Daddy, Mommy, Big Sis, Big Bro, and baby #3!
Saturday, July 31, 2010
NEW layout
I think this one will stick... although I may change up my header now and then... Love, love, LOVE using picnik.com. Seriously. Check them out. There are tons of cool things to do that are free - and you can buy a premium membership if you want. That sure is a cute family, huh? Amazing what you can find online... : ) heehee
Finishing Touches
I unpacked the last box that was to be unpacked. I made spots for MVJ's books and toys and babies. I organized the guest bathroom, our bathroom, our CLOSET. I enlisted JJ's help to hang our pictures and help me make some vinyl stickies for a few wall spots. We picked up a few frames and a desk and a laundry sorter (because, OH YEAH, we have our own washer and dryer!). In other words... we are MOVED IN. Woohoo! Love it!
I was putting back together a small shelving unit in our bedroom the other day. Everything was pretty much taken apart to fit in the moving van so we had a little job of reassembling all of our random furniture. JJ was playing a game on his ipod in the living room because that sort of thing is just not his sort of thing. I'll give him jobs and he helps, but he does not enjoy organizing stuff. I, on the other hand, find pure enjoyment from it, so why mess with a good thing? Anyways. I asked him if he wanted to come play it in our room so I could have some company while I organized. He came in and I realized that I didn't have any of those peg-thingies to hold up the shelves inside this little unit. I asked him if he had seen it. He, rather unhelpfully, answered, "No. That sure sounds like a mystery." and went right back to playing his game. Stinker. I ended up finding them in our kitchen of all places I think.
So check facebook in the near future for pics of the new place... I just posted some of our photosession back in GF. SO cute! : )
I was putting back together a small shelving unit in our bedroom the other day. Everything was pretty much taken apart to fit in the moving van so we had a little job of reassembling all of our random furniture. JJ was playing a game on his ipod in the living room because that sort of thing is just not his sort of thing. I'll give him jobs and he helps, but he does not enjoy organizing stuff. I, on the other hand, find pure enjoyment from it, so why mess with a good thing? Anyways. I asked him if he wanted to come play it in our room so I could have some company while I organized. He came in and I realized that I didn't have any of those peg-thingies to hold up the shelves inside this little unit. I asked him if he had seen it. He, rather unhelpfully, answered, "No. That sure sounds like a mystery." and went right back to playing his game. Stinker. I ended up finding them in our kitchen of all places I think.
So check facebook in the near future for pics of the new place... I just posted some of our photosession back in GF. SO cute! : )
Friday, July 30, 2010
A Taste of KC
We need some money coming in soon... because we are enjoying the local cuisines a little too much! : ) In our defense, we HAVE sought out deals and have not allowed ourselves to eat out more than once a day...... ; ) I have my interview Monday and am hoping and praying it is the job for me. JJ also starts school Monday and MVJ is trying out a daycare Monday so it will be a very busy day!!
Let me give you a rundown of the local fare we have sampled so far.
Bo Lings (with the Ls! Yay!): a delicious Chinese restaurant we ordered take out from Friday night. We ate at Jimmy Johns for supper but when we had all congregated to the living room (amongst all the boxes and furniture sitting willy nilly) we decided that at like 10:30 we were all still hungry. But... no internet... no phone book... no smart phones... what to do? We got out the "not so" trusty Gar-Gar, who gave us a rundown of the nearby restaurants. This turned out to be a major winner. And the bag was supercute too!
The next day TL ventured out into the big city and brought back some Einstein bagels. YUMMY! This has been maybe our favorite find. They're so fresh, delicious AND reasonably priced! Mmmm! Chocolate chip bagel anyone? How about some honey and oat shmear on a cracker? Delish!
Next JJ and I ventured out to Target to buy some necessary home items and came across a smoothie shop, where I bopped in to order one for each of us (and MVJ drank a bunch of each of ours!). I ordered the medium to be safe and it was HUGE. We have pics of MVJ carrying JJ's around and it is seriously bigger than her body! ; ) Yum-o Peach and Banana smoothies hit the spot for us.
Then we had to have some Noodles. I LOVE Noodles and Co. Delicious! Although JJ does chide me for ordering the same thing every time: Mac and Cheese! But it is SO good! And I can easily share with the M-ster. Hey! Last time I even added some broccoli. Ok, enough defense of my choice - I WILL continue to order the Mac and Cheese. every. single. time.
By then we were disgusted with ourselves for living in KC for like three whole days without a single taste of KC BBQ so we had to remedy that situation immediately. Our next culinary adventure was to Smokehouse Barbeque Restaurant. I am not a huge fan of BBQ, so I ordered a simple chicken sandwich. I should've planned on EVERYTHING being BBQ. Oh well... it really was good -- not too smokey I guess and sweet enough for me to enjoy. : )
Next JJ's choice was some pizza at Spin. We went in as a family and only ordered one small pepperoni pizza but all of us walked away feeling happy and full! Well, except MVJ, but it was past her naptime and beyond the point of reason.
Oh! Somewhere in there we tried this self-serve yogurt place. Yum-o, but it was the cause for great marital distress when JJ told me to just go in and get something for him and he'd wait in the van with MVJ. BAD idea. I turned up getting all the wrong things and being accused of not knowing him at all. Yikes! Note to self: JJ does NOT and has NEVER liked plain m&ms OR chocolate chips. In fact, he'd rather eat his white chocolate yogurt PLAIN. Dually noted.
Last, but certainly not least, we tried this Mexican food, by my choosing. Mmmm! We decided next time we are totally getting the 4-person take out special and eating it for a few days. But the salsa was delicious and the fixings tasted very fresh.
I totally blame JJ for our eating out extravagance. He *used to* watch Food Network and learn about all the best places to check out. Of course how could we LIVE with ourselves if we moved to an area with all these great food choices and NOT try them... all! : )
Let me give you a rundown of the local fare we have sampled so far.
