I already telled you....

Me:  "Hannah, guess what tomorrow is?"

Hannah:  "What?"

Me:  "June 1st"

Hannah:  "That means the new baby is coming to daycare!  Woo Hoo!"

Me:  "That's right.  Who is that baby again?  Is it a boy or a girl?"

Hannah:  "Ugh- mom!  Put on your listening ears.  I already telled you this- it's a girl."

Sad part about it is that I knew it was a girl, I was actually just trying to test her memory a little bit.

We've been waiting for you....

We've been watiting a long time for this kind of weather.
All week we were warned that Monday had the best chance of thunderstorms.  We got some storms through the night and today is very humid but so far no sign of those storms.

This evening after dinner the girls wanted to go outside to play and have a freezie (never too early in the freezie season to get started!). 

About 30 minutes into their play, Brian turned on the sprinklers.  Hannah was real interested in getting her feet wet and playing in the water that fell on the driveway.  Hailey had to see what this wet driveway business was all about too.

Step 2 got us a little closer

Step 3:  well, see for yourself

I love our nights in the driveway.  Sitting on lawn chairs, watching the girls play. 

Hailey could only handle soo much of the cold weather before she would burst out with a scream and then run away from the sprinkles.

 

I couldn't get enough of these adorable wet footprints leading to mommy and daddy.

Nothin' like a little fresh air

We had a good time at the lake this weekend!
We only stayed for one night and wanted to be home today to have dinner with daddy.
As you can see the girls had a great time :-)

Hannah kept grandma very busy while Hailey stuck to mom like glue.  Joe and Bobby were just a little too much for her to handle.  She was pretty warmed up to them by the time we needed to leave so hopefully this is progress and we don't have to start all over the next time we are here. 
That could make for a long summer!

I had a quiet ride home with just an occasional snore from one of the sleeping beauties.

Where are we going?

To the cabin!

Today the girls and I are off to the lake. 
Hannah was up bright and early this morning telling Emerson all about our plans.  They were dressed and ready to go before I had even considered taking a shower.
'Hold your horses, sweetie- we'll leave as soon as all of our things are done.'

Finally around 9:00 am I was ready to go.
I set up the DVD player in the car for the girls so they could watch a show on the way up.

We got about 15 minutes into the 60 minute trip and from the backseat I heard Hannah say "I miss my daddy already."  What a little sweetie!

About 15 minutes later from the backseat I hear whining and grunting (not from Hailey). 
Me:  "Hannah, honey, what's wrong?"
Hannah: "I can't see my TV, the sun is shining too bright! AUGH!"
Me:  "Sorry honey, mommy can't fix that for you.  There is nothing we can do about it so you are going to have to figure something out.  You could try your sunglasses or turn to look at Hailey's TV."

It got quiet and at the next stoplight I looked in back to find her like this.
Genius!

She had put her Dankie over her head and held her TV in her lap.

Good thing it isn't hot today and we only have another 20 minutes to go!

Vacation, All I Ever Wanted- Vacation, Had to Get Away!

 My 11 day vacation starts......now!

So really this is more of a stay-cation, as they say.

I have the next 11 days off of work (well, the next 6 days off work, then I have to go into work for one day and then another 3 days off).  My day on Thursday is shadowing a clinician at one of our sites to see if I can suggest some areas for improving efficiency.  So one day of work in the next 11 days - whatever,  I have wasted much to much time trying to explain that.

I have so much stuff that I want/need to do during the next 11 days but I know that realistically I won't get even half of it done.  I am starting to prepare myself now so there is no disappointment or hard feelings.

I needed this time off of work. 

If you see the picture above, you will see one of the first things I need to assure that I get done.

My stamping/crafting table is used for many things and most recently it is where I have been piling up the items that I wanted to get ready for that Just Between Friends sale.  In the middle of all of that chaos I made some cards - didn't put that stuff away either, and sorted out some more kids items to donate.

It is a huge mess and in order to get some scrapbooking done this coming week this table needs to be cleaned off.

My plan for today is to just simply make a list.

A list of everything that I want/need to get done.

