First 1st Birthday Celebration

She has already made her Daddy supper

2 down, 2 to go

This is a Christmas Eve to remember...

MD burnt his hand. It is painful but he assures me not too bad.
Then 5 minutes later, B fell down and bit her lip pretty badly.
It was bloody but she seems to be better now.

So Lil D and I will be extra careful for the rest of the evening.

Now onto opening presents...
Watch for video coming soon...

Frosting Cookies

B and I are enjoying some creative time together. I have only had to
scold her to stop licking the knife twice.
We are also watching Mary Poppins.

Winter Solstice

As the sun begins to set on the shortest day of the year, I am proud of myself for not getting too down about the weather and winter.
I wish we had a tradition for today.
I love the idea of celebrating the changing of the seasons.
One of my professors in college ran through the woods in her running shoes only to celebrate spring - at least that is what I heard...

I think maybe that will be something I will ponder on and talk through with MD. Maybe we can come up with some traditions for the solstice and equinox days of the year.

Do you do anything to celebrate the seasons?

UPDATE: AFTER DOING A 15 MINUTES SEARCH ON THE WEB, THERE ISN'T MUCH OUT THERE FOR CELEBRATION IDEAS FOR WINTER SOLSTICE. I REALLY THINK FOR ME IT NEEDS TO BE A PERSONAL CELEBRATION OF NATURE SO I GUESS I WILL NEED TO DO A BIT MORE THINKING ON THE SUBJECT. THANKS FOR YOUR INPUT SO FAR.

Any ideas?

So B and I were out shoveling in the deep snow this afternoon and some kids in the neighborhood came out to see her.

They came out without socks and mittens.

A neighbor of mine said she is sure they have these things - they probably just didn't put them on. What do you think?
I know I am not giving you a lot to go on.
My real dilemma is if I should gift them some socks and mittens?
Do you think they would be offended?
Should I give them anonymously?

Let me know what you think.

Poor Sophie

Christmas Cards

What's better than getting pictures of your family and friends in Christmas cards?
Getting pictures of your own family in Christmas cards.
Our friends in Ely where we go every year sent us a lovely Christmas card
with pictures of us in it!
I love it!

The Mad Scientist

The title says it all. This picture of D makes MD and I just shake our heads when we look at it. Our little boy is growing up! Almost a year old. I can't believe it.

Thinking of Ya-ya

My good friend and neighbor Ya ya is having a big operation tomorrow morning.
7 hours long.
Ugh.

We love you Ya ya and hope your surgery goes well!
I promise we will have rice pudding ready for you when you get home.
With cinnamon AND raisins!

UPDATE: Ya Ya's surgery went well. Only 5 hours. She is home now and resting. Welcome Home Ya Ya! We missed you.

The Dreaded Driving Season

So it has begun.
Driving in Wintery Conditions.
yuck.

I absolutely positively without a doubt HATE driving in wintery conditions.

Between the road slop freezing to my windshield and the guy in front of me driving 20 mph in a 55 zone - I long for those hot summer days when I am frying in my car.

Remember the good ol days when this was your ride?



All you had to worry about then was freezing your fingers and toes and face right off...

Those were the days.

B's excitement is contagious

As soon as the tree was up, B said, "I can't wait until Father Christmas is here!"
And then she said it again, and again.

Now she is setting up her tea set in front of the Christmas tea and asked me if I wanted a 'perfect cup of tea'. How could I refuse?

I am excited to see Christmas through her experience.

Beautiful Tree

December Already?

Whoa.
When did this happen.
You'd think by now I would be used to the fact that a month goes by faster and faster as time passes.

MD has been glued to his new toy the last 24 hours.
It is cute.
He is downloading all those apps that he thought I should have.
Now I can have them too - I guess.

Happy 1st day of December!!

Hooray!

Waiting for Papa gets long

Birthday present shopping

MD joins the iPhone bandwagon

Pink Stuff!!

