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Today I feel defeated. My child REFUSED to listen to a word I say.

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How sweet is this??? Brian planned meals for this coming week AND went grocery shopping for me today!

All I Want for Christmas is You

Well, Christmas has been an interesting one this year. We were supposed to go to Brian's sister's, but their whole fam came down with the flu. So we had to postpone it until next week. In a way, we were glad to not have to drive through the snow storm that day. (8 inches on top of what we already had)! But at the same time, it left us with a Christmas without family. Our first =0( Anyway, it was too last minute to prepare anything so we loaded the car and headed out to a Japanese Buffet for a Christmas Eve dinner. Gotta make the best of it right? I'm just glad we weren't the only ones there! With full tummies, we headed to church for a Christmas Eve service, came home and went to bed.



Our Christmas morning
A new toy? They do love me!
We all love having Brian home most of the week, especially Ethan who has been SUPER attached to him. He started calling Brian "Daddia" (???) and wanted to be held ONLY by him or sit ONLY in his lap. I just shrugged and say hey that's what he wants and snuck off to go do my own thing ;0) It has been a low-key week with the family...which is nice but borderline boredom (since we wanted to leave town). You know us Billmans, we can't be confined in the house for too long. Ethan has been a trooper with the snow, cold weather and not being able to go out as much. I tried to suit him up at least once a day so he could go play in the snow (with Brian). We went to the museum one day, drove around and looked at the lights one night. So I think that helped. It was also a motivation for me to get out of my pj's and get a move on. So how long is it going to take for all this snow to melt now?

p.s. Surprisingly our Christmas tree survived with only one broken ornament...and that was truly an accident. I prepared myself knowing that it was bound to happen sooner or later with a 2-year-old so I wasn't too upset. He left it alone for the most part though.

Christmas Letter '10

2010 – Oh, The Places We Went!

What’s a better way to start the year off than with a family vacation to Ft. Myers, Florida. It was Ethan’s very first plane ride and boy, was he a busy body! We were relieved at our arrival and only had one thing on the agenda: relax. And that is what we did! Our little explorer had the time of his life: roaming the beach front, chasing birds, collecting sea shells and even eating some sand. Blah! Despite the cold water, we still enjoyed the southern warmth. But like all good things it must come to an end.

Summer came and we took another trip to the Atlantic. This time we headed to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina with Brian’s parents. We hit the beach first thing every morning and went swimming. Ethan, on the other hand, didn’t quite share the same enthusiasm. He was terrified of the waves and was found happily playing with his sand toys instead. At night, Brian and I walked the shops along the boardwalk and enjoyed music by the beach as we reminisced about the summer we met in FL. It was wonderful! What a great vacation and it was even better with Dave and Linda along!

After spending so much time away, it was time to buckle down and get some house stuff done. August was spent painting the basement and remodeling the master bathroom. We got a new bathtub/shower installed so now there is no more caulking…EVER again!

A month later, we flew out to see my parents in Colorado. This year we wanted to take advantage of the great outdoors so we went when it’s not cold or snowing. We hiked in the mountains, walked around the lake, and climbed all the stairs at the famous Red Rocks Amphitheater. Ethan also had a blast at their house and was quite entertained in their vegetable garden. Believe it or not after this trip, he has now been to seven states before the age of 2. Pretty impressive huh?

Ethan turned 2 in November and we could hardly believe it! He is all-boy who loves to run, jump, climb and get dirty ALL day long while laughing and giggling. Whew, thankfully his energy level and intensity have settled down quite a bit! “E,” as he calls himself, is also talking a lot more now. Every so often we would find him reading and jabbering to himself and to Ikaika. Ethan’s bed time is the best part of the day ever since he started cuddling with us. Those are precious moments and a rarity in this household! It has truly been a fun year with him!

Not only did Brian turn the big 3-0 this year, so did I. From what we’ve heard, the 30’s is better than the 20’s. I hope they’re right! My parents came out for a quick Thanksgiving/birthday weekend celebration and what a special treat for us all, especially Ethan. He got to see them twice this year!

