Expanding again!

My waistline that is. Add not just because of Thanksgiving either (although, it certainly is going to add to it!)!!
My wonderful Kevin and I have been blessed enough to be expecting yet another baby! Baby girl Lucier is due around April 20th, 2010!!!
Poor Michael will be overwhelmed I am sure, but he is excited to have another sister!
Victoria was mostly upset we waited so long to tell her!

I am so so blessed, and this Thanksgiving Season certainly will be full of things for me to be thsnkful for!

Happy Thanksgiving to you all!!!

Halloween 2009

Before Trick or Treating. Grandma Lois made Victoria's costume! Thank you so much!

Another one before they older two went out to TOT. Madeline stayed home with Daddy

And while Michael and Victoria pigged out on candy, Madeline ate her "candy"- peas! And she was happy as a clam:)

Picture and some word catch up! WARNING: Picture heavy!

My attempt at taking cool pictures:) At Kevin's Aunt's lake in August

This lake is so peaceful and so beautiful! We love it there!

Victoria and her friend, as well as my mom and dad enjoying the lake

My mom and Dad

Toria and Michael meeting the Timberwolves at the YMCA

My mom with Madeline watching the Timberwolves mascot do tricks

Madeline before she sat up unsupported:)

No pictures yet:(

I got a new (to me) computer, and I do not have a photoprogram (or a sound card for that matter) on it, so I have not downloaded pictures from my camera in forever! I am hoping that this coming week I can get my darling husband to put a sound card in, because youtube movies just are not as much fun without sound! And, hopefully I can get a hold of a good photo program too. I have so many darling pictures to show you all!
I was planning on taking another one today - of Madeline's branded face, but her branding went away faster than we expected. She fell on top of a Duplo Lego yesterday and had the small circles from the top of the Lego bruised onto her face:( Poor baby!

Michael and Victoria are doing well in school and they are enjoying it too:) Michael is on the school crossing guard patrol, and likes that. He had his first week of patrol last week and it went well.
Victoria celebrated her 7th birthday on Saturday (19th) with her friends and then we had a family party for her, Kevin and Michael on the 20th as Kevin's parents were able to stop by on their way home from Oklahoma.
Michael will be having his friend party on the 10th.

Other than that, not much is going on. Work, work, work, and some planning for our trip in December. I am so excited we're going to celebrate Christmas in Norway! My friend Ingrid is coming home for Christmas too, so I get to see her. Hopefully we'll be able to see most of our friends and family while at home. We're staying from the 12th until January 9th! Almost a whole month. Maybe I will just not come back to the US and just keep staying in Norway! Kevin actually suggested I stay on a bit longer with Madeline, while he brings the kids back for school, but I fear travelling with my baby all by myself, so I will hold off on that until another time. I am kinda hoping to go back next summer, but I am not sure that is something Kevin and our bank account sees feasible. Only time will tell I guess.

So, whenever I get my photos downloaded, I will put some up here of my lovely family! Hope all is well!

I think I have a biter!

So Madeline has sprouted two teeth in the last few weeks and she has put them to good use. At least it makes her giggle when they are being used! I tell you, being a nursing mom to a child with teeth - who likes to use those teeth = not comfortable! For the most part she is good and just eats, but every now and then.....say no more!
Today, after she as done eating, she crawled (her army crawl) over to me and bit my arm! I think I am really in for it with this one! She is so lovable though, and has started cuddling and showing affection to those around her. Today she also waved at one of my co-workers when she saw her!
Oh, this weekend marked 8 months since she was born too! Yikes!

Michael and Victoria started school again on September 8th and they both love it! I need to get some pictures moved to my computer in the basement, since that is the one I use now, so that I can post them for you guys!

I am back to my normal work schedule and love it! I enjoy seeing all my Y friends and families every day!

We're heading out to work out at the Y tonight, so I have to cut this short, but hopefully I will find time to catch you guys all up on what has been going on. Since I have a lot of cleaning to dfo, I am sure I will find many reasons to dork around on the computer instead:)

This summer

of 2009 has been going so fast! I will try to update a bit, but will mostly post pictures so that you can see all the fun we've done! Pictures will come later though as I am dead on my feet.

My last post was on our 10th anniversary. Kevin and I went out to eat and brought Maddypants with us. We ate at Victoria's (love that place!) while most of the people in Rochester were at the Rochesterfest Parade! It just happened so that our waitress was a lady who took my Norwegian class a few sessions ago. It was neat and she gave us a free chocolate dessert for our anniversary:) Thank you Nancy! We later went home and just hung out (remember, the older two kids were at Grandma and Grandpa's in Moorhead :).

The Thursday before July 4th we went up to Moorhead to meet up with the kiddos. They had a blast at Grandma and Grandpa's without us! They both aquired skateboards, and I tried one out - a story in itself!
We stayed until the Monday after July 4th before heading home and back to work life again. I got to practice taking pictures of fireworks on the 4th, and found that it is fun, but extremely difficult to get good ones without a tripod! So the moom (visible in most of the pics) has quite a few weird shapes in most of the pictures:)

On July 15th Maddypants got her first taste of "real" food when we stared feeding her rice cereal. Not quite sure what she thought of it, but she at it all:) At her check up earlier that day we found that she is in the 46th percentile for weight and 51st for height. Doctor is not worried as she is an active girl and she eats a lot. I guess she is just one of those lucky ones with a high metabolism:)

Between the 4th and now we have mostly worked, and hung out with friends. My mom flew in on July 24th and my dad is arriving tomorrow! Lots of pics taken and I am certain lots more will be taken over the next week while they are here!

Next weekend we'll head to Kevin's aunt's cabin for some caming with my parents and Kevin's parents. Then, when my mom and dad leave the Monday after we're planning on heading up to the North Shore for some camping. We've never been there before and have heard so many neat things about it!

Man, I bet there are so many things I am not remembering, so I will come back in a few days to add and edit:) For now it is off to bed for me. Maybe I will be asleep before midnight for once:)

Married 10 years today!

Today my lovely husband Kevin and I are celebrating 10 years of marriage!

