New Beginnings

Potty Time!

2012-01-23T18:33:00.000-08:00

I was cleaning dishes and Jolynn made her normal pooping sounds (grunting). I thought maybe I could catch her before she actually did the duty and get her on the potty chair. We missed the chair, I ended up showing her the poop goes in the toilet. Then I sat her on the chair to try and go potty. The training book said to have her go when you go. So (TMI) , as I was going I told her to sit and go potty too. She got up and started walking toward the door. Butt naked (literally) I worried she would go while I was still occupied. Without me saying a word she came back, sat down, and went PEE! Really truly! Not the caught her midstream kind, this was actual pee pee on the potty!

Okay, maybe I'm a bit more excited than I should be. This seemed like such a huge deal. I wanted to sing and dance. Jolynn just wanted to touch it. (don't worry mom, I didn't let her). Jon was outside shoveling so I didn't dump it out so he could enjoy the excitement too. He did a bit of cheering when he came in and we told him, but still not as excited as I was when it actually happened.

Now I have to get brave enough to just let her run naked around the house so we can get her constantly going on the potty. I'm thinking she may be ready. She still doesn't say "yes", but she says potty. The fact that she turned around and came back to the potty chair instead of just peeing next to the door has to be a sign of readiness.

18 months

2012-01-18T07:17:00.000-08:00

ONE and a HALF! Our little girl is growing so much. She is walking like crazy, almost running. We rearranged the entryway because she is doing the steps now. She does them pretty well, but just in case this way she doesn't land on anything at the bottom.

We haven't used the monitor in a long time. I decided to see what she does when we put her down for a nap. I wish the monitor recorded. She was playing with the metal flowers on the wall, running circles in her crib, then at one point she had half her body over the railing. The crib is already at its lowest, next stage is toddler bed. We thought it better for her to fall out of the toddler bed than flipping over the top of the rail. We weren't able to get her to take a nap in it right away - she ended up taking it in our bed. She is great at getting in and out of it, and when she gets in she lays down and says "nigh nigh" but doesn't stay in the bed.

We tried the BabyCenter approach at nap time. We laid her down and said it was time for a nap. Shut the door. Jon stayed on the monitor while I stood next to the door. He would tell me "she's out of bed" and "she's at the door". Then I would walk her back to bed in silence and no eye contact. We did this about 8 times. She thought it was a game. So the last time I shut the door so it clicked (meaning she couldn't open it herself). She ended up falling asleep next to the door. I came in an hour later and had to gently keep opening the door little by little. Bedtime went a lot better. She gave us the cue when she laid down on the floor. We did our kisses for everyone (including Polly). Then I laid her down and left the room. She cried for a while next to the door. I sent Jon in this time. He put her in bed and she didn't get up. It has been this way for a week now. Once in bed and she pretty much gets it. She cries for a while, but she doesn't get out of bed.

Another milestone - potty training. We are taking it VERY slow. I have a potty chair. We started by having her investigate the whole thing. She took it all apart. Then we had her sit on it with her clothes on. I have her come in with me when I go and she sits on her chair (clothes on still). Before we get ready for bed and change her diaper one last time we sit on the chair naked. I let her run around the bathroom naked (easy cleanup if necessary). Every once in a while asking her if she has to go potty. When I ask she comes back to the chair and sits down. She took some toilet paper and I asked her what she does with it, she proceeded to wipe herself. I think she knows the concept, just not sure she knows about being wet vs. dry. When I have a weekend of no activities and not being sick, we will have to try the 3 day method.

(This is not the chair Jolynn has, but I thought it interesting when I Googled Potty Chair how many different styles there were and how they have evolved. I think this is the model I had when I was getting trained. Just a bucket under a chair with a hole. The bucket slid out and you dumped in the the toilet.)

New words: Uppee, Yummy, Potty, Baba (Grandpa Benson), mine, me

Twin Cities Live - VOTE for JOLYNN!!

2012-01-05T19:57:00.000-08:00

Happy 2012!

2012-01-03T05:13:00.000-08:00

We went to my parent's cabin for the weekend. Jon has never been up there, and Jolynn and I haven't since Memorial weekend. My mom warned me that there was 3 inches of snow up there and that the cabin would take about 2 hours to warm up. Pishaw I said! 3 inches is probably 1 1/2 by now, and the cabin will not be that cold because it hasn't been that cold here. Um, no. There really was 3 inches and I forgot mine and Jon's boots. The cabin wasn't too bad. It warmed up pretty quickly and then STAYED warm. On Sunday it was a whopping 85 degrees inside. We may have stoked the fire a little too much.

The weather was really nice. My mom and I took turns pulling Jolynn in her sled that my parents made. It had another coat of lacquer on it, so it was ready for the wet snow. Jolynn is much bigger than the last time she was in it and can now hold on to the side rails. We weren't going too crazy so she didn't have to buckle up.

My parents just recently had electricity installed. They had gas everything before (stove, oven, fridge, lights). We pretty much only used the stove and oven. Since light was by candle or lantern, bedtime was usually as soon as the sun went down. Things are a little different when you have electricity. It is still a "cabin", so there is no TV and cell service is minimal. It is great for playing games and reading however. Since they now have electricity they also installed a new fridge. This weekend was the first weekend for turning it on. Apparently the temp gauge was not working properly (fridge worked fine) or my mom got some bad meat from Cub. We were supposed to have ribs for New Year's Eve dinner. When I cut open the package the meat smelled really rancid. We ended up going down to Jack's Shack (great bar/restaurant) and ordering dinner to go.

It was a great weekend. I hope we can go back again, maybe when there is a little more snow.

Benson/Strait Christmas

2011-12-24T22:35:00.000-08:00

Christmas Eve was spent at the Strait's. Jackie was home from college and Maggie turns 18 (OMG!) in just a few days. I can't believe how time has just flown by. So here is a glimpse of what last Christmas looked like:

Now here is this Christmas:

We were smart enough to take a group photo this year:

(I know...10 years at Lifetouch has finally paid off - I can actually take a good group photo)

Painting!

2011-12-21T18:47:00.000-08:00

I finally got up the courage to try painting in the tub with Jolynn. Jon was a BIG help. I set everything up and then he "coached" her so I wouldn't get full of paint before Zumba class. He then cleaned the tub (and her) so I could get to Zumba. She started off slow, as the video will show, but she really got into it towards the end.

Finished paintings.

17 months

2011-12-18T19:58:00.001-08:00

The time between 16 and 17 months just flew by! We haven't had any revelations in development. She is a little chatter box. Loves to dance and sing. We've been trying to color more, working with markers now. She can take the covers off and put them back on too! She's so smart. She amazes me everyday. I can't wait for Christmas. She has been helping me with gifts. Money was a little tight this year, so most of my gifts have been hand made with the help of Jolynn.

One thing we have started (and by started, I mean we took it out of the box) is the potty chair. I don't plan on making it a die hard thing right now. I think she can tell when she is wet because she pulls on her diaper. We are going to go slow. Right now I can't even get her to sit on it with her diaper on. My mom is prepared - with stickers at the ready. No hurry, but it would be nice if she was out of diapers say by 2 years old. My mom said I was potty trained by the time I was 18 months, but I was also in cloth diapers and could tell when I was wet (not a good feeling).

Florida 2011

2011-12-12T19:29:00.000-08:00

There were many photos (too many to load here). Check out Facebook if you want to see them all. Here are a few of my favorites.

Poolside

Swimming with Grandpa Moritz

Meeting "Mickey" for the first time.

Up the stairs at the park, and...

Down the slide!

At the ocean for the first time.

Playing in the sand and

watching the waves.

collecting shells with Grandma Moritz

16 Months

2011-11-07T18:56:00.000-08:00

When Jolynn was 5 months I believe she was taking her first trip to Florida. Well, here we are at 16 months and she is about to take her second trip to Florida.

We've moved up to a booster chair. She really could have stayed in her highchair, but it doesn't fit well up to the table. So we moved to a booster that fits better.

She loves to read. Just before bed it almost seems like she is stalling because she brings me a book and I sit on the floor. She sits in my lap and we read a book. Then we get done and she brings another book over. We have to go through all the books in the living room (thank goodness we are not doing this in her room). Sometimes I catch her sitting in her highchair (we are still using it as a "chair") with a book open.

Last month, while I was in Vegas, Mike and Margaret took Jolynn for the weekend. They bought her a new pair of tennis shoes and cowboy boots. I'm glad she wore them just about everyday. While we were in Florida, they noticed she was walking funny again (like when they had her). I had her in size 2 shoes. They moved her up to size 3. We went to Stride Rite in Florida and measured her again - SIZE 5! Plan for shoes from now on: get a versatile pair and get her remeasured once a month. Buy special occasion shoes and weather related shoes when needed, not in preparation for a month down the line.

A few weeks ago we had her wellness check up for 15 months. She was 20.7 lbs (30%), 32 inches (90%) and her head was in the 90 percentile too.

halloween

2011-10-31T19:34:00.000-07:00

I think I was more excited about going trick-o-treating with Jolynn than Jolynn was of actually going. She was all dressed up and ready to go. We ditched the stroller and Jon carried her for the most part, but he made her walk a good block or more. We went to the neighbors down at the end of the block, then we walked to Mary's (daycare). We hit a few houses along the way, but that was about it. I'm glad we didn't go farther because she started to melt down a block from home. Probably didn't help that I gave her a sucker to keep her quiet and then took it away a few minutes later. She got over it quickly. Jon was anxious to hand out candy. I don't think we got as many kids as we have in the past. There were more kids in costume than normal. I hate giving out candy to kids that don'teven try. Get a mask!

Lady Bug

2011-10-15T16:27:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday BFF

2011-10-15T16:06:00.000-07:00

Jodi and I have been best of friends since we were in 6th grade. We ended up having girls that are within a few months of each other. Hopefully they will grow to be as close as us.
Today was Brianna's 2nd birthday party. It was held at a park with a pavilion and an awesome park. It was a little windy. I was glad we stopped at Target before going there and found this cute pink vest, otherwise Jolynn probably wouldn't have been dressed for the weather.

A few photos from the day.

Peeking between the spinners.

Heading down the slide with Gracie.

Playing in the tubes with Grandma Moritz (better her than me).

Going down the big slide with Grandma Moritz.

After a very busy and exciting day - she slept from Hudson all the way to Brooklyn Park.

Macaroni Kid Family Fun Day

2011-10-09T14:17:00.001-07:00

I receive emails for activities in our area through a site called Macaroni Kid. On Friday I rec'd an email that they were taking old costumes at the Maple Grove Craft Fair on Saturday. You would receive a ticket to get a new costume at the Fun Day at Anoka MS on Sunday.

I went into Jolynn's closet and found a lady bug bunting costume she never wore last year. We already have a couple costumes for this year, but I didn't think it would hurt to have another just in case. I picked out a lion and a flower. I held them up for Jolynn and asked her which one she wanted. She shook her head no. I held up the lion one and another one. She shook her head no again. Then I took down this frog costume. She grabbed it. She knows what she wants.

When you first enter you are given a goodie bag that had a bunch of coupons and free stuff if you go to the vendor's stores. You had to go around to all the booths and get a stamp on a card. Once you had all the stamps then you turn in your card for a spin on a "prize" wheel. All the booths had candy too so the kids (or in my case, me) could go trick-o-treating. Two of the booths were craft activities for the kids. One was making a spider web from black paint and a ball rolled in a pan. Jolynn again made her own decision in which spider would adore her web.

Then we went over to the other craft table that had foam cutouts with foam stickers to decorate them. Jolynn picked out the stickers and I stuck them on.

This was definitely a fun activity and it was all free. The only bad part about the whole thing was that Jon was not able to join us.

15 months

2011-10-02T16:44:00.000-07:00

I was very diligent about writing about Jolynn the first year. I feel like I have been slacking since then. I'm going to try harder. I have been documenting many of her milestones on Facebook. There are videos of her taking her first steps, our fun times with friends and family, and hide and seek. The part I have been trying to remember is the words. She is saying more everyday and sometimes they are recognizable. Jon swears she has said a few things too, but she hasn't repeated them.

Words this month (some heard by me, some by Jon, some only heard once): hot, mouth, hiding, ouch, polly (sort of), Mike, Margaret, pretty, nigh nigh (night night-bedtime), ahyaboo (I love you), bath time,
Previous month and ever since: momma, daddy, ow, uh oh.

She loves giving Daddy kisses.

Biggest milestone this month has been WALKING!! A few steps here and there and every day she makes more and more progress. She does more when she is not paying attention and you are not either.

*I tried putting a video of her walking, but it keeps saying an error has occurred. To see video go to Facebook.

State Fair 2011

2011-09-09T05:15:00.000-07:00

I'm a little late with this post. We went to the State Fair on the last day, Labor Day. It was a beautiful day, not very crowded. I did not eat my typical fair food, which made my body feel pretty good. I feel like I missed out a little though. The whole point of the fair used to be the food. This year it was more "the experience" and all about Jolynn's experience. I love watching her discover everything.

Her favorite booth at the fair: the shower heads. See Facebook for photo.

First stop was the K-9 building and she received her dog ears.

Then she went through the Cub Foods Farm.
Apron: check. Gathering bucket: check.

Driving the tractor full of hay.

Payment for all her hard work: CHEERIOS!

Midday nap. She can sleep through anything.

