easter...

I hope you all had a great Easter. We had a very good, but busy weekend. We were in Iowa from Friday night until Monday morning. We had a great time with family, although there was a definite lack of sleep on the part of the kids and myself :) I think that I don't want to spend my time with my family sleeping because it seems like we don't get to see everyone much so I tend to not sleep much at all while at my parents. But we had a great time and it went too fast as always. We had Jackson's birthday party Saturday and Sunday consisted of candy, Easter egg hunts, naps and spending time with family. A perfect day in my opinion. Yesterday we left mom and dad's about 10 (and only forgot a few things) and headed to Galesburg to stop by the business office. We stopped and had lunch with Steve and Alli (and then Alli & Gavin accompanied us to Galesburg as well). We got home about 7:30 last night and are trying to recover today. We take off again Friday for WI to visit some friends so in the 2 remaining days this week I need to get laundry done and the house cleaned up. We'll see how that goes. :) We are looking forward to seeing some friends we haven't seen in far too long, so we are all excited about the coming weekend. Hope you all had a very Happy Easter filled with family and friends.

I'm uploading a bunch of pictures from the weekend to shutterfly, so feel free to take a look.

I'll leave you with a couple here. Have a great week everyone!

crazy day...

I'm tired already. :) I've been up since 5am. I do not get up at 5am EVER. I woke up and all the little things I needed to do today started running through my head...the things I needed to remember to pack, the kid's Easter basket stuff, pictures, camera (you get the picture). So of course I could not go back to sleep. So I actually got up and decided to be productive. I think everything is ready to go except that I still have to pack clothes for the kids and myself (which you would think would be the biggest concern...but...no). The house is picked up and the dishes are done. We've got about 6 more hours before we have to be out the door, and in that time I have to pack clothes, shower, get dressed, get the kids dressed, feed everyone, pack the car and get out the door so we get to Bryce's 4 month checkup ontime so we can then leave for Iowa. Whew...and did I mention that I've been up since 5 and am running on no caffine? Since I gave up pop for lent and don't drink coffee I'm kind of SOL today. :) I realize today that I am insane, what woman in her right mind gives up pop/caffine with 2 small kids at home? Anyway, Mr. Bryce just woke up (yes, he has been sleeping since last night...this is why I don't get up at 5am EVER) and is probably starving...so I'm off to get moving on this day...again. I leave you with a couple new pics of the kids. Happy Easter everyone!

there are no adequate words...

I've mentioned before how I tend to blog hop starting out reading this one, and then ending up somewhere many clicks away from where I started. Well about a year or so ago, I blog hopped my way over to The Spohrs are Multiplying. I read whatever post happened to be up that day, which was (I'm sure) funny and had some adorable pictures of Maddie. So, I added it to my Google reader. I went back through their archives and found out more about Maddie and was drawn in by her story. Maddie was a preemie, born 11 weeks early. As any of you who have been here before know, my cousins, Dale and Suzanne, have had 2 preemie babies both born 25 weeks gestation. I was hooked, and have been reading their blog ever since.

When I opened my Google reader yesterday, I saw a post that little Maddie had passed away on April 7, and I cried. I cried for a little girl I have never met and for her parents, family, and friends. There have been hundreds of posts written about Maddie in the last 2 days and as of now over $18,000 has been donated to the March of Dimes in her name. She has touched so many in her too short 17 months on this earth.

My thoughts and prayers are with her family. Thank you for sharing your beautiful angel with all of us.

following her lead...

In honor of Jodie's air it out post I've decided to give it a shot myself...


1. Our kids have no bedtime routine, it is not unusual for Brianna to be awake at 10pm (or later) this is our fault, but I do not have the patience to try to instill a bedtime routine.

2. I try to give the kids a bath every other day, but that doesn't always happen (read...almost never) Heck we are stuck inside all day, every day...how dirty can they be?

3. The thought of packing up 2 kids in carseats to drive down the block to the store (when it is too cold to walk) makes me want to cry, so we don't go anywhere.

