Alexis & Noah

She Can See!

2012-01-13T20:04:00.000-06:00

When kids make faces at you, it’s adorable (most of the time). But when ONE of your daughter’s eyes slowly turns into her nose while looking at you, it’s kind of freaky!

Then we noticed it was happening a lot more often… and then other people noticed. It kind of came on quick. I immediately called the eye doctor and got her in. It turns out she is very farsighted.

I’m nearsighted. So, I’m not very familiar with what she can and can’t see. The doctor says her vision is on the border of not being able to see near or far (combination of her mom & dad’s vision? – He sees far, I see near. Perfect combo, right?). So, basically she can see things in the distance, such as trees, but can’t see the details of the leaves.

Well, I noticed the “turn” the weekend before open enrollment closed, so I was able to add her to my vision plan, just in case (added Noah too – might as well, he’s probably next!) But her coverage on my vision plan didn’t begin until after the first of the year. So we waited until then to order the glasses and save some money.

It turned out they didn’t have any glasses small enough for Alexis, so they ordered in three frames (there were very few that even came small enough!) and went back to try them on and pick one out last week. She picked out the “burgandy” ones. Really, they’re a dark pink. But Dad & I also agreed they fit her best. Then, they just had to order the proper lenses to fit and got them finished up today… just in time for the weekend! We rushed over before they closed and TA DA!

She’s had them for about three hours now and is doing a pretty good job of keeping them on. She only took a few wobbly steps as we left the doctor’s office – OP! spoke too soon. She just knocked her head into the piano bench.

Early reviews (through of a bad cell phone photo) are positive!

Now, I’m curious to see whether this helps her behavior. I’m hoping a little that she’s been acting out in frustration of not being able to see. Aww, come on, a mom can hope, right?

**PS: I’m still working on updating posts from August through December so keep checking back! Hope to get some work done this weekend. I’ve also already taken 600+ photos with the new camera! So you have those to look forward to too!**

Still to come:

~~Turner County Fair~~
~~September Miscellaneous~~
The Apple Orchard
The Children’s Museum
The Pumpkin Patch
Noah’s 2nd Birthday
The Corn Maze

New Year, New Blog

2011-12-28T22:19:00.001-06:00

The Alexis and Noah Blog is now under construction. I’m still getting caught up on things from earlier this year. But then we’re switching gears to a new look. THAT is already in the works (and I now have a “Wordpress For Dummies” book to help me along the way – Thanks, Hon.)!

We’re now past Christmas and 2012 will be here in the blink of an eye. But I wanted to thank everyone for who follows us here for being patient with updates. It’s been a very busy year and once the summer came along, we enjoyed spending time outside versus on the couch updating the blog. Sorry! You will be rewarded, though, with some great pictures.

So, just a little more patience please! And SkinnyPancakes.com will be here soon!

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!

The Not So “Itsy Bitsy” Spider… And Other Random Photos

2011-09-18T22:32:00.000-05:00

This post is really going to freak out Auntie Carissa! I’m probably doing myself a great disservice because she’ll never come over after seeing the next photo… This is what I found hanging around the outside of our house in a giant web! Okay, I’ll admit – that’s FREAKY GROSS! At least it was outside, right?We also finished Bill’s cabinets and work bench in the garage. He built the cabinet doors in the background which open up to TONS of storage (those are doors on the very top too!).

He also bought the counter top for the workbench on sale because the very corner edge was damaged. Then he built the base and hanging cabinets to match. A few months later – okay, nearly a year - we pulled everything back apart and primed and painted it. One more thing we don’t have hanging over our head!

We took an evening to go to Germanfest in Downtown Sioux Falls and they had these great cutouts. The kids didn’t fully understand what we were asking them to do in putting their heads up against a wood board, but you get the gist.

We also had some German food down there and, again, found stuff the kids could eat. But the question was whether they would eat it. Bill found them some sausage and vegetables. And Tom and Rose found a table for us all to sit at with another family. The mother of the two older kids looked at me, then at the kids and what they were eating and said “you’re really going to get them to eat that?” I explained to her that they love Kielbasa. They proved me right and the lady’s jaw dropped! They even tried the kraut, to which she was also amazed, but the kids weren’t fans.

I have a feeling I’m going to have tomatoes coming out of my ears for some time. This was one of the MANY baskets we pulled from the garden. The plants are SO full, I set up a system of pulling the turning ones and putting them in the basement, in a crate, wrapped in newspaper, against the sliding glass door. So, it was cool at night and got the warm sun during the day.

I heard the newspaper helps keep certain ripening gases close to the fruit to help it turn even more (and that adding a banana with them can further speed the process). It worked as far as I could tell. Pulling some of the turning ones helped give moisture to the ones still on the vine to help them turn before the wildlife and bugs could get them.

Got a few good pics of the kids goofin’ around on the stairs again. I really thought they’d start to give it up as they got older, but nope!

Fun At The (Turner County) Fair

2011-08-15T23:58:00.000-05:00

Fair food, fair rides, fair animals, fair people, fair sweat, fair smells, fair hair; why wouldn’t you want to go to the local county fair? Well, when it comes to the Sioux Empire Fair… been there done that. So, this year we hit the road, interstate, highway, through the cornfields, past a couple dirt roads and headed for the Turner County Fair.

I’ve met the people who run it in the past (through having them as guests on Inside KELOLAND) and I work with the fair board’s past President and biggest supporter, Darcy. Now, I just needed to get out there and see it for myself – with the family in tow, of course!

After a walk into the gate (which is free, by the way! No $5 per person entrance fee here!), we bee-lined it for the animals and were greeted by, what else? A camel! – a couple actually. Noah loved them and every other animal we saw. I should warn you, you’re going to see a lot of the back of his head in these photos. Why look at the camera when you can reach out and pet a camel!? Oh, Alexis was there too… she just wasn’t as excited about getting up close and personal with the baby cow. But she did like the little chicks… they couldn’t fit her hand in their mouth!The little guy’s level of no fear tends to give this mom a lot of fear! He decided he needed to hang on the cage of the miniature bulls. Okay, they’re miniature compared to the big ones, but that put their big, sharp horns right at my kid’s level! Seriously, kid! - That’s right, I took a picture before pulling him off because I didn’t notice the HORNS until afterward! I was personally impressed with the produce expo building and everything that was judged. But I think I could have won in some categories after seeing what came out of my garden this year. Darcy said I could enter in the open class category! Gonna give that some serious thought! And since Darcy’s a pro, she can coach me a little. I guess it’s worth reading the rules regarding stem length and other details! Then it was time for some fair food! We found some stuff Alexis could eat (hot dogs, I believe) and plopped down on a picnic table in the shade. It was getting warm – even as the sun went down! We all needed something to drink.Then it was off to find more show animals. First the sheep – which Alexis thought were cool because they were wearing different colored “coats”. They’re actually spandex! and apparently help keep the sheep clean before being shown. There were a whole bunch so they looked like giant Skittles!We also saw pigs, more cows and goats… little kids – again just the right height for Noah!Yep, this ^ is what she’s looking at in amazement!

And that’s on our way out of the fair. We were sad we didn’t get to see Darcy. I stuck my head inside the fair office and they said she was running around – totally understand! (I believe she was at the auctioneer contest with our co-worker Don Jorgensen who was judging the event.)

We will definitely have to try to come back next year!

Summer Project – Done!

2011-08-10T16:25:00.000-05:00

My summer project is DONE! It only took me ALL summer too! We thought staining the deck would be a couple weekend affair. The front deck went pretty smooth – yeah, it’s 6’ x 5’ with four steps. Piece of cake!

The back deck was a whole different beast! I liked the look of a two-tone finish, so I went for it and got all the appropriate equipment so it looked great. Regardless of the color, I had to tape off all the spindles and since it was going to take two coats, the tape was going to be on there for a little bit of time. The problem was after I got the first coat on, we got rain, rain and more rain. Then summer got busy. So I wasn’t able to finish the second coat for the solid color and finish touch-ups until the beginning of August.

Then I tried to take the tape off. It had been on through the heat and rain and figured maybe mother nature worked for me, baking the adhesive to the point of drying it out. It did, in some areas. In other areas, okay nearly every spindle, I needed some fingernail polish to remove the residue and paint drips that I missed. It took time but again, the detailing was worth it! What do you think?

Everybody Jump, Jump!

2011-08-08T15:47:00.000-05:00

Grandma and Grandpa thought it’d be fun to buy the kids a trampoline for the summer. It’s just their size and comes with a net to wrap around it. The thing sits not even two feet off the ground and is pretty sturdy. But putting it together is quite interesting. There are all of these elastic straps to tie into bows underneath the trampoline – finger killers! That’s us below – yep, both of us, which means ALEXIS took the picture! Not bad, huh?

It was an instant hit! But for some reason, they don’t want to stay in it very long. We’re talking five minutes at a time, then they want out. Five minutes later, they want back in. The zipper door is getting a workout.

The time outside also gave me a chance to pick a few things from the garden. I’ve been watering pretty close to every day and am pretty impressed with how things are growing. This was what I got at first pick. I don’t remember where I put the white onions and the green onions, so I picked these not knowing whether they were really big green onions or small white ones. Either way, Bill liked them and they tasted great in our salads.

The yellow peppers are spotted for some reason. I’m wondering if it has to do with the watering. But the tomatoes are going gangbusters! There are tons of green ones and these are the only ones ready to be picked so far. They look and taste great!

Saturday Night With Some Friends

2011-08-07T00:09:00.000-05:00

Ben and Trista had some friends over Saturday night with all the kids, which is always fun. They all play so well together; I’m always impressed. We all brought something to eat and grill and Noah got to sit at a table full of girls!

Bella was nice enough to show Noah how to use her boombox. And then he carried it around ALL NIGHT!

He and Sophie took turns on the swing… he pushed her and then we pushed him. Sophie wasn’t too sure about having him come swinging at her.

Bella had a riding tractor, which she and Alexis pushed each other around the yard on. Bella really got that thing going at times to the point that it made Alexis squeal in a bit of terror. When we got her to slow down a bit, it was much more fun for the both of them.

And to wrap things up for the night, Ben pulled out the fire pit and got things going for smores. It was cooling off just enough where the warmth felt good. Noah decided to swing the marshmallow sticks around a bit, so we had to take them away from him. Oops! He got interested in the graham crackers instead… we couldn’t get those away from him!

Lovin’ This Zoo Membership!

2011-08-06T23:54:00.000-05:00

It’s a nice summer day and Hy-Vee is sponsoring a free lunch at the Zoo. Let’s Go!

We loaded up the wagon this time and took a stroll through the Great Plains Zoo. We decided to get there as early as possible in the morning figuring the animals would be out before lunch and boy were we right! MEOW!

We took the Zoo in reverse order this time and started with the big cats and bears. The bear photos didn’t turn out that great so that means we get to the rhinos sooner. Alexis loves them and I don’t know why, other than that she still calls them “rhino-saurs”.

Then it was off to lunch: Hot dogs, watermelon, chips, cookie and water. And it’s a good thing we took some extra water bottles because the day warmed up fast. Noah sharing food with Dad:

Alexis wasn’t very into the Zoo’s mascot. At least she gets excited over the real animals!

Well, she likes the animals as long as they can’t reach through the fence and beg for food. But Noah LOVED feeding the goats! He kept asking for more treats and the little goats were HUNGRY!

