It has been awhile since I posted anything on here, and not because I have been busy! The wireless router has been sending my computer astray--this means that the computer connects to the internet, but then the signal gets confused, so I can't pull up any web pages...very frustrating! I see the little picture of my computer in the right hand corner, and the green wavy marks are flashing...so shouldn't that mean that I can connect....no, according to the Geek squad!
Anyway, I am sitting at Panera type type typing away, catching up on 3 days of missed emails and trying to work on our taxes, and thought I would take a break to blog. I will have to post pictures of Christian's production soon (when we get a new router.) It was a fantastic play, and every costume, song, and dance move was wonderful! My cheeks hurt from smiling the whole time.
Ok, this was brief, and I do not have any pictures to share right now...but I promise to give a more meaningful post in the next few days! Hope everyone is enjoying the fabulous winter!!!
Friday, January 30, 2009
Sunday, January 18, 2009
Christian's Birthday!
Traditional birthday breakfast of choice in bed 2009
His buddies at his party 2009
My baby turned 9 yesterday! Wow, where have the years gone? 9 years ago...
My due date with Christian was January 8th. January 8th came and went...and he wasn't ready. So, I visited my doctor and they decided if he didn't come by January 18th, I would go in for an induction. Late January 15th, I was having regular contractions. We called my aunt Mychelle to come be with Benjamin so we could go in. She arrived and I went in, they hooked me up..meanwhile both Chad AND Benjamin have the flu, so while I am in my hospital bed, Chad is in the bathroom getting sick.
After a few hours hooked up to machines, they decide my contractions are far enough apart that they send me home. We go home to our 2 year old late Sat night/early Sunday morning and my aunt goes home....my mom is on her way from her house which at the time was more than 2 hours away. Sunday morning both Benjamin and Chad are very sick, and I have yet to sleep. Gratefully both my sister Jacobi and my mom came so they were able to make meals, clean messes and take care of the 2 year old because I don't care what those doctors say...I am contracting and I am in PAIN! Sunday evening I go back to the hospital and they give me morphine to help me sleep, I haven't slept since Friday night/Sat morning and I am exhausted from contractions. They send me home after a 2 hour nap, and I am finally feeling no pain! My mom goes home, it seems as though things have calmed down so she thinks she can go to work on Monday before my induction on Tuesday. My little sister stays to be with Benjmain "just in case" Monday morning I wake up in FULL labor! The morphine has worn off and this baby is coming! I cry my way to the hospital where I am hooked up to the epidural-not a moment to spare- (Chad passed out while they poked me with the needles, but not getting sick anymore which is good) My mom turns around and comes BACK to Rochester, and at 3:47 I start to push. At 3:52, on January 17th 2000, my beautiful, happy, perfect color, wonderfully healthy, Christian Jacob enters the world with his beautiful singing voice. He weighed 8lbs 1 oz and he is absolutely breathtaking! 20 min later my mom arrived back at the hospital to see her newest grandson. He was welcomed later by his big brother Benjamin who couldn't get very close because he was still pretty sick, but was too excited to stay home and not meet the baby.
Christian has always been able to make me laugh. He is kind, generous, thoughtful, sincere, funny, capable, and creative. He humors us with his wit, he entertains us with his songs, he captivates me with his ideas and his stories, and he blesses me with his love. I am more and more proud of that young man and the person he is becoming everyday. I thank God for choosing me to help guide him in this world. I should have known based on the way he entered this world that he would dance to his own drummer, take his sweet time to do nearly everything, and posess no sense of urgency...but he is who he is, and I am honored to share his life with him.
I wish I had baby pictures on the computer, but 9 years ago we did not have a digital camera, and I just haven't taken the time to scan any in, but here are some shots of Christian from age 4 on...he is turning more and more into a little man!
Age 4
Summer of 2005
Spring of 2006, he broke his shoulder falling off the bed. His kindergarten buddy Ethan wouldn't even let me help him with his coat and backpack at school. He made sure to take care of Christian...they've been best buds ever since
Winter 2006--He almost always has a bruise on his head somewhere! He has the strongest head ever! This was taken skiing at Coffee Mill.