Love you so much Kevin!

Din for alltid,
Hanne

Swimming

We went swimming last night at the Y and towards the end decided on letting Maddypants give it a try too. She loved it! She actually perked up as soon as I went through the showers with her. She was all giggling and laughing. It was so much fun! When I put her in the pool (zero depth entry pool) her legs just started going wild - up and down. I wish you all could have seen it. Of course, I did not have my camera with me, so her 2nd time swimming will be the first one documented:)
She was trying to drink the water (gross!) and was splashing along the whole time. We only gave her 15 minutes though before we left. Did not want to overdo it the first time:)
She fell asleep before we even got to the car!

Michael and Victoria are both in an all day camp at a church here in town this week. They are both very excited to get to go to a full day camp! In the mean time I sit at work playing computer (got hooked on mafia wars on facebook recently) or run the other kids around to different activities.

I am mentally preparing myself for "Bootcamp" at the Y on Thursday night. I am exited but also terrified! It is a boot camp style group fitness class. How great is that!
Well, better go, places to be with the kids! Have a wonderful day!

Last day of school - Summer Vacation!

The kids went to school today and are very excited it is the last day of school before summer vacation. I bet the majority of the day they will be doing fun stuff!
After Michael is done I am planning on picking him up and together with Victoria he'll party with water at the Y. They are having and end of the school year water party in Y-Space. I hope the weather stays nice so that they will get to play outside.

I personally do not feel like it is summer. The weather is borderline cold. I only have one week off this summer - and not a week I pick at that - so we have no big plans for any trips. Kinda makes me depressed. I am sure we'll have plenty of fun though, and I am certain the weather will be ungodly hot in no time, so I should not complain. In the meantime, I will play with my camera, cuddle with Madde and enjoy listening to the older two kids make plans for their play outside.

I guess another sad thing is that this is the time of the year when so many people I have met move away due to med school or residency training being done. I wish them all the best at their future location, but will miss them dearly.

Today I am going to take advantage of the last chance to go eat with Kevin sans kids. I was supposed to work at the Y but a wonderful co-worker picked up my shift. Yay! Thanks Torey!
Every lunch from now on will be with the kids - which is fine, but I do enjoy the lunches with Kevin too!

Ok, enough rambling. No picture for this post either. I better get moving and get some more pics taken!
Have a wonderful day all!

Hair Cut!

Victoria has her hair cut yesterday and she looks so cute! She is always cute, but she loves this haircut so much it makes her even cuter! And just in time for the last day of school too!

Here are the pictures - before and after:

Look how long it was!

After

Look how cute she is!

Kids Triathlon and an update

It has been forever since I have taken time to sit down to update this blog. I am sorry!
We've been very busy lately, but a good kind of busy.

Tomorrow morning both Michael and Victoria are participating in a kids' triathlon here in Rochester. They are so excited!
Victoria will swim 50 yards, bike 2.1 miles and run 1/4 mile, while Michael will swim 100 yards, bike 3 miles and run 1/2 mile.
Grandma and Grandpa Lucier will be in town to watch them too!

Last weekend we went up to Kevin's aunt's lake cabin to camp and help her fix the cabin a bit. We had nice weather and got some things done around the cabin.

May 17th we celebrated in Minneapolis at Mindekirken. They had a service in Norwegian and then a parade around the area. The two older kids and I wore bunads.
After the parade we changed in the car and went to Como Zoo to enjoy the rest of the wonderful day.

Michael and Victoria are excited to be done with school soon. Their last day of school is June 9th. They have both had wonderful teachers and made good friends. Hopefully we'll see most of them at some point over the summer.

Madeline is growing well and is certainly showing her personality. She is not doing anything the way her siblings did it, which is fine :)
I took her in for her 4 month check up and guess what! No ear infection!! I was so excited! She is allergic to amoxicillin though, so that is a bummer.

Kevin is still busy with work. He's been working late hours a lot, but thankfully has time to go play softball with the guys on the church league team on Tuesday nights.

I am also busy. Feel tired most of the time and wish I did not work two jobs, but oh well. The Y is very willing to work with my nanny schedule, so I won't have to work so hard in the summer. I am looking forward to when the Y job is the only one I am working! It is the greatest place I have ever worked at, and I have the best co-workers too.

I was hoping to get to go home to Norway this summer, but that won't happen. I only have 1 week off this year, over the summer, so it does not allow for much travel. I am crossing my fingers for a Christmas time trip home!

Here's some pictures to hold you all over:






Hope you all have a wonderful weekend!

No more pacifier :(

So miss Maddypants had to give up her beloved pacifier at the age of 3 months! I took her in to the doctor yesterday as she has been really upset and not her happy-go-lucky self. Result: Ear infection in both ears again:( Poor baby. She was in so much pain! I am guessing we're heading down a well known roads towards tubes, but we're still crossing our fingers that is not the case.
The pacifier though, is gone. I have one in her diaper bag for extreme emergencies. She did well without it today. Went down for two naps without it, but with crying for a while. I can get used to it, and I am sure she can too. It was such an easy out though, a quick way to calm her down.

So, cross your fingers this is just a fluke! And that throwing good old paci out was all that was needed to get rid of all those yucky infections!

Me, smaller, soon

At least that is my goal.
My baby sister and I have decided to be each others coaches/buddies/whatever in order to lose weight. I am so excited!
I am NOT going to list my weight here, but I will update with my overall loss each week. Cross your fingers it will go well! I am not going out all the way as I am still nursing, but taking small steps to get to a healthy weight, and to a place where running will not be hard on me. I WILL finish a marathon at some point in my life and I think the sooner I get it done the better:) I will star with some 5K's and move up to 10k's and from there I guess we'll see what happens:)

Rolling over

Madeline decided to let my dad in on some of her development and rolled over belly to back three times on Friday! Yay! And then, today, while I was getting her bath ready she rolled over back to belly! And all on her 3month birthday! Happy b-day sweetie!
She is growing so fast and is such a joy to be around! She is becoming more and me like Michael and Victoria. Talking like Toria and content and smiley like Michael.

