October in ARIZONA

This post isn't finished... but I have been working on it for hours... I'm going to bed now.. but I will finish it up later!

Day 1
The trip started off a bit rocky; I got an email from Jana on Tuesday, Oct 11^th letting me know I was all checked in for our flight.  I was a bit confused, thinking, Who checks in for their trip 8 days ahead of time???  I emailed Jana, saying, Why are we checking in so early?  We don't leave until next week?Jana's response?  “Oh honey, you better get packing! We leave tomorrow morning!!”  

That’s when I had to kick it in high gear! Yikes.  I thought we were leaving the next Wednesday.  I had planned on using the next week to get our “old” (feels SO good to finally call it this!) house all packed up so that while we were gone, Ryan could move it all.  Now, I would be leaving Ryan to do the packing and moving.  OOPS!  That Tuesday evening, Ryan skipped class so I could get the boys packed, run a couple errands and get SJ’s haircut.

The next morning, Ryan and I were up bright and early, loaded the truck with BOB, 2 car seats, luggage, the kids, coffee and headed to Jana’s to pick her up.  We were off to the airport, Ryan parked, he  got a gate pass and we were all golden!  We made it off the ground without a hitch. J

At the airport- Jana and I well rested and ready (??) for our week as a team!

Ryan and the boys-

 He was pretty sad about leaving the boys for more then a week. 

The flight down was a bit crazy…. But that was to be expected.  John had a seat, SJ was a lap child.  Jana and I took turns with each little guy.  Reading books, singing songs, watching videos and walking the isle. 

Stephen was thrilled (WAY more thrilled then I was) that there was a dog across the isle from us.

John and Stephen snuggling.

Nick, the driver met us at the gate.  We loaded up in his car and headed to Scottsdale.  Ahhh, the warm sun.  After a bit of a mess with the alarm system, I settled the boys in, got unpacked and the relaxing began.  Jana went grocery shopping and made dinner.   We went to the park that was really close by.  They have a splash pad too- they were  great ways to cool off and move around after the flight!

Once we got off the plane, SJ was sleeping before we even got to the luggage carousel.  haha

Day 2

The Beaches came up to spend Thursday with us.  As always, it was a BLAST!  We love the Beaches.  John (well, all of us) have really missed them since they left MN after spending most of the summer here. 

The kids swam, beaded, and ran around.  We quickly (well, possibly too quickly) took over Jana and Steve’s retirement home.  :/  Jana and Katie went to Walgreens for some chips maybe (???) and came back with a playhouse for the kids to color and play with!  They loved it!!  John, a bit too much.  It didn’t last long, bit while it was standing, it was a hit! 

Stephen and Isabelle snuggling after SJ woke up from his nap.

John beading with his animal beads... before they ended up all over the floor!

A bunch of playhouse pictures! :)

That afternoon, Jana and I noticed that Stephen had been crying a lot.  SJ is a very content little one, we knew something was off.  Jana suggested that I take him to the Dr.  So, we headed to the Stat Clinix- there was a very little wait.  The Dr. said SJ had a double ear infection.  He suggested we get him on Tylenol/Advil and antibiotics.  Off to Wal-Mart to get his Rx filled and pick up dinner- chicken and pasta.

Everyone was patiently waiting for dinner… a late dinner at that!  We went to bed early so the next day we would be well rested. 

Day 3

Chrissy ran a couple errands while Jana and I took the three older Beach kids and the Patrick duo to the park and splash pad.  It was great fun!!  John sure found a place in Isabelle’s heart and vice versa- Isabelle is so sweet and patient with little John.  Following him, helping keep him safe and showing him all the neat things AZ has to offer. 

Our handsome son John- he is getting so big, I can't handle it.  :(

John and Christian at the Park

Lots of kids at the park!

