2014 - Week 1

Well, here we are! It’s 2014, it’s official, it’s here. We're ready to kick off a new year, and live it to it's fullest!

Wednesday brought us a family day, with everybody off work/school, and the first birthday celebration for miss Olivia. The girls did NOT sleep in, like we were hoping after their late night, so we were up pretty early. I made a big breakfast, and we watched Smurfs 2….again. Then, we all got ready and we were off to the Mall of America. Our girls do not have their ears pierced. It’s not that I have anything against it…I have plenty of holes myself, with my first being done as an infant. I just decided long ago, I’d let them make the decision to get them pierced, when they wanted to. When they could really understand what it meant, and were old enough to leave them alone. Well, lately, Olivia has been asking. After debating for a bit, we decided she was responsible enough to leave them alone, and we agreed to let her do it. So, our first stop at the mall was the jewelry shop to get it done. I told her she had to be brave, and that it would hurt a little, but not to cry…I could tell she was pretty shocked by the whole thing, but she held back. No tears! And, as soon as she saw them in the mirror, she was happy as can be. She proceeded to ask us, about every 10 minutes, throughout the day if her earrings were still there. It was cute. Of course, little Amelia asked why she couldn’t get hers done. We just told her she’s not old enough, and changed the subject! Christian had some jeans to exchange, so that was up next; then, he used some old ride points we had, and took the girls on the Ferris Wheel. It was pretty busy, so we didn’t bother buying anymore points for rides, so we packed it up, and headed to Applebee’s for lunch/dinner. Finally, we made our way back home. The girls and I settled in for a lazy night of movies and playing, while Christian made a run to Menard’s and did some stuff around the house. Tomorrow is the big birthday, and everybody is back to reality.

On Thursday, I got to wake up a 5-year old. FIVE YEAR OLD! I woke her up with a big hug, and a “HAPPY BIRTHDAY BABY”, and she was so excited. She couldn’t believe she was finally 5 years old, and she was so excited to get off to school. I sent her off with her cupcakes for class, and she couldn’t wait to show off her new earrings. It was such a bittersweet day. 5….5 is a big one. She’s officially a big girl. She can make decisions, she makes her own friends, she’s going to be starting Kindergarten this year. Yes, it’s a big year, it’s a BIG birthday. Of course, like any mother, I remember the day she was born like it was yesterday. Entering the world, promptly at 6:00AM. She’s so beautiful, so independent, so funny. She is a daddy’s girl, through and through, and is becoming quite a leader. She’s brave and willing to try new things, yet reserved and shy at the same time. She has a memory unlike any other, and she knows how to turn up the cute factor when it’s needed. My mini-me, growing way too fast!

Once we were all off to school/work, the day was pretty standard. I’ve been so distracted at work, I’ve been finding it hard to really focus and get stuff done. Maybe its baby brain…maybe it’s just the chaos of this time of year…maybe I’m just bored with my job at the moment. Probably a combination of everything, but I’m hoping it passes soon. It can make for some long days. Christian’s OT at work will probably dwindle for a while, post-holiday. He also has a few days of leave time he has to use, or lose, by the end of the month, so he’ll be taking a couple of random days off for that. After work, I picked up some final necessities for dinner, picked up the girls, and we made our way home. I did a quick clean-up of the house, and made the girls pick up their room (they’re actually really good at cleaning their room and making their beds, even by my standards!), then started dinner. We invited Olivia’s BFF Bella and her mom over for dinner/dessert/playtime, so they stopped over. We had a taco feast for dinner, opened presents, had some cupcakes and the girls played for a while. The girls had a blast. Amelia got a little emotional about it NOT being her birthday, but it was temporary. When our friends left, it was bedtime, and we were all EXHAUSTED! What a fun day!

Somebody was upset it wasn't their birthday too...

Friday FINALLY arrived! And I was so looking forward to the weekend…this weekend brings the end to our couple months of chaos – Olivia’s birthday party, and taking down the Christmas stuff/post-Holiday cleaning. Then, I feel like we can finally breath, and relax, for a while. Whew! Christian was off work today…he has some leave time to use up, before he loses it, but the end of the month. So, he was home being lazy for the day. I dropped the girls off and was off to work. It was another pretty long day…still just not motivated. Hopefully next week I’ll get it together. After work, I picked up the girls and we made our way home. We spent a little time hanging out, and Christian got dinner going for the girls. Then, I was off to dinner with my BFF, Kari, at our favorite place, Khan’s! Two pregnant girls at the Mongolian BBQ buffet. SO GOOD! It was fun catching up and chatting about our pregnancies. She’s due in a little over a week….SO EXCITING! After dinner, I was miserable and made my way home…straight to the couch to relax for the rest of the night.

Christian snapped this picture of Chuy - he found a hole in the blanket and made himself a little poncho. Ha.

Saturday was birthday party day! YAY! We were all up pretty early the girls were playing and watching some movies, eating breakfast and hanging out for a while. I started some laundry, Christian hopped in the shower and I gave the girls a bath. We all proceeded to finish getting ready, picked up the cake and were off to Sky Zone to celebrate with family and friends. For Olivia’s first couple birthdays, we had her parties at the house. It was just too much for me…it’s too cold to do anything, everybody has boots and coats and accessories that take up too much space, it’s too close to Christmas, so I have to rush to get all of the Christmas stuff down, or else it takes up too much space, the parties ended up split, with the kids playing downstairs, and some of the adults upstairs, cleaning and cleaning up. It was just too overwhelming, and I didn’t feel like we really got to enjoy it. So, we’ve been having them at different places the last few years…Pump it Up, Edinborough, and now Sky Zone…which is an indoor trampoline park. I love places like this. They guide you through everything, they set everything up, they serve the food and cake, they track the gifts and help you move the party along. And, no clean up!! It just makes it so easy. The party started at noon and all of the kids had a blast on the trampolines, the foam pit and playing some dodge ball (really, it ended up with the parents throwing the balls at the kids from the sidelines, which was just plain fun for everybody). The kids were all pretty exhausted when their jump time was up, so that seems successful to me. We had pizza, opened presents, had cupcakes and Olivia had a blast. The girls fell asleep on the way home…Amelia finished her nap once home, while Olivia begged me to open every new present she received, so I got the pleasure of doing that…again. I was pretty exhausted when all was said and done; I kept dozing off the rest of the afternoon/evening. Seriously, I’m looking forward to some downtime!! Christian was off to hang out with his friend Lorenzo for a while, so the girls and I played with their toys, watched some more TV and they were off to bed. I watched some Sons of Anarchy before passing out myself. What a day!