4. I often threaten that we will not go somewhere because of bad behavior, but don't often follow through because it is usually more punishment for everyone else than it is for her.

5. I have showered 1 time since last Friday, it was also the only time I've left the house since then.

6. I can't remember the last time I dusted. Our living room furniture is supposed to be a dark wood, instead it looks gray.


7. I have stood in the shower until the hot water runs out because it is the only place I occasionally have some privacy.


8. Our 3 year old has a TV in her room, and it is on every night when she goes to bed.


9. I didn't feel guilty having Brianna in daycare. I realize now how many less dirty diapers I had to change while she was there. (plus she loved it)


10. I've taken a shower and put on the same (dirty) clothes I've worn and slept in for days on end...more than I care to admit.


There are a million more, but I'm not brave enough to share all of them :)


I'm embarrassed about these things because of the way I think people will react to them not because I'm truly embarrassed about them (well maybe the shower thing :)).
I just watched the Oprah show from yesterday and it is funny how I related to the mom's on there who said a million things I've been thinking, so I wonder why I still feel so ashamed of all the things I feel and why I wrote and edited this post about 15 times before I even felt slightly comfortable posting this.

twenty-nine...

In just a few hours I will technically turn 29 (7:12am). I will hopefully be in a blissful sleep at that time. In all honesty, most days I can't remember what age I am (it is a good thing I was born in 1980 so I can usually figure it out pretty quickly...as long as I remember what year it is :)) Some days I feel 80, and other I feel like I'm just a kid playing house. I look and my life and wonder where the time has gone. How is is possible that I have an almost 4 year old, and that my little man turned 4 months old today? My life has turned into a cliche...the days go slowly but the years go by so fast.
As I sit here thinking about the turns my life has taken in these last years, I find that while there are some aspects of my life that I thought would be different (job/career), there are other things...the important things...that are exactly(or better) than I always imagined they would be. I have a wonderful, loving husband, 2 great kids, and incredible family and friends. So, my gift to myself this year is to live in the now, to be grateful for what I have in this moment, and to not dwell on the things I don't "have". I tend to get so wrapped up "what-if's" and "if only's" and always wishing there was more...more time, more money, more space, that I don't realize that in reality I have all I ever need.
So, I am embracing 29 and all it's possibilities. Here is to the peace in knowing that I'm exactly where I want (and am supposed) to be.

whirlwind weekend...

Wait...what day is it again? Wow, we put a few miles on the car this weekend, but we ended up getting to every place we needed/wanted to be. Friday we packed up and headed to Iowa, we stopped by my aunt and uncle's house on the way through Cascade, so we got to see a few family members. We finally rolled into mom and dad's house around 11/11:30, and of course the kids were wide awake. I think everyone finally settled down around midnight or so. The alarm went off at 5am, which is just inhumane if you ask me. Bob and I got ready and put some stuff together for mom to take the kids and headed off to Galesburg for Coach Heimann's memorial service. It was a wonderful tribute to his life and the way he lived, coached, and taught. We were very glad we went. After the memorial service we grabbed some lunch and headed to Cedar Rapids to attend the wedding of one of my high school classmates. We had a fantastic time at the wedding and we finally went to bed about 20 hours after our day had started. Of course while the wedding was happening, there also happened to be a blizzard going on outside. We stayed with some friends in Cedar Rapids and drove back to mom and dad's around 6 Sunday morning in about 10 inches of snow. We spent some time with mom and dad and then headed for home around 8 Sunday night, getting us home around 11/11:30, with...you guessed it, two kids that didn't want to sleep. Finally everyone got to bed and then we had to be up this morning to go to a funeral. Nancy's cousin passed away and we didn't make it back in time to go to the wake last night (obviously) so we went to the funeral today. We left home around 10am and got home about 5pm. So, to sum it up...lots of time in the car, not much sleep, lots of time with family and friends...it is amazing how quickly your emotions can change when you have a sad event, a joyous one, and another sad one. But in attending both the memorial service and the funeral, I think it makes me appreciate the people around me even more and for that I am grateful. Much love to you all.

jackson is one...

