I picked Anna up from daycare today, and we hit Walgreens so I could pick up a photo for work. (Jack was sick, so Steve stayed home with him.) Once I got there, they told me that they had no record of the order.
Argh! I've done this with Walgreens before. They have this dumb system where you basically have to double confirm, and I forget the second one. I was so annoyed. It was snowing and cold out. I didn't want to have to come back. Then it occurred to me...I have an iphone! I love my iphone. It's so great. I'm great at text messaging now. And I can look something up online anytime I want.
I whipped out my phone and told the photo tech to hold on because I was going to resubmit the photo. It took a little bit (waiting for the Web pages to load), but I went online, logged in to my Walgreens account and then resent the photo. A few minutes later, they printed my photo and I was on my way.
I am so cool. Just like one of those young kids! :)
Thursday, January 31, 2008
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
The joys of NOT living in a small town
Steve and I always knew that we wanted to live near a larger city. But I only recently realized one of the truly great things about this.
You don't get recognized (for the most part)! I'm talking about those trips to the grocery store or wherever when the kids are being little terrors. Yeah, it's hard to believe that my angelic kids have terror moments, but they do. In fact, they are now at the age where they team up. I can handle one, but when they are both in feisty moods, there's trouble.
Yesterday we were at the grocery store and I bribed them to sit in the little car cart by getting them miniature balloons. I figured it was better than candy. It was fun alright. We went through the whole store with them bopping their balloons all over the place. And, every person that passed by, they shouted out, "Hi lady. See my balloon." Those were Jack's words. Anna tried to mimick him by just shouting out to random people, "bawoon, bawoon!"
By the time we got through the line, Anna was getting up and just being trouble with a capital T. I ended up carrying her out the store with her screaming and wiggling around like crazy. I know I should have felt embarrassed, but I didn't care at this point. I was just glad I didn't know anyone. I don't mind being the anonymous, "mother with crazy children."
You don't get recognized (for the most part)! I'm talking about those trips to the grocery store or wherever when the kids are being little terrors. Yeah, it's hard to believe that my angelic kids have terror moments, but they do. In fact, they are now at the age where they team up. I can handle one, but when they are both in feisty moods, there's trouble.
Yesterday we were at the grocery store and I bribed them to sit in the little car cart by getting them miniature balloons. I figured it was better than candy. It was fun alright. We went through the whole store with them bopping their balloons all over the place. And, every person that passed by, they shouted out, "Hi lady. See my balloon." Those were Jack's words. Anna tried to mimick him by just shouting out to random people, "bawoon, bawoon!"
By the time we got through the line, Anna was getting up and just being trouble with a capital T. I ended up carrying her out the store with her screaming and wiggling around like crazy. I know I should have felt embarrassed, but I didn't care at this point. I was just glad I didn't know anyone. I don't mind being the anonymous, "mother with crazy children."
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
The Happiest Place on Earth
So we're back from Disney World, the self-proclaimed, "Happiest Place on Earth."
We did indeed have some great, happy moments. But traveling with a 2-year-old, we also had some yelling and crying moments. That girl...when she decides she does or doesn't want to do something, she can get a little finicky.
But overall, we had a very nice time, and we're glad Grandma Vicki and Grandpa Jeff could join us. I think our kids are the only ones who think Cinderella's Castle is actually Mickey's house. According to Jack, that's where Mickey lives, but he lets Cinderella stay there sometimes and do some work. Hehe. :)
Here are some pictures from our trip. Thanks to Aunt Maggie, we had our Einstein gear in order when we had breakfast with the Little Einsteins (newer Disney characters that the kids watch). We also had a great time swimming and playing in the water fountains at the Curious George Playland at Universal. And finally, you might spot a picture in there of Steve with a big bass. He and Jeff went on a fishing excursion one morning, and they must have been doing something right because they caught a lot of fish!
Oh yeah, the best picture of the trip might be the one of Anna with Piglet. Piglet is giving her a hug while Anna is chomping on a nice sausage link!
We did indeed have some great, happy moments. But traveling with a 2-year-old, we also had some yelling and crying moments. That girl...when she decides she does or doesn't want to do something, she can get a little finicky.