Summer 2006--He drove the boat home from Pepin to Wabasha! He did a great job!
Summer 2006- Playing the piano...I wish he would take lessons!
Summer 2006
Nisswa, Summer 2008--eating ice cream, chocolate of course!!
Spring 2008--freeing himself from being locked in our bedroom! The door handle broke so when the door closed we couldn't get him out. He had to take the door off the hinges. He was in there for over 45 minutes!
Jeez I love this kid......
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Snow days...
Remember the days of me wishing for snow so the boys could stay home from school? Don't get me wrong, I still enjoy them, but come on! 2 "snow" days in a row because of the temperature! Argh! Now I can see how this could be misconstrued as complaining about the weather, and I would like to make myself clear--it is not the weather I am frustrated about, it is wasting the "snow" days that frustrates me! I like the snow days where we are snowed into our house or neighborhood and the snow just keeps on a comin' down. When the boys can bundle themselves up, shuffle off into the snow, play and laugh and wear themselves out. Then they come back in for some ho ho mochas and soup and sandwiches all the while excited to get back out there to finish their fort, or sled down the hills again. But this cold and no school = stuck inside, cabin fever, bored, arguing, antsy, did I mention bored?
Tomorrow I will get up at 5:30, take my sweet husband to work (he can't possibly walk to St Mary's in this cold), come back and curl into my bed, hopefully it will remain warm while I am gone--maybe I will get the heating pad and turn it on while I am gone--and make a plan for the day. Tomorrow the cold will NOT get the best of us. We will go somewhere, where? Not sure, movie? swimming? friends? We'll see, but I am not going to let cold keep us inside this house another day!
Here are some of the ways we spent our time today.
A little Uno Spin anyone?? We didn't get far, we couldn't find the cards to tell us what the symbols on the spinner meant, so we had to move on to plan B after trying to give it a whirl w/o them. (reference arguing in blog above)
We made our first loaf of bread with the breadmaker that the boys and Brian gave me for Christmas. The boys even pulled up the bar stools to the counter so they could watch it knead and rise. They were completely enthralled! Honey Wheat bread is our loaf of choice...it is OK for the first round, we'll have to make some adjustments to the honey ratio though. When I took it out this evening for the picture I noticed someone got a little finger happy and stuck their fingers in the center of the loaf....Who could it be?
I read some of the book for book club today. Candy Freak....pretty funny, I am enjoying it so far. Steven Almond is the author and he is coming to the public library in Feb so we are going to go see him there. We picked the it before we knew he was coming so it was fun to see that he would be here right after we finish reading the book. We played Are you Smarter Than a 5th Grader. The boys got this for Christmas from their cousins and it was pretty fun...and harder than I thought. Apparently I am NOT smarter than a 5th grader. And of course, we have been catching up on the seasons of The Office. The boys love this show as much as Brian and I! Especially the theme song, every time it comes on they sing...so cute! And legos in the background. I think it goes w/o saying that legos are a staple in this house. They are touched and played with at some point everyday!
No, Benjamin is not drinking Dt Dew. In fact, I know this sort of looks like Benjamin, but it is indeed Brian. Or at least, that was what Benjamin was trying to portray. When Brian got home from his committee meeting tonight, Benjamin greeted him with this get up. He used my eyeliner for the goatee, I wonder what the tip of the pencil looks like now? Brian's coat was stolen, so he has been wearing this columbia coat, along with the black hat EVERYwhere he goes. Benjamin was imitating him and it was pretty funny.
Here was just some playing around with different angles and shutter speeds. I am trying to learn more about my camera so I can get the best use from it, still a work in progress though. (reference bored in blog above)
Tomorrow I will get up at 5:30, take my sweet husband to work (he can't possibly walk to St Mary's in this cold), come back and curl into my bed, hopefully it will remain warm while I am gone--maybe I will get the heating pad and turn it on while I am gone--and make a plan for the day. Tomorrow the cold will NOT get the best of us. We will go somewhere, where? Not sure, movie? swimming? friends? We'll see, but I am not going to let cold keep us inside this house another day!
Here are some of the ways we spent our time today.
