Pumpkin Patch Pictures

How Tall This Fall - 2007

Some Favorite Pictures

Benjamin enjoying his bath.

Sam "watching" Benjamin for me when I had to leave the room for a minute.

Sam holding Ben in church before Ben's baptism.

I caught Ben sucking his left first finger while clasping both hands together!

My babies

Ben's Baptism

Ben was baptised on Saturday, October 6th at St. Anthony of Padua Catholic Church. He was so good - he didn't fuss at all during the mass - even when Fr. Dodge poured the holy water over his head!

My busy family...

Even though my blog has been slow, my family hasn't been!

Samuel turned 7 on August 25th.

School started on August 30th. Sam's in First grade and Emily's in Eighth grade.

Rob turned 40 on September 4th.

Lots of pictures to follow...

Sam's 7th birthday

Rob's 40th Birthday

First Day of School

Riley meeting Ben

Ben on the Bilibed

Sam and Hawkeye

Emily and Benjamin

Ben's first picture

Sam's lost tooth #4

Busy week!!

Well - where do I start?

On Monday, August 13th, my water broke. Emily was at Camp Cormorant, Sam was with me, and Rob was playing basketball at the Y. He wasn't answering his cell phone or pages from the Y, so I waited an hour or so and then took Sam to the Y and picked up Rob on the way to the hospital. They admitted me and we waited and waited and waited and waited! No contractions or anything!

Finally the next day, they started me on pitocin to start contractions, and at 4:41 PM, Benjamin Michael Wagner was born! He only weiged 6 pounds and 3 ounces and is 18 inches long. He is such a tiny peanut, we can't get over it! I think that he's the spitting image of Sam when Sam was born, although Sam weighed 7 pounds and 3 ounces.

We got to go home on Thursday, but Ben's a little jaundice, so we had to take him to the clinic on Friday for a test. He was still a little high, so the home health nurse brought over a Bilibed for him to sleep on. He's supposed to be on it as much as possible - only coming off to eat, have a diaper change, and a bath. It's hard to watch him there and not hold him all the time, but he sleeps so much that it's OK. I'm told he's sleeping so much because of his jaundice. However, after his test today, he's doing much better, so we don't need a test tomorrow and can wait until Monday for the next test. They just prick his heal and take some blood - so far he's slept through all of the pricks!

Emily's back from camp and had a great time. She met lots of new friends and was so sad to leave. She was also pretty excited because the camp director told her that she should go to camp in June next summer and then could be a CIT the rest of the summer! That's Counselor In Training, and usually you have to be 15 to be one. She'll only be 14 next summer, so she's thrilled!

And, Sam's other front tooth came out, so his talking has changed a little. This one came out without Brittney's help, but he wasn't happy about it. He got a little happier with his silver dollar from the tooth fairy!

I'll be posting more pictures very soon!

Lost tooth #3!

We had to have Sam's "old" teacher pull his tooth out! He won't let anyone do that but Brittany. She's pulled all 3 of his teeth now. However, he's graduated to the after school room and Brittany's in the early childhood room, so we have to make a special trip to see her! :-)

Neat thing

My mom was recently awarded a Faculty Excellence Award at one of the colleges that she teaches at. This is a neat little blurb about what she's done, as well as a small interview that they did with her.

http://jonesinternational.edu/special_events/graduation/faculty.php

Weekend News and Fence Pictures

We had a wonderful weekend. Dad drove up from SD on Thursday and spent the afternoon with Sam. Emily got home from dance camp around 4:30, so we were all able to spend the evening together. Melissa joined us on Friday and Grandpa and Grandma hung out with the kids in the morning (plus Rob in the afternoon) while I worked. We had a very enjoyable weekend with great weather. Dad and Melissa left on Sunday morning and Emily flew out a few hours later for Georgia. She'll be back on Sunday.

Sam wasn't feeling well on Sunday, so we made a visit to the walk-in clinic. He had a fever, swollen tonsils, and no appetite, but no strep throat (as of yet). The doctor said "virus." We had him rest most of the day and this morning he was ready to go to day care. We did ask that he not play baseball, though - don't want to tire him out too much. Tonight is our summer picnic at work; there will be lots of great food and Games to Go (inflatables that you jump in) - I'm counting at least 12 outside now!

Below are some pictures of our new backyard fence. We LOVE it!!