But overall, we had a very nice time, and we're glad Grandma Vicki and Grandpa Jeff could join us. I think our kids are the only ones who think Cinderella's Castle is actually Mickey's house. According to Jack, that's where Mickey lives, but he lets Cinderella stay there sometimes and do some work. Hehe. :)
Here are some pictures from our trip. Thanks to Aunt Maggie, we had our Einstein gear in order when we had breakfast with the Little Einsteins (newer Disney characters that the kids watch). We also had a great time swimming and playing in the water fountains at the Curious George Playland at Universal. And finally, you might spot a picture in there of Steve with a big bass. He and Jeff went on a fishing excursion one morning, and they must have been doing something right because they caught a lot of fish!
Oh yeah, the best picture of the trip might be the one of Anna with Piglet. Piglet is giving her a hug while Anna is chomping on a nice sausage link!
Sunday, January 27, 2008
Part of the family
We're back from Disney. And while I'll have more on that later, I'm afraid we recently got some bad news. Steve's grandpa, Grandpa Jake, passed away a few days ago. This wonderful man had so many great traits. He always treated me like one of his own grandkids, which I loved. Since I'm away from my own family in Oklahoma, it's always been nice to have Steve's family here. They have always treated me like part of the family, and Jake did that, too.
I was never blessed to meet Jake's wife, Muriel, but he talked about her often. From the sound of it, they lived many years in mischievous marital bliss. Jake was in his 80s when I first met him, but you wouldn't know it. One of my favorite memories is when we went up north to the cabin, and Steve and I went golfing with Grandpa Jake...just the three of us. Well, someone had a bright idea to golf 18 holes, and I was dragging BIG TIME toward the end. By the 17th hole, I was groaning and moving slow. Meanwhile, Jake is off in the woods, looking for golf balls and never missing a beat.
I'll miss Jake this next summer. "Up North" won't be the same without him. I hope he and Muriel are now being mischievous together once again.
I was never blessed to meet Jake's wife, Muriel, but he talked about her often. From the sound of it, they lived many years in mischievous marital bliss. Jake was in his 80s when I first met him, but you wouldn't know it. One of my favorite memories is when we went up north to the cabin, and Steve and I went golfing with Grandpa Jake...just the three of us. Well, someone had a bright idea to golf 18 holes, and I was dragging BIG TIME toward the end. By the 17th hole, I was groaning and moving slow. Meanwhile, Jake is off in the woods, looking for golf balls and never missing a beat.
I'll miss Jake this next summer. "Up North" won't be the same without him. I hope he and Muriel are now being mischievous together once again.
Saturday, January 19, 2008
Brrrr
So we woke up this morning, and it was about -10° today. I was going to go to Target, but I thought better of it once I felt the chills coming in from the windows.
We were all hanging out in our family room when Steve made a comment about the cold. It went something like this: "This is the kind of cold that freezes your boogers while your outside, waiting for the bus. I should know. I grew up with this."
The tone in his voice was clear. He didn't have to say anything. I could tell he was thinking, You Oklahoma girls don't know anything about the cold.
Come on! I know I didn't grow up here, but doesn't 7 years count for anything? This is the girl who went to school at the University right by Lake Michigan. I used to drive and park at the marina and then jump on the "Park and Ride" bus to get to school. I was out there in single digit and below zero weather, my teeth chattering as I waited for the bus. I'll never forget the time where we were all waiting for the bus while the brisk lake winds whipped across our raw faces. We saw the bus coming around the bend and all breathed a sigh of relief. Then, the bus swiftly passed us by because it was full. Pft! Like I don't know frozen boogers.
We were all hanging out in our family room when Steve made a comment about the cold. It went something like this: "This is the kind of cold that freezes your boogers while your outside, waiting for the bus. I should know. I grew up with this."
The tone in his voice was clear. He didn't have to say anything. I could tell he was thinking, You Oklahoma girls don't know anything about the cold.