SJ playing at the splash pad.  :D

John and Nanny at the splash pad! :)

We had a late lunch of PBJ sandies, chips, and fruit and then my 2 took naps because we had a big night ahead.  Aunt Jackie and William invited us to Cracker Jaxs (I think that’s what it was called!?) It was a mix between Circus Pizza and Grand Slam? We had pizza and Icees for dinner.  Then it was off to the races!  John had his first driving lesson.  And, if it is any insight into how his driving will be in the future, he is never driving again!! HAHA.  John paid no attention.  He couldn’t reach the pedals, and the man running the track helped John around it once and then he was done.  Maybe next year?  The race track was a bit short lived, but inside by all the games we had a blast.  The boys ran from game to game pushing the buttons, watching it light up and then on to the next.  That kept them entertained for at least an hour.  We did quickly melt and Jana and I knew our time was done.  Beaches, Jackie and William stayed to play!  We headed home, Jana sang John to sleep as per the usual on this trip.  I rocked Stephen and we all went to sleep. 

Chrissy and I at the arcade.  :) 

Day 4

Most mornings, I got up with the boys (duh!) changed their diapers and we headed to Starbucks and then to the park. I wanted Jana to be able to get a little sleep and have some time to herself in the AM to shower, and get ready for our (crazy) day! J  We would get home from the park around 8am; usually it was already over 80 degrees by then- WAHOO!

However, on Saturday, We all got up together and headed to a state park about 45 minutes from their house to do a hike with the boys.  I was excited to get out and do some hiking, show the boys the desert and have bonding time.  After all the prep work that goes into preparing the boys for a desert hike (sunscreen, water, clothes, shoes, sunscreen, hats, snacks, stop for water bottles, drive, once in the park, drive to the furthest trail because that was the most ‘kid-friendly’ trial more sunscreen) we made it about 20 yards into the hike.  And, I should add that the first 20 yards were painful.  LOL- We took a couple pictures and headed to a playground we saw.  

Nana and John heading down the trail.

Mom and Stephen

John and Stephen After we finished with our "hike" SJ crying and JR smiling! haha

Jana had the idea to go to see the tallest fountain in the world!  It was neat- we could see it while we were driving there.  The water only shots for 15 minutes every hour.  By the time we got there, we had to wait another 30minutes, and the boys were super hungry.  We went to a little café for lunch.  I will say that meal was less then enjoyable.  Not because of the food, location, or my adult date rather the two little monsters we had with us!  It was a hot mess, start to finish.  We did however manage to get some mail out to Ryan, Papa and Gamma and Papa.  Jana took JR to the post office next door with SJ and I held down forth at the café waiting for our food.  When it came, Jana and I didn’t chat, we ate.  And got out of there! Hahaha.  We thought we would be just in time to see the fountain and head home.  Little did we know while we were fighting a 2 ring circus inside the café, the fountain was spraying.  Oy.  We hung out on the playground, watched some kids feed the ducks and sweat.  As we are getting ready to leave, because it was super-hot (100+) out.  We saw the fountain and headed for Troon North- home in the desert.

Day 5

Sunday: a LAZY day.  I took the boys to the park, got coffee/doughnuts and headed home.

At the Park...

 I asked John to help me have SJ go down the slide.  I would help SJ up the climber, get him on his stomach and then I wanted JR to "catch" (break his fall) SJ at the bottom. 
So, here is JR waiting for SJ to go down the slide. 

John proudly catching Stephen. :) 

Then, I would tell John, "Good job! Thank you, Stephen is safe now!"  However, John saw things differently- he needed to be sure SJ made it to the ground safely.....

Finally, SJ was "SAFE" on the ground! :)  Thanks John!!

We took naps, ate and hung out. Jackie and Willy stopped by as we were having out afternoon snack of sweet potato fries.

We had sandwiches for dinner and the laziness continued.  Ha-ha We had been on the go all week.  It felt good to have a relaxing day and it fit well since it was Sunday. 