Bo Lings (with the Ls! Yay!): a delicious Chinese restaurant we ordered take out from Friday night. We ate at Jimmy Johns for supper but when we had all congregated to the living room (amongst all the boxes and furniture sitting willy nilly) we decided that at like 10:30 we were all still hungry. But... no internet... no phone book... no smart phones... what to do? We got out the "not so" trusty Gar-Gar, who gave us a rundown of the nearby restaurants. This turned out to be a major winner. And the bag was supercute too!
The next day TL ventured out into the big city and brought back some Einstein bagels. YUMMY! This has been maybe our favorite find. They're so fresh, delicious AND reasonably priced! Mmmm! Chocolate chip bagel anyone? How about some honey and oat shmear on a cracker? Delish!
Next JJ and I ventured out to Target to buy some necessary home items and came across a smoothie shop, where I bopped in to order one for each of us (and MVJ drank a bunch of each of ours!). I ordered the medium to be safe and it was HUGE. We have pics of MVJ carrying JJ's around and it is seriously bigger than her body! ; ) Yum-o Peach and Banana smoothies hit the spot for us.
Then we had to have some Noodles. I LOVE Noodles and Co. Delicious! Although JJ does chide me for ordering the same thing every time: Mac and Cheese! But it is SO good! And I can easily share with the M-ster. Hey! Last time I even added some broccoli. Ok, enough defense of my choice - I WILL continue to order the Mac and Cheese. every. single. time.
By then we were disgusted with ourselves for living in KC for like three whole days without a single taste of KC BBQ so we had to remedy that situation immediately. Our next culinary adventure was to Smokehouse Barbeque Restaurant. I am not a huge fan of BBQ, so I ordered a simple chicken sandwich. I should've planned on EVERYTHING being BBQ. Oh well... it really was good -- not too smokey I guess and sweet enough for me to enjoy. : )
Next JJ's choice was some pizza at Spin. We went in as a family and only ordered one small pepperoni pizza but all of us walked away feeling happy and full! Well, except MVJ, but it was past her naptime and beyond the point of reason.
Oh! Somewhere in there we tried this self-serve yogurt place. Yum-o, but it was the cause for great marital distress when JJ told me to just go in and get something for him and he'd wait in the van with MVJ. BAD idea. I turned up getting all the wrong things and being accused of not knowing him at all. Yikes! Note to self: JJ does NOT and has NEVER liked plain m&ms OR chocolate chips. In fact, he'd rather eat his white chocolate yogurt PLAIN. Dually noted.
Last, but certainly not least, we tried this Mexican food, by my choosing. Mmmm! We decided next time we are totally getting the 4-person take out special and eating it for a few days. But the salsa was delicious and the fixings tasted very fresh.
I totally blame JJ for our eating out extravagance. He *used to* watch Food Network and learn about all the best places to check out. Of course how could we LIVE with ourselves if we moved to an area with all these great food choices and NOT try them... all! : )
Thursday, July 29, 2010
The BIG move...
So we moved from ND to KS... not just a slight little undertaking. And one that would NOT have happened without the help of our fabulous friends.
We got all loaded in our Uhaul and cleaned out of our apartment AND it happened quicker than we thought it was. Don't you love pleasant surprises like that?? I called the Housing Office to see if by chance we could check out early when I noticed that we would definitely not need until 5pm. I called a few times because the person I was supposed to talk to was never at her desk. I think I left one message and then called back maybe three times. I know, I know... when I have an idea in my head I just have to get a straight answer one way or another!! So finally I called and asked if I could talk to someone else. Sure! she said. Hmmm... maybe I should've asked that on call #2... The lady said that she had gotten my first message... and had already left a message for the Resident Manager person on duty, but had not officially spoken with him. When I left the message I thought we could maybe check out at 4, but we officially finished at about 2:30! Crazy!
We decided we should pick up MVJ from our friend AO's house where she was chilling so LL and I hopped in the O's car (switched so she could have the van with M). We picked her up and it started to downpour. It was just amazing because it started raining right after we got all of our stuff loaded. God is so good! With a few hugs we were on our way back to the L's house -- where else would we go? There was NOTHING at our place to entertain MVJ (and we know how that can go). About 15 mins. before 4 I decided to double check that the RM was indeed available to check us out early. The lady was like, "Oh! I thought you were already all checked out. He came by at like 2:45 and was going to head right over to your place." Boo!! We must've just missed him while we were picking up MVJ. I was a little frustrated because a very quick phone call to me would've solved that whole problem. Sooo now we had to wait for our original check out time of 5pm.
It really was ok because we had decided we would be stopping in Watertown, SD (about 3 hours out of GF, making the drive that much shorter on Friday). MVJ and I headed to our apartment about 4:45 to wait for the checkout guy. While waiting we said goodbye to each room (MVJ waving and saying "buh-bye" at each stop!). She was soooo scared. It was so sad to me that I couldn't explain exactly what was going on, though I tried. She clung to me, with SUPERbig eyes and would not venture anywhere on her own. JJ hit the road around 4 because he knew he would have to drive slower with the Uhaul dollying our car. His guess proved to be true because with all the road construction in SD, trucks (including moving vans!) were required to take alternate routes. He basically weaved his way all over SD until he finally showed up in WT about a half hour before us (and we had a late checkout - after 5:15 when the guy showed up! plus supper). I drove in the van with MVJ and TL and LL drove their car (with some of our belongings!). MVJ finally fell asleep about a half hour out of GF and slept quite a bit of the way. I suspected she would sleep the whole way and was worried when she woke up, but she just happily sat with a toy and/or a book. I took some pics... much to JJ's horror, but it wasn't like I turned all the way around or looked to focus them or anything... : )
We checked into our hotel in Watertown and hung out for a little while while crazy MVJ bounced from one spot to another. She found out how to unlock the safe in the room and was interested in the buttons on it and the phone and the TV and the chair and LL and TL and Daddy and I and the list goes on! We made a plan to meet in the breakfast area at 6:30 - we HAD to make our check in time by 6 pm Friday or we would have to check in Saturday morning. NO THANKS. We also decided at that point to stick together. We were ok driving a little slower if it meant that we could switch drivers if needed as well as have lunch together.
