Babies Babies Babies UPDATE

We interupt this blogging broadcast to bring you breaking news on the baby front.

Sister-in-law, Sarah, as mentioned in previous post... called to say she will have to go out and buy a whole new baby wardrobe. Her little new bundle arriving in July is going to be a BOY! And boys just don't look so swell in pink frillies.

We are thrilled for her and Josh! Savannah is going to be such a wonderful big sister to her little brother. Congratulations to you all!

Babies, Babies, Babies

I just love me some babies.

And as I was driving home today from having a wonderful lunch with my sweetie I got to thinking about just how many gals I know that are currently pregnant or have just given birth to sweet babies.

There seem to be quite a few!

So I just want to say Congratulations to these ladies and let them know just how excited I am for each and every one of them. Babies are the epitomy of pure, sweet, joy.

Connor's cousin Erik and his wife, Melissa, had a handsome (or as Erik likes to say, Manly) baby boy in mid-January. I got to hold Reese for several hours last weekend and it was so much FUN! He made the best noises, facial expressions, and he was so stinkin' warm and soft...it was the best.

My friend/ex-boss, Suzan, just had a beautiful little girl on January 30th... two full months early!! YIKES. Luckily, she is doing amazingly well and will get to come home with mom and dad later this week. Suzan is just sure that Makena entered this world early because she wanted to be born under the sign of the Golden Pig. Another couple of days and she would have been a rat. She was born only weighing 3+ lbs...but has been piling on the weight and now weighs in at almost 6 lbs. Yippee!

My dear friend, Karen, whom I've known for 30 years is also due to have a new baby in July. I'm so stoked about this little baby because if all goes as planned I will get to see this little boy enter the world on his birthday! I've never witnessed a birth (I don't consider giving birth the same at witnessing. You're in a whole different mind set at that point!) and I've been told it is an absolutely amazing thing to see. Especially, since I've been through so much with Karen, it just seems even more special and I can't wait to be there.

My younger sister-in-law, Sarah, also has a new bun in the oven that is due to done baking in mid July! We don't know the gender of this latest kid, but I'm sure its older sister, Savannah, won't mind one way or the other! She will be a fabulous big sister and her mommy, Sarah, is such a wonderful mommy! We are so excited to have another baby in our family.

So, since my baby making days are far behind me it's fun to share the joy of these new bundles of love that have arrived or are soon to make their big debuts. The world is always a better place with new babies wrapped in soft blankets that have countless people who love them!

Congratulations all you mommies!

Rude Awakening

Sleepovers can be such a blast. Because it's mid-Winter break, we hosted a fun sleepover with our niece, Jessica and our nephew, Ben. All the kiddos had a fun evening of Nintendo, ice-cream sundaes, a little dance-dance revolution, and a whole lotta laughter. It was GREAT!

I turned the lights off at mid-night and informed the four of them that they could talk quietly a little while longer before catching some zzzzz's.

Ahhh.... peace and quiet. We all drifted off to sleep.

Fast forward to 6:32 AM.

Nolan bursts into our room, looking a little frantic, and spouting off something like "MOM! Ben was going to the bathroom...but he didn't shut the door.... and my kitty,Sophie, got peed on!"

Within 1.3 seconds of finishing his last sentence...Sophie made an appearance by leaping onto our bed within inches of Connor's noggin. It was at that moment that Connor responded "You mean this kitty that just hopped onto my clean bed??? Nolan...take this pee cat outta here!"

Nolan shuffled out, deflated and sorry about the scene he had just caused.

Can you imagine a nicer way to wake up? It was just a glorious start to our day. All I could do was laugh about Sophie's impeccable timing. Then it was off to the shower for Sophie...

Probably the next worst thing to being woken up by a pee cat is trying to give one a shower. Funny how a cute little ball of fluff can instantly turn into a deadly clawing machine. Just add water. Maybe next time, she'll reconsider investigating what goes on in the bathroom when a boy has got to go.

This boot was NOT made for walking

Remember the days when your toddler aged kids didn't grasp the concept of sharing? That was a hard lesson to learn when your are only three and really believe the tonka truck is meant only for your enjoyment. Well all of my hard work of getting my boys to be generous and realize sharing is a good thing has really paid off because....


Nolan didn't have any qualms about sharing his lovely walking boot and crutches this morning with Nicholas.