Purpose of this is two fold.  First, just to assure that I have it all written down and secondly, my head is tired.  I have all of these mental lists floating around and there is so much noise in my mind that I am having trouble focusing on anything these days.

So, today I plan to get a hair cut (long overdue), sit at Panera and start my list, and then leisurely walk around Rosedale for an hour or so and remember what it feels like to not be shopping while on a lunch break.

This weekend I want to head up to Pine City with the girls and then Monday it is suppose to storm so we will probably plan on hanging low so we don't get disappointed if our plans have to get cancelled due to weather.

On Tuesday I will start checking away at my list.

I hope I can get a lot done and most importantly clear some of this clutter- not only from this table but from my head as well.

More on Child Labor

I hope when my kids look back at this blog and see all of the pictures of them helping (clearing off the table, cleaning the toilet, getting the mail, etc) they remember that they wanted to help and don't think that I was a slave driver or anything.

Tonight Brian was mowing the lawn and the girls and I were hanging outside.  The patch of hostas that line the driveway were sharing the space with lots of weeds and when I looked over it was bothering me enough to get my gloves and starting plucking!

Hannah had to run in and get her gloves too

 After I pulled the weeds, I would set them on the driveway in little piles and my little Hailey Monster would waddle over, pick them up and through them in our yard waste basket.
When Hannah got sick of plucking she would jump in with Hailey helping to keep the driveway free of green!
Seriously, such great little helpers tonight.  Actually made weeding kind of fun...

After the edging was done in the yard, Brian turned on the leaf blower to blow the dirt off the sidewalk.
Hailey scooted closer to Hannah.
Hannah turned and hugged her while repeating "It's ok buddy, there's nothing to be scared of."

When I was putting Hannah to bed tonight I asked her what her favorite part of the day was (we sometimes do that and most times I get to hear about the last thing she did at night like 'when i went potty and brushed my teeth" - you know the answer she gave because she had to say something for the assisgnment).
Tonight I got this  "When we were outside cleaning up, sticking together like a family"

Me too, Bean.  Me too.

Hats off to a great season!

It's over.

Scotty wins (acceptable choice after Paul and Hailey were voted off)!

I remember 10 years ago when this show first started.  Stacey and Gretchen watched the show and loved it.  We were all at the Busta's for a Idol finale party and as my friends were going crazy over the show, crying, and hanging on to every second waiting for Ryan Seacrest to announce the winner I was giggling on the couch making comments about how I 'just don't get it'.  Really?  You expect me to buy into this?

Gretchen told me over and over that I need to watch from the beginning.  Next season watch it and you will get hooked- it's a great show.  Well, that fall American Idol was getting ready to start and since I had nothing to lose I decided to check it out.

Well, they say a sucker is born everyday and that day that sucker was me.

Now here I am 10 seasons later, hooked.  I love this show.  Every year I watch, I vote, I cry.

I love the idea that these are nobodies.  Well, to be fair, their families wouldn't call them nobodies but to the average person, they are just people too.  I love the opportunity that is available for them with this show.  I love to watch their relationships with each other grow as you can see the connection that the idol contestants have.  What a special bond that they will share forever- I just think it's cool.

Tonight I was the one, on the couch crying (whatever- so I was bawling- don't judge), waiting on every word for Ryan (yeah, we are on a first name basis) to finally announce the winner.

Throughout the whole show Patty, Loriann, and I were texting like little school girls.  I am so glad we don't act our age :-)

When the show was over and I turned off the television, I felt this sense of calm come over me for a few minutes.  Finally, this show that has been consuming two evenings per week of my time, is over.  A few months of a break before it begins again in January.  Ahhhhh, looking forward to having my evenings free again without being glued to the TV.

Oink

Hannah wanted to play with Play-Doh tonight.

Sounded like a great idea!  This would mean a few minutes of mommy time.

How will I fill the space?  Watch Idol LIVE for once!  Woo Hoo!

Oh?!  You want ME to play Play-Doh WITH you?

We made pigs, snakes, cookies, ice cream cones, and 'mush'.

No need for words

She might not be talking much but there isn't anything this girl doesn't understand.

Tonight I asked her if she wanted to change her diaper.

She walked into Hannah's room, very gently lowered herself to the floor, lifted her legs, got her arms out of the way and waited.  Too cute, right?!

