Highlights of Christmas 2009

I can't believe that Christmas has come and gone already! Our string of celebrations began the 19th of December when we celebrated at Greg's parents home with the Sheely side of the family. It was a wonderful afternoon of delicious ham, great company, and the entertainment of Noah and James attempting to open, and help everyone else open, gifts. Noah even got a Disney "Cars" Snuggie!

On the 20th Noah had his very first church Christmas program, "A Birthday Party for Jesus". From the moment he woke up that day, he was telling Greg and I that he was not going to sing, and that he was not going to stand with his class! He did stand with his class and maybe sang a few notes here and there. He was pretty funny though as he was trying to show everyone how he can balance and jump on one foot for the majority of the program. Check out the video below!



After making the decision and committing to going to Little Falls and Miltona for Christmas Eve thru the day after Christmas, we learned that there was an impending Snow Storm...so we packed up and left Rochester on the 23rd. We were in the car roughly 5 hours (usually a 2.5 hour drive) and saw about 5 car accidents (one of which was a truck with a camper that was completely tipped on it's side). We were determined to make it though, and did without a problem. Jen's cousin, Chris, and his wife Stacy along with their two boys also came to Little Falls that night. It was beyond entertaining to see Noah and Carter play. They are three months apart in age.

Christmas Eve we made the trip to Miltona. The roads were still a bit difficult to travel but we rode with my Dad and Sue. With plenty of time to spare we attended the five o'clock Christmas Eve service. My Grandparents church has moved since I was a little girl. I remember many Christmas Eve's walking across the street from my Grandparents house to the church. We now have to drive but it is still a small, "country church". It brought back many memories of going up during the children's time and the pastor knowing who I was, seeing the same organist year after year, and finally, with candles lit, Silent Night in the dark church. It was so great being back in that, "place" and sharing that with Greg, Noah, and James. I will admit it was not quite as peaceful having to chase James through out the church or remind Noah 500+ times to be quiet, but overall it was perfect. Christmas at the Salvog's also included Bingo! Greg even got to give Grandpa a break and call numbers.

Christmas Day we woke up at Grandpa and Grandma's and headed home after dinner(lunch). We made it home with enough time to spare that Greg and I took the opportunity to go to a Christmas Movie. The Little Falls theater seemed so small and run down after going to theaters in Rochester for so long! It was fun, however, to hear high schoolers behind us telling stories of some of the teachers I once had.

My sisters, Jamie and Julie, along with their families made it to Little Falls on the 26th to celebrate at our Dad's and Sue's house. We had some yummy roast beef and the kids opened gifts in what I would call mass chaos! It was a fun time. Noah loves any opportunity to play with his cousins! We were planning on making the trip home that evening however the roads were still not great so we stayed one more night and finally got home about 3 pm on the 27th. 5 days and 4 nights later we were all somewhat in one piece. James had tummy problems for over a week and besides diapers and wipes we are also lacking sleep and patience. This has gotten a lot better over the last few days.

We've also begun the process of weaning him off of nursing and onto Whole Milk as his birthday was Wednesday. This has gone pretty well, although Jen is still pretty sore, and he has even slept through the night for two nights in a row! We are definitely enjoying that change!!

Greg and I both have had this week off and have taken the time to get our lives back in order, and spend some time together as a couple and as a family before Greg starts classes again! So far we have watched a movie or two, gone sledding, got James' one year photos done, visited Greg's Grandma Davis, and RELAXED!

We thought you might enjoy some photos from our past few weeks.

New Job!

Most of you already know this, but I have worked in Patient Account Services at Mayo Clinic since September of 2007. My job mostly consisted of taking call from patients, families, insurance companies, and many other people regarding outstanding accounts with the Clinic. I have enjoyed working there, but, as anyone who has worked in a call center knows, it is draining to take calls day in and day out.