Yup. Your heard right. We have another gimp living in the house. Why are my boys so flippin' fragile? I give them milk with almost every meal. They excercise A LOT at school and Taekwondo. They even take a multivitamin each and every day.

Nick's pinky toe is dark purple and swollen which indicates to me that he has broken yet another bone. No need to go to the doctor because we've got all the necessary equipment from prior visits to the E.R.

I think I'll spend the rest of the afternoon cleaning out my boys' dressers to make room for the bubble wrap clothing I'm going to have to make them wear from now on.

Domo Arigoto Mr. Roboto

My sweet Valentine of 17 years surprised me with a little token of love for V-Day....

Was it flowers? Was it a giant heart shaped box full of scrumptous chocolates? How 'bout a card filled with words proclaiming his undying love for moi?

Nope.

It was......














A sweet and thoughtful ROOMBA! A robot vacuum cleaner or "slave" as we've so lovingly referred to it.

And I LOVE it!!

I have to admit, I was a little surprised by this gift. Connor is known for giving thoughtful, beautiful, excellent, and tasteful gifts that NEVER involve household appliances. But as soon as this little robot fella was all charged up and ready for some serious cleaning action I was hooked.

He merrily (I like to think of it as a male, it's like my own little butler!) cruises quietly around my house, sweeping and sucking up any debris that my lovely children and pets have deposited. I can sit on my bumpkus while he goes to town.... Or, I can be doing the dishes and getting two chores done at once. Brilliant!!

I really need to come up for a proper name for this little robot... "slave" just doesn't sound very good. I'm open to any suggestions anyone might have.

Anyway... Thank you Valentine for this thoughtful, time saving, fun to watch gift. I love you.

Swing your partner

How would you like the opportunity to learn how to Swing dance?

I, for one, think it would be SO. MUCH. FUN. Who wouldn't want a chance to Jump, Jive, and Wail with your honey?

I'll tell you who....

My fifth grader.

This kid woke up the other day to the fear of having to learn how to swing dance at school. It's the current P.E. unit they are learning for the next couple of weeks. When I tried to convince Nick how much fun it was going to be, all he could think about was how he'd have to ask a girl to dance. He was mortified. Nothing I said was curbing his fear. My comforting words were falling flat. So...finally... I settled on telling him he should probably choose a girl who is, shall I say, petite. One that would be easy to swing around the dance floor. he agreed and went to school with butterflies in his stomach.

Later that night, he confided in me that swing dancing is not for him. He said his stomach was in knots all day long. I asked him about what girl he asked and he said "I was so nervous I just took the last girl that was left." "She was not short." "But we managed." I think the fact that he's in a class with six grade girls just made this whole scenerio ten times worse for the poor kid. Do you remember sixth grade girls when you were in school? Remember how they tower over the shrimpy boys at that age? I'm sure he did fine, he's a coordinated young chap. And what little girl wouldn't want to dance with such a handsome sweet boy?

He's counting down the days when this section of P.E. is behind him, I think he'd rather run the mile run. In the rain. Without shoes.

Last year in the single digits

Nine. What a wonderful age. Do you remember being nine? Life is good at that fine young age.

Nolan turned nine while we were away on vacation so I'm a little late in dedicating this post to him.

Happy birthday to my sweet Nolan, Nol, Rawhide, or Jennifer as one of his crazy friends at school likes to refer to him. Don't ask me why...maybe it's because he's given her the nickname "Bob". His crazy, fun-loving way is probably the number one thing I love about that boy. He doesn't care what people think, he's perfectly happy being the kid he loves to be. Even if it means wearing a crazy, spring-loaded, jingle bell clad elf hat around town and to school. If it makes him happy, he'll do whatever he likes. I love that.

I also love the fact that he cares deeply about the ones he loves. He takes such good care of his younger cousins. He gets such joy out of helping them out or just teaching them something new. He is kind to everyone he meets and I think that is one of the reason he makes new friends so easily. Every time I call from work to chat with him to see how his day went, he ALWAYS ends the call with "I love you mommy" even if I don't say it first. ALWAYS!! It melts my heart.

It's also a well known fact that Nolan is very laid back. It takes a lot to get this boy riled up. He goes with the flow and takes everything in stride. I could probably take a lesson or two from him on this subject. Easy goin' Nolan is every teacher's dream come true. He easily accepts new tasks without worry, can be paired up with ANY other student with a happy attitude, and doesn't seem to get fazed by big assignments or presentations.