And once we wiggled our way through the monkeys, past the camel and a few alligators, we swung into the flamingos to show the kids the interesting pink birds. Noah was captivated. Alexis, didn’t really care too much. Isn’t he too cute?!

Summer Vacation At The Lake: Part II

2011-07-29T15:27:00.000-05:00

My sister, Carissa, got some good pics too, which I have to share. I’ve found it’s hard to be thorough with photos or even take good ones when I’m running after the two little monkeys.

The kids each have their own lawn chairs, which they LOVE! They came back to the cabin with us again this year!

It’s also hard to get a family photo in and I always forget to hand off my camera and ask someone to take one. Carissa is good to me!

Back to the sandbar! Alexis did pretty decent coming out this time. Noah was on board too. The lake floor is really rocky so we have to take our flip flops out with us; the kids also have water socks – SO glad I invested in those!

The group didn’t know it at the time, but Auntie Laura wasn’t feeling very good during the vacation because she and Uncle Christopher are expecting a baby!

Uncle Mark (below), Aunt Becky, Brian and Annie the dog were in the cabin next to ours as usual and shared in all the fun, whether it was on the boat…

… or playing cards! It’s a tradition, but some are apparently growing tired of playing 31. Tough luck, I say! I guess the games do get pretty long now that there are, what, at least 12 of us around the table! Just more time to relax! For the first time in I don’t know how many years, it rained hard enough to force us into the Lounge for the night. It POURED! We stayed dry!

Getting the kids to nap in the cabin can be a bit of a challenge, even with the amount of fresh air that they were getting. Bill had pretty good luck, not to mention patience in getting them to sleep with him.

The past couple years, Alexis has been a bit afraid of walking on the docks. I think being able to see the water through the planks freaked her out a bit. She did better this year but was still slightly cautious. Noah was fearless. He’d walk right up to the edge too and look over into the water. Talk about freaking ME out! This kid is going to keep me on my toes!

And before we knew it, we were taking the annual group photo and packing up to go home. It’s funny, though, how when the end of vacation comes around, going home sounds good too.

The Cutest Little Vegetable Stand

2011-07-28T11:36:00.000-05:00

Now that I’m into canning and fresh vegetables, I’ve made an effort the past couple years to swing by the cutest little vegetable stand in Battle Lake. It’s an unmanned shack with a wide selection of vegetables all individually priced.

The neat part is that it’s all “on your honor” system. There’s a little sign, explaining how it works and a little black wooden box with a lock on it and a slot to drop your money inside. We got some really good corn last year and wanted to get more this time, but I guess the selection depends on the day of the week you visit on. This time there were just some REALLY large onions, peppers, a few melons and cucumbers. I grabbed a bag of 5 cucumbers for $2. Not bad!

Drive a little farther into town and they have a great candy/ice cream shop. We were also going to pick up some taffy, hoping the kids could also have some. The girl working the counter was nice enough to show me the ingredient list – taffy has milk; we got them some gummies instead.

But on the way in, a customer who was eating ice cream outside kindly informed me they don’t take credit/debit cards. I didn’t have much cash. She let me know there was a cash machine at the bank around the corner. So I headed across the street on foot and when I came to the corner, I noticed this:

Too cute, right? I love the little details of small towns; so quaint and full of personality.

Summer Vacation At The Lake: Part 1

2011-07-26T01:18:00.000-05:00

It’s the week I looked forward to the most all summer: one away from technology (there’s barely cell service, let along a wifi signal that you have to sit in the middle of field to get access to), next to a beach, and out in the great outdoors with family.

And what else do you want to do after making the 4-hour drive with the kids? Board the pontoon and take a ride around the lake!

Brian even helped Noah take over the controls. That was just the first of many spins around the lake. Don’t worry, we’ll get to those.

I was really impressed about Noah’s interest in the water. Last year, it took us a LONG time to even get Alexis in the water. Noah was okay floatin’ around in his tube. But he took to the shoreline real well… just plopped down and dug right in. And once Alexis saw him do it, she was okay with it too. But that’s all the farther she was going to go in the water… at least for now.

Before we knew it, Noah was taking his board out into the water, so we showed him how to float on it and he tried his hardest, but the water was still a little too chilly on his tummy.

The playground offered a whole extra adventure. It’s funny how it didn’t matter that we play on ours at home nearly EVERY night, this one was just as exciting to them: up the ladder, down the slide, up the plank, down the slide, swing, swing, up the ladder, down the slide, repeat for the next four days.

If sliding in their jammies wasn’t going to wear them out, I don’t know what would. It certainly helped get them into bed though. We all slept in the tent, with a pack-n-play for Noah and Alexis got to sleep in the “princess room” AKA the “dog den” (where you see Noah below).

One of our favorite places to go in the pontoon is a sandbar that allows you to walk into the middle of one of the lake’s “fingers” about waist deep. Alexis wasn’t quite ready to go for the walk. This time around, Noah wasn’t very willing to wear his blue life vest, so he got to wear the fun green monster. He and Dad waded out into the water, one step at a time. But in all the excitement, I guess I forgot to switch out his diaper for a swimming diaper. Like the droopy drawers? LOL

So, we took off the soggy, over saturated diaper and let him run around fancy free for a couple of minutes. Got some great photos of that… but you’ll have to take my word for it.

Once we got a dry diaper back on him, it was time for a Sunbutter and jelly sandwich as we headed back to the shore.

Uncle Brent made pink fluff – All By Himself. Good stuff too! Then he tried to school the guys on cribbage… a game I haven’t played in SUCH a long time. He may need to give me a refresher course!

We pulled out the “monkey balls” and Noah caught on right away, that is, the fact that they look like “monkey bars”. So, why not try to climb them, right? It wasn’t too much longer before he was ready to crash… with his own monkey.

Oh, How My Garden Grows!

2011-07-21T00:13:00.000-05:00

Alexis woke up sick, so I had to stay home with them. My new schedule is kind of helpful with sick days because I go to work in the morning until around 9 a.m., which means I only have to take half a sick day since I already have 4 hours in. Then I go relieve Bill and he’s able to go to work about an hour late. I tend to figure when she’s home throwing up, that he could do the same at any moment or is contagious too. So, I just keep him home as well.

While the kids were napping, I took a moment to step outside to document the garden. Take a look at my yellow pepper plants!

Not all of the tomato plants took off; I lost about five. But that left a dozen or so, which I’m sure will be plenty! It was time for cages, which I will install right away next year and buy the big heavy duty ones.

After nap, we did some painting. I figured it gave me an excuse to let them get a little dirty, in case I was going to have to clean up Alexis again anyway. They did a pretty good job! Now I just have to frame the artwork.

Have we mentioned how much Noah loves his sock monkey?

Alexis made it through the rest of the day without getting sick and we were able to get by without Noah getting sick too. You just never know with that kid!

Personality? Ya Think?

2011-07-14T13:08:00.000-05:00

Stick a flower on her head and she’s all sunshine and butterflies!

Another New Set Of Wheels

2011-07-13T01:03:00.000-05:00

After a trip to Aberdeen to get Dad’s new motorcycle, the kids now have a new set of wheels of their own… a kid-sized Ford F-150. Check out the faces!

Alexis’ feet barely reach the pedals so Bill will have to fix that for her. He’s pretty sure he can put a wood block on the pedal to give her that extra reach. Noah’s a ways away from being able to reach so he’ll just ride shotgun for now.

They at least got it down the driveway and then headed for the open road. Good thing our neighborhood is new and doesn’t get much traffic because we still have to teach Alexis how to drive a straight line. She’s still trying to figure out the steering wheel and how to turn a little instead of cranking the wheel all the way to one side.

The truck has a battery-powered radio, working doors and working tailgate. That’s where they store their helmets for when they ride their bikes.

Noah’s content with leaning back, changing the radio stations and letting the wind blow through his hair. Can’t wait to see what he does when we boost the power and the truck goes even faster! That’s going to take some time though.

Now it’s Mom’s turn for a new vehicle, yes? Yeah right! :o)

Hangin’ With The Girls

2011-07-11T00:57:00.000-05:00

The day after picking up the motorcycle, Alexis and I went to Bracco for brunch for my co-worker, Katie’s, baby shower. She’s having a little boy later this summer.

That gave us a chance to meet up with the girls – Mollie & Bella. You may recall they were all born within 2 months: Bella first, Alexis six weeks later, and Mollie came two weeks later. Bella’s in the middle in the photo below and Mollie’s to the right… getting three giddy girls to look at the camera together was a challenge!

It’s neat getting the girls together, because while they may only see each other a couple times a year, they hang out together like they see each other all the time. They’re only three and already have “old friends.”

Storybook Land

2011-07-10T00:56:00.000-05:00

Our first trip to Storybook Land is quite the story…

Bill had been shopping around for a motorcycle – we’re at the point where we could splurge a little. And on the Friday before Hot Harley Nights, a motorcycle poker ride fundraiser for Make-A-Wish, he found one on KELOLAND.com’s Automall. There was just one hiccup: it’s in Aberdeen.

The Hub City is about 4 hours north and west of Sioux Falls. So, what’s a guy to do? I told him we could either borrow his mom’s bike and ride in the poker run or drive to Aberdeen and possibly get his own.

The next challenge: if we did decide to buy it, how would we get it back? We wouldn’t have insurance on it yet, so I didn’t want him to ride it yet. Then he looked out the front window and noticed our neighbor’s new motorcycle trailer. We put in some calls and they let us borrow it. So, to Aberdeen we go!

So, after a drive and test ride, we bought the bike, loaded it up and headed for Storybook Land. We picked up some lunch first and went to Wylie park where a local dentist was putting on an annual picnic. I texted our Aberdeen bureau reporter, Erich Schaffhauser, to let him know we were going to be in town and he was going to be there so we stopped to say hi.

Then a quick ride to Storybook Land gave us a chance to stretch our legs and get out for a walk. It was HOT out and a lot of the play equipment was hot too. It was a good thing we grabbed a couple bottles of water from the picnic.

Noah worked on his climbing while Dad looked for a place to park the car and trailer. Then it was off to the castle.

Storybook Land consists of life-sized figures of your favorite storybook characters. We found the three little pigs and their homes made of straw…

sticks…

and there was one made of bricks, but I apparently didn’t get a photo. The area had gotten a heavy downpour earlier in the week so many of the displays were muddy or under water, so we really had to watch our step around the place.

Then it was off to the Wizard of Oz where the Munchkins were about the same size as Noah and their houses were just the same. Why he insisted on crawling through the window is beyond me!

Alexis thought Dorothy was pretty but neither wanted to go near the Wicket Witch of the West. By the time we found the Yellow Brick Road, I could tell we were wearing out fast.

The heat was really starting to affect even me and the kids’ faces were getting pinky. I was giving them all our water to keep them hydrated so we thought we’d end the trip with a ride on the carousel… their first ever!

At first, they didn’t quite know what to think. Noah was a little hesitant to get on the large fiberglass horse, but he warmed up once they started moving. Alexis LOVED it and didn’t want to get off. Of course, that meant a scene.

Then, it was time to leave Aberdeen and head home. A quick trip that was a warm one and added a new set of wheels to the garage.

4th Of July With Friends

2011-07-04T23:15:00.000-05:00

After months of trying to get together, we got the Matterns to come over for the 4th of July! Brats on the grill, fireworks in the bag! Had no idea what to expect out of the kids once the big bangs came out, but we were actually pretty impressed.