So cute that I went in the kitchen to get my phone and came back to find her still waiting patiently.

Nature's curtains

I missed it!

When did this happen?!

Just a few weeks ago I was blogging about snow and now the trees are full with leaves!

To be honest, I wasn't even convinced that we weren't going to get more snow.

I am happy to see that our curtains are back.

There are two windows in the house that we rarely close up.  The front window that looks out into the yard and the neighbors houses and the back kitchen window that faces our backyard.  The back window doesn't have any window treatment on it.  When there are no leaves on the tree in back, the sun shines through pretty strong in the am and if you aren't careful you could turn the corner and get shined in the eye!  The window in the front is a large window and even though we have curtains (on the inside) we don't close them.

I am sure my neighbors appreciate that there are leaves on the trees now :-)

Finger lickin' good

Hannah and Hailey picked out Cheetos for their evening post-dinner treat tonight.
Hannah:  "Mommy, I got us na kins so that we don't get our cheesy fingers on the couch."

I should do this every Friday

Today was going to be a great day.

It started as a regular 'ol day in the office.  A few hours of collecting emails. 

A few meetings and a few phone calls.

Then the day really started!

Today we had lunch at Benihana's.

Our friend and coworker, Patty, had a daughter, Melissa, who passed away 6 years ago from a brain tumor.  Today was her birthday, she would have been 19.

Melissa's favorite resturants were Japanese Steakhouses so each year on her birthday and day of passing, Patty honors her by eating at a Japanese Steakhouse.

We were looking at some pictures of Melissa yesterday when we realized that today was her birthday.  When we asked Patty about when she was going to go to the Japanese Steakhouse, she stated that her husband was in Princeton and she didn't know if they would make it this weekend.

I heard that and knew that we had to do something so within 15 minutes we had a lunch for Friday afternoon planned.  The whole team :-)

Part of the tradition includes a balloon release.

Balloons - with notes attached - sent to Melissa in heaven.

As a mother, I can not tell you what it feels like to watch that.

At the moment that the balloons start to take off you can almost picture Melissa clapping her hands adn bouncing up and down waiting for them and her personal note from her mommy.

It broke my heart.

I am sure that not a moment goes by that Patty doesn't think about her daughter.

However, when you feel sad when she tells stories or talks about it, she is happy. 

She celebrates the short 13 years she spent with her and cherishes every minute.

She is such a strong woman and I admire her for what she has been through.

As most of us freak out about the thought of our child tripping and skinning their knee, Patty had to help her daughter live out her life during those 18 months of treatment.  Unimaginable.

It truly was an honor to celebrate with her today.

Happy Birthday Melissa!

Top row:  Lola, Patty, Jessica

Bottom row:  Lori, me, Loriann, Joanne

After our lunch I had an appt for a full body massage and facial.

It was a gift from the girls at work from Christmas.  I scheduled the appt after our go live so I knew that I would be able to stay relaxed at least for the rest of the weekend.

Can you say "OMG!"?

That was amazing!!!!

I need to start doing this every Friday :-)

Putting it into perspective

One thing I absolutely love about blogging is when I share the memories that I have created with others and it in turn inspires them to document their own.

Since my sister, Kari, talked me into blogging in Jan 2010, I have been spreading the word to anyone and everyone who will listen.
Slowly others have joined us.  First Tammy, then my mom.  My friend, Patience from work was next.  Soon after was Stacey and then my sister, Jennie.  Most recently my friends, Lori and Loriann, from work have started blogs of their own.  (I am loving this!)

When I read Lori's first entry for her blog, something stopped me in my tracks.

I have been blogging for the past year and a half.  Religiously.  Some days I don't have much time and so I take a real random pic and then quick write something to be 'done'.  Other days there is a moment that happens that I need to talk about. 
A lot of time those moments happen, I get a pic taken, I sit down to start writing and then I spend minutes staring at the screen.  Where do I start?  How much should I say?
Almost like a writer's block or something.

I want to pour my heart out with every entry but most days it just isn't possible.

Anyways, reading Lori's entry inspired me.