A tradition that we started last year - we will get Jolynn's hand mold done each year at the fair. The one the left is her first year at 5 weeks old. The one the right is from this year. Can't believe she used to be that little!

**I forgot to mention we stopped in the Education bldg for our family photo and weighed in Jolynn. Last year I had to weigh myself, then hold Jolynn to get her weight. This year we had her STAND BY HERSELF on the scale. She weighed in at 21.1 lbs.

Where does the time go?

2011-08-18T07:17:00.000-07:00

It has been another month since Jolynn's first birthday. The first year went by so fast, how could the next go just as quickly? With work in full swing again my days are very busy and our weekends have been spent gallivanting visiting grandparents and friends. It has been a busy summer. This past month we caught Jolynn standing. She also pushes her legs straight with butt in the air. One of these days she's going to stand straight up and just start walking! She LOVES to "walk" around the house. She has also been very interested in watching me cook. We put her in her high chair and scoot her really close, then I do a tutorial on whatever I am making.

We've started having bath time at 7:30 or so. She loves the water so much and this has helped getting her to bed earlier and staying asleep through the night. Her nose has been very stuffed up lately and the bath also helps get rid of all the crud. She has started putting her face in the water and trying to blow bubbles. Most of the time she just ends up taking a gulp of water. It has been a good thing seeing her put her face in the water and not getting scared. She had fun playing every night with Ethan (friend from South Dakota).

Our friends from South Dakota came for a visit before their kids had to head back to school. Daycare was closed Friday, so I took the day off and we all went to IKEA. Then the next day we went to Como Zoo. I think Jolynn was more interested in people watching than animal watching. Should make the State Fair interesting. We used her new wagon and we had many comments of "honey, we don't have a wagon yet. I want that one for Christmas!". It was hilarious. I swear I could have sold it easily...not gonna happen-we love it!

Words this month: Ow, Uh Oh, Wuff Wuff, HI! (which she says to everyone whether they are coming or going) and lots of DADDY DADDY DADDY!

She's our little dancing girl!

One Year

2011-07-18T07:17:00.001-07:00

This past month has been very busy with getting ready for her first birthday. Lots of planning and I have learned a lot. Knowing that this was the first I wanted it to be big. I just thought it should be. After the first what is there? just kidding

Milestones this month - she is walking with a "walker". Go ahead and move into the walking stage honey! We've got the banister up! Unfortunately the baby gate doesn't fit, so we still have to do the modified version that she knows how to push over. Oh well. Jolynn is also eating more solid big people food. I think she is very much over the mush of cereal. She really likes banana, peaches, grilled cheese, mac-n-cheese, pancakes, and waffles. So far these have been the finger foods given. I tried some veggies, but she just chewed on them then spit them out. I forgot watermelon! she is also transitioning to a sippy cup.

She now has 4 teeth on the top and 2 on the bottom. Not sure which ones will come in next, but I think there are more in the works because she has every sign at the same time. Lots of drool, rosey cheeks, chewing on everything, and diaper rash.

We've had a few 90+ degree days with 100+ heat index. That makes for good pool weather. I see us having many more of these pool days if the summer keeps up like this.

We thought she had said Momma a few months ago, but couldn't tell if it was just a sound she was making or the actual name. We believe her first word (that is decipherable as an actual word) is UH OH! It is so cute. She does a lot of babbling and I suspect more words will be coming in the next few months.

Happy Birthday Jolynn!

2011-07-18T07:17:00.000-07:00

Today is the day - at 7:17am I gave birth to a beautiful baby girl. This year has gone by so fast. I think I need to recap with a few of my favorite photos.

ELEVEN Months!

2011-06-18T07:17:00.000-07:00

It's hard for me to even write the words. I can't believe she is eleven months already!

Swimming classes have ended. She missed class over Memorial weekend; but had her first camping experience and we visited Grandma and Grandpa Benson's cabin. The following weekend was BOW. She was going to miss her final class too, but my mom was able to take her. I mainly wanted her to take the class if she was afraid of the water as a way to get her not to be. She LOVES the water.

Late May I watched Jolynn crawl from one end of the room to the other, then pull herself up on the toy box and coffee table. I was cooking in the kitchen and the sliding door was open with the screen shut. Jolynn crawled across the kitchen, over to the screen, put her little hand on it - and OPENED IT! There isn't a lock on the screen door, not sure how we will keep her in on this one.

Still working on getting the railing up. So far we have been letting her wander around in the living room while we sit on the couch watching. She seems more adventurous and wanting to discover what things do when she doesn't think someone is watching. If we can't be watching her, she goes in her room and we put up a baby gate or we put her in her exersaucer.

This past month she also started: waving bye bye and hello, claps, and is "cruising" from couch to couch to coffee table and back to couch. I am quite positive she will be walking in a few months. She really thinks she is the stuff when you hold her hands and she practically runs (like a march) across the room. She is so proud, and so are we.

More sounds are emitting from her - can't wait for them to be words. We have been working on sign language during eating. Mostly "done", "more", and "milk". I don't know much else. "please" and "thank you" have been others that I try to do.

Ten Months

2011-05-14T05:13:00.001-07:00

BIG CHANGES! May 6 - Jolynn crawled! Since then she has been scooting all over the house. I used to be able to leave her in the living room on her blanket while I got ready for work. Now when I check on her she is into some wires or stuck in a corner. She is also fascinated with Polly's toys. Like she doesn't have enough of her own, she has to go after Polly's. So far Polly hasn't minded. Polly just licks her...over and over and over. Saturday morning I watched her crawl across the living room and reach up to the coffee table. She wasn't able to get off her knees, but I suspect it won't be long.
I'm very disappointed. We have this great video camera that was intended to capture all this special moments. So far we have captured them, but not been able to share them.

Next project - Banister and railing so we can put a gate up for the steps. Also, time to baby proof.

We have been working on the two upper teeth for a few weeks. Looks like the top right has finally broken through. I can't imagine how that feels. Just the thought of it makes me feel bad for her.

Another thing she has found (and quite loudly) is her voice. What once was quiet babble, is now ear piercing screeching. Jon and I have taken to singing when she starts to do this. So far I think it is working.

Two more busy months until her 1 year birthday. I can't believe it. It went by so fast. We have something going on all but maybe two weekends for the next 2 months.

Swimming lessons are going great. I will be gone this weekend at a scrapbooking retreat so the Grandmas are going to take her. They are going to have so much fun. I'm sure they both wish they could be in the pool with her at the same time. There will be plenty of time for that this summer. She LOVES the water. I hope we can spend lots of time at G&G Moritzs.

Nine Months

2011-04-20T19:00:00.000-07:00

A few days late, but I wanted to get her stats from the doctor's appointment in this time.

She is still in the 50% for height and 5% for weight. 15lb 12.5oz and 27 inches.

This month has brought a few changes. More teeth are on their way. I see two white dashes on her upper gums. Finger food is getting easier and keeps her entertained for a while. Polly likes it too because sometimes a few fall to the floor. I tried to tell her there would be treats galore once Jolynn arrived.

Movement: she is rolling front to back and back to front. I haven't actually witnessed the back to front, but when laid in bed all the sudden I will look at the monitor and she is on her stomach. She also pulled herself up in the pack and play. This brought us to moving the crib down. That was a big step. I packed up 3 more boxes of clothes. She is onto the 9-12 month clothes. She has also started scooting backwards and in circles. Crawling isn't there quite yet, but soo close. We really need to get that banister up :)

I love waking up in the morning hearing her talk to her "friends" in her crib. Then I go in and peer down at her. She gets as excited as when I pick her up from daycare. It's a great way to wake up.
We also had her 9 month photos taken at Flash over the weekend. See facebook for all 26.

Brookings, SD

2011-04-03T10:42:00.000-07:00

We were able to take our first family trip last weekend. Jolynn has been for a long trip to Florida, but not a long trip in a car. This was a four hour trip. She did very well. We went to visit friends. While there, we went to the Children's Museum. It was very cool. I can't wait to go back when Jolynn is more mobile. They have a great outdoor part too, which will be nice to visit when it is warmer.

I can help Grandma Benson gather eggs.

Official weight at time of Brookings visit=15 1/2 lbs

Heather helped Jolynn look at the kids in the toddler play area.

They had a cool room with a window and water color like paints. I probably shouldn't have used red, looks a little creepy.

The boys waiting for us to check out from the gift store.

Pooped out from her exciting day at the museum.

Eight Months

2011-03-16T16:40:00.000-07:00

Again, not much has changed since last month. The grandparents would beg to differ - since they see her every few weeks or only on the weekends. I see her every day. I still love picking her up from daycare and seeing how excited she is when she sees that it's me picking her up. She starts talking/screeching and waving her hands and kicking her feet. Pure excitement - all to see me! I love it! Physical progress: still not rolling over. Sitting much better, even without using the tripod method. If you put her on her stomach, her arms are stretched out and her stomach is off the floor. Knees are pulled up almost like she wants to crawl. When she is in her exersaucer she goes crazy. Sometimes I think that thing is going to flip over she makes it rock so much.

She is still a big eater.
Breakfast: 6oz formula, 4 T oatmeal, 3.5oz fruit (stage 2)
Snack: 6oz formula
Lunch: 6oz formula, 4 T oatmeal
Snack: 6oz formula
Dinner: 6oz formula, 4 T oatmeal, 3.5oz veggie (stage 2)

You would think eating all that she would be this chubby little thing. She's still tiny. Another month and she will have her next doctors appointment. At the 6 month appointment he said she was doing just fine and would be on the small side because of being premature. So far she does what she is supposed to do so I guess we are doing something right.

Communication has kicked up a bit. Besides her normal babble and squawks, we think we may be hearing mama and dada. Or just wishful thinking. When you put music on sometimes she sounds like she is singing along. She also loves to dance (with you of course).

At the end of this month we will be taking a trip to Brookings, SD. Besides going to Florida, this will be Jolynn's first long car ride. Since we are leaving after work, I'm sure she will sleep the whole way there. This will also be our first family trip, as Jon usually works the weekends. It is my birthday weekend and I am so excited to be able to be with him and her and on vacation.

Seven Months

2011-02-13T07:29:00.000-08:00

This month has brought more milestones. Jolynn moved up in servings for cereal and to stage 2 food. She still really likes her food. Nothing different has developed as far as what she doesn't like from last month. She can also sit up (tri-pod) much better than last month. Still not rolling over. At this point I'm thinking she may skip that part and go right from sitting up to crawling.
She is just fascinated with Polly. Loves to pet her and get licked by her. We have to reign Polly in a little on that because she gets carried away with the kisses. I can't wait for Jolynn to be able to through the ball for Polly. Hours of entertainment for both :)

At the end of this month we (me and the moms) will be taking our annual trip to BOW. As excited as I am to go, I am really going to miss Jolynn for 4 days. I can't imagine how much she will grow while I'm gone. Hopefully if she gets that rolling over thing down while I'm gone, Jon will tape it.

Late last month we had a tooth that was just starting to break through. It is fully through now and the second one has started to cut through. I thought she would be a lot crankier than she has been. She has her days of major drool and wanting to chew on everything. That's when we know that it is coming through a little more or a new one is coming.

Six Months

2011-01-17T17:10:00.000-08:00

We're at the half way point. Six months have gone by in a blink of an eye. Jolynn will have her 6 month appointment in a few days and hopefully this weekend we can get her photos taken at Flash. This past month has brought on a new milestone - FOOD! She was drinking so much formula in one sitting we had to switch her early. At the 4 month appointment the doctor did say she could have solids, but I didn't want to start her too early. When she started drinking 8 oz at a sitting I said okay. So we started by reading the directions on the container for first time feeding. It looked like soup. Jolynn didn't like it either. We made it more like mashed potatoes and she gobbled it right down. A couple weeks ago we started on the Gerber veggies. SHE LOVES THEM. She's like a little bird with her mouth open waiting for the next spoonful of green beans. Her favorites so far have been green beans, sweet potatoes, carrots, squash. She does not care for peas - image that. She also didn't like the bananas that we tried for breakfast. I'm okay with that. At least she likes her veggies. Next I'm going to try making my own food - since she likes stuff that is easily cooked and pureed.

She is making progress on rolling over. She gets about half her body over, but hasn't figured out that if she just flips the one arm over she would go all the way over. I still think she is learning more from the other kids at daycare than she does with us.

We introduced her to the jumper at Grandma/Grandpa Moritz's house. She was so funny - she would spin herself around and then pick up her feet and spin back the other way.

Jolynn is still very talkative - especially in the morning.
She has been sleeping through the night for a while now - goes to bed anywhere from 6-8pm and doesn't get up until 5-7am.

Christmas 2010

2010-12-29T16:53:00.000-08:00

Jolynn's first Christmas was fun even if she was only 5 months. She loved crinkling the paper and all the toys she got from family have entertained her for hours so far. I didn't think she would be able to work some of them, but she has. She is so smart!

I made a lovely turkey again - 18 lbs! There was lots of left overs. We've been having turkey sandwiches, turkey with penne, you name it. Even Polly has been having left over scrapings in her food.

After dinner we laid a spread of desserts and everyone nibbled while playing Wii Bowling. It was Bumby's first time playing. He smoked us all.

