Easter Sunday

We started out our day with brunch with Jason's family. We didn't get to visit with everyone for very long because our group was at a long, long table. The restaurant was very crowded. Amelia was a little unsure at first:

Brunch lasted about an hour and a half. We didn't get any pictures. Last year we did pictures outside after we ate - this year it was windy and cold so we all pretty much just got in our vehicles and left!

After brunch we went to my parent's house. It was warm enough that we were able to do a small egg hunt with Amelia.

She found all 39 eggs Auntie Kim hid in the backyard! In them she got candies, spare change for her bank and Dora fruit snacks. Each one she found she shook by her ear - just to make sure there was something in it!

We had pancakes and french toast for dinner and just hung out. Joe was happy as a clam because there were 5 sets of arms to hold him so he was almost always being snuggled - which he likes. A lot.

Sweet boy on his first Easter :)

We got a nice family picture in the afternoon.

Auntie only had to take about two dozen to get one that turned out ok...

We hope everyone had a good Easter!

We-Haw's Birthday

**We-Haw is what Amelia calls my sister. It started out as Ah-Hee, then it went to He-Haw and now it is We-Haw. No one is sure why.

Friday was my sister's 25th birthday! She came over to visit the kids and I. We went on a walk and ended up at the park :) Amelia could have stayed there all night swinging!

Joey had his first taste of playground fun in a tunnel!

We stayed at the park longer than we thought so we ordered pizzas for dinner. We seem to end up doing that almost every time Kim visits us...

Saturday afternoon we had lunch with my parents and Kim to celebrate her birthday as a family. We went to her favorite, the Mongolian BBQ in Stillwater. Joe sat in a high chair for the first time!

After our late lunch we went to a park in Bayport that we used to go to as kids (Jason did too!) Amelia is getting braver and braver at the park. This was the second day in a row that she climbed a rope ladder, alone!

Joe had his first taste of swinging. He thought it was great!

After the park we went back to my parent's house for cake and ice cream.

After cake Amelia and my dad fed the animals outside and then went to the school playground down the road. They were gone until dark. In fact, they were gone so long that we went out looking for them, fearing that something had happened! Everything was fine though. They were taking their time walking home and looking at the stars.

Sunday afternoon we went over to Jason's sister's house for a grill out with their grandma and a couple of their friends. Everything was so good! Liz puts out a good spread every time we are invited for dinner. We had to get our shopping done for the week on our way home so we didn't stay too late but we had a good time visiting!

All in all we had a busy weekend! It went by way too fast.

Shopping and Baths

Last night the kids and I went shopping with my mom and sister at Kohl's. Amelia like to ride in their carts because she can stand or sit down in the basket part. Joe can ride up front.

It would almost be perfect - if Joe would chill out and sit in the seat without crying for someone to pick him up! We had to take turns carrying his big ol' self around the store. It just made looking at anything much more challenging.

(can you believe he is only 5 months old? He is huge!)

After Kohl's we went to Arby's with Nana for a late dinner. At the end I had the camera out and Amelia was in the mood for a picture. She actually asked me to take a picture - a first! It turned out great - bonus!

Tonight, about the only thing that we accomplished was baths. Amelia gave Joe his bath. I was instructed to leave the room. I, of course, stayed but kept a little distance and essentially let her give him his bath.

With a watering can.

I think he was happy with his bath from his sister!

Amelia made her bath last over an hour. She just kept playing and playing and before you knew it it had been an hour. That is when we drained the tub and she got her shower. Yes, she takes both a bath and a shower each night. She requests the shower to rinse off all the bubbles. Her shower is usually around ten minutes - tonight it was fifteen.

Basically, baths took up most of our evening but that is ok. My goal before bed is to clear off the kitchen table. Again. It is a magnet for junk and papers and stuff.

MA For a Day

Thursday evening, my sister Kim's school had an open house type thing for family and friends. We went to her school and saw her classroom, met her teacher and had medical tasks an medical assistant would perform done to us by our own MA:

We all had our height and weight measured. Amelia was very insistent that we all get it done. Some of us went several times.

Amelia's favorite thing, besides getting wheelchair rides, was the book used to test for colorblindness. Someone showed it to her right when we got there and she tried her hardest to keep track of it all evening.

Joey got passed around as we all did our testing. His only test was his weight. It said 18 pounds which is less than the doctor weighed him at last month so I am not really sure. I don't think he's lost weight! Either way, he is still a big boy.

After the open house, we went for dinner at Cossetta's. Amelia insisted on getting into my mom's lap and then would not stop hugging her face/head. It was kind of funny...if you weren't Nana. I think she found it a little amusing though - but not the most comfortable way to receive a hug.

Papa Joe and Joey:

The kids and I didn't get home until 10:00 p.m. That is way past their bedtimes (7:45ish and 8:30ish normally) and also past mine! Thankfully I got us all in the apartment and into bed in a reasonable amount of time.

Awesome Weekend

We had a great weekend! Friday my sister came over to watch the kids during the overlap of mine and Jason's Friday work schedules.

Amelia went through, and arranged, all of her animals on the coffee table! Auntie stayed for dinner (we ordered Domino's) and assisted in bath time.

Saturday I worked and we made tacos for dinner and decided to give family movie night a try. We came up with a plan for Amelia to branch out from her usual choices (Toy Story, Aristocats, My Little Pony, Fantasia and Cinderella) and it worked! She has been enjoying her Little People pirate ship so I looked at the Peter Pan case to see if there was a picture of a ship and there was! I was worried because it was tiny and in the corner but she saw it and wanted to watch the movie!