Come on! I know I didn't grow up here, but doesn't 7 years count for anything? This is the girl who went to school at the University right by Lake Michigan. I used to drive and park at the marina and then jump on the "Park and Ride" bus to get to school. I was out there in single digit and below zero weather, my teeth chattering as I waited for the bus. I'll never forget the time where we were all waiting for the bus while the brisk lake winds whipped across our raw faces. We saw the bus coming around the bend and all breathed a sigh of relief. Then, the bus swiftly passed us by because it was full. Pft! Like I don't know frozen boogers.
Wednesday, January 16, 2008
The Shoulds of the World
I'm a little overwhelmed lately by the "shoulds" in life. Though I do have a busy life, it's not really related to being a working mom. I handle that well, and the kids are at the age where they enjoy and learn at daycare. Besides, all moms and women are faced with shoulds. But honestly, there seems to be a million "should do this" and "should do that" things in the world. Here's what I mean:
The list goes on and on from things you should do at work to time you should take for yourself. Seriously? After all those shoulds, you're supposed to take extra time to yourself, too?!? Now I do pretty good. I exercise on the elliptical pretty regularly, I eat pretty good, I mostly drink water and I spend good time with my kids. But there's always the shoulds, hanging out there. Just this week, I was told by my new dentist that I should floss because I have deep gum pockets (!?!), and the nurse at my "woman doctor" tells me I should consider a calcium supplement and Vitamin D pill to keep my bones nice and strong.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not bitter. These are good shoulds, but sometimes I just want to be satisfied. This is why I figure there should be some other shoulds on the list as well. Here's my list. I should hope that you try one or two of them out.
- You should read with your child 20 minutes a day.
- You should exercise 30 minutes a day.
- You should brush for at least a full minute twice a day and floss once a day.
- You should have 8 glasses of water in a day.
- You should have 3-4 servings of milk in a day.
- You should have a combined 9 servings of fruit/vegetables.
- You should put money into retirement.
The list goes on and on from things you should do at work to time you should take for yourself. Seriously? After all those shoulds, you're supposed to take extra time to yourself, too?!? Now I do pretty good. I exercise on the elliptical pretty regularly, I eat pretty good, I mostly drink water and I spend good time with my kids. But there's always the shoulds, hanging out there. Just this week, I was told by my new dentist that I should floss because I have deep gum pockets (!?!), and the nurse at my "woman doctor" tells me I should consider a calcium supplement and Vitamin D pill to keep my bones nice and strong.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not bitter. These are good shoulds, but sometimes I just want to be satisfied. This is why I figure there should be some other shoulds on the list as well. Here's my list. I should hope that you try one or two of them out.
- You should watch Project Runway (or whatever your TV pleasure is) without feeling like you need to do something productive at the same time.
- You should let your kids (if you have kids) blow off dinner and just eat popcorn, toast or whatever...just for the giggles.
- You should call an old friend and just chat because honestly, aren't those the things that make us smile?
- You should buy something frivolous for yourself. Not for your kids (that's what I tend to do), and then enjoy it!
- You should not take work home. Trust me, it doesn't go away.
- You should buy yourself a special treat instead of waiting and hoping that your significant other will take your hints.
- You should built a chair fort out of blankets with your kids (or nephews, nieces, etc.) just for the sake of doing something silly.
- You should find a way not to worry about body image as much...and if you find a way, please let me know about it.
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
Did someone say Prom video?
You can't really make people understand your high school or college experiences. Even if you had the most hilarious friends or crazy dorm roommate, no one really "gets it" like the people who lived through it with you.
So here's a video from my senior prom. It's me, my good friend Amber, and our friend Megan. We were the "entertainment" for the prom. We were tired of seeing the same old stuff at prom, so we thought it would be brilliant to put together our own music mix and choreograph it. Of course, it helped having the senior class president as one of our good friends who could pull the strings to get us on stage. (By the way, it's long.)
Now, I don't expect this to be funny to that many people. Actually, it's kind of silly in parts. But I'm posting it for a select few, who I know will enjoy and appreciate it.
By the way, do you notice the long blond-haired boy at the right, popping up to take a picture every once in a while? Yeah, that's a story for a different day.
And thanks to my lovely husband for digitizing the original VHS version.
So here's a video from my senior prom. It's me, my good friend Amber, and our friend Megan. We were the "entertainment" for the prom. We were tired of seeing the same old stuff at prom, so we thought it would be brilliant to put together our own music mix and choreograph it. Of course, it helped having the senior class president as one of our good friends who could pull the strings to get us on stage. (By the way, it's long.)
