also wanted something that paid more than minimum wage.

So far, I hadn't come up with anything.

Then a few days ago, while sipping my cup of coffee, I came across a job listing that sounded really promising: part-time hours that work around Dave's schedule, a convenient location, and a setting I'm relatively familiar with. So on a whim I sent my resume to the e-mail address listed in the paper. About an hour later, I got a reply back, asking if I could come in the next morning for an interview! I did, and was hired on a trial basis! There is a possibility of high stress in the job, so they want to make sure I'm up for it. Since I tend to thrive on pressure, I'm thinking I will be.

I'm really excited! The pay is decent and I feel like I'll be able to contribute more to the household. Plus it gets me out of the house and communicating with adults...because honestly, I sometimes feel like I'm getting rusty on that skill!

The only snafu is that Dave sometimes has to work late, and occasionally travels, so I need to make sure I have backup sitters lined up. Thankfully, Dave is rarely gone on Saturdays, so I'm going to stay optimistic.

Wish me luck!!

Is that a booger in your guacamole??

2008-06-28T20:58:00.007-05:00

We drove the boys to the Kerasotes theater in Inver Grove Heights to see Wall-E today. I hadn't really wanted to see it, but I'm glad I did! I enjoyed it a lot. It has very good messages, for kids and adults, about the amount of crap we throw away! And also the importance of staying vertical. I do recommend seeing it.

After our matinée, we went down the road and tried a new (to us) restaurant, Baja Sol. It was surprisingly spacious inside, the margaritas were wonderful--and so was my salad!--and on Saturdays kids eat free! Can't really beat that.

After I'd eaten most of the chicken, guacamole, cheese, black beans, and lettuce, the boys were helping me eat my giant tortilla shell. Henry got a piece with some guacamole on it and refused to taste it. I think his exact phrase was "Ewwwwwwww!" (This from the kid who eats his own boogers...)

Maybe it was the fact that I'd just drunk a large margarita, or maybe I was just in a questionable parenting mood, but I told Henry that the green on the tortilla was actually his booger.... And wouldn't you know, he tried it!! He was pretty upset with me that I'd tricked him actually.

NKOTB!

2008-06-26T14:09:00.012-05:00

I got a call this morning from my oldest friend, Dani (oldest in terms of years of friendship, not age). :)

She had exciting news and urged me to turn on the radio ASAP. She'd just won tickets to the New Kids on the Block concert coming in October and I am going with her!! I was so surprised--I had my kids in the van with me and didn't want to startle them too much, so I wasn't whooping it up as much as I'd wanted to. I hope Dani understood!

But just a couple weeks prior we had a discussion about them...about how, in the 7th grade, we both used to be such big fans, but never got to go to their concert. I remember being so upset with my mom at the time, especially since friends of mine got to go to the concert in a limo! SO unfair, wasn't it??

18 years later, we're finally going!

THANKS AGAIN DANI!! It's gonna be a fun night!

You sure look good in those genes!

2008-06-25T10:16:00.011-05:00

It is amazing to me how much Henry is like me, and how alike Dave and Jacob are. From swimming to food preferences to personalities, the similarities and differences are striking.

Dave was able to come watch swimming lessons last night with me, and right away noticed the difference between the two boys. Henry was jumping in, blowing bubbles, kicking away. Jacob had to be convinced to even go in the pool, then clung to the side and didn't want to try anything. At one point he was sobbing to me how scared he was. I told him it's ok to be scared, but he still needs to try....especially since he gets to ride in Grandma and Grandpa's boat and go fishing. He just needs to be comfortable in the water if, God forbid, anything happened. Dave also has water comfort issues (i.e. he's not), whereas I think I must be part fish, since I love swimming so much!

After lessons we took the boys to Applebees for dinner (their favorite restaurant). After our meals we each got a Dessert Shooter; Dave and Jacob both picked Caramel Apple and Henry and I both picked Hot Fudge Sundae. It amused me to see that.

And just in general, their personalities mimic ours. Like Dave, Jacob is sensitive and can be shy. He hates being the center of attention, and gets exasperated when Henry follows or copies him. Henry is pretty outgoing and loves to smile and sing and be silly. He's a huge tag-along to his big brother, just like I was to mine.

All I can say is, genetics are so cool!!

At Week's End...or is it At Wit's End??

2008-06-23T20:00:00.019-05:00

Dave just got back from a week-long business trip to Hartford. (It's been...interesting around here with him gone.) He was able to check out the big golf tournament over there during his free time, and was telling me about how he saw Luke Wilson (who he knows I like) and Aidan Quinn, and met a bunch of golfers! Yep, he was roughing it...

While he was gone, it was me, myself, and Jacob, Henry, and Odie. We went to see Kung Foo Panda, played with friends, had swimming lessons, slept through a soccer game, and went out for lots and lots of ice cream!

On Friday we headed up to my parents' cabin in Wisconsin for a few days. The weather wasn't great (on-again/off-again showers) but we had a nice time. We got to go out in the boat; both boys got to take turns driving...Henry with Grandma, and Jacob solo:

Even Odie got into the fun (though he didn't get to drive....neither did I, for that matter!):
My dad took the boys fishing off the dock. After a few near-misses with swinging hooks, he decided to first give them casting lessons. Jacob really seemed to get the hang of it. Henry enjoyed reeling the line in after I cast his pole out (and the more weeds he caught, the better)! My dad started taking me fishing when I was probably Henry's age, so it was really special for me to see him with the boys! Hopefully these are memories they'll cherish forever!

The cabin is in a very wooded area, with numerous lakes. One morning we saw a very large snapping turtle crossing the street by the cabin! The thing was literally over a foot long, not counting it's tail!
After a weekend of playing and relaxing, we all got up really early this morning and headed out (though we left a good half-hour later than I'd wanted to). My reason for making haste was that I'd signed the boys up for Vacation Bible School at a nearby church for this week. We went straight there, though we were close to an hour late! (And that was my first time making the almost-3-hour cabin trek without stopping!)

Dave also got back from his trip this morning, so after dropping the boys off at church, I headed to the airport to get him. He took the rest of the day off, and we all went to the Science Museum after VBS and lunch. They currently have Star Wars: Where Science Meets Imagination going on there, and it was really cool! I like Star Wars ok, but my 3 boys are all total Star Wars Nerds! One of their bonding rituals is to all sit on the couch with some popcorn and watch one of the movies.

I, of course, took a ton of pictures. I enjoyed seeing the actual models and costumes used in the movies! There were video clips playing too, giving background info, which was very interesting. Here's Luke's Land Speeder:
Henry in awe of how tall Chewbacca is:

Jacob by the Millenium Falcon model (and getting annoyed at having to be in pictures):
And of course, the master villain himself (Henry was tired and crabby by this time):
After exploring more of the museum, and seeing their Omni movie Special Effects, we had some dinner and then Dave brought Jacob to his soccer game. Dave told me that Jacob made a good block and a goal kick that went halfway down the field! Wish I could've seen it, but Henry was so wiped out that he slept through dinner and for the rest of the night! I guess I've finally figured out the secret to wearing him out... Trouble is, it wears me out, too!

Swimming lessons

2008-06-17T20:36:00.002-05:00

Tonight was the boys' first night of swimming lessons at the Y. I am SO glad we signed them up! Henry took to a fish in water immediately! He was floating along on a noodle, blowing bubbles, and jumping in, mid-deep range (his instructor was catching him of course)!

Jacob...well, I'm just glad he's there! The kids were swimming around the pool on noodles, and Jacob was clinging to his instructor for dear life! He really hasn't had lessons since before Henry was born, so it's long overdue. I'm just hoping over the next 8 weeks or so that he gets more and more comfortable.