We got on the road at about 7:30ish and everything just continued to go so smoothly. MVJ was up chattering, looking at books, having snacks and just being a very pleasant little girl. She only napped about a half hour which spelled doom to me, but seriously she did SO well. I can't even begin to describe what a relief that was!! As we approached Omaha, the Garmins (each vehicle had one for a total of 3) started showing heavy traffic ahead as well as traffic delays - our arrival time started getting progressively later and later and it made all of us a little nervous to say the least. We made a very quick fuel/lunch break at a gas station in a suburb of Omaha while we once again laid out our plans. We decided that TL and JJ would stick together and LL and I would cruise ahead in the van just to for sure make our Friday check in time.
LL got behind the wheel - such a blessing - and we were off! Little did we know that our Garmin would try to kill us. . . duh duh duuuuuh.
Garmin Epic Fail #1: There was some road construction getting into the actual city of Omaha and Garmin had us get off of I-29. We thought maybe it was trying to avoid construction and traffic delays. We got off and advised the boys to do the same. They decided to just stick it out on I-29 since their Gar-Gars (our nickname for our Garmin -- you know, like Tom-Tom...) told them to keep on a'truckin. We were tooling through cute little fields on backroad Nebraska - you know, corn fields and more corn fields. We could see I-29 running parallel to us the whole time... and it didn't appear to have too slow of traffic, but what could we do? And, I might add, LL was not driving back country speeds. We were clipping along until finally we reached the point where we were supposed to get back onto I-29. As we merged over, we got .... right in front of... a moving van! I called JJ who was just laughing on the other end. Yup... so much for our Speedy Gonzales moves - we were RIGHT back where we started.
I fell into a deep sleep about 2.7 seconds after we were safely cruising down I-29. MVJ also fell asleep and had a very good nap (close to 1.5 hrs. this time). We woke up in time to cheer as we drove into MISSOURI! Woohoo! We called TL and JJ and whooped it up. They appeared to be about a half hour or so behind us.
Garmin Epic Fail #2: We passed St. Josephs and realized that the very next big town would be KC! Woohoo! As we neared the city, Gar-Gar told us to get on a different road. We were leery this time and checked with TL to double check this move. He said that there was a route that by-passed downtown KC and would loop toward our suburb. We decided to follow Gar-Gar (and TL) on this one and headed to 435 (I think... something like that...). BUT Gar-Gar did end up with the big disappoint because then it wanted us to jump off 435 quickly and head into town. We followed directions like good girls and ended up driving through city streets for over 100 blocks. Yes, through stop lights and construction and people and traffic. It was NO GOOD. The boys couldn't believe we weren't all checked in when they called to say that they in fact were also headed into town. THEIR Gar-Gars took THEM on I-635 and I-69 like ours should've!
By the time we were checked in (and at this point, I'll be honest and a little embarrassed - I was not the most happy camper. When the check in lady said I need to have JJ sign something I kind of went off because we went to a notary in GF so that very thing would not have to happen. She tried to explain that that was on the lease agreement - this was on the application. Whatever. All I heard was JJ has to be here. She quickly explained that I could still have the keys and move in - she just needed him to head over whenever he got in. Ooookkkk...). So anyways... by the time we checked in, the boys were just about there and our friend SM was on his way to help us unload. Friends are SUCH a blessing. We would STILL be unloading I'm sure if it wasn't for the Ls and SM. But, as it is, we are almost done unpacking. Woot! Woot!
More on our adventures in KC next time!
We got all loaded in our Uhaul and cleaned out of our apartment AND it happened quicker than we thought it was. Don't you love pleasant surprises like that?? I called the Housing Office to see if by chance we could check out early when I noticed that we would definitely not need until 5pm. I called a few times because the person I was supposed to talk to was never at her desk. I think I left one message and then called back maybe three times. I know, I know... when I have an idea in my head I just have to get a straight answer one way or another!! So finally I called and asked if I could talk to someone else. Sure! she said. Hmmm... maybe I should've asked that on call #2... The lady said that she had gotten my first message... and had already left a message for the Resident Manager person on duty, but had not officially spoken with him. When I left the message I thought we could maybe check out at 4, but we officially finished at about 2:30! Crazy!
We decided we should pick up MVJ from our friend AO's house where she was chilling so LL and I hopped in the O's car (switched so she could have the van with M). We picked her up and it started to downpour. It was just amazing because it started raining right after we got all of our stuff loaded. God is so good! With a few hugs we were on our way back to the L's house -- where else would we go? There was NOTHING at our place to entertain MVJ (and we know how that can go). About 15 mins. before 4 I decided to double check that the RM was indeed available to check us out early. The lady was like, "Oh! I thought you were already all checked out. He came by at like 2:45 and was going to head right over to your place." Boo!! We must've just missed him while we were picking up MVJ. I was a little frustrated because a very quick phone call to me would've solved that whole problem. Sooo now we had to wait for our original check out time of 5pm.
It really was ok because we had decided we would be stopping in Watertown, SD (about 3 hours out of GF, making the drive that much shorter on Friday). MVJ and I headed to our apartment about 4:45 to wait for the checkout guy. While waiting we said goodbye to each room (MVJ waving and saying "buh-bye" at each stop!). She was soooo scared. It was so sad to me that I couldn't explain exactly what was going on, though I tried. She clung to me, with SUPERbig eyes and would not venture anywhere on her own. JJ hit the road around 4 because he knew he would have to drive slower with the Uhaul dollying our car. His guess proved to be true because with all the road construction in SD, trucks (including moving vans!) were required to take alternate routes. He basically weaved his way all over SD until he finally showed up in WT about a half hour before us (and we had a late checkout - after 5:15 when the guy showed up! plus supper). I drove in the van with MVJ and TL and LL drove their car (with some of our belongings!). MVJ finally fell asleep about a half hour out of GF and slept quite a bit of the way. I suspected she would sleep the whole way and was worried when she woke up, but she just happily sat with a toy and/or a book. I took some pics... much to JJ's horror, but it wasn't like I turned all the way around or looked to focus them or anything... : )
We checked into our hotel in Watertown and hung out for a little while while crazy MVJ bounced from one spot to another. She found out how to unlock the safe in the room and was interested in the buttons on it and the phone and the TV and the chair and LL and TL and Daddy and I and the list goes on! We made a plan to meet in the breakfast area at 6:30 - we HAD to make our check in time by 6 pm Friday or we would have to check in Saturday morning. NO THANKS. We also decided at that point to stick together. We were ok driving a little slower if it meant that we could switch drivers if needed as well as have lunch together.