On Sunday, our SUPER arctic blast started making its way into town. We’re supposed to be seeing some record cold across the state, and they’ve already canceled school across the state tomorrow because of it (“luckily”, the daycare is still open). So, we were pretty much trapped in the house for the day. We were up bright and early. I pretty much put Christian on Dad duty for the day. He got the girls breakfast and kept them busy…eventually sending them downstairs to play in the toy room…which they actually did, for quite a long time, actually playing well together. That was a surprise! Meanwhile, I took down all of the decorations, de-assembled the tree and packed that up, and spent the day doing laundry and cleaning up. It does make me a little sad taking down all of the bright, colorful decorations, it’s SOOOOO nice to get the house back, especially the tree space. I feel so much less cluttered, and feel like we have so much more room. It’s a nice trade-off. The only thing left to do is clean the toy room, moving all of the new stuff in, which will probably be done next Friday, when I’m off work. While the girls (and Christian) napped, I watched some Sons of Anarchy, with football on TV on mute, while I folded laundry and relaxed a bit. Love my quiet alone time. After naps, we had dinner and spent the night relaxing together. A fairly quiet end to the busy week, which was much needed!

Today I also turned 22 weeks! I’m still feeling pretty good, and my energy seems OK (minus the chaos exhaustion). Getting full faster and faster when I eat and growing away. The girls are getting more and more anxious for the baby to get here, and still insist with all of their might that baby is a boy. I don’t know what in the world they are going to do if baby turns out to be another girl! They are NOT going to be happy, that’s for sure. I’ve been having some serious issues with the way I look lately…it doesn’t help that a girl I went to school with just announced they’re expecting their 2^nd, a few days after me, and she is TINY, flaunting one of those perfect, ideal pregnancy bodies. I’ve been trying so hard not to let my weight or the way I look, consume me, but it’s been getting me down lately. Oh, one of the many joys of pregnancy, that’s for sure!

Until next week!

2013 Review

Well, I must say, 2013 was a pretty good year. The girls continue growing, and are happy and healthy as can be. Our family is stronger and closer than we’ve ever been. We've had so many adventures, memories, vacations to look back on and cherish. We learned that our family would soon be expanding, and are over the moon about it. We started the year off by getting debt free, and have been reaping the benefits ever since. It was a very special year of freedom, growth and stability for us.

January started the year off as exciting as ever, with Olivia’s birthday! She turned 4 years old to kick the year off, and it was as hard to believe as every other year. She was spoiled with attention at school, at home, and at her Edimborough birthday party. We took the girls to Sesame Street Live, and to the Mall of America aquarium with some free passes I’d won (and, of course, made a pit stop at Nickelodeon Universe). Olivia started her first ever activity, with round of Swimming lessons…and, she’s continued them throughout the year. Amelia turned 2.5, AND started officially potty training – becoming 100% trained in February. And, I finally made the decision to start selling off the girls’ clothes – they just take up too much space, and we really wanted the extra money. So, over the next few weeks, everything went, via friends and craigslist. Bittersweet.

February started off AMAZINGLY, with us becoming officially DEBT FREE!! It was an amazing feat, and we’ve never looked back. We also made the jump get continue saving, and got rid of cable…for a complete TV junkie like myself, that was a big deal. But, I haven’t had any issues or regrets since. Christian gave me my most wonderful Valentine’s Day ever, surprising me with some roses, and an appointment with my stylist! So, I chopped a good 18” off my hair. That was immediately followed up by first haircuts for both of the girls. Yeah, I cried. We’ve since continued getting Amelia’s hair cut, but have grown Olivia’s back out. We ended the month with a trip to the bowling alley with friends.

March was a rough month, weather and health wise. Olivia and I were both hit by our first ever bouts of the stomach flu. And, I seriously thought that I was going to die! Amelia did get hit with it after us, but not nearly as bad, thankfully. After a short reprieve from that, both girls were hit with some strange mouth virus – similar to cold sores, but it was CRAZY, painful and a little scary. We did manage to get some Easter celebrations in…visiting the Easter Bunny, dying Easter eggs, and attending an Easter service. We also took the girls on their first ice skating adventure…they were not fans. We got a very temporary relief from winter…it was pretty much just a slap in the face since we were in for another good month or so of winter weather. The month ended by celebrating Christian’s 29^th birthday, with a  fun night out with friends.

April started off with our trip to Wisconsin Dells, with the Steveson’s. We rented a big “apartment” this year, so we could all stay together, and had a blast! We stayed a little longer this year, and it was just as hard as ever to say goodbye. However, the trip ended extra tragically when I realized the diamond had fallen out of my engagement ring at some point, somewhere. While it should be covered…my rings had been stuck on my fingers since I was pregnant with Olivia, so the jewelers insurance was no longer valid. I debated waiting to replace it, but Christian was insistent that we do it right away, so we splurged on a replacement. It’s beautiful, but just not the same. We took a trip to the circus, and Christian and I had an awesome date night. Winter made a return, and stayed pretty much the entire month. And, Amelia started Pre-School! Getting so big.

May was a historic day in Minnesota, with the “Freedom to Marry” bill passing – yay for equality!!! I had a mom’s night out at a Twin’s Game, took Olivia on a date to see “Epic” and Chrsitian and I got to go to “Star Party”…where I saw one of my all-time fave’s, Nelly, perform up close and personal. Awesome! I had a wonderful Mother’s Day, getting a beautiful bracelet from Christian, and spending the day with our family and some friends. We were finally able to do some gardening, even though it was still a tad cold. We did some extra flowers this year, AND started some vegetable gardens for the first time. I did battle quite a medical scare this month…with my worsening, frequent migraines, I ended up going to the doctor, and through a serious of bloodwork and tests, including an MRI and CT Scan, everything ended up being “normal” – I spent a week in fear that I may have a brain aneurysm, and while it turned out to be fine, it’s a fear I don’t ever want to face again.

