Memorial Weekend = PURE Family Time!

We had a jammed packed weekend of family fun!!  Friday afternoon we loaded up the boys and headed to Danbury, WI to spend the weekend with Jana and Steve at the cabin.  The drive up was nice, not much traffic and lots of kids songs .... sang by yours truly... Ryan and I! Haha! ;)
We played outside, dug in the sand, explored outside and inside.  We had John's favorite for dinner, (all beef) brats, pasta, steamed broccoli and watermelon.  SJ chowed down!  He loved his cabin dinner in the wooden high chair.  JR did pretty good at dinner- he sure loved the Alfredo pasta, I think he had 4 servings?!  We played outside some more and then Ryan and I gave the boys a bath.  We read some stories and then the challenge set in......  getting John to sleep.  First Ryan tried to lay with him in his bed while I nursed SJ to sleep.  He was quickly down for the count!! :)  John was all about the word, "Morning!!"  Umm, no honey.... Nighttime!  SO, we drove John all around the back country roads.... for about an hour and a half.  He finally fell asleep!  Then, I carefully and quietly carried him from the truck to his bed, laid him down and didn't breathe as I tip-toed out of the room.  Yahoo! He wasn't moving!  It was time to enjoy a glass of wine with Jana and Steve.... Umm.... Nope! All the sudden, MORNING!! Morning Woof!!! (as he squatted down yelling in little Sabo's face...waking him up) Morning Nana!! Morning Bopa! Morning Mom! Morning Dad! Morning Beef?!   John was up running around! Haha  We thought it was pretty cute and funny too.  He seemed more awake then ever, that 5 minute power nap did him wonders! However, Ryan, being the rational and realistic dad he is decided this wasn't going to work to stay at the cabin overnight.  I was pretty torn, I knew John wanted to stay so badly.  Jana and Steve both tried to get him to sleep, singing, books, rocking... nothing was working.  So, Ryan packed up the truck and we headed home.  SJ slept the whole way home, and JR fell asleep around Tobies... everyone transferred successfully from the truck into bed.... at 1am! Woof!
Saturday we we hung around at home, unpacked and then headed to the farm!  My cousin Luke was having his graduation open house.  We had some storms in the afternoon but it turned into a perfect evening!  It was so nice for John to have tons of room to run, sheep to see and trampolines to jump on!  SJ was just a little ham, enjoyed his dinner and wanted me to hold him- check!  
Sunday we took the kids to Jana and Steve's and then walked to a park near their house.  It was a pretty hot day!  They loved their time at the park, slides, swings, tag and falls! ;)  haha  We walked back to J&S's for a chicken dinner.
On Monday, we played at home.  We had Carlson's over for lunch of homemade grilled pizzas.  Yummy!  Then it was family nap time!  After we all had a nice long nap we played in the water table in the backyard and then headed to a park with the boys.  (Oh, but first we went to Best Buy to get a new camera disk... my last one got wrecked....hence the lack of pictures!)

Stevie Joe played with Ryan at the park- he crawled in the sand and grass, swung on the swing, went down the slides and played peek-a-boo with his daddy! <3

While I played with ran after John! :)  We swung! John was not able to get on the swing himself when we got to the park, but by the time we left he could do it alone!!! 

John loved the slides! There were 2 really high ones (enclosed and safe!) It was nice because the slides went slow... so JR could sit as he went down.  (Usually he will lay on his tummy and go feet first because he loses his balance going so fast) 

John climbing in the "Itsy Bitsy!  He named it all by himself- I was quite impressed!  This was not the safest thing to climb on at his age, but I was watching very close and saved a few slips. While he was climbing, he sang the whole time-- "Itsy Bitsy, Itsy Bitsy"

Water table fun in the backyard!

Love you John! XO

On Tuesday, Ryan decided to stay home one more day!  We were just having so much fun spending all of this time together we were not ready for it to end yet.  So, we packed the boys up and headed to the MN Zoo.  It was a BLAST! 

While John was walking on this ledge, he came across a snake! Yuck! Ryan and I are not snake people....

We saw tons of animals outside, had our picnic lunch we packed in the farm area, and played at the park in the Zoo.  I think John's favorite part was the cows. (ahhh, the way to his mommy's heart) He was so excited about them, fed them and pet their heads...right between their eyes. 

I love family time!  That weekend was the best ever!!!!!  I know none of us are looking forward to Ryan's classes starting again.... 



