Halloween 2014

8 Nov

Even though we don’t get into Halloween very much, we did take Emma trick or treating around our neighborhood for about an hour this year. But to be honest, it was just as much about us getting to meet more of our neighbors as it was about Emma getting to show off being the most adorable ladybug. (The candy was a nice bonus too.)

We went out around 6:30 and got back around 7:30 – and man, was it dark outside! Our neighborhood doesn’t have any streetlights so the only light we had was a little lantern we brought with us. It was also in the low 30s, so we were bundled up in our winter gear (Emma had several layers on, plus her ladybug costume).

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A few weeks before Halloween, we went to a fall festival fundraiser at the Pillager school. Emma dressed up in her costume, played some games (her favorite was picking rubber ducks out of a bucket of water and matching them for a prize), squealed in delight when she saw the Husky mascot, and even jumped in the bouncy house with Daddy. Some of our new friends were there too, so it was fun to see them.

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And that was our Halloween this year!

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Worth Repeating {11/4/14}

4 Nov

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Scripture memorization has always been one of those things for me that I struggle with. I have grand ambitions of memorizing a verse a week but I peeter out before a month has passed.

I have memorized verses more organically though. When I was first learning about joy coming from accepting what God allows, my ‘mantra’ verse was “The meek shall obtain fresh joy in the LORD.” When I was training for my full marathon and wanting to have faith that God cared about my running, I recited “My God in his steadfast love will meet me; he will let me look in triumph on my enemies [the marathon].” But I didn’t memorize the book or verse number – just the words.

Back in August, I had the idea of memorizing a single verse every quarter (every 3 months). It seemed like a good compromise between intentional and organic memorization.

So far, it has worked really well. The verse I choose is related to an area that I feel I need particular encouragement in or to focus on.

My verse for July, August and September was Galatians 6:9 – “And let us not grow weary of doingmo good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.” That verse encouraged me to keep making dinner, cleaning, taking care of Emma, etc because it will produce a harvest in due time.

My verse for October, November and December is Ephesians 5:15-16 – “Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil.” Wisely managing my time as a stay-at-home, pregnant mom is often challenging. It’s a thin line between laziness and relaxation. This verse reminds me that time is limited and days are fleeting. One result of focusing on this verse has been that I started getting up around 6 am everyday for coffee and time in the Bible – I haven’t voluntarily gotten up that early since before Emma was born!

I have plans to write each quarter’s verse out and hang it up in a place where I’ll see it often. That way, it’ll remind both me and my family of truth! I haven’t gotten that done quite yet but hopefully soon!

How do you memorize Scripture?

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Pregnancy #2 Update: 4 Months

29 Oct

I’m 17 weeks along today. I decided that with this pregnancy, I’m only going to do monthly updates. I mean, there’s only so much you want to read about cravings, aches and sleep problems.

Although I’m very fortunate to not be experiencing any of those at this point. I went on a short run the other day and even though I haven’t been running much and was also 16 (now 17) weeks pregnant, I felt surprisingly great. I’m still sleeping pretty well, my energy is back (got up at 6/6:30 all last week!) and food is appealing once again. I still don’t have many cravings but that is just fine with me. I’ve been able to keep the bad heartburn at bay too, so things are going well.

This pregnancy is similar to my first in some ways. Things have been relatively easy so far. I’m finding it interesting again this time around how you can feel as big as a house but not look that big. (At least, not big compared to later on.)

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17 weeks with #2
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17 weeks with #1

But it’s also different – mostly in that I am WAY more relaxed about everything. I think once you experience being pregnant and being a parent, you get a sense for what’s a big deal and what isn’t in terms of “what not to do” and all the preparations for a baby. (Sometimes I laugh at the completely impractical things people do in decorating the nursery – but I get it. You just get more practical the second time around.) That said, the countdown and process is still just as exciting!

I started nursery preparations this past weekend – I cleaned out the closet and built-in bookshelf. Next up is getting rid of the desk and moving the futon downstairs. Then it’ll be time to paint! I had wanted to do a mint green color on the walls but now I’m reconsidering. I have a teddy bear print from my room growing up that I’d like to hang but mint green wouldn’t go well. Now I’m thinking white, navy and coral (with maybe some gold accents). We’ll see. It’s hard planning a gender-neutral nursery!