Well, I am really excited because I just found out last week I am (officially) being promoted to an Operations Analyst. I originally interviewed for the position in October, and, at the time, was given the job as an "enrichment" due to the economy. There was no guarantee that I would ever be hired on and could have been shifted back to the call center, but the shuffling of some duties within our department created the opportunity for me to be hired on full time!

This should be a great experience for me as I will get to work on a variety of projects. I am still waiting to hear exactly what the job will entail, but am looking forward to the opportunity.

One of those days, weeks, months... years.

Well, it has obviously been a while since we've posted any updates surrounding the details of our day to day life. While it would be so fun to try and explain the last several months with you, I am only on my lunch break and do not have the time or motivation to do so. Instead, I will focus on today.. or this week rather.

Greg is once again winding down the semester of course work. With only a take home final left to complete he has/will be gone every night this week. Greg is also working on trying to get our Christmas letter finished so we can send that off along with some photos we had done at Sears. We've also been busy with various things for the kids. So when I realized that James had sticky stuff in his hair as I was taking his hat off at daycare this morning or that Noah can recite "his order" from McDonalds without skipping a beat... I had to remind myself that this phase of our lives will pass, kids are resilient, and (as cheesy as it sounds) nothing else matter as long as Greg and I are together with our beautiful boys and we are all healthy!

So here are some updates:

Noah had his Early Childhood Screening last Friday. Greg and I both took him to "School" as he so fondly referred to it. It was so amazing to watch this 3 1/2 year share his knowledge and understanding of the world with a complete stranger. I just sat there shocked and overjoyed by what a brilliant little man Noah has become. It seems surreal to be at a point in Greg's and my life that we have a child getting ready for preschool or school. It brings forth a strange sense of being proud, helpless, sad, and excited all at the same time. I can't imagine the type of emotional mess I will be when he starts kindergarten!

James has been "walking" for almost a couple months now. He took his first steps right around 10 months and has been attempting to "run" in the last week or so. He is constantly out numbering Noah at the amount of teeth he had at his age. James is working on his 7th and 8th while Noah only had 2 at the age of 1. James will turn one at the end of this month- hard to believe! In October James and I both had H1N1 which took us both out of commission for a couple weeks. It was not a pleasant situation and to top it off Greg and Noah were also sick with Bronchitis and Ear Infection/tonsillitis/Step throat. We were a mess to say the least!

James turning one also brings to the end my time of nursing my babies. With no more children in our future this brings a sense of sadness. Don't get me wrong... I am thrilled to not have to "remember" to pump everyday or plan my work schedule in such a way that revolves around nursing... but it will be difficult to give up a part of my life that I have been dedicated to 100%. About 2 weeks left... I'm not looking forward to the "look" from James either.. You know, the "how could you do this to me, you traitor.. how can you expect me to get comfort from this sippy cup, please save me, mommy" look. Noah was really good at that look...

So in the midst of the nights of overtired, constant nursing, unbathed, teething, storying telling, playing with their food, wrestling boys... Greg and I will find a night of remembering the joy of the season. We are going to A Christmas Carol this Friday night. Quite a few people from the production of Beauty and the Beast that Greg was in a while back will be in this production, which will make it even more entertaining to watch! Looking forward to spending some time with Greg before the chaos of Finals at school shifts to the chaos of Holiday gatherings and travels.

Finally here are some recent photos of the boys for you to enjoy!

A Mother's Rant

Sleep... what's that? Now, I know that the majority of parents can relate to not getting much sleep as their little ones grow... but when you can't remember anything from 8pm to 6am, including rather substantial arguments with your spouse among other things, you know you've hit a breaking point. I don't think I could have any type of rational conversation with someone who tells me how their baby was sleeping through the night at 8 weeks old. Grr....
So here I sit... on the lap top due to our 3 year old now sleeping in our office. We've been trying to get James to sleep better through the night and after experimenting with Noah sleeping downstairs we discovered that James sleeps much better without sharing a room. To keep our sanity and savor our entertainment in the downstairs of our home we opted to convert our office to a "bedroom" for Noah until James sleeps better. This has been great so far...well other than the lack of office space from 8pm to 7am.
So with James still not sleeping the greatest Greg and I have been on edge... making our efforts to "deal" with Noah's testing behaviors inconsistent at best. I think there is something to be said for survival mode, especially when you are trying to combine two different people's ideas of how to manage things. It is times like this that I remind myself that children are resilient but also unfortunately why I am guaranteed job security in the profession I currently am in. I would argue that parenting is the most difficult and rewarding part of life.

