{ keisha's blog }

Como Zoo & Conservatory

2010-03-13T21:35:00.005-06:00

Today me and the boys and Marissa went to Como Zoo & Conservatory. Last night I told the kids that we were going on an adventure with Auntie Rissa. Zander said he wanted to be surprised with the activity...but proceeded to try to guess where we were going. He finally figured it out when we were walking to the entrance and read the sign that said Como Zoo. He yelled, "the zoo" and he and Mason both had big smiles. We visited the animals and then walked around the conservatory. It really gave me spring fever. I cannot wait until we start to see green around our own place! After Como, we had lunch at Snuffy's Malt Shop in St. Paul. Super fun morning and afternoon with the kids and my sister!

Smarty Pants

2010-02-24T21:25:00.003-06:00

Yesterday, we received an email from Zander's Kindergarten teacher. We, of course, know he's a smarty pants, but now I know I'm not just being a biased parent. Here's an excerpt from the note she sent us...

I have friends in 1st grade and have found a teacher that would be willing to let Zander join her guided reading group so he is not in a group on his own in my class since he is well above grade level. He is at about a DRA 12 and would really benefit from the discussion and group time with kids at his level. He would only miss 15 minutes of our Daily 5 time which would just count as the time he would have spent with me doing guided reading. Just wanted to throw that option out there for you. It's totally up to you and I'll do whatever you want! :0)

We'll see how it goes. Keeping my fingers crossed that he'll adapt okay to this "change" in routine.

Boys at (almost) 3

2010-02-06T22:50:00.004-06:00

Everyone says that the boys looks so much alike, but I never do. Here's the boys about a month shy of 3. I think they look like brothers, but not identical like some people say.

Zander... sweet TP chair, huh?!

Mason...next to his "prize" for filling his potty chart.

holiday gifts - homemade cards

2010-01-14T21:00:00.005-06:00

Holy cow, it's been over a month since I've blogged. This will be a quick recap of all the cards I made as holiday gifts for people. I made multiples of each of these cards - and then grabbed some of each to make "card packs". So fun! And of course I made a few extras for myself :)

Fabric & Pattern Giveaway

2009-12-12T21:05:00.003-06:00

My friend Jan's blog mentioned a great giveaway from Green Fairy Quilts. Check it out!

And check out all the other cool show and tell projects on Jan's blog from their quilt group - which my mom is part of. I love these ladies!

Miss you and love you Grandpa

2009-12-01T23:54:00.002-06:00

Quilts for my nieces

2009-11-28T21:21:00.005-06:00

Two new nieces were born in August. I was able to finish Kaylin's quilt in September - pink, green and brown flannel. I love the colors! I found the fabric up in Duluth in July.

And I finally finished Izabel's quilt a few weeks ago - magenta tone pinks and greens. I love the elephant and heart fabric I found when were were on vacation this summer (Perham quilt shop) - so adorable!!

November card club - holiday tags

2009-11-28T21:03:00.002-06:00

This month's card club was actually tags, rather than cards. I love it - I'm all set for gift tags this year!! Here are mine. I made plenty of extra for myself :)

Leaves

2009-11-15T20:56:00.003-06:00

Last weekend, it was beautiful weather. Mana was shooting a wedding, so the boys and I raked up leaves outside and had a blast running and jumping in the pile. I love these two pictures. The first one is a rare photo op.

Halloween Fun!

2009-11-02T20:36:00.011-06:00

Lots of pictures and stories to post from Halloween

Zander's Kindergarten class
I volunteered for Zander's kindergarten class. Mrs. Gindele was out sick (had a sub), so it was a bit chaotic... not that it wouldn't have been chaotic anyhow. When I arrived, I helped the other parent volunteers prep the room and fun stations. When the kids arrived in the room, they were all getting their costumes on...except for my kid. He wanted nothing to do with his Spiderman costume. I tried a couple times, but he just got more upset. They paraded around the school in their costumes (except for my kid). Then it was time for some halloween activities. I was assigned to the cookie decorating table. Why did I get stuck with the most multi-tasking - and the most focus on being germ free (since it involved food). I caught two kids licking the frosting off their knifes and then try to put it back into the frosting tub - aaaahh! I put a stop to that real quick.

Daycare party
I wasn't able to attend the daycare party (quarter end craziness at work), but sounds like the kids had fun. Look at the cutie frog and Spiderman. Zander and I put together treat bags. They turned out so cute!

Spooktacular 2009
Eric & Erica Ripken hosted Spooktacular 2009 and it was a blast! I haven't had that much fun in a long time! It was so fun to see everyone in costume. I realized that it had been about 5 years since we dressed up. Mana and I were robots - from Flight of the Conchords. Mana gets all the credit for making them. The highlight of the night was the live performance by Stranger In The Alps. They were AWESOME!! Take a listen (and look) to one of their songs below. (I made the video through iMovie). Mana's not a bad drummer for having never played until 2 years ago. **You can become a fan of Strangers In The Alps in Facebook**

Halloween Day/Night
Halloween day,w e carved pumpkins and visited my parents. After dark, we took the kids out trick-or-treating.

2 yr, 7.5 month comparison

2009-10-24T17:10:00.003-05:00

From time to time, I like to go through iPhoto and find pictures of the boys at the same age. It's fun to see the comparison and see how *different* they really are - despite the fact that people say they look so much alike. So, here they are - both at 2 years and 7.5 months.

Zander - Jan 2007

Mason - Oct 2009

Zander Update

2009-10-22T21:25:00.002-05:00

I have not been great at updating my blog lately, but wanted to post an update on how Zander is doing in school - otherwise I know I'll forget when I think about the "good ol' days".

The first week of kindergarten went really well. Mana drops Zander off and the first week of school, the kids congregated on the front lawn with the teacher. Then, the teacher would lead the class into the school. After that first week, it was a normal routine. So for Zander, that means Mana dropping him off. Zander insisted that he come into the school and bring him to the locker area. Sure, no big deal. The kid needed a little help finding the classroom. Well, after a few times of this, Zander started crying when Mana tried to leave. It has gotten progressively worse. I did a few drop-offs lately so I could experience first-hand what Mana was dealing with. It's at the point where he has to be brought to the class and we have to literally pry him off our leg and then run like heck out of the school and hope he doesn't chase us down the hall.... but he does. So, we have to walk him back until a teacher can take him and hold him back from running after us.

