Meikee/Pirates

The beloved blanket. We practice 'ba' 'ba' 'blanket'. 'Ba' 'ba' 'bankie', and she says 'ba' 'ba' 'meikee!'. I love it, she SO has her own little personality. Right from the beginning, big personality. Screeching like a little pterodactyl... She is talking more and more everyday. It's so much fun. She is really proud of herself as she gets better at communication. She did not enjoy being a baby, this age is much more pleasing to her.

Ty got some really good pirate stuff for Christmas from Grandma Nan. He and Gramma P were reading one of the books about pirates and their ships. It's more informational than a story, but in a kid friendly way. It was amazing all the things he already knew. He really pays attention. He called out Grappling Hook before Gramma P even knew what he was talking about. He is so smart! He knew a bunch of correct dinosaur names when he was 2. Pretty impressive. This kid may be smarter than I can handle! I'm worried he won't be challenged enough in school, or at home.

Welcome to our home

We've painted the living room and the kitchen. And even have some things hanging on the walls. The new stove and dishwasher are in place. I don't know if any of our house will ever be officially done, but these parts are good for now. They feel fun and cozy. After the Christmas decorations are down, we'll hang some more things on the walls. And hopefully sometime in the fairly near future we'll add base boards where needed. Then we're set..... for now. Anyway, here's some pics.

" It's not Christmas 'till somebody cries

... And usually, that someone is me" Or so says Donkey from Shrek the Halls, a very favorite around here. I may have somehow forgotten to mention all the crying and time out having that went on yesterday. We were assured by friends with other 3 to 4 year olds that it's all part of the fun. Oh goodie! There's nothing like a cranky kid to make you feel good about all you've done for them. I had a good cry, after the crying kids went to bed. And we start over fresh and new today. It's amazing the amount of emotions that can exist in such a short amount of time. Daddy is working from home AGAIN today! He took a lunch break to snow blow the driveway, and me and the kids ran around chasing Seibu. It was good. I love it here. The snow is piled so high in the trees, when the wind blows or new snow knocks into it, it all falls down in big avalanche clumps. I could watch it for hours.

The snow on the truck is all from yesterday and today! Fun, fun!

Ahhhhhhh

Picture perfect, this morning.

Christmas night. There's so much to say! It's 6pm and the kids are tuckered out, sitting on the couch, together, watching Frosty the Snowman for the last time this season. There are toys scattered all over the house that I should probably get around to picking up. And Dad's outside trying to fix the little snow blower our neighbor lent us when she saw how much trouble Daddy was having with the one we just got off craigslist. Yep, ours wasn't working right so she thought she'd let us ruin hers too. Isn't that sweet? And I'm sitting here at the kitchen table on Daddy's work laptop. Just soaking it all up. All the Christmas-y-ness.


First, Ty came home from the trip to pick up the snow blower and told me "WE GOT A SNOW GLOWER!" He still has to stop and correct himself a week later. I love it, I hope he calls it a snow-glower for a long time. By the way, anyone one know where I can get a snow-glower? Sounds fun.

The kids have had colds for over a week. Aubree's nosed stopped running for about 2 days, just in time for Ty to hit his worst and give it back to her. Yay. Do you know how much fun sick kids are? It wasn't so bad at the beginning and then Grandma Nan came to visit, that was awesome. For more reasons than just distracting the ever more whiny children. But I tell ya, there was a day I don't think I could have made it through without her! She left last Thursday morning, Thursday and Friday were long days. Luckily for me, Krisha's kids were sick too, so she was up for hanging out. I think our kids will be swapping colds for many years to come.

Daddy got to work from home yesterday, so it was almost like a 4 day weekend. I wish every weekend was a long weekend. It was so great to have him around. We had fun, we got things done. We all like having Daddy around a lot! Krisha's family has adopted us this holiday season. I couldn't be more grateful. We had such a great time with them all last night. Good food, great company, and a snowy Christmas. I don't know how we'll ever thank them for taking us in. They even got the kids some presents to open so they wouldn't feel left out! I almost cried.... Here's a pic of Aubree from last night.


We baked cookies for Santa and cleaned the house so it would look decent in pictures the next morning. LOL Mrs Santa really enjoyed the cookies after taking a fall in the basement. I laid there on the floor in the back storage area of the basement wondering if I had been really hurt, how long would it take Mr Santa to come looking for me. Luckily, I wasn't really hurt. Just hurt. I seem to be recovering well today, I was worried I might be whacked out for the week.


The kids were so cute this morning. Aubree loved all of Ty's toys. Of course. We had some sharing issues, but after nap time things got much better, for all of us! Even after coffee, Daddy and I were ready for naps before 11am. Ty had a great time playing with all of his stocking stuffers and almost forgot that there were presents under the tree to open. Then he ripped through them faster than you can blink. Clearly enjoying the process of opening more than the presents themselves. But he's had a good time with each and every one as the day has gone by. I think the big, awesome garbage truck is the big hit this year. Out of no-where Ty told me he wanted a trash truck for Christmas. ???? Where do you find that! Online of course! I love you Amazon.com. Aubree seems to like her Tinkerbell 'make-up' bag the best. She won't let me put any of the sparkly lip glosses on her, but she really likes putting them in and out of the cute little bag and giving them to me, and taking them back etc..