In other news:

Noah had his very first day of Sunday School today.I could tell he was nervous by his promptly flopping to the floor the second we walked into the church. I did have to fight back the tears as my little guy walked from the children's sermon to his classroom and didn't look back. We found him eating a cookie and having some milk. He proceeded to tell us about singing songs about Jesus the rest of the day. Proud Mama! He keeps saying the he is going to go to Sunday School tomorrow... wonder if he will make it a whole week!

James continues to cruise around the house, furniture, etc. I can't believe how mobile he has become in the last couple of weeks! I can't imagine it is going to be too long before he is walking!

Greg is well on his way to fall semester beginning. He is taking two classes this semester one of which is Saturday's in the Twin Cities. Golf and Softball are done for the year but he has taken on a new adventure of singing on a worship team for our Wednesday night service at church.

I am also helping as a confirmation guide this year at church. My group is with 7th grade boys! Looking forward to meeting new families and working with youth again!

We recently went on a long weekend vacation with Greg's family. We'll have to do a separate post for that to include stories of Noah fishing as well as pictures and possibly a video or two....

Stay tuned....

Sunday School Introduction

This is definitely one of those "You had to be there" stories, but I am going to tell it anyway.

Noah is starting Sunday School this year...hard to believe he is that old already. Tonight was the introduction for parents and kids so they could learn about Sunday School...they got to play with toys, sing songs, eat ice cream, and meet a friend or two.

The most memorable moment of the night (for Jen and I) was when they had gathered all the kids around, and the leader was telling the kids about different things they would find in Sunday School. Each kid got to pull something out of her bag and she would explain that they would find this it at Sunday School. Noah, for example, pulled out a glue stick, a book, and a CD (most kids only got to pull one or two things, but Noah thought he needed three)... Anyway, one kid pulls out a sheet of stickers, and when she asks the class what they were, Noah (with the biggest, silliest grin on his face, practically yells, "Stickers for going pooottttyy". Hilarious and embarrassing. Then of course, as she recaps everything they had pulled out of her bag, he has to reiterate these were stickers for going potty when she got to those.

At least we can say the potty training is going well!

Baseball and more

Well we finally had our first weekend as a family this summer. It was refreshing to have Greg home. I took the opportunity to go for a longer run and to go to the grocery store by myself.
Greg had some quality bonding time with the boys including some nasty diapers from James and playing Wii Sports Resort with Noah.
Friday night Noah got to go to Seasame Street Live with Grandpa and Grandma Davis. He LOVED IT! He has been talking about Elmo and his flower non-stop! Pretty sure he was able to recite in detail the entire story line... well up until intermission anyway.
Last Spring Greg got Twins tickets for a variety of games. Sunday was the first of the tickets that he and I went together. This was also the first game that I've made it to all summer...





The game got to be pretty long but it was great to spend time together and enjoy doing something out of the norm. While we were at the game Noah and James got to play with their cousins (Greg's cousins) Andy and Krista. From the smiles on their faces when we got there we're pretty sure they had a great time!
More exciting news was discovered while I was putting James to bed tonight. He was just so much more fussy than usual and wanted to keep nursing way past being hungry.... he then attempted to eat my face and hair and anything else he could get near his mouth. I started feeling his gums to see if there were any teeth coming through. Well after a couple seconds his chomped down and sure enough there it was... a slight little tooth cutting through his gums on the bottom! Hmmmm.... this makes me wonder if this could be where his diaper rash and running nose have been coming from? I know, most docs say there isn't a connection... but I would argue that with them 100%. It's so funny to me how babies and kids tell you long before something is going to happen with the changes in their mood and demeanor. More often that not we are just too preoccupied with other things to "hear" what they are saying and then we wonder why they get so crabby!