We have had a wonderful year, and we hope you have too. May our Lord, Jesus Christ be glorified in this Christmas Season! Wishing you many blessings in 2011!

Wintery Bliss

My winter guilty pleasure drink: hot chocolate with Peppermint Schnapp. Might as well make the most out of winter right? ;0)

Running through the House Screaming

...after Kaika. Yup, we're back to normal. After a week and a half of illnesses sweeping through our house, I think we're all finally okay now. I started feeling guilty with all the TV/cartoons we watched, but there's so much I could do to entertained a sick child when you're sick yourself. Anyway as you can tell, we don't do so well in the house that long so I took Ethan to Monkey Joe's today. I can tell he was just SO happy to go somewhere & play and I was happy to get back to our normal routine again. He's eating well and sleeping well which led to a happier toddler. Less whinny and less attached. And I'm less frustrated knowing that my only goal of the day (make dinner) can actually get accomplished. The sun's out today too so that helped a lot even though it's FRIGID cold out. I was feeling majorly depressed yesterday and was so, so, so out of it. But things will be okay after all.

Down and Out #2

But this time it's Brian. Apparently, he caught whatever Ethan had but worse. He tried to go into work this morning, but only to turn around and come back. I've never seen him so sick, especially since he's the type who never acts sick or stays home because of it. Brian ended up spending most of the day in bed and rest as much as he can while I tried to entertain Ethan at home. Ethan's still not quite 100% so unfortunately a playdate today was out of the picture. We did run a couple of errands and went to the mall just to get him out of the house...and keeping him from screaming & barging into the bedroom to jump on the bed (because Daddy's home). He has been extra handful today - just whinny/needy and not understanding the whole "sick" concept so it has been a challenging day. Along with that, I'm trying my hardest not to catch this stomach flu or whatever these two have. So far so good, but I think I am coming down with a cold though. Yuck! Please be praying for our family.

Down and Out

So yesterday morning I went in to get Ethan only to be hit with a horrible STENCH. So I thought he might have been sick and had a really bad, bad diaper. But as I inspect closer, I realized I was wrong. Instead, I saw that Ethan had apparently thrown up all over himself...in the middle of the night, rolled around in it and went back to sleep (???). His pj's, blankets and bears seemed to suggest so. I was so confused because I didn't hear anything coming from his room all night. Anyway, I got a load of laundry going and spent the rest of the day just cuddling on the couch with him. I must say I enjoyed that, but that's when you know he's REALLY sick. Poor kid!

Alternate napping location

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Got what every mom would want: 24 hours ALL TO MYSELF!!!

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Note to self: Do not use the oven's "self cleaning" mode in the winter when you can't open the windows and doors. I'm ready to pass out from the fume!

White Stuff from the Sky

So today we have our first official snow. And being the awesome mom that I am, I bundled both of us up to go play outside. I know, shocking isn't it since usually I don't want anything to do with snow (other than watching it from the inside) ;0) But I couldn't say no to that excited look in Ethan's eyes. So outside we went and we had fun! Minus the fact that Ethan won't keep his mitten on and Kaika kept stealing and flinging them around. Anyway, I'm proud to say that for the first time in 6 years I finally own a waterproof gloves and boots. I supposed they're winter necessities.

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Having a rough week and feeling kinda blue, so I prayed for the sun. And it came out! Just in time so I could take Ethan and Kaika for a walk. It lifted my spirit, thank you Lord!

Double Celebrations

For Thanksgiving, my parents decided to come into town last minute. So we ended up changing our plans of going to Marshalltown and stayed here instead. Everyone pitched in to help and everything was scrumptious! It worked out great that we had just enough food for one round of left overs since I'm not a big fan of eating this stuff over and over again for days. Turkey sandwich, turkey soup, turkey whatever else...you get kinda sick of it after a while. Unfortunately by the time we actually finished eating, Ethan woke up from his nap. So none of us really got a chance to take that long, lazy nap we had talked about. Go figure.