A little Uno Spin anyone?? We didn't get far, we couldn't find the cards to tell us what the symbols on the spinner meant, so we had to move on to plan B after trying to give it a whirl w/o them. (reference arguing in blog above)
We made our first loaf of bread with the breadmaker that the boys and Brian gave me for Christmas. The boys even pulled up the bar stools to the counter so they could watch it knead and rise. They were completely enthralled! Honey Wheat bread is our loaf of choice...it is OK for the first round, we'll have to make some adjustments to the honey ratio though. When I took it out this evening for the picture I noticed someone got a little finger happy and stuck their fingers in the center of the loaf....Who could it be?
I read some of the book for book club today. Candy Freak....pretty funny, I am enjoying it so far. Steven Almond is the author and he is coming to the public library in Feb so we are going to go see him there. We picked the it before we knew he was coming so it was fun to see that he would be here right after we finish reading the book. We played Are you Smarter Than a 5th Grader. The boys got this for Christmas from their cousins and it was pretty fun...and harder than I thought. Apparently I am NOT smarter than a 5th grader. And of course, we have been catching up on the seasons of The Office. The boys love this show as much as Brian and I! Especially the theme song, every time it comes on they sing...so cute! And legos in the background. I think it goes w/o saying that legos are a staple in this house. They are touched and played with at some point everyday!
No, Benjamin is not drinking Dt Dew. In fact, I know this sort of looks like Benjamin, but it is indeed Brian. Or at least, that was what Benjamin was trying to portray. When Brian got home from his committee meeting tonight, Benjamin greeted him with this get up. He used my eyeliner for the goatee, I wonder what the tip of the pencil looks like now? Brian's coat was stolen, so he has been wearing this columbia coat, along with the black hat EVERYwhere he goes. Benjamin was imitating him and it was pretty funny.
Here was just some playing around with different angles and shutter speeds. I am trying to learn more about my camera so I can get the best use from it, still a work in progress though. (reference bored in blog above)
Sunday, January 11, 2009
Wonderful Winter
Instead of a recap of our past--busy-- week, I thought I would blog about my progress with the weather. As you may remember I vowed to not grumble about the weather this year, and Mother Nature has put me to the test! I have been told (I refuse to look at weather.com these days so all temperatures are hearsay) that our temps reached -48 yesterday. Thats chilly! But chilly enough for me to complain? NO SIR! Look outside, it's beautiful! The sun is shining, the snow looks gorgeous on the trees, and the sky is a fantastic blue! I noticed this yesterday, and now we are on day 2 so I couldn't resist blogging about it.
---All I can picture when I look at this scene is me and Brian in our old age sitting in that chair. (when it is slightly warmer than -48 outside) I will NEVER get rid of it now!---
We had a wonderful few days of fluffy, puffy, light, flakes falling, which resulted in a soft blanket of snow all over. When I look out the windows, I see this wonderful fluff everywhere and I am thrilled to be in MN. I have set the thermostat to warm up to a balmy 68 in the morning before I get out of bed, so I don't have the chilly nose syndrome this year, and I am grateful for that.
Benjamin is in ski club (he snowboards) this year, it may be a little too cold to go this week, and that would be a bummer, but will it make me grumble and mumble? Heck no!
I am really and truly loving this weather! I am going to make it through these next 2 months of chilly temperatures, and in no time it will be Spring! In which I will continue this trend of not complaining of the weather. Muddy roads? Soggy shoes? Dirty truck EVERYday, even after a wash? These will not be enough for me to not bask in the wonderful sights and smells of spring. I have visions of the crocuses poking their way out of my garden and greeting me when I pull into the driveway. Ahhh....I will just think of those, while these temperatures stay so low. Need a reminder? Here they are!
I hear it should be 13 for the weekend! Heat wave!!
---All I can picture when I look at this scene is me and Brian in our old age sitting in that chair. (when it is slightly warmer than -48 outside) I will NEVER get rid of it now!---
We had a wonderful few days of fluffy, puffy, light, flakes falling, which resulted in a soft blanket of snow all over. When I look out the windows, I see this wonderful fluff everywhere and I am thrilled to be in MN. I have set the thermostat to warm up to a balmy 68 in the morning before I get out of bed, so I don't have the chilly nose syndrome this year, and I am grateful for that.