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Emma Grace: 18 Months

28 Oct

Oh man, this post is SO overdue. But whatevs.

Emma is so fun these days! And I know every parent thinks this, but she is the cutest little kid in the world. I keep telling her that if her sibling is as cute as she is, we’re going to die from cuteness overload. I mean, seriously.

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At her 18-month appointment, Emma was 23 lbs 14 oz and 32 inches long with a head circumference still in the 90th percentile. So still growing well.

She still doesn’t have any consistently used words though, so we’re getting her ‘evaluated’ by a child psychologist and speech clinician. Our pediatrician recommended it, it’s free through the school district and they come to our house, so even though we’re not that concerned, we figured what the heck. Emma understands what we say to her – we can say “Where are Emma’s socks?” or “Where is Emma’s nose?” and she’ll go get socks, or point to her nose. But then we’ll say things like “Can Emma say dada?” or ask Emma to come, and she will act like she doesn’t have a clue what we’re asking. So we’ll see. She’s kept pace in all other areas of development though.

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At 18 months, Emma loves playing with:

  • Makeup and barrettes
  • Dishes (real and play)
  • Balls (she can kick!)
  • Dog leashes (never gets old)
  • Dirt
  • Paint/yogurt/food
  • Water

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Emma also enjoys:

  • Playing in the car (but she figured out how to open the doors!)
  • Pushing buttons on remotes, coffee makers, phones, etc.
  • Drawing in her notebook (we usually give her a pencil because she is dangerous with a pen – hello walls – and still eats crayons)
  • Playing outside
  • Doggies (we went to a school festival and she squealed in delight upon seeing their Husky mascot)
  • Chocolate (girl asks for it – by waving – all.the.time.)
  • Feeding herself with a spoon or fork
  • Drinking bottles of milk before naptime and bedtime (we’re not ready for the battle yet)
  • “Brushing” her teeth herself (I think she just likes the taste of the toothpaste)
  • Putting things in her mouth (just recently realized that if I want her to not do this when we’re not at home, I can’t let her do it here either… aye.)
  • Bathtime! (this is one of the things that Emma consistently understands – when we say “Let’s take a bath,” she goes to her bathroom.)
  • People watching and playing with other kids (she’s a very social kid!)
  • Figuring out how things work

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Emma does not like:

  • Being thrown into the air
  • Mommy leaving the room
  • Loud noises, like a pressure washer, vacuum, electric drill, etc.
  • Cartoons or books (she will not pay attention to them at all! Mommy likes cartoons though)
  • Shirts getting stuck on her head
  • Wearing shoes or socks (she takes them off in the car all the time!)
  • Things in her hair (she will not leave barrettes, headbands or rubber bands in at all)E

Emma’s favorite foods are:

  • Pickles
  • Fruit snacks
  • Mac & Cheese / noodles
  • Clementines
  • Grapes
  • Pineapple
  • M&M’s
  • Cheese
  • Graham crackers
  • Licorice
  • Yogurt
  • Applesauce
  • Trail mix (we don’t give her the big nuts)

She loves water during the day, but is very attached to her bottles of milk before naps and bedtime.

We installed Emma’s big girl carseat shortly after our San Francisco trip. It hasn’t made a huge difference in her enjoyment of the car (she was fairly content before) but it is easier to pass her toys and snacks now that she’s facing forward. And I like that it has a cup holder – Emma gets pretty cranky when she’s thirsty.

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Worth Repeating {10/27/14}

27 Oct

Now that I am finally emerging from the first-trimester exhaustion and can actually do something during Emma’s naps other than take a nap myself, I’m hoping to get back into blogging regularly! It’s been a while since I posted a Worth Repeating post, so to recap, this is a weekly series where I share quotes, sayings and verses that I enjoyed and found to be worth repeating.

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While up at elk camp, I re-read C.S. Lewis’ classic book The Screwtape Letters, and loved this description of how God wants his creatures (us) to embrace who He created us to be – and even, dare I say, like ourselves. Like David said in Psalm 139, “I am fearfully and wonderfully made.”