Aubree and I made more cookies today while Daddy and Ty went sledding. We put the red sprinkles in the cookies and the green sprinkles on top. Oh, and it snowed all afternoon long. Beautiful big chunky snow. Freaking awesome.

Several years ago I looked up Pagan holiday traditions, since all of our current holidays stem from them. It was really cool to know why we put up Christmas lights and things like that. I hope I keep looking things up as the years go on and the holidays go by. I really appreciate putting up Christmas light and having a Christmas tree so much more after learning why the heck we have these traditions!

Our visit with Grandma Nan was wonderful. I think after living together for a while we were all grateful to be back in our appropriate rolls. She did awesome Grandma stuff and it was enjoyed by all. She and the kids did Christmas crafts together. She got Ty the most awesome pirate ship. And books, tons of new books to read! Both the kids are thankful for that. And she got Aubree a new baby. She LOOOOOVVVES babies. The baby came with bottles and a moses carrier, and another stroller. Now Ty and Aubree can race the babies around the house together! It's just what Seibu has always wanted. Ha! Did I mention that the Seattle Santa brought us a new to us flat top stove and a dishwasher that belongs in the kitchen, not next to it! Justin spent that entire weekend happily installing appliances thrown out by others who were updating their own kitchens. We love you Santa!

I've been on a crochet kick since it's been all winter-y and I live in my own home again with my own things and crafts are possible. I was putting the finishing touches on a new afghan for our living room when Grandma Nan arrived. So I asked her if she'd be interested in having one. She was! We bundled up the kids and all went to the Michael's to pick out yarn. Then we came home and she planned it all out. And let me tell ya, she did a great job. I need to remember to take a picture of it before I ship it off to her. Yes, I finished it the day after she left. Bummer. But there was no way I could get anymore done than I did. It turned out beautiful and snugly warm. I love making things that feel so good.

I'm sure I could go on and on forever, but I think jabbered on long enough. It's much easier to write about my life when I'm sitting in the middle of it. Our computer is in the basement and sometimes I just can not get inspired down there. I'll post more pics in the link on the side of the page.

Oh yeah! I almost forgot, I dyed my hair brown. Yep, no highlights or anything. I am very happy with it and excited to have less hassle and less cost. I'm feeling beautifully brunette.

Merry Christmas!

POOP

Aubree pooped in the bathtub, with Ty in it. ACK! This is our first real pooping in the tub experience. And it was a whole green log too. EEEWWWWWWWWW. Daddy is cleaning up the mess while I blog about it. He took a picture, I even thought about taking one. I'll will be sure to NOT post it for you all. Ok, I should probably go help get things back on track. But you can sit back and have a nice laugh on us.

ECFE

Early Childhood Family Education

It's a program here in MN, run by the county?? Anyway, it's awesome. I signed up for a class with Aubree and Ty goes to the sibling care playroom. He loves it. And I love getting to see another side of her personality. A side of her that is not reacting to or following her big brother. I love that she thinks the world of him, but I think it's great for her to get to be social without him. I think I watch her with hearts in my eyes the whole class! The class does some group singing and playing then they set out activities for the little ones to choose from. They can do whatever they want. Aubree LOOOOOVES the baby dolls. We've been 3 times and all 3 times she collects up all the baby dolls and gives them to the person of her choice. She got really comfortable with the teachers very quickly which is exciting. And get this. When it's time for the Mommies to leave the room and have our 'parenting education', she doesn't cry! All 3 times. It's so fun to see her grow and change. She always cries when I leave. Even if she's staying with someone she likes. A lot of times she calms down very quickly, but this class is the only time I have ever left her without a single tear. She has such a good time. And then, at the end, when they walk the little ones over to the room we're in... Ahhhh she is so freakin' adorable! I love to watch her look around the little room for me and when she spots me her whole body lights up. She runs over and gives me a huge hug. Pure heaven.

I should video tape this so I can play it to her when she's a teenager and says she hates me. Then she can see for herself that she did indeed love me at one point in time! Eeek.

Oh and the other cute thing. She cries when we drop Ty off at sibling care or Preschool. I should video tape that too! Show them how much they liked each other before they were teens. ~ Well, I'll just put it out there to the powers that be, that they are close and loving and will easily get through whatever little tiffs they get into. That they really will be friends.

I'm the Mommy!

First, Aubree is saying Ma-mee in the most adorable way I could just keel over and die. Laying with Ty at bed time gives me the same feeling. He holds me so tight and puts little soft kisses all over my hands and my nose. These are the moments when joy is almost painful. It's so awesome your body almost can't contain it, and sometimes it doesn't. We all know I'm a crier.