Stephen's Stats at ONE

I took SJ to his well child Dr visit on Tuesday.  He passed all of the development questions except the clapping part!  They asked my at his 9mo appointment if he was clapping... no.  Then again...no, he still isn't! However, I am not worried about his development at all! Clapping will come...we will just need to do more "Patty Cakes" :) 
Weight: 20lbs 14 oz (21%)
Height: 29 inches (24%)
Head Circumference: 18 inches (29%)
Weight for length ratio: 55%
He is a solid little boy, but growing just perfectly! The Dr ordered some labs to check a few things that were off at a prior appointment. 
Re-checked his lead levels, still slightly elevated but they have come down from what they were.
Iron: Still very low, we are upping his iron Rx to a higher dosage.  I hope that helps.
His hemoglobin was good (11.4) but one of the "agents" was too low... so that needs to be re-checked again. 
(always something!)

Eating:
Stephen eats whatever we are serving for a meal.  He will eat anything and everything. He has a very healthy appetite and rarely isn't hungry.  Some favorites:
Breakfast: YoBaby yogurt, blueberries, strawberries, eggs, wholewheat waffles
Lunch: deli turkey meat, cheese, fruit, avocados
Dinner: homemade grilled pizza, enchiladas, steak, mashed potatoes
...and the list goes on!  He does a little "happy dance" while he is in his chair waiting for food!  I have been impressed at the fact that very little food falls on the floor, he rarely will pick up his plate and spill it.  All in all, meal times are a success with Stephen!

Nursing:
I DID IT!!!!  OK, We did it!! ;)  I made it to a year! When I was feeling very overwhelmed with the whole exclusive nursing I wanted to just, "be done" but, I pushed through and decided I would nurse in the morning when he woke up, after lunch and before bed.  Much more do-able!!!  I started giving him formula mixed with some whole milk around 10.5 months for meals.  Then, as it warmed up and he seemed more thirsty, I have been giving him water in between meals.  He is a thirsty fella!  I tried a bunch of different sippy cups and the best ones I have found are the 'Take and Toss' cheapies at Target.  I love them! 
As long as Stephen is happy nursing, I plan to continue nursing him 2-3 times a day.   And, as of now he is an addict! hahaha  Ahh, what a sense of accomplishment for me-- I am very happy I pushed through and did it for him.

Sleeping:
Stephen is a very easy baby! I simply lay in him his crib awake (after he is done nursing) put a little receiving blanket over his legs and tummy and sing him a little song while rubbing his belly.  "Nighty night little Stevie Joe, nighty night.  Shhhhh. Shhhhh.  Night Night, mommy and daddy love you.  Playing time will be here soon.  Close your eyes, night night little Beef"   Then he turns his head to the side and goes to sleep.  ~AmAzInG~  When SJ wakes up he is always smiling for ear to ear and jumping in his crib. So nice to wake up to a cheerful baby!
He goes to bed at 8pm and will sleep until 6:30/7:30am.  Then, most mornings he will take a nap around 10-12 and then again from about 2:30-4.  OR if we are not home in the AM for his nap, he will just take one nap from 1-4. 

Talking:
He has been a pretty quite baby, but in the last 2 weeks he has learned "MOM" Now, he says it all the time, and with authority too! It is loud and he means business!  He also says, "Num Num Num" when he wants to eat or is eating.  I have heard him say "dad" but he hasn't been using it yet consistently or directly at Ryan yet.  Soon though!!  :) 

Walking: 
Not yet! YAY! I don't think I am ready for 2 boys that walk (in different directions) yet.  Since we have been outside playing all the time lately, SJ isn't a huge fan of crawling on his hands and knees in the grass.  So, he crawls up on all fours, it is quite funny to watch!  In the past week he has started to stand up all alone!  I was shocked the first time he did it and it only lasted a couple seconds.  But, now he is able to stand for close to 20 seconds (before he falls or John pushes him over! haha)   It will be soon that the walking begins....eeek!

Stephen LOVES to play with toys! He will sit on the floor and play with a toy for a looong time.  I am always so surprised at how content he is to be playing and exploring toys.  He isn't one to rip everything out of my kitchen cabinets, he will look on them, and only pulls out all of the towels/dish rags.   He got a little drum for his birthday and he bangs on and does a little booty dance to the music.  Super cute!
SJ is a mommas boy and I love it! I remember handing John to other people and he wouldn't even react about the possibility of me leaving.  I would joke around that I should start pinching him so he would cry. ;P  With Stephen he cries whenever I put him down or hand him to anyone else.  He wants to snuggle with me all the time, or at lease be in a close distance.  And, I am fine with it! :)  I know it is good for him to get used to other people which I make sure to have him exposed to other family members and Ryan (Of course!!) but I like that I am his "lovey" instead of a blanket or a tootsie.