Day 6

Off to the Phoenix Zoo!!  Jana and I loaded up the troops and headed south to the zoo.  It was hot, but tons of fun!  We looked at animals, watched diggers, and had a picnic lunch (or should I say 2 few picnic snacks) And John and I went into a monkey exhibit.  WOWSERS!  They gave us a warning before we went in saying,.  they are free roaming monkeys, 8 of them.  They could bite, so be careful.  I was thinking, wow, that’s weird they would let us in there if the monkeys will bite!?  We went in anyways.  At first we could see any of them.  Then suddenly, one, two…. Four monkeys.  I couldn't point them out fast enough for John. When I turned around, John yelled to me, “HE’S GETTING YOU!!!” And, boy was John right- the monkey was jumping right for me!  I screamed and jumped out of the way a bit faster than the monkey (thankfully!!) EEEK.  I think our next trip down I will let Ryan take John in there- ha-ha.  JK!

The other Zoo highlight was the Gnome House.  It was SOOO cute!!!  More than any child could ever dream up a tree house to be.  It was 2 floors, had a bathroom, bedroom, fireplace, slide to exit out of, and little windows with shutters.  They boys would have played there all day (every day for that matter!) It was the sweetest little house. 

Carousel rides….

These are randoms that I took... but can't remember exactly when they happened??

The boys jumping on Nana's stomach- they loved it waaaayyy more then Jana. ;)

Many of our nights ended like this... wine and chatting.   :)

Big Changes, Coming!

A lot has happened!  I know it has been awhile since I have blogged... I have been so busy with life at home. 
We sold our house! 
Very exciting news for us!  We are moving into the Patrick's MIL suite until we find THE house, not just A house! :)
Ryan is still going to school, a ton. I am home with the boys... playing the mom game. 
We have began packing, putting most of our stuff in storage and starting to plan for our move.  It will be a big adjustment for everyone.  Jana and Steve will have a busy, loud, and kid filled house! :/  My parents will not be able to just walk down the street a few nights a week to say 'HI'.  However, they of course know our door is always open to the basement apartment at the Patrick's! ;) haha  And Jana and Steve... well, we will do our best to keep everyone contained and happy!
John is turning into such a KID.  It is fun to see him embrace understanding what the adults around him are talking about.  John is looking forward to moving to Nana's house.  He will have so much more room to explore and use!  John keeps me on my feet, he is a busy boy!  He loves to explore, everything and anything.  John has had a blast the last couple weeks watching and 'helping' our neighbor Davey as he is getting the squirrels out of our roof/soffits.  John carries tools his tools around saying, "Me a workin' boy! Davey a workin' man!" He talks about Davey all the time, he even painted Davey a picture to go with our 'thank you' gift basket we made him for helping us.  John has entered the 'scared of monsters/dark' phase.... This has been a hard one because it is hard to explain to a 2 year old that there are no monsters etc.  He sleeps with his light on and door open most nights.   
Stephen is at such a fun age!  His vocabulary is starting to expand; dad, mom, mine, John Rome, pup, bye, hi, up, down, wow etc.  He is notorious for saying HI to everyone he sees.  He will even stand in our front window saying HI to people walking by.  His nick-name Beef, has really grow on him... not because he is beefy...just because it is so cute! ;)  Stephen had his 16mo well-child exam last week.  He is 55% across the board!  He can clap, eat with a spoon/fork, and loves his puppy.  Stephen has a (4) little stuffed dogs, he carries them everywhere, and constantly kisses their nose.  He is super easy to put to sleep- we just lay him down (awake) rub his tummy while John stands at his crib, dancing and singing "ni-night beef! ni-night beef! Lo-Lu Beef!"
The boys are really starting to play together and well, fight with each other too.  John's hugs look more like head-locks and Stephen thinks biting our brother is a kind thing to do.  They love to play off each other when they see that I am nearing the end of my rope with one of them.  Ex. 'John, sit down while you eat...' all the sudden, Stephen is standing in his chair and then standing on the table! 'Stephen, you can't be on the table' (as I put him back in his seat) Then John is up on the table.  Wow, as you can see it snowballs fast- and they think it is pure entertainment- not so much!