Well, just wanted to share that with you all!

Happy Easter!

Easter

We are lucky enough to have my dad visit us for Easter again this year and we love it! Unfortunately, I do not have time off as we just had Spring break. We're trying to make the best of it though.
I am doing nursery Friday night, Kevin is ushering Saturday night and Sunday we're invited to brunch at my sister-in-law's mom's house.
I am kinda bummed we won't be making an Easter ham or turkey, but it will be nice to not have to cook too!
Saturday morning we're going to church for an Easter Eggstravaganza. It entails all you can eat pancakes and an Easter egg hunt. We went last year too, and loved it!
Tomorrow, or Saturday afternoon we'll dye eggs and do some fun Easter crafts (and a bit of shopping) and just enjoy the time together,

I will post pictures later on, but I still have not gotten around to re-sizing them from RAW mode.

Take care all! And Happy Easter!

A little bit of spring break

We decided to get away for a few days with the kids. I am already loving it and we've only been away from home for 3 hours! We're planning on eating out every day, doing only fun stuff (no cooking, cleaning etc) and relaxing. God knows I really need it! Thanks to Kevin for funding this break for us!
I will post pictures as we go:) Just need to re-size them since I keep taking pics in RAW mode.

Changes

Changes are so hard! And to force yourself to change yourself is not fun, but I have high hopes that by making some changes in my life I will be happier, healthier, more relaxed and this more fun to be with:)
Being pregnant at the first of the year gave a good excuse not to come up with any new years resolutions. Now though, since adding a member to our family went pretty quick and it was an easy adjustment, I figured I can see if I can maybe get some things changed around the house (meaning me first and foremost). I also want to get our house organized (yeah, I know I have said that so many times and it never happened, but nesting when I was pregnant helped make a foundation, and the nesting instinct is not quite gone yet so I want to take advantage of it).
So, over the next few weeks I will be working on changing me, and the house - trying to slim down both places:)
I will be taking baby steps, so these first few weeks I will just up my water intake and chart it, aim for one long walk every day ( I hope to walk the 5K during the Med City Marathon. (actually, I want to run the 5K, but I am not sure I will be able to do that with my back being all sassy these days), and work on one (1!) room every week to get it organized.
So, if you have any good organizing ideas for me, send them my way! I am more than happy to take directions from people:)
I have always been happy not to be anal about cleaning and organizing, but man, these days I wish I had been born afraid of dirt and mess:)
So wish me luck and cross your fingers I can get this to work for more than a month:)

Spring Break!

Or, is it winter break? It certainly feels like it! It is so cold! Either way, I have a whole week off from my nanny job,and some days off from the Y. I have major plans, none of which include resting, so we'll see how that goes:)

Today is a no school day, but I am working at my nanny job, so most of the day will be spent on the internet I am sure. The kids entertain themselves, Madeline will eat and sleep,and I will catch up on the latest about the Red River Flooding. It sounds pretty bad right now! So please send a prayer up for the people who are in that area, either to help out or live there.
My in-laws live in Moorhead, but I believe their house in North Moorhead won't have any problems, maybe some water in the basement, but that happens every Spring, and is nothing compared to those people with their houses under water.
My friend in West Fargo, whose husband runs a clinic up there, told me their office was being evacuated.

We were planning on going up there for Spring break, so I took that week off, but Kevin's parents were able to work it so that they can go visit my sister-in-law and family in OK, so that canceled our plans. All in all, probably for the best with all this water. I feel like I should be up there doing something, but knowing my bad back wouldn't be able to handle the lifting and passing of bags I would probably just be in the way.

Anyways, so I picked up a few shifts at the Y again (kinda wish I didn't take it off so that I could have gotten my normal hours) and will go to a training in the Cities next Friday. That will be fun. We might be able to arrange for a family weekend up there, so the kids and Kevin (minus Madeline - she'll be with me) can hang out at the hotel or swim or something while I am at the training.
So, I am trying to figure out when we can head up north next time. Seems like every time I can get off from work Lois is working, so we might just have to go up again one weekend while she is working and have fun with her when she gets home in the evening. The kids are getting antsy about visiting them, so hopefully we'll work it out soon.

My dad is coming to visit two days after Spring break ends. I wish they still hooked Spring Break onto the Easter weekend! We are all looking forward to his visit, and hopefully I will be able to arrange for a few days off from the Y since I picked up some Spring break Shifts. He'll be here over Easter and leave again on the 15th. Not long enough, but we're happy that he can come over and visit! The kids are all excited as my mom was here not long ago too. I am so grateful my parents have been able to come visit us so frequently! We love spending time with them!.

Now, off to plan my evening. I am hoping to do something fun with Kevin, or just even make a nice dinner and hang out. No need to follow the NCAA bracket as mine looks horrible!

Hope you are all staying warm and dry!

Thankful and sappy I guess

I had one of those very emotional days when I just really needed some help a few days ago (nothing serious, just worn out) but enough to make me realize how much I love my friends and family! They are the greatest!
So, this post is dedicated to those that I love the most in this world, in no certain order!

Kevin - my wonderful and amazing husband! (He won't be reading this, so don't worry about him being embarrassed:) ) Without him I would not have the three beautiful kids I have. His never ending love, his persistence when I am ready to give up, his need to take care of his family and make sure no one treats us wrong and his dedication to provide for us all that we need and more has made me a brand new person and I find myself falling in love with him more and more, over and over again.
I know that sound cheesy, and there are days when I am ready to scream at him, but he is hands down the best person I have ever met! Love you Honey! Din Hanne Honning!

Elin - my bff! Even living at such a distance you are always there for me, and I cannot thank you enough! (yes, she might actually read this). For listening when I need an ear to vent to. Remember this poem:

A shoulder to cry on
an ear to bend
money to borrow
clothes to lend

Friday movies
afternoon walks
being together
our private talks

Mending out hearts
crying those tears
our memories together
- will they never end?
always together, forever friends

I still have it hanging in the frame with the pictures of our friends. I look at it every day and it totally makes my day to see all those faces and think of all the fun and crazy stuff we did back then :) Getting to know you and having you as my friend is one of the greatest gifts ever! Thank you for letting me bend your ear this past year! Kjempe gla i deg Elin!