Now, I don't expect this to be funny to that many people. Actually, it's kind of silly in parts. But I'm posting it for a select few, who I know will enjoy and appreciate it.
By the way, do you notice the long blond-haired boy at the right, popping up to take a picture every once in a while? Yeah, that's a story for a different day.
And thanks to my lovely husband for digitizing the original VHS version.
Sunday, January 13, 2008
All About Jack
So it's been a while, but now it's the "All About Jack" posting now. And while I don't have a dancing video to share, I do have some good stories. (Warning: These are totally random. If you don't feel like cute kid stories, I suggest you stop reading now.)
Jack is my little organizer. He likes things in order, and he likes his routine. He got a set of Pixar Cars for his birthday, and I think his favorite thing about them is the carrying kit that came with it. He promptly brought it home, and completely filled up each space. I don't really see him play with the cars that much, but he sure likes having them.
Jack isn't afraid to say what he thinks, either. The other day, we were at the grocery store and this old man was looking at Jack. Actually, he was kind of staring at him. And Jack said, "Hey! You man! Stop looking at me!" I did the motherly thing and told him that it wasn't very nice to say that, but all the while, the man is still staring. Jack repeated his warning, "Stop looking at me!" I promptly went in the other direction because honestly, I was wondering why an old man would provoke a little toddler like that. True, I'm sure this was my motherly instinct kicking in, but it was a little creepy. Though, this is my same little boy who at 2 scolded an older man in line at the grocery store. "Hey Grandpa!" he said. "It's our turn to check out!"
Just this weekend, I painted Anna's toenails, and Jack was dead set on having his done as well. Now, I'm all about gender equality and not stereotyping kids to be too boyish or girlie. But I was feeling a little strange about putting nail polish on my son. I tried to tell him that girls usually wear it and maybe we could put stickers on him instead. That alternative lasted for about 30 seconds before he ripped the stickers off and demanded polish instead. I checked with Steve, and he told Jack he could have it only if we took it off in a few days. Jack agreed immediately. He's no dummy. He knows how to agree to anything to get what he wants. So Jack has glittery blue polish on his toes, and he's thrilled. And you know what, I'm glad. In another few years, he's going to be surrounded by that boy/girl stuff that kids tease each other about in school. Right now, he can be a kid. No one is going to see his toes anyway.
And finally, my little sweetie sure is polite. I'm not sure where he got it, but twice this weekend he said something like, "This sure is a great dinner you put together Mommy. It's very nice."
I'll take any compliments I can get. And here's a picture of Jack and Anna with the gingerbread house they made with my mom. She said that Jack did the meticulous decorating while Anna ate it.
Jack is my little organizer. He likes things in order, and he likes his routine. He got a set of Pixar Cars for his birthday, and I think his favorite thing about them is the carrying kit that came with it. He promptly brought it home, and completely filled up each space. I don't really see him play with the cars that much, but he sure likes having them.
Jack isn't afraid to say what he thinks, either. The other day, we were at the grocery store and this old man was looking at Jack. Actually, he was kind of staring at him. And Jack said, "Hey! You man! Stop looking at me!" I did the motherly thing and told him that it wasn't very nice to say that, but all the while, the man is still staring. Jack repeated his warning, "Stop looking at me!" I promptly went in the other direction because honestly, I was wondering why an old man would provoke a little toddler like that. True, I'm sure this was my motherly instinct kicking in, but it was a little creepy. Though, this is my same little boy who at 2 scolded an older man in line at the grocery store. "Hey Grandpa!" he said. "It's our turn to check out!"
Just this weekend, I painted Anna's toenails, and Jack was dead set on having his done as well. Now, I'm all about gender equality and not stereotyping kids to be too boyish or girlie. But I was feeling a little strange about putting nail polish on my son. I tried to tell him that girls usually wear it and maybe we could put stickers on him instead. That alternative lasted for about 30 seconds before he ripped the stickers off and demanded polish instead. I checked with Steve, and he told Jack he could have it only if we took it off in a few days. Jack agreed immediately. He's no dummy. He knows how to agree to anything to get what he wants. So Jack has glittery blue polish on his toes, and he's thrilled. And you know what, I'm glad. In another few years, he's going to be surrounded by that boy/girl stuff that kids tease each other about in school. Right now, he can be a kid. No one is going to see his toes anyway.
