Lazy Weekends

The last two weekends have been filled with NOTHING! We didn't have any place to be or anything major to do and it was a welcome break from our busy and hectic weeks and with the weather finally being nice we enjoyed lots of time outdoors. The weeks were busy with me recertifying the guards in Red Wing, teaching my summer class at St. Kate's, Eric being busier with work, Robert testing our patience, and Izzy getting two more teeth. Along with all of that my mom had her 5th major surgery in as many years. She had a full knee replacement done on Thursday, she'd had a partial done last year but there were complications and for the last 2 months she'd been having lots of pain and thus it was determined she needed to have surgery again. Because this was a surgery planned late neither Nick or I could get off work for the actual surgery but we both traveled to Red Wing after work to be with her. The surgery went well and although the recovery won't be fun she should be feeling a lot better within a month or so. While she's recovering at the hospital and nursing home (rehab unit) we have her dog...Robert loves it and we're finding some advantage to have a vacuum follow Iz around when she's eating her puffs and cheerios but are also excited to give him back. We're hoping this week goes by quick so that we can get on to the next weekend!!!

Ice Cream Cone! Can't bite the bottom first!!!

Robert prefers his breakfast on the deck!
Always keeping an eye on her brother! Izzy's a natural kicker in the tub!

Memorial Weekend

This weekend flew by way too fast but we had a lot of fun and I actually feel refreshed and ready to start my summer schedule at work. I teach an EXSS Swim class for the next 2 weeks and then our big children swim lesson program starts after that. It is busy but always a nice change from more normal work tasks!

We were busy and saw lots of people over the weekend. Saturday morning Robert and I went to the Farmer's Market in Minneapolis and met up with my Aunt Sally, Uncle Joe, and cousin Mary and her husband Oz. It was a quick visit but fun to see them and we got lots of yummy and cheap fruit! That afternoon we traveled to Red Wing and spent lots of time helping my mom shop for a new mini-laptop and a new phone. The next day we visited with 2 of my best friends and their husbands and kids. Last year when we got together over Memorial Weekend there were only 2 kids but now there are 5 kids and it was so great to see them all interact, even if two are still really little! It is so nice to all have kids around the same age and I look forward to seeing the kids grow up together. From that get together we headed home since our kids seem to sleep the best at home and got both kids to bed on time and both slept peacefully all night long!! Today we started the morning in our PJs with waffles and watching Little Mermaid during the thunderstorm. Once the rain cleared out Nick came over and we took the kids to the park and then Eric's friend Chris joined all of us for dinner. Now the kids are in bed, Nick went home, and Eric went out for a beer with Chris...best part of all is that I have a quiet and clean house to do nothing but relax in. Perfect end to the weekend!

Izzy discovered the sandbox this week...uh oh!

Walking to the park is a lot easier with Robert helping!
At the park with Uncle Nick

Izzy checking out the grass at the park...

The grass passes her test!

Fighting for Uncle Nick's attention and pushes on the swing

This is fun!

My 3 Favorite Kids!

During dinner the busy weekend caught up with Robert and the next thing we knew he had fallen asleep on his chair. Poor little guy!

This week and coming there is NoThInG on our agenda and I am so excited for that and hope the weather is nice so we can continue getting outdoors. Have a great week everyone!

Parker's Graduation!

Today my baby cousin Parker graduated from high school and Robert and I made the trip to Abbotsford, WI to celebrate the big day. Our travels started on Thursday when Eric and Izzy dropped us off in Shakopee to meet up with my mom. Robert was able to sleep in the car and loved playing outdoors at Grandma's once we arrived. Later that afternoon I left to teach CPR and First Aid to the pool staff in Red Wing while Robert stayed home to help G'ma pack!

On Friday morning we headed for Wisconsin. We were bringing back my Uncle's trailer and that in itself was a big adventure. The night before we hooked it up to the car but had to call Paul to make sure we were doing it correctly since neither my mom or I had hooked one up before. We were impressed with ourselves for it only taking 10 minutes to back out of my mom's driveway...dang thing kept turning the opposite way and even were able to swing into Caribou for some yummy treats to kick start our energy. Robert had a good trip, watched two videos and got a nap in for the day.

Once we arrived at the Knautz home we had a quick lunch and then got to work decorating the garage for the grad party. Luckily both my cousins were around to entertain Robert! He had a great afternoon of running around outside with the boys and Parker's girlfriend.

