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Friday, December 31, 2010

2011 New Year's Resolutions

Lots of people are posting their resolutions today. I feel compelled to come up with a couple of attainable goals.

1. Have a baby before August 31.
2. Not go crazy learning how to be a mother of 3.
3. I was going to commit to a race per month, but I'm not going to. I'll commit that for Jeremy.

Tuesday, December 14, 2010

Christmas #12

12. One of Jeremy's Christmas memories is Ribbon Candy and those little raspberry hard candies with the gooey raspberry filling. I've looked all over and can only find them online. Any other ideas?

Monday, December 13, 2010

Christmas #13

13. The kids are having a really hard time waiting to open presents. Me too.

Christmas #14

14. Writing and receiving Christmas cards is one of my favorite parts of Christmas. It's fun to see new pictures and hear how all our friends and family sum up their year.

Friday, December 10, 2010

Christmas #15

15. Things I'm going to miss this year


  • Laughing with the family about the Covenant Pastor once comparing Jesus to Santa and wondering if he meant Jesus would come down the chimney.

  • Sour Cream Twists for breakfast on Christmas morning

  • Waking up at the crack of dawn to open our Stockings and then going back to bed

  • Being with my family

  • All the fun pictures in front of the tree on Christmas Eve

  • Getting all dressed up to sit around the house and wonder why there isn't football on TV

  • Asking every other second if we can open "just one" present before dinner

  • Getting scolded for touching and shaking presents

  • The ever-present plate of goodies

  • Lefse, bon-bons, Jolene's Christmas Mouse things and pretzel sticks, fudge, krumkaka, and coconut balls (that I didn't make myself)

  • Snow and sledding

  • The little Christmas pieces from the kids (who might be getting too old for it anyway)

Christmas #16

16. Christmas Movies!! I love them all. Some more than others. White Christmas is probably my favorite. Vermont should be beautiful this time of year--all that snow. I want to wash my hair, my hands, my face in snow!

The kids really enjoyed Polar Express this year. And Jeremy & I laughed through Elf and Fred Claus.

I think I might put It's a Wonderful Life on later today. I have a stitching project I committed to completing before the end of the year, and I need a few uninterrupted hours to get it done.

What are your favorite movies?

Thursday, December 9, 2010

Christmas #17

17. Gosh, I didn't think it'd be hard to write 25 posts about Christmas. There are traditions, favorite memories, funny gifts, silly stories, recipes. But I never can think of anything to write about. I get to the computer and think, "Hmmm, I should make some more fudge."

I love the Christmas Eve service.

Wednesday, December 8, 2010

Christmas #18

18. A few years ago, I made a photo calendar for my Grandma--one of the ones where you add a million of your own pictures to each month. She loved it! It's become a "tradition" now. She gets one. Dad gets one. Mom orders her own. Even Jeremy got one last year.

Tuesday, December 7, 2010

Christmas #19

19. I think Fantasy Fudge is the greatest culinary invention ever. The recipe right off the Marshmallow Creme jar. Add some nuts, or peppermint, or peanut butter, and oh gosh, I could die.

YUM!

Christmas #20

20. I think it's so fun to have a tree covered with lights and ornaments in the house. This year, we have the lights "twinkling" as Ivy says.

I've tried to convince Jeremy to let me leave it up all year. It could be a Valentine's Tree, an Easter Tree, a Flag Day Tree, etc.

He's not buying it yet.

Christmas #21

21. I love Christmas shopping! I love leafing through catalogs, laughing at silly gift ideas, figuring out who would like what. Then the shopping! I love the hustle and bustle of the mall at Christmas--the lights, the music, the egg nog latte. I even love wrapping all the gifts. It's so fun!

Christmas #22

I do not like "Feliz Navidad" or "So This is Christmas" at all. I've deleted them from iTunes, and I change the station when they come on the radio.

Friday, December 3, 2010

Christmas #23

23. Christmas Rice

I don't know if there's a real name for this dish, but it's been eaten in my family since my Grandma was a kid. Because she's 100% Swedish, I'll assume it's a Swedish tradition. We eat it at Christmas Eve dinner. And you HAVE to eat your whole bowlful before you can open presents.

Boil white rice in milk until it's soft.
Serve with white sugar, cinnamon, and milk.

I don't remember the story if my Grandma and her siblings liked it. My mom and her siblings did not like it at all. They choked down two bites and gagged the whole time. My siblings & I have thrown a wrench in the whole "eat it or no presents" thing. We love it! We beg for more. We wish we could eat it all year round. I will be passing this tradition down to our kids. And I hope they love it!

Thursday, December 2, 2010

Crappiest Dishwasher in the Universe

Our apartment has the worst dishwasher I've ever used. It's a GE Nautilus. I've come to expect all the glasses to take 3 cycles to actually get clean. They go in with a little juice or milk in the bottom, like a glass normally would. And come out coated in grit. I have no idea how it happens, but glasses, bowls, and sometimes plates come out dirtier than when they went in.

We've tried different soaps and cleaning the dishwasher. I don't know what else to do about it. So I run the dishwasher and eventually wash all the dishes by hand.

I might switch to paper products.

Wednesday, December 1, 2010

Christmas #24

24. Advent Calendar

This year, we are using an advent calendar to count down the days until Christmas. It's a great nativity scene with big nooks for stickers, chocolate, magnets, etc.

Tonight, before bedtime, we read a couple Bible verses and let Ivy look for the Number 1 on the calendar. She found it quickly and was very happy with the pieces of chocolate.

When I asked her to pick a book to read before bed, she said, "Can we read the Bible again? Can I look for Number 2?"

Christmas #25

I do so well blogging every day if I have a list. So, here's my list of Christmas traditions and memories.

25. Lefse!! For as long as I can remember, we've had lefse at Christmas. In fact, I remember eating only rice and lefse for many Christmas Eve dinners.

For those who don't know, lefse is a potato dough rolled out and cooked on a griddle like a very thin pancake. Jeremy's family said it tastes like a potato tortilla and dared to suggest eating it with salsa instead of butter and sugar.

This will be my first year making lefse alone. I'm using my Aunt Jolene's recipe. These are the instructions I have so far. I need to buy potatoes.

Lefse Recipe from Jolene Olson

Note: Cook the potatoes the night before you plan to make lefse.

8 cups riced white russet potatoes (5 pounds of potatoes makes approximately 8 cups riced potatoes)
1/3 cup cream
1/3 cup butter
1 1/2 tbs. salt

Cook 5 pounds of potatoes in enough water to cover about 1/2 inch over the potatoes.
Rinse and rice.
Put the riced potatoes in a large bowl and add cream, butter, and salt while potatoes are still hot. Refrigerate covered until ready to use.

Sunday, November 28, 2010

Plank

I follow a blog (http://bendoeslife.tumblr.com). The guy held plank position for more than 2 minutes yesterday. I thought I'd give it a try. I have a long way to go. Before I started, I told myself I'd make it more than 30 seconds. It's a good thing I had a goal in mind--I'd have stopped after 20 second. I thought I was going to puke. My competitive side demands I add this to my regimen so I can beat this so I can beat this guy.

Saturday, November 27, 2010

Favorite Christmas Music

I think I love all Christmas music. I have almost 400 Christmas songs in my iTunes. But I'm always looking for more diversity in my collection. Last year, I added John Denver & the Muppets and Kari Jobe and Josh Grobin.