Jana and I are taking the boys to AZ while the final push for our move happens.  I have been (trying) to get the everything organized and some packing done but while we are gone, Ryan will finish the packing and move us out of the house.  It has been proving way to hard to get things done with these little guys here un-packing faster then I can pack.  It will be nice to get away, enjoy the Phoenix Zoo and AZ sun for us and Ryan will get (hopefully) more sleep, have a cigar or two and get us moved.
Cheers to the month of October-- lots happening!

Never enough time for enough cakes....

We have been spending endless hours in our little turtle sandbox making cakes, pies, soup, and ice tea. 

I took a couple quick pictures the other morning... this is at about 7:30am!  Yes, we were already in the sandbox! 

Grandma and Papa John Turn 80!!

I better start with the song,

HAPPY CAKE, HAPPY CAKE, HAPPY CAKE!

On August 7th, we celebrated Grandma and Papa John's 80th birthdays!  Jana, along with her sisters (Jeanne, Julie, Betsy, Bridget, and Jackie) planned a perfect birthday party! The invites went out months ago, and we had been looking forward to it ever since.  Just over 100 people came to a lovely park in South St. Paul, Kaposia Landing, to celebrate.  It was fun to see so many relatives- so many of the out-of-towners flew in; loved it!  There was a big hall type building where the food, cake, drinks, and memory book was.  The sisters brought the food (bbq buns, salad, mac & cheese etc. cake and bars for dessert, a keg, wine spritzers and lemonade to drink) and it was a perfect summer lunch!  John and Stephen spent most of their time at the playground.  They ran around, playing with the Beach kids and Peterson boys while Ryan and I got to stand around the outskirts of the playground and visit with relatives.  Isabelle spent a lot of time working with Stephen to get him to confidently walk.  She sure is an amazing teacher- loads of patience and love!  By the time we were leaving, Stephen was walking all over!  I will remember to tell him when he gets older that his cousin Isabelle helped him master his walking skills.  :)
The boys made pages for the book of our favorite memories we have with grandma and papa.  Theirs were foot prints and a picture of them all together at the 4th of July.  The boys thought it was so funny when we put finger paint on their feet! They were both laughing hysterically.  Luckily neither of them has attempted to do that on their own since....
The day before the party, I was talking on the phone about how I needed to run to the store to get some ingredients to make some bars for the party.  Since John heard me he was bound and determined to help me make the bars for the party.  Umm... I have a (very strict) rule that only clean (mine) hands will be making food to serve/take somewhere out of our house.  (I do however, love having John and Stephen help make food in the kitchen- only to be served to our immediate family! haha)  I let him come to the store on a date to get the ingredients.  It was very fun for us to pick out all sorts of goodies and sweets together.  Then, after all were in bed the baking party of one began! ;)
It was a great party that took a lot of planning and time to put together- thank you so much to all who helped!  We had a blast, I am sure Grandma and Papa did too! 

Happy Birthday! XXOO

I had intended to take lots of pictures... but it fell through... I hope everyone else got some great pictures! :D   Cheers to 80!!

Elmo Stories

As I sit down to capture this cute story about John, I can't remember how it all started exactly.... But, I know it was between John and his daddy. 
John's newest thing is "Elmo" - it means he wants a story about Elmo.  When Ryan or I lay with John at night to put him to sleep we used to read books, but now we simply tell him a story.  Ryan tells fast moving stories, ones with a bunches of drama and adventure.  I am surprised sometimes when John falls asleep after hearing them! ;P  
I use my opportunity as a chance to teach John something.  My stories are always about Elmo and his mom.  I pretend I am Elmo's mom and John is Elmo, it makes for a special bond between us as I am telling the story.  I ask John where Elmo will be going or what he will be doing in the story and then I take it from there.  He has all kinds of ideas- the zoo, dentist, doctor, airport, vacation, park, pool, home, nanny's, Target, eating apples etc....  Tonight Elmo went to the doctors.  I try to make my stories about life experiences; Elmo being sick, his mom making an appointment, checking in, talking to the nurse, then the doctor etc.  I think it is a really special learning experience for John, he loves to snuggle at night while I or Ryan tells him a story. 
John, you are such an amazing big brother and son! I can't believe how tall you are getting, how much you are picking up on your manners, and how much I love your laugh!!  :)  I love you little Elmy.