And finally, my little sweetie sure is polite. I'm not sure where he got it, but twice this weekend he said something like, "This sure is a great dinner you put together Mommy. It's very nice."
I'll take any compliments I can get. And here's a picture of Jack and Anna with the gingerbread house they made with my mom. She said that Jack did the meticulous decorating while Anna ate it.
Monday, January 07, 2008
Best Birthday Present Ever
So I had a pretty uneventful birthday today. But I do have to share with you my favorite moment and gift of the day.
We had some dinner, and we were kind of hanging out afterwards. Well, Jack looked at me all serious, and he said, "Mommy. I'm not going to toot on you today because it's your birthday."
It just doesn't get any better than that.
We had some dinner, and we were kind of hanging out afterwards. Well, Jack looked at me all serious, and he said, "Mommy. I'm not going to toot on you today because it's your birthday."
It just doesn't get any better than that.
Thursday, January 03, 2008
Who needs Santa when George is around?
This posting is all for Anna this time around. Jack will get his turn in a couple of days.
Anna is quite a funny little girl. Her favorite phrase these days is "I do it! I do it!" She is asserting her independence, and she wants to do everything by herself. She had a great Christmas and visit when my mom was here. It was actually nice at Christmas because she and Jack are now at an age where they play and have fun together. I remember the baby days where you can't leave their side for an instant. This year, they were playing, giggling and having fun together. (And fighting some, too, but who wants to hear about negative things on a blog?)
Anyway, back to the title of this posting. On New Years' Eve, my mom and I took the kids to this Curious George event at the Children's Museum. You actually got to eat breakfast with George himself! I called ahead of time to get tickets, and the person informed me that they set a 200 child limit for the event. (Yeah, 200 children WITH their adults.) Needless to say, it was nutty. But, like the smart mother that I am, we went upstairs 5 minutes before the "photos with George" started. Only 1 family was in front of us, so we got to see George right away! Anna was thrilled! She sat on his lap right away and smiled nice and pretty for the camera (which she rarely does). Then she gave him a kiss, high five and told him "bye-bye" about 10 times. She wanted to go back for more, so we had to quick get her out of sight. After the event (there was a lame balloon drop at 10 a.m. for the New Year), we went down the stairs to try to get close to George one more time. He was the midst of dozens of crazy kids. Well, Anna found herself a little corner and blissfully danced along with George and the music. Of course, his back is turned to her and he had people surrounding him, but Anna didn't notice or care. It was so cute, I had to put a little video of the event here.
Back to more Anna stories. We got her a big girl bed recently. She loves it and is doing great. Don't worry, she is sleeping on the bottom part. And, because of my recent Ikea finds, I organized her closet, and I just had to put that picture in here, too.
Here's my final Anna story. Recently, we were eating dinner when Anna starting screaming and crying. It sounded like she was in pain, and I was sure she had bitten her tongue or something. We noticed that she was pointing to something on the table. We looked down and found a spider, crawling near her hand. She was so upset. It took us a long time to calm her down. Even later that night, she didn't want to sit at that spot because of the spider from earlier. It was so strange. This is our brave and fearless little girl, but she crumbled when she saw the spider. We've seen spiders before and no one in our house is afraid of them. All I can think of is to blame her Uncle Scott. :)
Anna is quite a funny little girl. Her favorite phrase these days is "I do it! I do it!" She is asserting her independence, and she wants to do everything by herself. She had a great Christmas and visit when my mom was here. It was actually nice at Christmas because she and Jack are now at an age where they play and have fun together. I remember the baby days where you can't leave their side for an instant. This year, they were playing, giggling and having fun together. (And fighting some, too, but who wants to hear about negative things on a blog?)