I timed the lessons so they overlapped, though Jacob's started 15 minutes earlier and ended 5 minutes earlier than Henry's. When Jacob got out, I was talking to him and helping him dry off. He noticed Henry splashing around, having the time of his life, and asked me, "Mommy, why is Henry so happy and I'm not?" Poor guy! Just about broke my heart.

Y OH Y!

2008-06-14T14:36:00.011-05:00

We decided to go ahead and get the membership to the YMCA. We also got both boys signed up for swimming lessons starting next week, and I'm going to try out a couple of their aerobics classes.

While we were filling out paperwork and waiting for it to get entered into the computer, the boys were bored and running around and driving everyone in the lobby crazy. At one point, Henry, who was chasing after Jacob, and wearing Crocs, fell and hit his head on a wooden bench in the lobby! I was amazed with how fast the goose egg appeared on his forehead!! It's huge! The staff at the Y gave us an ice pack and we finally got Henry calmed down. We had a talk about not running (especially in Crocs) and following directions. Hopefully he remembers this lesson for awhile!

We're home now, resting, and watching a movie. I'm ready for a nap!

Water babies...

2008-06-13T12:10:00.007-05:00

A year or so ago, we bought a family membership to a local, independent gym near our house. It costs us about a third of what it would be at the YMCA, it has a pool (though the water temp is always really cold), and a small workout area. It also has a childcare area, but with very limited hours. As a result, I don't go often (ever??); I'd love a workout buddy (i.e. my husband), but the couple weekday AM hours that the childcare area is staffed obviously doesn't work for him. So we just never go. I've been thinking about just canceling it altogether, since we're obviously not getting our money's worth.

This past week Jacob was able to participate in a free water safety class at the Y, and it's been great! He's got some anxiety issues with the water, and the older he gets, the worse that's going to get if we don't get him in there on a regular basis. The water is nice and warm (almost 90 degrees), so there's no issue there. (In the past, we've tried a couple different places for swimming lessons, and I couldn't even get the boys in the pool they were so cold!)

So now I'm at a crossroads. I love the idea of "supporting the little guy" but it's just not working for me! The childcare times are a joke, and the pool's freezing. The Y seems perfect...but it's quite a bit more/month. I do think Dave and I would actually get some use out of it though...and I'd sign the boys both up for swimming lessons immediately. I've also heard fantastic things about some of their aerobic-type classes (for me).

Should we take the plunge (ha ha) and switch?!? Oh, the dilemmas we face over here...

Soccer strife

2008-06-10T13:09:00.010-05:00

We signed Jacob up for summer soccer again. The last 2 years he was on the Under-6 (coed pee-wee) league, without a goalie or positions, really. They just all moved in a herd, chasing after the ball (Jacob was usually at the back of the herd, offering up moral support to those who were actually kicking the ball).

This year, the league bumped him up to the Under-9 Boys team. He is by far the youngest on his team, and it shows. I mean, he's a great runner; he can run reallyreally fast when he wants to, and if he tries he can kick the ball well....but on a team scenario, if anyone else comes anywhere near the ball, he backs off. Jacob had his first soccer game last night, and ran up and down the field like nobody's business. But he didn't stay in position and he shied away from the ball. It's obviously a challenge for him, but he needs that to learn what the heck to do out there.

I really don't have a clue as to what the guidelines are for our town, for figuring out who goes where! Every other kindergartener we know is on the U6 team this year (including his friend Noah). The league actually tried to get Jacob on the U9 team last year! We held firm and made sure he was with younger kids, since he would've gotten creamed out there! As it is, he's having a hard time understanding positions and rules.

I'm a little worried that we left him where he's at, instead of moving him down to the U6 league, especially since his coach had some concerns about his age and understanding of the game. Jacob loves soccer, and I want him to have a great summer! Sometimes though he needs a theoretical kick in the rear to get involved in something. I'm hoping he learns tons!

R.E.M.

2008-06-06T20:25:00.008-05:00

Dave called me out of the blue yesterday and said there was a small chance he'd be able to get R.E.M. tickets for that night, could we get a sitter lined up, and would I want to go?!?

My answers: "Um....Yay! Probably! And YES!! Of course!"

Saint Amy the bird-catcher agreed to watch the boys if we got the tickets, which of course we did!! She's Noah's (Jacob's best friend) mom, so I knew they would have fun, but I did feel bad because I knew it would probably be a very late night. Luckily school's done, so everyone could sleep in today.

Because of the stormy weather, we got to the Xcel a little late; we totally missed The National but arrived in time for Modest Mouse. I caught them on Saturday Night Live once but otherwise knew nothing about them. Their music is very loud, and while I couldn't understand a word they said, I did like most of it.

Oh...I forgot to mention where we were. On the floor, 12th row from the stage!! It was awesome! Because then R.E.M. came on, and everyone was jumping up and down and screaming and singing along. Michael Stipe was very personable and quirky, and he talked a lot to us, the audience. I used to go to a lot of concerts before I had kids, and I really do appreciate when bands actually converse with us lowly folk who paid to see them...

Michael, at one point, mentioned that they'd be playing a lot of their older music, and almost everybody roared with approval (myself included, since I know some of their mid-range stuff better than their newer songs). Michael stopped talking, gave the rest of his band a look, and said, "Hmmmm...I'm not sure what my opinion is about that." It was really funny!

I took some short videos from my cell phone (What's the Frequency, Kenneth?, Electrolite, and Losing My Religion). They're a bit fuzzy but R.E.M. sounded phenomenal!

I liked being down on the floor for the concert, but there were a bunch of tall men in front of me, which made it hard to see. There was also a couple right in front of Dave who were making out the entire time. It got to the point where I just wanted to tell them to go get a room, and let everyone else enjoy the concert in peace! Oh well.

All in all, it was a fantastic time!! Thanks Susan for selling us the tickets below face value, & thanks Amy and Scott for babysitting... It felt like the "old days" again.

A kindergartener no more!

2008-06-05T15:44:00.006-05:00

Today was Jacob's last day of kindergarten!! (Sniff, sniff!)

I spent some time this morning taking pictures of Jacob. He liked posing and making faces with his "bestest" friend Noah. Here he is with Noah and his teacher:

If I think too much about today, I get a little weepy-eyed. Next year, Jacob will be in a classroom with desks. Have homework every week and really start learning things! And Henry will be in preschool (with his girlfriend Megan). Just thinking of all the things they'll both learn, and all the independence they both will gain... It's a bit overwhelming!

I organized a group gift for Jacob's teacher with other kindergarten parents. She really is awesome! She's taught them so much over the last nine months, and all the kids love her. So we got her a gift card so she can do something to pamper herself this summer. We also got her some balloons, 'cause who doesn't love balloons??

"Know What Mom?"

2008-06-04T09:24:00.006-05:00

Henry's being even more of his normal, adorable self this morning. He got himself all cuddled up in my bed and was pretending to be a whale.

Then he started professing his love to everyone he knows:
Know what, Mom? I love you.
Know what, Mom? I love Jacob.
Know what, Mom? I love Daddy.
Know what, Mom? I love Megan. (His little girlfriend.)
Know what, Mom? I love Isabel. (His cousin.)
Know what, Mom? I love Katie. (His other cousin.)
Know what, Mom? I love Josh. (Another cousin.)
Know what, Mom? I love Grandma and Grandpa...

Age matters!

2008-06-03T21:56:00.003-05:00

Jacob turns 7 next month, and we're going to have a party for him. Crazy me, I decided that I'm going to send an invitation to everyone in his class before the end of the school year (which is Thursday), since I don't have everyone's address or phone #.

Henry is beside himself with excitement thinking that Jacob's going to have his party very soon (and not in a month and a half). He's disappointed to find out that his own birthday is still several months away. But that's not stopping him from pretending to be 4 already!