Today we started our day early and checked out the hotel's continental breakfast. Not the biggest selection but the bagels were good for me and Robert loved the chocolate mini donuts! A little later in the morning when my mom headed back to help out with party stuff Robert and I went for a swim. Robert wasn't too sure about going swimming at first, I think because it was a tad chilly, but eventually came around and had a blast! After showering (the hotel room didn't have a bathtub which was another fun experience with Robert) and getting dressed we headed off to Parker's graduation ceremony. I loved how short and sweet it was and then it was time to party!! Robert played with Ken (a cousin on Val's side) for most of the afternoon and since Ken is a year younger he introduced him to getting dirty and splashing in puddles! Luckily for Ken's parents he didn't master the skill as well as Robert whose socks and shoes were (and still are) soaked.

Now I'm hoping Robert will get a good night sleep, since he's been running on fumes with shorter to no naps and not sleeping as much at night, and then we'll head home tomorrow morning and meet up with Eric and Izzy in Hudson. It has been a great weekend and I'm so glad we could be here to celebrate the big day for Parker!

Robert watching videos at a rest stop in WisconsinWatching Uncle Paul mow but too chicken to ride with him! Decorating Crew!
Playing with Parker and Bianca
A must needed stop at Hawkeye Dairy after our work on Friday!

Parker and my Mom!
My CLEAN boy with white socks at the start of the party
Running around the yard with Ken Let the teaching of puddle stomping begin...

Puddles-0 / Robert - 1

Shooting hoops with Pat...couldn't get the video to turn (SORRY!)

Making up for lost time...

Sorry to our loyal viewers for the break from posts. We've been busy and battling colds and the blog got put on the back burner. The week after Easter both kids and Eric came down with bad colds. Robert's turned into an ear infection and all three suffered through runny noses and hacky coughs. I had been doing great and after a week of them all healthy I thought I was in the clear but unfortunately the bug caught up with me this last week. Oh well at least we weren't all sick at the same time but I'm hoping it doesn't cycle back through!

At the end of April our little girl turned 9 months and we've sure noticed a lot of changes over the last month. She is a lot more active and always on the move. She rarely will sit still and loves to scootch around (not quite a crawl) all over the house or her crib. She also has mastered the walker and loves the new freedom she gets from being in it. She loves feeding herself and is starting to dislike being fed her baby food. She now has all four of her front teeth and all four have come in during the last 3 weeks! Pretty fast but nice to keep the drool to one time period...until the next batch starts up. She still is fascinated with her brother and luckily he is showing a little more love for her too. He loves going into her room to greet her when she wakes up from naps or in the morning and has started to play with her. She LOVES the attention she gets from him! And as you can see from the picture above she also enjoys playing with Robert's toys...which he somewhat tolerates! At her 9 month check-up we learned that she is growing the opposite of her brother, except for head size...still in the 90th percentile. She is our tall and lean little girl and weighed in at 18pounds 13 ounces to put her in the 50th percentile but was 29 inches long putting her in the 91st percentile.

This past Friday was Dew Drop Bop, the annual end of the year party St. Kate's holds for students, faculty, and staff. I brought Robert to it and he had fun hanging out with his two favorite babysitters (Kelley and Molly). He also enjoyed the treats. Above you see him eating an ice cream sandwich and he also sampled a little cotton candy before the night was done. Which also meant he was on a SUPER sugar high when we got home and had Eric and I laughing hysterically. Going to bed was a different story and something he fought but we did manage to get his teeth brushed and only faced a small meltdown at bedtime.

Robert's favorite part of the bop was the big slide!

He giggled the entire way down and got to go twice...once with each of his girls!

Sampling the cotton candy while in my office

Today I had to work again but Eric was able to take the kids to Farmington to visit with a bunch of the Hunt family. Many relatives made the trip to MN to celebrate Eric's Uncle Tom's retirement from teaching and it provided a chance for the kids to see their family that they don't see very often. I heard that they had a great time and I'm sorry I missed out on the fun and the sunny day! Both Robert and Eric had a bit of pink on their faces after spending time outside playing with Tobias and Shane. :) I'd post pictures from today but Eric was with the kids and thus no photos were taken....

Tonight Nick joined us and had a cigar on the deck with Eric. Robert enjoyed a little more outdoor time before going to bed and I just enjoyed the fresh air...well what wasn't filled with cigar smoke. Izzy had gone to bed early but I enjoyed the evening with my 3 favorite guys!

This coming weekend Robert and I will be heading to Wisconsin to celebrate my cousin Parker's high school graduation while Eric and Iz have a father-daughter weekend. It should be a great time and we'll see which parent takes more pictures to post on the blog next weekend. Hope everyone has a great weeek!

