Raising Cubs in a Campground

Our shopping trip this morning zapped poor Sammy. I hadn't even finished nursing Julia and he was sound asleep. I suppose being up until 10:30 and then again from 4am-5:30am would make me tired too. Wait, scratch that - I am tired, but thanks to Jennifer's thoughtfulness I have two Cherry Coke's to keep me awake. I want to record a couple of special moments I've shared with the kids in the midst of the worst colds they've endured since Julia's was a newborn. The first night Sam slept in our bed he leaned over to kiss me on the forehead before falling asleep. There isn't much that tops an unsolicited kiss from your child and I'm a sucker for forehead kisses. Then today while I was singing and rubbing Sam's back before his nap, Julia started rubbing my back. She even took a moment to stoop down to her brother and give him a love pat as well. It is humbling to know that no matter how short I get with them, they posses the capacity to forgive ...

It has been a loooooong, horrible day at our house. Sam "slept" in our bed last night so I'm pretty sure it's only a matter of days until I'm sick with the same crud. I don't think I'll be able to get away with whining, "nose ruuuniiiinng" and expect someone to drop what their doing to come wipe the snot. After 3 hours of doing this for Sam I finally said enough is enough. He's old enough to take the Kleenex he's holding in his hand and wipe his nose himself. It doesn't help that 75% of the time there isn't anything to wipe. He's feeling it running inside his nose. I refuse to wipe when I can't see anything. His poor face is chapped enough. I'm sorry he's sick and I'm trying to be compassionate, but it's every 5 minutes that he is whining about something. Not to mention that Julia is still sick and needy herself. I'm not asking for sympathy, I just need an outlet for my frustration - frustra...

laughing all the way. Ha! Ha! Ha! It has been our tradition since Sam was born to ride a tractor out to the field of Christmas trees to pick out the perfect fir tree. This year we've had to get creative in order to continue that rather pricey tradition. Thanks to Brian's parents we'll be dashing through the snow this weekend (as long as the weather forecast holds true) to "cut" our Christmas tree at Grandma and Grandpa's house. For half the price I picked out a tree today at a local nursery to "plant" in the woods. With a saw in hand and two kids in tow we'll venture out to find our perfect tree again this year. The reindeer who witnessed our little deception have been sworn to secrecy. That goes for you too!

The news didn't start until 10:30 because of college football so the number of people who would have just happened to see the kids on tv dropped significantly. Oh well. At least they made it into the segment . If you listen closely you can hear Julia's vehicle noises in the background. Bonus points go to Carrie who spotted me holding a sleeping Julia during part of the clip!

You can't walk down the toy aisle at Target without noticing the ever increasing number of recall notices. We are on tight budget so ordering expensive European toys is not an option for us (and probably not for many people) but there is this cute family owned toy store in St. Paul that I enjoy shopping at because I can usually find small, unique, and affordable things that normally I'd have to pay to have shipped to my home. After finishing our Saturday chores by 9am we piled into the van for a trip into the city. The kids were in heaven with two different train tables to choose from. I, on the other hand, was overwhelmed by the choices. What in the world do you get for your second-born who just turned one? While I was carefully looking over every toy I noticed a woman that looked awfully familiar. It turns out she's a WCCO news reporter. She asked if the kids would play at the American made train table for a few minutes so they could get some footage for a piece...

Congratulations Mom and Paul! I took my first "engagement" photos before Thanksgiving dinner on Thursday. I put quotes around engagement because they eloped on my mom's 60th birthday a few weeks ago. Hope you like them Mom.

jumping on the bed nobody fell off but, the biggest one said let's try sitting on the couch instead.

Wanna see more?

I've got a couple posts worth of photos that I've been meaning to share: Halloween and Sam & Julia's birthday party. I better upload them now before the holiday rush and they get completely forgotten. This batch is from the Halloween party we go to every year. The weather was calm and warm enough to be outside without being bundled up. The host were brilliant. Instead of the usual games geared towards adults (who then couldn't play because the children needed supervising) she incorporated the kids into the fun. We wrapped Brian up as mummy and we scavenged the woods for items on a list, including a pine cone that I climbed way up in a tree to retrieve. Just for fun, see if you can list off any of the costumes you see. Here's another hint on Brian's costume : politics Doesn't Julia make a cute Little Red Riding Hood? Ok, on to the party.... (October 13th, 2007) Sam and Julia's Birthday party this year was at McDonald's playland. Cousins, ...