I feel horrible - and confused at the same time. How can a kid hate school this early on. And especially when he's doing so well. At conferences, his teacher said that he is one of the smartest kids in class. He's one of only 3 kids that can recognize all their upper and lowercase letters. That wasn't a surprise to me. Honestly, I thought ALL kindergartners knew this - guess not. He's also one of only 2 kids that can count past 50. Again not surprised. I'm often entertained with his counting into the late hundreds on our morning drives to Lizzy's. The teacher also said he's very participatory. He's always raising his hand to answers questions and he's very helpful. He doesn't act up at all. They have a green/yellow/red stoplight program each day. At the beginning, you start out at green and if you do anything bad (not follow rules, not kind to friends, etc), you move to yellow. Break the law again and you're red. He has been green every day, so he's a good kid. Just hates the separation thing! I think a small part is that he knows that Mana and Mason head out to run errands and he thinks he's missing out of the "fun".

I've been working with the teacher on action plans to turn this situation around. She's been great. Our next plan of attack is to involve the school psychologist - and use a sticker chart at school for his successful drop-offs. Zander met her today and she will be meeting Zander at his locker for a few days. And then a few times after that, she will meet Zander at the school entrance. Hopefully, we can "wean" him from needing the support to get into school. I know he can do it. He's a smart kid. He just needs to gain some independence.

29.8... again. Seriously?!

2009-10-22T21:23:00.001-05:00

No, I didn't run 29.8 miles. That's my weight loss I've been stuck at for 3 weeks now. I just gotta get that extra .2 pounds off so I can say I'm down 30.

My first 5K!!

2009-10-05T21:37:00.007-05:00

On Saturday, October 3rd, I ran the Twin Cities 5K - my first ever 5k!!! I have been training for this race for several months using the couch-to-5k app for my iPhone. I swear by it. Anyhow back to the race. My dad ran with me. (To the left is our pre-race photo - before we got all sweaty) And my mom, Marissa, Jason, Zander and Mason cheered us on which was awesome!
It was a super cool experience. The race went out ~1.5 miles, turned around and came back the same route. Right out of the gate, we were packed like sardines. If it would have been this packed the entire race, it would have sucked. But it loosened up right away as we approached the hill. It was pretty gradual, but it lasted for over 1/2 a mile - ugghh! There were plenty of people linign the street and one home owner had some 80's music blaring. That was my comfort zone. I'm so used to running to music. This was the first time I didn't run to music, but I survived.

As we passed the 1 mile mark, a guy was shouting out the time.... "14 minutes." What?! It took me 14 minutes to run one mile?! Well, not really. It took over a minute to even get to the start line (when my chip crossed) AND that first mile was mostly uphill. So, I told myself to relax. After all, I wasn't worried about my time. I just wanted to run the whole thing, no walking. Also as we hit the 1 mile marker, the lead runner passed us. Holy crap, he's fast. Gotta keep moving. The runners thinned out as the race went on which was nice. I could not believe how many kids were running - and they were passing right by me. Some of them were just a few minutes behind the lead runner - crazy!

As we approached the "loop", I thought, 'halfway, I can DO this!' My dad talked a lot while we were running. Honestly, I didn't hear a lot of what he said with my ultra concentration and millions of things running through my head. A few times in the race, I had to mentally pinch myself... Holy crap, I'm running a race. A 5K, that's over 3 miles. Holy crap! Two months ago, I could not even run for 5 minutes. Then we passed a guy who was running and juggling at the same time. Crazy, but made me laugh.

As we kept running, more kids passed me, but I didn't care. Then, we hard a familiar voice - it was Jason. He had run up about a mile to find us and cheer us on. Then he ran back to warn our fans that we were approaching. I kept up the same pace pretty much the whole run. Soon, I could see the big hill - downhill this time. Not a fan of hills, neither uphill nor down.

As we came off the downhill, I spotted my fans - mom, Marissa, Jason, Zander and Mason!! Again super emotional! We passed them and I thought...'OMG, I'm almost there.' In my training I had only run for 30 minutes, so I got overwhelmed with emotion at the thought that this was the longest I had EVER run... EVER! At about 100 yards from the finish line, I picked up the pace and all of the sudden I found myself sprinting to the finish line. My adrenaline kicked in and I gave it my all at the very end.

I crossed the finish line with 39:07 on the clock. I was glad to come in under 40 minutes, but I knew that my "chip" time would be even better since I didn't cross the start line for a minute or two. I ran my first 5k in 37:40. So, what's next? I really want to do another race. I've gotta get me some winter running gear. The capris and t=shirt are not going to cut it in this Minnesota weather. It would be fun to do a themed race - like a Halloween, Thanksgiving or Christmas one.

Thanks Dad, for running with me!!

Running and weight loss update

2009-09-25T21:23:00.003-05:00

Boy, I've sure been neglecting my blog lately. Thanks a lot facebook!

Running update

I'm still going strong with my training for the Twin Cities 5K on October 2nd. I swear by the C25K (couch to 5K) program. I'm on week 8 of 9 and I NEVER thought I'd be running for 25+ minutes with no walking. I have never even run more than 5 minutes straight prior to C25K.

Back on my birthday (Sept 4th), I bought myself a pair of new shoes. I went to Run 'n Fun in St. Paul. I tried on several brands and models and landed on a pair of Brooks. They were $80 and feel awesome on my feet. (Everyone told me I can't be buying a $30 pair on sale at Kohl's). I have wide feet (boo!), so there weren't too many to pick from which made it a little easier.

During week 5 or 6 of my training, I decided to continue with my step aerobics classes at work. Cross-training is good for your body, right? Well, not when you're clumsy like me and twist your ankle and fall on your butt. My ankle and tailbone were sore for days and I iced them a LOT. After about 5 days of "rest", I decided to run again and it felt just fine. I have continued to run without pain, so that's good. Tailbone is healed, but ankle still hurts every once and awhile. I'm just a lot more cautious. And no more classes until after the race. I WILL be running this race - come hell or high water!

Quick WW update
I have lost a total of 26+ pounds since May. I'm pretty much on track with where I wanted to be at this point. I'm still in Weight Watchers and really think it's a joint effort between the running and WW.

Zander's 1st day of school

2009-09-13T23:09:00.002-05:00

Just a few photos from Zander's first day of kindergarten.

Meeting Brixton

2009-09-10T21:22:00.003-05:00

Our friends Eric & Erica had a baby (Brixton) over a month ago and the boys and I finally got to meet him. He's SO cute and the boys (Mason especially) were excited to see him.

Mini vacation

2009-09-10T21:01:00.004-05:00

Wow, long time, no post. Lots to share. In mid-August, we took a mini family vacation. It started with 2 days at my sister's in-laws' cabin on Eagle Lake near Battle Lake, MN. The kids had a blast - from fishing to boating and s'mores to sandcastles!