August So Far

Well August has taken off and hit the ground running. Greg has been busing trying to wrap up his summer courses. He has finals this week and then will hopefully be able to breathe for a couple weeks.

The first weekend of August our good friend Jacci came to visit. We took the opportunity to take the kids to the fair and see the animals and just relax at home.





Noah also enjoyed as much chocolate milk as he could drink from the dairy concession stand. It was a good time... maybe next year we'll attempt the rides!

Update on the potty progress:
Noah is doing great staying dry the majority of the time.. overnights are a bit of a struggle yet. The best news though is that he is finally starting to be okay with doing a #2 in the potty!!!! Hurray!
Here is Noah's potty chart.. Not sure what we're going to do when that last row is filled up!


That's all for us right now. Please feel free to leave comments! We'd love to hear your feedback or even just let us know you've found your way to reading our blog!

Not-so-Gluten Free Chex..shame on you General Mills!

Being a husband of someone who suffers from celiac disease (aka, gluten intolerance) has been a very eye opening experience. When we first started dating, I made every effort to be supportive and eat everything she ate. I ate gluten free spaghetti, sandwiches, cookies, pretzels. I tried it all. I couldn't do it. It was terrible. The bread tasted like cardboard and would crumble into pieces if you touched it. The spaghetti was chewy and often clumped togehter to the point that it wouldn't cook all the way. Gross.

Eventually, we worked it out that it would be cheaper for me to eat "normal" food. Plus, I found that eating this gluten free food gave me a stomach ache...maybe i am allergic to not having gluten in my food! This has worked for us for years, although there are many nights where we have to cook at least two or three meals, one for her, one for me, and sometimes one for Noah cause he can't or won't eat what we are eating.

Now, the quality of the food has definitely improved over the years as celiac disease has become more widely diagnosed, but there are still some situations where we run into problems. Unequivocally, the most difficult situation is small "lunch meetings/gatherings" where lunch is provided. Think about what you usually eat at these types of gatherings: pizza, cold sandwiches, maybe the occasional sloppy joe, cookies...none of these options are viable, and Jen usually ends up going hungry or has chips for lunch. Now, this is not the fault of the host/hostess for the lunch...what is there to serve that would be gluten free? Tacos? Too difficult. Anyway, on to the real point of this post...

Yesterday, Jen had what I would call a "moment". I wasn't there to witness this, but she apparently broke down in Target when she saw that Chex cereal was now advertising "gluten free" Chex that came in several different flavors (corn, rice, honey nut, cinnamon, chocolate, etc.) She could buy them for $2.54 a box yesterday when she usually pays $4-$5 for a box of special gluten free cereal. She called me after all of this happened and was still pretty choked up. She bought just one box and brought it home. She proceeded to eat most of the box over the course of the next 24 hours. All was well in her world until she had some noticeable reactions similar to what happens when she eats gluten. Now, from what I have read, a reaction to gluten is different for each person. Some people get violently ill, others it is only subtle and hard to detect. For Jen, she is more on the subtle end of things, becoming slightly irritable, tired, depressed, and phsyically uncomfortable without knowing why.

Without knowing she was feeling like this, I was looking on the internet to see what others had written about General Mills new foray into gluten free porducts. This is when I found a post on the blog Celiac Bites outlining that while the ingredients in the Chex may be gluten free, there is a chance for cross-contamination. This can occur when a gluten free product is made on the same machinery, or even in the same facility as gluten-filled products Needless to say we were both very disappointed and Jen has been suffering the side-effects of this all day.

It seems General Mills trying to cash in on those with celiac disease and those who choose to eat gluten free as a lifestyle. Shameful...

