Boo!

Happy Halloween from our house to yours!  We all decorated pumpkins this afternoon.  Colin got the only one big enough to carve, and the girls helped him design a face for it.  Natalie painted the one on the left at school Friday, and we colored the rest of them with markers today.

Our gorgeous pumpkins!

Had to get both angles so you can see my Pirate Pumpkin!

After dinner, the girls got dressed up in their mermaid costumes.  Colin's mom made them herself.  Katie had spotted the fabric they used for the skirt in a bin of "extras" one time and commented that it would make a nice mermaid tail.  I think Grandma really ran with it!  I certainly didn't expect so much beading...  or matching candy bags!

She even made little loops to hold up the tails!  How sensible.  :)

Back view to see the fins -- Natalie gives us quite the pose!

Grandma also came trick-or-treating around our neighborhood with us, Cherie, and Darth Vader...  I mean, Gavin.  We went a different direction than we had the past couple years, and Katie and Gavin got to go through their first haunted house, set up in someone's yard about 2 blocks behind us.  A lot of neighbors had decorations out, but that guy with the haunted house went ALL OUT!  It was wild!

We stayed out for a little over an hour and had a great time.  The girls (and Grandma) were worn out by the time we got back to our house.  We looked through the candy and each had a piece before bed.  Yum! 

Colin had stayed home to hand out candy.  We bought way too much, so consider my co-workers lucky as I will be taking a lot of it to the office tomorrow.  :)

Hope you had a GREAT day!!!

Friday Festivities

As you all know, Halloween is coming up this weekend!  Are you ready???  I am still holding my breath, waiting for my mother-in-law to finish the mermaid costumes for the girls for trick-or-treating!


Luckily we have a stockpile of other fun items that you can wear on a day like today when everyone has a party! 


Natalie's class is having a Halloween party today, complete with snacks, pumpkin painting, and t-shirt painting.  Since she really couldn't decide between being a mermaid or a pumpkin for Halloween, she wore her other choice to daycare today.

I can't believe it still fits so well!  It was huge on her when she first wore it 2 years ago.  :)


Katie's school had a Storybook Character Parade first thing this morning.  Students and teachers alike dressed up as characters from their favorite book and brought along that book to share with their class.  They paraded through the entire school so that parents could watch and take pictures, ending at the atrium.  I'm so glad I went to watch Tinkerbell, I mean, Katie, with all her friends.

I didn't know Strawberry Shortcake (Maya) was so popular again!

It was a good idea, and throws in promoting literacy along with dressing up.  Gotta love it!

Katie's class is having a cookie-decorating party after lunch, and then her afterschool group is having a party today, too.  I bet both girls are going to be full of treats by the time they get home.  And that's only the beginning, considering we have a whole weekend of this to look forward to.

Happy Halloween!!!

Katie's First Sleepover Party

On Saturday, Katie was invited to her first-ever sleepover birthday party at Bailey's house.  She was SOOOO excited!  As parents, we were a bit nervous...  She's 5!  What if she needs us?!  What if something happens?!  What if, what if, what if...  But we have known Bailey and her family for a while through preschool (and now after-school program) and church and the same group of friends, so we trusted that their family would take good care of our special girl.

I pulled up to their house and could hear the shrieking of 5- and 6-yr-old girls before we even reached the door.  Yikes!  They were already having a LOT of fun in there.  Katie couldn't wait to join them!  We exchanged information with Bailey's mom, Beth, then Katie gave me one of those "Why are you still here?" kind of looks, and I knew it was time for me to go.

We all missed her.  Natalie missed causing trouble with her big sister at dinnertime and bathtime.  Colin and I missed hugging our big girl at bedtime.  We slept with all the phones on the nightstand, just in case...

Katie was just fine.  :)

No phone calls, no late-night drives over to Bailey's house to get her.  Katie had a grand time at her first sleepover party.  Beth and Scott took the 11 girls out to see a neighbor's Halloween decorations, and kept them busy with snacks, crafts, fashion shows, and dance contests.  They said the girls all crashed around 11, with only one of them requesting to have her mom pick her up before then.  They told me that Katie was very good, and was perhaps the most well-organized of the bunch when it came to keeping her things together and packing up her backpack in the morning.  I was so glad to hear that!

