Lazy Sunday

Had a wonderful weekend.  Sunday was another gorgeous day outside. I woke up early and took the kids for a walk across the street to the park and down the trail.  It was so nice to be outside on such a beautiful morning.  I got some cute pictures of the boys with there "coolest brother" tee shirts on.  They looked adorable.

Later Jason and I took the kids for a walk together to the park.  We had chicken on the grill for dinner.  Perfect day to grill out.  It was a great Sunday to just spend the day together doing nothing. 

 

Beer, Wine and Cheese!

Today was another beautiful day.  Not a cloud in the sky, sunny and 70 degrees.  I went to the beer, wine and cheese festival.  It was a sold out event and it was packed.  There was so many people waiting in line to sample beer and wine....it was really fun.   

After the festival we went to an Irish Bar, "Dublin Square" for dinner.  The food was AMAZING. I ordered the Irish stew which was awesome.  I also tried my very first muscle.  It was actually very good.

 

Finally a 70 degree day!!  I have never been so thankful to get outside!  I took a walk on my lunch break today and took the kids to the park after work to relish the beautiful day.  It is supposed to be nice all weekend.  Thank you God for some good weather finally.  I am heading to a wine, beer and cheese festival with one of my fiends tomorrow and I am glad it is going to be nice out.

AB-I-TOOT!

Had a good weekend.  It was still cold on Saturday but  the sun was out all day and it made it feel warmer.  Took Austin to the park and down the slide for the first time.  He really loved the slide.  I put him in the swing too but he didn't seem to like that as much. 

Jason took Riley to play basketball.  He is learning some new moves from his dad.  He is a pretty good dribbler and can make a lot of underhand shots.

 

 

Austin wanted to play too!

Dad brought us home some hot fudge sundaes.

We were a little silly.

We took a nap.

 



Tonight Riley was singing "AB-I-TOOT" and I couldn't figure out what the heck he was singing.  He kept saying "You know that part where the song says AB-I-TOOT" and then hummed the rest of the song.  Finally we discovered he was singing the Jason Aldean song "1994"  that I listen to in the car all the time.  It goes "Gonna bust out my honkey tonk ATTITUDE..."  Ha!   Now when I listen to it in the car I can hear him back there singing with a smile "AB-I-TOOT", too cute!!!

 

 

 

Matthew 5:4 Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.

It is 11 o'clock at night an I am just sitting here on my computer reading stories about some of the survivors from the Boston Marathon bombing.  I sit here crying, trembling and amazed at these beautiful amazing people that survived this horrific tragedy and can't imagine what they are going through.  I think about my life.  My husband and I go on little road trips with our kids all the time and never once do I think, "Is today the day someone is going to bomb us?"  That thought never crosses my mind.  I think about all the times I have gone out to eat with my parents and sat around laughing and enjoying our time together.  Never once do I think, "Is today the day someone is going to bomb us?" I think of my sister who lives in Milwaukee who I dearly love and cherish.  Never once do I think, "Is today the day someone is going to bomb her?"

All those innocent people enjoying a day with there kids, there girlfriend or boyfriend, there mom or dad, there co workers, there friends and family.  Not one them was thinking...."I wonder if today will be the day someone is going to bomb us?" 

Every day is a wonderful gift that we get to share with each other.  I cherish all my friends and family and can't imagine having them ripped away from me in such a senseless and cowardly act.  The heartache is enough to make you feel physically ill.  One day you are just living your life like any other day and then BOOM life is shattered into a million pieces.  It may not have happened in my back yard but I still feel pain and shock over such evil.  The scary thing is it can happen anywhere at anytime.  Life as I know it can be shattered into a million pieces right before my eyes.  That could have been my child who died or my family member who lost a leg.  As children of God we all stand together.  It is amazing to see the outpouring of people willing to help or give of themselves to help others who have suffered such loss.  When tragedies like this happen it is easy to allow yourself to live in fear of the evil that seems to be taking over this world.  Yet when I see all the wonderful people willing to risk there lives or give of themselves to help others it restores my trust in God and the spirit of God that is in each of us. It reminds me that one day that powerful God given spirit will CRUSH the head of evil and put it under our feet forever!  Our time here on Earth may seem long but it can't compare to the eternal bliss of Heaven.  Some people on Earth have suffered so much pain and I believe there is a special place in heaven for those who have suffered.  One day there will be no more tears.  One day we will all be together as one and we will all be reunited with our loved ones.  Oh what a happy day that will be!  Thank you Jesus for the hope of eternity in Heaven with you and all our loved ones.  Without it life would not be worth living.