I was just locked away in our 'spare' room in the basement where we have all the Christmas presents hidden. I'm sorting things into piles of what is for who and how much wrapping paper do I have and what will I need to get so that everything will look SUPER? Our first Christmas as parents was pretty fun. But this year really seems to have swept me away. I love how Krisha described Thanksgiving as the event that kicks off the Christmas season. And that's exactly how it felt this year. The air started to cool, Halloween was a blast. Fall is in full effect and while we had no family around we were taken in by friends for Thanksgiving, and we were, so thankful. Then the snow started and the temp dropped and we put up lights and decorated the inside of the house on Thanksgiving weekend. The first weekend in December we went in way below freezing temps to get a Christmas tree. I think it was the fastest tree pickin' ever! The kids were so excited to get it up and decorated, Ty more-so of course. Now we're getting ready for guests at the end of this coming week. Wondering if we can get our crap in order in time. Crap, that is another thing I wanted to post about. We got rid of a lot of crap before we moved this time and there is STILL too much crap. Crap!

Ok, let me get back on track here. I was locked away in the hiding spot scoping out the situation, planning what paper to use and when to start bringing presents out. I need a few things yet and I want pretty ribbon so I can wrap everything beautifully, and that's when it hit me. I'm the Mommy! Clearly, I knew this before. But, this is the first Christmas that I feel like it's all about our little family. We have one Grandma coming before Christmas, and one after. But the actual holiday will be just us. This will be the first time since having kids that it will be just our family on Christmas morning! I am so excited. Don't get me wrong, I'm also EXTREMELY excited to have family coming. But it's fun to think of being the only ones who get to watch the kids freak out over all the stuff. Just us, our family. I love our family! I love the snow, I love that it's freezing cold out. It feels like Christmas. I haven't felt that way since before we got married I think. Yay Christmas!

Twirling & Other fun things

Aubree has learned the endless joy of twirling. Oh my god, it has to be the cutest thing ever. She sooooooo enjoys it. And the sound effects are to die for. Whoooo, wooooo, wooooooo! This little girl thing is pretty damn fun!

Ty knows how to do every gross boy sound effect that has ever existed short of farting with his hand and armpit. I'm sure it's just a matter of time! While I don't usually enjoy this as much as the two of them spinning circles together in the living room, I find it quite impressive in it's own unique way.

I am so grateful that I get to experience both worlds. And obviously, I got the two best kids to experience it with. I did not even bribe them to do this. They did it all by themselves and I was lucky enough to snatch up the camera in time to capture the moment. Awwww.

Brrrrrrr

It's 13 degrees out! I've been pretty impressed with myself and the cold weather so far. It's been in the 30's and I've been chilly, but I hadn't officially called it cold yet. We even walked to the park yesterday and I felt fine. Aubree doesn't seem to notice much yet, but Ty wasn't real happy that I only put a fleece on him. His cheeks were rosy and his cute little nose was pink and he didn't want to play once we got to the park. Oops. The funny thing is, every time before we go out he tells me he doesn't want a hat/mittens/jacket etc. and that he wants to be freezing. So a couple weeks ago when he didn't want to wear socks or shoes to run over to Leah and Owens house, I let him! He cried most of the way there. I felt bad, but he needed to understand why I want to put these things on him. Do you believe the very next day he wanted to walk over to their house with no socks and shoes again? Stubborn little guy, wonder where he gets that from? I had to remind him that it was so cold it made him cry, to which he stated very boldly that he wouldn't cry this time. Stinker. Anywho, we went to craft time at Micheal's this morning and walked over to The Children's Place to make an exchange, then headed to have lunch at BK with a play area until it was time for school. I knew it was cold because it hurt when I inhaled the frozen air, but I didn't know it was that cold! 13. That's cold. I guess I should start checking the weather before we head out!

And I'll throw in a picture of the painted living room. It's not the best picture, but it's the one I've got. I'll take some more when we get the christmas tree up. But it's quite cozy and warm feeling with the sunny yellow walls. Nevermind the constant mess and slight stink from the dishes I haven't done yet..

Catching up

I found my camera!! Yes, it was hidden in the deepest, darkest depths of the diaper bag. I knew I wouldn't be so careless with it. Whew.

Aubree has really started to talk a lot. It's funny how they do that all of a sudden one day. She's not real easy to understand. But she'll repeat things now, she's never wanted anything to do with that. It's so fun and sweet and cute. And she gets all excited about it. I love it!

We painted the living room yellow. It's awesome. It's so fun to have color in the house. And on a sunny day, it lights up the whole house. It gets so warm the heat doesn't come on.

Ty's room is mostly finished. There's a spot that needs to be sanded and painted, where the thermostat was. We moved that to the hallway. And he needs some baseboards in a few spots. But he's been in there for a couple weeks now and is really liking it.

Aubree got a big girl bed! She took to it immediately. It's so fun to see her so little in her big room with her big bed. I finally got her some sheets on BLACK FRIDAY. I got both the kids some holiday flannel fun sheets. Hers are multi-colored snow flakes and his are blue with penguins, in scarfs. Before that she was borrowing some of Ty's sheets. That's no good! I think she may be getting more sheets for christmas. Shhhhh!

Ty's in preschool and is loving it. I made him start a week later than planned due to a make out session with a yogurt container! I just couldn't bring myself to send him to school for the first time with a giant purple circle around his mouth. So, his first day was on Halloween. Could a first day be more fun? I don't think so!