Karen - my other bff. I am lucky enough to have her here in town with me! I first met her at her wedding in Bismarck many year ago! My hubby knew her hubby. Since then we've slowly become better friends, and after working together I now consider her one of my two best friends! She is the one person here in town I know I can call whenever I need someone to talk to, help me out or when my real family is getting on my nerves:) Thank you Karen for your support this past year! I consider you and your family my family in Rochester! Love ya! Victoria says she loves you all too! Especially her "sister" Sophie :)

Jen - you are an awesome help with my kids (and Brett too!)! I am so glad that my older two kids are the same age as your kids and that they get a long so well! I am so thankful for you and your family and that you are part of our lives! Thank you!!

So, even though my family is far away - I still get the feeling of family from these wonderful friends! If I got to pick and choose who I could add to my family - you would be the ones!

My family in Norway is amazing too! Without going into it too much (since I miss them so much) I will just say I am thankful for them, and that I hope I will get to see them all soon. I want to show my latest princess with them all, and let my kids get to know them all better (and perhaps pick up on some more Norwegian).

Man, I guess I am in a sappy mood today! I feel tons better, but still homesick:( Looking at pictures from Norway is not making it any better I guess. I think the wonderful smell of Spring is working on me:)
Have a wonderful day you all, and enjoy the weather!

Getting back in a routine

I started back at work last Monday (the 2nd) and man did I pick the wrong day! Work was crazy busy - which from a business standpoint is awesome. I just wish I had picked a slower day to get back into the routine:) It is great to be back though. I have honestly missed all my co-workers and all the members and kids that I see every day.
I was still not feeling great when I went back to work, due to the sinus infection that I never got treated right, but by the end of the week I was better.

In addition to starting work again (at my 2nd job) I also watched my two beautiful nephews two days as my sister-in-law here in town had to have emergency gall bladder surgery. She is on the mend now. I had fun with the two boys, but man, again, it was a lot of work! The youngest one is only 9 months and does not walk, and the older one is 2. This means I had to carry two babies (Madeline and nephew) as well as wait for the 2 year old to catch up. My arms were killing me!
I am glad I was able to help out though. That is what family is for!

On Sunday we finally got to go to the Couple's Mini Congregation again that we've been wanting to join. We Missed the first week, went the 2nd, missed the third as I was sick, and went again this past weekend. I enjoy the people there and the chance to explore the bible more.

Before we left for church that day I got an email form my dad that he will be coming to visit over Easter. We are thrilled! Soon thereafter he called with the news that my maternal grandma had a heart attack. She is doing ok now and the surgery to have a stent put in went well.

Kevin has to work all weekend as well and is still very busy at work. I hope he will get a break soon so that he can catch up on some sleep!

This week has been slower, but it will be longer as my schedule makes me work on Saturday as well as every other day of the week. It will be nice to make some money again after 7 weeks of no pay:)
Tonight we're having date night while the kids are at Awana. Gonna have us some pie from Baker's Square:)

Have a wonderful day all!

Being sick

just really sucks! Out house is on the 3rd week now, but different people sick. Right now it is Madeline and I. She has ear infections in both ears and a sinus infection poor baby! Not even 7 weeks old and already dealing with her ears! I have a sinus infection and really should have went in yesterday to get meds, but did I? Nope. So it will be a long weekend! I just pray it will get better on it's own since I start work again on Monday.
Anyways, that is about it from us. My mom left for Norway again last night, and we already miss her! So glad she was able to make it here to visit though!

Norway Visitor

The kids and I will be heading up to the Cities this afternoon to pick my mom up from the airport. We are all thrilled to have her come visit us! This will be her first time meeting Madeline, so I am sure they will be spending a lot of time cuddling:)

Madeline is growing fast, and getting her own little personality. Victoria loves spending time with her and singing for her, and Michael love just cuddling her. They will sit on the couch for a long time just looking at each other. I love watching them!

Kevin is home sick today, and was yesterday too. He felt sick over the weekend when we were in Moorhead, but got better. Then Monday night he started feeling yucky again and it has gotten worse. I feel so bad for him! He set up a farewell lunch for the people in his department who were laid off, and now he does not get to go. This is also his last week of part time work before he heads back to work full time again. I am sure that transition will be hard when you have been used to sleeping in every day.
I will start my last full week off from the Y next week as well, and even though I look forward to going back I really enjoy the time at home with the kids. We can bake, play games, watch movies and just hang out. Maybe one time in the future I will get to be a full fledged stay at home mom again. It will be good to have that week off since my mom is here, so that we can visit. I do have to work at my nanny job, but having most of the day off while the kids are at school helps.

So, to catch you all up on what has happened lately here is a list, in no certain order:

• Saw a NDSU Bison game in Fargo - they lost:(
• Ate myself stuffed at KFC - mostly on the biscuits
• Left Madeline with grandma for almost 2 hours (longest I have been out without her!)
• Caught up on laundry - only to have it piled up again the next day
• Made Valentines for both of the kids to bring to school
• Went through baby clothes and packed in boxes to ship to OK
• Spent a long weekend with Kevin's parents in Moorhead. Unfortunately Kevin's mom had to work :(
  
• Searched the net for a fun and long hairdo I can sport whenever I get to the hair dressers
• Decided to make lots of meals to freeze - but did not actually follow through (so I am still craving some of the dishes I wanted to eat!)
• Woke up several times to deal with children who felt they were coughing a lung out
  
• Went through my clothes in the closet and put all maternity clothes in boxes to give back to the rightful owner. Most of them were not even worn once by me as I love my sweats too much!
• Went through my closet again and reluctantly got rid of clothes from high school I KNOW I won't fit into ever again, but kept dreaming I would.
• Napped a few times
• Got sad looking at my empty closet!
• Got happy when I realized it meant smaller piles of laundry!
  
