Christmas Jammies

We started a new tradition at our house this year!  I love Christmas pajamas and basically came up with an excuse to get them.  Each Thanksgiving night we'll give the kids a pair of Christmas pajamas that they can wear all month and explain what Christmas is all about to get them excited as to why we are celebrating.

They both have reindeer on their new attire if you can't tell!  Svea was very excited and her pack even came with two pair.  Lucky girl:) They don't make pajamas for kids with the baby Jesus on them...weird huh, so I'm sure we'll eventually be talking about both sides of Christmas.  The whole reason we are here and the commercial side;)

Here's Gaga and the kids making faces and smiling in Kieran's mirror.  I need to get some new pictures of him on his tummy.  He holds his head up SO high now! Christmas decoration post coming soon!

X-Mas Card Bloopers

Would you believe...

from these pictures...

that we were actually able to capture...

one good photo of our family this year?

Surprisingly, we did! Ham is an understatement for our first born.  She likes to put on a show, but actually sat in my lap for one minute, which was "just" enough time to get a cute smile out of her! Notice our second born....calm, cool, and collected.  Yes, I realize he is a baby, but positive thinking reaps positive results.

Got It! Catch Up Post!

Long story short is that I figured out how to put pictures on our blog again!  Yeah!  Lots have happened in the past few days and lots of pictures to be shared!  It is a bit longer of a process to get our photos on here, but worth it! These pictures are from Thanksgiving Day.  No Mommy and Daddy pictures this year....showers are sparse around here.  We only pose with deodorant on!

This is our third night in the "big girl bed" for Svea.  Dan converted the crib for us after this past weekend when she climbed and hovered over the edge twice.  I missed it both times, but unwillingly for us, it was time.  She does well at night staying in bed and falling asleep, but nap time the other day took awhile for Dan.  Having the monitor helps.  Dan said he would call down the hall for her to get back in bed when he'd see her get out of bed and I guess her face and actions were priceless.  He said you could see her wheels turning as to how he knew she was out of bed.  She scurried right back in.  Now we are trying to teach her to stay in her bed when she wakes up until Mommy and Daddy come and get her.  Right now she pops up and runs out into the living room, "Svea wake up"!  In case this happens and we don't hear her through the monitor we have bells on her door and have all baby gates firmly latched.  Paranoid?  Overprotective? You would be too if Svea Grace was your daughter as well:)

Kieran rolled over for the first time!!!  He rolled from back to front the day after Thanksgiving...I think:)  Life is a blur lately:)  We thought he would roll back to tummy first because he is so close, but nope.  We put him on his tummy and over he went!   My Mom got to see a lot of firsts for the kids this past weekend.  The children were putting on a show!

Today was/is my birthday!  I am 32 and very thankful for my life:)  We celebrated this past weekend with cake and gifts.  Thank you to my husband and mom for making me feel so special.  The best part was just hanging out at home with everyone.  Today didn't feel like my birthday because it was a normal day of working, however it was a gift that Dan was home for the evening and we could tackle parenting together.  Whew...even with two it's chaotic:) I had many fb messages, texts, emails, phone calls, and love from family and friends!  Thank you to everyone!  One of the best parts of today was the box of Pirate Treasures (a wheat weakness for me), and flowers from Dan!  Thank you especially for thinking about me throughout the whole day.  I could tell I was on your mind and that means the most to me:)  Dan also taught Svea to say Happy Birthday Mommy and that made me melt every time she said it.  

More pictures post to come!

hAPPY tHAnKSgiVInG!

I couldn't upload any pictures today.  I got a message saying I am out of space.  My girlfriend from high school who also blogs got the same message at the same time so it seems too convenient that we'd each reach it at the same time. 

Anyway, Thanksgiving this year was really nice!  Just spending the day together at home is a thankful day.  My Mom is here too!  Dan put up the Christmas tree and we played.  I organized all of our Christmas decorations and we ate until we were stuffed! My boss Mindi's husband Mark made us some homemade stuffing since I told him we were going to make Stovetop.  He thought that was preposterous so Mindi drove it down to us.  So sweet! 