Stephen turns ONE~!

I didn't realize how much different it would feel to have SJ turn one then it did to have John turn one.  I am much more sad about the fact that my baby is no longer a baby... he is ONE.  Now, when people ask me how old my kids are I need to say, 1 and 2.  That also means I can no longer use the I am still working on loosing my pregnancy weight.... umm... hello! Your "baby" is one! That excuse has officially ran its term.  I have no excuses left, I just simply need to get back to my pre-pregnancy self.  And, boy am I ready!  It is draining in so many ways to be over weight.  Ugh.  Oh wait!! This isn't a weight blog, it is a blog about Stephen!!!!

We planned a birthday party for Stephen on his actual birthday, June 3rd.  We invited all of our immediate family, spouses/GFs/BFs, and Ryan's grandparents.  Almost everyone came to our house on that hot Friday night!  Ryan L and Jinette came early and helped me wash chairs, set up the table in the backyard, pick up the cakes, watch the boys, bathe and dress them! I thought I was "ready" HA little did I know I needed their help! Thank you!! 

The party started at 5:30 and everyone staggered in as their work week ended.  :)  Sara stayed home because she had a cold and didn't want to spread her illness to SJ because he had surgery this week (Again!)  Alana was working at St. Olaf for their reunion weekend.  She was cleaning dorms to get them ready for the alumni to come and stay in them.  And, Grandma and Papa Brown stayed home at the last minute because of possible sever weather in the western suburbs.  Other then that, it was game on!  Jana provided dinner for everyone of brats, fruit salad, potato salad and baked beans.  The perfect meal for a hot summer night!  John served 'ice tea' to everyone, even if they didn't ask for it.  Stephen was so cute, he wore a shirt that said "Birthday Boy," enjoyed his dinner and loved his cupcake!!!  We opened presents....John opened everyones gifts and sat around and chatted.  It was a perfect night.  Happy Birthday Stephen! XO

Birthday Boy Stephen!

Nummy!  SJ waiting for his "smash cake" A cupcake...

First bites... NUM NUM NUM

Birthday kisses form mommy. I love you Stevie Joe! 

Momma and her boys!

SJ was a little 'heat struck' and full of sugar from the cupcake and frosting.

Washing it all down with cold milk

Big brother John enjoying his cupcake too! 

SJ and his Godfather, Mark.  (With Auntie Jinette in the background!)

John "helping" Stephen open his gifts...

Gifts all around! ....

Grandma and Popa Lais: Wheelbarrow, bath toy and Button puzzles

Kelli and Dan: Elmo Camera and Drum

Mark: Sock and Shoes

Grandma and Bopa Patrick: Swim shirts, Beach Bags, and Professional pictures of the boys

Lauren: "Patrick was a saint, I AIN'T!" Shirt

Alana:  Pat the Bunny Book

Glennie Ann: Card and money for his college fund

Grandma Evie: Card and money for his college fund

Mom and Dad: Sand and beach toys and a toy truck to play with outside.

THANK YOU EVERYONE FOR COMING AND CELEBRATING STEPHEN WITH US!  FAMILY MEANS EVERYTHING TO US!! XXXOOO

Getting behind...

To all of my mommy blogging friends:  Don't let yourself get behind!! 

I feel so overwhelmed about being behind, I think all day about what I need to type on here so that the boys have an 'up to date' "baby book"  .... BUT, finding the time to catch up is daunting!  I would need to be blogging all day for about a week to update the blog on all of the exciting cute things that are happening at the Patrick's.  Boring for you? Maybe.  But, I love this treasure I have been creating.  It will be something I hope the boys will value as they grow up and start their own families. 

Here is to catching up!!  Jana has John at the MN Zoo today while Stephen and I have a day at home.  I did 3 loads of laundry, cleaned the house, made dinner and now that my 'chores' are done.... BLOG TIME! :D

We're BAAAACCK!!!

We took a break from the Internet at our house... it was a long 3 weeks.... but a good three weeks! :D 

I have tons to update on, and Mr. Stephen is turning 1 this Friday!!  Stay tuned!!  ;D

TWIN'S GAME!!!!