Start them out with snaps and they’ll jump all over the place! Noah loved throwing them in the grass… and somehow still go them to go off. Maddie was all about the height.

Just two girls playing in a clubhouse. NO BOYS ALLOWED! :o)

Alexis made sure Maddie knew how the telescope worked!

Once we took out the smoke bombs, Noah was all about lighting things and getting really close to them. Had to set some serious boundaries! However, he didn’t like the sparklers until they were out… and then he wanted to hold them… and got an ouchie.

Now we just need to make sure we see the Matterns again before the next July 4th!

Whose Child Is She?

2011-07-04T15:45:00.000-05:00

Naptime: 4th of July. Notice the firework t-shirt?

Can’t Get Enough Of The Great Outdoors

2011-06-24T22:42:00.000-05:00

On nice days, I try to pick up the kids from day care a little earlier than normal so we can spend some time in the back yard. Today, we grabbed some grapes and the blanket and had a little snack picnic in the shade. Then it was off to the jungle gym for more swingin’ time with my little man! I noticed his little toes just dangling there, not even reaching the grass; too sweet!

Alexis, for some reason, likes Noah’s safety swing more than he does. I think it’s because she knows she gets to sit higher off the ground. She’s constantly asking us to raise the swing. But then she can’t get on it herself. She’ll figure it out one of these days!

And we finally got some fresh sand to dump in the sandbox. However, it didn’t take long for the neighbor’s cat to find it: Look! A giant litter box!

The kids were digging around one day and I noticed something that shouldn’t be in there. Well, we stopped using the sandbox at that point for the rest of the summer (talk about disgusting! – Not to mention it could make the kids REALLY sick!). Now I have to find some way to cover it and then replace all the sand again. The placement of the bench makes it a bit difficult, but I think I’ll have to find some awning material and learn how to use snaps to hold it down around the edges. Darn CAT! (UPDATE: the cat died at the end of the summer, but they have another little kitten now that’s not afraid of anything!)

Lovin’ The Backyard!

2011-06-18T22:15:00.000-05:00

We have been spending a lot of time outside, especially now that the swing set is done. The kids are loving swinging, climbing up the ladder and going down the slide.

Noah took a tumble off a swing about a month into having the jungle gym. We took him to the acute care to get him checked out since he wasn’t wanting to move. Of course, by the time we got to the doctor’s office, he was climbing up the walls all by himself! So, now he has a safety swing to keep him from falling again.

It wasn’t too long either before Alexis figured out how to pump her legs and swing all by herself! She just needs a little push to get her going and then she’s all on her own!

The rungs on the ladder were a bit too far apart for even Alexis to climb so Bill added an extra set between them. Now the kids don’t fall through! and Noah can get all the way to the top by himself!

Chalk is the next best thing to crayons! They have buckets and buckets and are getting the hang of doodling… but Mommy usually needs to get them started & inspired. Alexis loves hopscotch and Noah likes coloring over what you’ve already drawn. Of course, Noah still likes to sit on the big boy swings… so we just take it slow and don’t go very high. Alexis has taught herself how to climb up the back side of the ladder. But once she’s hanging, she doesn’t know what to do next.

Oh, and we found if you bring even a tiny inflatable pool to Busha’s and fill it with some water, it’s fun for EVERYONE!

Some Talented Kids!

2011-06-04T11:57:00.000-05:00

Alexis has mastered the art of blowing bubbles! (She’s wearing a St. Patrick’s Day hat that’s a wee bit small, but she likes to dress up with every once in a while.

They can stack blocks “super tall!”

And Noah has mastered the art of standing on sandwich cases… while doing squats!

Tradition Of Caring

2011-06-04T00:12:00.000-05:00

Every year, KELO chooses a non-profit organization or multiple organizations to benefit from free airtime during primetime to air public service announcements. This year, the Tradition Of Caring group took nominations from KELO employees for the organizations we are involved with in our personal time. Since I’m the vice president on the Sioux Falls Area Humane Society’s Board of Directors, I nominated the shelter. And it was one of the grand prize winners!

It really couldn’t have come in a better year, since the only other animal shelter in the Sioux Falls area filed for bankruptcy and was forced to close, leaving the SFAHS as the only shelter taking in and caring for stray and unwanted pets.

As part of the TOC’s selection, the station held a pet food and supply drive on our sidewalk. People drove up with their donations and we, as employees, took the goods and money for the shelter to pick up that night. Let’s just say the response was another example of how the community cares and the power of KELOLAND. (The photo above was taken just a few hours after the food drive began.)

The SFAHS Executive Director and some employees came down with a pickup truck to get the donations afterwards and they were overwhelmed by the amount of food that piled up; there was so much, one of our employees also filled his pickup truck to help transport it back to the shelter.

While it was a major gift to the shelter, it was also a great birthday experience for me!

A Couple Of Monkeys At The Zoo

2011-05-30T11:32:00.000-05:00

To celebrate Alexis’ birthday, we used our membership to the Great Plains Zoo to see some other monkeys!

We tried to get there a little earlier in the morning so the animals would still be active, but as the day got warmer, things slowed down a bit. The local grocery store hosted a free lunch for Memorial Day. So we got hotdogs, watermelon and cookies!

The petting zoo area is the best! But they didn’t have food out this weekend because the animals had been fed too much food the day before. But Noah still loved sticking his hand through the cutouts to pet them. Alexis – not so much.

We also found a cow, which the kids love to see on our walks and as we drive to day care. It was up close and personal, but maybe a little too close for Punky.

Did I mention Alexis also loves the “rhinosaurs?” They’re a hit every visit!

Green Thumb?

2011-05-29T11:46:00.000-05:00

We decided to give my green thumb a test and start a garden on the back side of our garage. Last fall, Bill built a tiered area for two decent sized gardens. Our landscaper said it was a great area for a garden but our neighbor warned that the deer were going to love it. I plan to put up a fence. That should keep them out, right?

This is what we started with… 16 tomato plants in the lower tier with marigolds around the edge to keep out any rabbits we may have.

The higher tier has 8 more tomato plants, green, white and red onions, jalapenos, and 4 green peppers, 4 red peppers and 4 yellow banana pepper plants.

To prep, we tilled in a couple bags of manure on each level as well as a large cube of peat moss. The dirt used around the house is actually a pretty good mixture of manure and dirt to begin with so, it should be pretty hearty for the plants!

Alexis Is 3!

2011-05-22T21:47:00.000-05:00

Alexis’ birthday weekend was full of excitement and visitors. It started with Daddy coming home from Alaska. He got home just in time for all the fun. He got in late Friday night, so the kids didn’t get to see him until Saturday morning and boy were they excited he was finally home!

Grandpa Knaeble and Maria came for a visit on Saturday to hang out with the kids. We played in the back yard after Bill installed an extra set of rungs on the ladder and they brought gifts for Alexis.

She got a book and some fun stuff for the sandbox!

We went for dinner at Applebees (which we’ve decided makes the kids act especially naughty for some reason) and beat the storm home. Maria read a couple books to Alexis and Noah before the kids went to bed for the night.

Sunday: Then it was the party day! We had everyone over for Alexis’ big bash after nap time, but the Birthday Girl decided she didn’t want to wear her birthday outfit… so we just went with it and she wore what she wanted: A t-shit and jeans. That works too!

Alexis’ favorite movie these days is the Disney movie, Tangled. We watch it over and over and she can recite lines and tell you what’s going to happen next. It was only fitting that I was able to find a cake! Grandpa Kanabee and Maria stopped by before the party after spending all day Saturday with us. And it wasn’t long before Alexis was ripping into her presents… with the help of her brother, of course. Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday to you! Big breath and out went the candles!

Of course, Alexis got her special dairy-free chocolate cake!

Uncles Christopher and Brent! Lookin’ good, guys!Grandma Rose & Grandpa Tom with the rugrats!

Alexis showed off her new camera to Great Dzia Dzia and Busha and Great Grandma Yinda (Linda), the photographers in the family!

Above: Great Grandpa Art & Great Grandma Linda
Below: Great Dzia Dzia & Great Busha

Uncle Chris, Aunt Laura & Cousin Tristan; Busha & Dzia Dzia with the birthday girl, Alexis!

Above: Aunt Carissa & Ryan
Below: Uncle Brent!

While The Husband’s Away, The Wife Will Play

2011-05-13T23:30:00.000-05:00

Work sent Bill back to Alaska for a full two weeks again. At least this time is was in the spring instead of the dead of winter. But that mean being gone for Carissa’s 23rd birthday. And this year, she really wanted to party. We all chipped in to rent a party bus so everyone could get around safely. We planned a route with a stops at four bars through the night and started out at our house. That way, if anyone needed to crash instead of drive home, I had plenty of floor space. The kids got to spend the night at Grandma and Grandpa’s house. We had fun. I’ll leave it at that. Happy Birthday Peeps! We started at Bracco where I bought her a pineapple drink and relaxed with a Grey Goose dirty martini. AHHH!

We picked up some people along the way like Chris & Laura, Mike & Jen and Theresa & Carlos.

Then it was off to McNally’s for a quick shot stop. The Irish pub was celebrating its birthday too and had special “birthday cake” flavored shots. I got to order 20! And there was one extra, so I got to enjoy it. But that’s where we parted ways with Theresa and Carlos.

Next stop: The Attic. That’s where we happened to run into a co-worker of mine whose family was pretty close with ours growing up. Kevin was there with Daniel Seddiqui. He did 50 jobs in 50 states and KELO was the first news station to do a story on him. He was back in Sioux Falls for a book signing and had a couple on him. So I bought one and had it signed! Was a great guy to chat with for a little while.

Movin on… the next stop: Wiley’s Bar. Not a huge fan but that’s where Carissa and her friends tend to frequent. Jen was impressed she made a family photo we took with all the girls (think Mom has that one). So I thought I’d post a pic of her and fiance Mike.

Me, Mom, Carissa & Laura

Noah’s First Haircut

2011-05-11T21:57:00.000-05:00

The Monday after Mother’s Day, Bill’s work took him back to Alaska for the next two weeks. That’s why we had the goal of getting the swing set done before he left. While the weather there was warmer than his visit in February, the sun was out nearly 24 hours! We missed him tremendously.

Brent and Carissa helped me out a ton with my new schedule. They stayed the night so I could go to work at 5 a.m. while the kids slept and I would come grab them for day care around 7:30 a.m. It worked!

But Bill also missed out on a couple things. Noah needed a haircut BAD! It is spring now, so the kids have had some pretty bad runny noses. And well, his bangs were getting so long (never been cut!) that his hair was getting stuck in his nose. Gross, I know! So, I got him in for a trim but told the lady I wanted to keep his curls. He did a great job sitting on my lap, but since I was the only one there, I didn’t get a picture of it. So here’s his new do – post clip. You’d think it gave him some personality too… but nope – that’s just my Noah!

New Swingset!

2011-05-08T22:13:00.000-05:00

The seven or so boxes, LARGE boxes, and large pieces of plastic that have been sitting in the front of our garage for the past eight or so months are now empty. And their contents are now arranged to resemble a child’s swingset in our back yard, which is now full of thick, green grass. We decided to put off the construction of the swing set to avoid a winter’s worth of weathering. So over a week’s time, Bill spent his nights putting together sections in the garage. And on Saturday, we recruited family help to pull it all together and station it in the back yard. The kids played their parts as mini foremen.