Dan and I did something we've never done before and I'm not proud to admit this, but we went to Target Thanksgiving night at 9:00 pm.  Mind you were weren't even shopping for door busters.  We walked in and saw the line and wondered what in the world were we thinking.  I think there were different words used, but we probably repeated them to each other a few times.  We decided we were already  there so we were able to find a few things we wanted and even snuck in a little Christmas shopping.  You couldn't even shop in certain parts of the store because that was where the line was.  As luck would have it thought there was a line just for people who were paying with their Target Red Card!  So we were in and out of there in no time and didn't feel so dumb anymore.  We seriously would have been in line to check out for an hour or more. 

Kieran had his follow-up ENT appointment.  We haven't been too worried about it since he's been showing signs of hearing, cooing at us, and startling .  I took him up by myself today and to our disappointment he failed it again.  We are really down about it and worried for him.  Most importantly though we are SO THANKFUL that he is healthy.  Whatever the outcome is we're just nervous and worried for him like any parent would be.  He still could be totally fine, which we aren't too hopeful for anymore, but it's still possible.  We are preparing ourselves for some amount of permanent hearing loss and praying that he's not deaf, although we just don't think that is possible because, like I said earlier, he is showing signs of hearing some things. He has another test in three weeks that measures his actual brain activity to see if the nerve connecting his ear to his brain is giving and receiving the messages so he can hear.  At first they told me he'd need to be sedated, but now they are going to try it when he's sleeping in my arms.  Whew...another thing to be thankful for!

We hope you all had a fabulous Thanksgiving.  We are very thankful for each other, for time together, for good jobs and the fact that we are happy in them, that our kids are happy and healthy, and most of all that God is providing all of this for us.  We are thankful to God for all of our blessings!

A Typical Monday Night

 Includes chaos, giggles, frustration, contentment, joy, exhaustion, and fun:)  Here is Svea wearing her underwear over her jammies, which she wore all night until bath time.

 She all of the sudden has a fear of taking a bath, more specifically water getting in her eyes.  We take things nice and slow and get her through it.  Her latest thing is throwing anything and everything into the tub. Woops, there goes my new baby doll. She needed a bath she says.  Last night it was a mini book, the gorilla from her zoo, Kieran's rings, and some blocks.  I was bathing Kieran at the time so all of these "things" did end up in the tub:)

After naps and in the morning Svea has started saying, "Mommy come in"! in a sing song voice.  When Dan went in to get her this morning she made "O" face and then got excited because it was Dad.

She has been talking non-stop about Grandma D and Gaga.  We were in the grocery store the other day and the loudspeaker came on.  She made the "O" face and said, "Grandma D making noise".  When it's time to pick up all of her toys at night she says, "Daddy pick up, Mommy pick up, Bay-ya pick up, Gaga pick up TOO"! She loves her Grandmas!  

Another thing that has been fun is she remembers who gave her presents.  She was playing with her cleaning toys the other day and she said, "Papa gives this to me". She'll go through other toys like this too from the tiniest little person to her big red car.  She even does it with books.  Of course not all of them, but it amazes me.  She is loving her recordable books right now and recognizes the Grandma's voices too.

I know I've been saying for a few weeks now that Kieran is close to rolling over.  Here's a video of what we see on a daily basis.  He is a scooter.  He pushes his legs and pushes himself to the head of the crib.  We started him in his room a few nights ago as well as we were waking him up.  We are "getting there" and he's handling being on his own pretty well. Most nights to go to sleep I lay him in his crib and keep a lamp on while I put things away or sit in his chair.  He doesn't want to be held or rocked.  He'll lay there and thrash his head back and forth before quietly drifting off.  See people....all signs of a future excellent sleeper!

We're Still Here

I'm just not as good at keeping up with our blog these days.  I guess two kids and working will do that:)  I wanted to share a few things from this past weekend in a random style.  That's usually how I roll anyway:)

 A boy and his Dad...they get along so well, don't you think? Kieran continues to be all smiles.  He is squawking and talking up a storm. He is SO LOUD it literally hurts our ear drums sometimes.  Svea is SO LOUD too sometimes, but you already knew that:)

 Banana Chocolate Chip Gluten Free Pancakes....sounds good doesn't it.  It was the second Saturday in a row that we enjoyed them and little too much!