June brought my 30^th birthday. 30!!! Gosh. It’s also brought Olivia’s start in Pre-Kindergarted. REALLY big! We had a wonderful Father’s Day, spent a day at Como Zoo, and another picking strawberries and spending some time at the beach. And, ended the month with Game Day, my dad’s “family reunion” of sorts.

July was a busy month! Olivia turned 4.5, and didn’t let anybody forget it. We celebrated the 4^th of July, with a couple of festivals, the parade and a BBQ at our house with family and friends. I celebrated 12 years at my job, AND 12 years with Christian – getting old folks! We had another beach day, and took our weekend trip to Duluth. We got to work on another outside project, stripping and repainting the deck. Amelia turned 3 with celebrations aplenty, including a trip to Pump it Up, getting lots of attention at school, and a party at home with friends and family – too bad the weather didn’t seem to realize it was July! I also went with some girlfriends to the Lakefront Musical Festival...where I got to see yet another all-time fave, Bret Micheals, perform up close and personal. Seriously, what an awesome year!

August was also a VERY busy month. It started off with our summer visit from the Steveson family. They again stayed with us, and we had such an amazing time. Hanging out around the house, a day trip to Stillwater, a day at the Mall of America, and another at IKEA, a mom’s night out to do a “Wine and Canvas” event. And, of course, our family photo session with Dawn. The visit always goes WAY too fast, and it’s so hard to say goodbye to them, but we made the most of our visit. Unfortunately, we also had to battle a family loss, with the passing of my Grandma, while they were here. I think I was very fortunate that they were here when it happened…it helped take some of the pressure off, and provided some much needed distraction. But, nothing could help keep from feeling the pain of saying goodbye when that time came. Our family will definitely forever have a hole in it. Throughout the month, we took another trip to Como Zoo, took the girls rollerskating for the first time (again, they were not big fans), spent a day at the Waterpark, and another at the beach and visited the State Fair. The month ended with a family reunion on my mom’s side. Olivia also started her first season of soccer, and loved it!

September was a pretty big month. I started the month off finding out that we were expecting Baby #3! We were over the moon, and just beyond excited for our growing family. So, May 2014, our family of 5 will finally be complete! I surprised Christian with an anniversary trip to Chicago, to celebrate our 6^th wedding anniversary, and we had a blast exploring the city together (even though I was beyond exhausted with early pregnancy fatigue). We spent a day at the apple orchard with friends, and Amelia finally got to start swimming lessons of her own! She was so excited to finally be “bigger”.

October, the chaos of life just picked up steam, and kept on rolling right through the end of the year. Olivia had her final soccer game of the year, and it was amazing to watch her grow through the season….learning, getting more brave and participating more and more. She got a little participation trophy, and seemed pretty bummed to see the season end. We spent a day at Sever’s Corn Maze with friends, and had a blast as always. I was able to go with some girlfriends to see “Wicked”, which was an amazing treat. Almost a year to the date from Rico’s medical chaos, Chuy had a little scare of his own! I finally got him in for a complete check-up, physical and updated shots, and he ended up having an allergic reaction to something. We were able to treat it at home, and it passed quickly, but what a scare! And, of course, Halloween festivities throughout the day…parties at school, a trip to Como Zoo Boo, the local neighborhood party and trick-or-treating with friends. Strawberry Shortcake and Lemon Meringue were a hit!

In November, the weather took a fast dive. I’m pretty sure we skipped most of fall – it was just a complete crappy year weather-wise. I was able to go to a Wild Game with a friend, so it was a pretty successful year for me and outings! That doesn’t usually happen too often! Christian and I started the great car debate…knowing we needed a new vehicle before baby comes, and not sure which vehicle we should get rid of. Currently, the debate is on hold until after winter – so we’ll see how all of that pans out. The rest of November was spent planning my BFF’s baby shower, planning/getting ready for Christmas and Olivia’s birthday, and, of course, Thanksgiving!!! Which, we hosted again this year. YUM!

December was a busy month of Christmas festivities. Buddy the Elf spent the month entertaining us, we visited Santa, the Holidazzle and the Macy’s Display. We decorated, watched tons of Christmas movies, baked and did some crafts. We shopped and wrapped and had a ton of family time throughout the month. And, I was able to co-host a baby shower for my BFF, who is due in mid-January with her 2^nd (9 years after from her 1^st). The month, well, the year, just flew by in the blink of an eye!

With that, we welcomed 2014. We’re ready for another amazing year…watching the girls grow, welcoming another baby into our family (along with 4 of our close friends that are also expecting) and seeing where life takes us.

2013 - Week 50 - The New Year

It's probably no surprise to most of my readers, per my usual these last few months, I've fallen quite behind. December has been a busy, BUSY month. But, I have managed to keep up on the side, and have finally put together my post for Weeks 50-52, plus those couple of extra days before ringing in 2014! I'm not exactly sure what 2014 holds for the blog. I'll definitely keep up with it in some fashion - I love being able to come back and catch up, and read back...which I really do often. I love staying connected to the outside world and sharing our lives, especially with a new Duran on the way, it just gets very hard to keep up with. But, we'll see what happens! For now, here is the end to our 2013.

Week 50

Monday was a pretty typical Monday. Back to work, and school. Unfortunately, the snow and arctic blast have made for some pretty horrible driving conditions, so traffic was HORRIBLE. Ugh..it’s only December, and I’m so ready for spring. And, it’s only Monday, and I’m SO ready for Friday! I stopped at the store quick after work to pick up some groceries, picked the girls up, and we had a quick dinner. For Buddy’s Day 9, he brought us supplies to make our 2013 homemade ornaments, so we got to work as soon as dinner was done. The girls had such a blast. We kept it simple this year, but they’re still pretty darn cute!