Anyway, back to the title of this posting. On New Years' Eve, my mom and I took the kids to this Curious George event at the Children's Museum. You actually got to eat breakfast with George himself! I called ahead of time to get tickets, and the person informed me that they set a 200 child limit for the event. (Yeah, 200 children WITH their adults.) Needless to say, it was nutty. But, like the smart mother that I am, we went upstairs 5 minutes before the "photos with George" started. Only 1 family was in front of us, so we got to see George right away! Anna was thrilled! She sat on his lap right away and smiled nice and pretty for the camera (which she rarely does). Then she gave him a kiss, high five and told him "bye-bye" about 10 times. She wanted to go back for more, so we had to quick get her out of sight. After the event (there was a lame balloon drop at 10 a.m. for the New Year), we went down the stairs to try to get close to George one more time. He was the midst of dozens of crazy kids. Well, Anna found herself a little corner and blissfully danced along with George and the music. Of course, his back is turned to her and he had people surrounding him, but Anna didn't notice or care. It was so cute, I had to put a little video of the event here.
Back to more Anna stories. We got her a big girl bed recently. She loves it and is doing great. Don't worry, she is sleeping on the bottom part. And, because of my recent Ikea finds, I organized her closet, and I just had to put that picture in here, too.
Here's my final Anna story. Recently, we were eating dinner when Anna starting screaming and crying. It sounded like she was in pain, and I was sure she had bitten her tongue or something. We noticed that she was pointing to something on the table. We looked down and found a spider, crawling near her hand. She was so upset. It took us a long time to calm her down. Even later that night, she didn't want to sit at that spot because of the spider from earlier. It was so strange. This is our brave and fearless little girl, but she crumbled when she saw the spider. We've seen spiders before and no one in our house is afraid of them. All I can think of is to blame her Uncle Scott. :)
Monday, December 31, 2007
Another year of marriage bliss and the glory of Ikea!
Steve and I celebrated our 7th wedding anniversary this past weekend by making a shopping trip to Illinois. They have an Ikea there, and I was beyond excited. Instead of getting each other presents for our anniversary, it's become our tradition to just go shopping together.
I told Steve I was serious about my Ikea shopping, but he didn't realize how much I meant it. Ikea rocks! Modern furniture, bargain price. That pretty much sums it up. Plus, they have escalators that actually take your cart up for you. How awesome is that?!? So we left Ikea with two big shopping carts full of closet organizers, a desk for Jack and some other odds and ends. After that, we hit the Apple store, and we are now both proud owners of the iPhone. I can't change over my service until the 2nd, but I can't wait. Those phones are great.
We still have Grandma in town, so we're hitting the town tonight with some friends wqto try out a steak place in downtown. We're not really livin' it up that much, as our diner reservations are at 8, and we have no intention of hitting the bars and whatnot just to stay up until midnight. So we might be lame, but at least we're lame together. Now that's compatibility at its best!
So time flies. Seven years ago, I was only 19, marrying "some older guy" from Wisconsin. I think both of our parents wondered what the heck we were thinking, but it worked out.
More info and photos from our Grandma visit later in the week.
I told Steve I was serious about my Ikea shopping, but he didn't realize how much I meant it. Ikea rocks! Modern furniture, bargain price. That pretty much sums it up. Plus, they have escalators that actually take your cart up for you. How awesome is that?!? So we left Ikea with two big shopping carts full of closet organizers, a desk for Jack and some other odds and ends. After that, we hit the Apple store, and we are now both proud owners of the iPhone. I can't change over my service until the 2nd, but I can't wait. Those phones are great.
We still have Grandma in town, so we're hitting the town tonight with some friends wqto try out a steak place in downtown. We're not really livin' it up that much, as our diner reservations are at 8, and we have no intention of hitting the bars and whatnot just to stay up until midnight. So we might be lame, but at least we're lame together. Now that's compatibility at its best!
So time flies. Seven years ago, I was only 19, marrying "some older guy" from Wisconsin. I think both of our parents wondered what the heck we were thinking, but it worked out.
More info and photos from our Grandma visit later in the week.
Wednesday, December 26, 2007
Livin' it Up!
Our family had a great Christmas, and I feel like I'm finally starting to get things organized again. This won't last long, though. While Christmas is finished, we've got a lot going on in the next week.