Thanksgiving thoughts

Thanksgiving to my 4 year old is just a stepping stone to Christmas. She was ready for Christmas in October but we told her we were going to celebrate Halloween and Thanksgiving first. So this morning when I told her that today we were celebrating Thanksgiving, I could see her eyes light up and the wheels turn... Christmas is next!

For me, I think Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. Today I get to have 'Pink Stuff'. That was the jello dish that my dad's mom always made for us when we gathered at her house. Food hasn't always been something that I have looked forward to or enjoyed but since I have been pregnant - that seems to have changed. Yeah!

I hope you have a relaxing, food-filled, safe Thanksgiving.
Happy Thanksgiving!

Furniture Olympics

Remember those days when you would jump on the furniture when your parents were out?
Gotta love the goggles too!!!

It's my Blogiversary!!!

Has it already been a year?!
Whoa.

Hope you have enjoyed it!

A look back

I don't have a picture of me readily available with my tight perm in 9th grade with glasses and braces (yes - really).
So I decided to find an old picture so we could all reminisce about the good ol days.
Notice my Mom's hair - she looked good in the 80s!
Notice my sister's hat. Um Marge - what is up with the hat? {Giggle!}
Unfortunately - I had a bit of a mullet going on.
Enjoy!

Haircut

Some people just intimidate me.
Tonight I met this person when I got my hair cut. She is a 5 foot tall, 50ish stylist who always looks like she is eating something sour. I don't know what about that is intimidating but it is scary.
She always does the hard sell on me too - which just freaks me out that she is going to convince me to get a perm or something.
Sorry - I am only going to look like Annie once in my life.
(No offense to Annie - that look just isn't for me.)

Not much new

Just thought I would tell you that D does 'So Big' now (after about 20 minutes of laughing and watching Mom do it...) He also waves 'Bye' and says something that sounds like Bye. Very cute.

B had a minor accident tonight. She was standing on a stationary bike and got her foot caught amongst the peddle. She had a good scrape and didn't want to put any weight on it. So hopefully we will be on the road to healing tomorrow.

Tired. Going to Bed.
Night!

Happy Birthday Dad!

Hope you had a good birthday Dad!

Since D was taking his nap when B and I called to sing to you - D wanted to send you a picture.
From one El Finger to another.

Enjoy!
See you in a few weeks!
Love,
C.

Out for DQ with the P's

Tonight we went out with our friends to DQ.
Afterward we make a stop to 'Once Upon A Child'.

But in between we always stop and look at the pretty lights at this shop.

I really liked this bubble-looking lamp.

Meema thought this one looked liked knitting.

A fun time was had by all! Thanks Meema, J, and Kidlet!!!

Politics

Have you heard the crap that Norm is saying about a recount?

...It will have to be up to Franken whether or not he decides to use tax payer dollars to pursue this recount...

Cripes! They were 478 votes apart at 6:45p tonight.

Al! Use my tax dollars and do the recount!!!

Fun With Photo Booth Part 3

Fun With Photo Booth part 2

Fun With Photo Booth

Mom and B

Your Right

Please be sure to exercise your right to vote on Tuesday.

But please be sure to vote for Obama, Franken, Tinklenberg, Ellison - otherwise I don't mind if you decide that you need to stay home.

Thank you!

Finding treasure

Here is your smile for the day

Thank you Meema for the picture!

More Halloween fun

Happy Halloween Eve

Kidlet and B

You Fill in the Caption

Marco...

Another B pic.

Art by my B

B drew this tonight with no help from me. I know I am her Mom and all but I was very impressed.

New Season - New Colors

Hope you can tolerate the changing blog again. I am not one to keep things the same. I like a little controlled change in my life. Have a great week.

Young Photographer

My daughter is quite a photographer. In fact - I often encourage her to grab the camera when she needs a distraction. Here are a few pictures she has taken.

He's a good sport

He is a cute reindeer, isn't he?

Onward and Upward!

WAY TO GO ANDREW!!!
Andrew scored the one and only goal to beat top ranked Apple Valley.