That night, Brian and I spontaneously booked a hotel and stayed the night in Schaumburg, IL (with my parents' suggestion and insistent). Who can turn down a night away, especially when we don't get the opportunity very often? So of course we went! It was so much fun and we laughed a lot...at the littlest thing and the chance that we can do things on the spur of the moment. The next day, we went to Woodfield Mall and joined in the rest of the shoppers. Talking about craziness amount of people!

Celebrating my birthday at a Japanese restaurant on Saturday

Growing Boy

We went in for our 2 year check up today and got some new growth measurements:
Weight: 32 lb. 10 oz. (91st percentile)
Height: 3 feet (89th percentile)
He also got a Polio shot while we were there. His eyes got big and he kept saying, "Ow, ow, ow" as the nurse inserted the needle. But he got over it pretty quickly. Apparently, it didn't really hit me that Ethan's 2 already until our doctor said that he won't be seeing him again until he turns 3. Wow, that's crazy!

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Feeling cabin fever-ish all week so we drove to Iowa City for dinner and some shopping. Ah, I feel much better now that we got out!

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Just got memberships to The Family Museum and Monkey Joe's. We should be good to go for the winter.

Ethan's Two

Yesterday was Ethan's ball-themed birthday party and Brian's parents came into town to help us celebrate. I kept it simple this year so we could just enjoy our time with him. But even with the goal of being "simple," I still couldn't help but aim for perfection. Anyway, I quickly reminded myself that that doesn't have to be the outcome of everything. Sometimes good IS good enough which helped me to enjoy the rest of the preparations!


He loved all of his gifts - thanks Grandpa & Nana.


My attempt at making a soccer ball cake. Not too bad huh?

Ethan was eyeing his cake all day and was SUPER excited when he finally could have a piece.

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Ethan finally took my advice and slept in until 8:30 am this morning. Definitely enjoyed it since it only happens like twice a year.

Just For Laughs

Ethan heard Paparazzi song by Lady Gaga on the radio and was singing along saying, "Papa, papa." Except I think he thinks he's singing about his grandpas. =0)

Mamma Wisdom of the Week

I went to Chick-fil-A this morning for a playdate and had so much fun chatting with a girl named Tricia, who also has a 2-year-old boy. I brought it up that it was Ethan's birthday yesterday which somehow led to birth stories and many others stories related to having a boy. What an encouraging time! It's nice to know that many things that I thought was unique to Ethan is actually just a BOY thing.

Side note: I saw this video on youtube the other day and thought it was neat Reflections of Motherhood. My answers would be: It's going to be hard and that boys are SO different!

Anyway, one big thing that we talked about was meal time and how difficult it has been lately for me. I tried so hard to make eating fun instead of being that mom who nagged and fought with their kids at every meal. What seemed to work for us: "If you eat this _____ (like chicken), then you'll get this _____ (peas or something he likes)." But obviously that doesn't always work and some days I just don't know how he's getting by with only milk, yogurt and applesauce. So she reminded me what I've already heard before: toddlers won't let themselves starved and that they'll eat when they're hungry. Plus, you'll have to look at what they eat in a span of a week instead of at each meal, which made me feel a little better. I've also learned a while back not to cook different things for your kids and that they'll need to learn to eat what you've made. And only to reheat that if they're hungry. Of course I'm not THAT strict and have made exceptions here and there but for the most part, I tried to stick to this rule. It's so hard not to take it personal though, especially when I made his favorite....or was favorite (that was so yesterday) and expect him to gobble it up. Oh well.

Birthday Boy

The birthday boy turned 2 today, but we won't be having his party until Saturday. Anyway, it was an uneventful day for the most part - went to Julie's in the morning and to story time at the library tonight. I was planning on taking him to Whitey's to get some ice cream afterwards, but after seeing his crazy energy I decided to hold that off until tomorrow. Don't think we need anymore sugar intake right before bed.