I told the boys that I'm not ready for Henry to be 4, nor Jacob to be 7. Jacob quietly asked me how old I was, and I said I was 31. He then told me he's not ready for me to be 32! I laughingly agreed...I am not ready for that either!

Then we talked about Daddy's age. He's 38, and will be 39 at the end of the month. Jacob deduced that he's "almost 40"! What a smart kid I have!!

Lovely Spam! Wonderful Spam!

2008-06-02T10:46:00.011-05:00

Merry Christmas Dad!

Dave, my sister Kara, and I all went in together and got Spamalot tickets for my dad for Christmas. On Saturday we were finally able to go!!

It was so freakin' hilarious!! I laughed the whole way through it. All my favorite scenes from Monty Python and the Holy Grail were there, extended a bit: the Knights of the Round Table song, Tim the Enchanter, the killer rabbit with big, nasty, pointy teeth, the Knights who say "Ni!", the Black Knight ("It's only a flesh wound!"), the French guards ("Now go away or I shall taunt you a second time!") with the Trojan rabbit and catapulting cows, the clueless guards guarding Prince Herbert, Brave Sir Robin...it goes on and on. And of course, at the end, no musical is complete without a wedding (or several)! I thought that Sir Lancelot and Prince Herbert made a particularly cute couple...

I wanted to buy out the gift shop, but contained myself pretty well. I bought a cow squeeze-toy for the boys, and a t-shirt for me ("Fetchez La Vache!").

Anyone who likes that sort of silly humor (my mom isn't a fan; she was happy to babysit for us though which was great!) should really consider going! The raunchiness level was kept pretty low as well--which is good, considering I was there with my dad!!

Bye-Bye Birdie!

2008-05-27T16:37:00.007-05:00

Last night, we were all sitting down to a yummy pizza dinner, listening to the chirps of the birds outside the window. One was surprisingly loud; Dave wondered if it was inside. I didn't think so, but guess what! We had a baby sparrow as a house guest for about 20 hours!

Dave and I tried to (gently) capture it, and almost succeeded a couple times. I thought it might be wounded since it wasn't flying, just hopping around. We both worried that it might die behind the piano, or under the hutch. (Ewwww!)

After bringing Jacob to school and Dave to work this morning, Henry and I came home and I heard it in the kitchen. I put up sheets in all the doorways and opened one of the windows, hoping it would be lured outside. I pulled out the stove and fridge, but it turns out it was on top of the pantry; I guess the little guy could fly after all! One "attack" with the broom and he flew towards the window, towards freedom and the great outdoors....and hit the top of the window and fell down with a thud! Luckily he didn't die, though he was stunned. He quickly recovered and hopped around and managed to sneak out of the kitchen and hide at the top of the basement landing (amid all of the bags of recycling), though at the time I wasn't sure if he'd flown downstairs.

My friend Amy came by for moral support at this point, because I was more than a little frustrated and getting panicky that the damn thing would end up in the basement and never get out! We'd just find a little bird carcass at some point in the future...

We found it but it got away, again! Flew through the gate I'd set up in the kitchen doorway, into the dining room, the living room, and finally the front porch! I ran into the porch and shut the door quick, so he couldn't get back inside the house. He was frantically flapping at the window, trying to get out, while his momma was flying back and forth outside! It was a really strange site...

Finally Amy was able to capture him in a towel, and let him go outside...where he flew over the lawn, hit my van, and fell into the street!! We ran to check on him, and he was still alive (amazingly!) though stunned. When we checked on him again a few minutes later, he wasn't there. So he must be ok. Hopefully not too much brain damage! (Especially since he didn't have much to spare!)

It really is a relief to have him gone...but it took me awhile to get over the shaky feeling I was having. I'm not sure why that affected me so much. Maybe because all my other plans fell by the wayside while I had to deal with this issue. I don't know what all he's touched in my house, so I'm not sure what needs cleaning (and how do you literally clean everything in a 3-room radius?!?). I haven't yet discovered any bird poop, but I'm sure that'll come at some point. I've just been under so much stress trying to free that bird in a humane way...luckily I don't need to have my blood pressure taken any time soon!

Hypothetical question...

2008-05-22T20:06:00.004-05:00

All right, what would any of you do in this situation??

I took my boys out to eat tonight at Applebees (their favorite). It was a busy evening at the restaurant. And it was just me and the kids. Jacob had one bite of his corndog and decided to wave it around like a lightsaber. Of course, it ended up on the floor about 2.9 seconds later. Hypothetically speaking, would you:

a) Tell your child that the food is still good and let him eat it? (They do vacuum the carpet once in awhile after all!)

b) Forbid him to eat it, try to track down your waitress and ask her for another one (which will take several minutes to cook and bring out) and hope that you won't get charged for 2!

c) Scold your child on restaurant manners and tell him "tough luck, no dinner tonight".

d) Run crying out of the restaurant because this is the last straw and YOU. HAVE. HAD. IT.

Seriously, anyone reading this: What would you do??

Done with ECFE

2008-05-21T12:40:00.012-05:00

Today was Henry's very last ECFE class, ever! (And, quite possibly, our last ECFE experience ever! Unless we end up having more kids. Who knows??) Henry gets to go on to preschool in the fall, and be in the big school that his brother's in.

Anyway, I was pretty emotional this morning. My baby (just don't call him that!) is growing up on me! Who told him he could do that?? He got me even more choked up though...his class is a separating class, so we play with the kids for half an hour or so, and then the adults leave and go to a different room and talk about parenting issues while the kids play with the teachers and have snacks. It was time for me to go, and Henry had just finished painting a butterfly at the easel. He needed to wash his hands, and one of the teachers asked if she could help him do that (so I could go). Henry said no, he wanted me to help him because "Mommy's my favorite"! Is that the best response ever?!? He is such a charmer!

At the end of class, we decided to take a group picture. I'd made a joke about herding squirrels while we were trying to get them settled, but they sat still really well.. Henry just loves his class! It's going to be hard this summer when there isn't a program anymore.

After ECFE we went to McDonalds with Henry's "girlfriend" Megan and her mom. It made the morning even more fun!

Sleep

2008-05-20T09:39:00.003-05:00

This morning I got woken up by Henry dropping a heavy box on my legs, all before 6:00 AM! We went to IKEA on Sunday, and, in addition to the rope ladder on the fort, we bought one of their bead toys, which we're going to assemble and mount into the fort. Henry just loves those things, and I think it would be something fun to have in there! We haven't gotten around to taking it out of the box and assembling it yet, so at some point in the wee hours of the morning, Henry got out of bed, went into the living room, grabbed the bead toy, came into my room, and plopped it down on my legs, all while begging for us to put it together.

I guess it's kind of cute, in a tiring, frustrating way.

In a nutshell

2008-05-18T23:13:00.010-05:00

Friday morning, Henry and I went to a friend's house I really haven't seen lately. There were a bunch of SAHMs there, and we had fun. It was nice chatting, eating, and (once Henry warmed up and stopped clinging to me like we were made of Velcro) watching my big boy play. He and Grady enjoyed the hammock on a warm spring day.

I got home, got Jacob from school, and got all ready because I got to go out Friday night. A few friends and I went to see the play Mom's the Word; it was really funny! Parts of it were downright hysterical! (But it's not for the....um....prudish.) It was nice to get out for a few hours, have a couple drinks, chat briefly with the girls (the background music was SO loud, it was hard to hear anybody!) and laugh. I could definitely do that again! Especially since a good friend and I went to have coffee and torts at Cafe Latte afterward! Mmmmmm!!