We got on the road at about 7:30ish and everything just continued to go so smoothly. MVJ was up chattering, looking at books, having snacks and just being a very pleasant little girl. She only napped about a half hour which spelled doom to me, but seriously she did SO well. I can't even begin to describe what a relief that was!! As we approached Omaha, the Garmins (each vehicle had one for a total of 3) started showing heavy traffic ahead as well as traffic delays - our arrival time started getting progressively later and later and it made all of us a little nervous to say the least. We made a very quick fuel/lunch break at a gas station in a suburb of Omaha while we once again laid out our plans. We decided that TL and JJ would stick together and LL and I would cruise ahead in the van just to for sure make our Friday check in time.
LL got behind the wheel - such a blessing - and we were off! Little did we know that our Garmin would try to kill us. . . duh duh duuuuuh.
Garmin Epic Fail #1: There was some road construction getting into the actual city of Omaha and Garmin had us get off of I-29. We thought maybe it was trying to avoid construction and traffic delays. We got off and advised the boys to do the same. They decided to just stick it out on I-29 since their Gar-Gars (our nickname for our Garmin -- you know, like Tom-Tom...) told them to keep on a'truckin. We were tooling through cute little fields on backroad Nebraska - you know, corn fields and more corn fields. We could see I-29 running parallel to us the whole time... and it didn't appear to have too slow of traffic, but what could we do? And, I might add, LL was not driving back country speeds. We were clipping along until finally we reached the point where we were supposed to get back onto I-29. As we merged over, we got .... right in front of... a moving van! I called JJ who was just laughing on the other end. Yup... so much for our Speedy Gonzales moves - we were RIGHT back where we started.
I fell into a deep sleep about 2.7 seconds after we were safely cruising down I-29. MVJ also fell asleep and had a very good nap (close to 1.5 hrs. this time). We woke up in time to cheer as we drove into MISSOURI! Woohoo! We called TL and JJ and whooped it up. They appeared to be about a half hour or so behind us.
Garmin Epic Fail #2: We passed St. Josephs and realized that the very next big town would be KC! Woohoo! As we neared the city, Gar-Gar told us to get on a different road. We were leery this time and checked with TL to double check this move. He said that there was a route that by-passed downtown KC and would loop toward our suburb. We decided to follow Gar-Gar (and TL) on this one and headed to 435 (I think... something like that...). BUT Gar-Gar did end up with the big disappoint because then it wanted us to jump off 435 quickly and head into town. We followed directions like good girls and ended up driving through city streets for over 100 blocks. Yes, through stop lights and construction and people and traffic. It was NO GOOD. The boys couldn't believe we weren't all checked in when they called to say that they in fact were also headed into town. THEIR Gar-Gars took THEM on I-635 and I-69 like ours should've!
By the time we were checked in (and at this point, I'll be honest and a little embarrassed - I was not the most happy camper. When the check in lady said I need to have JJ sign something I kind of went off because we went to a notary in GF so that very thing would not have to happen. She tried to explain that that was on the lease agreement - this was on the application. Whatever. All I heard was JJ has to be here. She quickly explained that I could still have the keys and move in - she just needed him to head over whenever he got in. Ooookkkk...). So anyways... by the time we checked in, the boys were just about there and our friend SM was on his way to help us unload. Friends are SUCH a blessing. We would STILL be unloading I'm sure if it wasn't for the Ls and SM. But, as it is, we are almost done unpacking. Woot! Woot!
More on our adventures in KC next time!
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
A big stinkin' update...
Well hello little neglected friend. How are you? What have you been up to? Me? What have I been up to? Wellllllllll....
Lately I have been on a huge roller coaster ride (not unlike the "ride" I felt while I was in labor). There have been so many ups and downs and twists and turns... I know that with my "backtracking" of details I will miss things... but here's what's been up with the Js lately:
*Monday we had our Bye Bye BBQ. We expected about 15 people (from RSVPs/verbal commitment) and about 30 people showed up. It was overwhelming and emotional for me that so many people came to say good bye to us and hang out. We had so much food it was incredible. Actually we way way "over bought" hot dogs and I don't think anyone got seconds because there were just that many people.
*We had fabulous pictures taken Tues. morning - in between rain - MVJ did really well - there are her typical serious poses/faces and some smilers. Also the pictures were free, which was a huge blessing to us as moving costs kept coming in and paychecks... sadly didn't...
*We went to Fargo so JJ could be in a golf tourney - his brother A's annual fundraiser event - with his bro, Dad and the Pastor at A's Church. MVJ got some classic cousin time while I got to hang out with SIL LJ and MIL BJ. We ate out at Kobe (thanks A and L!!) - a Japanese steakhouse - where they make the fried rice and stirfry RIGHT THERE. Yum-o! Even MVJ did well with the veggies and rice.
*Wednesday evening we came home and had a mad rush of last minute packing. JJ also helped TL build a patio at the A's (where JJ painted earlier in the summer). JJ was very interested in the process and learned a lot from T.
*Thursday evening we played our last volleyball game (and won!). Woohoo! Then we hit the road for the Bizzo to visit my family and attend my 10 year high school reunion.
*The reunion was great! It started out kind of slow with only a handful of people but definitely picked up. I got to see friends I hadn't seen in forever and really catch up with some close ones. I got to meet a few newbies - new kiddos, new hubbies, new boyfriends, new puppies, etc! AND I got to meet my internet BFF! TH, I had such a great time meeting you in person! You are a neat chicky - RH is very lucky! And c'mon... KH is ADORABLE. What a sweetiepie! Too bad we didn't get to hang out longer... but kiddos and people dragged us in different directions!