A crazy winter warm day.  We actually took a walk!  Yeah!  Here are the kids all bundled up for it.  Svea missed our walks, I think.  She was quiet the whole way except for when she was saying "more please" for dried apple slices....a little trick we use to get her to sit in the stroller when she fights it:)

 I loved seeing Kieran in the same outfit that Svea also wore.  She wore it at from 5-6 months and he's already in it!  Ha! I remember retiring the baby swing at 6 months with her and for him it's getting close. 

We are excited for the Thanksgiving Holiday coming up this week!  We feel very thankful for the blessings that God has given us....they are too numerous to count.  We literally thank God every night especially for these two monkeys.  They bring us so much joy! 

I'm looking forward to the weekend to catch up on sleep and to see my Mom! Have a great week everyone!

Cheesy

 We are all about "cheese" at our house.  We like to eat it. Our Daddy is from the land of cheese and can tell the cheesiest jokes. And, our little girl knows how to work the "cheese" for the camera a little too much! It's hard to catch a natural smile when "cheese" is around.

 This was before church last Sunday.  Yep, we all got to go TOGETHER up in St. Cloud.  I brought her up for the children's sermon and she sat OR jumped in my lap.  She at least listened though, which was nice:) Daddy and Kieran snuggled and Svea and just played in the narthex for most of the service.

 Thanks for the skirt Gaga!  It's super cute! "Svea dressed up"!

 Svea is having a rough couple of weeks.  Hitting and screaming at daycare and then it only intensifies when she comes home and doesn't have much energy left.  We are exhausted with keeping consistent with her, but we're hoping it's a stage.  She gave up her paci, we had the time change, and she was sick all at the same time.  Hmmm...it could be, or I could just be a desperate Mommy hoping it's one of these things because that means it might get better:) We are taking her back to the doctor tomorrow (I know, we could become our own network with how much we are there).  She is still showing signs of an infection that just won't clear up.

Dan is still off from work!  I LOVE it sooooo much!  I think I've already said this, but to have all four of us home every night is so wonderful!  We share the load, but yet get to hang out and play with the kids. Kieran is SO close to being able to roll over.  I have a video that I"ll post soon that shows it.  We are working on getting him to sleep in his cribs for at least naps.  We are also giving him a bottle at night now so we know the amount he is getting.  Then when he wakes up three hours later I KNOW he doesn't NEED to eat and encourage him to go back to sleep.  The tap is NOT open for business unless it's been at LEAST five hours:) He is still just a laid back kind of guy.  Still waiting for giggles!

I'm sorry if I repeated myself in this post.  I'm too tired to go back and see if I really did or not! Ha!

3 Month/2 Year Pictures

Grandmas and Grandpas, Nana, Papa, Gaga, Great Grandparents, and whatever fun names we have for all of you....you will be receiving some of these pictures in the mail hopefully this week.  I've got to get some stamps first you know!  I wanted to post them so that my Dad can see them.  He is in Mexico and if I send them there he won't get them until he's coming home anyway.  So, this way he can see them too!

I love them!  Kieran was so smiley the whole time and the tiny bit that Svea smiled we caught it.  Sorry they are so fuzzy and bad quality.  You get the idea:)

A Few Things

Kieran's newest thing is blowing raspberries and drooling because of it.  We might use his bibs after all! He is still loving the Rock n Play for naps and for when we have to put him down to do something.  He loves hanging onto something soft.  It's very cute:) He is also starting to put a little weight on his legs when you hold him upright.