Saturday was shaping up to be a rough day, however. The kids had gone to bed a little late (though they still woke up at the same God-awful time!) and were CRABBY!! Screaming, crying, picking fights with each other. Dave and I had plans to drop the boys off with their Grandparents for a few hours and go see the new Narnia movie. Part of me wasn't sure that rewarding their behavior by seeing their Grandma and Grandpa was a good idea, but in the end, Dave and I knew we needed to get out and spend some "couple" time together, and it would probably do the boys loads of good to get out of the house too. Turned out to be a really fun evening! I enjoyed the movie a lot, and the boys were little angels. Figures.

Sunday we went to IKEA to get a few necessities (like a rope ladder for the boys fort, so they won't have to use a chair to climb up anymore). We had lunch there as well. They had a bunch of lanterns hanging from the ceiling in the cafeteria, which Henry was amazed by: "Look at the jellyfish!" (Can you tell the kid loves Finding Nemo??)

Afterward we drove to Minneapolis to check out the Home Remodeling Expo. The place was pretty deserted as far as customers go, so some of the vendors were trying hard to get us to sign up with them, which is always awkward....especially since we'd just gone to get good ideas! If we go again, we'll probably do it on the Saturday, and leave the boys at home, because, according to Jacob, it was BORING!

We want a Wii!! (Originial, I know!)

2008-05-15T10:25:00.007-05:00

I very recently discovered a new blog (Three Kid Circus), and man, is it hilarious! Jennifer, the blogger extraordinaire, is having a contest: admit to your fitness/workout-buying hall of shame, and maybe win a Wii console AND the new Wii Fit game and balance board. I've heard great things about that, and reallyreallyreallyreallyreallyreally want one...

(Picture taken from Time.com)

I know I cannot outdo her weighted hula hoop and iGallop purchases, nor am I going to try. I'm wracking my brain for all of my silly (stupid) fitness fiascoes that I've been repressing. Here they are, in no particular order:

1. Tae Bo videos: I have them somewhere....or did I sell them at a garage sale?? I *think* I looked at them once... Realized what a wimp I actually am and couldn't get through them.

2. Yoga mat & yoga-during-pregnancy book: I bought these when pregnant with my second child. The company I worked for at the time had a yoga instructor come in once a week for anyone interested. I was very much interested in being centered, and crap like that to make labor and delivery easier (I say crap because I ended up having a c-section). I fully intended to keep with yoga though... (Where is that damn mat?? Probably under the couch along with the walking weights and Tae Bo tapes.)

3. Cute workout shoes: I think I may have used them for working out once. Now they are my cute kindergarten drop-off/grocery shopping/pick up dog poop shoes.

4. Big workout ball: Got this also when pregnant with my second. It actually did help during labor to get me dilated (before the c-section). I had grand plans of pumping the ball back up and using it at my computer desk or in front of the TV. You know, get fit while I veg. My son is 3 1/2, and the ball is still in the box...

5. Orbitrek Elite: Ok, I haven't actually bought this....yet! For the past 4 or 5 months (ever since I saw the infomercial) I've been slowly wearing my husband down, bit by bit, to be on board with my buying it. Seriously. I daydream about working out on it and looking fabulous! I have the website bookmarked!

6. Gym membership: I include this because we've been members to a local gym for a year and a half now. And I can count the total number of times I've gone on 1 hand. The number of times I've gone in the last 6 months?? Zero. (I blame their limited childcare availability.) My whole plan is to cancel my membership once I get that fabulous Orbitrek Elite. I mean, really, do I need both???

7. Play Time! CD: I admit, I got this thinking I'd dance around with the kids so much, the weight would be falling off! Yeah. Right. One pseudo waltz around the room, and I call it a day.

8. Hula hoops: the regular kind. Sure, I bought them for my kids...but I imagined myself using it daily and getting the kind of abs one gets from belly dancing.

9. Oh yeah, I've also looked into belly dancing classes. Does that count??

Obviously I have good intentions. No, great intentions! The follow-through needs some work though. I just find I don't have the time or energy in my day to commit to anything. If I were to win a Wii, however, I'll use it every single day!! I promise!

New skill

2008-05-15T09:18:00.004-05:00

Henry's 3 1/2 years old, and loves his tricycle, but he's always been hesitant to try peddling. No amount of coaxing from his dad or me could change that!

Yesterday, out the blue, he decided to give it a try:

Also, we got Henry a helmet (if Jacob needs one, so does Henry)! He is VERY proud of himself for peddling his trike and wearing his new helmet!

Anatomy lesson

2008-05-14T14:23:00.003-05:00

Yesterday, my friend Amy babysat Henry for me for a couple hours, so I could attack my mounds of laundry (seriously, they are taller than Henry, and there are several of them)! I got a some progress made, but there's still a long way to go.

Amy was also babysitting our mutual friend Christine's 3-year-old daughter Megan, and fed both of the kids macaroni and cheese for lunch. Apparently after some sort of noisy incident, the topic turned to bodily functions (of course)!

Henry (to Megan): Did you burp or toot?
*no answer*
Henry again (to Megan): Was it from your top or your bottom?
*no answer*
Henry yet again (to Megan): Was it from your mouth or your penis?
(Apparently he doesn't know where "toots" come from yet.)
Megan: I don't have a penis! My daddy has a penis...

At that point, Amy hurried to change the subject, because, who knows where the conversation would lead to after that?!? Both Christine and I were busting a gut laughing though when Amy told us. Gotta love 3-year-olds!

Competitive Preschool, updated

2008-05-13T22:42:00.004-05:00

Back in February, I was bemoaning the fact that Henry was on a waiting list for a preschool class for the fall. As an alternative, I had him signed up for one in a neighboring town.

Well, I am happy to report that I got a call the other day, and Henry's now in the preschool I want him to go to! I am so happy about that!! He'll be in the same school as Jacob, and the same classroom Jacob was in last year. I won't have to rush from a building in one town to another like I feared! It's gonna be so nice and easy, for all of us!

Mother's Weekend

2008-05-13T09:23:00.004-05:00

Mother's Day came and went, and I had a really great weekend! I was spoiled, and I loved it! I decided to spread out the joy to Saturday as well, especially since I knew that Sunday was going to be busy. So I went to a movie (Baby Mama) ALL BY MYSELF! Got to sit and eat popcorn and giggle, which was really nice!

I then went shopping...for 4 hours! I was able to sit in a comfy chair in Barnes and Noble, sipping my Frappucino and skimming through a few books. I wandered through every aisle and rack in Bed, Bath, and Beyond, loving the fact that I didn't have to "hurry" through, or warn someone that there were breakable things, and to please, for the love of God, STOP RUNNING! Did the same at Hallmark, where I went to look for cute gift bags for the grandmas (my mom and my mother-in-law).

I admit, it probably sounds odd to some (Dave) that I went to a movie and shopping by myself, but for any of you SAHMs out there--you hopefully know how nice it is to not have to converse with anyone for a few hours! Or listen to little voices talking non-stop. It really is a sanity saver!

Then on Sunday, Dave and the boys surprised me with breakfast in bed: French toast with bananas and caramel sauce, bacon, juice, and coffee! It was lovely! The boys did a great job helping me eat all that food! And luckily no juice got spilled in my bed...

We drove to visit my in-laws, and stopped at my folks' house on the way. They were out of town, but we left their gift bag as a surprise for when they got home. Everyone was over at my in-laws' house: both my sisters-in-law, their husbands, and my 2 nieces and nephew. The kids ran around and played, and the adults gabbed and joked around. We stayed there for a few hours, then came home and popped in a Papa Murphy's pizza. After putting the boys to bed, I vegged on the couch and watched Desperate Housewives and Brothers & Sisters--two of my (many) guilty pleasures! It was a fun, relaxing weekend, all in all!

Thanks Dave, Jacob, and Henry!!