I had hoped to write a lot more about all of these events. But it wasn't happening, so I thought I better get caught up before I forget. Better to have the memories recorded with less detail then not at all.

We went over to our fabulous photographer neighbors house for a little christmas photo shoot the other day. I can't wait to send out holiday cards!

Love

Ty and Aubree love each other. Really truly love each other. After all the eyeball poking, biting, toy stealing and screaming, they actually miss one another. Some days Aubree is ready for a nap a bit early and Ty almost always protests. ' NOOOOOOOOOOOO! I don't waaaant her to go to beeeeeed.' And when she wakes up and Ty is still asleep for more than 10 minutes. She blabbers at me and gets me to follow her over to his door and she points and pleads for Ty to come out! I guess it's a good reminder that love has it's ups and downs. The way they pester each other you'd think it was a battle to see who could drive who to insanity first. But it's not, it's love. Sigh, love. What a complicated thing! Today when Ty got up an hour after Aubree, she ran to him and threw her arms around him - and he let her. I think it was one of the sweetest things I've ever seen. The other that comes to mind is when Ty would hold Aubree's hand to help her learn to walk. He had such pride and joy.

And now I hear them spitting at each other. Love.

Long day

Why is it that some days feel so much longer than others? It's only 1:30pm and both the kids are up from their naps already. A lot of days they're just going down about now. But the morning seemed to go on forever and they were both super tired. So early naps were had. I am going to need some more coffee today! I decided to let them watch a movie to pass some time and give me a chance to putz around on the computer.

We are going to a Moms Club event on Friday morning. I'm excited and nervous. I'm excited at the possible friends to be made and many fun activities to do. Even if I don't make any good friends there, outings with other adults are much needed! There are some boys in Ty's preschool class that have Mom's in the Moms Club. It'll be interesting to meet them for real, I introduced myself in the hall in a hurry yesterday after class. One of Ty's teachers pointed me in their direction. Which reminds me I need to write about Ty going to school.

I got my sewing machine out of the box and plugged in! I even got a project together to start working on when I have spare moments (LOL, spare moments!). Actually I have more spare moments than I should because I'm not cleaning the house very well this week. Anyone who knows me knows that this is not out of the ordinary. But I have been doing decently well. Then it got cold and gloomy and I just want to sit on the couch and eat. Blech. I'm getting sidetracked. I even spent some time sewing this morning. Like 5 or 10 minutes. But it felt so good. I haven't sewn anything, I think, since before Aubree was born. No wonder I feel all creatively dampened! What did I work on? That's another post on the to do list! Hopefully I'll have a camera again soon so I can take pictures.

None of them have my blog address, but I just wanted to put out there that I miss my WA Mommy friends. I should probably email them. But what do I say? Hmpfh.

So sad

I still can't find the camera. I guess even though we were able to save it after jumping off the kitchen table, it just didn't want to be with us anymore. I believe it jumped out of my bag one day while we were out last week. The week was too crazy with Daddy gone for me to have any idea where we were or even what day it was. What am I supposed to do without a camera??? AHHHHHHHHHHH. I'm having withdrawal pains. I wonder how much crap I'm going to have to sell on eBay to make enough money to buy a new one? A lot. It's a lot of work, and only a little money. But every little bit helps.

The children are attacking each other - I must go NOW.

Snow!

It snowed on Friday morning. It was so exciting and so beautiful. I love snow! I wonder if I'll feel differently in a few months??? I don't think so. Now, I might be sick of being cold!! Actually, I'm sure I'll get sick of being cold. But not the snow.

It wasn't a lot of snow, just enough to really enjoy. I think it was the first snow of the season that didn't dissolve the moment it touched the ground. The kids and I took a short walk outside in it. They love it just as much as I do. As we were heading out for the day we got to see some really big fluffy flakes. I'm really enjoying the changing of seasons this year. I think we've got lots of winter fun ahead of us!

Good News and Bad News

The bad news is: Seibu crawled through a big space under the pre-existing back fence.
The good news is: He didn't hop over the short fence!

The bad news is: All our little fishies are dying, and our tank is being taken over by algae.
The good news is: We're going to the pet store after nap time. Fun!

The bad news is: I'm eating all the Halloween candy.
The good news is: I'm eating all the Halloween candy!

The bad news is: Daddy is out of town this week. He's in Virginia for training for work.
The good news is: Krisha is babysitting us and is doing a great job!

The bad news is: My camera jumped off the table last week and I couldn't get it to turn on.
The good news is: Daddy fixed it!!

The bad news is: I can't find it now.

There is no good news about that yet. Waaaaaahhhhh!

Just thought I'd share

I used to call Aubree 'Princess Poops-a-lot'. I'm sure it doesn't carry the same overwhelming, heart bursting love in writing. But, that's what I called her when I wanted to squeeze her too hard because the love was bursting outta me. I have no idea why I loved the name so much, it has a nice ring. LOL

We had a ton of names for Ty. Luckily I wrote a bunch of them down, because I don't remember a lot of them right now. Ty-de-do and Ty-de-doody-booty come to mind. That one sounds like a potty name, but I don't think it was meant to be! Oh, and Ty-de-do-de-cutie-booty.