Anyway, it's so crazy to think that two years ago today this little guy came into the world. I tried to reflect back throughout the day of the different moments of his life and how it just felt so surreal. Someone asked me the other day if it felt like it has been two years already and I said, yes and no. The days are long, but the years are fast is what someone once told me and I just think it's so true. When you're in the moment, it just doesn't feel like it going fast enough. But when you look back, wow it went by pretty fast...(although Brian and I had joked that we felt like we've aged like five years instead of just two). I guess having a child will do that to you. One thing God has really been teaching me is to enjoy the moments I'm in now and not looking so far ahead. So that's what I've been doing more and more. Last week, Ethan was playing with Brian's backpack and when he came down the hall way with it on, I got kinda teary. He looked SO old and ready for kindergarten or something. I know that day will come and I'm sure I'll cry even though I said wouldn't. But for now, I'm cherishing the time I have with him.

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Forgot Ethan had played with the alarm clock in the guest bedroom yesterday...until it went off at midnight last night. Scared the heck out of me!

AWANA

Tonight was the first night I took Ethan to AWANA and he had a lot of fun! Unfortunately, our church doesn't have the program so I had to take him to another church that does. He's in the Puggles and they learned about stars and how God made everything. He came home talking about stars in the sky and singing Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star. It was really cute to see him absorbing everything! I'm excited to start doing this on a weekly basis not only for Ethan but also for us. It's nice to get a break so we just might have to reinstate date night on Tuesdays =0). Anyway, the only bad thing about it: he came home super wound up and ready to play...instead of going to bed.

p.s. Did you know that AWANA stands for "Approved Workmen Are Not Ashamed?" Well, I didn't until now.

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Went in to get Ethan this morning only to find: his footed PJ's unzipped, his diaper ripped off, and that he had peed all over his bed.

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Ever since Brian got home from his (work) trip, Ethan has been super duper attached to him and would NOT let him leave his sight. Must be in the same room at all time and preferably carrying him. I don't blame him!

Trick or Treat

Friday, I found out about trick or treating at the mall so I decided to take Ethan there last minute. Didn't think it was going to be a big thing but was I wrong. It was madness with a ton of people & their kiddos in costumes. I supposed something indoor to take their kids to. Ethan wore his cow "hood" the whole time and enjoyed the "I dressed in a cute costume and I get lots of candy" experience, even though he was sweating hot. We held up the line a few times as he wanted to eat as he goes so we decided to not actually go around the whole mall. I tried to not freak out by all the candy he was consuming right before dinner.

Saturday, we went trick or treating around the neighborhood as a family. It was a lot of fun and the warmer weather definitely made the night more enjoyable. We walked around our block, but Ethan didn't make it very far so we ended up carrying him most of the way. Too distracted by the sour apple sucker I think. By the end of the night, he realized that he has been missing out on sweets and candy his whole life (of 2 years). Yeah, I guess that'll be my fault. Anyway, we had to hide all the candy so the lil' guy would go to bed - with a promise that he can have some tomorrow.

"I Want Candy!"

Mamma Wisdom of the Week

I was reading a book called What Every Mom Needs and came across a list of age-appropriate tasks that I found helpful. Ethan is already doing a little bit like helping me with laundry, taking out the trash & recycling bins, feeding Kaika, and filling Kaika's food buckets and you know what? He is such a hard worker (when not distracted)! But I was hoping to have him do more around the house. So I thought this came at just the perfect time.