*We enjoyed family time - my brother WK took us out on the river in his boat, we ran tons of errands, played some cards, ate some delicious food, and went on a few walks. It was a sad day Monday morning when we headed out. My family is small and close and a move this big is hard on them. It will be a great adventure and we know that we'll be moving closer to home eventually.
*We met up with our nephew MJ (of the Michigan Js) in F along with SIL LJ and kiddos LJ, BJ and AJ. YAY IHOP! It was delicious and so fun to see you on our brunch stopover. We can't wait for our very first visitors: AJ, LJ and parents-in-law CJ and BJ coming next week already!
*THEN we hit the lake with the Ls! YAY! It was such a fabulous time... except for the fact that I got supersick. YUCK! I'll spare you the details, but just know there was lots of throwing up (3x in the car...) and the big D. It would come and go so I did get some quality game time as well as boat time. Fun, fun. The cabin was perfect and the lake was amazing. The Ls are awesome hosts and it was so wonderful of LL's parents to let us chill at their cabin.
*BACK to GF on Tuesday - JJ helped with some finishing of the patio while I (again) did more packing/cleaning. What a not fun process. I told JJ that we canNOT move again for at least a few years!
*What did we do Wednesday? Oh... let's see... MVJ's babysitter friend MM came over to hang out with the M girl so we could do some last minute errands (drop off a friend's CM order... check... close our bank account... check... get the moving van situated and picked up... check...). We then got official word that we had our apartment secured in KS. Jeez Louise... that was quite the process. I mean, obviously, they want to make sure we can pay for it and aren't naughty people, but oh my word. We jumped through more than a few hoops.
*Thursday was THE BIG DAY. The big moving day. Puke. But it went SOOOOO smoothly. Again, we have THE BEST friends in the world. I can never ever thank them enough or do enough for them. It makes me emotional thinking of our friend CJ who came over at 9:00 and DID NOT STOP moving/packing/cleaning until we were done at 3:00 (ok we all stopped for a quick pizza break, but that was it!). And then our friend GJ who moved and packed and stuffed and took things apart so they would fit easier. Oh and our friend AO who watched MVJ. I was nervous about her being gone all day, but when I dropped her off, she jumped right into AO's arms. Pretty sure my worry went right out the window with that. AO is amazing -- she even called us the day before to make sure she had a good lunch prepared that MVJ would enjoy. What a great lady! And then our friends the Ls... who had SO MUCH going on and then they came over and moved and packed and cleaned. They are amazing. AND THEN they drove with us to KS. Amazing I tell you.
More about the move from the KS side another day. Both of my babes are sleeping... which means I should be.... UNPACKING! : )
Lately I have been on a huge roller coaster ride (not unlike the "ride" I felt while I was in labor). There have been so many ups and downs and twists and turns... I know that with my "backtracking" of details I will miss things... but here's what's been up with the Js lately:
*Monday we had our Bye Bye BBQ. We expected about 15 people (from RSVPs/verbal commitment) and about 30 people showed up. It was overwhelming and emotional for me that so many people came to say good bye to us and hang out. We had so much food it was incredible. Actually we way way "over bought" hot dogs and I don't think anyone got seconds because there were just that many people.
*We had fabulous pictures taken Tues. morning - in between rain - MVJ did really well - there are her typical serious poses/faces and some smilers. Also the pictures were free, which was a huge blessing to us as moving costs kept coming in and paychecks... sadly didn't...
*We went to Fargo so JJ could be in a golf tourney - his brother A's annual fundraiser event - with his bro, Dad and the Pastor at A's Church. MVJ got some classic cousin time while I got to hang out with SIL LJ and MIL BJ. We ate out at Kobe (thanks A and L!!) - a Japanese steakhouse - where they make the fried rice and stirfry RIGHT THERE. Yum-o! Even MVJ did well with the veggies and rice.
*Wednesday evening we came home and had a mad rush of last minute packing. JJ also helped TL build a patio at the A's (where JJ painted earlier in the summer). JJ was very interested in the process and learned a lot from T.
*Thursday evening we played our last volleyball game (and won!). Woohoo! Then we hit the road for the Bizzo to visit my family and attend my 10 year high school reunion.
*The reunion was great! It started out kind of slow with only a handful of people but definitely picked up. I got to see friends I hadn't seen in forever and really catch up with some close ones. I got to meet a few newbies - new kiddos, new hubbies, new boyfriends, new puppies, etc! AND I got to meet my internet BFF! TH, I had such a great time meeting you in person! You are a neat chicky - RH is very lucky! And c'mon... KH is ADORABLE. What a sweetiepie! Too bad we didn't get to hang out longer... but kiddos and people dragged us in different directions!
*We enjoyed family time - my brother WK took us out on the river in his boat, we ran tons of errands, played some cards, ate some delicious food, and went on a few walks. It was a sad day Monday morning when we headed out. My family is small and close and a move this big is hard on them. It will be a great adventure and we know that we'll be moving closer to home eventually.
*We met up with our nephew MJ (of the Michigan Js) in F along with SIL LJ and kiddos LJ, BJ and AJ. YAY IHOP! It was delicious and so fun to see you on our brunch stopover. We can't wait for our very first visitors: AJ, LJ and parents-in-law CJ and BJ coming next week already!
*THEN we hit the lake with the Ls! YAY! It was such a fabulous time... except for the fact that I got supersick. YUCK! I'll spare you the details, but just know there was lots of throwing up (3x in the car...) and the big D. It would come and go so I did get some quality game time as well as boat time. Fun, fun. The cabin was perfect and the lake was amazing. The Ls are awesome hosts and it was so wonderful of LL's parents to let us chill at their cabin.
*BACK to GF on Tuesday - JJ helped with some finishing of the patio while I (again) did more packing/cleaning. What a not fun process. I told JJ that we canNOT move again for at least a few years!