Day by Day

For most, including myself, it feels like summer is already almost over. For our family however it is just beginning. Greg completes his summer courses next week and will then have three weeks off before fall classes begin. We're looking forward to having more family time/events like going to a Twins game and being home as a whole family. We still don't have a lot of plans but just knowing that Greg won't have a lot of other commitments is refreshing.

Noah is continuing on his journey of potty training. He has been in big boy undies for over a week now, with the exception of today because I need to do laundry... oops. He has done really well thus far. Our biggest challenge now becomes having him go without being asked and being okay with not getting stars and prizes!

Our plans have officially changed for our Wedding Anniversary. We'll now being going to Half Moon Trail Resort in Park Rapids with Greg's family. They have been going there for years and I've had the pleasure to also tag along once while Greg and I were dating. Definitely a place for lots of memories and we're very excited to bring the boys up there. So although we won't be golfing on our actual anniversary we will still have the day off and be spending it relaxing.

Greg has proposed some good topics for blog posts that I am hoping he'll write soon... stay tuned!

Should have guessed...

For the past week or so Noah has had a nasty runny nose along with coughing at night that wakes us all up. The past couple of nights it has been crying, not being able to fall back asleep, and waking up at 5 or 6 in the morning. The worse part of this has been the acting out in naughty behaviors such as not listening or throwing/stepping on toys. Typically the not sleeping well combined with the behaviors is a clear indication for Greg and I that Noah is not feeling well and is either at the point of needing to go to the doctor or getting very close to it. For some reason(well many actually), this combination of clues did not trigger an internal signal to either of us that Noah was not feeling the greatest. It was not until today at about 10 am when we got a call from, "Our Mary" (daycare provider) that we understood exactly how icky Noah felt. Knowing that Noah is a pretty high energy kid, Mary was pretty surprised, maybe down right shocked, when Noah approached her at the playground this morning saying he was cold. Then asked to lay down in the wagon under a heap of blankets. Noah- not playing at the playground- out of the norm!!!!! So she preceded to take his temp to find that it was 101 under his arm... probably higher. Poor little buddy. I had just gotten out of a client visit so I was able to pick him up and take him in to Mayo Express care...and the verdict is... Pretty nasty ear infection on one side and fluid and the start of another ear infection on the other side. I am constantly amazed at how tough our little guy is. To top it all off, he has stayed DRY and gone in the toilet for over 24 hours now! What a big boy!

Last night I had my first experience on the driving range to test out my new golf clubs! Grandma came over to play with Noah and James so Greg and I could head over to Meadow Lakes. The whole way there Greg kept telling me not to be nervous and that no one ever comes to this golf course. We get there and it is completely full. Great. I did okay at the beginning but I could tell that it is going to take some work to build up the endurance for such a different sport. I'm looking forward to this new adventure for Greg and I. I think it's going to be something that he and I will enjoy doing together long after our babies grow up.

Sounds like our anniversary plans are changing... stay tuned to hear more details on that.

Potty Training!!

Jen has gotten off to fast start with this family blog, but I finally made it to a break in my schedule (for a day or two anyway), so I thought I would give it a go. So, fasten your seat belts for a bumpy ride!!!

We have been really struggling trying to convince Noah to go potty on the toilet. For whatever reason (I would argue he is afraid of trying some thing new), he refuses to try.

When he is ready to go potty, he usually runs off into another room and isolates himself. Jen and I are usually occupied with something else and by the time we notice the eery quietness it is too late. Every time we ask him we get the same response..."No!" We have waited for almost a year for him to take interest in it, and this has not paid off. He has become more defiant as time has gone on!

Below is a typical response we get from him when we encourage him to go on the potty. He likes to be left alone and to have the door closed.

Note: You may have to turn up your volume to hear what he says, but it is "I don't want to!"


Fast forward to this morning...