This pic was on Star Tribune's website this afternoon.

Andrew is a friend of mine. We play bells together at church.

Another Money Making Scheme

If you are following story coming out of District 6 - the Bachmann story - you know what she said about Obama.

Did you also know that her opponent - Elwyn Tinklenberg - has had a fundraising windfall in the last couple of days? $800,000 since Friday!

Zombie Mommie

Whew. I survived.
B is in bed and asleep I think. Now I need to shuffle off to bed and dream with no interruptions.

Thank you to my wonderful friends - Meema, Going 40, and eWac. Your support helped me get through today. I know how single moms get through life with kids - their friends.

I can't freaking believe that it is Monday tomorrow already. I have a lot of cleaning up to do before MD comes home. Anyone want a Hammond organ? It is going cheap!

OMG I am a failure!

You know, I was dreading today. I knew it was going to be bad because my kids just do not do well with a change in routine. But holy grey hair Batman! B insisted she HAD to do this project before we left and then take it with us to church. D was screaming about being left alone several times.

We got to church about 20 minutes late. Got through choir practice okay. Then it went down hill. I didn't get up to the service until 10:15 or so because SOMEBODY wouldn't go to sunday school and somebody else had a wet diaper. Then D wouldn't calm down and I was back and forth between nursery and sunday school trying to convince myself and them that we could do this. I finally left them together in the nursery.

I sang the anthem and then left early because I was so freaking hungry and I wasn't paying attention to the service anyway. So all that sweating for about 20 minutes of service.

Now in about 3 hours, I get to do it all again. Really.

My question to the world is HOW DO SINGLE PARENTS DO IT?!?!?!?!?!?

P.S. MD - I will be sending you + kids to Staples without me soon.

Chasing the cat

D just would not leave Oliver alone!

So peaceful

Sat morn fun

Single Parenthood

Night one of being a single mom went okay. I am starting to get tired of B's tactics to not go to sleep but she will get there soon. ((Whoops - she is out of bed again.))

I was thinking I would watch a movie tonight but I think I am going to go to bed instead. It is going to be a long couple of days which will turn into a very long week.
I have a big fundraising event on Thursday night and that will be about a 14 hour day.

So send a 'rah-rah' my way and I will try to get my blood pressure up to the point that I can function.

Hiking through the Tall Grass

Rememberance

Almost a year ago today, my Grandma B died. She was the grandparent that I got to know the best. When I was growing up, my mom always said I was a lot like Grandma B. A bit contrary, athletic, loved cats and books.

Grandma was very good at sewing. When my sister and I were little, she made us both quilts. I loved mine. It was a thick blanket with small squares of different fabric on top and a soft backing. She also made quilts for both of my kids. Such special gifts made by loving hands.

I think of Grandma often. I think about her when my daughter eats bread because she loved bread. I think of her when I shop at the thrift store because she loved to find a good bargain. I think of her when I put the quilts over the kids at night. Everyday things.

The picture to the right was taken after B was born. Here we are, 4 generations of Newland women. Happy, a bit contrary, and always looking for that bargain.

I don't think he is greasy..

Another blog worthy sentence came out of my B's mouth this afternoon.

I had asked her to do something and she had sassed back to me so I told her she needed to sit on the front steps by her Dad for two minutes as a consequence.

She looked at Dad, crossed her arms, and said,"I don't want to sit next to that greasy man!!"

I had to look away quick so I didn't laugh.

Where do kids pick this stuff up?!

...another one bites the dust...

Remember way back when... way back... I blogged about my stupid cats walking past a mouse on the steps to the basement? Well Sophie, my (formerly known as) girl cat has redeemed herself twice. Tonight was number 2 and we just found it in the living room.

MD said she was just having a fun 'ol time playing with it. Then he saw it and noticed it wasn't the catnip toy.