These pictures are oldies but goodies! They are from December 2010. 

John is wearing his Elmo clothes, while putting Elmo to sleep.  :) 

Comments from the back seat

The conversations I have with the boys when we are driving are pretty interesting...funny.... and most shouldn't be repeated! ;)

Tonight, we went to Ikea to do some window shopping.  John was so impressed with the bunk beds.  He kept asking SJ if he would sleep on the bottom with him and dad.  He didn't really understand that someone gets to sleep on top! :)  Anyways, we ended up buying a little table with 2 chairs for in Stephen's room. 
After Ikea we went to Nana and Papa's for a bedtime snack of popcorn and oranges.  The kids ran the circle in the backyard.  (Steve was just finishing mowing the lawn when we got there.  He cuts the lawn in a circle...) They also played on the swing set, in the sand box and with a little frog they caught.  Soooo much fun at Nana's- always!

When we were driving home, I was talking to the boys about how Ryan was at school.  Explaining what he does there; Daddy reads books, listens to his teacher, takes tests, uses his calculator...etc.
Then I said that he was going to be home soon and he would be very tired because he has to get up early and go to work.  I asked John to tell me about what daddy does at work.  Money books! Was shouted from the back seat.  I agreed, but I wanted to expand his answer.  So, I started naming other things Ryan does at work; John, daddy also sends emails, makes phone calls, works on his computer, goes to meetings... he does lots of things!  Every time I said something, John would agree by saying, yaaa and repeating the word (email/call...) I then asked John if he does anything else.  Right away he shouted, EAT! I agreed and asked, what else??  Then I heard, SHIT!! (It was so loud and clear... I was a bit worried because it was too clear....)  I responded, yes, he does sit, he sits at his desk and types emails! Good job John! John: NOOOO!!  SHIT!! Me: Yea, he sits, you are right John. John: DEUCE!  Me: He drinks juice?! Yea, I am sure he does sometimes at lunch!  John: Noo! SHIT! DEUCE! LOG! POOOOOOOPPPPPPP!!!! MOM!   Me: Umm... yes John, he does go potty at work. (all I was thinking was, THANK GOODNESS WE ARE HOME!

Where do they learn these things?!  OY!

Looking ahead to our weekend

I am always looking ahead to our weekends!  I love having Ryan home to spend time with as a family.

This weekend Ryan has a lot of studying to do because he has mid-terms coming up this week.  Other then that we are doing grilling, walks, parks, and playing at home.

We are gong to try to tackle the basement, too.  This last week, we got an offer on the house- but didn't accept it.  It was too low for us and neither party was will to budge.  haha  We had as many as 5 showings a day! And some pretty consistent feedback has been that we need to de-clutter the basement.  Ok, OK, We will!  ;)

OOOHHH, Most importantly, we were invited to a garden party at the CFO of 3M's house on Saturday night!!!!!!!  EEEK!! I can't wait!  It will be super fun to have a night out (or a couple hours) of adult time.  I will have to let you know how it goes.... we can't wait!! :D

John is Making Huge Strides!

John has had a wonderful week!  With all of this heat, we have been spending a bunch of time inside, even though we don't have air.  We have a very old air conditioning unit in Ryan and I's bedroom- it does make the air cold, it just doesn't take the humidity out of the air efficiently.  We have been having big slumber parties in our room.  We have John on a mattress at the end of the bed and SJ in a pack-n-play right nex tto John at the end of the bed.  It has meant earlier wake ups (as early as 5:30) but more quality sleep! :)

John has been doing a lot of "fixing" with his tool set.  He has a set of tools at home, and one at Nana's.  At home he is always working on the door frame, hammering, sawing and more hammering!  At Jana's he has been working on a couple chairs.  He also pounded golf tees into a wine box.  Today, we were taking a diaper break- he was wearing just a tee-shirt.  Ryan and I were rolling on the floor laughing when we turned around to see John was wearing a tool belt, safety goggles and a naked bum.  So cute, and funny!