For some reason when I woke up I had this incredible urge to make this happen. We told him, "No more diapers!" Now, keep in mind we had done this a couple of other times before, and after many accidents (including an unfortunate incident when he both pooped and peed on the floor when his potty chair was 3 feet away), we had given up each time. So, this proposition was no sure thing.

At first, he wouldn't even put on the undies we had for him. So, we let that go and he went in his birthday suit for a while. Finally, we convinced him to wear the undies...not more than a half hour later we had our first accident. No harm, no foul..but we did lose one of his favorite books in the process. We cleaned him up and put on a new pair of undies and went for round two. He was advised that he needed to tell us when he had to go. He made it about another hour and he was wet again...accident #2! At this point he had not made any effort to tell us he was going to go, so we were a little frustrated. It was time to put the baby diapers back on, we told him. Then something interesting happened. He didn't want them! We had told him before that if he couldn't wear underwear like a big boy then he couldn't do other big boy things like watch Scooby Doo or ride his bike. We had also bribed him with ice cream if he went. So, looking at this refusal of the diaper as a good thing, we continued on.

After one more accident while we were out for a picnic (outside, so not that big of a deal), we came back home and this is when the magic happened. I laid him down and asked him if he had to go...he said no. I told him if he decided he had to that he should yell, "I have to go potty!" and we we would come help. I shut the door and started head away when I heard, "I have to go potty!" Thinking he was just messing with me I went back to scold him, only he confirmed this time he really did have to go! So, we raced to the bathroom and sat him down and our son went potty in the toilet for the very first time!

Over the course of the day, he only has had one more accident and has gone in the potty 5 more times. One time he even did a little number 2! Needless to say, we are pretty pumped! Of course, we got him his ice cream and he got to ride his bike and watch his movies, so all was well in his world!

Here is a photo of the champ in his new big boy undies! Be sure to notice the "Buckle up for Safety!" sticker Noah got from the checkout lady at Target after he told her all about how he went poop and pee in the toilet! Nice!

And to close it out and not make this post totally about my child's bodily functions, here are some pictures from out rather eventful weekend. Jen, Grandma Marianne, and the boys went out to Essex Park on Saturday morning to play while I was at class, and then today we went out to Mayowood for a picnic lunch.

Hope you enjoyed it! Please leave a comment about your favorite potty training story and any tips or best practices you have for us going forward!

5:00 AM

At 5 AM I awoke to a thud and crying. My first reaction was to check and see whether James was in our bed or his. After seeing James' sleeping face next to me I nudged Greg to go check on Noah. He walked into the boys' room to find Noah standing by his bed crying. Now, Greg had not heard the thump so I promptly let him know that Noah had most likely fallen out of his bed. What should have been a quick, "it's okay, have a drink of water" and go back to sleep turned into Noah trying to sleep in our bed. At this point James woke up and joined the early morning party. My thinking that maybe James would fall back asleep in his own bed was sadly wrong when he started crying. I went back to get him, held him, and sat on the edge of my bed with him. It was then that I realized I was getting wet and something smelled all too familiar. James had exploded out the front of his diaper, which makes sense because he likes to roll himself over and sleep on his tummy. His crib, clothing, and myself were covered. I have not had to give either of my boys a bath at 5:45 in the morning before today. At this point Greg and I resolved to just waking up for the day, but after working on a paper for school until midnight last night, Greg is really not pleased.
It is going to be a long day. All we can say is, "Thank God it's Friday!"