Way to go Sophie!!!

kids playing together

Here B is being pretty nice but then she took the yo-yo away and D was ANGRY!
He likes to scream when he wants something. There was a bit of screaming after this picture was taken.
D is sitting on his heels in this picture. What is it about kids and sitting that way? It makes my knees hurt looking at this picture.

No Pics but LOTS of praise

This morning, braving cold weather and rain, Scott and Eric ran in the Twin Cities Marathon.
MD,the kids, and I + Angie and Kidlet watched. Some were better dressed for the occasion than others - but we were all pretty cold and wet after standing in the rain for a while. I can't imagine how the runners must have felt through that. And then when the runners were done - the sun came out for a bit. Not nice. :)

Great Job Scott and Eric!!! It was fun cheering for you.

P.S. Angie took some fun pictures of the event. Go check them out.

Ouch!!

Don't worry - he's okay. It looks worse than it was.
I just laughed when I saw these after I put the pics on my computer.
I wonder what he was thinking in picture #2.
Probably 'What the heck?!'

I could do this for hours!

D has really start mimicking MD and I.
Tonight he said his second phrase... wait for it... Uh Oh!
It is something that I could listen to for hours. D... Uh Oh!

B gets as excited about listening to him as we do and gets right in there.

********* *********

Tonight we were listening to some new music and B says 'Mom, I am going to go dance!'


'Mom! I did that so you could see me fall on the ground!'

'Mom! You missed my turn!'

'Mom! Are you watching me?'


So I had to 'yes sweetie, I am watching' about 75 times. But it is so darn cute too!

These times get me through the screaming bloody murder times of the evening.

a few pics from vaca

I haven't been very good about taking pictures with my iPhone lately. But here are a few from vacation.

These were taken on a hike to Kawishiwi Falls near Ely MN. (I will need to check the spelling on that...)

bad mom bad mom

Tonight as I was trying to help D get his pants pulled up - I pushed him forward and he ended up planting his face into the carpet and getting a bloody nose.

After B's bath tonight, I cut her thumb nail toooo short and had to listen to crying for a while about how kids don't like that.

Some days Mom can't win.

Brave

Steess, Ya-ya, MD, B, D, and I all went on a hike today. We were gone for about 2 1/2 hours and B walked 98% of the time. I am so proud of her! At one point in the hike, she actually stepped in mud puddles. If you know B, you know that even last year she wouldn't walk on gravel because she might get dirty. Also on this hike we came across a garter snake that had been run over by a car and she stepped on its head again - 'Just to make sure it was dead.' Then we saw a live snake. It was too quick for her to step on.

It is a warm sunny day with a pretty good breeze. So it was a perfect day to be out walking through the woods and tall prairie grass.

MD and D are taking a bit of a nap now. B and I are at the store and B is picking out jewelry for me. It is the sweetest thing. How do you say no when your daughter wants to buy you beautiful things that you know you may never wear?

'Like a Man'

So B likes to go to sleep in one outfit and wake up either in another outfit or in just undies.

One night this past summer, MD was asking her which outfit she wanted to wear to bed.

She said she wanted to sleep 'like a man'. I am sure MD was trying not to laugh and wondering where she had picked that one up. So when MD asked what that meant, she said she wanted to sleep in undies only.

Sing it with me!

If you have been following my blog - you may have realized by now that some food's don't like me. Poo poo on them!

Anyway, I have started to watch more carefully what I eat now that it has gotten to the point of not being able to eat some things. I have started eating 'Activia' yogurt to see if that helps too.

So the point of all of this is that everytime I open the cute little container - I sing the 'Activia' jingle. Then I giggle to myself too. I crack myself up.

So not only it 'Activia' help with digestion - it keeps me happy.

No Media 4 A Day

I have been toying with the idea of turning off my radio, tv, websites that carry news. I don't know if I can do it - even for a day. I am so tuned in to what is going on in the world. I feel like everything is going down the toilet and then on top of everything else, I have to worry about freaking Palin becoming VP.

I am a 'glass half-full' type of gal but I have to say I do not have much faith in my fellow Republican American.