First off, my mom is coming into town. We're waiting for her arrival as a type. Both of her flights were really delayed, so the anticipation has is really mounting. We have some presents under the tree that we're waiting for Grandma Linda before we we open. Oooo, Grandma's plane better hurry up.
Then (as my mom and I always seem to do), our next few days are packed with activities. Tomorrow, there's a furniture place delivering a new mattress for Steve and me...and also a new "Big Girl" bed for Anna. Then later that night, Mom and I are going to the spa. It will be her first massage/facial, so that will be fun. Then we have shopping, a breakfast with Curious George at the children's museum and Steve and I have a couple of date nights. Grandma is awesome!
So remember that for all of you people out there that are lucky to have a mom/mother-in-law nearby. It's a wonderful thing. Not only do the kids love it, but it saves a TON of money on babysitting. Here's my quick point...when we have a night out at a movie or something, we'll likely spend $100 for the night. About $50 for babysitting and another $50 for the movie/dinner/popcorn/whatever. I'm not complaining, as we enjoy where we live and how it works out, but it sure makes you grateful for the Grandmas of the world. So thanks Grandmas! My mom is great and so is Steve's mom. We're lucky to have you around, even if you're not in the same town. Oh, and you're great for more than just the free babysitting. :)
First off, my mom is coming into town. We're waiting for her arrival as a type. Both of her flights were really delayed, so the anticipation has is really mounting. We have some presents under the tree that we're waiting for Grandma Linda before we we open. Oooo, Grandma's plane better hurry up.
Then (as my mom and I always seem to do), our next few days are packed with activities. Tomorrow, there's a furniture place delivering a new mattress for Steve and me...and also a new "Big Girl" bed for Anna. Then later that night, Mom and I are going to the spa. It will be her first massage/facial, so that will be fun. Then we have shopping, a breakfast with Curious George at the children's museum and Steve and I have a couple of date nights. Grandma is awesome!
So remember that for all of you people out there that are lucky to have a mom/mother-in-law nearby. It's a wonderful thing. Not only do the kids love it, but it saves a TON of money on babysitting. Here's my quick point...when we have a night out at a movie or something, we'll likely spend $100 for the night. About $50 for babysitting and another $50 for the movie/dinner/popcorn/whatever. I'm not complaining, as we enjoy where we live and how it works out, but it sure makes you grateful for the Grandmas of the world. So thanks Grandmas! My mom is great and so is Steve's mom. We're lucky to have you around, even if you're not in the same town. Oh, and you're great for more than just the free babysitting. :)
Saturday, December 22, 2007
The Christmas Post
Our stockings are hung by the chimney with care, and we're just hoping that our bathroom window stops leaking water. Okay, not a great lead-in, but we've had a crazy, busy week. We've had record snowfall in December in our area, and it really added up. On Wednesday, we noticed a steady drip coming from the bathroom window. Turns out, our something-or-other was frozen over. I don't know what it was, but it wasn't good and was causing an ice dam. Our roof is now cleared, though. I just hope we don't come home to a wet bathroom after all of our travels.
We're making our holiday rounds...Minneapolis, Rice Lake then to Appleton where Steve's mom lives. It's hard to believe that we used to do all that and then get on an airplane to go to Oklahoma. I don't like being away from family around the holidays, but we're able to handle things better now that we've learned how to pace ourselves. My mom is coming up Wednesday, and I am very excited. We have off of work until Jan. 2, so I get the whole time to hang out with her and the kids. Of course, I already have all kinds of plans while my mom is here. Shopping, spa visit, movies, night out with Steve. It's going to fly.
Well, Merry Christmas everyone. I hope you have a peaceful and blessed time with your families. Have safe travels!
We're making our holiday rounds...Minneapolis, Rice Lake then to Appleton where Steve's mom lives. It's hard to believe that we used to do all that and then get on an airplane to go to Oklahoma. I don't like being away from family around the holidays, but we're able to handle things better now that we've learned how to pace ourselves. My mom is coming up Wednesday, and I am very excited. We have off of work until Jan. 2, so I get the whole time to hang out with her and the kids. Of course, I already have all kinds of plans while my mom is here. Shopping, spa visit, movies, night out with Steve. It's going to fly.