Steve and Jana were on a trip to NYC so Steve gave Ryan and I two of his season tickets- WOWIE!  They are second row behind the Twins dugout.  Right in the middle of the action!! 
It was a cold, windy, rainy morning.  Ryan went to work extra early because he was leaving early for the game.  I was home wondering if the game would still go on with the yucky weather conditions.  I called Ryan to ask what he thought, your kidding right?  Caroline, it's Minnesota! Dress warm! hahaha  Not 2 minutes later, Alana texted me asking if the game would still be on with the weather-- I was glad I wasn't the only one thinking about how frozen and wet I would be in a matter of hours! :)
My mom came over to watch the boys and Ryan and I headed to Target Field! YAHOO!  Steve and Jana treated us to the seats and my parents treated us to the parking and food.  It was prefect!  All we got had to do was enjoy our day together.  :)  Thanks to both sets of moms and dads. 
We parked forever away because we are the worst at navigating through Minneapolis especially through traffic ...  As we were walking to TF, a girl in a big tan truck hollered at us.  I was a bit confused... then I realized it was ALANA!! haha  she was still looking for parking--
Ryan and I got lunch, a steak sandwich and a cheese burger.  Ryan ate most of both of them- they were huge!  I was just trying to watch for the ball I was planning to catch, since I didn't catch the one thrown to me at the last game...!! ;D   Alana and her friend got to our seats about 1/2 way through the 3rd inning.... parking was terrible!  We had a great time!!!  Lots of laughing for us sisters to do.  :D  The boys in front of us caught ALL the balls, and they were not willing to share- I even asked.  lol
Ohhh, AND the weather got soo much better!  There were even peaks of sunshine! :)  I still needed my jacket and blanket for the wind and random rain drops.  I also won't get into who won or lost... it was pretty bad.... but we didn't let that wreck our prefect day out! :)

Guacamole through a ... STRAW???

Alana was home for the Easter weekend, her and Steve were going to grab burritos at Chipolte so Ryan called Steve and invited ourselves along. ;)  It was fun to see Alana, since she is away at school we cherish our get-togethers!  On our way out the door, I noticed the mail man came. Ryan has been waiting patiently for his CPA letter of final approval and I noticed it was in our mailbox!  We were in a bit of a hustle out the door, but I grabbed his letter.  The first thing Ryan said when we got in the car was, did I get my letter yet?? I told him it wasn't there, just bills!  Once the kids quited down, I pulled the letter out of the stack of bills-  Ryan was THRILLED!  And, I was SO happy to be there to see his face as we opened his letter and read it together. 
We go to Chipolte, Ryan and Steve ordered and Alana and I played with the boys.  As we ate, John was very interested in his guacamole- avocados are a staple at our house.  He was sitting between Steve and Alana, so he knew it was game on! haha Ryan and I were not in direct reach.  ;D  John took his straw from his cup of water and plunked it right into his cup of guacamole and started sucking.  We all laughed because his face was turning darker shades of red, but he persisted.  All the sudden, the guacamole began traveling up the straw... and he grew a huge smile of accomplishment.  Oh John, always doing things a little different!  ;) 
Dinner was quick and to the point, the boys last a matter of 10 minutes on a good night!

Easter Weekend!

We had a blast!! On Friday afternoon, I tried super hard to get all of the cleaning done so that we could have the whole weekend to spend as a family.  It was a success- Ryan came home to a sparkly clean house! :) 
Friday evening we relaxed, read books and dad and the boys wrestled.  On Saturday morning we had the fence company come out to finalize our new fence plans!  We can't wait to have a privacy fence- it will be super nice for many reasons- privacy from our neighbors who are outside all day/night, it will keep John in the yard and it will make our yard look more "put together" or organized if you will.  Around 9am we headed to an Egg Drop in Woodbury.  It sounded like fun- a helicopter was going to drop 10,000 eggs onto a field for kids 12 and under to pick-up.  As we approached the freeway exit it was mad chaos! We did a u-turn and headed home. 
We did our family Easter on Saturday afternoon- dying eggs in the backyard ... 

So much for the little wire egg spoon....hands were much better! ;D 

So excited about the egg dying!! Too bad it was chilly and rainy on Saturday.

Very proud of his eggs- this is the finished product. 8 eggs

Even though John looks like he is in pain... he was just saying "CHEESE!"  Stephen sat in the stroller for the egg coloring event- he just watched.  :)

The little boys headed right to the tub and then to bed for naps.  Ryan did yard work and I kept getting things done around the house.  And, most importantly the bunny came during naps!!!  There were plastic eggs hidden in the hallway upstairs and leading down the steps.  As John opened his bedroom door and saw all the eggs, he looked at Ryan and I and said, "OH NO!! MESS!! NO NO NO!"  (I guess he is listening when I say things are a mess....) 