Tuesday brought another looooong commute. In addition, I’m getting pretty fed up with this worker’s comp stuff. After my fall on the ice, I went to the doctor just to make sure everything was OK with the baby. We decided we better be responsible and file an incident report. Well, it’s spiraled now, because of my doctor visit. I’m getting calls from the worker’s comp folks, the insurance company's investigators…getting stuff in the mail. I’m so OVER it. I did leave work a tad early for the girls’ “Winter Gala” at school (and, barely made it on time, even leaving early, thanks to traffic!). Amelia did not sing a TON, but she did mouth along to most of the music, and did some of the hand gestures, so that was good. Olivia did very well this year, singing along and participating. They had so much fun, and LOVED that we were there to watch them. The girls and I picked up some dinner on our way home and ate, while Christian and his friend Lorenzo hung the TV in the bedroom. So excited to FINALLY have a TV in the room again, it’s been torture without it! So, it ended up being a pretty busy night! For Buddy’s Day 10, he brought us some Grinch Cookies and Punch to snack on while we watched “How the Grinch Stole Christmas”. YUM, and fun!

Wednesday brought yet ANOTHER long commute. I’ve been an hour late every day this week so far…I do NOT have the leave time for this, especially when it’s only mid-December! It’s so frustrating, and my hormones don’t help, because I pretty much want to have a massive breakdown every morning. I just wish people would get it together, and learn how to drive in winter weather…especially when it’s been several days since it actually snowed! Work has been pretty busy, and Christian ended up working pretty late today because there was some forklift disaster in the warehouse that he had to clean up. Olivia was very excited to tell me about her day when I picked them up…apparently she got to help put the toddler’s down for their naps today, by rubbing their backs. She thought it was just the coolest thing ever. It was so sweet, and hopefully that means she’ll actually help out with this baby vs. trying to torture it like she did with Amelia! She says we have to get a little crib for the baby so she can help, so that’s a good sign. I had to make a quick stop store for groceries again (one day, I’ll actually get time, and the motivation, to do some REAL grocery shopping!), then, I was home to make dinner and we hung out for the night. For Buddy’s Day 11, he TP’d the tree! The girls thought it was hilarious, then Olivia couldn’t believe he’d wasted all that toilet paper! LOL, that’s my girl!

Thursday was a busy day at work, and I was finishing up the week. Olivia had a bad day at school, and I was pretty disappointed in her. She was talking back, mouthy, hitting the other kids and apparently she and another little girl (who she is NOT supposed to be playing with) were kicking snow at another kid on the playground. So, she was on punishment for the night. I hate days like that! I’m going to have to talk to the school about this little girl…she’s the one Olivia picks up all of her bad habits from, and if Olivia is ever in trouble, this girl is involved. I don’t like it, at all. We made our way home to make dinner. For a nice change, Christian was actually home from work early enough to help, so he took over dinner while I did some dishes and picking up. Nice! After dinner, Christian was off to watch a soccer game at his friend’s house, so I just hung out with the girls, got them into bed and relaxed for the night. I was beyond ready for the weekend, that’s for sure! For Buddy’s Day 12 , he colored on our family portrait! It’s an oldie, but a goodie. The girls could not stop laughing; they thought it was just the funniest thing. Although, Olivia was very upset he drew a hat on her…drama!

One of my FB friends shamed me for not adding any mustaches...I had to correct that mistake. LOL

Friday was my day off, and I was lazy, lazy, LAZY! I took advantage of the new TV in the bedroom and spent the day curled up in bed, watching Hulu, reading magazines, playing around on the computer and resting. It was so perfect. Especially since I woke up feeling like I’d been hit by a Mack truck…seriously, head cold to rival all head colds, out of nowhere! My in-laws asked if the girls could spend the night at their place tonight (which, they’ve NEVER done, so I was pretty surprised by the offer). So, they ended up picking the girls up from school. I decided we should take advantage of the kidless night, at least a little bit, so Christian and I were off to have dinner at Applebee’s when he got home from work. We ended the night watching, “White House Down” – SUPER good, and “Grown Ups 2” – not as good as the first one, but OK, while I folded a TON of laundry that I didn’t get to last weekend.

Finally got my TV back!

On Saturday, Christian was off to work, and I actually slept in! I usually don’t really sleep in, so that felt good. But, I quickly got my butt up, and made up for yesterday’s laziness. I got the bedrooms, bathroom, living room and kitchen cleaned up and organized, and boy was I exhausted! Christian picked the girls up on his way home. He hopped in the shower right away, while Amelia and I were off to get her hair cut. I’ve been wanting to grow it out, but it’s just taking TOO long for her bangs to grow, and clips don’t stay in, so her hair is always hanging in her face. So, I took her in for a cut. Surprisingly, they were able to get her in right away, and the stylist said she was her easiest bang cut of the day! LOL. We were immediately off to meet Mariano and Bella at the Holidazzle Parade in Minneapolis. It was cold, and it started snowing, so traffic was horrible. We left super early, and still barely made it on time. I ended up dropping them off on the side of the road so they could get a spot while I parked the car. My pregnancy rage was getting the better of me, and I only made it about halfway through the parade before I couldn’t take all of the rude people anymore. So, we ducked out early, and made our way to the Macy’s display. It’s the last year of the parade, so we figured we would check it out one last time. The girls don’t seem to care that it’s the same display, so they had a good time. We grabbed some treats in the bakery on our way out, and made our way back home. Busy day! For Buddy Day 14, the girls found him cuddled up with Sleeping Beauty, watching a movie when they arrived home from their grandparents’ house. Romantic!

Post-Haircut!

Sunday was a pretty relaxing family day around the house. We spent the morning watching movies with the girls, then watched the Vikings game (a WIN, YAY!). I did some laundry throughout the day. Amelia took a nice long nap, but we let Olivia skip hers…she didn’t seem tired, and was really fighting the idea of a nap, so we decided not to argue with her about it today. She was pretty good, and entertained herself pretty well, so we survived. Once Amelia was up, we were off to the mall to visit Santa. This was another pretty disappointing outing for me. They usually just use some little teenagers with a fancy camera to take the Santa pictures…so really, they’d usually just let me take my own since we weren’t buying any. Well, apparently they decided to hire a professional this year, and I was shunned off to the corner of the display to take my photos – so I ended up with a horrible angle and no really great pictures. I was super annoyed…and then they seemed really annoyed with us, because we didn’t get in line to look at/buy their photos. Well, maybe you should’ve just let me take my own, and saved yourself the time. What happened to the days when your kids could just go and talk to Santa, tell him what they wanted for Christmas, and move on? Now it’s all about charging an arm and a leg to buy their pictures. I sound like a crabby old lady, but I don't care! LOL. For Buddy’s Day 15, we found him doing some various workouts throughout the day. Gotta stay fit!