Noah made sure all the guys stayed hydrated and they both kept a close eye on Uncle Brent’s handiwork with the picnic table.

The tube slide made them think a little though. The instructions can only take you so far, right?

Swings work?Check!

Ladder work? Check!

However, the ladder rungs were just a little too far apart for Noah. He kept putting his foot through the gap as he climbed. I was a little worried he was going to fall through so Bill later added a second set of rungs between each one. It worked out great and now he’s a pro at getting up to the fort and slide!

The next day was Mother’s Day. We had the family over for dinner an had hoped the kids could play on the new swingset. It was a bit icky out, so that didn’t happen. But Alexis & cousin Tristan hung out just the same.

April Favorites

2011-04-30T21:31:00.000-05:00

There were still a couple cold days in April and I finally happened to find our winter gear. You know, hats, scarves, mittens… some things we could have used ALL WINTER LONG. Alexis found a hat that my co-worker gave me for when Noah is a little bigger and wouldn’t leave it alone. Cute? Yes. (Thanks, Beth!)

Since my last attempt at making a fort for the kids got out of hand on my end and received little interest from the kids, I decided to keep the next one simple. We put up the tent Noah got for Christmas in the living room. It was a hit (go figure!)… especially at bed time as they brushed their teeth

Pizza & Playtime

2011-04-28T21:51:00.000-05:00

We met up with Grandma and Grandpa Leesch and Micki and the guys at Pizza Ranch in Brandon for pizza one night. And for the first time, we took the kids over to the County Fair, an arcade and indoor play land next door. They were just about to close (actually had an hour before closing), so the lady let the kids play on the jump jumps and the climbing set for free. Good thing we didn’t pay too because Alexis FREAKED out when we put her in the jump jump. So, of course, Noah wasn’t interested either. However he did want to shoot the guns at the saloon with the big boys.

They both LOVED the indoor jungle gym, yet refused to go down the giant tunnel slide by themselves and I didn’t think I was supposed to climb up there with them.

So they had fun hanging around and jumping off platforms with Grandpa. These were some of the best dismounts:

Two Little Bunnies, Three Easter Hunts

2011-04-24T22:10:00.000-05:00

Easter morning began with Hunt #1. Alexis found her basket pretty easy and helped Noah find his, though he didn’t really need it. When the baby latches aren’t on the cupboards, it seems as though an alarm goes off for him because he bee-lines it to them to play with everything inside.

Inside, they found the Easter Bunny brought them playdough, some toys, Oreos, fruit snacks and other non-allergenic foods.

Then the Leeschs came over for some lunch and an Easter Hunt #2. She’s a total ham, right? And yes, that IS an actual (and rare) photo of mommy.

Let the fun begin! They loved the hunt and Alexis got the hang of it quickly: grab as many eggs as you can because they have candy in them! She would shake every one to make sure there was something in it. However, when they open them, the jellybeans would spill onto the grass and our lovely yard guy had just treated it with a chemical, so those beans were no good! Try telling that to a sugar raging toddler!

There were even eggs for cousins Ethan and Cole. But they shared theirs with the kiddos too.

(Photo below: Grandpa, Grandma, Ethan, Micki, Cozi, Cole; Noah, Alexis)

Then it was off to Busha and Dzia Dzia’s house for some Easter dinner and Hunt #3. (Check out my two guys at the pond!)

Noah’s basket was tucked beside the piano, filled with tons of sugary sweetness. Alexis looked in the cupboard in the den but didn’t see it. We had to convince her to look again.

Then it was off to hunt for the eggs outside. By now, Noah was getting the hang of it and knew exactly what to look for. He found them in every nook and cranny, and was actually giving his sister a run for the money. Though cousin Tristan was full steam ahead and had them both topped.

After all the eggs were found and claimed, the attention turned to the tree… or the ball that got stuck up top. Uncle Chris climbed as high as he could but still couldn’t quite reach it… can you see it in the second photo? WAAAAAAY up there? Since he was in a part of the tree where he couldn’t get up any higher, Uncle Brent joined him on another side (the whole ordeal brought back memories of climbing the maple in our back yard on 1st Street!)

And with Alexis’ attention affixed on the activity in the tree, her little brother saw a window of opportunity to raid her basket! He really is a smart little cookie!!!

By the end of the night, we had to go through the kids’ goodies and combine it with what Bill and I received to sort it all out by what they could and couldn’t eat… and this is what we ended up with: enough candy to last us until Halloween!

The Falls Are Full Again

2011-03-19T20:34:00.000-05:00

The snow melt brought a lot of water down the Big Sioux River that wraps around Sioux Falls. So we headed out one night to go check out the Falls.

They were roaring and foamy, as expected. But they’ve had more water come through in the past.

Again, getting them both to look at the camera together is quite the task. It wasn’t happening tonight.

Mommy’s New Job

2011-03-18T20:22:00.000-05:00

It’s been seven years since I started producing the 6pm News at KELO. But I decided it’s time to change jobs… within the newsroom, that is.

The morning web producer moved on to a station in Omaha in December, which sparked my interest in moving to the web world. After a few short talks with my managers and husband, I decided it would be a good move for our family, although a major life-changing one. The station posted my job, did a couple rounds of interviews and after training my replacement in the end of February and beginning of March, I officially moved to the web department as a web producer.

That means I am now one of three people in the news department who solely manage the content on KELOLAND.com. I am learning a lot – and it feels good to learn again! And when ever I have serious computer questions that are over our heads, I have my husband to turn to. Just think, with some time, we may finally be speaking the same language! hehe

I’m also looking forward to collecting web-exclusive material, whether that’s video, photos, data or even live streaming video. Just a couple days into the job, I was live streaming the Governor’s Flood Informational Briefings to our website from Brookings and the Sioux Falls flooding updates from the Law Enforcement Center. Now the challenge is to keep enterprising content and coming up with new ideas!

Another aspect I’m really looking forward to is my new schedule. It may not sound attractive to some, but I hope it’s exactly what I’ve been looking for to give me more time with the family. I go in at 5:00 a.m. and get off at 2:00 p.m. and take a break from 7:30-8:30 am to grab the kids from home and take them to day care. That gives me time in the afternoons to run errands, grocery shop, take a nap if I need, go to meetings for other organizations I work with and make dinner so we can eat before 7:30 p.m.! My previous schedule was 9:00 a.m. to 6:45 p.m…. or whenever I wrapped up work to leave after the 6 o’clock news.

Now the trick is getting the kids to bed at a decent time (8:00 p.m. so that I can go to bed shortly after).

I’ll let you know how it goes!

New Discoveries

2011-03-11T19:27:00.000-06:00

Noah is loving to read books. He’s really good about pulling every book off the shelves and sitting down by himself to read through them. He’s not so good, yet, at sitting down and listening to you read through a whole one!

Alexis found my ‘bag of bags’ and for several weeks filled each of them with her toys and carried them around the house by the arm-load. First a shoe obsession, now purses. It’s just the natural progression, right?

And I don’t know what I was thinking to give the kids toast with sunbutter and jelly for breakfast (they can’t have peanut butter so sunbutter is made with sunflower seeds and is very similar!). I should have known Noah would cover his face, hands, table, chair, and pajamas in sticky blackberry jelly! At least he had fun with it and it turned into some cute pictures. Can you say, ‘bath time’!

Lucky Us!

2011-02-14T23:29:00.000-06:00

Valentine’s Day started and ended with surprises.

I was surprised at work to receive a dozen roses from Bill. The very surprising part was that the card was hand written, meaning he had taken care of it before leaving for Alaska! They are beautiful!

Then when I thanked him for the delivery, he told me there were also surprises for the kids and I in the bottom drawer of his night stand!

We got home to find a bag of gifts and some stuffed animals for the kids. I had bought them each a mini Valentine’s Day sock monkey. He got them a mini Winnie The Pooh and Eyore and some heart candies. A gift bag also had chocolate for me and two Willow Tree figurines. They’re precious!

So we got the kids all ready for bed and they cuddled up with their new snuggle toys!

Happy Valentine’s Day

2011-02-14T00:15:00.001-06:00

I am about a month behind again, but wanted to get out a Valentine’s Day greeting to everyone. I made Valentines from the kids to hand out today, but was not able to make enough for everyone or to get them shipped off to people out of town.

So… take a look and please know that we love you all. I can’t tell you how much you are appreciated for the support you’ve given us as a family… whether that’s watching the kids, coming to gatherings or just listening to me rant about their funny stories.

I realize many think this isn’t a “true” holiday, but why not give a little extra love today anyways? Hugs & Kisses from us!

Meanwhile, the rugrats and I are sending our love to Bill as he’s 3,000+ miles away in Alaska. He’s been gone for a week now for work and we can’t wait for him to come home toward the end of this week. He did get to go see some sights Sunday and sent a few pictures of the Denali National Park:

While I’d love to be with him to see it too, he just has to tell me that the temperature is –40 degrees and I get over it real quick! Love ya babe!

Oh, one more thing… would you believe we signed on the house a year ago Friday!

More posts to come soon! (Yes, I did post this at 12:15am! – time for bed!)

Sledding For The First Time

2011-02-13T00:22:00.000-06:00

Grandma & Grandpa got the kids sleds for Christmas, but the weather on the weekend had been so cold since the holidays that we just couldn’t get out to use them! That is until today! I bundled them all up for the 30 degree weather and headed out to the back yard!

So, Noah wasn’t too thrilled about the whole situation… the only way I could keep him happy was to keep the sun out of his eyes or stay moving. I don’t know if it was because the snow was so wet or what, but they were really heavy to pull around!

Later that night, we had some visitors next door… actually lots of visitors. Carissa and I counted 10 deer eating the now visible grass in the empty lot next door. There were more babies than usual but didn’t see a buck this time. You can see six of them in the photo below.

Noah As A Redhead….

2011-01-30T00:10:00.000-06:00

There’s just not much one can say about this one.

Happy Birthday Tristan!

2011-01-23T00:06:00.000-06:00

Look who’s 5! Chris and Laura invited us all to the bowling alley for Tristan’s birthday party this year. We had a blast!

Alexis goofed around on the bowling alley furniture with Aunt Carissa and Noah hung out on the alley steps. He thought he was such a big boy running off by himself!

Getting To Know Things…

2011-01-20T23:53:00.000-06:00

Noah’s getting very interested in discovering new things and finding out whether he fits inside of them…

He likes to stick his arm in the door of the new Little People house to push the button that makes the phone ring. One night before we went to bed, I couldn’t find my phone. When Bill called it, the inside of the house lit up. Noah had put my phone inside with the play phone!

He’s also getting very good at stacking the Mega Blocks and knocking them over again. He had Grandma going for quite some time stacking them up as high as he could reach! (I think Alexis’ dress actually matches the blocks rather well!)

And the big sister took it upon herself to help me feed Noah. He didn’t seem to mind!

Happy Birthday Ethan

2011-01-16T23:42:00.000-06:00

We all gathered at the Brandon Pizza Ranch to celebrate E’s birthday! He made out like a banchee with gifts and is well on his way to saving up for a major purchase… but he hasn’t said what’s on his wish list!

Getting both the little kids to look at the camera these days is a rarity!

Ugly Sweater Christmas!