Independence Day

Rob, the kids, the dogs, the boat, and I went to Fort Pierre, SD for the holiday. We left on Saturday morning and 7 hours later finally arrived. It was hot, muggy, and there were a ton of biting flies that didn't seem at all detered by any type of repellant. But I camped 5 nights! We spent our days boating and relaxing, so it was a nice time. However, I absoutely hate the evening of the 4th when we go to town and try to blow off a finger or two lighting fireworks in my in-laws driveway. I sat inside, biting my tongue, for 2 hours before they were done.

Unfortunately, we got some awful news on the 4th. My brother's girlfriend's son was killed in a car accident. Mike and Kim have been going out for almost 7 years, so he's the closest thing to a nephew that I have. His obituary is here: http://www.siouxcityjournal.com/articles/2007/07/09/obituaries/local/160f4a243e386411862573130012b52d.txt.

My dad and Melissa happened to fly to ND on Friday the 6th and headed to SD to spend time with Melissa's family before coming back to Fargo, so I was able to ride down to Sioux City with him for the services on Monday and Tuesday. Mom and Dennis drove from Ohio and were there Sunday through today. Words cannot describe the sorrow his mother was experiencing. Please pray for her.

I returned home to find that our fence was almost 1/2 done! It should be finished tonight, so I will take a picture and post it. It will be so nice to not have to hook Riley up every time I let her outside!

Nice weekend

Emily came home after spending 2 weeks with her grandma (my mom) in Ohio. It was her 4th year flying by herself to spend time there. They always do all sorts of fun things like going to Cedar Point amusement park and the Kalahari water park. They also visited Amish country, a mansion, and other tourist attractions. And she got 5 inches cut off her hair.

Sam went to a birthday party on Saturday evening. Rob got to go, too! It was for a classmate who also attends our church and goes to Sam's Sunday school. She had a hula party! They had food and a swiming pool and a pinata. Both Rob and Sam had a blast.

Rob's parents were here this weekend. Actually, his dad has been here since Tuesday. Rob took time off from work and they got some chores done around the house - the biggest of which was the removal of a small picket fence in the back yard. Riley, our yellow lab, jumps the fence with about 2 extra feet below her, so we are getting a 5 foot aluminum fence.

Of course, after ordering the fence on Friday, we decided to do things a little differently and the sales guy is coming out again today to modify our order. What's another $1000 when you're already spending $6000, right? Sigh.

And the best part of the weekend - our air conditioner quit cooling on Saturday night. It was only about 90 or so outside and quite humid, so opening the doors and windows was not an option. We had our new furnace and A/C unit put in in May of 2005 and this is the second time we've had to have them come fix the A/C. (We've had to have them come fix the heater once, too!) Rob's finally gotten as frustrated and angry as I have and will be exchanging some words with the sales guy today.

Now that Emily's back, things are going to be busy again. Sam has a baseball game at 12:45 today. I'm nervous because the heat index is supposed to be near 100 by then. Emily has dance from 5:30-7:30 and softball games at 6 and 7:30. I think we'll leave dance at 7 to be at the second game. Busy summer!

Picture of some cousins

I found this picture cleaning out some stuff! We were in MN for Karissa's first communion (she's the one that Emily is holding!). Next to Emily is Karin, holding Evan, and then Kaylee is holding Lexi. And Sam is standing not holding anyone!

Karin, Kaylee, and Karissa are Rob's cousin Sue's kids and Evan and Lexi are Rob's cousin Nikki's kids - Nikki and Sue are sisters.

Emily's spring picture - 7th grade

Thursday already?

Boy, the last 7 days have just flown by! Rob, the kids and I, and his uncle Jerry from Minneapolis, left at 7 AM Thursday morning for Devil's Lake, ND for the 8th annual Microsoft fishing tournament. Thursday was a little gray with scattered showers occassionally, but Friday, Saturday, and Sunday were beautiful! Temps were in the mid-upper 70's with sunny skies and light breezes. We camped, but slept in campers as Jerry brought his and then Bob and Mary Ellen joined us on Friday afternoon. Rob and Jerry didn't place in the top 10, but did get some fish. They took Emily and her friend out on Sunday morning and caught a few more. Rob really enjoyed his new fishing boat. I'm glad we have it!