Another cute (and naughty!) story about John and his daddy having a bonding moment....
Ryan and John were standing in Jana and Steve's kitchen.  Ryan looks over to John and says, "John! 1, 2, 3"- (and he toots!)  John looked up to his dad and says, "3, 4!" and squeaked one out too.  UFTA! I have my work cut out -  I am not a supporter of these kind of teachings.  However, I loved the bond you could see in their eyes.

Tonight, John helped Ryan cut the grass. He followed right behind him with his own little mower.  It was so sweet!  I love seeing John look up to his dad and want to be just like him.  I hope Ryan will always be his hero.  XO
 

BIG Week for Stevie Joe!!

For about the past month, Stephen has been standing, and "dancing" in place but, he wouldn't walk.  I was not pushing him to walk, at all.  John walked pretty early (10 months) and he looked like a drunken sailor for quite some time! ;)  We have not pushed Stephen like we kind of did to John.  This past weekend Ryan and I thought that Stevie Joe was ready ....  So, Ryan stood him up, and HE WALKED TO HIM!!  SJ took about 5 steps for his "first step"- pretty impressive! (7/17/11)  We were all on the porch, John was playing puzzles and books and Ryan and I were coaching SJ to walk.  It was very fun!

Stephen has also been saying a bunch of words! 
He said:
I want down. Hi John. Hi Daddy. Bye daddy.  I want milk. (I am totally drawing a blank on a few other phrases he has said... I will have to come back to this post and update it when I remember!) hahaha
When he wants to drink, or just drank, he makes the refreshing sound- just like John did.  It has been so sweet!

Stephen has been dancing, jumping and loving playing with toys!  We have this "beading" set. It is big jumbo wooden beads that are shaped like clothes and then you put them on the "clothes line" or string.  Stephen can do all 12 of the beads by herself.  I was very impressed the first time I watched him to it. 

Stephen is also quite the dainty eater.  Now, dainty is not to be confused with a small eater.  He has a big appetite! :)  He is such a sweet eater- he always needs his utensils.  He holds his fork/spoon and attempts to put the food on it and then when he doesn't get any food he uses his other hand to pick up a little piece of food to eat.  He doesn't throw food on the floor- no wasting for SJ! ;) He finishes his food at every meal, but he also takes the longest.  Healthy little boy!! XO

TWO Words!

EEEEKKKK!!!  Today Stephen said his first 2 word phrase!!!

We were driving home from speech this morning and everyday we go past Ryan's work- 3M. 
So, every morning we wave to daddy, tell him good morning and talk about if he is; in a meeting, sending an email, talking on the phone, or reading "money books".  John is so excitedly interested in Ryan's work- I love it.
Anyways-  So, John was saying, "Hi Dad, Hi Dad, Hi DAD!"  and Stephen was saying "Hi, Hi, Hiiiiii!" When all the sudden I heard, "Hi Dad, Hi Dad!!!" from Stephen!!  Super exciting! 

These boys sure love their daddy- so hard working, handsome, and loving. <3

Other words Stepehn is saying:
Hi, Bye, Mom, Dada, Num-Num.   It will be fun as this begins to expand..... :)

Girls Night Out!!

Tonight I went out to dinner with some of my girl cousins on the Brown side.  What a fun group of girls!!!  We got piled into the suburban and Alana drove us down to Chino Latinos in Uptown.  We ordered a few of the main dishes and sides (?) and ate family style.  The food was SO yummy!!  The conversation was good... it sure made me feel super old! ;) .... or very cautious, sheltered and careful.... which is all true! haha 
It was such a great night, going out with girl friends is always fun! =)

Thanks Alana, Tera, Jackie, Mackenzie and Chrissy.  Lauren, we missed you!!  But, lucky for you, we want to do it again... when you can come too!! ;) XXOO

A fun weekend is planned.... Ryan, Jinette, Mark and Jill are coming over tomorrow after the Twins game.  Then on Saturday we are going to go to the Farmers market.  On Sunday we have an OH planned... Yikes, the forecast looks HOOOOOOOTT!  :D
Oh, and pray to St. Anthony.... tomorrow marks the one week mark of me loosing both sets of my car keys!!!  Ufta, I am having a hard time not having a vehicle!