*What did we do Wednesday? Oh... let's see... MVJ's babysitter friend MM came over to hang out with the M girl so we could do some last minute errands (drop off a friend's CM order... check... close our bank account... check... get the moving van situated and picked up... check...). We then got official word that we had our apartment secured in KS. Jeez Louise... that was quite the process. I mean, obviously, they want to make sure we can pay for it and aren't naughty people, but oh my word. We jumped through more than a few hoops.
*Thursday was THE BIG DAY. The big moving day. Puke. But it went SOOOOO smoothly. Again, we have THE BEST friends in the world. I can never ever thank them enough or do enough for them. It makes me emotional thinking of our friend CJ who came over at 9:00 and DID NOT STOP moving/packing/cleaning until we were done at 3:00 (ok we all stopped for a quick pizza break, but that was it!). And then our friend GJ who moved and packed and stuffed and took things apart so they would fit easier. Oh and our friend AO who watched MVJ. I was nervous about her being gone all day, but when I dropped her off, she jumped right into AO's arms. Pretty sure my worry went right out the window with that. AO is amazing -- she even called us the day before to make sure she had a good lunch prepared that MVJ would enjoy. What a great lady! And then our friends the Ls... who had SO MUCH going on and then they came over and moved and packed and cleaned. They are amazing. AND THEN they drove with us to KS. Amazing I tell you.
More about the move from the KS side another day. Both of my babes are sleeping... which means I should be.... UNPACKING! : )
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
Just a little plug...
We had pictures scheduled for 9am this morning, so I got my butt out of bed around 8 only to find out that it was raining. Boo... BUT our photographer said she'd call if it cleared up to see if we'd like to give it a chance. We didn't have to wait too long and starting our "shoot" at around 9:30. She is the most amazing photographer, see her website here. Seriously. Check her out. Not only is she very easy going, great with kiddos and willing to try new things, but she is also very reasonable AND gives you a CD of your session. Awesome, awesome, awesome. PLUS this time she said the disk may be ready tonight or tomorrow at the latest. How great is that?
Midnight Snack
taken literally
My darling daughter has been in a little funk lately. Moving? Different schedule? Mommy and Daddy home, but with lots of random errands? FOUR teeth coming in? That happen to be the "eye" teeth?
Yes, yes, triple yes. Poor baby.
But this Momma is really having trouble adjusting to her newborn-esque sleep schedule. Last night was like the final straw. She woke up at right around 11:30. I put her back down. She woke back up around midnight. Daddy went in to play bad cop. She must be acting naughty right? Didn't quite work that way (and from overhearing how the conversation went from her room, he is a VERY soft bad cop...). He concluded that maybe she has an ear infection. We know that teeth and ear infections can sometimes go hand-in-hand AND that ear infections can make laying down miserable. But what to do until the walk-in clinic opened? After JJ left her in her room, we thought she may have gone back to sleep until we heard, "Gooooo Daddy? Gooooooo puppy? Daddy? Baby?" They were all questions and we couldn't help but giggle as she went through her vocabulary list.
I decided at about 12:30ish that I would rock her in the living room comfy chair so she could sleep and I could at least rest. I *thought* it was a good idea. She, however, became the life of the party. She was talking and squirming and generally NOT going to sleep. I decided to let her run around. She instantly went into the kitchen and grabbed a bag of fruit snacks. I offered her some and she gobbled them up. "More."
First, I gave her some teething tablets (they say they may cause drowsiness (YES PLEASE). Then, I got out the veggie tray left from our Bye-bye BBQ. She ate a cherry tomato (YUM!) and started in on a carrot, but took off to explore. I could not believe how awake she was. I decided to surf the web as she played happily in the living room. (I found an elementary special ed. position open... hmm... praying about it...)
She grabbed another bag of fruit snacks. I was like Come on Girlfriend! Two fruit snacks past midnight? But the girl was content and hungry, so I opened the bag and she sat content on the floor chomping them up. Maybe the gummy texture felt good on her teeth?? Anyways, afterwards she started trying type on my online application so I took her into her room to play quietly. She jumped up on a rocking chair and started banging on her closet door. I think at that point my words were, "ARE YOU KIDDING ME?"
I let her put on her lullaby CD (she LOVES pushing play) and we "danced" for a while. Then I told her that Mommy was frustrated and she needed to go to sleep. Guess what? It worked. She slept until about 8:15 this morning (but that was from 3ish am....).
Enter the Mommy. Mommy, who could barely see straight while baby entertained herself, headed straight for bed. Only to realize that she now was WIDE AWAKE. Grrrrr ba drrrrrrr. I could tell I was bothering JJ, so I finally asked him if he thought it would be a good idea for me to apply to a school teaching position. He groggily answered that if it felt right I should give it a shot. I resumed my online application and finished it around 4:30ish this morning... Hopefully they don't think I'm a crazed person who never sleeps. Also hopefully my answers made sense (I did triple check them this morning after I realized I had clicked a "doctorate" in elementary ed. instead of a "bachelor's"... oooops....).
My darling daughter has been in a little funk lately. Moving? Different schedule? Mommy and Daddy home, but with lots of random errands? FOUR teeth coming in? That happen to be the "eye" teeth?
Yes, yes, triple yes. Poor baby.
But this Momma is really having trouble adjusting to her newborn-esque sleep schedule. Last night was like the final straw. She woke up at right around 11:30. I put her back down. She woke back up around midnight. Daddy went in to play bad cop. She must be acting naughty right? Didn't quite work that way (and from overhearing how the conversation went from her room, he is a VERY soft bad cop...). He concluded that maybe she has an ear infection. We know that teeth and ear infections can sometimes go hand-in-hand AND that ear infections can make laying down miserable. But what to do until the walk-in clinic opened? After JJ left her in her room, we thought she may have gone back to sleep until we heard, "Gooooo Daddy? Gooooooo puppy? Daddy? Baby?" They were all questions and we couldn't help but giggle as she went through her vocabulary list.
I decided at about 12:30ish that I would rock her in the living room comfy chair so she could sleep and I could at least rest. I *thought* it was a good idea. She, however, became the life of the party. She was talking and squirming and generally NOT going to sleep. I decided to let her run around. She instantly went into the kitchen and grabbed a bag of fruit snacks. I offered her some and she gobbled them up. "More."