I'd like to find some more lively music. Any recommendations?

Thursday, November 25, 2010

Thankfulness #1

1. Thanksgiving Day: I am thankful for my family and traditions and a whole day to celebrate both.

Tuesday, November 23, 2010

Thankfulness #3

3. I asked the kids what they are thankful for.
Ivy said, "going to the mall."
Jamey said, "Dada. Arm. Book."

Monday, November 22, 2010

Sunday, November 21, 2010

Thankfulness #5

5. Today I'm thankful for fun times with family this weekend. We did normal weekend stuff--nothing special--but we were together, and it was fun. Our kids are hilarious!

Saturday, November 20, 2010

Thankfulness #6

6. I'm so thankful that Jeremy got up with the kids at 6 am and let me sleep until I woke up at 8:30 am. It's the latest I've slept since Ivy was born. It was glorious to know the kids were up doing things and I wasn't. And they're so much cuter when someone else gets them dressed.

Friday, November 19, 2010

Thankfulness #7

7. I'm thankful for the holiday season, the anticipation of Christmas, and making lefse (which does scare me just a little). We're putting up the Christmas tree in a week!

Finding a purpose

I was emailing with a friend today about a few things, one of which was making a difference at work.

My favorite paid job was working at Boston Scientific, because I really felt like we were all working together to make a product that saves lives. I was making a difference.

It hit me as I was typing that, that my job now gives me that same purpose, but in a different way. I am making a difference and changing lives.

I have purpose!

Thursday, November 18, 2010

Thankfulness #8

8. I'm thankful for being able to stay home with my kids. I love playing with them, reading to them, teaching them funny things, and watching them play together.

Tuesday, November 16, 2010

Thankfulness #10

10. Oh, I'm very thankful for Kindle for the iPhone. I'm quite a ways into Girl with a Dragon Tattoo, and I'm loving it. In fact, the kids are lucky I managed to get dinner made. If my husband wasn't such an encourager, I'd skip my run tonight to read. But he won't let me.

Monday, November 15, 2010

Finding Friends

I need help. We've been in Florida for 8 months and still haven't found any friends (aside from Jeremy's sister & her family).



  1. The Hollywood Mom's Meetup group was a bust. We went to several play dates. The moms yelled at Ivy & Jamey and I just didn't feel like I was welcome.

  2. The local MOPS group has never responded to my phone calls or emails.

  3. The local API group doesn't do anything. No play dates, no lunches, nothing. In fact, there's only about five active members, and only one of those stays home with her kids.

  4. We've visited several churches and settled on one (Oasis Church in Pembroke Pines). However, they don't have a MOPS group. The lady I emailed with about mid-week Women's Bible study was rude and unhelpful. I feel like I'm having to drag information out of anyone about small groups. (Maybe this isn't the church for us--but I don't know where else to go.)

  5. So far, we haven't put Ivy in preschool, but it may be an option to at least meet some other moms with preschoolers.

  6. I haven't been able to identify any stay-at-home moms in our apt building. There is one down the hall, but ....



Where else can I find friends?

Thankfulness #11

11. Today, I'm thankful for Coke and Peanut Butter M&Ms. It's that kind of morning.

Doctors

I do not know if my experience with doctors in Florida is the norm. If so, I'm sorry for all the people who live here and put up with poor customer service and cranky workers.

I've been to a family practice doc, the orthopedist (3 times), and now a pediatrician. I've had to wait more than an hour past my appointment time to see the doctor, who said no more than 12 words to me, didn't answer any questions, and bolted from the room before I could even clarify any instructions.

I miss arriving at my appointment 10 minutes early, getting called in 2 minutes before my appointment time, having a nice conversation with the nurse, seeing the doctor who asks questions, listens to answers, and then waits around for me to process the info. And then I get out of the clinic in less than an hour, feeling like I was listened to, respected, and actually treated.

Sunday, November 14, 2010

Thankfulness #12

12. I'm thankful for a day to myself. Jeremy & the kids are spending the day with his mom. I went for a run, took a long hot shower, and am now stitching and watching Anne of Green Gables. I might nap later.

Saturday, November 13, 2010

Thankfulness #13

13. Today, I am thankful for a really great run this morning. We did the 33rd Annual Key Biscayne Lighthouse Run. Jeremy and Amy did the 10k in 1:01. I did the 5k in 38 min--pushing the kids in the jogger. I felt great for the first two miles, and then Ivy kicked her shoe about 25 yards to the left, so I had to stop to pick it up, totally ruining my pace. That last mile was tough. But I thought I'd finish in 45 minutes, so 38 isn't too bad.

Thursday, November 11, 2010

Thankfulness #14

14. I'm thankful for Handel, Chopin, Strauss, Beethoven, Bach, Tchaikovsky, Mozart, and the 20 hours of classical music on my computer. It's perfect morning music.

And I'm thankful for Me First and the Gimmee Gimmees, because that's perfect running music.

Wednesday, November 10, 2010

Thankfulness #15

15. I'm thankful for encouraging phone conversations with friends and family far away.

Thankfulness #16

16. I am thankful for parks and the kids there who have fun toys and love playing with my kids. It's so great to see Ivy & Jamey make new friends and play together.

Tuesday, November 9, 2010

Thankfulness #17

17. I am thankful my mom taught me to write things down. I have a fun book of her memories and my milestones from when I was a kid. Now I'm writing them for my kids. I'm thankful for this idea to jot down funny things they say and do, my feelings about them getting bigger, and every once in a while we trace their hands. Not only does this preserve these memories for them & their kids, it helps me remember all the reasons I love staying at home with them.

Monday, November 8, 2010

Thankfulness #18

18. I'm thankful for Ebb & Flow. Ups & Downs. Good & Bad. Better & Worse. Like I was recently reminded, "it came to pass" not "it came to stay."

Sunday, November 7, 2010

Thankfulness #19

19. I'm thankful that we attended a church we like. Jamey lasted about 5 minutes in the nursery, so we sat in the crying room. Ivy loved the Sunday school class.

Friday, November 5, 2010

Thankfulness #20

20. Today I am so very thankful that it's 52 degrees. Sorry to everyone in South Florida, but I've been praying and hoping for cooler weather for about two months now. All this heat is more than this MN girl can handle. I love pulling out sweatshirts and long sleeves and pants. I love it! I hope this lasts until March!

Thankfulness #21

21. I am thankful for my very flexible schedule. For the last several days, Ivy has resisted any "out of the apartment" activity. No beach, no park, no mall, nothing. She just wants to stay put. So we are. Maybe she's fighting off a bug, maybe she just wants to stay home and color. Who knows? But I'm thankful that I don't have to force her out the door for anything and that I'm getting a lot of stitching done while she lays low.

Thursday, November 4, 2010

Thankfulness #22

22. Today, I am thankful for a full night's sleep for all four of us. For kids and adults who wake up happy. For cuddling with Jamey while Ivy eats breakfast with Jeremy. For homemade mocha and peanut butter toast. For steroids for my aching ankle. And for the exciting anticipation of 1/2 marathon training--starts next week!