Good stuff. Love those kids.

HAAAAALLOWEEEEEEN

Are you sure you want to see this?? Daddy was THAT GUY. You know the one, you can't figure out if he's wearing a costume or if he really looks like that.

I was 'THAT GUY'S' trophy wife. He hehe. My trophy's not real big, but hey, THAT GUY can't afford much!

Ty was the most handsome and most fierce pirate ever to roam the 7 seas of Stillwater, MN.

And there's most definitely never been a cuter ladybug in all of history.



We were invited to a party! Actually, 3 parties in the 3 weeks that we've lived here. We've never had such a rockin' social life! This was the coolest Halloween party. Costumes were mandatory, and as much as all the adults complained, I know we all had a good time with them. And there were kids running in every direction. Lots of food, and scary decorations.

People, when I dreamed of leaving San Diego to raise my kids in the midwest, this is what I dreamed of. I won't say it's perfect. But it's perfectly real. And that's even better.

Check out my boys hair

It's funkytown over here! Daddy already got a haircut, we couldn't have him showing up to his new job looking like that. And Ty's got an appointment with the clippers tonight. I will miss his shaggy little head. The floppy 'do either looks totally obnoxious or unbelievably cute. And most days it falls on the cute side.

There's always a fence to build

At every new house the first thing we do is build a fence. We've done several different kinds of fences. Fancy, sturdy, tall ones. Fast and temporary ones. Shiny, durable, vinyl ones. Little garden picket ones. So here we are, another house, another fence. We are all about comfort these days. Who cares how it looks, or if it's straight! How easy can we make it and will it hold up? Good enough then!

I am very please with our good enough fence. I think Daddy did a great job in record time.


Easy as 1,2,3.

The back was existing, we put up the side.

And the other side.Let's not talk about the fact that Seibu already hopped his horsey self over the little fence.

Oye

Is it over yet? When do I get to clock out? It's been a long day. I knew it would be since we were going to stay at home in our jammies all day. But the day seemed to drag on. It didn't start out bad, it was just, without direction. We took naps early. All of us. Ty slept in my bed and I slept on the couch. Why? Because yesterday Ty decided it would be fun to fill Aubree's bed half way full of toys with her in it. They totally can NOT share a room! So. Ty slept in my bed, I put a 'nighttime' on him (pull up diaper) just in case he had an accident during nap time. He has yet to master the potty control while sleeping. Of course today, he drank two sippys full of water before bed and peed through the diaper. Ok, no big deal. I bought cookie mix to make Halloween cookies, I thought that would be a fun after lunch activity. Ty wouldn't eat lunch, so we didn't make cookies. Aubree is whiny, nothing new there! But as the day drug on, it all started to get to me. I was getting frustrated so I decided we needed to get outside. So we somehow managed to get socks and shoes and jackets for everyone, it took an unbelievably long amount of time and a whole lot of sweat, but we did it. We're half way out the door, trying not to knock Aubree off the steps, hold the screen door open so it doesn't shut on anyone, move out of the way so Ty can get out, again without knocking Aubree off the steps. I think we're all successfully on the step, and WHAM. I shut the door. On Ty's fingers. Oh god. The screaming, THE SCREAMING, and writhing. I'm frantically trying to see his fingers and throw everyone back in the house without damaging anyone else any further. I see the fingers, they're pointing the right direction and there's no blood. Sigh, breathe, breathe, stay calm. Ty is jumping up and down, stomping his feet, shaking his head and letting out this high pitched shrill scream. Somehow I am finally able to hold him and let him cry and hold him some more. I tell him we're going to get some medicine to help with the swelling and pain. He's starting to calm down. I give him a small bowl of yummy autumn mix (candy corn, Reese's Pieces and honey roasted peanuts). He informs me that the medicine is yummy, and we're back to the WHYS. Why is the medicine yummy? Candy and the suggestion of a movie seem to be able to cure just about anything. I get him settled and plan to check on his fingers in a few minutes. I retreat to my bedroom for some quiet and a moment to catch my breath. I called Justin and told him what happened and as we're talking I realize I'm sitting in Ty's pee. Oh great.

Ty seems to be fine, but I need the rest of the day off!!

How 'bout them apples?

My hometown is burning to the ground and no one told me. What the holy moly is going on!

Pics

I just added some pictures to the last two posts - so go check 'em out! And here's a few more fun ones.



Ty LOVES the 'I SPY' books. Well, here's his own little creation.... Can you find what's hiding in this picture?

It's a giant horse dog!

Hhhhmmmmmm, Aaaaahhhhhhhhhhh

I love trees. I love trees. I've always known that I really like trees, but I'm not sure that I totally understood my love for trees until now. Our new house has big beautiful mature trees. Today is the day that I fell in love with them.

Our first house had a huge gorgeous tree in the front yard. I think it was one of the best things about the house. We were smack in the middle of urban living. Apartment buildings on both sides of us (one tiny house away on one side). In that stretch of street our house had the only tree. It made such a difference. It made our house feel like a home.