2011-01-09T11:08:00.000-06:00

They’re ugly, we know. We decided to mix things up this Christmas with my side of the family and had an “Ugly Sweater Contest". The funny part was that while we had months to find our sweaters, I think all but one of us bought them the morning of the party at our local thrift store. It was actually amazing how many “candidates” we found in one place, not to mention in the right sizes. All but one in the picture above came from the same store.

As for Mom & Dad, yes, they participated… but were far from winning. Better luck next time!

As for the winner, Brent took top spot! He bought his on e-bay and I think he decided it looked like a snow globe threw up on him. Bill got second place (we found his sweater in the women’s department!) for the scalloped neckline. He wasn’t there when I picked it out but was totally game when he saw it!

Uncle Brent, Tristan and Alexis played “Santa” this year and handed out all the gifts. She’s getting really good at it! And Tristan did a great job recognizing the names on the packages!

~Noah loved his jogging outfit from Auntie Carissa~

And we had a hard time deciding who was cuter in Alexis’ new apron & pot holders. But Noah was pretty adorable with the face printed on his new bike helmet.

Hoping for a ride, Alexis figured out she fit in Uncle Brent’s new cooler…

And to wrap up the night, we had arranged a game of dice. We all brought $10 gifts with an alcohol theme. Brent created a “7 shooter” by attaching 7 liquor shots to a shot glass. Noah figured out exactly what they were for without any coaching.

Allergy Testing X 2

2011-01-07T21:28:00.000-06:00

We didn’t get our hopes up but still anticipated the kids’ allergy testing for the year. We found out nearly a year ago that Noah is allergic to eggs and more tan 2 years ago that Alexis is allergic to milk and soy. Six months ago, the allergist said we could test in 6 months because her soy allergy could be close to going away. So, we had a glimmer of hope for that.

So, this time around, we had them test Noah for egg again as well as cat & dog, just so we knew whether we should medicate him before going to places that have them. Take a look:

Translation: He’s not allergic to dogs or cats (whew!) and his egg allergy has reduced a bit (that’s the big one on top to the right). The allergist says we can start to try testing him on foods that are well cooked with eggs (cookies, cake, etc). Haven’t done that yet, but will let you know.

The news wasn’t as expected for Alexis. We mentioned that she had a reaction to a bagel with peanut butter on it and so the allergist suggested we test for peanuts. He also did milk, soy, dust mites, and tree nuts:

The bad news: the largest welt (lower left) is for peanut. We also added dust mites. her soy was about the same (though he said we could start testing her on products with soy) and the milk reaction did lose some strength (it’s the second largest one). He hopes that this time next year, we’ll be talking about testing her on some milk products. Here’s hoping!

Christmas In The Cities

2010-12-24T22:22:00.000-06:00

We knew traveling to the Cities was going to be a holiday adventure. We had a lot of places to visit and people to see, but we had a plan to fit it all in. It began with driving to Shakopee Thursday afternoon… that was the plan at least, but it got pushed back to that evening. We stayed in a hotel (Bill’s parents had a free voucher that needed to be used) & then just had to Busha’s when we were ready in the morning.

She had a packed house! And with two little kids running around, things really heated up. We did our traditional Christmas Eve Polish dinner (the Wigilia) a little different this year & divided up the dishes so Busha could spend more time out of the kitchen. I was in charge of the rice pudding and ended up screwing that up because I bought the wrong rice for a crock pot recipe. The fix: some time on the stove. But we ended up making our own concoction anyways… with some Coffemate gingerbread creamer for flavor! It did the trick!

“Super” Busha & Dzia Dzia, as we now call them for the kids, got Alexis & Noah fuzzy blankets, which they loved instantly… among other gifts! Noah went around & stole presents from others. Cute of course.

Then, I can’t get over the fact that Busha opened up her cupboard & lid drawer for him to play in the kitchen the next morning. I remember doing the very same thing when I was little!

After breakfast on Christmas morning, we headed to Dad & Maria’s to spend the day with them. They had new trinkets for the kids to play with… but the Russian nesting dolls were a hit as usual!

After dinner, we headed over to Uncle Charlie & Auntie Nancy’s house (which is actually my Grandmother’s old house where my Dad grew up). He has a cheesebread & spaghetti sauce feed with his recipes from the old pizza shop. You just can’t get enough of it! Alexis and Tatum got to play together some (for only the 2nd time, I think) & people who hadn’t even met Noah yet got to see him too.

Noah played on the stairs that used to lead upstairs, which is where Brent & I used to stay when we visited Dad. Ah, the memories!

After jumping on the couch with Tatum and Gavin, we took a “quick” jaunt from North Minneapolis to Saint Paul to say hello to the Thesenvitz clan. I have to admit, I did a horrible job taking photos all weekend so they’ve very limited. But we did have a great time seeing everyone, even if it was only for a short time.

And when the night was over, we headed back to Dad & Maria’s for the night. The kids slept really well, though Noah woke up with matter in his eyes. He had been a bit cranky all weekend, but I kind of wrote it off to us all not being back to normal from the sickness earlier in the week. The kids got in some final cuddles, rang the bell a few more times and we were off & on the road.

Bill took Noah into acute care once we got home to get some drops for his eye and it turned out he didn’t have an eye infection, he had an ear infection. I felt horrible! Who knows how long he had it and whether that’s what was making him so cranky. It was the same with both him & Alexis: they don’t get fevers when they have ear infections. How’s a mom to know… before the mucus starts coming out their eyes! Poor boy!

Our Home’s First Christmas

2010-12-23T23:21:00.000-06:00

Santa came early to our house. We put in a call to the big man so we could keep the chaos of opening gifts at home.

He brought the kids new toothbrushes & toothpaste, coloring books and toys in their stockings. Noah got Chuck The Truck cars & Alexis got new crayons for the bath tub.

We had hoped to hit the road for the Cities around nap time, but we didn’t realize the toys would be such a hit. We had to take just about everything out of boxes, install batteries, even connect some of them to the computer. Alexis got a Tag Junior reader, which we didn’t realize needs the books uploaded to it in order to use it. And Noah’s puppy pal, Scout, needed to be connected to the internet to get his content. Each toy now says the kids’ names! We hoped it would give them something to do on the 3.5 hour drive.

Merry Christmas!

Sick Bay

2010-12-22T23:20:00.000-06:00

It’s the Monday before Christmas and Alexis woke up not feeling so well. She threw up all over her pillow while sleeping but said she was coughing when she did it. The same thing had happened Saturday morning, but it was the only time she did it, so I had decided it was cough-induced and wasn’t too worried. Since it happened a second time, I decided to keep her home. Then about 2 hours into the morning, Noah did it too. So I figured we were looking at a bug of some sort.

The next morning, my suspicions were confirmed. I woke up around 3:30 AM when Alexis wandered into our room saying she had to go potty. She did her thing, went back to bed and then I got sick. I grabbed my pillow and a blanket and headed for the couch, hoping to not get Bill sick.

7 AM came around and Bill wandered down the stairs. He was sick too. We both called into work and called my mom to come pick up the kids & take them to day care (they were both back to themselves the night before, running circles around us!) . Talk about feeling worthless when you’re so sick you can’t take care of your kids. We seriously sat on the couch all day & didn’t move.

We still weren’t feeling up to “life” the next morning, but work was calling for me… I had to go in because other people were sick now. Oy ve! It really went around the newsroom! But I also took Alexis in to the doctor real quick. She had been having problems with her bowel movements for the past couple months and the illness didn’t help AT ALL! The doctor (not our usual one) decided she was probably getting too much fiber, but ran some tests to make sure she didn’t have an infection. They all came back negative, but that didn’t exactly offer any answers either.

Leesch Christmas

2010-12-18T23:19:00.000-06:00

We changed things up a bit this year for the Leesch Christmas and had it at our new house… our first Christmas! It was also a week early. I made dinner, we ate and opened presents afterward. Noah was quickly interested in everything piled up under the tree!

The kids got spoiled. But I’m still impressed with how much Alexis loves getting clothes for gifts. I don’t think I’ve seen her do the “throw the clothes over the shoulder” thing once yet! While I see that as a good thing, it could also backfire on me when she’s 15 and asking for money every week to go shopping. hehehe

I was also pretty happy with how our gifts turned out for Cole & Ethan. I made them each fleece blankets with their favorite football teams’ logos. I had made one for Bill a few years back and he LOVED it! We pull it out all the time & I hope the boys do the same!

Noah & Alexis also got sleds from Grandpa and Grandma, which they quickly figured out worked well on the carpet and kitchen floor. So Bill took each for a couple spins around the island. We’re going to have fun with these this winter! It just needs to warm up a little so we can get outside!

14 Months & Still <20 lbs!

2010-12-06T23:09:00.000-06:00

We’ve really been working hard to get Noah’s weight up. We’ve been going to get his weight checked every month and every month he gets a little closer to 20 lbs. At the 14 month mark, he was still 19 lbs 6 oz. So, still just more than half a pound from where we’re trying to get him. That means we still can’t turn around his car seat and things are getting a little tight. His carrier car seat is getting really heavy for me to lug around!

So we decided, this month, to switch him to whole milk from his concentrated formula. There are many reasons why, but after doing the math, I found the milk had more calories. It doesn’t have the other vitamins & nutrients he was getting in the formula, but I’m pretty sure we can get him those things through his food. Since Alexis can’t have milk, we tend to eat pretty healthy: meat, vegetables, fruit.

Not to mention the specialized formula he was on is very expensive: $42+/can in the store but $12/can after insurance. But he went through a can every 2-3 days. That really adds up considering he’s now drinking a gallon of milk every week.

His body is taking to the milk really well; no skin or bowel problems. But we’ll see how it goes!

Odd Little Kids

2010-11-05T22:31:00.001-05:00

Alexis is getting a bit too comfortable with her bed lately. This is where we put her every night...

But some mornings, this is where we find her:
I don't know why she doesn't like staying in bed but Bill says he used to do the same thing as a kid. For a while, we closed her door (which she didn't mind) and put a door knob cover on the inside. That worked, but we found it hindered potty training. So, now we just are cautious when putting our feet on the floor when we wake up!

Noah's really getting into things now that he's walking. We put all the locks back on the kitchen cabinet doors. He loves sitting in baskets!

He tried spaghetti for the first time the other night so pictures were a must. Alexis didn't like spaghetti noodles so we don't make it that often. But Noah gobbled it up and didn't care where he got it. The sauce was a little rough on his face though. It really flared his eczema for a while afterward.

Happy Halloween

2010-10-31T22:00:00.000-05:00

So, the Vikings didn’t have a very good day, but I did have the cutest little cheerleader in the neighborhood! Noah tolerated his costume a little better and it really helped keep him warm as it did get pretty cool that night. At least there wasn’t any snow!

As we took pictures, we gave the kids the mini pumpkins to hold to keep their attention. It worked, until they decided to play “let’s throw the pumpkins down the stairs and watch them roll.”

These pictures also give you a good view of the pumpkins Bill and I carved too. You can probably guess who did which one. Hint: I’m not a Nebraska Husker’s fan. I do have to fess up though that I got my pumpkin idea from my cousin, Nick. I just tweaked his design a little.

Cousin Tristan, AKA Spiderman, brought Chris & Laura and the rest of the family came over too for some pictures and to visit a couple houses in the neighborhood for some treats.

We started at Carol’s. She’s my mom’s “sorority sister” who lives across the street. It was Punky’s first time trick-or-treating to people’s doorsteps, so when Carol opened the door, Alexis walked right in.