Five Months

2010-12-11T08:42:00.000-08:00

Can you believe it! I can't. Another month has flown by. Jolynn is such a happy girl. Jon can really get her going. She is such a Daddy's girl. She likes to snuggle. Sleeping has gotten longer. She still goes to bed around 7pm and doesn't get up until 4 or 5. She is on full formula now because pumping is no longer producing anything of significance. The only reason I am still pumping is to relieve some of the pressure. She still does well at daycare and the kids really like "little Jolynn".

Today is Jolynn's 5 month birthday - she is taking a very big step today. Boarding a plane for her first vacation to Florida. This is not the Florida/Disney trip that we have planned for her 5 year birthday. This is just a get away with both grandparents. Unfortunately, Jon and Bumby are unable to make it because they can't get off work. I really wish they would have been able to make it. I think I am most nervous about keeping her occupied during the flight. That's a long time for a little one to sit in one spot with nothing to do but coo in your face.

Some other happenings with Jolynn: she likes to pull her pacifier out, and is getting close to being able to put it back in her mouth. She is very verbal. She really only cries for two reasons - hunger and tired. If you satisfy the hunger she usually passes out after.

Her 4 month appointment went very well. Her stats were: 10lbs 14 oz, 24 1/2 in, Head Circumference=16 in. She had the same shots as her 2 month appt. She did very well with those again. Cried a little more than last time, but was okay once it was over. She fell into the 50 percentile for height and head, but was in the 5 percentile for weight. The doctor said she will probably measure in the lower percentile for a while because of her prematurity. He said other than that she is right on track developmentally. He expects her to probably be rolling over in the next month. Most of her development will be a month behind full term babies because she was a month early. There are many things that I think she is ahead of if you keep up with Babycenter or Planning Family.

Four Months

2010-11-15T16:18:00.001-08:00

This month has gone by so fast. With Jolynn being in daycare now, it's a few days there, a few days with Jon, and then we have our weekend together. We have stayed home the last few weekends because of nasty weather, but otherwise have gone to visit Grandma and Grandpa Moritz. My parent's have been up at their cabin trying to get it ready for winter. This past weekend was their first weekend back - but I think mostly because Georgia (their dog) was hit by a car and needs constant supervision because she won't wear her cone.

Jolynn has been trying so hard at the rolling deal. She is really good at holding her head up and she does the push up when we initially put her on her stomach. She is still her most talkative in the morning. I love it. It is so hard to get ready for work once she is awake. I guess that is why I get up 2 hours before I have to leave. That way I get everything I have to do out of the way before she even wakes up and then I have more time to coo with her.

She just found her feet the other day. It was very funny. She stared at them for a long time and flexed her feet, then wiggled her toes. Then she would stop and do it again. The look on her face was hilarious.

We have found that she is using her burp cloth like a blankie. Also very cute.
Best so far...she found her thumb! She still uses the paci, but the thumb finds it's way if the paci falls out.

I haven't been pumping enough to keep up with her feedings. She is anywhere from 5-7 oz. So we started her on formula about 3 weeks ago. We mix 2 parts BM to 1 part formula. Since starting the formula she has been more productive in the pooping department. Sometimes going 3 times a day - but the smell is so much worse than when she was only on BM. She is also sleeping longer since being on formula. Anywhere from 5-7 hours. Her first sleep session is usually from 6 or 7pm until midnight. Then she used to get up at 4am, but has been sleeping until 5 sometimes.

She is also grasping. I saw her the other day swat at the mobile on her vibrating chair. Both Grandmas have a rattle that has two thin bands for a handle. It is the perfect size for her to grasp on to. She already whacked herself in the head causing a little crying, but she was okay after Mommy kissed it of course. She is also following objects from side to side.

She has moved on to 0-3 month clothing. Most of the clothes that say 3 month still don't fit her. All those cute onesies with feet still don't fit her. She has two that zip up and they are the only ones that fit her feet.

She absolutely amazes me every morning. I go to get her and I swear she has grown another inch and gained another pound.

We hear about other kids that were born around the same time as Jolynn or later and they have been reaching milestones quicker than her. I know not to judge her progress on others - she is an individual. She has a little friend (lots of friends actually at daycare); her little friend at daycare is Avery. They are about 6 months apart. They lay together on the floor and interact. I hope by this interaction that Jolynn will learn quicker; like having a big sister.

She has her 4 month check up next week, more shots. I weighed her this past Sunday and she was 10lb 7oz! She's more of a pumpkin than a peanut now :)

Happy 1st Birthday Brianna

2010-10-16T18:32:00.000-07:00

Jolynn's best friend-to-be, Brianna, had her 1st birthday party today. There were so many kids there. It was fun to see which ones were going to fall into the same age group. There were the 2-3 year olds that were crazy running around. Then the 1 year olds that were just learning to walk. Then the 3mo (Jolynn) - 9mo that were still in the hold me stage. I realized that most of my picture and video taping has been by me. I have one picture of Jolynn and me (and I took that one too) - when we were in the hospital.

So I had Mike take some of me and Jolynn.

Three Months

2010-10-08T05:38:00.000-07:00

I don't know what is scarier - being back to work or Jolynn being 3 months. Time is going by so fast. Jolynn has made great progress on her development. She can hold her head up pretty well, her arms don't flail as much, and the smiles and coos just keep coming. She likes to be pulled up by her arms and plop back down on the pillow. She also likes to "stand" or "sit". Neither of which she can actually do on her own yet, but she can see so much and loves that. Thankfully she has finally started to find her hands, and in turn, something to suck on. I don't think she has decided yet if it will be her thumb, a finger, or a couple fingers. Her mood is the best in the morning. I think she is like her momma - she is a morning person. We haven't quite got the sleeping thing down yet as far as timing. She sleeps very well and for long periods, but not the right periods. She still wakes up at 4am; eats, then falls asleep for a hour or so, then we have our awake time. This is where all the cooing and smiles happen. She loves having a conversation around 7am. I hope to have even 15 minutes to spend with her before we have to pack up. Through out the day she takes little cat naps and then between 5 and 6 she goes down for the count. Doesn't wake up until midnight. But then sleeps from midnight to 4am. Somehow we need to move that 6 hour slot up so it is when WE are sleeping too.

We have a new toy from Grandma Margaret. It is a tummy time playmat. She lays on the "scoop" and there is a flower petal mat underneath. She is able to hold her head up and touch the ground with her hands and feet. She scoots around in a circle using her limbs. There are activities on each petal. This has also helped with getting rid of her gas because she is on her tummy forcing the pressure out.

I don't think I posted about her 2 month check up last time. She did very well. 50% in all areas. Doctor was very pleased with her weight gain. She was 7lb 10oz. We have been weighing her on our home scale and last Saturday she was 8lb 1.5oz. She doesn't go back until 4 months now.

It is funny how so many of our friends had babies around the same time. Erin has a boy, Richard Jr, that is about 4 months older than Jo. We joke that we have arranged them to be married. Talking about them dating and going to prom. There is competition though. Jared and Naomi have Brody, also about 4 months older than Jo. Richard Jr already has one up on Brody though, Jo and Richard have already been on a "date", chaperoned by us mommies. Then there is Jodi's daughter, Brianna. She had her 1st birthday party this past weekend. B and Jo are going to be best friends like their mommas.

I am so happy to have such a supportive network of friends and family. Grandparents have stepped up to help with watching Jolynn or Polly, or both. Jon has started to realize that I will need him a bit more now that I am back at work. He pitches in when he can, but still needs a little push now and then. I love watching him with Jolynn - she loves her daddy so much.

We had her 3 month photos at Flash. It was an evening session. Jolynn was not as cooperative as her first photo shoot. There was a lot of crying. I don't know if it was her gas, the fact that we woke her up, or she didn't like the photographer. I felt a little uncomfortable with this photographer; I really liked our first girl, Maggie. She happened to be the manager - must be why she was so good. Wish we could get her again. Anyway, Jolynn didn't like getting her photo taken so we had to reschedule for a morning session. Jon will have to take her because I'm not taking off work to get her picture taken.

That's been our month in a nut shell.

(Jolynn - now that momma is back to work, please don't grow-up too fast. Love you.)

Como Zoo

2010-09-21T18:06:00.000-07:00

It was Jolynn's first visit to a zoo. Yes she is bit young so she basically slept through the whole thing. It was nice to get her out of the house though and have a beautiful day out for a stroll. Erin had asked if we wanted to join her, Shirley Jean, and Baby Richard. It was fun watching Shirley get excited about all the animals and saying what each sound was from each animal. Made me look forward to Jolynn going at an age where she can interact as well.

Video to come later after we edit all the pieces into one.

Updates to Jolynn's Room

2010-09-18T17:32:00.000-07:00

Mike and I installed a closet system in Jolynn's room. Now everything is so organized. I can tell what size clothes she has for each stage and there is a place for her diapers, toys, clothes that would go in her dresser but she is not to that size yet, and blankets.

I also added some things to the wall with books and shelves of stuffed animals. In a small box is the hand cast from the State Fair. Next to that, photos from her 1 month Flash session.

I finally hung the painting from Jodi and the 3D metal artwork. There is still a painting of a fairy that is going on the other side.

I also attached this artwork (using Jolynn's name) with 3M hooks to her door. Mike and Margaret bought this from the State Fair. Each letter is made into a character that has meaning:
J: flying bird=prosperity
O: butterfly=love
L: fish=goodluck
Y: sitting bird=happiness
N: sailboats=hope
N: bamboo=honesty, upright

Two Months

2010-09-13T18:40:00.001-07:00

Believe it. We are at TWO MONTHS! Our little peanut is growing so much. She has nearly doubled her birth weight. She is eating so much and so fast you would think she was at the milk booth at the State Fair. Whenever I am feeding her I always think about this photo. It was my favorite at the time. Can't hold her like that anymore. I can barely hold her with one hand to burp her like Jon does.
We are just starting to get into the coos. It feels like she stays up more than she sleeps lately. We have been playing with an activity center that my mom found. Adding our own play things to it. So far she hasn't grasped onto anything, but she loves looking at everything-especially the lighted stuff.

We found out the hard way that what I ate affects her greatly. The State Fair was great for me, not so much for Jolynn. A few days later she was on that day of pumped breast milk. Before this she hadn't gone to the bathroom for 7 days. We were very worried so I called a nurse at the clinic. She talked to the doctor and called me back with instructions. We were to give her 1/2 oz of prune juice mixed into her milk or with water. Not to exceed 2oz in 24 hours. After 1/2 an oz there was a shart, then at 1oz she pooped out the sides; By 1 1/2 oz Jon had put her in the swing. She threw up most of her brown liquid and then when we went to change her from the puke that was on her onesie we noticed poop on it too. Later looked at the swing and there was poop on the straps. Needless to say we didn't give her anymore prune juice. Couple days later she had the State Fair milk and we had another blow out.

Since my last post Jon also had his 30th (Golden) birthday. We celebrated by going to Fogo de Chao. Jolynn does great at outings. Sleeps through most of it. She went to Benihana, Fogo, Red Robin, and Origami Sushi. I didn't get Jon anything for his birthday. I felt a little bad, but without working I didn't think we could really afford anything nice. He has Jolynn, what else could he want :) His parents gave him a REALLY nice video camera. We have only done a couple videos. Just like with the camera, you need to have this attached to your wrist at all times to catch those moments. It's sad that most of my memories of the past two months are in my head because I didn't take as many pictures or videos as I would have wanted.

State Fair 2010-Part 2

2010-09-03T10:09:00.000-07:00

We went to the fair again on Thursday. This time we went with Daddy and Grandma and Grandpa Moritz. We arrived a little before every one else so we went to Hamline Dining Hall again and fed Jolynn. We also met up with Knute, Olaf and Stephanie, Sara and Tony, and a couple of their friends. This visit to the fair was all food and purchases. I had corn again and Mouse Trap cheese curds. I swear they are better than anyone else. Also had a Chicago dog, foot long corndog, foot long hot dog, flash frozen ice cream, and my new favorite-fried pickles. Seriously, better than cheese curds.

We ventured into the Merchandise mart and Grandstand. Margaret found this booth that had fairy stuff. Tutus, tiaras, wings, capes, and these crocheted hats with big flowers on them. She came back with a white one. Jolynn was so cute. We went back to the stand and she brought so much attention to the booth. "look how cute she is!" Of course I had to get a purple one and a matching tutu-these will be used at her 3 or 6 month photos.

Jon wanted to go to the Wild booth. They weren't in their normal spot in the Grandstand this year. Finally found them in the Fan Zone-go figure. We picked out 3 outfits there-maybe we will get to a game or two this season.

Inside the Merchandise Mart was a booth that made casts of your hands. We thought what a great idea to get Jolynn's hand done and then again each year. It was soo tiny! I was thinking this morning that I could teach her sign language for all the years (after five you have to do different things with one hand to make a six, seven, etc. without using two hands). Then each year we go back for the cast she can make that sign and we will have how old she was at that State Fair.

Inside the Education bldg they had free calendars with your picture. Jolynn had her photo taken with us and then with the grandparents.

On the way back to our car the sky got really dark and opened up. Luckily we were next to a display of trailers. We ducked inside with 5 other people and waited it out. There was hail and downpours. Good thing we found shelter. When it was over we continued on our way and saw this beautiful double rainbow. Other than that brief downpour it was a gorgeous day.