I hope he goes through the rest of his life with the wonderful attitude that he possesses already. He's funny, sweet, smart, tough, sensitive, friendly, goofy, lovable all rolled into one terrific kid.

I hope this year is by far your best yet. Enjoy being nine- it's a wondeful age to dream, play, grow, learn, laugh, and be the crazy kid you love to be!

Disney World or Disney Hurled?

Oh to be back in Orlando... Sitting by the pool sipping a mai tai while my boys splash and swim away the afternoon under the warm sunshine.

It makes me smile just thinking about it.

We were gone for eight days and for the most part had a very nice vacation.

Day one-
Red-eye flights are NOT for me. I'd finally doze off just in time for the pilot to announce that our seatbelts MUST be fastened. This happened about 12 or 70 times during the 5 hour flight... it was a little bumpy. But once in Orlando I happily walked around the Magic Kingdom in my zombie-like state for about 5 hours until we were finally let into our hotel room at 3 pm. Just a 5 hour nap was all it took for us to feel refreshed and so we ventured over to Downtown Disney to get some grub and see the sights. It was a lot of fun and we hopped on the little ferry boat that took us down a delightful waterway back to our hotel. Really fun and so convenient!!

Day two-
NOLAN's 9th BIRTHDAY!! The day was all for him! He got to call the shots, so he chose to check out the Animal Kingdom. This park is so lush and beautifully designed- WE LOVE IT! Nolan was given a birthday button to wear that had his name on it, and every single Disney employee noticed it and made a point to wish Nolan a happy Birthday. It was amazing. While we were waiting in line for the safari, one of the employees came up to Nolan and said "Nolan, somebody wants to talk to you on the phone, come over here." He dailed a number and before we knew it, Nolan was getting a birthday greeting from Goofy! How cool is that? He was so pleased and it was fun to see Nolan with a perma-grin on his face the whole day. The rest of the day was spent at the hotel pool. The boys loved going down the dragon water slide and swimming the evening away.

Day three-
Not the best day. Nick woke up with a high fever and a nasty cough. Big Bummer..... I spent the majority of the day with Nick, quarantined in the hotel room watching cartoons and taking naps. Poor kid was so upset that he was missing the fun. Connor and Nolan ventured out to Disney Hollywood Studios Park and had all kinds of fun on the Tower of Terror. Ok,...maybe Connor had fun on the Tower of Terror. Nolan not so much!

Day four-
Nick still felt under the weather, but at least that nasty fever was gone. Halleluiah! We decided to make him rest one more day because we didn't want him to get worse and have to sit out the entire week! We went to the lego store and bought him a couple treasures so he'd have something fun to do while stuck in bed. (By the way...I still can't believe our hotel doesn't have ANYTHING in the way of games, books,movies, or activities for sick kids to do. LAME! Not even the gift shop had anything.) Nolan and I hit the magic Kingdom again because we just can't get enough of Big Thunder Mountain Railroad! I think we rode that ride about 7 times...it's the very best!

Day Five-
Hooray- the four of us can actually go out as a family! We decided to go to Hollywood studios- it was great! We saw a couple of amazing stunt shows, had lunch, and Nick and I braved the Tower of Terror. Not a favorite. I guess I just don't like having my stomach in my throat as much as Connor seems to like it. Next it was time to do nothing by the pool- My Fave! Connor and I just chatted away, sippin' on our cocktails, while Nick and Nolan swam to their heart's content. Glorious.

Day Six-
Epcot- here we come! Epcot is nice, but probably my least favorite park in the Disney world complex. The boys and I decided to park ourselves in "China" to have some lunch, while Connor walked all the way to "Germany" to grab himself some sort of sausage and 'kraut. Probably not the best thing to do before going 64 miles an hour on the "Test Track" ride. We managed to keep our lunches down and then went to the "Soarin over California" ride which we unanimously love. It's the best!! More pool time, more mai tais, and happy times!

Day Seven-
How can it be our last full day already??? We decided to venture back to the Magic Kingdom for more magic. We really wanted to head to one of the water parks, but Nick was still recuperating and Nolan was not feeling all that great. I guess we'll just have to go back again someday!