• Got excited about the snow melting and grass showing
• Woke up to help children whose ears were hurting
  
• Got depressed about it snowing again, covering the brown grass!
• Cleaned the kids' rooms for the 100th time, threatening to throw away anything left on the floor (for the 200th time). Still have yet to get a thrash bag out to actually pick the things up that are out now...:)
• Cuddled with Madeline, Michael, Victoria and Kevin!
  
• Slept on the couch to keep hubby company while he slept in the recliner chair last night (actually, it was more for me than for him as I sleep horribly when he is not in the room with me)
• Finished the Twilight Series. Now I want to watch the movie!
• Started a book that I never finished - just did not grab me.
• Started another book that is scary! About a house that is alive....also one of the reasons I slept on the couch and not in my bed.....
  

Hm....not a very exciting life, huh? I wouldn't trade it for anything though! Except for the parts where I have to wake up in the middle of the night that is.

Have a wonderful day/week you all!

How to tame kids' clutter!

So on one of my regular blogs that I read I found this link to a link party. At The Shabby Nest you can find links to other blogs where people share their ideas on how to tame the clutter in their house that kids make. Check it out!
I am eating my lunch checking each and every one of the blogs out. So many neat ideas! Now, if I could only afford to get all the extra boxes and storage for the de-cluttering!

Madeline's announcement - I think :)

I got this done for free, but I am not sure I am going to use it as I am not satisfied with all the pictures I picked for it. I was kind of rushed. Oh well, here it is :)

Stuffy noses

are just so much worse when they are in your kids and not you! Madeline started getting a stuffy nose yesterday and last night it was horrible. I feel so bad for her! Especially while trying to eat! She is a champ though and did not complain a lot. I raised her mattress, let her sleep in bed with me (on a wedge) and finally put her in her bouncy seat to sleep. It helped a little, but not a ton. Right now she is sleeping in her car seat, and it seems to help also. Hopefully it will go away soon!
Last night we took the kids to the pool and while sitting in the pool area she was doing great, so it might just be because of the dry air in our house.

Forgive me Friends, for I am not keeping up!

Over two weeks have passed and I am not doing well with keeping the blog going. Sorry!
I really have plenty of time. All I do is dork around on facebook, play with the kiddos (which is very important by the way!), drink hot chocolate (my new love), surf the web for a new cell phone, and making my to-do-list grow! Oh, and every now and then I clean a big and do some laundry too. Such busy life I tell ya!

Next week I am going back to work at my nanny job and I am looking forward to it. It is good to have a reason to get out of the house for a bit, even if it is for work! I will have four weeks of nannying before I go back to the Y to work. My mom will be here the last of those weeks. I am so excited!

Oh, good news! Our friends in Fargo who delivered their twins the Friday before Madeline was born finally got to bring their little girl home today! I am so excited! She was not gaining enough weight, so she had to stay behind when her brother came home. It made me so sad to hear! I know their mom and dad are just thrilled to be all together in one home, which will be amazingly busy now I am sure with a 15 month old and newborn twins!

Today the girl I nanny for (not that she really needs me anymore other than for rides) turned 16!! I have worked for this family for almost 7 years now, so she was only 9 when I started working for them! hmm....feels like I might have written this before - I have to go back in the blog and check. I can't remember anything from one day to the other anymore! I blame it on the nursing fog (or something like that anyways).
Which reminds me, I only had to wake up twice to feed Madeline last night! Then she woke up again around 6:30, but only to snuggle, not eat. It was awesome! She certainly is a grunter though, so throughout the night I did wake up a bit as her grunts are louder than Kevin's snores! No need to get out of bed for grunts though:)

Well, I better get back to being busy ya know :) Lots of facebook talk and status changes to keep track of:)

My cousin is getting married

on my wedding date! I think it is so awesome! On my 12th anniversary she'll be saying yes to her fiancee. Just wanted to throw that out there! She is an adorable girl and he is a cute looking guy too, although I have never actually met him! I hope we can change that in not too long. If only the economy in this world was better! I'd be racing home to hang with family right away.

I know I am behind on blogging, so I promise to TRY to make up in the next few days. I have had to promise to nap every day the rest of the week though, so I am not sure I can make that blogging thing happen.
I start work again next week (one of my jobs) so life is slowly but surely picking up its normal pace.

Showing off the princess

I finally got out to go to the Y while Kids Care was open and I got to show Madeline off today! Kevin took the kids to the pool and I just hung with my co-workers. It was great! I really miss working there, but know it is good to have this time off for now too.
Kevin's parents came down this afternoon and is loving on the kids. This is their first meeting with Madeline and she is sleeping through it.
Kevin's mom gave us a Winnie the Pooh bedding set. It is so cute! She also brought us a convertible car seat - the rear facing to forward facing kind, so now we're set for a while!

Tomorrow is our baby shower that is held at the Y. It will be very fun to see so many people again (feels like I have been gone from work for more than 2 weeks!) Then on Tuesday is the baby shower for my supervisor's baby. She was born right before Thanksgiving, but due to scheduling issues the shower is not until now. So, I get to go back again on Tuesday!

I have only one more week left before I go back to my nanny job. that is be good too! I miss the kiddos. I will stop by on Thursday with Sarah's birthday present. She'll be 16 then. Man, she has grown up so fast! She was only 9 when I started working for them!

Anyways, time to go feed my porker. This time for my own comfort rather than her hunger!
Have a wonderful weekend you all!

That imaginary wall was hit today

Man, you know that wall they talk about in "she's going to hit the wall"? Well, I think I hit it! Does not hurt much, but man I am tired! It is not that Madeline was up a lot - she even slept a 4.5hr stretch making me wake up in pain needing to feed her. It is more that Kevin wakes up when she wakes up, and then he can't go back to sleep so he plays computer games until he feels tired enough - thus making me sleep not very well. I am thinking that tonight I will head to the living room when she wakes up and feed her there and put her to sleep in the bassinet and then myself to sleep on the couch. The kids don't have school tomorrow, so I don't have to get up at 7:30 to get them ready. I meant to nap yesterday, but Kevin fell asleep, so I got up. Didn't want to let the older girls have the run of the house:)
I am hoping Kevin can get enough sleep so that he won't get sick. He tends to run out of steam after a few days of little to no sleep, and then he gets sick. He goes back to work part time next week, and with the IBM layoffs he'll have plenty of work to do.