Wednesday, November 3, 2010

Thankfulness #23

23. I was going to be thankful for financial security today, but Ally is, so I'll save that one for another day.

I'm thankful for the parenting community I have that encourages me to be the best parent I can be. Thank you, Mom & Amy, for sound advice three years running on how to help Ivy sleep and eat.

Thank you to the Twin Cities API group for advice and encouragement about everything related to pregnancy, birth, babyhood, and the toddler years.

And a special thank you to all my girlfriends who listen to me cry after sleepless nights, worry that time outs are going to put my kids in therapy, and laugh when Ivy rolls all the toilet paper into the toilet.

I'm a better parent because of these great people.

Tuesday, November 2, 2010

Thankfulness #24

24. Today, I am thankful for Jeremy as a parent. He is a great dad. The kids can be tired, crabby, and fighting, and the instant he walks through the door, they're laughing, playing, and excited. They love when he comes home. And then he plays with them for three hours--helping jam 3 bites into Ivy who never wants to eat, hiding and seeking, doing baths, and then reading to the kids before bedtime.

And he helps me figure out solutions and think up new ideas on whatever happens to be stressing me out. He enforces the same rules and sends the kids to give me kisses on really long days.

He's a good dad, and I'm glad my kids have him.

Monday, November 1, 2010

25 Days of Thankfulness

I'm stealing this wonderful idea from my sister-in-law and will be blogging every day in November about one thing I'm thankful for. These are in no particular order.

25. I recently wrote an email to my mom listing the top 17 reasons I hate Florida (there were more, but the kids were crying), so I'm going to take this opportunity to be thankful for this opportunity. I'm thankful we can be closer to Jeremy's sister and her family. I really love getting to know her better and watching the kids play together. I'm glad they have cousins their age to play with. We always have so much fun when we're with them. I'm glad we can be here.

Wednesday, October 27, 2010

TV Shows

I think tv watching is my guilty pleasure. When I think about watching tv, I think it's a waste of time and there are so many other things I could be doing. But I like watching tv. So I stitch while I watch, and then I feel less guilty about it. No one makes snide comments about doing crafts all night.

We rarely watch live tv. We don't have a dvr anymore though, so we just watch tv shows from Netflix. I think commercials are a waste of time, and I don't know if I really buy anything based on their commercials. Except Coca Cola. I love those commercials. We get tv show seasons from Netflix and watch away sans commercials. I love that! And I get tons of stitching done.

We're watching:
Fringe
CSI (the original)
NCIS (the original)
Eureka
Castle
Criminal Minds
Dexter
House

And when we don't have any discs from Netflix, we watch whatever is on the Food Network. We're addicted to Guy Fieri and Throwdown with Bobby Flay and Ace of Cakes.

Tuesday, September 14, 2010

Remember blog-a-day?

I vaguely remember vowing to blog every day. I don't think my life is interesting enough to do that. And I struggle with the idea that many things I think will offend some people I know, and I don't want to needlessly offend or anger people. So, I keep some thoughts to myself and blog less often.

I am thinking about "shopping and eating to feel better," but I when I google that, I get nothing.

Wednesday, September 1, 2010

enragenified

To use a newly coined word, I'm enragenified because Ivy has been having LOTS of bathroom accidents. She has wet her pants a couple times at the park, and she's pooped in or around the pool about 10 times--and on the sidewalk behind a tree once.

I don't have any idea what is going on. She's been day-time potty trained for a year now, and all of a sudden she's not using it.

And I don't know what to do about it. We leave the pool or park immediately when it happens. I don't know how to convey that it's not okay to go in her pants. And I'm not putting her back in diapers.

On the flip side, when she poops at home in the toilet, she puts almost the entire roll of toilet paper in the toilet, which also makes a big mess.

Monday, August 30, 2010

Teething

I hate teething ... especially today. Jamey has been crying and whining since he woke up this morning--all day long. Even with motrin, he cries. He wants to be held, he wants to eat, he wants to get down, he doesn't want to eat, he wants a drink, he wants to throw his cup. It is going on and on.

And then I burned dinner.

Friday, August 27, 2010

Don't play with the door

For five months, I've been telling the kids a hundred times a day, "don't play with the doors." I'm nervous they'll hit their heads, smash their fingers, or just drive me crazy with all the slamming. Yesterday morning, Jamey was opening and closing our bedroom door. I got down on the floor and played Peek-a-boo with him a couple times. The last time, I scared him, and he slammed the door and hit my face. It's not too bad, but I do have a welt. I was afraid I'd get a black eye, and "I hit a door" just doesn't sound plausible. But this is why we don't play with the door.

[gallery]

Wednesday, August 25, 2010

He's a boy

I just gave Jamey his first hair cut. I just cut off the wispy long hair around his ears and said good bye to the one long curl in the back.

And here's why I hate the Crapintosh. Where are the pictures stored? Who knows? Some random secret someplace so you can't import them to a blog or Facebook or anything. But gosh, they look so great in iPhoto.

I'd show you a picture, but I can't find them.

Post a Day?

I have a lofty goal of blogging every day. If I can get with the program, I'd like to even post pictures. Until then, I'm going to be satisfied with maybe once a week.

We have 10 days until we leave for Minnesota. Now that we have this awesome new van, I've thought, "I can bring the bike, the burley, my scrap booking stuff, and we can make a bed in the back" (because we're driving the whole 30 hours without stopping). That's another story to blog about when it's over. But now we have to do it, because we're picking up my sister in Minneapolis at 8:15 Sunday morning.

I have now spent a bit of time in the back of the van, and we will not be bringing the bike or burley or making a bed. I am, however, bringing my scrap booking stuff. I need to buy some shoes for Jamey.

Friday, August 20, 2010

Getting fit

I just read that my ideal weight is 139. The range is 123-154. Whew! I have a way to go. I'm embarrassed that I got so overweight. It's exciting that I've lost 21 pounds since April. I want to be in my weight range before we have our next baby--I've decided that being a healthy weight when I start another pregnancy will help ward off pre-eclampsia. I don't know if that's true, but it can't hurt. It stinks that I have to rest my ankle. That's going to hinder weight loss.

What I don't understand is how professional athletes can rest for 2 weeks and be back at it, while I'm supposed to rest for 6.

Thursday, August 19, 2010

a diagnosis

I've just returned from the orthopedist with orders to rest my ankle as much as possible or I get a cast at my follow-up appointment in Oct. He said he doesn't trust that I'll stay off it.

When I got fitted for my running shoes, the guy at the store said that most likely I'd hurt the tendon that runs down the inside of my ankle and across my foot. The ortho said he was right. So, I'm diagnosed with Tibialis Posterior Tendon. I have three or four months' worth of Naproxin, and I'm changing my workout routine.

Instead of running/elliptical (because I haven't been running in about a month anyway), I'm going to either swim laps in our 30 foot pool (gross) or just do weights. And I'll bike.

I think the trip to MN will be good for my ankle. Who exercises on vacation anyway?

Monday, August 16, 2010

Orthopedist

I finally have an appt to get my right ankle checked out. One doctor couldn't see me until Sept 29, so I called around to three other clinics until I found one who can see me this week. Thursday afternoon.

I'm eager to get this dumb thing fixed and get training. I'll miss the race in Sept (because I'll be in MN), but I'm checking out the Miami Equalizer in Oct. Or the Halloween 1/2 marathon. And training for the ING 1/2 marathon starts in Nov.