Well, Merry Christmas everyone. I hope you have a peaceful and blessed time with your families. Have safe travels!
Monday, December 17, 2007
My Mr. Incredible
Anna is going through a huge Incredibles stage right now. She and Jack will take turns picking a show, and when you ask her what she wants to watch, there's no doubt in her voice. "Credibles! Credibles! Credibles!"
This story is the perfect lead-in to talk about my Mr. Incredible. Steve's birthday was on Saturday. He was supposed to be in London, working, on that day. But then I got stuck in an ice storm, and he canceled his entire trip to be home with the kids. He figured it wouldn't be a good idea for both of us to be randomly flying around the country, so he had them cancel his trip. Of course, he made up for it because the rest of his work team went. Steve ended up working many hours this weekend, over the phone and on his computer. It wasn't much of a way to spend a birthday. But he's a trooper.
We got Steve some presents for his birthday, but the real highlight was the cherry pie we picked up from Bakers' Square. He and Jack devoured that thing. Those boys were bonding over cherry pie. I wish I had a picture!
So, thanks Mr. Incredible. We know you had a lame birthday, but hopefully there will be blue skies ahead (especially when you're using your new ipod Touch). We love you!
This story is the perfect lead-in to talk about my Mr. Incredible. Steve's birthday was on Saturday. He was supposed to be in London, working, on that day. But then I got stuck in an ice storm, and he canceled his entire trip to be home with the kids. He figured it wouldn't be a good idea for both of us to be randomly flying around the country, so he had them cancel his trip. Of course, he made up for it because the rest of his work team went. Steve ended up working many hours this weekend, over the phone and on his computer. It wasn't much of a way to spend a birthday. But he's a trooper.
We got Steve some presents for his birthday, but the real highlight was the cherry pie we picked up from Bakers' Square. He and Jack devoured that thing. Those boys were bonding over cherry pie. I wish I had a picture!
So, thanks Mr. Incredible. We know you had a lame birthday, but hopefully there will be blue skies ahead (especially when you're using your new ipod Touch). We love you!
Friday, December 14, 2007
I'm back!
So I got through the icky Oklahoma weather and made it home Tuesday night. My favorite story to tell from the whole ordeal is driving from Tulsa to OKC. Northwest was saying that they couldn't get me out of Tulsa until Thursday! So I booked at flight from OKC and rented a car. I figured I knew more people in the OKC vicinity, so if I got stuck there, it would be better than Tulsa.
It was a rainy drive, and I was almost out of gas. In fact, I was running on fumes and my gas light was on. After the gas light came out, I squeaked out about 20 more miles on the highway. There wasn't anything in between there! Then when I stopped for gas, none of the stations has power. Therefore, I couldn't get gas. I was really scared I was going to break down on the side of the highway and that no one would really care since everyone seemed to have their own problems. Thankfully, I came across a gas station that had just gotten their power back, and I fueled up. Whew! After that, it was pretty much smooth sailing at the airport. I even got to eat Sonic, which I LOVE because Sonic doesn't come this far north.
On another note, Steve has been taking his physical therapy to help his back very seriously. He's been working on nearly every day and is doing lots of stretching. Here's a great photo of Steve and Jack stretching together on the floor. Jack wanted to be like dad. Of course, he didn't have the same stretchy band, so he's using his rubber snake. :)
It was a rainy drive, and I was almost out of gas. In fact, I was running on fumes and my gas light was on. After the gas light came out, I squeaked out about 20 more miles on the highway. There wasn't anything in between there! Then when I stopped for gas, none of the stations has power. Therefore, I couldn't get gas. I was really scared I was going to break down on the side of the highway and that no one would really care since everyone seemed to have their own problems. Thankfully, I came across a gas station that had just gotten their power back, and I fueled up. Whew! After that, it was pretty much smooth sailing at the airport. I even got to eat Sonic, which I LOVE because Sonic doesn't come this far north.
On another note, Steve has been taking his physical therapy to help his back very seriously. He's been working on nearly every day and is doing lots of stretching. Here's a great photo of Steve and Jack stretching together on the floor. Jack wanted to be like dad. Of course, he didn't have the same stretchy band, so he's using his rubber snake. :)
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