Our second house was brand new and came complete with a dirt lot. We did a lot of work on the yard. Installed a sprinkler system, put up a lot of fence, laid sod, and planted flowers and bushes and trees. I think 9 trees. I like trees. But they were small and young and we didn't stay long enough to enjoy them.

Now, our third house, has lots of trees. Mature trees. Beautiful, breath of fresh air, home to many, many a squirrel, trees. I didn't have to plant them, I don't have to wait for them to grow in to magnificant beings, and there's more than one. How lucky am I?

Late this morning I was standing at our sliding glass door that looks out at the deck and backyard, waiting for the dog to poo. Lovley, no? Well, it was lovely to me because the dog poo provided for me to fall in love. Not only with our trees, but with fall. I've never disliked fall, it has lots of nice qualities. But it marks the end of summer and I'm never too happy about that. But, sipping my second cup of coffee, staring out at my backyard, kids screaming in full on chaos running like tornados through the house, waiting for the dog to poo, was magical.

It's like I was in a world all my own. The kids seemed to be removed from my moment, like they were in a far off distant land that was somehow only 50 feet away from where I was standing. The pooping dog was conveniently block from my view of the yard. My coffee was warm and tasty. The sun was peaking out from behind the clouds letting the leaves in the yard and my heart glow, and then returning to his cover again. I'd watch as a breeze came and the leaves would flutter and dance down to the ground. Serenity and peace are not things that I feel often. I am so greatful for dog poo. And the fact that we don't have a finished fence yet, so I have to wait for the dog to finish doing his business so I can let him back in!

I hope in trying to share this moment, I did it justice. It was awesome. Not to mention, it reminded me that the kids don't always need me to get in the middle of their business. Sometimes butting out can be the best way to handle the situation - especially if you get to have a moment like I did. Nothing helps me be a better Mom then feeling like my soul's been revived. I have a feeling I'll be staring out the window to watch the trees a little more often.... not just when the dog needs to poo.

Don't freak out!

We're alive and well! We're HOME.

The move went pretty well, although I was not the one driving a truck for 3 days across the country. Packing the tuck was the easiest ever. Daddy's become a pro. He and Gramma Nan drove all our junk across WA, ID, MT, ND and MN. It took 3 much longer days than anticipated. Almost 3 HOURS longer each day. That's a lot when you just want to get to your hotel and soak your sore bones in the hot tub!

Gramma P came up to give me a hand with the kiddos on the plane. I thank my lucky stars for that! Our flight was late and our poor friends had to pick us up after midnight.





We stayed with Krisha and Andy, all patiently waiting for the junk to arrive so we could get to work. And waiting. At last the trucks and our people were almost here, and then.. They hit a closed road 10 minutes from home. They carefully looked at the situation and calculated a way out. They were so close. But not quite close enough. The moving truck got stuck in the mud on the side of the road, after it was turned around! Ugh. Justin could tell it wasn't going to unstick easily and got out to take a look. The truck was starting to tip.

They called a tow truck to pull him out. Pop! Super fast, just like that, well, just like that after they waited more than an hour for the guy to get there. Waiting, 10 min away from home. Daddy and Gramma Nan arrived safely around 9pm (instead of 4 or 5pm like they thought).

We ALL stayed at our friends house, two doors down from us. I think they may be the sweetest people on the planet! The next day Andy and Krisha called in reinforcements and the truck was unloaded by lunchtime. Amazing. We went and got carpet padding and they helped cut and position the padding and the carpets and got our furniture in to functioning set up. I can't imagine getting through this without all these wonderful people. We are so blessed.

The Gramma's stay about a week. Played with the kids so we could unpack, get MN plates for the cars and they organized the kitchen and bathroom. Krisha took us gals around town for the best Stillwater tour you could ask for. We went to dinner downtown and walked around and looked at too much cute stuff in too many cute shops. It was perfect.



Did I mention it was HOT? Yes, HOT. I had to borrow shorts - freakin' awesome! What a welcome. God; I couldn't ask for more!

Things

.... are crazy and not that crazy all at the same time. We've packed up all our stuff. As of today we are living out of suitcases and the kids have no toys. Well, not NO toys - that would never work. But we packed all of their toys. Luckily Gramma Nan's got plenty to get us through the next few days. This move has been full of anticipation and impatience, as hard as that has been, this is probably the easiest move we have ever done. So far. It's been a long process, but it's been nice to have time to think and prepare better. Tomorrow we're getting the 4runner tuned-up. I'm having a goodbye lunch with my Stoller Strides owning & tattoo loving friend Kelli. Then a goodbye dinner with my Moms group. And on Wednesday a goodbye lunch with my friend Katie. Saying goodbye is hard, these women were my saving grace. Wednesday morning Justin will be picking up the rental truck and we'll start loading everything up!

Instead of jotting down all our plans, I think I'll save the rest of the story till after it unfolds!

This is what I just heard from the other room

The scene: Ty jumping around, hollering, and being generally obnoxious as little boys are.