 Svea is now done with her paci!  We tried last weekend and it worked!  We simply didn't offer it to her and most times she didn't ask. The few times she did we just played dumb and said we didn't know where it went. Wouldn't it be nice if potty training was that easy:)

 I am now back to work and tired!  Maternity leave was great because Kieran and I were able to sleep in until at least 8:00 am and sometimes even later.  Getting up at 6:00 am and losing the extra couple of hours really makes a difference in my energy level.  We are contemplating on when to put Kieran in his room.  More on that later:)  I've now lost 28 lbs and have 2 to go, but actually 4.5:)  Almost there.  My goal is for by Christmas time.  They always say the last 5 are the hardest.  Someone told me that when you are nursing the last 5 won't come off because you need it.  We'll see what happens!

 Dan is on a week and a half break from work!  It's been good and yet frustrating since when he's "off" but in town then he's not really on vacation.  The other day, on his day off, he basically worked a half a day from home plus went in for one meeting:(  Frustrating is an understatement.  We all went to church this morning as a family up in St. Cloud.  That felt really weird since we've never done it.  I felt like a normal couple with our two kids.  It was still very stressful and that was with four adult hands.  Oh well, we at least made it!

Svea's newest things that she likes to do is closing and opening doors.  Our shorty can now open and close them all on her own and she likes to go back in her room, close the door, and then wait for us to come and get her.  Other times she comes right back out and tries it again.  She is also into commenting on who is making noise in the house.  "Riker making noises. Oh! Baby Kieran making noise"!

Here is a link to a video I took the other day of the kids and me just hanging out at home.  Svea has a pleasant surprise for you a the end too.  Guess who got to change that diaper?

My Thoughts On Having Two Kids

It wasn't easy at first and it rocked my world like I was afraid it would.  Fear would be the correct word to describe how I was feeling about it all.  The unknown and how we were going to figure out the balance between work, kids, family time, chores, etc. was what scared me the most.  We still don't have it all figured out, but we haven't been fired, our kids are fed, clothed, and loved, and the house is still standing. 

The most important though, in "our new normal" is that we have two amazing children.  We'll eventually get a balance down.  We'll eventually eat meals together again. We'll eventually sleep 8 hours at a time again and not have to roll the windows down on the way to work to stay awake:)

It seriously is completely worth it though.  To have these two is the best gift we could have ever asked for. I tear up all of the time just looking at, snuggling with, and interacting with them.  I can't believe they are ours. We thank God for them:) I'm sorry this is such a sappy post, but sometimes we get so overwhelmed with love for them:)

Lazy Weekend

 We had a pajama Saturday this past weekend, meaning no one got out of their pajamas all day. Kieran took a nap on the floor with his "puppy". I can tell he is going to love snuggling him more when he is older and can actually keep him in his crib for the night.

 Oh happy guy!

 Kieran after his bath.  He was quite content to pose for me:)

 Svea put on a show for me on Sunday morning when we were getting ready to head to church. This is a new dress from Grandma and Grandpa D.  It looked sooooo cute on her.  I could just eat her up! She kept saying, "Bay-ya is dressed up". Bay-ya has long socks on".

 She had her water shoes on before I talked her into these.  Her hair looks so curly here.

 She is starting to pose for pictures.  Here I told her to stand and smile and then she came running  over to look at the picture I took. She is also starting to take some pictures too.  I'll hold the camera and she pushes the button.

Kieran is getting so close to giggling....so close!  My favorite is when he has his paci in his mouth and you talk to him and then he starts to smile.  The paci falls out and you are left looking at his huge grin:)

We didn't do much this weekend, but play with the little ones. Right now, that's JUST the way I like it to be!

Politics in Numbers

43-the number of extra pieces of junk (I mean slanderous political garbage) mail to enter our home. Way beyond Minnesota nice here people.
2-the amount of times local politicians have rang our doorbell during Saturday nap time
2-the number of local politicians who have gotten an icy hello and goodbye from a tired parent who just wanted ten minutes of blissful quietness. No, I will not vote for you as you've ruined my whole flippin day!
16,797-the number of political commercials (examples of why we have a bullying problem in this country) seen on television this season.
0-the number of times I've felt obliged to engage in political conversation on facebook.  (Does it ever end well?) If you can't talk about it in person then don't talk about it at all is my philosophy. I can't wait until November 6th is over!
1-the number of times we will vote this fall and then not have to worry about grade school name calling for another four years!