Kevin's parents are coming down tomorrow afternoon also, so that will be great. The kids will have a blast, and I know Lois is itching to hold Madeline:) I am going to take advantage of having grandma here and nap as much as I can!
Saturday is my baby shower at the Y. My awesome friend Karen is throwing it for me! She is the best! I am excited to get out and see people, and to show our little princess off! Not sure what the guys will be doing, but I have a guess they will head to the pool while the girls party:)

Tonight we're eating dinner that a great friend from the Y brought over yesterday. We're so lucky to have people bring us meals! I am hoping that by the time I head back to work at my nanny job (another week) I can get some meals made and put in the freezer so that we can just take them out and pop them in the oven.
Well, I am going to head out and pick Victoria up, then back home for a nap!
Maybe later today I will find some more energy to take more pictures of the kids to post.

Have a wonderful day all!

A picture of the kids

I finally got around to resizing one of the pictures from when I was in the hospital. So here it is:)


Now, I will go work on the other ones as well:) I am using handy, dandy paint to re-size them, so it will take me a few minutes:)

Here we go:Victoria with baby sister Madeline Can you tell she is proud?!

Michael with baby sister. Looks like a pro at holding babies!

Some of the pictures taken after we got home. I was hoping to get a good one for the birth announcements.

This was taken in the hospital soon before leaving.

Just a little something to brighten your day

My friend Michelle posted this on her blog and I find myself going back to read it over and over. And I laugh each time too! So, I decided to steal her joke and post it here for more people to see since her blog is private.

Supposedly this is from the diary of a Pre-School teacher, but I am sure if you search it on the internet you will find many different versions.

My five-year old students are learning to read.
Yesterday one of them pointed at a picture in a zoo book and said:

"Look at this! It's a frickin' elephant!"

I took a deep breath, then asked..."What did you call it?"

"It's a frickin' elephant! It says so on the picture!"











And so it does...

" A f r i c a n Elephant "

I just laughed out loud when I first read it. Then I went back to show it to Kevin, and then to Michael, and I just keep laughing so hard! The joys of working with children!

Have a wonderful day all, and stay warm. I know we are:)

Doctor's appointment update

Madeline had her first out of the hospital doctor's appointment today and it went very well! I was dreading taking her out in the frigid cold though!
She is not jaundice, and the doc said the main reason for that is how well she eats and it helps get rid of the waste produced by her bruises breaking down. Neither is she GBS positive, although we kinda knew that already since the first test came back negative. She has also gained back all her weight lost plus some and is now 8lbs 15 oz! He said that at this point the babies re usually still 10 oz below their birth weight, so she is doing great nursing! My little porker:)

She slept well last night, as did the rest of us since we got to sleep in:)

Michael and Kevin have been preparing for the overnight blast and Michael actually napped a bit too!

Victoria and I are having a girl's night in with Madeline - painting out nails (not baby's though), eating pizza and watching a chick flick:) It will be great! I am sure we will all end up in my room as well reading and cuddling.

Wishing you all a great and hopefully warmer weekend!

School is canceled again!

Due to the cold weather they have canceled school for tomorrow. It actually works out great for me as tomorrow was going to be early release with Victoria being done at 11:20 and Madeline having an appointment at 11:30.
Tomorrow is also Michael's Overnight Blast at the Y, so it will be good for him to be able to sleep in and take it easy as I am pretty sure he won't be sleeping a lot Friday night. Kevin is going with him as one of the chaperones.
I took some more pictures of Madeline today, but I think they are too big to be uploaded. I saw them in RAW file so I am thinking I might have re-size them before I can upload them. I will play around with that tomorrow when I am not so tired!

Good night all, and stay warm wherever you are!

Negative 52 F with windchill!

That is almost negative 47 C! That is cold I tell ya!
Last night they canceled school for this morning (usually they wait until the day of) due to the severity of the weather!
I guess I picked the right time to go on maternity leave, with no reason to go outside at all!
The kids have early release tomorrow, no school Monday and next Friday, so it works out pretty nicely. Kevin has time of too, so he gets to spend time with the kids even more!

Better get going to feed the princess! Have a wonderful and warm day all!

Hanne

1st night at home and attempting pictures again

Our first night at home went great! Madeline only woke up three times to eat (and no crying other than being hungry and when I changed her diaper). We did have a bit of a mess as I apparently did not wait until she was done going in her diaper before starting to change her, but it all worked out:)
I slept from the minute I put her in her bed until she woke up hungry, so I had good sleep! I was even ready to get up before the alarm this morning. I am sure that won't last though.

Kevin missed his dentist appointment on Monday due to me being in labor, so he got it rescheduled for today. That is where he is right now.
Later today Victoria is bringing her friend Sophie over to stay with us until Awana. Kevin will be taking care of them while I most likely nap:)

I did take some pictures of Madeline this morning as she had her eyes wide open. I also took some without her hat on. She as really dark hair (yes, she has hair!!) and it looks like so much hair too. It is not really that much, but with Michael and Victoria both being pretty much bald it seems like a lot! However, the memory card was not in the camera, so no pictures to share:( I will repeat next time she is wide awake - with the card in the camera!

Well, my second attempt at posting pictures was shot down by blogger again:( I will fight more with it later.

Announcing Baby Madeline

I am so glad to be back home! Yeah, I guess at the hospital I don't have to make my own food - but Kevin makes better food. I had my own room - but with people walking in and out all day and the walls thin enough to hear all the laboring women (sorry to those that I annoyed when I gave birth!). I am SO glad they were willing to let us go home a day early!

So, onto announcing our new princess!
Madeline (that is right, no middle name) was born at 9:35am January 12th, 2009, weighing in at 8lbs 14 oz (4035 grams) and measured 20 inches (50.8cm) long.