Woo Hoo!!

My boy has shoes!

Jamey is 18-months old, as of last week. Until a month ago, he only wore the Robeez soft sole shoes. In part because I love Robeez, they're versatile, they're not expensive, and they're good for learning how to walk. The other reason is that Jamey's feet are still so "baby chubby" that I haven't found a shoe that fits him--you know, if his whole foot fit inside the shoe enough for it to velcro shut, it was about six inches too long. So, soft soles or barefoot it's been. About a month ago, I picked him up some light-up Toy Story shoes at Target. He loves them! But it's a pain to get them on, and when we pry them off, his poor feet are all red and creased. But he can't go barefoot all the time. He trips and his toes are all bloody and mangled.

We took a trip to the Stride Rite store this morning to have his feet measured and pick him up some real shoes. And now he won't take them off. I tried. He screamed and flailed and pointed until I put the shoes back on. I guess he likes them!

Tuesday, August 3, 2010

Try a Tri

Shortly after we registered for the Trilogy Tri's, Jeremy found a meetup group based out of Dania Beach. They get together almost every day to do different work outs. He's been going to the Sunday morning "Swim, Bike, Run, Breakfast" group. And now I'm going to go to the Friday morning "Brick" workout. It's biking and running. Does anyone know what that's called a brick? And I'm starting the Bridge to 10k running plan tonight. I'm enjoying all this training and racing.

Monday, July 26, 2010

my foot is killing me

Gosh, my right ankle and shin have been sore off and on since the beginning of June. There was no trauma, so it was hard to pinpoint why it hurt. And somedays, it hurt a lot and other days, it didn't hurt at all. I iced it, massaged it, heated it, braced it, and even stayed off it. Nothing seemed to make the pain go away. My hubby did some research and the info he found suggested a quick trip to a podiatrist who also runs would solve the problem.

Last week, I ran 17 minutes and had to stop. I thought my ankle was going to give out. I went to a regular doctor (that was a horrid experience I may never write about because I still get raging mad when I think about it). He said it was bruised and it would heal on its own.

I called The Runner's Depot to get a recommendation for a podiatrist. She said before I go to the doctor, I should come in to get sized and get in the correct shoe. My first thought was "Gosh, what a scam. Of course the shoe store would suggest I buy shoes from them."

Even though it sounds hokey that the running store would tell me I need new shoes, without me telling him where my foot hurt, he knew. He looked at my foot--not close up. Watched me walk and said, I bet it hurts here and here because of how your foot rolls. I over-pronate or have overpronation. Something. He put me in a different shoe, had me run on the treadmill, and said my stride is great.

Here's hoping my foot adjusts to these shoes well and I can start real running again. I just got an email about the Miami 1/2 Marathon, and it sounds fun.

Friday, July 23, 2010

Our first tropical storm

Today is supposed to be our first ever tropical storm. To celebrate being stuck in the apartment all day during the storm, the kids and I decided to make cookies. And a quick trip to Publix was required for chocolate chips and butter.

By the time we drove the three blocks to the store, it was seriously downpouring. Even with the wipers on full blast, I could hardly see. And my gas light came on. Now I was terrified of running out of gas in the storm.

Ran into the store, got drenched. Found what we needed. Had a nice chat with the guy in line before us--he has a 120 dog and thinks Ivy should take karate. Ran back out to the car in lighter rain. Got the kids buckled in.

Got locked out.

My kids were buckled in their car seats with no chance of getting out, and the keys were happily lying on the passenger seat while all the doors were locked. Geez. Now what?

I called Jeremy. He'd come home to get the spare set and unlock the doors. Don't call the police, he said. He's coming.

So I immediately flagged down a cop who was driving through the parking lot. He called for back up, and before I knew it, there were six police cars, a huge fire truck, and fire rescue. I just made a huge spectacle.

They wedged the front passenger door open with an inflatable pillow. Stuck a stick in there, pushed the button, and viola! Three minutes later, it was like it didn't happen. They hopped in the vehicles and zoomed off to help someone else. I sat there for a minute, embarrassed and wishing I'd have taken pictures.

Thursday, July 22, 2010

Sewing

Ugh, who knew it was going to be so hard to find a seamstress?

My super SIL did give me a recommendation for someone, but my incredible inability to understand less than perfect English has hampered further communication. I felt bad that I asked her to repeat her address four times, and I'm still not sure I got it right.

I've emailed a couple people from Craigslist, but I've gotten no response.

I asked for recommendations from the parenting group and got one. That lady hasn't called me back either.

I finally just looked some places up on Google. One doesn't do sewing. And the other lady was going to charge me $350-$400 to make one dress.

So, now I've called Joann Fabric. They have a couple business cards in the store. I have to go check those out. If that doesn't work, I guess I'll try my hand at sewing.

Monday, July 19, 2010

Trilogy Tri #2

We did our second race yesterday. Big News! No one passed out, and we all finished. Jeremy SMOKED both me and Amy--I think his finishing time was 11 minutes faster than either of us.

I did increase my 1 mile and bike speeds. However, my 5k time was pathetically slow. Mostly because I walked 2/3 of it. I was dead tired. So, winning my division just means that the other racers were SUPER slow.

It was fun though. Its fun to talk with girls from the last race. And it's fun to see Jeremy and Amy out on the course. And it's a lot of fun to cheer them on at the finish.

Whew, we have another race in 4 weeks. I'm going to work on my run.

Thursday, July 8, 2010

Traveling

We picked the wrong summer to move. I made a trip back to MN in May to host a bridal shower. We just returned from a second trip to MN for my bro's wedding. And we'll be going back in Sept for my sister's wedding. Plus Christmas. That's a lot of traveling. Two things: we should've signed up for frequent flyer miles. And we should've bought a car to leave in Osakis. It costs an arm & a leg to rent cars for longer than a long weekend.

The Wedding Week was wonderful (how's that for alliteration?). We had parties, decorated, tried to continue our training, made food, ate food, ate more wedding cake than I ever want to see again, and the actual wedding and reception were so much fun!

The girls went dress shopping for Ashley's wedding one morning. I've decided that if I ever become waif thin and gorgeous, I'm going to be a wedding dress model. I'm totally stoked for her wedding. I can not wait! I think everyone I know should get married this summer. I love weddings!!

It's hot here. Hot hot hot. My bike tires are flat. And I put Florida license plates on my car this morning.

There's a guy who, it seems, is always lifting weights when I'm working out in the gym. We rode the elevator once and chatted for a minute. I saw him this morning on the way to put my new plates on. I think Bethany should move down here and go out with him at least once. He's very muscly and a snappy dresser. I don't know if he likes soccer though.

We're having mac & cheese for lunch and then going to spend the afternoon in the pool. It's really hot.

Monday, June 21, 2010

Trilogy Tri #1

The awesome news is that I finished second in my division! The reality is that there were only two women in my division. Still, I get an award.

We stayed over at Marc & Amy's house so we didn't have to get up so early. We still had to get up at 4:30 am. We hit the road at 5ish, and were at the race site by 5:45. Jeremy put the bikes together and topped off the tires a bit. When he pulled the pump off Amy's back tire, the stem popped right off. You know, she wasn't too disappointed or upset to be missing the bike ride. She was going to swim and then run the 5k with me.