Justin: "OWE DUDE! Ty knock it off, that's my balls! Dude, STOP. Owe, oh, owe."

Ty: In his sweet little 3 year old voice, 'What's a ball?'

-----------------------
Me: Hysterical laughing.

So, I think the cat has a UTI.

Bummer.

You know what sucks?

When your husband weighs only 4 or 5 pounds more than you. That sucks. After we move I have really got to start working out and watching what I eat again. I know I'll feel a lot better too.

On a good note - we have awesome family dinners every night. I love it. Justin cooks while I take a break from the kids. The kids get some quality Daddy time. Then we all eat together. Justin usually has music on while he's cooking and sometimes we leave it on while we eat. Aubree likes dancing and bouncing to the music. Ty was never into it much, we really had to work to get him to dance. He liked it when he did it, but it was usually just a little arm swing. LOL! That's another thing I love - the differences. They are so awesomely individual. Anyway.... Led Zeppelin was on the other night and we were all rocking out during dinner. These are the moments that I want to remember forever.

I guess my feeling sorry for myself, sucky post ended up pretty awesome.

These are the moments that make it all worth it

Yesterday, my cuties were head banging to Bad Religion. I can't put into words how much fun these little monkeys can be. I love them so much I want to squeeze them till they pop!

Pet tags

Our pets all have their new Minnesota ID tags! It's very exciting. We are meeting with a moving company later today to get an estimate. We may still do the move ourselves, but after paying for the rental truck and gas and hotel, it may not be much more to pay someone to do it. Justin had another job interview this morning. Things are looking good.

Puddles & Slugs

Is there anything more fun than a little girl and a great puddle?

Is there anything more lovable than a boy and a couple of slugs?


Ew, maybe they're not so good for kissing!

Dirty diaper

Aubree is only 15 months old and she is already coming to tell me when she has a poopy diaper! I love it! She is so cute when she walks up to me and has these big serious eyes. She babbles her own little language quietly and pulls at the top of her diaper. Or if she's got overalls on she pats her tummy. She looks so intensely that you just *know* what she's telling you. It's pretty cool. A few times she even brought me a diaper. This is my favorite age.

Daddy's Awesome!

I am very proud that our Daddy belongs to US!

We've had the problem with the computer before, but it was still under warranty so it wasn't as big of a deal. This time we learned that this is something that goes wrong with our model about every year and a half. Yay. Luckily Daddy's a smart guy and he checked some message boards online to see if other people have had the problem. They have, and they gave basic directions on how to fix it. The only problem is you could screw up a bunch of other stuff attempting to fix this one thing. Great. We took it to the official computer store and they wanted $600 to replace the entire section of the computer! Yikes. So Dad took the kids on a field trip to a specialty computer store and they wanted 7-10 days to diagnose the problem. We already know the problem. Back home they all came. And our AWESOME Dad took the computer apart and fixed the problem himself! Even with fairly unclear directions. I love that guy.

DA!

Things that Aubree says:

Mom - Maa or Maaaam
Dad - Da
Ty - Ta
Gramma - Ma
Dog - Da
Cat - Meow, more like Meeeeaaaaaahhh
Diaper - Da
Done - Da
Down - Doh
No - NoNoNoNoNoNo or NO!
(And I swear she says 'No I don't want to' all in her little gibberish language!)
Seibu or Bu - Bu
Snap - Na(p - sorta)
Hi - I
Hello - Heeooo
Night Night - *wave
Bye - *wave
Star - Da(r)
Eye - Eye
Nose - No
Ow! - Oweeeeee
Milk - Mo(k)

Some are very regular, some aren't regular yet. The letters in parentheses are only said once in a while. I know these don't seem like a huge deal. But it is so fun to hear her talking and communicating. She still mostly has her own language, which our friend says sounds like the puppy Blue, from Blues Clues!

T-Rex Hiding In The Dark

Ty had cake tonight for Daddy's birthday. Tonight at 9pm! (Aubree was already in bed.) He was getting delirious and kinda spastic. Add some good sugary cake and OH MY! I wish I had video to share. It's just hilarious. I ended up taking him outside and had him run back and forth, over and over again to get some of the wiggles out before attempting to put him in bed. Ha! But he had a great time. He ran and ran and I made funny noises at him and we laughed. We talked about all the t-rex's that are walking around in the dark. Some are scary and some are nice, and some are a little bit of both! One even came home with us.

Our 6th Anniversary

6 years. It's been a roller coaster and I'm so glad nobody got thrown off. LOL I love my husband more now than ever. I mean it! There were times that that wasn't true. I really feel like we are growing in to each other and understanding each other at a new level. Yay for us for sticking it out and staying committed to getting through the craziness and making ourselves reconnect when we felt far away, as hard as it may have been.

I suppose some people wouldn't want to share that it's been rough at times, but I am so proud of us. I feel like going through so much has given us a great foundation for a long life together. Of course, the hormones hit, and I'm ready to run for the hills! But we're learning to work with our strengths and weaknesses and it freakin' rocks.