This little guy turns one today. It is hard to believe that he is one already. I can't wait to see him in a couple of weeks. Happy Birthday Jackson! We love you!

chick craft link...

I found it back!! To anyone interested...here is the link to the chicks we made the other day.
Duck Paper Plate Craft

finger painting...

I know, I know...3 posts in one day. But just wanted to share our craft project from today. (These are probably getting old, I promise not to post every single one). This project came from Sarah (Miss Claire's mommy) she said the Child Life group at the hospital did this with the kids during the winter and the kids loved it. It was pretty simple to do, only a few things needed.

Shaving cream, glue, and food coloring (optional...Sarah said when they did this at the hospital they left it white). I'm not sure of the exact ratio of shaving cream to glue. In all honesty I put some shaving cream into the container and then added a bunch of glue, there was no measuring on my part during this process.
I split ours into 4 different containers and had this:
I then let Brianna loose to paint on paper plates. Obviously you can use paper, but we always have an abundance of paper plates around here and always end up short on paper thanks to my little artist.














After all was said and done it was a little messy, but easy to clean up and Brianna had a blast, although she was less than thrilled with how dirty her hands were.

We had a great time and finger painting is good for those of us a little over the age of 3 as well :) Thanks again Sarah for sharing the great idea!!

state of our house...monday edition...

So, in the 5-6 hours the kids have been up, our living room has gone from picked up to this... It sure is Monday around here, we're all still in our pjs, the house looks like the above picture, the tv has been on far too long, Bryce just wants to be held, I haven't showered, we are just eating lunch...leftovers and oranges, yum yum. But, it has still been a good day so far because even in the middle of this mess there was still enough room for an impromptu ballet recital and plenty of smiles from the little man.














Oh Monday...what are we going to do with you?

sunday flowers...

Yes, I know it is Monday, but I didn't get a chance to post this yesterday. Brianna and I made another bouquet of flowers Saturday. I think these turned out much better, and all of the colors bring a smile to my face on this gloomy Monday. Have a great week everyone!

friday craft...

Yesterday Brianna and I made chicks. I found the idea on the internet (but I'm too lazy to look it up and link it right now), pretty easy, and we had all the supplies, paper plate, construction paper, yellow paint, googly eyes. You put the pieces together with a stapler, but maybe glue would work better and not be so obvious. Oh well it worked out. I made one for Bryce with his handprints as the tailfeathers (hence the reason we have two). Brianna is loving all of our craft time and LOVES to paint, it is fun letting her do these things without getting crazy about how messy she is being. This afternoon/evening we may be making some more egg carton flowers, she had a blast doing those. I also saw a craft for making flowers out of kid's handprints (I tried one with Bryce's handprint, but it may be too small to get the desired effect and I was rushing) so I'm sure we'll be trying that in the near future. And my friend Sarah just emailed me a few craft ideas that I'm anxious to try, especially painting with shaving cream and glue! Maybe that is a project for this week. If we get to it, I'll be sure to post pictures. Thanks Sarah and Holly for all of the ideas you've sent me, Brianna and I are really enjoying our time together while we do these things. Without further ado...our chicks from yesterday...

busy week...

We've had quite the week around here. First of all the weather has been georgous (well Monday and Tuesday at least). We spent tons of time outside those two days, it did us all some good. Monday we walked to the bank and Walmart and then I decided I needed a haircut so we walked across the street and saw Gina and got my haircut. By the time we walked home it was lunchtime so we ate and then headed back outside to play. We colored with chalk, Brianna rode her bike and ran around until Bob got home. It was fantastic. We saw some neighbors that were surprised to see that our family had grown. :)