She was born after only two hours in the hospital (my water broke at 1am Monday morning) and it was an awesome experience! I knew I had to get there earlier than I did with Victoria (13 minutes before she was born / less than 5 minutes in the room) since I had to get the IV antibiotics. What I did not know, was that they wanted me to have several doses of the antibiotics - all spread out 4 hours apart! Well, that did not happen. I did get one full dose through though, which is better than nothing!
Since she came so fast, her whole head is a big bruise, and she also tried to get her arm out first, which resulted in her arm getting a huge bruise on it. That will all heal in the next few days though.
She is a champion at nursing so that helps tons! She does seem to think of me as a live pacifier though, so we're working on cutting that down:)
Michael and Victoria are very excited to have their sister here finally, and Victoria is my designated burper after feedings:) Michael is more reserved, but definitely a proud big brother! He seems very fascinated with her!
We go back in for a checkup for her on Friday to make sure she is not becoming Jaundiced and that the antibiotics I got were enough to keep the GBS away. Her first GBS culture came back negative, which bodes well.
I find it highly amusing how so many people point out how big she is, and I can quip back with the fact that she is the smallest one that I have had:) She seems so tiny now!

Oki, so I was going to post pictures, but keep getting an error, so I will come back later and try again. Now off to nap again since baby just ate:)

Today

we'll get to meet baby girl Lucier! My water broke at 1am, so now we're off to drop the ids off (in a little bit) and head to the hospital! Contractions have not been too bad, so I was able to doze off a bit in between :) Yay!

More to come!

Wondering why I want to rush it!

So I have been pondering today, Why in the world do I want to rush this pregnancy to end? I am a mean, cleaning machine right now, and it would be nice to keep that going, right?! And I have a feeling it all all stop as soon as baby is here! It is too bad it is winter, or I would have my garage scrubbed down - the on your hands and knees scrubbing in the corners scrubbed down - and organized, labeled etc:)
I am happy with what I have accomplished these last few months though. Our house is still cluttered and nowhere near the spotless house I see some other people living in, but it is a huge step towards the better! You can even look under my bed and see to the other side! Not even a dust bunny (I checked yesterday!). Just that fact alone should help my asthma and allergies a ton!
I sometimes think having carpet instead of hardwood floors would be so much better as all the dust and dirt can hide (and out of sight, out of mind, right!) but I am so glad I can see it all right away so that it is easier to clean as we go.

So, for the rest of the day I am planning on enjoying myself, reading (should have gotten book #2 of the Twilight series!), scrapping, playing around with my pictures on the computer etc, as I know in a few days my free time will be limited! I promise not to make any additions to my to-do-list, nor will I check off more than three more things (I have to write up a few things for work, put away the last of the laundry and make up the guest bed for when we have people come over) for today at least! Can't promise about tomorrow:)
I just called the family I work for to let them know I am currently planning on working there tomorrow (as long as I do not go into labor tonight), and from then we'll take it one day at a time.
Kevin has a dentist appointment tomorrow, so it would be good if labor waited until after he is done:)
So, off I am, to enjoy my weekend and no longer stress about having baby here.

Sending Kevin out tonight

hoping that is might spur something in the labor department:) Sounds kinda backwards doesn't it?
Pastor Paul and some other guys from church are going to see the new Tom Cruise movie (I don't know what it is called) and Kevin was invited. I figured it is good for him to get to do stuff since I will be asking him for a lot of help in the next few weeks!
I have had back pain and contractions all day, but nothing that really hurts or makes me feel very uncomfortable, and they certainly are not close enough together to make a difference right now. I am sure they are doing something in the hidden, but not enough for me to notice any change:)

We spent the whole day shopping for shoes, groceries etc, so I got a lot of walking in before church this evening.
I did start feeling warm and flushed during the sermon, but I am not sure that means anything.

Now the kids are in bed, and I am wondering what project I should take on for the evening. I probably should go to bed, but I know I won't for a while:)

Oh, and I did send my cell with Kevin, so I can get a hold of him. He will be the one with a vibrating cellphone in his pocket not noticing it:) So, our friend is bringing his phone as well (Thank God!) so I can call him if need be:)

Have a good night!

Nothing happened

overnight, and I am kind of happy about that. It is hard to go into labor when you have been up all day trying to get labor going :)
We have a busy day ahead of us, trying to get smaller chores done, major grocery shopping, some laundry (I ALWAYS have lots of laundry to do) and some basic cleaning. Yup, that is right, only BASIC cleaning, as I spent the day yesterday purging and scrubbing:) Never made it as far as vacuuming the basement (our vacuum cleaner and I don't get along very well. It is an old one we got from Kevin's mom when our other one broke). The vacuum cleaner works, but has a mind of it's own and I think it really just moves the dirt more than pick it up, so I am guessing a vacuum cleaner will be my next big purchase. It is nice though, that upstairs we have no carpet, only a few rugs that I can clean with my hand held vacuum. I would love to have a vacuum that can clean both hardwood, tile AND carpet! Not sure if that is in our budget though.

Right now I am just sitting here waiting for the rest of the crew to wake up so that I can make more sound:)
Have a wonderful weekend all!

Disappointing appointment

I went in today for my checkup thinking (since the doc said so last time) I would get a date for an induction, but not so :( I did not have my regular doc and the doc I saw does not induce until 41 weeks 2days in case of prematurity. Did not matter that my other doc had it written in my chart that we were to set up an induction for a few days later. I was so set on knowing it would be set up I left the office in tears. I know it will happen sooner or later, but I am having nightmares about going into labor and not getting there in time for the IV antibiotics! Oh well, if that is the worst thing I can complain about I guess I am doing pretty good, huh:)
So, my next appointment is next Thursday - at 39 weeks 5 days, but I am going to see if I can reschedule for Wednesday just because it works better for me work wise.
So, this is today's update. I am currently cleaning the house again hoping to get something going by itself:)

Still here, and Sorry!!!