Of course, the kids’ food allergies makes public events, such as trick-or-treating, a little challenging. So we just made sure to separate the candy she could have from the candy she can’t (and that became Mom & Dad’s candy). The grandparents all came over too with “Alexis appropriate” Halloween treats – AND LOTS OF THEM!

The Night Before Halloween

2010-10-31T00:17:00.000-05:00

We had babysitters and an invite to a party.

What we didn’t have: costumes.

So the day of the party, we scrambled a little to find costumes for us. I came up with an idea for Bill (and am pretty impressed that I did!). So that left us looking for elements to his costume and me looking for anything that wasn’t trashy, too short or expensive. Talk about a scavenger challenge! But I think I did okay:

However, the fangs I bought for my Vamp look didn’t work. Seriously, who do these companies think can really keep their mouth dry for 5 minutes to let some bonding putty set? Yeah right!

So we headed to Nate (in the Green ‘Kickass’ costume) & Angie’s (a vintage cigarette girl) where, unfortunately, not too many people were able to show at last minute.

So we headed to the bar, only to find out that it too was pretty empty. Just meant more room for us.

Bill’s co-worker, John (Lumberjack), met up with us.

As did Brent (Redneck Zombie), after the Zombie Walk downtown.

Oh, and for those of you *not* familiar with the movie “The Hangover”, Bill’s costume probably looks rather odd. He went as Alan, a character from the movie, who carried around “Carlos”, a stranger’s baby. Yes, that’s a doll and yes, it’s just about life-size (and post-party is now Alexis’ baby).

Carving “Punkins”

2010-10-29T23:52:00.000-05:00

With newspapers spread across the table, carving knives and markers at the ready, it was time to show Alexis how to carve a pumpkin. Bill dug into his work of art and I started giving Alexis options for eyes, nose and a mouth for hers.

I cut open the top and tried to get her to help pull out the guts. But she stuck her hand inside, felt the grimy gunk and decided it was not for her. So I scraped out the inside and she colored on the newspaper instead.

Once it was done, though, she was willing to take credit for all the work and was ecstatic that her pumpkin was smiling back at her.

Bill and I will reveal ours later. hehehe

BTW, I can’t express the extreme satisfaction that I’m catching up on these posts. I hope you’re enjoying them as much as I am!

A Vikings Victory? Um, No.

2010-10-24T23:40:00.000-05:00

To rally the Vikings, the family came over in their Vikings gear and we all watched the team play the Packers. (Okay, I didn’t watch a single play. Not a football fan. I watch the Superbowl for the commercials.)

It was actually an odd afternoon for the kids. We ran errands and had stopped to pick up some fresh pumpkins to carve when Alexis passed out in the car. She was so out of it, when we got home (around 7:30 p.m.), she didn’t want to wake up. We put her in her bed and she was out for the count. She didn’t even wake up with all the commotion downstairs. But Noah was roarin’ and ready to go… playing with the pumpkins!

The big green thing is a squash my dad & Maria brought from their garden. We decided a samurai sword is just about the only way to cut it in half. Actually, I have a plan, but baking it, I have a feeling, is going to take some time. Then I think I’ll freeze some for the kids for later this winter.

Oh, by the way, the Vikings lost 28-24. But Noah and I still had fun!

Zoo Boo With The Knaebles

2010-10-23T23:19:00.000-05:00

Dad and Maria couldn’t make it for Noah’s birthday, so they made a special trip to Sioux Falls to hang out with us for the weekend.

They brought some presents for the kids and gave Noah an old, oiled catcher’s mit. He had a very unusual reaction to the gift, even for a 1-year old, and at the sight of it, threw it as if it was a bomb. Everyone got a good laugh. Dad & Alexis showed him what it was for and he warmed up to it eventually.

After a good nap, it was off to Zoo Boo, our city zoo’s annual trick-or-treating event. We had never gone, but the day, which started out cool, warmed up, the sun came out and it ended up being a beautiful evening. Alexis went as a Vikings cheerleader and Noah used Alexis’ duck costume from last year (she didn’t get to leave the house in it last year because she had H1N1).

I was curious how Alexis would react to anyone dressed up. I mean, you remember this, right? Well, even Spongebob Square Pants didn’t get a better reaction.

So, why not to try to trick her to get a picture with a couple guys impressively dressed as Star Wars characters. We passed by them and she squealed a little. So Dad stopped to take a picture and the guys moved into the background. But Alexis was too smart for them and anticipated their move…

Who wouldn’t love this duck, right? Noah waddled us out of the event and we were on our way to dinner with a decent bag of goodies for each of us. Gotta love a trick-or-treating event that encourages the adults to carry a bag too!

More Goofin’ Around

2010-10-17T22:52:00.000-05:00

Noah has a new favorite place to hang out while Mom’s in the kitchen. He will pull every bowl and plastic item out of this cupboard and sit in there with Alexis. Guess it’s time for some cabinet locks!

Busha got everyone in the family Homer Hankies for the Twins’ playoff games. We got them out right away and tried to show the kids how to use them… well, she almost figured it out!

What’s almost as funny is that the other day, she walked out of her bedroom from her nap to see the Vikings playing on the TV and yelled “Go Twins”. That’s my girl!

Silly Nay-Noah Sits In Everything…

2010-10-03T23:42:00.000-05:00

Noah loves crawling into everything! His dump truck and the dishwasher (if Noah even hears the dishwasher open, he comes crawling for the door, clings to what he can and crawls right onto the door when possible) …

And his racecar spinner. The bottom of the “bowl” spins, sending the race cars in circles before they shoot out the ramp. But Noah thinks it’s a chair and insists on sitting in it.

But Super Busha was able to get him on his feet and walked him around the house a bit. We were really thinking he’d be walking in time for his birthday, but didn’t quite make it. He just needs a little more practice and he’ll be running circles around us!

Happy Birthday Noah

2010-10-02T23:29:00.000-05:00

To celebrate Noah’s first birthday, we had a party with family on the 2nd. Everyone came over after nap time and brought a ton of gifts for Noah. Alexis was a big helper and actually go the hang of the idea that it was Noah’s party and not hers. Whew!

Of course the tags, boxes and paper are often more exciting than the gift itself. Although the big big yellow dump truck sure got his attention!

He also started getting really excited over the clothes. He’d yell “Woah!” once we got things open for him. They were both pretty excited over the Harley Davidson motorcycle and took turns getting their ride on it right away.

Then it was time for the cake. Noah wanted to dive right into the Cars cake. He grabbed for it right away, so sitting him on the table next to it to take pictures was out of the question… especially since he couldn’t eat it. We sang ‘Happy Birthday’, blew out his candle and stripped him down to his diaper for his cake.

I made his cake special with an egg replacement because of his egg allergy, but also used rice milk so Alexis could eat it too. I covered our chair in a plastic bag, planning for him to get stuff everywhere, and he did. But, just like his sister, he didn’t like the icing. I really should have just skipped it. It took him a while to really get into it, but he didn’t really end up eating very much of it.

Noah’s First Birthday!

2010-10-01T23:16:00.000-05:00

Bill and I both took Noah’s birthday off from work to spend the day together as a family. The pumpkin patch at the Garden of Weedin’ was ready for picking, so we took the short drive to the Iowa border… It’s literally on the SD-IA border… and searched out pumpkins for our front step. It’s a cute little farm with home-grown pumpkins, gourds, tomatoes, corn, and other vegetables. Unfortunately, all the rain this summer hurt their pumpkin crop. A lot of them had water damage or were already rotting on the ground. But at $1 each, we were able to find 10 good pumpkins to bring home.

Apple Pickin’ Time!

2010-09-25T22:59:00.000-05:00

This year the apples ripened a little early because of all the moisture we got this summer and the nice weather. So we had to move the pickin’ outing up by a couple weeks. I remember last year’s outing rather well… I certainly remember all the walking that sent me into labor 3 days later!

Bill was out of town this year at a Nebraska Husker’s game, so Alexis, Noah and I had to find other company… AKA, the KELO crowd. We met up with the Dunsmoors, Hansons & Elsens for a fabulous day at the orchard. Alexis was right at home and knew exactly what to do!

Noah needed a little more direction, but got the hang of it quickly.

Bella and Alexis got along great as usual, posing for pictures & taking giant bites out of their freshly picked apples. I think Alexis ate about 3 while we were out there. She’d ask me to “open” one for her by taking a bite out of it to get it started.

Since it was just me with both the kids, a diaper bag and a 20 pound bag of apples, Ben was nice enough to offer to carry Noah around a little. Thought it was cute to see the guys all standing around, holding diaper bags & all.

We took our pick home and got to work making good use of it all. I was very proud of myself to figure out how to make applesauce, which the kids LOVED!!!! Can’t even believe how easy it was! I just cut up a crock pot full of peeled apples, added some sugar, cinnamon and water and let it cook down for 6 hours on low. FABULOUS!

Then I got the crazy idea to learn how to can. I mean, I had so many apples left, I still didn’t really know what to do with them. So, we bought some stuff and I went to a seminar at the library to get all my questions answered, and got back to work in the kitchen. I cooked up another batch and was able to get 3 jars of applesauce canned. We’ll have to see how they do & whether I REALLY preserved them. Fingers crossed.

We’re Gonna Win Twins!

2010-09-19T01:08:00.000-05:00

Brent, Carissa, Bill and I had made comments all summer about how we needed to get to the new Twins Stadium. So, we finally picked a Saturday at the end of the season, checked with Chris & Laura to see if they could come (they couldn’t :o(), got Mom & Dad to babysit the kids, and hit the road for a daytrip.

We got to the parking ramp about an hour before the game (which turned out to be perfect timing… we could have probably shown up even earlier) checked out the exterior and headed inside.

The Twins were playing the Oakland A’s but it was also the first time ever the Vikings were playing the same day in a preseason home game. So, Bill wore his Vikings jersey.

The stadium is awesome! We bought “standing room only” tickets, which meant we didn’t have seats, but got free roam of the stadium and got to hang out in the “standing” sections.

Once we got our stadium brats, we found the perfect place to stand, and stayed there for 7 innings. Check out our View:

We thought that since the Vikings were also playing that day, that maybe the crowd would be a little thinner, but that wasn’t the case at all! The place was packed, and it stayed packed.

So, they didn’t win… actually lost 2-6, but Gardenhire got thrown out arguing a call, that’s always good to see him sticking up for his players, and the Yankees also lost that day. So they didn’t advance their record.

(We got there just days before Sanford Health got its logo installed on the Target Center. hehehe)

This is a look at how the layout of the stadium is so open. The views are unobstructed when sitting in the chairs because the pillars are back in the walkways, but still allow for a great view from anywhere while you’re buying snacks or standing in line.

Oh, on the way out, Kirby Pucket started some trouble with Brent… hehehe.

On the way to the Cities, we said if we left town in time, we wanted to stop by one of the apple shops along Hwy 169. We’ve passed by them all for about 20 years now an have never stopped.

We picked the one that was freshly painted BRIGHT yellow, and found treasures galore inside! Fresh pastries & pies, canned items, fresh vegetables, and just about every candy you could ever think of. We scored some apple butter, squash, apple fritters, pickled eggs (Bill’s purchase, not mine), fresh jerky and cheese curds!

We’ll have to stop again next season!