Katie took a good nap on Sunday and also went to bed early last night.  But when she was awake, all we heard were stories from the party...  Bailey did this, Lily did that, etc, etc.  And finally, the question:

"So...  When can I have a sleepover party at OUR house???"

Yikes!  I don't know if we're ready for that!!!

Day Off with Natalie

Because of where Natalie's incision is, Colin and I had some extra concern about keeping it clean and dry.  I mean, she's 3, and she runs around a lot.  We decided we wanted to keep her at home the rest of the week so that we could watch her and protect it a little bit before sending her back to daycare.  Colin stayed home with her Thursday, and I did today.

She is still doing fabulously.  But here is what is NOT fabulous:  changing a bandage on a 3-year-old!  The first time wasn't so bad, but then she got wise to what we're doing, and now she kicks and screams and fights it the whole way!  Ugh!  I let her sleep in this morning after I helped Colin and Katie get out the door.  After a lengthy bandage-changing-process, we were finally ready to go run!

Natalie TOTALLY rocked her Bondi Band!

Natalie helped me take this one of myself (sort of)

After we got back to the car from the trail

I somehow got the brilliant idea to take the jogging stroller over to the trailhead.  Only it doesn't fit in my trunk and I had to ride with it in the passenger seat of my car.  And it is heavy enough to set off the seat belt sensor, so my car beeped the whole way there, thinking there was some passenger who needed to buckle up!!!  But we made it there and back and went about 2.5 miles.  Natalie wanted out of the stroller and she "jogged" next to me for the last quarter mile or so.  It was great.  :)

After we got cleaned up, we went to the mall and stocked up on some things at Bath & Body Works.  We had lunch out, then Natalie came back here and tried to nap (but didn't).  Oh well.  She's been sleeping in a lot the past couple of days, so hopefully she won't crash too hard before bedtime!

We have a few other things planned for this afternoon.  Hopefully Natalie's healing continues to go well and she will be back to daycare like normal next week.

Thanks everyone for your thoughts and prayers for Miss Natalie!  It is a little scary to have your child go into surgery, even something so small, but we are doing very well.  :)

Natalie's procedure

Natalie had a small cyst removed from her knee yesterday, and everything went really well!

We were worried about the no food/drink beforehand, but she did fine.  We let Natalie sleep in until the last minute before we needed to leave for the hospital.  We got her up, slapped some clothes on her, and strapped her in the van.  She didn't even have time to think about breakfast!  She did ask for a drink a couple of times, but we reminded her that she couldn't until afterwards, and she was OK.

Things went very smoothly in the admission and pre-op area.  We were impressed at how everything was totally geared for her age group.  I'd never been to the Children's Hospital before, and it was definitely a great place to have a procedure done.  They kept Natalie busy and preoccupied all the way up until the time they wheeled her into the OR and pointed us to the waiting room.

Colin and I sat watching TV and reading magazines, chatting a bit, but mostly just relaxing.  It was barely half an hour before the doctor came in to tell us they were all done!  He said the cyst was benign, but they will still look at it under a microscope.  He told us that Natalie had 3 stitches and gave us a few instructions on care of her wound.  Then he told us that they'd send someone to fetch us for the recovery room in just a moment, and off he went!

Not 5 minutes after that, someone came to take us to the recovery area.  This was probably the worst part of the day -- Natalie was just waking up from the anesthesia and was confused and angry.  It took us a while to calm her down, but eventually she did, and she was thrilled that they let her eat not one, not two, but FOUR popsicles in recovery!  The nurses were happy that she was acting fairly normal and keeping everything down.  It was nice that the anesthesia didn't make her sick to her stomach like it does to some people.  After monitoring her for a while, we were cleared to go home!  We got Natalie dressed again, and the nurse gave us a bag of supplies to take home for changing her bandages.  We were home before lunch.

Natalie was still tired and took a good afternoon nap, then slept well last night.  We're just so proud of how relaxed she was at the hospital, and how well she's done with everything.  What a big girl!!!

We love you, Natalie!!!

Tough Week

My friend Elisa posted today about changes going on in their household, and they're all positive!  Is it bad to be envious?  We've had a rough few days around here...