The Beatitudes
3Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 4Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted. 5Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth. 6Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled. 7Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy. 8Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God. 9Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God. 10Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 11Blessed are you, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. 12Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.      

New things

Austin has been doing so many cute things lately that I felt the need to post them.  His hair is starting to get curls just like Riley's did at this age.  I am sure people will begin to think he is a girl as his hair has gotten quite long now but I am not ready for his first haircut just yet!  He is a great walker but now he not only walks but runs all over the place.  One of his favorite places to run to is Riley's bedroom.  He usually will go straight for his bed to lay down.  He loves Riley's Lightning McQueen bed which is good as soon it will be HIS Lightning McQueen bed.  If there are shoes on the floor you can count on him finding them and carrying them all over the house.  What is it with baby's and shoes?  Who needs toys when you got shoes?  He loves playing all sorts of cute games.  Riley likes to throw the blanket over him and play peek a boo.  Austin just cracks up laughing.  Riley would probably play the peek a boo blanket game forever if Austin didn't finally get sick of being covered in a blanket everywhere he goes.  He also loves balls now.  He loves kicking and throwing them around and pushing them back and forth on the floor with Riley.   He knows how to give high fives and he will give you a kiss if you ask him too.  He still loves to sing and dance and likes any show that has music in it.  He loves to take out all the toys and then put them all away again.  He doesn't like it when Riley takes his toys away from him and he has a firm grip that even Riley can't break sometimes.  Every day he gets more loveable and fun.

Riley has some new tricks these days too.  He says the funniest things all the time.  The other day I was holding him pretending he was a little baby and he says to me "Mom, I am not a baby!"  I say "Aw my cute little baby!"  He gets up and runs across the room and starts doing jump moves and dancing tricks and says "See mom I am not a baby, if I were a baby I wouldn't be able to do these tricks."  He sure proved me wrong there!  Another thing he has been trying very hard to learn is how to do a summersault.  He asked me to do one and so I did.  I felt sore and dizzy for a while after doing it.  I guess summersaults are not so easy anymore.  Today I heard him talking to Jason in the other room.  He saw our wedding picture and said "Dad, You and mom got married?"  Jason: "Yes."  Riley "At the church?"  Jason:  "Yes we got married at a church."  Riley says "Well I have been to the church and played there 5 times in the playroom so I must have got married at the church too."  Ha!  Too funny.

Riley is very excited to get outside and play catch with his new baseball glove.   He loves that thing.  Austin tries to copy him and play catch too.  I have been trying to read more books to Austin as he seems more interested in them now.  Riley has the entire book "Cat in the Hat" pretty much memorized.  If I skip a page or say a word wrong he is correcting me right away, no cheating and skipping a few pages anymore.  He has gotten 100% better at going to bed at night.  I put him to bed at the same time every night(830) and we always brush teeth, go potty, wash hands, read a book and then he gets a kiss, squeeze and hug goodnight.  The bedtime battles have not been bad lately.  (Knock on wood).  Austin always goes to bed at 8pm and always sleeps through the night.

With all the tragedy in the world these days I am sure counting my blessings!  Life is so precious and every day you are alive it is a blessing.

        

Eyes

 



TGIF

Today was a great Friday despite the weather.  I had the day off and woke up to a winter wonderland but it melted fast.  Nothing like an April snowstorm to get you thinking about Spring! Ha!  Riley looked out the window and was very excited to see the snow.  I said to him "Aren't you sick of the snow?  Don't you want it to get warm outside?"  He replied "Some days I want it to be warm outside and other days I want it to snow." Honest enough. 

Didn't really do much today.  Took the kids to the car dealership.  How exciting!  Actually it was exciting for them.  They have a little play room(thank God) with a whole bunch of toys for your kids while you wait for your car to be serviced.  I had a head light out that needed to be replaced and got my oil changed.  It took 2 hours and 15 minutes to complete the job.  Seemed like a long time but I wasn't in the complaining mood today so I just smiled and said "thank-you".  My kids were well behaved so that helped. It is crazy how fast 3 months goes by.  Time can be measured by oil changes.

Austin seems to have contracted a cold.  YUCK!  My kids seem to always have snot oozing from there noses and it is so much worse on your baby as they cannot blow there nose.  I always feel guilty in public, like everyone is glaring at me thinking get your snot nosed kid out of here!  Unfortunately if I stayed home every time one of my kids had a cold I would never get anything done and would probably never leave the house.  Whatever, germs are good for you sometimes. Without germs you would never build up any type of immunity. 