She watched the whole thing with us and even sat on Daddy's lap towards the end. We made popcorn (2 bags...) and ate it all and enjoyed a relaxing night together :)

Sunday mornings I am off by 8 and the past couple of weeks I have brought home breakfast. I got donuts for the second week in a row! I have learned that Amelia's favorite donuts have white frosting and sprinkles. I got her chocolate this past weekend and she wanted the white one instead!

Sunday we ran errands in Woodbury. We had our taxes prepared and Jason was fitted for a tux for a wedding he is in this summer.

After our errands we had dinner with my family at my parent's house. Joe got passed around so he wouldn't whine! He just likes to be held - all the time. I really don't know what to do about that! We'll figure something out one day...hopefully soon!

Sunday night the kids rode in their new seats! While we were in Woodbury we saw a great deal on a booster seat for Amelia so we got it and switched Joe into her convertible carseat since he is just a pound or so away from being too big for his infant seat/carrier!

Have a good week, everyone!

Christmas Day

Christmas morning Joe was the first to rise! Amelia eventually made her way upstairs to find that Santa had come! Santa used light-bulb wrapping paper this year and Amelia was so excited about it that she could hardly unwrap anything.


Amelia was excited about the wagon Santa brought her and Joe!


Mid-morning we got ready and went to Jason's sister's house for Christmas with his family. We had breakfast/brunch this year and it was really good!

Amelia and Joe dressed up for Christmas Day:


Even Cashew was fancied up!


Family photo:


Truthfully, I am glad Christmas is over and the new year is here! We, once again, let the stress of the holidays get to us. It probably didn't help that I went back to work (in a retail setting) just two weeks before Christmas! That's a hard time to get back into the swing of things.

Christmas Eve

Christmas Eve day I worked my usual 8 hour shift. My day surprised me - it was pretty fun! I spent a lot of time in the electronics and entertainment department trying to put movies away but ended up helping guests all day! I was pleased that the ones who I had interactions with seemed to be in a good mood. I was even thanked by a few for working which I appreciated.

We stopped by a gathering of Jason's family briefly and then spent the night at my parent's house. Kim made stuffed peppers for dinner and we did presents around the tree. Amelia couldn't even get through present opening before she needed something opened so she could play with it:


Joe on his first Christmas Eve:


Family photo by the tree:

Christmas Tree 2011

This past Sunday we went to the St. Croix Tree Farm to get a tree for Jason's sister's house! This year it snowed the night before we went - just like last year!

We brought a sled with this year for Amelia to ride around on and she loved it!


She also figured this year that throwing snow is fun!


While the tree was being trimmed our family snuck off to get a picture of the four of us for our Christmas card! All three of them turned out ok but this one was our favorite:


Thanks Auntie Liz for being our photographer!

The group shot this year wasn't as good as last years...


...the spot we chose had the sun right behind us! We'll have to plan better next year :)

This was the second year that I went to cut down a real tree and I am starting to think that once we are living in our own home I might want to give a real tree a try! We never had one growing up because cats got sick from eating the tree and needed medicine etc. For now, we will use our artificial tree which we hope to have up this weekend!

Joseph Leonard

On October 13th we welcomed our new baby, Joseph.



He weighed 8 pounds, 12 ounces and was 22 inches long! Quite a relief for me since big sister was over ten pounds! Labor and delivery was just under 12 hours compared to 28 hours with big sister which was also a relief to me :)

I was induced, as I was with big sister, and it was slow going. Around dinner time I was only 4 centimeters dilated so Jason left to get some dinner at a drive-thru and I settled in to rest. I knew I was going to need some energy later in the night but my body had other plans. Before Jason could even get back (he was gone less than a half an hour) I was in a lot of pain and felt like I needed to push. I was completely numb with Amelia and they had to tell me when to push so this was a whole new thing and concerned me since thirty minutes earlier I wasn't even halfway dilated.

Jason got back, got a nurse and they checked and I was ten centimeters. No one could believe it, including me! Here I was, expecting to settle in for a few hour nap and they were telling me it was time to push? My epidural did not take very well so pushing was much different this time around - much more painful. Maybe the pain helped me push harder because he was out in 25 minutes (vs 3 hours with big sister)!

Going home outfit:


Tuxedo...with tails!

Sunday Afternoon at the Zoo

Yesterday afternoon we were looking for something fun to do. We didn't want to spend any money so we decided to take advantage of our Minnesota Zoo membership!

We packed a picnic lunch and ate it in the parking lot before heading into the zoo since we got there right around lunch time!

Once inside we saw tons of animals but, of course, Amelia gravitated towards anything in water. We spent a lot of time looking at turtles, fish, empty tanks and more fish. She did not give up on the "empty" sea otter tank and it paid off!


He came out of his cave, swam to her, did a somersault and swam away!

To take a break we rode the monorail.


Amelia enjoyed looking out the windows and I think she saw a couple of animals but mostly she just looked around and said, "wow!"

When she saw the leopard napping she thought it sounded like a good idea:

Riding on a wolf with her zebra:


There is a "splash pad" near the monorail where kiddos can run around in their swimsuits and cool off. We avoided it one time but on our way off the trail it is near Amelia noticed it and had to go. We debated, tried telling her not today but in the end we gave her the go-ahead. Once she heard, "ok" she was gone!


She had an absolute blast!


Once we were done at the "splash pad" we got Amelia changed into her spare clothes and a new diaper and looked through one more area of the zoo before heading home! Amelia fell asleep super fast on the ride home:


We had a fun day and can't wait to go back!