Happy Easter!

We had a terrific Easter weekend or at least it seemed great through my partial vision! On Thursday I went in and had my PRK surgery done on my left eye. The pain was a lot worse than with my right eye but luckily by Sunday it was mostly gone. Things are pretty blurry right now but I learned today at my check-up that there is a scab on the eye (perfectly normal) right where I look to see and that it is making everything blurry. So until that is fully healed Eric will be driving me around which will be a pain with the kids but I'm hoping it is just for a few more days.

For Easter we bought the kids a sandbox and both

Robert and Dad love playing in it and had to get a jump

start on playing before Easter earlier last week!

On Saturday we went to Rainbow for their Easter Egg
Hunt. The Bunny was a little scary but the egg hunt was fun!


Easter Morning!
What did the Easter Bunny bring you?

All Dressed up!

The tables got dressed up for dinner too.
It was great having both of our families here!

And to end the day a trip to the park with dad and G'pa for Robert!

Unfortunately we're coming off the weekend on a low note... Since last Thursday Robert had been battling a fever. There were no other signs and he was eating, drinking, and sleeping normally and it never spiked too high so we weren't really worried. But last night it was a rough one and he spent part of the night in bed with us. Today he has a bad cough and runny nose but the fever hasn't returned so hopefully we're nearing the end. But as one comes to the end that means it is time for the other one to begin... Izzy woke up today from her morning nap with a little fever and by the time we returned from my eye appointment (kids and Eric waited in the car and took little naps) her fever had fully spiked and she spent the rest of the afternoon curled up in my lap with a few little naps but mostly full of tears. We finally got her fever to break around 4 and she seemed to have a better night. But we'll see how much sleep we get tonight... We're not sure if Robert shared his ickiness with her or if it is the 2-3 new teeth (both top ones and possibly her 2nd bottom one) coming in. This is the first time she's been sick, and I feel very fortunate to make it almost 9 months, but it is so hard to see them in pain and confused as to why they feel that way and why mommy and daddy aren't making them better. Hopefully this is just a short bug and both will be smiling and laughing soon!

Twins, Eggs, Rio, and Tooth!

This week was a lot of fun despite winter and snow returning. On Wednesday I took the day off of work to go to the Twins game with Eric, Nick, and my mom. The game got off to a great start but unfortunately the Twins had a rough middle patch and we ended up losing the game. It was still a lot of fun and the kids had a great time at home playing with Molly & Kelley. On Saturday we went to our first Robbinsdale Spring Egg Hunt. It wasn't quite what we were expecting since there really was no hunt. What you do for this event is stand in a long line and wait for your turn to enter our City Hall. Once inside the kids get to grab 4 eggs out of different bins and then move on to the prize room. In the prize area helpers are there to open the eggs and see what you won. The Chamber of Commerce did a great job running the event and it would have even been better had the weather been a little warmer or the wind a little less windy.

Trying to stay warm waiting for the doors to open!

Eric and Robert trying to fix the sign that the wind kept pushing down. Trying to warm up and look at their prizes.

Robert doesn't usually pay too much attention to commercials on tv but lately whenever the preview for the movie Rio came on he's gotten pretty excited. So today I decided to take him for his first movie. He did pretty good and luckily the theater wasn't too busy so he could get up and move in our row of 4 seats without disturbing anyone. We both enjoyed the movie and Robert also enjoyed a big, blue icee!

At the end of the movie trying to get the last of the icee!

Izzy's big news of the week is that she cut her first tooth (bottom right). She's still pretty drooly so we're expecting at least one more to show up pretty soon. She's been pretty good with the teething and especially likes the new noises she can make with the extra saliva in her mouth. Here's a video of her making some of her new sounds!

This week will go by pretty quick for me with only working 3 days. I had an eye check-up last week and my right eye was healing perfectly and everyday my vision keeps getting clearer and stronger. Because the PRK is a little longer recovery and work was difficult since I spend so much time on a computer I decided to incoporate the upcoming holiday with the surgery on my left eye so I'd have extra time to recover and not put any unneeded stress on my eyes. So bright and early on Thursday I have surgery on my left eye and if all goes as well as it did with my right eye I should be pain free with decent vision by Easter Sunday. So until then I get to switch back to wearing glasses but this time not only will they still be slanted they will also be missing a lense since I don't need anything for my right eye. So excited...um is it Thursday yet?