I took off on my 1 mile run at 7 am. I did a 9:49. Not bad, but the girl who beat me did 8:06. I'm going to have to step up the training!

Jeremy started his 400 meter swim at 7:15. Amy started hers at 7:30.

I figured I see Jeremy going out on the bike ride around 7:35--at the very latest. But I never saw him. I figured I missed him. But I did think, "If his bike is still on the rack, I know something happened."

I got back to the transition area at 7:50ish and saw Amy wiping her feet off to get her running shoes on. And Jeremy's bike was right next to her. I tossed my bike up, changed shoes, and asked the "Bike Out" guy where my hubby was.

He passed out. He's in the ambulance. They haven't left. He's fine.

And he was. Silly guy only ate a banana and then swam a 6-minute 1/4 mile.

None of us finished the race, but we have three more to go!

Wednesday, June 9, 2010

It's our new car

It took a day to sell my SUV. I thought for sure we'd go weeks or maybe months without a vehicle while we researched, test drove, and negotiated the budget. Turns out, even though I hardly drive down here, I hate being without the option to drive.

We talked new vs. used. Figured out how much we can afford. Looked at a few cars. Debated between an earth-destroyer SUV, a crossover, or the dreaded minivan.

And it was easy. We drove into the Dodge dealership. I told the guy what features I wanted and for what price. We test drove and took home a van a few hours later.

Now we've had it a few days, and we still like it. There's a ton of space. And Ivy likes that she can push the button to close the door. And she LOVES watching movies in the car. I do think it's a little silly to watch 10 minutes of a movie on the way to Target, but whatever.

Saturday, May 29, 2010

A sad happy day

I walked into the dealership in Brooklyn Center after about two years of test driving cars, knowing exactly what I wanted. I drove out about two hours later with my Santa Fe. It had 14 miles on it, including the seven from my test drive.

And now it's gone. Sold to a college kid who's ecstatic to have his own vehicle big enough to haul everything in his dorm room and a bike.

I have tucked every insurance card into my "to scrap book" bin, and I said a tearful good bye on my last drive. That was the first car I bought myself. I think Jeremy and I drove it on our first date; it hauled our wedding gifts to the house from Osakis; we brought the kiddos home from the hospital in it.

It'll be weird walking out the garage and not ever seeing it again. But soon, in it's place will sit a hot new car. Maybe a minivan or maybe an SUV or maybe a Vespa. Can I get car seats on a scooter?

Friday, May 21, 2010

Into everything today

Ivy learned how to open her dresser drawers today. She's emptied her socks, undies, and swimming suits onto the living room floor. This afternoon, she brought me her charm bracelet, Dedication Necklace, and 15 pairs of earrings.

While I was in the bathroom this morning, both kids emptied the toy bins in Jamey's room. I still haven't picked up the cars, blocks, and animals.

And now while I've been cooking potatoes for dinner, I see the kiddos have colored the tile floor in their bathroom. As Ivy said, "Isn't the colors beautiful, Mommy?"

Wednesday, May 19, 2010

Bridal Shower

Ally is officially welcomed to the Paradee Family. The four sisters hosted a bridal shower for her at my mom's house.

My mom read her this "welcome to the family" poem, and she gave Levi's baby book to Ally.

I just gave her a mop.

Jamey's 15-month appt

Our boy is 26 pounds and 33 inches.

When I knew we'd be back in MN for bridal showers, I scheduled Jamey's 15-month appt with our regular pediatrician. I'm dreading the task of finding a doctor in Florida.

Ivy went shopping with Bethany during the appt mostly because she had fallen asleep in the car.

I enjoyed seeing Dr. Aronson and Nurse Sarah. And when Ivy came to pick us up, she ran back and gave Sarah a huge hug and even chatted with the Dr. for a few minutes.

I'm thankful for a great relationship with the clinic, and maybe I'll think of a reason to go back in Sept so we can do Ivy's 3 year and Jamey's 18 mo appts there too. :)

Getting to MN

It was so good to be in Minnesota again. We stepped off the plane at 10:45 am in jeans and short sleeve shirts and immediately started shivering. I can't believe how cold 45 degrees feels after six weeks of no temps lower than 70.

The plane ride was horrific. Ivy sat still for 45 minutes, declared she didn't like the Princess Movie, and proceeded to Tag Team Cry with Jamey the remaining three hours of the flight. Thankfully, the plane was EMPTY and the flight attendants were helpful. My kids ate 8 packets of fruit snacks, 3 breakfast bars, 4 glasses of milk, a ziploc bag of cheerios, a ziploc bag of goldfish, 12 bags of airplane pretzels, 4 bags of airplane cookies, and an entire pack of gum. And they still managed to cry the entire flight.

When I reserved the rental car, I picked something that was big enough for four people and two suitcases. I figured if they were advertising a car would fit four adults, it would fit two adults and two car seats. However, two Britax Boulevards will not fit in the back seat of a Ford Focus or a Ford Fusion. We ended up with a bright blue Dodge Journey. Driving in Minnesota was wonderful! I know where everything is; I didn't need the GPS, and I could even change routes when line painting on 494 caused traffic problems.

Sunday, May 9, 2010

Mother's Day

Yay! I have the perfect family! Somehow, my ninja husband got out of bed (with Ivy) and made me pancakes, toast, and my personal favorite--bacon--for breakfast in bed. I didn't really sleep in any later than normal, but it was awesome to not get up with the kids.

I woke up to the door flying open. Ivy was carrying my plate. Jamey was running behind her, carrying a little white bag. The second he saw me, he flung that bag across the room and ran to the bed. Like he hadn't seen me in days. Jeremy had coffee!

The little white bag was my "jamey ring." If I could figure out how to post a picture here, I'd show you.

We then went to church, spent some time with Jeremy's mom up in West Palm Beach, and then went swimming.

Awesome day! I love my kiddos and my hubby!

Wednesday, May 5, 2010

I hate our neighbor

The woman in the apartment next door isn't deaf but she listens to her crappy music like she is. I'd like to tear her stupid bass speakers off the wall and throw them through her super loud television. And then shove her phone down the garbage disposal. This woman makes me crazy and irate and evil.

Monday, May 3, 2010

A few observations

1. There is a tire store on every block--used tires, imported tires, racing tires, all kinds. But in 6 weeks, I haven't seen even one carwash.

2. There is only one coffee shop within 5 miles of us, and it doesn't even have a drive thru.

3. People here are very friendly. Old ladies fawn over the kids in the grocery store. Everyone talks to us in the elevator.

4. The kids no longer have "excess earwax" and I have no idea why. But I love it!

Saturday, May 1, 2010

Thursday, April 29, 2010

the glories of apartment living

First a funny story: I finally got the mesh stuff up on Ivy's balcony, so we were out playing this morning. Somehow, her little pink puppy purse, Jasper, got tossed over the edge. So much for the mesh making a difference. we threw some shoes on, ran downstairs, and rescued Jasper from the alley traffic.

The real reason for the post: the little boy from down the hall came over to ask Ivy to play, and she did! She went to their apartment and played for almost two hours! I took Jamey to Target--gosh, he's a quiet kid. And then we read some books, played with the beach toys, and drove the kiddie bike. It was a blast!