The Spencer County, Iowa Fair

2010-09-13T00:13:00.000-05:00

Grandpa & Grandma used to take Bill & Micki to the Spencer County, Iowa fair when they were kids. So, to share the experience, they made reservations for us to camp in Spencer and spend Saturday at the fair.

It all started with a shuttle ride from the campground to the fairgrounds…

We all boarded the bus (including Bill, whose head you can see in the front of the bus hanging out with the stroller). It was much easier than finding parking near the gate. Everyone who lived within blocks of the fairgrounds sold out their front yards and curbs for parking.

Then it was off to the exhibits… the ShamWow guy was even there!

But I think Alexis & Noah were especially interested in the animals. I don’t think Alexis had ever seen a pig in person, and today she got to see dozens of them.

The one in the photo above actually charged at Alexis when it was let out of its pen. As a mom, I will admit my heart skipped a beat watching.

They both were extremely interested in the massive train display. The Smoky Mountain Central Railroad display has at least 21 operating lines. It also had a Santa Claus and set of reindeer flying around a neighborhood

Then we finally found the baby animals… including more pigs! They squealed so loud when taken away from their mom, it hurt your ears. That freaked out Alexis enough where she didn’t want to even touch them.

She also got a chance to ride a saddled hay bale… She didn’t quite know what to do, so I convinced her the “horn” really beeped. And her cousin, Ethan, showed her how to milk the fake dairy cow.

One of the areas I found somewhat comical, was the poultry barn where, among the ducks, chickens and other odd looking feathered friends, they also had turkeys. And just outside the entrance…

you could also EAT one at the Gobblestop Turkey Shop.

We also got to watch a couple sheer their sheep and find out why some shaved all the sheep down to the skin and others left more & blended it in. Basically it’s for show and if you don’t have a very good sheep, you use its fur to help cover up its flaws.

That’s about the time I came down with a massive headache that I couldn’t shake for about 8 hours. So I didn’t take many photos after that.

It was expected to be a chilly night so instead of putting up the tent, we stayed in the pop-up with Tom, Rose & Ethan. The kids did very well sleeping! Except that Alexis decided it was time to wake up as soon as the sun came up.

After breakfast, we cleaned up, packed up and were off to the massive park… it was going to be another beautiful day! Noah took a nap while Alexis ran circles around us on the jungle gym.

Before we left I tried to get Alexis’ picture in front of another jungle gym that was a ship, but when she put her hands into the window…

it turned out to be SUPER hot! She quickly pulled her hands off and was okay, but I was extremely surprised something so light-colored could get so hot in the sun. That’s all it took to end playtime. So it was off to the potty before we all loaded up in the car and were on our way back to Sioux Falls.

(BTW, 9/11 was Bill and my 12 year dating anniversary! Wowzers!)

Our Animals Meet The Zoo Animals

2010-09-04T23:12:00.000-05:00

Bet you were getting tired of looking at the landscaping pictures, huh? Well, I’m getting caught up, little by little. After this post, I’ll be only 2 months behind!

Over Labor Day weekend, we decided to take a trip to the Great Plains Zoo. It had been, probably, decades since I’d been there last. So we coordinated with Chris & Laura and met them out there for a walk through the grounds.

We were especially impressed that Alexis got in the Jeep, because she freaked out the last time we were at Pizza Ranch and tried to get her into the fire engine with Bert & Ernie.

Cousin Tristan helped keep Alexis headed in the right direction. As long as he has her by the hand, she’ll do what ever we ask!

Had to share the camel contortionist… You’re looking at the hump on its back and his head wrapped around looking back at it. Took us a minute to figure out what exactly was going on. If you tap on the window or put your palm on the glass, these little monkeys come up to see you!

We took a train ride to see the backside of the property, but it was kind of a joke. Most of the ride shows you the area where they hope to expand in the future. So the most exciting thing going on at that time was watching the squirrels run around in the leaves. It was a dollar per person… And Alexis loves trains!

Then you get a decent view of the giraffes and other animals, through a fence. Don’t know how they expect you to keep kids preoccupied to this point. The lighter giraffe is the baby and the dark one is the mother. The baby was born just a few months back and is among tons of babies born at the zoo over the past year or so.

But Alexis’s favorite animal was the “dinosaur”…

She didn’t want to leave the rhino exhibit for some reason because she thought it was a dino. Too funny! She kept her face pushed up against the plexiglass, which had rhino snot blown all over the cage-side… or at least I hope it was on the cage side.

Then it was off to the area I was looking forward to the most… the petting zoo. The llama was super cute and had a baby camel friend in there with it. Alexis wasn’t overly excited… okay, she didn’t want to be near it. On the other hand, Noah reached right out and grabbed its nose. I think it liked Noah too because it didn’t seem to mind.

So, you can just about guess how she felt about sticking her hand in to feed the goats…

It really was a perfect day, not too hot, not chilly at all, and very surprising for September in South Dakota. Were a little bummed we couldn’t find Callie, the new baby tiger, but think the kids got to see a decent number of animals for the day.

Potty Training & Other Goofball Pictures

2010-09-03T22:33:00.000-05:00

So, we’ve officially begun potty training Alexis. The only sign she’s really shown though that she’s ready is that she can wake from a nap and overnight still dry. But we figured she should be old enough to understand so we did a test weekend. I filled her full of juice and put her in underwear and while she did have some accidents in the beginning, she did go in the potty too. I was lucky enough though, that all the accidents were anywhere but the carpet. Let’s just hope things keep going well! (She’s going to kill me for putting this photo on, I know!)

Later that night, I was going through too-small baby clothes organizing them for a consignment sale and Alexis found her infant baby jacket. She insisted that she wear it… and she did.

Meanwhile, Noah cruised around naked with socks in his mouth. He too insisted, I swear! Goofballs!

Yard-In-A-Day (and-a-half)

2010-09-02T22:22:00.000-05:00

The next step on the house was the lawn. And while it may have appeared we were putting it off, it was more of a step by step process. We started by having it graded by our contractor and then it would rain and he would do it again; and then it rained and he did it again. Shoot, it HAS been one of the wettest summers on record! We were dealing with a lot of soil that would wash away on the hills when it rained.

Once we had a window of opportunity, we had the edging guys come out and put in the concrete edging. We picked a dark brown color to go with the color of the house. It was a color they’d never done before but they ended up liking it in the end too.

Then that area got filled with rock. The pile of rock sat out in the street waiting to be installed for the longest time. But it would rain & make all the soil wet & muddy. Then it would dry during the week and rain again on the weekend. We just did not have very good luck on timing.

But it did happen. Plants were next. But the landscaping company we had hoped to go through didn’t return our calls for the longest time. Guess they had a pretty busy season. Once he finally did, he felt horrible and gave us a pretty good discount on the whole package: Sprinkler system, drilled in grass seed, plants & trees. And they were going to do it all in a day and a half… that week!

So they arrived Thursday morning. 8AM sharp. In no time flat, there were about 10 landscapers placing the plants and digging holes.

Noah found the whole experience very interesting. He watched from the window as the crew walked back and forth in front of the window.

By the end of the day Thursday, most of the work was done. And when I came home for lunch Friday, it WAS done!

We ended up with 50+ plants and 6 trees including the Pin Oak in the front yard and an Autumn Blaze Maple, Fallgold Ash and Norway Maple on the Garage side (from front to back). We also have a Birch and Quaking Aspen in the back yard. Really planned them all for the colors they’ll have in the fall and by size.

Guess we should start seeing the Rye in the grass mixture come in about two weeks from now and then the Kentucky Bluegrass and another hybrid two weeks later as the yard thickens up and gets darker. We can’t wait to play on it!

Backyard Surprises

2010-09-01T20:31:00.001-05:00

Our new location has delivered more surprises, this time to our backyard. While eating dinner last night, the wild walked through our back yard. Two deer decided to make a visit on the way to their dinner?

I yelled, “Alexis, COME HERE!” But I think I frightened her a little because she gave me quite the look… but then was very excited to see the deer.

The next morning, I heard a whirring noise outside. It was odd but I thought maybe it was our contractor picking up the tractor. Then it kept going and going and going. So I walked over to the sliding glass door and saw this:

I once again yelled, “Alexis, COME HERE!” and she gave me the same terrified ‘what did I do’ look. I swooped her up and carried her to the window to show her the beautiful balloon. With her cereal in hand, I plopped her on the table outside and let her watch the balloon come down. Her main concern, though, was that Noah couldn’t see it. So I brought him out in his car seat so he could watch too.

Later that night, it was wrestle mania in the living room. Alexis decided, for some reason, she needed to tackle Noah. Again, I’m guessing this is just the beginning to a lifetime of horsing around!

Mr. & Mrs. Chris T.

2010-08-21T23:55:00.000-05:00

View Full Album

I had so many fun photos from the day of Chris & Laura’s wedding, I couldn’t decide which ones not to share. So I tried a photo album.

It was a beautiful day… very warm! Father Chuck did a nice job with the ceremony, even recognized my grandparents who were also celebrating their 62nd Wedding Anniversary on the same day.

Alexis & Tristan did a superb job walking up and down the aisle (Noah stayed at home for the ceremony). Although it was a good thing we didn’t teach Alexis how to toss the rose petals on the floor. A couple fell out of the basket during the ceremony & she got a bit uppity until they found their way back into it.

And before you knew it, it was party time! The reception was at a newer venue in town, and the room was perfect. We celebrated all night and danced until we couldn’t stand any more. Reflecting, I don’t think we’ve had that much fun at a wedding since our own.

We wish Chris & Laura all the best in their new life together!

Prelude To A Wedding

2010-08-20T23:21:00.000-05:00

Alexis got the honor of being the flower girl at her Uncle Christopher’s wedding this summer. It wasn’t something we really prepared her for all that much, because she didn’t really comprehend what a flower girl was. So we counted on Tristan, her future cousin, to get her down the aisle.

She looks up to him very much and we figured all it would take was him taking her hand and leading her to where she was supposed to be.

And by the looks of the rehearsal, things were going to go according to plan!

Chris’ fiance, Laura and her dad, Pete, didn’t really need the practice for their part. During one practice run, he picked her up and handed her to Chris. Too Funny!

They had a wedding party of three bridesmaids & three groomsmen. And Father Chuck officiate at St. Therese. He also married Bill and I and renewed Mom & Dad’s vows a couple years back.

Alexis didn’t exactly know what to do during the ceremony, so I was worried that might create some challenges, but Laura didn’t really mind what she did. No matter what, we knew Uncle Brent would be there to provide the laughs should things get out of hand!

And then it was off to the rehearsal dinner at Spezia. It was beautiful! Mom had the centerpieces all made up with wine bottles and candles and the food was delicious!

Just an overall great night leading up to the BIG event! Even Noah can’t wait for the big day!!!

A Bad Reaction

2010-08-15T12:29:00.000-05:00

We had a bit of a scare this weekend with Alexis’ allergies.

I had a home product party at our house and had bought some bagels. I read the ingredients the next day and realized Alexis could have them. But when Bill and I were eating ours with cream cheese, she wanted some too. So, instead, we put some peanut butter on it… figured, similar consistency, but something she could have. Well… maybe not.

In a matter of minutes she was scratching her arm. I had told her to stop… from across the table it looked like her eczema. Then she decided she didn’t want her bagel any more… she didn’t even take a bite. I think it touched her lips & that was about it. So I went to clean her up and noticed the area on her arm was really hives and she that was getting spots around her eyes (this photo actually was not the reaction at its worse… but needed to document it).