Ants, Ants, Ants

The Ant Chant!!

I have been reading this book to John a lot lately! 
He has turned into such a bug kid-  Nothing phases him!  Nothing creepy, crawly, juicy, fast, slow, too many legs to count....nothing! 
He has every rock in our yard over turned daily, digs in the dirt for "SSssSSssSS" (AKA: snakes ... AKA: worms) and stomps any ant he can find.  His ant stomping is quite humorous-  as soon as he spots an ant the connectors in his brain start going a million billion miles an hour and before he can get everything in the right place at the right time he is already stomping, usually, each ant gets about 7-10 stomps.  (and by that time, the ant is safely hiding somewhere far from John's heavy foot! :)
When ever he finds an ant in our house (yes, we do have them... :/ )  he picks it up and throws it out the front door saying, "NO ENT! NO ME HOUSE!! OUT!" 
Oh, bugs!
I feel very protected with John around.  I never have to worry about a big spider getting too close to me! ;)

Summer Days = Play Days

This summer has been lovely!  We have been trying to keep it simple! :)
Other then John's therapy (4x a week) we have nothing else "in writing"   -- everyday we just make sure there is time for the boys to be KIDS! :D

We wake up around 8am and have breakfast- scrambled eggs, fruit, waffle/bagel and milk.  Then it is time to change diapers and put on play clothes.  I do sunscreen 2-3 times a day (morning and after nap; I re-apply if we are doing water activities)  most mornings we play in the backyard doing sand box, sprinkler, water table, tee-ball, find the..., pulling weeds, biking on the tricycle, oh and of course, squishing bugs!! 
I have the boys play inside while I make lunch (about 11-11:30).  They do books, puzzles, blocks or sometimes watch WordWorld.  They eat lunch and then it is time for books and naps (1-3pm).  Usually they both practically fall over into bed.  I try to run them in the AM so they will take a nice long nap.  While the boys nap I eat lunch and then clean up the kitchen, do a load or two of laundry and a quickie clean up in the whole house.  There is usually about 45 minutes of down time for me then, sometimes I take a quick nap, read the news paper, organize toys, plan meals schedules, return calls/emails.  Once the boys wake up I re-apply SPF and we go to the backyard to have a snack. I have been having the boys do their afternoon snacks outside so the house stays clean for when Ryan gets home from work.  :)  We just simply play then until the big ol' truck rolls into the garage! 
I think it is so important not to over schedule kids!!  I can say that now because our kids are still so young. :)  It is pretty easy to keep it simple right now- I hope I am able to try and stick to this as the kids grow up. 
Summer = PLAY!
:D

Mission Accomplished!

Stephen is officially done nursing.  He is 13 months and 10 days.  The important thing is that HE was ready.  I had made some changes to his nursing routine that made it possible and comfortable for me-  I cut him back to morning, afternoon and before bed.  However, the last 2 days he has had no interest.  I would try to nurse him and all he would to was push away and even cry a little. 
Tonight, I thought I would give it one last try.  I got John his cup of almond milk and vitamins to have before bed while I was going to nurse Stephen (like I do every night).  All Stephen wanted was John's cup of milk. 

I am OK with this.  My goal was to make it to one year.  I did! I decided that anything after a year was a bonus, and everyday I made it extra I would give myself a little pat on the back. ;)   It is a little sad because Stephen is growing up!  I can't believe how much his is growing like a weed!! I guess we are moving on to the next chapter... what ever that is. :)

<3 <3 Bitter Sweet <3 <3 

Hot Chocolate???