Day eight-
Up at the crack of dawn to catch our bus to the airport. Apparently, the bus driver likes to keep his bus very hot, drives very "jerky", and likes to clean up vomit. Because two of his passengers got car sick on the short jaunt to the airport. Unfortunately, one of them was my son! Nick turned to Connor just in time to say "Dad, I don't feel so good" then covered his mouth with his hands in an attempt to keep the spewage from coming out. My quick thinking hubby, grabbed Nick's hat right off his head just in time to catch the special delivery. Sweet! That was just the icing on the cake to a slightly less than wonderful vacation. Nick felt much better after that, but was extremely bummed to have sacrificed his favorite hat.

Now we are home, freezing, and dreaming of the time we spent in good ol' Disney world hugging Chip and Dale, eating frozen lemonade, squealing through Space Mountain, and just doing whatever we wanted whenever we wanted. It was a nice vacation spent together even if it had a few less than perfect moments. It was definately memorable!

( I will post pictures as soon as I get my picture software downloaded onto our new computer. In the meantime, you'll just have to visualize us in all our souvenir garb checking out the sights.)

Watch out Orlando...Here we come.

It's finally here.



The vacation we've been waiting for for quite some time. We thought about this trip probably over two years ago... While the boys were deep in the thralls of learning TaeKwonDo we told them if they stick with their lessons and reach their goals of becoming black belts we would celebrate by taking a family vacation to Disney World. Those boys have worked really hard at reaching their goal. It took about three and a half years of sweat and dedication but they did it! I feel a little guilty for getting to go along on this trip as I didn't sweat once to deserve this vacation. I guess I did a lot of driving, belt tying, and bill paying to reach this point.



We are stoked about just being together and having a grand old time. Disney is such a wonderful place. You can't help but feel happy just being inside the park. We are such huge fans of Disneyland, so we are jazzed about seeing what Disney World has to offer.



So, goodbye, Au Revoir, Caio, aloha, etc....

BRRRRRRR

I remember my Grandfather once say to me on the phone "It's colder than a well digger's butt here today." I thought it was a bit odd and funny at the same time. Those crazy Nebraska Corn Huskers can be a little loopy at times. But OH MY GOSH....

It IS colder than a well digger's butt HERE today.

It was 20 degrees when I awoke this morning. That is just not right. The only thing making me feel better about this deep freeze other than my scarf and mittens is knowing I will be in sunny Orlando on Saturday. Hallelujah!

Until then, I'll just have to down a lot of hot chocolate and wear an extra layer of clothes.

It's shaping up to be a good one

It's been a great day so far...

I woke up to see the sun shining which is always a nice thing.

Had a bowl of frosted mini wheats while sittin' at the table with my boys.

I went to the school's MLK assembly to watch with pride as Nolan went up on stage to read a paper he wrote about how he serves his community. He was one of six kids whose paper was chosen by the Vice Principal out of 60 contest entries. He did a great job and we are so proud of him!

Nicholas was also on stage... he's in the school choir, so he was up front singing and did a fantastic job as well!

Then I went to go get my haircut, and I feel SOOOOO much better!

Soon, I'll be heading back to the school to teach a great group of 3rd/4th graders a fun art project.

So... All in all, a good day and it's only half over...

OOPS

Well doesn't my background choice look just snazzy? Unfortunately, while applying the new background, I have accidentally erased my music and slide show. So...until I can get it fixed, you'll just have to hum your favorite tunes and imagine in your head what we look like in photos.

I prefer you to envision me as a size 6 on a good hair day. Please hum a KT Tunstall song, as she is my latest fave.

Thanks

Special Delivery

Happy Anniversary to me! Aren't these the prettiest roses you've ever seen? I had to work yesterday on our anniversary which was a big bummer, but this lovely vase and flowers brightened my day as I worked away. Not to mention about a gazillion people commented on them and informed me that my hubby was a keeper!

Look what a little breath mint can do...

It all started over 17 years ago when this strapping, young, handsome co-worker of mine came through my checkout line wanting to buy a pack of Wintergreen Lifesavers. As he purchased them he asked "Did you know these spark in the dark?" I replied..."Nope, and I really doubt they do." Then here's the hook he used to reel me in... he said "I bet you a free lunch that they do." I, of course, was poor and could use a free lunch (especially with such a cute guy) so I said "you're on!" About ten minutes later... the two of us and another co-worker were all standing in the ladies room in the dark, munching on these breath mints watching for some sort of pyrotechnics to emit from our mouths. Well, I totally lost that bet, but deep inside I knew I had actually won!