We carried SJ down the steps and look what the bunny left the boys...

SJ thought the pin-wheel was very cool. :)

John and his goods!

The kids were not so sure about the chocolate bunnies.... neither was I!  They looked at them, took a bite each and then went on playing.  I sure dodged that bullet....

 John and Daddy playing T-Ball!  He caught on fast- it was a great toy!

They both loved the bubbles! 

John opening the PBC eggs, lining them up... and then forgetting about them!  hah I was surprised at how uninterested they were in the candy-  :)

SOME of the many eggs John found! He really liked collecting them, but wished they were filled.  He opened each one and looked at Ryan and I sad that they were empty.  Oh the expectations of a 2 year old.....

SJ enjoying his football egg!  A very happy baby!

Our Sunday was super busy!!  We woke up bright and early (as per our usual) bathed everyone and I baked caramel rolls.  We headed to my parents at 9:30a with our rolls and Easter card John made for G & P.  Brunch was egg bake, caramel rolls, fruit, ham, blueberry coffee cake ...

The kids looked for eggs (filled with gum balls and jaw breakers...haha... pre-filled eggs are not made for 2 year olds!) and played with their Easter baskets goods- squirt guns and chalk while we got all the food ready. 

GRRRRR!  The eggs were shaped like little animals- soo much for just solid colored eggs! haha.  They were really cute!

SJ and his egg

Can you tell he has an ear infection??  Poor boy- he was a trooper though!

Ed's beard was... interesting! :)  SJ was intrigued!

Then, it was time to eat- John was sitting at the head of the table, like the king... as always! ;D

SJ got to sit next to the head of the table, in his highchair! :D  This was his first time having eggs!  He loved them!  Eggs, ham and cantaloupe. 

The boys played outside after breakfast while I got to drink coffee and chat with the adults. :) 

SJ and grandma enjoying the sunshine before the Patrick's headed home for naps!  :)

We went home, napped the boys and Ryan and I re-packed the diaper bag.  Then Ryan had some homework to do, so he spent an hour reading his case studies. 

Around 1 we headed to Great grandma and Papa's condo for the Brown side Easter!  It was so fun to see them!!  It had been way too long-- our sick winter kept us from many family gatherings.  The older girl cousins played with JR and SJ while I got to chat with the aunts about music, technology and being a mom! :)  Great conversion!  Then, Ryan took John outside with Papa and looked at his garden.  John loved running around outside and spending time with Papa.  SJ and I stayed inside to talk (surprised? haha - I know what you are thinking- Caroline, talking?!  no way! hah)  and SJ enjoyed a sample of most of the desserts. :)

John and great grandma and papa's, sitting on this little chair with a teddy on it.  He thought it was so silly! He had the girls (Jackie, Alana and Tera) wrapped around his little finger!  He was un-wrapping all the candy he could find, sampling it and then going for the next piece. :)  

Then we got the boys snuggled in their car seats so they could nap and hopped on 169S to head to Jordan.   (By the time I go to Jordan, I was pictured-out  ... I only took a couple at the Brown's and none in Jordan! Oops)  We ate dinner in Jordan, and then there was a table FULL of desserts.  It was a bit ridiculous... but very tasty!  I has a piece of cheesecake that I shared with JR and SJ.  We played outside and hung out.  John went on rides up to the cemetery with my parents until the golf cart got a flat! haha  So, uncle Mark and Tom came to help.   John walked ran thought the cemetery while we were waiting for the rescue crew. :)  He was going from grave to grave kissing them.  (not sure what he meant by it... considering he doesn't understand the concept of graves... but it was still cute!) 

Then he played in the little playhouse and enjoyed an ice cream sandwich with uncle Dan and aunt Terri.  SJ enjoyed playing with cousin Rachel and uncle Dave.  Rachel is pregnant, and having a girl!!!  The Kreuser's have 3 baby boys, so it is due time for a little girl! :)  Jack, John and Stephen we DO love having you too! ;D

Around 8:30 we put the boys in their jammies (we actually changed them in the bed of the truck-- very country like! lol) and headed home after a loong day- John was awake the whole way home, and SJ was sleeping before we pulled out of the drive way. We unloaded the truck and I put the boys to bed while Ryan did homework. 

WOW- I had to do this post 4 times!!!  Each time, it kept getting deleted!  UGH.  So, I shortened it each time I had to re-type it.... and it is still super long. haha