Tuesday we played outside again, it was slightly windy so we didn't spend as much time outside (Bryce was not a big fan of the wind), but we painted in the driveway and did some bike riding. Tuesday night we had some company. My cousin Tina and her husband Randy were in town on some business so they came over for dinner (corned beef and green beer :)). It was so nice to see them. Yesterday Tina accompanied us to the mall where we walked around Brianna played for a little bit in the play area, then we met up with Randy for lunch, and they headed home and so did we. Brianna actually fell asleep on the way home from lunch and slept for a little bit after we got home, giving me a chance to do some work.
Today, Brianna and I made egg carton flowers and cookies. Last night we (Bob & I) went grocery shopping and he saw these cookies at Sam's (basically chocolate chip cookies that were sandwhiched together with frosting and rolled in sprinkles). So today, being the good wife that I am I made them :) I haven't baked in a while, and I actually love to be in the kitchen, so it was fun.
All-in-all, it has been a great week, it is amazing what some time outside and some sunshine can do to brighten my mood! Hope you are all having a great week. I'm looking forward to a weekend at home spending time with the family, no plans (for once :)) Hope you all enjoy your weekend. I've posted new pictures over at shutterfly, so feel free to check them out!
And just so you can see the little man...

Happy Birthday tomorrow to our little friend Samantha! 1 already...how crazy. We can't wait to see you in a few weeks.

sadness...

Today the Knox community lost one of it's most beloved. Coach Tim Heimann passed away this morning. As most of you know, Knox is near and dear to my heart and while I never had a personal relationship with Coach Heimann, I am filled with a tremendous sadness. I had him for a professor for one trimester and knew him through Bob and other close friends that he coached. One of his sons graduated in 2002 with us and I've never heard anyone say anything but good things about Coach Heimann. He is indeed a very special man. Knox will not be the same without him. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family at this most difficult time, he will truly be missed.

(The photo above was taken the night he coached his last game for the Prairie Fire, only a year ago. The world is losing too many good people to cancer, so if you can...I urge you to please go donate.)

book contest...

You know how much I love books and I especially love children's books. That said, the sweet ladies over at On My Bookshelf are giving away Llama Llama Misses Mama. So go on over there and enter, tell them I sent you (just kidding)!

thursday has started with a bang...

Yikes, today has not started well. First of all, it started too early. I know I shouldn't complain and most of you will hate me for this, but my kids sleep until at least 8am every morning, sometimes as late as 9. And yes, I have become accustom to this. I don't go to sleep until very late, so I enjoy the fact that my kids sleep late. Even when I was working outside of the home I didn't have to be at work until 9, so I very rarely got up before 7:30am. I'm generally not a morning person, I can get up and be productive, just do not talk to me, and I especially don't like being waken from a sound sleep by someone crying for no reason. At about 7:15 this morning Brianna comes in screaming and crying about how she wants to go downstairs and watch TV. Oh, hell no. Of course the dreaded snowball effect and Bryce wakes up. So, before we're usually up on most days, Bryce has been changed and fed, we've had breakfast and are quietly playing now. I have, have, HAVE to get some work done today. So I'm trying to shake off my bad mood and turn it into being productive. Plus I had an epiphany on how to arrange/organize our dvd collection and keep it organized, so that is exciting me to no end right now. So, there is our plan for the day, play, arrange/organize dvds, work, and hit the gym tonight in time to watch Grey's and Private Practice. Is it sad that I have to go to the gym to watch two of my favorite shows uninterrupted? The upside is that I work out for 2 hours while watching!
Happy Thursday everyone!

partially to blame for my funk...

OK, last post of the night, I swear.

I just wanted to expand on my other post a little on me being in a funk. I know all of the things I've listed in the previous post are contributing factors to my funk. However, one thing that always contributes to my funk...is my weight/body image. This weight from being pregnant is HORRIBLE. I'm frustrated and angry that it will not come off. I realize it has only been 3 months, but I am an expert on weight hanging around, and the longer it hangs around the harder it is to get rid of. It is amazing how much my body has changed (and not in a good way). I read a blog the other day that this mommy blogger posted a picture of her stomach. Uh, never in a million years would I do that. I admire her for having the strength and courage to do it, but not me. All of the weight from Bryce is in my stomach, which makes me 3 months after delivery look like I'm still pregnant. Frustrating.