State Fair 2010

2010-08-31T16:35:00.000-07:00

My day started off at 4am with a feeding. Then pumping and a shower. I had a bowl of cereal to tide me over until getting to the fair. I got everything packed up and ready to go, time to get Jolynn in her car seat. Woke her up at 7:30 and she was ready to eat - so I had to feed her and then we were off to Grandma and Grandpa Benson's at 8:00am. Once we got there they were ready to go. We got to the fair around 9:00am. We went to a restaurant called Hamline dining hall (or something like that). Sally met us there when we were just about done. We mapped out all the places we wanted to go and times of things we wanted to see.

First was the Robot Demonstrations in the Educational building. I wasn't impressed. I guess I was expecting more like robot wars. So we passed on that and took a walk around. We found a booth that was taking pictures and putting them on a calendar for FREE. Score! Jolynn brings a lot of attention where ever she goes. How can you resist such an adorable little girl :) The Educational building also had free bags. Jolynn was ready to eat after this excursion. So we went back to the Hamline dining hall and asked for some hot water - they were very nice and didn't mind giving me this and letting me sit in there to feed her out of the sun.

Then we went to see the chickens. My mom is now into raising chickens, so she really wanted to go see them. Jolynn and I waited outside. This was the only photo I took the entire time we were there. Don't worry - you didn't miss anything. This is what she did the entire time we were at the fair.
After the chickens I was on a mission to get my cheese curds. I stopped and got corn on the way. Then we got to the cheese curds. I got those and should have shared. I ended up getting a belly ache and was in the bathroom later.

It was pretty warm. Every now and again there would be a breeze. I was drinking pop (not caffeinated). Pop is not a good source to keep you hydrated. I started to feel faint and decided I better head back to the car and home. Once we got to the car my mom had some water in her cooler. I drank that and combined with the AC in the car, was feeling much better. Note for next time is to bring water, sunscreen, and a hat.

Jon's 30

2010-08-26T02:24:00.000-07:00

We celebrated Jon turning 30 at Fogo de Chao. Both grandparents were there, Jason, Olaf and his friend Stephanie. Of course Jolynn had to get passed around.

One Month

2010-08-15T11:00:00.000-07:00

I can't believe our little girl is a month old already. People weren't kidding when they said time would fly by. I would love to say that Jolynn has reached some great milestones, but she hasn't-there isn't much to accomplish in the first month. There were the little ones like making it back to her birth weight, and reaching a weight where she could go out in her car seat legally. She also lost her cord and has an innie belly button.

We started off bottle feeding and were able to do both breastfeeding and bottle. She even recently started breastfeeding without the nipple shield. That is once in a blue moon however. I imagine soon she will be making sounds and faces that will actually mean something, instead of the normal smile because she has gas. She sleeps great, normally 3-4+ hours at a time. Jon has been great with helping with the feedings. It was a little rough at first because of him going back to work, but I think he is starting to get acclimated to a few hours of sleep at a time. I had the whole pregnancy to get used to that with getting up to go to the bathroom. Now instead of bathroom breaks I'm getting up to feed Jolynn.
One of the questions I often get is, "how is parenthood treating me?"
Some days it feels like I am babysitting someone's kid. There are also days where I am absolutely fed up with her squirming and fussing. That's when Jon takes over, or she has a visit with a grandparent. When I get her back I look at her and appreciate her so much more. I wonder to myself, how could I ever leave or be mad at this little angel. Then of course it happens again. Takes a few days for this pressure to build up, but it is nice to have a release and calm yourself.

We had our first photo session with Gracia Joy Nelson. She came to our house and took some great photos. I can't wait to do Jolynn's birth announcements now. Below is ONE of my favorites. There were 282 photos that I loaded, 36 were loaded to Facebook. I thought picking out the clothes was the hard part - now I have to choose from so many great photos for her announcements...this is going to be tough.

First Bath

2010-08-14T09:38:00.000-07:00

She was a little squirmy. I had hoped Jon would have taken video, but he only took 3 photos. It was a quick process because she kept falling to the side.

She smelled so good after - then she spit up. Lesson for this: feed then bathe.

Outings

2010-08-12T16:15:00.000-07:00

I am learning each time we go out. First time out we went to National Night Out - luckily only 1 block away. Didn't think we would be staying too long because it was hot out, so I didn't bring ANY milk. Ended up staying longer and it was time for a feeding, so I walked home and heated up a bottle. Only to get back and find her fast asleep.

Today we picked up Margaret from the airport at 9:30am. We fed Jolynn at 8:00 thinking she would be good until we got to Oakdale. I packed her diaper bag with the normal stuff (diapers, wipes, extra clothes). I even packed the Gripe Water and Mylicon. Thinking that we would not be there for more than a couple hours I only packed 2 partial bottles of milk. I brought my Udder Cover to breastfeed too. Unfortunately, I forgot the nipple shield. She was not having me the old fashioned way, so Grandma Moritz fed her a bottle. Since she didn't breastfeed from me since 6am I was feeling a bit "full". I texted Naomi because they live very close and was able to use her pump. Then Jon decided he wanted to go to Mongolian and we asked Jason if he wanted to come with us. Then we had to wait for Jason to get to Oakdale. Jolynn was fed one more time - using up all the milk I had brought. After eating at Mongolian Jason had to pick up stuff from his place in Hudson. No problem, I wanted to see his place anyway. It did not end up being a short stop. Jon got on Jason's computer and started playing a test realm in World of Warcraft. Margaret texted and said she thought Jolynn was hungry again. I told Jon we had to get going.

By the time we got back to Oakdale and left for home it was 4pm - rush hour. All highways were backed up. Jon decided to take Hwy 10 home instead of 694. Jolynn got so hungry I took 20ml that was left in a container and fed that to her. She was still upset. I didn't know what else to do so I tried to hand pump myself. Yes, HAND. It kind of worked. I was able to "pump" another 20ml. We finally got home and she was still hungry so we gave her another 1/2 oz. I think I know how a cow really feels now.

Live and Learn

2010-08-08T12:47:00.000-07:00

Need I say more? The shirt says it all.

Jolynn is 3 weeks old today. I can't believe she has been home for two weeks already. Time really is flying by. The first few days of 4 hour feedings I knew days were going to go by quickly. Every time I hold her in my arms as she falls asleep I wish I had my camera strapped to my wrist. She makes the funniest faces as she sleeps. She has been staying awake more after feedings, but mostly in and out of slumber because her pacifier falls out. We started breastfeeding again and Jon bottle feeds when he is home. I've stock-piled a bin of milk in the freezer downstairs (over 100 oz) and almost have another bin filled upstairs.

We had our doctor visit a couple days after she was brought home and they told us we didn't need to come back until she was 2 months. I found this a little strange since she is a preemie. Babycenter and the hospital told us that she should be fine as long as she doesn't present a fever over 100.4, her outtake is normal, and she keeps gaining weight. So far all those things are good. She has had a few episodes of projectile vomit. Almost all the times we knew why it happened. Live and learn. She tends to have a few episodes of spitting up when she gets the hiccups, so we started giving her .5ml of Gripe Water when she has hiccups. They go away instantly. Now she has been bearing down a lot like she has to poop, but nothing comes out. When she eats (and sometimes at rest) she has a lot of gurgling in her stomach/intestines. When she scrunches up sometimes I hear her fart, so I figure it is gas. I started giving her .3ml of Mylicon - that worked really well. She slept for almost 4 hours and there were no gurgling noises when she ate next. Hopefully it will give her some relief.

Jolynn had her first outing this past Tuesday for National Night Out. It was fun to bring her out in the stroller. She slept the whole time, but we still got out of the house (even if it was only a block down the road). I would love to go on more walks with her, but it has been sooo hot. 90+ every day and will be for the next week. Maybe in September.

Craft Room Done!

2010-07-31T08:09:00.000-07:00

Check another to-do off the list. The walls are painted and the floor is laid. Now we just have to move everything in. It will be nice to have all my craft supplies in one area again. (they've been in the garage, upstairs, spare room, and under the steps.) Try finding a paint brush when you need one :)

It's All Good

2010-07-26T20:40:00.000-07:00

It was an awesome day. This morning I happened to look outside and saw a city truck parked next to our house. They were checking out the trees (Jon had called them about the downed trees). Apparently, the property behind our fence and on the trail side is school property. The city guy talked to the school about removing the downed trees and the uprooted trees. It would be nice if we could get them to remove all the overgrowth of weeds, dead trees, and buckthorn. The city guy is also going to have the boom truck check out the huge trees that line the walkway and have limbs hanging over our house. These trees are on city property so he said they could trim them. I can't believe how well this turned out.

Jolynn and I had a home nurse stop by today too. My BP was 130/90. The lower number is not great, but is better considering I'm not resting a whole lot. Jolynn's check up was even better. The nurse weighed her in at 4lb 10.5oz! That's only .5 oz from her birth weight. I was so happy. Then the hard part - she had to take a vial of blood to test her bilirubin levels. Jolynn hates this part. Not so much the heel prick, but the squeezing of her foot to get the blood. The nurse said her input and output was good, and her increase in weight was great. They called us later with the results of the test - 10.6 (not sure what numbers all mean) which meant it is still in her system, but the level is not enough to alarm them. She has her first doc appointment on Wednesday.

As far as my weight, I don't know what I have lost officially because my appointment isn't until Friday. I decided to try on some shorts that I hadn't worn for a very long time, even prior to getting pregnant. They fit. I hope it continues.

Changes

2010-07-21T05:42:00.001-07:00

While we were in the hospital there was a terrible storm. Lots of rain and straight line winds. Mike and Margaret were at our house painting the craft room. When they arrived the day after the storm they sent us a photo via phone of our one and only tree inside the fence in the backyard. Snapped off at the top and took out 4 other trees. It also landed on a section of the fence.

I had also scheduled to have Troy (contractor) install the sliding glass door in the kitchen. Didn't expect to be going into the hospital the same day he was supposed to be coming. So with the help of Mike and Jon staying home while I was on bed rest, Troy was still able to install the door.

When I was discharged from the hospital we went home to get more supplies for staying at the hospital. This is what we found.

Craft Night

2010-07-10T05:28:00.000-07:00

First off - this was the most fun I have had in a long time. Second - I didn't even have to do anything! Everyone brought a project (or two or three) and a dish to eat. I even got Jon to make burgers on the grill. They were thinking, (I think they have done this before) even bringing extra tables. We had 3 set up in the living room and turned the dining room table and pulled out the extensions on each end. I can't wait for our next Craft Night!

Who knew I could fit all this in my living room!

Lauren and Naomi working on Lauren's table decor for her wedding reception.

Plenty of food, of course.

Erin updating her baby "books".

Katie making a Hooter Hider - couldn't finish because we don't have an iron.

Some of Lauren and Naomi's finished work.

Jodi made a princess tent for her play room out of sheets and a hula hoop.

A little credit

2010-07-02T08:39:00.000-07:00

I have to give Jon some credit for all that he does. Everyone thinks he doesn't do anything around here because it was like pulling teeth to get him to do things when he lived at home. This week, on his two days off, he went to his grandpa's house and mowed the lawn then went to his parent's house and helped organize/clean the garage for the 4th of July party. Granted these are things he should probably help with anyway, but he didn't complain this time. Then yesterday I came home and he cut the front and back yard (again! before it grew so long we had hay), vacuumed, did the laundry, and made dinner.

I've been a little hard on him lately because we have been playing World of Warcraft again. He tends to stay up until the wee hours of the morning playing this game. I was worried it would make him sleep all day and not take care of things around here. Guess he proved me wrong.

I love you honey. Thank you for all you have been doing around here and with the family.

Tent City 2010

2010-06-01T20:00:00.000-07:00

My first Tent City pregnant. Everyone was soo excited. We used Mike and Margaret's camper. I don't think I could have done it without that. Polly was really good about me stepping over her 4-5 times during the night. She never budged - I'm sure she was just thinking "no need to get up, she's just going the bathroom...again".

We had a few issues with Polly growling and charging kids when they walked by. She always pounces and then backs off . I tried to get a couple kids to give her treats, but she wouldn't take them. It has worked great with Jodi's daughter Gracie. Gracie is not afraid of Polly and Polly is getting to the point where she knows Gracie is here to give her treats. So we have the 2 year old size okay; it's the 3rd-5th grade we need to work on.

No one let me do anything. I understood that I would not be hauling wood or chopping any wood. But I was surprised when they told me I couldn't help with making the community meals (no chopping potatoes). If I was sitting and chopping they were okay with that. Everyone was also very mindful of their second hand smoke. I was a bit "over-protective" in that I didn't want to use Deet. This caused me to miss out on a lot of the campfires because I couldn't stand the mosquitoes. It was nice to just go back to the camper, feel the breeze go through all 3 open windows and listen to the music from afar. I got a lot of needle point done.

This one is my favorite - Bumby and his doggies taking a nap.

See Facebook for pictures from this year and a few years back.

Deck Done?

2010-04-30T07:12:00.001-07:00

Or so I thought...

Mike came over on two separate days to finish the deck pieces that the inspectors had issues with. One day was spent fixing the steps so they were all 6 1/4 inches - really, we measured them. The next day, him and Jon installed the hand rail. The inspector came by today...

IT DIDN'T PASS AGAIN!!

I'm not going to say anymore - I'm too upset. I'm ready to tell Brooklyn Park to bite me.

We didn't fix one of the items that was on the previous inspection record - making the stair stringers less than 12" apart. All we had to do was put some blocks between each to make the distance shorter. We fixed the railing, but they still don't approve of it. I don't know why they are being so picky.

It looks like a perfectly good railing to me.