Monday night Emily had a double-header softball game. Won one and lost one. Tuesday night we went to the Red River Zoo for a work event. (Emily had a better offer - watching a friend's brother's baseball game.) My co-worker took pictures and got this cute one of Sam.

Last night I planted 14 perennials and 2 bushes and pulled a ton of weeds. 2 hours later I was exhausted, so took a hot shower and went to bed early! Tonight I have to do lots of laundry because Emily leaves first thing in the morning for her annual 2 week trip to Ohio. The house just isn't the same without her around!

I just tried to upload her spring school picture, but got an error, so will try again later today or tomorrow. She looks so much older without her braces on!

Super weekend!

We had a wonderful Memorial Day weekend as a family. Saturday's weather wasn't too nice, but we cleaned the house and got caught up on the laundry. Sunday and Monday were beautiful, so we spent most of both days outside. On Sunday, Sam caught his first fish! Unfortunately, I didn't have the camera along, so didn't get to preserve the memory :-(. We drove down to Lindenwood park and sat by the water. It's quite flooded now, so we were pretty sure we wouldn't catch anything, but Sam wanted to practice "throwing the hook!" He is so excited about the whole fishing thing!

Because of where we were sitting, we had quite a few snags, so when he couldn't get it unsnagged, he asked me to help. About the third time I tried to unsnag it and thought, "Hmmm - I think there's something on the hook!" I gave the rod back to Sam and told him to real it in and sure enough, there was a fish on the end of it! We're not sure what kind it was (you never know in the Red River what you'll catch), but it was about 8-10 inches long and a pretty silver/white color. He was pretty thrilled! We put it back in the water, even though Sam wanted to eat it! We explained it was too small to eat and then he was OK with letting it go.

4 days left of school!

We had a busy weekend! Emily had dance recitals on Friday and Saturday nights and a softball tournament on Saturday afternoon. The in-laws came on Saturday to see the recital, and stayed until early Sunday evening. My father-in-law loves our new lawn mower, so he mowed our entire yard over the weekend. That was a big help and time saver! Although Emily also loves the new mower, so she's started mowing, too.

We splurged last week and bought the new mower and a new grill - a Weber Genesis. Our other grill was about 8 years old and had definitely seen better days. It was time to get a new one. Rob and I put it together last weekend and had a blast doing it. We hadn't spent that much uninterrupted time, just the two of us, in quite awhile!

I had my glucose tolerance test on Friday. (That's to test for gestational diabetes.) I don't have the results yet, but am not concerned - it's never been an issue before. I'm measuring at 26 weeks, so the doctor said I'm right on track. The family is still working on names - seems like we're getting more in synch with what we like and what we don't, but I'm glad we still have a few months to decide.

Dance competition and Softball updates

Last weekend we went to Bismarck for an IDC event (International Dance Competition). Emily dance on Saturday and Sunday and both of her dances received the Sterling Silver award! Each dance is evaluated on technique, coreography, and other things, and awarded points, that correspond with different levels - Platinum, Gold. Sterling Silver, Silver, Bronze, and no award. She was excited that they did so well! She had a blast and really learned a lot. Sam wasn't as excited - he had to come with me because Rob was an attendant in a wedding on Saturday, so had rehearsal, rehearsal dinner, pictures, wedding, etc. and really couldn't watch him. But, Sam got lots of swimming in and we got a new Nintendo DS game to keep him busy!

Last night Emily had two softball games. They won the first one 14-2 and the second one 16-14. She played second base for both games and had 5 great catches to get the batter out and another 3 catches to get the runner out on 2nd! She also had a couple of hits and 2 RBI's!

Tonight is the last PTA meeting of the 2006-2007 school year, which means it's the last one that I preside over as President! I had a great time, but am glad to pass the gavel over - it's been exhausing!

Happy May Day!

It's a boy!

At least that's what the ultrasoud technician said. Sam was thrilled - Emily, less so, but still excited to see the baby. They lasted about 10 minutes and then were happy to wait in the waiting room while we finished up. Everything looked good - hard to see what the experts see, so just have to take their word on it!

Easter came and went quickly - doesn't feel like it should be that time of year because of the snow. Easter means spring and spring means flowers and grass and not snow. We got 6 inches of it last week. But, the latest prediction of another 3-6 inches has fizzled out and it's just been flurring all day long. With predicted temperatures of 40s tomorrow and 60s by the weekend, what we have won't last long. We're so ready to clean out the garage and see what we have for the baby and what we need to get!