What happens in our country is very important and we do have a voice, although the way our system works right now is annoying.  Show me a candidate who absolutely refuses to bad mouth the other and I would be shocked.  Well, actually there is one local lady that has enough integrity to do that and she's getting both of our votes:)

(Shameless Plug)The best way you can show support for yourself and others is to vote.  For a very interesting and thought provoking read I recommend a really good book by one of our close friends Matthew Anderson called Runningmate.  It's like watching a National Treasure movie, getting a fascinating history lesson, and a constant cliffhanger all at once.  I've never really ever read a political novel before this one.  It's not a genre I'm usually into, but I can honestly say I could not put this book down.  Matt's openness and respect for others views is evident in his book and his idea on how to bridge the gap between opposing forces is, in my opinion, brilliant.  His old, yet new idea, may never catch on or work, but wouldn't it be amazing if somehow it did or at least opened people's minds on to how to do business together in a more efficient way.  Matt and I might share many different political views, but it always ceases to amaze me how respectful and open he is whenever we've engaged in political conversations. You can tell there is genuine listening going on between both of us.  Wouldn't that be nice if all of our politicians could do that and seriously work together to get something done!?!  Check it out!

Another Round of Comparisons!

 There is definitely differences between these two now.  I still see many similarities though too.  Sometimes I like to pretend they're fraternal twins, but then I realize that would mean I'd have two crazy two year old children running around at once! It seems that by now Svea had started to fill out and get rolls on her legs.  Kieran is still not there yet.  I'm sure he'll round out soon.  They both have about the same amount of hair and the same noses. You can see even here the differences in their skin color and a few features in their face, but I can't quite name them.  I just know they look slightly different.  Looking at these pictures though, I can really tell that Svea looks more like me and Kieran looks more like Dan.  I'll compare them again at six months!

Svea's Two Year Doctor Appointment

Svea did great at the doctor yesterday. The doctor kit she got for her birthday has come in handy SO many times in the last few weeks.  I am so thankful for it!  She, of course, had some tears, but there was no screaming and crying instantly at the doctor when she came in. She also allowed the doctor to check her over, which was so nice....for everyone involved:) She now weighs 24 lbs. 10 ounces (23%) and is 32 and 3/4 inches (22%) tall. When I plugged her measurements into a height predictor it said she would be no taller than 5'3 by the time she is 18. We will see if she actually stays shorter than me. I am 5'4 and 3/4 inches, but I just say I'm 5'5:) The most important thing is we have a happy and healthy little girl! One new thing with her is we've been working on getting rid of the paci.  So far it's going well.  We don't offer it and she hasn't really asked for it.  Could it really end up being this easy?  We'll see and keep you posted!

Happy Halloween 2012!

 I know this is super late, but Halloween didn't happen on October 31st at our house and then today we didn't have Internet all day until Dan got it fixed tonight:)  Svea had a secondary infection from taking her antibiotic (ladies will know what I'm talking about) and she was in A LOT of pain when she had to pee. It was awful to watch her go through that, but thankfully some over the counter medicine helped the pain go away asap.  We ended up turning off all of the lights in the house and hanging out in her bedroom all night so that the doorbell wouldn't be ringing every two minutes. I so wanted her to experience going to a few houses and answering our door as well, but it just wasn't to be this year.

 Mr. Batman and Ms. Cowgirl did dress up on November 1st and we galloped over to Larry and Darcy's house to show off our new gear.  Batman feel in love with Larry and he made him smile a lot.

 Cowgirl picked up on what trick or treating was really fast and enjoyed some M&M's, but needed to take her costume off right away.  She was so good at their house and Darcy taught her how to do the princess wave.  Hilarious!

  As soon as I took Kieran and Larry's picture and then showed her on the camera she had to sit at the same spot and get her picture taken.  She is saying "cheese" here.

Thank you Larry and "Dardar" for the treats and hanging out with us.  It was fun to show the kids off and we always have a good time with the Alstaeds. They have been SO good to us:)