Before I begin, I need it known that I am NOT complaining- I wait ALL winter for it to be this hot!! :D

It has been very hot here lately!! In the high 80's and 90's.  Our 100+ year old house does not have the best insulation, so if it is 92 outside, it is 93 in our house.  We have no trees to provide shade, just metal siding. ;)  I love it, the boys and I play outside all day, every day... I am dreading our water bill.  Every time I check the mailbox I cringe as I am watching for our City of St. Paul Water bill.  Gulp!
Anyways, back to the point.  I have been a bit crazy about everyone drinking enough water.  I am practically following the kids around with their cups to be sure they are drinking enough.  Today, John was refusing to drink anything and I was desperately pleading with him, John, do you want chocolate milk??  Pink juice??  A juice box?!  Ice cubes?? Anything?!!!  He looked at me and pointed to the cabinet, THIS!!   As I looked to see what he excitedly wanted I cringed as I realized it was HOT Chocolate!! WHAT?! 

So, yes, John sat on the back steps drinking "hot" chocolate and Stephen and I guzzled our ice water.  :/  LOL

4th of July 2011

Well, our weekend was full of ups and downs....

On Friday morning, I forgot to take John to therapy- it was a long (hot) night at the Patrick's! Both boys had trouble sleeping in the heat and I put them down for naps at 10am!! I called Ryan at work and asked if he wanted to take a 1/2 day of vacation and we could head to the cabin a little earlier then planned. He said he needed to wrap a few things up and he would be on his way home! Yahoo! :D I quickly packed the boys and we loaded the truck. We wanted to try and spend the night ... I thought maybe since the Beach and Peterson kids would be there, John would be able to sleep??

We have had such a great time catching up with the Beach's- I sure wish they really lived here!! ;) We had a very simple dinner of burgers and fruit pizza, the kids swam and played all afternoon together. Peterson's got there around 7pm and just as we were beginning to feel "moved in" for the weekend, it started getting really dark out. I suggested to Ryan that it looked like it was going to storm and he should go clean up the beach toys etc. He ran down there with John and with in minutes it was full force storming out. It was like nothing I have ever experienced. The wind was so strong it was almost blowing us over as we ran to the basement. The lake had white caps on it, the power went out and a huge tree fell on the cabin, right by where we were. A couple other trees on their property fell too. Once the storm was over, went to access the damage. There were at least 40+ trees down and power lines laying on the little road that connects us to a main road. Ryan and I knew, we were sleeping at the cabin!! ;) John slept until about 3:30. He woke up and was ready for the day. Stephen was loving the cabin air and snuggled all night in his crib. I sat with John in the truck, reading books, singing songs and swatting mosquito's! Around 7am he and I both fell asleep in the truck... just in time for Ryan ans Stephen to wake up! HA We thought we better go look at the roads now that it was light out and try to get ice. There were crews and residents all over the roads with chainsaws and trucks. It was very sad to see; not only the beautiful trees that had fallen, but the homes crushed, you could see the devastation on their faces- many of them probably one major bill away from a financial crisis. It was hard to see.

We made it to the town of Danbury- they were letting one person in the store at a time, and all they could buy was ice- cash only. Well, we had no cash so we called Jana ans Steve to let them know what was going on and to get ice on their way to the cabin.

We quickly realized it was time to head home - no power, no water, and no sleep (for me) was not a good combo. It was time for us to hit the road- we drove home.

Ryan got caught up on homework and mowed the lawn while I started the laundry and took a nap with the boys.

On Sunday we went to Patty and Dan's for dinner and fireworks. It was nice to get the boys out in the fresh air! As we drove home we watched all the firework displays that were happening. Stephen slept and I sat in the back seat with John helping point out the "sparkles"

On Monday, we went to the Patrick's for a summer dinner- burgers, a few salads and ice cold water! :) Just what we are all always looking for lately! haha. We didn't stay for the "sparkles" at Mendakota. We were very tired and Ryan had to be up for work bright and early the next day. It was lights out by 8:45 here!! :D

John was "fixing" the tree that fell on the cabin--- hmm...



I took these from Chrissy's blog.... :/ I didn't take ANY pictures of the 4th 2011!! It was a pretty hectic weekend. Ufta!

(Thanks Chrissy!!)