What about this woman says hope, freedom, privacy to those of you who claim to love her SOOO much.

She is another REPUBLICAN who thinks she knows more about your life and your decisions than you do. She wants to get into your life and tell you how you will live it.

That is all pro-life is. Is there ever any talk about supporting the babies that are born? No. Because that isn't going to get them elected. If she did care - she would be pushing to help support those women and girls, those families, who are having babies every day. What about funding for adoption, what about funding for childcare, what about funding for education??
The US isn't supporting life, we are paying BILLIONS of dollars supporting death in a war that shouldn't have even started.

AAAHHHHHH!

I think I need to take a break from the media. Don't you?

And crap - it is time for me to go to sleep.

Its a slippery slope!

D has started crawling! He is also babbling. Da da da da da. He is Daddy's boy.

B spent a lot of time writing her letters and numbers today.

It just goes so fast!

Nevermind

The ice cream didn't like me.

give me the ice cream...

I chalk this up to another thing that nobody tells you about how pregnancy screws up the mom.

I think I am still dealing with hormones in my system screwing up my digestion. How can I go from eating like a bird to eating like a horse in 3 months and then back to eating like a bird after the baby is born? I would like to have a happy medium thank you.

I have had an almost constant stomachache for about a month now and I think it was started by eating ice cream every day for a week. I have self diagnosed myself as lactose intolerant. I did take my pills most of the time but I did forget a couple of days. MD bought me some Activa so I will try that at some point here. I don't really like yogurt or food right now for that matter so it is really easy not to do it.

Today I am home because I woke up feeling really crappy. I needed a day away from the schedule. It wasn't an ideal decision but I really needed some time to myself.

So enjoy your ice cream/liberty custard/cereal whatever for me! I am starting to crave it which sucks!

Really Distracted

I don't know if it is the change of season, facebook, a lack of energy, or all three but I can't think of anything to blog about really. So I will just update you on daily stuff...

B is learning how to whistle which means every time she makes a noise that sounds like a whistle she asks if we heard it. And if you have small children you know that you have to answer every query because they won't stop asking until they get an answer. (Maybe I should try that tactic when I want her to do something!)

D has a cold and is teething. So he is snotty and slobbery. yuck. A face only a mom and dad could love has new meaning. :)

MD is working hard after being off due to the RNC in town. I know there may be some of you that support that party but I don't think I can listen to another bit from Sarah P. She is a bit grating on my nerves.

And me? Watching Heroes first season as fast as I can because that is what I do with new TV shows that I rent from Netflix. Unfortunately the turn around time isn't fast enough for me so I had to resort to the video store this weekend to get the next couple of episodes. And facebook. The new time suck. Geez.

Happy Birthday Eric!
Happy End to Monday!

Is it Autumn already?

It's supposed to be 49 degrees in the am tomorrow. By the time we get to vacation in a couple of weeks, we may be freezin' our buns off up north!

Today as I was driving with the windows down, I was reminiscing about high school. The sights and smells of this time of year remind me of cross country practices, marching band rehearsals, and football games. I think Autumn is my favorite season. Unfortunately, I don't get to see or do any of these things anymore. I think the high school in our neighborhood has football games on week nights. Somehow that just doesn't seem right to me.

Tonight church choir and bells started back up. I hadn't been involved for a while because of being pregnant and the kid but it felt good to be back. I took some pictures of our choir director tonight but they all turned out very fuzzy and I didn't want to post anything less than perfect of our fearless leader.

D has cut his second tooth and is working hard on others. B didn't chew on stuff like D does. He just goes to town on anything he can get in his mouth. He is also getting ready to start crawling. He pushes up to his knees and hands all by himself and then rocks. I give him a month.

Redeemed?

As we pulled up to our house last night, we saw many neighbors outside and I realized it was good to be home. As much as I don't really like living in the city, I love our neighborhood.