Role Reversal

2010-04-22T05:11:00.000-07:00

Yesterday Jon went with his grandpa and picked up two more shelves for in the basement. Our shelves were getting really cluttered so we needed to spread stuff out. I didn't expect to come home and find everything neat and tidy put away. I think someone is nesting...

MN Zoo Babies

2010-04-18T06:15:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I went to the MN Zoo with Jodi and the girls, Carrie Atkinson and her family, and Jodi's brother Tony met us with his daughter Elara. We had a lot of fun. Time went by really fast. Before we knew it the were announcing that the zoo was closed. We were all taking photos so check out their blogs more more pics.

Jodi and Gracie looking at the sheep and lambs.

Carrie and Kylie also looking at the sheep and lambs.

Brianna Leigh - such a happy girl!

Gracie wanted to pet the moo cow, I had to give her a boost. I'm not great at the one arm holding a kid and angle photography.

We took a "train" back from the farm. Great Grandma Iris held Brianna.

I did take a few photos of some of the animals too.
The prairie dogs are always so cute.
The tigers make for great photos - plus they were my HS mascot!

Free Dog

2010-04-13T16:30:00.000-07:00

The past three days Polly has gotten into something that is edible. Two of the times it wasn't her fault, we should have known better. But today didn't make sense.
Day One: she took the foil from the recycling (it had the burgers in it from the BBQ) - our fault.
Day Two: she got up on the dining room table and slurped up the beef broth that was in a crock pot and ate a bowl of potato chips - again, our fault.
Day Three (today): she chewed up an empty container that once held dog treats. Then while I'm in the bathroom (maybe 2 minutes!), she went into the garbage in the bedroom and took out a plate.

At first I thought the incidences were because she is hungry or bored because we aren't home. But then to come out of the bathroom and find her doing it again. I really have had enough. I feel bad about it, but I think we will have to start locking her up when at work again. I don't know if this will help her "acting out" while we are home as well.

She was doing so well.

Breaking in the deck

2010-04-11T05:17:00.001-07:00

So it's not quite approved yet, but we decided to have a BBQ anyway. I love entertaining, but I am realizing now that it is a lot more work when you are pregnant. It didn't help that Jon was at work all day when I needed to be setting up. Margaret and Mike came over early and helped get everything (tables and food) setup. Jon came home pretty early actually and good thing, because Mike and I could not figure out what screws needed to be switched out on the grill to get it working. While they worked on that, Margaret and I got the food ready.

We started a little late, but that was okay because most people didn't show up right at 5. The grill is together and getting prepped with oil.

The tables are set. Funny what you can do with some random chairs, a couple saw horses, and a broken outdoor table top.

The party goers.

We played some games inside once it cooled down outside. Next time I would like to have a fire.

4th bedroom

2010-04-01T07:32:00.000-07:00

We had an egress window installed. We now have a legal 4th bedroom. This will be my craft room. I can't wait to move everything in. The inside still needs to be finished, but the outside looks great. There is so much light in the room now, it will be great for crafting.

Birthday #32

2010-03-26T18:51:00.000-07:00

What a weekend. It started on Friday when my co-workers decorated my cube. I wish I had my camera with me because it was a jam packed day. Everyone brought in goodies for a pot luck - salads, sweets, meatballs and chili. All soo yummy! Then we closed down early and went to a wine tasting that I won at an auction. Don't worry, I told them I was pregnant so they didn't think I was rude just taking a sip of each (5 wines) and tossing the rest in the "spit" bucket. All the girls looked like they had fun and many went away with bottles. Then a few of us went out to dinner at El Toro. Also very fun. I have found that I am not a good person to go out to dinner with unless you don't mind me finishing way before everyone else and having half my meal still left over. Great for me because I have leftovers, but not so much for the people that are still eating.
Saturday I went over to Jon's parents house with Polly. Always a good thing because Polly gets pooped out and I don't have to deal with her boundless energy all weekend. Margaret and I went to Jon's cousin, Stacy's house for a Jockey party. It was so nice to see her again. Being that she lives in Colby, WI we just don't see each other except for parties that someone holds to sell products. We got home pretty late. Jon had picked up Polly earlier and went home. When I got home she was ready to play ball again, but quickly went back to sleeping.
Sunday was the big day. My birthday. My parents had finished remodeling their living room and everything looked so nice. The Moritz clan came, Aunt Sally and Jon arrived later because he had to work. We had steak and shrimp on the BBQ. The steak melted in your mouth it was so good. Then I opened presents - I had asked for money because I really want to get this egress window installed in the basement. My mom also gave me a few items to use on the new deck for entertaining. Sally gave me a gift card to Target - always a good thing. Mom got a cake that tasted just like our wedding cake; white cake with strawberry filling and butter-cream frosting. YUM!

Nursery

2010-02-14T16:20:00.001-08:00

Jon put the crib together today. I picked up a little.
Just a few finishing details that are on the registry.

As for big stuff, all that is needed now are curtains or blinds and bookshelves.

Hot Air Affair 2010

2010-02-14T16:14:00.000-08:00

Jodi invited us to the Hot Air Affair in Hudson. It was my first time going. I have seen the balloons flying overhead but never thought anything of them. It was so cool watching them fill up. They are so big up close. It was really cold. I wasn't prepared for that. Next year I will know better. They had a dance team selling hot chocolate for $2 and you got a souvenir mug, then refills were only $1. Wish I would have known about that when we got there. Next year :)

I really went to see Gracie's reaction because Jodi said she LOVES the balloons. She was so cute. When the first balloon took off she waved bye bye to it.

MICE

2009-12-23T06:46:00.000-08:00

So I noticed some mice poop on the counters in the kitchen. I thought it was because the kitchen was dirty. I cleaned everything and dissinfected everything. No mice for a while. Then I find a chunk of cookie with the chocolate in the center scratched down. Apparently my favorite cookie (the peanut butter kind with the hershey kiss in the center) is also the mouse's favorite cookie. I was then wondering how the cookie got to be on the counter because everything was cleaned up. The mouse had chewed through the plastic covering the plate, ate the cookie partially inside and then pulled it through the small hole. I had to throw the whole plate of cookies away. This meant war. I put the traps out...with peanut butter. One by the sink and one next to the stove. This morning, the one next to the sink was moved and peanut butter was eaten but not set off. The one next to the stove was on the floor, peanut butter eaten, and set off. Nothing caught but a little fur. I didn't want to have to resort to poison, but they leave me no choice if they are going to be smarter than the traps.

A Very Merry Christmas

2009-12-13T16:17:00.001-08:00

Written on Sunday, December 13, 2009:
I can hardly stand that I have to wait to post this until after Christmas. Jon and I have been trying to get pregnant since February. After 6 months I went for my normal yearly exam. The doctor told me there was nothing they could do yet, but to start taking my temperature. I've been doing that since September. Never really noticed the swing in temps. This past week my temp has been unusually high - in the 98-99 range. A friend was talking about how she was not feeling well and I mentioned how I was taking my temp for ovulation, but that recently it has felt like I have a slight fever in the morning. She asked some other questions and then asked if I had taken a test lately. I actually took one December 4 before going to a co-workers party. (wasn't sure if I would be drinking wine). It was negative. Then last night I kept having dreams that I was pregnant, when I would wake up I just told myself it was a dream. I decided to take a test this morning - there was a faint line, but there was a line. I couldn't believe it. I started crying and raced into the bedroom and woke Jon up (7am) and told him to come into the bathroom. I told him it was positive, he gave me a hug and went back to bed. Wasn't exactly what I thought it would be, but it was 7am. Later he was so excited, he almost slipped to his dad when they were cutting up branches. I had trouble this afternoon because all the aunts and moms got together to make Christmas cookies. Not being able to tell them was KILLING me! At one point I wasn't feeling great and both the moms looked at each other and said, "could it be?". I just said, "it's gas". Although it is going to kill us to keep this to ourselves for the next two weeks, we thought it best to be able to tell the both of them at the same time. Luckily Christmas is right around the corner.

DECK DONE!!

2009-11-29T17:54:00.000-08:00

I am happy to report that THE DECK IS DONE! Inspector will be out Thursday@2pm.

BBQ anyone?

2009-11-26T06:53:00.000-08:00

We had a massive deck building day last Saturday. Mike, Margaret, Jason, Knute, Olaf, Nate, Jon and I all had jobs to get this done. Mike, Margaret, Jason, and Jon all worked on the stairs. Knute, Olaf, Nate and I all worked on putting the boards on. We were short one board and 3 were defective (they didn't shave them down) and we ran out of screws. So we didn't finish on Saturday. Mike and Margaret came over again Sunday and we finished the steps and boards, then poured 2 more footings for the steps going down to the ground. Sounds like Mike is going to come back Friday and Saturday this week to do those steps and work on the railings. It is so beautiful and I am so thankful for all the time and money that Mike and Margaret have put into this. In Margaret's case a bit of blood too. Can't wait to have everyone over for our first BBQ!

Pass/Fail

2009-11-18T18:09:00.000-08:00

The deck failed inspection again, but we just have to make the changes and move on.

Who's available this weekend if I bribe you with beer and food?

Bring a drill if you have one.

FAIL

2009-11-13T04:45:00.000-08:00

Looks like we will be fixing things on the deck this weekend instead of finishing it. The inspector said "cannot use screws on joist hangers at the ledger board. must be nailed with proper nails. joist hangers under upper deck must also be nailed."

The upper deck is existing - how are we responsible for that?

Then he left a voice message "newer beams not properly installed, stop by inspections office and talk to building inspector. the way they are mounted on the posts is not right. there needs to be blocking between the two boards used to make the beam."

We are not sure if the VM is referring to the new deck or the existing deck or both.

So close

2009-11-09T17:07:00.000-08:00

Ready for the next inspection this Thursday and then hopefully get this thing done in the next two weekends.
No more giant leap to step down from the garage door.

The steps will eventually go down from here and attached to the deck below.

One Year Anniversary

2009-11-01T08:11:00.000-08:00

I can't believe it has been a year. this time last year I think I was meeting the girls to get our hair done. It has been a busy year. Mostly house projects and traveling. Jon's biggest event for this year (besides getting married) was going to Vegas. I have to admit - going there with a bunch of friends and his brother was a real treat. I'm not much of a gambler and they made a whole weekend of activities that was almost paid for by the casinos.

Our other big project of the past year has been our deck. Mike, Margaret, Bumby, Jason, Knute, Olaf - Thank you so much for all your help in getting this project done. It looks great and is so near completion I can smell the BBQ already! Can't wait to have it done and have everyone over!

Golfing

2009-10-13T19:46:00.000-07:00

Margaret won 18 holes of golf with carts for 4 people. Mike, Jon, Richard and I took on the challenge. None of us has golfed in probably 3 or more years. We got through 9 holes and that was enough for the day. The other 9 holes have to be used before 12/31/09...really?

Almost a month...

2009-10-02T16:09:00.000-07:00

Wow. August 23 was the last update we had on anything "us" related.

We have been busy, but nothing wow factor to write about.

The main deck is pretty much done, just have to do the steps. Can't do the steps until we get the lower deck in. Steps to getting lower deck in are daunting and having the city involved isn't helping. I drew up plans for the lower deck and included measurements of the existing deck. Those plans were approved. Now we have to break up the cement side walk, dig the post holes, have the city come out and inspect the holes; then we can fill them, build the framing, and then we have to have the city come out again. After that should be the easy part - lay down each board and screw them down. Then, of course, the city has to come out again and inspect the finished project.

Other house projects have been put on hold until we can get the outside done. Not too worried about inside because it can be done in the 6-9 months of winter that MN gets.

Deck update

2009-08-23T18:31:00.000-07:00

While I was away for the weekend walking, the moms and dads were at our house slaving away on the deck. When I got home I was able to stand on it. All that is left is the railing and steps.

Project update

2009-08-13T16:20:00.000-07:00

I posted this to the wrong blog. See here for the update.

NY 8/3/09

2009-08-03T12:48:00.000-07:00

The trip home was through the states. Very uneventful thankfully. We made many more stops than we did through Canada. Our bathroom breaks were not coinciding with our fuel refill. When we went through Canada we didn't stop at a Tim Horton store because they were always packed. Going home there happened to be one at a quick stop. Jon got a few donuts for breakfast and we were back on the road. Now we can say we had Tim Horton donuts. We made very good time. Ended up in Hudson by noon. We stopped to say hello to Jodi and Brian and see their new place. We were so tired and didn't feel all that fresh, so we didn't stay long. It is so nice that they live so close again. We missed them.

It was a great week vacation. Jon said he would do it again. I think I need to plan it earlier in the summer because of work. It was too close to the start of the photo season and I feel like I really had to bust my butt before leaving to have everything done before I left - there is still going to be quite a bit for me when I get back I'm sure.

NY 8/1 & 8/2/09

2009-08-02T10:22:00.000-07:00

Saturday was another lazy day - love days where I never get out of my pjs. I helped Sarah paint a little more in the screen porch. Cory set up a pool for Skye. It took a few hours to get it filled but it was fun once it was up. They haven't had good weather here for a few weeks, so getting outside is a big deal. Cory had to work 7p-7a, so when Skye went to bed, Sarah and I watched Twilight...again. That movie stays with you, the way they look at each other they don't even need to say any lines.