My Little Rockstar!

Today also marks 19 weeks for me and baby! I can’t believe how fast this pregnancy is flying by! Almost halfway there already. I’m feeling pretty good these days. My weight has been pretty steady these last couple weeks, so that’s good. BUT, Christmas festivities start next week, so that will probably bring a change in that. I haven’t really had any headaches or sickness lately, and I’ve been feeling baby move more and more, which is always so wonderful. Just over 2 weeks until our ultrasound and I can’t wait!

Week 51

Monday, back to work, BLAH! But, it was a pretty busy day, so I shouldn’t really complain. A crazy blizzard hit shortly after I arrived at work, so that was pretty good timing. It hit me mid-morning that I really still have a TON of stuff left to do for Christmas, and not a lot of time left to do it, so I ended up leaving a couple hours early. I don’t really have leave time to spare, but I’m so limited on "free" time, and Christmas is just coming way too fast, I had to do it. So, I was off to Barnes & Noble, Hallmark and Target to get some final presents and do our grocery shopping (REAL grocery shopping). The only thing left to get for Christmas is a Secret Santa gift for my Grandpa’s house, and I’m thinking that I’ll task Christian with that job. I picked up the girls and we ran home to get everything put away. They actually helped me carry everything inside, which is a new desire of theirs. I’ve been thinking it’s time to assign them some “chores” now that they’re getting a little older and like to help out more around the house. Olivia really likes feeding the animals, so I think that’s a good job for her…Amelia could probably start off by helping me unload the dishwasher or something a little more simple – she’s not quite as trustworthy yet. After we were cleaned up, I made dinner quick, we ate and Olivia helped me address our 2013 Christmas cards, which are ready to go out in the mail tomorrow! This is SOOOOOO late for me! Not surprisingly, I strive to be the first card our friends and family receive, but this year I couldn’t pass up a good deal I found online, which took FOREVER to ship. And, we always take our picture in front of the tree, so with Thanksgiving being later, we lost a week there. I’ve been getting more strict about keeping track of who we receive cards from, and cutting down our list. Last year I pretty much sent cards to everyone…except a few cousins that we never really talk to and have never received a card from. We sent over 60 cards last year – this year, I cut it down to around 45. We’ll see how many we get this year, and if we’ll be making some more cuts next year. It just gets too expensive…and, I figure, it’s not that hard to keep a box of cheap, generic cards on hand to at least send them out to those you receive from. I love sending them, it just gets to be too much…and, stamps are going up another $.03 next year! Ugh! Anyway, after we finished addressing everything, the girls were off to bed, we got in a little rest time, and passed out. For Buddy’s Day 16, he showed up with our 2013 Hallmark Dancing Snowman! I love these things! The girls do to…however, they love playing all of them at one time. Not so fun.

I was so excited to have FINALLY found an ornament with Amelia's name on it!

Tuesday was a pretty typical day. Off to work and school as usual. The girls have been doing a ton of winter/Holiday crafts and activities, so that’s been really fun for them. Today, they made their own little gingerbread houses, and were so proud. Christian’s work has been really busy with the pre-Holiday rush, and my work is picking up for end of the year stuff. So, the days go pretty fast for all of us. I stopped at the store quick after work because I forgot to get stuff to make my dip for tomorrow’s potluck at work – losing my mind! I picked up the girls, and Christian actually arrived at home at about the same time as us. He was able to help with dinner while I got some dishes done and picked up a little – that’s always a welcomed surprise. We finished watching Wreck it Ralph from last night and ate dinner. For Buddy’s Day 17, he decided it was Polar Express night! He brought the girls the movie to watch, along with some S’mores trail mix. YUM! So, we watched the movie quick after dinner, before heading off to bed.

Wednesday started off pretty chaotic. Again, in true losing my mind fashion, I had to stop at Walmart quick before work, after dropping the girls off, to pick up some chips for my dip for today’s holiday potluck at work. Ugh, pregnancy brain on full blast, seriously! But, it was potluck day, so that was pretty exciting. Until afterwards, when I felt pretty horrible the rest of the day. You think when you’re pregnant you can eat and eat, all day long…but that’s SO not the case. There just isn’t enough room in there! But, I survived the day, and it went pretty fast with the extra distraction. I picked up the girls after work and we just hung out, watching some movies for the night. I made them some leftovers for dinner, because I was definitely NOT hungry. It was actually pretty nice out today, after a stretch of arctic weather, so Christian worked on fixing some of the outdoor lights that had gone out while the girls and I hung out. For Buddy’s Day 18, we found him bungee jumping from the chandelier. So brave!

Thursday turned out to be quite a hectic day. We were off to school and work as usual. I’ve been noticing Amelia hasn’t quite been herself the last couple of days. She’s been pretty quiet and inactive, she’s been really warm to the touch, she’s been eating less, but has been sleeping and seems happy. She hasn’t had a fever or gotten sick, but I knew something was coming. Sure enough, by 10:30, the school was calling to let me know Amelia had spiked a fever and had to be picked up. My poor baby – I don’t know what it could be, but I definitely knew it was coming. So, I packed up some work and made my out to pick her up. I picked us up some lunch, we ate while she watched a little Wreck it Ralph (the current movie of obsession), and then she was down for a nap. Meanwhile, I received a call from Christian shortly after arriving home, that there was some disaster in their Fargo warehouse, and they wanted Christian to go there for the weekend to help clean it up…immediately. So, he was on his way home to pack a bag and hit the road. They were actually going to fly him there, but his friend Lorenzo is afraid to fly, so they just drive. So, it turns out we’ll be having a girls weekend…with a sick little one and a list of things to do still to get ready for Christmas. Ay! After all that chaos, I finally settled in and plowed through my new requests all day, eventually finishing up before bed to make sure I got my time in. I finally had to wake Amelia up around 5:00 to go pick Olivia up from school. We had a relaxing night watching movies, eating dinner and hanging out together. I sent Amelia off to bed with some Tylenol, hoping she’d get a good night’s sleep. What a day! For Buddy’s Day 19, he colored some pictures for the girls. Though, Amelia decided they were all for her because she didn’t feel good.