It's the simple things

Greg is golfing tonight with his dad and while we were going to hang out with Grandma Marianne we opted not to. It's been a long day... with headaches and tired boys.
Noah enjoyed mac and cheese and I ate some peaches with cottage cheese. We spent the next hour or so amused by James attempting to crawl. He's been trying so hard and only has a couple bumps on his face to show for it. I really think he's on his way to crawling as his brother did. One leg tucked in and the other out. I love that James is so patient... with his daddy, Noah and myself! He just takes it all in!
I tried to get some video of Noah singing the ABC's or Itsy Bitsy spider tonight but he was pretty camera shy... a trait I know he does not get from his father.
After spending some time jamming on youtube watching music videos from the 90's such as Eve 6, Everclear, Eagle Eye cherry, deep blue something, and gin blossoms my baby boy is sleeping and Mr. Noah is absorbed in his newest addiction... Scooby Doo! A much needed break for mom!
Greg and I will be married for 4 years this coming September! We just decided what we're doing for our anniversary... The boys will be in Mayo's back up daycare that day so we are going to take the day off and go golfing at Maple Valley... only one catch- Greg is making me golf with him. Now for most of you, you know that Jen does a much better job running cross country meets on golf courses than actually golfing on them. Usually when I go with Greg I carry his bag or ride in the cart, etc. I have never golfed in my life. Mini-golfing does not count but perhaps I will be okay at putting! It should be an adventure and I'm looking forward to spending the day with my lovey and trying something new. Plus, he is buying me golf clubs out of the deal... can't argue with that I suppose.. we're going to be in trouble if I hate it though :)
On a somewhat random note... today I realized that I have spent 20 months of my life breastfeeding... so far.... probably about 6 or 7 more to go. While I love this time with my babies... I'm ready to have my body back and not leak at the most inopportune times! I know once they're grown up though I'm going to miss that cuddle/quiet time with them.

Thought it would be fun to have some, "then and now" pictures... Enjoy!

Busy Tuesday

WoW! Greg just filled me in on what our/his evening is going to look like...

Work until 5
Group Project downtown 5:30
Eat/Change for Softball 8:15
Leave for Softball 8:30
Softball 9-10
Writing a Paper 10:30-??????

Jen and the boys evening... Hang out at home until bedtime.. maybe a trip to the school/playground after dinner!

Post from facebook yesterday:

Jen 'Salvog' Davis wonders if it is too much to ask to have a family similar to ours (age and with little kids) as neighbors so that I can sit on the steps and chat at night after the kids go to bed without having to A. find a babysitter B. worry about keeping the kids out past their bed time so I can have an adult conversation C. Going anywhere??? Apparently I took my former life of having siblings, Michelle, and college for granted!

This got 7 responses... I am starting to think that I am not the only mother of little ones that gets lonely and wouldn't mind having someone next door for support/friendship...Won't be moving anytime soon, however.

Trip to Little Falls...

This past weekend Jen,the boys,and our good friend Rachel (Greg had class) took a road trip to Little Falls for Grandma Chachi(Deb) and Grandpa Darren's vow renewal ceremony/summer party. They were married July 18th, 1992.

The ride to Little Falls was pretty uneventful with only one stop. Noah started complaining of his tummy hurting and when the big tears starting falling I promptly pulled over the car for fear of having to smell vomit the rest of the trip if I didn't. I got him out of his seat and stood him on the side of hwy. 52. After about 2 minutes he tells me he is okay and it feels better... strange.

Saturday's weather was a challenge. I don't think I've gotten that cold to hot and back again so quickly in my life. The boys went through at least 3 outfit changes a piece.

Julie and I walked down the aisle together and then went to sit with our babes. My time of watching the ceremony was short lived however when the escape artist, a.k.a Noah slipped out of my grip and ran to the front to ask Grandma Chachi for a snack. I then chased him around the yard trying to contain him and keep him from screaming/crying. I completely missed the actual vows, ripped my sister's skirt that I was wearing, and had one heck of a crabby child. I should also note at this point that both Noah and James have had colds all week, were already overtired, and were surrounded by mostly strangers... can we say recipe for disaster? The Ceremony was beautiful none the less.

They also had a pig roast which smelled amazing and tasted equally as great! That along with Grandpa Ivan's potato salad... pretty sure I was in heaven! I don't think I have laughed quite so hard as I did when my cousin John installed a fart application on my phone. It was also great to have James meet more of the family.