And so it began...



A homemade pizza and a game of pool and Connor was mine! We don't consider that first meal our first date, however. Seems kind of wrong to call a lost bet a date. It was just the starting off point to where my life would lead with this fantastic guy.



For the next two years, we had so much fun together. Going out all the time, hiking, bowling, camping, weekend trips to the ocean, spending as much time as possible together. He opened my eyes to all kinds of wonderful things in life. He is a nature lover, he taught me to look at my surroundings and be thankful for this beautiful world around us. I got to know his group of friends very well over these two years, and realized they are such fun and wonderful people. I felt very lucky to have these people as my friends too. But most of all, I learned that Connor was the kind of person I could share my life with and be completely happy forever. From day one he continually showed me how caring and thoughtful he was. His sense of humor and wit kept me in stitches. He could whip me at a game of Trivial pursuit...but was sensitive enough to not make me feel like the idiot I was. (He is seriously, one of the smartest people I know) He loved his family and the way he talked to his mom sealed the deal!

On one of our many nature excursions, Connor and I headed up to Mount Rainier on a sunny April day in 1992. It was such a clear and crisp Spring day. We pulled off the main road to explore the forest lined creek not too far off in the distance. I distinctly remember watching the most beautiful blue butterfly flittering away from rock to rock along the water's edge. We were lying down in a grassy meadow watching the clouds above, when all of sudden Connor placed something round on the tip of my nose. Of course, it didn't take me more than a second to realize what it was. Suddenly I felt like I was sitting on one of those clouds I was watching just a moment before. He was so sweet and asked if I'd like to share the rest of my life with him. I remember a feeling of complete happiness wash over me as I said yes. Forever couldn't start soon enough!

So...Fifteen years ago today I met him up at the altar. I don't remember a thing the pastor said and we might as well had Charlie Brown's teacher up there saying "Mwa Mwa mwa mwaaa mwa mwaaa mwa mwama." My brother, Scott, had warned me that might happen! :) Later on, we danced the night away at the reception and had a grand ol' time. We just tried to ignore the fact that our wedding cake was yellow...

With the passing of fifteen years have come a boat load of wonderful memories. I'd be writing for 8 months straight if I were to mention all of the good times. But the most important, would have to be Nick and Nolan entering our lives. I feel that we've created this family for ourselves that brings me total joy and contentment. Connor is a fantastic father and role model for those boys. And as a husband, he is the absolute best! There isn't a person on the face of the earth I feel more comfortable with. He is just as romantic today as he was way back in the early days and keeps me laughing ALL OF THE TIME and that is the way I like it.

(This was taken at our friend, Rob's, wedding in July 1996)


In fact. Here are a couple of things Connor has said to me over the years on our anniversaries...



5th year anniversary... "You know, Kel, there are prison sentences shorter than this."



14th year anniversary... We were driving around and he asked me if I wanted to hear the latest song he'd downloaded from itunes. I said "sure." Before I knew it we were listening to Paul Simon touting the "5o ways to leave your lover." Isn't that sweet?



Well, I guess it's safe to say he didn't hop on the bus, make a new plan, or slip out the back because today we are celebrating our 15 th Anniversary! I can hardly wait to hear what he's going to say about fifteen years of wedded bliss.

But I will say this, Connor, thanks for making my life the wonderful journey it has been. I love you and I can't wait to see what new and fantastic things we will encounter as our journey continues. You are the absolute best.


HAPPY 15TH ANNIVERSARY CONNOR

Just Three Simple Words

Warning... This post is going to be a little syrupy sweet.


I just have to put this little episode of my life in writing so I can refer to it any time I'm having a bad day...

The other morning, I woke up to the best sound a mom could hear. Nick was just hanging out upstairs in his room and decided to poke his head into my bedroom to say good morning. That was nice enough, but then as he was leaving he let out a sigh and said "I love life."

As a mom, you spend a great deal of your time wondering (or in my case, worrying) if you're doing a good enough job as a parent. I know I lack in MANY areas and make a lot of dumb decisions when it comes to the challenges of parenting...but, hearing Nick say that little phrase put my parenting woes at ease. It brought a huge grin to my face that morning and I don't think it's left my face since.