Home Sweet Home

2008-05-09T21:43:00.005-05:00

Dave and I like to drive around and look at houses for sale. (Well, we liked it a lot more before gas got to over $3.50/gallon, but I digress...)

But we'll see a house we love (at least from the outside) and imagine buying it. (I do a lot of imagining over here--I'm a good role-model for the kids, see?? Usually my daydreams are of everything I'd do and buy if I won the lottery!)

I digress, again. But whenever I think of buying another house, a few other realities come into play. I remember how much I love (almost) all of my neighbors!! How any number of them would help us with the kids, with moving furniture, with fixing our lawn mower, or offering advice and neighborly conversation, and I realize I don't want to leave my block. There are at least 6 kids on the block within a couple years of my boys ages, and numerous others who are a little older (or younger) than that! There's almost always someone to play with--just yesterday, there were 5 little boys in my kids' room! And Jacob was trying to get the neighbor girl over to play with them too!!!

I also think of where we live. True, we live in a very small house, in an old blue-collar river town. It's completely unpretentious, which is refreshing. There's a lot of history here too. I know people who have grown up here, and are raising kids (or letting grandkids visit them) in the same neighborhoods! I love that!

Both Dave and I moved around numerous times when we were little. From the time I was 18 months old, until I entered 7th grade, I lived in at least 5 different homes or apartments. Dave probably moved around that much in 5 years! (Before I was 18 months, living arrangements were a little dicey. Personal things. Not gonna get into it. Sorry.) Dave and I both LOVE that our kids have a stability that we never had. It's really tough to move to a new city and leave all your old friends and have to make new ones. The older you get, the harder it is. (The last move we made as a family, I was entering 7th grade--middle school!--and my poor brother was going to be a junior in high school I believe! That transition was absolutely horrible for both of us. It was a very cliquey town, which didn't help...though eventually we both made some great friends!)

But Jacob and Henry can be friends with kids that they're going to go to school with for years to come. They know their neighborhood and neighbors. Dave and I can get to know their friends' families too. Life is good.

It's definitely not perfect though--we have a list of projects for our house the size of Mount Rushmore,* and our dog's woodwork-chewing phase means we'll have to (eventually) replace or refinish parts of our kitchen we recently remodeled. The yard is small, the 1-stall garage is detached. There are days I dream of a house fire (after the family, favorite pictures, and important documents are safely outside) so I can just start anew. Or I'll daydream that Ty, Paul, and the other Extreme Home Makeover folks will come and bulldoze our house down and send us to Disney World!

But really, life is good!

*There is a downside to owning an 82-year-old house--it starts to fall apart, piece by piece!

Jacobisms

2008-05-06T16:49:00.005-05:00

Some conversations I've had with my dear, sweet Jacob today:

**I was pushing him on the swings and he started pumping. I don't remember teaching him that, so I asked him where he learned to pump. "God," he said. I asked him to clarify and he said that God taught him how to pump because God likes to swing.

**Also at the playground, Jacob and Henry were pretending it was a big ship and there were sharks in the water. They didn't want the shark to eat me (how nice, huh??); Jacob was friends with the killer shark and said that "Killer" (the shark's name of course) doesn't eat people who look nice. I asked him if I looked nice and would be safe... "Maybe," was his reply. Twirp!

The boys on the playground today... Looks like quite a ride!

**Jacob really wants us to get an SUV so we can "go off-roading"--though even with an SUV I can't see us doing that. But we were driving somewhere today, and he was chastising me a bit about why we didn't buy an SUV but bought our new van instead. He started telling me that SUV's can pull trailers off of cliffs because they have very powerful engines (a commercial he saw once). I asked if our mini-van had a powerful engine, and he got quite exasperated with me. "No Mom, our mini-van can't even pull a trailer off of a cliff!" (Oh, the humanity. However do we get through our day?!?)

Road Trippin'

2008-05-06T09:21:00.005-05:00

I really enjoy reading James Lileks' blogs, though I usually don't agree with his politics. But he is a very funny writer. In yesterday's Buzz article, he mentions the story of 3 kids who are going through 48 states in 5 days. First of all, I can totally see myself loving this idea 10 years ago! (Today, with 2 kids and the price of gas....not so much.)

But Lileks points out: "if you don’t get off the interstate, you really don’t enter a state at all."

I have to say I agree with him. I've been thinking about all the road trips I've taken: numerous trips to all the neighboring states (Wisconsin, Iowa, South Dakota); going to my Uncle's wedding in Ohio; visiting another Aunt and Uncle in Pennsylvania; a trip to visit my brother when he was living in Colorado Springs; and a missions trip where we took a bus to Mexico (though we slept in El Paso). The last trip was quite a doozy (it was on this trip that I met Dave)! One pre-dawn morning on the road, we hit a deer. It may have been in Nebraska? I don't remember exactly. I just remember being awake (I don't sleep well in moving vehicles) at about 5:00 AM and hearing a thud. Everyone checked out the bus afterwards; I don't think the headlight fared well, but then again, neither did the deer! We also broke down somewhere in New Mexico and had to sit along the side of the road in this dinky little town that only had 1 road. We ended up staying overnight in a hotel (in Tucumcari, if memory serves), so I do count the fact that I've been to New Mexico. All the states along the way though...not necessarily.

If we only saw the freeway and the McDonald's when we stopped for breakfast, does that really count??

Conjunction Junction

2008-05-04T09:30:00.005-05:00

At breakfast this morning, Jacob was telling us about an "injury" to his hand (i.e. he slept on it funny!) he recently had...

Jacob: "...it hurt badder than I thought it would..."
Me (interrupting): "Worse."
Jacob: "What?"

Dave then explained to him about conjugating words and how it changes from "bad" to "worse".

Jacob (finishing his story): "So it hurt worser than I thought it would..."

Amazing painting

2008-05-02T20:14:00.003-05:00

Once again, I am shamelessly copying another's topic to address in my own blog (thanks Erinn). :)

This video is just SO cool!! Cynical me, I was looking for a puppet string or something. I find it hard to believe that an elephant can actually paint! (And better than me, I might add!!)

Parenting

2008-04-30T11:52:00.005-05:00

Read this on my friend Erinn's blog (and shamelessly copied it)! :) It's just so profound! I love it. I'm dealing with a lot of the worry and stress right now that she was, though she's able to look back on it and realize everything turned out fine because of (or is it in spite of) it!

Anna Quindlen, Newsweek Columnist and Author:

All my babies are gone now. I say this not in sorrow but in disbelief. I take great satisfaction in what I have today: three almost-adults, two taller than I am, one closing in fast. Three people who read the same books I do and have learned not to be afraid of disagreeing with me in their opinion of them, who sometimes tell vulgar jokes that make me laugh until I choke and cry, who need razor blades and shower gel and privacy, who want to keep their doors closed more than I like. Who, miraculously, go to the bathroom, zip up their jackets and move food from plate to mouth all by themselves. Like the trick soap I bought for the bathroom with a rubber ducky at its center, the baby is buried deep within each, barely discernible except through the unreliable haze of the past.

Everything in all the books I once pored over is finished for me now. Penelope Leach., T. Berry Brazelton., Dr. Spock. The ones on sibling rivalry and sleeping through the night and early-childhood education, have all grown obsolete. Along with Goodnight Moon and Where the Wild Things Are, they are battered, spotted, well used. But I suspect that if you flipped the pages dust would rise like memories.

What those books taught me, finally, and what the women on the playground taught me, and the well-meaning relations --what they taught me, was that they couldn't really teach me very much at all.

Raising children is presented at first as a true-false test, then becomes multiple choice, until finally, far along, you realize that it is an endless essay. No one knows anything. One child responds well to positive reinforcement, another can be managed only with a stern voice and a timeout.