Sunday - I went to church with Sarah. It has been a long time since I have gone to church. A lot has changed. It was fun. The Pastor was very alive and fresh. He referenced things from my generation (80's music, artists from today). They also had a live band that didn't play the typical music I remember. It was lively and the words were up on a big screen. They had guest pastors from Washington DC. They opened with Psalm 37:3-6
Trust in the LORD and do good;
dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture.
Delight yourself in the LORD
and he will give you the desires of your heart.
Commit your way to the LORD;
trust in him and he will do this:
He will make your righteousness shine like the dawn,
the justice of your cause like the noonday sun.

I have always believed in the Golden Rule: Do unto others as you would like done unto you. I also have been thinking if I start trusting and putting some faith in that higher power that maybe I will get the desires of my heart.

NY 7/30 & 7/31/09

2009-08-01T09:41:00.000-07:00

Thursday was a good lazy day. We didn't do a whole lot. Sarah got a bike for her birthday and a child bike carrier for the back for Skye - two birthday presents in one. Skye LOVED it.

Friday - Sarah had to work, Skye went to daycare for part of the day. C0ry cleaned the van in preparation for our trip to Watertown to Texas Roadhouse. This is a great steak restaurant. You can choose to hand pick your steak or choose from the menu. I had a 16 oz Fort Worth Ribeye. It was so good that I could still remember the taste this morning.

We went to Target while in Watertown. Sarah doesn't get to go to Target but maybe once a year. So it was a big shopping spree (we only had 1 hour till closing). Jon found year 1-5 box set for Harry Potter! We had to pick out a movie to watch on the way home in the van. Sarah and Cory have the coolest van. This is not your typical 1970 van that we were used to. It has automatic doors, plug ins, two movie screens with headphones, and Sirius radio. We put the middle seats down, sat in the back with our feet propped up and headphones on. We had a dip size crock pot plugged in with Buffalo Chicken Dip. Our movie of choice - Twilight. I don't know why I hadn't wanted to watch this movie before - loved it! Thinking about going to Walmart and getting the whole set of books. If it is anything like Harry Potter, I'm sure the books are ten times better than the movie and the movie was really good.

NY 7/28 & 7/29/09

2009-07-30T05:57:00.000-07:00

Cory and Sarah had to work today and tomorrow so we took a trip to Alexandria Bay. We left around 9am, stopped at Duncan Donuts for coffee and donut holes. We arrived in Alexandria Bay around 11am. There was a huge line for the Uncle Sam Tour Boats. After waiting for 1/2 hour in one line we found out we need to go to a different window for the lunch tour. When we got to that line 2 people before us were told it was sold out. Got back in the other line (not too happy). Jon suggested we purchase the tickets for the next day and just wander the town. Good idea. Jon got the tickets and we wandered the town-got some fudge and visited other shops.

We headed to Canada to stay at the Holiday Inn (thank you Margaret!). When we checked in I was told to ask if they had a king size bed available. He said they didn't have anything, so he gave us our keys - we headed up to the room-the door was propped open. There was a hot tub and king size bed! Unfortunately the room was partially cleaned and the bed wasn't made - I think someone made a mistake. I went back down and sure enough they wrote a 2 instead of a 1. Went back up to our room, which was 2 queen size beds. Still a great room and very comfortable - comfortable enough to take a 4 1/2 hour nap! We got up and headed to dinner around 9pm. When we checked in Jon rolled a small straight which earned Margaret 1500 points. They said if we went to the Lobster Trap next door and spent $40 (Canadian) she would get another 1000 points. Not a problem, however the Lobster Trap wasn't great.

Wednesday morning we headed back to Alexandria Bay. Yesterday they were packed with groups, today there was nobody. Lunch on the boat was sandwiches, mac-n-cheese, beans, and fried chicken. It was hard to hear the tour guide when we were eating. As soon as I was done I went upstairs to get a better view and to hear the guide. We toured the Canadian and US millionaire row. These houses were gorgeous! I found a few that I'm sure mom would love. There are over 1800 islands - to be considered an island you only need 1 shrub/greenery and a certain amount of land around your property. Not much. Almost looks like a floating house.The castle was beautiful too. I expected more of a tour with headphones or a pamphlet that would tell you more about each stop. The pamphlet told you where you were, but not what you were looking at.

We headed back to Massena around 4pm. Sarah was just getting off work around 5 and Cory wasn't off until 7. We had dinner shortly after Cory got home and then headed to Dollar Tree and Walmart to get items for Skye's birthday party.

NY 7/26 & 7/27/09

2009-07-27T13:32:00.001-07:00

Cory, Sarah and Skye went to church on Sunday. Jon slept in and I walked 3 miles downstairs on their treadmill. When they got back we had chicken nuggets and mac-n-cheese. I made it my special way with added cheese. Skye went down for a nap but not for long. She ended up going to bed at 7:30. Sarah had a babysitter come over while Skye was sleeping and we went out to Mongolians and a movie. Being that Jon and I are eventually going to have kids and seeing what it is like for them, I could totally understand the getting out for dinner and a movie as a big deal. We saw The Awful Truth. We thought it was hilarious! A lot of adult humor. It is rated R for a reason. We were all pretty tired when we got back so it was straight to bed.

Monday morning was very laid back. Everyday we have been here Skye has slept in until 8:30. Cory said Sarah is getting a mini vacation because she has been sleeping in. It has been raining just about every day here, so when it isn't there is work to be done outside. Sarah is also having trouble with her computer upstairs so Jon worked on that while we were outside painting and staining. Cory worked on the deck rails while Sarah and I painted the wood trim on the screen porch. Then we stained the steps to the screen porch. Clutzy me bumped the container of paint I was holding and dumped it all down the steps. Our staining job would have looked perfect.

Sarah and Cory were invited to go out with some friends so they are getting a babysitter for a few hours tonight and we are going to Coach's for dinner. It will most likely be an early evening since they both have to work tomorrow. Jon and I will be going to Alexandria Bay for 2 days and staying one night in Canada.

NY 7/24 &7/25/2009

2009-07-25T20:18:00.001-07:00

Jon and I left for NY on Friday around 6pm. We dropped Polly off with my parents and then she will go the Moritz house during the week. I made a loaf of bologne sandwiches, and we each had 2 cans of Monster. We were set. I started the driving so Jon could sleep since he had to work all day. He didn't sleep much and ended up taking over around 1am. He drove till 6:30am. I slept for the most part but was awaken by the terrible weather. It rained so hard and with the dark, I was very glad Jon was driving. He woke me up around 6:30 when he needed conversation to make it to Sudbury. I was supposed to drive from Sudbury to Ottawa. I ended up driving all the way to Massena. We were a little early 3:30pm - an hour and a half early. Sarah and Cory weren't quite ready for us. So while Cory finished mowing the lawn and Sarah took a shower, Jon took a nap and I played with Skye outside. We ordered pizza, Sarah and I gave Skye a bath. We had a few drinks and watched Forgetting Sarah Marshall. Sarah has a lot of plans for this week so I will try and abbreviate each day to a short paragraph.

Back splash

2009-07-19T09:36:00.000-07:00

When you decide you are going to grout - make sure you want to do it all the way through. There is no stopping half way through because you are tired or your hands hurt. I read the directions on the grout bag. Tried using the float to spread the stuff on. With the stone being so uneven this was impossible. I had to put it on by hand. Half way through I had 4 holes and a lot of scrapes on my right hand. I switched to the left. Went a little bit farther and had 3 holes and a bunch of scratches in my hand. With two walls done, I was starting to get whiney. Jon to the rescue! He jumped in and finished off the last wall. He had a little different method - still had to use his hands, but he put a lot on and scraped it off with the float.

His side looks better, good thing its the first wall you see.

All that is left is to remove the dust layer on the stone and then reseal it.

(Finished Product)

Furnace and AC

2009-07-17T06:08:00.000-07:00

We had some issues with our old AC leaking into the furnace. Both work fine, but eventually the furnace was going to go. Not good having water stream through it. So the guys were here at 7am sharp. Polly was locked in her cage (sorry) because the guys were going in and out and working in the back yard and inside. No safe place for her to be than in her cage.

It was a good time to get them replaced - very cool the last couple days so we haven't had the AC running. We got a good deal on it too. Xcel and Centerpoint both had rebates for energy efficient replacements. The feds are also giving up to 1500 in rebates for energy efficient home stuff. They told us if we were planning any other improvements like window replacement that we coudn't get any higher than that. One big purchase at a time thank you.

While they were working downstairs and outside, I decided to work on the kitchen back splash. I tried to install the outlets. I say try because it took me 1/2 hour to do one, and then 10 minutes to do the others. Only to discover that I had done them wrong because they didn't have any power when I tested them. Luckily there was an electrician here for the AC. He took a look at it and (if I would have not second guessed myself) was an easy fix of putting both wires into the bottom locations. I had it this way at first, but then got to the last outlet and wondered why there was a piece of tape over two of the screws. Read the directions and it said if you had 4 wires that 2 were line and 2 were load. I didn't know that! Electrician said they could both go in the line end. So I fixed the wires, turned the power back on, he tested each outlet and we were good. Tomorrow I hope to start the grout.

Aldi Experience

2009-06-30T17:12:00.000-07:00

Lately that's all I've been hearing about is this Aldi store. I thought I would check it out.
**it was like walking into a warehouse style grocery store with everything in the shipping box it came in.
**they were a bit limited on their items.
**I forgot to bring my own bags and ended up spending 11 cents on a bag.
**I spent 50% less than I would at a normal grocery store.

It was a good place to go for packing lunches or for everyday items. Special dinners will still need a stop at Cub - the produce selection was lacking.

When I was checking out the cashier told the lady in front of me that she was limited to one bushel of strawberries because they were running short. If someone is willing to buy them and they already say that some items in the store are first come first serve, why put a limit on how many one person can buy? (she was buying 2 bushels by the way)

WE HAVE GRASS!

2009-06-22T17:36:00.001-07:00

Deck: Round 2

2009-06-22T17:31:00.000-07:00

Mike came over on Saturday and we jacked up another section of the deck. It made the steps go up about 5 inches. Only one third left still hanging.

Undone Projects

2009-06-15T12:35:00.000-07:00

I had thought about writing about all the projects around the house that are half done. I was to the point where we could not destroy one more thing without fixing something first.

We started with my craft room needing an egress window to make it a legal bedroom, that room is now the storage room for the downstairs bathroom parts.

The downstairs bathroom was completely gutted one weekend and has sat there ever since. We can't finish this project because we need to get the furnace replaced before the walls can go back up.

The deck is slightly leaning both forward and to the side - not the safest, so we planned on replacing that. Wood was on sale a while ago so that was purchased and now sits in the middle of the backyard. The dads (Mike and Bumby) have spent last weekend and will be back this week - so far the new footings are in and one corner is raised. I took this picture with the camera level.

The front yard - since getting the notice from the police department that many houses have been broken into on our block- has been completely redone, the rock has been removed. A co-worker's husband does landscaping so we asked him to come out and give an estimate on leveling off the yard, bringing up the grade on the house, and putting down seed. He thought he wouldn't get to it until late August or September. I was called last week - he had a cancellation and wondered if he could do it this past weekend. Not a problem. So one project somewhat done - we just have to make sure the grass grows or we will have a big mud pit for a front yard.

Last projects are tiling the entryway and the back-splash in the kitchen. Thought I had some time on this one also. Jodi was going to come during the summer - thought that was going to be in July. Turns out she had an interview at a Hudson school (YAY!!!) Tuesday. So they are in town this week and we started doing the back-splash. One third done. The tile didn't work exactly as the salesman said it would. Some broke very think, some splintered, and some the hammer made perfect holes in and nothing else. I will try and bring those back as well as show them the differences in thickness. They knew I was doing a mosaic and said this would work for it.

Stay tuned for more updates on the deck, yard, and backsplash - the other projects, who knows.

Vegas

2009-04-27T18:05:00.001-07:00

What a trip. I don't want to write a novel. I had so much fun. I hope everyone else did too. It was great to experience this with a great group of friends. Check out facebook for all the photos.

I was the last to sign up for a Ladies Pampering session. It included silky hands, feet and lips. It ended up being a Mary Kay salesperson. She was hilarious and there were two other ladies there that had the whole room going. What was supposed to be an hour ended up being almost 2. Jason saved me from having to buy anything when I looked out the window and saw him checking in. I said, I see my husband's brother I better go get him.

The guys waiting for Sirens of TI to start. It was canceled because it was too windy. Then a pretty girl walked by.

It was all of our first time in Poncho seating, but it was Knute's first time at a Blue Man Group show.

We won money and lost money - not sure how we all ended up, but we had fun and that's what counts.

Spa Day Deux

2009-04-18T21:16:00.000-07:00

It was an absolutely beautiful day. I walked this morning with Polly for a straight 6 miles. Then got ready for spa day!

We had lots of fruits and salad. I made a spinach salad that a friend makes for work pot lucks. It was a hit. Cat made 3 or 4 different kinds of smoothies. We moved the drinking of smoothies outside because it was so nice out. That turned into foot soaking and massages. Others had hair mud masks applied. Some of the ladies had a turmeric mask which turned their faces a little yellow temporarily. We moved inside and had some salad and fruit. There was ear candling again and everyone had a turn on the Chi machines.