I think that sometimes Christians confuse the idea of hating our sin with hating ourselves. Yes, I am sinful. Yes, I have a long way to go in the process of sanctification. But God created me to be who I am, and I can only reach my true potential in life when I learn to embrace and accept all of Me, instead of wishing I were different. When I can embrace and rest in who God created me to be (sin aside), I can stop trying to prove myself. And when I stop trying to prove myself, humility and servant-heartedness become possible.

In case you’ve never heard of The Screwtape Letters, it’s a novel in which an uncle demon is writing letters to his nephew about how to win a man’s soul to their side (Satan’s).

“The Enemy [God] wants to bring the man to a state of mind in which he could design the best cathedral in the world, and know it to be the best, and rejoice in the fact, without being any more (or less) or otherwise glad at having done it than he would be if it had been done by another. The Enemy wants him, in the end, to be so free from any bias in his own favour that he can rejoice in his own talents as frankly and gratefully as in his neighbour’s talents—or in a sunrise, an elephant, or a waterfall. He wants each man, in the long run, to be able to recognise all creatures (even himself) as glorious and excellent things. He wants to kill their animal self-love as soon as possible; but it is His long-term policy, I fear, to restore to them a new kind of self-love—a charity and gratitude for all selves, including their own; when they have really learned to love their neighbours as themselves, they will be allowed to love themselves as their neighbours” (71-72).

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Elk Camp 2014

26 Oct

Life is finally returning to normal after the craziness that was September and the beginning of October. Travis and I are both so ready to be homebodies and not make any plans for a while! (Though as you know, weekends just have a way of getting filled up anyway.) It has been so nice to just chill at home this weekend though and get some stuff done around here.

Elk hunting in Colorado went well again this year, though it looked different than in past years since Travis and I no longer live there. Travis’ parents and nephew left on Wednesday afternoon and Travis had planned to meet them about an hour into the drive, but I had debilitating pregnancy heartburn that day so Travis stayed an extra couple of hours to help me get packed and drive me to Papa Murphy’s for dinner. He met up with them at the hotel that night. They arrived in Denver the next afternoon, went grocery shopping and loaded up Travis’ friend’s truck with gear. They headed up to camp on Friday morning – both to get the spot they wanted (they’re first come, first serve) and because it takes all day to set up camp, chop firewood, etc.

Meanwhile, I had driven down to Rochester to my parents’ house on Thursday after Emma’s 18-month well baby appointment. The drive is 3.5 hours, which is totally doable in one stretch – unless you are 14 weeks pregnant and have a toddler with you. I stopped a little over halfway in Minneapolis and spent a couple hours with a college friend, got coffee and browsed the kid’s section at Barnes & Noble, and then continued on my way. I arrived at my parents’ house around 7 pm. We hung out and ran errands on Friday, and then on Saturday, it was back up to the Cities for me to catch my flight to Denver. I cried as I hugged and kissed Emma goodbye, and I was a mess of emotions for the rest of that day, but after that, I was actually able to enjoy having a break. It helped that Emma did really well with my parents, and I was able to get updates from them every day, even up at camp.

My flight to Denver ended up being delayed a couple hours though (boo) so I didn’t get to Denver as early as I had hoped. My good friend Cathy drove me up the mountain to Silverthorne and my mother-in-law picked me up there. Cathy and I had planned to hang out up there for a couple hours, but she ended up just dropping me off and heading back. It was nice to chat with her anyway. We got up to camp around 7 pm and Beth got to work on dinner. Al was already back from hunting and had a fire going, and one by one, the other hunters (Travis, Drew, Matt and Aidan) trickled back in (shooting light was over by 7 pm each night). Each night followed a similar pattern – the hunters got back by 7:30, we ate dinner, hung around the campfire for a bit and called it a night around 8:30/9. But when you’re getting up at 5:30 in the morning, it doesn’t seem that early!

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20141012_125404 20141014_053956The next day (Sunday), it snowed 4-5 inches so Beth and I stayed hunkered down in the nice warm wall tent, except for a walk up and down the road during a brief respite. And we made a snowman.

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Meanwhile, Travis had shot a bull elk and they had to quarter it and pack it out in the snow. Not ideal, but he was pretty excited about it anyway.

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Monday, Beth and I headed to the tiny mountain town of Hot Sulphur Springs where there’s a resort that has about 20 pools filled with natural hot sulphur water that you can soak in. Since I’m pregnant, I made sure to not get too hot but I was still able to enjoy almost all of the pools (I sat halfway out of the hotter ones). It was nice and sunny, and the pools were outdoors, so it was very enjoyable. Afterward, we ate lunch in Granby, bought a few things from the grocery store and headed back to camp.

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Tuesday was a really nice day weather-wise – so much so that in the afternoon, we read our books outside in the sun and I even got a little sunburned. After lunch, while the guys took their usual after-lunch nap, Beth and I went on a short 2-mile hike on the South Fork Loop. The trail went along the river, so it was pretty flat – exactly what I was looking for because I haven’t been on a real hike in 2 years!

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Wednesday, it was time to pack up camp. None of the other guys in the hunting party saw or shot anything the rest of the week – but that’s pretty typical of elk hunting. We’re always happy to get at least 1 animal. We arrived back in Denver around 3 pm, took showers and headed out to dinner at Buffalo Wild Wings – our post-elk hunting tradition of the past 5 or so years. It was only 7 pm when we were done eating and we all just wanted to go to bed! But we forced ourselves to stay up until 9 pm.

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Thursday morning, my flight left at 10 am so Travis brought me to the airport right after breakfast. True to form, I had totally forgotten to check in to my Southwest flight 24 hours in advance (and not sure if I could’ve even, because we were still at camp) so I ended up checking in just 2.5 hours before the flight. Somehow though, I was assigned A16 for boarding – which, if you know that Southwest only assigns boarding order and has open seating, you would also probably know that A16 is the first boarding position after their version of first class. I have no idea how I got the first position for a completely full flight that close to takeoff, but it was totally awesome!

My parents and Emma picked me up at the airport, and her face was absolutely priceless. Her eyes were wide, her mouth gaping, like she was just in shock that I was back. She didn’t smile or cry or anything – just stared at me. We ate lunch at Q. Cumbers and then played at a park for a while so the dogs could get out of the car (my parents watched them that week too). We decided to have dinner with my brother and sister-in-law so we went to Nickelodeon Universe at the Mall of America for a couple hours. Emma played with the Legos for a while and then we took her on some of the tamer rides. I think she enjoyed them…? I tried taking a picture of her on the carousel with my dad (she rode a rooster) but they turned out super blurry. Bah.

For dinner, we went over to Chris and Meg’s and then walked to Lund’s, where we got food from their deli. I had a craving for sushi (of the cooked kind) so I got aPhiladelphia Roll. For grocery store sushi, it was decent and it satisfied my craving. I didn’t end up leaving Chris and Meg’s place until 8:45, which meant I got home around 11 pm. It was a doozy of a drive home, but we made it!

We’re still cleaning and putting stuff away from the trip (camping is so.much.work.) but we got all of our meat processed with Travis’ parents last Sunday. Between the new meat and what we had left from last year, our freezer is completely full of game meat. And deer hunting is still coming up! We’re set for the apocalypse.

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Pregnancy #2 Update: First Trimester

10 Oct

Sorry to announce my pregnancy and then fall into complete silence for almost 2 weeks! I hate to use the cliche “Life has been crazy” saying, but hey it’s true.

The culprits of this craziness are many (and some are our own doing):

1) Travis has been working 50+ hours each week and traveling more than usual (3 weeks in September alone).

2) We’ve been gone for part or all of almost every weekend this summer and fall.

3) We just moved into a new house prior to the craziness beginning.

4) Emma’s been sick for over a month with one virus after the other and a hacking cough that will.not.go.away.

5) I’ve had my share of pregnancy issues, which I will get to shortly.

Both Travis and I are living thisclose from a major meltdown. Did I mention we’re going elk hunting in Colorado this week?

Anyway, that’s why I haven’t been blogging. Can you blame me?

BUT after elk hunting, we have nothing on the calendar for 3 whole weekends, then deer hunting, and almost nothing after that. Which means hopefully we will be able to discover some normalcy and routine instead of running around from here to there like chickens with our heads cut off. Yes, routine would be very nice.

So, the first trimester. Travis and I discovered I was pregnant the first week or so of August (from the get-go, things have been quite a bit more laidback than my pregnancy with Emma – I didn’t record the date of the pregnancy test…). We were and are VERY excited, and if you’re curious, this pregnancy was planned. My due date is almost exactly 2 years after Emma was born, which was the timing we were hoping for (though not nearly that accurate!).

The week after I found out, I went to the doctor and they did all sorts of tests, asked all sorts of questions… except they didn’t check that I was actually indeed pregnant. I asked about it after getting my lab results and the nurse said that home pregnancy tests are so accurate these days, they don’t retest. Ummm… ok.

I didn’t have an ultrasound until I was 12 weeks (I’m 14 weeks now), so for those middle 6 weeks I felt like we were hoodwinking our immediate and extended family by telling them I was pregnant. I didn’t feel pregnant, didn’t look pregnant… was I pregnant? The only symptoms I had were that coffee wasn’t appealing and food was meh. Other than that, I felt pretty normal. Needless to say, we didn’t tell anyone beyond our family about the pregnancy.

Right after we got back from San Francisco trip though, I started feeling more pregnant. I picked up some kind of virus or food poisoning that kept me on the couch for a couple of days, and since then, I’ve felt slightly carsick all the time – meaning food in general has sounded disgusting. When I was pregnant with Emma, I had tons of cravings in the first trimester. This time, I haven’t really had any. But considering that’s been the worst symptom until a few days ago, I have been very blessed with an easy pregnancy again.

In the past few days, I’ve had ridiculously bad heartburn. My chest feels really tight and I can barely breathe. I had that happen about 5 years ago when I was nowhere near pregnant and went to the ER because I thought I was having a heart attack. Nope, just really bad acid reflux. Turns out carrying a 23-lb toddler is not enjoyable when you have stabbing chest pains – neither is sleeping in any kind of reclined position. Hopefully Zantac and papaya enzymes can keep it at bay from now on.

Similar to my first pregnancy, I haven’t been exercising as consistently or eating as healthy as I would ideally like to be. But limited energy, lots of travel and a general ‘meh’ attitude toward food make it tricky. Once we get back from elk hunting, though, I AM getting back on the workout bandwagon. I do NOT want to be as out of shape postpartum with this baby as I was with Emma.

As for gender, Travis and I have decided that we are going to wait until the birth to find out. The anal planner in me is freaked out by that choice, but it also feels like an adventure, which is fun. I keep thinking the baby is a boy, though, so if it’s another girl, it’ll probably throw me for a loop.

And here’s a bad picture of me at 14 weeks for your enjoyment (I feel giant already):

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{Seeing as I fly to Colorado tomorrow, Emma’s 18-month update will most likely be happening after I get back. So see you in another week!}

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Matching Outfits for a Special Occasion…

28 Sep

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More details coming soon!

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Fall Fun at the Farm on St. Mathias

22 Sep

Last Saturday, Travis, Emma and I went to a fall festival with my mother-in-law and Trav’s aunt. It was a fundraiser for the Early Childhood Coalition here in Brainerd. We had a lot of fun!

The first thing we did was go through the corn maze.

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There were 8 different scissors you were supposed to find and use to cut your ‘punch card’. If you got them all, you got a treat (which ended up being a sucker). I think we found almost all of them.

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One of the bridges had a slide – that was fun (yes, I went down.)

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After the maze, we checked out the llamas and alpacas, and then got some food. I had a piece of strawberry rhubarb pie that was pretty tasty.

Then we went on the ‘hayride’. I thought it took us out to the pumpkin patch but it just went in a circle back to where we started.

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By that time, Emma was getting pretty tired so we headed back home for lunch.

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{Unrelated side note: My laptop died so I will be blogging from my phone more often until I find a replacement. Please forgive any spelling or formatting errors!}

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Our San Francisco Trip {Brill’s Wedding Weekend}, Part Two

20 Sep

If you missed it, find Part One here…

Sunday of Labor Day weekend was the Big Day – Brian & Jill’s (Brill) wedding. We didn’t have to be to the Conservatory of Music (where the ceremony was being held) until 3 pm, so in the morning, Jeremy, Jen, Jensen, Travis, Emma and I walked down to Golden Gate Park to see what we could see on foot.