She stated  "I would love to have the opportunity to read about moments from my childhood. This time I wouldn't only be reliving the memory, I'd be reliving it through the eyes of someone who loved me... no matter what I did"

And it hit me.
Again.
THIS is why I do this.  I want my children to see what things were like 'when I looked at this world'. 
It will be a good reminder for me as I fall a few days (or weeks) behind in my entries and then sit down to crank out a bunch of entries to 'catch up'.  Take your time.  After all, this will mean the most many years from now.

When Loriann and Lori were starting to talk about starting a blog it almost felt like I was pressuring them or trying to talk them into something and I kinda was. 
I would talk about mine or show them pics online and they would make comments about how they wished they would have done something like that.  Never to late to start.
We would sit at lunch and they would tell cute stories about their kids, things they said or did.  I would respond with "that'd be a great blog" or "It's adorable but you will have so many other adorable moments in your life that you probably won't remember that when they get older'.  It wasn't a threat.  It's just reality.
Once they finally started their blogs I heard things like "I caved".  It's all in good fun but really?!  I hardly call taking this chance, trying it out caving.  I call it brave.
It's brave to sit down and pour out your thoughts and feelings for others to see.

Think of the things you know about yourself from when you were little.
You have heard stories (and probably the same ones over and over) about things you have said or things you might have done but do you really get a sense of the kind of little person that you were? 

I want my children to have that.

Waiting

Hailey had a doctor's appointment yesterday.
It was a typical well child check and as long as we are here I'd better ask about her bow legs.

The appt was at 4:00 so that meant leaving work early so I could get from St Paul to Champlin to get the girls, turn around and drive to Maplewood.

Well, we made it!

I brought the girls a litte snack to eat in case there was a wait.
As soon as I pulled it out, Hannah grabbed the stool and made them a picnic.

My favorite part of this picture is little Miss Hailey just hanging out in her diaper.
I have missed those arms, elbows, and knees!

Get it Hailey!

Last night we were sitting on the couch upstairs when Hailey started running around the living room clapping and pointing.  She was squealing and turning in circles.

What in the world?!

It only took a few seconds before we realized that the sun was coming through the window and the dust in the air was shining.

 

She was trying to catch it!

Oh, to be young and care free!

What happens when your back is turned

Today on the way to Jackie's Hailey was crying because the sun was in her eyes.

I kept hearing Hannah whispering something to her.

When we finally got to a stoplight a few miles down the road, I turned to see this.

No wonder the crying had stopped.

It's a great day for a car wash

Last night Brian told Hannah that they could wash the cars today.

First thing Hannah said when she woke up "It's car wash day!"

Hannah, Hailey and I went to the outlet mall around 10:00 this morning.  We came back, ate lunch, and then played outside.  Hannah was outside the whole day.  She finally came in for dinner and was not happy when instead of going back outside to play she needed to take a bath.

I love days like this and when they are done I always wish that I would have just sat back for a few minutes and taken it all in.  Sometimes you are so busy running errands and filling cups with chocolate milk to realize how lucky you are. 

So far so good

We are finished!

The upgrade was a success!

Testing did not reveal any new issues and we made the decision to go live!

Whew!

By the way, today was suppose to be my date to the Twins game with Brian.  Remember my Bday present from Stacey.  Well, I totally forgot about this upgrade at the time so we had to change tickets for another time.  Turned out to be a good move since today's weather was horrible.  Cold and rainy.

Here goes nothin'

This weekend we have an EHR upgrade. 
We have communicated, tested, comminucated, and tested.
The system will be taken down tonight at 7:00 pm and tomorrow around 3:00 pm we will make the decision on whether or not we go live with the upgrade.

Today I feel nervous.  Did we do enough?  Are we prepared?  Did we miss anything?

At this point only time will tell.

Good luck to us!

Hannah's First Haircut

It took 3 1/2 years but Hannah finally needed a haircut.
Mostly because when her hair was just 'down' (minus any ponies or pigtails) she had a comb over thing going on.
The other night we were playing outside and the poor girl had hair in her eyes all night.  Try to get just a snapshot of the girls playing and there would be a picture of Hailey and Cousin It.
It was time.