...until it got close to bedtime and we realized the keys were locked in the van and it would be 45 minutes before Brian returned with the spare key to unlock the doors. Thanks for a fun evening Gene and Rena! The kids sure love coming to Grandma and Grandpa's house! (and so do we)

I have been prepping Sam in hopes that he won't be scared to sit on Santa's lap this year. I don't have pictures from last year, but one look at this one will make this year's apprehension look like excitement. We took the kids to the mall last night to get a glimpse of the jolly fellow and let Sam warm up to the idea at his own pace. Here are the pictures from our first try. I'm sure we'll give it another go soon. Stay tuned... I was a tad disappointed to not see the usual Santa, but when this kind soul asked one of his elves for a Sharpie (a purple one) "because the elves like purple", my heart softened as he carefully checked off the toy train from Sam's letter and made a note to make one for Julia too. Notice Julia's expression says about the same thing Sam's does, "Don't you dare leave me here with this dude!"

Sam's hair was getting poofy or "Big" has he called it once so I pulled out my new clippers and gave it my best shot. Right before the holidays, you say? Yep. More pictures are taken at Christmas than Thanksgiving so I figured it had time to grow out if I messed it up too bad. We are trying to save money wherever we can and dropping $17 into each hair cut for Sam is rough. By his third trip to Mommy's Barber Shop the cuts will be free . Woo-hoo!

Today is not at all like yesterday . *sigh* That's all the venting I have time for because we might be having a showing this afternoon and with Brian working today, my "break time" has to be spent cleaning. *double sigh*

As long at the sun isn't glaring in my eyes, I prefer a sunny day to a cloudy day - just like I prefer a battle free and pleasant day with the kids rather than a day filled with whining and unwillingness to get along. Thankfully today has been one of those days the kids play nicely together, Sam helps pick up and goes down for his nap without a hitch, and the house is clean before nap time rather than having to clean during nap time. When I look at this picture I'm reminded that without the hard times, we can't truly appreciate the good times, and without clouds, what would God use to paint such beautiful sunsets?

These are way better than the boxed dinner I have in the oven.

You might remember Brian's request in this post . Any guesses on what his costume is? Click here if you need a hint.

8 - the number of times Sam threw up last night 45 - the number of minutes of sleep I got from 10pm-3am 12:45 - the numbers on the clock when Julia started throwing up 2 - the number of times I changed sheets on a bed last night 4 - the number of times I changed a towel on a bed (I wised up and saved myself a heap of work and laundry) 5 - the number of times Julia threw up last night 4 - the number of loads of laundry I did in the past 24 hours 4 - the number of loads of laundry still waiting to be folded and put away 2 - the number of clues I had that we were headed for trouble (Sam said his tummy hurt while we were eating dinner. I chalked it up to his tummy was full cuz he actually ate a complete dinner for once. Then later I was at Owen and Staci's dropping off their wedding album when Staci asked how the kids were doing because Moriah had started throwing up that evening. Brian called me as I was pulling into the driveway at 9pm to say Sam had thrown up.) 13 - the num...

We went for a walk today for the first time in a loooooong time. I'm not good at those transition weeks when the weather changes and it requires coming up with a new setup. I thought the fresh air would be good for us and since for once it wasn't windy I dug out the necessary hats, mittens, blankets and coats we'd need. Before long we were cruising along the paths of our neighborhood. "What lives in there Mommy?" asked Sam. "Maybe a.....squirrel?" "What about an elflint ?" "Silly Sam, Elephants live in Africa and Asia." A little while later...What do you think lives in there?" "Hmmm...maybe a chipmunk?" "What about a giraffe?" and on and on we played this little game. The only accurate animal he came up with was a "stunk". But according to Sam, "They're iiiiiishhhhhy." Gosh, I love this kid!