We got to go out to dinner all by ourselves and we used a giftcard we got for christmas, so we didn't spend a dime! 'Uncle Kai' watched the kids till Gramma Nan got home. They had a blast, I love knowing that they're going to have a great time when we're gone. After dinner we went to a movie, at the theater. I don't remember the last time we did that. We saw "Stardust" and it was AWESOME! I wanted to stay and watch it again. I'm not usually one to want to watch a movie over and over and I never buy them. But I'd buy this one in a heartbeat! It was so fun. And fun is just what we were looking for.

So here's to a lifetime together, working, playing and loving. Justin and I agree that we have never heard of a custody agreement that sounds like it was good for the kids. So, divorce isn't an option for this family. I guess we'll just have to keep growing- together.

Ty's 1st trip to the dentist

Thursday: I was pretty anxious about this first trip to the dentist. It was hard for me to imagine how I would handle both of the kids by myself. The appointment was right at Ty's naptime, obviously I was concerned that he'd have a hard time dealing. And I worried that Aubree would be wiggly sqiggly as well. Luckily she did really good. We walked around the office when sitting was too hard. It went much better than I could have imagined. Ty did fantastic. I think he even had fun! The dental assistant was amazing. He was so interested in all the stuff she was telling him. She let him hold Mr. Thirsty - the suction tool. I was so impressed and proud. He is so smart. He makes my heart swell.

Coffee

My kids eat coffee beans. Crazy, huh? Aubree started the bean fad. She will not let me make coffee in the morning without giving her a bean. Seriously, she will totally throw a fit. Of course once Ty figured out that she was getting this very special treat, he had to have one too. Silly goobers. Though, Ty's introduction to coffee happened long ago. When he was around a year or year and half old he always wanted some of what Daddy was having every morning. Finally, one day, Justin gave him a sip. Justin drinks his coffee black and figured Ty wouldn't want anything to do with it... He was wrong. Ty happily took a sip and said 'Mmmmmmmmmm'! I don't think Aubree's been brave enough to take a sip yet. She mostly just expects it to be offered so she knows you're not being rude. Then she'll try and stick her hand in it.

I heart Mom - I heart Dad

Who's cuter than who? Thing 1 or Thing 2!

Before I forget

Right around his 3rd birthday, Ty was facinated with being angry. It was funny and a bit scary. But it was kind of adorable how he'd tell you so plain and clear that he was angry at you right now. That part ties in with the last post. But the next part is why this is a post of it's own. So New Year's Eve: Ty was banging away on some toys like a drum in the middle of Gramma Nan's New Year's party. I asked him if he was going to be a musician. He said ' NO!! I'm going to be an angry musician.' Well then my son, you are going to make a lot of money!

My big little boy

What is he, 3 going on 13? He blows me away. He blows lots of people away. He's been able to repeat nearly perfectly any word since before he was 2. When your 20 month old attempts to repeat the word 'antioxidants', it kinda blows you away. I'm not sure I even know how to spell that word. I feel like he's been talking for more years than he's been on this earth. That may be because he talks nonstop! Who knew there was so much to say about ANYTHING? I love watching his language and thought process evolve. It's magical. Currently, besides being in the WHY stage, he is saying some funny stuff! He talks so grown up. I was giving him a little lecture about something and he told me 'Mom I don't want to have this conversation anymore'! Fair enough! If I get to say it, I suppose he does too. : ) I know the feeling little man.

Silver lining

I am an orange nosed sword fish who can fight and save dolphins by cutting them out of nets! I work with the blue nosed sword fish. He's the toughest fish in all the sea.

What a fun thing to be at 7:30 am with only half a cup of coffee in me! I wish you could see Ty 'swimming' across the kitchen floor with his plastic blue screwdriver held up to his nose.

In mornings filled with yelling that's much too loud, sometimes in fun and sometimes in frustration, and arguments over who gets what toy when, these are the silver linings.

Moving to Minnesota

My kids are going to grow up with an accent, don'tchaknow!

Stillwater, MN - final destination? Let's hope it is.... at least while the kids are growing up. I can't quite decide if we're sick of moving or addicted to it. I'm sure all of our family have had some good laughs and groans at our expense due to all the moving. That's ok, it is kind of hilarious. I'm glad for each and every move. I've grown and learned a lot from each experience. I feel like I have a much better understanding of myself because of our adventures. But, I am sure ready to stay put for a bit. Settle into a routine and get to do some of the fun things life has to offer when you're not moving every year and a half.

We're buying a cute little 1950's rambler in a great little town on a street where we already have friends. The house isn't too big, and it sure ain't small. It's not too old, but it's clearly not new. It's the perfect mix right in the middle. I'm super excited to have home improvement projects with no time frame in which they must be completed! At our leisure.... ! Check out the pictures - click on the link at the side under 'Pictures'.

I'm a little worried about making friends. I always worry about this. And I always make friends. But I have some really great friends I've been getting to know here in WA, and it'll be hard to say goodbye. I hope I'll find a new moms group that'll feel like home in MN.

We don't have a moving date just yet, but I feel it's fast approaching...

Wahlah!

I searched my photos and found a couple of good blankie pics!