First, I gave her some teething tablets (they say they may cause drowsiness (YES PLEASE). Then, I got out the veggie tray left from our Bye-bye BBQ. She ate a cherry tomato (YUM!) and started in on a carrot, but took off to explore. I could not believe how awake she was. I decided to surf the web as she played happily in the living room. (I found an elementary special ed. position open... hmm... praying about it...)
She grabbed another bag of fruit snacks. I was like Come on Girlfriend! Two fruit snacks past midnight? But the girl was content and hungry, so I opened the bag and she sat content on the floor chomping them up. Maybe the gummy texture felt good on her teeth?? Anyways, afterwards she started trying type on my online application so I took her into her room to play quietly. She jumped up on a rocking chair and started banging on her closet door. I think at that point my words were, "ARE YOU KIDDING ME?"
I let her put on her lullaby CD (she LOVES pushing play) and we "danced" for a while. Then I told her that Mommy was frustrated and she needed to go to sleep. Guess what? It worked. She slept until about 8:15 this morning (but that was from 3ish am....).
Enter the Mommy. Mommy, who could barely see straight while baby entertained herself, headed straight for bed. Only to realize that she now was WIDE AWAKE. Grrrrr ba drrrrrrr. I could tell I was bothering JJ, so I finally asked him if he thought it would be a good idea for me to apply to a school teaching position. He groggily answered that if it felt right I should give it a shot. I resumed my online application and finished it around 4:30ish this morning... Hopefully they don't think I'm a crazed person who never sleeps. Also hopefully my answers made sense (I did triple check them this morning after I realized I had clicked a "doctorate" in elementary ed. instead of a "bachelor's"... oooops....).
Saturday, July 10, 2010
Gooooo!
Another super stinkin' cute phrase?? Our friend TL had a softball game on Wednesday. I prepped MVJ with a little cheer, "Gooooo T!" Daddy didn't believe me until she did it for him, but she totally had it down, the intonation, voice raise at the end, and everything! "Gooooooo T!" So we get to the game, and she did do it a few times, but in such a sweet, soft voice, that T didn't quite hear it until he was done with his game. Later on facebook, he proclaimed that he had the best cheering section ever! : ) Now she's changed it up a bit and we hear "Goooooo Daddy" every once in a while.
Friday, July 9, 2010
More!
When MVJ was a very little girl or maybe even not born yet I learned about baby signing. First of all, it helps babies communicate before they can do so though speech which makes a world of difference for both the baby and the family! Second they are stinkin' the cute when they do it!
When MVJ was about 9ish months old we began teaching her signs. She was not into them. We stopped.
Just the other day, when MVJ was 16 months old, she just randomly started doing the sign for more and saying more. It was so amazing! She was watching and learning that whole time!
Now, I'll be honest, we were totally proud of our little girl until we realized "more" is such a limited word. SLP auntie LC agreed -- you should teach what the kiddo wants more of [i.e. water, snack, sleep (a mom can dream...)].
Soooo, back to the drawing board, we taught MVJ "help please". She was so cute - when she'd get in a pickle or want down or whatever, we'd hear those sweet little words, "Heyp pwease". But then, smart little stinker, MVJ learned that maybe she could do things that she hadn't been able to do before with those magic words. "Help please" so I can get into Daddy's chocolates. "Help please" so I can dig through the garbage. "Help please" so I can color with pen all over.
Yikes! BACK to the drawing board. We're still encouraging "help please", but also make sure she knows that just because she asks nicely and uses her words, Mommy and Daddy have the final say!
When MVJ was about 9ish months old we began teaching her signs. She was not into them. We stopped.
Just the other day, when MVJ was 16 months old, she just randomly started doing the sign for more and saying more. It was so amazing! She was watching and learning that whole time!
Now, I'll be honest, we were totally proud of our little girl until we realized "more" is such a limited word. SLP auntie LC agreed -- you should teach what the kiddo wants more of [i.e. water, snack, sleep (a mom can dream...)].
Soooo, back to the drawing board, we taught MVJ "help please". She was so cute - when she'd get in a pickle or want down or whatever, we'd hear those sweet little words, "Heyp pwease". But then, smart little stinker, MVJ learned that maybe she could do things that she hadn't been able to do before with those magic words. "Help please" so I can get into Daddy's chocolates. "Help please" so I can dig through the garbage. "Help please" so I can color with pen all over.
Yikes! BACK to the drawing board. We're still encouraging "help please", but also make sure she knows that just because she asks nicely and uses her words, Mommy and Daddy have the final say!
Wednesday, July 7, 2010
The Apartment Search is OVER!
I'm sure many people would find our apartment search extremely exhausting. I swear we aren't picky people. We wanted 1. safety 2. good location 3. 3 bedrooms if possible 4. dishwasher 5. in suite laundry.
Not too tough, right?? Two kind of fell by the wayside on our quest for #1.
We started out using a superhelpful organizer from our friend CAJ, who just found an apartment with her hubby and baby in a completely new city as well. They had the luxury of taking a trip to choose an apartment. We really did not have that luxury - especially on our other quest of saving money for the BIG MOVE. I called a bunch of nice places in what seemed like a nice area - and one that was close (10-15 mins.) from JJ's school. Oh, at this point we also had an apartment helper through the school.
So I'm a bit on the overly cautious side, but somehow we got into this apartment rating dealy that made us a bit more paranoid than ever. And by us I mean me. Basically it led me into another whole path to for sure find the safest place. With that, we began seeking other people's advice. When I made it "facebook official" that we were moving, lots of people let us know they had relatives in the area or they themselves lived there. It was GREAT to get big city dwellers' advice.
THEN I had the brilliant (are you catching on to my paranoia of the whole moving thing?) idea to call the police department and have them recommend neighborhoods. I was chatting with a lady from the "crime analysis department" and basically I told her the name of the place we were very seriously considering. She said, "I'm not allowed to give personal preferences but DO NOT MOVE THERE especially since you have a daughter." Oh jeez. BACK to square one. She had a website that tracked crimes over the last two years and we began our search all over again.