After the cabin, we took it more rustic and went camping. Zander camped one night in the backyard a month ago, but other than that, this was the first time camping as a family. It went about as well as could be expected for a 5 and 2.5 year-old. We hit 3 MN state parks bringing our total to 63. Only 8 more left to conquer the state!

Cousin count = 6

2009-08-28T21:32:00.002-05:00

Kaylin May Zerwas was born on Aug 21st. We made a brief visit before we headed on our vacation. Congrats to Mindi, Eric and Zaylee. I'm excited to spoil two more nieces!

Cousin count = 5.... but not for long!

2009-08-17T22:46:00.002-05:00

Sunday, Aug 16th, Izabel Erin Handt was born!!! She weighed 8 lbs, 2 oz and has lots of dark hair. She is SO adorable. We visited today and the boys loved it - especially Mason. Before we left for the hospital, Mason told me, "when I see the baby, I will whisper like this... I will not yell loud Mommy" It was so cute. And then when he saw her, he was so cute with her. Kinda makes me want to have another baby - ok, maybe not.

This Friday, Mindi is scheduled for her C-section and cousin #6 will be here - another girl :)

We bought a new tent!

2009-08-09T15:53:00.003-05:00

After much research, we bought a new tent. It's a Kelty Trail Dome 6 and we got it off Amazon.com. I'm excited to put it to use later this month in West-Central MN. It will be so much nicer than the 3-person tent we've used for years - before we had kids.

One thing we learned when researching, a 4-person tent is really best for 2-3 people and a 6 person tent is ideal for 4 people. So, we went with a 6-person tent. We found the following illustration of how 6 people would sleep in a particular model - which cracks me up. Who would sleep like this?!

Mason being cute

2009-08-05T21:14:00.004-05:00

Mana posted this quick video on his facebook status the other day - too cute! See all the fun stuff I miss while I'm working.
(BTW - I am not responsible for dressing him on "daddy daycare" days - hence the totally mismatched outfit.)

And in case you're interested, here is "Daddy Day Moment #1"

Start of C25K

2009-07-30T20:51:00.003-05:00

C25K... what the heck is that, you ask? It stands for Couch to 5K. It's a program that builds you up to running a 5K in 9 weeks by alternating between walking and running and gradually increasing the running intervals and decreasing the walking. The c25k website talks about the whole program. When I got my iPhone over a month ago, I bought the C25K application. I finally got around to actually putting it to use. Today was 'week 1, day 1' which included...

* 5 minute warm-up walk
* alternate 60 seconds of jogging and 90 seconds of walking for 20 minutes
* 5 minute cool down walk

It took me a few rounds to used to the creepy robot guy telling me when to walk and run. " *ding ding* run".... 90 seconds later, "*ding ding* walk". I kept wanting to run more than the 60 seconds, but know I need to stick with the program.

I'm looking forward to 'Week 1, Day 2'!

Duluth & WW check-in

2009-07-22T20:29:00.003-05:00

Duluth
I feel like I'm still recovering from the 3-day weekend in Duluth. We actually didn't pack as many activities in the 3 days as we usually do, but somehow it was still as exhausting. Some of the things we still managed to squeeze in: swimming at the hotel pool, bar-hopping (adults only, of course), Canal Park, Enger Tower picnic, Sand Dunes beach, Lief Erickson Rose Garden, ice cream shop. You know, the usual!

WW weigh-in
Despite the not-so-healthy eating in Duluth, I still managed to lose 1.2 pounds for a total of 19.4 now! I'm hoping the bad eating isn't just taking a week to show on the scale. We'll see next week :)

WW weigh-in

2009-07-16T23:04:00.002-05:00

Lost another 2+ pounds at WW this week, bringing my total weight loss (since mid-May) to 18.2 pounds! I'm approaching the 20 pound mark - but sadly I have another 25-30 to get down to a somewhat normal weight. I did it two other times, so I know I can do it again.

4th of July

2009-07-09T22:46:00.006-05:00

We had an eventful 4th of July. We broke out the 4-wheeler that Mason got for Christmas from Auntie Marissa and Uncle Jason. He had a blast... but took awhile for him to grasp that he had to put his feet up when he pushed the button to move forward.

When we put Mason down for a nap, Zander was bored. Seriously, that kid is always bored! He wanted to play sports, so I told him we were going on a field trip. I took him to the Andover high school tennis courts. He loved it. And man, that kid is GOOD at tennis. I'm not kidding. He hits the ball every time - and far! These pictures were taken with my iPhone, so they're not the best. I do have to say that I love my iPhone for these spontaneous photo opportunities though!

Then we headed to WBL. We put out our blankets and chairs at Matoska Park first and then to Roo & Justin's for dinner and pre-fireworks entertainment. The kids were excited (or "I'm so bacited" as Mason would say) to see Grandpa Dennis who just arrived from Florida that afternoon.

2 years + 4 months comparison

2009-07-09T22:40:00.004-05:00

I love looking back and the boys at the same age to see how they look so different. Here's a picture of Zander and Mason each at 2 years, 4 months. Notice how they even have the same pants - gotta love hand-me-downs!!

WW Weigh-in (week 7)

2009-06-30T20:43:00.001-05:00

Down another 2.2 pounds today for a total of 16! This holiday weekend will be a challenge, but I'm up for it!

Osseo Band Festival

2009-06-29T23:00:00.002-05:00

I took the boys to the Osseo Band Festival on Saturday.... and they loved it! They were fascinated by the flags, uniforms and instruments (especially the drums). And they were such good boys. I was a little worried tackling this adventure by myself (with Mana in the BWCA), but it was fine. It helped that my friends Stacy and Jenny (and their families) were also there :) We'll definitely be going back next year. So many memories of PCMB came rushing back. Good times!

WW weigh-in

2009-06-24T22:09:00.002-05:00

I think I'm in week 6 of WW now... and I'm down almost 14 pounds. I'm happy with my progress - let's hope it continues. Summer is just so hard with all the activities and events. But that's life and I need to figure out how to eat healthy for life :)

Zander's birthday events

2009-06-22T21:50:00.011-05:00

June 10, 2009
On Zander's actual birthday, I took the day off from work and we surprised him with a few "adventures". First we went to Ham Lake Park for some fishing. About 10 minutes after we got there, it started raining, so we went home.

Then Grandma Wendy came over for lunch and to watch Mason during adventure #2. We took Zander to see his first movie ever - Up! Yes, that's right - he's 5 and just seeing a movie in the theater for the first time. I think we've set the bar pretty high since he probably thinks all movies are in 3D and require glasses.

After the movie, Mana and Zander made another attempt at fishing and were successful - and even brought a "friend" back home. The next day, they took it to WBL and released it.