My uncle passed away at the end of last week.  He had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in August and was not strong enough to undergo treatments.  While I am happy that he was able to move into the new house he and his wife had just bought, I'm sad he didn't get more time in it.  He's been on my mind a lot, as well as his grown kids, grandkids, and everyone else in my family.  My mom is very upset about losing her big brother too soon.

One of our longtime co-workers passed away this week as well.  He'd had some ongoing health issues, but apparently they were more serious than we at the office were aware.  Never married, no kids...  our prayers go out to his sister and her family, dealing with the shock of the situation.

Other organizational changes at work continue to turn things upside down.  And that's all I'll say about that at this time (in other words, don't get me started or I could write all day...)

Little Miss Natalie has to have a procedure next week to remove a cyst on her knee.  It's small and will be quick and routine, but you know us parents get nervous anytime someone says "general anesthesia" in relation to a 3-year-old.  I'll keep you posted on the outcome, and I'm sure she'll be her spunky self in no time.

I was feeling a little down last week at church, when Rev. Mac's sermon had the subtitle of "Finding Peace when You're Not OK".  I thought, "Geez, that sounds like me!  Not OK, and looking for peace!"  And I had no idea that the "not OK" feeling would continue through this week as well.  But the things he talked about, and the love from my family and friends, have all sustained me this week and will continue to do so. 

I know things will turn around.  I'm looking forward to a good weekend and getting things moving in a positive direction!

10/10/10 - 10K Virtual Race Report

I took part in a virtual 10K hosted by Jamie, Running Diva Mom.  Although in honor of the date 10/10/10, it could really be completed any time between October 1-15.


Since I'm not really up to 6 consecutive miles yet, coming off the stress fracture, I broke it up into 2 chunks:  4.2 miles on 10/10, and 2 miles on 10/11.  Here are the results:


Sunday, 10/10 - I started off from the house around 2:30pm, 85 outside and not a cloud in the sky.


Mile 1:  I went west from my house up to the elementary school.  Split:  10:02


Mile 2:  I turned north from the school and ran the road that bisects our golf course.  The sun really seemed to cook me!  Why did I remember it as shadier???  Split:  10:30


Mile 3:  Once at the north end of the golf course, I headed east and then curved south around the edge of the golf course.  Blessed shade!  Love those oak trees lining the street.  Obviously I am not clicking the split for miles 2 and 3 in the right place because I didn't speed up THAT much...  Split:  9:46


Mile 4:  Finished up that shady stretch and hit the main road going east back toward my house.  Still feeling pretty good!  This mile ends right in front of the Y.  Split:  10:20


The 0.2:  Busted it the last couple blocks to my house.  Split:  1:44


Monday, 10/11 - I left my car at a small park where I know wide sidewalks branch out from it in every direction.  After a rough day at work, I was glad to hit the road.  It was 5:20pm, low 80s, with a pleasant breeze.

Mile 5:  After starting slow due to some trouble with my watch, I really picked it up.  I headed north from the park in the gorgeous weather.  Split:  8:48

Mile 6:  I turned around at the north end and tried to maintain that pace back to the park and my car.  Tried so hard!  Split:  8:53

So, a 10K done, final time 1:00:03.  Woohoo!!!

And here's my unflattering photo at the finish.  :)

Thanks for hosting the race, Jamie.  It was fun!!!

Natalie Turns 3!

My baby girl turned 3 today.  I can't believe she is getting so big already!  We started off the morning with some gift-opening.

After breakfast and swimming lessons, it was time for a quick change before running off to our next soccer game.  Go Gators!!!

Natalie did a lot better during this game in terms of not getting so upset.  We are so proud of her!  Unfortunately, she needed a potty break around halftime and then sort of lost interest in the game after that.  Oh well, that's how it goes some days.  We'll see how game 3 next week works out.


After lunch and a good nap, we talked to my mom via webcam.  It was great to see her!  Natalie had also received a package in the mail from her cousins Bryce and Ian, so we opened it on camera so Grandma could watch her.


We had supper out at Moe's, Natalie's choice.  The weather was so beautiful when we got home that we decided to take a little walk around the block before bath.

Check out Natalie on the scooter she got from Colin's parents!  She was all business.  :)

We hope you had a great day, Natalie!  You are such a special girl:  sweet, spunky, mischievous, energetic, and so smart.  You are a blessing to our family!