Once there are Vista drivers for our printer/scanner/fax/copy machine, I'll post my ultrasound pictures.

Another Dr. Appt.

I visited my OB yesterday and things are good! I'm measuring where I should and I've gained 2 pounds total now. But the most exciting thing is that I've scheduled my ultrasound! We're so excited to see the baby. Both kids are going to join us, and they can't wait!

I'm feeling great, but do have some heartburn occassionally. I've been eating much better since I've been pregnant as I've craved milk, fruit, and fresh veggies, while fried foods, creams, and chocolate make my stomach do flip flops! Strange! And about once ever 2-3 weeks, I get this incredible craving for a big, juicy, hamburger with lettuce, ketchup, mustard, and pickles. (And not the McDonald's kind - the restaurant kind.

We went to the circus last night. Sam really enjoy it and Emily wasn't too terribly embarrassed to have gone with her parents - we had better seats than her friends, so that helpecd! It's supposed to be 65 here today, and has definitely been nice. We've spent time outside enjoying the weather by walking the dogs, riding bikes, and cleaning the van! We'll see what tomorrow brings!

16+ weeks!

And I'm feeling good! I got dusting and vacuuming done, my laundry caught up, and my house in order - for this week anyway! Rob was in San Diego last week for Convergence, so it was a little crazy at times, but we all survived.

AND, we bought a boat! It's a fishing/ski boat, so Rob can do some more serious fishing and the kids can ski and tube more often. Rob's friend, Tim, bought a new one and offered us his old one at a great price. He's always taken great care of it, so we know it's in good shape. Plus, Rob's fished from it for years, so he is comfortable with it. Now I just need to get him to take some time off from work so we can use it this summer.

I have my next OB appointment on Thursday and my dr. told me that we'd make an appointment for my level 2 ultrasound then. The kids are excited because I said they could come and watch! We're going to find out what sex the baby is, if the baby will cooperate! Then I can start buying clothes. Seems like even the "unisex" color clothing has ruffles or embroidered trucks or other sex-specific things on them.

We're looking forward to this weekend because we'll have company! Rob's parents and his aunt, uncle, and cousin who is Emily's age, are coming for a JO Volleyball tourney. It's always fun to have company in the house. I enjoy all the hustle and bustle. And of course, they'll want to go shopping! :-)

Snow, snow, and more snow!

Feeling like winter here! It started snowing last night and looks like we've got about 6 inches of fresh, new snow! Last weekend I was scrapbooking in Minnesota and when i got there Friday afternoon, the ground was bare. When I left on Sunday afternoon, there were 11 new inches! Fargo only got about 4 or so. But combined with this new 6, plus the additional we've continued to get all day, we've got a lot!

It hasn't stopped snowing all day. Sam's already talking about making another snow man and how we should name the town Snow Town. And I could be Snow Mom and dad will be Snow Dad, etc! He loves snow. Emily, on the other hand, can't wait for summer. Although she thinks this is pretty, she will get tired of it very soon.

I have another ailment this week - swimmer's ear. It's an infection of the ear canal. My ear feels like it is going to pop, but never does. I have been uncomfortable for a few days, and finally went in to the doctor yesterday because the pain became unmanageable. I have to use drops for a week until the pain goes away.

Unfortunately, because I haven't felt like myself for almost 7 weeks now, my house is in shambles. I've just barely been able to keep up with the daily stuff like meals!

13 weeks!

I'm almost done with my first trimester! Thank heavens the Augmentin that I was given cleared up my sinus infection so that I could start enjoying this pregnancy! I had my first OB appointment and actually lost 2 pounds my first trimester! I didn't think that I was that sick. The Dr. said it was OK - it happens often the first 12 weeks. I'm not as tired as I was, but still am pretty wiped out these days. Don' tknow if it's the pregnancy thing or if I'm just not sleeping well.

I got to see the baby on an ultrasound at the doctor's office! One little bean in there - she said she could see good limb development, good placental development, and a heart beat! What more do we need?! It hasn't seemed totally real until I saw that picture - she even gave me a print out - it's so small, but it's there!

Still sick

This is crazy. I've had a sinus infection for 5 weeks now. I've been on 10 days of Amoxicillian and 5 days of Zithromax and still feel like heck. I can't breath through my nose during the day. To use my CPAP at night, I have to use saline to clean my nose, blow like crazy, and then coat the skin under my nose with Mentholatum. I've been to the walk-in clinic and seen a family practice doctor and talked with an OB nurse. I'm ready to be done with this!

Emily has a basketball tournamet that starts tonight at 4:30. If they win, they play tomorrow at 10:50. If they lose, they play at 8:30 AM. (I told her they better win.) Rob doesn't get home until 6 PM, so I still have an entire day without him around. I felt quite a bit better yesterday and actually got some cleaning done - the kitchen looks better as does our bedroom, but there's still a ton to do and laundry piled high.

On a positive note, I'm at 11 weeks now, so think that my exhaustion should be nearing the end. And my morning sickness is pretty much gone. I still have stomache aches, but they're not constant and they seem to dissipate with food. I am going crazy waiting for my first official OB appointment on February 19th. It seems so far away!

Scrapbooking weekend

I returned Sunday afternoon from a super weekend of scrapbooking, rest, and socialization. Some friends from work (and Kim from MN), met at a villa on Lake Reno and had a blast. The owner of the villa waited on us and fed us awesome food. I only got 14 pages done because I ran out of pictures (left stacks and stacks on my desk at home), but I went to bed early, slept in late, and just rested to get rid of this terrible sinus infection that has rendered me useless for weeks. I can finally breath through my nose for the first time in 5 weeks! Now if I could just get over feeling so exhausted. But, being pregnant can do that to you! I'm 10 weeks along, so in 2 weeks I should get another burst of energy. (My fingers are crossed.)

Rob's in Redmond this week at a conference - he's presenting. Of course, the day he leaves we get 3 inches of snow! I've asked my neighbor if he would snow blow our walks as Rob doesn't want me out there doing it. (And I'm not sure I should be, anyway!) Only 3 more days and I can sleep in again!

21 Days

Wow - 21 days since I last posted. That doesn't mean that nothing has happened - it just means I've been too busy to post! My weekends have been filled with things like laundry, taking down Christmas, sledding with the kids, laundry, visiting with neighbors, cleaning the house, and laundry. It's been rather cool her lately - double digits below zero for a few days in a row - so we've been hanging out around the house. Thank goodness we got lots of fun games for Christmas. Sam's favorite is Kidz Headbandz! We walk around the house with these funny headbands on with cards sticking out of them trying to guess what we are! :-)

Next weekend will be tons of fun! Rob's parents are celebrating their 40th wedding anniversary near Madison, SD. We will be heading down on Friday night for a weekend of fun! Saturday is the actual celebration, starting with a mass. We're staying at Camp Lakodia, which is a camp for the deaf outside of Madison.

The following weekend I'll be heading to MN for a scrapbooking retreat! I can't wait!!

Wonderful, relaxing Christmas

Finally back to work after over a week off. Rob and I both had Dec. 23-Jan. 1 off and enjoyed it tremendously! We went to Christmas in MN, spent an evening in Watertown, then hung out at home, cleaning, relaxing, and enjoying time with the family. Here are some fun pictures.

Wonderful day

I had a wonderful birthday yesterday. The day started out nicely and got even better quickly when Rob presented me with 12 long-stem red roses at my desk. He doesn't do that often, so when he does, it's extra special. I left work early to take Emily to an orthodontist appt. - hard to believe that she'll only have her braces on for 13 months. Then we picked up Sam and met Rob at Johnny Carino's for supper. It was so nice to have some down time with the family. We're so rushed these days with all of Emily's activities and our busy work schedules. After dinner we shopped at the mall for about an hour and a half and then went home. We rested there for 30 minutes and then started getting ready for bed. It was so nice to relax!

Today is the 65th anniversary of the bombing at Pearl Harbor. Rob and I watched the movie on TV this past weekend. I cried quite a bit during it.

Cute picture of the kids

My friend from work came over to take some Christmas pictures of the kids. I don't want to share all of them yet - the surprise will be in your Christmas card. But here's one that's adorable.

Sam lost his second tooth!

Halloween pictures

Sam is the ninja between the two girls. Holly is Violet Incredible, Paige is the purple and black cat, and Sarah is the princess. I took this picture on Halloween when Sam's kindergarten class went to Bethany Homes to sing songs and trick-or treat!

Sam lost his first tooth!

Sam lost his first tooth yesterday! He was so excited about the tooth fairy coming to visit! He went to bed early without any fussing! The tooth fairy brought him a Susan B. Anthony silver dollar and a flat rock with an angel on it. I told him that the tooth fairy usually brings something special for the first lost tooth. The other bottom middle one will be going today - it's hanging on by a thread!

My, how time flies!

Rob went hunting last week and was gone for quite awhile. I guess I didn't realize just how much he helps out around the house! ;-) He left on the 3rd (Emily's 13th birthday) to go pheasant hunting in SD with family and took Riley. It was her first time out and she did pretty darn good! After being there for 5 days, he came home just in time to pick up my dad from the airport. Dad wanted to visit the kids during their veteran's day break from school. I had a tamale cooking class that didn't get over before the plane landed.

Then, Thursday morning Rob left for mule deer hunting in Western ND with a couple of friends. The three of them go every year, but this is the first year they got mule licenses. After 2 days of hunting the barren plains, they came home. Rob didn't get one, but wasn't upset about it - I think he got bored! ;-)

Emily's basketball games started last week. Her team won their first game against D-G-F (Dilworth, Glyndon, Felton). She has another game tonight and another one on Thursday. She likes it and I'm glad she is keeping busy. Sam is excited to start basketball "camp", as he calls it, on Saturday. He really is his father's son!

School happenings

We have a Level III sex offender who not only lives in our school district, but who has a step-daughter that attends Hawthorne. So, legally he can be on school grounds and at school events and functions. The parents are in an uproar over this, and rightly so. Last night there was a meeting at the school to discuss sex offenders and laws in general. There were representatives from the police department, the states attorney, and the school district at the meeting ND is behind-the-times in laws regarding sex offenders. There are some that are being worked on and the district is creating a policy, but everyone wants it NOW. You can read about some of it here: http://www.in-forum.com/articles/index.cfm?id=144907&section=news. I'm the PTA President, so I was hounded all day yesterday by the media for a comment. I just avoided them and let the other parents have their say last night. Now if we can just make it to the next school board meeting, when the policy should be drafted and presented to the public.

Halloween 2006

It was a scary day, alright. I spent the first 2-1/2 hours of my day driving 5 kindergarteners to a nursing home to sing songs and trick or treat with the residents. It was fun, but I don't know how teachers can spend all day with that many kids and still be sane. Of course, Sam's teacher was dressed up as Amelia Bedilia and said she was often compared to her...

On the way back to work, I ended up with a very flat tire. I did hear something about a mile and a half earlier, but didn't see anything. While Rob was changing it, he broke a lug nut. Once he got going, it only took 15 minutes. But we ended up having to run around and do all of our stuff last night with one vehicle. Sam was done with swimming lessons at 5:55. Emily needed to be picked up at 6:00 from swimming and dropped off at 6:20 for dance. Sounds easy enough, but the buildings are nowhere near each other!

Sam did get some trick or treating done. I did take pictures, but haven't gotten them off the camera yet. Hopefully tonight! Emily did a little bit after dance, but she was pretty tired. She originally wanted to be Marilyn Monroe, but it was only about 20 degrees here and the halter-style dress just didn't work with the weather! Maybe next year.

Attitude is everything

I read this today and it really made an impact on me.

There once was a woman who woke up one morning, looked in the mirror, and noticed she had only three hairs on her head.

"Well," she said, "I think I'll braid my hair today." So she did and she had a wonderful day.

The next day she woke up, looked in the mirror and saw that she had only two hairs on her head.

"H-M-M," she said, "I think I'll part my hair down the middle today." So she did and she had a grand day.

The next day she woke up, looked in the mirror and noticed that she had only one hair on her head.

"Well," she said, "today I'm going to wear my hair in a pony tail." So she did and she had a fun, fun day.

The next day she woke up, looked in the mirror and noticed that there wasn't a single hair on her head.

"YEA!" she exclaimed, "I don't have to fix my hair today!"

Attitude is everything. Have a Good Day!

Be kinder than necessary, for everyone you meet is fighting some kind of battle.
Live simply,
Love generously,
Care deeply,
Speak kindly.......
Leave the rest to God.

Bowling scores for Emily

Emily hasn't done as much bowling as she usually does by this time of year because of her swim meets. However, this past weekend she blew her average out of the water with a 111, 134, and 157!

Wonderful weekend

I spent last weekend at a scrapbooking retreat. 12 women, one cabin, 3 bathrooms, and lots of scrapbooking supplies! We had a great time. It was nice to focus on getting some pages complete - I finished almost the entire year of 2005 - one book for each kid. It was also nice to not worry about cleaning the house or getting someone somewhere on time. Rob did a great job with the kids and hosue while I was gone. I told him I might need to do it more often! Emily had a swim meet on Saturday, so he had to get her to the school by 7:45 AM to catch the bus. Sam had a birthday party at noon that Rob needed to get him to, plus shop for a birthday present for the birthday boy. He also mowed the lawn, cleaned the house, and took care of Sam. Wow!

Emily swam 500 yards again

And she did it in 8 minutes and 2 seconds again! Quite consistant! This meet was in Moorhead, so it wasn't far to drive and it was just the two schools, so it started at 6 and ended at 8. Unfortuately Emily didn't swim until 7:15 and I dropped her off at 5 for warm-ups, so I spent over 2 hours watching other girls. Now, had I waited to come closer to the time she actually swam, I would have saved myself 2 hours and $5! But it was fun and I learn something new everytime I watch a meet. I've been lucky to sit next to seasoned swimming moms who share their knowledge with me.

I also got my hair cut. It's not at my chin - maybe an inch below. Rob thought I should try it and since I wasn't attached to my current style, I thought I would. Not sure if I like it or not - it dries faster, but I haven't figured out what to do with it yet. It's great for those windy North Dakota days when your hair whips around and gets all knotted! And today is one of those days - swirling snow - our first snow of the season!

She did it!

Emily completed the 500 yard freestyle event today! She swam it in just over 8 minutes. I'm so proud of her. She was exhausted afterwards, but proud to have accomplished it.

Rob and Sam stayed in Fargo, so I drove to Mandan by myself. I was looking forward to some "alone time" to clean my van, take a walk, window shop, etc., but instead, I twisted my ankle at the swim meet and it's now swollen to the size of a tennis ball! I'm resting in the room with ice on my ankle. I'm so bummed that my free time is going to be spent resting.

Another swim meet

Another Saturday, another swim meet for Emily. She had some personal bests at this one! It was in Dickinson, ND - she left on the bus at 5 AM and didn't get home until 1 AM - LONG trip! I wasn't able to attend this meet, but plan to be at all the rest of them. Emily swam the 200 yard freestyle and decreased her time from 3:32.20 to 3:03.10! That's 30 seconds better! She also swam the 100 yard freestyle in 1:19.57, and swam the 200 yard freestyle relay - her time was 37.63 and the total team was 2:35.75.

This was all good practice for her as next Saturday she's swimming at a meet in Mandan and will be doing the 500 yard freestyle! That's 20 laps!

Sam and I had a cute conversation over the weekend:
Sam - "Mom, when is my next birthday?"
Mom - "You just had a birthday last month. You have to wait 11 more months until your next birthday."
Sam - "But what day is my next birthday?"
Mom - "August 25."
Sam - "Why is my birthday always August 25?"

Weekend news

Emily attended her first swimming invite on Saturday. These are different from regular meets that usually have 1 or 2 different schools (duals). Whapeton, Willeston, Fargo North, Fargo South, West Fargo, and Shanley. Emily competed in 4 of the 11 events. 4 is the maximum number you can compete in. She had a great time and I was able to learn a bunch because I sat next to a seasoned swimming mom and asked a lot of questions!

On Sunday, Sam attended his first day of Sunday school. He really enjoyed it and even asked on Monday if he was going to Sunday school. I explained that he had to wait 2 weeks now because our church's Fall Festival is next week and there's no Sunday school. Emily and I then prepared food and served it at the Salvation Army that afternoon. We picked up one of her friends and there were 2 other ladies from our church there, in addition to the kitchen manager. I definitely want to do that again. It made me very grateful for what I have, and there were so many kind, thankful people there that it made me want to help more.