Tuesday, April 27, 2010

Cake Pops

My sister-in-law, Amy (www.jadyimages.com) introduced me to www.bakerella.com.

Last week, Amy made cake pops and was unhappy with the results. Following her advice for changes, I made them this morning. Not the same disaster, but equally unhappy. They look disgusting but are delicious.

Jamey loves them! And Ivy had a great time dipping them in the candy coating.

We were going to try to make them for Ally's bridal shower in a couple weeks, but we might have to order a cake now.

It's over

The Honeymoon Phase in the apartment is over. Things are starting to bug us.

1. The neighbors are really loud. The listen to music super loud. We can feel bass lines thumping in our bones. They listen to the television super loud. I don't even have to turn on House; I can just listen from their place. And gosh, they fight a lot!

2. The water heater, which we can't change, is turned down super low. I mean, instead of a hot shower, we take luke-warm showers.

3. The trains go by 47 times during the night, and it must be mandatory to blare the horn right outside our building. I get worse sleep now than with a newborn.

4. Hauling bags in from the store is a nightmare. We park on the third-level parking garage and live on the seventh floor. How in the world do you haul even six Target bags and two toddlers up four floors? Like today, I had one bag from Lowes, one bag from Michael's, and three bags from Target. I had to drag out the stroller just to get the stuff and the kids into the apartment. I miss our garage!

5. Something that irritates the heck out of me is that other mothers at the park are constantly telling me how to parent my kids: he has a stick, she took her hat off, he's going to fall, watch out for her, blah, de blah, blah! And it's not like I'm off reading a book or playing Bejeweled. I'm standing right there three feet from the kids.

6. There is a little boy in our building that terrorizes Ivy every time we're down at the pool. The rotten child has radar on how to make Ivy cry. He takes her ball, splashes her, tries to throw her towel in the water, tries to jump to me when Ivy's going to. I mean, seriously, the kid is awful. And there his mom lays in this skimpy bikini, listening to her iPod, not paying attention to her spawn of Satan. Come to find out, she lives two door down from us.

Sunday, April 25, 2010

We might be crazy!

Jeremy's sister Amy talked us into doing 4 races this summer.

http://www.trilogytri.com/

I signed up for the duathlon, so I'll be running and biking. Jeremy & Amy signed up for the triathlons. We have races once a month in June, July, August, and September. And training has begun! (Aside from the harsh reality that I have a 5k in two weeks.)

We're doing lots of biking, and I try to get on the treadmill or elliptical a few times a week. We're trying to find someplace for Jeremy to swim.

I'm pretty nervous about the 5k part of the duathlons, but that's why we're training, right?

Friday, April 23, 2010

so it continues

Before the drive down here, Jamey was nursing 4-5 times a day and once during the night. His mid-morning & mid-afternoon and nap-time nursings stopped on the trip, because he was in the car seat all day. He did nurse all night in bed with me. Since we've been in the apartment, he hasn't shown much interest in nursing during the day. He even stopped falling asleep nursing for naps. So, lately he's been nursing twice a day--at bed time and around 5 am.

He's been having a really rough time sleeping at night but he naps so well during the day. Tonight he didn't want to nurse to sleep, even when I offered. We'll see how he does overnight. Maybe he's done bedtime nursing?

Wednesday, April 21, 2010

A visit from home

Bethany came to visit for a long weekend. I didn't realize I was even a little home sick until I saw her. Gosh, it was great to see someone I recognize.

Unfortunately, it rained practically the whole time she was here. We did squeeze in a couple trips to the pool, a bike ride to the beach--to play and have lunch, and an afternoon at the park. And we hit up the Build a Bear shop where Ivy made her new friend Sunny the Bunny.

Bethany had to leave yesterday morning, and it sucked. I balled my eyes out when she left. I was so home sick. I'm even thinking about a third trip to MN before Christmas.

The kids and I are going back May 12-18 for Ally's bridal shower and a 5k. Then we're all going back June 25-July 5 for Levi & Ally's wedding. I'm thinking about a long trip in Sept/Oct. And then back for Christmas. Yikes! That seems like a lot of traveling and airfare.

Here's hoping the Hollywood Moms are great!!

Tuesday, April 20, 2010

3 weeks

We've been in the apartment three weeks today! I think we're adjusting well. We're really enjoying the area and the great weather.

We've found a church we like (Oasis Church in Pembroke Pines). I'm in the process of finding information on small groups. Ivy has liked the nursery so far. Jamey not so much. He cries when we leave and when we pick him up. They swear he's an angel in between.

I joined the Hollywood API group, but it's not very active. There are no play groups or mom's night out activities. They're really not even that active in the online forum. I'm hoping to meet up with one of those moms at the park nearby. She lives just around the corner from us.

I also joined the Hollywood Moms Meetup group. They have about 35 activities a month. Our first play group is on Friday at some park. I'm really hoping this group has lots of friends for us.

We are going to a South Broward LLL meeting this morning. At least I'll meet some other crazies that are planning to nurse until college. :)

I haven't had any luck in finding a preschool, and I'm starting to lose interest. If we're only going to be here a couple years, I don't want to muck up our fun with school.

We're totally unpacked! Everything is put away. I have a few more pictures I can hang up, but I'm not sure where to put them.

I picked up some Stonyfield Oikos Greek yogurt the other day. It's my new favorite food.

Cute Things Ivy's said in the last couple days

1. I want to walk on my toes (means she wants to go barefoot)

2. I want to go in the window (means she wants to go on the balcony--through the sliding glass doors)

3. Mom, you're my best friend in my whole life ever.

Saturday, April 10, 2010

Is this paradise?

In the 10 days we've been in our apartment, I've biked to the beach 4 times, walked to the park 3 times, taken the kids to the pool 3 times, and driven the car twice. I've only forgotten sunscreen one day ... and we were just going downstairs to get the mail. Until Ivy asked for a bike ride. Today was the first overcast day, and it didn't last long. There's been no rain yet. Although I've had to mop every other day. How in the world do the floors get so dirty?

Wednesday, March 31, 2010

We have renters!!

The house has been rented by decent people with no kids and two dogs. They signed a two-year lease. Great!! Because we won't have to find someone else next year.

Moving--day 5--march 30

We've arrived!! The drive from Orlando to Hollywood was pretty easy. I got our sunpass activated, so we sped down the turnpike.

Jeremy did a great job picking a place to live. The apartment looks great. Although the balconies are going to give me a heart attack.

After a glitch with the keys, we got in and unloaded the car. I packed an overnight bag to take to amy's and we hit the road again. Thankfully, the new Stone house is only 40 minutes away.

Movers arrive at 11am on April 1.

Monday, March 29, 2010

Moving--Day 4--March 29

I woke up early this morning and got to shower without the kids banging on the bathroom door. And then I loaded up our extra bags in the car. It was a nice morning after such a cruddy day.

We ate at the Waffle House before we hit the road. I have noticed since St. Louis that there are no coffee shops--not Caribou, Starbucks, Dunn Bros, nothing. I guess they don't drink coffee down here. But let me tell you, everyone offers us sweet tea the second we sit down. Hey, not even the gas station has the bottles of Starbucks.

Again, the drive seemed SUPER long. Even after we stopped in Vidosta, GA for a long lunch at Chick-fil-a. They had a play place. I'm over my CFA thing already. It's not that great. I mean, it's okay, but nothing super.