Check Out Little E

For Trisomy 21 awareness, I invite you to check out my friend Anne's blog.  Anne is doing "31 for 21", 31 posts to honor and celebrate her daughter Eisley, who has Down syndrome.  Eisley is a beautiful and amazing little girl, and Anne's postings are informative, filled with practical "lessons learned" about Down syndrome, and most importantly, chock-full of gorgeous pictures!

Anne's family will also be participating in their local Buddy Walk this weekend.  I'm praying for awesome weather as they walk for Little E!  Can't wait to hear how it goes.  :)

Go Blue

After many seasons of watching Katie, Natalie is FINALLY ready for her first organized sport!  She had her first game of YMCA 3-4 year-old soccer on Saturday.  I didn't get if they have a team name, but she is on the blue team that plays for Coach Jeff.  Here he is, instructing everyone on some rules.

Miss Natalie, #3, is the tiny one on the left.

Natalie was pretty good about getting in on the action.  We were so proud of her! 

She even got to do a kickoff!

Natalie also had a hard time accepting when the other team got the ball away from her.  She was in tears more than once, but Coach Jeff was very sweet about patting her on the back, walking her off to the side, and letting Colin or I hug her and get her back into the game.  She was still mad about it at lunch, that other people dared to take the ball away, but we just reminded her that all she has to do is take it right back from them!  Hopefully she remembers and does not get so upset next week. 

We have 7 more games, so should be fun!!!

Natalie's Par-tay

In honor of Natalie's 3rd birthday coming up this week, we hosted her birthday party on Saturday.  We had a gymnastics/bounce house party at the Y.  We've done that party twice before for Katie, so we were ready to have some fun!!!

Mr. Adam helps Jasmin, Natalie, and Jack

Go Katie!

Natalie's ready for the balance beam

Jasmin and Natalie in the pit!

Happy Birthday, Natalie!!!

Natalie had 6 friends join her for a running, jumping, bouncing, swinging, hiding, balancing good time!  We had a blast playing in the gymnastics room, then went on to pizza and cake in the game room.

Here's the Dora cupcake tower!

Deeee-licious!

Way to go, Birthday Girl!

After everyone had eaten their fill, Natalie opened her gifts.  This puppy was one of her favorites!

Puppy from Jack

Thanks to the Y, Mr. Adam, and Mr. John for hosting such a fun party!  We're so glad our friends Gavin, Ethan, Jasmin, Charlie, Jack, and Georgia could attend.  :)



(PS, is it just me, or is the new photo feature on Blogger being uncooperative?  Let me know if you're having trouble as well...)

Week in Review

Friday already!  Seems like it's been a busy week around here, with meetings at work, and life in general.  Things that have been going on:

• I completed my OSHA 8-hour safety refresher for this year.  Whew!  Good to have that done.
• We attended our first kindergarten parent-teacher conference.  Colin and I were thrilled to hear about how well Katie is doing in school, and also thankful for some reading/writing suggestions from her teacher that we can easily do at home.
• We attended family night at our school's book fair yesterday.  The girls each got a book, and I bought one for some lucky recipient at Christmas.  Please, oh please let me draw my brother Tyson's name!  This book is made for him.
• I had church orchestra rehearsal last night where we continue to work on things not just for this week, but also for Christmas.  Already!
• I took the girls for flu vaccinations.  I am happy to report they both did the nasal mist, and with No Incidents!  (It is rare that we leave the pediatrician's office with no incidents, trust me!).  They earned the trip to Dunkin Donuts following the appointment.  :)

Things coming up this weekend:

• Switching to a new swimming lessons time on Saturday.
• Starting Natalie's soccer season on Saturday.
• Natalie's birthday party...  also on Saturday (I'm gonna pass out from exhaustion at the end of the day, for sure!).
• Preparing for Natalie's actual birthday this upcoming week.
• Cheering for Iowa vs. Penn State.
• Rooting on friends in 2 races:  Jamie from Running Diva Mom in the Milwaukee Lakefront Marathon, and Jen from PriorFatGirl, and Ingrid and her brother in the TC 10 Mile.  You've worked hard, and I can't wait to hear the results!!!

How about you -- what are YOUR big weekend plans???