Sorry I did not update yesterday. I had the most horrible headache I could not get rid of, and stayed on the couch and in bed as much as I could. Still no baby, so I guess we have to wait until tomorrow to know more:)
Kevin is hoping to game with the guys tomorrow, so Saturday am would be a perfect time to head to the hospital to be induced! I would love for baby girl to show up this weekend, but I guess if I have to wait until Monday that is ok too:) Another weekend to get stuff done. I still need to get out and spend money on a boppy and a diaper bag, preferably before baby gets here:) It is just so nice to not do anything when I get home from work in the evening!

Kevin and I got to go out to eat alone (probably for a long time) and tried a new for us restaurantt named Chesters downtown. It was ok. Maybe a little bit too upscale for us:) The salad I ordered was really good, but actually filled us up better than the dinner meal Kevin ordered. It is nice to have that time just for the two of us though.

My headache is here today too, and I am not sure why it is here. I have had it since Tuesday, so I hope it goes away soon. I actually woke up from the pain last night - combined with some weird dreaming, and could not get back to sleep so last night was a looong night, making today a loong day!

Tonight I have to make Victoria's VIP Board for school. She needs to have it with her on Monday - pictures of her and family and some info about her. We're waiting to fill out the last line of the info as it tells about her family. We might be able to add another name (if we ever decide on a name and baby shows up before then) before she heads to school on Monday. I really need to get that done as I would feel really bad if she did not have her board ready when it is her turn to be the VIP.
Anyways, that is today's update:) I am hoping I will have internet access at the hospital so that I can update as soon as something happens and share pictures right away too, but I really do not know. I need to remember to ask what I can use and what they do not have tomorrow at my apointment.

Still here.....

I am still at home, or at work that is. I work at my nanny job until 6. then head back to the Y for the second time today do reviews. The kids and Kevin will be swimming. I am not going to the pool as I would feel horrible if my water broke and they had to close the pool just because of me!
Short daily updates will be coming!

Last week of work for a while

Today I started my last week at the Y before baby comes. I was tired though. I did not sleep well, and have felt weird (not sick or anything, just weird) all day. This evening I have been having back pain, but I am not sure it is contractions as they don't really go away. Just kind of there the whole time. So, we'll see I guess if this turns into anything. Just in case, I am heading to bed in a few minutes. If it is the real thing at least I can get some sleep in before it gets too bad:) I am fairly certain they will see me at work again tomorrow though.
I told Ryan I would call him if I went into labor so that he could work for me. He sounded kind of worried about that, so I better make sure there is no contraction coming when I am letting him know:)

Cross your fingers for a good night's sleep!

Hanne

Last weekend as a family of 4?

I as up most of the night thinking that this might be our last weekend as a family of 4! It is kind of scary!
Michael is off at a sleep over, Victoria was up most of the night not feeling good so I anticipate a long nap for her, Kevin will be watching the Vikings play in the playoffs and I am doing house stuff (just can't seem to stop!). So much for family time, huh:)
Oh well, we'll have six weeks to hang out together at home (except for when the kids are in school that is) so that will be good!

I feel like I have gotten most of my stuff taken care of, but keep looking for things I want to get done so that I won't have to worry about it with a baby around.
One of the biggest things that bug me is the painted train border in the room that will be the girl' bedroom. I keep thinking that all I need it a can of white paint:) I know this is something that will have to wait until after baby comes though, so maybe when my mom is here since she can watch the girls when I paint:) The whole thing should only take 20 minutes or so, I have just kept putting it off.
The rest of the stuff I want to do is: Get a rug for the girl's room, get fabric to finish up Michael's drapes and fabric for the girls' room drapes, buy a diaper bag, baby bathtub and a big, really flat, door mat for the door by the kitchen. This is very much needed as I now get to park in the garage again! Thank you Kevin for moving the extra car out of the way! This means I don't have to get up earlier in the am to scrape my car, and it will warm up so much faster!
I also want to purge more stuff out of the house, and take it to the Goodwill store. I love the way my living room is right now - with only the necessities in it!
Last night I cleaned out pretty much everything from my closet - putting all the maternity clothes in a bucket (I will be living out of that bucket until baby comes! but at least I can get it back to the rightful owner as soon as I am done with the clothes and have them washed!) and sorting out the clothes I desperately want to fit into again, but know I won't.

Anyways, instead of wasting time on the computer, I should get to work:) Cross your fingers for the Vikings to advance to the next round!!! Go Vikes, Victoria says!

Super Excited!!

I got an email from my mom letting me know she got tickets to come visit us in February! I am so excited!!
I also had my OB appointment today, and that was less fun. I found out I tested positive for Group B Strep, which means I have to have an IV antibiotic when I go trhough labor and delivery. Bummer. I was hoping I could get by without one again! On the brighter side, it does mean that by next week (unless baby decides to come on her own) they will set the date for me to be induced. With the risk of having a rapid delivery and not getting the meds in time they would rather set me up to be induced as not to risk the baby getting the Strep as well.
Right now I am still only at a 1, so she did not want to set it up yet. I guess all the contractions I have had these past two weeks have done nothing.

Today's work day is almost over. It is nice to only have one work day before the weekend! I work at the Y tomorrow, but that is only until noon, so not bad at all:)

Kevin is at home today, and kept the kids as well so that they could sleep in. Last night he made a to-do-list for himself and it included making a turkey dinner! Isn't that great? We were intending on having it yesterday, but Kevin had the chance to go gaming with the guys, so we put it off until today. Who knows when he'll have the chance to go have much fun again. I am so blessed to have a husband who always puts us (me and the kids) first!

The official count down (waiting) has started!

Baby girl now has the ok to come any day! I do have an appointment tomorrow, so if she waits until after that it is fine with me.
I will find out more about dilation, effacement and possible induction then, so I am pretty excited.
Today I am planning on just taking it easy with the kids, watching a movie or playing games with them. Kevin is going gaming with the boys out in Kasson.
I guess I should do some laundry as well, but I am not too stressed about that:)
We have everything we have to have for the baby to come, just need to install the car seat in the car.
Still have some "wishing for" things on my list, but none are needed, so I will put off getting those until later.

Happy New Year to all of you! I hope 2009 treats you well and brings you good health and lots of happiness!