After dinner, we put a candle in a chocolate chip cookie so he'd have a candle to blow out on his b-day. Cake coming later.

LCC Birthday Party
A quick pic of Zander and his fav cousin Ayden.

Family Birthday Party
The immediate family came to our place for a pirate themed b-day party. Here's everyone staying cool in the shade while the kids ran through the sprinkler.

While presents were being opened, a pirate buried some treasure in the sandbox, so the kids had fun digging it up.

Funny Mason quote

2009-06-07T23:05:00.003-05:00

I was changing Mason's diaper the other day and he said, "Boys have wee-wees and girls have earrings!"

I seriously don't ever remember Zander talking about boys parts - or the difference between boys/girls. What's the deal with Mason?!

SO proud of Zander

2009-06-04T22:47:00.002-05:00

Last week Zander, Mason and I all had a dentist visit. It was Mason's first time and he barely let them look in his mouth. Oh well, what can you expect from a 2-year-old. Zander was very good for his whole cleaning...and then they found a cavity. I was so bummed because we're SO good about making sure he brushes his teeth twice a day and we do a once-over when he's done. The dentist said that for some people, cavities are just going to happen no matter how well you brush. Anyhow, today he had the cavity filled and he was a perfect angel. I was totally expecting the worst - to freak out or something (when they put the nitrous oxide mask on or did the novocaine shot). But he totally didn't. He was such a good boy. I'm SO proud of him.

WW weigh-in #3

2009-06-02T22:41:00.002-05:00

Today was WW... which means weigh-in time. I was pleasantly surprised by the scale. I had a lot of "event eating" where I had less control of my food choices - but I just had to be smarter about my selection and stick to smaller portions. I did use up my 35 "extra" points for the week - which you don't have to use. (I only used a few the weeks I lost over 3 pounds). Anyhow, today I was down 1.8 pounds for a total of 8.6 pounds in 3 weeks. Only about 40 more to go - ha!

rAnDoM pOsT

2009-05-28T21:39:00.005-05:00

Geez, I cannot believe I've been away from my blog for so long. Now that's I'm on facebook, I kind of neglect my blog. Shame on me!

May card club

New camera
Mana and I have talked about how we want to buy a decent non-SLR camera. I love all our SLRs, but sometimes when we go to an event, it's so cumbersome to bring the bulky SLR. So, we bought a Nikon P6000 and we love it! A lot of the functions and features are just like our D50, but it's compact! And it takes video with sound.

Landscaping weekend
Saturday, we spent all day working on landscaping - the whole family. We hit a few garden centers in the morning and then got to work planting and tearing out.

Here's before and after pictures of the front yard. We had two evergreen that were in rough shape (they were here when we bought the house), so we decided to just tear them out. Zander and Mason loved helping and the boys found a mouse nest when they got to the base of the evergreens - eeeeww!! Of course, they had to try to catch them (caught 2) and kept them in a bucket for awhile.

WW week 2
I had my 2nd weigh-in at WW and lost 3.6 pounds for a total of 6.8 pounds so far. I'm on my way back to a healthy weight. Woohoo!

Happy Birthday to Mana!
34 is really old - but I still love you :)

WW weigh-in... successful

2009-05-20T22:18:00.002-05:00

I made it through week one of Weight Watchers - and lost 3.2 pounds! I'm off to a great start, but i have a lot to lose. And I know it will not always come off this fast or easily. Surprisingly, I didn't feel deprived or starved even though I trimmed my food intake by at least half. It's crazy to think about how much I was eating - WAY too much! This is a lifestyle change, not a diet.

Zander's last day of preschool

2009-05-16T22:08:00.008-05:00

Thursday was Zander's last day of preschool. When he was getting ready, he asked Mana, "Do you think I should do my hair really handsome?" How cute is that?! Here's a first and last day of preschool photo...

Parent's were invited to a program and party. They have been practicing songs the last few weeks and performed for all the parents. Did I get emotional? You bet I did!

After the program, they played "Pomp and Circumstance" while each kid received their certificate and walked across the "stage"...

And afterwards, they had snacks and refreshments. Here are Zander's teachers - Mrs. Herzog and Mrs. Nereson. Zander really liked them both!

Mother's Day

2009-05-15T23:35:00.006-05:00

We started Mother's Day with me sleeping in and waking up to freshly picked daffodils from our front yard and a homemade card. On the left is hearts drawn by Zander. The right side is a bunch of balloons. Also, notice the dining room table on the left covered in syrup from the waffles the boys had that morning.

Then we went to Marissa and Jason's house for lunch. My sister had a DQ cake and all the moms gathered for a photo...and Zander really wanted to be in the picture :)

Later on, we went to Wendy and RT's house. Wendy made us do a family picture and I'm so glad she did. I love this picture!
Back row: Liz, Keith, Eric, Justin
Front row (adults): Mindi, Erin, Mana, Keisha
Kids: Ayden, Zaylee, Zander, Mason

Concert list

2009-05-14T21:50:00.002-05:00

So facebook has all these "top 5" lists - favorite movies, favorite musicians, things that make you happy, cars you want, etc. It would be fun to do those lists or quizzes, but I really have no time. Seriously, how do people find the time?! A list I once saw on facebook - 'concerts you've attended'. Kinda fun, so I'm doing my own list as a blog post here.

Concerts I've attended...

Michael Jackson
Def Leppard
Crash Test Dummies
They Might Be Giants x 2
Paul Simon x 2
Simon & Garfunkel
Bob Dylan - must have had a gun to my head
Jack Johnson
Mason Jennings
Damien Rice x 2
Ray LaMontagne
American Idols Season 7 Tour

Weight Watchers: Round 3

2009-05-12T22:16:00.003-05:00

I know it is time. I know I have to do something to get out of this downward spiral - or maybe I should say upward spiral - ha! I am the heaviest I have every been my entire life. I'm even 10+ pounds heavier than I was at 9 months pregnant with both boys. So pathetic. I have been very good lately with portions and working out... but it's not enough. I need to be held accountable. I need to relearn how to eat better. I know I can get back to a normal weight. I did it two other times. I'm sure it will be harder this time. My body is different now that I've had two kids. That just means I have to work harder and I WANT to. I NEED to. Today was my first weigh-in and group meeting with Weight Watchers. It was hard getting on that scale knowing what it would read and knowing how high of a mountain I have to climb. But I need to do it - for me, for my family. Healthy eating and more activity from here on out!

Parental emotional roller coaster

2009-05-04T20:42:00.002-05:00

I barely made it through preschool conferences. I made it through kindergarten orientation. But, preschool graduation? I don't know. This is sure to be a tear jerker. I better prepare myself. It's not until Thursday, May 14th, but I'm trying to get myself psyched out about it now.

Naughty Mason

2009-04-28T22:59:00.001-05:00

Mason's note from daycare yesterday...

2.79 mile walk!

2009-04-27T21:53:00.003-05:00

After the kids went to bed, I ventured out for a walk. I knew what route I was going to try and thought it would take about 20-30 minutes maybe. It had to be like 1 or 1.5 miles. How about 2.79 miles and 45 minutes!

I figured out the distance using a website called mapmyrun.com.

Card Club - April

2009-04-27T21:47:00.001-05:00

April Birthdays

2009-04-26T20:51:00.004-05:00

We hosted a party for the April birthdays - Dad, Mom and Marissa. The boys loved having them over. Zander even wrote 'Happy Birthday' on the front step to welcome everyone.

It's Kindergarten Orientation Eve!

2009-04-22T21:56:00.005-05:00

OMG, I cannot believe that Kindergarten orientation is tomorrow. Where did the last 5 years go?! It seems like yesterday that we were taking Zander home from the hospital. And now he's almost 5 and about to start kindergarten! I'm crying as I'm typing this post. This may be a good thing. I need to get out all the tears before tomorrow night to save embarrassment - for myself and Mana.

If this orientation is anything like preschool conferences, I will be a mess, no doubt. But maybe it won't be so bad since it's a lot of paperwork, touring and listening to the "rules". At preschool conferences a few weeks ago, the teacher shared Zander's "Strengths and Goals" as follows:

Strengths
* What a sweetheart! A kind, caring & smart little guy.
* Very bright & catches on to things fast.
* Participates, answers questions
* patterns, rhyming, letters, etc.
* Went from knowing 49 to 51 letters this year! (that dang lowercase q gets me every time too!)

Goals
* Encourage drawing pictures, people w/ details, places, even labeling them
* Keep practicing name writing with lowercase letters
* playing with peers a little more, or asking peers to join him or if he can join - just building that confidence.

How could I not get all emotional after the teacher shares this info.... maybe with the exception of her elaboration on the first strength. When she went on and on about how Zander is so kind to his classmates, taking turns and giving up his turn for them.... I stopped the teary-eyes and looked at Dennis as if I wanted to say "Is she talking about OUR kid?!" but I suppose he's a bit of a different kid when he's not be pestered by his 2-year-old brother and retaliates.

Easter

2009-04-19T21:12:00.006-05:00

Easter egg coloring was going fine and dandy last Saturday... until Zander tipped over the BLUE dye.

Easter morning, the boys found their baskets. Zander got a bike helmet and Mason got a "derby hat" (Mana might have made that name up - the kind Samuel L. Jackson wears).

Sunday, we wet to my parents in the AM and to Liz & Keith's late afternoon which included an easter egg hunt. This picture of the 4 of them was impossible. I took a bunch and still none of them are looking. And to think in 4 months, there will be 6 cousins!

Mason LOVES Flight of the Conchords

2009-04-16T23:24:00.004-05:00

Totally mesmerized...

Here's the video he was watching if you're interested...

open heart surgery.... SO amazing!

2009-04-13T23:12:00.004-05:00

My trip to Boston last week was so wonderful. I cannot believe that in my 9+ years at Medtronic, this was my first time in the OR. I observed 5 cases at Brigham & Women's Hospital - amazing!
This is a horrible picture, I know. Scrubs for occupational attire - I could do that!

I had a few hours to walk around the city before training started...

My view from the hotel room.

Sweet 3-story Apple store!

Tag reading system

2009-04-05T21:39:00.006-05:00

Today we finally broke out the Tag reading system that Zander got from Santa (and Santa won it on the Mommycast podcast). It was a lot of fun for him. He's been reading some easy Dr. Seuss books with me, but when I showed how to use the Tag, he liked being able to do it on his own. It comes with one book, but there are many available for purchase. It's battery powered and the sound is decent. There's even a headphone jack!

I'm off to finish packing. I'm heading to Boston for a work trip Monday afternoon - returning Friday early AM.

Zander adds to the grocery list

2009-03-31T22:12:00.005-05:00

We started making a grocery list and stepped away to the kitchen. When we came back, we found that Zander had made his own lists. Below is his rendition of "we need fruit snacks". When he runs out of room, he writes above.... like in the picture he writes "FrUT SN" and then writes "AS" above it. Ok, so he also forgot the "CK" in snacks (and sometimes writes 'S' sideways)...but hey, he's only 4.5!

Card club

2009-03-28T14:50:00.002-05:00

Definitely a different type of card, but people seemed to like it!

kids

2009-03-26T23:29:00.006-05:00

Zander can't wait to get back outdoors. The few nice days we've had, he's been "living" in the sandbox. I love being able to take pictures of the boys outside in the natural light. However, getting a picture of the two of them together is still next to impossible. I know it's because we're actually professional photographers, we were given "those kids" that are allergic to the camera anytime they're near each other.

And seriously, we must look like such dorks out in our front yard doing a photo shoot. Just look at this...

Mason's phrase right now... "I'll be back in just a minute!" He usually says this as he's closing a door, but it could be anywhere really. He's at such a cute age with all his phrases.... and then 30 minutes later he will have a terrible two meltdown.

Feeling lucky

2009-03-23T22:35:00.002-05:00

I won something - wahoo!!! I always enter contests on my favorite blogs - Donna Downey being one of them. And I actually won something HERE and it's super cool... a tree stamp from Unity Stamp Company.

I'm so glad I proof read my comment...idiot!

Keisha in MN said... Glad you're back in business with the computer. Love that tree stemp

15 years ago today....

2009-03-19T20:50:00.004-05:00

Mana: So, are we boyfriend-girlfriend?
Keisha: I guess...

That's how it all started 15 years ago!

Love this kid!

2009-03-19T20:35:00.003-05:00

Today, I had to work from home since our office is being moved to a new location. Last night it dawned on me, I could take Zander to preschool - something I've never done. I figured that he would object being such a daddy's boy... but he said, "yes, yes, yes, I would love that mom!" So, I dropped him off at preschool today. It was beach day, so a little crazier than usual. They had to wear summer clothes (under their winter clothes) and bring a towel, sunglasses and snack. Needless to say, it was chaotic - 19 kids all trying to "get in costume". (Maybe now I understand why they don't celebrate Halloween at preschool). Anyhow, he loved that I dropped him off and was super excited to see me when I picked him up. And the real heart wrencher was when I tucked him into bed tonight, he said, "Mom, I really liked when you came to my preschool. I wish you could bring me every day!" I got a little teary-eyed. The kid usually wants nothing to do with me, so this made my day!!