Shortly after we got into Florida, we stopped at a service area on the Florida Turnpike to do our first Resident Thing. We bought a SunPass. I have to activate it tonight, but no more scrambling for change at the toll booths. And the turnpike is totally worth it!!

The Radisson in Orlando is pretty sweet. We played on the playground a while and then went to the World's Largest McDonalds (or at least largest play area)--they had an arcade. Ivy rocked at a pirate shooting game.

Baths now and then hopefully bed soon. We're planning to get up early so we can spend some time at the beach before we meet the condo management in Hollywood.

PS. The kids are riding really well. They read books, play with the dolls, eat cheese sticks and drink lots of Crystal Light. Jamey is sick of it now-he arches his back and screams every time we get close to the car. Ivy watches movies and sicks to herself a lot.

Moving--Day 3--March 28

Last night in Nashville was the worst ever. Jamey slept from 7-9 and then was woken by loud people in the hall. He just was not interested in going back to sleep. After a couple hours of walking and nursing and lying down, I finally took him down to the lobby to run around for a while. We stayed down there for more than an hour. He wanted to check out the workout room, the pool, and tried playing the piano.

We got up mid-morning to head to Macon, GA. The drive was long; we were all tired and sick of being in the car, and Atlanta looked like so much fun as we drove by.

And Macon is the armpit of Georgia. The hotel was crappy; there were NO activities--the mall was even closed. And I think we were in the ghetto side of town. Supposedly, there was a Botanical Garden, but no one knew anything about it.

We ate at Applebees where the kids were a huge hit. It was another late night. The kids like to stay up until 11 or so. Wake up at 8 and then not sleep in the car. We're getting eager to get to Amy & Marc's house.

Saturday, March 27, 2010

Moving--Day 3--March 27

We are in Nashville! I think we're halfway there!!

This morning, we just got up and got on the road because it was a longer driving day--350 miles. I think we were in the car for 5 hours. Or 6. It felt like 32.

The drive from St. Louis to Nashville is not pretty. Boring, boring, boring. But a little hilly.

We got in to the hotel around 4. It's not really in Nashville. I think we're 20 miles south. So we didn't go to any local attractions. I did hit up the local Target for some laundry soap and tape for Ivy's chin.

Thankfully, the Courtyard Hotel has guest laundry services. Even with a diaper on, Ivy's had accidents every day. Her carseat and clothes were in dire need of a washing. We spent the evening swimming and playing on our little patio.

It's 8:45, and Jamey's been sleeping for an hour. Ivy's bathed and goofing around. I might hit the workout room or the shower. And I think Jeremy's waiting for his turn on the computer.

Moving--Day 2--March 26

We woke up in Cedar Rapids, IA. We all went swimming as soon as we got up. The pool was FREEZING! After baths & showers, we hit the road and got to St. Louis around 3:30. The drive was pretty easy. Both kids napped; I even got a short nap in. The Doubletree was very nice. Best pool I've seen in a long time. It didn't have free Wifi though.

We drove over to the Arch. Did I mention, the Sweet 16 NCAA tournament was going on there, and traffic was bad down there. And the river was really high.

We had fun at the Arch. Spent a lot of time in the Western Expansion Museum and bought a few postcards. We didn't go up because the tickets were all sold out, and it was windy, and I'm terrified of going up there. Did it once when I was in college and have no need to do it again. And the kids are too young to care.

Jamey is totally lucking out on this trip. I nurse him to sleep in one of the beds and then move over to the other bed with Ivy. Right now, he's got the whole bed to himself while the rest of us watch Terminator 2 on USA.

We got to bed around 9 and no one woke up until 8 am!

Friday, March 26, 2010

Moving Day -- March 25

The movers were due to show up between 8-10. Everyone told me to expect them early, so we got up at 6. We pulled bedding off the beds and tossed in the last load of laundry. We drove Jeremy to work because the movers are hauling his car. When the kids and I got home, I put Jamey down for his nap--think he'd just get in a bit of a nap. Then the movers didn't show up until 11:30!!

They seemed to move really slow. At 3, I asked them to get all our stuff out of the house so I could vacuum and get on the road.

The kids and I cried goodbye to every room in the house. Remembering my first thanksgiving turkey, their first steps, those dumb dogs.

Then we picked up Jeremy from work and headed to Cedar Rapids. The kids alternated between being happy, sleeping and screaming. We got in to the hotel around 9:30. The kids were super excited to jump on the beds. We didn't get to sleep until 11. Thankfully, they didn't wake up until 8.

I don't think it seems real yet that we're not coming home. Ivy had asked several times to "go home tonight." She wants "Lola puppy" and Baby Sonny.

Thursday, March 25, 2010

Parenting 7th graders

At the park yesterday, there was a group of 7th grade boys skate boarding and hanging out. I know they were in 7th grade because they said so. One of the boys called his mom for permission to do something else and ended up swearing and yelling that he just wants to be with friends, being at home is boring, and she's a bitch. He hung up and announced to his friends that he had to get out of there because his mom was calling the cops to drag him home.

How do you get from this adorable sweet cuddly baby to that? I have no idea, but the lack of respect on both sides was evident. After watching NBC's Parenthood the other night where a 15-yr old girl was sneaking around and lying to her parents, I was a little fearful that angst is inevitably in
my future.

Then 7th grade boy (who happened to look exactly like Matt Reich) called his mom for permission to go to the skate park. It was a wonderful conversation about negotiation, expectations, and compromise. Renewed my faith in teenagers and parenting.

Moving day

Today's the day we leave our first home. I flip flop between crying and not. I'm sad to leave the place we bought together when we were just starting out almost 6 years ago. It's the home of all our memories together. I mean, we had those stupid dogs here. And brought our kids home here. This is a special place. Sure, most of the time since we've had kids, I've been scheming to buy a bigger nicer house, but when it comes right down to it, I've invested lots of my heart into making this a home. And I'm sad to leave.

Monday, March 22, 2010

3 more days

Well, we only have three more days in our house. Things are pretty much done. My mom and the kids are coming tomorrow to help finish packing "the last little stuff," which will probably take all 10 empty boxes we have in the garage. And clean the house and shampoo the carpet. The lawn service is scheduled for spring clean up, and I have estimate for tree trimmers. Here's hoping someone can patch that big hole in the front yard where the pool sat last summer!!

Ivy got her stitches out this morning. She was a champ--laid real still while the dr. pulled them out. And she wanted to keep the "little spiders from my chin." So we'll end up putting them in her scrapbook.

It's been warmer out, so I leave the deck door open a lot. Jamey & Ivy like running back and forth, and I can't believe how much fun it is to empty the dirt from the herb garden.

Here's hoping for some uneventful days!

Sunday, March 14, 2010

Stitches

Last night, we were with 7 other couples and 9 other little kids at one of our favorite restaurants for a going-away party.

Ivy and two other girls were running up and down a short hallway by our table. They'd been playing for an hour and half between bites of quesadilla and sips of chocolate milk.

Ivy tripped and fell flat on her face. We saw her crying, and Jeremy picked her up wiping blood off her face. By the time he got over to my chair, we knew it was her chin, not her mouth.