You never know what life is going to throw your way.  Some people seem to have it all and others struggle day after day.  No matter what someone always has it better than you and someone always has it worse than you.  Life is not easy for any of us but some people seem to get it all and more.  The real things in life that matter are not things anyway.  Money is nice but it doesn't last.  Ask anyone who has serious health problems and they will give you all there money to be healthy again.  Faith, hope and love are the best gifts in this life and when the end comes those are the things that I want to have.  Here is a great bible verse I came upon today.

  I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do everything through him who gives me strength.

—Philippians 4:12-13

 

And now for some pictures...

 

 

 

 

 

 

Molehills and Mountains

Sometimes it is better to just take a moment in the midst of the rain, hold your umbrella up and stay calm until the storm passes.  Life is full of tests and trials.  Most of our tests are very small and yet most of the time I stress over the small ones.  Like the saying goes don't sweat the small stuff.  I tend to make mountains out of molehills.  It seems some people can just kick back and smile in the face of molehills.  Not me I feel the need to beat molehills to death and then faint from exhaustion.  Life is  a series of molehills with an occasional mountain to climb.  Hopefully one day I will figure out how to ignore the molehills and move on to the mountain.  There is still hope for me yet!  By the GRACE OF GOD!  Ha!     

Today we had another road trip family day.  Drove to Rochester.  We got Riley his first baseball glove.  It was amazing they actually had a left handed one.  Austin took his first wagon ride today too.

Cute Qoute of the Day

"Mom, your the fairest one of all."

-Riley

"True Moo, the chocolaty taste kids love."

Today was the warmest day we have had for a while.  Too bad I didn't really get to see any of it as I worked all day but I am glad to see Spring is on it's way slowly but surely.  Riley can't stop talking about all the things he is going to do when it gets warm outside.  Swimming, biking, basketball, sandbox, scooter, fishing and on and on.  We have long conversations about what we are going to do outside if it ever gets warm again. 

I can't believe next month Riley is going to be 4.  Four years sure flew by fast.  He is such a funny and loveable little kid.  He has been really into reading "The Cat in the Hat" book lately.  That book has trumped Lightning McQueen for the past couple weeks which is quite the accomplishment.  Riley's "Cute quote of the Day" today was when he asked me to get him some chocolate milk.  As I am pouring him some he says "True Moo, the chocolaty taste kids love."  Ha!  I have heard that commercial on T.V. too but it sounds funny coming out of his mouth.  Our chocolate milk is not True Moo either.

Austin is growing fast.  He is eating new things everyday.  I use a cookie cutter to mash up a lot of his food which works amazingly.  So much easier than using a knife or a fork and you don't have to blend anything.  He can eat bigger chunks of food now but I always feel safer cutting his food up in smaller pieces.  He pretty much eats anything. He loves all types of pasta: macaroni, spaghetti and lasagna.  He loves rice, chicken, hamburger meat, mashed potatoes and soup.  I have yet to feed him something that he wouldn't eat.  Even green baby food he gobbles right down.  Yuck.  He is a great eater.  I am still breastfeeding him too.  I have cut back on the amount of bottles he gets now though.  Now that he is a year old I could stop breastfeeding but it is so hard to give it up.  Although I hate being constantly attached to a black bag at work (breast pump) there is something so special about breastfeeding your child.  I read a few things off of a website called Mothering from the Heart that I thought were so true.  "There is no other single action by which a mother can so impact the present and future health of her baby.  Breastfeeding promotes a very special bond between mother and child that only a mother can provide.  The strong bond developed with nursing is much more intense. There is no feeling to describe the child suckling at your breast and letting go to give you a big smile; and knowing that the  growth of your baby came from what your body produced! Wow! What a feeling!"  Not only does breastfeeding give you a special bond with your baby but it has so many health benefits for you and your baby.