This photo is from last weekend when it spiked up to 50 degrees :)

Benihana - Happy Bday Liz!

2009-03-16T23:11:00.004-05:00

Went to Benihana for Liz's birthday tonight. Love, love, love their shrimp sauce. I could almost just go there to order the sauce by itself. But the rest of the food is yummy too!

iTunes movie rental...who knew?

2009-03-15T20:54:00.004-05:00

Last night we rented a movie from iTunes! I had no idea that was even possible. It as super easy. We scanned the top movie rentals (but could have searched by title too) and agreed on "Step Brothers" (Will Ferrell, John C. Reilly). We started the download before dinner and it was ready to go after the kids were in bed. We didn't have to drive to a rental place, hem and haw over the picked-over movies and drive back home.... only to drive back a day or two later to return it. We just paid the $4 to download it and went to bed when it was done!

Zander can read - no really, he can!

2009-03-13T21:34:00.003-05:00

Last night, Zander grabbed the book "ten apples up on top". I saw him really studying the pages and said, "Honey, do YOU want to read this to ME?" And he responded with,
"But mom, I can't read!" I made him try and he read about 8 pages! He was so proud and so was I. So, tonight, we tried "hop on pop". This one is a little easier and he did even better! Then I told him we would go get PJs on and finish reading at bedtime... and in true Zander style, meltdown ensued! I guess the kid loves to read. Thanks Dr. Seuss!!

Mr. 10th percentile still... plus some bad news

2009-03-09T23:06:00.003-05:00

We brought Mason in for his 2 year check-up today. He's holding steady in the lightweight division at 24 lbs, 9 oz - which is the 10%. This was no surprise. The surprise, however, was his diagnosis with a inguinal hernia.... again. At 9-months, his regular doc found a hernia (here's the story and the result - and more), but when we had a consult with the pediatric surgeon, they found nothing. Well, apparently this time it was so obvious that his regular doc is 100% sure. So, we go in next week for another surgical consult. I'm freaking out at the thought of my baby being put under anesthesia and having the surgery. I know it's a fairly routine procedure, but I still worry. I know I'll be a mess when it gets closer.

I took the plunge - finally!!

2009-03-08T23:25:00.005-05:00

Mason's bday party

2009-03-07T21:01:00.002-06:00

We had Mason's bday party here today. I was a bit nervous all week with him being sick, but he was back to normal by Thursday, so the show went on!

Flight of the Conchords - Hurt Feelings

2009-03-06T23:11:00.002-06:00

Season 2 of Flight of the Conchords has started back up again. Unfortunately, we don't have cable so we'll be waiting until it comes out on DVD. But that doesn't stop us from buying their songs on iTunes and finding videos on YouTube. Remember THIS one - ha! Still a classic. And the one below from season 2 cracks me up...

Happy Birthday to Mason

2009-03-04T23:39:00.003-06:00

Today was Mason's 2nd birthday....but it was not a fun day. Both boys had a fever all day. Mason was looking forward to having a little party with his Lizzy friends, but that didn't happen. Instead he was sportin' a 101 fever at home with me. After dinner, we did sing Happy Bday to him and he got to blow out a candle on a cupcake. I'm crossing my fingers that he gets better for the family party on Saturday.

The other bag

2009-03-04T23:26:00.003-06:00

Here's the other bag that I couldn't show the other day. That's because I was giving to someone as a gift! A baby gift! I'm totally loving Amy Butler fabric right now. I almost kept the bag for myself :)

Feb card club

2009-02-28T22:24:00.003-06:00

Better late than never. I hosted card club on Friday, Feb 20th and here's the card I made. I totally stole the gift card holder concept from Jennifer McGuire. I gave this card to my Grandpa - pictured below blowing out his candles :)

fun bag!

2009-02-24T21:26:00.004-06:00

This weekend, I finished two projects. One I can share now, and one I can share a bit later. This green bag turned out super cute. It's about a purse size, but I'm not sure if I'll use as a purse or bag for kid stuff. It was pretty easy to make except for sewing the bottom of the bag since there were curves. I love the colors. It's reversible too! The inside is mostly the darker green with the lighter patterned pocket. My sister and I split the cost of the pattern. She bought pink fabrics, so it will be interesting to see how hers turns out. I just might have to make another one!

Mason makes a bus!

2009-02-23T23:19:00.003-06:00

I was in the kitchen and heard the sound of chairs moving around, so I thought I better check out what was getting destroyed or where a chair was being positioned to climb up onto another piece of furniture. When I peeked around, I saw 4 chairs all lined up in the dining room and Mason. I asked Mason what was going on and he replied, "Mama, I made a bus!" He was so proud. I asked him if I could ride on the bus and he jumped in one of the "seats" and started driving. So cute!

American Idol

2009-02-18T21:20:00.005-06:00

Ah, another AI season is in full swing. They're taking a different approach to get to the top 12 this year. They're starting with 36 finalists. They're breaking them into 3 groups of 12. In each group of 12, three will make it to the top twelve (1 guy, 1 girl and the next person with highest votes). So, that only make 9. The last 3 are wildcards. Not sure exactly how that will work, but we will find out.

Anyhow, tonight as they were bringing contestants to the stage to tell them whether they had made it, there was a twist. Ryan Seacrest called down the next two contestants and they were actually Michael Johns and Carly Smithson (both from last season) to sing a duet!!! They were awesome!

The last pick/elimination was complete drama and I was NOT surprised. It was between a fabulous guy (Danny Gokey) and a decent girl (but complete drama queen - Tatiana Del Toro). When they announced that Danny was going through to the top 12, Tatiana just stood there and cried versus moving off to the side to let the Danny have his glory. Then when Danny sang, she stood in the back and cried and cried while the rest of the group (also eliminated) was dancing along with the song. What a sore loser - but again, not surprised!

From wrestling to reading...

2009-02-17T22:57:00.002-06:00

With two boys, I never know what's ahead. They are constantly wrestling...and Mason is ALWAYS the one to initiate it. It's so cool to see how they are SO different. Mason is such a thrill seeker, yet goes with the flow (laid back). Zander, on the other hand, always wants everyone to get along, likes to stick to the routine and asks lots of questions about new things.

This second photo was taken just minutes after the wrestling photo. Zander loves to read to Mason. I love to listen to him ask Mason (in a high pitch voice), "Do you want brother to read you a story?" It's so cute!

Valentine fun

2009-02-15T20:57:00.003-06:00

We had two rounds of Valentine's fun. First was "buddy day" at preschool on Thursday. Zander signed each and every Valentine - 19 in all.