Today holds a special place in my heart. I can trace it all the way back to my freshman year of high school when my friend Owen and I created this silly tradition where we'd meet at Dawn Benkowski's locker (#111) at 11:11 am on November 11th. I know it's odd and quirky - you don't have to tell me. With the possible exception of when I was in Santiago, Chili on 11/11, we've made the effort to reconnect on this day for the past 16 years. Well, except for the meeting at Dawn's locker part. Instead we send letters, make phone calls, or write an email. I'm happy to share that today we were able to mark our tradition with a gathering at Owen and Staci's home. See, they happen to have a daughter who was born on November 11th and today was a big day for her - a first birthday and she was being dedicated during the family's home church gathering. After some warm up songs with the kids Moriah was dedicated to the Lord. It was a powerful time of praye...

No snow here in Minnesota....yet (at least the kind that sticks to the ground. I did see a few flakes swirly in the wind earlier in the week.) I couldn't help but change my blog header to reflect our current situation and upcoming holiday. I took this picture back in March when we got over a foot of snow. We learned this week that the road less traveled is not the one for us. We are not meant to move our family five hours away and live in the Northwoods. Which road is it going to be then? Only God knows. Until He lets us in on His plan we'll do our best to find joy in the journey. Here are the words that Michael Card sings in the last song of my play list: There is a joy in the journey There's a light we can love on the way There is a wonder and wildness to life and freedom for those who obey. And all those who seek it shall find it A pardon for all who believe Hope for the hopeless and sight for the blind. To all who have been born of the spirit And who share incar...

I never thought I'd have to write this post. Honestly I had a completely different one composed in my head for when we got the phone call from Voyageurs National Park but....I was the one to get the letter from Voyageurs in the mail that said they gave Brian's dream job to someone else. It's going to take a while to not feel anger towards a place I used to love. The place we had such fond memories. The place we fell in love. The place we wanted to raise our family. The place we wanted to share with friends and family who would come to visit. The place we wanted to grow old together. **sigh** The big question is what will do now? We don't know so please, please don't ask. This is all we know for now: We will still sell our house (read- give away our house considering the price drop). Brian will continue to look for a better job so he doesn't have to plow snow this winter or break his back landscaping in the spring. I will continue to grow my business ...

Friday night : took an hour to fall back asleep when she woke at 1:30 Saturday night : took 15 minutes to fall back asleep Sunday night : only up for 5 minutes and didn't cry hardly at all (Instead, Sam was up 6 times.) Monday night : Not a peep from Julia and Sam was only up a couples times. (He's been waking up to use the bathroom.)

While watching Mr. Roger's Neighborhood the other day Sam was introduced to the Incredible Hulk. Mr. Roger's was showing the kids the difference between pretend and real. Upon seeing Lou Ferrigno in all of his Hulk makeup Sam said, "He has B**BS! Then looking at me with a serious face he concluded, "They're just pretend." I guess that qualifies for understanding the concept of pretend and real, right? Tonight Sam called me back into his room to tell me that he loves me. (A stall tactic if I've ever seen one, but one I don't mind the first couple of times a night.) He also said, "I like Tieran and the baby." I asked him what the baby's name was and he replied, "DAFFODIL!" He's never said that word in his life and knows very well that Kieran's little sister's name is Maisie . Where do they get this stuff??? I think Sam has finally quieted down for the night as I wrap up this post. Darn, no more funnies. By t...

but when you've gone to the trouble of taking your kids to the pool and have to get out after only 5 minutes because it's not just a Baby Ruth floating in the water....it's not funny. It wasn't funny when it happened in the bathtub three hours later either. Note: Just want to make it clear that it wasn't Sam or Julia at the pool. The tub? Sorry JoJo, this one's on you, Peanut.

Julia turned 13 months old today. I truly feel like I've been introduced to a new little girl this past month. She's always been a happy baby, but her giggles are much more frequent. She's always been fascinated with her brother, but now she loves to crawl on him and snuggle with him. There are even moments, albeit brief ones, where they play together. This picture shows her zeal for giving kisses lately. Obviously the new skill of walking is a new milestone (10/22), but it's the expressions on her face that show she knows we're proud of her that are priceless. She'll get herself into a standing position and give me the biggest grin before toddling forward a few steps (usually in the direction of Daddy). She is always pulling books out of the book basket to look at. She's drawn to the animals and pictures of babies. She does the appropriate signs when we get to the bath page or when there's a baby or puppy she's starts waving her arms and sa...