Benjamin is in ski club (he snowboards) this year, it may be a little too cold to go this week, and that would be a bummer, but will it make me grumble and mumble? Heck no!
I am really and truly loving this weather! I am going to make it through these next 2 months of chilly temperatures, and in no time it will be Spring! In which I will continue this trend of not complaining of the weather. Muddy roads? Soggy shoes? Dirty truck EVERYday, even after a wash? These will not be enough for me to not bask in the wonderful sights and smells of spring. I have visions of the crocuses poking their way out of my garden and greeting me when I pull into the driveway. Ahhh....I will just think of those, while these temperatures stay so low. Need a reminder? Here they are!
I hear it should be 13 for the weekend! Heat wave!!
Monday, January 5, 2009
Not Me! Monday
I have found a blog that is not only inspirational...but entertaining as well. One of the things she talks about, and encourages, is the Not Me! Monday. Here is an excerpt from her blog:
Not Me! Monday was born out of a desire to admit some of our imperfections and reveal a few moments we'd rather forget.
Why?
Well, for one, because it's just plain fun to pretend that we really did not do the things that we actually so did do. And, two, because reading through great tales of other people's Not Me! Mondays each week is a great way to level the playing field. We're all human, we all take embarrassing shortcuts, and so we may as well show each other that we're all in good company!
So I am going to give it a shot this week....
Over Christmas break I did NOT stay up progressively later each night. I did NOT stay up until 3:30 am Friday night just because I could. Na uh, not me.
Again, over Christmas break I did NOT eat everything in sight and gain 7 pounds. I did NOT go more than 3 days w/o a vegetable, and I certainly did NOT go out and buy a large stock of V8 from Sams Club to try to make up for my lost veggies---and still not had one can.
I did NOT enter a competition this past week with my husband to see who had the most facebook friends. And I certainly do NOT regret rejecting some of the names that sent me friend requests...if only I knew then that it would turn to this. Definitely NOT me!!! As a side note...the one rule is we can not be friends with the randoms...so fret not if you are a facebook friend of either of us ;)
I did NOT get moody when I had to take down the Christmas decorations. And it certainly had nothing to do with missing the look and smell and feel of the holidays. I certainly am not looking forward to next November already.
And lastly, today I did NOT get up much earlier than I usually do on school days, bring the boys to school, come home, open a Dt Dew and take a nap for an hour. Maybe those progressive late nights were not such a good idea?
Ooooh, that was kinda fun, maybe I will do more Not Me! Mondays?
Not Me! Monday was born out of a desire to admit some of our imperfections and reveal a few moments we'd rather forget.
Why?
Well, for one, because it's just plain fun to pretend that we really did not do the things that we actually so did do. And, two, because reading through great tales of other people's Not Me! Mondays each week is a great way to level the playing field. We're all human, we all take embarrassing shortcuts, and so we may as well show each other that we're all in good company!
So I am going to give it a shot this week....
Over Christmas break I did NOT stay up progressively later each night. I did NOT stay up until 3:30 am Friday night just because I could. Na uh, not me.
Again, over Christmas break I did NOT eat everything in sight and gain 7 pounds. I did NOT go more than 3 days w/o a vegetable, and I certainly did NOT go out and buy a large stock of V8 from Sams Club to try to make up for my lost veggies---and still not had one can.
I did NOT enter a competition this past week with my husband to see who had the most facebook friends. And I certainly do NOT regret rejecting some of the names that sent me friend requests...if only I knew then that it would turn to this. Definitely NOT me!!! As a side note...the one rule is we can not be friends with the randoms...so fret not if you are a facebook friend of either of us ;)
I did NOT get moody when I had to take down the Christmas decorations. And it certainly had nothing to do with missing the look and smell and feel of the holidays. I certainly am not looking forward to next November already.
And lastly, today I did NOT get up much earlier than I usually do on school days, bring the boys to school, come home, open a Dt Dew and take a nap for an hour. Maybe those progressive late nights were not such a good idea?
Ooooh, that was kinda fun, maybe I will do more Not Me! Mondays?
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