Then, the week ended with a party at LCC. Again, Zander signed his Valentines and also wrote out the "to" names on the valentines. I was so proud of him. We also made "pretzel treats" (or "frentzel" as Zander likes to call them) for the Lizzy friends. Actually, me, Zander and Mason all helped.

iPhoto: Faces

2009-01-30T22:34:00.007-06:00

iLife '09 just came out and it contains a new version of iPhoto... which has a new feature called Faces. You tag a photo of someone and then it searches through your entire iPhoto library and suggests people. Here's how it works...

When it was initially installed, it took 16 hours to simply go through every photo in the library and identify a face - not yet assigning it a person. Then you select a photo (or multiple photos) and "tell" iPhoto who it is. Next, you make the computer search and try to find that person. Then, you confirm or reject. Through this process, you "teach" iPhoto who all the people are in your iPhoto library. I don't know how it does it, but it's amazing. The part that I find so crazy it that while my boys look alike, they must be different enough in their features that it know them. For example, I only "told" the computer who Zander was from some recent photos... yet it knows who Zander is from baby pictures! Crazy!

Scrapbook room wall art

2009-01-29T22:05:00.002-06:00

Over a year ago, I went to an UpperCase Living home party and bought some wall art. One was for Mason's room which I put up a while back - go here for photos. The other wall art was for my scrapbook room which I FINALLY put up a week ago. I just love it!

Nickelodeon Universe

2009-01-27T22:01:00.003-06:00

On Sunday my parents and I took the boys to Nickelodeon Universe. I've taken them to the MOA before, but never to Nickelodeon Universe. Just Underwater Adventures... or "the aquarium" as Zander would say. (Maybe we'll do the aquarium for Mason's birthday coming up). And then we usually stop at IKEA (my fav place). Anyhow, the boys had a blast on Sunday... even with me applying Purell after everything they touched :)

Mommy day

2009-01-24T21:21:00.003-06:00

Today was a "mommy day". Mana was at a shoot the whole day (snowmobile racing), so the boys and I ventured to the pet store. They LOVE it there. Almost as much as the zoo, but much closer. They also talked me to into going to Target. Mason was actually the one that suggested it.

January card club

2009-01-23T00:26:00.003-06:00

I am loving card club! I'm so glad that my friends Shelley and Erica asked me to join last April. I love all the members and we have a blast talking about everything - from scrapbooking to kids to cooking to home dec to relationships. You get the idea!

more snow

2009-01-18T23:26:00.001-06:00

Seriously, I'm ready for it to stop snowing!

I'm ready to "muve"!

2009-01-15T22:08:00.003-06:00

Today I was notified that I will be in a pilot program at Medtronic for something called the Gruve Solution - from the company muve. I'm so excited to part of this one year pilot! Here's some info about the Gruve Solution taken directly from their website...

The Gruve Solution™ is a new, completely revolutionary approach to weight management. It isn't a magic pill, miracle powder or meal replacement plan. It's not about counting points, cutting carbs, or purchasing body-bending contraptions. And it doesn't require 60 minutes at the gym 3 times a week or a $100-per-month membership. Instead, the Gruve Solution is an unprecedented, personalized, scientifically proven solution that enables healthy, sustainable weight loss.

Our Gruve is an amazing piece of technology!! This little device provides you with a personalized, quantifiable measure of your activities and the calories you burn throughout your day.

The Gruve uses an omnidirectional accelerometer to measure activity intensity and duration. Synchronizing your Gruve device with our Gruve web site gives you the ability to view your own daily calorie burn and track your weight loss progress.

Mason is naughty... and funny

2009-01-15T21:56:00.004-06:00

You know Mason is up to no good when it's quiet for more than a few minutes. I was making dinner last weekend and realized that Mason had ventured upstairs and was being pretty quiet. When I peeked upstairs to check on him, he was at the fish tank and quickly ran away when he saw me. I went upstairs to find this! It was so hard to not laugh, but I did put him in a short timeout. Masey is my little adventure boy. Zander is adventurous in a creative thinking kind of way. Mason is just a pure daredevil adventure boy! Love 'em both!

Map boy

2009-01-07T23:22:00.002-06:00

Zander got a United States wall map from Santa this year. We finally got around to hanging it up above his bed. He absolutely loves it. If we have the TV on and they mention a location, he runs to his room asking where it is. He also has a globe and US puzzle. Hey, the kid loves geography!

Project 365

2008-12-31T16:05:00.003-06:00

I'm SO excited to start Project 365! It's a totally new way of scrapbooking. My biggest scrapbooking idol, Becky Higgins, came up with the concept - and you know I'll jump on any idea Becky has!

Project 365 is a kit that comes with an album, page protectors (8 - 4x6 slots and 8 - 3x4 slots for journaling), tons of journaling cards, weekly labels, etc. Click HERE to watch a video of the contents.

Here's the concept....Document SOMEthing every day - whether that be a photo, receipt, kids' drawing, etc - and journal about that little something. Click HERE to watch a video about putting it altogether. Click HERE for some additional concept info.

Here's what a typical weekly page would look like - this is from a random week of Becky's last year.

Christmas Day recap

2008-12-29T20:32:00.006-06:00

Christmas Morning
Santa only brought the boys a few things this year after hearing what Grandpa/Grandma and Marissa/Jason got the boys. They were just fine with that. All Mason wanted to do was use his chapstick from his stocking anyhow! Santa could have brought a 6-pack of chapstick and Mason would have loved it. I got Mana appletini drink mix. The main character on Scrubs likes to drink Appletinis even though they're rather girly. I thought Mana would want to try them too!

Christmas late morning
We hosted Christmas with Mana's family. First we ate breakfast - I made a ham. Then, we let the kids open gifts and sent them upstairs to play while the adults exchanged. I made Mindi a tree skirt. At the end of gifts, Liz & Keith announced that they are expecting baby #2 in August!!! Wow - 5 cousins next year!

Christmas evening
Karen and Greg hosted the Kutzner Christmas. Two of my cousins have kids - so the family has really started growing. The little girl in red is Gabriella, 15 months (Brent and Erica) and the brown and green stripes is Taylor, 2, (Andrew and Kari).

Christmas Eve recap

2008-12-27T23:48:00.005-06:00

We spend every Christmas Eve morning with my family - and my mom's parents. Everybody goes so overboard with the kids. We seriously need another room in the house to put all the new "stuff".