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It was a beautiful day, and the park was very pretty, but after the first 1.5 hours or so, the kids – and adults (namely me and Travis) – started having meltdowns. It was Emma’s naptime, and Travis and I still haven’t figured out how to not let Emma’s meltdown cause us to meltdown. Fortunately, Emma fell asleep on the walk back to the house, but poor Jensen was not happy to be in his stroller the whole way home. Unfortunately, while Jensen went to take a nap at the house, Emma woke up (after a much-too-short nap) and was wide awake. Of course. On the day we need her to take the best nap, she takes the worst. What are ya gonna do.

We got ready for the wedding and made it to the Conservatory. It seemed like all the kids were acting up and throwing tantrums. Aye. Emma seemed to be on the verge of a meltdown but shortly before the ceremony started, she got her second wind and actually did really well. We had her notebook and pencil, as well as some snacks, stashed out at our chair, and those kept her occupied for the whole 20 minutes of the ceremony. The other kids in the wedding were a little harder to tame, but overall, they all did well.

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Emma was totally shot after that, so Travis and I grabbed some cookies from the cookie reception, loaded Emma up in the car and drove around for 15 minutes before pictures. She was out cold in 30 seconds flat, and we just carried her in her carseat up to pictures, so she totally missed out on those. But you gotta do what you gotta do. Jensen wasn’t in any pictures either, because he wouldn’t sit still.

After pictures, we piled in the minivans and drove over to the bowling alley where the reception was being held. It was a fun atmosphere! Dinner was burgers and fries. There was dancing and bowling.

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Thanks to my uncle Noel for the great wedding shots!

Travis and I played almost a whole game before feeling like we had to take Emma home – it was 10 pm at that point. The reception went until 11:30, so we didn’t miss a ton, but I was still sad that we had to leave early. Duty calls.

The next morning, Brian and Jill hosted a brunch at their place. It was fun to see where they lived! It’s a small apartment/townhouse but has this fantastic courtyard area outside their door (actually in back, in between several houses) so it feels tropical and cozy – so unlike a traditional apartment. Jill’s dad made awesome Norwegian pancakes, and we had turkey bacon, chicken sausage, fruit, doughnuts and mimosas. Since we were out of the city (they live in Oakland), it was HOT. It’s amazing the difference in temperature across the bay. (No pictures of this, unfortunately.)

We stayed there until naptime and then did some sightseeing. We drove down to Ghiradelli Square to try and ride the trolley, but once we saw the crazy long line, we reconsidered. We ended up eating lobster bisque at Scoma’s and then headed back to our car.

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We then drove past the Painted Ladies (very anti-climatic because one of them was having work done and had scaffolding covering the front), through Chinatown and over the Golden Gate Bridge. It was Labor Day that day, and holy tourists batman! They were everywhere. It was near impossible to drive but the views were beautiful. (And full disclosure, it was so cold at the first viewing point that I didn’t even get out of the car! Travis took these photos.)

IMG_6003 (Large) IMG_6000 (Large) IMG_6001 (Large)After the bridge, we headed back to the house and ate dinner. Brian and Jill came over and hung out for a bit, which was nice.

The next morning, we all flew back home. Travis and I ended up getting a whole row to ourselves, which was awesome. Emma loved having her own space, and she even took an hour nap during the flight.

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My parents had been on the same flight, and they parked in the same off-site parking, so we got to our cars at the same time. Emma wasn’t in the best mood for a 2.5 hour car ride, so my parents hung out with us while we let her run around outside for a while (we tried to go to a park but it ended up being an indoor park!) and then ate dinner at Q. Cumbers, a salad bar buffet restaurant. A big salad hit the spot after a weekend of rich food and sweets. Then we hit the road and went home! Emma slept the whole way home, but once we got to our house, she was wide awake. So we let her stay up for about another hour, then put her to bed. It took her over a week to get readjusted to Central Time!

In hindsight, I wish we had gotten a babysitter for the wedding. We didn’t get one, even though we had recommendations, because we weren’t sure about having someone we didn’t know take care of Emma (the tricky thing about a wedding out of state). But I think that even if we had just had a sitter at the reception to watch her while we enjoyed the festivities, it would’ve enabled us to really enjoy being there. Just a thought, in case you have a wedding coming up and are wondering about what to do with your kiddos!

Congrats again to Brian and Jill!

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