I had a rough start on Friday. My mind was just not working, at all. Christian was gone, so I was left to get the girls up and ready, get the animals fed and all that on my own. I dropped Olivia off at school, before realizing I’d left my work and phone at home, and had to turn back to get it. I dropped Amelia off at my mom’s because she couldn’t go to school today, so two drop-off’s was just added chaos I was not ready for. Of course, I hit bad traffic…even though it hasn’t snowed for days, and Friday’s are usually better traffic days, and our parking lot was a COMPLETE disaster, so I gave in and parked at the meters for the day. It was just one thing after another, and I was quickly turning into a crazy-hormonal-pregnant lady. I finally settled into work, almost an hour late, before realizing that I’d left my work in the car. At least it was right outside the door, but still – OVER the day already at this point. The day did go pretty fast from that point on…I got all of my work from home going, returned some e-mails and caught up on some paperwork stuff that I’ve been putting off. Busy day! After work, I stopped home to let the dog out, picked Olivia up and we were off to my mom’s to have dinner over there. Amelia still wasn’t 100%, but they’d planned on spending the night there, so we decided to just go ahead with that. After dinner, I made my way home and spent the night watching “American Horror Story” and doing ALL of our Christmas and birthday wrapping. I was up until 1:00AM finishing up, but it’s DONE! Amelia ended up spiking another fever during the night, and it was actually bad enough to bring on a fever seizure. We’ve never had that happen before, and I felt bad that I wasn’t with her when it happened, but my mom said it was quick and didn’t happen again. Of course, my mom didn’t get a wink of sleep though between her, and Olivia’s coughing (again). My poor babies!

On Saturday, I was able to sleep in…that is always a welcomed surprise, when my body actually cooperates and lets me sleep. Then, I spent the day cleaning and picking up the around the house. My mom brought the girls home around 2:30, and we made our way across the street to Bella’s house to cut out and decorate some cookies with them. Of course, it didn’t take long for them to get bored with it, and take off to play, leaving Sara and I to finish up. She had to work, so we made our way back home to watch some movies. Amelia ended up passing out around 5:30, still not feeling too well. Olivia and I had some dinner, and I woke Amelia up around 7:00 to get her changed, give her some Tylenol and sent her off to bed with a fever patch, hoping to avoid another spike. I was so exhausted that I fell asleep watching shows with Olivia. I finally got up and sent her off to bed, napped a little more, and somehow managed to wake up and watch most of this week’s SNL (Jimmy Fallon & Justin Timberlake…heaven!), before passing out again. For Buddy’s Day 21, he brought us supplies to make the grandparents’ Christmas cards. Amelia was too tired, so we held off on actually doing them until tomorrow.

Sunday was a fairly relaxing day. The girls spent the morning playing and hanging out together. I did laundry, dishes and finished cleaning throughout the day, while catching up on “The Sing Off” – my favorite singing competition. I did take a break to watch the Vikings game, but it was too painful to watch, that I had to give up and go back to my show. I don’t think I’ve EVER turned a game off before, so that was a first. Dang Vikings. Christian arrived home around 3:30, exhausted, but the girls were excited to see him when they woke up. We had some dinner and took it easy most of the night. Amelia seems to be doing a bit better – still not quite herself, but no fevers or anything like that, thankfully! For Buddy’s Day 22, he brought us a gingerbread house, so we took some time to put that together and make our Christmas cards from yesterday.

Today also marks the halfway point of this pregnancy…20 Weeks!!! I know I say it every week, but I can’t believe it! While I don’t think I’ll be saying this come 40 weeks, I’m actually hoping to go about a week late with this one. It would be nice to have baby a little later into May, and be able to stay home later into August. We’ll have to see what happens though. I still have to talk to Ann (my midwife) to find out how late they’ll let me go. This one is still considered a VBAC, since Olivia was a c-section, so I know they won’t let me go TOO late. I didn’t get a chance to weigh myself this week, so I’m taking a week off – not sure how things will turn out next week with the post-holiday feasting!

Week 52

Monday was a pretty busy day. We were off to work and school as usual. I think the girls are going to have a pretty quiet week at school with a lot of kids off for Christmas. I took my lunch break and ran to Target on lunch break…I had to get a few things for the house (laundry detergent, stuff like that) and didn’t want to fight the pre-Christmas Eve crowd. After work I made my way to PetSmart to get Rico his million dollar food…of course, finding out his prescription was expired, so I had to stop into the vet (there) to get a new card…and, of course, our PetSmart is the same exit as the Burnsville mall, so I was stuck in the mall traffic on top of it. UGH! Next up, I had to stop into Walmart to get something to make for dinner (not quite as crazy as I was expecting), and then finally, picked the girls up. We had dinner and spent the night relaxing. Amelia seems to be doing better…she seems more chipper, no fevers and is getting a little life back in her, so that was a relief. Meanwhile, Christian informed me this morning that he had to run to the mall for “something”…hmmmm, on Christmas Eve Eve, I can’t imagine what he’d be going to the mall for! LOL. He was also tasked with running to Menards to get a gift card for the gift exchange and salt for the softener, so he had a very busy night. Almost done with the chaos…almost! For Buddy’s Day 23, we found him in the toy room, playing teacher and teaching all of the babies their letters, some math and shapes. What an elf!