A Great Day

2009-04-09T16:06:00.001-07:00

Today was a beautiful day. I don't know what the temp was, but I had to walk 4 miles for training today. I walked one mile at lunch by walking to Milios and back. Then decided to go straight home instead of the gym. Polly and I went for a 3 mile walk around Palmer Trail. I normally don't like going for long walks with Polly because she pulls quite a bit. I used a retractable leash. She did very well. Every time a person went by (with dog or on bike) I pulled her in really close. After a while she would see someone coming and just came to my side. Otherwise, she had the full reach of the leash the entire walk. No pulling.

Then we got home and there was Jon cooking dinner. Not just any dinner. Spaghetti Bolognese from my Weight Watchers cookbook. Delicious. Now I know he can really cook-this was a complicated recipe. You had to chop vegetables and cook different parts at different times.

It was a great day...and it's a 3 day weekend. Yay!

Happy Birthday!

2009-03-28T18:53:00.000-07:00

Today is my 31st birthday! It was a busy day. I went to the gym early to get my 3 miles for the day out of the way. Came home and took a shower, watched NCIS and Survivor saved on OnDemand. Then I left to meet my cousin Audrey for lunch at TGI Fridays. She helped me pick out an outfit for my birthday dinner and palled around with me to JCPenney to get my makeup done (which they don't do anymore) and get my hair cut. I was a little late to dinner because my hair took a little longer than I thought it would.

Dinner was great! I love the show you get with hibachi. There were many birthdays going on. They ring a gong and have a multicolored disco ball light up. Then they start singing and come out with a plate of fried bananas with whip cream and a candle. The little girl across from us got a Japanese hat. When it was my turn they came out with this...I couldn't even describe it so here is a picture.

Tomorrow I will be walking 5 miles with a group outside for training for 3-day.

Spa Day

2009-02-05T16:04:00.000-08:00

So I forgot my camera at Cat's house when we had Spa Day. I have wanted to post these pictures for a long time! We had so much fun and had way too much food (all good for you food, except my buffalo chicken dip). We hope to make this a monthly or bi-monthly event.

Margaret with mask on and Michelle taking in a foot soak.

Rose taking in every bit of this relaxation.

Mary enjoyed some of Cat's juice concoction with her mask on.

Cat applying mask to Stephanie.

Me and my mask.

The most fun and interesting part of the evening was the ear candling. We all had flaming ears. Margaret liked it so much she went online and bought a bunch of the tubes. When we last went over, Jon and I had it done again and a lot more stuff came out. She gave us 4 so we could do again on our own.

Jadah concentrating on her Chi/energy flow by realigning herself.

Waz Up?

2009-01-18T00:02:00.000-08:00

So haven't posted in a while because really there isn't a whole lot going on. It is very cold so we haven't been doing anything outside. When we had one warm day last week we went outside and played Polly in the middle. If we missed catching the ball and she got it she would get really excited. Having her run back and forth between us really pooped her out.

Since I was laid off for two weeks during the holidays, we have been conserving money a bit to make sure we have bills paid before I start getting a paycheck again (not until next week). We asked for money for Christmas to help offset the no paycheck deal. We should be fine, just a pain. I really want to be working on the craft room and bathroom downstairs since it is cold outside and we can't really do any yard work with all the snow :) With cutting back on spending it also cut into house projects.

Other than the above we really haven't done anything. Been playing World of Warcraft ALOT. Staying up very late (as you can see by the time of this post). Mike and Margaret just got back from Phoenix and Vegas, so tomorrow (today) we are going to go visit them and bring Polly to play with Jay and Elsa.

Merry Christmas

2008-12-25T16:21:00.001-08:00

I had the family over yesterday. There were 10 people. We all fit around the table. I made turkey the night before. There was also beef tenderloin (the best!), homemade mashed potatoes, green beans with red and yellow bell peppers, lots of cookies, pumpkin pie, crescents, stuffing (Margaret made), and salad.

I gave the parent's their photo albums and a coupon book for two of each, house cleaning, dinner, and Jon is providing tech support.

Jon and I gave each other the same gift - Bluetooth headsets for gaming.

Jon also gave me a "game" for the DS called Cooking Trainer. It gives you a shopping list, utensil check list, a tutorial how-to, and some give video how-to. My first recipe to try was California Sushi. I was more concerned about the rice than anything else. The first two rolls I don't think I waited long enough for the rice to cool. The third one was almost perfect. A few more practices and I'll be ready for that sushi party!

Floor Finished

2008-12-07T09:14:00.000-08:00

This actually happened on Wednesday and I really wanted to post about it because it looks fantastic. Jared and Richard came over and finished the floor in the bathroom. I was afraid someone would comment about how it was just in time for this weekend and the party so I held off on the post. I am SOOO happy with it. It looks great! Feels good to have one more thing checked off the list.

YMCA

2008-11-22T20:14:00.000-08:00

You Tube Anyone?

2008-11-22T20:01:00.000-08:00

Day 8: 11-9-08

2008-11-22T06:27:00.000-08:00

Last day. Time to go home. Happy and sad. This was an awesome week. I am so happy that Jon planned this. We really lucked out on the Blue Angels show. The news this morning said people waited 2 hours in a car line up only to be turned away. Today's show has already sold out so we wouldn't get in anyway.

I'm excited to go home to share all the pictures and gifts/items we purchased. Jon was so wonderful this entire week. Since my feet were hurting he would ask me through out the day 1-10 where were they at. Depending on my answer we would slow down or stop and rest. When we got back to the hotel he would rub my feet if they were really bad.

I am so lucky.

Day 7: 11-8-08

2008-11-21T15:48:00.000-08:00

Another early start-8am out the door. On our way to Kennedy Space Ctr. Paid for admission and tickets to the Air Show with the Blue Angels. We didn't have a lot of time to view exhibits at the center. Buses started loading at 10:30 and the show didn't start until 12:30. It was a good thing we went early-one guy said there were around 10,000 people expected. It was a big open field surrounded by water. I forgot to put on sunscreen so Jon acted as my shade when there were no clouds. We got about 3/4 through the air show and my camera battery died again! Just 2 acts before the Blue Angels. Jon ended up taking them with his phone. It took them 2 hours to ship everyone to the air show site. You should have seen the fleet of buses to take everyone back. We got back to the center and went on Shuttle Launch Experience. When we got off, buses were still unloading.

We stopped at Walmart to develop the pictures. They had an adapter so Jon could print his phone pictures too. I went through them at the hotel sorting by date things were done.

Did the last load of laundry. All clean clothes when we get home. Called the parents. Margaret is picking us up and everyone is meeting at our house to open gifts. Everything is pretty much packed. Hotel said we could leave any food and someone would take it. Jon is very sad. He didn't want to leave the parks. It was so much fun, it's hard for me to go back too. I miss everyone too though.

Day 6: 11-7-08

2008-11-20T15:32:00.000-08:00

Another early day. Off to Animal Kingdom. Jon made a bee-line to Expedition Everest to get the FP. The wait was only 10 min, so we got a FP and went on the ride. While waiting for FP time we went to the Jungle Trek and watched Flights of Wonder. Took Everest again-this time smooching for the camera.

Then we went to DinoLand. Our timing was great. We just made it to Finding Nemo: The Musical. Not what I thought it was going to be. This was a full theatrical show and it was free (or included in cost of admission). There was singing, dancing, acting, even fireworks. The "costumes" and scenery were beautiful and most were people dressed up as seaweed or holding a puppet fish. Jon didn't care for it as much as I did-he described it as disappointing. For being a free musical, I though it was very good. While in DinoLand we also went on Dinosaur. There should be an order that you go on rides. Once you've been on as many rides as we have you judge all others-and they don't measure up. The are still good rides, but you know there are better. This would be the case for some later rides.

We headed to Africa to get the FP for the Safari. Decided to eat at Tusker House. The guide said it was an all-you-can-eat meat restaurant. We thought this meant it was like Fogo. It was more like OCB. Good timing there too. When we were done it was time for the Safari. I would suggest going on this more than once. Each time sit on a different side of the truck. This was an awesome ride and you get great photos. The photo of the white rhino on the left is without zoom. It was right next to the truck. We had to be very quiet so it wouldn't charge the truck. The two baby elephants were wrestling close to the trail the truck was on. Pangani Trail was right next to where we exited so we went on that next. We skipped a lot of Animal Kingdom, but told each other that it's just something to look forward to next time.

We took the tram back to the car to drop off our photos. It waited for Jon to get back on, luckily we were only 2 cars in from the tram. We took a bus to Disney Hollywood Studios (MGM). We raced across the park to the Extreme Stunt Show. Jon really wanted to see this. I wanted to go on the new Toy Story ride. We went the wrong way and ended up on the Star Wars ride-again a ride that seemed like it was an original. Disappointing. Finally made it to the Toy Story ride-80 min wait and no FP. They said they run out of FP for this by 11:30am. We were there at 6 or so. That means there were no FP for most of the day. Decided to go on Journey Into Narnia. This was just a 15 min preview for the movie-nothing else. No ride, no sitting for a presentation. Disappointed again-we headed back to the hotel. Drew a bath, drank some complimentary wine and fed each other grapes. Watched D3 (Diners, Dives, and Drive-Ins).

Day 5: 11-6-08

2008-11-18T15:22:00.000-08:00

Woke up ready to go again. I feel like a little kid. Watching the local news while waiting for Jon to get up. Forecast comes on and they said a cold front was coming next week. All the temps said 80, one day said 77. That is NOT a cold front.

Arrived at Magic Kingdom by 9am. Parked in Dopey. In all the days we have parked at Disney we haven't lost the car yet. Took the monorail to Magic Kingdom. First top was Space Mtn. Very fun-very dark. Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin was more of a kiddie ride, but shooting things and getting points was fun. Tomorrowland Transit Authority took us around the whole Tomorrowland area. Then we hit up Monster's Inc Laugh Floor. Hilarious! It was an interactive cartoon comedy show. Stitch's Great Escape was okay. More of a sensory ride using scents and spraying water. Fantasyland had the Philharmagic. Using 3D glasses the movie and characters seemed like they were right in front of me. I thought I was going to wack the lady in front of me when I grabbed for one of the things that fly by. We wandered through the other lands to Liberty Square for Haunted Mansion. Not a whole lot to say about that one either. Onto Frontierland, got our FP for Big Thunder Mtn. There was an hour wait for that so I went on Splash Mtn by myself. Jon did n't want to get wet. It had a 40 min wait. As I am in line for who knows how long, they annouce they are having technical difficulties and don't know how long the wait will be. Many people got out of line. I didn't want to get out because I didn't know how close I was. Finally got on-chose the back. Came out with a few sprinkles. By the time I got off the ride, Jon and I were able to go right on Big Thunder. Splash Mtn not worth and hour wait in line. Big Thunder was fun and only a 5 min wait.
We took the train that goes around the whole Kingdom back to main street. Then boarded the monorail twice to Epcot.

First stop was Mexico. We had beef empenada, quesadilla with chirrizo and margaritas. China had a Chicken Sha Sha. Germany had sausage, saurkraut on a pretzel roll. That was my favorite. I was feeling really dizzy when we got to Japan. I don't know if it was a combo of heat, alcohol and no liquids to hydrate. We stopped at our fave restaurant, Yakitori House. Jon had his Japanese curry and I had the California rolls. I was feeling better. We headed to The Seas. Cute show/ride with Nemo. It is hilarious how every ride ends and dumps you into that ride's gift shop. Jon's fave ride at Epcot is Spaceship Earth. We went on again and emailed our image to ourselves and Mike at work. We headed back to Magic Kingdom using the monorail. Jon knew a little secret that you can ride in the very front with the conductor. On our way to Epcot here was a kid that threw a tantrum and the parents wouldn't do anything. The ride back was sooo much better. I got some cool pictures.

There was a castle performance called Dream Along with Mickey. Also able to get some good pics using 10x zoom. About 40 min before the parade was going to start we got a curb side spot. Three floats into the parade the battery on my camera died. You'll just have to believe me or go see it yourself. The fireworks were so beautiful. It brought tears to my eyes. Took almost an hour to get out because we stopped to get hats instead of going straight out.

Day 4: 11-5-08

2008-11-17T15:18:00.000-08:00

This was our lazy day. Woke up at 7:30-watched the news-OBAMA IS PRESIDENT! Switched to Food Network. This made me hungry so I made a nice breakfast at 10:30 of eggs, cheese and bologna...yes, bologna. Took a nap till 2:30. Watched more food network. Took a shower and got ready for my surprise show-BLUE MAN GROUP!
I thought this was going to be like the Excel show. Besides a few acts it was completely different. It was so awesome! It was a very small room-only about 20 rows and 3 small sections. We were in the 8th row right in the center. Very personal and the chairs were wide enough where I didn't feel pinched. Plenty of leg room too. Jon wouldn't let me take pictures so all you get is before and after. They had a lot of audience participation.
Before the show we had dinner at the world's largest Hard Rock Cafe. After the show we went to Downtown Disney and had a chocolate covered strawberry each and shared a chocolate covered rice crispy bar. Most of the stores were closed so we walked from one end to the other.

Day 3: 11-4-08

2008-11-16T09:08:00.000-08:00

Voting Day. Don't worry, we did absentee ballads. I wonder how things will go, and how will it affect security in the parks after they are announced. I slept in a little later-8am. Got my coffee and finished writing about our packed day yesterday. not sure what we are doing today. Our rough itinerary was to go to Sea World. Waiting for Jon to get up again. Doing our first loads of laundry. Forgot to mention-on the flight here a lady next to me spilled her pop down my leg and onto my jacket that was on the floor. Hence, doing laundry.