Emily's first swim meet

Emily's first swim meet was Thursday, September 7th. She participated in the 100 butterfly and the 100 breaststroke. The pools are 25 yards long, so that means she had to swim back and forth and back and forth! She finished both heats, competing against upperclassmen. Sullivan has a no-cut policy, and only about 20 girls on the team, so Emily is swimming at varsity level right now! Most of the team is young with only a few older girls (grades 9-11). The coach said that this year and next year are the building years and by the 2008-2009 school year our team should be awesome!

Kids with Disney characters

Disney World Fun

We're back from a great family vacation! (Although I did have to work a bit.) I've got a ton of super fun pictures to post. Quick recap:

We flew to Orlando on Sunday, August 27 after and dropping Riley off at the Barnesville Bed & Biscuit and leaving Max with Kathy and Jerry. At the airport, we simply went to the Disney welcome area and hopped on a bus to the Disney Yacht Club, leaving our luggage behind for the Disney staff to gather and deliver to our hotel room! Once in the hotel, we were amazed! It was huge and beautiful and filled with lots of staff anxious to do things for you! We registered and then went to the welcome reception put on by Microsoft. Lots of good food and drinks and conversation. Then back to the room to unpack and get to sleep for the next day!

Monday started slowly with us getting to the character breakfast around 7:45. The kids had their pictures taken with Mickey and Minney Mouse, Donald Duck, Buzz Lightyear, and Cinderella. Oh, and we ate. Then Rob took the kids off to Animal Kingdom while I worked. We had some meetings and then I got to participate in a team-building activity called geo-caching. It was an awesome experience and I learned a great deal about competition and working with other teams toward the same goal! Unfortunately, it was about 95 degrees and had to be near 100% humidity and this activity took place from 11-1 at Epcot! We were drenched with sweat when we were finished. A few more hours of meetings, and then I had dinner with the UA folks until about 9:00. I beat Rob and the kids back to the room as they were watching the fireworks at Epcot. They had a blast visiting Animal Kingdom and Epcot on Monday.

Tuesday I worked from 8-6 with 30 minutes for lunch in the same room as all of the meetings. Rob and the kids went to Magic Kingdom and we met at 6:30 to attend the Dynamics AX ship-it party! The kids went into a separate room with games, activities, computers, and TVs to have their own fun while we drank and ate and conversed with other grown ups until 10 PM. Then I took the kids (both ours and others) to our room while the rest of the adults went out to a piano bar for more fun.

Wednesday was fun for all of us as I got to go with Rob and the kids to the parks! We slept in a bit because of the rain from Tropical Storm Ernesto, but were able to be at MGM by 10 that morning. After visiting lots of fun stuff, we decided to head back to the hotel when it started to rain again. We rested, took naps, and did 2 loads of laundery. Then we ordered in a pizza and went to bed early.

Thursday we got up early and went to Magic Kingdom for a few hours and then Animal Kingdom for a few hours. I have so many pictures to post that will describe all the fun that we had! At 7:30 PM, we attended a dessert reception at Epcot. The resort we stayed at is considered an Epcot resort, meaning you can walk to the park from the hotel. Or you can take a boat, which is what we usually did just because it was more fun! We had wonderful desserts and watched the fireworks from a little island between France and the UK. Then we went back to the room and packed.

Friday we got up early to catch the bus to the airport. We were able to check in at the hotel so we didn't have to haul our luggage around anywhere. It was very slick. Next time we go to Disney World, Rob wants to stay at the Animal Kingdom Lodge. I think the Animal Kingdom was his favorite park! I got bumped up to 1st class on the flight home, but explained that I was sitting with my son and couldn't leave him in coach alone, so they bumped him up, too. I decided to let Emily and Rob take the first class seats. I think they really enjoyed it! We spent Friday night in Minneapolis and went to a drive-in movie with Sue, Terri, Kathy & Jerry, Karin, Kaylee, and Karissa. The kids watched Barnyard and then most of them fell asleep (including Rob) during Talladega Nights (which was probably better than watching the movie).

Saturday we made it home and started the unpacking and cleaning. We're not done yet, but we're getting there! Emily has her first swim meet tonight, so I'm very excited to watch that. I plan to take some pictures to post, too. She's nervous about the butterfly - she says she doesn't know how to do it but she's scheduled to compete tonight with it. We'll see what happens!

Expedition Everest at Animal Kingdom