So tonight after dinner Hannah and I headed up to Kiddo Klips in Champlin.
The whole way there Hannah told me that she wasn't scared and 'don't worry mom, I will be just fine'.

This place was so cool!

The kid chairs were planes, fire trucks, taxis, and police cars.

There was a huge wall that was a chalkboard for the kids to play with while they waited.

A train table, a doll house, handheld eletronic games, books and more.

For the bigger kids they sat in chairs that had a TV and video games.

I didn't save any of her hair.  The lady was making me feel sort of bad about it but I just couldn't convince myself for any reason why she would like to have a lock of her own hair when she gets older.  I know it's tradition and 'everybody's doin' it' but I just couldn't find the point.

She did great and although you wouldn't know (since she won't let me get an after shot) she looks adorable!

Monkey See, Monkey Do

Last night, before we went car shopping, we were playing in the yard.
For most of the evening Hannah had a plan.
She asked daddy to get out her slide, got her babies and started on with her night.
Hailey was only a step behind the whole evening, copying her every move.

Hannah decided to go down the slide with her babies on her lap.

Hailey thought it sounded like a great idea.

Emerson and Abigial needed to sit and relax.

Hailey thought her babies could use a rest as well.

Hannah took her babies for a ride.

Oh, good idea!

Although, where is my stroller?!

Oh well, this will have to work.

Car Shopping

We have another new car at our house!

A 2011 PINK MUSTANG

We are going to be spending A LOT of time in the driveway this summer.

What a difference a little rain can make

Remember that picture I posted the other day of the little hosta trying to poke it's way out?

Check out what happens once you add a little rain to that little guy!

Can't wait until that whole side of the house is green again!

"Our grill day"

Isabelle (2 1/2) , Emerson (9 mo) , Hannah (3 1/2), Nolan (4 1/2), Morgan (2), Hailey (19 mo), Jackie
Not pictured:  Bruce (6), Cora (3), Jackson (3 1/2)

Each year for Mother's Day and Father's Day Jackie hosts a BBQ for the moms or dads.

Hannah has been asking all weekend about our celebration.

Today is finally the day!

Hannah: "Mom, what day is it today?"

Me: "Monday, our celebration at Jackie's!"

Hannah:  "Today all the moms are going to take off their shoes and stay there??"

Me: "Well, we might not take off our shoes but we will be staying there?"

Hannah:  "Because today is our grill day!"

I always bring my camera and like to take a picture of the kids with Jackie.  It's fun to see how big the kids have gotten and how much they change over the years.

Before I was a mom

There was a time when I wasn't even sure I wanted to be a mom.

Now, I couldn't imagine my life any other way.

I have always liked this poem when it shows up in my email around this time of every year. 
So, in honor of Mother's Day, here it is.

Before I was a Mom,

I never tripped over toys

or forgot words to a lullaby.

I didn't worry whether or not

my plants were poisonous.

I never thought about immunizations.

Before I was a Mom,

I had never been puked on.

Pooped on.

Chewed on.

Peed on.

I had complete control of my mind

and my thoughts.

I slept all night.

Before I was a Mom,

I never looked into teary eyes and cried.

I never got gloriously happy over a simple grin.

I never sat up late hours at night

watching a baby sleep.

Before I was a Mom,

I never held a sleeping baby just because

I didn't want to put her down.

I never felt my heart break into a million pieces

when I couldn't stop the hurt.

I never knew that something so small

could affect my life so much.

I never knew that I could love someone so much. I never knew I would love being a Mom.

Before I was a Mom,

I didn't know the feeling of

having my heart outside my body..

I didn't know how special it could feel

to feed a hungry baby.

I didn't know that bond

between a mother and her child.

I didn't know that something so small

could make me feel so important and happy.

Before I was a Mom,

I had never gotten up in the middle of the night

every 10 minutes to make sure all was okay.

I had never known the warmth,

the joy,

the love,

the heartache,

the wonderment

or the satisfaction of being a Mom.

I didn't know I was capable of feeling so much,

before I was a Mom

Happy Mother's Day to my mom, my sister, my friends, all of the people reading this that wish to be a mom someday. 

And to my husband- THANK YOU- none of this would even be possible without you!