I did some research on the areas we want to visit using the Unofficial Guide to Florida. I really want to go to Animal Kingdom and Sea World. MGM won't take too long-but they have a night show and so does Magic Kingdom.

Sea World was kind of a dud. Not worth getting the free entry for a second day. We started at Dolphin Cove, Manatee Rescue, then Kraken. Kraken seemed to be the only good thing about Sea World. We went on twice. Once to find out where the camera was, second time to pose for the camera. Then we went to the Penguin Encounter and Shark Encounter. Also pretty cool because you are in a tunnel and the fish and sharks are all around you. The Clydsdale Hamlet was cute. Those horses are huge. I got film of them when we were next to the Shamu exhibit.

We missed the Shamu show and there wasn't another one until 5:30pm. We had just missed the 1:30-not worth staying 4 hours for the next showing. We'll catch it next time and just for the show. On our way out we stopped at the Dolphin Nursery. We went back to the hotel for a quick lunch. Sea World is right next to the hotel so this was easy and cheap. About 3:30 we left for MGM, which is now called Disney Hollywood Studios. Got a couple of pictures at the beginning then raced to Tower of Terror-also as been renamed-got a FP for this also. Then we went to the Rock-n-Roller Coaster for another FP. You can't have two at once so we went on this one. There was a 30 min wait. We were racing everywhere because the park closed at 7pm. We only went on those two rides then waited over an hour in the bleachers for a show called Fantasmic. AWESOME! It was hard to take photos of this show, it was mostly a spray of water with a "movie" projected on it. There were bits of Mickey appearances and at the end a boat came by with all the characters on it.

We went back to the hotel for Garmin to find a Mexican restaurant. Two couldn't be found, third one was found and was great. Back to the hotel-chillin, watching food network and poll results.

Day 2: 11-3-08

2008-11-15T06:51:00.000-08:00

I have this problem with sleeping in. I set the coffee pot to auto@7am. I woke up at 6 and waited for the coffee. Looks like it is going to be a nice day. Yesterday is was raining/drizzling. It's now a little after 8am. I'm on my third cup of coffee, showered and dressed. Just waiting for Jon to get up so we can go to some parks! Third cup enjoyed on deck.Jon was moving by 9 and we were out the door by 9:30. Jon decided no watch and no Garmin-bad idea. We got a little lost, luckily we still had regular maps in the car. Once we got back on the main freeway (Hwy 4) we got to our destination - EPCOT! I'm not going to go into every detail because we went on everything and saw everything. We were there for 12 hours. My feet were killing me.First we got a Fast Pass (FP- a pass you get before a ride or show so you don' t have to stand in line as long) for Soarin. Then we went on Living with the land. This showed the green house that Dinner Impossible used. Everything in the greenhouse is used at the Disney resorts and parks for preparing food. Everything is fresh.Then we went to Japan, ate at Yakitori House. We took the ferry back to the other side becauase it was time for our FP on Soarin. Then we got a FP for Test Track. While waiting for Test Track, we went on Mission Space. Not my fave. I felt a bit sick. Needed to slow down, so we went to Ellen's Adventure, Spaceship Earth and then Fast Track.

We saw a couple wearing bride/groom Mickey ears. We had to get them. Another couple had buttons that you get for free from guest services-ours said Just Married. They have 1st Visit, Birthday, and Anniversary buttons too. Once we had all the items on people, workers and visitors, all wished us congratulations.
After Fast Track we made our way around he countries again starting with Mexico and the Gran Fiesta Tour. Another "ride" if you are looking to rest your feet. Another lady told us we needed to get a margarita-so we did. They were gone by China and I was a little tipsy. We stopped to sit for a bit. Some workers were roping off an area for the fireworks. I asked if there were only certian areas you could go to watch them since they were roping off areas. I had notices turrets along the shore and thought they ropes were for safety. The lady got on her walkie talkie and told another lady to look for newlyweds named MORITZ for special seating. We made our way back to Japan. When we first visited Jon picked an oyester with a pearl and had it mounted in a necklace that says LOVE in Japanese. I also got my own chopsticks. Jon really knows me. Any time I go on vacation I buy things for other people, not myself. When we went back this time, he bought a sushi set and I picked out a book for sushi parties. We bought Jason a "sword" letter opener. We also caught a Taiko drum performance.
Our special viewing area was behind the Fish-n-Chips in the UK. They knew who we were when we arrived. Jon played with the camera to get pictures of the show. When it was done we headed back to the hotel. Our car doesn't have automatic anything. We had to remember where it was. As we went straight to our car-no problem-all you could hear were car alarms going off because peole were trying to find theirs. Doesn't work as well when everyone's is going off.
We decided we want to spend another 1/2 day at Epcot to eat at all the countries. It is International Food and Wine Festival. Every country had 2-3 booths with $3-5 samples of their food. We also didn't do any character pictures and the Kodak Picturespots.
When we got back to the hotel there was a basket from the hotel with cheese, crackers, trailmix, chocolates, tea, and wine. Jon's eating the trail mix, Jadah will get the tea, and Nate will get teh chocolates. These things all had nuts in them (or I don't drink tea)-I'll take the wine :)
I drew a bath and soaked my aching feet. My fantastic husband gave me a foot massage.

Day 1: 11/2/08

2008-11-12T16:40:00.000-08:00

Flight was at 11am. We were at the airport at 8:30. Jon set a wake up call for 7 and a shuttle to the airport for 8am. I forgot all about daylight savings time and was up an hour earlier. I wasn't tired, very excited. They had a really nice breakfast at the hotel.
Side track-it took me 15 min to wash my hair-conditioner, shampoo, shampoo, and conditioner again. Then another 20 min of picking out the knots.
Our seats on the 3 hour non-stop flight to Orlando were right behind first class. Plenty of leg room, but the seats still lacked butt room. Being that close to first class I saw the differences. They were served ice water pre-flight, unlimited alcohol, and a 3 course meal! I brought my Ipod to listen on the plane-completely dead. We arrived early. Got our bags quickly and intact. Hand picked our car-a gray Aveo. Jon's driving, of course, directions are supplied by the Garmin that Margaret provided-works great! Arrived at the hotel-OMG!! Words cannot describe-I took tons of pictures of the rooms.

We were going to go to Sea World for 1/2 a day, but ended up soaking in this awesome room. Then we were hungry, we hadn't eaten since breakfast at the hotel. It was now around 6pm. Using the yellow pages and Garmin, we found a Japanese restaurant called KOBE. Very similar to Benihana. There was an hour wait for the dinner show, so we went to the sushi bar. There was only one guy working there and he was swamped with orders. The dinner table ended up being ready before our sushi was, so we waited for the next table. All good things come to those who wait. I should have that saying etched somewhere. Food was great and there were people at our table with great conversation. One lady was staying at the same hotel as us. There was a family of 5 from France too. So diverse here. After dinner we set the Garmin to find a Target, but drove past a Wal-Mart. Jon doesn't like Wal-Mart but since it was right there we went in and bought food and other non-food items for the week. $60 later we had breakfast and lunch for the week. Plan was to eat dinner out only. Back to the hotel. Drew a bath in the hot tub. A little too hot because it actually felt like a hot tub. We went to bed early.

The Wedding Day

2008-11-11T16:59:00.000-08:00

The day started off with the girls getting their hair done. It didn't take that long. Everyone was able to do whatever they wanted and the stylist were able to pull off some great work. I was very impressed-everyone looked fantastic. Erin brought a fake hair piece to use on herself but ended up not using it and then offered it to me. It matched my hair perfectly and really added some volume-which I don't have. Olaf ended up loading all my photos from the wedding day onto his hard drive so I don't have anything to post for pictures yet. I also do not have my professional photos yet. I will add photos when I get them.

After the hair dos we went to the hall. Some of the girls headed over early and started setting up. By the time I got there most of the stuff was already set. Jessie did a great job on the flower arrangements-they were beautiful. Having the black napkins to break up the all white table cloths really looked nice also. We had about a half hour to get ready for photos. We all crammed into the bathroom and became really close fast. We took a few individual photos while we waited for all the girls to be done. Once everyone was done we took the girl group photos. We headed outside and took some there. Outside were two shiny silver and red Corvettes. They belonged to the owner and his son. Since the girls were in black and I was in white we went with the stand out red car. I can't wait to see these photos! A car would drive up and the girls would all scream for me to take cover in case it was Jon (who didn't want to see me before the wedding). When we were done we went into the "office" for K&J. It was the boys' turn. I haven't seen any of these and don't really know what kind of poses they even did.

The girls and I waited in the office until almost right before the start of the ceremony-then we headed out the kitchen and came around to the back door. We were going over the essential wedding stuff; something old=my bracelet was from high school prom, something new=dress, something borrowed-this stumped us until Erin yelled "MY HAIR!", something blue=my hankie tucked into my cleavage.

The officiant was supposed to be there at 3:30 to go over the ceremony. 5 min before the ceremony was supposed to start-he showed up. I was not a happy bride, but at least he was there. I had the entire ceremony outlined and had what he had to say word for word typed out. We gave him our vows and asked that he feed us the lines. We asked if he needed us to write our names on them so he knew whose was whose. He said he was fine. When the ceremony started he was not fine. He read the outlined ceremony word for word-straight through to the end. He skipped over Margaret and Jadah doing readings and then fed us our lines 2-3 words at a time. I'm surprised anyone even understood what we were saying. He almost pronounced us before I looked at him and between gritting teeth said, UNITY-GET OUT OF THE WAY. Seriously, he skipped over the part in the outline that said Unity Sand. He pronounced us, we headed out. Started gathering for the receiving line and he came over to congratulate us. I didn't want to shake his hand. Everyone backed away as I voiced my concern about how he performed. I asked for my check back and he gave it back. I would have also liked my other payment back, but he did show up and when we returned from the honeymoon we already had the official license in the mail.

The rest of the night went smoothly. Margaret and Jadah had decided pretty much as soon as they were skipped by the officiant that they would do their readings during the dinner before the toasts. They each added a little something at the end that of course got me teary. Dinner was great-the plates were kind of small so I didn't get a chance to eat some of the items. My mom brought home all the leftovers and froze them, so we had them when we returned on Sunday and for the past two days. Jon had Monday and Tuesday of this week off so dinner has been pretty easy for him with leftovers. There was lots of dancing and drinking (videos will come later also)-I hope everyone had a blast because we had so much fun we ended up leaving earlier than expected. Around 10pm Mike drove us to our honeymoon hotel next to the airport. The beds were smaller than our one at home, so funny thing, our wedding night we slept in separate beds.

Next posts will be the honeymoon-one day at a time...

**there are too many photos for blogging. To see wedding photos go to facebook or myspace.

Catch Up

2008-11-11T16:39:00.000-08:00

So it was a busy few days leading up to the wedding day so I didn't get a chance to write about the rehearsal, dinner, and Fogo.

We had rehearsal on Thursday October 30 because many of our friends are first time parents and we thought it would be nice for them to enjoy that first moment with their kiddies. When we showed up for rehearsal I noticed a couple people in costume. I didn't think much of it because I saw the same outfits on facebook-I just figured they were coming from a party or going to one. Then others showed up in more elaborate costumes. Mike and Margaret were a couple of playing cards. Everyone had conspired about this for quite some time via email. Since my parents email was not working, they didn't get the memo. Knute had just came back from Amsterdam so he had a good excuse for not dressing up.

We got into the hall a little late, but everyone was great and we were able to run through the ceremony a couple times with the music. Then we were off to the Machine Shed for dinner. Everyone had fun and plenty to eat.

On Friday I went to Midway Party Rental and picked up the napkins. Then I headed to a few other stops. We were meeting a group for lunch at Fogo. Olaf, Mike and Dave met us there. Jodi and Brian came to our house and we rode together. It was the first time for Jodi, Brian and Dave. I think they enjoyed themselves. About an hour after we got done eating Jodi's parents called and asked if she would be ready for dinner-way too full. It is a meat smorgisboard.

After lunch Jodi helped me get last minute stuff for the wedding. Then we headed to her brother's house to go trick-o-treating. When done she took me to the hotel. There was a hand off with Tamara-who spent the night with me. I was so wound up that I couldn't sleep and just wanted to keep talking. She finally said, if we go to bed now we'll get this amount of sleep. I still ended up waking up before the alarm...nerves/excitement.

Next up...the wedding day!

Counting down...

2008-10-24T21:06:00.000-07:00

we are down to less than week.
I had my trial run for hair, and a makeup consultation.
Turned in my dress to be pressed.
Margaret bought a serving set for the cake cutting.
I bought a vase/container at World Market for our Unity ceremony. Anyone that knows me knows I am a do it yourselfer. We went to Things Remembered and they said the mouth of the vase was too large for them to be able to etch on it. So we went to Michaels and I bought the stuff to do it myself.
Jon is having his bachelor party on Thursday after the rehearsal dinner, so I am helping clean the Moritz house tomorrow. I also need to pick up the serving set from being engraved.
Just about everyone has rsvpd (thank you), so Sunday we are going to go through who is sitting at which tables. Not so much in each seat just at each table.
Jon and I are going to pick up the rings on Sunday and I am getting my nails done.
Monday I have to give the final count to K&J.
After that we just need to pack for the honeymoon and do the last minute stuff like stopping the mail and turning in our absentee ballots. Can't forget to vote!