One child is toilet trained at 3, his sibling at 2. When my first child was born, parents were told to put baby to bed on his belly so that he would not choke on his own spit-up. By the time my last arrived, babies were put down on their backs because of research on sudden infant death syndrome. To a new parent this ever-shifting certainty is terrifying, and then soothing. Eventually you must learn to trust yourself. Eventually the research will follow.

I remember 15 years ago poring over one of Dr. Brazelton's wonderful books on child development, in which he describes three different sorts of infants: average, quiet, and active. I was looking for a sub-quiet codicil for an 18-month old who did not walk. Was there something wrong with his fat little legs? Was there something wrong with his tiny little mind? Was he developmentally delayed, physically challenged? Was I insane? Last year he went to China . Next year he goes to college. He can talk just fine. He can walk, too.

Every part of raising children is humbling, too.

Believe me, mistakes were made. They have all been enshrined in the, "Remember-When- Mom-Did" Hall of Fame. The outbursts, the temper tantrums, the bad language, mine, not theirs. The times the baby fell off the bed. The times I arrived late for preschool pickup. The nightmare sleepover. The horrible summer camp. The day when the youngest came barreling out of the classroom with a 98 on her geography test, and I responded, "What did you get wrong?". (She insisted I include that.) The time I ordered food at the McDonald's drive-through speaker and then drove away without picking it up from the window. (They all insisted I include that.) I did not allow them to watch the Simpsons for the first two seasons. What was I thinking?

But the biggest mistake I made is the one that most of us make while doing this. I did not live in the moment enough. This is particularly clear now that the moment is gone, captured only in photographs. There is one picture of the three of them, sitting in the grass on a quilt in the shadow of the swing set on a summer day, ages 6, 4 and 1. And I wish I could remember what we ate, and what we talked about, and how they sounded, and how they looked when they slept that night.

I wish I had not been in such a hurry to get on to the next thing: dinner, bath, book, bed. I wish I had treasured the doing a little more and the getting it done a little less.

Even today I'm not sure what worked and what didn't, what was me and what was simply life. When they were very small, I suppose I thought someday they would become who they were because of what I'd done. Now I suspect they simply grew into their true selves because they demanded in a thousand ways that I back off and let them be. The books said to be relaxed and I was often tense, matter-of-fact and I was sometimes over the top. And look how it all turned out. I wound up with the three people I like best in the world, who have done more than anyone to excavate my essential humanity. That's what the books never told me. I was bound and determined to learn from the experts. It just took me a while to figure out who the experts were.

Thyroid stuff

2008-04-29T10:54:00.004-05:00

I've been having problems with my thyroid. Been on medication for almost a year now, and I had to have the amount doubled recently. I've been having my thyroid levels checked to make sure I'm back on track, and it (finally) seems to be figuring itself out.

Normal TSH range is .34-2.5 UiU/mL (thyroid-stimulating hormone: a hormone synthesized and secreted by thyrotrope cells...which regulates the endocrine function of the thyroid gland (according to wikipedia.com).

This past December my TSH levels got as high as 9.33 (quite a bit off)! I had it tested again right before I went on vacation, and got the results back today (2.91)!! Almost normal. What a relief!! I still feel like crud on a regular basis, and feel like I'm gaining weight at an alarming rate, but at least I know things are getting back on track and I probably won't slip into a coma anytime soon!

Florida: Days 4 & 5

2008-04-28T16:27:00.012-05:00

I'm feeling on a roll here, so I may as well finish the trip up.

Saturday we only had a few hours to spare (Dave had a big work event Saturday evening) so we went to Disney's Hollywood Studios (formerly MGM Studios). The Indiana Jones stunt performance wasn't going on that day, which bummed Dave out quite a bit. (Neither was the Block Party Bash unfortunately.) But we checked out the Star Wars stuff for awhile. Jacob and Dave rode on Star Wars Tours, while Henry and I waited at the front of the line (minimum height requirement for the ride is 40"; Henry was a few inches shy). When they were done, Dave took Henry and I got to go on the ride. Jacob liked it but decided against going on a second time; he was feeling a little bit queasy. That was a lot of fun, and really well-done. We went to the Muppets 3-D movie, which was cute. (That was also the first time Henry willingly wore the 3-D glasses!) We had lunch at Toy Story's Pizza Planet, and then spent the remainder of our time there at the Honey, I Shrunk the Kids-inspired play area.

It was a great way for them to burn off energy! They loved getting soaked in the giant Super Soaker and going down the slides, climbing up the "spider web", and riding on the big bugs.

We ended with a popsicle and took the ferry back to the hotel.

Dave got ready and did his work thing and the kids and I had an evening in. I was still sick and the kids were overtired, so we vegged out and watched TV.

On Sunday, we got up early and had breakfast, and spent the morning on the beach and in the pool (one last time before going home!) then packed everything in a hurry. We spent the remainder of our time checking out the boardwalk across the lake from the hotel, then caught the bus to the airport. After we got on the plane, the flight attendant warned us that it was going to be a bumpy flight ("one last Disney World ride!"), and boy, were they right! The flight scared the bejeebus out of me, there was so much turbulence! Luckily we landed safely and are now home. We're all a little cold now though...it was in the mid-80s when we took off, and about 39 degrees (and snowing!!) when we landed. Ugh!!

We're glad to be home, but I wish that our vacation could have been a little longer...there's just so much to see and do, and we only scratched the surface!

Florida: Day 3

2008-04-28T15:10:00.012-05:00

On Friday we spent the entire day at Epcot (around 12 hours). The highlights were the Finding Nemo ride, and of course Turtle Talk with Crush, which was incredible! He's computer-animated but talks to the audience, answers questions, and describes in detail who he wants to talk to next ("The little dudette in the front row with the pink shell"). (I found a YouTube video someone had shot which gives you an idea if you haven't seen it.)

My boys being avid vehicle lovers (all 3 of them!), we rode the monorail to the Magic Kingdom and back, just for the thrill of it. This picture was literally taken seconds before Henry toppled backwards off the bar and landed on his back, which was only about 20 minutes after Jacob inadvertently ran him into a metal pole (they were holding hands and running to the monorail and Jacob, who was leading, got a little too close to the pole, which totally biffed poor Henry in the head!)....Henry wiped out at another point too, and flew out of the stroller. He wasn't having such a grand day it seems.

We went on Spaceship Earth (the boys were amazed at the "big golf ball"), the Honey, I Shrunk the Audience 3-D movie (which scared them a little), and the Maelstrom boat ride (in Norway). The weather was perfect and we had lots of fun. We walked and shopped and walked some more. By the time the fireworks started, Henry was more than a little wiped out! Probably recovering from all of his injuries!

We got a prime location on a comfy bench and stayed for the fireworks, which was in-sync to music and complete with a laser light show. It was as spectacular as those at the Magic Kingdom, only completely different.

Florida: Days 1 & 2

2008-04-28T14:42:00.014-05:00

Dave had to go to Orlando for work (poor guy, huh?), so the kids and I tagged along with him. It was their first trip to Florida, and my first in 18 years. We were able to stay for 5 days, which was great!

The flight out went well, and we arrived at the hotel mid-afternoon. (Yep, we were really roughing it!) When we went to check-in, there was a mixup and only Dave's name was listed so we only had a king-sized bed for 4 people. The hotel was completly full so we opted to get a cot for Jacob with the promise that the next night we could have 2 queen-sized beds instead. Jacob loved having his own cot so much he begged us to stay in that room, so stay we did. Henry slept in between Dave and me and there was so much room it worked out fine. Jacob loved having his own space.

I was actually feeling pretty crummy though. I more or less lost my voice and just felt yucky most of the time. The boys had colds too. Figures.