After several battles with Noah, including trying to get him out of the river, we cut the weekend short and packed up to go back to Rochester. Not having talked to Greg all day made this somewhat sneaky on my part. The boys and I arrived home around 11:30, with no Greg to be found. I got them all situated in their own beds and waited for Greg to get home. He called about 12:15 saying he had gone to a late movie and was on his way home. At this point I had still not told him that we were no longer in Little Falls. Still on the phone, I heard him pull into the garage, unlock the door, walk into our bedroom and turn the light on to find me sitting on the bed. I don't think I have ever seen someone jump so high or scream so loud. Guess his sense of fight or flight would be the second. Still unclear how he was oblivious to the fact that my car was in the garage, or the diaper bag was on the kitchen floor. Still not sure if my being home early made up for the trauma I caused him???

In our first post we mentioned video. We recently purchased a Flip Video recorder so the following are some videos of the kids doing their favorite things! Enjoy!

Meet our family

The lack of emotional security of our American young people is due, I believe, to their isolation from the larger family unit. No two people - no mere father and mother - as I have often said, are enough to provide emotional security for a child. He needs to feel himself one in a world of kinfolk, persons of variety in age and temperament, and yet allied to himself by an indissoluble bond which he cannot break if he could, for nature has welded him into it before he was born. ~Pearl S. Buck

Over the last six years we've explored what family is and what it means to us. Greg and I have grown in our relationship and become a family together while also bringing Noah and James along for the ride. Greg and I met the summer of 2003 at Luther Park Bible Camp in Danbury, Wisconsin. We were engaged December of 2004 and married September of 2005. Noah graced us with his presence June of 2006 and James December 2008. Greg and I constantly remark about how quickly our relationship progressed and how we would not change a moment of it for anything. Often times we find ourselves somewhat out of the norm, and downright lonely, when it comes to where other people our age are at in their lives, however at the end of the day we feel blessed to know that we have each other and our beautiful sons.



You may wonder what the significance of the quote at the beginning of this post is all about... We have some family living near us but the majority is anywhere from an hour, three, or another state away. Our hope is that although we may not get to see those loved ones that often; they can still experience and be a part of our daily lives through updates, pictures, and videos. As some of you know raising little ones can sometimes leave you feeling isolated or detached from the world... so here is to our reaching out and connecting!

Introductions:

Greg: BUSY! Greg is constantly up to something. He is currently a student in the Masters of Health Care Administration program through the University of Minnesota. For the past two years he has been working for Mayo Clinic in their patient accounts department. He also plays on a softball league and a golf league. Last summer he played the role of the Beast in Beauty and the Beast in the Stewartville Community Theater. He would love to do more acting/singing in the future... when time allows.

Jen: I finished my schooling in December of 2006 with a Masters in Social Work. After staying home with Noah for his first year and a half of life we moved down to Rochester and I started working full time. I currently work for Olmsted County as a Child Protection Social Worker. I can honestly say that I have never been more emotionally invested in a career before. There is so much gray area and blurred lines of how to help the families I work with. I had a short 8 weeks off following the birth of James but have been back to work full time since March. My most recent challenge is running Grandma's Marathon in Duluth 2010. This will be my second marathon and it happens to fall on my 26th birthday. I'll be running it with my sister Jamie.

Noah: Mr. Noah just turned 3 at the beginning of June. He has quite the attitude but also the kindest, most sincere heart too. His newest accomplishment is learning to pedal on his bike! He loves milk, specifically chocolate milk as well as any type of cereal/snack! The kid seriously eats like a 13 year old boy! He never will allow you to be bored...very strong willed!



James: James is 6 1/2 months old. He shares the same birthday as his great-grandma, Elaine! James is very in tune with his surroundings, like a sponge he absorbs everything. More often than not he seems to have his, "thinking face" in action for all to see. He has just started eating some veggies (carrots, squash).



We hope that you enjoy the opportunity to share in the laughs, smiles, challenges, and joy with us. Until next time...