The kids open presents before we eat lunch, so Masey can take his nap. Then the adults open presents - and Zander plays with some of his new toys. The highlights of the kid gifts was the marble game and puzzles. The highlight for the adults was definitely the "dickie sweater" I made Jason. With all of Jason's job where he's worked form home, we always joke that he can interact with people via video conference/webcam and really only needs nice clothes from the chest up. So, we joke that we're going to get him "dickie" shirts - which I don't even know if they make anymore. So after all these years, I took one of Mana's old sweaters and turned it into a sweater dickie. It was a hit. Jason was laughing so hard that he was crying. Hysterical!

pillowcases

2008-12-27T23:34:00.004-06:00

I made 4 pillowcases for gifts this year. I loved how they turned out - and they're not too hard to make.

Zander (stripes) & Mason (dots)

Ayden

Zaylee

Bean - so creative

2008-12-27T23:27:00.003-06:00

Zander-Bean is so creative. He sees Mana receive tons of boxes from his WHCC deliveries, so he asked if he could use one for a "project". He grabbed a box and a pen and went downstairs to work on his secret project. When he told us to come down, this is what he had made. So cute! I love how Dennis has taught the boys to be resourceful and creative. All these fancy toys and gadgets get put aside when they work on a project like this and I love that! Good 'ol fashioned fun.

'Another Christmas' by Michael Johns

2008-12-27T21:38:00.002-06:00

Yes, I'm still a huge fan of Michael Johns. So when he came out with a Christmas song, I bought it from iTunes the day it came out (Dec 9th). All proceeds go to ALS and the Red Cross - very cool! I love the song - not holiday-ish except for the words, so I love it. Here's the video that goes along with it.

Mason... years ahead of Zander in potty training??

2008-12-26T21:26:00.002-06:00

On Tuesday around bedtime, Mason took off his diaper like he does most nights in preparation for a diaper change and new PJs. Only this time, he said, "I have to go potty" and ran into the bathroom. We just laughed thinking he was cute copying the actions of his big brother. When I peeked in the bathroom, he was on the step stool and putting the seat up. He then stood there for a few minutes. Every time I would come in there, he would say, "go away mama!" So, I gave him his space peeking every so often to make sure he wasn't doing anything naughty. Then, all of the sudden I heard him peeing! In the toilet! Holy crap! I ran in there (I think I scared him) and said, "good job Mason!" and gave him a big hug. I could tell that he was very proud. I was still in shock. Zander didn't even pee once in the toilet until he was 3.5! And here my 21 month old independently used the toilet. I figured it was just an isolated incident until last night - he did it again! I always knew that he would be potty-trained quicker than Zander - just a personality difference. And hopefully it will be sooner than I thought. I'm not going to push him. I'll just keep letting him try when he wants. He likes to copy everything Zander does which is where this is all coming from - I think. Regardless, I'm cool with it!

crafty gifts

2008-12-25T00:41:00.007-06:00

Now that there have been some celebrations, I can reveal some of my crafty gifts. More to come in a future blog post.

Co-worker gifts

"Holiday Hellos card keeper": I made these for the three co-workers on my team - Brenda, Joe and Crystal. I also made these last year for several family members.

I made sets of cards for some other co-workers..

Family Gifts

Marissa and Jason were the recipients of this super cute photo book. I got the kit at a scrapbook show a few years back and knew it would be perfect for pics of the puppies. It's actually a box with pages inside. The front cover props up like a frame. Super cute!

christmas prep

2008-12-20T20:53:00.003-06:00

Quick post to say that I've been a crazy mad woman trying to "make" so many christmas presents. I can't say too much until after Christmas - photos to come.

Over the last few weeks, I entered a series of contests with MommyCast podcast.... and won 5 things! This is the same contest that I entered last year and won the grand prize - an ipod nano. The grand prize this year was an Amazon Kindle - which my friend Stacy won!

holding hands

2008-12-13T00:00:00.003-06:00

The other day on the way home from daycare, I looked in the backseat and my boys were holding hands. I wish I had a camera. They held hands the whole way home - it was so cute. Totally Zander's doing - I didn't ask him to do it. I will have to remind them of that moment in a few years when they're fighting like brothers do.

jozin z bazin

2008-12-07T23:03:00.001-06:00

My 3 boys are addicted to this video and song.

FAME, FAME, FAME - he's really dragging this out...

2008-12-06T23:28:00.003-06:00

Mana put together a montage of his conjunction photos and TV clip...with music and everything.

Santa meltdown?

2008-12-06T23:14:00.005-06:00

Today was the Medtronic Children's Holiday party. We were expecting total meltdown from Zander - and possibly Mason...but it actually went okay. We went into it knowing that we were going to do a family photo with Santa - and that's just what we did. And that's okay. After the photo, Santa asked Zander what he wanted and he actually talked to Santa. He told him he wants a "marble thing". I got a photo during this discussion.
Later today, we were talking about our visit to Santa and Zander commented, "Mom, I didn't even cry - when we were taking the picture AND when Santa asked what I wanted."

Christmas flashback from the 80's

2008-12-04T21:25:00.004-06:00

How many mullets can you count in this video?

...which also makes me think of this video - back when Michael Jackson was normal. Weakest link = Bob Dylan. I remember as a kid, playing this video and shouting out the singers without looking.

More fame

2008-12-03T22:31:00.002-06:00

Mana wanted to make sure I did another post to mention that he's part of Chikage Windler's Chik's Pics Blog. Check out THIS link. His 26 seconds of fame has now turned into a full 15 minutes.

26 seconds of fame... AGAIN

2008-12-02T22:34:00.003-06:00

The following clip was on the Channel 5 news Monday night at 10pm (and Tuesday morning too). This is the 6th time he's had a photo published on the news. Apparently he's got an "in" with Dave Dahl, Rob Koch and Chikage Windler.

He actually wasn't going to send it in until his brother (and then a few others) called and told him to go take pictures and send one in.

Many faces of Mason Robert

2008-11-30T23:50:00.004-06:00

I've really been getting into Photoshop lately. Mana loaded Photoshop Elements 3 on my Mac (which he got free from buying his Wacom tablet). I've always wanted to get more into photo editing - and finally started teaching myself (with some help from Mana, of course). I love this little montage. I came up with the idea myself and Mana helped me achieve the look. I now have many post-it notes stuck to my monitor with all the PS action shortcuts.

Zander is thankful for...

2008-11-28T23:51:00.003-06:00

NOT his Mom apparently! When I asked him how come Mom and Mason were not on here, he said "I didn't have enough room!"

Do it, Done it

2008-11-26T20:40:00.002-06:00

Put the items you've done in bold. I've italicized things I want to do.

1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you're not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo's David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car - less than 2 months ago!
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chicken pox - evidence right between the eyes
89. Saved someone's life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous - had dinner with Torii Hunter
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee
100. Read an entire book in one day

Analog?!

2008-11-23T21:08:00.000-06:00

This video is too funny not to share. Enjoy!