A Very Proud Mama

See that boy right there?  I love him.  He makes me SO proud.  That boy right there is my baby boy, the first of my children to venture out into the world beyond our home by himself.  That first day of kindergarten, I bawled....a lot.  I watched him walk up to school, a bit nervous, pause a moment and then take those steps into the big brick building where he would be spending his days, and my heart went with him.  He looked so little next to all the other kids, but I was SO proud of that little boy.

Then, I started volunteering in his classroom.  I help out with "centers" on Wednesday mornings....basically I help out with learning activities and the kids rotate centers and I get to help them out and spend some time with Peder.  I watch him and listen to him when he doesn't realize that anyone else is paying attention, and the things I hear him say make me even more proud of him.  He will walk past someone in his class and say something like, "I really like how you colored your monster." or "Your letter M looks really good."  He reaches out to his classmates and is extremely kind to them, and the fact that he does that when no one is watching, with no expectations, makes me SO proud.  It melts my heart and brings tears to my eyes because I can see the person he is becoming, and I love who he is becoming.

Yes, I'm bragging.  I'm proud.  SO PROUD!  And let's just add another thing on there to be proud.  Today when I picked him up from school he had a sucker in his hand.  I asked him why he got the sucker and he told me that he got it for counting to 100 with the principal.  The principal, Mr. Bretoi, goes to the classrooms and sits with the kids and does things with them to track progress and see where kids are in their skills.  Today Peder was one of only 2 students in his class that was able to count to 100.  Another thing to make this Mama proud.

I am SO happy and excited about the boy Peder is turning into.  I just had to share this with all of you....I'm just so proud of him.

Oh the Hilarity....

Some of the funny, hilarious, whatever tidbits happening in our life right now:

- Mari had her new glasses for less than 3 hours before she got hit in the face with a whiffle bat and had to have them adjusted. 2 days later she got hit in the face again while wrestling with Peder.

- Any time we are in the car, all 3 kids sing along to the radio.....every song. It amazes me that after hearing the song once the kids know half the words to a song.

- Our house is full of giggles lately. Our kids are all developing their senses of humor and OH MY GOODNESS, do they find each other hilarious. Sometimes they are a lot like their mom, dad or Grandpa Warren, and they find themselves hilarious when no one else does.

- All three kids had blood draws today for their allergies....no tears whatsoever. They all were VERY brave and did a wonderful job.

- Peder starts kindergarten a week from Thursday and the girls start Pre-K two weeks from today. How did this happen?

- On the slightly crude side....Emmy was sitting on the toilet this morning before her flush and she farted.  I said, "Did you tooter?" And her response was, "No, my butt coughed."  I seriously could not stop laughing.

- We're doing a lot of singing and dancing around the house and while driving around on our errands. I will leave you with the one song that gets us ALL (yes, Jake too) dancing and singing along to the radio...(YES, we have WAY too much fun in our life! :) )

Babies, Dogs and Engagements.....Oh MY!

It's been awhile since I've updated, and we've had a lot going on since then.  All 3 kids finished up with preschool and Peder is getting all prepared for Kindergarten this fall.  Peder is playing both soccer and t-ball this summer and the girls and I spend Monday and Wednesday mornings hanging out with one of their preschool friends and watching Peder play soccer.

In addition to our regularly scheduled summer activities, the following things are going on:

- I have decided to take the summer off of school.  It was all becoming too much and I was missing my family.  We'll be reassessing in the fall to decide whether it's better to start again in the fall or wait until all 3 kids are in school all day and talk about it again then.

- My cousin Chelsea and her husband Josh had their first little boy last month.  That's Great-Grandbaby number 5 on that side of the family, and baby number 3 for our families this year.  I said in January that 2011 was going to be the year of the baby, and it's definitely shaping up that way.  Any baby fever is placated by snuggling with all these little ones joining our family and the families of our friends.

- Jake's brother Nick got engaged earlier this week.  WA-HOO!  Dana really is the perfect fit for him and we can't wait to have her in the family.  Welcome to the family "Auntie Dana!"

- After Jesse's death we really struggled with whether to get another dog.  We just didn't know about getting another dog, especially at this time in our life with the financial responsibility of it.  I hemmed and hawed for quite awhile and then took the plunge and applied to be a foster parent for dogs through Midwest Animal Rescue and Services.  We got our first dog last Friday.  His name is Elmo.  He is an American Bulldog (think Chance from Homeward Bound) and is about a year old.  He was extremely lethargic the first couple of days here, but now he fits right in.  He is very much a puppy still and we're working on teaching him his manners.  I'm actually amazed at how easy he is to train and how well he is doing, especially after how sad he was those first few days.  Here's a picture of the cutie:

 

I think that's all for now.  We're gearing up for a couple of family get-togethers this weekend with Jake's family and the girls turn FOUR tomorrow.  WHAT?  How did this happen?  I'm in disbelief....

Building up our Immunity

We've been dealing with illness here for the last 2 weeks.  It started with Jake and moved to the kids and me.  All 3 kids and myself went to the doctor today.  Here is a rundown:

Peder - Strep
Me - Strep and Sinus Infection.

Here is my adventures of the day:

- I have never had strep in my life.  EVER.  I was shocked to find out I had it.
- I was given the choice of oral antibiotics for 10 days or a penicillin injection today and no need for oral antibiotics.  I chose the injection.
- I hate needles and the shot took FOREVER.  I got lightheaded and had to lay down.
- I finally felt better, but exhausted.  I decided to go home and take a nap.  By the time I'd made it 15 feet from my exam room I was looking for a nurse.  I couldn't keep my eyes open.....I was SO tired.
- I passed out on the appointment desk at the clinic.  They helped me to another room, got me a nurse and laid me down tilted towards my head.  Apparently I was so pale my lips were white.
- It took me a half hour to recover from my lightheadedness/exhaustion enough to be able to drive home.
- I woke up from my nap this afternoon to a temp of 103.4.  I called the doctor and am now on a tylenol schedule for the next 48 hours until my body has the infection under control.  WA-HOO!

It has been quite the day.  I'm still going to be feeling pretty crummy for the next 48 hours, so I'm planning on spending my time in bed as much as possible.

It's been awhile since we've all been this sick.  I hope that by next week we'll all be on the mend.  I hope none of you are battling all of these illnesses like we are and are able to enjoy the gorgeous weather!

First Haircuts

My baby girls are now 3 and a half, which means I have finally given in to giving them haircuts.  They look SO cute and like such big girls.  And for those of you who have a hard time telling them apart....Emmy now has much shorter hair then Mari.

Emmy Before:

Emmy After:

Mari Before:

Mari After:

Time to Simplify

The holiday season always, ALWAYS stresses me out.  I get depressed, grumpy and overwhelmed.  It makes me sad, because I really do LOVE the season, the smells, the sentiments and the giving.  I love everything related to Christmas, but every year I get down emotionally.

So now, this year, actually in the last 24 hours, I've decided to make some changes.  Most of you know that every year I send out handmade Christmas cards, with a family letter and picture.  Every year I spend at least 20-30 hours designing and making the cards.  That doesn't include the letter, picture or addressing the envelopes.  Since I've been so busy this year I haven't even started any of that process.  So....I'm not doing it this year.  I'll still send out cards, but it will be a photo card that will take me an hour or two to make the 80 that I usually send out.  There's one load off my shoulders.

I'm also changing the family letter.  I'm not going to do the traditional format.  I haven't quite decided what the new format will be, but it will be quick and easy to do.  No more worrying about the grammar, spelling, etc.  In all honesty, it may just be a list of things from our year.

Now....what will I do with all this extra spare time that I have?  Well, first of all, I'll sleep.  WA-HOO!  I love sleep and it hasn't been around much lately, so I'm going to reacquaint myself with it.  THEN....I'll actually be able to enjoy my children's wonder of the season, rather then stressing about what else I need to get done this year before the holiday gets here.  I'll be able to bake and decorate cookies, take them shopping for each other and their dad, and continue our family traditions while being fully present rather then thinking of something else.  I'm also going to spend some time with my rarely seen husband....doing goofy things like playing Guitar Hero or kicking his butt at Wii Boxing.

This year I'm slowing down rather then speeding up.  I'm going to hold my family close and really enJOY the season.

Busy-ness, Inspiration and The End is NEAR!

As most of you know, life is chaotic in the Early household.  We are busy, busy people.  Last week all 3 kids started preschool.  (Pictures soon, I promise.)  Peder has pre-k every Monday, Wednesday and Friday.  Emmy and Mari have 3-school every Tuesday and Thursday.  It was an exciting week in our house.  All 3 kids were ready for school to start and this mommy was ready to be in a routine again.  I have to admit, Tuesday and Thursday mornings are oddly quiet with just Peder to hang out with.  I'm not quite sure what I'm going to do next year with all the kids in school several days a week.

Jake and Peder are leaving for a fishing trip on Wednesday night, right after Peder gets done with his first swim lessons class.  They are heading up to Canada with my dad, my grandpa (mom's dad) and my brother-in-law Randy.  I'm sure they are going to have a fantastic adventure and I know Peder is looking forward to hanging out with the guys.  He seems to feel like a very grown up boy with this privilege to go along.  It's cute.

I spent the weekend hanging out with my Mommy.  We went to ScrapFest over at the Mall of America.  I went to a crop by myself on Thursday night and then met my mom for another one on Friday night.  On Saturday we did make n' takes, took 3 classe and did a bunch of shopping.  Sunday we spent the day doing make n' takes.  This is something we try to do every year.  We have so much fun, make a ton of cute projects and get all kinds of inspiration.  I had so much fun hanging out with my mom....I look forward to this weekend every year!

And....THE END IS NEAR!  At least of my quarter at school.  I have a final and a final project due tonight, a final tomorrow and then D-O-N-E!  WA-HOO!  I get a week off in between quarters and the only thing that we have planned is swim lessons, Jake's football game and our annual trip to the corn maze.  I'll finally be able to get the rest that my physical therapist keeps telling me to take.

We have a lot to look forward to in the next couple of weeks!

Bad Blogger Update

I have been a very bad blogger lately.  In all honestly, I've been so busy that I end each day with a ton of things that were supposed to get done and didn't.  Every day is a race to see what can get done before bedtime, which keeps getting pushed later and later.  Luckily, in 3 weeks I will be out of school for a 3 week summer break.  This means vacations and time to enjoy my family.

Since I've last updated: we celebrated Mother's Day at the Sculpture Garden and I got a nook (L-O-V-E it), my sister Chanda came to visit with her son Eli (so cute!), I celebrated my 30th birthday, Jake took me on our first date again, and we spent a day in Alexandria for the Pederson side family reunion.

The biggest news is that I will be having surgery on my hip on July 22nd at 7:30a.  After 3 years of pelvis issues and 15 months of specific hip issues, my orthopedist has recommended surgery to repair my hip.  The surgery will last about 2 hours and I will be on crutches for the first 2 weeks after surgery and unable to drive for a week.  The surgery involves removing some of the bone from my hip socket, repairing the cartilage in my hip and then maybe reshaping the ball part of the leg.  The good news is that I should be 90% better within a year and continue to improve slowly after that.  If this surgery is successful, it will be a dream come true for us.

I will try to keep you more posted about the happenings in our life, and related to my surgery.

Let's Go Fly a Kite

We headed out to a local ball field and flew kites tonight.  WAY TOO MUCH FUN!

Peder getting ready to fly his Spiderman kite.

Mari loving her kite.  Look at that smile!  She couldn't stop talking about it afterwards.

Emmy was ecstatic.  I loved all the smiles on the kiddos' faces and the giggles.

This is Mari and me getting her kite out of a tree.  I was SO impressed that I got the kite out without snapping the line or ruining the kite.

Daddy helping the kids get their kites up.

Our Weekend Highs

A summary of our weekend in the great things we experienced!

Friday -
1.  We went to the Minneapolis Camping and Vacation Show and found a camper we want to get when we buy our next camper.

2.  While looking at a camper one of the sales people asked us if the girls are twins.  We, of course, said yes and he talked about his twin boys.  He mentioned that his twins were premature.  I told him that our girls were born at 38 weeks and his response made me soar.  He said, "It's obvious, they both look very healthy."  HOW AWESOME!  I love that people look at my girls and see healthy kids!

Saturday -
1.  I got a ton of studying done!

2.  SLUMBER PARTY!  Peder, Emmy and I had a slumber party in the living room.  We watched a movie, had a special snacks and shared a bowl of popcorn.  I love slumber parties with my kiddos!

Sunday -
1.  A Valentine's Day surprise from Jake!  He doesn't like Valentine's Day, but made today special because I've been struggling with stress level.  Jake and I haven't been able to spend much time together lately.  We got to my parents' house to pick Mari up from her weekend visit and the kids brought me two Valentine's cards.  Jake had asked my parents to watch the kids and we went out on a date.  We went to see "When in Rome," which was really cute and fun.  Then we went to Target, wandered around and got some new clothes (for me) and Valentine candies for Jake.

2.  An awesome TWIN moment between Emmy and Mari.  When we got to my parents' house to pick up Mari, the girls ignored everyone else.  Emmy and Mari yelled each other's names and ran into each other's arms.  They hugged each other and were SO excited to see each other again.  It totally melted my heart.

A Peek at our Night

Tonight we went to run some errands.  We headed over to Woodbury to check out Michael's and I made a trip into Archiver's.  On our way back to Target in West St. Paul, the following scene happened.

Emmy:  Singing at the TOP of her lungs.  And I mean TOP.  She was joyously singing like she often does.

Peder:  Got kind of annoyed with the singing.  Told Emmy to stop.

Emmy:  Kept SINGING!  Sang so loud I couldn't hear Peder talking.

Peder:  Repeatedly:  EMMY STOP!

Me:  Started singing Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star at the top of my lungs.  MUCH louder and more annoying than Emmy was.

Peder:  "That's MUCH better!"

And that is a small snippet of our life.  Enjoy!

My Day...

So today was a day.  A REALLY bad day.  I started my third week of classes today.

Here is a summation of my day:

1.  All 3 kids battled me tooth and nail to get Peder to school.

2.  I had to trick the girls into thinking I was leaving the house so they would get ready to go pick up Peder from school.

3.  Nap time was a nightmare.  The girls fought, screamed, cried, learned how to open their bedroom door and in general fought with me every moment of naps.  Peder goofed off, played and got upset when limitations were set.

4.  All 3 kids fell asleep at 3:45p, 15 minutes before we wake them so they go to bed on time.  Imagine how they all were when it was time to get up.

5.  I printed off my assignment for class tonight and then left it at home.  Luckily I had sent the assignment to myself via email and could print it off at the school computer lab.

6.  I forgot my cell phone in the car, which lead to a moment of panic until I realized I still had that email in my account.  I didn't have time to run back to my car, call Jake to email me the paper, go back and print it off and make it to class on time.

7.  I ate Arby's for dinner and it made me REALLY sick about 40 minutes into class and had to leave for about 10 minutes because my stomach was feeling so gross.

8.  On my way home from school the car started to make a weird whirring noise.  I thought it was a belt and told Jake to take it out for a spin.

9.  I was happily eating the cookie dough Jake made for me when he got home from his drive.  He walked in and told me that it was probably the transmission needing to be replaced.  WHOOP-DEE-DOO!

Time for bed and to start tomorrow fresh.

Year in Review - December 2009

Now the last "Year in Review" post.  To see what happened through our year, scroll down.  It's been quite an adventure!

We took the kids to see Santa.

We decorated a gingerbread house and train....and cookies later in the month.

The kids helped Jake shovel the sidewalks after a big snow fall.

Peder was in his first ever Christmas program at church.

We did our annual trip to the Macy's 8th floor display with Grandpa Warren and Grandma Cindi.  (Mari is on Grandpa's shoulders, Emmy is on Grandma's.)

And then went to the Holidazzle parade.  Peder is giving me some love in this picture.  He's so sweet.

We had a joyous and snowy Christmas celebration.

And we finally got to meet nephew #3, Elias Warren Stevens on December 26th.  He was born November 22nd, 2009.  Here is Emmy giving her newest cousin some love.

Thanks for traveling with us through 2009.  We can't wait to see what 2010 has in store for our family and hope that you can continue on this journey with us.

Year in Review - November 2009

I sold my paper crafts for the first time ever.  It was very successful and I started an etsy shop and have had several custom orders since then.

We did the Walk to End Hunger at the Mall of America on Thanksgiving morning.

We had a WONDERFUL Thanksgiving dinner.

Mari had her first trip to the ER and we dealt with our first set of injury related stitches.  I almost passed out after they were done putting the stitches in.

We picked out our Christmas tree.

We also decorated our tree.  We loved it!

Year in Review - October 2009

Mari decided she wasn't quite ready to be done with her bath, after she was dressed for bed.

Peder turned 4.  (Can you believe it?)

Jake got to do the public tour of the new football stadium at the U of M.  Yes, this was part of our anniversary weekend.  Yes, I'm that good of a wife.  :)

Peder celebrated his 4th birthday at Pump It Up with some friends from preschool and a couple of cousins.

Jake, once again out did himself with the cake he made for Peder.

We carved pumpkins for Halloween.

And the kids got dressed up all cute to go trick or treating.  Mari, the bumblebee, Emmy, the princess and Peder, Woody from Toy Story.  They all picked out their own costumes.

Year in Review - September 2009

Auntie Chanda came to visit from Pennsylvania and we all got to see and touch her baby belly!

My Aunt Debbie and I threw a baby shower for my sister.  This is a picture of some of us cousins:  Alli, me, Chelsea and my sister, Chanda.

Peder started preschool, officially.  He was VERY excited!

We spent a lot of time playing outside.

We did our annual visit to the corn maze.  What a blast!

Year in Review - August 2009

We took our brand spanking new camper up to Hayward for a weekend of camping with Jake's brother and his family.

While we were there Peder made a tie dye t-shirt.

The kids and I went to Marshall with my mom to visit my grandparents.  We hung out with Great Grandpa Earl.

Went to the park with Grandma Cindi, Great Grandma Dorene and Great Aunt Jan.

And Peder went for his first ever tractor ride with Great Uncle Jerry and Great Aunt Jan.

At the end of August we spent a week on our first ever family vacation, just the 5 of us.  We camped in the Black Hills and had an absolute blast!

Year in Review - July 2009

We celebrated the 4th of July at my parents' cabin and the girls had their first boat ride ever.  It was F-U-N!

Emmy and Mari turned 2.

And celebrated their birthday with family at a local pool and park.

And we welcomed nephew number 2 into the family!  Alexander Russell Edward Early was born July 5th, 2009!  This is him with his mommy, Jill.

We visited the Como Zoo with the White family.