In the end we settled on a place that within a one mile radius has had three crimes in the last 18 months -- all of them being cars broken into. Well, I can definitely deal with that - especially since we don't keep anything valuable in our cars and our vehicles are not fabulous. And c'mon crime happens everywhere, even if I still wish everyone would just get along and not be naughty.
Our apartment is 1. as safe as we could get it without being a gated community costing us one of these and one of these (an arm and a leg) 2. about 30 mins. from JJ's school 3. 3 bedroom (but slightly above our desired price = we're doing without cable and highspeed internet) 4. has a dishwasher and 5. comes with full sized washer and dryer in suite. Also, it's gorgeous and big and we welcome all friends and family members!
Not too tough, right?? Two kind of fell by the wayside on our quest for #1.
We started out using a superhelpful organizer from our friend CAJ, who just found an apartment with her hubby and baby in a completely new city as well. They had the luxury of taking a trip to choose an apartment. We really did not have that luxury - especially on our other quest of saving money for the BIG MOVE. I called a bunch of nice places in what seemed like a nice area - and one that was close (10-15 mins.) from JJ's school. Oh, at this point we also had an apartment helper through the school.
So I'm a bit on the overly cautious side, but somehow we got into this apartment rating dealy that made us a bit more paranoid than ever. And by us I mean me. Basically it led me into another whole path to for sure find the safest place. With that, we began seeking other people's advice. When I made it "facebook official" that we were moving, lots of people let us know they had relatives in the area or they themselves lived there. It was GREAT to get big city dwellers' advice.
THEN I had the brilliant (are you catching on to my paranoia of the whole moving thing?) idea to call the police department and have them recommend neighborhoods. I was chatting with a lady from the "crime analysis department" and basically I told her the name of the place we were very seriously considering. She said, "I'm not allowed to give personal preferences but DO NOT MOVE THERE especially since you have a daughter." Oh jeez. BACK to square one. She had a website that tracked crimes over the last two years and we began our search all over again.
In the end we settled on a place that within a one mile radius has had three crimes in the last 18 months -- all of them being cars broken into. Well, I can definitely deal with that - especially since we don't keep anything valuable in our cars and our vehicles are not fabulous. And c'mon crime happens everywhere, even if I still wish everyone would just get along and not be naughty.
Our apartment is 1. as safe as we could get it without being a gated community costing us one of these and one of these (an arm and a leg) 2. about 30 mins. from JJ's school 3. 3 bedroom (but slightly above our desired price = we're doing without cable and highspeed internet) 4. has a dishwasher and 5. comes with full sized washer and dryer in suite. Also, it's gorgeous and big and we welcome all friends and family members!
Sunday, July 4, 2010
The No Good Very Bad Day
"And I had to wear my railroad train pajamas. I HATE my railroad train pajamas."
There is a story of when my brother and I were little of a "No Good Very Bad Day". Of course the scene is set with my Dad being gone for guard camp so my Mom was home by herself with us. We lived in the country and had lots of room to run. My brother was probably 1 1/2 - 2, making me (doing the quick math . . . ) about 4 1/2 - 5. First of all, I was having fun on the slip 'n slide until I hit a huge rock and hurt my hip bone. THEN my brother, still in dipes, went head first in the kiddie pool and couldn't right himself because of his diaper - he was too off balance. THEN when he was heading inside, he opened the screen door and wind came up and whipped him against the side of the house. YES. It was a no good very bad day.
Fast forward to now. I had my very own no good very bad day. It started off with a happy baby playing with her Mommy. I was holding MVJ above me giggly playing with her and then she swiped me playfully and cut me with two scratches on my face. One was little above my lip and the other was long and bled immediately. We promptly cut her nails and were good to go, except the nagging sting left from my cuts. Fast forward to volleyball. We were bumping around before the game and I called our friends, the Os, to make sure they were on their way. Out of the corner of my eye I saw a ball coming towards me. JJ apparently also saw the ball coming and knew I was on the phone. We both went for it and both weren't looking at each other. My RIGHT jaw made hard contact with his fist and I immediately fell to the ground - but more suprised than anything. LATER that evening, we decided to head to Green Mill to celebrate our big 2-0 victory (and the fact that we had a babysitter! YAY!). We were all deep in conversation and I turned my head sharply to my left (where JJ was sitting). My LEFT jaw made contact with JJ's elbow.
My face was beat up in all directions. Ugh. It had been a no good, very bad day.
There is a story of when my brother and I were little of a "No Good Very Bad Day". Of course the scene is set with my Dad being gone for guard camp so my Mom was home by herself with us. We lived in the country and had lots of room to run. My brother was probably 1 1/2 - 2, making me (doing the quick math . . . ) about 4 1/2 - 5. First of all, I was having fun on the slip 'n slide until I hit a huge rock and hurt my hip bone. THEN my brother, still in dipes, went head first in the kiddie pool and couldn't right himself because of his diaper - he was too off balance. THEN when he was heading inside, he opened the screen door and wind came up and whipped him against the side of the house. YES. It was a no good very bad day.
Fast forward to now. I had my very own no good very bad day. It started off with a happy baby playing with her Mommy. I was holding MVJ above me giggly playing with her and then she swiped me playfully and cut me with two scratches on my face. One was little above my lip and the other was long and bled immediately. We promptly cut her nails and were good to go, except the nagging sting left from my cuts. Fast forward to volleyball. We were bumping around before the game and I called our friends, the Os, to make sure they were on their way. Out of the corner of my eye I saw a ball coming towards me. JJ apparently also saw the ball coming and knew I was on the phone. We both went for it and both weren't looking at each other. My RIGHT jaw made hard contact with his fist and I immediately fell to the ground - but more suprised than anything. LATER that evening, we decided to head to Green Mill to celebrate our big 2-0 victory (and the fact that we had a babysitter! YAY!). We were all deep in conversation and I turned my head sharply to my left (where JJ was sitting). My LEFT jaw made contact with JJ's elbow.
My face was beat up in all directions. Ugh. It had been a no good, very bad day.
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