Tuesday was Christmas Eve! I can’t believe Christmas is officially here! One more week until we ring in 2014, and this is definitely the fastest year of my life! It was a very, VERY quiet day at work today, the morning was definitely dragging. But, we actually were sent home for the day at 12:30! We’ve never been sent home that early, so that was a pretty awesome surprise! Very exciting. And, it gave me some time to stop home, pack up for Christmas at the in-laws and get everything ready. School was pretty dead today too, and they were closing at 3:00, so I picked the girls up a little after 2:00. When we arrived home, they found Buddy for his final visit of the year….he brought them their Christmas Eve bag, with some jammies, a goodbye letter and a Christmas movie. They got right into their jammies and we watched the movie while waiting for Christian to get home. He arrived home a little before 4:00, got ready and we were off to his parents’ house for the night. It started snowing shortly after we arrived, and came down like CRAZY! It was pretty interesting driving home, that’s for sure. Once his sister and nieces arrived, we had dinner and hung out for a while, before opening presents. The girls had fun showing off all their new stuff and playing together. They each got some new clothes, a Lalaloopsy Doll and a Littlest Petshop remote control car to share; Amelia got a new bedding set, some Doc McStuffins kits and a Sofia the First Doll; Olivia got a couple of Elsa dolls, a pony and an Equestria Girl doll. We made our way home, getting there around 10:00. In order to fit everything in, we decided to have our Christmas when we got home, so we had to wake Amelia up. They opened presents…each getting a build-a-bear My Little Pony, a Lalaloopsy doll, a board game and a book. Christian and I exchanged our gifts, nothing too huge, and the girls were off to bed. Finally, we put together their Santa gifts…a scooter for Olivia, and a bike for Amelia, and filled their stockings before passing out. What a day!

Wednesday was Christmas Day!! Merry Christmas to all of my readers, I hope you all had a wonderful Holiday season, surrounded by those you love!

The girls were up bright and early…it was still dark, and I could barely open my eyes. Olivia came running in to get me, to tell me Santa had brought them bikes! Once the lights were on, she realized hers was a scooter, and was even more excited. It was so cute watching them rummage through their stockings (nothing huge…spin toothbrushes, little ponies and lalaloopsy dolls, socks, candy) and, of course, testing out their new wheels around the house. I can’t wait to take them for walks when it gets nice out to test out their new goodies! We showered right away, got ready, and were off. First up, my mom’s house for breakfast and Christmas with her. She made some cinnamon rolls and we opened gifts. They got some more new clothes, some movies and glow pets; Olivia got another Equestria Girl doll and Amelia got another Sofia the First doll. So fun! The wanted to watch “The Wizard of Oz”, so they watched that while we hung out, had some snacks and I nursed a headache. Next up, we were off to my Grandpa’s with my dad’s family. When we arrived, I was informed that my Grandpa was actually in the hospital. They found out he had fluid building up around his heart, so had to get that drained before he could leave. But, he wanted us to party on without him. So, it was very strange being there without Grandma or Grandpa. We had “dinner”, cleaned up, watched the kids open presents (the girls each got an Equestria Girl Doll [Amelia couldn’t believe she got her very own!] and a lalaloopsy pony), did our grown-up gift exchange, had dessert and a “midnight snack”, played some card games and hung out. Olivia had a tea party with the other girls pretty much all day long. Amelia went back and forth from playing with them, to getting left out and hanging out with me. It’s tough being the “baby”! We left there around 6:30 and finally made our way home. Amelia was right off to bed. Olivia played with her new toys for a bit before going off to bed herself. What a busy couple of days!! But, it was amazing being surrounded by all of our family. Our first Christmas without my Grandma was pretty strange, but I could feel her watching over us, laughing with us and enjoying the chaos. It’s also hard to believe we’ll have another little munchkin to celebrate with next year! I can’t wait to have another “first Christmas”. We have one last Christmas celebration this weekend, with my step-family. Then, Olivia’s birthday next week, and we’ll finally be able to kick-back and relax for a while!

Thursday, Christian was off to work bright and early. I decided to switch my Friday off, for today, so the girls and I slept in a little bit, before I dropped them off an made my way back home for the day. I was pretty exhausted, and I knew it would be SUPER dead at work today, so tomorrow would be a better day to be in the office. I spent the day finishing up “American Horror Stories” and unpackaging all of the toys and gifts we’d received, and picking up around the house. I’ll probably work on packing up the decorations next week, and I’ll take the tree down next weekend. I hate to see it go, but it’s nice to get the space back, that’s for sure. I picked the girls up at the usual time, and we were off to meet Christian at Target to pick up some clearance Christmas decorations and lights. We had a quick dinner when we got home, watched TV for a bit and were off to bed. It felt like a Monday, and I was really wishing I had some extra time to take off tomorrow!

Friday was a loooong day at work. I had stuff to do, just wasn’t in the mood for it, and most of our office was in, but the day was still just dragging along. I did go to lunch with a friend and our supervisor though…to the Thai place downtown that I haven’t been to forever! YUM! That helped break the day up. I picked up the girls after work and we all just pretty much hung out around the house. Christian brought dinner home and we watched some TV together. We watched “Hangover 3” before bed…I thought it was much better than people made it out to be when it came out, so that was a pleasant surprise. Christian had to work early the next day, so we were off to bed right away after.

Had to try out Christian's Christmas gift tonight. Classy!

Saturday, Christian was off to work and it was just the girls and me. The weather was supposed to be pretty amazing today, so we watched some movies and ate some breakfast, waiting for the sun to come out and warm up a bit. Then, we were off to spend some time playing outside. Another arctic blast is supposed to hit overnight, so we had to take advantage while we could. They ran around, made some snow angels, collected some snow/ice chunks, rode their bikes for a while and played on the swingset for a bit. We tried to start a snowman, but the snow wasn’t quite wet enough for that. They had a blast though, and it was actually pretty warm out. We made our way inside to take our showers/baths and get ready for the day. Today, we were off to my dad’s for Christmas with my step-sisters. Well, it turned out one sister and her family didn’t come, and one sister came by herself without her family, so that was pretty disappointing. I don’t get the chance to see my whole step-family too often, so I really look forward to Christmas and seeing everybody together. Christian met us there after work…we had dinner, chatted for a while, opened presents (the girls each got a set of little board books and a princess crown/jewelry set), had dessert and were on our way home. Christian went out with his friend Lorenzo for dinner and drinks…their little Christmas outing. So, I settled in with “Sons of Anarchy” for the night.