So that night (Wednesday), after grabbing some dinner and checking out the hotel a bit, we took a shuttle bus to Downtown Disney. One of the toy stores had a "Build Your Own Lightsaber" booth which of course Jacob and Henry loved! They spent a long time reenacting different battle scenes.

The next morning we went to the Magic Kingdom, the pinnacle of all that is Disney (or so it seemed, judging by the crowds!). It was almost unbearably hot that day and the lines were insane: 45 minutes to ride on Dumbo, 40 minutes for Peter Pan's ride, 30 more for Mickey's Philharmagic 3-D movie (which was really cool!), etc. As a friend had explained to us, the Philharmagic show is really 4-D: not only do things pop out at you, but you can smell the baked goods during the Be Our Guest number, and feel the wind and water from the show! (Plus, you get to sit in the blessed air-conditioning!!) Those 3 rides really were the highlight of the day for the kids.

Since it was so hot and humid, and the kids were really cranky, we decided to head back to the hotel for a few hours. We had some dinner and a swim in the pool, which lightened everyone's mood. We went back to the Magic Kingdom around 9, just in time for the parade and fireworks! They were spectacular! Beyond words! We did make a mistake though; there were a couple more rides we had wanted to go on, but hadn't wanted to deal with the heat or lines at the time, so we thought we'd go back late and stay for the extra Disney hours, which are extended hours available for folks staying at a Disney hotel. We thought that there were extended evening hours, but it turned out they'd been that morning, so we missed out on those last couple things. Oh well.

Monday, Monday

2008-04-21T22:27:00.009-05:00

Henry's little friend Megan came over today to play for a bit (technically I was babysitting her, but the kids get along so well it just doesn't feel like any sort of chore!). According to Henry though Megan's not his girlfriend (just friends). :) Love Henry's smile!

Then after school, the kids and I went and saw my niece Katie play softball. She traveled up to my town with her middle-school team. What a superstar!

100 and still going strong

2008-04-21T18:47:00.004-05:00

On Sunday we traveled to a small town in southern MN for a family reunion/birthday celebration for my great-aunt Tilly. She turned 100 years old!! That just amazes me. She's actually not doing great, health-wise, but really, she hasn't been doing all that great for the last 15 years, and really is still going strong!

It was really nice seeing my aunts and uncles and a couple of my cousins (and their kids). Most I see less than once/year, since they're so spread out around the country. It was a fun afternoon.

It was also a peaceful drive there and back, since we tried out our new portable DVD player! Works like a charm, and it kept the boys quiet....I mean, entertained.

Lary

2008-04-19T12:46:00.003-05:00

Dave's oldest friend Lary (in terms of years of friendship, not age!) got interviewed by a local paper. He's been in the navy for over 20 years now, and has had such an interesting career. He's lived all over the world, been promoted to chief, and of course has served in two wars. We're really proud of him!

Brotherly love

2008-04-19T09:54:00.010-05:00

Our groceries came today, thanks to the "grocery man" (as Henry calls him). In it were a couple boxes of Fruity Cheerios (I had a coupon for $1 off 2 boxes), which are Henry's favorite cereal, ever! (Jacob loves Life cereal, like me.) Cheerios boxes now have a race car inside (Richard Petty's #43), so it worked out well that we got 2 boxes! We let them open both boxes and each take a car.

Jacob's is red and blue, and is based on the Fruity Cheerios box. Henry's is yellow and blue, and based on the original Cheerios box. Dave made the mistake of pointing that out to Jacob; since Henry loves Fruity Cheerios--"green Cheerios" as he calls them--he should have that car. As soon as the words came out of his mouth, I think he realized his mistake. My boys are SOOO competitive! To a fault. They certainly don't need any extra fodder (from us) for arguing. I'm not blaming Dave; I've done it myself, many times. I meant well, of course, but it always came back to bit me in the ass. Therefore I've learned the valuable lesson of biting my tongue whenever tempted to intervene regarding who is playing with what (most of the time).

So of course this morning, Jacob's spent an inordinate amount of time trying to bribe, bully, and beg his brother to trade cars with him. Henry of course refused, so Jacob's been pouting and is not being nice to Henry, and Henry's gotten mad and is not being very nice to Jacob.

Oh joy.

Growing up, I had one brother and one sister, so I understand those relationship dynamics, but watching two brothers interact....it's a whole new ballgame!!

The sound of music

2008-04-19T00:18:00.006-05:00

This week at Jacob's school, the kindergarteners performed a music concert for their families, complete with singing, dancing, and playing instruments. There are over 100 kids in his grade, so it was quite a big group. They all did a great job, and Jacob had some great dance moves going on! (Jacob's in the middle, wearing green.)

Mixed (Up) Ages

2008-04-13T10:49:00.006-05:00

Kids sure have interesting ideas about how old grown-ups are! Two cases in point...

On Fridays, the kids in Jacob's kindergarten class get to bring a Show & Tell item and present it to their class. They then get to choose 3 people to ask a question/make a comment about what was brought. Jacob decided this past Friday that he wanted me to be his Show & Tell item. It was really sweet, even when one of the kids asked him how old I was:

Child "B": How old is your Mom?
Jacob: I don't know. How old are you, Mommy?
Me: I'm OLD!
Child "S": Are you 49?
Different Child "B": She's 99!

And so on... Made me feel just oh-so good.

Then this morning, Henry had his 2 cents about ages:

Henry: Daddy's 2!
Me: Daddy's 2? How old is Mommy?
Henry: Mommy's 3!
Me: I'm 3 just like you??
Henry: You're not 3, I'm 3! You're 4!

So apparently I look older than my husband as well as middle-aged....or down-right old! (By the way, I'm only 31 and my dear, dear husband is actually 7 years older than I am!)

Maybe it's time to start wearing make-up and get out of these sweats*....

*No, I don't actually go out in public wearing sweat pants and no make-up.

Target Rocks!

2008-04-08T12:01:00.004-05:00

So yesterday morning I noticed my driver's license was missing. Spent a very frantic day digging through everything I owned and calling all the places I'd been the last week or so (which was plentiful!): Target, Kohls, Great Clips (Jacob's haircut), Kids' Hair (Henry's haircut--he requires DVDs while getting his hair cut!), Caribou, Noodles & Co, Chipotle, Barnes & Noble, Cold Stone Creamery, Cossetta's... Yikes. Like I said, I got a little carried away.

Anywho....everywhere I called had the same answer: a big, fat, resounding NO! So after Dave came home from work (and helped in my search), I spent an hour or so in line at the DMV and got my new one ordered. I have a temporary license (that yellow sheet of paper) but I was still a little nervous. We have a vacation planned in the not-so-distant future, and I kind of need my license to get on the plane! I do have a passport (dug it out of the safe yesterday) but, as it turns out, has my maiden name on it still! So yeah, I was panicky about if I'd even be able to fly out with my family!

Then lo and behold! The mail arrived today, and there was my old license! I'd left it at Target (I'm guessing when I made a return last Friday) based on the envelope. But there wasn't a note with it, so who knows where it was?? I'm just so relieved to have it back! So thank you, generous Target Good-Samaritan! Thank you.

Bimbo

2008-04-07T14:03:00.002-05:00

Now that I've got your attention...vote for me! Just kidding. :)

I'm having a crapola day over here. Woke up with a sore throat and congestion issues. And at some point in the last few days, I seem to have lost, misplaced, or had stolen my driver's license! Poor Henry's been stuck with the TV babysitter all day as I've frantically searched for it. It's not in my wallet, purses, any of my pants pockets, winter coat, spring jacket, jean jacket, van....well, you get the idea. I've called everywhere I've bought something lately (which has been a lot--I think I might be a compulsive shopper based on the receipts!), to see if someone has it, but so far no luck. This is REALLY stressing me out!!