We gave her some Zyrtec immediately and basically sat there just staring at her, watching to see if anything else was going to happen. I thought right away it must be the peanut butter. She has had it before, though, and not reacted.

Then while talking to us, it sounded like she was slurring a little, so I thought her tongue was swelling and we threw the kids in the car, PJ’s and all, and headed for acute care. From the time the PB touched her lips, a matter of maybe 10 minutes has passed. But by the time we were blocks away, the swelling was already going down & clearing up. So we decided to walk around inside Lewis until she was completely clear just to make sure.

I still don’t know whether it was something in the bagel or the peanut butter, especially since Noah’s blood tested positive to a peanut allergy (which may have been a false positive since skin tests came back negative). So, we’re just being cautious until our next round of allergy testing in January or February. I did realize though that she’s had plenty of Honey Nut Cheerios and has been fine. So we’ll stay away from bagels too. Odd!

Lake Clitherall 2010

2010-07-31T22:46:00.000-05:00

For the past, oh, at least 12 years, Mom & Dad have rented a cabin on Lake Clitherall in Minnesota the same week as Uncle Mark, Aunt Becky & Cousin Brian.

This year was Alexis’ 3rd trip and Noah’s first… they’ve both gone every summer of their life (okay, that’s cheating a little, I know). It’s become a great annual getaway for everyone involved.

This year, the four of us stayed in a tent. Concerned about the heat in the middle of July, it actually ended up being on the cool side over night… something we didn’t really prepare for. But we’ll know now for the future. We fit a large air mattress, pack-n-play and bed for Alexis all in our tent. I figured we had fit a dog crate in there at one point, so the pack-n-play should fit too, right? Well, it was a tight squeeze. The other hiccup… Alexis wakes up at first light: 5:30 am! So, we would hang out in the tent until the 'cabin’ people woke up .

We also had some severe weather mid-week… but thankfully, the tornadoes stayed to the east of us.

Annie, Uncle Mark & Aunt Becky’s dog, figure out she could climb into the kids playset… had to grab a shot of that! Everyone else had fun on it too… Dad included!

The lack of a bathtub in the cabin meant bath time happened in the sink. Busha was great about getting the kids all clean! Noah loved it as usual!

As for Alexis, she spent her time on the play gym and wrangled just about everyone in the family into pushing her on the swing. She just didn’t get enough… all week long!

Yes, we did do some swimming too, but it took a little bit of finessing. Last year the water was so cold, Alexis wouldn’t even put her toes in. This year, she wasn’t a whole lot different, so we practically pulled her into the water… slowly. Started in the kayak, then Aunt Becky coaxed her into the water with the sand sifter and bucket so she could make sand castles. Then she had to ride on the floatie with Dzia Dzia, but refused to sit up or move. Noah, on the other hand, got used to it rather quickly and enjoyed floating around in his star. I’ll call it a success!

Balloons, Bath Time, Bouncing & Bella

2010-07-15T22:39:00.000-05:00

This is just one of the very cool things we’ve gotten to watch from our back door & deck in our new house. We’ve had a pretty regular showing of hot air balloons behind our house this summer. Alexis loves to see them! We were bummed this year that we were out of town for the Great Plains Balloon Race, but it turned out the weather didn’t cooperate and they didn’t get to launch any anyways. So, we get to see them behind our house instead!

Mr. Noah is getting to be quite the messy eater! Loves to rub squash in his hair… but bath time takes care of that!

This moment was too good to be true! Got them both to sit on the couch, together AND smile!

You know your child is too big for the jumper when she can crawl in it herself! A little territorial, Alexis insists she gets to bounce when ever we mention putting Noah in it. He actually isn’t very interested in it anymore now that he’s mobile. Would rather crawl through the tunnel or follow us around the kitchen with his toys, leaving them for us to trip on.

**** Dimple Alert! ***

And Bella got to come over and play with Alexis this month for a short while while her mom was at at work late. Need to do these play dates more often! They do a great job getting along!

Harleys & A Haircut

2010-07-10T22:32:00.000-05:00

Hot Harley Nights is an annual event we go to/participate in to help raise money for the Make A Wish Foundation.

It begins with a motorcycle poker run, which lasts much of the afternoon. Bill and I usually borrow his mom’s motorcycle and his parents ride Tom’s. Then we all ride the poker run with a group of their friends. We didn’t have babysitters this year so Bill rode alone and we caught up for our traditional early super at Texas Roadhouse.

Then all the motorcyclists take part in a parade from J&L Harley to Downtown Sioux Falls.

This year, we took the kids to watch the parade instead of riding in it. It lasts about an hour… typically, the parade is so long, the first bike has arrived Downtown before the last one even leaves J&L!

Uncle Brent decided to join us and rode his bike from his apartment. From there, we too head Downtown for the HHN street party.

This was also the day of Alexis got her first haircut! You’ll notice it’s remarkably shorter and more even. I still needed to get her 2 year pictures taken and her hair was so all over the place, I thought this would help it look less messy while helping it grow!

I took her to my stylist, Crystal at Salon Ne Zhoni, who did a fabulous job! Alexis didn’t feel comfortable sitting in the chair by herself, so she sat on my lap. She got a little clingy at times, but Crystal was able to get a straight cut… at least it looks that way!

But once she was done, Alexis was pretty proud with her new look. When Dad got home from his motorcycle ride, I told her to show him her hair & she flipped her hand under the bottom of it & spun around as if she had done it all before.

(Thanks to Aunt Carissa for taking the photos!)

Happy Birthday Brent & USA!

2010-07-04T22:50:00.000-05:00

Noah was sleeping at photo time… but not left out!

Anticipating our trip to the lake at the end of the month, Brent had jumped on the sale of a jet ski (which we rent every year anyways). So for his birthday, we all chipped in to get him some gear to go along with it… 2 lifejackets, a deck tube (it doesn’t have the hole in the middle of it), tow rope and misc. items. Alexis had to try on the life vests too!

And since it was the Fourth Of July and all, we had to get a picture of Noah in the same bib his sister wore two years ago:

Yep! That's her! I went post happy, trying to catch up. So, keep reading!!!

A Feisty Little Visitor

2010-07-03T00:32:00.000-05:00

Bill’s been doing a lot of work outside lately. He and his dad finished the retaining wall outside our egress window and then built a two tiered wall where our garden is going behind the garage. There’s also a door on that side of the garage, which is where I figure a feisty little visitor got in when someone wasn’t looking.

Bill had heard some chattering while going into his tool box. He’d open a drawer and hear chattering. Close it, more chattering. That’s when he found this guy… wedged between the tool chest and work bench.

He tried to use a pole to shoo him out, but the little guy attacked it with his long claws. Bill at first thought it was a baby raccoon. But not seeing the typical mask, we thought it was maybe a badger, considering the attitude and long claws. But when we compared photos, it wasn’t a badger at all… no white stripes!

It turns out, the mystery animal was a groundhog AKA a woodchuck.

And we now believe it was among a group of chattering rodents running around our back yard about a month or so ago. We heard them one night around midnight, clear as day, and tried to get a better look outside with a flashlight. But they’d scatter at the light. Interesting. Didn’t know we had these around here. Just another animal to add to the wildlife menagerie in our backyard:

Deer, pheasant, wild turkey, (snakes?) groundhogs

Pig Faces, Power Walks, Pool Time & Other Priceless Photos!

2010-06-30T00:15:00.000-05:00

She’s going to kill me for these photos… but that’s what mom’s are for!

More photos from our walks to see the cows down the block. Noah’s been upgraded to the back seat without his car seat!

It’s taken a little while, but day care has helped Alexis warm up to the concept of swimming, at least in a kiddie pool. Noah took to it right away! He loves crawling around and splashing his big sister!

I was very surprised to find them playing together already. I didn’t think Alexis would embrace him as a little person so soon! He’s really getting around now, he taught himself to crawl in a matter of two days. He went from rocking on his knees to making his way across the room. Now he’s found a fascination in looking out the windows and getting into everything… even if that does mean Mom’s purse!

Noah is still having some problems with his skin, it flares every now and then, but we just deal with it as it happens. Alexis gets retested for her allergies next month! We’re looking forward to the results, but having watched her skin still flare also, I’m not anticipating any big changes.

Happy Father’s Day!

2010-06-20T23:47:00.000-05:00

He got exactly what he wanted: A KELOLAND Live Doppler Rain Gauge!

Jealous? Thought you might be! You can order one HERE!

Guess Who’s 30?

2010-06-06T23:33:00.000-05:00

Party at Mom & Dad’s with the family… who could ask for better gifts?

Walking The Bike Trail For CF

2010-06-06T22:17:00.000-05:00

We decided to pass up CMN’s Bike and Babes Motorcycle Ride this weekend and do something together as a family for kids. Instead, we hit the bike trails in Sioux Falls for the Cystic Fibrosis Walk.

As part of Team Reese, for my co-worker’s niece, Alexis and I wore team shirts… though hers was a bit big! :o)

Noah took his place in the back seat of the double stroller and Alexis had hers in the front. We were ready to go!

We got just past the halfway point of the 6.2 Miles (10 k) walk and Punky got a little restless. So we found a park along the way and let her run wild!

So, she didn’t exactly want to leave the park but once on the trail again, she found a way to get comfortable… feet up in the air!

Party With The People!

2010-05-30T21:00:00.000-05:00

For Alexis’ 2nd birthday, we threw a beach party for the family.

I feel horrible because I was so busy, I didn’t get to take near as many photos as I should have/wanted to. I realized I didn’t get any photos of her with any family. But I was able to pass the camera to my sister, Carissa while Alexis opened presents. She got a lot of summer clothes, which she needed!!! And some toys for a little girl. But she did a pretty good job of taking a look at the cards and thanking everyone who came.

Big Girl Bed

2010-05-30T14:12:00.001-05:00

For Alexis’ birthday, we got her a mattress & box spring and bedding for a big girl bed. She tried crawling out of her crib the weekend before, so we decided… it was time. After all, Noah is now nearly 8 months and is sleeping in the pack-n-play in his room, and it would be nice to get him in a real crib.

We had the headboard from the bedroom set that the kids’ dresser-turned-changing table came with, so, all we needed was the frame and mattresses. I picked out some bedding to go with her walls and presto!

She seemed to like it right away… now the challenge is to keep her in it. We don’t have railings. So since the box spring is only half the height, I put a body pillow on the floor in case she falls out.

So, her first night in the bed comes with a story. It was the same night my friend’s daughter spent her first night in her toddler bed. Their family’s concern was that Bella knows how to turn door knobs and get out of the house.

So, the next morning (Memorial Day), before I went to work, I poked my head in the room to check on Alexis. She wasn’t in her bed. I had been around the house that morning and hadn’t seen her so I immediately questioned whether she, somehow, got out of the house. As my heart started racing, I looked again. Maybe she was in the pile of pillows and stuffed animals and I just hadn’t seen her. Nope.

I started to panic but then questioned whether I was hearing myself breathing or someone else in the room. I held my breath and the sound continued. But where could she be? I looked in the pink castle there and like the bed, it too was empty. But there, between the bed and the castle, tucked under the foot of the bed just a bit, Alexis was on the floor, fast asleep. It was the one area on the floor below the bed I hadn’t put a pillow… but I’ll never know whether she crawled out and decided to sleep there or truly fell out.