Tasks for Two- and Three-Year-Olds

• load spoons into dishwasher
  
• help feed animals*
  
• put away toys after play*
  
• wipe table*
  
• dry unbreakable dishes
  
• sweep (small broom)
  
• wipe mirrors (parent sprays)
  
• entertain infant
  
• bring in newspaper
  
• dress and undress
  
• mop small area
  
• pour milk (small pitcher)
  
• empty wastebaskets
  
• dig and pull weeds in garden
  
• dust furniture
  
• fold dishtowels - prefers to unfold
  
• put away silverware - prefers to bring them out
  
• load washer, unload dryer*
  
• stir orange juice
  
• assist with stirring in cooking
  
• brush teeth, wash face*
  
• tidy magazines, sofa pillows
  
• pick up trash in yard*
  
• set table (from diagram)

* already doing

Discovery of the Week

• Recently Ethan figured out how to use the door knobs. So now he's no longer frustrated and whinny at the door from being shut out or in. Last week, I found him in his socks playing in the middle of the yard because apparently, he decided to let himself (and Kaika) out the patio door. Also, I do have to warn guests when they stay with us to make sure they do lock their door unless they wanted to be barged in unexpectedly.


• Throughout the day, we sing our ABC's quite a bit and this is how the song usually goes. "a b c d e.....k....p..s t....y." Not too bad for a 2-year-old. And his favorite game show is none other than Wheel of Fortune.


• Ethan can now say his name...well sorta. Can't quite say the whole thing so he calls himself "E."


• He has finally learned how to say "I love you, Mamma" and it's just the sweetest sound to my ears =0)

The Farmyard

Ethan and I are visiting Brian's parents in Marshalltown for a few days. And for our outing today we went to Center Grove Orchard where Brian's mom wanted to get some apples & cider. While we were there, I decided (against all my inner desires) to walk through The Farmyard despite the 40 degree weather with a gusting wind of 50 mph - not kidding! (But what do you do when somehow you gotta get a toddler's energy out). So we put on our hats and winter coats and toughed it out. Of course like any kids, Ethan had a blast and doesn't seemed to mind the cold. Me, on the other hand, wondered AGAIN how I was going to make it through this winter. But we had fun anyway!




Ethan's favorite, the Corn Pool. We definitely gotta get one of these in our backyard! It was AWESOME!

Dr. in the House

Our good friends, the McCallisters came into town this weekend for Zac's graduation (from Palmer Chiropractic School) which meant he is now officially a Dr. Yay! It was fun to hang out with them again and as always they're up for anything. So on Saturday, we headed to John Deere headquarters to do a little touring. Ethan had a blast climbing on all the tractors/machinery and really enjoyed the freedom to wander.


Is this huge or what?

Candy bribery was involved for this pic ;0)

Halloween Party

The mom's group had a Halloween party today and we was fun seeing all the kiddos in their costumes. There were lots of yummy food, too!

My lil' cow
Posing with his friend, Nathan. Too cute!

Fall Service Project

This is what we did at MOPS today: putting together a baby boy basket which will be donated to the local Crisis Pregnancy Center.

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Went grocery shopping this morning BY MYSELF (without a screaming toddler) and actually had time to think through my list.

Just For Laughs

Clear the road!
Check out my new shades (actually they're Dadda's)

Party Time!

Yesterday, we spent the day in Lexington celebrating Ethan's cousin, Lucas' 4th birthday. As always the cousins had fun playing together and by the end of the night, they were best buds! =0) We had fun catching up with the fam, too. And I must add that this has been the best Fall EVER. The kids spent most of their time outside. What a perfect weather!

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You know it's going to be a LOOONG day when it's only 7 am and my patience has already run out. Praying that God would just get us through the morning =0(

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Many nights I wonder...why bother picking up the toys when they'll be scattered all over the house again tomorrow??? So I just leave them where they are. Clearing the hallways and bottom of the stairs of course.

Our Happenings

Just a little midweek update on what we've been up to.

Sunday: "Be the Church" Sunday where we went out into the community as a church and served. Brian and I were the captains for doing yard work at King's Harvest (a local soup kitchen). Their property wasn't all that big but was that deceiving: we were there for three hours and it was hard work! God provided the people and other things that I didn't think of, including a friend with a truck and a generator to power the equipments, that helped get the job done quicker. I guess while we were there, there were a lot of wanderers downtown that I unintentionally ignored while busily "working." God also reminded me that while it's great to be so focused on serving (along side fellow Christians) that I also needed to have a heart for His people who might not know Him.