Sunday was a lazy day around the house. The girls were kept pretty occupied all day with all of their new toys. They rode their new wheels all over and played with their dolls…packed and unpacked their suitcases full of stuff. They crack me up. We did lay together and watch a movie this morning, which was nice. Once they were off for naps, Christian and I watched some football…the Vikings ended the season, and their final game in the metrodome, with a win, so that was pretty exciting! They’ll be playing the next two seasons outside, at the U of M’s TCF Bank Stadium…brrr! Then, they’ll be playing in the new stadium. Pretty exciting! Rumor has it our coach will be let go this week. He’s not a super emotional coach, and probably not really head coach material, but I actually kind of like him. He’s a pretty stand-up guy, seems like a great coach to work with. They really need to fire the general manager and get some new management in there! That’s their only real hope of turning things around. Unfortunately, that game was followed up with the Packers beating the Bears to take the division title. Ugh, damn Packers. I am sad that the football season is coming to an end though – I love my football Sunday’s! The girls were up from their naps after the games were over, so we had some dinner and they went right back to playing. We had to break up a few fights throughout the day, but overall, I was surprised by how well they played together. A very nice change of pace. Once they were in bed, we had an impromptu movie night and watched “2 Guns”, which was actually pretty good before passing out. Another week comes to an end!

Watching movies this morning, this one decided baby made a good pillow. I don't think baby was a fan..she didn't seen to feel it, but she got a couple of good kicks.

Today also marks 21 weeks for baby…and, ultrasound week! I still can’t believe we’re actually going through with NOT finding out baby’s gender, but I’m SO SO SO excited to see this little peanut on Tuesday! I’ve still been feeling pretty good. I’m at the point now where I can’t eat as much at one sitting, and I have a little more energy than I did. This coming week, I’m going to work REALLY hard at getting my walks in at work, and starting my prenatal exercise video at home. With the Holiday’s and everything behind us, the rest of winter/early spring should be pretty low-key, and should leave me some time to get it in. I’d love to keep my weight gain minimal the rest of the pregnancy, and I know being active is supposed to help with labor and recovery, so I need to get my butt going!

Week 52+

Monday was a pretty slow, low-key day. Work wasn't quite as dead as it was last week, but we're still in Holiday mode I think. Regardless, we were back to work, the girls off to school. I was plugging away a work when I realized I have a few things yet to do for Olivia's birthday this week. I hadn't ordered a birthday cake yet, I still had to finalize the RSVP's and order pizza...I haven't started my "list" of what to bring...thought about sending treats to school on her birthday or how we were going to celebrate a home. It sneaks up on my EVERY year! I can't believe by the end of his week, we'll have a 5 year old! So crazy. To top it off, we're back in the midst of a SERIOUS cold snap, and we had a storm hit around lunchtime. I ended up leaving a tad early because traffic was at a standstill, and I wanted to get to Target to order the cake before pickup. I realized one major benefit to working in the same building as my mom today...she brushed my car off when she left, so that was one hassle saved! I took some side streets and made decent time getting home, so thankfully I was able to get to Target. They had a pretty cute "My Little Pony" cake, so I went with that. Finally, I picked the girls up and we made our way home. Dinner, some play time and relaxing for the night. Christian got stuck in some much worse traffic, and conditions, so it took him quite a while to get home. He was pretty exhausted - winter traffic, so over it already! It's gonna be a loooong winter at this rate!

Tuesday was the big day...New Years Eve! It was so hard to believe the year was coming to an end already. I can remember ringing in 2013 like it was yesterday, and here we are, saying goodbye already. Christian got an early start off to work. I dropped the girls off a tad late to school, and then made my way to the clinic. It was FINALLY ultrasound day! We were so excited to see the little peanut and make sure everything was going OK. Traffic was slow, but not as horrible as I expected. Christian met me there, and we got there JUST in time. The ultrasound tech was really sweet, and great at explaining everything she was looking at...the best we've ever had. The baby was quite a wiggle worm, moving around the whole time. We watched baby wave a few times, get the hiccups, do a couple of flips. It was by far the most active ultrasound I've ever had! We ALMOST had to go back in a couple weeks to get a good view of the tailbone, but at the last minute, baby shifted and the tech was able to get what she needed. And, we STAYED STRONG, and we remain on team green! I'm so proud of myself. She did say that she hadn't seen a good view throughout the exam, so it would've been hard to tell....maybe she was just helping keep us strong, but either way, that was a little reassuring. I'm so excited! After the scan, Christian was off to work, and I was off for my regular check-up. We talked briefly about the VBAC, and she did confirm this one will be handled pretty much the same as Amelia...no induction, little intervention, extra monitoring. But, that my chances of success are even greater now that I've had a natural birth. I pretty much knew all that, but it's nice to talk about. Hopefully I'm able to get a wireless monitoring room again this time! She said at my next appointment, she'll go over a VBAC questionnaire with me and we'll talk about it more. By both the scan, and Ann's measurements, baby is right on track, perfect size and growing just right. So, it was a very great morning! Finally, I was off to work. The day went pretty fast. The building emptied out quickly as the day went on, so the afternoon did drag a little bit. But, quitting time finally came. I stopped at Target, again, to get some snacks/dinner for tonight, cupcakes for school and home and dinner ingredients for Olivia's birthday. So, we should be set for the next few days now. I picked up the girls and we made our way home. I got a frozen pizza and wings going, and Trashy Taco Dip cooking. Christian arrived home with the sparkling cider and juice....we all got in our jammies, gathered up our spread, watched "Smurfs 2" and "Turbo" and partied the night away. Amelia was off to bed around 10:00 - she was just getting way too tired. Olivia made it another hour before her eyes were getting heavy - she did get to see the "live" ball drop though, so at least she kind of made it. I dozed in and out up until midnight...then finally made my way to bed as soon as we rang in the new year. It's officially 2014, and it's so hard to believe! This year is going to bring so many amazing things, and we're very excited to hit it head on!

Until next year!   XOXO