She had a huge gaping laceration across her whole chin. We raced over to Children's ER to get her fixed up. As soon as we got in there, the nurse put some numbing cream on her chin and covered it with a clear bandage. After a short wait, we got into a room. A very nice woman named Mindy came in to show Ivy what the suture nurse was going to do. Then someone came in to give Ivy some tylenol with codeine.

When Ivy fell, she screamed but let me put a napkin on her chin. I sat between the car seats on the way to the hospital, singing "Ivy, Ivy, Ivy." She was pretty quiet the whole time we were in the ER. Although, she looked sad and overwhelmed a lot. She was still easily distracted with Nick Jr and coloring. And a red popsicle.

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity--really about two hours from the fall--the doctor and the suture nurse came in. Get this! The dr used to work at the Children's hospital in Hollywood.

I laid down next to Ivy for stitches. Mindy held up a dvd player for Ivy to watch Finding Nemo. She screamed like crazy during the first stitching, but she didn't move at all. After the first couple stitches, Nemo kept her attention. It took a while to do all the stitches, because her chin kept bleeding.

She got nine stitches total: two inside and seven outside. We have to keep ointment on it for five days, and she'll get them out after seven days.

She is not real happy about taking tylenol and motrin. And she doesn't like getting the ointment put on.

She has said things like "ouchie chin" and "floor ouchie." so she knows what happened. It's not slowing her down though. Makes me nervous to see her running around.

Thursday, March 4, 2010

3 weeks to go

The movers will be here in 3 weeks. I do feel like we've gotten a lot done, but when I look around the house, there's so much more to do. Jeremy says the storage unit is almost full. I'm going to have to take a picture of that. My brother is coming over the weekend to haul some stuff up to my mom's house. I am not putting my scrapbooks in storage! And we're giving her some furniture we just won't have room for: a really great cubby shelf and our spare bed.

When I haven't been packing and sorting and organizing, I've been reffing the kids, who have had a severe case of the crabbies for two weeks. Jamey cries like I'm tearing his arms off every time I leave the room. We think maybe he's just angry that I can walk faster than he can. And that he can't say any words. Ivy maybe has a bit of cabin fever. She's becoming very adept at picking and teasing already. And good grief, she pushes and pulls and knocks over and hits. And she won't eat. On a happy note, she's slept 12-13 hours straight the last two nights.

I'm getting eager to spend the days outside!

Thursday, February 18, 2010

The Countdown has begun

The movers are coming 5 weeks from today. And I have so much to do!

Thankfully, we've done all the big stuff:
1. new kitchen floor
2. hired a property manager
3. finished all the little projects
4. hired movers
5. had the house and carpet professionally cleaned
6. rented a storage unit

Now, I'm focusing on figuring out what goes in storage and what goes to Goodwill and what goes to Florida. I dropped off six boxes of reusable stuff at Goodwill yesterday. Does anyone want a bedrail?

Jeremy leaves tomorrow to find a house. We're hoping for a mondo house near biking/walking trails , playgrounds, and a pool. It's exciting to think we'll have a house on Saturday.

Saturday, January 23, 2010

A bend in the road

It looks like we're moving to Florida.

After our Thanksgiving trip, Jeremy talked to his manager about a short-term move so we could be closer to his family. Kroll Ontrack has an office in Miramar, so we're going to spend two years down there. I want to be back here before Ivy starts kindergarten.

Come visit!

Tuesday, January 19, 2010

IKEA pulled through!

When we picked up the mail today, I thought the heavens had opened up.
1. My new stitching project arrived :)
2. A phone case arrived
and then shock and dancing and WOO HOO
3. a small package from IKEA delivering happiness--the two replacement parts for our TV stand!!

Jeremy promptly got the pieces put in and the glass put back on. YAY for no more cardboard covering the front of the PS3 shelf. And hopefully Jamey will stop playing with it.

Monday, January 18, 2010

Working Girl

So, it looks like I'll be "going" back to work.

Someone found me on LinkedIn, suggested I email someone else who wanted a technical writer to work off-site part time. That's my dream job--staying home with the kiddos, sitting at the computer for a few hours a week, and bringing home Coffee Money. :)

I was really excited going in to the interview last week. When I left, I was less excited and thought about turning it down. But then I figured, "what the heck? It'll be good for me to have something else to do."

Besides cleaning, laundry, cooking, kids, activities, play dates, the zoo, shopping, stitching, scrap booking, getting my girlie figure back, and spending countless hours playing Scrabble on Facebook.

Saturday, January 16, 2010

I'm feeling the first pang of guilt. I'm packing up and selling part of my babies' tender moments. This little part of their babyhood will be gone forever.

I know I'm being dramatic, overly so. But with a smile for fond memories, I've packed up the cloth diapers and am sending them off to a lucky lady in Tennessee who won the eBay auction.

It's back to 'sposies full time for me.

Wednesday, January 13, 2010

Preschool Shopping

Ivy and I went to Circle of Friends preschool tonight for an open house. If we're going to put her in school next year, now's the time to be shopping around.

Circle of Friends is associated with the school district and is in the school we go to ECFE. She knows some of the teachers; she knows the building; it's four blocks away.

I think she'll enjoy going to school and having planned activities. And I don't know if I want to home school. I like the idea of Circle of Friends, because it's close. I don't want to drive to EP twice a day--twice a morning!

I'm also going to look into Little Saints preschool and the Spanish Immersion school in Eden Prairie.

Weaning?

We night-weaned Jamey in December. I just couldn't take waking up 2-3 times every night anymore. Jeremy did it. I slept in the basement for a week while he "Ferberized" Jamey. Jamey got it in about two nights. Sleeping all night has been glorious!

Tonight, I was out with Ivy while the boy were home. Jamey hit the wall, so Jeremy took him up to bed. My baby boy zonked out without nursing. And chances are Daddy's going to do bedtime again tomorrow night so I can go to Archivers for scrapping.

It's bittersweet to not nurse him to bed and know this is the beginning of weaning. But mostly I'm excited. Don't get me wrong, I'm all for nursing for as long as possible (at least a year), but by the time that year comes along, I'm ready to be done.

Monday, January 11, 2010

Hating IKEA spare parts

We need this part!

Our TV stand was broken when our darling little boy was learning to stand up. IKEA doesn't have this part available in the store, and we can't order one because it's been longer than 90 days since we bought it.

Where can I find one? Well, two, actually.

It's part number 115280 for the Tobo TV unit.

Saturday, January 9, 2010

What a surprise!

On Wednesday, I had the kids in the bath. It's really fun to watch them play in the water together. Ivy likes to pour water on Jamey's head. He likes to stand up constantly. They fight over who gets to sit by the faucet and who gets the pink pacifier. And over which wash cloth is whose.

Ivy could and often does play in the water for close to an hour--at least until it gets cold. Jamey, on the other hand, wants to splash a bit, get cleaned, and get on to other business.

I got him out, toweled and lotioned. Mmmm. I love smell of baby lotion! I put him down in the living room so he wouldn't try to throw himself back in the tub while I was getting Ivy out. As I was pulling Ivy's shirt over her head, Jamey crawled into the bathroom. Very pleased!

He crawled all the way up the stairs all on his own!! It was spectacular! He's a stair-crawling man now. He's so happy to be able to go with us, and I love not having to carry him all the time. And he's so little. It's so cute to see him standing on the steps.

Now to teach him to go down.