Good job team - the yard, parking lot & sidewalk looked 110% better!
Monday: I took Ethan to a story time at the Bettendorf Library and he LOVED it! I wish I had taken him sooner, but this whole time I thought for sure he wouldn't sit still long enough. But you know what, he actually sat on my lap the whole time and was mesmerized by the songs, rhymes and movement activities. We had a lot of fun!

Tuesday: After talking to some friends, Brian and I are trying this thing where we each get a night off. So far it hasn't really worked out, but we're trying it again. Tonight, I headed to Chili's for dinner with some MOPS ladies for a Mom's Night Out. It was an overwhelming day with Ethan and so it was a MUCH needed time away! I came home feeling refreshed and extra chatty =0)

Wednesday: Tonight was Brian's night off which he chose to work on completing the deck project...a year later. (Seriously, only my hubby would do that on his night off). I decided to take Ethan to the story time at the library again. He still liked it, but unfortunately it was EXACTLY the same thing as the one on Monday. I know repetition is good for him, but it was kinda boring for me. Oh well, we got out of the house and killed about an hour.

Nothing on the agenda tomorrow. But I'm looking forward to Friday night which is our church's woman's retreat. Yippee for another night away where I don't have to cook =0D

Action Packed Day

Ethan started our day at the crack of dawn (to my dismay - doesn't he know it's the weekend?) After Brian went to get him, he happily barged into our room and tried to drag me out of bed while saying "eat" over and over again. Okay, I get the point. I'm up. Since we're all up early, we decided to take advantage of this rare beautiful day in October and go do something. First things first, the QC Mother of Twins Club rummage sale across the river. Wasn't sure what I was going to find since I have horrible luck when it comes to garage sales, but I was hoping something worthwhile. To my excitement, I got a lawnmower, a dump truck and jack o' latern for Ethan. AND the steal of the day: a Baby Bjorn Air baby carrier (that I've been looking for for the next baby) for $10!!! That totally made my day!

Look at that concentration on his face
We then headed to Scott County Park for a day of hiking. Boy, did he and Kaika had a blast on the trail! Later that afternoon, we headed to LeClaire and walked the shops along the Mississippi River. What a fun day to spend as a family and getting to do these QCA things that we've always wanted to do but haven't for whatever reason.

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Ethan's 9 pm bedtime lately is taking a toll on us. We NEED some couples time.

Stone's Apple Barn

Today, Ethan and I ventured out to an apple orchard with the mom's group. It was a first experience for both of us and we had a lot of fun. We got to go on a hay ride, saw lots of apples, and learned how they are cleaned & processed. Ethan's favorite part was at the end when they gave him a whole apple. You should have seen him devour that thing! And my favorite part was coming home with some yummy cider.



When we got home, he woke up freaking out because he couldn't find the rest of his apple.

Annual Oktoberfest

After agonizing over how cold it was going to be at the Amana Colonies today, it turned out to be beautiful day after all. Yes, it was cold and windy but at least it was sunny (unlike last year). And with a yummy cup of rasberry white chocolate mocha, I was good to go! We made it to the parade this year and Ethan had a blast. It was his first and he was rather entertained by all the cars, fire trucks and horses. His favorite part? Picking up all the candy that were thrown out by the parade people. Although he didn't quite get what he was supposed to do at first, he caught on pretty quickly. It was cute. We spent the morning strolling through the stores and I came home feeling accomplished. Ate at the Ox Yoke, got my dessert wine & kettlecorn and bought a few Christmas ornaments. What a fun day and it was even better spending it with Brian's parents and our friends, the Boscaljons.

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Just had one of the best days EVER with the fam!!! Got lots done in the house and out. Got a super long nap. Plus a movie night on the air mattress. Everybody's happy =0D

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Searching the entire house for my missing car keys. Only if my toddler could tell me...