Anyway, I came across this van over the weekend, and had to get a picture of it!

I was a little nervous about even trying to look up the company's information online (that's not something you'd want to misspell!), but after double-checking my typing, I decided it was worthing checking out. At bimbousa.com, there's a lot of cutesy animation with "the lovable Bimbo bear", and some interesting old video footage from their early years. According to the video, the company name is based on the word bambino, but according to Wikipedia, it's "the mixing of the words "bambi" with "bingo". Wherever the name came from, it's unfortunate it doesn't translate so well!

Do your pits smell nice??

2008-04-04T10:58:00.007-05:00

We were all in the van yesterday going to an event, and this conversation took place:

Jacob: "Who smells so good?"

Dave: "It must be mommy!" (I admit, I'd gotten myself a little fancied up--meaning I wasn't wearing sweats--and had some expensive, nice-smelling lotion on.)

Jacob: "I think it's you, Daddy! You know that armpit stuff you put on your armpits so they don't smell? I think that's what smells so good!"

Dave: "Well, thanks!"

Wow. I was trying my darnedest to not laugh out loud, but it was very difficult! Dave turned up the radio to cover up any inadvertent wheezing/snorting/hyperventilitating noises I was making.

Handsome

2008-04-02T19:57:00.004-05:00

My boys both got haircuts today. They've needed them for awhile...you know it's bad when it touches their eyes! Don't they look handsome??

Crockpottery

2008-04-02T14:13:00.008-05:00

I recently came across a great new blog - the woman behind it has vowed to use her crockpot every day for a year. I am so excited about this! I have a love/fear relationship with my crockpots. I love the whole *3* meals that Dave and I can make in them (chili, sloppy joes, and we've made a mean pot roast too) but I am a nervous wreck about trying new recipes out!

It's a bit silly to me that I am such a scaredy-cat. But every time I've thought about experimenting a little, I worry that I'll screw up dinner so bad everyone will get food poisoning, or it'll be cooked through but just be inedible, and I don't want to waste a meal on an unsure thing.

It's not like we don't have Papa John's on speed dial over here though...if all goes to hell I can order dinner for my family in a jiffy!

Crabby Patty....er....Stephanie

2008-04-01T15:48:00.008-05:00

I don't know what's wrong with me today. Maybe it's the fact that we received over 7" of snow yesterday, when the previous weekend I'd gotten myself all excited because it was warming up and my lawn was almost all greenish-brown. It could be because Jacob's been off of school since Friday (when he threw up, at school), since Monday and Tuesday are conferences....and this comes shortly after a full week off of school for Spring Break (which was after he had another day and a half off because he was sick. At school. Again.). Which came shortly after they had ANOTHER day off in March being the end of the trimester (and I know he had at least one other sick day in there somewhere too).

It wasn't just Jacob though; Henry's dealt with his share of being sick, though he hasn't thrown up (yet). It's been nothing but cleaning up vomit, trying to get diarrhea out of clothing, and SNOW for a solid month!!! No wonder I'm about to crack!!

As a result, I'm "mean mommy" today. My patience is pencil thin. The boys seem to know this and are trying to push me past my limit. Maybe they think if they push hard enough, I'll raise the white flag and they can survive on their own, a la Lord of the Flies. (Just so you know, neither of them have heard that story.) Or maybe they're just hoping if I crack enough, they'll get ice cream and cookies for dinner because I will have lost my will to mother.

Good luck on that one, boys!

Behold... (Part 3)

2008-03-31T22:50:00.002-05:00

Spring (again) in all its glory!

Here it is, piled up on the bird feeder:

In the end, we got 7-8" of snow in about 24 hours.

Scoops for Troops

2008-03-30T17:38:00.007-05:00

On Sunday afternoon we all piled into the new minivan (if you can't tell, I'm excited about it!) and went to Eagan. An acquaintance co-organized Scoops for Troops at a local ice-cream shop, and I am so glad we went. The turnout was amazing; the line was out the door! There was a gentleman there who restored a 1942 Army jeep and was letting kids sit in it. The boys loved that, and it helped make the wait more enjoyable. I'm bummed I forgot my digital camera and my cell phone camera (Doh!), especially when Jacob whispered to me while in the jeep that that was his "dream come true". He had a lot of well-thought out questions for the owner, and Henry had fun "driving" it!

Jacob was also interested in learning more about his family history in the military: both of Dave's Grandpas served in WWI, my Grandpa was a paratrooper during WWII, and my uncles and brother (Jacob's namesake...at least his middle name) all served in the army as well.

At the benefit, there were local radio/TV celebrities serving ice cream, which was fun to see. Dave, Henry, and I all had a scrumptious red, white, and blue gelato, and Jacob had some kind of blue ice-cream with M&Ms in it. It really was great seeing the whole community turn out for this event! I really hope they make lots of money.

Soaring

2008-03-30T11:47:00.028-05:00

On Saturday, while Jacob and Henry were being watched by their Grandparents (and loving every minute of it), Dave and I test-drove a 2007 Sienna, and loved it! (Our old one had over 115,000 miles on it and was going to need some repairs soon.) We ended up buying the newer version (which was a huge decision for us) and trading in our old one. We then took the boys out to enjoy the new vehicle. Our errands eventually took us to Dick's Sporting Goods store, where we bought some new shin pads for the upcoming soccer season.

After the boys test-drove the kayaks, Jacob wanted to try climbing their 2-story rock wall. He just made the height requirement, so we let him try it out.

Henry was pretty disappointed that he couldn't climb up there with his brother, but we cheered on Jacob, who got maybe a third of the way up. Considering it was his first time trying it, he did great! I'm really proud of him. I did a little rock climbing waaaayyyyy back in college and just loved it!

(The pictures were taken from my camera phone, so they're a little fuzzy.) Go, Jacob, Go!

He has a knack...

2008-03-28T14:08:00.007-05:00

...for extending his days off of school (Jacob, that is)!

A couple weeks ago, he got sick at school and needed to come home early. It was a Thursday afternoon, and he had to wait 24-hours before he could return. The whole next week was Spring Break, so he didn't have to go back to school for 10 1/2 days (including weekends).

Then this morning, I brought Jacob to school and we were getting his stuff in his locker. The poor thing threw up in the hallway! So now he's home, sleeping, and won't be back until Wednesday, since the kids have Monday and Tuesday off for conferences.

I don't know how he does it, but the kid seems to have a gift for getting ill right before a school break! Which of course causes him to become antsy and bored and stir-crazy a lot sooner (and hence get himself into mischief sooner)!

The Easter Bunny Cometh!

2008-03-24T15:52:00.011-05:00

We really had a nice Easter. The boys woke up and found their Easter baskets easily (according to Jacob, the Easter Bunny didn't do a very good job of hiding them!) and enjoyed the candy, cars, Legos, and VSmile games (yep, they're a bit spoiled). Love Henry's bed-head!
We had caramel rolls for breakfast and got all gussied up and went to church. After we came home, we put a ham in the oven, and I made a pie. Dave helped the boys color eggs while the ham baked, then we had a nice family lunch.
When we were done eating we went down to visit my in-laws. My mother-in-law hid eggs and Easter baskets for the boys and they really had fun finding them. We had a nice visit with them and right before we left my nieces and nephew came over too. Jacob and Henry had helped their Grandma hide eggs for them before they got there, and Henry was very helpfully finding them!

Then we went over to my parents' house. My sister was there as well (who I don't think I've since since Christmas!) as well as a cousin and her kids (I know I haven't seen them since Christmas). We had a delicious meal and it was nice seeing them all again. The boys each got a WebKinz toy from my parents: Jacob named his Almonzo (I'm reading him the Little House on the Prairie books--we're on Farmer Boy right now) and Henry named his Froggy.