Breastfeeding Facts
Health Benefits to Babies Who Breastfeed

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• Children receive the most complete and optimal mix of nutrients & antibodies
• The varying composition of breast milk keeps pace with the infant's individual growth and changing nutritional needs
• Have fewer incidences of vomiting and diarrhea in the US (20-35 million episodes of diarrhea occur in children under the age of 5, resulting in over 200,000 hospitalizations and 400-500 deaths in the U.S.)
• Protection against gastroenteritis, necrotizing enter colitis
• Reduced risk of chronic constipation, colic, and other stomach upsets
• Reduced risk of childhood diabetes
• Protection against ear infections, respiratory illnesses, pneumonia, bronchitis, kidney infections, septicemia (blood poisoning),
• Protection against allergies,   asthma, eczema, and severity of allergic disease
• Reduced risk of SIDS (sudden infant death syndrome) Statistics reveal that for every 87 deaths from SIDS, only 3 are breastfed.
• Protection against meningitis, botulism, childhood lymphoma, Crohn's disease and ulcerative entercolits
• Decreased risk of tooth decay (cavities)
• Nursing promotes facial structure development, enhanced speech,  straighter teeth and enhances vision.
• Breastfed infants develop higher IQ's, and have improved brain and nervous system development; IQ advantage of 10-12 points studied at ages 8, 12, and 18.  (Breastfeeding is considered the 4th trimester in brain growth and development...there are specific proteins in human milk that promote brain development))
• Reduced risk of heart disease later in life
• Increased bone density
• Breastfeeding plays an important role in the emotional and spiritual  development of babies
• Breastfed babies enjoy a special warm bonding and emotional relationship with their mothers    
• Antibody response to vaccines are higher
• Are hospitalized 10 times less than formula fed infants in the first year of life
• The colostrum (first milk) coats the GI tract, preventing harmful bacteria and allergy -triggering protein molecules from crossing into baby's blood
• Decreased risk for vitamin E and Iron deficiency anemia
• Decreased risk for acute appendicitis, rheumatoid arthritis, inguinal hernia, pyloric stenosis
• There are factors in human milk that destroy E coli, salmonella, shigella, streptococcus, pneumococcus....and many others
• Less risk of childhood obesity

Health Benefits to Moms Who Breastfeed

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• Reduced risk of breast, ovarian, cervical, and endometrial cancers
• Reduced risk of anemia
• Protection against osteoporosis and hip fracture later in life
• Reduced risk of mortality for women with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) has been associated with total time of lactation
• Helps the mother's body return to its pre-pregnancy state faster - promotes weight loss...1/2 of calories needed to manufacture milk is pulled from fat stores... can burn from 500 - 1,500 calories per day.
• Helps delay return of fertility and to space subsequent pregnancies
• Develops a special emotional relationship and bonding with her child
• Breastmilk is free- reducing or eliminating the cost of formula (in the thousands of dollars/per year)
• Breastfed babies are sick less thus reducing healthcare costs to family in Doctor office visits, prescriptions, over the counter medicine purchases, and hospitalizations
• Moms miss less time off from work due to child related illnesses
• Helps the uterus contract after birth to control postpartum bleeding

It is amazing to me how God designed mother's bodies to provide nourishment to our children.  What an amazing privilege.  I am having a hard time giving up breast feeding at this point but although some people may look at me like I am crazy I know the benefits for me and my baby don't stop once he turns 1 year old.  This is probably my last child and last time I will have the special bond breastfeeding brings.  Also it is the only time you can ever lose weight without dieting or exercise.  What women wants to give that up.  Ha!

Here are some pictures from my day.



This is what Austin does when we tell him to go "night night".

Goodnight.



This is Riley wanting to be pat of the "night night" game too.

This is Austin's famous pose.  He is always pointing at something.

 

This is Austin dancing and Riley playing with Dad's GI Joe toy.

  
     

Chickens and kittens at the barn

Today my mom and I drove to the Craft Barn in Galesville.  They sell homemade crafts out of a barn and it is fun just to browse around there.  They have chickens, cows and farm cats too which is fun for the kids.  Riley loves to play with the cats and they are so friendly.  Today was a lucky day though because one of the cats just had kittens 3 weeks ago and we were able to see them.  They were so adorable that it almost made me want to take one home.  They are cute but I would NEVER EVER get another one.  I am allergic to them and besides we already have one that makes me sneeze enough at home!  It was love at first sight for Riley.  He made friends with the little black one that kept trying to escape from the box.  Riley was talking to him and the kitten would mew back at him like it was answering him.  Riley said "Mom the kitten is going to miss me.  He doesn't want me to leave."  Austin liked the kittens too but lost interest after a while as there were many other things to get his hands on.  Then we went out and visited the chickens and cows.  The cows were a little scary looking.  They looked like they might nibble at your hair if you got too close so we admired them at a distance.

I forget to write down the funny things that Riley says so here is one.  The other day he came out with 2 of his Lightning McQueen cars and said.  "Mom, I have a problem.  I don't know which McQueen is Gabe McQueen and which one is my McQueen."  (Gabe McQueen is a car his friend Gabe gave to him.)  Jason said Gabe McQueen is the one with the chipped paint on it.  He comes running over to me and says..."Mom!  Mystery solved!"  Ha!  I am sure he hears this on T.V. shows but it is still funny.