Our neighbor and friend, Ya ya, is a saint and feeds our cats while we are away. The story she told us last night was interesting.
Apparently when Ya ya came over to feed the cats, she found something in the kitchen that looked out of place. As she bent down to get a closer look, she realized it was a dead mouse. So maybe my cats can kill mice. After this episode, it would be a bit surprising.

VP is who?

I am a liberal thinking person who is SO excited to be done with GW.

I listened to Obama's speech in the car Thursday night. Exciting and Inspiring. It was so nice to listen to someone who can speak! And for 40 minutes!
Then on Friday I was waiting to hear who McCain was going to choose for VP. I thought Pawlenty would be a good choice. He isn't well know outside of Minnesota but here he is known as a conservative. I thought that might be a tough choice to beat. Then I wondered about Romney. MD thinks he would be too rich. Too many houses between the two of them.

When I heard that Palin was the pick, I did a double take.
Wow.
Why?
Really?
I can't understand why she would be a good choice. I don't know if she will pick up any of the Hillary supporters. I can't believe she would. Who is she going to appeal to that McCain didn't already have supporting him?
I can't believe she would be the best compliment or able to hold her own at a debate with Biden.

I wonder if the Republican talking heads thought the same thing and were not excited about having to defend her.

Its going to be an interesting couple of months.

Recently heard at my house

My daughter told my sister-in-law that she needed to stay at her house so she could have a break from her parents. B said she would have to stay at least 10 days. MD and I think that sounds great!

*****
Cate? Cate?
'Yes B?'
You look like my Mom!

*****

When I asked B where she wanted to go for her birthday supper she said she wanted to go to her daycare provider's home. I asked her how we would get that set up and if she thought her daycare provider would want to cook her supper and B said 'Yeah mom, call her!'

*****

I think that is all I can think of right now. D isn't talking yet. He is screaming and laughing.
B can make him laugh harder than anyone. Here is a sample.

Happy Anniversary Tante and Andrew

Hope you enjoyed your day!

Sunday

Here in Mpls - it is a beautiful day. Sunny and 65 degrees (according to weatherbug).

MD is helping me do laundry and hang it on the line, B is picking Black-eyed Susans and putting them in a yogurt container and D is sleeping.

We had peach pancakes for breakfast - yummy!! I think MD's pancakes may be my favorite meal.

*****
Last night for our anniversary we did get a table at Heartland without a reservation. SWEET! We were prepared to sit at the wine bar but got into their dining room, luckily. I had a wonderful meal and so did MD. We didn't get the same thing this time. He had wild boar for his main course and I had an amazing fish dish for one of my courses. If you haven't been there - you should make your reservation today. :)

Last night as we were talking quietly at our table, we also listened to two women conversing rather loudly. It is funny to me that you wouldn't recognize that the whole room can hear what you are talking about. Obviously I was caring about what everyone else thought lots more than they were. Oh well - they were having a good time.

Then to carry out the anniversary theme - our wine had 'Steele' in the name. It was a good wine I guess because the 'loud' table ordered it too. Obviously you know why I know. :)

*****

One more note: if you dolphin lovers out there ever see the movie 'Eye of the Dolphin' on your rental shelves and feel compelled to rent it - DON'T. That movie was a stinker. I mean you could rent it but be prepared to throw popcorn at your tv and laugh at all the 'touching moments'. Maybe it would be a good movie if you take out all the talking? Ugh.

Happy Anniversary MD

Tomorrow is my 11th Wedding Anniversary.
The traditional list says that I should receive/give steel.
The modern list says that I should receive/give fashion jewelry.

Personally, I am a traditionalist myself.
I would love to just see this sculpture in real life.
It is called 'Cloud Gate' and it is in Chicago.

Here is a picture taken by:
Tinga, from Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei Darussalam



Pretty sweet!

My Babies have come a long way

I can hardly believe that my babies are getting bigger.
Here is a picture of them together soon after D was born.
(Note bang growth!!)

And here they are today. So much bigger so fast.
Love you sweeties!
Mom