I've made the conscious decision to not let this consume me. I have to be OK with my body as it is right now. It may never change. I have to be OK with that. I will never be completely satisfied with my body (who really is?). That is not to say that I will not continue to work out. I am still working out and trying to eat better, because I want to be healthy for myself and my family. But I refuse to let this define who I am any longer. I am more than the number on the scale and it is about time I start realizing that.
(But I will still never post a picture of my stomach on the internet! :))

my craft closet beginnings...

How coincidental that today I received a coupon in my inbox for Oriental Trading Company. I just placed my order for some googly eyes, pipe cleaners, paint, jewels, geometric foam shapes, monster foam shapes, etc. I always look at Oriental Trading Company and like some of their kits (especially for kids Brianna's age), BUT...I really don't need 12 of the same thing floating around here. Some of the stuff I got on sale, others I think are just a good deal (I hope so anyway). As long as I can keep it under control/organized I think it will be great. One of their craft kits I think I'm going to copy for Easter, so we'll see how that works...I'm sure there will be pictures. And speaking of pictures I really need to try to take more pictures of the kids. (If only there were like 5 more hours in the day, or I didn't need to sleep I might actually get everything that I want/need to get done done.)

I can't wait until our shipment of stuff comes! :)

gloomy tuesday...

So, here we are, another rainy day. I am in a funk. I think part of it is the weather, the cold, gray, rainy weather we've been having for what seems like forever. We've been cooped up in the house for what seems like an eternity. I know, I know...I could load the kids up and take them to the mall play area or to target and walk around...but the thought of bundling them up taking them out in the rain, wind, whatever...is not all that appealing.

I'm trying to think of stuff we can do that doesn't cost money, that doesn't involve hours of tv, and is short enough that we can do in between Bryce's feedings. While he is doing great at sleeping through the night, he makes up for the lack of eating by eating every 2 hours during the day. I probably should try to give him an extra ounce at each feeding, but he has a tendency to spit up, so I don't want to push it. Brianna has been having some set-backs. She had 4 accidents last week, and she wet the bed last night and had another accident today.

Beyond that, I think I'm just feeling a little burnt out. I love being home with my kids, but I feel like I never get 5 minutes to myself. The only time I get to myself is at the gym, but the gym is not a relaxing, enjoyable time for me. I go because I have to, and yes I feel good after I work out, but it is not the thing I would choose to do if I could do anything. The thing is is that I don't know what I want to do that is enjoyable anymore. I love to read, but I can't just sit in the house and read because if I am here, there is no quiet. And it seems silly to go somewhere else to read. I guess I need a hobby, but I don't even know where to start with that.

On top of all of this, I have to find time in the day to do my bookkeeping work and finish my transcription class, so any "free" time I do have I try to work on that stuff.

So, I am at an impasse, I need things to do with my kids, and I need to figure out something I can do to rejuvenate myself so I can be the kind of mom and wife I want to be. I am trying to come up with crafts that Brianna and I can do together, but am coming up short with ideas.

So, I'm posing some questions to you blog readers...
1. What are some of your craft ideas for a 3-year-old?
2. What do you do to give yourself some time to re-energize?
3. Have you experienced set-backs in potty training and what do you do about them?

hello again...

Well, I guess it has been a little bit since I've posted. Not too much going on, just the same old day-to-day stuff. I cannot wait for the weather to warm up so we can play outside, we've been playing lots of Candyland, Chutes and Ladders, and Memory lately also coloring and putting together puzzles. (All of which Brianna does better than me by the way). Other than that I've been busying myself with some work and trying to finish up my transcription class...I'm so close. I will be glad when I'm done. Naps as always are a battle with us, so it is really hard to get too much done during the day. We've got a few trips lined up for the next few weeks and I think March is going to fly by. Bryce has been doing really well sleeping (so I'm not sure why I'm so tired :)) I'm excited to take our little family on the road this weekend, it'll be nice to get out of the house and see some friends. Hopefully I'll have some pictures to post after this weekend. Until then, I'll leave you with this picture of Bryce. (it was taken on my phone so it is not the best quality)

Sorry for this boring post, my brain is not functioning well. Hopefully I'll be back soon with something of more substance. :)