Lakewood

Finally, I have some time to update about our Colorado trip at the beginning of the month. Apparently, it has been a while since we were back because I had forgotten a few of the state's awesome trademarks that I love:

-clear sky with not a single cloud
-the dry air
-of course the Mountains
-tons of outdoors activities

Since my parents only get to see Ethan once a year, they were so excited to spend time with him and just be grandparents. They also knew we needed time away as a couple and gave us many opportunities to go on dates. Which we of course took advantage of =0) One of the days, we made our ways up to the mountains to go shopping and ate at my favorite pizza place, Beau Jo's. It was awesome!!! We also went out to dinner and dessert the other nights. Ethan of course had a blast at their house and absolutely LOVED their vegetable garden. It amazingly kept him busy and entertained for quite some time!



Counting airplanes and looking at stars


Labor Day block party at my parents'
A day at the Denver Children's Museum

My little stairmaster going up and down and up and down all the stairs at Red Rock Amphitheater
Our most favorite part of the trip: enjoying the scenic drive and hiking the trails surrounded by aspen trees at Kenosha Pass (elev. 10,000 feet). Ethan absolutely loved it as you can tell by the video.







We had a great time, thanks for everything!

Bracing Myself

First thing first before I forget, last Saturday was Brian's big 3-0 birthday. I threw him a nice little bash and it was great having family and friends here for the special occasion. I guess I'm married to an old man now. But then again, I guess I'm next.

Now onto this post. So every year around this time when the air gets crisp and the leaves start changing color sI get excited because I love Fall. But at the same time, I also get this anxiety because I know what's around the corner. The snow, the cold, the winter apparels and the fact that it's going to to be harder to get out with Ethan. And I absolutely hate being stuck in the house. These are real fears people!!! I am NOT from the midwest and don't think I will ever get used to the midwest winter. Brian laughs about it and tells me to not freak out as I checked with him again when we'll be getting the first snow. God reminded me this week to come to Him so He could calm my anxious heart. In the mean time, I wake up every morning telling myself that it's going to be okay. We've done this 5 times before.

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One thing that I absolutely dread thinking about daily: what to cook for dinner. In an ideal world, I would have a personal chef who would make me gourmet meals on demand.

MOPS 2010 - Quantum Queens

MOPS started up again this year with the theme of MOMOLOGY: The art and science of Mothering and tomorrow will be our 2nd meeting. I'm super excited because the women in our group seemed to mesh well together and I hope we can all go deeper! Last year didn't turn out so great which is why I decided to step up and take on some leadership roles. I'm praying that I can be welcoming to the new moms and that they won't feel left out. And may it all be done to the glory of our Lord!

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When my hubby wants something done, he wants it done! It's 9:45 pm and we're prepping the bathroom for painting tomorrow =0(

Discovery of the Week

This week, I finally switched Ethan from the space-saver high chair & booster to just a portable booster so he could actually sit and eat AT the table with us. I really should have done this a long time ago because I think he felt more like a part of the family at meal time (instead of sitting side way). He even has his own plate and silverware to use now that I finally got over the making-more-mess factor, but the ironic thing is that the mess is less. Apparently he liked having more control of his food and haven't been throwing it on the floor anymore. And come to find out after the chair switcheroo that the arms on the space-saver actually goes down (so I could've scoot it under the table). Duh!

Onto a very exciting thing that happened tonight: Ethan ACTUALLY peed in the potty!!! It was a pretty hilarious scene. He got up, poked his finger in it and with a semi-confused look said "Uh-oh." I screamed in excitement but had to tone it down and change to a cheer since I realized that I had scared him. Then he said yay and clapped his hands. Sad to say, but Brian has been the one who encouraged him and helped him to try the potty out lately. I guess I've tried a few time before, but I think he might have been too young and maybe not ready then. So anyway, I'm excited but nervous at the same time since I'm not quite sure what the process is and what I need to do. I guess we'll see...

Playdates

Pictures from playdates with Matthew a couple of weeks ago.

Enjoying a hot but fun day at the zoo:





Dinner at the Lemos: