beanski

total randomness

Our house, while decorating the Christmas tree, while drinking a bottle of wine we've been cellaring for 4 years, listening to cheesy Christmas music:

To the orament: "You suck."

"That star is so shitty. It's f'ing ridiculous."

"I'm not putting that up. It's weak."

"Does anyone even really like Louis Armstrong? Or is he someone people just say people like because they're morons? Maybe everyone else putting music out then were a bunch of dickbags."

"This is going in the garbage. It's an f'ing piece of junk."

"Dude this music sucks."

"Heavy oraments suck."

"Look it's Jaromir Jagr, this f'ing rocks."

"This is jank ass."

"I need to find a sweet spot for Darth Vader. It's sweet that he's so heavy, he's made of lead and shit."

So now you know what Christmas decorating is like at my house. Fa la la la la la la la la.

naptime

My son is too nosy to nap in a house full of people so this is where we're spending naptime today. He is sleeping in the car and I'm spending some time with my iPhone. Thank god for minivans and iPhones. Amen.

giving thanks

Today we'll sit down to eat Thanksgiving dinner with my entire family. Both of my sisters and their families. My parents. Cousins and uncles and sisters and grandmas and papas.

I had a dream last night that shook me to the core, the words to describe it can't get past my lips. I can't acknowledge the possibility.

Today I'm thankful for one thing and one thing only: that everyone I love is healthy this Thanksgiving.

the partygoers

I didn't get a picture of everyone at Cam's birthday party which sort of makes me not want to post these pictures but whatever. I love everyone that was there and I don't have anything else to say today.
The Mom, party achiever. I always shut down when everyone gets there and she gets the food on the table.

Tara, I don't see her often enough and she has been going through some serious shit, I really appreciate her always showing up when we invite her to the kids' parties.

Renee and Griffin lunching

Griffin and Beef. Griffin is the only kid that I know that has a toy named Beef. Griffin is going to be a comedian someday.

Griffin's brother Sam climbing up the stairs on Uncle Michael's watch. I opened the door and there he was.


This is the glare you get anytime you talk to Sarah. She's a feisty one :) And I love her.

Birthday boy

Miss Lucy Goose

A meeting of the minds at the cat door
Nena and Aunt Jill playing peek with the birthday boy

Cupcake distribution

Jen and her sidekick

Last but not least, my girl Lindsey. She has had a pretty extreme few months here and she's still smiling. That's my girl.

Thanks to everyone for coming, putting up with the sewer smell in the house and sorry these pictures are so grainy...not much light on a very cloudy day.

reason 9021

We took the kids to the pediatrician today. Exciting, I KNOW.

When I pulled into the parking garage I told myself that I needed to remember to ask Ski for money to pay for parking before we left. I hate that I NEVER have cash. EVER. I'm scrambling to make up hours at work every single week so when I have to take the kids to the doctor it's always rush, rush, rush.

Cameron weighed in at 23 pounds 8 ounces so try as he did to outdo his father who was over 25 pounds at one year, he fell short. Barely. It was only 62th percentile for weight so I'm not going to believe everyone who tells me that he's a giant baby any longer. He's perfectly normal, thank-you-very-much. They both got some shots and Cameron flirted with the nurses and Renee glared at them. Pretty much par for the course.

Cameron has had some weird reactions to foods lately so they sent me to the lab for blood work so they can (FINALLY) screen him for allergies. I sent Renee home with Ski because she was on the verge of losing her shit. I was HORRIFIED when they told me they would have to draw from his arm (I was thinking finger prick) but he did just fine. He laid there with his eyes open wide wondering what in the hell was going on. 

I was halfway through the eighty mile walk back to the car lugging a 23 pound 8 ounce baby and a 92 pound diaper bag/purse when it hit me: I fricking forgot to ask Ski for money. I spent the rest of the walk cursing under my breath totally annoyed at myself wondering if I could sweet talk the parking attendant. Would she let me run to an ATM or stop by tomorrow to pay her?

I opened the car, wrestled Cameron into his carseat (he was not pleased and neither was I) and went to get into the driver's seat when I saw it.

Four perfectly placed dollar bills just sitting there waiting for me to pay for parking.

Reason #9,021 why I married the man: He thinks about shit like me not being able to pay for parking before I do.

the pioneer woman and marlboro man

My sister and her friend Stacy went to the Mall of America to meet the Pioneer Woman (and Marlboro Man and the boys - bonus!) They waited for what I've gathered was a long time to meet her which I can totally see because I imagine Ree can talk. And talk. And talk. I'm holding out hope that the cookbook she's signing is for me (hi sister, Christmas IS coming up :) Anyways, here's a couple of pictures - I wish I could have gone along ladies!!!

questions answered, part 1

The random number generator from 1 to 13 picked number 9 so Kim wins! She had good odds :).

Where do you shop for your kid's clothes (they are always so cute)?
I looooooove to shop, much to my husband's dismay. I am a bargain shopper and NEVER pay full price for anything. My kid's clothes are pretty much all from a few places: Etsy, Gap, Hanna Andersson (hanna pjs are the only way to go), Tea Collection (I have a soft spot for Tea and you can get their Daily Tea lines really cheap if you shop the sales), Old Navy and Target.

What is your favorite decoration on your Christmas tree?
Ski and I spend hours going through our ornaments when we put up our tree because we can remember getting most of them as kids. I'm drawing a blank on my favorite one, I think probably the Bible I handpainted when I was a teenager. I can remember doing it with the neighbor lady and it's so heavy that it never stays on right.

What store do you visit the most (not including any grocery store)?
In person, Target. I think I go to Target 3-4 times a week. Online, probably Gap.

Tell me an work story about my dorky brother (FatJ):
This is a brilliant question. I worked with Anne's brother (Kim's husband) at two different jobs. When we started working at my current job, there was this guy working here whose life read a lot like a soap opera. A really over-the-top soap opera. We called him The Mumbler because he mumbled play-by-plays while he was writing code. In the year that the three of us worked together, he got married to a seriously white trash girl who had like eight kids with eight different men, had a baby with her (that was probably not actually his), got his car stolen (more than once), his apartment broken into. You name it, it happened. The daily fights between The Mumbler and Brandi, The Crazy, made for some of the most hilarious working moments of my career. They would scream and swear and hang up on each other daily and Tom and I would narrate the girl's side of the call over IM. I would bite my tongue for hours trying to not laugh out loud at work. Then there was this one time that Tom, Kim and I went on a field trip to Soup-town because we just had to see where The Mumbler lived. Good times.

Would you hang a gong in your living room?
I guess I probably would if I had a reason to own a gong. I guess I probably do and that reason is my insane husband. If he wanted one, I'd probably let it slide.

Do you think this is cool for a 14 month old?
We happen to have that very toy and neither of my kids have used a trike of any sort yet. Renee isn't interested and I think Cam is still a bit too little. I think someday it will be cool though :)

What do you think Cameron and Renee will be when they grow up...chef, WWF?
I can't even begin to guess on this without laughing because right now Renee would be best suited for a role in the latest Television Drama involving someone bitching and moaning and whining about EVERYTHING and Cam would be an electrician because HOLY SHIT THAT KID IS OBSESSED WITH WIRES.

I'd like to know how your husband proposed? My husband proposed on my 25th birthday. We went out to dinner, he hit his knee in the living room right when we got home and blurted out "Marry me?" I've never seen him so nervous and awkward. I actually laughed at him and then for a minute I thought he was joking because I had been waiting for a while. Then I said yes :)

Where did you go to college and what is your degree in?
I went to a small-ish private Catholic school called the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul. I doubled majored in English and Computer Science (because I couldn't make up my mind) and never actually finished the English degree. I think I have like five credits left or something but honestly, what would I do with that degree anyways?

If you could go back in time...just once...and change or relive something...what would it be and why? This question is hard. The obvious answers are my wedding day and when my kids were born, especially when Renee was born. I was so scared something was going to be wrong with her when she came out that I think my brain sort of shut off. I don't remember much of it. The one moment I would like to relive with a slightly different result is when I told my mom that we had named Renee after her. She got teary eyed and before I could get any explanation out of my mouth about how wonderful of a mom she has been to me, the nurse came in to change my dressings and kicked out my mom out. I was pissed. I would like to have that moment back...without the nurse.

If you could do something other than be a programmer, what would you do?
This is tough because there are a lot of things I'd like to do. The most realistic option being that I'd like to teach programming at the college level. I'd love to be a Chef (minus the long hours), a Party Planner (that actually makes money), or an interior decorator (after some training). I'd really love to spend a spring working in a greenhouse learning about plants and gardening. I hope to someday do that after I retire. In like eighty years.

Where else would be your ideal place to live? Let's just pretend that your extended family would also be moving there, so you wouldn't have to worry about being so far away from them.
Two words: SOMEWHERE WARM. Please, please, please, get me out of this winter crap. Someday, PLEASE?

What was your favorite subject/class in high school and why? Was it the teacher, or the other people in the class, or did it just come naturally to you?
Math was always the easiest subject for me but I liked English the best because I like to write. The trouble is that I suck at reading comprehension. I know some people that can read something once and totally remember everything from it but my brain doesn't work that way. I have to try hard to comprehend things. Like, if I read a photography book, I have to read it 10 times before it starts to sink in. It's VERY frustrating. I always scored the lowest on reading comprehension on those standardized tests in school and I am still that way to this day.

How do you find time to write such personal posts, complete with beautiful photos, all while working and raising two little ones so close in age (all while keeping a semblance of your sanity?) This comment totally made my day so thanks Kourtney! The writing comes naturally to me. I write posts in my head while I'm driving or working and then I slap it down fast without caring much about the proper tense and grammar before I go to bed at night. I spend a lot of time taking and putzing with pictures because it is my hobby and one of the only things that I actually enjoy doing. Me keeping a semblance of my sanity? Umm yeah, you should probably talk to my husband about this. I'm actually a raging lunatic :)

Tell me about something you've done that was so silly or stupid that you laughed until you cried. It can be with someone else, but I would prefer it was just you...alone. Tonight Renee was picking her nose and I took her 'big boog' off her finger and put it in the garbage and she laid down on the floor kicking and screaming and crying because she wanted her 'big booger' back. I laughed so hard I almost peed myself. There I was sitting there arguing with a two year old about why she can't take her 'big boog' out of the garbage.

Do you like d-town? Where did you guys grow up? We do like d-town. I wish someone in either of our families lived closer though. It has been really hard to have little kids with everyone so spread out. I grew up in the I. Falls, the Icebox of the Nation (GO BRONCOS!) and my hubby grew up in Moon Township, a suburb of Pittsburgh, PA.

Thanks for the questions!!!!

the birthday boy and his cake

I would say Cameron was fairly interested in his cake. I think he was a little overwhelmed at being the center of attention. Part of the fun of being the second born, I think. He clung to Daddy for the first few minutes like "Don't leave me here with that cake! PLEASE? All of these people are looking at me. I mean, I kind of like it but I just don't know. DON'T LEAVE."

"Dad, I'm hanging on tight, DON'T GO."

"He did it. He sat me here just like I asked him not to. Mom, get your butt over here. Why are you always back there behind that camera? Everyone is looking at me, mom!"

"What is it you want me to do here? Be cute? CHECK."

"What is this? Food? Why is it in the middle of the floor? What is UP with you people?"

"I think I can, I think I can." This whole thing went on for 10 minutes or more.

"This fondant has an odd taste. What are you doing to me?"

"Not bad. You guys didn't mention there was sugar in cake. You're holding out on me. YUM."

"Whoa dude. Wow. That's all I can say. Is this some alternate universe? You guys said it was my birthday but I don't know what to do with this."

"Mission accomplished. Now do you guys have any waffles? I'm STARVING."

The End.

oh my oh my oh dinosaurs

My baby is one. Have I mentioned that? You know when they say the first year is the hardest? Yeah suckas, I'm done with it. I'm torn right in the middle of being relieved and being just plain sad. I want my baby back. WAH. The party was a blast and we were so lucky have so many important people in our lives there to wish my Bubba a Happy Birthday. I'm going to post just the party decorations  in this post follwed by the birthday boy and his cake followed by pictures of the partygoers. Blog material for NaBloPoMo, yo.

First things first, the cake. My mom and dad worked like slaves with me to make this a reality. My favorite times with my mom in the last few years have been getting ready for the kids' birthday parties. She likes planning and doing it as much as I do and we have so much fun. She comes a day early and we putz around and drink wine. LOVE YOU, mom and dad!

The cupcakes. Renee was like a rabid dog trying to get at the cupcakes before the party. I thought she might just lose her mind with anticipation. And you know what she liked? THE FONDANT. WEIRDO.

I also made these ice cream cone cupcakes because I saw them on some site somewhere and thought they were cute. I thought the kids would go crazy and most of the kids wanted regular cupcakes. The adults liked them though :)

I've been bad at creating traditions for my kids that I follow through on every year. But I have vowed to make a banner for each of their birthdays with a picture for every month of the year. I love reflecting on their past year and it is fun for everyone to see how much they've changed.

Little water bottles with dinosaur stickers.

The silverware.

Party favors. Stickers, bubbles, candy and a toy dinosaur.

We had lasagna, bread and salad that I made ahead and froze and it was so much easier than trying to grill the day of.

Such a cute party for such a cute little one year old!

tft: christmas cards

I need to get on Christmas cards but I have no motivation. No motivation to get a decent picture of the kids, no motivation to pick out colors and designs, nothing. I think I am out of creative juice. Help me.

• Do you send Christmas cards?
• Where do you get your Christmas cards?
• Do you prefer a card-style or a regular?
• Do you like pretty envelopes and if so, where do you get them?
• Do you prefer a picture with the mom and dad or just of the kids?